The Sovereign's Ascension

Lin Yun played a total of five different songs and each song had its own feeling. However, Lin Yun was just casually playing, so they contained his purest emotions.

The first piece represented his loneliness and dominance through the Heavenly Path. The second piece was for Xin Yan, the third was for Yue Weiwei, and the fourth was for Su Ziyao. They were the most important women in his life and no one could replace them. Usually, he would only cherish them once they were gone.

He didn’t realize it, but his emotions were bottled up until now. For example, he only realized at this moment that Xin Yan had an important position in his heart. And whenever he looked at the flute in his hand, he would recall his first meeting with Yue Weiwei. Just like that, Lin Yun looked at the flute in his hand and daydreamed.

Finally, there was Su Ziyao, the lover of Lin Yun’s two lifetimes. There was the Lin Yun from earth and Lin Yun the sword slave. But at the same time, neither of them existed anymore.

It was because of the promise he made with Su Ziyao that he went through life and death to arrive in Kunlun Realm. However, he didn’t know when he would see her again.

The fifth song was for his sword, Flower Burial. Ever since he received it, he could tell that it wasn’t an ordinary sword.

Just like his sword, Lin Yun wouldn’t allow himself to be trapped under the clouds. He was determined to go beyond the sky. Suddenly, Lin Yun’s sword intent manifested into crystallized flowers all around him. It looked like he was in a sky full of stars.

“Wielding the flute as a sword…I see…” At this moment, Lin Yun finally understood the true meaning behind wielding the flute as a sword. In a word, it was emotion. When Lin Yun understood the meaning, he felt a warm current surging through his forehead. It felt like he was about to have a breakthrough, but it ultimately failed.

“Did that have something to do with the fourth-grade sword intent?” Lin Yun fell into deep thoughts because this wasn’t the first time he had this feeling. So it turns out that playing the flute would also improve his sword intent. If that was the case, practicing the flute was the same as practicing the sword.

Lin Yun began to look forward to the day that his sword intent reached the fourth grade. Waving his hand, the flowers around him made up of sword intent soared into the sky in a gorgeous and bewitching manner. At this moment, Lin Yun couldn’t help wondering how beautiful the fourth grade sword intent would be.

But just when Lin Yun was about to leave, he heard an ethereal zither somewhere in the 108 mountains. Lin Yun was inwardly shocked because he could sense that this person’s attainment in music was a lot stronger than his attainment.

He was captivated by the music, so he tried to see where it was coming from. Then, he spread his arms apart and passed through the layers of clouds. When he passed the clouds, he saw the person playing the music. It was a woman who was strumming the zither with her fingers.

Just from her hands alone, he could tell that she was definitely a beauty. Suddenly, he was full of doubt because she was the mysterious lady dressed in white. However, when he tried to get a better look at her, he couldn’t see her appearance.

Despite the setback, Lin Yun was certain she was the same lady who was watching him. Without any change in his expression, Lin Yun quietly approached her.

When he got close, the lady dressed in white stopped playing, “Young Master Lin, since you’re here, why are you still hiding? I’ve been waiting for you.”

Lin Yun wore an awkward smile and walked out of the clouds after he was discovered. When he got close to the lady, he saw five cups on the desk and he couldn’t help asking curiously, “You’ve been waiting for me?”

“It has been a long time since I played the zither, and I was tempted to play it again after listening to your five songs,” smiled the white-clothed lady.

“You know my surname, so that person from back then must be you,” smiled Lin Yun.

The lady in white didn’t deny it and replied, “They say that everyone from the Heavenly Path is a genius, so I came to take a look for myself. I was pleasantly surprised by the good show you put on. You mastered a sword technique in seven steps and even ascended the Sword Saint Mountain. But I never expected that you would have such deep attainment in the flute.”

Hearing the praises, Lin Yun wore an awkward expression and replied, “I’m flattered. I just started to practice the flute.”

“I can clearly hear the profundity in your music. But I’m curious, why is your music filled with so much sorrow and loneliness?” The lady in white raised her head to look at Lin Yun.

Hearing that, the smile disappeared on Lin Yun’s face. He never expected that someone would manage to hear the real intent in his music. Now, a bitter smile was plastered on his face.

