Chapter 1307: Qingyue and Xuanyin
Eastern Divine Region, Yue Shen Realm.
Having traversed the Eastern and Western Divine Regions, after a long solitude, Xia Qingyue finally returned to the Yue Shen Realm.
Gazing at the Yue Shen Realm so close at hand, her state of mind was utterly different from any other moment before.
Passing through the isolation barrier of the Yue Shen Realm without any obstruction, before she had gone far, two Moon Guards detected her aura.
“Xia Qingyue!?”
With two flashes of white light, the two Moon Guards appeared before Xia Qingyue, their fierce auras locking onto her: “How dare you come back!”
Just as their shouts left their mouths, a low voice came from behind them: “Withdraw.”
With a ripple in space, a man in full golden armor, with a lean figure, appeared out of thin air. His pupils released two intense beams of golden light that were hard to look at directly, accompanied by a terrifying pressure that seemed to freeze the space itself.
The moment he appeared, the two Moon Guards tensed up and hurriedly bowed: “Greetings, Golden Moon God!”
Golden Moon God Yue Wuji cast a complex glance at Xia Qingyue and said in a calm voice: “Our king has been waiting for you for many days.”
“…” Xia Qingyue did not speak. She gave a slight nod, then swept through the air and headed toward Shenyue City.
In the vast and empty hall, even the gentle moonlight could not erase the cold stillness here. At the end of the hall, Yue Shen Di sat on the throne of the Divine Emperor, expressionless.
Xia Qingyue walked slowly, stopped at the center of the hall, and slowly knelt.
“Qingyue…” Yue Shen Di let out a cold, deep sigh: “You have returned this time. Are you not afraid that I might kill you?”
“Adoptive father will not kill me.” She knelt on the ground, answering softly.
“…” Yue Shen Di’s face twitched involuntarily, and then he could no longer keep it composed. He said with a mix of laughter and tears: “Qingyue, can’t you just beg for mercy and act a little obedient? This stubbornness of yours is nothing like your mother back then.”
Xia Qingyue closed her beautiful eyes and said softly: “Adoptive father’s kindness to Qingyue is as deep as the sea, yet Qingyue has tarnished adoptive father’s reputation of a lifetime. Although I know adoptive father will definitely not kill me… Qingyue also has no face to ask for forgiveness.”
Yue Shen Di frowned, then let out a sigh: “If it were decades ago, I might indeed have been so furious that I would have killed you and that brat Yun Che. I still remember that year, in my madness, I lost all reason; it took me several years to calm down, and I even did many things that in hindsight were insane.”
“But you are not your mother, and I am also not the same as I was back then.”
“This time, my anger lasted less than an hour before I completely calmed down. That day’s wedding ceremony, though I said it was for the future of the Yue Shen Realm, was in fact still a ridiculous act driven by my own turmoil and selfishness. You were also held hostage by the kindness I had shown you over the years. The appearance of that brat Yun Che might also be Heaven’s will… It’s good that it’s been destroyed. Thinking it over carefully these past few days, if you hadn’t made that choice that day, I… and especially your mother, might instead have been somewhat disappointed.”
Xia Qingyue lifted her head, her gaze trembling: “Adoptive father…”
“Heh heh,” Yue Shen Di shook his head: “Are you surprised that I think this way? I myself am also surprised. Maybe… my time is really almost up, so there’s nothing I can’t come to terms with.”
“Adoptive father, you…”
“Say no more.” Yue Shen Di waved his hand, his face calm: “It’s not that I completely believe the words of the Tianji Realm, but recently, similar feelings have been coming more and more frequently, and more and more strongly.”
“Qingyue, if you want to make up for your guilt toward me and repay the kindness I have shown you over the years…” Yue Shen Di’s chest rose and fell, his gaze heavy: “then inherit my divine power. All these years, I have done my utmost to treat you well, so that when I pass on my divine power to you, I can feel a little more at ease. I know this has always been something ‘forced’ upon you, but… this is the only selfish desire I cannot let go of.”
