Sixty-one: Absolute Reliance

She was Jue Yi, the youngest princess of the Witch Tribe. Though the Witch Tribe belonged to the Celestial Realm, most of its people lived in the Ancestral Continent and had little contact with the outside world. Thus, their connection to the Celestial Realm was not as close as others imagined. Unless the Celestial Emperor issued a decree, the chieftain and elders—those of the older generation—rarely left the Ancestral Continent.

Jue Yi's father, Mu Yun, was the current chieftain of the Witch Tribe, and the youngest in their history.

When Jue Yi was about five or six years old, her father took her to the border of the Ancestral Continent. At that time, the vast sea surged with water dragons trying to break through the boundary of the continent, but each attempt ended with the barrier dispersing their forms.

Mu Yun pointed at the water dragon and said, “Water cannot take form on its own. Unfortunately, the one controlling it lacks strength.”

Jue Yi did not understand. She giggled, wrapped her arms around Mu Yun’s neck, and asked, “Father, where is my mother?” She was accustomed to asking this question whenever they were alone together, for since she could remember, she had only seen her father. Yet every other child in the tribe had both parents. Each time she asked, Mu Yun would only smile, never answering directly.

“Jue Yi, watch closely,” Mu Yun said, pointing at the water dragons that kept rising. “When you grow up, you must strive to become strong. Only by being stronger than others can you protect what you cherish most. I am stronger than those who try to invade, so I will never let anyone breach the Ancestral Continent and harm our tribe.”

Jue Yi watched as her father flicked his finger lightly, sending a blue gleam through the natural barrier of the continent toward the newly risen water dragon. She stared in awe as the dragon’s body was suffused with the blue light, prompting her to clap her hands.

“So beautiful!”

The water dragon changed direction, charging straight toward the azure sky with a long, echoing roar. But in the next moment, its body suddenly disintegrated into countless droplets, vanishing without a trace, and the sea returned to calm. Jue Yi waited, but saw no more dragons rise. She tugged at the black hair drifting before her eyes and asked, “Father, where did the dragon go?”

“Silly child, the true Dragon Clan resides in Yuan Continent, far from here. What you saw was nothing more than an illusion, a fleeting mirage.”

After speaking, Mu Yun carried Jue Yi back inland. With her short arms wrapped around his neck, her eyes lingered on the sea, reluctant to look away even as it became as tranquil as a mirror.

The Witch Tribe was a people who valued strength above all else, unlike other places in the Celestial Realm where seniority and status mattered. From the chieftain and elders to the heads of every household, the strongest held their positions. The chieftain’s trial and competition occurred every four years, the elders’ every seven, and the heads of households as circumstances varied.

Since she could remember, Jue Yi knew her father was the chieftain. At the previous competition, she was still a swaddled infant, unable to recognize anyone. This time, the contest was only days away. After returning from the border, Jue Yi felt her father had become suddenly busy, and only Bi Li, the sister who had cared for her since childhood, stayed by her side.

Jue Yi shook Bi Li’s hand and looked up to ask, “Bi Li, where is father?”

“The chieftain is preparing for the competition in seven days. He’s doing it all for our little princess!” Bi Li bent down, tapping Jue Yi’s nose with a smile.

Jue Yi tilted her head, unable to understand why Bi Li was so cheerful when her father was absent. When the day arrived, Bi Li woke Jue Yi early from her dreams, dressed her carefully, and carried her out of the chieftain’s residence.

Jue Yi rubbed her drowsy eyes and asked, “Bi Li, where are we going?”

“You’ll understand when we get there, little princess.”

Hearing this, Jue Yi nestled back into Bi Li’s arms and fell asleep again. When she woke, she saw Mu Yun on the dueling platform not far away, striking a young man out of the competition with a single blow.

“Little princess, do you see? That is our chieftain—your father!”

Jue Yi was not interested in such displays. She disliked the father she saw on the dueling platform; when he stood there, his expression became unreadable, and she dared not approach him. Looking around, she saw only familiar uncles and elders on this side, while the other side of the platform hosted the young Witch Tribe candidates awaiting their turn.

“Is everyone from the Witch Tribe here?” Jue Yi asked.

Bi Li nodded. “Of course… oh, except for one person who never comes. But he’s always been an odd one, so you needn’t worry about him, little princess.”

“An odd one?”

“Yes, a very strange person. He never attends important events and rarely appears before others, living in a small hut hidden in the mountains.”

Jue Yi nodded in confusion. Her father had once told her that the eastern part of the Ancestral Continent was covered by endless mountain ranges, and except for gathering necessary minerals, the tribe’s members were forbidden from entering. If that was so, how did that person live there? Truly odd. After watching for a while, Jue Yi broke away from Bi Li and ran off.

As only Witch Tribe children lived in the Ancestral Continent and most knew each other, Jue Yi often ran off alone, leaving Mu Yun and Bi Li behind. Of course, she could not enter places protected by wards. She wanted to return to the place her father had taken her, to see the water dragon rise from the sea again, but as she wandered, she found no sea, only lush mountains. She craned her neck, trying to see if the sea lay beyond the peaks, but no matter how hard she tried, all she saw were tangled branches, green summits, and drifting white clouds.

Jue Yi puffed her cheeks and, with unsteady steps, started up the mountains. She did not know that these mountains were also protected by wards, and only with a special rune could one enter. As she approached the entrance, the invisible barrier softened, opening a path for her, then closed behind her once she had passed. Had Mu Yun or the elders been present, they might have noticed something amiss, but Jue Yi, unaware, simply walked into the mountains. She walked for quite a while, but saw no end. The trees here were impossibly tall, blocking even the sky. Soon, Jue Yi stopped, opened her mouth, and burst into tears.

She wanted to see her father, but dared not return by the way she had come. After crying herself tired, her sobs diminished to soft whimpers, until she noticed a pair of clean white boots in front of her.

Jue Yi stopped crying and, sniffling, looked up. Before her stood a man as tall as her father, but younger in appearance. She stared at him for a long time before asking, “Who are you?”

“Little girl, how did you get in here?”

Jue Yi whimpered again, “I just walked in.”

The man seemed a bit surprised, then reached out and picked a leaf, holding it to his nose.

Jue Yi thought he was very strange.

He tossed the leaf aside and looked at Jue Yi again, asking, “Why did you come here?”

“I want to see the dragon! My father showed me a few days ago.”

The man crouched before Jue Yi, ruffled her hair, and smiled, “Silly child, dragons aren’t here. If you want to see dragons, you must go to Yuan Continent.”

“No, I saw them here. The dragons kept rising from the water, and my father changed the color of the last one!” Jue Yi waved her chubby arms, trying to demonstrate.

The man watched her for a while, then seemed to understand. “Ah, those dragons aren’t found here either. You’ve gone the wrong way.”

“Really?” Jue Yi blinked and asked.

The man nodded, escorting her to the mountain entrance. “Go back and find your father. Let him take you again.”

“I can’t,” Jue Yi shook her head. “Father is competing now. Bi Li said he has prepared for a long time and must not be distracted.”

“Oh? Your father is competing for the chieftain’s position?”

Jue Yi nodded, then shook her head. “Father is already the chieftain. Bi Li said he has to participate, and nothing must go wrong. So I have to be good and not disturb him.”