Super Invincible Immortal Doctor
Chapter 1647 - 1648: Where the Legacy Lies

"Yes, but also no. The most fundamental reason is still because he is who he is. That’s also why I am here."

The Green Hillock Empress began speaking with a smile. Behind that face—one no one could clearly discern—was an inexplicable kindness defying her age.

In the distance, Cui Manlou, who was firmly suppressed, listened to the conversation between the two, increasingly sensing that something was amiss.

Only now did he realize, after having meticulously devised his plan—a scheme that should have been a one-stone-three-birds strategy—that everything seemed to veer off course the moment it connected to Su Chengyu. He couldn’t pinpoint where the deviation had occurred, but the unease steadily grew, overshadowing all else.

"Who exactly is that Su Chengyu? Ah!"

Following the question was a heart-wrenching, piercing scream. The pale flames emanating from the seal technique suppressing Cui Manlou were clearly meant to inflict deliberate torment upon him.

"You’ve been skulking in the shadows for years, pestering Xia Country like flies. Didn’t you claim your intelligence network spanned the entire land? How could you fail to uncover even this? Is my Yu Er’s lineage so impossibly hard to trace?"

Cui Manlou gritted his teeth, enduring the pain as his mind remained unusually clear. From just a few short sentences, he caught the key hints hidden within the Green Hillock Empress’s words.

"So that’s it... That Su Chengyu turns out to be the Empress’s descendant, the offspring of that particular figure..."

"You’re not entirely dim-witted. Now I see why that damned man entrusted his legacy to you."

Cui Manlou raised his head somewhat strangely and asked, "You know Yao Laotou?"

"I wish I didn’t, yet among all of you demonic path types, that man indeed stands out."

Cui Manlou fell silent. Between "Demonic Path" and "Demon Clan," there was only a single-character difference in name, but it marked a chasm as vast as heaven and earth.

As the Green Hillock Empress had stated, the so-called demonic path referred merely to those who had lost their way—a faction of misguided wanderers. True members of the demonic path were those who had undergone metamorphosis, transforming fully into an entirely different race.

Cui Manlou, having inherited Yao Laotou’s legacy, was one such example. A scarce few within the demonic path displayed a similar uniqueness. Yet, for most demonic path practitioners, the critical piece to progress to that ultimate state was still missing.

This explained Cui Manlou’s relentless obsession with Yu Yanshu.

Without sufficient power, how could one even begin to discuss foundation building or returning to one’s origins? Only if Yu Yanshu truly joined the demonic path could Cui Manlou leverage her abilities to convert ordinary demonic path adherents into true members of the Demon Clan. Only then could he consider addressing the root of the issue.

Dwelling upon this, Cui Manlou’s gaze once again fell on Yu Yanshu’s form.

Yu Yanshu’s existence was simply too crucial. Since persuasion was futile, even through coercive means, he had to take her away from this place.

"Do you know that Yao Laotou once debated my husband in a Seeking Dao?"

The Green Hillock Empress’s sudden statement snapped Cui Manlou out of his thoughts, prompting him to respond swiftly.

"I don’t particularly enjoy the violence of combat. Most of Yao Laotou’s techniques that I’ve studied are limited to those useful for survival."

"I can tell. That’s the only reason I still hesitate to eliminate you on the spot."

The Green Hillock Empress sneered coldly, "But you’ve misunderstood. Their Seeking Dao wasn’t a battle of martial strength."

"Oh?"

Cui Manlou looked surprised. In his memory, the old man who passed on his legacy didn’t seem like the sort to engage in esoteric debates. He couldn’t imagine him participating in one.

"The essence of their Seeking Dao lay in the question: whether Yao Laotou’s pursuits could ever truly align with the aspirations in his heart."

"And what was the outcome?"

Cui Manlou squinted as he asked the question.

"No resolution."

With a calm tone, the Green Hillock Empress continued, "During that Seeking Dao, the two asked themselves, asked their hearts, and even asked the heavens. Yet neither achieved a satisfactory answer, nor did they succeed in persuading the other. It was precisely this failure that led that madman to begin doubting the path he followed."

