"Did you go in by yourself? Or shall I throw you in?" The white-robed immortal looked at me with a smile that was not a smile.

"No need to trouble yourself, I'll go in by myself."

It seemed that I was doomed today. I walked slowly towards the alchemy furnace, feeling despair in my heart.

At that moment, the old white ape led a group of white apes armed with weapons, rushing into the hall.

"Evil beasts!"

The white-robed immortal couldn't contain his anger. With a wave of his dusting cloth, the apes fell in disarray. Despite that, a few white apes managed to get close.

Just then, a fourth thunderous boom exploded at the top of the celestial palace. Seizing the opportunity, I lunged towards the white-robed immortal who was attacking the white apes and plunged the two "Godslayer Wood" hidden in my sleeves into his back.

He roared, his hair all white, killing several white apes around him. He turned to glare at me, his eyes bloodshot, holding a blood-red dusting cloth, advancing towards me step by step.

"Godslayer Wood!"

"How do you have the Godslayer Wood?"

"Did you use this to kill Yinmu?"

The white-robed immortal looked up to the sky with a bitter smile, tears of blood streaming from his eyes. "I should have killed you directly that day! Turning you into human grass to feed the alchemy furnace like Yinmu."

His snowy white clothes gradually revealed red spots, shrinking like a piece of white meat turning withered.

Several white apes pounced, lifting the struggling and cursing white-robed immortal, and threw him into the already red-hot copper alchemy furnace.

With a soft "puff" sound from the furnace, everything fell silent.

The old white ape lay gasping for breath at the entrance of the hall, blood flowing from her mouth and nose.

I rushed over to help her up. She reached out and touched the "fire" character on my cheek, then ran her hand through my hair.

A familiar feeling rose from the depths of my heart, an indescribable sensation that I couldn't place, even though it wasn't in my memories.

I remembered Yinmu calling me a "bastard," and the rumors of the new bride disappearing a year after giving birth in the village, suddenly everything became clear to me.

As the old ape's hand fell limp, her eyes peacefully closed. I hadn't managed to call out that word, and I never would in the future.

It turned out that the one who had saved me time and time again was the white ape who had once given birth to me, recognizing me by the birthmark on my face, watching over me, protecting me.

I held the old ape in my arms, howling to the sky, crying loudly amidst the thunder.

Purple-red lightning struck down, causing the celestial palace to collapse. The few remaining white apes dragged the old ape's body and me out.