Chapter 559: Chang'e and Houyi's back story
But, the sudden appearance of the Cosmic Orb of Malevolence plunged our Diqiu realm into chaos. People became greedy. The nobles wanted to rule, the commoners wanted to hunt down the beasts to get stronger, and the dragons wanted to loot the people, ugh… that was a decade I couldn't forget even after a long time.
As the ancients often say, heroes rise in turbulent times, Houyi's talents as an archer made him well known all across the world over time; with blessings from Emperor Ku, he became the guardian of the world.
During this period, we met each other, fell in love, and became a married couple.
Just as we thought everything would come to an end, the Sun God gets corrupted for some reason and he multiplies nine times to surround our world, intending to destroy all life for some unknown reason.
Houyi accepted the emperor's plea and set out to save the world.
Armed with his celestial bow and magical arrows bestowed upon him by Emperor Ku, Houyi climbed to the peak of Kunlun Mountain, where he had a clear view of the ten suns.
With unmatched precision and strength, he shot down nine of the ten suns, leaving only one to provide light and warmth while taking all of that remnant energy into him to protect the world, almost dying in the process.
Impressed by his efforts, Xi Wangmu, the Queen Mother of the West and Jade Emperor's wife, gave him the elixir of immortality as a reward. Houyi could drink it and ascend to the heavens as an undying immortal but instead, he brought it back to our home to keep it safe.
He actually planned on using it to brew a magical elixir so that even a poor boy in a mountain village gets to enjoy long life spans with immunity to disease and extraordinary healing recovery. But, he wasn't an alchemist.
The only one he trusts to make such an elixir is the mighty Leviathan, which he had a contract with. Who could have expected his own summoning contract would betray him for the elixir?
Houyi and Leviathan fought for days and nights. They were heavily injured and Leviathan's army wanted to raid the world to acquire the elixir in the absence of the guardian.
To protect it from falling into the wrong hands, I had to drink all of the elixir and become immortal while my husband died due to injuries. But, the story doesn't end there.
That evil serpent dragged his body and soul back with it to the depths of the netherworld, a place where all the Deities, even the Jade Emperor, are vulnerable. On the other hand, as I assumed the post of the ruler of the moons, I'm stuck in this palace, not capable of leaving that place.
Thousands of years have passed and I was waiting to meet a warrior who could help me. And now, look at the coincidence, the one who I was waiting to meet ended up not only our descendant but also the one with a contract of a demon king.
If this is not fate, what else it is, mortal?"
"Wait… wait… wait…"
While Mark found the story very heart-touching, there was something else that disturbed him. "I'm your descendant?" He asked the Moon Goddess, Chang'e.
The Moon Goddess was pleasantly surprised by his question. "Of course," She nodded with a smile as she snapped her fingers.
Instantly, countless light particles conjured in front of Mark, transforming into the image of a couple; one looks similar, if not an exact copy of himself but in traditional warrior clothes and a bow, and the other is the graceful-looking moon goddess, who seemed unchanged at all, except for the divine aura.
Mark couldn't help but stare at the image. As a modern man, the first thought that came to him was, "Is this a photoshop?"
But then, he instantly put that silly thought away as there is no reason why a Goddess who is as strong as Bael would want to lie to him.
Her ethereal beauty also affected his mentality a lot. He just couldn't help but believe her words to his heart.
However, the main problem is still there and Mark had to point it out first.
"Okay, let's just assume that I'm really Houyi's descendant, Your Grace. But, I'm still not strong enough to go into the demon world to do your task. While I could still feel the connection with Bael, there is no guarantee that he will help me. Isn't it the same as committing suicide?" Cautious Mark didn't hesitate to put forth the facts as he didn't want to die and leave his wife and child behind.
In response, The Moon Goddess replied almost instantly as if she was prepared to answer his doubt, "I'm going to come with you. So, no worries."
"Huh?" Mark was taken aback by her response. "Didn't you earlier say that you are not capable of leaving?"
"Oh, I just have to appoint someone as my successor and I can leave. That's not a problem at all," replied Chang'e.
Mark couldn't help but furrow his brows, deeply thinking of everything that transpired so far. If that is the case, how come she has yet to do it? Why did she need him then? Perhaps, she has no way to enter the netherworld itself without an outsider's help. And she wants revenge against Leviathan?
There were a few questions in his head but Mark felt like it would be rude to ask her everything as it would seem like he was interrogating her.
But, at the same time, there is also an issue of security. If the air in the netherworld is poisonous to divine beings, Chang'e wouldn't be much of a help. Her cultivation might be suppressed to Saint Realm and she might not be a match for Bael.
So, is it necessary to take her with him?
After thinking thoroughly, Mark said, "I accept the task but under one condition." He bowed to her once again and cupped his fists, "Your Grace, I request you to heal my sister prior to our journey so that I get to be in peace."
"That goes without saying, mortal," Chang'e's smile continued to stay on her face as she further added, "After all, we need the power of her Cosmic Orb to defeat that evil monster. Before we go, I'll also help you enter the Demigod realm. Moreover, if you want to remove the Mark of the Queen Mother Goddess, branded on your soul, you would have to be in the Demigod realm.
Until we work on your issues, you can stay here as the guest."
"It was from the Queen Mother?" Mark's heart skipped a beat when he heard it. His eyes widened as he thought, 'No wonder the system said it doesn't have the power to erase the mark.'
"Thank you."
One day later;
In one of the gardens of the Moon Palace, Mark is seen meditating as Chang'e was personally helping him with the breakthrough.
Through her blessing of divine energy, his cells rapidly turned into ether particles, increasing their number every second.
In just an hour, they reached almost 1 billion in number, the bottleneck of the Supreme realm. Mark could feel a burst of energy inside his body. He could sense how strong he had become.
While he might have taken a shortcut to reach such a stage, Mark doesn't feel an ounce of shame for it. If it happens by luck, then, so be it. If it happens by taking the help of a third party, so be it.
As long as his goal is achieved, it is satisfying for him.
On the other hand, The Moon Goddess doesn't look good. She has a deep frown on her face as she continuously pours her divine essence into Mark's body, "Why? It's been absorbed but not being refined. There was a huge wall that even I couldn't break? Is this his limit? No, that cannot be.
He is the holder of the Blizzard Pegasus and some unknown power that even I'm not aware of. There is no way his potential is stuck here. What might be the reason?"
After trying it for another hour, she stopped the process and let out a deep sigh, "It's useless."