Had Xia Yuanba revealed his connection to Yun Che, the middle realm king who declared that he would take him as his direct disciple a moment ago would've pissed his pants instantly.
Yet he didn't do so. This was a new world and a new starting point. This time, he would reach the height of power on his own two feet.
"Very well!" Yun Che answered. He would respect Xia Yuanba's choice, of course. He could also sense some sort of buried passion within his brother's eyes. The more the Tyrannical Emperor's Divine Veins awakened, the greater his desire for power and pride in his own strength became.
He was certain that it wouldn't take too long before Xia Yuanba made a name for himself.
"This is for you, Yuanba."
Yun Che handed Yuanba a gemstone that shone a faint red. It was none other than the third and final World Jade.
"It's called a World Jade. It will teleport you to Emperor Yun City in just a few breaths no matter where you are. Make sure you wear this on your person so that you can use it immediately in case you encounter an impossible crisis."
He had given the first World Jade to Yun Wuxin, and the second to Jun Xilei. Today, he decided that Xia Yuanba would have the third and last World Jade.
To have a spatial divine artifact was to have an extra life. Normally, no one would ever turn down such a valuable gift, but Xia Yuanba waved his hands without hesitation and said, "It's fine, I know first hand just how hard it is to traverse the space of the God Realm. You should save this for Wuxin instead of little old me."
"Also," Xia Yuanba added seriously, "if I do perish in the God Realm one day, it simply means that my strength or fate wasn't sufficient. I will accept it without any regrets."
This time though, Yun Che didn't respect Xia Yuanba's choice. He affixed the World Jade to Xia Yuanba's waist with his own profound energy.
"Yuanba, I know every step you take from now on will be fearless and true to yourself, but I still hope that you will cherish your own life. I would never be able to rest easy if something were to happen to you."
"..." Xia Yuanba opened his mouth, but he ultimately didn't turn down the World Jade a second time.
Yun Che then said with a smile, "One more thing. Feel free to address me as brother-in-law just like before."
"Ah?" Xia Yuanba's reaction was greater than all the other reactions he had displayed up until this point. "R-really?? Does that mean you don't hate my sis as much as before, brother-in—brother-in-law?"
"Hate?" Yun Che looked away again and let out a bitter chuckle. "I don't have the right to hate her. I will never have the right to hate her."
"??" Xia Yuanba didn't understand what Yun Che was saying at all.
He had learned the "truth" of everything during his stay in the God Realm. After all, there was practically no one who hadn't heard the name "Xia Qingyue". He learned that his sister had been the Moon God Emperor, that she had attempted to slay Yun Che with her own hands more than once, and that she went so far as to destroy the "Blue Pole Star"…
Of course, he also learned that Yun Che was the one who had ultimately ended her life.
The reason he didn't address Yun Che as brother-in-law today wasn't because he was feeling reluctant or because he resented him for the murder of his sister, not at all. It was because he thought of all of the torture Yun Che had gone through for the past couple years… and believed that he simply didn't have the right to call him his brother-in-law anymore.
"What she left behind wasn't hatred, but a debt I can never, ever repay."
There were too many things he couldn't say without spilling the beans completely, so he simply patted Xia Yuanba on the shoulder and said, "No matter what you do, always remember to treat yourself well, Yuanba. Remember, you don't owe anyone anything, but this world owes everything to you."
Yun Che left after saying that. For a long time, Xia Yuanba stood where he was dazed, confused, and with a sense of relief that filled his ferocious eyes with tears.
Yun Che hadn't explained everything, but he had said enough for Xia Yuanba to know that his older sister wasn't the cruel and merciless villain everyone claimed she was.
The heavy burden and guilt that had been sitting in his heart evaporated into nothing.
…………
Profound Sky Continent, Floating Cloud City.
It was a peaceful early morning as usual at the Xiao residence.
Xiao Lingxi was folding some clothes in silence. The clothes were old, and some of them were damaged. However, not a speck of dust could be spotted on the fabric.
Yun Che had worn these clothes when he was younger. Obviously, Yun Che had outgrown them a long time ago, but Xiao Lingxi could never throw them away. In fact, she often took them out of the closet and tidied them.
It was because the Yun Che who wore them was hers and only hers.
Today, he stood at the peak of the world as Emperor Yun, a being who neither needed her protection nor was able to keep her company all the time like before. Since he took Yun Wuxin to the God Realm, it had almost been a year since they saw each other.
Suddenly, she paused what she was doing and looked behind her.
There Yun Che was watching her with deep love in his eyes from the entrance. For all she knew, he could've been standing there for a very long time.
"Little Che." That was all she managed to say before he strode up to her and pressed her head gently against his chest.
"Ah…" Xiao Lingxi let out a small yelp of surprise before relaxing into the embrace. While wrapping her arms around his back, she asked, "You're back… has your trip around the God Realm with Wuxin come to an end?"
"Not yet," Yun Che replied. He closed his eyes while hugging her tightly.
"Eh? Did something happen during your journey?" Xiao Lingxi asked concernedly.
Yun Che shook his head. "No. I just… suddenly missed you, so I came back to see you."
"... mm," Xiao Ling responded softly without asking any questions.
The world truly was an unexpected place. You could never guess what kind of "pleasant surprise" it might give you at any moment.
Who would've thought that the woman in his arms, his "little aunt" and childhood friend would be the incarnation of the Ancestral God herself?
Who would've thought that the Ancestral God would go so far as to severely damage her own body just to make his life better?
This might very well be the single most ridiculous thing to have ever happened since the creation of the Primal Chaos.
