The Heroine and Villainess are Pregnant. What's Going On? - Chapter 75:

Chapter 75: Sure Enough, Ling Ye Is the Assassin from Three Years Ago:

-The royal palace

In the pavilion by the lake, the autumn wind swayed the trees, scattering golden leaves over the still water. Ling Ye sat alone at the stone table beneath the pavilion.

Ye Lin was busy preparing for her grand wedding the next day, likely trying on her bridal attire, surrounded by a flurry of palace maids and ladies-in-waiting. Yet, Ling Ye had come here alone, to a secluded place where Emperor Ye Tianji often sought solitude.

This spot was traditionally off-limits to everyone but the emperor himself. However, Ling Ye chose to come because he knew Ye Tianji would seek him out.

Sure enough, Ye Tianji arrived.

At first, he was accompanied by a group of attendants, but upon seeing Ling Ye sitting there alone, he waved his hand, dismissing them all. Even the Twelve Heavenly Martial Stars, hidden in the shadows, retreated silently at his gesture.

Ling Ye could sense their departure, leaving Ye Tianji completely alone.

With his hands clasped behind his back, Ye Tianji walked toward Ling Ye, who remained seated, revealing a faint smile.

“You certainly are bold,” Ye Tianji remarked, shaking his head.

Not only did Ling Ye fail to rise in respect, but his demeanor also radiated a quiet defiance. If anyone else dared to act this way, their head would have rolled long ago.

But this was Ling Ye—someone beyond Ye Tianji’s reach in every sense.

First, there was Ling Ye’s unparalleled strength, which the emperor could not overcome. Second, Ling Ye now held Ye Lin’s heart, and she carried his child. 

What could Ye Tianji do to him? Nothing.

Accepting the situation, Ye Tianji sat across from Ling Ye, adjusting his dragon robe as he did so.

Ling Ye gestured to the chessboard on the stone table, inviting Ye Tianji to play.

The emperor studied the board. 

A lone black piece occupied the central Tianyuan position—an unconventional and impolite opening move in traditional chess. Nonetheless, Ye Tianji smiled faintly and placed a white piece, initiating the game.

At first, Ye Tianji followed established strategies, placing his pieces with precision. But Ling Ye’s moves were entirely unorthodox, defying all logic.

As the game progressed, Ye Tianji began to sense something unsettling. 

By the 108th move, his expression grew tense.

In Ling Ye’s seemingly chaotic placement of pieces, a murderous intent emerged, as if the chessboard were alive with thousands of sword auras.

Sweat formed on Ye Tianji’s eyebrow as he hesitated with his next move. The invisible sword energy from the chessboard seemed to echo the pain of the wound he had suffered three years ago.

He struggled to place his next piece, each move feeling heavier than the last. The sword energy grew sharper, and the chess game became a battlefield.

Finally, Ye Tianji looked up at Ling Ye, whose calm smile revealed nothing.

At this moment, Ling Ye seemed as unfathomable as the game itself—a presence beyond comprehension. He gave no indication of wanting to conquer the chessboard, yet it was clear that he could dominate it effortlessly if he wished.

Ye Tianji’s gaze shifted to the sword beside Ling Ye—the Blood Flame Excalibur.

“This sword suits you perfectly,” Ye Tianji remarked quietly.

“Not bad,” Ling Ye replied with a faint smile.

“Lin’er gave it to you, didn’t she?”

“She did.”

Ye Tianji took a deep breath. “Do you truly care for Lin’er?”

“I do,” Ling Ye answered simply, his expression calm yet sincere.

Hearing this, Ye Tianji seemed to relax, the tension in his wounded body easing slightly.

After a pause, the emperor spoke again. “The assassin from three years ago… that was you, wasn’t it?”

Ling Ye’s deep gaze met Ye Tianji’s. Under the emperor’s piercing scrutiny, Ling Ye nodded slightly.

“Yes. It was me.”

