Chapter 1927: Choice (Part 2)

A faint light flickered in her tear-stained palm, revealing the Universe Piercer. She slowly raised it, and the words of the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, spoken before her departure, echoed in her mind: "You have seen my choice. Let my Universe Piercer bear witness to your ultimate decision!"

She knelt there for a full day and night. Finally, the wind's whisper faded, taking with it the desolation that clung to her. She slowly rose, her eyes devoid of tears or sorrow, and her boundless grief buried deep within her soul. Facing the Universe Piercer, she spoke softly, "Senior, I have made my choice. I have already failed my parents, my sect, and Yuanba... Since it has come to this, he and I were, after all, once husband and wife. At the very least, let there be one person in this world whom I can truly face without shame. However, what I am submitting to is not fate, but my own heart!"

The Universe Piercer vanished from her hand. Her gaze, which had previously been one of utter collapse, was now clearer and more resolute than ever before. "When the 'endgame' approaches, I will resist in my own way! But before then..." As the Universe Piercer disappeared from her hand, she turned her gaze northward, the distant sky reflected in her deep violet eyes. "I loathe this tragic fate, yet... I cannot refuse this sorrowful 'wish'. Yun Che, now in the Northern Divine Region, you have no more weaknesses or attachments, only hatred that will force you to grow rapidly... Before your return, I will, little by little, pave the way for you. I only ask that when you return, you can stand proudly at the pinnacle of this world, reclaim everything that is yours, and let no one ever again destroy or harm you... Even if it's just so I don't... betray... a life that is soon to end."

Subsequently, the Moon God Realm was far from as peaceful as it seemed on the surface. The Brahma Heaven God Realm was frantically searching for Yun Che's whereabouts, and the Moon God Realm appeared to be making similar moves, with people entering and exiting far more frequently than before. In reality, their mission was not Yun Che, but intelligence gathering. The core memories of successive Moon God Emperors naturally included all the Moon God Realm's secrets... as well as the hidden secrets of various realms they secretly controlled. Even the secret of the Brahma Monarch God Realm concealing the Primordial Life and Death Seal had long been known, which demonstrated the formidable intelligence capabilities the Moon God Realm had always possessed. These secrets were typically only used for control and deterrence when necessary, and Moon Without End had rarely employed them throughout his life. Yet, in Xia Qingyue's hands, they were fully utilized, step by step, laying hidden explosive traps across the major Eastern Divine Region star realms.

She discovered that Yun Che's brief hiding place years ago was the Glazed Light Realm, so she proactively disclosed it, then severely punished Shui Qianheng and took Shui Meiyin away. At the bottom of the Moon Prison, she took out the Universe Piercer, explained everything to Shui Meiyin, and asked her to gradually build an affinity with the Universe Piercer using her pure divine soul until she became its new master, taking over everything Xia Qingyue had done years ago. "Meiyin, death is a choice I must make, and it is the best possible end. For me, everything in this world might change, but this one thing, I will never waver on. Let him hate me forever, just as he does now. That way, after I die, he won't be heartbroken, and no void will be left in his soul... And that's surely not what you want to see, is it? Don't grieve for me. At least you will remember everything I've done. At least you will accompany him in my stead and witness him become the man he is truly meant to be."

After he killed the Heaven Smiting Guardian, demonized Zhou Xuzi, and took the Heaven Swallowing Cauldron in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, she had specifically entered the God Realm of Absolute Beginning to investigate the traces he left behind. But after that, she did not immediately leave the God Realm of Absolute Beginning; instead, she came to the Abyss of Nothingness. And then, at the edge of the Abyss of Nothingness, she lingered for a very long time. Before leaving, a faint smile gently curved her lips, because she had found the best path home for herself.

That day was Yun Wuxin's eighteenth birthday, and also the day Yun Che and Chi Wuyao had arranged to meet Zhou Xuzi and Zhou Qingchen. From a distant space, she witnessed Yun Che brutally murder Zhou Qingchen in front of Zhou Xuzi... the sinister smile on his face and his hateful roars were unlike anything she had ever seen from him. In the end, Zhou Xuzi retreated with hatred, Yun Che fainted, spitting blood, and her presence was detected by Chi Wuyao's divine sense. Using the Universe Piercer to instantly return to the Moon God Realm, Xia Qingyue sighed to herself, "As expected of the legendary Devil Queen of the Northern Region; her power and methods truly live up to her name. With her by his side, it seems I don't need to worry too much."

The Northern Region was shaken as Yun Che was crowned, becoming the supreme Devil Master, towering above the Northern Region Royal Realms and leading the devil race. Naturally, the dark barrier of the Soul Stealing Sacred Region could not block the spatial divine power of the Universe Piercer. From an exceptionally distant sky, she watched Yun Che, clad in a dark brocade robe inscribed with crimson devil patterns, his night-dark hair dancing in the devil winds. The Eternal Calamity Devil Light from the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor had transformed his eyes into dark abysses that could instantly devour souls. The Three Royal Realms bowed, and all dark profound practitioners paid homage... In just three short years, he had become the undisputed emperor of the Northern Divine Region.

"Yun Che, this is how you are meant to be." She watched from afar, a faint yet exquisite smile gracing her lips: "It was worth taking such a great risk to witness this moment of yours." The encroaching darkness swiftly advanced, and she knew she couldn't linger much longer. Turning away, she said, "I await the day of your return." Only now did Yun Che realize that, back then, she had specially crossed divine regions to witness him becoming the Devil Master of the Northern Region.

