Chapter 1436: A Stone's Throw from the Demon Emperor
Yun Che's words caused the Ice Phoenix Spirit to fall silent for a moment before speaking slowly: "The world of today belongs to the realm of mortals. The state and laws of chaos are completely different from those of my era... This is a world that neither needs gods nor should have gods."
"Thus, a long time ago, I thought to bestow my remaining power upon a mortal from this star realm who could inherit my strength... and the one I chose was your master."
Yun Che: "..."
"As an Ice Phoenix, I was one of the Three Sovereigns of Ancient Water Systems, a high-ranking deity qualified to stand beside the Creation Gods. But I am, after all, of the demon race. My power is difficult to achieve a high degree of compatibility with humans. Hence, those who inherit my bloodline and profound arts also find it hard to reach the ultimate realm—that is, the Divine Lord Realm. And your master is the first Divine Lord in the history of the Yin Xue Realm. Do you know why?"
Yun Che thought for a moment and replied, "I once heard from the Ice Cloud Palace Master, who brought me to the God Realm, that Master possesses a special 'Ice Phoenix Soul'... Was that gifted by you?"
"That's correct," the Ice Phoenix maiden said. "I chose her when she was still a young girl and secretly gave her a part of my soul. As she grew and cultivated, the power within that soul slowly merged with her, gradually helping her break through to the Divine Lord Realm, making her the first Divine Lord and Realm King of the Yin Xue Realm."
"...I see." Yun Che murmured softly.
"Although my soul would not harm her, its level was too high for her. Fusing the divine power within it was incredibly difficult and took an immeasurably long time. Over the course of ten thousand years, she had only managed to fuse about two-tenths of that power. To fully merge, it would have originally taken at least another thirty thousand years."
"But you greatly accelerated this process."
"Eh?" Yun Che was about to ask, but then something struck him. His voice faltered, and his expression twisted with awkwardness. "Well... about this matter... actually, I don't really know anything..."
"Your Evil God divine aura and your Dragon God divine aura are both of a higher level than my soul. Your union of yin and yang bestowed a trace of the Evil God's divine aura upon her body, removing almost all barriers to the fusion between her body and the soul I had granted her, thus allowing her power to grow rapidly in a short time."
Yun Che clearly wanted to steer away from this topic, but the Ice Phoenix maiden continued directly, ignoring his awkward expression. Fortunately, her tone was exceptionally calm, without any waves, so at least Yun Che's old face didn't completely cramp up.
"Regarding this matter, I was compelled... unintentionally involved." Feeling that the more he explained, the more awkward it became, Yun Che quickly shifted the topic: "So, does that mean Master has known of your existence for a long time?"
"She indeed knows of my existence but has never seen me," the Ice Phoenix maiden said. "You are the only human who has ever seen me."
"Originally, I planned to gradually bestow my power upon her and then dissipate on my own. But just then, I suddenly had a premonition of unease. So I continued to exist... until I sensed that terrifying aura and your arrival."
"At that time, the Evil God aura on you astonished me, and your memories showed me many secrets that even the ancient era knew nothing about. Perhaps my lingering existence was also arranged by heaven."
The truths she told Yun Che were, for the most part, actually derived from Yun Che himself. His memories, combined with her cognition, allowed her to see one after another of those terrifying or astonishing ancient secrets.
"This... is this the secret you mentioned about my master?" Yun Che asked with a skeptical look.
Last time the Ice Phoenix maiden had spoken about it, she had been hesitant and had ultimately refrained from finishing. But what she had just stated—the fact that Mu Xuanyin possessed an Ice Phoenix Soul—Mu Bingyun had already told him many years ago, and voluntarily at that.
If it was to be considered a secret, it was only barely so. And the Ice Phoenix maiden's attitude last time had clearly indicated that it was something difficult to articulate, eventually leading her to choose silence.
