"Who are you?"
Deep within her body, the other Xia Miao'er spoke, sensing a threat.
And this threat could even endanger her very existence; the other party was fully capable of erasing her.
His power was even greater than that of the Lan Kingdom's ruler, who was nominally her father. It was the first time she had encountered such a formidable existence.
Even someone as powerful as her felt an extreme sense of trepidation!
"I am no one. Continue sleeping." Ye Chen's voice carried a peculiar magic, one that even the other, immensely powerful Xia Miao'er within could not resist. Having just awakened, she fell back into slumber once more.
He did not take action to erase the other Xia Miao'er, unsure whether it would be good or bad for Xia Miao'er herself. Like his old friend, who also had dual souls within one body, the powerful soul always took great care of the weaker, simpler one.
Not everything is necessarily bad.
Xia Miao'er's eyes soon regained clarity as she stared blankly at Ye Chen. After a long moment, she asked, "Big Brother, what just happened?"
Ye Chen shook his head and then let out a soft sigh. He made a cut on his finger, and a drop of brilliant golden blood dripped out, quickly turning crimson and condensing into a red pearl the size of a little fingernail.
He casually handed it to Xia Miao'er. "Little Miao'er, thank you for your concern for Big Brother. I don't have anything good to give you, so take this little pearl. Keep it with you; it will be very useful in a critical moment. But you must never tell anyone about it, not even your family. Understand?"
This was Ye Chen's way of repaying Xia Miao'er. It was his saintly blood, which could protect her once in a crucial moment, more useful than anything else.
Even if the other Xia Miao'er within her caused trouble, it could suppress her.
Xia Miao'er nodded, seeming to understand yet not fully, and carefully stored it away.
Whoosh—
At that moment, another graceful figure appeared ethereally.
Unlike Xia Miao'er's pink and adorable appearance, this was a young woman who had blossomed into elegance, possessing an aloof, noble beauty that seemed unattainable. She bore some resemblance to Xia Miao'er but appeared more mature and stunning. Without a doubt, she was Xia Miao'er's elder sister.
The aloof woman's narrow phoenix eyes first swept over Ye Chen, who was seated cross-legged on the primordial stone. Her gaze was slightly icy. Then, she waved her slender jade hand. Xia Miao'er, understanding and obedient, trotted over, bouncing and skipping, displaying the innocence of a young girl. She chirped, "Sister, you're here too."
The aloof woman flicked the girl's smooth forehead with her finger and gave a light hum, though her eyes overflowed with deep affection. "You restless little sister, how many times have I told you not to run off randomly? What if something happened?"
The girl, however, paid no mind. She took her sister's delicate hand and giggled while acting spoiled. "Miao'er isn't afraid. Isn't Sister always by Miao'er's side?"
"You—" The aloof woman shook her head slightly, helpless. Before outsiders, she appeared noble, aloof, and unapproachable, but before this most beloved sister, she couldn't maintain that facade, showing only affection.
Nevertheless, she carefully examined Xia Miao'er and, finding no imagined mishaps, seriously turned her attention to Ye Chen on the primordial stone. Seeing an ordinary mortal without the slightest fluctuation of laws, her icy demeanor eased somewhat.
Perhaps due to loving the house and its crow, the aloof princess offered a reminder. "This place is a gathering ground for the world's saints. Even a Divine Transformation expert wouldn't be enough to make a mark here. You should leave quickly, as far away as possible. Otherwise, you could easily get hurt."
She was also someone cold on the outside but warm inside. Ye Chen smiled. "It's fine. Since they are all beings of that level, their attacks can devastate thousands of li in an instant. Even if I leave now, I can't run far. It's better to stay and get a close look at those usually lofty existences. At least I'll have something to boast about when I return home, right?"
He rarely cracked a joke.
The aloof princess was taken aback, not expecting Ye Chen's understanding to be so profound. However, Xia Miao'er tugged at her sister's hand, shaking it while pleading, "Sister, Big Brother is so pitiful. Can't we help him?"
"Help? How?" the aloof princess said. "We can't leave without permission. If Father Emperor finds out, we'll be punished."
Although the Lan Kingdom was powerful, it also had rival empires no weaker than itself. If captured by a rival empire, that would be real trouble.
Xia Miao'er continued to act spoiled. "Sister, please help Big Brother. I know you, esteemed elder sister, must have a way."
The aloof princess glanced at Ye Chen. She couldn't understand what kind of bewitching potion this ordinary man had given Xia Miao'er recently to make her plead for help like this repeatedly.
In the end, she was defeated by her sister's pleas and nodded helplessly. Xia Miao'er cheered loudly, hugged her sister, and gave her a loud kiss on the cheek, giggling, "I knew Sister was the best!"
"You, always nicer to outsiders than to family." The aloof princess flicked her smooth forehead again. Then, with a wave of her slender hand, a scroll appeared, which she tossed to Ye Chen. She said indifferently, "This is a spatial scroll. Open it, and you'll be teleported to the Great Desolate City a hundred thousand li away. Once there, you'll be safe. How you get back to your home planet is not my concern."
The Great Desolate City was far from the Million Mountains and was a major city of the Huang Empire.
Ye Chen caught the spatial scroll. Even on the Ancient Emperor Continent, this was a remarkable life-saving treasure, worth at least ten thousand jin of spirit stones. He hadn't expected her to be so generous, giving it away just like that.
But it was all for Xia Miao'er's sake.
"Thank you." Ye Chen revealed a faint smile. "As a token of gratitude in exchange, please accept this pearl. It can protect your life once in a critical moment."
A sparkling blood pearl shot out. The aloof princess caught it casually. Opening her palm, she found it was just an ordinary blood pearl, utterly common, without the slightest energy fluctuation. She couldn't help but frown, her pretty brows knitting.
She disliked people who had no real ability but insisted on showing off the most.
However, when she lifted her gaze, her almond-shaped eyes instantly widened in shock.
Because the ordinary young man on the primordial stone had vanished, disappearing without a trace in an instant.
Had he used the spatial scroll to disappear?
But she distinctly hadn't sensed the slightest fluctuation of spatial laws. Using a spatial scroll should definitely trigger a massive surge of spatial law energy.
Yet there was none at all!
The other party had vanished as if he had never existed in the first place.
It took the aloof woman a long time to regain her composure. For the first time, a grave expression appeared on her cold, beautiful face. She had a feeling she might have encountered an extraordinary and remarkable individual.
At the same time, on a mountain peak over a hundred li away, Ye Chen appeared. Gazing at that distant peak, he remained silent, then continued to sit cross-legged in meditation, merging with heaven and earth. This time, no one could detect his presence anymore.
On this day, the agreed-upon time arrived.
Within the safe zone, the super-powerful experts who had been meditating immediately opened their fierce eyes. Astonishing auras erupted one after another, like deities awakening from slumber.