Tome of Troubled Times-Chapter 919: Two Captures, Two Releases

Ye Wuming stood stunned, her gaze fixed on Dragon Bird.

She had anticipated a formal challenge on behalf of Zhao Changhe eventually, but she had never imagined it would occur now of all moments.

Luo Chuan’s soul was still thrashing within River of Stars, the outcome yet uncertain. Various hidden powers in the segmentum still harbored ulterior motives, leaving the situation dangerously subject to change.

Zhao Changhe himself had just emerged from a climactic battle, and his injuries were still fresh. Moreover, regardless of their actual physical state, psychologically, anyone would experience a momentary lull after such intense combat. At the very least, Ye Wuming herself was far from being mentally prepared for another clash.

Every angle indicated this was hardly an opportune moment for a challenge.

Yet Zhao Changhe stood boldly, saber in hand, openly issuing his challenge at this utterly unreasonable juncture!

Nearby, Yue Hongling’s beautiful eyes had softened into utter admiration, while Ling Ruoyu’s sparkled with excitement. This was the spirit of the jianghu, this was the way of heroes that had survived to this very day.

Ye Wuming quietly regarded Zhao Changhe’s fiery eyes. After a lengthy pause, she finally asked, “Why now? You’re clearly wounded. Don’t say later that I took advantage of you.”

Zhao Changhe flashed a faint smile. “Your greatest foe is captured, and your momentum has waned. But my ultimate adversary has always been you, and my momentum is surging. If I don’t take this chance to defeat you decisively, when else would I do so?”

Ye Wuming narrowed her eyes. “Don’t tell me you’ve been planning this challenge even before this battle.”

“Not really,” Zhao Changhe replied. “But the atmosphere is ripe now, and I haven’t had my fill of battle yet. Care to indulge me?”

Ye Wuming’s lips curved subtly as she finally nodded, “Fine.”

At once, the gathered women swiftly dispersed to spectate from afar. Ling Ruoyu eagerly bustled about, arranging seats and snacks for her aunts, leaving only Ye Jiuyou by herself to grip the River of Stars firmly and focus on suppressing and refining Luo Chuan within.

Trapped inside the sword, Luo Chuan sensed everything clearly. Never in his wildest dreams had he ever expected that in Zhao Changhe’s eyes, he was not the grand villain but merely a subplot, merely a single act in Zhao Changhe’s “play.” This realization inflamed his rage far worse than the agony of being refined inside the sword. Had he possessed a physical body at this moment, he would undoubtedly have coughed up blood in sheer indignation.

Yet his assessment was not far off the mark. Indeed, he was merely a single act in Zhao Changhe’s play.

The challenge Zhao Changhe had issued carried a deeper meaning, reminiscent of the day he confronted Vermillion Bird. Previously perceived merely as a “lesser man,” Zhao Changhe had transitioned from someone “fortunate” to be taken under her experienced wing to a leader capable of taking up the title of Night Emperor in his own right. It signified an inversion of roles.

Similarly, this challenge against Ye Wuming carried a comparable implication.

He was no longer merely a “chosen pawn” that was unworthy of even consulting in strategic discussions. Today, he had personally resolved the greatest threat she faced and surpassed her in sheer strength.

The day had come, at long last, when Dragon Bird could rest at Ye Wuming’s neck.

Could she still remain aloof and untouchable, forever poised in cold detachment, gazing down from her lofty heights?

Could she continue to regard this man with the same guiding, instructive demeanor?

That was not possible.

One of them had to defeat the other, for good.

Ye Wuming herself was not certain how she would react if she was defeated. Would she surrender gracefully as Vermillion Bird once had? She had never considered this before now, but she grasped perfectly well the significance behind Zhao Changhe’s challenge.

As Dragon Bird moved toward her, Ye Wuming remained momentarily dazed, failing to immediately shift into a battle-ready stance.

Only when the edge of Dragon Bird nearly grazed her throat did she finally react, slapping the side of the blade with her palm.

During Zhao Changhe’s initial challenge at the Night Palace, accompanied by Ling Ruoyu, Ye Wuming had similarly deflected Dragon Bird effortlessly. Back then, Zhao Changhe had been sent flying, blood dripping from his lips, prompting Ye Wuming to coldly remark, “Is this what you mean when you say that you’re now my equal?”

Yet this time, despite Zhao Changhe’s visible wounds, he stood firm, unwavering. Instead, it was Ye Wuming who, despite being in peak condition, felt her palm soften slightly, nearly losing control as Dragon Bird moved three fen[1] closer to her throat.

