“Where would you like to set the eye of the formation here, Big Brother Yun Che?” Shui Meiyin asked.
Yun Che thought for a moment before answering, “I think it would be best to place it in Xiao Clan. In fact, let’s place it right here in this courtyard.” [1]
Although the Illusory Demon Yun Family was where he was born, he was ultimately attached to the Xiao Clan of Floating Cloud City in a special, irreplaceable way. After all, it was where he grew up, where his fate was changed forever, and where he met Jasmine for the first time.
“Eye of the formation?” Yun Wuxin shot her father an inquiring glance.
“It’s the eye of a dimensional teleportation formation to be exact,” Yun Che answered his daughter smilingly. “The other teleportation formation is set in my city in the God Realm, Emperor Yun City. When the construction is complete, you may travel to and from the God Realm whenever you wish.”
Yun Wuxin’s lips parted a little. It was because she was stunned by the magnitude of the construction.
Yun Che had told her that the spatial laws of the God Realm were much stronger than the ones governing the lower realms. It was incredibly difficult to traverse or destroy the fabric of space of the God Realm.
One of his given examples was the great dimensional formation that connected the Eternal Heaven God Realm and the edge of the Primal Chaos. It had taken the manpower and resources of multiple king realms to complete, and it was literally the biggest space traversing project ever undertaken in the history of the God Realm.
The soon-to-be-completed profound spatial formation that connects Blue Pole Star to the God Realm was on a much smaller scale than that great dimensional formation, but she recognized that it was still on a scale that was beyond her ability to comprehend.
“It connects directly to father’s Emperor Yun City…” Yun Wuxin’s eyes shimmered. “A profound spatial formation can’t be mundane even for the God Realm, right?”
“Of course not,” Yun Che replied. “Even if we discount the resources that are involved, your Auntie Meiyin is the only person in the entire cosmos who can complete a profound spatial formation like this in such a short time.”
“Auntie Meiyin is amazing,” Yun Wuxin praised from the bottom of her heart.
“Heehee!”
Shui Meiyin brushed her fingers against the World Piercer, and ripples of crimson energy trailed after her movement. “I shall begin my work then. The space here is too fragile though, so I will have to strengthen it before laying down the eye of the formation. It will take around ten days to complete everything.”
“Oh right!”
Shui Meiyin suddenly recalled something and extended a hand. Sitting on her snow white palm were three bright, crimson jades. “This is for you, Big Brother Yun Che!”
The unique crimson glow was a dead giveaway. They clearly contained the spatial divine power of the World Piercer.
Yun Che accepted the gift and exhaled bits of profound energy to figure out how to use it. Then, he asked in a surprised voice, “Did you create them using the World Piercer?”
“Mn!” Shui Meiyin nodded before continuing in a melodious voice, “The World Piercer will never regain its former glory. Therefore, it cannot create a Void Illusion Stone anymore.”
“However, the World Piercer has been able to regenerate some divine energy during the past couple of months of peace, and I decided to create these ‘World Jades’ with them. All you need to do is to inject it with profound energy, and they’ll teleport you to the destination no matter how far away you are from it. It is inferior to the Void Illusion Stone in that it is not perfectly untraceable, but—”
Shui Meiyin’s eyebrows curled into crescents. “—the trail it leaves behind is still nearly undetectable, and it only takes a maximum of two breaths to complete the teleportation. Most importantly, it doesn’t teleport you to a random, unknown location. I promise you that they are better than all the Void Illusion Stones that remain in the current universe.”
“But where do they teleport you to?” Yun Che realized the answer even as he voiced the question. “Could it be… Emperor Yun City!”
“But of course!” Shui Meiyin giggled again. “Just crush it, and you will be teleported to Emperor Yun City even if you are inside the God Realm of Absolute Beginning.”
