Chapter 1810: Little Willfulness
"Flirting with your sister?" Yun Che couldn't help but laugh, kneading her face like dough as he said, "What nonsense are you talking? She's your sister! With the great battle imminent, how could I have such strange thoughts."
"Hmph," Shui Meiyin said with a mischievous smile, "Even if your thoughts aren't there, your eyes and actions are still very honest."
Yun Che: (Huh??)
"These past two months, I've mentioned you to my sister every day," Shui Meiyin said with a cunning gleam in her eyes, speaking in a mysterious whisper. "I even 'secretly' told her that you've always had very improper thoughts about her, that you often secretly watch her back, and even asked me if she wanted to be your concubine."
"~!@#$%^..." Yun Che's eyes widened and his scalp went numb. "I... when did I ever say that!"
"Of course you didn't," Shui Meiyin blinked hard.
Yun Che sucked in a sharp breath.
No wonder Shui Yingyue had reacted so strangely to those few words from him earlier!
"I don't care," Shui Meiyin said, her starry eyes blinking, her soft pink lips curving into a cute yet stubborn arc. "My sister is the most beautiful, most perfect fairy in this world. Besides Yun Che-gege, I won't let anyone touch my sister!"
Yun Che: "…………"
"Worst case, someday I'll use my Stainless Divine Soul to knock my sister unconscious, strip her naked, and send her to Yun Che-gege's bed. A super pervert like you definitely, absolutely won't let her go, hehehe."
It sounded like a prank that only existed in a girl's imagination, but Yun Che could see in her eyes a hint of determination and... eagerness to try?
And that term "super pervert"... he hadn't heard it in a very, very long time.
"We'll talk about it later, talk about it later," Yun Che groaned, feeling helpless and weary.
But he noticed that the heavy weight that had been pressing down on his heart these past days had unconsciously eased quite a bit.
Shui Meiyin spun around, wrapping both arms around Yun Che's arm, pressing her soft, plump chest against him. "This is my first time in the Southern Divine Region, but I've heard many tales about it long ago. Especially from Ninety-ninth Brother, who told me more than once that if I ever came to the Southern Divine Region, I absolutely must visit a place called the [Seven Star Realm]."
"Seven Star Realm?" Yun Che searched through all the information he had about the Southern Divine Region, but found nothing familiar.
"It's a very small lower star realm. You probably haven't heard of it, Yun Che-gege," Shui Meiyin said in her ethereal, soul-stirring voice. "According to what Ninety-ninth Brother told me, its location isn't too close from here, but not extremely far either. If we travel a bit faster, we can reach it in about five or six hours."
"Let's go there together, okay?"
"Now?" Yun Che's brow twitched.
"Yes! Ninety-ninth Brother has talked about it so many times, so as soon as I entered the Southern Divine Region, the first thing that came to my mind was the Seven Star Realm." She looked at him, eyes sparkling like stars, clearly longing to visit this small star realm for a long time.
"…" Yun Che's first reaction was that Shui Meiyin was joking. His second was to refuse.
Even at their speed, it would take five or six hours—that was a considerable distance.
Round trip plus time spent there would take over a day. With only seven days left before the assault on the Dragon God Realm, as the core of the Northern Domain's forces, this was absolutely not the time for him to waste such hours.
"Let's go, let's go! Let's go right now, okay? Okay~~"
She shook his arm, her voice soft and sweet, her eyes full of longing, gently pushing back the words of refusal that were about to leave Yun Che's lips.
"What's so special about that Seven Star Realm? Why do you want to go there so badly?" Yun Che asked.
"Hmm..." She seemed to think about it seriously for a moment, then her jade-like face bloomed with charm as she pressed her pink lips close to his ear. "Actually, even though Ninety-ninth Brother really did mention it many times, that was just an excuse."
"I... I want to monopolize Yun Che-gege for a day... just the two of us, okay?"
Her warm breath touched him, her soft voice entered his soul, and he felt her little tongue secretly touch his ear, sending a wave of tingling sensation through his entire body.
"Alright, then let's go see the Seven Star Realm," Yun Che agreed generously, without any hint of reluctance. "I've been in the Southern Divine Region this whole time and haven't taken the chance to enjoy the local customs. It wouldn't be bad to relax a little before the battle with the Dragon God Realm."
He couldn't refuse Shui Meiyin, and he no longer wanted to.
She had given so much for him, and he had never done anything for her in return. How could he not satisfy this one little willfulness of hers?
He quickly sent sound transmissions to Chi Wuyue, Yan Tianxiao, and the others. Then, wrapping his arm around Shui Meiyin's slender, soft waist, he said, "Let's go! Whether it's the Seven Star Realm or the Nine Star Realm, I'll go with you wherever you want today."
"Mm!" Shui Meiyin's starry eyes burst with radiance. She tightened her arms and rested her head against his side, then said playfully, "Should I bring my sister along too?"
"Better not," Yun Che quickly shook his head.
"I can help you take advantage of her, you know."
"…Don't mess around!"
"Hehe!"
Just as they were about to set off, Cai Zhi's figure appeared in their line of sight.
Shui Meiyin had long known of Cai Zhi's name. Back during the Divine Prodigy Tournament in the Eastern Divine Region, when Shui Meiyin was only fifteen, Cai Zhi had seen her through the Zhou Tian projection.
But today was their first formal meeting.
