They Are Archenemies, But They Have A Child - Chapter 36

Chapter 36: Breaking the Realm

“What are you running away from?” Cold Lici asked, staring into Yun Qingwu’s eyes.

Without waiting for Yun Qingwu’s reply, he continued on his own: “There’s a discrepancy between your memory and reality. Yet, in this missing year, not a single god in the Nanze Kingdom was willing to intervene. You don’t try to find the truth behind this mystery, only thinking of atoning through death. What? Are you scared?”

“What are you implying?” Yun Qingwu looked at Cold Lici, his eyes bloodshot.

He picked up the arrow from the ground and lunged at Cold Lici, his movements disorderly: “If you want to die here, I can grant your wish!”

Cold Lici effortlessly blocked the hand holding the arrow, keeping it half an arm’s length away. His tone chilled: “I truly don’t understand you. You constantly talk about atoning for your sins, yet you only want to take the easy way out by dying. You certainly know how to pick the easiest thing to do.”

Yun Qingwu lowered his eyes, his whole body trembling, breathing heavily, like a fish on the verge of death.

Cold Lici’s words were too direct, instantly piercing the wall he had built in his heart. With this single vulnerability, the once-impenetrable wall suddenly became a dangerous structure with holes everywhere.

He could no longer sustain his body’s strength.

He abruptly let go, collapsing forward with the force, leaning against Cold Lici’s shoulder.

Cold Lici’s initial anger froze in place due to this sudden lean, stuck between emotions. He could only shut up for a moment.

His neck felt wet, but the trembling breaths gradually smoothed out. Cold Lici was unaccustomed to this kind of situation. Feeling awkward, he said stiffly: “Hey, you’re not crying, are you?”

“No!” Yun Qingwu denied in a muffled voice.

Cold Lici was right. Subconsciously, he was afraid to pursue the truth. If he simply fulfilled Meng Huang’s wish today, at least everything would remain as he had understood it all these years, without spiraling out of control.

But the moment this thought was exposed, everything became visible. He lost the opportunity to escape.

However, once exposed, the boulder in his heart also felt somewhat lighter.

He would find the truth and allow the citizens of the Nanze Kingdom to rest in peace.

“Ah Huang! You can’t—” Qu Huanyu ran over, panting. Her urgent tone suddenly halted when she saw the scene before her.

Cold Lici instantly pushed the person off him and looked away.

Yun Qingwu barely managed to stand steady. Feeling a flush of embarrassment about his previous actions, he cleared his throat to ease the awkwardness.

Fortunately, Qu Huanyu only paused for a moment before shifting her attention back to the matter at hand: “Ah Huang, how about we lead everyone out of the Nanze Kingdom?”

“Out of the Nanze Kingdom?” Yun Qingwu repeated in a low voice. The walls that had surrounded him on all sides suddenly collapsed, and a brand new path appeared before his eyes.

“Yes! Leaving this place! A tree dies when moved, but people move and live. Even if we no longer possess the ability to live forever, we can at least try to live this life well.”

Qu Huanyu’s eyes were filled with aspiration and determination. She took a step toward Yun Qingwu: “It won’t be any worse than it is now, Lord of the Nation.”

“She is more insightful than you,” Cold Lici said, crossing his arms and glancing at Yun Qingwu with amusement.

Yun Qingwu looked at the citizens not far away whose faces were distorted with madness, hysterically throwing objects at the illusory Bai Ze in the sky. His gaze flickered between light and shadow.

After a moment, he looked at Qu Huanyu: “Fine, let’s leave this place.”

…

One month later.

In a mountainous area near a stream, house after house was constructed.

Everything here needed to start over, but the sun high in the sky no longer tirelessly toiled day and night. The eyes of the Nanze clan members who had survived the arduous journey no longer held the innocence of those ignorant of the world, nor the madness of extreme fear.

What remained was the calm of escaping death, and the hope for the future.

“Hey, there’s a black bear! Everyone, let’s go together! We’ll have meat today!” Someone shouted.

“Coming, coming! We won’t let it escape!”

And, the courage that no longer begged for gods.

“See that? They don’t need the responsibility you forcefully imposed on them.” From a high vantage point, Cold Lici glanced at the silent person beside him.

