After Ye Zichen and Su Yan woke up, they naturally didn’t linger in the hidden land.
This was in large part since Fatty was pressuring them to depart immediately out of fear that someone from above would divine their location. Soon, the group arrived at the Su sisters’ loft.
Within the loft’s living room, they each took a seat.
“So Big Brother Zichen is the heavens’ chosen Emperor, that’s so cool!” Xia Keke batted her glossy eyes and evaluated Ye Zichen, her expression intensely curious.
After waking up, Ye Zichen had also noticed his own transformation. It wasn’t his strength that had changed, rather, his connection with Heaven’s Will seemed to have grown more intimate.
It seemed as if, so long as he willed it, all of creation would obey his commands.
“For now, we’ve located two of the Emperor’s Auxiliary Stars: me, and Keke,” said Fatty Yin with a frown, “To tell the truth, I’d really rather not be an Auxiliary Star. I’m not at all optimistic about the current situation.”
“I’m one of Big Brother Zichen’s Auxiliary Stars too? That’s wonderful!” said Xia Keke, laughing vibrantly. Then she fixed her gaze on Su Liu’er and said, “Big Sister Liu’er, why are you staring at Susu like that?”
“Cough….”
Having been spotted, Su Liu’er coughed in surprise, then turned away. After a moment, and without answering Keke’s question, she asked, ”what exactly are the ‘Auxiliary Stars’ and ‘Emperor Star’ you just mentioned? I don’t quite get it.”
“The so-called Emperor Star is actually the North Star, the northernmost star in the Milky Way. Since all other stars revolve around it, it’s been considered the Lord of All Stars since ancient times. The North Star has many names, including the ‘Lord of the Starry Sky’, ‘the Purple Star,' and ‘the Master Strategist.’ It’s the Emperor Star of the Five Arctic Stars.”
Naturally, Fatty Yin took on the role of professor and explained the situation, pacing back and forth as he began his lecture."
"The Illumination of the Emperor Star represents the arrival of the Son of Destiny. Just now, you all saw it; the Emperor Star lit for Ye Zichen.”
The others nodded, and he spoke again, “
“The Auxiliary Stars are like subordinates encircling the North Star; they represent ministers supporting the emperor. That is, they exist to wholeheartedly support him in claiming the throne. However, there are simply too many stars in the Milky Way, and furthermore, Star-bearers and Auxiliary Stars are both created when a star descends into the body. Therefore, the only way to know for sure if you’re an Auxillary Star or not is timing: when the Emperor Star illuminated, the stars that descended afterward were all Auxiliary Stars. It’s usually just one star per person."
“So that’s how it is. Then, I…..” Su Liu'er started to speak, then suddenly opened her hands.
“The Martial Star.”
Su Liu’er opened her palm, revealing a radiant star emblem. Fatty Yin saw this, exclaimed in shock, then immediately started complaining.
“How could the Martial Star be female?”
“Do you look down on women?” Su Liu’er suddenly grew cold.
Her grim expression scared Fatty Yin so much that he forced a smile, saying, "No, I absolutely didn’t mean anything like that! It’s just that since ancient times, the Martial Star has always been inherited by men. Sister-in-law, I was just surprised you’d inherited it is all."
“No need to say anymore," she said, "then, based on what you said earlier, I’m supposed to serve Ye Zichen?”
“That’s right.” Fatty Yin nodded decisively, but in response, Su Liu’er glowered coldly at Ye Zichen.
Serve him?
Her heart filled with endless unwillingness. Back then, her big sister had died for him. Then, in this life, Su Yan had come perilously close to dying for him again.
The way she saw it, Ye Zichen was a blight on Su Yan’s life.
To have her serve that kind of person…...
Everyone sensed that the atmosphere had grown somewhat strange, so Su Yan chose that moment to press her lips into a smile.
"It's too early to talk about serving anyone for now," she said, "but it's great that you were able to inherit the Martial Star！And it's good that Zichen is the Emperor Star, isn't it? At the very least we’re all already familiar with each other, and are part of the same family, so why talk about ‘serving’ anyone?”
“Susu, you also seem different from before,” Xia Keke suddenly chimed in.
“Mmhm, that’s probably because of my relationship with Zichen,” replied Su Yan. “Right now, our lifelines are connected. I might’ve changed a bit too when he illuminated the Emperor Star.”
“Su Yan’s right,” said Ye Zichen, following up on her earlier statement. “There’s no need to talk about anyone serving anybody. Let’s just go on as before.”
“That simply isn’t possible,” interrupted Fatty Yin. Then, his face darkened as he said, ”since you’re the Emperor Star, we are your axillary stars. Naturally, we have to pay attention to propriety. You, too, have to always be on alert; don’t treat anyone carelessly. The Emperor is the Emperor. Emperors and ministers each have their own place. From the moment we received our stars, our relationship as master and servant was clearly defined.”
The others didn’t understand why he’d taken such a hard line; they all knew that Ye Zichen and Su Yan had only said all that to lighten up the atmosphere.
However, Fatty Yin didn’t seem to care about their reaction at all. After some time…..
He naturally understood that even if he said more, they wouldn’t necessarily understand.
“Let’s set that aside for now. Currently, two of the four main Auxiliary Stars have appeared. I am the Deputy of the Left.”
He opened his left hand, revealing a star emblazoned on his palm.
“The Deputy of the Left is the Leader of the Emperor’s Auxiliary Stars, and is also known as the Chancellor Star. When I inherited it, I also received the ability to recognize other stars. Su Liu’er is the Martial Star, so right now our main goal is to find the Literati Star and Deputy of the Right. Those four stars correspond to the emperor’s four ministers.”
“Then, which star am I?” Xia Keke cut in, “It seems I’m not especially important.”
At first, she had been really excited to receive her Auxillary Star; it made her one of Big Brother Zichen’s supporters. However, after all that Fatty had said, she’d discovered….
Her Auxillary Star didn’t seem especially important.
“You are the Emperor’s Fated Star; his beloved, and someone destined to protect him from calamities. Su Yan and Xiao Yumei should also have this sort of star.”
Su Yan and Xiao Yumei both nodded, and opened their hands to reveal stars just like Keke’s.
“The North Star has incredible fortune, but will also undergo many trials. As his beloved Fated Stars, you have the ability to resist his tribulations. In truth, you are far more important than the four of us, as we can only serve him. You’re the ones who will keep him alive.”
“In that case, I’m happy.”
She smiled excitedly again, but when Yuan Hong saw her foolish joy, he couldn’t help but make fun of her. “Keke, did you actually understand him? You exist just to save Ye Zichen from calamity, but you could easily die in the process!”
“That doesn’t matter,” she said immediately, “I’m happy to protect Big Brother Zichen.”
When she said this, she didn’t hesitate in the slightest. That, and her heartfelt tone and gaze made it obvious that she meant it; she absolutely wasn’t just trying to impress the others.
Su Liu’er looked over at Su Yan and Xiao Yumei’s faces.
They were the same way.
Su Liu’er silently clenched her fists as she wanted Su Yan gaze longingly at Ye Zichen.
“If my big sister has to save you calamity,” she muttered internally, “then let me take her place!”
Little did they know, while the others were preoccupied, Chang’e took a private look at her own hands.
Shockingly, on her palm, there was…...
A Fated Star.