Chapter 322: The Heart of the Strong
"This is everything that happened this time…"
Immortal Spirit City, within a courtyard somewhere in Peace Ward, dusk was gradually deepening.
Chen Chang'an's muffled voice drifted from within Ji Hongli's hair, recounting one by one Lin Wan's experiences in the Upper Realm.
The wind chime at the corner of the eaves swayed gently in the evening breeze, releasing crisp, clear sounds.
Chen Chang'an embraced Ji Hongli from behind, burying his face deeply in his wife's cascading black hair and taking a deep breath.
Ji Hongli never wore makeup, yet a unique fragrance always lingered around her. It was like camellia blossoms in early spring, still touched by morning dew, carrying a cool, sweet freshness that left Chen Chang'an utterly intoxicated.
After listening, Ji Hongli slightly turned her head, revealing a beautifully contoured profile.
"Master never told me such detailed matters about the Upper Realm."
Her voice was clear yet steady.
"But now that Mount Buzhou has reconnected, the connection between the Upper and Lower Realms is only a matter of time."
Chen Chang'an tightened his arms around her, worry evident in his voice.
"Yes. I just do not know how much impact the tribulation force of seven emotions and six desires from the Upper Realm will have on the Lower Realm."
He sighed softly.
"No wonder all these years, whenever matters involving the Upper Realm came up, there was always an indescribable strange stench. Now I finally understand why."
Ji Hongli gently held the hand wrapped around her waist and comforted him softly.
"When you care too much, you become unsettled. You are underestimating your disciples."
"How so?"
Chen Chang'an raised his head, his chin lightly resting on her shoulder.
Ji Hongli replied, "Recently, I have gradually been able to sense that several of your disciples are always surrounded by a faint yet persistent force of destiny."
She turned to look at her husband, a knowing smile in her eyes.
"It seems that when you accepted them back then, it was not entirely a coincidence."
Bingo!
He actually guessed it right.
A trace of astonishment flashed through Chen Chang'an's eyes before he smiled.
"It seems you are not far from that realm either."
Ji Hongli nodded gently, her hair brushing against Chen Chang'an's cheek.
"So the connection of the two realms may not be entirely a bad thing."
The two fell silent for a moment.
"By the way…"
Chen Chang'an suddenly tightened the arm around her waist and asked in a low voice.
"Hongli… what do you think of Ji Wuque?"
He paused, his tone carrying a rare hint of unease.
"You women do like men with lofty ambitions and overwhelming dominance, do you not?"
Ji Hongli laughed softly, the wooden hairpin in her hair swaying slightly as she moved. She turned around and gently tapped his forehead with her finger.
"Who told you that women all like that?"
Her eyes glowed warmly in the twilight.
"That kind of talk about overturning heaven and earth at every turn is, in the end, nothing more than ambition worn openly like a garment."
She took Chen Chang'an's hand and placed his palm against her own heart.
"A true strong person has never been like that. Moreover… even when it comes to the heart of the strong, my husband is not inferior to anyone."
"The heart of the strong?"
Chen Chang'an froze, his brows unconsciously knitting together. He recalled how, the moment he appeared back then, the person in his arms had beaten him so badly that he dared not leave the house for nearly a hundred years, and he could not help but ask himself whether he truly possessed such a thing.
Yet when he lowered his head to look at his wife, all doubts caught in his throat.
Ji Hongli was gazing up at him, those eyes that were usually calm as still water now shining with astonishing brightness, as if reflecting a sky full of stars.
A smile rested on her lips, as though she had recalled something immensely precious, and a soft radiance seemed to envelop her entire being.
Chen Chang'an suddenly felt warmth surge at his heart, and all his doubts dissolved into a single quiet sigh.
He lowered his head and gently rubbed the tip of his nose against hers, smiling helplessly.
"Then… let us assume that I do."
The wind chime beneath the eaves suddenly chimed, startling several sparrows resting in the courtyard.
The smile in Ji Hongli's eyes deepened, yet she said nothing more and simply buried her face once again against his chest.
At some point, several fireflies fluttered into the courtyard, flickering in the darkening night like scattered stars.
The wind chime under the eaves continued to sway gently, adding a touch of life to the tranquil moment.
They remained quietly in each other's embrace, neither speaking again.
…
In stark contrast to the peaceful years within Immortal Spirit City at this moment.
On a vast plain at the border between Green Province and Spirit Province.
A great battle was on the verge of erupting.
Campfires dotted the land like stars, illuminating tens of thousands of resolute faces.
No one had expected that a spark of fire, in just ten short days, would ignite a prairie-wide blaze.
An uprising army formed by disaster victims had smashed through three cities in succession and now stood before the final barrier guarding the imperial capital.
Ye Fan stood atop a hastily constructed wooden platform, wearing a coarse cloth battle robe with an iron sword hanging at his waist. His gaze swept across the crowd below—sallow-faced farmers, hunters driven to ruin by the authorities, craftsmen who had lost fingers for failing to pay taxes, and even several ragged cultivators with sharp, piercing eyes.
All of them were people forced to the brink by this world.
"Brothers!"
Ye Fan's voice was not loud, yet it was like a sharp blade that split the silent night.
"Tell me—why are we rebelling?"
The crowd fell silent for a brief moment, then erupted with long-suppressed roars.
"We cannot survive!"
"The dog officials seized my family's land!"
"My mother starved to death, and the authorities still demanded grain!"
Ye Fan raised his hand, and the crowd gradually quieted.
His gaze was cold and hard like tempered iron.
"That is right, we cannot survive. But do you know why we cannot survive?"
He suddenly pointed toward the brightly lit imperial capital in the distance.
"Because the people in that city believe our lives are worthless!"
"They feast on delicacies from land and sea, wear silks and brocades, and live in golden halls and jade palaces. And us? The grain we grow feeds them, yet we ourselves gnaw on tree bark and eat Guanyin soil!"
Below the platform, some clenched their fists while others reddened at the eyes.
Ye Fan suddenly drew his iron sword, its blade reflecting a cold glint in the firelight.
"Today, I, Ye Fan, swear here—if we win this battle, the land of the realm will be distributed by population. There will be no harsh taxes, no forced labor. The powerful and the commoners will be punished alike!"
"This realm should not belong to a single person or a single clan!"
His voice abruptly rose.
"This realm should belong to all of us!"
Boom—
It was as if a bolt of thunder struck everyone's hearts. Those once hunched backs gradually straightened, and those once clouded eyes began to burn with fire.
"Now, those willing to follow me into the imperial capital—"
Ye Fan pointed his sword toward the heavens.
"Raise your weapons!"
Swish!
After several fierce battles, most people's weapons had already been replaced with standard-issue arms identical to those of the regular imperial army, though several thousand farming tools and woodcutting blades were still mixed among them.
Yet at this moment, under Ye Fan's furious roar, everyone raised their weapons together. In the darkness, it looked like a forest of steel.
"Good!"
Ye Fan leaped down from the wooden platform, his battle robe snapping in the wind.
"Today, we shall make that golden palace—"
"Turn heaven and earth upside down!"
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