Chapter 1560: Shifting the Array
The Northern Territory of the Central Ruins was the most peaceful area in the Central Ruins Realm, rarely ravaged by storms. The battlefield of the Central Ruins Battle was located here.
Around the Central Ruins battlefield stood four palaces perpetually shrouded in barriers, belonging to the Realm King sects of the four realms—the East Ruins Sect of the Eastern Ruins Realm, the West Ruins Sect of the Western Ruins Realm, the North Cold City of the Northern Ruins Realm, and the Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom of the Southern Ruins Realm.
Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er arrived at the location of the East Ruins Sect. The moment they approached, they were stopped by someone.
"Halt! This is the territory of the East Ruins Sect. Unauthorized entry is forbidden!" the guarding disciple barked sternly.
Yun Che took out the token that Dong Xueyan had thrown to him that day and said calmly, "Inform your Sect Master that Yun Che has come at his invitation!"
...
Inside the East Ruins Hall.
"Big Brother, you're here."
Sensing his aura, Dong Xueyan hurried out to greet him. Dong Xueci was not only her elder brother but also the pride she willingly looked up to for her entire life. In her eyes, among the Five Realms of the Secluded Ruins, aside from Beihan Chu, no one of the same generation could compare to him.
Dong Xueci swept his gaze around and asked, "Where is Father?"
"Father has gone to see the North Cold Divine Lord. He is probably confirming the matter of Beihan Chu and Nanhuang Chanyi," Dong Xueyan said. As she spoke, she suddenly noticed that Dong Xueci's face was heavy with gloom. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Just ran into some idiot asking for death," Dong Xueci said coldly. "At least it'll add a bit of entertainment after the Central Ruins Battle."
Dong Xueyan did not press further and instead asked, "What about Yun Che? Did Big Brother test his strength? Although Ninth Master thinks highly of him for some reason... that arrogant and insolent attitude of his, I really don't want to see him in the Central Ruins Battle."
Dong Xueci's expression darkened further. "I followed Father's orders and waited an extra day for him personally, but I didn't even catch a glimpse of his shadow. Hah."
"What?!" Dong Xueyan's expression changed slightly, and her voice turned colder. "He dares to defy the will of our East Ruins Sect?"
Just then, an East Ruins disciple hurried over and transmitted a message from outside the hall: "Both Your Highnesses, Yun Che requests an audience."
Both of them turned around simultaneously, their expressions shifting again. "Yun Che?!"
"He holds the East Ruins Token, inscribed with the name Yun Che. It has been verified as authentic," the East Ruins disciple reported.
"Hmph!" Dong Xueyan flicked her sleeves and strode out quickly. Dong Xueci, his face dark, also stepped out. Although Yun Che had shown up after all, the fact that he had made them wait an extra day without appearing was already an unforgivable crime.
Dong Xueyan exited the hall and immediately spotted Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er. She frowned deeply and scolded, "Yun Che, how dare you still show your face?!"
"I came at your invitation. Why wouldn't I dare?" Yun Che countered.
"Heh," accustomed to being revered and looked up to, the sight of Yun Che's stiff, cold face devoid of any respect reignited her inexplicable fury. "Participants in the Central Ruins Battle must undergo pre-battle assessments, and there are extremely important formation preparations! I clearly told you to come to the East Ruins Sect early. Who allowed you to come directly to the Central Ruins Realm?!"
Yun Che remained unmoved. "I only agreed to participate in the Central Ruins Battle for the East Ruins Sect. I never agreed to go to the East Ruins Sect!"
"You—!" Dong Xueyan grew angrier. Just then, a voice tinged with mockery and gloom sounded from behind her: "So this is Yun Che?"
Dong Xueci walked over slowly, his half-lidded eyes fixed on Yun Che with a sinister, icy stare. Noticing his unusual expression, Dong Xueyan raised an eyebrow. "Big Brother, have you met him before?"
"Met him? Of course, I have." Dong Xueci broke into a smile, but his smile carried an obvious chill. "Quite coincidentally, he's the idiot asking for death I mentioned just now."
