Chapter 437 - 435: A Barren Land
Celeste Grant, however, was quite calm. She reached out and patted her son’s head. "Son, you’re just scaring yourself. Don’t worry, Mom is doing great. Once I get to the Upper Realm, I’ll go straight to the Demonic Domain to find your father. Nothing will happen."
Hearing this, Aaron Sinclair finally felt a bit relieved. He looked up at his mother and said, "Okay. You go on ahead and find Dad. I’ll ascend to the Upper Realm to find you both soon."
As the mother and son were talking, Nerida and Leo appeared beside them.
"My lady, I can’t bear to see you go."
"Miss, what’s this old servant supposed to do without you?"
"My lady, you’re about to give birth. Why are you ascending now? This really isn’t a good time. My Cultivation is still a little lacking, otherwise I could have ascended to the Upper Realm with you and taken care of you."
Looking at Nerida and Leo, who had pushed her own son aside and were now clinging to her hands, Celeste Grant didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
She reached out and hugged them. "It’s alright, it’s alright. Don’t worry, I’m just going ahead to scout things out. Nerida, Leo, you two cultivate hard. I’ll be waiting for you in the Upper Realm. When the time comes, we’ll dominate everyone, crush those cultivators in Valerium, and become the biggest and baddest."
"Okay, my lady. You just wait for me."
"Miss, I’ll cultivate as hard as I can! I’m still supposed to work for you for another three thousand years. You can’t forget about me! WAHHHH, I’m going to cry myself to death."
"Okay, okay. I won’t forget, I won’t forget."
Next, Elder Lawson and the others were also there to see her off.
Their eyes reddened as they looked at her.
"My lady, you must take care of yourself in the Upper Realm."
"We wish you a safe journey, my lady."
They didn’t know if they would ever have the chance to ascend to the Upper Realm in this lifetime. But their loyalty to Celeste Grant and Javier Sinclair was bone-deep. So, seeing Celeste Grant about to leave, Elder Lawson and the others all wore expressions of deep reluctance, wishing they could follow her to the Upper Realm right this instant.
Celeste Grant’s gaze swept over each of them, and a feeling of reluctance welled up in her heart as well.
"Elders, and everyone from the Bloodfiend Den, take care of yourselves and cultivate well. I will wait for you in the Upper Realm."
Hearing this, the elders present nodded repeatedly.
"Yes, my lady."
Finally, Celeste Grant saw her parents again, as well as her younger brother and sister from this world. She hugged each of them in turn.
"Mom, Dad, I’m heading to the Upper Realm now."
"You have to take care of yourselves while I’m gone."
"And little brother, I’m entrusting Mom and Dad to you from now on."
"Don’t worry, big sister. I’ll handle everything at home. I will take good care of Mom and Dad."
"Good."
"Celeste, don’t you worry about us. You, on the other hand, must be careful when you get to the Upper Realm all by yourself. If you encounter a powerful enemy, your safety comes first. If you can’t beat them, run. You absolutely cannot put yourself in danger."
Celeste Grant nodded slightly.
"Okay, I know, Mom."
She looked at her parents and said in a low voice, "Mom, Dad, thank you. I’ve been so happy to be your daughter in this life."
"Having a daughter like you is our blessing."
"Your mother is right. Having you as our daughter is our blessing. You need to take good care of yourself from now on."
"I will."
After that, Celeste Grant spoke a few more words with her son. Then, she took the Jade Pendant from her own neck and placed it in his hand. It was the pendant Javier Sinclair had left for their son, one that could surely save his life in a critical moment. She could only leave with peace of mind if she left it with him.
"Mom, I don’t need it. I can only rest easy if you keep it."
"No. If you don’t have some form of protection, Mom can’t rest easy either."
"I’m going now."
"Bye-bye, son."
"Goodbye, Mother."
A golden light descended upon Celeste Grant, and in the next moment, her figure slowly floated into the air. At the same time, the voices of Cultivators from both the Immortal and Demonic Paths reached her ears.
"We respectfully see you off, fellow Daoist."
"We respectfully see you off, fellow Daoist."
Among them, all the Cultivators of the Demonic Sects shouted in unison.
"Your subordinates respectfully see you off, my lady!"
The Demon Cultivators from the Bloodfiend Den in particular knelt on one knee, placed a hand over their chests, and very solemnly saw Celeste Grant off.
Seeing this, she smiled faintly and waved gently. "Everyone, goodbye."
Celeste Grant stood in the air, her gaze turning to her son. She smiled slightly and waved at him. "Son, Mom’s going now. You hurry up, okay? Mom will wait for you."
"Goodbye, Mother."
"Goodbye, son."
"Mom, Dad, everyone, goodbye." As Celeste Grant’s voice faded, her figure instantly vanished into the beam of light, leaving this world for good...
「In Valerium.」
In a remote area in the southwestern region.
The outskirts of this place were a desolate wasteland stretching as far as the eye could see, with layers of black fog permeating the surroundings. Not a single blade of grass grew here; it was utterly barren. The ground was littered with the massive skeletons of various Demonic Beasts, as well as the bones of Cultivators.
Yet, at the edge of the black fog, there was a completely different scene. If this side was a barren land, then deep within the fog’s edge, across a massive chasm, was a place brimming with Spiritual Energy, where plants and trees thrived with life.
A small village with a small population was situated in this area. The village had a little over two hundred people, and its architecture was ancient and mysterious. In the very center of the village stood an altar and a stone plinth carved with ancient runes.
Celeste Grant had been here for half a month. In that time, she had already blended in perfectly with the villagers. She even found out that Widow Lawson from the edge of the village was having a thing with Second Uncle Ward.
The village was called Kheris, and it was a rather beautiful place. The people who lived here were not Cultivators and had no idea what Cultivation even was.
At first, Celeste Grant thought they were just ordinary people living in a place isolated from the rest of the world. But she discovered that the people here could kill Demonic Beasts with their bare hands, and any seven or eight-year-old child could casually lift a boulder weighing over a thousand pounds. She simply couldn’t associate them with ordinary people, and yet, she was certain these people had never cultivated.
During her time here, Celeste Grant discovered that the village was strange through and through. It seemed to be sheltered by some ancient, mysterious power. Because of this, she found that no matter how formidable her Cultivation was, the moment she tried to gather it, it would vanish into thin air as if it had never existed.
As if that weren’t enough.
「A couple of days ago.」
As she was passing the edge of the village, she saw a man who had been out hunting carry a thoroughly dead companion into the village and casually toss him onto the ground.
Then he kicked the body and said, "Get up."
And just then, the young man, who had been completely dead, miraculously recovered from his injuries and resurrected on the spot. Even the spot where a Demonic Beast had clearly bitten off half his hand grew back. The man stood up, lively as ever, and went straight home.
The other villagers who saw this acted as if it were nothing out of the ordinary. Only Celeste Grant stood there, completely baffled.
’Are these ordinary people?’