# Chapter 2036: Mist Emperor's Breakthrough
At this moment, from the darkness ahead, a black shadow burst forth, charging straight at the weakened Yun Che. It was an Abyss Beast at the mid-stage Divine Lord Realm. Hua Caili had already detected it, and with a gentle sweep of her Glazed Cloud Sword, an invisible sword ray pierced through space, instantly penetrating the Abyss Beast's skull. Abyss Beasts feel no pain; to truly neutralize an Abyss Beast, one must destroy its body.
The most efficient method was to obliterate its head. A series of overlapping cracking sounds followed as dozens of sword rays erupted from the Abyss Beast's head as the focal point, directly severing it into countless neat fragments that scattered in all directions. When she first entered the Mist Sea, Hua Caili found such brutal hunting methods extremely hard to bear.
But now, her heart held no more hesitation or ripples. *Boom!* The headless Abyss Beast's body veered off course and crashed heavily beside Yun Che. After a few convulsions, it fell silent, with only dense Abyss Dust silently dispersing. Yun Che moved aside the Heaven-Defying Sword propped in front of him, then used the sword blade to support himself on the ground as he stood up with considerable difficulty.
"Thank you, Fairy Sister, for saving me," he said, facing Hua Caili. Suppressing his pain, he forced a smile toward her. "This way, we can consider ourselves even."
With that, he directly turned around, dragging the Heaven-Defying Sword, and slowly walked away.
"Ah... wait a moment." The words came out of Hua Caili almost subconsciously. Over this period, she had gradually come to understand just how devastatingly lethal her appearance was.
Whether inside the Mist Sea or outside, everyone she encountered wanted to get close to her, some even resorting to all kinds of means to travel alongside her... Even though she always kept her face veiled with a gauze, revealing only her eyes. Yet this person, three encounters, three clean turns away... as if he couldn't avoid her fast enough.
The moment the words left her mouth, Hua Caili herself was momentarily stunned, then quickly said in a natural tone, "You're so severely injured. If you run into an Abyss Beast again, it will be too dangerous."
"You saved me before. As repayment, I can stay here to protect you for two hours, allowing you to heal your wounds in peace." As she spoke, she extended her hand. In this dim Mist Sea, her jade-like fingers seemed to shimmer with a crystalline luster. In her palm was a round, light purple jade pearl, exuding an aura that could stir the Mysterious Veins of any Xuan Adept.
"This pill can help with your injuries and the recovery of your Mysterious Veins." As a Divine Maiden of a Divine Kingdom, she naturally didn't want to owe anyone a favor. This was the first time since entering the Mist Sea that she had proactively wanted to help someone. The pill in her hand was called a Purple Heart Pearl, capable of rapidly restoring life force and profound energy. It had been given by a Pure Land Divine Official and was extremely precious. She was also well aware that taking out this Purple Heart Pearl was a very dangerous act, because the medicinal and spiritual energy emanating from it could easily stir a person's greed... especially within the Mist Sea.
However, in Yun Che's eyes, which she could see, there was not a trace of greed, nor any surprise or interest.
He smiled. "Thank you for your kindness, Fairy Sister. My injuries only look terrifying; they're actually not that severe. As for saving you before... you just saved me as well, so we're even now."
With that, he smiled again, turned his gaze away, and slowly walked off into the distance. Hua Caili stood there stunned, momentarily at a loss. Wherever she went, she was always like the moon surrounded by stars.
In the Zhe Tian Divine Kingdom... even in the Pure Land, she was the star in everyone's palm. Never had she been so repeatedly disregarded. Especially since this was the first time in her life she had proactively approached a man, extended a helping hand, and been rejected without any hesitation.
Not only did he refuse to accept her pill, but he even declined her offer to guard him for two hours... A feeling of unprecedented displeasure rose in her heart, as if something was blocking her chest. It was unfamiliar and inexplicable. Her words once again outpaced her composure and reason: "Why do you always rush to avoid me every time you see me? Is there something about me that disgusts you?"
Yun Che turned back, a look of surprise on his face, then said, "No, no, I absolutely don't mean that. To have the fortune of meeting you repeatedly in the Linyuan Realm and the Mist Sea is a great luck and honor for me. It's just..."
A smile curled on his lips, and his voice carried a hint of faint melancholy. "I've grown accustomed to solitude, and I no longer dare to hope for friends or companions. Besides, someone like you, Fairy Sister, must be a star in the sky. You and I... are destined to be from different worlds. Why should we draw close?"
"..." Hua Caili didn't know how to respond. But the moment Yun Che turned around, her gaze suddenly froze. His back was so lonely, so desolate. As he walked further and further away, the entire world seemed to grow distant and remote, unwilling to grant him even a trace of warmth... His only companion was the crimson sword light.
The word "loneliness" had never been so clear in her heart, nor so suffocating. What... had he gone through?
Yun Che grew farther and farther in her sight. When she snapped out of her daze, she suddenly realized that she had been staring blankly at his back all along.
She quickly averted her gaze. After a moment of absent-mindedness, she still secretly glanced in Yun Che's direction. And this time, she saw Yun Che suddenly fall to his knees, and then he never got up again... Even from a distance, she could clearly see his body trembling violently and hear the faint sound of his grinding teeth.
