Wei Wuyin had squared Wu Baozhai away, his thoughts swirling as he sat on his couch in thought. When that impulsive set of words left his lips, a series of convenient scenarios emerged in his head. From the very beginning, he sought to find a leader for the Myriad Monarch Sect to ensure the safety of his subordinates, lovers, and legacy if the worst case scenario arrived: the death of his body and soul.
At first, he wanted to let Tuo Bihan act on his behalf, but he was too advanced in age. He wasn't reliable for a long lasting security. But what if he had a subordinate of his become the Grand Monarch? He had always thought of ways to do so, but after obtaining Wu Yu's spirit, he learned about the Imperial Heaven Ignition Essence.
It made it impossible.
Unless Wu Yu regained his physical body or Long Chen decided to willingly give up his cultivation base, it was impossible to find a legitimate heir. He felt no desire to topple the legacy of the Myriad Monarch Sect, especially with Wu Yu still existing. But even if that wasn't the case, he didn't feel the need to do so, and rather respected the cultural traditions and modus operandi of the Myriad Monarch Sect.
Now, he'd just learned of a loophole.
Wu Baozhai.
As he'd thought, Wu Baozhai also possessed the Imperial Heaven Ignition Essence within her that lay dormant in an inactive state. Dual Cultivation was principled on two methods, sharing and plundering. Considering the benefits that Wu Baozhai experienced during her Dual Cultivation with Long Chen, he expected she would retain a portion of the Ignition Essence within her.
Not only did she have a portion, but she had the complete essence stored within her in a state of hibernation. The only reason she hadn't developed an Imperial Soul was purely because she didn't have the Imperial Heaven Qi Method. It was also this Imperial Heaven Ignition Essence that gave her a greater imperial aura, that soon left after she entered the Astral Core Realm.
This revelation brought him an unexpected solution to something he intended to do since he'd known Long Chen's position as an Inheritor of the Grand Monarch Lineage; finding his own Inheritor! And find he did, nay!
She found him!
He'll have to ensure some things, such as her feelings towards Long Chen, but after hearing their story and feeling her emotions as she told it, he felt she was only with Long Chen due to her ideals or thoughts on purity, forcing a sense of obligation that had dwindled overtime. Perhaps she would have truly fallen for him with time. But the fact she strove to regain the direction of her life was already telling.
As he pondered his plans in depth, Su Mei arrived.
"Lord Wei, I've settled Wu Baozhai." She had swiftly performed her duties, bringing Wu Baozhai to an area of the Sky Palace to commence the reset of her cultivation. She would have to abandon her Astral Soul entirely, reforge her foundation, and establish an Imperial Astral Soul. Fortunately, Wei Wuyin had experience with this already.
After setting her aside with the necessary materials and instructions, she was housed away for cultivation. Prior to this, however, Wu Baozhai had asked to personally inform others of her choice. While this could be perceived as leaving Long Chen, she felt it was best the news came from her.
And she did.
They ventured down towards the surface and met up with the others, and as Wu Baozhai explained this to them, to Long Chen, it was anything but peaceful.
The sheer explosive interaction was shocking even to Su Mei. Fortunately, Wu Baozhai smartly left out Wei Wuyin's intentions to allow her to become the Grand Princess, overtaking Long Chen's position. As they spoke, she caught the determined glint within Wu Baozhai's eyes that revealed her complete willingness to do it, to replace Long Chen.
As for the viciously thrown words filled with pain and feelings of betrayal, she accepted them all. Besides Lian Yu, Long Tingyu, and Long Chen, the rest were mostly silent. This was especially so when Na Xinyi asked why and she explained her innermost thoughts in an emotional display. But to Long Chen, it was simply a complete and utter betrayal. He didn't see it, or couldn't see it, any other way.
He had even brought up their sexual relationship with each other, saying how Wei Wuyin was merely doing this simply to take her away from him, and she was falling for it! Even Lian Yu lost her emotions, calling her a disgusting slut with no sense of loyalty. A vicious side Wu Baozhai had never expected from the normally gentle Lian Yu.
Their relationship fell apart.
Even when she explained that she wasn't there to become Wei Wuyin's lover nor had any intention to, their minds had already become set on that possibility. Maybe it was because they understood or thought of doing so as well, so they fixated on it.
Su Mei silently watched it all, bringing Wu Baozhai away after the climax of their feverishly heated exchange. She found it somewhat laughable that they believed Wu Baozhai joining the Ascendants meant becoming Wei Wuyin's lover, as she was extremely aware of his ironclad principles regarding this issue.
Returning, she settled Wu Baozhai and informed Wei Wuyin of the developments, including the emotional collapse that had occurred.
Wei Wuyin expected nothing less. All that remained was for Na Xinyi to arrive, asking him to honor his previous words. With that, Long Chen would only have Long Tingyu and Lian Yu. Considering Long Tingyu was technically his adopted sister, that was a little awkward.
He truly didn't know if he was plundering all of Long Chen's karmic fortune little by little or if this was the inevitability of interacting with a Blessed as an Inheritor of Sin. He hadn't taken any intentional actions, hadn't experienced any influences of the Heavenly Daos, and yet each one of Long Chen's mysterious beauties that were likely expressions of Karmic Luck was coming to his side.
Lin Ziyan had a unique bloodline and history.
Wu Baozhai possessed keen intelligence and a bloodline legacy.
Na Xinyi had an evolving Physique that was endlessly beneficial to every male in existence.
Qing Qiumu's talent was vastly beyond imagination.
He didn't know if they had their own stories as grand and extraordinary as Lin Ziyan, but he knew each one of them was unordinary. He could only imagine that Lian Yu and Long Tingyu were someone special as well. If he had to make a wild guess, he would assume that Long Tingyu had a connection with the Abyss Master and Lian Yu might be connected to the Divine King Han Xei in some way, perhaps linked to the Guardian of the Elements or the Four Way Elementus Knights.
This was just a speculation based on how Lin Ziyan and Wu Baozhai had distinctive connections with two other great figures, the Sacred Elven Queen and Wu Yu respectively.
With a light sigh, he nodded towards Su Mei. There's been non-stop developments as of now, and he had this distinct feeling that it'll lead to something explosive. It wasn't his Eye of Truth or his Bloodline of Sin, merely his instincts that told him that a chapter was approaching its inevitable climax. As for what they would lead to, he had no idea.
With a shrug, he stretched his neck to the side. "The Gateway Door will open soon. There are still a few things to do, such as visit the Alchemist Association and ensure the settling of the new Void Gate, but I think its time I challenged my next Astral Tribulation." He hadn't made major breakthroughs in his cultivation for quite a while, being thrusted into many different things without pause.
Now, he had finally comprehended the unique principles of Soul Idol Formation, feeling the trigger to start his Astral Tribulation at any time.
"Tch!" – King.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" – Ori.
"…" – Eden.
"Finally." – Kratos.
It's been a while since his Astral Souls felt lively, they were ready to finally begin. He could feel their excitement, their elation, and the utter expectations from them. He knew this Astral Tribulation like the others wouldn't be ordinary, but he just didn't know what they had planned.
He was infected by their vigor, smiling brilliantly with anticipation.
