# Chapter 1817: The Dam Breaks
The wind and snow suddenly stopped. Within the snow domain connecting heaven and earth, chaotic heartbeats from unknown origins faintly echoed.
"Hate."
The calm voice, the flat response, made Xia Yuanba's heart feel hollow... He knew Yun Che could definitely hear.
"How could I not hate?"
She did not turn around, just stared ahead, her voice even colder than the endless snow before her: "He didn't witness my birth, didn't accompany my growth, not even my eighteenth birthday coming-of-age ceremony... he wasn't there."
"He said I was his entire world... He said he would never let me and my mother get hurt or cry again... He said he would be back soon... He said he would watch me, accompany me as I grew up, make up for all his debts to me..."
"But... he broke his word time and time again... over and over..."
"He is the most untrustworthy, most incompetent... most detestable father in this world!"
Her tone was very light and faint, except for the ethereal quality of her voice, no emotion could be perceived.
High above, so distant she couldn't sense it, Yun Che closed his eyes. Between his tightly gritted teeth, a thin thread of blood slowly trickled down.
Shui Meiyin reached out, catching a falling blood bead in her palm, then gently closed her hand.
"He clearly said... he wouldn't let anyone take me away from him... why... does he keep abandoning me..."
"I hate him. I hate him so much."
She murmured, then slowly walked away.
Xia Yuanba couldn't see her expression, but her voice was so cold it choked him. He reached out his hand but couldn't say anything more.
Just then, Yun Wuxin suddenly stopped and turned back.
"Uncle Xia," she looked into Xia Yuanba's eyes, her gaze as clear as an untarnished pool: "Have you already seen him?"
Caught up in his emotions, Xia Yuanba jolted and quickly waved his hands: "No no no no! Absolutely not! Otherwise I... would definitely have brought him back."
Seeing Xia Yuanba's reaction, something like glass seemed to shimmer in Yun Wuxin's beautiful eyes. She parted her lips, and after a long moment, slowly said: "You... really saw him? You saw him... he's still alive... right?"
Xia Yuanba was a very poor liar. Forget reaching Yun Che's level of lying with complete calmness of mind and soul — he couldn't even match an ordinary mortal.
If he hadn't denied it, it might have been fine, but his denial was full of holes. In Yun Wuxin's eyes, it was equivalent to admission.
"Uh... this... I..."
Meeting Yun Wuxin's gaze, Xia Yuanba couldn't help but step back. He wanted to forcefully deny it again, but the moment he opened his mouth, his courage failed him and he dejectedly lowered his head.
"Phew..." He let out a long breath, not daring to look in Yun Che's direction, his eyes darting away as he resigned himself: "Yes, actually... I successfully reached the God Realm side, and by a very coincidental stroke of luck, I encountered your father."
These truthful words naturally showed no trace of lying.
After saying them, although he felt guilty toward Yun Che, Xia Yuanba actually felt much relieved.
Silence... a long silence. Xia Yuanba nervously looked up and saw Yun Wuxin standing still, as cold and calm as before, showing no emotional turmoil.
Yun Wuxin finally spoke: "Then why didn't he come back with you? Why did he have to hide? Was he injured... unable to move?"
"No no, absolutely not. He's perfectly fine, not a scratch — I can guarantee that."
Since it had come to this, Xia Yuanba no longer concealed anything and said seriously: "He just has something very important he hasn't finished — important to a degree that... I can't comprehend."
"Wuxin," Xia Yuanba continued quickly, "I understand your father. He hasn't returned all these years because he truly has unavoidable difficulties and troubles. After all, that place called the God Realm is a world so vast we can't even imagine it. He must have been held back by something."
"But he promised me he would return soon... he said it himself, a very serious promise."
Having racked his brains to say this, Xia Yuanba nervously awaited Yun Wuxin's reaction.
"Is that so..."
Yun Wuxin murmured, then turned around, once again showing Xia Yuanba her back.
"I understand. Since he doesn't want us to know you found him, I won't tell my mother and master."
"Uncle Xia, you've been away for months. The Huangji Sacred Domain has been worried about your safety. You should go back quickly and put their minds at ease."
As she spoke, her figure was already receding into the flying snow.
"Wuxin, are you... alright?" Xia Yuanba asked worriedly.
He received no answer. Yun Wuxin's silhouette gradually blurred until it completely merged into the wind and snow.
Full of guilt, Xia Yuanba stole a glance upward. After hesitating for a long time, he finally turned and flew south.
After all, the Bing Yun Fairy Palace had always forbidden entry to men other than Yun Che. He was no exception.
The wind and snow grew heavier. Ever since the shock that had descended upon the entire Lan Ji Star more than four years ago, the Ice Extreme Snow Domain seemed to have become a degree colder than before.
Yun Wuxin's steps grew slower and slower. Unconsciously, the direction she was heading deviated from the Bing Yun Fairy Palace's location.
Pfft!
Her foot suddenly stumbled, and she fell to her knees in the snow.
For a long time, her figure didn't rise. Her delicate shoulders trembled softly, gradually shaking more and more violently...
Amidst the wind and snow came the sound of suppressed sobbing.
"Father... Father..."
A soft call, each word filled with sorrow. A teardrop slipped from her tightly shut eyes, transforming into the most dazzling, jade-like crystal, silently merging into the eternal, never-melting snow domain.
"It's enough that you're safe... it's... enough... that... you're... safe..."
"As long as... you're... safe... no matter... how long... I... will... wait... for you..."
