Tempting though it was to fall into despair at the news of Emperor Qin’s invulnerability, Yoshika refused to buckle. If Qin Yang was an inviolable mountain, she would find a way around or over that mountain. If she couldn’t, then she’d test just how inviolable it really was.
“We delay him, then. The Dragon Lord is already moving to that effect, and once I’ve finished preparing things here I’ll join him. Shen Yu should remain neutral until we can break the seal, but if I can get him to move earlier, then I’ll try to do that as well. In the meantime, Do Hye, how is progress on the formation?”
Do Hye smiled weakly.
“On that front, at least, I can offer some good news. The mana concentration formation is tentatively complete, and the prototype designs are ready for testing.”
“We’re skipping the testing. It works or it doesn’t—we don’t have time.”
“I thought you might say that, but I must stress that failure in a practical scenario may trigger the collapse, with you at the epicenter. There won’t be any second chances.”
Yoshika sighed and shook her head.
“And how long would it take to test the formation exhaustively? If we take the time to do everything the safe way, do we ever even get a first chance?”
Yue squeezed her hand.
“A better question would be—are you willing to risk everything on this? Are you sure this is the only way forward?”
Just because it was Yue, she closed her eyes and took a moment to seriously reconsider everything. She envisioned a twisted labyrinth of fate, each possibility branching out more paths, and different potential outcomes.
A direct confrontation with Qin was a dead end. Victory was unlikely in the extreme, and the best case scenario led to the deaths of millions of innocents. Xiaofan had suggested overwhelming him with enough power to force his submission—a very dragon-like move—but Yoshika had no idea how to accomplish that. It was a dark, unknown path.
Flight without breaking the seal was their last resort, but it was barely worth considering. An act of sheer desperation that would reduce Yoshika to a highly vulnerable position and exposed to the divine sovereigns whose wrath she’d provoked. And that was assuming she survived at all.
There were so few options, and so few good outcomes possible. Even the best case she was chasing put her in a difficult situation—beholden to Shen Yu for protection but unable to actually pay her end of the bargain without sacrificing a considerable portion of her power and possibly her life.
One by one, she carved the branches away until there were only three possibilities—each one mutually exclusive with the others.
“We could just give up and run away. Start over in a new realm at the bottom rung and pray that we can scrape by enough to keep our loved ones safe and happy. Or, as unlikely as it might be, we could strive for something more.”
Yue chuckled mirthlessly.
“I think we both know which you’ll choose.”
“It’s not that simple. Because as you say, to do so puts everything on the line. Not just you and I, but everybody. If we fail, there’s nothing to fall back to, no last resort. We either run now, or we risk giving up the option forever.”
Xiaofan snorted derisively.
“If death waits both ahead of and behind you, I say you charge forward and take it on with pride. No granddaughter of mine would slink away with her tails between her legs.”
Yue pursed her lips, but nodded slowly in agreement.
“I think Aunt Xiaofan has a point. If there’s a better path forward, then we owe it to ourselves and our people to chase it, no matter how small it may be. It’s gotten us this far, hasn’t it? What’s one more cast of the die? One last opportunity to spit in the face of destiny?”
She squeezed Yue’s hand—her wife’s hand—glad once more that she had her support.
“Then whichever path we take, it starts with the formation. Do Hye, is it possible to use the moon as a core in the same manner as Emperor Qin?”
“Possible, yes, insofar as there is credible evidence that it’s been done. I no longer have the slightest clue how one would accomplish it, however.”
“Damn. Then how soon can you get the formation ready for use?”
Do Hye tapped his chin, frowning thoughtfully.
“The issue of deployment is rather complicated actually. You’ll have to place critical nodes in auspicious locations across the entire world. Even I’ve never attempted a grand formation on this scale—the spell I used to shift the alignment of the sky pales in comparison.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“I have a suggestion, if I may?”
She sighed and gestured for him to continue.
“Go on, then.”
“If your plans hinge so firmly upon this formation, then we must hurry, but not rush. I ask that you buy us some time. A few hours at most, to confirm that the formation functions as designed in a safe and controlled environment. You need time to mark and secure the nodes anyway, and by the time you accomplish that, the test should be complete.”
