Tome of Troubled Times-Chapter 926 (1): The Place Where the Dream Began

The grand fantasy of treating the Four Idols Cult, with the Night Emperor included, like some brothel did not quite pan out.

No matter how much she had endured it on the livestream before, Ye Wuming’s pride just could not stomach sharing a blanket with others. The moment she realized what was happening, she disappeared in a flash.

“Eh?” Zhao Changhe reached out instinctively to stop her but midway realized how desperate that would look. The hesitation cost him, and she managed to slip away.

With Ye Wuming gone, the women of the Four Idols Cult were left standing there in awkward silence. After all, they had used the excuse of “competing for favor on behalf of our Night Emperor” to summon Zhao Changhe... and now that the Night Emperor had bolted, who among them still had the face to follow through?

Especially seeing Zhao Changhe just standing there, hand still outstretched and completely naked, it was more ridiculous than anything else. The would-be intimate atmosphere turned into one of comedy on the spot.

Yue Hongling was the first to flee. This damn cult can rot and die for all I care. I’m only here to help power the formation anyway.

Xia Chichi, being pregnant, did not want to mess around either. She slipped away too.

Lady Three and Huangfu Qing tried to hold in their laughter but quickly dispersed as well. Zhao Changhe was left standing alone atop the astronomical observatory, veins twitching on his forehead.

He still had that hand half-raised, frozen in the middle of trying to hold someone back, but who? There was no one left. And even if there had been, he could not just... treat them like an actual brothel, could he?

“Pfft...” Ye Jiuyou floated over like a breeze and wrapped her arms around his neck. “What’s mine is mine. Even if they snatch you away for a moment, it won’t change a thing.”

Zhao Changhe did not know whether to laugh or cry.

Ye Jiuyou leaned in and whispered in his ear, “They all say you’re ridiculous or absurd, but honestly, you haven’t even shared a blanket with more than two or three at once.”

Zhao Changhe put on a righteous face. “Do I look like that kind of man? Wait, do you have an idea?”

“Oh, they’ll come around. Pride is just getting in the way for now,” Ye Jiuyou teased, blowing softly into his ear. “But if you want a little tip, then start with the ones who care the most about appearances. Once they fold, the rest are easy.”

Zhao Changhe thought to himself, Aren’t you one of the proudest of them all? Is this your roundabout way of saying to take you first?

Then again, if we’re talking about pride... Ye Wuming clearly topped the list. The twin Other Shore sisters were definitely the hardest to win over.

Come to think of it, he had never actually been with both twin sisters at once. That would be something even the Four Idols formation could not match.

As if sensing where his mind had gone, Ye Jiuyou’s expression darkened. “You really are hopeless. Didn’t that thing a while back count for anything?”

“That... doesn’t count...” Zhao Changhe felt a little sheepish. He pulled her into his arms. “Anyway, let’s rest. You’ve had a long day too.”

“Rest?” Ye Jiuyou coiled around him like a cat. “Isn’t dual cultivation the best way to recover? You spent two full days with Ye Wuming, and now her cultivation’s higher than mine. I refuse to accept that.”

Zhao Changhe thought, If you want to compete with her over that, we’re in for trouble, unless she hands the position of Heavenly Dao back over to you.

However, that was not something for him to say right now. When your wife wanted you, there was no point in spoiling the moment with logic.

He leaned in and kissed her. “Then let your husband push your cultivation one step further...”

Their lips met, and their bodies entwined. Just as things were heating up, Ye Wuming’s familiar scent drifted from behind them. “Hey...”

At this moment, Zhao Changhe’s hand was already halfway into Ye Jiuyou’s robes. With her robes partially open, she was at the peak of visual allure. The sudden interruption made Ye Jiuyou bristle with frustration. “You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?!”

Well, I guess I am.

She had originally just wanted to make it so that Ye Jiuyou would not be the next one up after Piaomiao had her fill. That was why she had let the women of the Four Idols Cult yank Zhao Changhe over in the first place. But with the girls scattering and him ending up in Jiuyou’s arms anyway, what was the point of everything they had just gone through? Was it all just some kind of farcical skit?

Ye Wuming did not voice any of her thoughts aloud. She simply put on a perfectly straight face as she said, “I saw the Four Idols disperse and thought you hadn’t gotten around to it. I just remembered something related to Jiuyou’s cultivation, so I came to speak with you... It looks like I picked the wrong time again.”

“No, you came at just the right time.” Zhao Changhe smoothly extended his arm and pulled her in. “Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting to hear those words?”

Ye Wuming had not expected him to make a move, especially after having refrained from doing so just moments ago. Caught off guard, she instinctively struggled. “Zhao Changhe! Weren’t you acting all decent just now? What happened to that?”

