Chapter 01: Forcibly Marrying a Saintess at the Start
Eternal Great World, Canglan Region, Great Xia Dynasty.
Ye Wushang never expected that he would receive tragic news just after awakening the memories of his past life.
The former head of the Ye Family — his father Ye Batian — had led the clan’s elites to explore a secret realm, only to meet disaster.
All of the family’s elite members perished inside.
Among them were his two full-blooded elder brothers.
This immediately caused the family’s strength to suffer a severe blow, forcing them to contract their territory.
As for him, once a hedonistic third young master of the direct bloodline, he had no choice but to take charge and assume the position of patriarch in this time of crisis.
Not only that, in order to prevent the family from being threatened by others, he even had to marry a woman he had never seen before.
“Wushang, I know you’re unwilling, but as the only remaining bloodline of your branch, you must step up!”
“Yue Rushuang, although now just an ordinary woman, was once the strongest prodigy of the Yue Family and held the title of Saintess. Marrying her will not disgrace you!”
“Enough, this old man won’t say more. Prepare well — in three days, she’ll be brought into the household!”
At this moment, one of the Ye Clan’s last three surviving elders, the Grand Elder, spoke to Ye Wushang.
Then, without further explanation, he left directly.
Now that the Ye Family’s strength was greatly diminished, he was already overwhelmed.
Even after the Grand Elder left, Ye Wushang remained in a state of frustration.
But he also knew that, at this point, it was no longer up to him to choose.
If the Ye Family did not form a marital alliance with the Yue Family and borrow their strength, the Ye Family would surely be unable to survive.
Back in their prime, the Ye and Yue Families were once known as two of the Top 100 Clans in the Great Xia Dynasty.
They had close relations and had intermarried many times.
However, a cataclysmic crisis later struck, and both families suffered great losses.
Still, by supporting each other, they managed to endure.
But during that battle, the Ye Family paid a heavy price to rescue the Yue Family.
As a result, the Yue Family owed the Ye Family a massive favor.
Over time, however, the Yue Family grew stronger and gained increasing prestige in the Great Xia Dynasty.
The Yue Family, on the other hand, wasn’t as fortunate — they could only maintain their status in a single province.
So even though the Yue Family tried many times to repay the favor, the Ye Family never asked for it.
Now, facing an unprecedented crisis, the Ye Family finally decided to cash in on that favor.
Ye Wushang also understood why he, out of so many branches of the Ye Family, was the one to take over as patriarch.
Because the ancestor who once rescued the Yue Family from the brink of death came from Ye Wushang’s branch.
In other words, the Yue Family only acknowledged his line within the Ye Family.
Otherwise, given that Ye Wushang’s father had led the team that caused such a massive loss, there was no way the position of patriarch would’ve landed on him.
After thinking it through, Ye Wushang could only shake his head helplessly.
At the same time, he began reflecting on Yue Rushuang’s past.
Yue Rushuang — once a heaven-defying prodigy that moved gods and ghosts alike.
In the Eternal Great World, due to the abundance of spiritual energy, humans matured early and began cultivating from the age of fourteen.
When Yue Rushuang first began cultivating, she displayed terrifying talent.
In just three months, she broke through the Body Tempering and Qi Gathering realms, reaching the Dao Foundation Realm.
Then, before her fifteenth birthday, she broke through the Dao Foundation and entered the Core Formation Realm.
Next, at sixteen, she advanced to the Condensed Core Realm, and by seventeen, she reached the peak of that realm.
Such terrifying talent shocked the entire Great Xia Dynasty, and even neighboring dynasties were shaken.
The top force in the Canglan Region, Ancient City of Cangyuan, even declared openly:
As long as Yue Rushuang broke through to the Divine Sea Realm, she could directly join them as the Saintess of Cangyuan.
The moment this news came out, the whole Great Xia was in an uproar.
From then on, countless people began calling her the “Quasi-Saintess,” with some even addressing her directly as “Saintess.”
In their eyes, it was practically guaranteed that she would break through and assume the role of a true Saintess.
Yet just when everyone was eagerly anticipating her breakthrough into the Divine Sea Realm, fate played a cruel joke.
Yue Rushuang failed to break through — and even worse, her cultivation regressed two entire realms, falling back to the Dao Foundation Realm.
This stunned the entire Yue Family.
Unwilling to give up, the Yue Family Patriarch continued to pour resources into her.
But even after several attempts, Yue Rushuang still failed.
Overnight, the prodigy became a cripple — rumors of her downfall spread across Great Xia.
From a lofty Saintess, Yue Rushuang became the object of ridicule.
The Yue Family’s experts scoured countless ancient texts but could not find the cause.
Some powerful figures even concluded that Yue Rushuang would never reach the Divine Sea Realm in this lifetime.
Thinking of Yue Rushuang’s past, Ye Wushang couldn’t help but sigh.
She really is a pitiful one.
In this world, strength is revered above all. The cultivation realms are as deep and vast as an abyss:
Body Tempering, Qi Gathering, Dao Foundation, Core Formation, Condensed Core, Divine Sea, Celestial Phenomenon, Purple Mansion, Manifestation, Cave Heaven, Star River, Yin-Yang, Spirit-Communication.
Each level is extraordinarily strict and difficult to cross.
In the Great Xia Dynasty, only those who reach the Divine Sea Realm are worthy of the title “Master.”
The Celestial Phenomenon Realm represents a Grandmaster — Ye Wushang’s father, the previous patriarch, was at this level.
Only by reaching the Purple Mansion Realm could one be considered a “Mighty Expert.” The Yue Family had more than one such expert, commanding great authority across Great Xia.
As for those at the Manifestation Realm — beings of vast divine power — it’s said that only the royal clan has a few old monsters at that level.
The Cave Heaven Realm, or Marquis-level powerhouse, was only ever reached by the founding emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty.
The fall of a genius to mediocrity overnight must be incredibly painful.
Suddenly, a wild thought surged in Ye Wushang’s mind — he recalled a certain book from his past life.
An idea popped into his head:
Could Yue Rushuang be following the same script as the Flame Emperor?!
If that were really the case — if he married her — he’d be hitting the jackpot.
But whether that was true or not, he couldn’t say for sure yet.