Chapter 1813: The Fish That Slipped Through the Net

The Seven Star Realm is located south of the Southern Divine Region, near its southern edge, and is named for the seven brilliant stars that encircle it. Of the 40,000 star realms in the vast Divine Realm, Lower Star Realms alone account for over 30,000, more than 70%. As one such Lower Star Realm, the Seven Star Realm has a small spatial area, and even its profound energy aura is weaker than that of most other Lower Star Realms.

Evidently, this is not a star realm primarily focused on profound arts. Such realms are rare in the Divine Realm, but they usually possess unique characteristics.

"We're here! This is it! Let's go down and take a look!"

The core of most star realms typically houses the Realm King Sect, but the Seven Star Realm is different; its core is known as the Seven Star Commercial Domain.

As they arrived above the Seven Star Commercial Domain, a bustling atmosphere enveloped them. Shui Meiyin tightly gripped Yun Che's hand, eagerly descending.

The Seven Star Commercial Domain spans thousands of miles, home to countless large and small merchant guilds, with small shops and stalls dotting every corner. The goods sold there are incredibly diverse: weapons, profound artifacts, exotic stones, rare flowers, ancient jades, formation plates, decorations, gourmet food, outer garments, profound ships, profound beasts, information, and much more. There were even some truly bizarre items that left Yun Che utterly astonished.

"Wow! Wow!" Shui Meiyin continually exclaimed, her starry eyes darting around, already overwhelmed. "It's so lively, so many strange things, exactly like what Brother Ninety-Nine said… Wow!"

The atmosphere of the marketplace… Although it hadn't been that many years, it gave Yun Che a feeling of extreme distance, almost illusory. The Snow Song Realm, King Realms, God Emperors, Devil Masters… After entering the Divine Realm, he had ascended too quickly and climbed too high. His elevated standing over the years made him feel as though he were cut off from this kind of world.

Shui Meiyin, born in the Glazed Light Realm and pampered since childhood, was experiencing such a world for the very first time.

"In the Eastern Divine Region, there's a similar star realm," Yun Che said. "It's a bit smaller, but just as lively."

Upon descending, he and Shui Meiyin used their profound energy to alter their appearances and fully concealed their auras. Otherwise, with his Devil Master's face, which was virtually known to everyone, his direct appearance would likely trigger immediate widespread chaos throughout the Seven Star Realm.

Shui Meiyin's face immediately turned towards him. "Really?"

"It's called the Blackya Realm," Yun Che replied. "It's likely the Lower Star Realm with the most merchant guilds in the Eastern Divine Region. But unlike here, the Blackya Realm also pursues profound arts."

At that time, the Blackya Realm in the Eastern Divine Region had the quite powerful Black Soul Sect. However, in this Seven Star Realm, Yun Che's spiritual perception didn't detect any sect of that caliber; only scattered medium-sized forces were present.

"Blackya… I think I've heard Father mention that star realm," she said, her face suddenly full of curiosity. "Brother Yun Che, I remember that after you arrived in the Divine Realm, you immediately joined the Ice Phoenix Divine Sect in the Snow Song Realm. How do you know about the Blackya Realm? And it sounds like… you've been there before."

Memories flooded back. Yun Che said, "Back then, I made a grave mistake and offended my master. In my fear, I cowardly chose to flee, and the place I escaped to was the Blackya Realm."

It was there that he met He Lin, which subsequently led to Divine Xi taking him in and his connection with He Ling. Any seemingly insignificant point in life can sometimes influence the trajectory of one's entire destiny.

"Eh?" Shui Meiyin's eyes widened with curiosity. "Brother Yun Che… ran away? Did you do something really bad to your master?"

"…" Yun Che shook his head and changed the subject. "Where is the place your Brother Ninety-Nine mentioned? For him to recommend it so highly, it must be extraordinary."

"It's around here; we should be arriving soon."

Not pressing the previous question, Shui Meiyin excitedly said, "That place is called Qimeng Xuan. Brother Ninety-Nine said that if we ever visited the Southern Divine Region, we absolutely had to try their Jade Ripple Heart Soup."

"…" Yun Che smiled and gently squeezed her palm. "You crossed such a vast star region just for a bowl of soup?"

"That's no ordinary soup," Shui Meiyin said, her long eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings. "Brother Ninety-Nine said it's the most supreme pleasure in the world, so delicious it could almost make your soul leave your body and forget all worries."

"Although it sounds a bit exaggerated, Brother Ninety-Nine never lies to me. Unfortunately, Jade Ripple Heart Soup must be enjoyed right after it's made. Otherwise, even if it's just a quarter-hour too late, the taste will be greatly diminished. So, to taste it, you have to come here in person."

