Chapter 114: Unable to Be Perfect, a Heart Filled with Regrets

The mirror reflected what was transpiring on the other side of the wall.

Yin Yu shook Quan Yizhen vigorously. "Wake up, wake up…" Quan Yizhen finally came to and mumbled blearily, "Shihong, who bea me uh jus now? Wha sih ya?"

Poor Qi Ying…he was so bruised up that he was slurring his speech.

Xie Lian couldn't help but feel sympathetic.

"Do you think I could've beaten you up…?" Yin Yu asked.

Quan Yizhen scratched his head, and only then did he seem to recall what had happened. "Oh, ih was the Emprer who bea me uh." He suddenly remembered something else and his energy seemed to return. "He snach away your shovo! Do you wan me to hel snach ih back?"

"Do you really think you could beat him…?" Yin Yu asked.

Xie Lian finally figured it out—he was in the Palace of Qi Ying. It seemed Yin Yu had been captured by Jun Wu when he came to look for Quan Yizhen.

Jun Wu had circled back behind him, and Xie Lian used the chance to lower his head and mouth soundlessly, "Lord Wind Master, are you still there?"

However, it wasn't Shi Qingxuan who responded.

"Of course not," Jun Wu said.

"…" "It suddenly occurred to me that there were some loopholes in the Heavenly Capital's barrier," Jun Wu explained. "I have only just barred the Soul-Shifting Spell."

"…" Jun Wu patted his shoulder and said amicably, "And to think I was the one who taught you the Soul-Shifting Spell all those years ago. I am very pleased that Xianle has been making practical use of the things I taught him."

With that, Jun Wu left. Not long after, he appeared in the image in the mirror.

Quan Yizhen was the first to notice his arrival. "…!"

Yin Yu whirled around and called out in alarm, "My Lord?!"

Quan Yizhen jumped to his feet, ready to fight, but Jun Wu easily smacked him back onto the bed with a casual wave. The entire bed collapsed on impact, and Quan Yizhen fell to the ground, head lolling. He had lost consciousness again.

Yin Yu was fully on guard, but Jun Wu said to him, "No need to be so tense. Think of it this way—any attempt at defense would be a pointless effort, so why not relax?"

That was certainly true. Not knowing how to respond, Yin Yu gave the same awkward smile that he always had, though he quickly retracted the expression. Jun Wu, on the other hand, appeared relaxed and at ease.

"My dear Yin Yu, I do not think I have ever chatted with you like this before. Isn't that right?"

"I guess not…" Yin Yu replied cautiously.

Even back when he was the martial god who ruled the west, his base of believers wasn't strong, his merits were few, and his rank wasn't impressive.

He wasn't the lowest ranked of the heavenly officials in the Upper Court, but he was still below average, so he'd had almost no opportunities to interact with the Heavenly Emperor—the highest of the high. In the past, he probably would've been nervous if Jun Wu even passed by his palace's entrance. Now, his anxiety had reached new heights.

"But there aren't many heavenly officials who have spoken to me before, or know me," Yin Yu added.

"That's not necessarily true," Jun Wu said. "There are many who know you, even if they've never met you before."

"Really?" Yin Yu asked, surprised.

"Many know of your shidi. And when your shidi is mentioned, you are often an accompanying subject—as his foil," Jun Wu replied.

Those were extremely hurtful words. Jun Wu gave a colorless description devoid of emotion, but that just made it sting more—it was the objective truth. Quan Yizhen was still dizzy, not yet back to his senses. Yin Yu hung his head low and clenched his fists.

Xie Lian could vaguely guess what Jun Wu was planning now.

It took a long time for Yin Yu to gather his courage. "My Lord, what do you want? You're already the Heavenly Emperor, the number one martial god of the Three Realms. From heaven above to hell below, there is no one who could stand equal to you. So…why are you doing this? What exactly do you want?"

Of course, Jun Wu didn't answer him.

"Yin Yu, do you want to return to the Upper Court?" he asked abruptly.

"What?!"

Xie Lian was also surprised by this question. What was Jun Wu planning? Why would he try to coax Yin Yu to change sides at a time like this?!

"Surely you do not actually like being a mere pawn in the Ghost Realm?"

Yin Yu finally snapped out of his shock. "…My Lord thinks too much.

There's nothing to like or dislike about it."

