Chapter 1692 I Am You, If You Win
The Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky looked at her. It was because it hurt that wouldn't forget?
"That's your past life, not this life. Why endure the pain of your past life in this life?" the Lady asked.
"Since I remembered, then there must be just the one life," Hua Jieyu looked at her and responded.
Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky looked on coldly, and an invisible breath bloomed from her, covering the space. Terrible light was released from Hua Jieyu's body. Hua Jieyu's body trembled suddenly. It was as if she was enduring extreme pain.
Her face was distorted, and from her body, shadow after shadow was stripping out, and there seemed to be thousands of them being peeled away, all of them appeared around her. These shadows did not look like Hua Jieyu but were that of the Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky.
Hua Jieyu's figure became elusive, no longer appeared real. Like a vague shadow, it could dissipate at any time.
Finally, there seemed to be a light that switched on. And in this light, many paintings could be vaguely made out, and all those paintings were of the same person. If Ye Futian were there, he would find that every one of these paintings was a depiction of their shared memories, which had also appeared in his mind not long ago.
"Do you want the past life or this life?" Many voices spoke as the many shadows that were surrounding here asked her at the same time.
At this moment, that elusive figure seemed so fragile and precarious. It was as if it might disappear at any moment.
"You should know that even if he had destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace, he could do nothing to me."
That elusive figure suddenly laughed and said, "Then your hundred generations' worth of cultivation will disappear with me."
The Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky fell silent. They both knew that this was the truth. Back then, when she rescued Hua Jieyu, the Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky felt the opportunity of enlightenment in her, so she had chosen a woman from the Lower Worlds to be the perfect embodiment of herself.
However, it seemed that it might not have been so perfect after all.
Her previous life had too strong of a hold on her; it was too strong to be erased.
"Since it's a no-win situation, let's make a bet." Finally, the Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky turned around and said, "Put out the lamp. I will let you go with him to cultivate. If I win, you are me. If you win, then I will be you."
Hua Jieyu looked at her and asked, "How could I trust you?"
"If you agree, I will cut off my own recourse," said the Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky.
"Very well." Hua Jieyu nodded.
The Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky turned around and saw those elusive figures merged into Hua Jieyu's body, while the Lady herself stepped into the sacred hall in the Heavenly Palace. She closed her eyes, and an extremely powerful aura rushed directly into Hua Jieyu. At the same time, there was a voice resounding through Brahma's Pure Sky.
"Starting today, I will be cultivating in retreat. From now on, everyone in Brahma's Pure Sky will need to assist Hua Jieyu. After I go into the retreat, if the Heavenly Mandate Academy is established, Jiutian Goddess will escort her there to cultivate."
As the voice fell, the sacred hall suddenly lit up.
Hua Jieyu looked ahead, then turned around and walked toward the staircase, looking down at the sky below. There were tears dripping down from the corner of her eyes, but a steely determination could be seen in those eyes.
"If I forget about you, you would forgive me, right?" she said in a heartbreaking voice. She suddenly smiled and continued, "At least, I will be by your side again."
Leaving was for a more perfect return.
Brahma's Pure Sky was shaken up, but no one knew just what kind of agreement they had made, or exactly what was at stake.
...
Ye Futian returned to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Now, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had been re-established in the Celestial City with Gu Dongliu as the master of the Celestial Gate.
Next, it should be the establishment of the Academy.
The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had already dispatched its cultivators to the location where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty once resided. They would work together to build the Academy at Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now, all the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were getting busy. This was the first time that all of them were working hard toward the same goal simultaneously.
Xia Qingyuan had also been working hard at cultivation. After receiving the lotus flower in God's relic, she made rapid progress, transforming her life spirit and merging one with the divine lotus. She had already experienced a transformation.
On this day, she finished cultivating and walked toward the person in front of her. The man stood quietly on the edge of the palace, looking into the distance. He appeared quite lonesome.
She walked next to him and asked softly, "Did you find what you were looking for?"
"Yeah," Ye Futian said with a smile, "I did."
In any case, she was still around, right?
Although the outcome was not exactly what he had hoped for, it was not bad either.
That was why he told the Lady of Brahma's Pure Sky that he would be visiting again.
Xia Qingyuan's beautiful eyes were slightly turbulent, but then she smiled a brilliant smile and said, "After so many years of hard work, you have finally accomplished your wish; why didn't you take her back with you?"
"She refused to come back with me," Ye Futian said.
Xia Qingyuan looked surprised. "But why?"