It should’ve been impossible to teleport between the God Realm of Absolute Beginning and the God Realm. Before the World Piercer appeared, not even the so-called greatest spatial profound artifact at the time, the Great Void Cauldron could pull off such a feat.
Yun Che clenched his fingers a little. If Yun Wuxin wasn’t right here, he would’ve pushed Shui Meiyin down and kissed her for a very long time.
As the Great Emperor, there was nothing left in the Primal Chaos that could threaten him anymore. However, that didn’t mean that he had no use for the World Jades.
It was because the World Jades were meant for his loved ones. He had afforded them the best possible protection in the entire universe, there was no such thing as too much. Even if the worst case scenario—even if the chance of it happening was smaller than a speck of dust—were to occur, his loved ones would still be able to escape the danger.
Shui Meiyin knew exactly where Yun Che’s greatest worries lay. That was why she created these spatial divine stones she named “World Jades” for him even though they cost the incredibly precious energy of the World Piercer. The owners of the jades might never have to use them, but their existence would permanently eliminate the last vestiges of worry in Yun Che’s heart.
“Three is all I can create though. You will have to decide who gets to have them, Big Brother Yun Che.”
Shui Meiyin winked meaningfully at Yun Che before twisting her delicate waist and waving the World Piercer. A thin sheet of crimson light immediately expanded from the Heavenly Profound Treasure and enveloped all the space within 10 kilometers of her.
“Wear this, Wuxin.”
Yun Che placed one the World Jades in Yun Wuxin’s hands and advised seriously, “Never store this in your spatial artifact. Instead, keep it on your person at all times. In case the unthinkable happens, you’ll be able to teleport to Emperor Yun City immediately.”
“I got it.” Although she thought that her father’s precautions were entirely too excessive, she obediently accepted the World Jade and admired its unique light for a moment. Then, she carefully deposited it inside her sash.
“So, who are you going to give the remaining two jades to, father?” Her tone was serious, but her playful expression was exactly identical to the one on Shui Meiyin’s face a moment ago. “Personally, I would like mother and master to have them, but…”
“Auntie Cang Yue and Auntie Ling’er are the gentlest of them all, so they will never contest for it. They will definitely feel disappointed on the inside though.”
“Auntie Caiyi would appear the most unconcerned, but the truth would be the complete opposite.”
“Auntie Lingxi grew up together with father, and everyone knows just how close you two are. Even I would feel sorry for her if you don’t give her one.”
“Auntie Caizhi looks very unhappy for some reason. It would be a bad idea to make her even madder.”
Auntie Meiyin poured her sweat and blood into creating these three World Jades. Although she gave them all to you, I bet she really wants you to put one around her neck with your own two hands…”
“Auntie—”
“Enough! Enough…” Waves of headache assaulted Yun Che’s. The two World Jades in his hand suddenly felt scalding hot for some reason.
Yun Wuxin clasped her hand behind her back and bent forward slightly. Her current appearance was one an outsider who was used to her cold, lofty mask could never imagine. “If you don’t mind, I may have a solution to your problem.”
“… are you sure it’s a good solution?” Yun Che glanced at his cute daughter suspiciously.
Yun Wuxin said half-jokingly and half-seriously, “It’s simple. All you need to do is give me a younger brother and a younger sister, heehee!”
To her surprise, Yun Che actually nodded after a moment of consideration. “Not a bad idea.”
His eyes focused, and his expression suddenly turned serious. “In that case, help me trick your mom into the bedroom tonight! It’s been seven days and eighteen hours since she allowed me to touch a hair on her. I can’t believe she’s still angry about that!”
“Of course she’s angry!” Yun Wuxin rolled her eyes at Yun Che. “How could she not after she saw what you did to auntie!? If she wasn’t as soft-hearted as she is, I… I would be ignoring you just like mom! Hmph!”