Cui Manlou instantly grasped the meaning behind the Green Hillock Empress’s words. He sneered, "What folly... To begin doubting himself simply because he couldn’t sway others? No wonder he took his own life atop Dadao Mountain."

Suddenly realizing the unspoken implication of the Empress’s remarks, Su Chengyu interjected, "But Empress, if you think these few words can shake my resolve, then you will surely be disappointed."

With an icy gaze, the Green Hillock Empress replied, "I don’t expect you to waver. You are unlike Yao Laotou. His actions carried, at least partially, a concern for others. Your heart, however, holds only yourself."

"The Empress sees through all things."

"I am merely reminding you that the answer Yao Laotou arrived at may not be correct. His self-inflicted demise serves as undeniable evidence. What he left behind was never meant to be a simple mess for someone else to clean up. If you fail to find the answer that belongs to you, you will merely become the next Yao Laotou—and perhaps even his lesser."

"Delusional nonsense!"

Bang!

As Cui Manlou spat his words, the seal keeping him suppressed finally burst apart. At the moment he leapt into action, he charged madly toward the Green Hillock Empress, employing reckless methods that made it clear he was willing to sacrifice even his Divided Spirit to drag the God’s Soul of the Empress down with him.

"Truly a tiger fallen to a plain, bullied by curs! In my prime, filth like you—I could crush ten thousand with a single hand."

The Green Hillock Empress made no effort to disguise her disdain for Cui Manlou, but she was acutely aware of the situation. Suppressing him had already proven arduous. Even with the destruction of this Divided Spirit, another one of Cui Manlou’s spirits would inevitably emerge. This battle offered no resolution.

Yet, the Green Hillock Empress’s delay wasn’t simply a gambit for Bai Qiu and Ao Tian to bring good news, nor was she just waiting for Su Chengyu’s arrival.

Everything she had just said and done served two purposes: to explain to Yu Yanshu the critical consequences of her imminent decision and to await Bai Huang’s full acceptance of Qingqiu Fox Clan’s legacy.

"Brazen demonic scum! How dare you act so audaciously in the sacred land of our Qingqiu Fox Clan? You deserve death!"

A still-youthful voice shouted out, and Bai Huang, with his entire form ablaze in green-and-red flames, appeared before the Green Hillock Empress.

The Empress looked at the little fox, who carried the remnant soul of the Demon Emperor upon him, and smiled wryly. Despite her backing, this Qingqiu Tomb harbored only that blood-bound remnant soul willing to serve as Bai Huang’s protector.

No matter—it would suffice. With Yu Er as his guide, any inadequacy in protectors could be overlooked.

"Heavenly Fire Thunder Pond!"

As Bai Huang completed his sentence, the image of the ancient eight-tailed elder behind him fully synchronized with Bai Huang’s actions. Green-and-red flames intertwined with infinite lightning as they rushed toward Cui Manlou.

Lightning formed a prison; Heavenly Fire became the trigger. All of Cui Manlou’s Divided Spirits within this realm were simultaneously locked. By the time Cui Manlou sensed the danger, it was already too late.

Under the bombardment of endless bolts of lightning and fire, Cui Manlou’s form began to fade, his very existence finally dissipating from this world.

Realizing defeat was inevitable, Cui Manlou sneered at the Green Hillock Empress, "Green Hillock Empress, I may have lost today, but you shall never claim true victory."

"Oh? Then let’s see what the future holds."

With a single wave of her hand!

The Green Hillock Empress, wielding the power of the Heavenly Fox Orb, utterly annihilated the last trace of Cui Manlou’s remnant thoughts.

As the dust settled, the Green Hillock Empress slowly turned her gaze toward the burial ground of countless generations of Qingqiu Fox Clan legacy. Her eyes were cold.

Finally, her focus fell upon Bai Huang, who had fainted from the burdens of excessive power.

She understood that, from this day forth, the legacy of the Qingqiu Fox Clan was irrevocably tied to this single individual.