Chapter 1674: Crack

The advancement of profound cultivation alters the aura of profound energy.

And every advancement in the Grand Way of the Brahma Divine Art changes one's life aura.

Back on the Conferred God Platform of the Eternal Heaven, after enduring nine levels of lightning tribulation, Yun Che entered the fifth stage of the Grand Way of the Brahma Divine Art. After that, no matter how much he comprehended, he made no further progress.

This time, however, the manifestation of true divine power invisibly opened another Brahma gate for him.

Coupled with his Dragon God bloodline and Dragon God marrow, his current physical strength has already surpassed that of Tianlang Xisu in the past!

Furthermore, with the profound light energy he inherited, his body's self-healing and profound energy recovery speed have reached a realm that no one can match or even comprehend.

The fleeting manifestation of true divine power brought far more than just this.

As the boundaries shattered, he inadvertently and imperceptibly touched upon an even deeper "void."

"Little Che, wake up! It's time to get up!"

"Ugh... it's still so early. Let me sleep a bit longer."

"Today is your big wedding day with Miss Situ! The hour is almost upon us, get up quickly!"

"Little Che, this is the porridge I just finished simmering. You're weak, and the morning is so long... you must drink it all."

"Alright, alright."

"Ah... you don't need to rush so much, there's still some time."

"Phew... I've finished it. I wonder if I'll still get to eat Auntie's cooking often after this."

"Hehe, you're marrying the City Lord's daughter and bringing her into our home, it's not like you're marrying into her family. As long as you wish, I'll still cook for you every day, just like before... But Little Che, after you start your own family, you'll surely spend less and less time with me."

"How could I! I just promised Auntie yesterday: after marrying Situ Xuan, I won't forget her just because I have a wife; I won't reduce the time I spend with her, and I'll be at her beck and call just like before!"

"Hehe, that's a good boy then!"

"Yuanba, you're up surprisingly early?"

"Hehe! Today's your wedding day, so of course I had to come help... Actually, there's some good news. My dad invited a friend of his, a mentor at the New Moon Profound Palace, a few days ago. The original idea was for him to help me get into the New Moon Profound Palace, but unexpectedly, that senior mentor said that with my aptitude, I could directly enter the Azure Wind Profound Palace!"

"Oh! That's wonderful! This is simply a huge joyous event for our entire Flowing Cloud City!"

"Hehehe... I've been so excited I haven't slept well for two days. Once I get into Azure Wind Profound Palace and become more and more powerful, we'll see who dares to bully you!"

"This is still a secret for now; Dad said to keep it under wraps to avoid any complications. Only you know about it... Oh right, speaking of which, for the past two years, I've heard a lot of unpleasant rumors. They all said City Lord Situ would surely cancel the engagement and marry Situ Xuan off to Xiao Yulong, the son of your Xiao Sect Master. Hearing those rumors made me angry, and I didn't dare tell you. But now, these rumors have fallen apart on their own."

"Where there's smoke, there's fire. But it's alright, I've long grown accustomed to it. For a cripple like me to have a friend like you, and even be able to marry the City Lord's daughter, it's already a blessing from the heavens."

His consciousness was clearly awake, yet for some reason, he couldn't fully awaken. Instead, one voice after another resonated chaotically within his mind.

These voices were clearly familiar, yet they carried an unsettling sense of strangeness.

They clearly echoed in his mind, yet seemed impossibly distant and forever beyond his reach.

His hazy consciousness told him that these familiar yet strange, close yet distant voices were not new to him; they had echoed in his dreams before.

Those incredibly absurd dreams... In them, Xia Yuanba was similar in height to him, with a slender build, a handsome appearance, and astonishing profound cultivation talent.

In the dream, the one he was to marry was not Xia Qingyue, but Situ Xuan, the daughter of the Flowing Cloud City Lord.

Even the infant girl Xiao Ying saved back then was Situ Xuan.

In the dream, Xia Yuanba envied that he had an aunt by his side who would never let him be lonely, as he had no siblings.

Why would these absurd dreams reappear... or rather, manifest all at once...

Yun Che's consciousness began to struggle, desperately trying to awaken. Suddenly... the ocean of his consciousness plummeted without warning into a violently distorted pallor.

Within the distorted pallor, fragmented voices echoed...

