The divine spring is precious beyond measure, even a single drop.
The twelve blooms that had opened in the ten clay jars must have contained an unknown quantity of dark divine spring. After draining them all, even with Zhang Ruochen’s physique and mental willpower, his mind grew heavy and painful, his consciousness blurring.
“Invigorating!”
Yan Wushen rose to his feet with a great laugh, but before the sound faded, his legs buckled, and he toppled backwards onto the ground.
Yan Ting and Wen Chu rushed forward at once, supporting him as he withdrew to regulate his breathing.
“Are you all right? Shall I first help you refine the dark power within the dark divine spring?” Beside him, a wave of fragrance washed over. Wuyue extended slender, jade-like fingers to steady the swaying Zhang Ruochen, transmitting her voice in concern.
“No harm done!”
Zhang Ruochen forced himself to stand firm, steadied his body, and gave the assembled gods a bold, sweeping smile. “Did you all see that? This is what comes of courting humiliation. Today, Yan Wushen’s lifetime of glory lies in ruins. Even if he becomes a divine venerable hereafter, or takes his place among the heavens, he will never wash away the shame of this day.”
“Haha!”
The gods burst into joyful laughter.
Someone shouted, “From now on, let Yan Wushen be called Yan Softlegs!”
“The Kneeling Great God, Yan Softlegs.”
“Boundary Venerable Ruochen, do not laugh too soon. You still have a third round ahead. If you end up sprawled on the ground yourself, how will you save face?” Wen Chu said with a laugh.
Zhang Ruochen immediately swallowed the sobering pill that Gong Nanfeng had given him.
Many divine spirits protested.
Yan Huangtu and Luo Shengtian charged forward to stop him, but Wuyue blocked them with her domain of mental force.
She smiled gently. “Since everyone has come to the banquet, Ruochen is naturally delighted, and would not mind drinking himself senseless with you all. Yet if he collapses before even entering the Temple of Destiny, with whom shall this goddess complete the wedding?”
Yan Huangtu and Luo Shengtian could only retreat, inwardly puzzled, no longer certain of the true relationship between Zhang Ruochen and Wuyue.
Were these two truly mortal enemies?
“Haha, the wedding rites are not yet complete, yet Hall Master Wuyue is already shielding her husband. From now on, revenge will be difficult for Yan Wushen!” someone called out with a laugh.
“To take Hall Master Wuyue as wife truly makes the rest of us green with envy. Xue Jue, are you envious?” The Grand Clan Butcher of the Undying Blood Race’s Demon Heaven Tribe deliberately teased the Blood Absolute War God.
The Blood Absolute War God replied, “To this day, I still think of Wen Ya.”
“You rascal Xue Jue, still thinking of Wen Ya. Are you also still thinking of Tian Yin?”
The Grand Clan Butcher howled and lunged at the Blood Absolute War God, ready for a fierce fight, for Wen Ya was his own clan butcher’s wife, and also a proud daughter of heaven from the same era as the Blood Absolute War God.
Rumour had it that when Wen Ya was young, she greatly admired the Blood Absolute War God and had once trained alongside him.
In the crowd, the Goddess Mother Tian Yin remained calm and elegant, her expression unruffled, yet she cast a glance towards the Blood Absolute War God.
The gods of the Tian Luo Divine Kingdom grew furious one by one and surged towards the Grand Clan Butcher. Fortunately, the old clan leader intervened in time, subduing them until they quietened.
On the other side, Zhang Ruochen and Wuyue approached the third drinking challenge.
At the sight of the two women who had set it, the headache that had only just eased returned to Zhang Ruochen.
And it hurt worse than before.
Luo Yi and Bai Qing’er stood behind a long white jade table, like twin lotuses on a single stalk, a pair of immortals, both clad in white, each more radiant and pure than the other.
One bore beauty and wisdom within her innocence.
The other held pride and profundity within her coldness.
At this sight, the gods outside the Temple of Destiny fell instantly silent, ill-intentioned smiles upon their faces.
Some felt envy. Which of these three women was not a peerless beauty of the mortal world? Which was not an extraordinary woman of the present age? Which did not look down from the heights?
To win even one would make a man the victor of a lifetime.
Luo Yi clearly intended to rival Wuyue in splendour. Her white robes were elaborately wrought, embroidered with silver silk clouds and edged in cyan, her makeup exquisite, every eyelash carefully groomed.
She spoke first. “Brother Chen’s wedding to Immortal Wuyue is the greatest joyous event in the hell realm. This princess and Sister Qing’er have presumptuously arranged this round. You will not be angry, I hope?”
Before Zhang Ruochen could reply, Wuyue stepped forward gracefully, her beautiful eyes smiling. “Princess Yi Yi jests. How could elder sister be angry? I am overjoyed. After all, we shall all be family hereafter. Yet Ruochen has already drunk two rounds. I fear he cannot manage this third. Let family not fight among themselves, or we only give others cause to laugh.”
Bai Qing’er said, “In truth, we mainly wish to invite Immortal Wuyue to drink a single cup. No contest of volume, just one cup.”
Upon the white jade table stood three small, exquisite bronze goblets, each holding a cup of wine.
“It cannot be this harmonious, surely?” Yan Huangtu muttered in disappointment.
He was not disappointed. Bai Qing’er continued, “I have long heard that Immortal Wuyue’s mental power is formidable, with the potential to reach the realm of heavenly perfection without flaw, and that she is a triple divine master of illusion, symbols, and pills. Of these three cups, one is formed by illusion, one by symbols, and only one is true wine.”
