Dian Mo didn't know what to do or what to say. Thus, he stayed silent and immobile, simply watching the scene unfolding before him. On the other hand, Cao Yun was completely shaken to his core. Indeed, he was facing the founder of the Hongchen Kingdom. Emperor Nuwa was the woman who had liberated mankind from Demon God Da Mo. Seeing even a fragment of her soul was absolutely transcendental.
What made Cao Yun's heart stop was how weak she seemed. Although there was a grandiose aura all around her, he could tell that her soul was incredibly weak. Of course, this might not be that important for the soul fragment of an actual Immortal. For what seemed like an eternity, Cao Yun didn't know how to react to her words. He looked at her, dumbfounded until he found his words.
"Noble Emperor, I am ready to sacrifice myself to save the Hongchen Kingdom if need be. Emperor Weide betrayed mankind. He slaughtered my family and my mother's family in order to amass more power. But I don't hold a grudge against mankind. The Hongchen Kingdom is where my family was born, where my sworn brothers and sister reside, and where my Wubei Sect is located. My past and my future are both tied to the Hongchen Kingdom. I won't easily sever those karmic ties. Even when I leave the Piaolu planet to explore the vastness of the universe, as you once did, I won't forget this land. If there is anything I could do to save the people of the Hongchen Kingdom, I would do it. However, I'm not sure that I can do anything..."
Sensing the sincerity in Cao Yun's plea, Emperor Nuwa smiled with sorrow.
"It is most unfortunate that such misery befell you. My successor failed and wronged you. I am glad that you don't harbor any hatred for the people of my... of our Hongchen Kingdom. Young Cao Yun, I am weakened but not so weak that I can't help you in your time of need. Emperor Weide isn't worth my efforts, but you are. I know that you can help save our people. After all, I've seen your memories. Your plans can work. But you underestimate this Empyrean Asura. Da Mo's soul took over this body and grew in power. Although he seems to only be a 9th-grade Accomplished Demon, his soul is the soul of a late Reborn Demon. Thankfully, he didn't cross over into the Immortal Demon realm. Also, his soul is probably damaged and restrained by his current body. As such, it's not impossible to take him down."
As she spoke, Cao Yun saw images of battlefields from the past. The scenes were confusing. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand anything. But he knew that those were pieces of Emperor Nuwa's memories.
"Before I fully ascended from the Piaolu planet, I left behind a small fragment of my soul in order to protect the Hongchen Kingdom in its darkest hours. For millenniums, I've stayed dormant as my power was slowly being consumed by the array formations protecting the entire kingdom. As such, I have almost no strength left to fight such a threat. I might be able to protect the kingdom from Empyrean Asura for a few years, but I'm not sure I would even be able to sustain his attacks for more than a decade. Cao Yun, our Hongchen Kingdom needs all the strength it can get..."
As she spoke, Cao Yun finally understood why she had asked his forgiveness. Cao Yun's blood began to boil at the idea. Many thoughts surged through his mind. He couldn't! He wouldn't! Never!
"You know what I'm going to ask of you..."
"This man... this beast... this traitor...! I can't let him live!"
Cao Yun's rage erupted! When he saw the sadness in Emperor Nuwa's eyes, he controlled himself.
"Even if I could, he won't let me live either..."
"I can make sure that he does. Sadly, my Hongchen Kingdom has grown weak during the Forsaken Dao Era. Against Empyrean Asura, you will all be slaughtered. I do understand your rage and your thirst for vengeance. Believe me, I do. However, there is a time and a place for everything. If you keep fighting today, you or Emperor Weide will die. Most likely, both of you will die. After that, the Hongchen Kingdom will fall. Your sister will die, but also your sworn brothers and sister, your friends, your sect, everyone. I can make sure that you and your sister can leave peacefully. I might even be able to help with her memories. Although I can't restore them, I can give her yours. You can have a chance at life, at a peaceful life."
"But I have to spit on my family?! I have to let their murderer live in peace too?!"
