# Chapter 1733: Falling Moon (3)
Under the moonlight, Xia Qingyue slowly rose. As her figure and features turned, even the moonlight seemed to dim by several degrees.
The purple garment slipped from her body, her rounded shoulders and collarbones appearing like heavenly crafted jade, her skin's luster surpassing even the moon's radiance.
The snow-white flesh was barely revealed before being concealed by red robes. Her long hair cascaded down, her head lifted, and her beautiful eyes slowly swept across Divine Moon City. Beneath the moonlight, she was like a legendary moon goddess who had descended from the heavens, a peerless beauty and divine charm that mortal brushes and pigments could never hope to depict.
Her jade hand lifted lightly, and a point of purple light flashed, manifesting as the Purple Que Divine Sword, which belonged only to the Moon God Emperor and possessed a world-shaking reputation. Purple light flowed over the sword's body, as deep and profound as her own pupils.
Her arm leveled, yet her gaze did not linger on the sword's body. Instead, she silently stared at her own bright red sleeves... After a long daze, her figure slowly faded, and she was already outside Divine Moon City, heading toward the direction from which Qianye Ying'er's aura emanated.
——
Within the vast star domain, the existence of the Moon God Realm was exceptionally conspicuous.
The Star God Realm eternally bathed in starlight, while the Moon God Realm eternally bathed in moonlight. Compared to the brilliance of starlight, moonlight was gentle and mysterious. It was serene and hazy, as if every strand of moonlight concealed endless secrets—some distant and profound, others desolate and beautiful.
"Star God and Moon God — in ancient times, they were of the same lineage. Perhaps even they never imagined that the mortals who inherited their divine power would become enemies."
Qianye Ying'er gazed at the Moon God Realm from afar. No one could deny that among the four divine regions, the Star God Realm was the most dazzling, and the Moon God Realm the most ethereally beautiful.
In this regard, the destruction of the Star God Realm was truly a pity.
"Wasn't their enmity instigated by you?" Yun Che glanced at her sideways.
"I merely added a few sparks to the fire," Qianye Ying'er said leisurely. "If they didn't have enough old grievances, and weren't foolish enough to take the bait, how could they have been so easily hooked?"
Yun Che: "..."
"Speaking of which..." Facing the Moon God Realm, Qianye Ying'er asked a question she had repeated many times since the Northern Divine Region: "After you married Xia Qingyue, did you never touch her even once?"
"No!" Yun Che replied coldly.
"Ah..." Qianye Ying'er let out a sigh of ambiguous meaning. "What a pity. Truly a pity. Such a beautiful body — I almost can't bear to imagine her being toyed with by a man."
"Such a woman, married to you with full ceremony, yet you couldn't lay a hand on her. Just how useless were you back then?"
Yun Che shot her a cold glare. "Whether I'm useless or not, is there anyone in this world who knows better than you?!"
Qianye Ying'er: "..."
"But your scolding is not wrong." Yun Che's voice grew heavy. "Back then, I never wished to go against her will. I was wary of and doubted everyone, yet I never guarded against or doubted her. And yet, she was the one who made me the most naive and foolish person in this world. Heh, truly laughable."
"... I received some good news." Qianye Ying'er suddenly spoke. "Internal strife erupted in the Saint Universe Realm. Luo Changsheng escaped, his whereabouts unknown. Luo Guxie has also left the Saint Universe Realm, seemingly to look for Luo Changsheng."
"As for the Saint Universe Sect, in order to suppress the news, they have strictly sealed off the realm." Qianye Ying'er finished and her beautiful eyes shifted. "Interested in hearing about Luo Changsheng's origins?"
"Not interested!" Yun Che's gaze was fixed firmly on the Moon God Realm. The scene of Xia Qingyue severing the Blue Pole Star before his eyes was etched into his soul every single day, every single moment, as clear as ever.
Back then, Luo Changsheng was an opponent he had exhausted everything — nearly his life — to barely defeat. Now, although Luo Changsheng had experienced three thousand years in the Zhou Tian Realm, he no longer had the qualifications to be mentioned in the same breath as Yun Che.
"Don't underestimate anyone. Sometimes, a piece you initially didn't take seriously can play a considerable — even irreplaceable — role at a certain moment." Qianye Ying'er smiled cryptically. "Especially when it's Luo Changsheng."
As her voice fell, Qianye Ying'er's golden eyes suddenly flickered, and she slowly turned around.
A red figure, carrying the pressure of an emperor, emerged as if stepping out of a dream, manifesting slowly before their eyes.
The Moon God Realm, bathed in moonlight, resembled a vast, brilliant moon shining in the star domain. Xia Qingyue stood at the moon's center in their line of sight. The moment she appeared, the entire Moon God Realm became her backdrop, and even the moonlight seemed to shine only upon her alone.
Yun Che's hands clenched violently, then slowly loosened. As he raised his head, a cold gleam shot from his eyes — a chill he could not suppress no matter what.
The Xia Qingyue before him was still as peerlessly beautiful as ever, so breathtaking that one glance could make one forget the past and fall into an eternal dream.
She was clad in red robes, just like their first meeting on their wedding day. But this red at this moment was so piercing and heart-wrenching... as if stained with the blood of all his loved ones.
"Yun Che, Qianye Ying'er, it's been a while."
Xia Qingyue spoke slowly. Compared to Yun Che's gaze that seemed to solidify into tangible, piercing cold light, her words and her purple eyes were as calm as still water, as light as smoke.
"No, not a while at all." The corners of Yun Che's mouth split bit by bit, his voice carrying a frenzied edge that threatened to erupt at any moment. "I see you every single day... in my nightmares!"
