Nine Seyi understood Chu Hezhou's intention, which was to keep the recent events a secret.
He smiled at Chu Hezhou, nodded, and said, "Yes, we will always be brothers!"
This was Nine Seyi's response to Chu Hezhou, implying that he would not reveal anything.
The two of them thus reached an unspoken agreement.
Chu Hezhou was satisfied with Nine Seyi's reply.
He nodded and laughed heartily, "Since Thirteen has brought back the Yin Extreme Yang Body, we should go and pay our respects to His Majesty! Let's go, brothers. If I'm not mistaken, the Gate of Ghosts is about to open!"
After speaking, Chu Hezhou took the lead and headed towards the Imperial Palace.
The others did not harbor any suspicion towards Chu Hezhou and followed closely behind him, heading straight for the Imperial Palace.
Nine Seyi fell behind. He released his divine sense and scanned the area where Ye Zhan was, confirming that Ye Zhan had no signs of life before following them.
After Chu Hezhou and the others had left and the surroundings were devoid of any human presence, Ye Zhan opened his eyes and his life force returned.
After Chu Hezhou had helped him, he had anticipated that someone would check if he was alive.
Therefore, Ye Zhan held his breath and sealed off his body temperature, creating the illusion of death.
It was fortunate that he was prepared; otherwise, even if Chu Hezhou had spared him, Nine Seyi would not have let him go.
Since everyone had left, Ye Zhan had no more reservations. He swallowed some elixirs and began to heal his wounds.
Although he was very worried about Jing Yulan's safety, if he didn't heal quickly, he would not only be unable to save Jing Yulan but would also perish himself.
Ye Zhan was severely injured this time. It took him an entire night for his injuries to recover only seventy percent.
However, this was enough. His spiritual energy erupted, shaking off the earth and stones that buried him, and he leaped out of the pit.
Ye Zhan oriented himself and then chased in the direction Chu Hezhou and the others had left.
...
In the main hall of the Ye family, Ye Zhan looked grief-stricken.
Zi Linling quietly caressed Ye Lingyuan's face, remaining silent.
However, Shangguan Yulin curiously asked, "What happened next? Patriarch Ye, did you save Madam Ye?"
Shen Liuxing glared at Shangguan Yulin and said, "Are you an idiot? If Patriarch Ye had saved Madam Ye, how could Ye Lingyuan have ended up on the Tianyuan Continent?"
Ye Zhan smiled bitterly and nodded, "Young Master Shen guessed correctly! When I rushed to the Imperial Palace, I fought with Chu Hezhou and the other ten great Ghost Messengers for ten days and ten nights. In the end, I was completely drained of spiritual energy and almost didn't make it back."
"Oh?"
Rong Guang raised an eyebrow and asked, "If that's the case, how did Patriarch Ye escape?"
Before Ye Zhan could speak, Zi Linling interjected, "It was because of Madam Ye! If I'm not mistaken, it was Madam Ye who saved Patriarch Ye!"
Ye Zhan nodded, his expression of pain deepening.
"Yes, just as the Ghost Emperor ordered Chu Hezhou to kill me, Yulan stepped forward and threatened to die with me. She threatened the Ghost Emperor that if I died, she would not live alone and would self-detonate, causing the Ghost Emperor's efforts to be in vain."
"The Ghost Emperor sneered and said that Yulan's desire to commit suicide in front of him was wishful thinking."
Elder Du nodded and said, "Indeed, for a cultivator at the early stage of the Great God realm to attempt to self-detonate in front of a peak God Lord realm expert is overestimating oneself."
Ye Zhan said self-deprecatingly, "Yes, the Ghost Emperor imprisoned Yulan with just a thought. Forget self-detonation, she couldn't even use her spiritual energy."
"Then, how did the Ghost Emperor let you go?" Xuan Yuan Xun frowned and asked.
Ye Zhan said bitterly, "Yulan threatened the Ghost Emperor that even if she couldn't self-detonate in front of him, if he wasn't constantly watching her, she would still find an opportunity to do so."
"The Ghost Emperor certainly wouldn't allow that to happen, because to open the Gate of Ghosts, a living Yin Extreme Yang Body was required. If Yulan were to self-detonate, there would be no more Yin Extreme Yang Body in the world. Even if one were to appear, it would take a very long time."
"Therefore, the Ghost Emperor did not dare to gamble. In the end, he agreed to Yulan's request, but the condition was that I would never be allowed to set foot in the Ghost Domain again."
"I, a proud prodigy, had to rely on a woman to save my life. How could I bear this?"
At this point, Ye Zhan closed his eyes in pain.
A violent aura erupted from within him, shattering the surrounding furniture.
"What happened next? How did Madam Ye go to the Tianyuan Continent?" Su Dan Novel Network asked.
Zi Linling's voice rang out.
She had incorporated the sound of the Great Dao into her voice, which calmed Ye Zhan down.
Ye Zhan sighed and said, "One day, Chu Hezhou suddenly came to find me, saying that there was an accident when opening the Gate of Ghosts."
"An accident? What accident?" Shen Liuxing hurriedly asked.
Ye Zhan clutched his head in pain, "Opening the Gate of Ghosts required a complete Yin Extreme Yang Body. However, Yulan was already pregnant. This caused a strange suction force to appear when the Gate of Ghosts was half-open, sucking Yulan away. The moment Yulan disappeared, the Gate of Ghosts closed again."
Zi Linling's hand froze as she stroked Ye Lingyuan. After a long pause, she asked softly, "Patriarch Ye, did you search for Madam Ye afterward?"
Ye Zhan's eyes turned red as he shook his head, "I searched, but I found no clues. I have never seen Yulan since then."
"Oh?"
Zi Linling's brows furrowed, and she asked, "Then how did you determine that my husband is your son?"
Ye Zhan gently wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, "There are two reasons. Firstly, his appearance is forty percent like mine and sixty percent like Yulan's. Secondly, he possesses my bloodline power, which resonates with me. Thirdly, he carries Yulan's bloodline aura."
Upon hearing this, Zi Linling was already certain that Ye Lingyuan was Ye Zhan's son. However, she was puzzled as to why Ye Lingyuan was the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Revelation Kingdom. Or rather, how Jing Yulan became the concubine of Ye Moyuan, the Emperor.
But to unravel this mystery, only Jing Yulan herself could provide the answer.
Since the relationship between Ye Lingyuan and Ye Zhan was confirmed, Zi Linling spoke frankly.
"Patriarch Ye, since my husband is your son, could you give me something?"
Ye Zhan was taken aback and asked, "What thing?"
Zi Linling said, "To be honest, Patriarch Ye, my husband, or rather your son, fell into the Illusory Realm of the Other Shore to save me. To save him, three items must be gathered."