Hua Caili teleported to Yun Che's side in an instant: "You..."
The words had just left her mouth when she sensed that the profound energy around Yun Che was in utter chaos, as if countless uncontrolled wind vortices were entwining his swaying, crumbling body. This was clearly... a sign of breakthrough!
"Fairy Sister," Yun Che spoke, his voice calm but strained. "Can I... ask you... for a favor..."
Halfway through his sentence, he had already collapsed to the ground. "My profound energy reached the breakthrough threshold some time ago, but being in the Mist Sea, I had to forcibly suppress it... But such severe injuries have made it impossible to hold back any longer..."
Unless there was a trusted person guarding him, breaking through in the Mist Sea was an extremely dangerous act. Because if an Abyss Beast encountered him during the breakthrough process, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"I understand." Hua Caili nodded slightly. "I will stand guard here. Just focus on your breakthrough."
Watching this strange man who had repeatedly tried to avoid her now having to actively ask for her help, she felt an inexplicable joy in her heart... like gaining the upper hand in a contest she was about to lose.
Yun Che smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Fairy Sister. I will... definitely... *mmph!*"
His profound energy completely spiraled out of control. It seemed Yun Che could no longer speak. He forced himself to sit still, guiding the flow and rebirth of his profound energy. Being in the Mist Sea, surrounded by Abyss Dust, and heavily injured on top of that—the risks of breaking through in such a state were obvious. Hua Caili dared not make a sound to disturb him, only murmured in her heart: *He called me 'sister' again... he's clearly much older than me... but maybe it's not wrong... No, no! Father God, Aunt, and Uncle Abyss Emperor all say I'm nineteen. I am nineteen. He shouldn't be calling me 'sister'!*
While arguing with herself in her mind, her beautiful eyes couldn't help but fall on Yun Che's profile. The first time she had seen Yun Che, she had remembered his appearance, remembered it with exceptional clarity. After leaving the Linyuan Realm, nearly seven months had passed before they met again. At that time, her vision had been noticeably blurred from exhaustion, yet she had recognized him at a glance. Even she herself didn't understand why he had left such a deep impression on her. Perhaps it was because of his behavior, or because his profound energy was so strange, or perhaps because... his face was truly hard to forget.
Hua Caili had undoubtedly seen far too many exceptional and handsome men in the world. Senluo Divine Son Dian Jiuzhi, to whom she was betrothed, was elegant yet sharp; Dreamweaving Divine Son Meng Jianxi, whose eyes were like dreams, could draw women into infatuation with a single glance; the Star Moon Twins possessed the ultimate in otherworldly male beauty. And Abyss Emperor was known to all beings in the Abyss as the pinnacle of male appearance, power, and status. Growing up in such an environment, Hua Caili was never easily moved by a man's appearance. Yet now, without even realizing it, she had been staring at Yun Che's profile for a very long time... standing less than three feet away from him.
His face was beautiful, yet so unique... His eyes were clear like water, yet they never showed any ripples, as if all the waves were hidden deep in some unfathomable pool... His brow seemed to hold many secrets... His features were very handsome, yet they seemed to overflow with a heart-wrenching loneliness... A succession of thoughts surfaced in her mind, suddenly startling her. She quickly turned her gaze away, even hurriedly stepping back.
"...?" In the distant sky above, Hua Qingying frowned slightly.
Hua Caili lightly shook her head, quickly dispelling those strange and inexplicable thoughts, and focused on sensing the surrounding aura. Just then, Yun Che's profound energy suddenly stagnated, and then exploded in a burst of blazing flames. Hua Caili, who had just managed to look away, immediately turned back. She saw a cluster of golden flames quietly burning on Yun Che's body.
It was a golden flame she had never seen before—pure, as if utterly flawless, brilliant gold. The golden firelight pierced through layers of Abyss Dust, transforming the originally dim world around them into a resplendent golden realm. The golden flame light reflected in Hua Caili's beautiful eyes, and also captured Hua Qingying's attention.
She knew of many who could burn golden flames. But such pure gold, she had never seen before. The golden flame burned for a few breaths, then slowly extinguished. Various profound energy vortices continued to swirl around Yun Che, then... suddenly stirred up a violent storm. The surrounding rubble and corpses were all pushed away by the storm, and even space was slightly distorted.
*Crackle!* *Hiss~* The storm gradually subsided, lightning flashed, and streaks of thunderbolts flickered and screamed on Yun Che's body. At first, they were purple lightning, gradually transforming into a crimson lightning like blood. After a dozen breaths, the shrieking lightning turned into strands of faint blue water currents, rapidly flowing around Yun Che like countless coiling water dragons. Immediately, the water dragons congealed as they coiled, turning into Ice Crystal that released dreamlike radiance.
Fire, wind, thunder, water, ice... Hua Caili stood completely frozen, her pink lips unconsciously parted at some point. And on Hua Qingying's face, a look of astonishment clearly appeared.
Just then, the blue light of the Ice Crystal slowly receded, replaced by a gradually deepening yellow glow.
The ice silently transformed as well, finally becoming a layer of yellow jade covering Yun Che.
Earth! Hua Caili's already parted lips widened a fraction more. The surprise in Hua Qingying's cyan eyes persisted for over a dozen breaths without dissipating.
She had seen five elemental profound lights on a single person!