A cold wind blew, lifting Xia Qingyue's long hair and the hem of her red robes. Bathed in the moonlight from the Moon God Realm, she presented a scene of heartbreaking beauty. She looked at Yun Che, her beautiful eyes devoid of emotion, only a faint detachment that seemed never to melt away: "The Northern Domain's Demon Lord, who annihilates countless lives in the blink of an eye and plunges the vast Eastern Divine Region into misery — even he has nightmares?"
"Heh, hehehe." Yun Che laughed, his laughter unspeakably sinister. "My little tricks — compared to the Moon God Emperor, who destroyed her homeland for the throne of the Divine Emperor — what are they?"
"When it comes to cruelty, when it comes to ruthlessness, who in this world... can match you, Moon God Emperor!"
KRAK!
As Yun Che's voice grew increasingly harsh, his teeth ground together, nearly shattering.
"Sigh," Xia Qingyue sighed softly. "Compared to the position of Moon God Emperor, the mere Blue Pole Star is as insignificant as a grain of sand in the vast ocean. What is there that cannot be abandoned? Yun Che, you are already the Northern Domain's Demon Lord, yet you still don't understand such a simple truth?"
"Understand? Of course I understand." Yun Che raised his hand, every finger trembling. Finally facing Xia Qingyue, the faces of his family, parents, beloved women, daughter, sect... Those soul-carved visages intertwined with the scene of the Blue Pole Star's fall in a brutally cruel tapestry, making him relive that nightmare of losing everything.
"What is a homeland? What are loved ones?" He muttered in a voice of extreme gloom and sarcasm. "They are weaknesses! They must be abandoned — better yet, personally erased!"
"And me? What am I? Naturally, a tool!" His smile twisted gradually. "When I was valued by the Demon Emperor, hailed by the world as the 'Savior Divine Son,' how attentive and caring you were — even sending the Fandi Shennü to me as a slave!"
Qianye Ying'er: "..."
"And when I became a demon, a stain on your record as the Moon God Emperor, you abandoned me without hesitation — and had to personally kill me!"
"Tch!" Yun Che shook his head, a faint sneer on his lips. "Same age, born in the same Flowing Cloud City, from the same Blue Pole Star. Compared to you, the Moon God Emperor, how childish and foolish I was — like a pitiful, unknowing larva, trampled beneath your feet, toyed with in the palm of your hand, yet naively seeing you as the person I trusted and cherished most in the divine realm, someone I would give everything for. Hah... hahahaha. How ridiculous. How utterly ridiculous!"
Xia Qingyue's lips parted slightly as she spoke indifferently: "It's a pity that back then, I still harbored a shred of pity for you. I didn't choose to execute you immediately but gave you time to speak your final words... And in those few brief breaths, you managed to survive, eventually becoming the threat you are today."
She lifted her head slightly, her red robes fluttering, the purple light in her eyes reflecting boundless imperial might: "That was my mistake back then, and I shall personally correct it!"
"Heh, you?" Qianye Ying'er narrowed her eyes, a faint cold smile on her lips. "Moon God Emperor, you actually dared to come alone. I may not be what I once was, but do you think... Yun Che is still the Yun Che of old?!"
"Killing you is more than enough!" Her cold gaze condensed with authority, purple light swirling. With a sweep of her red sleeve, a point of purple light was grasped between her jade fingers. Though the tip of the sword emitted but a single point of purple light, it seemed to simultaneously press against Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er's throats.
But Qianye Ying'er did not move. Her golden eyes met Xia Qingyue's purple eyes. Though they were two pairs of eyes that gathered boundless grace, as beautiful as celestial illusions, they clashed with the hellish chill and killing intent of the Nine Nether: "Moon God Emperor, before we fight, don't you want to first see the grand welcoming gift Yun Che has specially prepared for you?"
Xia Qingyue: "...?"
"Xia Qingyue." Yun Che averted his gaze, his eyes falling on the Moon God Realm behind her, which was pouring down silver-white moonlight. For the first time, he addressed her not as "Moon God Emperor," but as "Xia Qingyue."
"This Demon Lord has returned to the Eastern Divine Region. Even that Zhou Tian Ancestor couldn't be bothered to deal with. But you — I must personally grant you death!"
"Before you die, this Demon Lord will give you a grand gift. In the coming moments, you had better watch closely. Don't miss a single scene — otherwise, it would be far too great a pity."
"..." Xia Qingyue's brows furrowed slightly. The voice in her ears was so familiar.
These were the words she had spoken to Yun Che before the Blue Pole Star back then... Not a single character different, and even the tone and gaze were so alike.
One could imagine how deeply that day's scene was branded into his soul.
She saw Yun Che's fingers slowly pinch together. A deep sense of unease suddenly rose in her heart. "You..."
His fingers gently shifted, producing a crisp "crack" sound.
BOOM——————
A thunderous roar, as if the cosmos had overturned and ten thousand peaks had collapsed. The surrounding space shattered layer by layer, the entire star domain trembling violently.
Xia Qingyue whirled around sharply. In her purple-tinged pupils appeared the Moon God Realm, hazy and illusory in the moonlight... and the black light that shot skyward, mercilessly piercing through the Moon God Realm.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!
Chaotic explosions rang out like apocalyptic thunder. The Moon God Realm split in two under the black light, then disintegrated and was destroyed in the wildly erupting darkness. In the blink of an eye, it turned into countless silver-white fragments and moon dust, spreading into a dazzling, incomparably beautiful curtain of destruction.
But this breathtaking scene was far too brief. As the scattered fragments and moon dust were frantically devoured by the darkness, they quickly lost all their moonlight... until they were consumed and annihilated in the darkness, returning to the nothingness of the void.
——
[One more chapter — definitely after midnight. Don't stay up late. Read it when you wake up tomorrow morning!]