Chapter 1429: Breaking the Heart
"..." Yun Che's head shot up, his face filled with bewilderment: "Master, this matter..."
"Enough!" Mu Xuanyin coldly cut him off. "I am not asking for your opinion on this. You will agree whether you want to or not!"
Yun Che: "..."
"As a man, you must never make promises lightly. A marriage engagement concerns one's entire life and, even more so, a woman's reputation. It can never be treated as a child's play. Since you have already made the promise, and everyone knows of it, you cannot break faith and betray your word. Moreover..."
"In terms of family background, she is the little princess of the Glazed Light Realm. If she wishes, she will surely become the Realm King of Glazed Light in the future. In terms of talent, she possesses the only Stainless Divine Soul in the current era. At merely three thousand years old, she is already a Seventh-level Divine Lord. The world all says she will one day reach the Divine Emperor Realm through her own power. In terms of appearance, in the Eastern Divine Region, besides Qianye, she is second to none."
"Having just returned to the God Realm, you naturally wouldn't know what the name 'Meiyin Divine Maiden' means in the Eastern Divine Region these days. Her fame has long since surpassed that of her father and all the Upper Realm Kings... Before her, the only one in the Eastern Divine Region truly worthy of the title 'Divine Maiden' was Qianye Ying'er."
"..." Yun Che's mouth slightly opened. That girl who had once been hopelessly infatuated with him, and whom he had seen again still laughing and smiling like a young maiden—she had already become so dazzling.
"In every aspect, she is more than worthy of a hundred of you. What's even more valuable is that her feelings for you are deep and sincere, without a trace of falsehood. Her father also has no objections. For you in your current situation..." A flicker of complexity passed through Mu Xuanyin's eyes. "At the very least, it is in no way detrimental."
This was the second day after Yun Che's return to the God Realm. Before he could even begin what he needed to do, a marriage contract he had hastily made in a moment of "quick thinking" was suddenly thrown at him, catching him completely off guard. Most importantly, it wasn't someone else pressing this marriage upon him, but Mu Xuanyin.
"But, about this matter..."
"No buts!" Mu Xuanyin clearly wasn't giving him any chance to refuse, her voice exceedingly cold and authoritative. "Listen carefully. The fact that you are still alive has already been exposed, and soon everyone will know. Think back—how did you end up struck with the Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal back then, and how were you forced into the Dragon God Realm?"
Yun Che: "..." (She knows about the Buddhist Soul Death-Pleading Seal? Did Qingyue tell her?)
"Among your peers, you are indeed unmatched. But don't forget how terrifying those who have their eyes on you are. Take today's Luo Guxie, for example. Without someone else by your side, with only your own strength, you would have been dead without a burial place! And her disciple is Luo Changsheng, whose strength now far surpasses yours—someone you can barely even look up to! Not to mention that Fandi Shennü, whose strength, cunning, and methods are all extremely terrifying!"
"You should understand the principle of 'having a treasure incites greed' better than anyone after all these years," Mu Xuanyin said, each word heavy and laden with profound warning. "Since you lack the power to protect yourself, you must do your best to find a strong backing!"
"Right now, Yue Shendi is your backing, but she is only one person, not the entire Moon God Realm! You have shown kindness to Zhou Tian Shen Di, and he will surely protect you, but that protection is limited—that 'favor' is not deep enough for him to harm the Zhou Tian God Realm on your behalf. But if you marry the little princess of the Glazed Light Realm, then the entire Glazed Light Realm—the top-ranked Upper Star Realm—will become your backing... Now, do you understand?"
"..." Yun Che stood frozen, unsure how to respond.
"This does indeed mean using the little princess of Glazed Light. But she would willingly accept it, knowing full well." Thinking of Shui Meiyin's gem-like black eyes, Mu Xuanyin's emotions were momentarily complicated. "Do you understand my meaning?"
Yun Che nodded somewhat woodenly: "...I understand."
"As for feelings, you can slowly cultivate them with her." Mu Xuanyin's gaze shifted slightly, and she suddenly gave a cold snort. "Hmph! Someone as lustful as you, who can't be happy without women—with the little princess of Glazed Light's beauty and grace, I believe you have no feelings for her, but I absolutely do not believe you have no thoughts about her!"
"..." Yun Che lowered his head... The tone and intent of her words were so similar to Mo Li's back then.