However, compared to those days, Shui Meiyin's appearance and aura had undergone a earth-shattering transformation. As for Cai Zhi, due to the influence of the Celestial Wolf Divine Power, her appearance had hardly changed at all... except that after falling into darkness, she had lost that lovable brightness and gained a fearsome chill.
From a distance, Cai Zhi glanced at the two who were clinging tightly together. Without a word, without pause, she turned and walked away coldly.
Yun Che was about to call out to her, but Shui Meiyin's voice rang out before his: "Sister Cai Zhi."
"…" A brief hesitation, and Cai Zhi stopped. She turned around, and the two girls' gazes met. Both had black pupils, but one was as dark as an abyss, the other as bright as a starry sky.
"Sister?" Cai Zhi spoke indifferently, uncertain whether she was questioning the address or expressing displeasure.
By normal years, Shui Meiyin was several years younger than Cai Zhi. But if one strictly counted the three thousand years in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm… then Shui Meiyin was three thousand years older than Cai Zhi.
Who should call whom "sister" was actually a very tangled and complicated issue.
But to Shui Meiyin, there was not a hint of hesitation.
"I am Shui Meiyin of the Liuguang Realm, Yun Che-gege's betrothed wife," Shui Meiyin introduced herself to Cai Zhi with a somewhat solemn expression.
"I know," Cai Zhi replied, brief and cold.
Faced with Cai Zhi's coldness, Shui Meiyin still smiled sweetly. "Then... Sister Cai Zhi, I'm borrowing Yun Che-gege for a day. I'll return him to you tomorrow."
She glanced at Yun Che, then Cai Zhi turned her face away with a "swish" and said coldly, "He doesn't belong to me alone. No need to return him."
With that, she released her profound energy, and in a ripple of spatial distortion, she vanished into the distance.
Yun Che opened his mouth, then slowly let out a breath.
These years, Cai Zhi had changed far too much.
He clearly remembered that when he first met her all those years ago, she was dressed in a colorful skirt, like an adorable, sweet elf. She had cleverly deduced his identity through the smallest of clues and teased him thoroughly under the alias "Little Mo Li."
But now... she seemed to have sealed off her former world, forcing herself into another pitch-black, lightless world.
Looking down, he found Shui Meiyin gazing tenderly in the direction Cai Zhi had gone. She didn't look away for a long time.
"What are you looking at?" Yun Che asked.
Shui Meiyin's lips parted, and she said softly, "I'm looking at... a little girl who is trying so hard to wrap herself tightly in coldness, darkness, and resentment, but whose heart is actually drifting, lonely, filled with anxiety about gains and losses, afraid of herself, and even more afraid that the people she cares about... will hate her."
"…" Yun Che's heartstrings trembled.
"Yun Che-gege," Shui Meiyin said, raising her head, her voice soft and tender, "Next time, don't let her run away again. Catch up to her and hold her tight. If she struggles, hold her even tighter... and then she'll have no strength left to break free."
"She seems to need no one, but in truth... she needs you more than I do, more than anyone else."
Yun Che's gaze shifted back to the direction Cai Zhi had gone. He was lost in thought for a moment, then smiled slightly. "You always say such strange things... Let's go."
————
Hand in hand, the two flew side by side above the Ten Directions Canglan Realm, taking in the vast, azure royal realm below.
"How is your father's recovery going?" Yun Che asked.
"Father is in good condition. Especially after learning that his profound strength can fully recover, his spirits have improved a lot," Shui Meiyin replied with a happy smile.
Yun Che said apologetically, "The upheaval in the Southern Divine Region was indeed sudden, which is why I haven't been able to go heal Senior Shui. After we kill Long Bai and break through the Dragon God Realm, I'll return to the Liuguang Realm with you."
"You must keep your word this time," Shui Meiyin said, pressing Yun Che's hand against her chest, letting him clearly feel the beating of her heart.
Below, cultivators from the Northern Domain, exuding dark auras, constantly passed by. Sensing Yun Che's Demon Lord aura, or catching a glimpse of his figure as they looked up, they would immediately kneel on the ground, heads bowed low, devoutly expressing their reverence and loyalty to their Demon Lord.
Every Northern Domain cultivator in the vicinity did the same, from Realm Kings down to lowly soldiers, without exception.
"No Realm King or Divine Emperor has ever received such reverence and worship," Shui Meiyin remarked. "Yun Che-gege, I am increasingly convinced that in their will, they are not just fighting for the Northern Divine Region. Perhaps they would just as willingly, without regret, and even without fear of death, fight for you."
These seemingly casual remarks from Shui Meiyin touched a place in Yun Che's heart that he didn't want to probe.
"I am merely a catalyst and guide that the Northern Divine Region has long awaited. Without me, another era would eventually produce someone perhaps more suitable. Changing the perception of darkness and the fate of the Northern Divine Region is their generational wish. It has nothing to do with being the 'Demon Lord' or any mere title."
Shui Meiyin parted her lips, about to say something more, but seeing Yun Che staring straight ahead, deliberately avoiding any downward glance, she held back. Instead, she smiled brightly and said, "We're almost out of the Canglan Realm. Wow! Look over there—there's a purple-red star realm that seems to have a thunder vein coiled around it. Let's go check it out first."
"Alright!"
Yun Che naturally wouldn't refuse. They shifted their flight path slightly and headed toward that world radiating a purple glow.
And so, with his mind at ease, Yun Che accompanied Shui Meiyin, enjoying the sights along the way as they gradually approached the Seven Star Realm she longed for.