“Miss, do you want to hear a story?” Lin Yun said after a brief hesitation. He had no idea why he wanted to share the stories with her.

“Please, have a seat before you share your story,” she responded.

Sitting down, Lin Yun raised the cup of wine and smiled, “So the wine was prepared for me. Then I won’t be polite with you.”

When he gulped down the wine, he could sense a fire burning in his throat while his organs began to surge violently. Everything felt like it was on fire, which made him tear. After a series of coughs, Lin Yun spoke, “What good wine! It’s a long story. Where should I start? A long time ago in a remote region, there was a sword slave in a sect. There’s nothing out of ordinary in his talent aside from polishing swords. But this sword slave was infatuated with a woman.”

Lin Yun began to laugh when he reached the part about desolation. He was clearly sharing the story from a third-person angle, but he still couldn’t control his tears. Without him knowing, he had already fused with the sword slave Lin Yun. He was both Lin Yun from the earth and also Lin Yun the sword slave.

He shared his story about Su Ziyao and how he traveled from the Azuresky Sect to the Great Qin Empire. Then he talked about Xin Jue’s death and standing up for Xin Yan. After that, his story moved on to the woman who told him not to be so smug right before he left the Great Qin Empire.

The whole time, the lady in white was smiling, but Lin Yun didn’t notice it. Then, she interrupted him with a chill in her voice, “Are you really proud that you slept with her?”

Lin Yun didn’t notice the change in her emotions as he was half-intoxicated and smiled, “I’m not a superficial person. I’m only happy that she has me in her heart.”

Without noticing, Lin Yun had already finished the five cups of wine. However, he continued to drink while sharing about his past. He had no idea why, but he didn’t want to hide anything from this lady. Perhaps it was because it wasn’t easy to find someone to confide in. Or perhaps he had too many things bottled up and needed someone to share with.

Then, he recapped his journey on the Heavenly Path, and how he rejected Yue Weiwei in the final battle. This was also why he was in such pain because Yue Weiwei and Xin Yan were both engraved in his heart.

“No need to be too bothered by it. If you didn’t have any feelings for those two ladies, then you would be cold-blooded. Who knows, perhaps the lady you’re in love with might not like you if you’re too cold-blooded,” said the white-clothed lady.

“No, it has nothing to do with her. I never expected that I would be trapped by love. Love is even harder than sword dao,” smiled Lin Yun.

“Young Master Lin, you’re unlike the person that I saw seven days ago,” replied the white-clothed lady.

“I’m the same person, but I just can’t fathom that old geezer’s intention. I only acted that way because I could tell the old geezer was playing with me. I think I might have gone overboard though,” smiled Lin Yun as his vision began to blur. As he drank, he began to share what he was feeling when he played the five songs.

In the end, Lin Yun fell asleep in the pavilion they were at and began to mutter the things from his dream. When dawn arrived, Lin Yun slowly opened his eyes. He realized that there was a white-fur coat draped on him. Then, he got up and started to look for the lady in white. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find her. “Where is this place?”

Looking at the wine on the table, Lin Yun slowly regained his consciousness and smiled bitterly at the white-fur coat, “How embarrassing of me to get so drunk.”

As Lin Yun stood up, he raised the cup and licked the last droplet of wine before he wiped his lips, “What good wine.”

The wine was good, but he had no idea if that lady was a good person. Shaking his head, Lin Yun no longer thought about it and traveled through the sea of clouds to return to his residence. When he got back, he saw a child playing with her braids in annoyance.

When Lin Yun saw her, his eyes lit up because Lil’ Purple had returned from Ye Ziling. When Lil’ Purple heard the commotion, she raised her head. And as soon as Lin Yun saw her appearance all of the wine was shocked out of his system. Lil’ Purple’s hair was a scattered mess, freckles were all over her face, and she was wearing old-fashioned clothes.

“What monster are you?” Lin Yun took a step back and questioned.

When Lil’ Purple heard him, she began to sob before she bawled, “Wuuuuu! Lin Yun you bastard! This empress doesn't want to live anymore!”