Invincible Young Master in the City-Chapter 1500 - 1496: Heavenly Retribution

When Ye Fan confronted Tantai Wanrong, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman was still recovering from her wounds. Through her inherent restorative powers, she regained sixty to seventy percent of her cultivation strength in a short period. Yet, at this moment, she still couldn’t contend head-on with Ye Fan.

"I didn’t expect her cultivation to advance so rapidly. It seems the elemental power of the six crystals has greatly enhanced him. He will soon meet the requirements set by Pan Gu and become someone truly capable of saving the heavenly tribulation!" When the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman said this, she was speaking to the air, with no visible presence of anyone.

"You’re mistaken!" A voice from the darkness emerged, "Although Ye Fan’s cultivation is advancing rapidly, he is not the chosen one!"

"He’s not the chosen one?" This time, even the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman was surprised.

"No need for surprise. He never was. If he were, Tai Ning would have acknowledged him the first time he came into contact. His true identity is at most just the guardian beside the chosen one!" said the voice from the darkness.

"Then who is the true chosen one?" the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman demanded.

After a long silence, the voice from the darkness finally replied: "Mysterious Woman, I can’t tell you because knowing would bring you no good. You would disrupt the heavenly tribulation and sabotage the task given to you by Pan Gu and Fu Xi. What you need to do now is to help Ye Fan and not to demand the artifact to summon Fu Xi and Pan Gu from him. Only you can help Ye Fan overcome this crisis!"

"Then what exactly is the crisis on Ye Fan? This you can tell me, can’t you?" the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman said impatiently.

"It’s the heavenly punishment!" said the voice from the darkness, gravely, "When a cultivator breaks through their cultivation at an incredible speed, they will face heavenly punishment. As for the outcomes of heavenly punishment, even Pan Gu and Fu Xi cannot answer. In terms of cultivation, Ye Fan still has a significant gap compared to the ancient powers, but in terms of cultivation speed, he exceeds any ancient power! His heavenly punishment is an inevitable result of his cultivation advancement!"

The Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman sneered: "He breaks through so quickly, he finally has to face the consequences of heavenly punishment someday? Haha, Ye Fan, oh Ye Fan, once believed you could become invincible, but it seems now you’re just destined for an ordinary fate. It’s best if you cannot pass the heavenly punishment and end up buried in the world of reincarnation alone."

The voice from the darkness said: "Mysterious Woman, would you really let Ye Fan return to reincarnation?"

One question left the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman’s expression slightly bewildered; she seemed lost in contemplation, ultimately she merely sighed softly, saying: "If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have become who I am now. There’s long been no connection between us. Ye Fan is Ye Fan, that person is that person, there’s no connection between them either. Don’t always think I felt anything special for Ye Fan; the relationship between him and me is merely one of mutual utilization!"

The voice from the darkness said: "I hope you can keep your word today if anything happens between you and Ye Fan. You might face heavenly punishment again, and among ancient cultivators, you’ve tasted heavenly punishment before. If you endure again, it won’t just be skin-deep suffering; perhaps, post-mortem, you won’t see the light of day again, cycling through life and tasting the bitterness endlessly. I’m leaving, remember to help Ye Fan; Ye Fan is your ally, not your adversary..."

With those words, the voice faded away, eventually becoming inaudible, leaving the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman in prolonged thought. In the end, she merely looked up at the sky, pondering aloud: "Could it be there’s really some fateful ties between us? Impossible! I am who I am. What I adhere to is the task entrusted to me by Pan Gu and Fu Xi. I am the Guardian; no one can change this!"

...

...

Within the Pan Gu Secret Realm, Tian Cheng.

Li Zhaojun stood before the largest hall in Tian Cheng, looking up at the starry sky.

Calculated from the Earth calendar, the time for her marriage to Ye Fan was less than a day away, but in the Pan Gu Secret Realm Era, her wedding with Ye Fan was still eight days away.

During these eight days, she prepared to break through to the Eighth Layer of the Heart Sutra and enter wholly into the Ninth Layer, which was also the final layer of the Heart Sutra.

"Sister, what are you thinking about?" Min Shang approached Li Zhaojun from behind, asking gently.

"I’m thinking about some things unrelated to Ye Fan," Li Zhaojun replied, "We’ve been in Tian Cheng for over ten days now, and here it seems like a peaceful society; even with the threat of heavenly tribulation, it hasn’t impacted Tian Cheng yet. Do you think if this could become our future home, would it be nice?"

Min Shang shook her head: "Sister, what you said, I don’t understand; I only know wherever Ye Fan is, there I will be!"

"Your view on emotions is simpler, and more fulfilling. In your heart, besides love and cultivation, there’s no distraction, whereas I...sometimes can’t achieve that. Actually, as a cultivator, finding someone you love and even cultivating together, achieving immortality, is a very blissful and joyful thing, but sometimes...I can’t feel happy!" Li Zhaojun’s face took on a sorrowful expression.

Min Shang asked curiously: "Sister, why?"

Li Zhaojun shook her head, smiling: "Some things, I can’t explain to you, but what I can say now..."

At that moment, as Min Shang was preparing to listen attentively, Li Zhaojun suddenly struck, directly aligning with Min Shang’s energy point. Min Shang then bent slightly, ultimately fainting into unconsciousness.

"Sister, don’t blame me. In truth, sister...also wants to help you!" Li Zhaojun’s face bore a sorrowful expression; she seemed to know this was not the right thing to do.

A voice suddenly emerged from the air: "Have you completed everything?"

"Yes!" Li Zhaojun replied using sound restraint, "I’ve already followed the previous agreement and brought everyone here, including myself, and we have enough people for you as you said to complete the final sacrifice, right?"

As Li Zhaojun spoke these words, her expression remained calm, as though carrying out these tasks were normal.

Her mind wasn’t bewildered; she wasn’t doing anything foolish, and everything she did was very natural, even Ye Fan and Sang Yuan and others hadn’t noticed anything amiss.

"You’ve done well. Only by gathering all the women Ye Fan cares about through your efforts can we conduct a soul sacrifice to allow him to evade heavenly punishment. You can’t tell him, because if he knew, he wouldn’t agree, which could lead to him dying alone!" said the voice.

"I understand, I’ll follow your guidance for everything!" Li Zhaojun gritted her teeth: "But in this matter, we’re merely cooperating; you also don’t intend to exploit me in the slightest!"