Chapter 1640: Black Sonata

A dark shadow flitted, and Chi Wuyao was instantly before Huajin. From the black mist, a hand as white as porcelain jade emerged, gently resting on Huajin's chest. Beneath her palm, a dark profound array instantly materialized.

Immediately, a thin layer of black light enveloped Huajin, causing the emerald green glow in her pupils to slowly recede. Her pupils, however, remained dilated, reflecting an unprecedented shock. "Master, this is..." she stammered.

"It's the Heaven Wounding Poison," Chi Wuyao stated. Her hands, sculpted as if by divine craftsmanship, slowly withdrew. As they receded into the black mist, the contrast between their jade-white and the pitch-black was blinding. "The demonic poison of the Heaven Wounding Poison Pearl is too potent to be annihilated," she explained. "It can only be forcefully suppressed until its 'life' expires on its own."

"The dosage is very small; you can control it, so there's no need to panic. By this time the day after tomorrow, it should dissipate completely."

Back then, the main reason Qianye Fantian was fully afflicted by the Heaven Wounding Poison Pearl's poison, after being ambushed by Yun Che and Xia Qingyue, was the panic and despair of being unable to remove or annihilate the poison. He was also completely unaware that the poison released by the current Heaven Wounding Poison Pearl could only "survive" for twenty hours.

Chi Wuyao, however, seemed to know this perfectly well.

"Now, do you still think he didn't recognize your disguise?" Chi Wuyao asked softly.

Huajin pressed a hand to her chest, and it took a while for her breathing to finally calm. She sharply turned her gaze, speaking in a low voice: "Master, he claimed to draw you out for cooperation. Yet, when he recognized my identity, he secretly struck with such a venomous hand. He shows no genuine 'cooperation' intent towards my Soul Stealing Realm."

"No, he merely used that to give me a warning and assert his dominance," Chi Wuyao said slowly. "His killing of Yan San'gen was both to lay a fuse and to make a statement, a form of coercion against me."

Huajin was bewildered.

"His way of doing things has completely changed," Chi Wuyao said, her voice lingering with a hint of lament or sadness. "The old him would never have acted this way."

"The old... him?" Huajin asked, her face showing surprise.

"Huajin, your words are not entirely wrong," Chi Wuyao said slowly. "No one can guarantee whether Yun Che can help us fulfill our long-held wish. No one can foresee whether the future will be better or worse. But given the current state of the Northern Divine Region, he is the only possibility and hope."

She didn't emphasize the words "the only," yet they seemed to pierce Huajin's soul like two demonic imprints, deeply etched into her heart.

After a long silence, Huajin voiced no more doubts or admonitions. She knelt once more, single-kneed, behind Chi Wuyao, declaring, "We sisters will devote everything to help Master achieve her long-held wish."

"Send a message to Yu Wu, Qing Ying, and Chan Yi; tell them to return to the realm immediately," Chi Wuyao commanded.

As her words fell, she lifted her elegant head, gazing at the eternally dim sky. Her lips slowly curved into a smile. "This sky, which has been dull and dark for millions of years, is finally about to become interesting," she murmured.

Yun Che and Qianye Ying'er were heading precisely towards the Soul Stealing Realm.

The Northern Divine Region, being a gradually shrinking "cage," is far from as powerful as the other three Divine Regions. At their maximum speed, even without the aid of spatial profound arrays, they could reach it within a day.

"Why didn't you tell me about Zhou Xuzi?" Yun Che demanded abruptly.

Qianye Ying'er glanced at him. "You avoided Chi Wuyao just to tell me this?"

"Why didn't you tell me!" Yun Che repeated coldly.

"It wasn't necessary," Qianye Ying'er said. "Besides, although you've been very restrained, you're still somewhat anxious, and you should know that yourself."

Yun Che frowned but remained silent.

"If you had lain dormant for another year or two, you would have had more initiative when dealing with Chi Wuyao, but you didn't. At Huangtian Que, you killed Yan San'gen forcefully without consulting me. This was to directly enrage the Yama Devil Realm, thereby forcing Chi Wuyao to annex Burning Moon and Yama Devil sooner."

"All of this proves that my concealment was the correct choice."

Yun Che still did not speak.