Yun Qingwu’s eyes moved slightly. He smiled in relief.

“You are right.”

Cold Lici was startled. He looked at Yun Qingwu strangely: “What do you mean?”

Yun Qingwu shot him a sideways glance: “You talk nonsense. Is that sufficient?”

Cold Lici didn’t speak. He snorted and looked away.

A huge, blinding light spread from the area where the sun was highest. The glare was intense, forcing Yun Qingwu to cover his eyes. When the dazzling light faded.

A familiar voice was already audible beside him: “Junior Brother! You’ve finally broken the realm! I knew you’d be safe!”

Yun Qingwu slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Li Qingyang’s face again gave him a feeling of having passed through a lifetime.

The Mind Realm was broken.

“Senior Brother,” Yun Qingwu murmured, calling out. Then, he saw the familiar yet slightly unfamiliar daughter squatting in his Senior Brother’s arms.

“Bao—oh dear.”

If Xiao Dao was in the state of a two-month-old mortal when she was first born, she was now five months old.

She was visibly larger than he remembered.

“Xiao Dao? How did she grow so much? How much time has passed here?”

Li Qingyang also looked down at the child in his arms: “You’ve been inside for nearly a month. It’s strange, but not long after you went in, the child turned into this overnight.”

Overnight…

Considering the difference in the flow of time, Yun Qingwu suddenly realized something, his ears turning red. He subconsciously looked for someone.

Hmm?

Where is Cold Lici?

His heart tightened. He quickly looked around.

“Where is our Demon Lord? Why didn’t he come out with you?!”

Dan Mu, who could no longer contain himself, rushed forward, only to be stopped by Li Qingyang.

Yun Qingwu ignored Dan Mu’s commotion, secretly searching quickly. Just as his heart sank further, a familiar red figure flashed past, and vanished into the eaves corridor in the blink of an eye.

His eyes narrowed. He was stunned for a moment.

Why did Cold Lici turn back into a fox?

“Let me go! Let me go!” Dan Mu fiercely bit Li Qingyang’s arm.

Li Qingyang frowned but did not loosen his grip at all.

This sound brought Yun Qingwu back to his senses. His heart relaxed slightly. He said calmly: “He is fine. He might have already left. You will see him naturally.”

Li Qingyang was suspicious. He had intended to use this opportunity to join forces with Yun Qingwu to capture Cold Lici: “If the barrier is not broken, how could he leave?”

Yun Qingwu pursed his lips, placing his attention on Xiao Dao to avoid giving away any clues: “He carries many spiritual tools with him. Perhaps he has his own method. Otherwise, there is no reason for him not to show up.”

“I see…” Li Qingyang’s suspicion was hesitant to dissipate, but he raised no further questions.

Yun Qingwu’s desire to kill Cold Lici was only slightly less than his own. There was no reason for him to lie about this matter.

“Cough, cough, cough—”

A fit of coughing sounded from behind. Meng Huang, who had been asleep for a long time, woke up.

Yun Qingwu took a deep breath, turning around to face his familiar yet strange old friend.

“I am sorry, Ah Huang.” He spoke from the heart.

The ominous look in Meng Huang’s eyes softened a bit. He stared blankly at Yun Qingwu.

Yun Qingwu: “I didn’t know you had such a difficult time all those years. It was my self-importance that led me to assume I could truly empathize with you, making me angry at your betrayal and disgusted by your degeneration.”

Meng Huang’s eyes turned red, tiny specks of light flickering in his dark pupils.

Yun Qingwu lowered his gaze: “When facing the same situation, I might not have done any better than you.”

Tears silently streamed down Meng Huang’s face, drop after drop, until his cheeks were soaked.

The long-silent Meng Huang finally spoke: “So there really was another solution.”

He murmured: “I should have listened to Huanyu’s advice back then. That way, she wouldn’t have died…”

“You—” Yun Qingwu wanted to say something, but he saw the person who had just been subdued suddenly become excited. The madness in his eyes returned.

Meng Huang struggled, looking at Yun Qingwu with hope: “Ah Ze, it’s not too late. Everything is still salvageable. As long as we maintain this realm, all the regrets can be mended, can’t they?”