“It’s not like that! Yueli and I are—”
“You know it’s no use trying to explain things to an angry spouse, right? Much less me.” Yun Wuxin hid a snicker before continuing with a straight face, “Plus, how is mom at fault when you’re really the one who couldn’t give me a younger brother or a younger sister? I have more aunties than I can count, and let’s not pretend that you haven’t been… been…with them… all this time when my mom was ignoring you!”
“Pfft!”
A girlish snort suddenly came from below. Yun Che’s already awkward expression immediately crumbled into something worse.
It was only now that Yun Wuxin noticed the new arrival. Panicking over the likelihood that she had really hurt her father’s dignity, she said in a hurry, “Auntie Ling’er, I… I was just joking with father.”
“I know,” a smiling Su Ling’er replied while walking up to them. “Can you play with Yongning for a bit, Wuxin? There’s something very~ important that I would like to talk with your father about.”
“Okay!” Yun Wuxin hurriedly agreed before escaping the scene. She didn’t even dare to look at Yun Che’s face before she left.
“This is getting serious. Even your precious daughter is starting to worry over you,” Su Ling’er teased Yun Che after arriving by his side.
“Hmph!” Yun Che exhaled through his nose, crossed his arms and feigned indifference. “This was a common problem for the Dragon Gods, and I have the Dragon God’s bloodline, so it can’t be helped. It’s not all bad though. It would be terrifying if ten thousand years later, the number of my descendants grew to tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands like some of the realm kings or god emperors in the God Realm.”
His scalp turned numb just thinking about it.
“Yes, yes, whatever you say, husband.” Su Ling’er’s eyes curled a little with cheer. “I’m sure it’s the same for Wuxin. She may ask for a younger brother or sister time and again, but I bet she’s really worried that she would lose some of your love to her future siblings.”
“What an unnecessary worry.” Yun Che let out a chuckle before asking, “So, what is this important thing you wish to talk with me about, Ling’er?”
“Make a guess, husband.” Su Ling’er blinked cutely.
Yun Che tried, but he couldn’t think of anything that fit the weight behind Ling’er’s words. He replied tentatively, “Did… did Caiyi and Caizhi get into an argument or something?”
“Of course not! In fact, they are doing great right now.” Su Ling’er took a step forward and moved her face closer until her lips were almost touching Yun Che’s cheek. Then, she whispered in a quiet voice, “What else is very important besides the matter between you and Sister Lingxi?”
Yun Che’s surprise gave way to uncontrollable excitement. “D-did you finally figure out why!?”
“Not yet,” Su Ling’er replied slowly and seriously. “But I’ve told your master about your weird impotence whenever you’re facing sister Lingxi, and he said—”
“Stop stop stop!” Yun Che interrupted, “You can say go soft or whatever, but NEVER use that word EVER. Also, what!? You told my master about this!?”
Impotence was the greatest pain for any man… and the Great Emperor of the God Realm was no exception.
“Don’t worry, husband. When I spoke with our master, I made sure to mention that it was ‘someone else’s husband’.”
“…” Yun Che put a hand to his forehead. “Master isn’t stupid, you know.”
“That’s not important, heehee.” Su Ling’er just barely held back a giggle at Yun Che’s expression. She continued in a consoling tone, “You really don’t need to mind about this. Everyone knows that our husband is the greatest, strongest and manliest man in the entire world… except Sister Lingxi.”
“~！@#￥%…” Yun Che groaned inside his head. She just had to add that last part!
“What… what did Master say?” Yun Che tried to stay calm, but he only half-succeeded when he realized that he could no longer visit his master without feeling some intense awkwardness.
“Master’s judgment was exactly the same as mine,” Su Ling’er said. “If the body is perfectly healthy, and the man doesn’t react differently before another woman, then it can only be a psychological problem.”
“For years, I had believed that your psyche had created some sort of mental block because she was your ‘little aunt’. You had believed her to be your blood relative for fifteen years after all.”
