Chapter 139 - 138: Gathering - Na Xinyi's Choice
Who was Wei Wuyin?
Who was Long Chen?
These two questions were on the mind of the present elite crowd today, and especially the primary question that Na Xinyi had to thoroughly ponder on. Her dazed and slightly glazed eyes revealed the swarming mess that was her mind.
For all these years, nearing twelve years, she harbored an absolutely intense hatred for those responsible in the hunting, murder, and enslavement of her senior and junior sisters, brothers, and elders. Her entire sect had collapsed until it became nothing more than a figment of other people’s memories.
At that time of her sect’s swift demise, she hated the world for her weakness and swore revenge against those responsible. But she was too weak, and all she could do was flee at the behest of her fellow sect members. She left with those civilians and mortal elders unable to fight, with a few warriors to protect them. They didn’t last long.
Because of Wei Wuyin. His eyes were like a hawk as he drove them fleeing in horror, unable to escape his clutches. They were captured, killed, and abused without regard. This was their fate, and she had thought it would be hers too.
Until she saw him. He was an exceptionally phenomenal man, unlike the cruel, cold, and vicious hunter she imagined. His appearance was handsome to the extreme, his resplendent silver eyes contained sharp and intelligent light wherever they went, and his strength was unquestionable! The first impression she had of him was unforgettable.
How woeful was her. To have, no, feel these thoughts in her heart as she remained shackled to her fellow female sect members, being analyzed to see if they’ll be selected as fodder for the men that killed their family and friends or sold for a pretty price to a fate unknown.
She was in tears, and when he looked upon her, and those silver eyes revealed a hint of confusion, then interest, then she had hope—hope in surviving.
Since she could remember, she was ordinary. Her talent, her cultivation, her backing, and even her personality; nothing stood out. Her time was spent mostly cultivating, hanging out as a quiet member of the sect, or just being a spectator to others fascinating life events.
It was dreary and unfortunate. She always wondered if she’d be able to one day float in the sky like those Mortal Gods, or be able command respect wherever she went. In her idle time, she daydreamed about becoming an Empress of the World. This daydream became her innermost desires of her heart.
So when she saw Wei Wuyin, a figure that even she had heard about, an expert that worked his way from nothing after tragedy, how could she not desire for him to be her prince charming to the rescue? Was she being ridiculous? Idiotic? Completely unrealistic? Of course, but it was her dream.
Then, he brought her away. He helped her avoid the disgusting fate as sexual fodder or being sold, and performed a series of strange spells on her. She thought he intended to use her as a cultivation cauldron, practicing evil methods, but while she was scared, she could only accept it.
When he later told her that she had a unique physique, which he discovered because of the color of her eyes that was cloudy grey, she didn’t believe him. But he gave her an option, a choice: Dual cultivate willingly and be set free.
The other choice was obvious. It was either with consent or forceful, but it was her choice. Later, she would learn that willingly dual cultivation was nearly three times as effective than forced extraction of her primal yin essence, so she understood why he even gave her that option.
She took it.
She wanted to live.
However, perhaps even she didn’t realize it, but when she was set free, her heart was weighed down by this freedom. Was this it? Was her life going to continue to be ordinary? Perhaps this wws why hatred fueled her heart even to this day. She developed a drive to become greater than she ever was!
After this, she stumbled into a mess in her clumsy attempt at rising greater and was subsequently saved by Long Chen. They squabbled, even fought at one point, but they were forced to work together to survive. Her yin physique helped bypass an obstacle, and then their friendship grew. What turned into friendship was her experiencing the exceptional characteristics and greatness that Long Chen exuded.
He wasn’t ordinary.
His determination towards cultivation and pursuit of strength, to avoid being ordinary, and gaining control over his own fate. He fought from being referred to as a trash by all into a feared expert! His future potential seemed limitless. Perhaps he would be able to rule over the continent one day...maybe even the entire starry sky.
She thought for a moment: "If I became his woman, would I be able to rule by his side?"
This thought was infectious and she latched onto his side like a reluctant woman. Over the course of several years and many events, both eventful and uneventful, they developed a greater than normal relationship. Her hatred, however, was still fierce and burning. How could it not? It drove her to greater heights!
So when Long Chen learned of her background, what happened to her to make her bitter and hateful, he swore to kill the one responsibility on her behalf—Wei Wuyin & Wu Chen.
You see, Wu Chen was the main culprit behind the death of her comrades. It was his lust and greed for the Violet Moon Sect’s top beauty that led to its eventual collapse. In the end, that beauty was captured while her home was destroyed. Her struggles and reluctance led to the death of numerous innocents, and it did nothing to stop her from ending up in the clutches of THAT man!
