Chapter 640 – World Shaking Great Matter (2)
“You’re not allowed to interrupt!” Yun Che’s expression was severe, but he quickly continued by saying, “Aren’t you oh so great?! Your power waned as the days flew by, many of the Guardian Families and Duke Palaces betrayed you for their own selfish ambitions, and you contended against Duke Huai Palace for an entire hundred years… Even though it looked calm and tranquil on the outside, with Duke Ming pulling the strings all along, the fact that you could preserve the final dignity of the Demon Emperor’s clan for a whole hundred years was already the most impressive accomplishment in the history of the Illusory Demon Realm! And every single day that passed during this period must have been filled with difficulties, pressures, and nerve-wracking situations that are unfathomable by the common man…
“You managed to escape from Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley by a hair’s breadth. In addition, even though the first thing you did was complete your vengeance, you were also the one who took responsibility for the whole bloody affair of exterminating the entire Duke Huai Palace down to its very roots! Even though Duke Huai Palace could not be spared, in the process of burning up their very roots, a great deal of innocent people were killed as well. But there was no helping their deaths! For a truly ruthless and decisive ruler, he would slaughter them with no qualms at all. But for someone like you who basically can’t bring yourself to be so ruthless and cold-blooded, you will definitely confine yourself to a long period of gloomy darkness over the innocent servants that have died because of your command. This is also why I went to look for you every single day and even tried various ways to tease and provoke you… I am unable to share your burdens, so I can only use this method to distract you, in hopes that you leave that dark place as early as possible and forgive yourself.”
Little Demon Empress: “…”
“Do not think that this is merely my conjecture. I am extremely clear on what it means to implicate many innocent people and send them to an early grave! Because I have done similar things before. Countless of innocents have fallen beneath my poisonous hands! Even though after that, I repeated this action too many times and I have already grown numb to it, the first time I did it… that darkness, depression, and pain, I won’t be able to forget for the rest of my life! But you, in these one hundred years, even though you have personally killed many people, after my detailed investigation, I found that there was not one innocent among them. This extermination of the entire Duke Huai Palace is the first time you have ever done such a thing in your life… So what you will suffer after that, even though the entire Illusory Demon Realm may not know, I will!
“It’s not that they can’t comprehend it, but that their thoughts won’t even venture in that direction. Because what they are concerned about is the conclusion and their own prospects, but as for me, what I am concerned about is you!
“Before I had entered Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, everything that I had done in your name, including directly clashing with Duke Huai and disregarding my own life to go and save you, they were done for my departed grandfather, my parents, and my clan! At that time, you were only a figure to me… and that was the Little Demon Empress! I confess that my pride is higher than the heavens and my bones are more stubborn than rock, so I definitely will not swear loyalty to any person, but for the sake of my grandfather’s will and my family’s safety, I showed you the greatest loyalty I could have at that time!
“But after we emerged from Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, everything that I did for you had completely nothing to do with the three words ‘Little Demon Empress,’ but it was for you yourself! I was concerned with everything about you… I even hated your status as the ‘Little Demon Empress’! Because it causes you far too much pain and bitterness, and it makes it incredibly hard for me to care for you or even approach you in the first place!”
“…” The Little Demon Empress’ lips lightly quivered, but not a single sound emerged from them.
“‘Little Demon Empress’ is your title, and it was also the fate forced upon you after the death of the Little Demon Emperor, giving you no choice but to bear the final dignity and glory of the Demon Emperor’s clan. So even though I hate this heavy burden that weighs down on you, no one, not even me, has the right to interfere with your decisions, sacrifice, or actions for the sake of the Demon Emperor’s clan… Even if there are only three years left for you, you still cannot live for yourself and have to live for the Demon Emperor’s clan.
“But the affair between you and I… when such a thing concerns me, I still have the right to be dissatisfied!” Yun Che exclaimed as his brows furrowed. “It is clear that I am on your mind as well, but why do you treat me with disdain, contempt, and sometimes even disgust! Do not try to deny it, or maybe you think that you have perfectly concealed everything… and perhaps if it was someone else, you would have driven him away a long time ago. But in my eyes, all your actions only make it more obvious to me!
