Chapter 1947: Polar Night
Mo Beichen's blankness of consciousness lasted less than a single breath.
As the Nirvana Wheel Demon Soul was drawn away, his consciousness rapidly cleared.
The terror that had arisen from the sudden contact with the golden Brahma light also quickly dissipated as his rationality returned.
What replaced it was undoubtedly an instantly exploding rage!
And what enraged him even more was that within his perception, Yun Che had suddenly vanished!
Boom——
With a deafening crash, the starfield violently collapsed under the abruptly released force of his fury. The three Yan Ancestors entwined around him were blasted away in an instant, scattering a rain of blood and bone fragments into the void.
Mo Beichen didn't spare them a single glance. He charged straight to where Chi Wuyue and Shui Meiyin had been moments before.
But no matter how far his divine sense extended, he could find not a single trace of spatial residue.
It was even more complete than the disappearance of Jun Xilei that had happened before his eyes earlier.
His teeth clenched silently. Mo Beichen's features gradually twisted into a savage grimace.
Boom!
His hand clawed out, and the space before him tore apart into thousands of black scars like torn cloth, yet it could not release even a fraction of the fury in his heart.
More than anger, what he felt was humiliation.
As a demigod, as an Abyss Knight, to be toyed with in this humble realm…
He abruptly turned his head, glaring at the blurry black shadows in the distant space.
Yan Yi, Yan Er, and Yan San had already lost all signs of life. The power he had unleashed in his fury had shattered their bodies completely.
Yet, the Three Yan Ancestors were monsters who had lived for eight hundred thousand years; their vitality was tenacious beyond measure. Even with their internal organs shredded and limbs broken, their demonic pupils remained wide open, and a dense demonic light still flowed from their broken remains.
"Heh… heh heh heh…" Yan Yi was laughing, because they had successfully completed their final mission, witnessing Yun Che being rescued with their own eyes.
"You… laugh at what?" Yan San's demonic light was the weakest, but his tone refused to soften in the slightest: "Old man… my contribution… is the greatest!"
"We've lived long enough." Yan Er was also laughing. To them, there was no more valuable way to die. "Master… must… be safe…"
Mo Beichen's facial twitching stopped. He suddenly realized that even this brief moment of losing composure in this world was a disgrace.
All his fury condensed deep within his eyes. Mo Beichen turned coldly, and his five fingers clawed out fiercely.
Boom——
A hundred thousand miles of starfield collapsed into endless spatial fragments, which then turned into terrifying spatial dust… until it transformed into a spatial black hole a hundred thousand miles across.
The bodies of Yan Yi, Yan Er, and Yan San, the last Brahma light of Qianye Wugu and Qianye Bingzhu, along with Nan Zhaoming and Nan Zhaoguang, were all devoured within it, reduced to the most primitive nothingness.
At that moment, he also released his divine sense without reservation, sweeping across starfield after starfield.
After a short while, he withdrew his divine sense and released his power, charging eastward. Not long after, he reached out and grabbed, pulling an aged figure directly to him from a great distance.
It was Qi Tianli, who had initially teleported together with Mo Beichen to the Eastern Divine Region.
Although he hadn't approached the battlefield, the distant roar and calamitous storm had left him still shaken, and his heart was deeply conflicted.
Sensing the hidden anger beneath Mo Beichen's cold exterior, Qi Tianli's heart turned icy in an instant.
"Yun Che has escaped."
The low, cold words made Qi Tianli bow his head deeply, not daring to speak rashly.
"Why does their spatial transfer leave no trace?" Mo Beichen glanced down coldly at Qi Tianli. "You should know the answer."
"Yes… it is the Cosmic Thorn!" Qi Tianli dared not hide the truth.
The fact that Shui Meiyin possessed the Primordial Cosmic Thorn, one of the seven Xuantian Supreme Treasures, had not been publicly disclosed, known only to a handful.
As Yun Che's right hand and a core figure of the Western Divine Region, Qilin Emperor was naturally one of the few.
"Cos… mic… Thorn!?" Mo Beichen's tone abruptly changed.
The fame of the seven Xuantian Supreme Treasures was immense; how could the Abyss be unaware of them or lack records?
Qi Tianli quickly explained: "It truly is the Cosmic Thorn among the seven ancient Xuantian Supreme Treasures. The Cosmic Thorn reappeared in the world a few years ago, and its master is one of Yun Che's imperial consorts."
"With the Venerable One's divine might, the only way they could escape is—could only be through the Cosmic Thorn… ugh!"
A pale hand grabbed his collar. Mo Beichen's gaze turned icy: "Why didn't you tell me earlier!"
Qi Tianli's face turned white, and he said with difficulty: "It was too sudden… old… old man… failed… had time… Venerable One forgive me…"
"But with the Venerable One's ability… they can only… escape for a while…"
Bang!
