Transformation

Three years later.

On this day, the winds and clouds above the Hehuan Sect suddenly surged. Purple qi came from the east for thirty thousand miles, and golden light filled the sky.

Ye Qingcheng had formed her Golden Core.

A twenty-three-year-old Golden Core cultivator, a darling of the Heavenly Dao. Even looking at the entire cultivation world, she was an existence as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

The Sect Master of the Hehuan Sect was overjoyed and ordered a grand celebration for three days.

However, in this moment of universal celebration, amid the deafening sound of gongs and drums, the dilapidated shantytown of the outer sect was terrifyingly quiet.

Ye Xuan sat by the window, slowly wiping the iron sword in his hand.

In three years' time, he had cultivated to the great perfection of the Qi Condensation realm.

Although he was still just an ant in front of a Golden Core ancestor, the aura around him was as steady as a pool of dead water, concealing its sharp edge within, remaining entirely undisturbed.

Suddenly, a blood-red streak of light tore through the auspicious clouds of the celebration. Ignoring the Sect Master's furious roars and the obstruction of the mountain-defending grand array, it plummeted straight toward the outer sect like a madman.

Bang!

The dilapidated wooden door was not pushed open, but was directly shattered into fine dust by an incredibly tyrannical spiritual pressure.

As the smoke and dust dispersed, a figure stood at the doorway.

Ye Xuan raised his head, his pupils shrinking slightly.

It was Ye Qingcheng.

But she was no longer that fairy whose white clothes surpassed the snow.

She was bathed in blood. The flowing cloud dharma robe, which originally symbolized the honor of a Golden Core elder, was now soaked with dark red blood. It clung damply to her body, and with her panting, blood dripped onto the floor, drip, drop.

The stench of blood was so strong it made one nauseous, even mixed with a certain heart-palpitating smell of minced flesh.

Husband...

Ye Qingcheng stumbled inside. With every step she took, she left a bloody footprint on the ground.

Her usually proud and aloof face now wore a sickly and manic smile, her eyes shining frighteningly bright.

She rushed in front of Ye Xuan, ignoring the filth all over her body, and tightly grabbed his shoulders.

They are all dead! Husband, they are all dead!

Her voice was hoarse, carrying the thrill of having taken her great revenge: These past three days... I was in the Red Lotus Secret Realm... Zhao Tianba, Li Changfeng, and those other two... I killed them all!

Ye Xuan looked at her and said nothing, only listening quietly.

Ye Qingcheng, as if presenting a treasure, incoherently and eagerly explained: I lured them into the secret realm on purpose... I had just formed my Golden Core, and my realm was unstable. They thought I was a soft target. They thought they could treat me in there just like they used to...

She suddenly laughed nervously, her laughter shrill and mournful: But they didn't know that I had already mastered the Hehuan Heavenly Demon Scripture! I set up an absolute killing array in the secret realm. I killed all four of them. I tortured them for three days and three nights before letting them die!

She reached out her hand, covered in dried blood, wanting to stroke Ye Xuan's face, but stopped in mid-air. Afraid of dirtying him, her hand could only hover there, trembling:

Now no one can humiliate you anymore... I have cleanly killed everyone who touched me! Husband, I am clean now... No, no one will dare to gossip anymore! Whoever dares to mention the past, I will kill them!

Looking at the woman before him who resembled a vengeful ghost, an indescribable sorrow welled up in Ye Xuan's heart.

The gentle young girl who once didn't even dare to kill a chicken, who would shed tears for an injured little bird, had ultimately died in the giant dyeing vat that was the Hehuan Sect.

Yes, well killed.

Ye Xuan's expression was calm, his tone extremely indifferent: Because you are already a Golden Core elder. Foundation Establishment cauldrons truly are no longer worthy of you. Killing them makes perfect room for the new batch of geniuses sent by the sect, doesn't it?

The manic smile on Ye Qingcheng's face instantly froze.

A bleak, beautiful flush faded from her face, replaced by a deathly pallor.

You... how did you know?

Her eyes darted away in panic: No... it is not what you think! Ye Xuan, this time is different! It really is different!

She frantically pulled a glittering golden token from her storage ring. Carved upon it was the highest-grade totem of the Hehuan Sect.

Look! The Sect Master just gave this to me! I have already applied for the highest privilege from the sect!

She forced the token into Ye Xuan's hands, trembling all over with excitement, her eyes full of pleading tears:

Given that I formed my Golden Core at twenty, my potential is limitless. The sect finally relented! They allowed me to designate an official husband!

She stared intently at Ye Xuan, her voice trembling: Ye Xuan, from today on, you are the lawful Dao Companion of me, Ye Qingcheng! Properly and legitimately! Even the Sect Master cannot drive you away! Your name will be carved on my elder monument!

Ye Xuan lowered his head and looked at the heavy token in his hand.

A line of small text was carved upon it:

Official Husband of the Hehuan Sect Purple-Clad Elder Ye Qingcheng — Ye Xuan

However, on the back of the token, four other lines of names were carved in an extremely ironic, neat script.