Profound Practitioners don't actually need to eat. Wine and gourmet food are simply consumed for the enjoyment of the palate. For profound practitioners, crossing star regions purely for such sensory enjoyment… perhaps it's considered normal?

Following the memory image provided by Shui Yinghen, Shui Meiyin's gaze scanned their surroundings. "It seems to be right around here; I'll go ask."

"Excuse me, grandpa, could you tell me where Qimeng Xuan is located?"

The "grandpa" Shui Meiyin addressed had a wrinkled face and white hair. His cultivation was only at the initial stage of the King Profound Realm, and his lifespan seemed to be at most five hundred years. A pile of oddly shaped ancient stones lay before him, indicating he was likely a long-time stall owner here.

Although Shui Meiyin had concealed her appearance, with her immaculate divine soul, even without releasing any soul power, she exuded an irresistible, invisible charm that left people completely disarmed in her presence.

Faced with Shui Meiyin's inquiry, the "grandpa's" indifferent expression instantly softened, and he chuckled. "Little girl, you've come at the wrong time. Qimeng Xuan closed seven days ago, and everyone from there has already left the Seven Star Realm."

"Closed?" Shui Meiyin paused, startled, then asked, "Why would it close? It's so popular; business should have been good."

"It has nothing to do with that," the old man said, his smile fading into a sigh. "The devil race from the Northern Divine Region has invaded our Southern Divine Region. The Southern Sea Divine Realm just disappeared like that, and the Canglan, Xuanyuan, and Ziwei King Realms suffered even worse… Alas!"

"Although it's still somewhat peaceful now, who knows when those devils will begin to rampage everywhere? When that happens, we'll be like fish on a chopping block."

Yun Che remained silent.

"Now, it's not just the Seven Star Realm; wealthy families in any of the surrounding star realms have started to flee or are preparing to. The best destination, of course, is the Western Divine Region, where the Dragon God Realm is located, but that's not a place ordinary people can go. More often, people are forced to temporarily hide in the turbid Lower Realms."

"As for people like us," the old man shook his head, "we can only resign ourselves to fate. If the devil race is destroyed by the Dragon God Realm in the future, that's good, but what if… sigh, I dare not even imagine."

Shui Meiyin's expression dimmed a little. "Then… grandpa, do you know where the people from Qimeng Xuan fled?"

"I don't know. If you truly want to find out, you could try asking Master Ke from the tripe stall next door."

"…Alright, thank you, grandpa."

Returning to Yun Che's side, Shui Meiyin's head was slightly bowed, and the smile had vanished from her face.

"It seems we came all this way for nothing," Yun Che said, tilting his head to observe her expression.

She pouted her lips softly. When she looked up, a sweet smile bloomed on her face. "How could that be? With Brother Yun Che by my side, no matter where we go or what we do, I'm always the happiest."

"…" Yun Che watched her for a moment, his gaze seemingly profound. "Qimeng Xuan is out, so where do we go now? Back to Canglan?"

"No," Shui Meiyin said, hugging his hand tightly and pressing her slender body close to him, unconcerned by the bustling crowd around them. "Brother Yun Che is mine alone right now, and I don't want to go back so early. It's so lively here; even if Qimeng Xuan is gone, there must be many other delicious and fun things. Come on, let's go look over there."

No longer concerned about Qimeng Xuan, Shui Meiyin pulled him along, trotting deeper into the commercial domain.

After wandering around the Seven Star Commercial Domain for a full two hours, Shui Meiyin had bought a large pile of strange and wonderful things.

The daytime here was short; the light imperceptibly dimmed. Shui Meiyin walked with Yun Che outside the Seven Star Commercial Domain, holding a string of colorful candied hawthorns—a common sight on the streets of any small town in the Lower Realms—and eating it with relish.

Amidst their laughter, they walked quite far, casually strolling into a barren forest where occasional sounds of birds and beasts could be heard, and human traces were rare.

Just then, four figures darted out ahead, accompanied by a low, cold laugh. "Hey, stop right there."

There were four individuals: two at the late stage of the Divine Origin Realm and two at the mid-stage of the Divine Soul Realm. Their four auras, neither too heavy nor too light, pressed down on the two prey whose auras were weak and who seemed incapable of any resistance, their gazes freely sweeping over them.

