Dan Feiâs mind turned blank. Her brain WAS mush at Vastseaâs words. She murmured, âPrecious Tree Sect, the sixteen kingdoms alliance? Young Lord Zhen? Emperor Vastsea, are you playing a joke on me?â
âOf course not.â Vastsea grinned. âThe whole world knows. Ask the Geng brothers if you donât believe me. Both of them are young lord Jiang Chenâs trusted followers.â
Jiang Chen?
These two words were a bolt from the blue. Her tender figure shook. She almost thought she was hallucinating. The name sheâd longed for for so many years had resounded in her ears without the slightest warning.
Born in the sixteen kingdoms alliance, once a disciple of the Precious Tree Sect, and now the young lord of Veluriyam? Jiang Chen?
âMiss Danâer, are you alright?â Vastsea was baffled. âDo you really know the young lord?â
Vastsea found this incredulous. Miss Danâer had been on Sacred Peafowl Mountain all this time while Jiang Chen was the mountainâs young lord. They shouldâve met already. How was it possible for them not to know each other?
Dan Fei struggled to compose herself, yet her voice was still raw with emotion. âYoung lord Jiang Chen... young lord Jiang Chen. Is this really not a dream?â
Vastsea and the Geng brothers looked at each other. The brothers actually didnât know her. Their attitude had become much friendlier once they learned she was Emperor Peafowlâs adopted daughter.
âMiss Danâer, our young lord did indeed come from the sixteen kingdoms alliance, but he didnât stay for long in the Precious Tree Sect. He left for the Regal Pill Palace afterward. After Myriad Domainâs invasion, he made a narrow escape to Veluriyam and gained Emperor Peafowlâs favor. In a short decade, he displayed his extraordinary talents for the whole world to see, and became a peak existence of the young generation. Youâre Emperor Peafowlâs adopted daughter, did you never hear him mention this?â
Dan Fei turned her back to the brothers with tears streaming down her face. She felt dazed, in a dream. Never in a million years would she have imagined that the man she yearned for day and night had been within reach all this while.
Fortune truly toyed with them all!
Seeing them absorbed in their discussion, Elder Qiu threw Zhao Mang a meaningful look. Although sweating with pain, Zhao Mang clenched his left fist, ready to pick up his severed limb and escape.
âQiu, you better stay honest.â Each and every move of theirs was within Vastseaâs perception. Once a great emperor extended his consciousness, any blade of grass swaying in the gentlest of breezes within several dozen miles was within his awareness. âHow dare you leave? Did this emperor say you could?â
Elder Qiu stiffened, his face pale. He thought he could sneak away while his opponents were distracted. He never imagined this Emperor Vastsea would be so sharp, that he would watch master and disciple so tightly.
While an attempt at forceful escape wasnât entirely doomed, he knew the probability of success was almost negligible. There was a huge disparity in strength between great emperors and those below. Perhaps some geniuses could try to fight despite that gap, but Elder Qiu wasnât one of them.
Most importantly, Emperor Vastsea wasnât one of these initial stage great emperors, but a bona fide veteran with at least two thousand years of fame to his name. He was an advanced great emperor, even if he hadnât reached the peak stage yet.
Vastsea had always been fond of flattering others. People like him were usually very attentive and proficient at reading body language. He saw Dan Fei turn her back to him and somewhat sensed the surge of her emotions. He could even see the slight shake of her shoulders.
A thought occurred to him. Perhaps Miss Dan Fei is truly an old friend of the young lord? That boggles the mind. Both of them were in Veluriyam for the past few years, did they never run into each other?
Then an explanation dawned on him. Wait, the young lord always wore a disguise while in Veluriyam and he never made his identity public. If they never met face to face, itâs quite possible for both of them to be ignorant of the other. Otherwise, why would Miss Danâer be so affected? Why would she show such an exaggerated reaction?
Perhaps... Vastseaâs thoughts whirled at top speed. âiss Danâer lost all her self-possession and became so agitated after hearing the news, so a relationship must be involved... Right, I have to handle this carefully. Wouldnât it be a great accomplishment to bring back the young lordâs woman?
Coming to this conclusion, he waited patiently for Dan Fei to regain control of her emotions.