"She had suffered such a grievous injury back then, maybe that's why she forgot everything. But as long as she is still alive, it's enough, isn't it?" Ye Futian didn't know whether he was talking to Xia Qingyuan or to himself.
He once thought that she had disappeared completely from his life, and it was Xia Qingyuan's intel that gave him a glimmer of hope. But he also knew very well that he had been tricking himself all these years with this desperate and illusive wish until he saw her in those elusive dreams.
Now that he had seen that she was still alive, despite being a little disappointed, it was better than he had expected.
Xia Qingyuan was taken aback at first, but then she understood what Ye Futian meant. Had she really forgotten everything?
"She will remember it," Xia Qingyuan said. "And you won't give up either, will you?"
"Mmmm," Ye Futian nodded.
He turned around and looked at Xia Qingyuan with a smile. "Thank you."
Over the years, he had never thanked Xia Qingyuan properly.
If it weren't for Xia Qingyuan, he wouldn't have even started looking, and he wouldn't have this little bit of hope.
Xia Qingyuan looked into his eyes, then smiled brightly and said, "Not at all. You helped me a lot too."
She continued, "I have to cultivate now, and maybe it won't be long before I can become a Renhuang, just like my father."
After Xia Qingyuan finished speaking, she turned to leave. Ye Futian looked at her and saw her footsteps speed up. It was as if she was running away.
With her back to Ye Futian, tears flowed freely from those beautiful eyes that had smiled so brilliantly.
Just "thank you"?
This wasn't what she wanted.
However, it was still a very happy ending. After all, he finally found the one he loved, hadn't he?
Perhaps this was the best outcome.
When she entered the realm of Renhuang, she would return to Emperor Xia's Realm and become Empress so that her father could rest.
Well, that would also be perfect!
…
The center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was once the territory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and it had been extremely unstable during this period of time. First, it was the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that, like a thunderbolt, shocked the hearts of countless many. It could not be assuaged for a long time.
As the symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had stood for countless years. Its destruction was like a dream.
But now, after the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, its ruins had been cleared up. An academy was rising from the ground, and the area covered by this academy would be even greater than the former imperial palace.
Many went to watch the buildings grew out of thin air inside the academy, which had elicited all kinds of emotions.
After the destruction of a dynasty, would there be another stronger force replacing it?
Numerous cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had come here, especially many young people. They dreamt of entering this academy with their minds set on seeking the Way. They all knew that this academy would be the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, its strongest holy land for cultivation.
At this time, outside the academy that was still under construction, there were many excellent figures that gathered there.
Among them, there were two young people. It was a man and a woman. The man was unparalleled in his temperament, and the woman was unparalleled in her looks. When they walked together, they look like a perfect match, a golden couple.
"I didn't expect this," the young man said with a smile. "It has only been a few years since we came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm together, and now his name rings through the entire realm. It is said that he is renowned even in Nine Supreme Realms. The history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was also rewritten because of him."
"It's surreal, all right," the woman said with a small smile. "I wonder how the others are doing with their cultivation."
"In any case, I am afraid that no one can overshadow his fame," the young man laughed. "Fortunately, we had no conflict with him back in the days; otherwise, even my father would not be able to hold him back."
These two were indeed Ye Futian's friends from Crimson Dragon Realm. Chi Shang, the son of the Crimson Dragon Emperor, and his wife, Yu Shifei. After the two married in Crimson Dragon Realm, they came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm together.
"How could you, given your character?" Yu Shifei smiled.
"Shifei, do you think there would be a shortcut for us if we wanted to go to the academy to cultivate?"
"We are not that lousy, are we?" Yu Shifei said in a low voice. They were the most outstanding cultivators in the Crimson Dragon Realm. They should be qualified to cultivate in the academy of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.
"That's right. We all came here together. A shortcut would be incredibly shameful." Chi Shang laughed. Moreover, he was the Prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm, who came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with Ye Futian. If he had to rely on his relationships to get in the Academy that Ye Futian established, it would be too dishonorable.
Aside from them, many people who knew Ye Futian had come here as well. For example, Emperor Qi that Ye Futian had met when he first arrived at the Heavenly Mandate Realm, as well as people from the Yun Clan, like Yun Qianyue, who had always wanted to be his student. It was not until he was forced to save Yun Qianyue that he finally agreed.
Yun Qianyue knew that this was not what her teacher wanted, but she just wanted to see him from a distance and watch.
The Academy was starting to form with the joint efforts of all principalities. It would not be long before it was completed. By then, who knew what could be achieved?
On the opening day of the Academy, would all the top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm make an appearance?
...