Ascended Without Me: Cultivating with a Genius Son | Chapter 90 | A Choice of Two Lives | Novela.app

Li Xue opened her eyes to the sight of skyscrapers. Cars streamed across the overpasses; she had returned to the bustling modern metropolis, specifically the capital she knew so well. Her heart raced with excitement as she quickly located her residential complex and apartment number. Before she could enter, the door opened, and an unfamiliar couple stepped out. Peering inside, she saw the layout had completely changed. Had sixty years passed on Earth as well? Were her parents already gone? The thought filled her with a profound, aching sadness. In a daze, Li Xue drifted aimlessly. When she finally came to her senses and looked at her surroundings, she found herself in her old home in Jiangnan. A sudden thought struck her—perhaps her parents had moved back to their hometown. She flew toward the old house. Staring at the familiar gate, she didn't dare open it. Her hands trembled, terrified of what lay within. Would it be filled with cobwebs and dust? Or... *Creak.* The door swung open, and a man in his sixties stepped out. "Dad!" Li Xue cried out, her eyes brimming with tears. It was her father, and he looked only a few years older. He suddenly looked up at the sky, a flicker of confusion crossing his face, but then he shook his head. He called back into the house, "Honey, let's bring Xue'er out to get some sun!" Li Xue was stunned. Not only had her father failed to hear her, but he had also said words she couldn't comprehend. After a flurry of movement, she watched as her parents carried a lounge chair out of the house. Lying upon it was the Li Xue of her previous life. Li Xue’s eyes widened. There were two of her—one lying down, one standing. Which one was the real Li Xue? Suddenly, it clicked. Her current self was merely a primordial spirit, while the one on the chair was her physical body from her past life. But how could a body remain uncorrupted for years without a soul? Her divine sense was powerful. As soon as she activated the Insight Art from the Golden Breath Manual, she discovered that a soul was indeed occupying the body—a mortal soul. With a sudden leap, Li Xue’s primordial spirit lunged toward the body. Within the sea of consciousness of her physical form, a mass of grey spiritual awareness crouched there, trembling in fear. "Who are you?" Li Xue asked coldly. The spiritual awareness shuddered but did not answer. With a single thought, Li Xue sent a ripple of pressure toward it. The grey mass began to scramble about, crying out, "Mercy! Have mercy! I—I didn't come here on purpose! I—!" "What is your name? Answer me, or else!" Li Xue barked. "I... my name is Xia Xiaoqing. I... I don't know!" the soul stammered in terror. "What? You're Xia Xiaoqing? What is your relationship to Li Ran?" Li Xue asked, incredulous. Suddenly, everything began to make sense. "Li Ran?" Xia Xiaoqing froze, then became frantic. "My husband! He's my husband! Where is he? Where is he?" she cried out in a mix of joy and shock. Confirming her suspicions, Li Xue felt a headache coming on. This damned Xia Xiaoqing had occupied her body, yet she hadn't absorbed any of her memories? Couldn't she have learned to be a bit braver or stronger? "I am Li Xue. Li Ran is no longer in this world. He has likely been reincarnated," Li Xue said. In her mind, there wasn't much difference between transmigration and reincarnation. Xia Xiaoqing finally looked directly at Li Xue, gasping, "You... you're really Li Xue?" "I am. How many years have you been in my body?" Li Xue wanted to determine the current year on Earth. "A-about five or six years, I think," Xia Xiaoqing said uncertainly. "Five or six years? Don't tell me you haven't woken up once in all that time?" Li Xue asked, her anger rising. "I... I was a little scared," Xia Xiaoqing murmured. "What is there to be scared of? This is a society ruled by law; no one would have bullied you!" The more Li Xue thought about it, the angrier she became. This Xia Xiaoqing had been hiding, pretending to be a vegetable, leaving Li Xue's parents to toil away caring for her for over five years. What a loathsome woman. Li Xue continued, "Do you have any idea? I gave birth to your son, took him to find his father, and raised him to adulthood and Core Formation. Shouldn't you have at least woken up to comfort my parents?" "Son... yes, I was giving birth... then, then I had no strength left. I... I...!" Xia Xiaoqing became agitated again. Li Xue looked up at the sky, speechless. Xia Xiaoqing’s personality was far too weak; communicating with her was exhausting. Li Xue wasted no more words and directly sent a strand of spiritual awareness, flooding Xia Xiaoqing’s soul with the general outline of her experiences. As Xia Xiaoqing slowly absorbed Li Xue’s memories, she alternated between weeping and laughing, though mostly weeping. Li Xue closed her eyes in the sea of consciousness, resting her mind while she waited for Xia Xiaoqing to calm down. She had already made a decision: if Xia Xiaoqing was unwilling to stay in this body, she would let her return to the body in the cultivation world. Li Xue could not stand by and watch her parents struggle in their old age, caring for her shell of a body with no one to support or rely on. She now possessed cultivation techniques and a powerful primordial spirit; she could start her cultivation from scratch. If this body lacked spiritual roots, she could reincarnate. She knew of certain secret arts. In short, even if she had to switch bodies, she would persist on the path of cultivation. To hell with destiny! Li Xue steeled her heart. A day later, Xia Xiaoqing finally finished digesting the major events Li Xue had shared. Her face was clouded with gloom. She looked up at Li Xue and asked, "Can Li Ran still be found?" "It's possible, but it would take at least a thousand years. And he might have transmigrated just like us," Li Xue answered seriously. She then added, "Xiaoqing, if you don't want to stay in my body, you can go back to that one. I will take care of my parents myself." "You would give up the body you worked so hard to cultivate?" Xia Xiaoqing asked, visibly moved. "What choice do I have? I can't watch my parents grow old with no one to care for them. Nor can I destroy you and let that body perish, which would only hurt Xiao Lin and the others." At the thought of her son, Xiao Lin, Li Xue felt a pang of heartache. But so be it. At least her master, Li Lin, was a cultivator; he would find it easier to accept. The decision was made. Xia Xiaoqing remained silent for a long time before finally looking up. "I don't want to go back. Xiao Lin would surely be disappointed to see me. I didn't even have the courage to give birth to him; he would hate me if he knew." Xia Xiaoqing began to sob again. "Li Ran transmigrated too... who knows who he has become? If he doesn't want me anymore, what will I do?" "Huh?" Li Xue didn't know whether to laugh or cry. *You're nearly at the Core Formation stage, yet you're afraid of this?* She truly couldn't understand how someone could be so naive. Suddenly, a thought struck Li Xue. Wait—with Xia Xiaoqing’s mortal state, could she even survive returning to a cultivator's body? Would there be side effects? This was truly a headache. "Besides, you went through so much hardship to reach your current level of cultivation. If I go back, I won't understand anything. It's even scarier than here," Xia Xiaoqing added. "So, you mean you're not going back? You want to stay in this body?" Li Xue confirmed.