# Chapter 1882: Anxious to Return
That Mu Xuanyin was Yun Che's master was known to all the world.
Back then, outside the Blue Pole Star, Mu Xuanyin had died protecting Yun Che… even at the risk of bringing down the entire Yin Xue Realm, potentially burying it all as well.
Those who had personally witnessed that scene might have found it difficult ever since to believe they were merely master and disciple.
Everyone below the Imperial Cloud City was shocked, but under the oppressive weight of too heavy a pressure, not a single person made a sound… Now, throughout the heavens and myriad realms, every living being in the world was beneath Yun Che's feet. He could redraw every rule. Even if they were just master and disciple, even if it crossed ethical boundaries, who would dare speak a single word of nonsense?
Those with the strongest reaction were undoubtedly the Ice Phoenix Divine Sect.
Back then, they had all personally participated in and witnessed Yun Che's apprenticeship ceremony.
"As expected." Mu Tanzhi sighed to himself. Recalling all the strange signs from Mu Xuanyin back then, everything now made perfect sense.
Mu Huanzhi ground his teeth. "Yun Che, that brat, is an absolute beas— Mmm mmm mmm!"
Mu Tanzhi shoved an ice crystal into Mu Huanzhi's mouth, firmly blocking his words. "That's the Cloud Emperor and our Sect Master! Do you want to die?!"
Mu Huanzhi slapped Mu Tanzhi's hand away, still full of indignation. "Didn't they say the Ice Phoenix God-Sealing Canon, cultivated to its utmost, freezes the heart and seals emotions? How could she possibly…"
"Tch!" Mu Tanzhi curled his lips. "Why don't you talk about your own Feixue girl instead?"
"…" Mu Huanzhi fell silent.
Atop the Imperial Cloud City, Mu Bingyun quietly glanced at her elder sister… Though the surroundings were completely silent, the intense soul tremors from the Realm Kings below came through clearly. But Mu Xuanyin's eyes were like icy pools, and even the ice dust gently rippling around her showed not the slightest disturbance.
Having crossed life and death together, between her and Yun Che, there could no longer be any barrier that could not be crossed.
The gazes of the world no longer had any right to stir her heart or mind.
Qi Tianli's imperial voice continued:
"…Establish 'Order Bureaus' in all upper-level, mid-level, and lower-level star realms of the Four Divine Regions, to govern the order of all realms."
"Appoint Cang Shitian as the Supreme Commander of Order Keepers, with overall authority over the divine region's Order Keepers… Four Divine Regions each have a Deputy Commander: Eastern Region — Glazed Light Realm's Supreme Realm King Shui Qianheng; Western Region — Azure Dragon Divine Servant Qing Ruo; Southern Region — Cang Shitian concurrently holds the post; Northern Region — Attendant Concubine Yu Wu…"
"The Order Keepers are directly under the command of the Cloud Emperor and the Empress. They are not subject to the deployment of any other person. All major Realm Kings and the Order Keepers supervise each other. If an Order Keeper violates order, their punishment is one degree heavier!"
The entire divine region was silent as death. The existence of the "Order Bureaus" and "Order Keepers" undoubtedly weighed like ten thousand jun on the hearts of countless cultivators — especially those in power.
Though Qi Tianli's words were brief, the Order Keepers radiating layer by layer from beneath the Cloud Emperor's feet and eventually extending to the lower-level star realms would, without a doubt, in a very short time, firmly grip and control every corner of the divine region in the Cloud Emperor's hands.
Then came one rule after another, proclaimed on the spot:
"…Dark Profound Force is also a branch of profound force. There is no distinction between good and evil, high and low. No one may unjustly discriminate against, expel, or harm Dark Profound practitioners… Dark Profound practitioners must also release their grudges. If they harm other races without cause, it is considered the same crime."
The heartstrings that had just tightened suddenly relaxed because of this rule proclaimed to all the world.
When Yun Che, betrayed by the three regions, returned from the Northern Region to bury the world… without a doubt, what the cultivators of the three regions feared and dreaded most was retaliation from Yun Che and the Northern Divine Region.
Especially for the latter — a cage that had lasted a full million years, which surely had accumulated a million years of resentment. And as the victor, with just one word from Yun Che, their status would rise above the three regions. As those forced to submit, they would be trampled underfoot — just as they had oppressed the Northern Region cultivators for a million years.
