During the inauguration of Cao Yun, the entire Wubei Sect was present. This was a great occasion. After all, and thankfully, sect leaders weren't inaugurated frequently. Apart from Sect Leader Xuan, only a handful of sect leaders had died of unnatural causes. The ceremony started at the Shell Gate. In a way, Cao Yun was like a new disciple entering the Wubei Sect as he walked through the giant Shell Gate. In fact, he would have to walk all the way to the Sect Palace. It would take him the entire day. Each gate he crossed was a form of celebration. As he went further and further, the crowd around him got thinner and thinner.
In the outer yard, he celebrated with all the disciples. But in the inner yard, only the inner disciples were present. Finally, only the chief elders and the outsider officials remained when Cao Yun reached the Sect Palace. However, all the disciples were waiting and looking at the summit of Heidai Peak. Black fireworks exploded in the sky. The shape of the Black Tortoise could be seen floating above the Wubei Sect. Music echoed throughout Heidai Peak in order to celebrate the inauguration of the new sect leader.
For several days, Cao Yun held a large meeting with all the chief elders, as well as officials from the outside. Emperor Lixing had obviously not been able to come, but she had a representative there. Nothing unusual happened. Sadly, the ceremony wasn't as festive or grandiose as it could, or should, have been. But everyone knew it in advance. That being said, the overall morale of the Wubei Sect improved. In fact, it helped the morale of the entire Hongchen Kingdom. Emperor Lixing and Sect Leader Cao were the talk of everyone, apart from the war, of course. They were young, but they were respected. After all, Cao Yun was the hero who had vanquished Demon God Da Mo. Although the Silver Wolf Marshal had slain the demon, every human praised Cao Yun, who had actually defeated the demon. In their eyes, the Silver Wolf Marshal had just stolen Cao Yun's praises.
Cao Yun had barely anything to do as sect leader. Indeed, the chief elders were already taking care of everything. In fact, intervening would probably cause more trouble than it would solve. Here and there, he just adjusted their priorities and set general goals. However, he never interfered with the ways they handled anything. After all, the Wubei Sect was working very well. The chief elders had been chosen not only for their cultivation and loyalty to the Wubei Sect, but also for their competence. To be honest, there were also many officials who were not powerful cultivators but great administrators. They were helping the chief elders and making sure that everything went smoothly.
Very pleased with the Wubei Sect, Cao Yun focused on himself. He relaxed and focused on healing. At some point, he would have to go visit Emperor Lixing. Fortunately, her capital was now Baziyun City. As such, Cao Yun could also visit his family there at the same time.
While Cao Yun relaxed and enjoyed himself in the Wubei Sect, the disciples were working hard to repair it all. Their new sect leader made sure that they were not overworked and that they had everything they needed. Thankfully, the war seemed to truly be over. The demon kingdoms were too busy fighting each other and slaughtering any remnants of the Empyrean Asura Theocracy to care about the humans.
From the capital, Cao Yun received many reports. Near the border of the Subei Province and the Sunmen Province, a new demon kingdom had begun to grow. It wasn't very large or impressive, but Cao Yun was impressed nonetheless. What struck him was the name of the kingdom. They had called themselves the Sons of the Abyss. Before he even read the reports, Cao Yun could tell what this kingdom was, just by its name, its geography, and its size.
Slaves from the Desolate Sepulcher who had been brought near the border to fight and had been freed were the ones who had founded this kingdom. The border was mostly a wasteland as neither humans nor demons ever invested any time, effort, or resources in its development. For those slaves, this was perfect as no one cared about this land apart from using it as a buffer. Moreover, no one would send military forces to get them out in the current political climate.
Before he got to more detailed notes, Cao Yun had a strange feeling about all of this. Secret documents marked with the personal seal of Emperor Lixing confirmed every suspicion he had. She had given help to those demons in order to create this kingdom. Apparently, she wasn't just rebuilding the Hongchen Kingdom, she was also playing at building demon kingdoms. Indeed, she couldn't send human spies into demon territory, but if she could have a demon kingdom under her control, or, at least, indebted to her, this would be perfect. Although nothing was confirmed, Cao Yun was absolutely certain that she had dispatched some of the former slaves as spies in exchange for favors. This new kingdom of the Sons of the Abyss would be a much better buffer than mere wastelands.
The more Cao Yun thought about it, the better this plan was. After all, Emperor Lixing knew Cao Yun's connection to the Sisters of the Abyss. Soon they would reach the continent. When they arrived, this kingdom would be extremely useful for contacting them. It would also help create stronger ties with demon kingdoms without waging war. There were risks, but they were mostly in the distant future. By that time, the Hongchen Kingdom would have grown even more powerful than before, and this wouldn't be much of an issue. Considering her age, Emperor Lixing would reign for at least two millennia. In fact, since mankind had found a way to break the Forsaken Dao Era, she might live much longer than that, especially with her Pure Golden Dantian and all the pills she could easily get.
Meanwhile, the young sect leader of the Wubei Sect had other considerations. He was planning his wedding with Feng Yingyue. Through their union, the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute and the Wubei Sect would be tied together. Thus, they had to make preparations with both the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute and Emperor Lixing herself. This was a very important political marriage. However, Emperor Lixing was absolutely favorable to it, and no one would dare oppose it.
Despite wanting to stay with Cao Yun, Feng Yingyue was sent back to the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute in order to prepare everything and to save some face. Cao Yun had to personally come ask for her hand in marriage. But if he had arrived with her to ask for her hand in marriage, this would have made everything a joke. Feng Yingyue left Cao Yun. Then, they waited a few months for Cao Yun to go there as well.