"Regarding the marriage contract, at the Heaven's Might Assembly nineteen days from now, I will discuss it with the Glazed Light Realm King. You don't need to worry about it—just obediently listen."
Yun Che rubbed the tip of his nose and said softly, "Master, didn't you say before that I am no longer your disciple?"
"..." Mu Xuanyin slowly turned around, her peerlessly beautiful icy eyes narrowing into a slender slit. "Even if I am no longer your master, you still have to obediently listen to me! These two things are unrelated!"
Yun Che was speechless.
"Huo Poyun has been waiting for you over there. He should have something to say to you." Mu Xuanyin's body spun, and her figure vanished from Yun Che's sight, leaving only her voice behind: "After you 'settle' this, come find me at the Holy Temple!"
Yun Che had already sensed Huo Poyun's presence earlier. Everyone else had left, but he alone was still waiting there.
Yun Che walked over. At that moment, Huo Poyun also turned around. Their eyes met, and Yun Che said, "Brother Poyun, how are your injuries?"
Huo Poyun shook his head with a smile, seemingly unconcerned. "They're already fine. Don't worry about it. Yun Che, I find it hard to believe that you are really alive."
"Actually, back then, I couldn't believe I would survive either," Yun Che said with a smile, coming to Huo Poyun's side. "Brother Poyun, congratulations on becoming a Divine Lord. The Flame God Realm will forever hold you in eternal glory."
Huo Poyun showed no hint of pride or arrogance, smiling peacefully. "At least I haven't disappointed my master and the others. I never imagined that in three thousand years, I could truly reach my current height. Speaking of which, it's not just because of the Golden Crow Spirit's blessing and the extremely high-level spiritual energy of the Zhou Tian Divine Realm—I also have you to thank."
"Me?"
"Yes." Huo Poyun nodded solemnly. "Back then, before entering the Zhou Tian Divine Realm, if you hadn't repeatedly resolved my inner conflicts and demons, I would have entered the Divine Realm with them, and my path of cultivation would undoubtedly have been heavily obstructed. My master also told me that Yun Che is my greatest benefactor, as well as the Flame God Realm's greatest benefactor. No amount of repayment would be too much."
"Haha..." Yun Che shook his head with a smile. "No need. At that time, you were my only friend in the God Realm. Whether it was me thoroughly humiliating Jun Xilei to vent your anger or resolving your inner demons, these were all things I should have done. There's never any need to mention the word 'repayment.'"
"..." Huo Poyun's gaze shifted. "That... time?"
Yun Che did not follow his gaze. He still looked into the distance, his eyes calm and profound. "Besides, a person's state of mind and attitude gradually change with the passage of time. Even if I hadn't been there back then, you would have resolved your inner conflicts and demons on your own within the Zhou Tian Divine Realm. Oh, and I'm guessing... during those three thousand years in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm, you probably got along quite well with Luo Changsheng and the others."
"..." Huo Poyun's lips parted, his eyes shifting violently.
"If you can become a Divine Lord, then the Flame God Realm, which is already strong overall and has three top-tier Divine Sovereigns, will undoubtedly ascend to the ranks of Upper Star Realms," Yun Che said with a smile. "And you will inevitably become the supreme ruler of the Flame God Realm. At the level of an Upper Star Realm, to secure a foothold and stabilize your position, it is undoubtedly the most correct and wise choice to build close relationships with those who, after leaving the Zhou Tian Divine Realm, can also stand at the peak of their realms... especially with someone like Luo Changsheng."
"Compared to your former self, who only focused on the Profound Path and whose heart would shatter from a single loss in a profound power competition, you have now truly undergone a fundamental transformation... and it goes far beyond just cultivation level. Someone like you might already be qualified to take on the future of the Flame God Realm and become its Realm King."
Every word Yun Che spoke was an affirmation and praise. But as he listened, Huo Poyun's eyes trembled. Later on, they even shrank slightly... yet for a long time, he couldn't speak.
Yun Che seemed completely unaware of this extremely unusual reaction. He turned away and said calmly, "Master just summoned me, so I must take my leave. Please convey my regards to Sect Master Huo. If I have free time in the future, I will definitely visit the Flame God Realm."
With that, he didn't linger and directly walked away.
"Wait!"
Behind him came Huo Poyun's voice... just two words, but they were shouted out in a low roar, accompanied by Huo Poyun's abnormally heavy breathing.