“But fortunately, after the ‘wedding ceremony’ incident, you no longer need to, and it is no longer possible for you to become the Yue Shen Di. Although it is my great regret, I think you will find it easier to accept… and I can also feel much more at ease.”
“…” Xia Qingyue did not answer.
“Tomorrow, I will announce to the outside world that I have adopted you as my foster daughter…” Yue Shen Di originally intended to continue, but after a moment of hesitation, he shifted his tone slightly: “Go see your mother. She has been worrying about you these past few days. First, let her be at ease. We can discuss other matters tomorrow.”
“Yes.” Xia Qingyue replied softly, then stood up, walking slowly toward the exit of the hall.
“By the way, where is Yun Che?” Yue Shen Di suddenly spoke up: “He did not enter the Zhou Tian Pearl, and there has been no news of him so far. The Zhou Tian Realm must be deeply regretting that.”
Xia Qingyue stood still in silence and did not answer.
Yue Shen Di waved his hand: “Forget it, forget it. Go see your mother quickly.”
But Xia Qingyue did not leave. Instead, she suddenly said: “Adoptive father, three years ago today, those words you said to me—I have truly understood them now. I also suddenly realize that over these years, the reason I haven’t been able to ‘return’ was never really blocked by you, but by myself.”
With that, she took a step and quietly left.
Yue Shen Di was stunned, a look of confusion on his face. Suddenly, his brows twitched, and he stood up abruptly, his face showing an extremely rare expression of excitement and ecstasy.
“Qingyue, if you truly understand, then I… will have no regrets even if I die ten thousand times!”
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The small world where Yue Wuguo resided was always a secret within the Yue Shen Realm, and few could approach it. As she drew near, the surroundings were calm and peaceful.
Xia Qingyue’s steps were slow and heavy. No one could understand her thoughts at this moment. Since meeting Yun Che again, her heart and soul had been repeatedly subjected to earth-shattering impacts… choices, betrayals, escapes, fear, helplessness, death, despair, hope…
Suddenly, her whole body went cold, and her steps came to a halt. An irresistible, terrifying force had firmly suppressed her, and a woman’s voice, extremely icy, reached her ears:
“Where is Yun Che!”
Xia Qingyue could not turn around. She shifted her gaze sideways and saw a corner of a snow-white skirt and a few strands of ice-blue hair.
This was definitely not someone from the Yue Shen Realm, yet she could infiltrate it without being detected!?
“Who are you?” Xia Qingyue countered.
“Answer my question… Where is Yun Che!” The woman’s voice grew even colder; an ice spike extended from behind and touched Xia Qingyue’s throat.
“…” Xia Qingyue was silent for a moment, then suddenly said: “So, you must be Senior Mu Xuanyin, Yun Che’s master.”
The air immediately chilled a few degrees more. After a few breaths of silence, the ice spike at Xia Qingyue’s throat slowly melted, and the force binding her also dissipated.
Xia Qingyue turned around and saw a face of ice so beautiful it could make heaven and earth lose color. She wore a snow-white garment similar to the one Yun Che had worn that day, and her stunning face was covered with a layer of ice and an icy majesty that seemed to have frozen all emotions. Xia Qingyue bowed lightly: “Junior Xia Qingyue greets Senior Mu.”
When she raised her eyes again, a strange light flickered in them. She had not expected that the Realm King of Yin Xue Realm and Yun Che’s master would be such a beauty.
“How did you guess it was me?” Mu Xuanyin’s icy eyes stared closely at Xia Qingyue, asking coldly.
Xia Qingyue replied: “Yun Che mentioned to me that Senior Mu is his greatest benefactor in the God Realm. Although you appear cold and emotionless, you care for him deeply.”