“However, after you increased all our cultivation to the Divine Origin Realm using the Divine Water of Life, and I spent the past couple of years growing accustomed to the body and profound energy of the divine way, I came to realize that it was a mistake. This mental block may affect a mortal man, but never to a divine way profound practitioner like you.”
“…” Yun Che had figured this out himself a long time ago. A body forged in the divine way simply couldn’t be touched by the negative effects of the psyche. [2]
“I haven’t thought about this until now because of your years-long disappearance, but your ‘symptom’ remained even after you came back. After searching for a solution or even a reason for the past couple months to no avail, I finally decided that I must consult Master about it.”
After going missing for five years straight, Yun Che had returned a renewed man in every sense of the word. He had united the Northern Divine Region, flattened the three Divine Regions, torn the Dragon Monarch apart with his bare hands, and became the emperor of the universe himself. Discounting the Era of the Gods, he was without a doubt the greatest profound practitioner ever in the entire cosmos.
After he returned to the Blue Pole Star, Su Ling’er, Cang Yue, Chu Yuechan, Little Demon Empress, Feng Xue’er and more… everyone had come to know exactly how powerful his draconic blood and divine body really were. He had grinded for seven days and nights straight and remained as energetic as he was on the first day!
And yet… the second he pounced on Xiao Lingxi…
His little brother would immediately wilt like a flower!
It was exactly the same as it was back then!
He himself was a genius doctor. His art of healing had long since surpassed Yun Gu’s, especially after he had cultivated the Divine Miracle of Life to completion.
In fact, his cultivation in this area had gone beyond the art of healing and into the boundary that was the true essence of life itself.
He knew better than anyone that it was neither a physical or a mental problem. That was why he was so confused by it.
This was no illness he was contending with. No, this… was an invisible curse.
But what could possibly curse him? In this world where the heavenly way itself feared him, and the Dragon Monarch was crushed by him like an ant?
Even if a transcendental existence like that did exist in the world… why in the Primal Chaos would they curse him with something so nonsensical??
“Master admits that he is confounded, since the issue is neither physical nor mental. That is why he requested me to bring the ‘patient’ to him for an actual inspection. Do you get why I am here now?”
“You want me to follow you to meet Master?” Yun Che exhaled in a helpless voice.
Su Ling’er stuck out her tongue a bit before grabbing Yun Che’s wrist and shaking it back and forth. “Husband, I know you don’t like this, but this is Master Yun Gu we’re talking about. You know there’s no illness in the world that he cannot treat.”
“Both you and Sister Linxi have been hung up on this for a very long time, and this is the only possible way to solve this that I can think of. Please, resolve yourself and come with me, okay? Master will find a way to solve this.”
“No.” However, Yun Che rejected her without hesitation. “In fact, you don’t need to worry about this anymore, Ling’er.”
Surprised and slightly aggrieved, Su Ling’er stopped shaking his hands and asked in a timid voice, “You… you really want to keep it a secret that much?”
“It’s not that.” Yun Che retook her hands to assure her. “I just know that even Master won’t be able to solve this. Don’t worry though. One day, I will figure out the reason myself.”
“Also, when you speak to Lingxi later, please tell her that it’s just me still unable to get over myself, okay? I don’t want her to start wondering if she’s the real problem.”
Amusingly enough, Xiao Lingxi being capable of turning him soft instantly wasn’t even the strangest thing about her. The fact that she could somehow decipher the World-Defying Heaven Manual written using the Divine Text of Absolute Beginning was a million times stranger than that.
Wait a minute… the World-Defying Heaven Manual!
Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t asked Xiao Lingxi to decipher the last World-Defying Heaven Manual the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor had given to Shui Meiyin before she left, and Shui Meiyin had passed to him later on.
There were a couple of reasons. For one, he was the strongest profound practitioner in the entire universe. Two, he had too much to catch up on after he was finally able to return home. It wasn’t like the manual hadn’t come across his mind at all, but it was quickly buried by other matters. Now though… he felt like he should figure out its contents for some reason.