"Your hatred for your enemies and your hatred for yourself are like body-devouring demons, making you suffer agonizing pain every moment; I understand that very well." Qianye Ying'er looked straight ahead. "And Zhou Xuzi is the one you hate the most... or perhaps Xia Qingyue? I feared that if I told you, the time you would seek out Chi Wuyao would be drastically shortened."

"Just because of that?" Yun Che asked, his expression unchanged despite Qianye Ying'er's words.

"Yes."

"Why does Zhou Xuzi value Zhou Qingchen so highly?" Yun Che asked.

Qianye Ying'er smiled faintly. "Zhou Xuzi's eldest son is nearly twenty thousand years old, yet Zhou Qingchen, as the Heaven Smiting Crown Prince, is close to my age. Don't you find that strange?"

"There's nothing strange about that," Yun Che said. "Didn't your father also choose you as his successor?"

"I have no father," Qianye Ying'er snorted coldly, then said disdainfully, "Does that worthless Crown Prince of Heaven Smiting deserve to be compared with me? I was chosen as successor by that old dog Qianye Fantian because my talent surpassed all his descendants and all my peers. As for Zhou Qingchen... you've interacted with him multiple times; do you think his cultivation, talent, prestige, or temperament in any way qualify him to be the 'Heaven Smiting Crown Prince'?"

Qianye Ying'er and Zhou Qingchen were of similar age. Yet, even after having her inherited Brahma God divine power abolished, Qianye Ying'er still possessed mid-stage Divine Master cultivation.

Zhou Qingchen, however, was merely a mid-stage Divine Sovereign.

As fellow successors to a Divine Emperor, the disparity in their profound cultivation was immense.

Leaving aside the anomaly that is Qianye Ying'er, for Zhou Qingchen to possess mid-stage Divine Sovereign cultivation at his age was already enough to be proud of. However, he was the Crown Prince of Heaven Smiting, enjoying the best environment and resources in the world. A significant portion of his cultivation undoubtedly came from this.

The fact that the two great guardians of Heaven Smiting risked entering the Primordial Divine Realm to retrieve the Primordial Divine Fruit for him clearly illustrated this.

Even with resources at the King Realm level and treatment clearly exceeding that of a Crown Prince, while his cultivation was remarkable, it truly didn't reach the level expected of a Heaven Smiting successor. Even among the "Heaven's Chosen" who experienced Heaven Smiting's three thousand years, many were far more outstanding than him.

In terms of prestige and temperament, Zhou Qingchen was even less comparable to Qianye Ying'er.

Therefore, facing Qianye Ying'er, whose status was clearly equal, Zhou Qingchen had always felt inferior and ashamed. Even though he was infatuated with her, he never dared to take a step forward.

Yun Che thought for a moment. "Go on," he said.

"Zhou Xuzi's official wife supposedly did not come from a noble background; if I recall correctly, she was merely from a mid-rank star realm," Qianye Ying'er explained faintly. "That star realm, like the Snow Song Realm, primarily cultivates ice profound energy."

Yun Che remained silent.

"Despite such a background, she was chosen as Zhou Xuzi's official wife, which shows the depth of their affection." Qianye Ying'er subtly scoffed with a dismissive sound. "I heard that the reason Zhou Xuzi valued this woman so much was because she once, for his sake..."

"Get to the point," Yun Che coldly interrupted her. Every time he heard the name "Zhou Xuzi," the veins on his body would involuntarily spasm, so he had no desire to hear anything about his past.

"In short... that woman had no children for many years after marrying Zhou Xuzi. After consulting doctors, they found out that due to her cultivation of ice profound energy, her body had long suffered from 'cold wounds.' These cold wounds had accumulated for years, making it almost impossible for her to bear children."

"Heh." Yun Che sneered, probably already guessing what came next.

"Zhou Xuzi and the woman tried countless methods, but years passed. Zhou Xuzi already had countless descendants, with his eldest son nearly twenty thousand years old, yet she still had no offspring. Zhou Xuzi had also never established a Crown Prince, which probably made the woman both moved and guilty. She finally made up her mind and tried the only possible solution: she secretly crippled her own profound veins without Zhou Xuzi's knowledge, dispersed all her cultivation and cold energy, then repaired her body, finally conceiving."

Yun Che knew very well that it was easy for women cultivating ice profound energy to damage their wombs. With his abilities, he could easily restore it, but for others, even at the King Realm level, it was almost an insoluble problem.