"Do you (I) truly wish for this?"

"Do you (I) know... how many long years... how many cycles of reincarnation it took... to finally have a 'complete' you?"

"If all of this... if the source power is given to him... you (I) will no longer truly exist in this world..."

"He... is merely a mortal, after all..."

"Very well... as you (I) wish... After all, your (my) will is my (your) will."

"His frail body cannot bear my (your) power, nor can I (you) bestow it. All that can be given is a sacred body forged by the laws of nothingness, capable of containing all powers in heaven and earth..."

"Is that not enough?"

"No... fate is the one thing in this world that cannot be interfered with."

"Even I (you) cannot."

"Very well... if you (I) insist..."

"Even the slightest alteration of fate will involve causal shifts throughout the entire world. The consequences, moreover, are beyond anyone's prediction or control, even yours (mine)."

"The last of the source power might be enough to complete one causal correction..."

"It will just require a very long time... perhaps a few years, perhaps several decades..."

"During this time, I (you) will pause the time flow of this world... except for the world he is about to be sent to, where he will complete his fusion with the source power..."

"Ugh!"

Yun Che abruptly opened his eyes and sat up.

The fragmented voices that had previously echoed chaotically in his mind rapidly blurred and receded within his consciousness. He concentrated, desperately wanting to retain and remember them, but they grew fainter and more distant... until finally, they vanished completely from his memory.

Not a single word could be recalled.

"You're finally awake."

Yun Che looked up. Before him, Qianye Ying'er leaned against the wall some distance away, arms crossed, her gaze cold as she watched him.

Shaking his head, Yun Che immediately sensed a profound transformation in his body.

The flow of his life aura, the circulation of his blood, his breathing, his perception of the world... everything had changed.

His consciousness delved inwards... The Brahma Pagoda, which had been dormant for so long, had astonishingly turned pure gold.

The Grand Way of the Brahma Divine Art had suddenly advanced once more, and he clearly felt that the magnitude of change brought by this breakthrough far surpassed any previous one.

Jasmine had told him back then that for the twelve-stage Grand Way of the Brahma Divine Art, cultivating to the sixth stage was the limit for a mortal body. Anything beyond that was the realm of gods, forever unattainable.

He raised his arm, silently sensing the changes in his body. With his body transformed once again, activating Yama Emperor no longer required enduring the damaging backlash it once did, and he should be able to maintain it for a considerable period.

When he eventually reaches the Divine Master Realm, maintaining Yama Emperor in its normal state will certainly not be impossible.

With a dull explosion of air, most of Yun Che's freshly changed outer robe ripped apart.

He frowned, then suddenly looked up at Qianye Ying'er and said, "Activate the barrier. Allow no one to approach."

Qianye Ying'er's arms, crossed over her chest, tightened slightly. She coldly snorted, "There are two devil girls right outside; you'd best restrain yourself!"

"I'm about to break through. Protect me!"

As his words fell, Yun Che quickly drew in his arms and began to focus on guiding the chaotic profound energy circulating throughout his body, which was on the verge of breaking through.

Qianye Ying'er paused for a heavy moment, then swiftly rose. With a wave of her arm, a barrier formed, and at the same time, she sent a sound transmission to Chi Wuyao, isolating the area from anyone approaching and from any sound.

Each of Yun Che's minor realm breakthroughs was vastly different from those of ordinary profound practitioners.

Breakthroughs in the Divine Sovereign Realm are typically a long, quiet process involving significant quantitative and minor qualitative changes. However, Yun Che's minor realm breakthroughs in the Divine Sovereign Realm caused his profound energy to surge like raging seas, almost reaching a level that could easily destroy normal profound veins.

His previous Divine Sovereign breakthroughs had all occurred within the Primordial Profound Ark. This time, being in the Soul Stealing Sacred Realm, was actually far more reassuring.

Inside the barrier, Qianye Ying'er silently watched Yun Che's breakthrough. Turbulent air currents swirled, rustling her long hair and sash, yet her eyes remained perfectly steady.

Even she began to feel... that she had indeed changed.

She had become something she would never have believed or accepted in the past... in fact, she had become the very image she most disdained and despised.

And she was well aware that what was silently driving this change, or rather, allowing her to gradually see and accept all of this... was not herself, but Chi Wuyao.