Oh no! Xie Lian cried in his mind. You can't answer like that. Now he'll find your weak point!

Sure enough, Jun Wu smiled. "Did you know? An answer like that always means 'I dislike it and would rather not talk about it.'" "…" It was true. If Yin Yu truly felt confident and actually liked his current position in the Ghost Realm, he would've easily responded, "I like it very much." By avoiding giving an answer, his real feelings were made clear.

"You came from a renowned school, an orthodox sect that never traversed the deviant path. Growing up in that sect, you were always told that ascending was the ultimate thing to strive for," Jun Wu continued. "It is very difficult to give up that sort of goal. Falling in with the Ghost Realm was an unfortunate circumstance, an act borne of helplessness. Of course you cannot say you are satisfied with your position in the Ghost Realm. It was never what you wanted in the first place."

Yin Yu didn't have enough confidence to deny it. He said weakly, "Chengzhu has shown me grace. He saved me—" "I know," Jun Wu said. "He even helped you pacify and send off Jian Yu's vengeful spirit after he died during your banishment, am I correct?"

"…Yes," Yin Yu confirmed. "So whether or not I'm satisfied with my current position, it's all—" "That is dissatisfaction," Jun Wu noted. "You are bound by his grace and have nowhere else to go. You are in denial."

Yin Yu hung his head and didn't reply.

Xie Lian broke out in a cold sweat. He could guess how Jun Wu planned to attack, and Yin Yu was full of weakness from head to toe—in every expression, every gesture!

"Then let me ask you another question," Jun Wu said. "Have you shown Quan Yizhen grace?"

"…" "Why must you place yourself in an unsatisfactory position because someone showed you grace? Why must you devote yourself to repaying his kindness? When you showed Quan Yizhen grace, he made you fall this low," Jun Wu continued. "Yin Yu, compromising yourself for another's success is a bad habit. You must know that no one will thank you."

With every step he cornered Yin Yu further and trampled the places he hurt most!

"You yearned for ascension your entire life. You wanted a good position in the Upper Court and to join the ranks inside the Palace of Divine Might," Jun Wu went on. "Even after Quan Yizhen made you an embarrassment—turned you into his background accessory, made you the laughingstock of the heavens—you endured it and struggled to keep your place in the Heavenly Capital. Was that not because you wanted to stay?

"You belong here. But Quan Yizhen made a mess of everything. He effortlessly stole all the things that should have been yours. Who does he think he is?

"Have you not sacrificed as much as him? No, you sacrificed far more than he ever has. And when it comes to overall ability, he might not even compare. Why is Qi Ying now alone in the Upper Court, with neither aid nor support? It is because his mind is simple—he is ignorant and foolish, blunt and savage, and incapable of earning anyone's respect. But you… You are far more mature. You know the ways of the world better than him. You know when to charge and when to withdraw, and you are always willing to put in the effort. Your achievements would be many, many times greater than his if you had his natural talent and spiritual power. All would respect you."

Yin Yu was growing restless. "I don't understand why My Lord is saying all this. What-ifs are meaningless; his spiritual powers are his own—" Suddenly, he cried out and raised his hand, then asked in alarm, "What?!

What is this?!"

Dazzling spiritual light had burst from one of his hands, bright enough to blind any who looked at it directly.

Jun Wu was unmoved. "No need to be afraid. It is just a bit of spiritual power."

Only then did Yin Yu calm down a little. He said in disbelief, "Whose spiritual power is this? Mine? I'm not this…" His spiritual power wasn't that strong.

"It is not yours yet," Jun Wu said. "Whether it will become yours will depend on what you choose."

"If it's not mine, whose is it?!" Yin Yu exclaimed. "Could it be…" Someone immediately came to mind, and he looked at Quan Yizhen.

As stubborn and resilient as always, Quan Yizhen regained consciousness in that moment, though bewilderment was still plastered on his face. He was clearly confused again.

"Correct. This is Quan Yizhen's spiritual power," Jun Wu replied.

Quan Yizhen gaped. "Huh…?"

"Why are his spiritual powers inside me?" Yin Yu questioned. "How can spiritual power be transferred like this? How is this possible?!"

"Even fates can be swapped. Why not spiritual power?" Jun Wu said.

"There are many things that are hardly as difficult as you assume. It is only a matter of a few words and a few brush strokes from a few great heavenly officials."

