Chapter 771: A True and False Search for Xu Ke
"I heard you mention that the Sage Emperor of the Empire might be our common ancestor," Xu Bai said calmly, his gaze fixed on the Emperor's Daughter. "I was quite intrigued, so I went to some trouble and had someone look into it."
Before the Emperor's Daughter could react, Qing and Hong burst out excitedly, "What did you find out?"
"You want to know, do you?" Xu Bai smiled. "Then trade the Holy Blood Embryo Transformation technique for the information."
Hong started to speak, but Qing stopped her with a raised hand.
Taking a deep breath to compose herself, she addressed Xu Bai. "Do you expect us to trade for nothing but a single sentence, Fellow Daoist? You'll have to prove that your information is actually worth it."
"Fair enough." Xu Bai nodded in approval and held out his right hand.
An instant later, a jet-black feather materialized in his palm.
Both Qing and Hong immediately recognized the familiar aura emanating from the feather.
"Xiao Hei?" they both cried out in unison, their bodies trembling.
"So, you're familiar with this Fated Xuan Bird," Xu Bai remarked. "That makes things easier. Saves me the trouble of explaining."
"Thanks to the Federation of All Worlds and its ability to connect the myriad realms, I was fortunate enough to find Xiao Hei's remains in one of the small worlds."
"This feather was the only thing left of its body. Along with it, I found a fragment of Xiao Hei's memories."
At this point, Xu Bai fell silent.
"Xiao Hei... is dead?" Qing and Hong were stunned, their eyes locked on Xu Bai.
After letting the suspense build, Xu Bai shot them a glance and sneered. "Xiao Hei was far more loyal than you two. To find any trace of my ancestor, it burned through its own lifespan, determined to search every last small world in the Xuanhuang Realm."
"And though it died before it could find Xu Ke, the search was not entirely in vain."
"It's very likely," Xu Bai said slowly, "that Xu Ke is still alive."
His quiet words struck Qing and Hong like a clap of thunder.
"Impossible!" they shot back in unison.
"If Master were truly alive, we would be able to sense him. But we lost that connection a long, long time ago."
Qing's brow furrowed, a murderous glint flashing in her eyes. "To trick us into giving you the Holy Blood Embryo Transformation, you'd dare to fabricate lies about whether Master is alive or dead..."
Facing Qing and Hong, who looked ready to erupt at any moment, Xu Bai remained perfectly calm. He shook his head and sighed. "And this is why Xu Ke favored and trusted Xiao Hei above all others. There was a good reason for it."
"You can both sense whether Xu Ke is alive or dead, so are you suggesting Xiao Hei couldn't? Then why did it remain so convinced that he was alive? Why would it cross countless small worlds, searching for him until the very end?"
As he spoke, Xu Bai pointed into the air.
An image materialized before them.
It was the memory from Xiao Hei's remains, showing its journey across countless small worlds in a ceaseless search for Xu Ke.
They watched the scenes of different small worlds flash by, one after another, and saw Xiao Hei's movements grow increasingly slow and labored with age.
Qing and Hong trembled slightly, their expressions a mixture of complex emotions.
The image vanished as abruptly as it appeared. Xu Bai said nothing, simply watching them in silence.
After a long silence, he spoke again. "The small worlds of the Xuanhuang Realm may seem countless, but we all know there is a limit."
"Xiao Hei visited many of them, ruling those worlds out."
"And one thing is certain: my ancestor never left the Xuanhuang Realm."
"Therefore..."
Understanding dawned, and a glimmer of hope flashed in Qing's eyes as she stared at Xu Bai. "Master... he's in one of the remaining worlds?"
Xu Bai neither confirmed nor denied it.
Instead, he casually changed the subject. "Even if we'd known this before, facing the sheer number of remaining worlds, we would have been powerless. But things are different now."
"The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance is now determined to unify the Xuanhuang Realm, which means every last small world will be swept through and conquered."
"Thanks to the life-or-death campaigns of countless cultivators, the secrets of many small worlds have been laid bare. As a result, the search area for Xu Ke has shrunk considerably."
At this, Hong could no longer contain herself. "Doesn't that mean Master could be in danger?"
Xu Bai nodded. "If the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance finds him before we do... well, given their current methods, his chances are slim."
Hong's face turned grim. "No, I have to..."
"Calm down, Hong." Qing, ever the composed one, held her ground.
She stopped Hong with a sharp glance before turning back to Xu Bai. "Your story doesn't stand up to scrutiny."
"For one, you have no proof that Master is even alive. And even if he is, how can you be sure that among the worlds the Alliance has already explored..."
Before she could finish, Xu Bai cut her off with a loud laugh.
"Oh, Fellow Daoist Qing, always so very rational," he mocked. "Fine, I admit it. Everything I've said is pure speculation, based on a dead bird's memories. But can you honestly deny the *possibility* that Xu Ke is still out there, in one of those remaining worlds?"
"Xiao Hei faced an endless sea of unknown worlds without flinching. Now the search has been narrowed down significantly, and yet you're the one who's afraid to face the truth."
"What exactly are you afraid of, Fellow Daoist Qing?" Xu Bai demanded, his gaze as sharp as a blade, fixed directly on her.
Qing flinched as if struck by a physical blow, her body trembling uncontrollably.
Her mouth opened, but no words came out.
"And what am I asking for? A mere technique, one that Xu Ke handed out casually back in the day," Xu Bai added, his tone laced with scorn. "I never imagined that after all this time, the very people closest to him would disregard his life or death over something so trivial."
Just as Qing was about to respond, the Emperor's Daughter, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke.
"I accept your terms," the Emperor's Daughter declared, her voice firm. "Whether the Sage Emperor is alive or dead, I will not allow him to remain lost and alone any longer."
Qing and Hong said nothing in the face of the Emperor's Daughter's decision.
Xu Bai nodded in approval. "A wise choice."
With a flick of his wrist, he conjured a map of the Xuanhuang Realm that hovered in the air before them.
"The Xuanhuang Realm has undergone heaven-and-earth-shattering changes over the last few thousand years."
"However, our Federation of All Worlds has been discreetly monitoring and recording everything. Therefore, we can still pinpoint the worlds that Xiao Hei visited in its memories."
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