Chapter 1468: Protective Talisman?
After Yun Che returned to Yin Xue Realm, his initial intention was to go see the Ice Phoenix Divine Spirit as soon as possible. However, he had just managed to send off those Realm Kings who had come upon hearing the news when he was directly dragged away by Xia Qingyue again.
With Xia Qingyue's own power, flying back to Yue Shen Realm would only take half a day. But bringing along Yun Che, this dead weight, naturally made it much, much slower.
A fairly large Mysterious Ark was shuttling through the space of the Eastern Divine Region, trailing a remnant shadow like a sliver of moonlight.
Inside, there were only two people: Xia Qingyue and Yun Che.
Although Yue Shen Realm had lost the Dun Yue Immortal Palace, it still possessed a large number of high-grade Mysterious Arks and Mysterious Ships, but their speed and defensive capabilities were far inferior to the Dun Yue Immortal Palace. However, Xia Qingyue seemed to have no intention of taking the Dun Yue Immortal Palace back from Yun Che.
"Qingyue, what exactly are you taking me to do?" Yun Che admired Xia Qingyue's flawless back figure. "Last time, you didn't say much before leaving, and now you forcefully drag me away again. Women's minds are truly strange. Hmm... rest assured, even if the worst-case scenario happens in the future, I will ask Senior Jie Yuan to protect Yue Shen Realm."
"It's not about that," Xia Qingyue said softly.
"Then... you couldn't possibly want me to see with my own eyes your imperial prestige in Yue Shen Realm, could you?"
"We are not going to Yue Shen Realm."
"Huh?" Yun Che's brows jumped. "Then where are you taking me?"
Xia Qingyue slowly turned around. The light inside the Mysterious Ark was somewhat dim, but her body seemed to release a hazy moonlight radiance. Her figure and countenance were breathtakingly beautiful.
She didn't answer Yun Che's question but said leisurely, "So you really did die three years ago."
"Master told you?" Yun Che was slightly startled.
"Mm. She told me a lot about you, including your matter with Tiansha Xingshen." Xia Qingyue's beautiful eyes shifted slightly. "After the news of you bearing the Evil God's Divine Power spread, many people would think that your relationship with Tiansha Xingshen might be extraordinary. After all, back then, it was she who obtained the Evil God's Indestructible Blood in the Southern Divine Region and then disappeared for eight years."
"At the end of the Profound God Convention, you unexpectedly chose the Star God Realm. Putting it all together, it's hard for people not to have some wild thoughts."
Yun Che curled his lips. "Strange. Master has an extremely cold nature, unwilling to interact with others, and even less willing to trust anyone easily. So why does she trust you so much? Not only telling you these things but also casually allowing you to take me out... When did you two become so close? Could it be that you've been visiting Master frequently these past few years?"
"No, I am not very familiar with Senior Mu, and I have not seen her many times. Before you returned to Yin Xue Realm, I had truly only met her once."
That time was when she left Yun Che in Yin Xue Realm, and Mu Xuanyin infiltrated Yue Shen Realm in hiding to question her about Yun Che's whereabouts.
"Then how could Master trust you so much?" Yun Che was completely puzzled. He was the closest to Mu Xuanyin and the one who understood her temperament best.
"Probably a woman's intuition," Xia Qingyue said.
Yun Che: "...?"
"There is one thing about Tiansha Xingshen that you probably don't know." Xia Qingyue said softly. "Back when you and I fell into Qianye Ying'er's hands in Tai Chu Divine Realm, the reason we were able to escape was that Tiansha Xingshen and Tianlang Xingshen suddenly appeared and blocked Qianye Ying'er."
"!!" Yun Che's gaze sharpened.
"Her spiritual perception must have sensed something, so she had been following behind Qianye and Gu Zhu. It seems she truly cares about you. No wonder you knowingly went to your death back then but still rushed to the Star God Realm."
"... " Thinking of Mo Li, Yun Che's heart sank. But then, remembering that she was still alive, even the shadow brought by the "Evil Infant" seemed to amount to nothing.
"Also, you probably haven't forgotten that the one chasing us back then wasn't just Qianye, but also a gray-clad old man. His strength was terrifyingly powerful, no less than any Brahma God of the Brahma Emperor God Realm. Tiansha and Tianlang stopped Qianye, and the one who stopped that gray-clad old man... was your master."