"He dared to show disrespect to you?" Dong Xueyan's face instantly turned as dark as water. His disrespect toward her she could tolerate with suppressed anger, but disrespect toward her big brother was truly seeking death... even if he was someone Ninth Master valued highly.
"Heh, disrespect is putting it mildly." Dong Xueci's lips curled up. Looking at the "defecting" Yun Che, he suddenly stopped being angry. He realized that with his own esteemed status, someone like Yun Che was nothing more than a clown who thought too highly of himself but was in fact utterly stupid. His earlier verbal insults were merely the barking of an ignorant fool—hardly worth his attention or anger.
"Yun Che," he said with a smirk. "Do you dare to repeat the words you said to me earlier to my face?"
"Have your father come out," Yun Che said, still expressionless. "You are not worthy to speak with me."
Dong Xueci and Dong Xueyan were both stunned for a moment. Then Dong Xueci threw his head back and burst into wild laughter, clapping his hands as he laughed. "Hahahaha! Excellent! Absolutely excellent! Xueyan, don't you think the world would be much more entertaining with a few more fools like this? Hahahaha!"
"Yun... Che!" Dong Xueyan wasn't laughing. Her face was so dark it was slightly twisted, and her voice carried clear murderous intent. "It seems you truly are... sincerely seeking death!"
"No need to be angry." Dong Xueci maintained his smiling expression. The way he looked at Yun Che had completely changed to that of looking at an idiot. Even his voice became lazy and weak. "Take back his East Ruins Token. Even if he does have the strength Ninth Master believes he has... a fool like this, if he joins the Central Ruins Battle team, it would be a disgrace to our East Ruins."
"Fine!" Dong Xueyan didn't hesitate at all. She extended her finger and pointed. Light flashed, and the East Ruins Token in Yun Che's hand instantly dissipated, turning into small patches of quickly fading residual light until it completely vanished.
"Big Brother, how do you plan to deal with them?"
"Get lost." Dong Xueci's face was full of mockery and contempt. "You should be grateful this is the Central Ruins Realm. Otherwise... tsk tsk. Oh, and I'll give you a friendly piece of advice: you'd better never return to the East Ruins Realm. That way, you might live a little longer."
Yun Che silently watched the East Ruins Token dissipate, a strange light flashing deep in his eyes. He turned around directly. "Let's go."
Qianye Ying'er didn't say a word and followed him away.
Dong Xueyan's brow furrowed. She took a step forward but immediately stepped back. "Big Brother, are we just letting them off like this? To dare show such contempt for our East Ruins Sect, even if Father were here, he would never let them off."
"This is the Central Ruins Realm," Dong Xueci said indifferently. "A jumping jack like that isn't worth me breaking the rules here. But really, how ridiculous—a mere Level 5 Divine King made me personally wait an extra day... Is Ninth Master blind?!"
"Huh? Level 5 Divine King?" Dong Xueyan was startled. "Ninth Master said earlier he was a Level 1 Divine King... but he also mentioned he might be using some Profound Artifact to suppress his aura."
"Ninth Master is indeed getting old," Dong Xueci shook his head. "To have summoned such a laughingstock."
"Do we need to inform Father about this?" Dong Xueyan asked.
"No need." Dong Xueci replied. "Father has been troubled lately by the marriage alliance between the Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom and North Cold City. A mere laughingstock isn't worth spoiling his mood."
...
"Where to now?" Qianye Ying'er asked. She now understood why Yun Che had deliberately provoked Dong Xueci earlier... it was clearly intentional.
"What do you think?"
"Nanhuang Chanyi!" Qianye Ying'er said slowly... Obviously, Yun Che had changed his mind after encountering Nanhuang Chanyi.
"On one side, the arrogant East Ruins Sect; on the other, the Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom, which has always been trampled underfoot by the other three realms in the Central Ruins Battle and is now in a delicate situation. Helping the latter win the Central Ruins Battle will clearly bring me greater benefits."
The Yun Che who once valued honor and loyalty above all had now become one who prioritized profit above all else.
And what was even more despicable was that he was leading the other party to actively break the agreement!