But the brutal Demon Lord actually granted them equal status, and even actively suppressed the resentment they were so eager to vent.
A hatred accumulated over a million years could not normally be resolved… unless the one who broke open the cage and reversed their destiny was the Demon Lord who led them.
Amid their excitement, some gratitude inevitably arose in their hearts. In contrast, the establishment of the Order Keepers suddenly became much less difficult to accept.
"…Encourage intermarriage between cultivators of the three regions and the Northern Region… If both parties are willing but others forcibly obstruct, it is considered a serious crime!"
…
"Wood Spirits are the purest and most untainted spirits in the current age. Their existence is a gift from the ancient Creation God. Hunting and killing Wood Spirits is an evil act that heaven and earth cannot tolerate! Whoever commits it, be they who they may, it is a capital offense! And it implicates their entire clan… Even if a Divine Emperor commits it, they must be executed!"
"If a Wood Spirit suffers misfortune within any domain, then from the Domain Lord up to the Realm King, all are guilty of a serious crime!"
This decree concerning Wood Spirits shocked everyone to the point of their scalps going numb.
Even a Divine Emperor who committed it would be executed. If it happened within a domain, the Realm King would be held responsible… This was not just strict; it was harsh to an unbelievable degree.
In the past, the divine region had always had a ban on hunting Wood Spirits. But Yun Che had seen too clearly the fate of the Wood Spirit race…
The only remaining bloodline of the Wood Spirit Royal Clan were He Lin and He Ling. The former had saved his life and left eternal tears in his heart; the latter had willingly become a poison spirit to follow him for life, accompanying him from Divine Son to the Abyss, and from the Abyss to the clouds…
No matter how much he repaid or how much he favored and protected the Wood Spirit race, it could never be too much.
…
"…As cultivators of the divine region, you may not bully the lower realms by relying on your divine path cultivation. Any sect or cultivator, for whatever reason, who goes to a star realm or planet in the lower realms must report to the Order Bureau!"
…
"Appoint Fen Daoqi as the new Emperor of the Fenyue Divine Realm… Appoint Yan Wu as the new Emperor of the Yanmo Realm, to rule over the Yanmo Realm and all realms under its command… Posthumously grant Yan Tianxiao the title of 'Demon-Lie Yan Emperor,' place his spirit tablet in the Demon-Lie Hall of the Imperial Cloud City, and his descendants for a hundred generations will receive direct protection from the Great Emperor. If they commit serious crimes, they may all be spared the death penalty."
…
The Great Emperor's commands, transmitted through the Qilin Emperor's divine voice, reached the ears of all living beings in the Four Divine Regions, one after another.
Northern Divine Region, Dongxu Realm, Donghan Kingdom.
Donghan Kingdom was originally an unremarkable small kingdom in the Dongxu Realm. Over the years, its national strength had not changed much, but its status had suddenly risen to a terrifying level.
Gradually, there was no one in the Northern Divine Region who did not know that when the Demon Lord first set foot in the Northern Divine Region, he had briefly stayed in the Donghan Kingdom.
There were even rumors that he had favored the Donghan Princess, Dongfang Hanwei.
Now, the five Boundless Ruin realms, and even almost all surrounding mid-level and upper-level star realms, were well aware of the name Donghan Kingdom.
Especially in the past few months, who knew how many experts had come to pay special visits, including many local overlords and even Realm King-level figures. To this small kingdom that they would have previously disdained, that they had never even heard of, they all came bearing heavy gifts, each one exceedingly courteous.
Especially towards Dongfang Hanwei, they bowed and scraped, lowering their heads deeply, not daring to look directly.
This was a reverence the Donghan Kingdom had never experienced in its history, and had never even dared to imagine.
In their ears was the imperial voice of the Qilin Emperor, while their eyes were fixed on Yun Che's image. As decree after decree was announced, the sky began to darken. This grand enthronement ceremony, which had ignored all traditional rituals, seemed to be drawing to a close.
Dongfang Hanwei gazed at the image high in the sky, her hands gently clasped over her chest, her beautiful eyes like water and mist, unfocused and distant.
