Chapter 1371: Red Star

"Xian'er will always obey the Phoenix God's commands, Your Excellency. But to hear you 'beg'... Xian'er is truly unworthy." Feng Xian'er bowed deeply, overwhelmed with trepidation.

"No, you are worthy," the Phoenix Spirit said. Its eyes were dimmer and its voice heavier each passing year. "I hope you can leave this place and stay by Yun Che's side for as long as possible."

"Ah?" Feng Xian'er looked surprised, and then the words "I beg you" made her even more flustered. "He is Xian'er's great benefactor. Xian'er would never do anything to harm him."

"I want you to stay by his side, but not to do anything harmful to him, nor do I have any designs on him."

"Then... does the Phoenix God want Xian'er to protect him?" She felt a slight sense of relief.

The Phoenix Spirit replied, "The strongest individuals on this continent are all close to him; he doesn't need your protection. But there is one thing only you can do."

"Only... me?" Feng Xian'er murmured, feeling lost.

"From now on, you must remember every word I say, not a single one can be forgotten. This concerns Yun Che's life and destiny, and perhaps... even the survival of this entire continent!"

Feng Xian'er stared ahead, her mind a blur.

Beyond the Phoenix Barrier lay "the outside world," a world Yun Wuxin had never set foot in.

Feng Xian'er led Yun Che, while Yun Wuxin led Chu Yuechan. High above, the boundless vista and the distinctly different air filled Yun Wuxin with excitement. Her starry eyes constantly scanned her surroundings, and she breathed deeply, like a bird just released from its cage.

"We've finally left this place," Chu Yuechan said, gazing into the distance with a complex expression.

Her years at Ice Cloud Immortal Palace were marked by cool indifference, and her years with the Phoenix remnant clan were spent in isolation. For others, these might have been cages, but for her, they had become habits. Thinking of the future, her heart was instead filled with uncertainty.

The biggest reason she was willing to leave with Yun Che was still Yun Wuxin.

"Little fairy," he whispered, knowing what Chu Yuechan was thinking. "I'll always be by your side."

In the distance, a dangerous aura suddenly approached.

It was a massive eagle, entirely green, creating a storm as it flew. The storm was heading directly towards them.

Feng Xian'er's delicate face tensed, and she immediately shielded Yun Che. Yun Che, however, showed no worry.

"Oh?" Yun Wuxin turned her gaze, extended her small hand, and gently pointed towards the giant eagle.

Instantly, all the storm dissipated, and the giant eagle, which had been diving down, was firmly frozen in mid-air by a force it could not resist, even if it were ten times stronger.

Yun Wuxin seriously observed it, then asked curiously, "What is this? It looks pretty, but also very fierce."

Yun Che smiled slightly. "That's a Storm Gale Eagle. Years ago, I was chased by one and fell into this place."

"Eh?" Yun Wuxin's lips parted, and then she said, somewhat indignantly, "It actually chased Daddy! It must be a bad thing!"

With a gentle poke of her finger, the poor Storm Gale Eagle spun backwards like a top and plummeted down, flying out of Yun Che's sight.

"Hahahahaha." Yun Che laughed heartily, then frowned slightly.

First the Green-scaled Beast, and now the Storm Gale Eagle—their temperaments were completely different from what he knew, as if they had been twisted into ferocity.

Wait... twisted?!

The first thing Yun Che thought of, or rather, the only thing he could think of that could invisibly twist the nature of living beings, was dark profound energy!

However, this was the Profound Sky Continent. After Fen Juechen and Xuanyuan Wentian perished, no one possessed dark profound energy except him. The Devil God's Cavern near the Supreme Ocean Palace was sealed year-round, and even if it weren't, the leaked devil energy wouldn't affect this place.

As Yun Che pondered in silence, a flash of red light suddenly caught his eye.

He instinctively turned his head to the east... and saw a point of crimson starlight shining directly in the eastern sky.

