Shui Han said, "We are here with a letter of introduction from the Galactic Heavenly Emperor, sincerely seeking an audience with the Queen."
"The Queen does not receive visitors, especially male guests," the female attendant on the right said stiffly.
"Then, may women enter?" Shui Han said without thinking.
"Women are also not allowed," the female guard on the left said.
"Then we will fight our way in," Qin Xiao said furiously. "We have traveled thousands of miles, and we cannot possibly return without meeting the Queen!"
Shui Han sighed and looked at the two female guards. "If you do not let us in, then we will have to force our way."
The situation became tense, with swords drawn and ready to strike.
At that moment, a voice suddenly rang out, "Stop!"
As the voice faded, a petite figure appeared at the doorway. The two guards bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Princess!"
Upon seeing the newcomer, Mo Qi was stunned. The princess they spoke of was none other than his beloved sister, Ye Qingqing.
This was too absurd!
How had she suddenly become the princess of the Light World?
Ye Qingqing waved her hand, dismissing the guards, and turned to Mo Qi. "Brother, come in with me."
Then she turned and walked inside!
What kind of attitude was this?
Mo Qi was immediately displeased. He strode forward and tapped Ye Qingqing on the head. "What's wrong? Gotten too big for your britches? Giving me attitude?"
Ye Qingqing turned back, her face flushed. "It's not that, Brother. I was very excited to see you, but I am tens of thousands of years old now. I have to control my emotions. If I were to rush into your arms, I would truly seem like a child."
Mo Qi finally understood. This was perhaps one of human's inherent natures. When people try hard to shape an image for someone, that person, in turn, tries hard to break free from that image.
"But in my heart, you will always be a child," Mo Qi said, picking Ye Qingqing up and carrying her on his back. He then walked around to face everyone. "This is my sister."
After a moment of surprise, everyone looked on with admiration. "What a cute sister!"
Ye Qingqing's expression was one of exasperation, but she had no choice but to accept the situation. She leaned on Mo Qi's shoulder and greeted everyone. "Hello, brothers and sisters."
Her shy and adorable demeanor, like that of a child, captured everyone's hearts.
Everyone wondered: How could he have such a cute sister in this world? And she was also a princess of this world, so what kind of person was he?
The surrounding guards were dumbfounded. Was this still the same cold and aloof princess?
She looked like a lost child from someone's home!
Qin Xiao examined her for a moment and finally exclaimed, "You, you are Ye Qingqing?"
Ye Qingqing glanced at her and smiled. "It's me, Sister Qin Xiao. Has my brother reconnected with you?"
Qin Xiao was stunned. What was going on?
Was he truly Ye Yun? Was he truly the former Xinghe?
But he didn't look like it!
In his current appearance, where was the demeanor of his past?
He still refused to believe it and shook his head repeatedly. "No, Qingqing, you must be mistaken. He is not your brother. After so many years, have you forgotten what your brother looks like?"
Ye Qingqing pouted and acted spoiled. "Brother, put me down quickly. If you don't put me down, I'm going to cry."
Mo Qi said dotingly, "Don't cry, my dear sister. I'm most afraid of you crying."
With his words, he gently set Ye Qingqing down.
Ye Qingqing then turned to Qin Xiao. "You can't tell with your eyes. You have to feel it with your heart."
For a child, she spoke such profound words!
Qin Xiao was somewhat bewildered.
Ye Qingqing seemed to understand. Qin Xiao was currently in a state of confusion, perhaps having realized at some moment that the former Ye Yun was by her side, but she was unwilling to accept reality.
After all, she had been searching for tens of thousands of years. Not finding him was the norm.
If he suddenly appeared on his own, she found it somewhat difficult to accept!
If it were so easy, why had she searched for tens of thousands of years?
Ye Qingqing led everyone inside. When Shui Han requested to see the Queen, Ye Qingqing said, "The Queen has decreed that only my brother may see her. The rest must wait outside."
While Shui Han hesitated, Mo Qi's heart was filled with unease.
He wondered who this Queen was.
Ye Qingqing was called a princess, so who was her mother? Was she also his mother?
No, absolutely not!
Then, was this Queen his mother from a past life?
