“What exactly do you mean by that? I don’t have any hidden ailment!”
Ye Yu stared at the box before him but did not reach out to take it. A flicker of wariness crossed his eyes. After all, Mo Tianjun was a dangerous figure.
Even so, if they faced each other head-on, Ye Yu was confident he wouldn’t necessarily lose. That was precisely why he had agreed to accompany Mo Tianjun to see the Demonworld’s false god. But if that old fellow had slipped poison pills into this medicine... who knew what effect they might have in the vast Celestial Realm?
Ye Yu truly couldn’t fathom Mo Tianjun’s intentions.
“Yes, yes, you’re right—‘hidden ailment’ was rude of me to say. There’s no ailment. These pills are simply for strengthening your body. Just take them now and then as qi-replenishing pills.”
Mo Tianjun hastily corrected himself and proffered the box again.
Something felt off—very off. Ye Yu recalled that when they first met, Mo Tianjun had scanned him from head to toe three times. A single name sprang to mind: Ban Xia. Was she the one who had spoken to Mo Tianjun?
He accepted the box with deliberate caution and asked, “Mo Tianjun, did someone say something to you?”
Mo Tianjun paused in surprise, then waved his hands. “No, I don’t know anything—really! You have my word!”
Ye Yu could only stare. The more Mo Tianjun denied it, the more he wanted an answer.
“Why can’t we be honest with each other? Besides, I’ve already guessed the truth—Ban Xia must have told you, right?”
Within the entire Wuwei Tower, only Ban Xia knew Mo Tianjun. His reaction could only mean she had spoken.
With the matter exposed, Mo Tianjun ceased his evasions and related Ban Xia’s report: During a battle with a half-step Imperial Realm expert, Ye Yu had been wounded in an awkward spot and developed a hidden ailment. Many treatments had failed, leaving him increasingly irritable. Until his ailment healed, no matter how charming Ban Xia was, she could bear no children. It was Ye Yu who was at fault, not her.
Upon hearing this, Mo Tianjun had immediately commissioned pills to heal the ailment—and they were freshly completed.
“Honestly, it’s not Ban Xia’s fault at all,” Mo Tianjun added. “I asked her after she’d been gone so long if there was any happy news. If she could bear an heir, I wanted to reward her handsomely. I never expected this. But trust me, these pills I had made will work—take them!”
As he spoke, Mo Tianjun watched Ye Yu’s expression closely. Ban Xia was his pawn at Ye Yu’s side—and she must remain loyal. Otherwise it was better to execute her as a warning and replace her with someone obedient. Revealing this was a test, to see if Ban Xia had lied.
As the saying went, a man cannot admit weakness, and a fairy cannot refuse. How dare Ban Xia claim he was...incapable? Ye Yu’s anger surged; he recalled Ban Xia’s hearty laughter at the Immortal Sect meeting, and her double apologies full of ulterior motive.
His face flushed. “I’ll settle this with her when I return!”
At Ye Yu’s clenched-teeth vow, Mo Tianjun’s own anxiety evaporated. Yes—that reaction! A man enraged in this way must be concealing an unspoken pain. Ban Xia’s intelligence was true: Ye Yu really did have a hidden ailment. Since she had not lied, the pawn was still useful.
Mo Tianjun thrust the box into Ye Yu’s hand, then spoke well of Ban Xia. “Ye Xianyou, you mustn’t think like that. Ban Xia only did it for your sake. If you can’t perform, you must be healed. After all, my Three Corps Hall has ample resources; her seeking help was reasonable. Don’t read too much into it.”
Ye Yu retorted, “Who’s ‘can’t perform’? Who said that about me? I’ll deal with her when I get back!”
His voice rose eight degrees, betraying his fury. Deep down he knew Ban Xia had not truly sided with Mo Tianjun—he must have just inquired after her, and she had no choice but to say it was him. But why not invent another excuse? Why claim he was at fault?
If he weren’t her husband, he’d show her just how capable he was.
Ye Yu’s livid response only confirmed Mo Tianjun’s belief that the ailment was real. Panicking, he could not let Ye Yu brood on his anger—Ban Xia would be in danger.
“Come, come—let’s go observe the Demonworld army!”
Mo Tianjun forcibly steered Ye Yu eastward through the Celestial Realm.
Moments later, they arrived in the eastern Celestial Realm—and were shocked. The Demonworld army’s advance was far swifter than anticipated. Half of the eastern Celestial Realm had fallen, with countless Immortals killed and entire sects wiped out. Despite so much time passing, no coordinated resistance had formed. Immortals who sensed the danger trickled in too late.
Ye Yu felt dazed. In his dream, during the Battle of Heaven, he had been a demon commander, unstoppable, slaying both Immortals and demons. Except for Ling Qiansha, he had cut down every demon lord, ending the war prematurely. Without his intervention this time, the Demonworld army had unleashed overwhelming strength—he had underestimated them.
Seeing «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Ye Yu’s odd expression, Mo Tianjun presumed he was mourning the slain Immortals and softly explained, “Survival of the fittest is the only truth everywhere. The demons came prepared; this result is normal. But rest assured, the Celestial Immortals are not as fragile as believed—they will counterattack. The only wild card in this invasion is that false god. His power will determine the outcome!”
