Chapter Forty-Four: Trust

After Li Su departed, Silver Yao gradually entered a meditative state.

Within that ethereal realm, Silver Yao saw herself from the twenty-first century: Si Tu Yao! The decisive, ruthless version of herself—the one who dominated her world, even cold and unfeeling at times...

Then, another self emerged before her eyes: Silver Yao! The one who willingly embraced ordinariness, who couldn't even protect her own family, the one so weak she nearly died again and again...

Two versions of herself, one soul, yet their experiences could not be more different! What has happened to me!?

Silver Yao cried out in her heart! Had her mother’s love truly worn away the sharp edges of her character? Or had a comfortable, ordinary life made her complacent?

She questioned her heart again and again! Silver Yao wanted to return to being Si Tu Yao from the twenty-first century, yet she could not bear to become heartless. In this life, she had already felt the presence of love, and she did not wish to let it go.

...

When Silver Yao opened her eyes again, three days had passed! During these three days, Li Su had come to see her several times, but she was deep in meditation, and he did not wish to disturb her.

Upon awakening, Silver Yao seemed somehow different. Her aura was more stable, and her every movement carried a new sense of gravitas. She emanated the weight of someone who stood above others.

Silver Yao tended to her wounds carefully at the manor, knowing that only by fully recovering could she train safely, avoiding the peril of losing control. Her father’s words had awakened her! She could not be impatient; she had to calm her heart, take steady steps, and build a solid foundation.

This newfound openness of spirit allowed Silver Yao to advance smoothly into the mid-tier of the Illusion Rank. The discovery surprised her greatly! She slowly came to understand that cultivation was not merely about strength, but even more so about one’s state of mind.

As time passed day by day, Silver Yao's strength grew. Though she appeared to be only in the mid-tier of the Illusion Rank, her power now rivaled the peak of the rank, even touching the threshold of the Void Realm.

“Ah!”

A shout echoed from Silver Yao’s private quarters! Li Su, who had been silently watching over her, rushed in at once upon hearing her cry.

He saw Silver Yao sitting cross-legged on her bed, her eyes bloodshot and weary. With concern and urgency, he asked, “Yao’er, what’s happened to you?”

Silver Yao slowly opened her eyes, looked at Li Su, shook her head, and gestured for him to leave. She then closed her eyes again to rest.

Li Su watched Silver Yao with a heavy heart. Over the past two years, he had witnessed her transformation. Yao’er was not one to rush for breakthroughs; she knew that a solid foundation was most important! In these two years, aside from advancing to the mid-tier of the Illusion Rank once, she had not pushed further, nor had she grown anxious. Instead, she forged ahead step by step, strengthening her base.

Li Su held his breath and quietly approached Silver Yao. She did not notice him, likely because she was too exhausted, he thought.

He extended his hands, channeling his inner energy, and placed them a short distance from Silver Yao’s back, slowly infusing her with spiritual power, hoping to do his part.

Silently, a warm current flowed into her back, her spiritual energy rapidly recovering. Sensing something amiss, Silver Yao turned her head and saw Li Su, his expression earnest.

Li Su met her gaze and spoke solemnly, “No matter why you’re suddenly so eager to break through, I will help you with all my strength.”

Silver Yao nodded and turned back, focusing all her attention on gathering her energy.

In truth, she was not an impatient person. She simply felt she had reached the thin barrier separating the mid-tier from the peak of her rank. She thought perhaps it was time to break through, and was confident—yet success continued to elude her! Each time her power approached the barrier, it inexplicably dissipated.

Li Su noticed Silver Yao’s distraction and reminded her, “Yao’er, focus!”

Silver Yao cleared her mind of stray thoughts. Mist swirled behind her, warmth flooded her body, and all the power felt invigorating, stirring her to action.

She had accumulated enough energy. Now, at the moment of breakthrough, Silver Yao forced herself not to dwell on her past failures—but the more she tried not to think about them, the clearer those memories became! Suddenly, fear gripped her.

“Believe in yourself, and believe in me!”

Eight simple words helped Silver Yao regain her composure. Even if only for Li Su’s sake, she would try again. Success or failure, she would only know by trying.

Seeing her respond, Li Su smiled with relief, pouring more power into her. Sweat beaded on his brow.

Silver Yao placed her hands on her knees. In her right hand appeared a whip, silver-white, surrounded by flickering red light, floating before her. Silver Yao raised both hands, her palms facing the whip—this was Ice Spirit.

Strangely, the advancement of her spirit weapon, which should have occurred only upon breaking through to the Void Realm, was happening now.

Guided by Silver Yao’s spiritual energy, Ice Spirit began to change color from the grip, slowly turning red, inch by inch, at a snail’s pace.

Her back was drenched in sweat—she was truly soaked through! Yet she persisted.

Li Su realized that breaking through this bottleneck required far more energy than expected, and so he increased his effort. The sweat on his brow became droplets, trickling down his perfect features.

An hour passed, both of them exerting all their strength! Yet Ice Spirit stopped near its tip, refusing to advance further.

Will I fail again? Silver Yao mocked herself inwardly.

Suddenly, a surge of immense power entered her body, and she instinctively expelled it. At that instant, a spot of crimson at Ice Spirit’s tip burst forth, suffusing the entire weapon with energy!

Silver Yao stared in astonishment. The next moment, she caught a faint scent of blood in the air. She turned anxiously, unsurprised to find Li Su drenched in sweat, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his face deathly pale!

Li Su himself hadn’t expected it. When he sensed Silver Yao’s self-deprecating thoughts about possibly failing again, a force within him broke loose, driven by one thought: Yao’er must succeed!

Silver Yao’s look of defeat pained Li Su deeply, stirring the urge to protect her at all costs... The power was overwhelming, and he was shocked by his own explosive strength in that moment!

His vision blurred, his head grew heavy, and his body slumped to one side. Silver Yao quickly caught him, and he fell into her arms. Silver Yao’s right hand infused spiritual energy into his back. With a thought, Ice Spirit vanished from the air.

Li Su’s breath gradually steadied. Silver Yao laid him on the bed, fetched a basin of well water, wiped the sweat from his face, then took the water to leave.

Abruptly, her right hand was seized. Reflexively, Silver Yao dropped the basin, spilling water across the floor.

“Yao’er, I’ve fallen for you. What should I do?”

Bang!

———Extra note———
The usual update time is 11:55 a.m. Today, apologies for the delay.