Mo Beichen spread his fingers, and Qi Tianli was flung far away, kneeling and coughing violently.
His eyes slowly narrowed. The coldness in Mo Beichen's gaze gradually dissipated, replaced instead by a gradually intensifying excitement.
In this world, the range his divine sense could cover far exceeded that of the Abyss.
Moreover, everyone around Yun Che were those with the most intense auras in this world.
Even if they had temporarily escaped, finding them again would only be a matter of time.
And now that he knew of the Cosmic Thorn's existence, next time, Yun Che would have no chance of escape.
Although he had failed to capture Yun Che for now, learning of the Cosmic Thorn was, overall, a very good thing.
Presenting a Xuantian Supreme Treasure as tribute to Abyss Sovereign would undoubtedly be another great merit.
"Is there anything else you haven't told me? Speak the important ones."
Mo Beichen's low voice pressed down on Qi Tianli.
On this day, the dark clouds from the Abyss also pressed heavily upon the God Realm, which had only recently emerged from calamity and regained peace.
…………
…………
Drip…
The sound of a water droplet falling.
Rustle rustle…
The sound of wind sweeping fallen leaves.
And…
Unbearable pain everywhere.
The pain…
Am I… not dead?
Consciousness was exceptionally heavy, making him not even want to struggle to wake up.
A thousand times heavier than that were the scenes that awakened and drifted within his consciousness.
Mo Beichen…
Divine Annihilation Realm…
Abyss…
Why is there still power at that level…
Why must it invade this world that had finally shed its threats?
How… absurd.
A faint sensation came from some part of his body, very cold and icy, yet it soothed his convulsing soul.
"Yun Che, I'm leaving."
"Live well. This is my… final wish. Even if it's destined to be difficult, please fulfill it for me."
Mu Xuanyin's voice seemed both near and far.
With a calm decisiveness, it felt like a… final farewell.
His dormant consciousness began to stir violently. He struggled to wake up.
At that moment, another voice sounded:
"Yun Che," it was Qianye Ying'er's voice, carrying a sorrow she rarely displayed: "I wish I could die by your side, but I want you to live even more."
"In this life, I've done countless wrongs and committed countless sins. But only meeting you, sharing joy, anger, sorrow, pain, lament, honor, and disgrace with you… everything, absolutely everything, I do not regret."
"…" Yun Che desperately wanted to reach out, to grasp the owner of that voice.
"Brother-in-law…"
Cai Zhi's voice, soft and tender, completely lacking the majesty she always put on, like an ethereal young girl from their first meeting, making one want to protect and pity her.
"I'm going to see sister. All these years… I've always… always missed her so much. So, you don't need to be sad for me at all. Just… think of me sometimes, that's enough."
"I will watch over you from another world with sister. So you must live well. You wouldn't want to disappoint me and sister, right?"
…
Is this a dream, or…
Why does every sentence sound like a farewell…
What exactly…
"Yun Che!"
This time, it was Chi Wuyue's voice, every word heavy, every word engraved on the soul.
"Your destiny is destined to be extraordinary, and also destined to be turbulent."
"Only this time, it came too fast, too cruel. Even I, who was confident enough, feel nothing but powerlessness."
"The last thing I can do for you is to stay away from you."
"You must live… live at all costs, just like when you hid with hatred in the Northern Divine Region."
"For us, you can do that, right?"
…………
…………
His soul trembled violently, his consciousness struggled desperately. He frantically wanted to wake up, even if every moment of struggle felt like a thousand blades piercing his heavy soul.
The pain all over his body kept intensifying. This didn't make Yun Che retreat; instead, he struggled even more fiercely.
Because the more it hurt, the more it showed his consciousness was becoming clearer… until the brink of waking.
"Ah!"
A girl's startled cry echoed in his sea of consciousness, followed by He Ling's joyful shout: "Master, you… are you awake? Waa… waa!"
Sobs spilled from her lips, then were forcefully suppressed.
A glimmer of light struck Yun Che's eyes.
The momentary sting told him that his eyes had not been opened for a long time.
Adjusting to the light, what came into view was a vast blue sky.
His hearing gradually became clear; beside him, a stream babbled, and a gentle breeze whispered.
His will moved his body, and his fingers lifted slightly, accompanied by piercing pain.
"Ah!"
Another girl's startled cry, followed by hurried footsteps. In Yun Che's line of sight appeared a girl's delicate face, brimming with surprise and tears.
"Yun Che gege…" she called out, and in an instant, tears streamed down her face: "You're finally awake… you're finally… waa… waa waa waa…"
"Mei… Yin…"
Yun Che's lips parted, and the sound that came out was dry and harsh. Amidst the pain, his arm slowly lifted, barely touching his field of vision.
His body, surpassing common understanding, had already reconnected his meridians and broken bones during the coma.