"Are you sure you're not interested in her as a person?" Qianye Ying'er asked, her beautiful eyes slanting. "The number one beauty of the Five Realms of the Secluded Ruins—what a tantalizing title. A man's temperament can change drastically, but his innate baser instincts can never disappear... right?"
As the Divine Maiden who had been defiled by Yun Che, she seemed to quite hope that Yun Che would ravage those lofty women... Perhaps it would give her some kind of morbid psychological balance.
Yun Che said nothing, as if he deemed it unworthy of a response.
Just then, an especially violent storm arose without warning.
Rumble!
The space hummed, sand and stones flew everywhere. The tri-colored Liuyin Stone around Yun Che's neck was lifted high, and in the turbulent storm force, the stones collided with each other, emitting continuous maidenly voices:
"Daddy, Wuxin misses you!"
"Daddy, don't do dangerous things!"
"Daddy, don't fool around with other women!"
The sounds released by the Liuyin Stone were very faint, instantly drowned by the storm... Yun Che's footsteps halted. His face was stiff, his expression and features maintained without a tremor, but his body was trembling, uncontrollably trembling. One breath... five breaths... ten breaths... It just couldn't stop.
The time when Yun Wuxin had made the Liuyin Stone was when Qianye Ying'er, under the slave mark, was protecting her and even helped her imprint her voice to its most perfect state. So she knew very well what the Liuyin Stone that Yun Che always wore around his neck was.
It was also during that time that she had witnessed with her own eyes the bond between Yun Che and Yun Wuxin, a bond that surpassed even the connection of life itself.
Qianye Ying'er's footsteps halted as well. She didn't speak, but then, for some reason, she suddenly felt unwilling to look at Yun Che's current state. She turned her gaze away and said coldly, "Take it off. What you can't see or hear won't pierce your heart and disturb your soul."
"None... of your... business!" Yun Che said coldly. As he spoke, a thin trace of blood seeped from between his lips.
Even though he had buried himself in the abyss of darkness, every time he thought about how he would never see his daughter again in this life, never see them again... the pain and despair were still the same.
But even so, he never wanted to take off the Liuyin Stone.
The storm gradually subsided, the dust settled, and a golden figure swiftly passed through their line of sight.
A golden robe with phoenix patterns, a phoenix crown with dangling pearls, and an indescribable air of nobility and divine aura—it was unmistakably Nanhuang Chanyi!
The Central Ruins Realm was plagued by storms, and during the Central Ruins Battle period, any Profound Practitioner could enter, making it a mixed bag of people. As the Crown Princess of the Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom, Nanhuang Chanyi should have been surrounded by countless guards, yet at this moment, she was completely alone, which was indeed quite strange.
Just as they spotted Nanhuang Chanyi, she also noticed them, but she didn't stop or turn her gaze, drifting past them gracefully.
Since they had come for Nanhuang Chanyi in the first place, encountering her alone like this was the best possible outcome. Yun Che shifted his footing, and with Phantom Lightning Extreme, he chased after her like a bolt of lightning and flashed in front of her. Caught off guard, she nearly collided with him.
Even an ordinary commoner would frown if someone suddenly blocked their path, let alone the Crown Princess of the Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom. However, after Nanhuang Chanyi came to a hurried yet exceptionally graceful stop, there was not a trace of anger to be seen. A glint as bright as the bright moon flickered through her bead curtain and gently fell on Yun Che. "May I ask what business you have, young master?"
Not only was she not startled, angry, or flustered, but even her voice as it left her lips was so gentle and melodious that it seemed to soothe even the storms around them.
"How about we make a deal?" Yun Che cut straight to the point.
"Oh?"
"In this Central Ruins Battle, I will become a participating Profound Practitioner of the Southern Ruins Realm!" Yun Che declared. His previous sentence had been "How about we make a deal," but this one was clearly a command that brooked no dispute.
The light behind the bead curtain seemed to flicker slightly. Nanhuang Chanyi spoke softly, "This time, my Southern Phoenix Divine Kingdom has already confirmed the ten Profound Practitioners for the Central Ruins Battle. Your origins are unclear, and your cultivation level is far inferior. Why would you suddenly have this thought?"