A flicker of alarm flashed through Ye Wuming’s eyes, and she quickly sidestepped.

Relentlessly, Zhao Changhe pursued, Dragon Bird cutting through the air with a fierce whistle.

The gathered women watching the spectacle had their snacks suspended mid-bite. “Ye Wuming actually lost in the first exchange?”

“She isn’t even in fighting form. She looks half asleep, while Changhe’s momentum is rising,” Piaomiao said with a smile. “Changhe picked a surprising moment for the challenge. I mean, even we didn’t anticipate this.”

Yue Hongling interjected thoughtfully, “But if Ye Wuming truly senses danger, she’ll snap back to seriousness immediately...”

Piaomiao winked playfully, a sly smile forming on her lips. “She won’t get that chance.”

Yue Hongling: “?”

At that moment, Ye Wuming dodged to the side, retreating swiftly, while Zhao Changhe’s Dragon Bird moved after her, slicing toward her ribs.

Ye Wuming spun gracefully, closing the distance instantly, and her elbow flew toward Zhao Changhe’s chest.

A faint smile danced on Zhao Changhe’s lips as his left arm suddenly swept around her.

Ye Wuming blinked in shock. Is this guy out of his mind? He actually dares to embrace me mid-fight? If my elbow lands with full force, it’ll shatter every rib in his chest!

Instinctively, she pulled back some of her power, and her elbow only hit Zhao Changhe’s chest gently as she tried to twist away from his grasp.

But then she suddenly realized that Zhao Changhe’s casual embrace carried a staggering force, vastly different from what he had shown with the earlier strike. It brimmed with the overwhelming power of the peak of the Other Shore. Her half-hearted attempt to break free failed utterly; instead, she found herself firmly ensnared in his grasp. Her elbow rested on his chest ineffectually. Zhao Changhe did not even twitch.

In just one casual move, Ye Wuming was immobilized, struggling furiously within Zhao Changhe’s unyielding arms, her face reddening with embarrassment and anger.

The spectators dropped their snacks.

Their eyes widened, and their jaws hit the floor in shock.

Before anyone could voice their confusion, Ye Wuming shouted furiously, “You still have Piaomiao’s full strength! And you hid it during that first strike! This isn’t fair!”

Piaomiao nonchalantly cracked a seed between her teeth. “Changhe carried my power during the battle against Luo Chuan. I never reclaimed it, nor did anyone say otherwise. You imagined it yourself. Who’s to blame for that?”

Ye Wuming was livid. “You said a challenge! And now you’re ganging up on me, you shameless couple! What kind of duel is this?”

Piaomiao calmly retorted, “We fought Luo Chuan together. Why can’t we do the same against you? Aren’t you our enemy? Did you forget your position?”

Ye Wuming sputtered, “You—”

Piamiao isn’t exactly wrong... but why does it feel so wrong?

The conquest she had envisioned earlier flashed through her mind. Wait, why was I even thinking about being conquered in the first place?

Ye Wuming thrashed angrily. “Zhao Changhe! Is this how you see things too?”

Zhao Changhe’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “Should it be different? Was there ever some other understanding between us?”

“I...” Ye Wuming faltered, unable to articulate that she had imagined their understanding as him defeating her singlehandedly, offering her a dignified way down. Still, she had not even made up her mind yet.

Zhao Changhe tilted his head down, his eyes locking intimately with hers. “Why did you hold back just now?”

Ye Wuming turned her head away, evading his gaze, seizing desperately at the excuse he’d inadvertently provided. “Even though you treat me as an enemy, I restrained myself. Do you honestly have the face to call this a victory?”

Piaomiao finally glided gracefully to their side, her slender fingers gently pinching Ye Wuming’s flushed cheek teasingly. “Since you’re our enemy and you made a foolish mistake, why shouldn’t we capitalize on it as a victory?”

Ye Wuming huffed indignantly, turning her face sharply away.

When Piaomiao sought vengeance on her, she had always been powerless to argue back, whether it was the humiliating bed incident or now.

Though she kept silent, her seething displeasure was obvious to all. This damned couple, teaming up is one thing, but hiding power during the first strike? Utterly despicable. No wonder Zhao Changhe dared to challenge me while injured. What a scoundrel!

Piaomiao smiled sweetly. “Look at you, so indignant... Does this mean if Changhe didn’t have my power, you’d willingly let yourself be hugged?”

Ye Wuming finally spat out, “What willingly hugged? If he fought me fairly, I’d admit defeat!”