"Reporting, Master, news from the Western Divine Region suggests that the Dragon God Realm indeed has the movements you previously mentioned?" Lian Yue reported the information from the Dragon God Realm to her. "Details?" "The Dragon God Realm has been secretly investigating the existence of 'Light Profound Energy.' The stated purpose is to find profound practitioners with Light Profound Energy aptitude for the Dragon Queen, to be cultivated as potential successors. This endeavor has supposedly been ongoing for several years, but its true purpose remains unknown." After a brief silence, Xia Qingyue commanded, "Instruct them to cease investigating this matter. Redirect these intelligence resources to track the movements of the various Dragon Gods." "Understood." After Lian Yue left, Xia Qingyue murmured to herself, "So, Shen Xi is likely still alive... and Long Bai doesn't know her whereabouts." There was only one trace of destruction in the Samsara Forbidden Land. No matter how powerful Long Bai was, he couldn't kill Shen Xi with a single blow. The news from the Dragon God Realm undoubtedly strongly supported the possibility that Shen Xi was still alive.

Time flowed, gradually approaching the fourth year after Yun Che's arrival in the Northern Divine Region... the time when the curtains of war would rise. One after another, overt or covert preparations were unfolding invisibly. News of a new Crown Prince about to be established came from the Brahma Heaven God Realm, while angry dark clouds gathered over the Northern Divine Region, their spearhead pointed directly at the Brahma Heaven God Realm for "destroying the Northern Region star realms with the Heaven Swallowing Cauldron."

"So fast," Xia Qingyue softly murmured, gazing at the dark clouds to the north. This day's arrival was far earlier than she had anticipated. "Having walked through true hell, you will surely not allow yourself to fail. And with the Devil Queen by your side, I believe this is not a hasty or ill-considered step." She spoke to herself, "Then, I shall pave the way for your first step."

In the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, she dropped a single drop of Shen Xi's blood, obtained from the Samsara Forbidden Land, onto the desolate gray earth. At that very spot, the Azure Dragon God was approaching. The crimson liquid slowly sank into the earth, but a faint aura of light remained. Using the Universe Piercer for spatial travel, another drop of blood sank into a different, distant space within the God Realm of Absolute Beginning. Following that, she took out a bamboo slip and, matching the inscription on it, used a small stone to lightly carve the character "Xi" into the ground. Immediately after, her figure reappeared in another space. Through fifteen spatial transfers, she placed sixteen drops of Shen Xi's blood in sixteen different locations within the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, in a way that Long Bai would not be able to find them quickly, yet would eventually discover them. And at the last location, she left an inscription indicating that she would return in a few months. This elaborate arrangement had easily discernible purposes and flaws... However, Xia Qingyue believed that given Long Bai's twisted obsession with Shen Xi, when it came to her, even if he had ninety-nine parts of doubt, he would never easily let go of that last one percent of possibility. That would be enough. After personally witnessing the Azure Dragon God discover the first trace of light profound energy and then depart in haste, Xia Qingyue turned and vanished from the God Realm of Absolute Beginning.

In the Southern Divine Region, in the western part of the Southern Sea God Realm, above one of Nan Wansheng's Imperial Palaces, she watched a young girl, whose aura was perfectly concealed, silently place a soul crystal onto Nan Wansheng's personal maidservant. The soul crystal was imprinted with the secret of the Brahma Monarch God Realm concealing the Primordial Life and Death Seal. "Hee hee hee, so they want to use this king as a pawn... but! This pawn, this king is determined to be it. Who can resist the temptation of eternal life, hahahahahaha!" Amidst the wild laughter, the girl disappeared into concealment. Xia Qingyue's figure also moved away. "The rumored Seventh Devil Girl, Huajin? Truly lives up to her reputation." She murmured, "It seems I don't need to intervene. Her ability to conceal her aura is unparalleled in the world. And carrying dark aura with no signs of spillage... Is this the 'Dark Eternal Calamity' that the Devil Emperor senior spoke of? It seems the core powers of the Northern Divine Region have all undergone transformation because of him. This step he has taken will undoubtedly catch the Eastern Divine Region off guard. This method must have come from Qianye." A complex purple light flickered in her eyes as her figure vanished into the air.

At the same time, as the curtain of war was drawn in the Northern Region, numerous hidden traps that had been laid long ago were silently detonated, one by one. "Deliver this blood-stained sword to the Realm King of the Bright Heart Realm; he will know that the one who killed his young son back then was the Realm King of the Yi Yang Realm." "Deliver one of these soul crystals to Luo Changsheng and another to Luo Shangchen, leaving no traces." "The scandal of the Divine Martial Realm King Wu Sanzun from back then is etched within. Use it to order him to strictly seal his realm for the next three months, allowing no one to leave, or he will be utterly disgraced." "Place these seven Primordial Poison Vines into the seven seas of the Nine Luminaries Realm, respectively. The turmoil among the sea tribes of the seven seas will be enough to keep the Nine Luminaries Realm preoccupied for some time."

The first step of the dark invasion was to trample the Eastern Divine Region. This step proceeded incredibly smoothly, especially concerning the most threatening upper star realms, more than half of which remained extremely compliant from beginning to end. When Brahma Heaven was stained with blood, none of the surrounding upper star realms came to its aid. This was the result of extensive planning by Chi Wuyao, Yun Qianying, and others. However, they never anticipated that behind this far smoother-than-expected progress and far fewer-than-expected losses, there was another layer of invisible assistance. Especially, the greatest threat and variable, Long Bai, was led away. Without the Dragon Monarch's command, the Dragon God Realm, and indeed the entire Western Divine Region, entered a prolonged state of watching from the sidelines.