Yun Qingwu hadn’t expected Meng Huang to still harbor this thought. He couldn’t stand on the moral high ground to criticize him as he had before, nor could he voice agreement. He fell silent for a moment.

“Ah Huang, let us go.”

A clear, cold female voice sounded from behind.

Everyone looked over. Li Qingyang looked at the neither-human-nor-demon entity and became wary.

Yun Qingwu, however, was slightly taken aback: “Huanyu.”

Meng Huang saw the person arrive, and his stopped tears began to pour out again: “Huanyu, believe me one more time. As long as Ah Ze helps, we can definitely go back to how things were! Please give me one more chance, alright?”

Qu Huanyu stepped forward, standing in front of Meng Huang, and shook her head: “Ah Huang, stop obsessing. Living this way is not the life I want. I am in great pain, Ah Huang.”

Then, Qu Huanyu turned to Yun Qingwu: “Great God Bai Ze, thank you for choosing to trust me in the Mind Realm, allowing us to escape the nightmare. Now, your faithful believer makes a vow: please grant us true freedom and rebirth.”

Yun Qingwu’s eyes moved slightly. His right hand unconsciously tightened into a fist. He nodded, his voice choked: “Alright, I promise you.”

A hint of a smile appeared in Qu Huanyu’s eyes. The next second, she raised the knife in her right hand and fiercely plunged it into her heart.

“No—No—Huanyu—how could you…” Meng Huang struggled hysterically, his cries eventually dissolving into incoherent shouts.

With this stab, the stable barrier began to shake violently. The surrounding buildings gradually twisted and began to dissipate.

“The core of the array was actually her heart.” Li Qingyang looked complicated.

“Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah—” As the array’s spiritual power dissipated, Meng Huang finally broke free from his constraints. He rushed to hug Huanyu, trying to staunch the demonic blood continuously flowing from her chest.

“Ah Huang… let go.” Huanyu reached out and stroked Meng Huang’s face, her eyes filled with deep affection.

Meng Huang held Huanyu tightly. Their figures gradually dissolved, finally turning into starlight scattering across the sky.

At the same time, the souls of the Nanze clan members trapped in other bodies were released. They floated in the air, and their suppressed memories gradually returned.

Li Qingyang held Xiao Dao securely with one hand, and with the other, he clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and began to perform the ritual to guide the souls.

Several light specks flew toward the front courtyard and briefly materialized into their original forms upon landing.

“Great God Bai Ze.”

Liu Sao, Qu Ping, and Qu Ye smiled as they looked at Yun Qingwu.

Yun Qingwu blinked somewhat awkwardly, trying to suppress the soreness in his eyes.

In the Mind Realm, he had become Meng Huang. They were truly his family, but that memory belonged only to him.

“Liu Sao, Uncle Qu, you can just call me Qingwu.”

Liu Sao smiled and nodded: “Then you should still call us Teacher and Teacher’s Wife, Qingwu.”

!

Yun Qingwu’s eyes widened suddenly. He looked at Liu Sao and Qu Ping in surprise: “You…”

“We remember the events in the Mind Realm too,” Qu Ping provided the answer.

“I… I’m sorry. I still couldn’t give you a happy ending,” Yun Qingwu lowered his eyes.

“Qingwu, you did,” Liu Sao replied with a smile: “You led us to build a new home, didn’t you forget?”

“That new home was really good. After that, our life was even better than before, and we lived out that life very wonderfully.” Liu Sao sniffed, looking tenderly at Yun Qingwu: “So, you must let go too.”

Yun Qingwu turned his face and rubbed his eyes once. When he turned back, his eyes also carried a smile: “Alright, I promise you.”

The family, having had their heartfelt wishes fulfilled, gradually dissolved, eventually turning into nothingness.

“Ah Ze!”

Just then, another familiar voice arrived.

Just as in his memory, Meng Ping, dressed in a pink dress, came running over, followed by Liu Ya, whose eyes showed a hint of helplessness.

“Mother.” Yun Qingwu followed his heart and chose this address.

Meng Ping smiled and responded: “Yes!”