Chapter 2050: Mist Emperor Patrols the Sea
The young girl rose from Hua Qingying's chest. She wiped the tear stains from her face with her fingers, doing so with considerable force, as if to express some kind of resolve.
"Auntie, I understand." She earnestly wiped away the last trail of moisture on her cheek, and the sorrow in her beautiful eyes was also suppressed with great effort. "I'll be fine... just like the wounds left from practicing the sword. At first they hurt, but... they always heal... they will heal..."
However, though sword wounds are painful, she could still endure them stubbornly as a young child. Yet the wounds of the heart and soul—why does the harder one tries to endure them, the more they pierce the heart and bore into the marrow?
Hua Qingying seemed able to see into her soul. "Caili, you don't need to force yourself to forget. Yun Che is indeed an extraordinary person. His uniqueness has astonished me several times. That you would fall for him in such a short time is not strange at all."
"And he is worthy of your feelings."
Without deliberately avoiding the name "Yun Che" in front of Hua Caili, she instead gave him a very high evaluation. "He made you cry and led you into a tribulation, yet I cannot bring myself to blame him in the slightest. His final choice was the greatest rationality, and moreover, it was his protection of you... towards you, he indeed has nothing but a sincerity that cannot fail to move anyone."
"I know, I know all of that." The water vapor that Hua Caili had barely managed to dispel from her eyes began to gather again.
The sword immortal gently patted the young girl's slightly trembling shoulder. "Your current training expedition still has three months left. These three months are enough time for you to heal yourself. By then, you will face your marriage to Dian Jiuzhi with a clearer mind and more complete emotions."
"Years later when you look back, you might still feel some regret and melancholy, but more than that, there will be reflection and gratitude. Your life—the life of Qu Wanxin's daughter—should have this fragment."
She had never spoken so much to Hua Caili at one time before.
She had indeed encountered an extremely outstanding man. Thinking back, it was no wonder she had developed such deep feelings for him in such a short time.
If Caili were not the Heaven-Breaking Divine Maiden...
She recalled that year, the one who knelt before the divine temple, begging to give up the title of "Divine Son"—the "Heaven-Breaking Divine Son"...
He did not get his wish.
Thus, the once arrogant, reckless, and disrespectful Heaven-Breaking Divine Son became the gentle, refined, and serene Hua Fuchen, the Heart-Painting Divine Venerable, like an old pine by a mirror lake.
She remembered even more clearly that when she learned Hua Caili had awakened her divine rank, and moreover it was a perfect divine rank unprecedented in the history of the Zhe Tian Divine Kingdom... his first reaction was not joy or pride, but a trace of heart-wrenching pain that almost spilled from his eyes.
He had long arranged a companion for his daughter—in his eyes, the most outstanding, most suitable, and the best man for his daughter, cutting off all possible "deviant paths."
She was aggrieved.
Ten thousand years have passed, and Hua Fuchen never mentions the name Qu Wanxin. But she has never forgotten those years, and she has never forgiven herself.
Hua Caili nodded lightly, committing her aunt's words to heart. "Auntie, I will. After all... I have long grown up."
A fragment...
Can it only be a fragment?
Perhaps, to have such a fragment in this life is already an immense fortune.
Suddenly, she understood what people often called the affection between a man and a woman. Suddenly, she felt that the marriage contract she had never cared about was so heavy. Suddenly, she realized that her identity came with so many shackles. Suddenly, she fully understood the questions her aunt had asked. Suddenly...
If only I could understand nothing.
If I could do it over again, I would rather never have seen him...
No... I still want to see him...
From Hua Caili's eyes, one could tell how chaotic her thoughts were beneath her deliberately calm words. Hua Qingying did not offer any more comfort. The two paragraphs Yun Che had left behind under the snow curtain, though expressing the intention of never meeting again, were undoubtedly an overly powerful shock to the girl's heart.
As for the rest, just leave it to time.
After all, their time together was short, their feelings shallow—no unforgettable memories, no shared life-and-death experiences. At most a few months, and it would completely fade away.