“And you risked great danger to infiltrate the Yue Shen Realm just to find his whereabouts, and your profound strength is extremely high, your profound aura intensely cold… In the Eastern Divine Region, within just a few short years, the only one who fits this description is Senior Mu.” She continued: “Moreover, that person outside the Tai Chu Divine Realm… was also Senior Mu, was it not?”
“…” Mu Xuanyin’s icy brows moved slightly.
“To be able to enter the Yue Shen Realm without being detected requires strength enough to withstand the gray-clothed man beside Qianye Ying’er. It seems the vast Eastern Divine Region has greatly underestimated Senior Mu’s power.”
Mu Xuanyin narrowed her icy brows slightly and stared fixedly at Xia Qingyue for a long time.
Facing her chilling, intimidating gaze, Xia Qingyue did not look away; instead, she actively met her eyes, which shimmered with an ice-blue luster: “Senior, rest assured. This junior knows what to say and what not to say.”
Mu Xuanyin did not deny it, nor did she waste a single word. She said coldly: “Answer my question. Where is Yun Che? Why did you come back alone?”
“He is in the Dragon God Realm,” Xia Qingyue said.
“Why did you leave him in the Dragon God Realm?”
“He was struck by Qianye Ying’er’s Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal.”
“…What!?” Mu Xuanyin’s expression changed drastically, and her originally well-concealed aura became violently disturbed.
“Senior, rest assured. The reason he stayed in the Dragon God Realm is that there is someone there who is removing the Death-Pleading Seal for him.” Seeing the change in Mu Xuanyin’s expression, Xia Qingyue felt a slight pang in her heart: Yun Che had only been in Yin Xue Realm for a little over three years, and yet he had made the Yin Xue Realm King—this woman of unparalleled elegance and formidable power—care so much about him…
Was it really just a master-disciple relationship?
“Impossible…” Mu Xuanyin’s pupils flickered with cold light, and even her icy countenance could not remain calm: “If it truly were the Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal, apart from Qianye Ying’er, no one could undo it! Exactly…”
Suddenly, her icy brows twitched, and she thought of someone: “Are you saying…?”
“Shen Xi,” Xia Qingyue softly uttered two words.
“…” Mu Xuanyin’s icy eyes had been fixed on Xia Qingyue, yet she found that under her pressure, Xia Qingyue remained exceptionally calm—a calm that was unusual for a woman of her age… so calm it was almost eerie.
On the contrary—whether it was an illusion or not—she instead felt a faint, almost imperceptible… sense of oppression from Xia Qingyue?
“Can she really undo the Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal? And why would she keep Yun Che?” Mu Xuanyin asked. It might indeed be possible for Shen Xi to undo the Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal. However, the Reincarnation Forbidden Land where she resided never allowed any living being to approach, let alone enter. Yet she found no trace of falsehood in Xia Qingyue’s words.
“The Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal can be undone—that was Shen Xi’s own words. It will take fifty years,” Xia Qingyue replied, still calmly and gently: “As for why she kept Yun Che, it is the good fruit of a good karma he planted in the past.”
“Not being able to enter the Zhou Tian Divine Realm is indeed a great regret, but being able to stay by Senior Shen Xi’s side, for Yun Che, besides getting rid of the Death-Pleading Seal, is also another rare opportunity. So, please rest assured for now, Senior… At least for these fifty years, he will be absolutely safe.”
Mu Xuanyin’s slightly agitated aura slowly calmed down at this point. Indeed, being taken in by Shen Xi was a great opportunity for Yun Che. Although the short-term gains could not compare to the three thousand years in the Zhou Tian Realm, in the long run, it might even surpass that.
Because that was Shen Xi… the most special existence in the entire God Realm.
But the prerequisite was that he could win Shen Xi’s favor.
However… it was said that Shen Xi was extremely gentle and soft, but behind that gentleness and softness lay a complete lack of emotion. She was a person so indifferent to extremes that she seemed born without the seven emotions and six desires.
Could such a person truly be won over… even a little?