If so, it would be much easier to understand.
But for some reason, he inexplicably hoped that this Queen was his mother.
Therefore, his heart was filled with both trepidation and anticipation.
After a moment of thought, Shui Han finally made a decision and looked at Mo Qi. "Then you go in. Be sure to convey the Heavenly Emperor's wishes to the Queen. He wishes to form an alliance with the Light World to jointly resist the Golden River World."
Mo Qi readily agreed. "I will, I will."
Thus, everyone sat on chairs in the outer room, waiting patiently, while Ye Qingqing led Mo Qi into the inner chamber.
Upon entering the inner chamber, Mo Qi was overcome with emotion and his eyes welled up with tears.
For before him stood his mother, Yang Cuigu from Fengxi Village, the consort of the Red Leaf Kingdom. The two identities overlapped at this very moment.
All thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning. He then suddenly realized that Mo Shan from Fengxi Village and the ruler of the Red Leaf Kingdom could also be the same person!
However, their circumstances were vastly different. One had become a gatekeeper in the underworld of the Star World, while the other had become the Queen of the Light World!
Mo Qi looked at her elegant and regal demeanor, still finding it hard to believe that she was once a village girl who carried burdens in Fengxi Village.
However, Mo Qi's first words to her were not a cry of "Mother," but rather, "Are you the Saintess of Light?"
Tears welled up in the Queen's eyes. "No, the Saintess of Light was born with the sun. I am merely a regent Queen."
Mo Qi was confused, but Ye Qingqing reminded him, "Brother, you just said I was giving you attitude. Why are you so calm when you see Mother?"
Mo Qi suppressed the tears that threatened to burst forth and choked out three words: "Why..."
Although he only spoke half the sentence, the Queen understood its full meaning.
Why, why did you cruelly abandon me and come to this Light World, unreachable by mortals?
Why, knowing my whereabouts, did you not come to find me?
Why did you cruelly leave Father behind, leaving him to wait alone and unawakened?
Why are you so content to be the Queen here? Can you cast aside all the bonds of past and present lives? Can you turn a blind eye to them?
Why...
The Queen stood up, walked tremblingly to Mo Qi's side, and gently stroked his head. "I am sorry, my son, but I was helpless. I was forcibly brought back by my master, the Saintess of Light. Later, to protect the Light World, she sacrificed herself. Before her sacrifice, she entrusted this world to me. In truth, I do not have the ability to protect this world, but I must persevere. The condition is that the world must not know that the Saintess of Light has sacrificed herself."
It had been a long time since he had felt this way, to be moved to tears by a gentle pat on the head!
Mo Qi wiped away his tears and deliberately changed the subject. "What kind of danger did the Light World face at that time, requiring the former Queen to sacrifice herself?"
"All the star worlds of the Golden River World had gone out of control and were colliding with the Galactic World. At that time, a star at the forefront was hurtling towards the Sun Star. If the Sun Star were destroyed, the entire Galactic World would be annihilated. Master could not stop it and had to sacrifice herself to avert a disaster," the Queen murmured.
Mo Qi was greatly shocked. "A single star has such destructive power. Who knows how many more stars there are in the Golden River World. How should we deal with this? Could it be that everyone has to make a sacrifice?"
The Queen sighed. "The sacrifice of ordinary people is useless. What realm was Master in? She was already in the Pangu realm. Even with her cultivation, she could only prevent a star by sacrificing herself. How could others prevent it?"
Mo Qi felt as if he were suffocating. "Doesn't that mean we can only wait for death?"
"We can hold on for as long as we can. After all, no one can live forever. Those who are not dead are merely buying time. From this perspective, the death brought about by the destruction of the Galactic World merely means we each have less time to hold on," the Queen said calmly.
Mo Qi was speechless. The Queen continued, "Therefore, what we need to do now is to buy time. We have sent dozens of people to train in the deepest parts of the Sun Star, so they can advance to the Pangu realm as quickly as possible and then make a sacrifice..."
"Is the Pangu realm something that can be achieved easily? Don't try to fool me."
The Queen patted Mo Qi. "How dare you speak to your mother like that? You have no manners."
Mo Qi touched his head. "I, I just find it a bit unbelievable."