"..." The Ice Phoenix maiden fell quiet and did not respond immediately. After a long pause, she spoke softly: "Never mind. After much deliberation, I think it's better not to tell you this matter. The relationship between you and her is currently in the best possible state. Telling you would serve no benefit and would only create unnecessary 'resistance'."
"???" Yun Che frowned. The Ice Phoenix maiden's words were extraordinarily cryptic, and since it concerned Mu Xuanyin, he was particularly eager to know. He pressed: "What do you mean? Is there something important that Master is deliberately hiding from me?"
"No, it is something she does not know and cannot control." The Ice Phoenix maiden felt Yun Che's eagerness—an unusually strong eagerness—and she faintly sensed what it meant.
She let out a soft breath of ice and whispered: "This is a secret that, if revealed, would only create negative psychology. It's better for you not to know... and there is simply no need to know."
"No," Yun Che shook his head firmly. "If it concerns Master, I must know!"
"..." The Ice Phoenix maiden sighed lightly. "Very well. But I give you time to think and be rational. After you face the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor, if you still insist on knowing this secret, I will tell you completely before I dissipate."
"..." Yun Che wanted to say more, but the Ice Phoenix maiden continued: "You won't have to wait long, because that day is already very, very close."
"Very close!?" Yun Che's attention was immediately diverted, and he said in a low voice: "How close is very close? Since you can already clearly sense the aura of the 'Cosmic Thorn', can you estimate roughly how long until the Chaos Wall is completely severed?"
Several seconds of cold silence, then the Ice Phoenix maiden answered: "Within one month."
"...!!" Those five short words made Yun Che's gaze tremble violently.
Within... one month!
This was a span of time so short that it was impossible not to be terrified.
"Within a month? How... how can it be so fast?" Yun Che gasped, a chill running down his spine.
"Unless the power of the Cosmic Thorn suddenly wanes greatly, the Chaos Wall will inevitably shatter within a month. Your return is still timely."
Yun Che: "..." (One month... dammit!)
"The star realm called Zhou Tian Realm will also certainly take action soon."
The Ice Phoenix maiden's words made Yun Che start, and he immediately said: "Right! I just met with Zhou Tian Shen Di. The Zhou Tian Realm has opened a dimensional array to the Eastern Extreme of Chaos, and will soon hold the Zhou Tian Assembly to deal with the Crimson Calamity, forcibly ordering all Divine Lords of the Eastern Divine Region to attend."
All Divine Lords...
When he had first heard it, he had been deeply shaken.
But thinking about who they were facing—the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor—not to mention all Divine Lords of the Eastern Divine Region, even if all the Divine Lords of the entire God Realm were gathered, before a Demon Emperor, they would be nothing but a swarm of locusts that could be crushed at will.
But aside from that, what else could be done?
No wonder, when saying the word "truth," even someone like Zhou Tian Shen Di had shown such pessimism and darkness... almost despair.
...
Wait!? How did Zhou Tian Shen Di know the truth?
Right! It was the Zhou Tian Pearl!
The Ice Phoenix Spirit had said that the only ones who knew the secret of the Evil God and the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor being husband and wife were her and the four Creation Gods... naturally including the Order Creation God, Xike.
The Zhou Tian Pearl's master in ancient times was Xike, so it made sense for its artifact spirit to know!
And if the Ice Phoenix Spirit could sense the aura of the Cosmic Thorn, the Zhou Tian Pearl had no reason not to sense it!
The aura of the Cosmic Thorn, combined with the secret of the Evil God and the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor being husband and wife, would naturally allow one to guess the terrifying truth: that the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor had survived in the Outer Chaos because of the Evil God's Cosmic Thorn and would return!
Thinking of the lusterless look in Zhou Tian Shen Di's eyes when he mentioned the "Zhou Tian Assembly," Yun Che took a deep breath... Facing a returning Demon Emperor, even the highest existences of the present age felt only powerlessness.