He felt that there were no words he could say that would fit this moment. He could only hold her tighter and tighter still…
Now that the Ancestral Will had fallen into slumber, she would neither have those "dreams" nor learn that she was really the Ancestral God anymore. She would only be Xiao Lingxi and Xiao Lingxi only.
When the Ancestral God completed this cycle of life, she would merge with the Ancestral Will and prepare to enter the next cycle. Her memories as Xiao Lingxi might become as insignificant as a slightly bigger speck of dust in the universe. She would never treat him as she did before.
As for him, there would be no reincarnation for him. When he reached the end of his life, he would disappear entirely from this universe just like everyone else.
It was stated in the ancient records of the Dragon Gods that reincarnation no longer existed in this world because the Well of Samsara had been destroyed.
After the Era of Gods came to an end, there was even less hope to restore the cycle of reincarnation. His own reincarnation was a special case that the Ancestral God had forcefully driven via the Mirror of Samsara.
Now that the Ancestral Will had returned to sleep, it obviously wouldn't happen another time.
In that case, there was only one thing he could do.
He would give the Ancestral God… no, his Lingxi, the best memories he could provide in this lifetime.
…………
Another year passed by in the blink of an eye.
The biggest news of this year was without a doubt Emperor Yun's crowning of not one, but two Empresses. Chi Wuyao was named the Devil Empress, and the late Xia Qingyue… the Divine Empress.
He also ordered a temporary halt to the construction of his Emperor Yun Realm and shifted the entire God Realm's resources and manpower into rebuilding the Moon God Realm instead.
There was no official announcement or explanation as to why the decisions were made. Naturally, it triggered countless rumors and speculation.
For the Moon Gods and Moon God Divine Envoys, this particular year felt like a dream they couldn't wake up from.
For years, they had believed that their hiding would eventually end in murderous pursuit and subsequent execution at the hands of Emperor Yun. Instead, he had personally invited back to the God Realm, posthumously crowned their late God Emperor as the Divine Empress, and literally poured every available resource and manpower into rebuilding the Moon God Realm.
In fact, Yun Che had personally chosen the best star realm for them before the construction began. The construction speed and the amount of manpower and resources invested into it far exceeded even the Moon Gods' imaginations.
A year was still too short a time to restore Divine Moon City to its former glory, but it certainly wouldn't take much longer.
Throughout the year, Yun Che spent nearly half his time simply watching the new Moon God Realm slowly rebuilding itself into the shape in his memories.
…………
God Realm of Absolute Beginning, the Abyss of Nothingness.
Ding!
Space itself snapped, but it only caused an instantaneous, soft ring.
Jun Xilei slowly turned around. She hadn't unsheathed the Nameless Sword, but endless nameless sword energy filled the space within fifty kilometers of her.
Her profound strength had barely improved during the years she spent in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, but her mastery of sword auras had entered a completely different realm.
When Jun Wuming saw his disciple shattering space itself without leaving a single trace behind, a proud smile clung to his face for a long time.
His complexion was reddened, and his eyes were clear. He actually looked even younger than he was last year.
Jun Xilei landed in front of her master and said, "I… I finally reached that realm you spoke of for real, Master."
"Hehe." Jun Wuming said after a chuckle, "It only took you three thousand or so years to reach this realm, which is so much better than your master back then. Lei'er, it is the greatest fortune in my life to have you as my disciple."
"No, master. It is my greatest fortune to have met you," said Jun Xilei while kowtowing before Jun Wuming.
"I keep saying this, but I truly have no regrets left in this life. I can only offer the heavens a million thanks for giving me the time to see this with my own eyes." A pause later, he continued without losing his smile, "Now, it is time we finally bid each other goodbye."
"... !!" Jun Xulei immediately looked up with tears in her eyes. "Mas… ter?"
Jun Wuming raised both of his arms. Not only did his skin look as good as new, they were covered by some sort of crystalline light.
The next moment, the sword will he devoted his whole life into honing began pouring out of his body. He seemed to know that he was about to fade away from this world.
"There is no need to be sad, Lei'er. Your master shall be departing this world with no regrets." Jun Wuming said smilingly, "Thank you for keeping this dying old man company for the past few years. When I am gone, you will finally be able to seek out the life you wish for… pursue it like you pursue the sword, Lei'er. Be sure to burn bright and persistent so as not to leave any regrets in your own life."
Jun Xilei could barely form words at this point. "This disciple… shall obey… her master's teachings…"
It was at this moment a gust of wind brushed against them. It was an impossible phenomenon considering that they were at the edge of the Abyss of Nothingness.
However, Jun Xilei was too mired in sorrow to notice it.
The unusual wind didn't fade away, however. It kept growing stronger and stronger until space itself started shaking violently.
Jun Xilei finally snapped out of her sorrow and looked up in confusion. Her lightning and sword-filled eyes saw thin spatial cracks appearing everywhere.
"!?" Jun Wuming's peaceful expression changed into worry as well.
Rumble!
Rumble!!
RUMBLE—
The unnatural spatial distortion only lasted a couple of breaths. Instead of subsiding, it was followed by a terrible spatial explosion!
How was this possible? This was the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, the space next to the Abyss of Nothingness!
Their vision distorted, but it wasn't because their eyes suddenly decided to stop functioning properly. It was the spatial cracks suddenly spreading at an uncontrollable rate! A phenomenon like this normally happened only when god emperors were battling one another!
It was at this moment that Jun Xilei finally realized that the sudden change had begun from the last place she expected, the Abyss of Nothingness itself.
"Fly!!" Jun Wuming cried in warning.
Jun Xilei snapped out of her daze, carried Jun Wuming with her and zipped toward the distance at high speed. However, the spatial collapse kept growing more and more intense, and the tidal wave that seemed capable of devouring anything and everything in its way was right behind them.
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