Yin Yu shuddered. "This… This…!"

He shook his hands as if trying to toss away a scalding-hot potato. But the spiritual powers only sparked with joyful vigor on his hands, blasting wherever his fingers pointed. An entire set of walls inside the Palace of Qi Ying were blown apart in an instant, the divine statue collapsed, and the roof almost caved in. This shocked Yin Yu even further, and he didn't dare randomly throw his hands around anymore.

"Do not be nervous," said Jun Wu, smiling. "Take your time. Just keep it under control."

Shaken and terrified, Yin Yu held one hand with the other. His arms trembled.

"Yin Yu, let me ask you again. Do you want to return?" Jun Wu asked.

Yin Yu heaved several breaths, his eyes bloodshot. He gazed at Jun Wu.

"If you want to return, not only can I remove your cursed shackle, I can also transfer all of Quan Yizhen's spiritual power to you," Jun Wu said.

Quan Yizhen just lay there, utterly stupefied—it seemed he had never even considered the existence of such an evil spell.

"Are you crazy?!" Xie Lian exclaimed.

"And from now on, there will never be another who only knows of Qi Ying but not of Yin Yu," Jun Wu continued slowly. "For who would dare not remember your name? No one ever again."

Yin Yu stumbled a few steps back, his mind a mess. "I… I… I…" Xie Lian was so tense that he'd forgotten he was still tied to the chair by Ruoye. He held his breath, his hands gripping the chair as his body leaned forward.

There was one thing Jun Wu had gotten right, and Xie Lian could see it too. Deep down in Yin Yu's heart, he preferred the heavens. He had belonged to the Upper Court all along. This feeling was planted deep within his mind, unchangeable.

And did Yin Yu really not harbor a single resentful thought toward Quan Yizhen? He couldn't be sure.

So much had happened between them that it was impossible to say "I don't hate you" so easily. The hatred he felt might be great or small, but Yin Yu was neither assertive nor self-possessed—his decisions were greatly influenced by those around him. Since they didn't know each other well, Xie Lian couldn't be sure what Yin Yu would do. He could only pray silently.

Your Highness Yin Yu…be careful!

"I… I…" Yin Yu was frightened out of his wits, and for a long while, he sat on the floor with his face in his hands. Eventually, he looked up with cold, somber eyes. He stared at Quan Yizhen, who had been beaten so badly he looked like nothing more than a pile of trash.

And then he said in a low voice, "My Lord, can you really…give me all of his spiritual power?"

Xie Lian's heart sank. Quan Yizhen gaped at Yin Yu with a wide-open mouth.

"Shixiong…?"

"Why don't I give it to you now? Then you will see for yourself what I can do," Jun Wu said.

Yin Yu still seemed concerned. "Then…could he steal it back? It's his own spiritual power, after all, so if he wanted it back—" "It is impossible for him to retrieve it unless you return it willingly. Or unless you die," Jun Wu said.

"If his spiritual power is transferred to me, will Quan Yizhen…die?"

Yin Yu asked doubtfully. "Or will something else happen…?"

Despite everything, he probably still didn't want Quan Yizhen to die by his hand.

"Nothing will happen. The process will be a bit painful, that is all," Jun Wu replied. "But who in this world has not suffered pain? How he is dealt with afterward, whether he lives or dies—that will be entirely up to you."

"What about the other heavenly officials?" Yin Yu then asked. "So many in the Upper Court saw what happened at the Palace of Divine Might.

If word got out—" Jun Wu smiled. "So what if they know? They are mere ants who can be crushed with a single hand. Annihilate them all, bring up a new batch of heavenly officials, change your face and your name, make up a new background. Who would be the wiser?"

As he said this, his expression was nonchalant, like he was suggesting pouring a new cup of tea if the old one had gone cold. Nonchalant…and clearly speaking from experience.

Finally, Yin Yu asked, "In the new Upper Court, I… What…would my position be?"

"Ling Wen will be my left hand, and you shall be my right," Jun Wu said. "There will be none above you besides me."

Yin Yu gritted his teeth. Finally, he said, "Very well!" He continued darkly, "Pray My Lord remembers the promise he made to me today. Now…" He trailed off and turned his gaze on Quan Yizhen.

"As you wish," Jun Wu replied.