With him, Cao Yun took many treasures and brought a small court of officials. To be honest, they were not very important, except for Chief Elder Qinghe. Sadly, Chief Elder Qinghe was dying. Cao Yun had brought him at his request because the old man wanted to talk to some friends he had there, as well as visit a few graves of former friends. Everyone was aware that the old physician had reached the end of his natural lifespan. Unfortunately, he had been forced to accept it and was making the most of it.
Anyway, Cao Yun arrived on Hongyu's back. She was now extremely fast and massive. When she arrived at the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute, this was a tremendous event, especially for alchemists. Her flames were incredible. As a wedding gift, Cao Yun surprised absolutely everyone. He offered a feather of Hongyu, an 8-core Infernal Nirvana Fenghuang. Such a gift was too much even for an emperor. This would become a generational treasure of the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute.
For almost a month, the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute threw vast celebrations. This was officially for Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue's wedding, but people talked more about the gift than the wedding itself. Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue were called the blazing couple by everyone. Some even referred to them as the Fenghuang parents since Hongyu seemed to treat them like family. Seeing such a large and powerful demonic beast treat them with affection was really surprising. It was hard to tell whether Hongyu saw them as siblings or even as parents sometimes. After all, Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue had known Hongyu's parents. For Hongyu, they were more like her big brother and big sister, to be honest, maybe a bit more than that. Anyway, although she didn't understand all of mankind's rituals, she could understand that this was a special occasion for them, so she was happy. Everyone could sense it in her eyes, and even in her flames. Although her fire was hot, its heat wasn't a problem at all. In fact, it just warmed people as well as their minds. This was welcomed by all the alchemists.
When Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue left, the alchemists were sad. Fortunately, they had Hongyu's feather.
Finally, Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue got married in Baziyun City, in the new capital. Emperor Lixing herself was present during the ceremony. The irony wasn't lost on any of them. Cao Yun's adventures had begun when he had met Feng Yingyue while Huang Cixi's family had been an obstacle. All three of them were reunited once more, in the city where Cao Yun was born and where Huang Cixi's family was dominant. This time, the Huang family was an ally to Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue.
The newlyweds had a huge ceremony. This wasn't just their personal union, this was the union of the most prestigious alchemy academy and the most powerful martial sect. At the same time, this was a symbol of the resilience of mankind against the demons. Emperor Lixing would use their wedding as much as she could. As such, she made sure that the ceremony was exceptional. She had Elder Ying and Hongyu preside over the ceremony as well. No one present would ever forget this display of wealth and power.
Honestly, even Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue were impressed by everything. They were clad in red clothes and followed all the rites and rituals. Both were very pleased with this ceremony. However, they also had a very different ceremony. This one was intimate, and Emperor Lixing used all her authority to make sure that no one would disturb them at all. Indeed, they went to the graves of the Cao family. Fang Shaolong and his wife were present with them.
Cao Yun spent entire days talking to his family. His sister had been buried with her family. The young man shed tears surrounded by his last family. Fang Shaolong was what remained of his old family, while Feng Yingyue was his future family. Later, when they left Baziyun City, Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue also went to Yinmen City to visit the grave of Feng Yingyue's father, Feng Ziya.
At last, Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue were married, after almost a year had passed since the end of the war. They had been separated for several months and made the most of their honeymoon. Both of them had prepared for that. Not only did they genuinely enjoy themselves and each other, but they also dual cultivated as much as possible. This helped the two of them progress much faster. In particular, it was helping Cao Yun recover. His injured Soul Embryo grew stronger and sturdier.
Moreover, a joyous event happened. As powerful cultivators, they could both perfectly control how fertile they were. Thus, they literally conceived a child during their honeymoon. Feng Yingyue was already a Spirit Warrior. Not only would her body barely be affected by a pregnancy, but she could also keep cultivating her Soul Embryo without risking her child's well-being at all. Thus, she kept on cultivating while bearing Cao Yun's first child. Very quickly, she could tell that this child would be a girl.
Cao Yun and Feng Yingyue stayed together at the Wubei Sect. They had obligations, and Feng Yingyue was helping refine important pills. But they always found time to be together every single day.
Before Feng Yingyue's pregnancy was too visible, Cao Yun's body had already recovered fully from the fight against Demon God Da Mo. Sadly, his Soul Embryo was still damaged. It would take decades for him to heal properly. In the meantime, he could work on his Dao, on his mind, on his martial arts, on anything really. However, he didn't. He wasn't being lazy at all. Cao Yun wanted to make sure that his Soul Embryo healed as well as it could. After all, his own sister had given her life for that. He wouldn't accept ruining her efforts unless there was a very good reason. Right now, there was no reason, he just had to be patient.
Soon, Cao Yun became a father. His first daughter was born, Cao Yanmei. The fierce warrior and legendary cultivator became a doting father. He spent long days with his daughter. For months, then years, he enjoyed her company. With his wife, he made sure that she grew into a great woman. Honestly, this was more of a challenge than he had thought. But Cao Yun was helped by Ren Chao and Wang Mei, who were very good with children.
For years, Cao Yun felt as if he was in another world. Everything had changed. The way he saw the world had truly transformed.
Despite this newfound family life, Cao Yun never neglected his responsibilities. Thanks to Hongyu and his own cultivation, he could travel extremely fast. However, he almost always brought Cao Yanmei with him. In particular, he visited Baziyun City often to see the Cao tombs and his uncle. Of course, he used this time to confer with Emperor Lixing. What interested him more than anything was the current situation of the demon territories, especially that of the Sisters of the Abyss.