In the city of the Divine Emperor of Death, a flying boat breezed through the skies, descending towards the mansion at the center of the city.
A black-robed woman jumped off from the flying boat. With a wave of her hand, the flying boat disappeared, and she descended to the ground, landing right before the entrance. Although she didn't exactly touch the ground, she floated into the mansion, reaching the hall.
"Mingzhi, you're back~"
"…"
Mingzhi looked at Evelynn and glanced around at the high number of sisters slacking around in the hall. She could see everyone was in their true body, not actually cultivating or doing anything.
"Yes…" She answered, panning her gaze at the gloomy crowd before she caught sight of Schleya.
"Any news worthy of my concern?"
Schleya shook her head, "None. The Divergent you told me to track down hasn't shown himself, and there is no particular news of concern from our informants hired by Black Claymore. In fact, with our recent heavy purchasing of resources, more people became aware that the Black Claymore belongs to the Divine Emperor of Death…"
Her eyes slightly narrowed, her expression turning apologetic, "I apologize for not being able to cover our tracks properly."
"That's not your fault." Mingzhi smiled, "It's just a matter of time before we're exposed. I saw it coming a month ago but also knew that they could not do anything about it since we've already established ourselves. Those who want to pick a fight with us would be committing suicide or exterminating us. There's rarely an in-between."
Schleya pursed her lips before she nodded, but she glanced at the others, causing Mingzhi to look their way as well.
"Mingzhi, are you fine?" Isabella asked.
"I am, third sister."
Mingzhi nodded, "If you're asking about the mutation of my Malevolent Darkness Physique, then-"
She paused, garnering everyone's attention as they held their breaths.
"-it went well~"
Mingzhi smiled, causing Isabella and the others to heave a sigh of relief.
"Mingzhi, tell us about your physique!"
Fiora came hovering to her side, appearing excited.
However, Mingzhi shook her head, "Never mind me."
"Ah~ Come on, we-"
Mingzhi raised her hand, interrupting Fiora. A moment later, she sighed, "How many days has it been since he left our home?"
"…"
When she dropped the question, everyone became silent, some averting their gazes while Fiora pursed her lips and extended her hand to touch Mingzhi's shoulder in a comforting manner.
"He left the night he dropped you in the Aurora Cloud Gate— without saying anything to us."
"…"
Mingzhi stared at Fiora before she nodded as she knew his soul body had dispersed on that same day, "So it's been seventeen days, more than two weeks since then, and he still hasn't returned?"
Her brows creased, "Evelynn, Nadia, and Everlight. Where is he…?"
"…"
The three of them were the ones who averted their gazes. Their silence cast an even more deafening silence in the hall, leaving Mingzhi feeling her heart sinking.
"He… he is supposedly in the Divergent Peak," Natalya uttered, her expression appearing worried.
"Oh, that's good." Mingzhi nodded, "He should return in a few days or a week, considering his cultivation speed…"
"The problem is…" Ellia expressed with some hesitation, "… the Divergent Peak is closed off by a strange barrier."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not sure. I went there but couldn't get in. Two Guardians of the Aurora Cloud Gate were also there, and they tried to enter, but it was of no use. They couldn't enter, and all the divergence in the area due to the remnant destructive lightning disappeared, appearing as clear as day inside although they're not sure if it is an illusion…"
Ellia uttered in a worried tone, causing Mingzhi's expression to quiver. She turned to look around, returning her gaze to Evelynn.
"Just what's going on, really? Can you three still sense him if he's in this world?"
"…"
Evelynn, Nadia, and Everlight kept quiet. There seemed to be a certain amount of solidarity between them as they gave out nothing.
"Forget it… they're not telling…"
Fiora comforted Mingzhi, but Mingzhi walked towards them and glared at Evelynn.
"You… tell me… where he is… right now…"
She clenched her teeth, and her breathing became erratic as she stood in front of Evelynn, confronting her.
"Actually," Shirley wryly giggled from the side, "Eldia hasn't returned as well. She should be with him, so-"
"It doesn't matter if she's with him. All I want is to know if he's still here or not!"