"For the next three days, I will stay with you. But only three days," Hua Qingying said.
"Okay." The girl nodded. "Thank you, Auntie."
"Let's go." She took Hua Caili's hand and turned in the direction opposite to where Yun Che had gone.
Hua Caili did not immediately step forward. Instead, she carefully folded the sash inscribed with the light profound text.
"Throw it away," Hua Qingying said. "Since you have decided to sever the bond, you must be resolute from the very beginning, just as he was when he left you—without hesitation, without looking back."
Hua Caili's movements froze. She was stunned for a long moment, then bent down and gently placed the sash on the ground covered by a thin layer of snow.
Hua Qingying nodded almost imperceptibly and led Hua Caili away slowly.
But after only a few steps, the soft jade hand in hers suddenly broke free.
She rushed back to the sash and grabbed it tightly in her hand. Her already pale fingers turned even whiter, as if she wanted to merge it into her own flesh and blood.
"..." Hua Qingying looked back and sighed. "That is not a good choice."
The usually obedient girl did not loosen her grip in the slightest. She said softly, "Mother left many, many years ago, but Father God still often secretly looks at Mother's portrait, sometimes for hours at a time."
"You are different," Hua Qingying said. "Your father and mother went through life and death together, fought against the world and fate together. Their feelings had long been etched into each other's very marrow. You and he are merely chance acquaintances who were attracted to each other... Cutting it off cleanly is the most appropriate choice."
"It's impossible to cut it off completely," Hua Caili said, standing up and winding the sash around her jade wrist, feeling the faint, almost imperceptible warmth. "He and I will meet again, for sure."
"With a appearance surpassing all the divine sons, a cultivation at the Divine Lord realm rivaling the Divine Annihilation realm, and elemental profound strength surpassing Granny Lingxian... how could such a man remain unknown in the future?"
"..." Hua Qingying could not refute.
"By then, my fate will already be sealed. And there will probably be someone else by his side. The only thing that belongs exclusively to me from him is this piece of sash."
"Just let it be... the sole keepsake of this 'fragment,' okay?"
With teary eyes, she looked at her aunt, so delicate and pitiful, stirring one's heart. But within her was a determination that would not yield any further.
Hua Qingying was silent for a long time, even standing there in a daze.
At that moment, her vision blurred violently...
...
"Qingying, Fuchen says you cultivate the emotionless sword path and have long lost all seven emotions and six desires... hahaha! I don't believe it. The difference between humans and abyssal beasts is precisely that humans have emotions and desires. If one is truly without emotion or desire, what difference is there from an abyssal beast?"
"The emotionless sword path, as I understand it, should mean you are deeply devoted to the sword and unwilling to divert your feelings elsewhere. Ah, I'm different—born with many emotions. Before, I was fond of traveling the world, vowing to set foot on every inch of land outside the Pure Land and the Mist Sea in my lifetime. Then I met Fuchen."
"Hmm... that seemingly cute little Fuchen is actually a little disaster. After leaving him, no matter where I went, even to places I once yearned for, I lost all interest. I could always think of him, so I had no choice but to transfer my feelings to him, not wanting to go anywhere else."
...
"Qingying, I envy you so much. No emotions, no thoughts, so no attachments, no sorrow, no pain... But I would never want to become you... Even if it were a thousand or ten thousand times harder and more painful, I would never regret meeting Fuchen..."
...
"I am an orphan girl, and he is a divine son... I have never thought myself unworthy of him..."
"Even if the world mocks my delusions and slanders my malicious intent... even if the Divine Venerable exerts his might to break my bones and shatter my soul... as long as he does not give up, I will never let go of his hand... never!"
...
"Fuchen... Qingying, do not hate him, and do not seek revenge for me... After all, he is... your... Father God..."
"Especially... my sister Qingying... you cultivate the emotionless sword path... how can you shed tears... You are not wrong, never have been... I forbid you to blame yourself... That is not... the life meant for you..."
"In this life, having you as my beloved and my friend... I have... no regrets..."
...
"Auntie? Auntie, you... what's wrong?"