It was daytime, and the brilliant white light of the scorching sun should have obscured all starlight, but this point of light not only existed, its glow seemed to penetrate everything. The moment Yun Che looked directly at it, it felt like a crimson steel needle piercing his eyes, causing an unspeakable stinging pain in his soul.

That was...

"Oh? Mother, look quickly, that red star has appeared again."

As Yun Che wondered in surprise, he heard Yun Wuxin's soft exclamation. And as her voice faded, the red light completely vanished from the sky again, not reappearing for a long time.

A red star... again?!

"What was that red light just now? Does it appear often?" Yun Che turned his head and asked.

Feng Xian'er replied, "It's the 'Crimson Star.' It started appearing about half a year ago, often flashing briefly before disappearing. No one knows what it is, but there are many rumors that its bright appearance over the Profound Sky Continent is a sign of good fortune."

Yun Che fell silent.

"Actually, it's not just the Profound Sky Continent; my brother and I also saw it when we traveled in the Illusory Demon Realm," Feng Xian'er said, then murmured to herself, "It seems to be appearing more and more frequently recently."

"Half a year ago..." Yun Che frowned, then suddenly said, "Is that around the same time the profound beast unrest started?"

"Ah?" Feng Xian'er was startled. "It seems... it really is. Could there be a connection between the two?"

Yun Che was silent for a moment, then smiled slightly. "I was just speaking idly. Let's go."

"By the way, Xian'er, why did the Phoenix God specifically summon you?" Yun Che asked casually.

"Well..." Feng Xian'er lowered her head slightly and whispered, "I don't want to hide it from you, but... but the Phoenix God said I mustn't tell anyone about this, so... I'm sorry..."

Yun Che quickly waved his hand. "No, no need. If the Phoenix God personally summoned you, it must be something important. I shouldn't have asked carelessly."

Feng Xian'er opened her mouth, but ultimately decided against speaking.

The Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range was teeming with profound beasts, most of which had become savage. The moment they were discovered, the beasts surged forward in a frenzy to attack.

As they left the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range area, they endured a total of twelve waves of profound beast attacks.

The profound beasts here were mostly Spirit Profound Beasts and Earth Profound Beasts, with Sky Profound Beasts being extremely rare. With Feng Xian'er and Yun Wuxin by their side, no matter how many rampaging profound beasts attacked, they posed no threat.

Finally leaving the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range, Yun Che realized that profound beasts, which normally would not venture outside their own territories, were appearing in large numbers in the outer regions. All the villages near the outskirts were now desolate ruins, and even the main roads were unusually quiet, with no one in sight even in broad daylight.

"Is the profound beast unrest in other places similar?" Yun Che asked.

"Yes," Feng Xian'er nodded. "The most severe is the Death Omen Plain region; the area within a hundred miles around it has become a disaster zone, and no one dares approach. Although the unrest has been suppressed repeatedly, it's said that the scope of the disturbance continues to expand. If it continues like this, all the profound beasts in the entire Death Omen Plain could fall into chaos."

This meant that to resolve the unrest there, it might ultimately be necessary to kill all the profound beasts in the Death Omen Plain.

The entire eight hundred miles of Death Omen Plain... the most dangerous place in the Azure Cloud Nation, inhabited by countless perilous profound beasts. The level of these profound beasts was incomparably higher than those in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range. The two flood dragons within had once nearly killed Chu Yuechan.

It was conceivable that without the aid of the Divine Phoenix Sect, such widespread unrest would be a catastrophic disaster for the Azure Cloud Nation.

What on earth was going on?!

Yun Che meticulously described the Azure Cloud Imperial City and the customs of the Azure Cloud Nation to Yun Wuxin, as they would soon be heading there. A short distance ahead, profound beast roars echoed, accompanied by rapid, almost overlapping sounds of tearing.

Yun Che recognized them as the sounds of sword qi tearing through space.

Feng Xian'er stopped and said to Yun Che, "It's Ling Jie, whom we met the day before yesterday."