"Father... I hate you... but I... truly... miss... you... so... much..."
Finally, her sobs and tears broke simultaneously, the dam bursting. She knelt in the snow, hand on her heart, amidst this boundless snow domain, shielded by the howling wind and snow, crying her heart out, her soul torn apart, the world spinning and darkening.
Every tear, every anguished cry carried the endless longing, grievance, sorrow, worry, fear of all these years...
Above the clouds, Yun Che's hand gripped his chest tightly, his fingers nearly digging into his flesh.
"Let's... go."
These four words trembled so much he couldn't even hear them himself.
Every extra moment he stayed here brought one more share of danger to Lan Ji Star.
The nightmare scene from back then must never be repeated. He absolutely could not let anyone detect its existence... even if the possibility was as tiny as cosmic dust.
He couldn't meet, couldn't stay, couldn't even get close... until there were no more threats in this world.
Shui Meiyin picked up the Cosmic Thorn and gently slashed.
Light and space shifted simultaneously. They had returned to the Qixing Realm, exactly where they had been before.
Because he had discovered Xia Yuanba, Yun Che's emotional stirring had left his presence too obvious. So, returning here, even if someone tracked his trail, they wouldn't find any "gap" or "break."
Bang!
Yun Che heavily fell to his knees. His hand still clutched his chest tightly. His face was twisted, his shoulders and whole body trembling wildly. From his mouth came the harsh, piercing sound of grinding teeth.
Shui Meiyin crouched down and softly called: "Brother Yun Che, it's only me here. No one else can approach."
Just this one sentence completely shattered the Demon Lord who ruled the Northern God Domain and had stained both God Domains with blood. He slammed his head to the ground and burst into loud wails like a broken child, tears instantly soaking a large patch of earth.
Homeland, family, clansmen, wife, beloved, daughter...
So they were all still there.
So he had never lost them...
There is no greater blessing or surprise in the world.
But the extreme of great joy touched upon great sorrow.
Two worlds, father and daughter — both kneeling on the ground, both clutching their hearts, both crying as if heaven and earth were darkening.
Inside the Heavenly Poison Pearl's world, He Ling covered her mouth with both hands, crying like pear blossoms in the rain.
"Waaah... it's wonderful... it's wonderful... wuwuwu..." Amidst her sobs, she couldn't form words.
"Wah wah wah wah!" Hong'er wailed loudly, tears pouring like a torrent.
You'er looked at them with a confused expression, not knowing what to do.
---
"So, Jie Tian Mo Di gave you the Cosmic Thorn a long time ago?"
Yun Che had wailed for over half an hour before gradually stopping.
Even now, his eyes were still severely reddened. Though it greatly damaged his dignity as a Demon Lord, he didn't want to erase it with profound energy.
After all, only Shui Meiyin was by his side. No matter how unsightly his appearance, she had already seen it all.
As he spoke, his hand gently pressed against his chest... it was no longer cold, but warmly beating.
"Mm, a long time ago." Shui Meiyin nodded. She held up the Cosmic Thorn, gently stroking it with a slender finger.
Anyone seeing that ordinary-looking black spike in her hand, completely devoid of aura, would never imagine it was the Cosmic Thorn — ranked sixth among the legendary Seven Xuantian Supreme Treasures of ancient times.
"No wonder," Yun Che said with a faint smile, "you said before that Yue Shen Di couldn't actually imprison you at all. So that's how it is."
Shui Meiyin said: "But for the safety of the Liuguang Realm, and to keep the Cosmic Thorn from being exposed, I obediently stayed locked inside. Only when I was sure I wouldn't be discovered did I occasionally use the Cosmic Thorn to slip out briefly a few times."
"Brother Yun Che, actually, Senior Jie Tian Mo Di originally wanted to leave the Cosmic Thorn to you." Shui Meiyin suddenly said.
Hearing this statement, Yun Che didn't show too much surprise.
After calming down and looking again at the Cosmic Thorn in Shui Meiyin's hand, his first reaction was actually astonishment: since Jie Tian Mo Di hadn't taken it out of the Chaos, why hadn't she left it for him!?
After all, her two daughters were in his hands!
The Void Stone was recognized as the strongest spatial treasure. Its power lay in instant teleportation without leaving any traceable trail... the drawback was that no one knew where they would be teleported.
Back at the Chaos Wall, Yun Che had escaped by relying on a Void Stone that Qianye Ying'er had tossed over after being enslaved.
Back outside Lan Ji Star, Yun Che, carrying Mu Xuanyin's remains, had also relied on a Void Stone to escape.
According to records, the power of the Void Stone was born from the Cosmic Thorn. Its remaining quantity in the current era was extremely scarce, non-renewable — each use meant one less forever.
But the Cosmic Thorn could not only instantly cut through space without leaving any spatial traces, but could also perform targeted teleportation! And it could be used at any time!
Such a treasure, so powerful in terms of escape that it bordered on heaven-defying, he simply couldn't fathom why Jie Tian Mo Di hadn't left it for him.
Moreover, in the Age of the Gods, the Cosmic Thorn had originally belonged to Xie Shen Ni Xuan. Later, as a token of love, he gave it to Jie Tian Mo Di Jie Yuan. In turn, Jie Yuan had given the Heavenly Poison Pearl to Ni Xuan.
He looked at Shui Meiyin, focusing his attention to listen. Although he was deeply puzzled, he was also very clear that Jie Tian Mo Di must have had a special reason for doing so.