“There was a crowd. I had to let you save face. But now? It’s just your own sister here. And it’s not like we haven’t... Well, anyway. What’s there to be shy about?”

“Oh really?” Ye Wuming gave Ye Jiuyou a sideways glance. Jiuyou clearly was not pleased about the interruption. Her face was full of irritation, not at all like the gleefully mischievous expression she had worn back on that day.

Seeing that, Ye Wuming felt a petty thrill of vengeance. She stopped resisting and her tone turned sultry. “Brother-in-law... Are you really going to choose me in front of my sister?”

Zhao Changhe: “...?”

Ye Jiuyou: “...”

Ye Wuming leaned in and kissed him. “Brother-in-law, if you think I’m more tempting than my sister, then I’m all yours.”

Ye Jiuyou practically exploded. “Ye Wuming! Have you no shame?!”

Ye Wuming shot her a disdainful glance. “Aside from bullying me when I was powerless, what else are you actually good at?”

The two sisters lunged at each other.

Zhao Changhe was promptly shoved to the side, rendered a mere spectator.

How did this even happen...

Well, maybe this isn’t so bad?

Watching the two of them grapple with one another—two nearly identical, peerlessly beautiful faces flushed with conflicting emotions—Zhao Changhe suddenly surged forward, tackling them both beneath him like a mountain crashing down.

Two mirrored faces lifted toward him in unison, eyes filled with the same complex emotion: part shy, part annoyed, and part affectionate.

It was as if they were silently asking, “Who are you going to choose first?”

Looking at the twin flowers born of one stem, Zhao Changhe truly could not decide.

* * *

“Did you have a pleasant night?”

The next morning, Zhao Changhe emerged, one hand on his waist, trying not to look too winded. Tang Wanzhuang was already seated in the nearby pavilion, sipping tea. When she saw the faint exhaustion in his expression, she smiled knowingly.

Zhao Changhe’s face turned a little red. After all, they were at the astronomical observatory last night, taking the sky as their canopy and the earth as their mattress. Thankfully, he had the good sense to put up a privacy barrier. The obscene scenes of the jade-like sisters being thoroughly ravaged were simply not meant for anybody’s eyes.

As for who he had chosen first... well, some things had no need to be said.

He cleared his throat and walked over, massaging Tang Wanzhuang’s shoulders with a sycophantic grin. “Do you think I’ve gone too far?”

Of all his wives, Wanzhuang was probably the most indulgent when it came to his absurdity. And yet, whenever Zhao Changhe saw her, he could not shake the feeling that he was facing a very dignified headmistress. She was not just the prime minister of an empire, she felt like one at home, too.

“Everything’s settled now. Who wouldn’t indulge a little?” Tang Wanzhuang murmured, biting her lip so he would not see the quiet ache in her eyes.

I’d like to indulge too... But I can’t break character.

Still holding on to her calm, composed tone, Tang Wanzhuang said seriously, “Still, you need to think about the three realms. Chichi and Sisi won’t remain in the Golden Palace[1] forever. Sooner or later, they’ll be wandering the stars with you. You need to put some proper plans in place for what comes next.”

“How’s the unification on the Miaojiang front?”

“We’ve been working toward it for years. It’s nearly ready.”

“Good. As for Chichi, she’ll have to stay until the child’s born and raised a bit.”

“And how long is a bit?” Tang Wanzhuang sighed. “This is what I’m afraid of. A while, a few years, those are vague promises without substance. If you say sixteen years, then we’ll plan around sixteen years. You have to give us something more specific.”

“How long we stay won’t be up to me alone... We won’t go off wandering the stars right away. We’ll settle in one place for a while. As for how long... that depends on whether you all are willing to let go.”

Tang Wanzhuang blinked, then suddenly understood. “You mean... your Zhao Family Village?”

“Mm. It’s also Old Xia’s Zhao Family Village. Want to see it?”

Tang Wanzhuang’s eyes lit up. “I’d love to.”

“Then it’s time. I’ll go talk to Blindie,” said Zhao Changhe as he turned to look for Ye Wuming. However, while he had been chatting with Wanzhuang, The Ye sisters had already left the astronomical observatory.

He spread his divine sense and quickly found that she had slipped away to be with Ling Ruoyu.

In truth, no one was more delighted by Ye Wuming’s acceptance than Ling Ruoyu. The young girl no longer had to agonize over choosing between her mom or dad. Now, she was simply over the moon.

Seeing Ye Wuming come looking for her first thing in the morning, she happily snuggled into her arms and wrapped her arms around her neck. “Mom, can you bring me to travel and play around the myriad realms? There are so many places I want to see!”