Seeing Yun Che’s peaceful but firm expression, Su Ling’er understood that there was no point trying to change his mind. “Very well. I just hope Master won’t go on another rant about ‘hiding a sickness for fear of treatment’ again…”
“Oh right,” Su Ling’er asked suddenly, “Who is that Yun Kong person you brought home? He has no profound energy or even memories, but you went through the effort to obfuscate his identity anyway. You’re only making us more curious, you know that?”
“He is a sinner who deserves a million deaths, but I cannot execute for some reasons,” Yun Che replied. “His past is nonconsequential. Just treat him like you would any other person.”
Caizhi hadn’t objected to Yun Che’s treatment of Xing Juekong, but he had no doubt that she didn’t want anyone to know that he was her father.
Maybe she would visit him one day. Maybe she would never. It was up to her to decide.
“I see.” Su Ling’er looked thoughtful, but she didn’t pursue it any further.
“Speaking of which, he hasn’t asked Master to restore his lost memories, has he?” Yun Che asked.
“No.” Su Ling’er shook her head. “On the contrary, he actually rebuffed master’s request when he offered to inspect his head and see if there’s a chance to restore his memories.”
“Yun Kong claimed that watching our master rescuing the ill and wounded was like having his soul cleansed by pure water. Every time he witnessed a dying patient returning to life, he felt as if their reignited flames of life were glowing in his own hands. It was a kind of satisfaction and joy that was beyond all description.”
“He said that ‘the man who brought him here’ had called him an unforgivable sinner, and the longer he worked with Master, the more he grew to fear and reject his own past. That is why he is certain that he doesn’t ever want to regain his memories.”
“I see.” Yun Che raised his eyebrows slightly. He didn’t quite know how to feel about this.
He really wanted to punish Xing Juekong, but… it looked like he had saved him instead.
…………
Although Shui Meiyin was restructuring the surrounding space of the entire Xiao residence, not many people actually noticed her activity.
Yun Che had returned to Xiao Lingxi’s courtyard and saw her sitting with her chin between her hands and watching a rack of grapes she had grown herself. She was wearing a jade green dress that outlined her perfect shoulders and delicate waist. Her peaceful and elegant features looked like they would never be tainted by the filth of the mortal world.
Xiao Lingxi turned around with a beautiful smile on her face when she heard his footsteps behind her. “You came, Little Che. Shouldn’t you be with Wuxin right now?”
“I chased her away. She’s twenty years old, she shouldn’t stick around her father like a baby,” Yun Che walked up to Xiao Lingxi while saying this.
“Pfft.” Xiao Lingxi suppressed a giggle. “Someone’s feeling defiant today. Just wait until the day Wuxin marries. I’ll be there when your act falls apart.”
Yun Che sat down beside Xiao Lingxi and wrapped his arm around her waist like it was the most natural thing in the world. “You’ve been blanking out a lot recently. Is there something on your mind?”
Xiao Lingxi shook her head reflexively, but she nodded slowly after she finished processing his words. “After meeting Meiyin and Caizhi, I came to realize that the goddesses of the God Realm are truly… different. And I haven’t even met my new older sister, the one called ‘Mu Xuanyin’ yet. I heard that she is very… dignified, and that she used to be your master. Meiyin even said that there is no other woman you respect and listen to more than her.”
“Er…” He couldn’t say it wasn’t true.
“So… I’m a little nervous, to be honest. I’m worried I would fumble and leave her a bad impression. For the past two days, I’ve been thinking about how I should speak and act around her.”
Her tension and worry were almost tangible to his eyes.
“Haha, your worry is unnecessary. She is nowhere as scary as you imagine.”
Yun Che held Xiao Lingxi’s hands as he said this. He was smiling, but his heart ached painfully for his childhood friend.