"Ling Jie?" Chu Yuechan glanced sideways. "The second young master of Heavenly Sword Villa?"

During the Azure Cloud Ranking Battle back then, Ling Jie's sword might displayed at the age of sixteen, and his talent, which surpassed his elder brother Ling Yun, had thoroughly astonished everyone present in his battle against Yun Che.

"It's him," Yun Che said. "In these past years, he left Heavenly Sword Villa and has been traveling, partly for cultivation, and partly to help me find you as atonement for his mother's actions."

Chu Yuechan said nothing.

"He has shown me kindness several times. When I battled the Burning Heaven Clan, he feared for my safety and traveled thousands of miles to help me. When his grandfather, Ling Tianni, tried to kill me, he shielded me with his life. When I went to the Divine Phoenix Empire for the Seven Nations Ranking Battle, he risked danger to support me. While these may not be considered great favors, they are incredibly precious and pure."

Yun Che sighed softly, his emotions complex. "It was because of this that, even though I knew what Xuanyuan Yufeng had done back then, I ultimately did not kill her."

"Should we avoid him?" Feng Xian'er asked. The day before yesterday, Yun Che had clearly seemed unwilling to meet him.

"No need," Yun Che smiled. "It's rare to meet again; we should at least say hello."

Ling Jie being here was naturally not for cultivation. Given his current cultivation, this was hardly a place for his training. His continuous stay here for several days was clearly to save as many people as possible who had inadvertently entered this area.

Just like the day before yesterday, when Feng Xian'er and Yun Che were surrounded by Green-scaled Beasts, he had burst forth like thunder.

*Clang!*

The sword light was dazzling, tearing black streaks through the air. Rampaging profound beasts fell in swathes under his blade. As the last mournful roar of a profound beast faded, Yun Che's figure appeared in his line of sight.

At that moment, he froze, his vision blurring.

"Xiao Jie, long time no see. You haven't changed much," Yun Che said with a smile as Feng Xian'er helped him descend from the air.

Ling Jie remained stunned, his eyes wide and fixed. After several seconds, he finally managed to say, disbelievingly, "Yun... Yun... no... you are... you really are..."

"It's only been five years, hasn't it? You don't recognize me that quickly?" Yun Che chuckled at his reaction.

"No, it's not that..." Ling Jie quickly shook his head. Only now did he seem to finally believe his eyes, and he stepped forward excitedly. "Boss, is it... really you? Legends say you went to a higher plane, you... you... did you come back from there? But... your appearance..."

He naturally sensed no profound energy aura from Yun Che... this could be understood as the gap between them being too vast for him to perceive. However, he could clearly see that Yun Che's skin was rough, and his eyes were unusually cloudy.

"Yes," Yun Che nodded. "I did go to another world, and I haven't been back from there for long. My current appearance... as you can see, my profound energy is completely gone. From now on, I'm basically a cripple."

Ling Jie was suddenly shocked, muttering in disbelief and inability to accept, "How... how could this be..."

As he spoke, his gaze inadvertently shifted and landed on Chu Yuechan... At that instant, he looked as if he had been struck by lightning. The Sky Mandarin Duck Sword, which was never out of his grasp, slipped from his hand and clattered onto the shattered stones at his feet with a crisp *clang*.

"Yuechan... Fairy!?" He froze again, his eyes trembling even more violently than when he first saw Yun Che.

Chu Yuechan, once the most beautiful woman in the Azure Cloud Profound Realm, the woman his father had been infatuated with and his mother had been consumed by jealousy over... she was also the person he had dreamed of finding all these years.

"Yes," Yun Che smiled slightly. "I've finally found her."

*Thud!*

Ling Jie knelt heavily before Chu Yuechan, tears streaming from his eyes. "I, Ling Jie, a descendant of a sinner, on behalf of my deceased mother... beg forgiveness from Fairy Yuechan!"

As soon as he spoke, his head hit the ground hard... without any profound energy to protect him, his forehead immediately split open and bled, staining the scattered dust.