"Yes..."
Her words pierced Cao Yun and stabbed him right in the chest. From below, Dian Mo was observing the scene. He could feel Cao Yun's pain. More than that, he could also see his thoughts. At the moment, Cao Yun was imagining many scenarios. Unfortunately, try as he might, he couldn't find a scenario where mankind could come out unscathed. Emperor Nuwa's words were unbearable because they held a lot of truth. Indeed, Cao Yun had understood that he couldn't win, no matter what. In the very best scenario, he would be able to escape, but he couldn't even make sure that Cao Huiying would be safe, as she probably wouldn't want to go with him. Besides, he had no way of restoring her memories. He knew enough about the mind and the soul to know that if they had been erased, they were gone.
Emperor Nuwa could actually help her remember him, at least from his own perspective. She would know the truth and see her own youth through her brother's eyes. If he agreed, Cao Huiying would remember their mother, their father, their big brother, and their great-grandfather. But if he refused, her past would be gone forever. The only thing he had to do was to let the man who had ordered the slaughter of his entire family live. Every fiber of his being was telling Cao Yun to kill the bastard!
Deep down, a small voice was telling Cao Yun that he had to follow Emperor Nuwa's advice. Even this voice of reason was torn apart by its own words. If only Cao Yun were more powerful... But he could still kill Emperor Weide later. He could bring him to public justice before all the people of the Hongchen Kingdom. Once the threat of the demon was over, this wouldn't be such an issue anymore. Maybe he could even get Matriarch Huang's help to bring him down, as she clearly wanted his throne. The more he thought about it, the more Cao Yun rationalized it. Even he could tell that he was inventing nice stories about the future. This would never work out like that. After the war, if the war was won, Emperor Weide would be seen as a hero, and the sacrifice of a few families wouldn't be such an issue for anyone...
There was a chance that if Cao Yun let go of his opportunity, he might never get it again. However, this was true for both opportunities. If he refused Emperor Nuwa's offer, his sister would never remember her childhood or her family. If he accepted it, he might never get vengeance for his family, let alone justice.
"I... I... I agree, if you can ensure the safety of my sister from Emperor Weide or anyone else."
"... I understand."
Emperor Nuwa was genuinely sad and tormented by the situation. It reminded her of many sacrifices she had to accept during the Blood and Dirt Era.
"I can use my array formations to fully annihilate the aura of Da Mo assaulting you. In fact, I can get rid of every trace of that bastard within you. This should help in your future cultivation. Even though your Soul Embryo is damaged, your blood cultivation can keep improving. With the blood from a Conqueror, your blood cultivation will most likely surge forth and break the curse of the current Forsaken Dao Era."
Although Cao Yun had ruined his future Qi cultivation, he might really be able to break through and finally be able to see the Dao. Moreover, he had forged pills that might help Sect Leader Xuan and Matriarch Huang break through the Greater Tribulation. It wasn't impossible for mankind to have three cultivators in the fourth realm of cultivation. In fact, the pill might help Emperor Weide as well. It wouldn't be as good as absorbing Cao Huiying's Soul Embryo, of course, but it would increase his actual chances of becoming a Sage. Helping the man he hated the most was unbearable. That being said, Cao Yun was ready to do so if it could ensure the safety of his sister and all the people he cared about.
With a deep hatred in his eyes, Cao Yun agreed to Emperor Nuwa's words. He simply nodded.
Suddenly, Sun Liao felt a strange sensation. Several of his array formations seemed to take on a life of their own. Even he couldn't understand what was going on. But it didn't take long for him to remember the Palace of Supreme Wisdom. It was exactly what happened when the Soul Embryo of his master was using the array formations from within. As he thought about it, he could only see one soul that could be inside those array formations. He had never discovered it, but that meant that Emperor Nuwa had probably left a fragment of her soul inside. Obviously, Sun Liao didn't do anything to hinder her in any way. However, he did monitor what was going on, just in case she sided with their enemy. Yes, Sun Liao was ready to rebel against Emperor Nuwa herself if it meant helping his brother Cao Yun.