The moment the words left his lips, Quan Yizhen began writhing; his face twisted, and he screamed. Blood flowed from every orifice as he clutched his head and rolled across the floor in agony. As for Yin Yu, his body suddenly began glowing with spiritual light. His entire face was shining. He swung a hand upward—and blew a giant hole through the ceiling of the Palace of Qi Ying!

Chunks of the golden palace roof tumbled to the ground with an enormous crash. Standing among the wreckage, Yin Yu bowed his head to look at his hands, clenching them into fists. Jun Wu looked like he was watching a small child playing with a new toy.

"How does it feel?"

It was a moment before Yin Yu replied, "…I've never had such strong powers before."

Quan Yizhen was still howling on the floor. Yin Yu gazed at him with a complicated expression.

"My master once said that Quan Yizhen was someone born to ascend —that his abilities were a gift from the heavens. Is this what a heavenly gift feels like?"

"From now on, it is yours," Jun Wu said.

Yin Yu slowly nodded. The next moment, he raised his hand and shot a blast from his palm.

The blast used all of Quan Yizhen's power, its strength terrifying. A white light erupted from the mirror. A moment later, Yin Yu drew a huge circle in the air with his right hand, then snatched it from the air and hurled it out to ensnare Jun Wu. Jun Wu frowned slightly as he looked at the circle of light around his feet, seeming wary of touching it. He watched as Yin Yu pulled at Quan Yizhen on the ground.

"Yin Yu," said Jun Wu, looking indifferent, "would you like to explain why you have gone back on our deal at the last moment?"

Yin Yu kept his back turned to him as he hoisted Quan Yizhen onto it.

He didn't respond.

"What you are doing is certainly praiseworthy. Truly, a man of class," Jun Wu said. "However, is this what you actually want deep in your heart?

You have endured and suffered this for hundreds of years—are you going to continue?"

Yin Yu still did not respond.

"Do you truly not hate the one you are saving right now? Or even if you do not hate him, are you not annoyed?"

Yin Yu finally couldn't take it anymore. He clenched his fists tight, cracking his knuckles, and whirled around.

"I do resent him! He is annoying! But so what?!"

Quan Yizhen was a flustered mess, and blood spewed from his nose and mouth as he tried to speak.

"Shixiong—" "Shut up!" Yin Yu shouted, then turned to Jun Wu again. "My Lord… My… No, not My Lord! You! Why must you keep reminding me of that?!

Why do you speak like you actually understand me?! Yes, I hate him! But so what?! He's given me so much trouble—can't I hate him for it?!"

Xie Lian had no words. At first sunken to the bottom of the valley, his heart was suddenly thrown into the skies once more. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and he almost fell over. What kind of messed-up logic was that?!

"But…" Yin Yu continued. "But I only… I only wanted to hate him.

That doesn't mean I want to hurt him. What was all that about how things should have been mine? Nothing belongs to anyone at birth besides their own natural talent. I don't want someone else's possessions!"

Xie Lian's eyes lit up. "Well said!"

"I do want to return to the heavens, I do want to be ranked in the top ten!" Yin Yu continued. "But it's completely meaningless if I don't do it on my own! I'm unlucky, I accept that! If I'm not as powerful as him, at least I can admit it! Admitting that I can't compare isn't that hard!"

Such pride! In that instant, Xie Lian finally saw Yin Yu shine with the glorious valor of his long-ago youth.

"Waaah!" Quan Yizhen had burst into tears on Yin Yu's back. Blood mingled with tears and snot, and it all splattered onto Yin Yu's face.

Yin Yu broke down, shouting, "Stop that!"

Quan Yizhen sobbed and moaned, "Shixiong, I'm sorry!"

Yin Yu was at the end of his patience. "You don't need to apologize to me anymore either! No matter how much you say you're sorry, you won't understand. I've honestly had enough of you…" Jun Wu sighed and rubbed his temple.

"Besides… Besides, I'm not completely useless either," Yin Yu added.

"You said it yourself. He might not compare to me when it comes to overall ability. But I've got my own—" A strange noise rang out. Click.

Jun Wu turned around with a casual sweep of his hand. "Exhilarating.

You and Xianle must get along well."

What?

What happened?!

Still tied to the chair, Xie Lian's heart was pounding so hard it was going to jump out of his chest. What happened to Yin Yu?!