“I can’t promise hours, but that’s not a bad idea. I’ll try my best, but when the time comes, we'll deploy the formation whether it’s ready or not.”
He bowed low.
“I’ll begin right away.”
He turned to leave, vanishing into thin air. Yoshika groaned and rubbed at her face for a moment before giving Long Xiaofan an apologetic smile.
“Sorry about that.”
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
She smiled wryly and waved off the apology.
“Not at all. I must say, you are playing with fire, keeping a soul like his bound to you.”
“Better to have him where I can see him. I hope it’s not an issue that we’re working with him?”
Xiaofan shrugged.
“That’s my brother’s grudge, not mine. If he doesn’t know, then there’s no problem. I’ll deal with it if I must.”
“I...”
Yoshika hesitated, casting an anxious glance at Yue, who just smiled encouragingly.
“I don’t know why you’re giving us so much help, but thank you. If there’s anything at all we can do for you, please just name it. I know you’ve said it’s because we’re family, or because you owed us one, but you’ve gone well above and beyond that pretense.”
Xiaofan’s gaze bored into her. Even at her most casual, her piercing golden gaze was intimidating. After a slightly uncomfortable pause, the dragon sighed and broke eye contact herself.
“No. I should be thanking you. My brother and I have wallowed in isolation for too long. Content with the status quo—satisfied with the uneasy peace with Qin my granddaughter bought. I tire of it. I saw the future you were trying to sell to those self-important old men, and I wanted to be part of it. You renewed the hope for this world I didn’t know I’d lost.”
She stood, the decorations on her horns jingling slightly with the movement, and gestured around them.
“You’ve created a place where humans, spirits, fiends, and everything in between can live in harmony. You gave my descendents, Ruiling and Yue, shelter in my absence. You even found a place for a pariah like Melati—a challenge even I struggled with.”
Yoshika blinked.
“You know Melati?!”
Xiaofan cocked her head and smiled archly.
“Am I familiar with the living calamity that nearly wiped out one of my family’s islands?”
“Well, when you put it that way...”
“Her kind are...difficult to understand. Before you, Ruiling was her only ally, and I’m grateful that you could help her.”
Yoshika blushed and shook her head.
“She’s just a bit different, that’s all. All she needed was someone who could listen and understand—I hardly deserve credit for that.”
She reddened further when Yue and Xiaofan both gave her knowing looks.
“And that is why I believe you are a seedling worth nurturing. If this accursed world is to be the egg from which a new divine sovereign hatches, let it be you rather than yet another man far too enamored with the sound of his own voice.”
“Do you really think that’s possible?”
“Yoshika, I am the daughter of one of the three great lords of the divine realm. I know more than most about what they are like and where they come from. The one thing they have in common that nobody else will tell you, is luck. The Bloody Sovereign, too—even the Void, in its way. Fate favored them with circumstances that allowed them to grow unimpeded by other powers until it was too late for anyone to catch up.”
Yoshika chuckled weakly.
“I’m not sure ‘lucky’ is how I’d describe our current situation.”
“No? You have a divine artifact of incomparable power fused to your soul, and a vault of more artifacts to make even the likes of Shen Yu or my father salivate. You have an ocean of divine essence at your fingertips, and the means to tap into it ready and waiting. Your greatest foes cannot interfere with you because of their own divine seal, which leaves only one true rival in your way.”
“Yeah, but Qin Yang is a pretty huge obstacle.”
She shrugged dismissively.
“I’ll grant you that, but his kind are nothing special where I come from. I can name a dozen just like him under Shen Yu’s thumb. I’ve never seen any like you—not even the Bloody Sovereign. I’m confident you will prevail.”
“But how?”
“That’s for you to figure out. As for me—I believe I owe my granddaughter a visit. I haven’t spoken to her since before she became an imperial consort.”
Yoshika’s eyes widened at that casual declaration and she rose urgently to her feet.
“Wait, you’re going to the imperial palace?! Isn’t that dangerous?”
Xiaofan scoffed and tossed her hair back.
“Not if they know what’s good for them. I’ll bring one of your formation talismans with me. The seat of Qin’s power should be an auspicious place indeed for an anchor node.”