After a long while, Dan Fei finally steadied herself and faced the great emperor once again. She asked quietly, âEmperor Vastsea, where is your young lord now?â
âHeâs at the Regal Pill Palace. The sect is in the middle of rebuilding and requires his presence. Miss Danâer, is the young lord perhaps the one you came to find in the Precious Tree Sect?â
Dan Fei wanted to protest, but in the end, she didnât deny. Instead, she quietly responded, âI never thought heâd become Veluriyamâs young lord after we parted. I brushed past him countless times, yet thought he was at the other end of the world. Emperor Vastsea, how... how is he doing nowadays?â
Vastsea hurriedly to reply, âVery well, heâs doing very well. Miss Danâer, why donât I take you to him right now? Iâm sure the young lord will be delighted to meet an old friend. Before sending me here, he especially told me to make inquiries and see whether I can find old acquaintances from the Precious Tree Sect. For example, a certain Ye Chonglou, or a Tang Hong. Oh I remember, he even told me to go to a mundane kingdom when Iâm free...â
âOh? Did he tell you to look for someone in that kingdom?â Dan Feiâs tone took a strange turn as she suddenly thought of something.
âYes, the young lord told me to visit Skylaurelâs king. I think heâs called Ye Rong or something. Oh right, thereâs also a girl. He said sheâs Ye Chonglouâs disciple, called Dan Fei.â
Vastsea stopped all of a sudden. His eyes fell on Dan Fei as if he finally understood something. No wonder Dan Fei asked him who heâd been told to look for.
It seems Miss Danâer happens to be the Dan Fei the young lord asked me to find? Judging by her reaction, it seems her relationship with the young lord is quite deep indeed.
Tears threatened to spill from Dan Feiâs eyes, almost getting the better of her. Countless feelings welled up in her.
So he didnât forget me after all! He didnât forget me. A faint wisp of happiness rose amidst her sadness. All of a sudden, she felt that she hadnât suffered in vain during these years, that the torment of her longing had been worth it.
âGeng brothers, why donât you take Miss Danâer to the Regal Pill Palace first to meet with the young lord. Iâll follow you once I capture Qiu.â Vastsea didnât act high-handed. Instead, he spoke as if consulting with them.
The Geng brothers shared a look, well aware this Danâer might well be someone dear to Jiang Chen. They dared not slight her importance. They knew they were strong enough to suppress Elder Qiu if they stayed behind, but it was another story when it came to capturing him.
In an exchange of blows between experts, one wouldnât be able to stop an enemy from fleeing if one was only slightly stronger.
âMiss Danâer, the Geng brothers are the young lordâs trusted followers. With them by your side, nothing will happen to you along the way.â Vastseaâs tone couldnât be more courteous.
Dan Fei hadnât freed herself entirely yet from the stupor of the happy tidings. She sighed softly, her voice conflicted. âRight now, Iâd like to go back to Skylaurel first.â
Sheâd really planned on visiting Skylaurel. Logically speaking, she should be wishing that she could grow wings this instant and fly to Jiang Chen. However, for some inexplicable reason, she was a little afraid of having this decade-old dream suddenly come true.
She wasnât afraid that the dream would shatter, but she was at a loss how to face Jiang Chen. Should she tell him that sheâd been his partner during that night of absurd debauchery?
If so, Dan Fei was worried whether Jiang Chen would think her a wanton woman. Would he look down on her? Even if he didnât, even if he felt guilty, Dan Fei knew that Sacred Peafowl Mountainâs young lord Zhen had a dao partner.
Dan Fei felt a faint ache in her heart at that thought, as well as a twinge of jealousy. How should she face him? And more importantly, how should she face his dao partner?
Uncertainty and conflicted feelings weighed on her. Although she was still as excited and happy as ever at finding Jiang Chen, a newfound conflict now reigned in her.
Vastsea blinked. Danâer had cried tears of joy when she learned of Jiang Chenâs whereabouts, so why had she become so aloof again all of a sudden? However, he was a clever man. Putting two and two together, he realized Miss Danâer must be worried about something, or perhaps she couldnât put down her pride as a woman.
With a small smile, he said, âIt happens Iâm also headed to Skylaurel. Since Miss Danâer wants to go there, why donât I go with you?â
Dan Fei had been a little prejudiced against Vastsea up until now, because she still held lingering memories of him as Emperor Shuraâs man. But that prejudice was slowly fading away, because of news of Jiang Chen and how considerate he was. She nodded after some thought. âIt will be my honor to have your company.â
âHehe... Miss Danâer, please wait a moment.â Vastseaâs figure moved while he spoke. With a wave of his arms, the formidable energy of a great emperor lifted walls of water cresting toward Elder Qiu.
The elderâs expression turned to dread. The momentum of a great emperorâs full-strength attack was frightening enough. Moreover, the difference in cultivation between Elder Qiu and Vastsea was as great as the distance between the sky and the earth.
The thought of resistance had barely crossed the elderâs mind when the daunting water curtains crashed over him, shaping a vortex of water that sucked him inside.
Free and easy, Vastseaâs figure blurred as he charged inside the vortex.
Crash!
He came back out of the water holding two men.