"What!?" Yun Che's mind shook violently again.
Back then, he had been tortured unconscious, so he hadn't seen the appearance of either Mo Li and Cai Zhi or that mysterious blue silhouette.
"She sealed her aura with Ice Profound Force. When fighting that gray-clad old man, she only used profound energy and didn't use any profound skills. Even so, there was still a risk of exposure. So, at that time, she saved you at the risk of implicating Yin Xue Realm." Glancing at Yun Che's expression, Xia Qingyue continued, "But now, Qianye and that gray-clad old man must already know it was your master."
"..." Yun Che was stunned for a long time.
"Ha! You died a swift and tragic death, died with deep affection, worthy of your Tiansha Xingshen! But... do you know how many people expended a great deal of effort and took immense risks to keep you alive, even nearly staking the future of an entire Star Realm, to give you a chance to survive in the Dragon God Realm? Yet you knowingly went to your death..."
"Besides Tiansha Xingshen, who else are you worthy of!"
He recalled how furious and enraged Mu Xuanyin had been when he returned to Yin Xue, and his heart was filled with mixed emotions.
"She is very good to you," Xia Qingyue said.
"Ah... mm!" Yun Che snapped back to reality and nodded vigorously. "Master has always been very good to me."
"Even in the memories of past Yue Shen Realms, it seems no master has ever been so good to their own disciple, to the point of disregarding even the Star Realm they lead." She raised her eyes to look at Yun Che and asked softly, "Senior Mu and you truly are just master and disciple, right?"
"Well... of course." Yun Che, who always liked gazing into Xia Qingyue's beautiful eyes, averted his gaze somewhat guiltily, looking at the cosmic space outside the Mysterious Ark. "Qingyue, you still haven't told me where exactly you're taking me and what for."
Xia Qingyue didn't ask further. She gently gathered her moon-sleeves and said, "Before I answer you, you answer a question first... It's best if you answer me honestly."
"What question?"
"Can you control..." Xia Qingyue's soft lips paused briefly, her voice slowing down, "Dark Profound Force?"
"......!!" Yun Che's gaze, which had been looking outside the Mysterious Ark, snapped back abruptly. He stared at Xia Qingyue in shock.
"You and I are alike. Neither of us was born in the God Realm, so I don't have a deep-rooted aversion to Dark Profound Force. You can rest assured," Xia Qingyue said indifferently.
Yun Che's first reaction was to deny it. But meeting Xia Qingyue's gaze and hearing her words, the denial surged to his throat but couldn't be spoken. He said in astonishment, "How do you know... Did Master tell you too?"
"No! That's impossible! Master would absolutely never tell you about this."
"Oh?" This time, it was Xia Qingyue's turn to be surprised. "So Senior Mu already knew as well."
Yun Che: "..."
"So that's how it is. It seems I was right. You do indeed possess Dark Profound Force." Although she was already about seventy percent convinced, confirming this still left Xia Qingyue with complicated feelings.
Even though she came from a lower realm and didn't have such a strong aversion to Dark Profound Force, the perceptions of the God Realm and the memories of past Yue Shen Emperors made her painfully aware of what a "demon" was in the eyes of the God Realm's people.
"How did you know?" Yun Che asked, eyes wide. Over these years, he had only used Dark Profound Force twice. Once was when he repaired the dark barrier of the Absolute Abyss, which Mu Xuanyin saw. The other time was in front of Jie Yuan, proving to her that he possessed Dark Profound Force.
At other times, he had perfect control over his Dark Profound Force, making it impossible for it to leak.
It couldn't be that Jie Yuan told her, could it?
"A month ago in the Zhou Tian God Realm, when you purified the Evil Infant demonic aura for Qianye Fantian, your emotions fluctuated several times. I asked you then what you wanted to do, and you said you wanted to poison him. Now I think back, the poison you mentioned was referring to the Heavenly Poison Pearl's poison, right."
"What does that have to do with whether I have Dark Profound Force or not?" Yun Che was even more confused.
"You casually said something at the time," Xia Qingyue glanced at him. "You said you had a way to directly conceal the 'poison' within the demonic aura inside his body, making him completely unaware. The other implication of this statement is that you can, to some extent, control dark demonic aura."