But his injuries were too severe. The backlash from Divine Ashes had also left his strength in an extremely weakened state.
With these two evils, his recovery was far slower than usual.
Shui Meiyin quickly reached out, gently cradling Yun Che's lifted hand.
Yun Che stared blankly at Shui Meiyin, his thoughts momentarily blurred and disordered… The wet traces gradually spreading on his palm, and the excruciating pain all over his body, all told him that he had truly woken up, not sunk in a dream.
Shui Meiyin was by his side, which meant this place was not a dangerous one.
Before losing consciousness, he had clearly been held in Mo Beichen's grasp.
That power that made him despair in an instant, without even a shred of strength to struggle…
How exactly… had he managed to escape?
The earlier voices stirred in his sea of consciousness, accompanied by a gradually intensifying unease. Ignoring his current state, he weakly released his spiritual sense, straining to extend it around.
No Chi Wuyue. No Qianye Ying'er. No Cai Zhi. No Mu Xuanyin.
Not even Yan Yi, Yan Er, Yan San, who would never willingly leave him.
Here, besides him and Shui Meiyin, there was no one else.
"How long… have I been asleep?"
He was Yun Che after all. As his consciousness grew clearer, his vision no longer blurred, and his voice became much clearer.
"Sixteen days." Shui Meiyin said, while forcefully wiping away the traces of tears on her cheeks and starry eyes.
Now, only she was left by Yun Che's side. She had to bear the future with him. She could not be weak… absolutely not.
Sixteen days…
Yun Che was dazed for a long while.
With his current body and level of power, he had actually been unconscious for so long.
One could imagine how extreme his power depletion and injury severity had been that day.
Wait…
Sixteen days!?
Given how terrifying Mo Beichen was, such a long time…
His heart and pupils constricted simultaneously. Yun Che's body struggled to sit up, and his voice became urgent: "They… the Demon Empress… what about them? And Wuxin?"
"…" Shui Meiyin's lips clenched tight in an instant, then quickly relaxed. A faintly pale cheek lifted into a very relaxed smile: "Since even Yun Che gege has woken up, of course they are all fine."
"Yun Che gege, your injuries are still very severe. Don't distract yourself first, just rest well, okay? I'll go tell them you've woken up. When you wake up again next time, you'll be able to see them."
Shui Meiyin's expression and voice were very natural, her spotless smiling face gently brushing the soul like a light breeze…
But she could fool anyone, except Yun Che.
Because when she said these words, she couldn't look into Yun Che's eyes.
Back then, facing Yun Che, she had spoken the entire set of lies that Xia Qingyue had woven for him.
Now, it was her again. It could only be her again.
"…" Yun Che stared blankly into Shui Meiyin's eyes, exhaled softly, and said, "Help me up."
Her lips parted slightly, instinctively wanting to tell Yun Che not to move recklessly. But seeing the suddenly deep and profound look in his eyes, she could only comply: "Mm."
Sitting up, leaning against Shui Meiyin's soft chest, Yun Che's gaze looked ahead.
This was a strange small world. As far as the eye could see, the sky was blue and the water clear. Not far ahead, several streams intertwined gently, and from time to time, fish leaped up, creating ripples.
Although his spiritual sense was far from recovered, it was enough for Yun Che to determine that this was a low-level plane of spiritual energy, but a lower realm with intact natural atmosphere.
Ordinary, but far from the God Realm.
"Yan San."
He suddenly called out.
A gentle breeze blew, but brought no response.
"Yun Che gege," Shui Meiyin spoke softly. Some things should not be said at this time, but she understood that although Yun Che had just woken up, he had already sensed something.
"Yan San and the others… have already… already…"
"It was also them, using their own lives, that saved you from that terrifying person."
"…" A brief silence. Yun Che sighed faintly: "I see."
"The Demon Empress, Xuanyin… where did they go?" he asked. "I want to hear the truth."
His voice was very calm, and his expression was equally peaceful. But he himself knew that every word he spoke made his heart pound even harder.
Shui Meiyin shook her head, placing her soft white hand gently on Yun Che's heart: "Later. When your injuries have recovered a bit more, I'll tell you, okay?"
At that moment, the Liuguang Water Jade on Shui Meiyin's chest flickered slightly.
It was as if she had suddenly found a savior to divert Yun Che's attention. She quickly said, "It's a message from Sister. She's been sending news from the Eastern Divine Region these days, and every time she mentions that Wuxin is safe. Listen if you don't believe me."
Saying that, she moved her mind, and the sound transmission formation within the Liuguang Water Jade activated.
Shui Yingyue's voice then rang out, but it carried deep urgency and panic.
"Meiyin! Wuxin has been taken by Cang Shitian and brought to the Taichu Divine Realm, to be offered to Mo Beichen as a token of loyalty… Only you can save her!"