Every word Chi Wuyao had spoken earlier, imbued with strangeness, had echoed countless times in her mind over the past few days.

Less than an hour later, with the final dull explosion of air, the storm around Yun Che suddenly ceased.

His eyes opened, and a divine radiance, more profound than ever, shot forth from his pupils.

The aura of a Divine Sovereign at Level Eight silently emanated from his body.

Combined with the advancement of the Grand Way of the Brahma Divine Art, and despite being only a minor realm breakthrough, the immense increase in his overall strength was beyond what any ordinary person could imagine.

He had expected severe consequences from activating "Divine Embers" for two breaths using the Absolute Extinction Four Star Divine Source Power. He never imagined that it would instead be beneficial, breaking through multiple barriers consecutively.

Yet, there was no trace of excitement or joy in his opened eyes.

After all, for him, this was merely another step—a fated and necessary one—on his path of vengeance.

"Finished?" Qianye Ying'er slightly turned her waist, pushing her golden hair back... These unconscious gestures had never appeared in front of Yun Che before.

"It didn't leave you half-crippled, nor did it kill you. Instead, it helped you break through. Hmph! You truly have an extraordinarily resilient life!"

Qianye Ying'er finished coldly, then spread her fingers, about to dispel the barrier.

Yun Che, however, suddenly reached out, stopping her, and asked, "What about the Burning Moon Realm?"

Qianye Ying'er replied, "Aside from Fen Daojun and Fen Daozang, whom you killed, all the other Moon Eaters and Burning Moon Divine Envoys have surrendered. The Burning Moon Royal City has also fallen under the Devil Queen's control."

"All of them!?" Yun Che's brow furrowed sharply.

"You're not unfamiliar with Chi Wuyao's methods," Qianye Ying'er said, glancing at him. "Those Moon Eaters were already scared out of their wits by you. Then her devilish voice stole their souls and charmed their minds. With just a few words, each one striking at their vital points, she completely leveraged your power, taking control of Burning Moon without shedding a drop of blood."

"But isn't that good? An incredibly smooth and significant step."

Yun Che fell silent, his expression grim.

"What's wrong? Do you find Chi Wuyao too terrifying?" Qianye Ying'er asked.

Yun Che remained silent, an unspoken acknowledgment.

In his mind, he rapidly replayed every event, every scene, and even every word that had transpired since entering the Burning Moon Realm, his brows gradually furrowing tighter and tighter.

"If she weren't clever enough, how could she be fit to cooperate with us?" Qianye Ying'er said. "Besides, no matter how profound her schemes and methods, she still relies heavily on us. At least for now, since we only share common goals and have no conflicts of interest, you don't need to worry excessively."

Yun Che lifted his gaze, still frowning, and slowly said, looking into Qianye Ying'er's eyes, "You're speaking for her."

Qianye Ying'er paused for a moment, then a hint of complexity appeared in her eyes: "It does seem so. You don't... think even I've had my heart bewitched and soul stolen by her, do you?"

Yun Che fell silent again. After a long pause, he extended his arm, and as his fingers spread, a streak of extreme, heart-cleansing purity emanated within the barrier. In just an instant, the entire world seemed to undergo a strange qualitative change because of it.

A Primeval World Pellet!

Back in the Primordial God Realm, He Ling had refined two Primeval World Pellets by fusing the Primeval God Marrow and the Primordial Divine Fruit.

One was refined by Qianye Ying'er, allowing her cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds within half a year, reaching an eighth-level Divine Master.

The other was prepared by Yun Che for his own use after he reached the Divine Master Realm.

Yet at this moment, he took it out prematurely, and... handed it to Qianye Ying'er.

"Take it."

The Primeval World Pellet was the highest-tier profound pill known in the current world, a miraculous item even Divine Emperors dared not covet. Yet, facing this second Primeval World Pellet, Qianye Ying'er's golden brows furrowed, and her voice became a few degrees colder: "What do you mean by this? Guilt? Compensation? Pity?"

"No," Yun Che slowly said, "This incident gave me a sense of crisis. Chi Wuyao does rely heavily on my Eternal Calamity of Darkness, but... in terms of strength, we are still too far behind her."

"And only your power is truly... completely mine."