The girl's worried call awakened her from a trance that had lasted far too long. Hua Qingying quickly averted her gaze and said blandly, "Forget it. If you want to keep it, then do as you wish."
She suddenly began to feel some regret, and even a trace of fear.
What if... what if Hua Caili's temperament was exactly like her mother's?
She quickly shook her head. No, even if that were the case, between her and Yun Che, it was still far from that point.
Surely it would not happen.
...
...
In another space, Yun Che stood still, having been deep in concentration for a long time.
"Why is your heart beating so fast?" Li Suo spoke up.
"Of course, because I'm nervous," Yun Che replied.
Li Suo was silent for a moment, then said, "It seems that what you are about to do is indeed a major matter."
"Very major," Yun Che said, his eyes deep.
"What are the odds?" Li Suo asked.
"Nine out of ten," Yun Che answered very directly.
Li Suo was momentarily speechless, then after a while said, "In that case, why are you so nervous?"
"Because the remaining one out of ten means complete and utter ruin."
He had promised Chi Wuyue that he would never risk his life.
But stepping on this shortcut was the sword immortal Hua Qingying, the number one person under the gods of the Six Divine Kingdoms, a person who could decide his life or death in an instant.
Yun Che clenched his ten fingers, the bones creaking. He sensed the flow of abyssal energy around him, and the light in his eyes gradually dimmed, as if he had already hidden himself within the abyssal energy.
"It can begin now."
...
...
"The core of the Heaven-Breaking First Sword is 'intent.' With intent as the foundation, countless variations can be derived. The sword techniques you have cultivated—Question Heaven Sword, Level Heaven Sword, and Control Heaven Sword—can all be integrated into it. Once you are proficient, you can forget the sword moves, following your heart and changing with the battle."
The young girl was dancing with her sword. The sword shadows were like rainbows, and her sword postures were like dreams.
Hua Qingying watched every sword trace the girl made, still somewhat hesitant and chaotic, revealing the lingering ripples in her sword heart.
A gust of cold wind blew past, and Hua Qingying frowned slightly.
The wind of the Mist Sea was eternally gloomy, but just now, it inexplicably gave her a momentary chill.
She released her divine sense, radiating it into the surroundings.
And at that moment, a dark wind suddenly rose.
Hua Caili's sword posture abruptly stopped, and Hua Qingying also swiftly turned her gaze. Both of them looked toward the sky ahead.
What startled them was not the dark wind, but... the rolling black fog that came into view!
At a distance of less than ten li above the Mist Sea, the sky had somehow become exceptionally dark. Beneath the dark sky, large patches of black thick fog were slowly rolling...
No, that was clearly abyssal energy!
The center of the Mist Sea was the Primal Dead Abyss. The closer one got to the Primal Dead Abyss, the denser the abyssal energy became. Apart from this rule, abyssal energy existed naturally and uniformly like air, only gathering near abyssal beasts and abyssal ghosts.
But the pitch-black thick fog visible to the eye was a massive accumulation of dense abyssal energy.
That was a concentration that should be impossible to appear in this area, almost approaching the extreme depths of the Mist Sea in Hua Qingying's knowledge.
"Auntie, what is that?"
Hua Caili quickly turned back to Hua Qingying's side, looking with surprise at the strange phenomenon in the distance.
With her aunt beside her, Hua Caili never needed to be afraid of anything, but she did not notice the cold intent in her eyes.
The densely gathered abyssal energy rolled and moved, heading straight in their direction.
Hua Qingying's divine sense pierced through layer upon layer of abyssal energy... but behind the abyssal energy was even thicker abyssal energy. Even with her powerful divine sense, she could not fully penetrate it.
Just as Hua Qingying was about to withdraw her divine sense, from within the thick fog of the Mist Sea's sky, a heavy and deep voice came:
"The Mist Emperor patrols the sea! All beings, disperse!"
Each word shook the soul and startled the spirit, like a demonic chant from the abyss.
Instantly, the abyssal beasts fell silent, the Mist Sea grew still, and the gray sky seemed about to collapse.