“That’s crazy! They’ll never let you get away with that!”
“Then it should provide an adequate distraction. Leave that part to me—you just worry about yourself, and how to overcome Qin Yang.”
Before she could protest any further, Xiaofan disappeared in a flash of azure dragonflame, leaving just Yoshika and Yue, alone for the first time since they’d been married. It wasn’t quite what she’d imagined.
As if reading her mind—which she could, a little bit—Yue laughed melodically and rose to her feet, pulling Yoshika up with her.
“Aunt Xiaofan is right. You have good friends and allies—trust them! You don’t have to do everything. Where can we do the most good—or rather, where can only we do the most good?”
Yoshika gathered herself again and nodded.
“Right. Well, there’s still a lot of confusion among the people who got pulled into my soul realm. Maybe you can help explain what’s going on and calm people down while I—”
Yue interrupted her by placing a finger against her lips.
“Ah ah! None of that, my love. I’ve hardly had you for a few hours, and you’re not getting rid of me that easily. We, Yoshika. Wherever you go, I’m joining you.”
“But it’s dangerous! If anything happens to you—”
“Hah! Yoshika, I despise the idea of destiny, but if fate had any reason for bringing us together, I believe that it must be this moment. There’s no place in the world safer for me right now than by your side, but more than that—you need me.”
Yoshika hesitated.
“Of course I need you, Yue! That’s why I want you to stay here.”
Yue shook her head and gave her a condescending smirk that she hadn’t seen pointed her way in a long time.
“That’s not what I mean and you know it. You don’t need my emotional support, or my power, or my love—though I have an endless amount of it to give. You need me.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Yoshika, look at me and answer honestly. What do you think you are?”
She blinked at Yue as her wife held her by the shoulders at arm’s length.
“What? I’m just...me? I’m Lee Jia and An Eui, Hayakawa Kaede, Seong Eunae, Li Meili. I’m human. Half-spirit. Mother, daughter, queen, empress, cultivator—I’m a lot of things, Yue, including and especially your wife.”
Yue gave her a strangely condescending smile, both familiar and uncomfortable—if only because it was an expression that she hadn’t been on the receiving end of in a long time.
“Your humility usually suits you, but not today. You have confidence and pride, but you lack faith. Yes, you are all of those things, but those are mere aspects—parts of who you are, but not what. That is why you need me. Because I have all the pride and vanity to say it plainly and proudly—you are a goddess, Yoshika. The Goddess of Unity! And it seems you need my perspective to start thinking like one.”
Dawning blossomed on Yoshika’s face, as she realized what Yue was actually suggesting.
“Are you sure? I thought you weren’t comfortable with dual cultivation.”
She rolled her eyes.
“I knew what I was getting into when I married you. I’m not suggesting that I’d like to become a full-time part of the collective, but darling—”
Yue stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Yoshika’s waist, drawing them up together until their foreheads were touching, and she could feel their hearts beating as one.
“—it’s still our wedding day, in case you’ve already forgotten. Let’s show Qin Yang the folly of challenging the Goddess of Unity in the middle of her own wedding, shall we?”
!
Selkie Myth for their incredible shoutouts.
RMullins
Etly
Emilin
Victor
Mine
Odunski
Naimah
DvorakQ
Thomas
Robin
Cog
Alexis Lionel
Attherisk
Kit
Vail
Arusalan
Saganatsu
Stephane
Celdur Ey'lin
Alexandra
IrateRapScallion
Fraxx
The Test Subject
Yandron
Berj
Sorcoro
Max C.
Solo
Mark
Ava
Auribia
VietDom
MeliMeliDH
Andrew C.
Seasparks
Joseph H.
ShadeByTheSea
Beryn
Ranzbart
Connor B.
Taylor W.
Lu
Rayaface
Zeodeicasia
Jess
j0ntsa
Jan
LarryParrish
6J0ker9
GiantOrange
K G
eagle0108
thkiw
FISHLAD
Tatsu D
The Human
Tarantism
Elisah
RuRo
bisque
Salmuna
Jake T.
Emanym
TAF
mrblue
Rhaid
Damian Z.
itbeme12321
Joseph C.
