Chapter 1957 - 1953: Awakening
Li Zhaojun followed Ye Fan as they arrived at the Zuo Region Star System, and Ye Fan was observing the situation there as well.
From Ye Fan’s understanding, the Zuo Region Star System was now mired in a crisis preceding the ultimate cosmic catastrophe. The star system was known for its many prophecies and seers who foresaw various events, all of which were being proven true one by one.
Ye Fan said, "This is the position of the cosmic Grand Cross. If the catastrophe strikes here, it means the calamity will begin to devour humanity’s living space. I don’t want Earth to face extinction, but I don’t know how to avert the immediate crisis. Zhao Jun, I fear we may not find the chosen one in time, leaving it to you and me to face the catastrophe, which will present us with formidable challenges."
"I’m not afraid," Li Zhaojun said determinately. "To fight alongside you, even in failure, there will be no regrets. Moreover, Ye Fan, I feel the greatest understanding should exist between us. Our minds are in harmony, and if we can maintain this base, before long, we’ll change everything before us. We will succeed, because I believe in your abilities, and I’ll dedicate myself to being your supportive companion."
Ye Fan smiled and asked, "Aren’t you afraid I might not be the real Ye Fan, just an illusion?"
Li Zhaojun shook her head slightly and replied, "There are many things I’m unsure of, but continuing to doubt would be pointless for us. Ye Fan, I’ve thought it through, and it’s time to hold our wedding. Perhaps it’s the final boundary between us; with only two days left, I don’t want too many regrets."
Facing each other, both their gazes bore tenderness, especially Ye Fan’s, whose gentleness deeply moved Li Zhaojun. Despite storms and disasters, Ye Fan never gave up on her. After going through so much together, they had finally cleared away the clouds to see the moonlight.
"Alright," Ye Fan nodded with a smile, "As long as you’ve thought it through, that’s enough. We don’t need witnesses for our return; we’ll complete this wedding ourselves, and in doing so, eliminate the last regret in this world. Shall we?"
Li Zhaojun didn’t respond with words, but with actions instead. She directly embraced Ye Fan. As they held each other, Ye Fan felt Li Zhaojun’s warmth. For him, the two most important women were Li Zhaojun and Lu Xiaoman, and Li Zhaojun had always been a regret.
As they were together, Sang Yuan appeared before Ye Fan, slightly disrupting the moment. Li Zhaojun withdrew from Ye Fan’s embrace. Sang Yuan said, "Master, news just arrived: Miss Tantai has woken up. Will you go check on her?"
Ye Fan glanced at Li Zhaojun, aware of the past between Li Zhaojun and Tantai Wanrong. Although they were as close as sisters, many things weren’t as simple as Ye Fan imagined. The two sworn sisters were striving for the same man, and the engagement between Ye Fan and Li Zhaojun was always a hard pill for Tantai Wanrong to swallow. Upon hearing Tantai Wanrong had woken, Li Zhaojun’s face showed slight relief as she said, "Ye Fan, you should go see big sis. After sleeping for so long, you’re the person she most wants to see. As for me, I can go back on my own."
"I’ll escort you back to Earth first," Ye Fan said. "After I visit Aunt Rong, I’ll return and we’ll complete our simple wedding, which is my greatest wish."
"Mm." Li Zhaojun nodded, her gaze full of determination.
...
...
Ye Fan first took Li Zhaojun back to Earth, then proceeded to Tantai Wanrong’s residence in Hua Hai City. Besides Zhao Tianya, Qin Mengyao, and Yang Xiaoting had also rushed over upon receiving the news. Tantai Wanrong sat there, her gaze vacant, as if not fully awake from her slumber.
"Aunt Rong," Ye Fan approached and addressed Tantai Wanrong.
Tantai Wanrong looked up at Ye Fan, then around at those present, as if she’d lost her memory. Zhao Tianya came over and questioned, "Ye Fan, after big sis woke up, she doesn’t recognize anyone, nor does she speak, as if she’s forgotten everything. What happened to her?"
Ye Fan used his Spiritual Sense to examine Tantai Wanrong’s meridians and found an unusual sealing force within her. This power was peculiar, and Ye Fan dared not casually dispel it for fear it might harm Tantai Wanrong.
"To put it this way, Aunt Rong’s condition is far better than another comatose girl because she was imprisoned by Xi He. I’m not holding Xi He accountable because I know he didn’t cause harm to Aunt Rong, but it seems some kind of force within her has been activated. If we can dispel it in a short time, the seal within Aunt Rong will be lifted," Ye Fan explained.
Zhao Tianya was about to continue questioning when Qin Mengyao grasped Ye Fan’s hand and anxiously asked, "Brother Fan, is aunt alright? Seeing her like this is terrifying!"
"She shouldn’t be harmed if we can dispel the seal. But it’s not as simple as I say it is. The process itself may pose challenges," Ye Fan assured them, turning to Qin Mengyao and Yang Xiaoting. "Help her sit down first. I’ll try to use my power to dispel the force. Don’t worry; I won’t let Aunt Rong be harmed. She’s one of the dearest people to me, just like you wish to protect her, so do I."
"Mmhm." Qin Mengyao trusted Ye Fan completely, without any doubt.
Zhao Tianya huffed, "You can keep deceiving these two little girls. They’re devoted to trusting you, and you use that trust as bait. Humph, big sis ending up like this is entirely because of your indulgence, or rather, you’re the culprit!"
Even as she scolded, she still hoped Ye Fan could cure Tantai Wanrong.
At this moment, Tantai Wanrong seemed to have no consciousness of her own. Sitting there woodenly and detached, Ye Fan injected streams of power into her, but they were inevitably repelled.
"Why is such a great repulsive force within her?" Ye Fan wondered. The source of this power wasn’t what Xi He instilled, and its origin remained unknown.