The Donghan National Lord quietly approached. He glanced sideways and said, "Go. Walk out of here, head to the Southern Divine Region. Even if it's beyond reach, at least you should have the courage to take that step. I don't want our Northern Divine Region to have finally escaped its cage, only for my daughter to fall into another."
"…"
A long silence.
Demon Empress, Divine Emperor, Divine Maiden… Even one as exalted as a Demon Maiden was merely his attendant concubine.
Closing her eyes, Dongfang Hanwei gently shook her head. She did not speak, but her jade hands clasped over her chest tightened a little more. Between her slightly crossed fingers, a pure white jade buckle was faintly visible.
In the end, she did not take that step.
After Yun Che left the five Boundless Ruin realms, he never set foot in the Dongxu Realm again… nor did he ever descend to the Donghan Kingdom again.
Years later, Dongfang Hanwei naturally inherited the throne and became the Donghan National Lord. Thereafter, she governed with diligence, devoted herself to Donghan, and with the lingering prestige left by Yun Che, she transformed Donghan from a small kingdom into a true dominant power in the region.
She never married in her life, and remained alone until her natural death.
And all the citizens of Donghan Kingdom knew that around their national lord's neck was always worn a pure white jade buckle. The jade was ordinary, entirely unworthy of her status as national lord, but she never took it off, no matter the year, the month, the place, or the circumstances.
Many years later, when she died peacefully and her breath faded, the jade buckle also cracked. Inside it was nothing but a single, long black strand of hair…
…………
New era names, new rules. The first true supreme emperor in the history of the divine region.
Yun Che's cold, world-dominating gaze was etched deep into the souls of all divine region cultivators. And when the projection faded and this grand ceremony — or more precisely, the Great Emperor's proclamation — came to an end, only then did people begin to notice that their star realms had long had several Order Bureaus.
Perhaps there were already Order Keepers among them.
To what extent the Cloud Emperor's "claws" had already extended, no one dared to guess. They only knew that from today onward, they must firmly remember all the rules of the new divine region… for these would be the most fundamental laws of survival.
In truth, even Yun Che himself did not know how deep the "claws" had reached. Everything was manipulated by Chi Wuyue. And even with Chi Wuyue's heaven-reaching abilities, it was impossible to control every star realm of the three divine regions completely within a vast net in just half a year.
But those "casually" revealed signs in the various major star realms were enough to cast another layer of heavy deterrence upon the three divine regions, which were already under the pressure of darkness.
As the Order Keeper forces gradually expanded and the great net truly took shape, the divine region would be completely and utterly controlled in the hands of Yun Che and Chi Wuyue.
For Yun Che, he would absolutely never allow the Blue Pole Star to encounter any danger again.
And for Chi Wuyue, she would never allow any threat to Yun Che to exist in this world — even just a minor possibility.
This meant that from now on, any genius brilliant enough to dazzle the world born in the four directions of the divine region would fall under Chi Wuyue's demonic gaze.
Yun Che's enthronement ceremony had no grand celebration. But after the various Realm Kings returned to their realms, some star realms began great celebrations and amnesties, on a grand scale. It was as if the Northern Divine Region was not the only one experiencing rebirth.
If one side did it, how could the other star realms dare to lag behind? In an instant, the myriad realms of the three divine regions erupted in grand celebrations, each more extravagant than the last, and the spectacle was so great they feared the world would not know.
Yun Che's reputation as the world's savior was repeatedly extolled in every star realm. The royal realms that had been destroyed were all labeled as calamitous sin-realms. Zhou Tian Shen Di, once revered by all life, became the greatest sinner of the contemporary divine region. Even the Supreme Dragon Emperor, who had once arrogantly dominated the world, became an evil dragon punished by the Cloud Emperor and spurned by all realms.
The wind could shift so drastically in such a short time… It was hard to imagine what kind of history the divine region's annals would record many years later.
But none of this was of any concern to Yun Che.
Atop the Imperial Cloud City, as his figure cast an unparalleled imperial majesty over the entire divine region, his cold, dark eyes were always fixed on the direction of the Blue Pole Star.
Let's end this soon… Everything, finally, can end.
The Evil God's final wish… my mission… all sources of calamity, all disasters, are over.
There were still three days until Yun Wuxin's twentieth birthday.
He was anxious to return.