Yun Che stopped in his tracks.
"It was me... I sent a sound transmission to Luo Changsheng telling him you were still alive! It was me!" he shouted at Yun Che's back, his voice trembling with every word.
"I know." Yun Che replied without any change in expression. "In Huan Yan City, you overheard my conversation with Mu Feixue."
Luo Guxie had arrived too quickly, too suddenly. The only possibility was that he had been exposed before even returning to the sect.
And before that, the only one who knew his identity was Mu Feixue.
When he had revealed his identity to Mu Feixue, not only had he kept his voice extremely low, he had also swept the surroundings with his spiritual sense to confirm no one else was nearby.
But the only possible exception was Huo Poyun.
As a newly ascended Divine Lord, it would have been child's play for him to evade Yun Che's spiritual sense.
He didn't want to believe it... but that was the only possibility.
"Then why didn't you expose me!" Huo Poyun's voice became hoarse. "Were you pitying me... or simply didn't care enough!"
"What should I have done then? Roar and shout like you? Go hysterical?" Yun Che's expression and tone remained utterly calm, as if he were talking about someone else's affairs.
"..." Huo Poyun stepped forward, his hands clenched, his face twitching in pain. "Luo Guxie is the one who wants to kill you the most! The entire Eastern Divine Region knows that! I told Luo Changsheng precisely so that Luo Guxie would come to kill you... to kill you! Do you understand?! Do you understand?! And you... you just let me off like this? Your master is so powerful—she could even defeat Luo Guxie, she dared to kill Luo Guxie. With just one word from you, she could easily cripple me, kill me. Why... why... why don't you..."
His voice grew hoarser and hoarser. By the end, his teeth were clenched so hard they seemed about to shatter, and two streaks of tears traced down his face.
Slowly, he knelt in the snow, his body trembling violently, and muttered incoherently, "Back then... when I became a Divine Lord and left the Zhou Tian Divine Realm, the first person I wanted to tell wasn't my master... it was you... but then I got the news that you were dead... I had never been as sad as I was in that moment..."
"But why... why are you still alive... why did you come back... why..."
"..." Yun Che let out a long, heavy breath and said softly, "The reason I didn't expose you publicly is because I know that when a person's mind is in extreme turmoil, they will do things beyond reason—things they themselves wouldn't believe afterward. The fact that you came to the Yin Xue Realm means you regret it. And when Luo Guxie suddenly attacked me, you shielded me with your life—that was both guilt and genuine intent."
"And, the most important reason..." Yun Che closed his eyes. "You were once my only friend in the God Realm."
Huo Poyun lowered his head, a cold, bitter laugh escaping his lips. "Friend... friend... Heh... heh... Did you... truly... ever consider me a friend?"
"..." Yun Che furrowed his brow.
"Back then, in the Zhou Tian Realm, I was drawn to Mu Feixue. Do you remember... the words of comfort you spoke to me?"
Yun Che: "...?"
"But..." Huo Poyun raised his head, his breathing growing heavier and heavier. "But... I heard with my own ears... two Bing Huang disciples talking about how she had long been granted to you by your master as a dual cultivation partner!! I heard it with my own ears! Heard it with my own ears! Yet you didn't say a single word to me! Only fake words of comfort! You were... you were simply laughing at my expense!"
Yun Che turned around, his brow deeply furrowed. "Listen to me. Back then, after the apprenticeship ceremony, my master did indeed designate Feixue as my dual cultivation partner, and it was announced publicly. But... after that, I refused, and my master agreed."
"..." Huo Poyun's entire body trembled, his eyes staring wide.
"Because of that matter, since my master had announced it publicly, if we then announced that she had been rejected by me, it would undoubtedly cause Feixue to be ridiculed. So it was not made public. Feixue and I have never been dual cultivation partners. In the years I spent in the Yin Xue Realm, the total time we spent together doesn't even compare to the few words we exchanged in Huan Yan City!"
"If you don't believe me, you can go ask my master right now!"
"..." As if struck by a thunderbolt, Huo Poyun stood there, silent and motionless, as if his soul had left him.
"Forget it," Yun Che said, turning away without looking back at him. "Believe it or not, it's up to you. It doesn't matter much to me anymore. And this is the last time I call you Brother Poyun."
His footsteps heavy, he left without looking back. "Young Sect Master Huo... until we meet again."