“The medicine pellet you destroyed in front of me that day… was not even the one that I had given to you! I am a thousand times more clear than you on the composition of that pill. And my sense of smell when it comes to medicine is ten thousand times more sensitive than yours. Even though you did show me the pill that I had given to you, the pill that you destroyed was only a normal Heart Cleansing Pellet! All of your fury and berating, all the so-called dirtying of your blood and the destruction of the pill itself was merely you being distressed for my sake and you fearing that I would continue to harm myself for your sake.
“Furthermore, during that period, even though you acted cold and disinterested every time I came to see you, you had never brushed me aside without ever seeing me at all. Not only that, what you did last month, you did it because… because you saw me and Su Zhixi in the Yun Family’s household and you heard the rumors regarding me and Su Zhixi. So your heart felt stifled and frustrated! If I wasn’t on your mind, why would you do that?!
“At times you are so shrewd that it is scary, but when it comes to the affairs of the heart, you do not even match up to the average teenage girl!”
Yun Che’s chest heaved and his voice became several octaves deeper, “Don’t think that I don’t know what has been in your heart all along! Do you think that given your status and age, if our relationship is known to the world, it will greatly affect my reputation? Cause me to endure boundless questioning? Then you think far too little of me! From the moment I stepped into Demon Imperial City, I was willing to take on the huge power of Duke Huai without reservation, so do you think I will care about the questions and stares of these vulgar people?
“Do you think that because you only have three years left to live that you have no right to have such feelings… afraid that you will only draw me down?!” Yun Che suddenly strode forward and the Little Demon Empress allowed her shoulder to be grabbed by him as she looked lost while a look of helplessness flashed across her eyes. Yun Che continued to exclaim in a quiet voice, “Do you think that keeping me far away will cause me to stop thinking about you? So that after three years, I will not feel pain and heartbreak over your passing? If so, then you are far too naive…
“Little Demon Empress, let me tell you. From the day we left Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley together, I have determined that you would be my woman for the rest of your life! I do not care what status you have, because you are you! Also, I care about you. It has nothing to do with whether you pretend to care about me or not! If it was so easy to change my feelings for you, then I do not have the qualifications to be your man! If you can honestly face my feelings and allow me into your world… even if I am truly helpless after these three years… and I cannot save your life, at least, every time I think of you, it will be composed of short but everlasting happiness. But if you force yourself to continue to be cold towards me, even if I do not see you for the next three years… at that time, all that will be left for me will be a lifetime or frustration and regret! You think that you are holding yourself back for my sake, but what you are really doing is hurting the both of us! Do you understand?!”
The Little Demon Empress’ eyes quivered and her body trembled. She shrugged off Yun Che’s grasp and stumbled backwards.
“Little Demon Empress…” Yun Che stared directly into her eyes, and from the chaos that lay therein, he knew that he had stepped into her heart. “I also know that you work so hard to reject me because you want to uphold the dignity of the Demon Emperor’s clan, especially the dignity and reputation of the Little Demon Emperor. Because you were after all, his empress… as long as you are unwilling, I will not let a single person know about the affair between the two of us. As long as we have time for ourselves and you let this love flourish, let me be your spiritual support. For the sake of the Demon Emperor’s clan, you have sacrificed far too much already. You have even given your own life for their sake. You have already paid your dues to your clan and ancestors, and upheld their name to the greatest extent… so can’t you, when your life’s flame is about to go out, just for that little bit, just live for yourself?!
“And am I… really truly unworthy of becoming the reason for you to become a little selfish?”
The Little Demon Empress: “…”
Yun Che had spoken a lot in just one breath, but in this period of time, he had poured out everything that was in his heart to the Little Demon Empress. After all, he was not like the Little Demon Empress, a white, spotless paper when it came to romantic relationships. And he was clear enough on whether the Little Demon Empress had any feelings for him, so because he knew that her coldness and her attempts to hide her feelings were just that, attempts, in his eyes they were… so clumsy that it was adorable.