"That is to say, you have the ability to control Dark Profound Force. And its level should be quite high."
"..." Yun Che was dumbfounded, completely shocked. "Just... just from this? Because of this?"
"Isn't that enough?" Xia Qingyue asked back, tilting her head.
"It's not a question of whether it's enough." Yun Che's eyes and mouth twitched together. "I was just saying that casually at the time. If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten it myself. Just one offhand remark that slipped out, and you guessed that I have Dark Profound Force!? This... this... No, you... your mind is too sharp!"
"It's not that my mind is sharp, it's that you were too careless." Xia Qingyue gently shook her head again. "Probably, it's because you don't guard yourself in front of me."
"Why would I guard myself in front of you! Right now, you might be the Yue Shen Emperor in others' eyes, but in my eyes, you will always be Xia Qingyue, whom I formally married back then! In the God Realm, you and I are each other's only 'old acquaintance'. Am I supposed to focus all my energy, be cautious, and deliberate over and over again just for what I say and do in front of you?"
Yun Che suddenly became indignant.
Xia Qingyue's voice was calm. "Have you forgotten? Back then, we had already..."
"Tch!" Yun Che's lips curled, and he interrupted Xia Qingyue with a sneer. "You're going to talk about the marriage contract being destroyed again, right? Let me tell you, tearing up the marriage contract is useless! Our marriage registration is still fully preserved in Liu Yun City, and the witness is still alive and well."
"According to the rules of our Liu Yun City, unless I divorce you, or you bring evidence of my unworthiness as a husband and personally go to the household registry in Liu Yun City to go through various examinations and a whole bunch of procedures to dissolve the marriage registration, the two of us have always been husband and wife! Thinking that tearing up a marriage contract can sever the marital bond? Hmph, the new Yue Shen Emperor of Yue Shen Realm is really childish."
"..." Xia Qingyue was speechless for a good while.
"As a wife! When speaking with your husband, your mind should be filled with the way of being a wife and romantic matters. And yet you..."
"Enough. Let's talk about the serious matter." Xia Qingyue's lips moved slightly, her voice seeming cold yet gentle.
Yun Che's words also "obediently" stopped. He silently glanced at Xia Qingyue.
The change in Xia Qingyue was so great that it made him dazed.
Not to mention the time of their marriage, even when he first met Xia Qingyue again in the God Realm, she was still a person with a rather indifferent disposition. But back then, she felt guilt and confusion about taking him away, shame and anger when his hands were restless and offended her, panic and fear when chased by Qianye, and she could also show resentment and tears...
But now, Xia Qingyue's temperament and state of mind seemed to have undergone the sedimentation of thousands or even tens of thousands of years, reaching a terrifyingly calm and composed state.
Not only was her mind frighteningly meticulous, but her reaction to his words just now—neither happy nor angry, neither scolding nor refuting—only a faint "Enough. Let's talk about the serious matter."
"The thing I'm preparing to take you to do also relates to your 'Dark Profound Force'. Although it's possible to try without it, the probability of success will decrease significantly. This is for the best," Xia Qingyue said.
Having hit a soft yet tough wall, Yun Che's thoughts were forced to cool down. He had to talk about the serious business. "What exactly is it?"
"To find a protective talisman for you." Xia Qingyue's words were still as gentle as a soft breeze. "Your current situation is too dangerous."
Yun Che absolutely did not agree with this statement. He frowned and said, "Qingyue, you might think I'm arrogant for saying this, but under the current circumstances... I should be the person in the safest position in this world, right?"
Yun Che wasn't speaking recklessly. The arrival of Jie Yuan had completely changed the survival rules of the present era. Those who once stood at the very top of the food chain had no choice but to get close to and flatter Yun Che for the sake of safety and survival.
Moreover, even if those Demon Gods, upon their return to the world, slaughtered all living beings, Yun Che would definitely come out unscathed. Bearing the Evil God's Divine Power was secondary; the key was that his life was tied to Hong'er. Jie Yuan would absolutely never allow those Demon Gods to touch a hair on his head.
A protective talisman? Was there any stronger protective talisman in this world than Jie Yuan?