Heaven's Daughter

Chapter 40 - The Last Phoenix

10 years later...

In a town not to far from Eden, sat a bustling tavern. A group of cultivators had stopped in to rest from a long journey from Eden.

"It's been nearly ten years since the third prince and King Wang Yan died," one of the guest of the tavern said sadly.

"King Wan Yi is really unfortunate. He killed his brother. King Wang Yan died of grief. The Prime Minister was executed for treason, and his wife, the queen is a cripple," said another guest. The third guest scoffed and said, "He deserves it! He can kill his own brother because of a woman!"

"Sh! Do you want to be beheaded?" whispered his friend. The first guest glared at the third guest and spoke up for the king.
"He's running the kingdom well despite everything that has happened. The queen also did the kingdom a great favor by foretelling the future before she became a cripple. If it wasn't for her, the barrier between the demon realm and the human realm would've broke. Then where would we be?"

"We'd be dead, that's for sure!" the second guest exclaimed. The group chattered nonstop as their conversation drifted off from the royal family to making money as a mercenary. Then the first guest who spoke of the royal family frowned.

"What a strange girl. Isn't her clothing strange?" he said. His group turned their attention to the corner of the tavern. There sat a young woman who looked no more than twenty. Her hair was unkempt and she wore dirty jeans and a long sleeve shirt. It was as if she had been on the road for days. She was covered in dust and her face was just as dirty as her clothes. She looked extremely out of place as if she had been plucked from a different dimension and placed in that tavern. Which was exactly what had happened. She was none other than Kairi who had just woken up days ago.

"Ten years has passed, huh..." Kairi thought as she listened on the conversation. So, not only did Zhang Sheng died, King Wang Yan also died. At least Wan Yi did something about the barrier.

The tavern owner came out from the back with a plain dress and handed it to Kairi.

"Thank you again for helping me. I'm sorry if this isn't much," the young girl said while handing over a small bag full of coins.

"No. I should thank you," Kairi said as she took the dress and the bag of coins. She didn't know where to go but it was best to be as far away from Eden as possible.

When she had awoken, she found herself deep underground in a spiritual cave. The energy there was so dense and strong, she ended up cultivating for a few days before exiting. She had just made it to the surface when she stumbled upon the young tavern owner. She had been out in the mountains picking tea leaves by herself and was attacked by a demon beast. Kairi had heard her cry for help and rushed in to kill the demon beast on instinct. She thanked the heavens that even after she returned to her body her cultivation was still there if not stronger. Xiao You's body was always on the weaker side and with her core sealed, Kairi had the hardest time protecting herself. Now she was free of the seal and she didn't need to overexert her spiritual energy every time. Defeating the demon beast didn't even take an ounce of her spiritual energy. In fact, if she hadn't been careful, she might've even wiped out a portion of the forest she was in.

She thanked the girl once again and quickly went to change. She was drawing more and more attention. Once she changed into the dress, she tied her hair into a bun and stepped out. She looked less noticeable and blended in more with the people of this world.
She had wanted to fly away on her sword but even after summoning her sword, it never appeared. She wondered if it had anything to do with the time when her soul left Xiao You's body. Right before her soul disappeared from the palace, she saw her sword fly off into the distance and Xiao Huo combusting into flames.