Bai Qingyue’s thoughts surfaced to the present time.
Forcing himself to preserve his consciousness, he could feel his spine cracking under the harsh impact.
He guided his soul into his pocket dimension during the time his physical form was tortured, although he felt the pain of each strike, he was still capable of separating his body and spirit.
A pocket dimension was a physical manifestation of space a cultivator’s soul is capable of creating. Naturally, it was rare even for cultivators to be able to possess a pocket dimension. One would have to have a very special soul in order to have their own dimension. The higher the cultivation was, the bigger the space of the dimension.
Bai Qingyue’s pocket dimension used to be a vast, nearly endless space but currently, it shrank down to a yard size. Inside the small space was an ancient temple adorned with fox guardian statues and surrounded by herbs so rare that even the dragon royal family members frequently requested exchanges with the clan for them.
The fox lord’s ethereal spirit brushed past the statues and went inside the temple.
Dusty wooden walls greeted his sight. It had been a very long time since he last went into his dimension. The temple was completely unkempt, filled to the brim with priceless materials scattered and tossed on the floor. Without his inner energy, the brilliant glory of his space had turned into a pile of dirty mess, yet the objects both himself and his ancestor obtained remained. Countless treasures accumulated throughout the generations of the Huli Jing’s sovereign rulers manifested in front of his eyes.
He made his way to a pile of rusty and ancient trinkets and ornaments, shoving his hand inside the stack of items and fishing out a hand-sized lamp.
The lamp was old and lacklustre in its condition. Age did not preserve it well, yet this lamp’s potential made it a highly sought item, cherished beyond compare.
Bai Qingyue shut his eyes and syphoned his consciousness into his body.
He brought the lamp with him into the physical planes of existence. The rusty old lamp materialized in his hand.
Hong Meigui might have been capable of preventing the upcoming events but in her bout of madness, she was too far gone to notice Bai Qingye’s subtle movements.
"You’re just like your father! All I wanted was the best for him and look what happened. I won’t let you do the same!" Her golden eyes swirled and her shoulders shook as she whipped her son.
Bai Qingyue lit the lamp with his fox fire and cast the object at his mother’s direction.
Hong Meigui bewilderedly paused her hand, but she had no time to react before bone wrecking pain consumed her body. Her back felt as though a horde of racing horses splintered across it.
The rusty lamp Bai Qingyue delivered from his pocket dimension was known as the agony reversal lamp.
The stronger the damage inflicted on the holder of the lamp, the higher the intensity of the lamp was capable of transitioning the pain towards the inflictor.
As dangerous as the lamp was, it was but a play on the mind and only a temporary solution. The damage wasn’t real, and no physical harm was done to the aggressor, but the mind delivered signals to the rest of the body as though it did.
Hong Meigui’s yell soon turned into a shrieking howl of pain. She was in such a sudden intense torture that her consciousness was unable to handle it. Her body toppled to the ground as she fainted in front of the golden throne.
Bai Qingyue struggled to elevate himself. He wiped the blood off his face. With a signal of his hand, Bai Yu was summoned, his most trusted second in command, the captain of the guard.
Waiting for his lord to call upon him, Bai Yu counted the seconds outside the palace halls. He could feel the malice and evil energy in the air. His white ears with black tips drooped down from the intensity of the screams. For such an intensive negative force to accumulate, a lot of blood must have shed. His lord demanded not to let him interrupt until he was called upon, and have the servants wait upon his summons.
As soon as he felt his lord’s signal, Bai Yu sifted inside the throne room.
The regal and loyal captain of the guard who had witnessed countless battles and lived for aeons had his mouth gaping in horror.
The ruler of the clan and Sovereign Lord of the realm had his back facing him. Its shape was no longer recognizable. All Bai Yu’s mind was capable of comprehending was forms of sliced flesh. A pale sheen of his lord’s spine emerged into view, the striking red of his blood adorned the bone. It was a hideous sight.
"S...Sire!" Terrified, Bai Yu knelt down in front of his lord, his face paled from shock.
Bai Qingyue spat a mouthful of blood and sighed.
"It is fine. It appears worse than it feels." His voice was devoid of emotion as if he wasn’t just tortured to the brink of death. He stood with a ramrod straight back. His royal countenance seemed lonelier than ever.
"...." Said Bai Yu.
Sire, you are a really bad liar.
"Have you prepared the prison hold for my mother as I requested?" Bai Qingyue could no longer let his mother run amok. She caused a disaster with his consort that would now take him who knows how long to fix.
"Yes, sire!" Bai Yu bowed again as he responded. His usually fierce voice was shaking.
To go to this extent and butcher your own son...
The matron had lost all sense of reason!
The handsome captain of the guard was fiercely loyal to his Sovereign Lord. Although Bai Yu was older than Bai Qingyue and served under his father’s reign, Bai Yu had nothing short of respect one would have for an elder towards his Fox Lord.
Under Bai Qingyue’s reign, the clan only prospered. Despite not being a full fox, and having been raised as a third extended branch of the Bai clan, the Sovereign God never belittled Bai Yu’s merit and even went as far as to ordain him second in command.
Bai Yu’s mixed heritage was portrayed with his full-on pitch black eyes belonging to the demon realm. His hair was as all the other pure blooded clan members, a shining silver colour, neatly tied down with a single braid, his stature stood taller than the other celestial foxes.
Many fox gods assumed Bai Yu’s lineage was tainted with a large bestial demon because of his burly physique. He was often mocked due to his intimidating build.
Bai Yu always thought his lord’s only shortcoming was handing the reigns to his mother in ruling the Huli Jing.
Bai Qingyue glanced at his subordinate shaking as he kneeled on the ground. He couldn’t tell the man to carry his mother with his own hands, that was most improper.
"Bring forth the ladies in waiting for the matron that stayed awake on standby. Monitor their every move, I want your eyes on the matron at all times. Ensure she is properly locked within the prison’s force field without means of escape. The ladies in waiting that were part of the ambush I experienced on earth...Eliminate them." It was rare for Bai Qingyue to give such a long speech. It emphasized how important this mission was to him.
It must be done perfectly.
"Right away, sire!" Bai Yu followed his sovereign lord’s command and disappeared as he sifted out of the throne room.
It was only when Bai Qingyue was once again alone with his unconscious mother sprawled on the floor that he allowed his body to stagger.
The heavily bleeding fox wobbled towards the palace’s hot springs, leaving a trail of ruby drops through his path. He undressed the remains of his robe and fell into the waters. The spring was already prepared in advance on his orders, filled with special herbs to accelerate healing. He sat his nude tortured body inside the warm liquid and shifted himself to a lotus position in order to cultivate.
Bai Qingyue circulated his Qi throughout his body, cultivting inside the hot springs.
The medicinal spring water stung the exposed wounds. It was so agonizing that cold sweat formed all over forehead and back.
His thoughts strayed from the ache and lingered elsewhere...
Knowing time moved differently in the god’s realms than on earth’s realms filled him with dejection.
How long had she been without him? For Bai Qingyue, it was a moon’s cycle, but for his girl? How long had it been?
His only comfort was the knowledge she had his powers to protect herself. With his godly cultivation, she should experience no issues in the mortal realm.
He sighed and let the healing spring work its magic.