Earlier, when Mei Mei had arrived alongside Wu Chen, Long Chen’s emotions were exceptionally fierce because he intended to kill Wu Chen. Unfortunately, Wei Wuyin halted this inevitably in an attempt to protect Mei Mei. Considering Mei Mei was Wu Chen’s Dao Companion, Long Chen didn’t try a second attempt due to realizing that Wei Wuyin would pounce with the utmost ferocity imaginable.
It was truly unfortunate.
Now, she stood before the man she wanted to kill and the greatest obstacle in killing the other. He had taken her first time, her innocence, and now was speaking bluntly and stating that he would take her as his wife, support her through the trials of heaven and earth, ensuring her happiness and dreams.
If it was anyone else, she wouldn’t take this seriously, but the question once more entered her mind:
Who was Wei Wuyin?
A man with unearthly good-looks, cultivation talent and speed that rivaled the most elite geniuses, strength that was pretty much unrivaled in the continent’s residents as he claimed Wu Jiao’s arm and exiled him from his presence. How fucking fierce and exceptional was he?
Furthermore, he was a Lord Alchemist! The number of Lord Alchemists on the entire continent barely reached a few dozen in number!
Young, talented, strong, and skilled.
These four traits were all exceptional for a cultivatior.
Handsome, charismatic, intelligent, and domineering.
These four traits were all exceptional in a man.
But...
Those glazed eyes of hers inevitably turned subconsciously to inspect Long Chen.
Who was Long Chen?
They had fought against each other, traveled together, survived life and death together, and he even swore to get revenge for her(albeit with complete and utter lack of success thus far). Did he lack any of those four traits of a cultivator? Absolutely not. Did he lack any of those four traits as a man? Absolutely not.
From an outsider’s perspective, Wei Wuyin was the obvious choice. While they both possessed these characteristics, they were utterly not at the same level. Long Chen may be five years younger, but Wei Wuyin was a Lord Alchemist with the same cultivation base.
Long Chen may be strong, but Wei Wuyin was presently stronger.
Long Chen may be handsome, but Wei Wuyin was an unnatural freak in the looks department, capable of excelling immensely amongst his gender. Charisma? Perhaps Long Chen was slightly better, but it’s not as if Wei Wuyin paled in comparison.
As for domineering will, just from his earlier display, Wei Wuyin definitely had far sturdier will.
From the perspective of those who knew their growing story, perhaps Long Chen was the most obvious choice.
To her, despite her attachment to Long Chen over the course of these years, the most important factor was: "Could she become the Empress of the World with him?"
Her eyes when she looked at Long Chen lost a little of its haze. If she followed him, be with him, wouldn’t that be possible?
Long Chen’s calm eyes that revealed trust and belief in her was apparent. When she turned to see Wei Wuyin, she wasn’t met with a smile, but mostly casual indifference. Would he really allow her dreams to come true? Could he? He might...
"I..." her heart seemed to know what to say, but before she could mutter a word, Wei Wuyin interrupted her.
"You don’t have to choose now. I don’t really care when you decide, as long as you don’t become intimate with another man before you do, then I’ll always take you as my wife." Those words were frighteningly casual, even containing a hint of distant coldness. In the middle of his words, he glanced at Long Chen.
To Wei Wuyin, this wasn’t an important priority, and in truth, he didn’t really feel like obtaining a burden. If, and when, he overcame his second Calamity of Hell, or rose his cultivation base to a sufficient point, could he start to truly plan for things like this. Until then, it was best to avoid this entirely. Leaving it as an option for her was generous enough.
"You..." Na Xinyi thoughts and emotions were sent into a spiral. She had thought of the past, present, and future, contemplating everything, only to be interrupted and say it’s fine whenever? How casual! To think! To think...
Wei Wuyin completely ignored the fiery and mixed emotions in her eyes. He saw that her choice was set, and he truly didn’t feel like having a burden at this moment. He felt that it would bring about endless trouble at this particular juncture of his life.
Just from his observation of Long Chen, those beauties by his side seemed to be siphoning his karmic luck endlessly, otherwise there’s no way all those people, those that followed him into a misguided goal of retrieving a woman that wasn’t a captive or under any threat, would experience an abrupt and grisly death.
As for Long Chen, he had a smug grin. It was impossible not to. To him, when Na Xinyi looked back to him and her eyes cleared a little, he felt in his heart that she had chosen him. And when Wei Wuyin intervened when her words were about to be spoken, wasn’t that a way to save face?
Tch!
How pathetic!
While they both had their own thoughts, Na Xinyi’s choice was stifled still, unable to escape her lips.
"If you want to take responsibility, then you should show some sincerity first." A voice resounded from within Long Chen’s group.