Piaomiao laughed lightly, shaking her head in disbelief. “To think that Ye Wuming, ever arrogant and above the world, would one day demand fairness...”

Zhao Changhe interrupted calmly, completing Piaomiao’s thought, “Fine, then let’s make this fair.”

Ye Wuming clearly felt the strength confining her dissipate. The formidable power that Piaomiao had transferred to Zhao Changhe had vanished from him entirely. Now Zhao Changhe stood before her, genuinely at the early stage of the Other Shore, wounded and vulnerable.

Ye Wuming immediately twisted herself free and spun sharply in place, her elbow once more driving toward Zhao Changhe’s chest with unbridled fury. “Since you refuse to hold back, then I will not hold back either!”

When Ye Wuming unleashed her full might, that elbow ceased being a mere elbow. Her strike carried the force of an exploding star.

Zhao Changhe was not arrogant enough to block such a devastating elbow strike with his chest again. His figure blurred swiftly into the distance, leaving Ye Wuming’s fierce elbow to smash nothing but air.

In the next instant, Zhao Changhe leaped forward with great momentum, Dragon Bird cleaving downward. Stars converged above, cascading like a river of celestial brilliance, immense and unstoppable.

Ye Wuming’s gaze sharpened with deadly seriousness as she thrust out her palm to meet the attack.

She recognized this strike instantly. It was the same strike that resembled the Milky Way cascading down that Zhao Changhe had unleashed against Luo Chuan. Within the confines of the Heavenly Tome’s world, such a move held enough power to shake the foundations of an entire era once more.

Yet, unlike Luo Chuan, Ye Wuming had a far greater understanding of this technique. Zhao Changhe had developed this move under her own guidance; it was clearly influenced by the legacy of the Night Emperor, harnessing the might of the stars. However, Zhao Changhe’s mastery focused solely on the Milky Way’s overwhelming momentum, while Ye Wuming commanded the precise arrangement of celestial stars, forming the intricate Four Idols.

Thus, their clash now hinged entirely on who could exert greater control over the cosmic forces. In the vastness of space, perhaps the outcome might be uncertain, but here inside the Heavenly Tome’s world, competing against her was sheer folly.

The spectators watched in astonishment as the stars above spiraled into chaos. The mighty strike that bore the might of the Milky Way faltered instantly, losing most of its terrifying power.

Bang!

The broad saber slammed into her palm with a dull, resonant thud. Dragon Bird, a saber that could slice space itself apart, could barely penetrate the superficial skin layer of her palm.

Ye Wuming raised her head, meeting Zhao Changhe’s gaze. Her lips parted as she prepared to speak, but suddenly, her expression shifted dramatically.

The scattered stars refused her command and instead abruptly gathered once more into the surging form of the Milky Way. Dragon Bird’s strength doubled instantly, and it breached her defense with thunderous might.

Ye Wuming, eyes blazing with fury, dodged frantically backward. “You’re interfering again? Have you no shame?”

Indeed, Lady Three, Huangfu Qing, Xia Chichi, and Yue Hongling had seamlessly formed the Four Idols Formation. By wresting control of the Four Idols’ power, they funneled the central authority directly into Zhao Changhe, the newly appointed Night Emperor.

Ye Wuming nearly coughed up blood from sheer indignation. She herself had willingly relinquished the throne of the Night Emperor. Until she fully reconstructed the rules of this world, the system comprising Zhao Changhe and the Four Idols represented the most complete celestial alignment. Even as the former Night Emperor, she simply could not compete!

That single miscalculation cost her dearly. Dragon Bird shattered her defenses, its blade halting precisely against her neck as she retreated hastily.

Ye Wuming froze, her face utterly expressionless.

Lady Three leisurely cracked open another sunflower seed and sighed dramatically. “We weren’t interfering at all. The Night Emperor bestowed upon us the titles of the Four Idols. Just now, someone rashly tried to meddle with their alignment, and we simply restored them to their proper trajectory. We are merely answering to the Night Emperor’s command.”

No matter how she phrased it, she could not hide her underlying amusement. After all, watching the dignified Night Emperor Emeritus fall from grace was surely more entertaining than squabbling with Vermillion Bird and her dumb disciple over a man.

Ye Wuming: “...”

She had willingly destroyed the original Four Idols and transferred her Night Emperor authority to Zhao Changhe herself. Now, the boomerang she had thrown had circled back to smack her in the face, and she could not fault Lady Three and the others at all.