This Zhou Tian Assembly was more like a desperate struggle under the unwillingness to sit and wait for death... a struggle of utter powerlessness.
"I just received the qualification to go to the Zhou Tian Realm from Zhou Tian Shen Di," Yun Che said with a furrowed brow. "I will go to the Zhou Tian Realm with Master as soon as possible. I will stay there until the Chaos Wall cracks open."
"Everything is entrusted to you. May you become the eternal glory of humanity, and may the great will of the Evil God shine forth with the divine light of salvation."
With the Ice Phoenix Spirit's hopes and the mission and burden of "saving the world," Yun Che took his leave of the Ice Phoenix and floated up from the water.
His body broke through the surface of the pool, but Yun Che did not leave immediately. He stood in the cold mist at the center of the Heavenly Lake, eyes closed, calming himself for a long time.
Everything he had learned from the Ice Phoenix had impacted him far too greatly.
"He Ling," he said very softly, "my life has been very short, but it has been 'eventful' to an excessive degree."
"Master, don't worry too much," He Ling comforted him gently. "Just as you said yourself, even if you fail, you can still protect yourself and those around you."
"...Where is Hong'er?"
"She secretly ate a lot of purple crystals just now, and now she's sleeping," He Ling replied in a low voice.
"~！#￥%... Sneaking food again!" Yun Che's eyes widened. But thinking of her identity—the daughter of the Evil God and the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor—the corner of his mouth twitched violently. "Forget it, forget it. Purple crystals are fine. Tell her she doesn't need to sneak around anymore, she can eat as much as she wants! And those swords too, don't hide them anymore. Let her eat to her heart's content."
"In short, try to keep her happy these days. Whew..."
Yun Che had always thought Hong'er was a little ancestor because if she didn't get her way, she would cause endless trouble and needed to be well taken care of.
Now he realized she was not just a little ancestor... she was a super big ancestor! She was the daughter of a Creation God and a Demon Emperor, ahhhhh!
Using the daughter of a Creation God and a Demon Emperor as a sword... He wondered if the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor would slap him into ashes on the spot if she found out.
Uh... probably not, since their lives were still linked.
"Hong'er is always carefree. As long as she's fed and well-rested, she's happy anytime," He Ling said. "But Master, I feel that your heart is very heavy. Are you worried... that it will be difficult to achieve your goal?"
Yun Che twitched the corner of his mouth but found it hard to smile. He said quietly: "Even if everything develops in the best possible way and we get the best results... what then?"
He Ling: "Ah?"
"The Ice Phoenix Spirit repeatedly emphasized one sentence: the chaos of today is a world that neither needs gods nor should have gods." Yun Che gazed into the distance, his heart heavy. "Under the current state and laws of chaos, if a Demon Emperor suddenly appears, even if she does not bring disaster to the world, will the world truly be at peace?"
"In the ancient era, the sudden appearance of a Demon Emperor's aura would not have caused chaos in the world. But... you have seen the current state of Lan Ji Star and the Yin Xue Realm. That was merely a trace of leaked Demon Emperor aura, and it affected today's world to such an extent."
"One can imagine that the chaos of today simply cannot withstand the aura of a Demon Emperor's level. The mere existence of a Demon Emperor is already a disaster. Given enough time, the existing order and laws might even collapse... In other words, even the best outcome is still an unpredictable catastrophe."
"Master..." He Ling murmured. "But at least Master can minimize the catastrophe. If you succeed, you will still be the savior of the world."
Yun Che shook his head and said: "I haven't truly faced the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor yet, so it's not time to think about what comes after. My greatest hope right now is that the Heaven's Calamity Demon Emperor, whom the Evil God loved so deeply, will be a demon with a good and righteous nature..."
Flying out of the Heavenly Lake, Yun Che prepared to leave. But as he turned his body, the corner of his eye caught a slightly unusual glint.
Yun Che paused, instinctively turning his gaze toward a corner of the Minghan Heavenly Lake: "What is that?"