"Poor wretches, coming out of the Seven Star Commercial Domain, are we?" The leader grinned, revealing teeth that gleamed coldly. "If you want to live, obediently hand over your profound crystals…"

Too lazy to waste even half a word on them, and unwilling to move a finger, Yun Che's eyes flashed with a black light. The four individuals instantly turned into dark powder and scattered with the wind. To try and rob the Devil Master—it was hard to say whether they were incredibly lucky or incredibly unlucky.

Shui Meiyin lowered the colorful candied hawthorn from her lips and softly said, "As a star realm primarily focused on commerce, the Seven Star Realm sees countless people moving through it daily from other star realms, and is therefore protected by many rules established by higher-ranking star realms. For instance, large profound ships are forbidden from flying above the commercial domain, and overly strong auras cannot be released within the city."

"Moreover, using power to bully others and seize possessions by force is a major taboo. Anyone who violates this will face severe punishment."

"However… it seems that robbers have begun to appear here, and they carry a strong scent of blood, indicating not just robbery, but also murder."

Yun Che said nothing, listening quietly.

"Wars in the higher planes are beyond the participation of lower planes; they barely have the ability to interfere, and it appears as though they wouldn't be affected. Yet, in reality, they might be the ones most profoundly impacted."

"When even a commercial star realm is gripped by fear, and order has broken down to this extent, it's hard to imagine what other star realms must be like…"

Looking ahead, she softly murmured, "When a storm wants to fell a great tree, the most tragic victims are often the innocent grass and ants beneath it."

Yun Che stopped, looking at the girl's profile. "Is this what you wanted to tell me today?"

"Eh?" Shui Meiyin seemed to snap back to reality, turning to look at Yun Che and blinking hard. "No, I just suddenly had some thoughts."

Yun Che leaned down slightly, reaching out to gently turn Shui Meiyin's shoulder. He looked directly into her black, jade-like starry eyes, a doting smile playing on his lips. "It's this late, and you're still not telling the truth."

"At such a critical time, you brought me across this vast star region just for a bowl of Jade Ripple Heart Soup? Do you take me for a three-month-old piglet?"

"Pfft!"

Such childish teasing coming from the mouth of the terrifying Devil Master made Shui Meiyin burst into laughter.

"And you're usually so clever, yet this time, to bring me here, you used such a basic… er, simple and rather stiff method. It seems you were very eager to tell me, or show me, something, weren't you?"

"…" Shui Meiyin opened her mouth as if to speak, but then gently bit her lip, followed by a very soft murmur. "It wasn't a basic method at all; it was just because I knew that no matter how willful my request, Brother Yun Che would never have the heart to refuse me."

The starlight in her eyes flickered slightly, as if she were struggling and hesitating about something.

"Let me guess," Yun Che said with a faint smile. "You hope that our fierce battle with the Dragon God Realm won't affect the innocent as much as possible, and that… when I replace Long Bai and become the supreme ruler of this world, I will re-establish order and treat everyone kindly, right?"

Shui Meiyin's gaze continued to tremble. She neither nodded nor shook her head… After a long moment, she looked at Yun Che and finally spoke. "When Qianye Ying'er sent me a message, I heard a deep worry in her voice. Brother Yun Che, you're so eager to break through the Dragon God Realm, and I… I'm really worried and scared… I'm afraid that behind this urgency, there might be… great danger."

"Just like when you risked great danger facing the Southern Sea Divine Cannon to forcefully break through the Southern Sea Divine Realm."

"So… so…"

"…?" Yun Che was slightly stunned.

What Shui Meiyin wanted to say seemed completely different from what he had guessed.

"After receiving the news, my first reaction was to tell you 'that matter.' But… I've been afraid and hesitant ever since. Even now… I still don't know whether I should say it."

"I… I truly don't know if this is the right time."

Yun Che's brows furrowed… For Shui Meiyin to be so hesitant, even a little flustered, what she wanted to reveal must be extraordinary.

Unable to bear seeing the girl's subtle, painful internal struggle, he raised a hand and gently patted Shui Meiyin's shoulder. "It's alright. Whatever it is, good or bad, if you want to tell me, then tell me. If not, then…"

His words suddenly trailed off. Yun Che abruptly turned his head to look southwest, his eyes instantly turning cold.

Shui Meiyin also sensed something at that moment and looked in the same direction as Yun Che. However, compared to the chilling intensity in Yun Che's eyes, her own instantly flickered with a hint of panic.

"Hmph, what a subtle twist of fate," Yun Che muttered unkindly, taking Shui Meiyin's delicate hand. "Meiyin, follow your own will. No one, including me, will force you, nor will anyone judge whether you're right or wrong. Before you make up your mind, let's go catch a few stragglers."

With that, he took Shui Meiyin, released his profound energy, and shot straight southwest.