Mingzhi's eyes turned moist.
"…"
Evelynn raised her head and gazed at Mingzhi. She saw that Mingzhi couldn't hold back her tears already and couldn't help but close her eyes before sighing lightly.
"We can't sense him."
"…" Mingzhi's gaze shook.
Evelynn continued, "We sensed him on the day you left until the night, but after that, we couldn't sense him. It's like— he isn't here in this world anymore, but the Divergent Peak is closed off as well, so we couldn't say where he really is."
"Big sister," Niera strode forward, "That's what you said on the second day, and that's what you're still saying. Don't you think something would've changed by now?"
"…"
Evelynn shook her head, "I can't even find him using my Hex Laws."
The others turned to look at Nadia and Everlight, but they also saw shaking their heads.
"Tia?"
Mingzhi turned to look at the silent giant in the room. The others may not know of her capabilities, but she did, causing her to gaze at Tia.
However, Tia also shook her head.
"I can't divine locations or in second-degree relation with such an Anarchic Divergent like his trace. I can use other methods, but they aren't quite reliable, and direct methods will have a negative impact on our lives. I-"
"That's enough."
Mingzhi looked up at the ceiling, looking pissed, "That bastard really said for me to wait for Myria and announce the laws we're going to establish together. Let me guess, Myria is also not here, is she?"
"…"
Ellia strode forward, her expression sympathetic, "Mingzhi… please don't be angry at him or my mother…"
"…" Mingzhi bit her lips, lowering her gaze to meet with Ellia's, "You're right. I got ahead of myself. It's just— I don't feel good with him leaving without saying anything to me or any of you for that matter."
"He didn't abandon us." Ellia corrected, her gaze turning sharp, "If he left, that is because he was forced out."
"I didn't say he abandoned us. I said- that I-"
Ellia abruptly embraced her, causing Mingzhi to bite her lips and shed tears as she also wrapped her arms around Ellia.
"I know. Every one of us feels the same way, but it isn't a given that he left. I mean, the Divergent Peak is sealed off, so he's still there for all we know, caught up in some storm with his usual bad luck. Hehe~"
Ellia comforted Mingzhi before she giggled, causing Mingzhi to also smile
"Myria isn't here either." Isabella suddenly spoke up, "It obviously points to one thing, so could we all calm down and accept the fact that he has ascended to the true immortal world already?"
"But-! "
"No buts!"
Isabella interrupted Ellia, "You know he will do the same for all of us, utterly foolish and stubborn when it comes to us, so stop mopping around and get back to cultivation! The stronger we get, the better we can be of support to him."
"…"
"Evelynn. Shirley." Isabella turned to look around, waving her hand, "We three will continue on with our plan for the Candidacy. As soon as we win that ridiculous competition, we'll all chase after him in the true immortal world and make him apologize!"
"…"
Evelynn and the others continued to blink.
It seems like their third sister was the only one who was able to take control of the situation and use the frustrating emotions as a form of motivation. However, her words rallied their courage, allowing them to feel at ease or at least better than before, as they still felt hope for the future.
In fact, their motivation was renewed even more, wanting to meet him badly when it was not even a month after his disappearance.
They still got a shy of a decade to work on, knowing that they could become forces to be feared just like their husband.
"…!"
But at this moment, Evelynn, Nadia, and Everlight shook at the same time, their eyes widening as they looked at each other.
"What is it!?" Mingzhi's gaze lit up.
If the three of them reacted, then it could only mean one thing in her eyes, and that was-
"We can sense him!" Evelynn screamed out, her face turning joyful.
"Yes!!!"
Natalya and the others also cheered.
Everlight stood up, clenching her fists as she looked around before grabbing the first person's hands beside her and shaking them. The other party also reciprocated with immense excitement, but as soon as they recognized who each other was, they let their hands go and looked away, appearing like it had never happened.
Nadia looked elsewhere as though she hadn't just done a joyful dance with Everlight.
On the other hand, Isabella appeared dumbfounded.
He still hadn't left after he said to her that he wouldn't change his decision no matter what...?
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