But… in the end, she was still the Little Demon Empress. On her back was not only a clan, not only a nation, but an entire continent! Furthermore, she also bore the burden of upholding the Demon Emperor’s clan ten thousand years of dignity and prestige.
So his words ‘I hate your status as the Little Demon Empress’ came from the bottom of Yun Che’s heart.
Moreover, as Yun Che vented his feelings, the Little Demon Empress did not interrupt him even once. In the end, she did not even respond; she merely turned around and flew away… and she left in that soundless and quiet fashion.
“You are not even afraid of death, yet you keep running away from me time and time again… you still dare to say that you do not think of me?!”
Seeing the distant figure of the Little Demon Empress, Yun Che stamped his feet and a loud bang ensued, causing the floor tiles to crumble into pieces. He yelled loudly, “Little Demon Empress! If not for the fact that I cannot beat you, I would drag you with me to the Profound Sky Continent, even if the entire Illusory Demon Realm was hot in pursuit… so that you would never need to be the Little Demon Empress ever again!”
Yun Che’s yells showed his exasperation… At any time, strength was important, even between a man and a woman. Initially, because he was not Chu Yuechan’s match, he could not force her to stay behind. But now, there appeared the Little Demon Empress, who was even prouder and more fragile than Chu Yuechan… and the strength that she possessed was absolutely terrifying. Even if he wanted to force it, it would not be possible.
After Yun Che had finished yelling, the figure of Mu Yurou appeared in his field of view. She anxiously flew over and shouted in a worried voice, “Che’er, what happened? You just said that… you were going to be pursued by the entire Illusory Demon Realm… and that you were going to kidnap the Little Demon Empress? What… what happened? Please do not scare your mother.”
“Uh…” The corner of Yun Che’s mouth twitched and hurriedly replied, “Mother, you have heard wrongly. What I said was actually me swearing that I would be eternally loyal to the Little Demon Empress and even if the Little Demon Empress was being hunted by the entire Illusory Demon Realm, I would have no resentment or regrets… Yes, that was what I had said. Just now the wind was very loud, so Mother must have heard incorrectly. If I had really said such a thing, the Little Demon Empress would have sent me to an early grave. It wouldn’t be possible that I would be standing here unharmed, right… Haha…”
“…Then that’s good.” Even though her heart still had some doubts, Yun Che’s last few words dispelled most of her worries, and she let out a sigh of relief. “Che’er, your father said that he felt that the relationship between you and the Little Demon Empress wasn’t too good. And in addition to this, the situation in Demon Imperial City has not calmed down yet as well, so you must definitely not behave rudely to the Little Demon Empress just because you have made great contributions to her cause. After she awoke her bloodline, the Little Demon Empress’ power increased greatly, but her temperament has also become even colder and more severe than it was before. Not only that, she seems more fickle than she was before, so you must definitely not set her off.”
Mu Yurou said the word ‘definitely’ twice in one breath, so Yun Che nodded his head like an obedient child.
The next three days were all calm. In these three days, Yun Che did not exit his house; he just slept, trained, refined, and occasionally treated the injuries of other people and teased those girls who were in the spring of their first love… that was how he idled away his days.
Finally, when dawn broke on the fourth day, he was shaken awake by Yun Qinghong. “Che’er, today in the afternoon, the Little Demon Empress called for a lunch feast, and she requires for all the Guardian Families and Duke Palaces to be present… Moreover, the Little Demon Empress specified that you had to be there.”
“Eh?” Yun Che’s sleepiness was almost instantly dispelled as he replied, “Lunch feast… specifically requesting my presence? Did the Little Demon Empress mention anything else?”
“She didn’t make anything else clear.” Yun Qinghong shook his head. “The Little Demon Empress only said that it was a great matter concerning the future of our Illusory Demon Realm.”