Thankfully, Sun Liao realized that she wasn't hostile at all. The array formations strengthened around the guards still trapped. She didn't want them to escape before she was done. It was best if no one saw the current scene. A powerful light appeared above both cultivators floating in the sky.
On the ground, all the cultivators felt the diffuse presence of Emperor Nuwa. As such, they all looked up instinctively, no matter how much tension there was between them. Even Jian Zhenli almost forgot about Yong Ke. They were quite literally in the presence of Emperor Nuwa. The other alchemists fell to their knees and cupped their fists to the heavens.
Emperor Weide was stunned, too. Then he realized what the voice he had heard had been. Besides, Emperor Nuwa was siding with this boy over him. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't accept it. But her voice echoed in his mind once more.
"Yong Weichen, you have dishonored my name and the name of all the Emperors between us. Repent!"
Her voice was powerful and rang like thunder in his sea of consciousness. As he was still recovering from the backlash of his pseudo-Domain being breached, the pain was intense.
"I have no regret, Noble Emperor. I did what was necessary for our Hongchen Kingdom! Even you had to make sacrifices! Judge me, punish me, as much as you want. I know that I did the right thing. My honor and my dignity, even my morality, are not superior to the fate of all the people of our Hongchen Kingdom. I know who our enemy is. Demon God Da Mo won't be vanquished without blood and tears. No matter how low I must fall, I will protect my people at all costs."
Emperor Nuwa was expecting such an answer. But she wasn't expecting that Emperor Weide was so passionate and convinced. He clearly wasn't saying that to hide his true motives. No, he sincerely believed that all his actions were justified for the greater good. The worst thing was that Emperor Nuwa agreed with him. Even now, she had lied to Cao Yun. Hopefully, the young man would never learn the truth of the matter. But even if he did, Emperor Nuwa knew that he wouldn't let the Hongchen Kingdom fall. She was using his love for his kingdom and for mankind against him. She felt dirty. In fact, she knew that she wasn't different from Emperor Weide. As such, she couldn't judge him.
Ironically, she now knew that he would accept. He wasn't trying to sacrifice Cao Huiying to be more powerful or to live longer. After all, considering his age, even if he became a Sage, he would probably never be able to reach the Immortal realm. In fact, he would most likely die in battle against Empyrean Asura. Thus, he was actually trying to become strong enough to defend his Hongchen Kingdom. Only Cao Huiying's Soul Embryo could make him strong fast enough to fight Empyrean Asura.
"Yong Weichen, I made a deal with Cao Yun. You are not to harm him or his sister. In exchange, he will put all of his strength into the service of the fight against our enemy, Da Mo. I've seen his mind as clearly as I've seen yours. With his help, the Hongchen Kingdom truly has a chance. That being said, I can't promise that he will not slay you once it is done. But listen closely. If you accept this offer, mankind has a real chance of surviving. If you refuse, I don't see a future for our kind. So, I know what you're going to choose. Besides, I will make sure that the sacrifice of Cao Huiying is off the table for you. In truth, you don't have much choice!"
With those severe words, she left his mind. Emperor Nuwa didn't want to keep talking to him. Deep down, she knew that she wasn't disgusted by him. She was disgusted by herself and by how similar she was to him.
Finally, Emperor Nuwa went to Cao Huiying. Her soul fragment got closer to the young girl who was still staring at Cao Yun in the sky. She knew that she had known him, not just as Chen Guo, but as someone else. Try as she might, she simply couldn't place him. When she was a girl, she had been attacked and maimed by her father's enemies. Because of this attack, she had lost all her memories. Most likely, this young man was somewhere in there, but she simply couldn't find any trace of him.
As she was trying to remember, a warm presence entered her sea of consciousness. Unlike everyone else, Cao Huiying had not even realized Emperor Nuwa's presence high in the sky. But now, it was directly inside her Upper Dantian, so she noticed.