Luo Yi added, “If the immortal chooses correctly and drinks it, Sister Qing’er and I will immediately let you pass.”
“So simple? Then this wine must be far from ordinary,” Wuyue observed.
Luo Yi narrowed her eyes and smiled. “Rest assured, it will not poison anyone to death. At the very least, it cannot kill the immortal.”
Wuyue asked, “And if I choose wrongly? Must today’s wedding be cancelled?”
Luo Yi replied, “Not to that extent. The immortal need only return the garment she wears to Sister Qing’er. We will still let you pass.”
The atmosphere grew steadily more heated. It was indeed a fine spectacle.
The onlookers assumed Luo Yi meant the phoenix crown and robes upon Wuyue, believing the two women had come to steal the groom. Yet Zhang Ruochen knew she referred to the Heavenly Venerable Treasure Gauze, and worry rose within him.
“How can such a moment lack poetry? Why retreat so far, everyone? It is only a poem,” Huang Bahu cried urgently.
The more he spoke, the further the assembled gods distanced themselves, wearing expressions that said, “We do not know this man.”
Huang Bahu felt his refined taste met with few admirers and recited alone, “On this fine day and auspicious hour, I compose a new poem for Ruochen.”
“One woman has a husband, two women share a husband.”
“Three women have no husband. Husband, husband, what is to be done?”
Upon hearing the poem, the gods secretly sighed in relief, then roared with laughter.
It truly fitted the scene.
“The husband should cultivate to heavenly venerable, invincible beneath the heavens, spring blooming everywhere.” Huang Bahu pondered long, then recited the final line with a great laugh. “Now it is complete. The grandeur rises at once!”
No one dared speak. They consciously drew even further from Huang Bahu.
Wuyue remained calm and unruffled, looking at the two women opposite and gently shaking her head. “This game is unfair. No matter the outcome, I lose.”
“How then should it be, in the immortal’s view?” Luo Yi asked.
Wuyue replied, “If I choose wrongly, I drink the wine and surrender the garment. But if I choose rightly, you drink the wine.”
Zhang Ruochen knew Luo Yi and Bai Qing’er were both supremely clever, yet how could Wuyue be inferior?
Moreover, whether in experience or mental power, Wuyue far surpassed them.
How could they possibly best her?
Zhang Ruochen stepped forward. “On this joyous day, why create such discord? These three cups, whether illusion, symbols, or true wine, I shall drink alone.”
Wuyue softly pressed down the hand Zhang Ruochen stretched towards the table, her lips red, her teeth white, a charming smile upon her face. “Why such worry, Ruochen? Surely you do not believe the wine prepared by Princess Yi Yi and Qing’er is truly poison? Everyone merely seeks amusement. It is only a little game.”
“Brother Chen, this is a small game among us women. Your involvement would spoil the fun,” Luo Yi said.
Bai Qing’er added, “I do not truly care about that garment. I merely wish to see the true depth of Immortal Wuyue’s mastery of mental power.”
Bai Qing’er’s hint was plain. Zhangc Ruochen could no longer intervene, for to do so would be to prevent her from reclaiming the Heavenly Venerable Treasure Gauze.
Zhang Ruochen gazed at the three cups upon the table, surprise flickering across his features. He then employed the Heart of Truth to perceive them, yet still could not distinguish true from false.
How could this be?
Was this the handiwork of Senior Nine Heavens?
It must be.
Without absolute certainty, given the intellect of Luo Yi and Bai Qing’er, how could they dare set such a challenge before all the gods?
In mental power, the gap between Zhang Ruochen and Wuyue was indeed vast.
Yet in perception, Zhang Ruochen was confident he was no lesser. If even he detected no anomaly, finding the true wine would not be easy for Wuyue either.
The assembled gods, including such mighty figures as the Blood Absolute War God, the Ancient God of Learning, and the Grand Clan Butcher of the Demon Heaven Tribe, all released mental power and divine sense to probe, yet their results matched Zhang Ruochen’s.
“Such formidable illusion, utterly flawless.”
“The symbolic technique is profoundly refined. No trace of runes can be found.”
“Of course you cannot discern it, but Hall Master Wuyue may yet succeed. She is a divine master of both illusion and symbols. Illusion might deceive her, yet she could never fail to detect its presence. The same holds for symbols.”
“Not necessarily. Remember, Xing Huan Tian possesses a being whose mental power has reached heavenly perfection without flaw. What does that mean? Mental power exists, yet leaves no trace, merging with heaven and earth. Illusion cast by such a being can become reality itself, creating worlds with a single thought.”
…
Even boundless realm cultivators such as the old clan leader and Di Lao grew curious and quietly observed.
Yet with their cultivation, they too detected nothing amiss.
“This trial will not be easy for Wuyue. Still, even random choice offers one chance in three,” the Ancient God of Learning remarked.
Wuyue studied the three bronze goblets, reached towards the leftmost, watching Luo Yi and Bai Qing’er’s expressions. She saw no flicker of emotion in their eyes.
She withdrew her hand, then reached towards the rightmost.
The two women’s faces remained unchanged.
Given their intellect, how could Luo Yi and Bai Qing’er allow such simple probing?
Wuyue withdrew her hand once more and fell silent for a long while.
Zhang Ruochen quietly exhaled in relief. It seemed Wuyue was truly stumped this time.
Yet at that very moment, Wuyue decisively lifted the leftmost bronze goblet and offered it to Luo Yi.