He had stopped talking, and his expression had turned odd. As for Jun Wu, he rested his hands behind his back and calmly strolled out of that seemingly powerful circle of light—it had not held him for a moment.

"I expected you to respond that way. That is why I did not remove your cursed shackle."

Cursed shackle?! There was indeed a cursed shackle on Yin Yu's arm!

Xie Lian quickly looked over just as Yin Yu also raised his wrist. The cursed shackle had tightened drastically; it looked like it was going to snap Yin Yu's hand off. As for Yin Yu's arm, it had turned as pale as paper, and the whiteness was spreading upward.

The cursed shackle was draining his blood!

Xie Lian lunged forward. The chair fell over, leaving him and it in a heap on the floor. Now he couldn't even see the mirror. He struggled like mad, but it was useless. From the mirror, he could only hear a savage beating.

A long time later, a pair of white boots came into Xie Lian's field of view. It was Jun Wu, who had returned.

In his hand, there was a cursed shackle—it was so engorged with blood that it had turned a dark crimson color. It had to be taken from Yin Yu.

Jun Wu crouched and petted Xie Lian's head. "Go say goodbye to your little friend."

Ruoye was finally untied from the knots that bound it. Xie Lian crawled upright and threw a punch at Jun Wu's face. Of course, it didn't land, and he almost tripped over his own feet in the attempt, but he hadn't expected it to hit Jun Wu anyway—he was just venting his anger. He dashed madly to the palace hall.

Yin Yu was lying on the ground. He looked dried-up and shriveled, as white and thin as a paper doll. Even his cheeks were sallow. All the spiritual light on him was gone—it had been returned to the bruised and beaten Quan Yizhen, whose face was now completely unrecognizable. It seemed the spiritual power had returned to its rightful master.

Xie Lian rushed over to them. "Your Highness Yin Yu!"

Yin Yu blinked with sunken eyes. When he saw Xie Lian, he croaked, "Your Highness…" Quan Yizhen was clinging to the floor, wailing at the top of his lungs and screaming to the heavens. "I'm sorry, shixiong! All I know is how to fight, but I can't beat him!"

The blood from his mouth and nose splattered into Yin Yu's face again.

Even the sight of it looked miserable. Veins popped on Yin Yu's forehead.

"I told you to stop that!" he shouted with the last bit of his energy.

"Forget it… Just drive me to my death…" His vigor gone once more, Yin Yu deflated. Xie Lian couldn't tell if he had wanted to sigh, shed silent tears, or smile despite himself.

All of a sudden, tears welled up in Yin Yu's dry eyes. "I knew," he whispered. "Yizhen is a genius, but I'm just ordinary. I could only climb so high. I knew that."

The pain of powerlessness seized Xie Lian's heart.

"Even though I knew, I couldn't accept it," Yin Yu said. "In truth, I felt the same as Jian Yu—I was even more frustrated than he was. It's not that I wasn't resentful; it was impossible to be otherwise. After that incident, I could never bring myself to reflect on why I told Yizhen to die when I knew he was wearing the Brocade Immortal. Was I really just driven to madness, or did I actually want him dead?"

Xie Lian held him. "It's all right… It's over. Those are all small matters, really. Your Highness Yin Yu, if you live in this world for another few hundred years, you'll know that none of that really matters. Whether you were driven to madness or really wished someone would die—who in the world has never had such thoughts? I once even thought of massacring everyone who ever wronged me; it's true, and no lie, I almost did it. But look at me—I'm still here, shamelessly going on living. In the end, you didn't actually do anything, and that's what's most important."

"But in the end, I…still think…it's so unfair," Yin Yu sobbed. "If I wasn't destined to be perfect, I at least wanted to be perfectly kind. But…I couldn't even manage that. It's really…so unfair. And to tell you the truth, I can't get over it, even now. I just can't swallow the fact that I'm dying for this little bonehead, Yizhen. I can't even let go and die without resentment or regrets. What the heck…?"

"Your Highness, you've already worked so hard," Xie Lian comforted him softly, "and you've done very well. You're already much, much better than most people."

"Better than most people, huh?" Yin Yu gave a small, arduous chuckle.

Then he sighed, and the sound of his last regret passed along with his soul as he mumbled, "But I wanted to be a god…" Xie Lian bowed his head deeply. "Your Highness Yin Yu…this world has no true gods…"