Ye Wuming knew that, deep down, the young girl harbored her own burdens. Ling Ruoyu had always longed for a life of wandering the jianghu with sword in hand like Yue Hongling. It was clear how much she’d loved that time when she wandered the jianghu of the mortal realm. But her lineage was simply too overwhelming. She was born with unmatched talent, and soon after she came to realize who she truly was, she stood atop the world. She was the three realms’ most well-connected little princess. Now, that life of wandering the jianghu could only be a fleeting dream.

Perhaps she could have had some more “fun” in the Myriad Manifestation Segmentum, but then her dear father crushed that possibility too. Now the whole family was practically adrift inside the Heavenly Tome.

Still, Ye Wuming knew the place they were heading next was one that her daughter would find to be to her liking. “Once you’ve seen enough of the myriad realms, you’ll realize there are places more fascinating than those with a jianghu filled with fighting and killing.”

Ling Ruoyu’s eyes lit up. “You mean...?”

“The place your father always thinks about... He’s already conquered the world, unified the three realms, subdued the segmentum, and yet his heart is never at rest. Do you really think he’s just aimless? It’s because he misses his home.” Ye Wuming gave a faint, amused sigh. “The women outside all think he treats me differently—special enough to be jealous over. And maybe he does. But what they don’t realize is that because I’m different, the resentment between us runs even deeper.”

The others never had to experience a first time like hers. And the second time? She had to share him with her own twin.

Ling Ruoyu, of course, had no idea what her parents’ first and second times had looked like. She asked excitedly, “Are you talking about that legendary Zhao Family Village?”

Ye Wuming nodded. “That’s right. It’s a planet almost entirely devoid of spirit qi.”

“Devoid of spirit qi?” Ling Ruoyu was baffled. “Then what’s so great about it? Is there even anything to fight?”

“Don’t underestimate it... Our jianghu, our immortal path, all of it may be tied to that place in countless unseen ways. It was because of a mysterious connection that I first found my way there.” Ye Wuming looked up at the sky, lost in thought. “There are still many things I don’t understand... but there’s a strong chance that that world is where we were all truly born.”

Ling Ruoyu’s curiosity burned bright. “Then I want to go! That’s the place where Dad was born, after all.”

Ye Wuming playfully pinched her nose. “Honestly, even if there’s no fighting, there’s still plenty to enjoy. I’m a little worried you’ll fall in love with that place and never want to leave.”

While the mother and daughter chatted, Zhao Changhe arrived, already grinning before he even landed. “Blindie...”

Ye Wuming, knowing exactly what he was about to say, did not even turn around. “You’re ready?”

Zhao Changhe laughed. “Didn’t you once say that the key to returning was resolving my obsession? Well, my obsession was killing that witch. Would you say I’ve accomplished that? If not, maybe I need to go back inside and make sure of it?”

Ye Wuming covered Ling Ruoyu’s ears and hissed, “What kind of nonsense are you saying in front of a child?!”

But Zhao Changhe only laughed.

“Killing the witch” could be interpreted either literally on the battlefield or figuratively in bed. If he could slay her in combat, it meant that his power now surpassed hers, and he now possessed the qualifications to traverse space and time as she once had. If he could “slay” her in bed, well, that meant they were family. And naturally, she would take him home.

Now, both meanings had been fulfilled. Going home was no longer a dream; it was merely a matter of minutes. Ye Wuming could handle the process herself. Zhao Changhe did not even need to spend any effort figuring out the way back, as she already knew the way.

Zhao Changhe’s laughter faded. He said seriously, “I want to... take all of you back home with me.”

Their gazes met. Within their eyes swirled thousands of unspoken words and countless memories.

Under Ling Ruoyu’s wide-eyed stare, Ye Wuming gave a quiet reply, “Alright. I’ll go home with you.”

Zhao Changhe turned, scanning the surroundings. “Everyone ready?”

Laughter echoed all around. “We’ve been dying to see what kind of place could raise a bastard like you.”

Zhao Changhe’s gaze landed on Xia Chichi. Her smile held a hint of anticipation and a shadow of melancholy.

That was not just her husband’s birthplace. It was her father’s, too. In a sense, it was her ancestral homeland, yet it was a place she had never once set foot in.

Ye Wuming asked, “Are we going back to the same time as when you left?”

It was a question only the two of them truly understood. Zhao Changhe paused, then shook his head. “I miss my parents. It was the middle of the term when I left. Let’s skip ahead a bit and return to when it was summer break. I want to go home.”

“Alright.” Ye Wuming took his hand and closed her eyes.

In the next instant, the Heavenly Tome streaked across the void. The dimension folded inward, and they were gone.

1. This is an old term that specifically used to refer to a place for emperors or rulers to govern or offer sacrifices. ☜