These four names shone with golden light, and each one was a renowned Golden Core genius in the cultivation world.

Ye Qingcheng followed his gaze, and her face turned pale. She hurriedly tried to cover the back with her hand, explaining: This... this could not be helped. It is a sect rule. A Golden Core elder must dual cultivate with experts of the same tier to consolidate their realm... These four are, are geniuses sent over for political marriages from other sects...

She looked up, gazing eagerly at Ye Xuan, her voice carrying a humble flattery: But Ye Xuan, you are different! You are the primary spouse! You are the greatest! When those four newcomers see you in the future, they will all have to respectfully call you the first husband! You are the master, and they are the side consorts! Isn't that enough?

Ye Xuan held that blood-stained token.

How ironic.

Official husband.

The official husband ranked fifth.

A Qi Condensation realm first husband commanding four burly Golden Core men.

Ye Xuan raised his head, looked at Ye Qingcheng's expectant, frantic, yet fragile face, and chuckled softly.

The fifth?

Ye Xuan toyed with the token and said softly: Then shouldn't I thank Fairy Ye for her great kindness and virtue? What right or ability does my Ye Xuan possess to be able to share a drop of your rain and dew between the cracks of four Golden Core experts? This cuckold's hat of mine can now be considered to have a golden rim, making it quite noble, isn't it?

Ye Xuan!

Ye Qingcheng painfully clutched her chest: Why must you speak to me like this? Do you know what I had to sacrifice to fight for this position?

If I hadn't been secretly protecting you, do you think you could have survived in the outer sect until now with just your Qi Condensation cultivation? Countless people wanting to curry favor with Zhao Tianba would have come to kill you long ago!

I know.

Ye Xuan nodded, his expression still calm, But none of that matters anymore.

He placed the golden token on the table, producing a crisp sound.

Because I am leaving the Hehuan Sect.

Ye Qingcheng's pupils contracted violently. Her entire body's spiritual energy became chaotic due to her loss of emotional control, and the tables and chairs in the room instantly turned to dust.

Where are you going? she asked with a trembling voice.

Back to the mortal realm.

Ye Xuan turned around and began packing his pitifully sparse luggage, a few old clothes and a chipped axe: This place doesn't suit me. I am tired.

Why? Because of me? Ye Qingcheng rushed forward and desperately grabbed his bundle: Are you doing this to take revenge on me?

Not at all.

Ye Xuan shook his head, his eyes so clear it was unnerving. "I've thought it through. My aptitude is too poor. Even if I walk this path of cultivation to the very end, I'll only reach the Foundation Establishment realm. Rather than suffering here, I might as well return to the mortal world and establish a clan."

He raised his head, his gaze piercing through the dilapidated roof as if he saw some beautiful future. A long-lost, gentle smile actually appeared on his lips.

"I plan to go to Jiangnan and buy a few hundred acres of fertile land. Then I'll marry a dozen wives—they don't need to be too beautiful, just virtuous. Then I'll have a whole bunch of children, teach them to read, and teach them martial arts. Working at sunrise and resting at sunset every day... No dual cultivation, no human cauldrons, no slaughter."

He was calmly planning his future.

In this future, there were fields, land, flocks of wives and concubines, and halls full of children and grandchildren.

The only thing missing was her, Ye Qingcheng.

This plain description was the most vicious torture in the world to Ye Qingcheng.

That was the life she had once dreamed of!

It was the fantasy she had gritted her teeth and clung to during countless nights tortured by love poison!

But now, Ye Xuan was going to realize this dream alone, and he was going to divide the doting that belonged to her among a dozen vulgar mortal women!

"No!"

Ye Qingcheng threw herself into Ye Xuan's arms, hugging his waist tightly as tears soaked his chest. "I won't allow it! You finally gained recognition, and you will enjoy tremendous treatment! I can give you the best resources, I can help you reach Foundation Establishment, or even form a Golden Core! Promise me you won't leave, okay?"

Ye Xuan looked down at the woman in his arms.

He felt not a shred of warmth, only heaviness.

"Let go." Ye Xuan pushed her away, his eyes indifferent, devoid of both love and hate.

"Our paths are different; we cannot walk together."

Pushed away, Ye Qingcheng stumbled a few steps. She lowered her head, her long hair hiding her face, her shoulders shaking violently.

When she looked up again, the pleading in her eyes had vanished, replaced by a chilling, sickly obsession.

"Husband, I had my difficulties. Don't force me."

Her voice was as cold and sinister as a snake's tongue. "You want to leave? Without my permission, you won't take half a step out of the Hehuan Sect!"

Ye Xuan's expression remained calm. "Whether you had difficulties or not, I no longer care. I am leaving."

However, reality was cruel.

The next day, when Ye Xuan took his sect-leaving application to the Deacon Hall, it was ruthlessly rejected.

The reason consisted of just four words: The Elder does not permit it.

The current Ye Qingcheng was at the peak of the Golden Core realm and was the sect's future Nascent Soul seed.

To the outer sect disciple Ye Xuan, her single word was an inviolable heavenly law.

He was imprisoned in this cage known as the Hehuan Sect.