They had merely preserved the integrity of the Four Idols, responding strictly to the current order of the stars. Their actions were not aimed at her specifically, so could she really claim any wrongdoing here?

But then why does it feel so unbearably stifling?

Ye Jiuyou sighed softly, shaking her head. “Ye Wuming, to think you’d see a day like this.”

Utter isolation and betrayal, was this the inevitable destiny of one who embodied the Heavenly Dao itself? No ally remained by her side in this moment of vulnerability.

Ye Jiuyou glanced toward Ye Wuming, impassive as the saber rested against her neck, then looked at Ling Ruoyu, who was calmly munching on snacks beside her. Perhaps the only person inclined to side with Ye Wuming was this young girl, but could Ye Wuming truly risk seeking her aid?

If anything, Ling Ruoyu would eagerly encourage her parents’ reconciliation. She would sooner set Ye Wuming up for failure than help her out of this mess.

Ye Wuming finally sighed in resignation and turned to Zhao Changhe. “Do you truly believe you’ve won?”

Zhao Changhe smiled faintly, withdrawing Dragon Bird. “If you decided to cheat by rewriting this world’s rules, I’d suffer greatly. So how about we move this duel elsewhere? Outside this world, perhaps?”

Ye Wuming cast a sidelong glance at Dragon Bird as it withdrew from her neck and said coolly, “A duel outside this world? Aren’t you worried about drawing the attention of Withered Wood and the others?”

Zhao Changhe smiled faintly. “Well, just because it’s outside this world doesn’t mean that it has to be carried out within this segmentum. We have another battlefield.”

Ye Wuming looked up into his eyes. Their gazes met, and at that moment, words were unnecessary. After a pause, Ye Wuming extended her hand. “Let’s go.” 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Zhao Changhe reached out and took her hand. The next moment, both of them vanished from the Night Palace.

The crowd of onlookers was left dumbstruck, their snacks halfway to their mouths. One after another, they let out disgruntled tuts.

What frustrated them most about the relationship between Zhao Changhe and Ye Wuming was this constant sense of exclusivity. It was as if they shared some secret language that no one else could understand. The battlefield they had just chosen was clearly their own special place, like some sacred memory sealed in moonlight. The rest of them could only look on from a distance.

So what if you were once high and mighty? In the end, aren’t you still the pettiest one?

Two captures and two releases. Three strikes, and you’re out. Now everyone was waiting for the exalted Heavenly Dao to formally pour the tea and offer apologies all around.

As for whether Zhao Changhe could defeat Ye Wuming without drawing on their combined strength, no one even questioned it. Over the years, whenever Zhao Changhe set his sights on something, failure simply was not in the cards.

Huangfu Qing stood with a dark expression, cracking her knuckles as she strode toward River of Stars. “Changhe may not care much about him, but I certainly do. How’s the refinement going? I feel that it’s not hot enough in there.”

Flames surged within the sword, and Luo Chuan’s screams grew even more agonized.

Ye Jiuyou let out a breath of satisfaction and murmured, “The reason Changhe rushed to challenge Ye Wuming isn’t just about proving himself.”

Huangfu Qing stoked the fire and asked, “What do you mean?”

“With our current strength, we’re all still below Luo Chuan,” Ye Jiuyou explained. “We’ve only managed to trap him here because he’s injured, and we’re exploiting the Heavenly Dao’s laws. None of us can fully annihilate his soul. We can only keep up the refining to prevent him from breaking free. That’s all. We need a greater power to intervene and finish the job for good, and we can’t drag this out. Waiting for too long will only invite disaster.”

Huangfu Qing immediately understood. “Ye Wuming is the final piece. Only with her on our side can we surpass Luo Chuan.”

Piaomiao added, “And it’s not just about Luo Chuan. To suppress the Myriad Manifestation Segmentum, we’ll need her power too. It’s urgent, and we don’t have time to delay.”

“Ye Wuming knows this, but she needs a way out.” Ye Jiuyou sighed. “And once she starts thinking like that, once she wants to lose deep down, then she’ll never win.”

Everyone present had fought their share of battles and knew exactly what that meant. The moment one subconsciously wanted to be defeated, it was over. Zhao Changhe was not just sharp in combat; he had the nose of a hungry bear. He could smell an opportunity like this from light-years away, and he had absolutely no qualms about using it.

Two captures, two releases—it was all about deepening that flaw, like water eroding a hole in a dam. Even Ling Ruoyu could see now how this duel between her parents was destined to end.

1. This is a unit of measurement equivalent to 1/10th of a cun, so 3.3mm. ☜