Cang Yue was Empress Cangue, Feng Xue’er was the Phoenix Goddess, Huan Caiyi was the Little Demon Empress of the Illusory Demon Realm, Su Ling’er was the disciple of the world respected medical saint, and Chu Yuechan was the Frozen Cloud Palace Master and mother of Yun Wuxin…
As for Chi Wuyao, Qianye Ying’er, Shui Meiyin, Caizhi and Mu Xuanyin… they stood at a height where she couldn’t even begin to imagine.
Of all the women Yun Che had loved, she was the only one who was perfectly average.
Even disregarding family background, influence and status, her looks were inferior even compared to Feng Xue’er or Little Demon Empress, much less the likes of Qianye Ying’er or Chi Wuyao.
It was impossible not to feel some sadness and sense of inferiority every time she looked at the women surrounding Yun Che. She was too average, too humble. She just didn’t feel like she belonged with them.
However, she didn’t want to reveal her feelings in front of Yun Che either. She didn’t want him to worry for her.
“I’ll admit that Xuanyin looks very dignified. Scarily so, even. However…” he suddenly lowered his voice and wore a mischievous look on his face. “Ever heard of the phrase ‘cold outside, hot inside’?”
His closeness caused Xiao Lingxi’s heart to race despite herself. She asked hesitantly, “You are saying that… Sister Xuanyin is… such a person?”
“Oh, yes!” Yun Che declared with absolute confidence, “When she’s in the presence of an outsider, she can freeze someone into a popsicle with her two eyes. On the bed though, whew! Not even ten Xue’er’s and nine Caiyi’s are a match for her.”
“…” Xiao Lingxi’s eyes and mouth widened at the same time.
“Here’s another secret,” Yun Che continued, “do you know how Xuanyin and I went from master and student to lovers? Not long after I became her disciple, she, uh… forced herself on me while we were at a place called the Ancient God Burying Inferno Prison.”
“What!?” Xiao Lingxi couldn’t stop herself from crying out.
“That was her first time, and it took me two days and nights of non-stop activity to finally satisfy her.” Yun Che exhaled shortly. “That is why people say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Sometimes what you see IS what you get, yes, but other times, well… who knows? Maybe the scariest person you ever meet is also the most… hehehehe. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that you really don’t need to be nervous around her. Heck, who’s to say she isn’t more nervous than you are?”
“After all, all my women know there’s no one closer and more important to me than you, my Lingxi.”
“O… okay.” She had inadvertently conjured some weird scenes in her mind after listening to Yun Che. Blushing, she bowed her head in an attempt to hide her embarrassment.
She understood that Yun Che was exaggerating things quite a bit for her sake. However, she couldn’t deny that it did wonders to dispel her nervousness and tension.
Meanwhile, Mu Xuanyin was watching a cuddling Yun Che and Xiao Lingxi behind a thin cloud in the sky. No one had noticed her due to the effects of Moon Splitting Cascade. [3]
After learning of Shui Meiyin and Caizhi’s arrival, she ultimately wasn’t able to quell her impatience and decided to give Yun Che a pleasant surprise.
Of course, she couldn’t show up right away. If she did, this lovey dovey scene would’ve turned into a horror story instantly.
“Hmph! There’s nothing he cannot say to coax a girl, can he?”
She muttered to herself but didn’t show herself or leave the area. She stayed just out of range of Yun Che’s perception and watched over him and Lingxi in silence.
1. (T/N: I’ve had confused readers in the previous chapters, so here’s an explanation. Formations usually have a core which in Chinese is called the “eye” of the formation. It’s kinda like how people call the center a hurricane the “eye” of a hurricane. You need two teleportation formations to connect two places together, which is why you need two cores or eyes to set them up properly.)
2. (T/N: this explains why the EHGE can’t just die or even go crazy despite his mental state. The body is too strong even though the mind is in pieces.)
3. (T/N: Yun Che is dead, but he’s right. What a voyeur, man.)