"Although that woman lost her profound energy, with the resources of the Heaven Smiting Realm, it was still enough to forcefully extend her lifespan by a thousand years. But unfortunately, her cold wounds were too severe, and she died immediately after giving birth to Zhou Qingchen with great difficulty."

"That was probably Zhou Xuzi's most powerless moment in his life. Therefore, Zhou Qingchen, to him, was certainly not just a simple matter of being his only legitimate son."

"Is that all?" Yun Che seemed to sneer.

"Not enough?" Qianye Ying'er countered.

"...Enough." Yun Che's gaze gradually narrowed. "It's enough... very good."

Qianye Ying'er's gaze shifted. She saw Yun Che's hand clenched tightly, a faint streak of blood seemingly seeping from between his fingers.

"However, are you sure that old dog from Heaven Smiting will forcefully attack the Northern Divine Region once he's enraged?" Yun Che suddenly asked.

"Probably," Qianye Ying'er said. "No matter how old a monster lives, they will have their weaknesses. The reason I know so much about Zhou Qingchen is that when I was very young, Qianye Fantian wanted me to clearly see and find everyone's weaknesses!"

"Including Zhou Xuzi, Yue Wuya, the Dragon Monarch... everyone who could be used or who could become a threat."

Qianye Ying'er was recounting the rules of survival instilled in her by Qianye Fantian since childhood. But unfortunately, she had never clearly seen what Qianye Fantian's weakness was.

"Zhou Qingchen is Zhou Xuzi's biggest weakness. Once he's completely enraged... you can try to make him empathize with your hatred and state. At that point, whatever he does won't be surprising."

Yun Che remained silent.

"Additionally, he will not only bear hatred but also develop a profound sense of crisis after personally witnessing your terrifying growth and the Queen's resentment. The combination of these two will make him stop at nothing, regardless of the consequences, to eliminate you in the shortest possible time, leaving no room for luck or hesitation."

"How confident are you that these will be realized?" Yun Che asked.

"Fifty percent," Qianye Ying'er said. (She would, of course, have shown "one hundred percent" confidence without batting an eye in front of Chi Wuyao.)

"If he doesn't fall for it, we'll think of other ways," Qianye Ying'er said with a faint smile. "There can be many ways if one is willing to think. This is the most likely method of success I can currently think of, and I don't want you to be too anxious and waste this best opportunity before everything is fully prepared."

"At least, let this Northern Divine Region... have only one King Realm left!"

"Moreover," Qianye Ying'er's lips moved slightly, forming an incredibly sinister curve. "The longer the hope is dragged out, the more painful and frenzied the despair will be in the end, won't it?"

Yun Che was silent for a long time, not speaking, seemingly agreeing with Qianye Ying'er's words.

"I am quite curious about something," Qianye Ying'er suddenly said. "What about that little girl?"

She didn't believe that the current Yun Che would still harbor any superfluous goodwill.

"She's a Devil Maiden," Yun Che said.

Qianye Ying'er's eyebrows twitched, and she let out a light snort. "So that's it."

"The Seventh Devil Maiden, Huajin, with her phantom-like disguise and stealth abilities, truly lives up to her reputation," she mused, directly recalling the name. "Within ten steps, she even managed to fool me. Not even the Heavens Punishing Star God could do that."

"Beyond the Devil Maidens, Chi Wuyao herself cannot be underestimated," Qianye Ying'er said, her slender brows furrowing slightly and her eyes turning cold. "It's the first time I've felt someone's eyes could penetrate my soul."

"Furthermore, this cooperation was a bit too smooth," she said, glancing at Yun Che. "Do you think it's due to the Heaven Punishing Devil Emperor's influence?"

"I won't fully trust anyone," Yun Che said coldly.

"Including me?"

"Yes." A one-word response, delivered without hesitation.

"...Very well." Qianye Ying'er slowly nodded, seemingly in approval. Then, looking ahead, she very lightly said something inexplicable: "Even I'm starting to not trust myself... hah, how ridiculous."

Yun Che gave her a sidelong glance.

Passing through one dark realm after another, the region belonging to the Soul Stealing Realm finally appeared in their sight.

Also a world of darkness, its presence was like a devil god standing among the clouds, casting supreme demonic might over the surrounding worlds.