Those words, spoken slowly and deliberately, hung heavily in the air.

For a moment, the lake pavilion fell into a profound silence. The atmosphere was so oppressive it seemed as if time itself had frozen.

Ye Tianji stared at Ling Ye without speaking. He didn’t need to; he already knew the answer.

Sure enough, Ling Ye was the assassin from three years ago.

But what could he do about it now? Ling Ye was already bound to Ye Lin, and she carried his child. Even if that weren’t the case, Ye Tianji couldn’t possibly defeat him.

If Ling Ye wanted to, he could end Ye Tianji’s life with his sword in just three moves.

This realization weighed heavily on the emperor. 

The memory of their first meeting over a month ago came flooding back. Back then, Ye Tianji had treated Ling Ye as a junior, a subject to be guided. How laughable that seemed now.

After an eternity of silence, Ye Tianji finally placed his chess piece back into the pot.

“I’ve lost,” he said with a faint smile. “I lost from the very beginning.”

His voice carried a sense of relief.

“I always feared you were the assassin. Now that I know… strangely, I feel at ease.”

“Oh?” Ling Ye raised an eyebrow.

“Aren’t you going to kill me now?” Ye Tianji asked.

“If I killed you, she would hate me forever,” Ling Ye replied evenly.

Tomorrow was the wedding. Turning a joyous occasion into a funeral would devastate Ye Lin. With her carrying his child, how could he bear to hurt her?

“Then I suppose I should feel reassured,” Ye Tianji said, standing and gazing at the lake. “Why did you try to assassinate me?”

Ling Ye stood as well, his sword by his side. Together, they looked out over the still waters.

“For the sake of martial world,” Ling Ye finally said.

Ye Tianji was a mighty ruler, but his oppressive grip on martial world made him a threat to its very existence. Ling Ye had fought to protect it, even at the risk of his life.

“As a ruler, you shouldn’t suppress the martial world,” Ling Ye added. “martial world should be the sharp blade of the empire, not its enemy.”

Ye Tianji sighed deeply. “How could I not know that?”

But his voice wavered. “I… am afraid,” he admitted, his tone heavy with vulnerability.

A king’s greatest fear is losing his legacy. “I fear that the thousand-year foundation of the Mysterious Jade Empire will crumble in my hands,” Ye Tianji confessed. “I fear that Wushi and Wuchen won’t be able to rule after me.”

Ling Ye’s gaze remained steady. “The two princes aren’t as simple as they seem. They may act recklessly on the surface, but beneath it, they have their own plans.”

The emperor nodded faintly. His sons, Ye Wushi and Ye Wuchen, had been secretly recruiting masters from the martial world. While their actions seemed clumsy, their true intentions lay hidden.

“And Lin’er?” Ye Tianji asked.

“She placed all her faith in me,” Ling Ye replied with a small smile. “And she made the right choice.”

Ye Tianji knew it was true. Ye Lin had found the perfect ally in Ling Ye. If he remained by her side, she could very well become the first empress in the history of the Mysterious Jade Empire.

“The three of them are brilliant in their own ways…” Ye Tianji murmured.

Ye Tianji smiled faintly. “But compared to you… haha!”

He understood his three children were no ordinary individuals, but how could they measure up to Ling Ye? Not even close. 

If Ling Ye had ever desired the empire, it would have fallen into his hands years ago.

Yet, Ling Ye never showed such ambition. He only acted during critical moments, maintaining a delicate balance between the world and its forces—much like the chessboard they had just played on.

But now…

Now that Ling Ye had reappeared, Ye Tianji couldn’t be sure of his intentions. 

Did Ling Ye covet his empire? 

He didn’t know. 

Ling Ye’s mind was unfathomable.

Still, one thing was certain: Ling Ye wouldn’t act against him for the time being. After all, Ye Lin was carrying Ling Ye’s child. That unexpected development was, in a way, a blessing—a tie that held their precarious relationship together.

“You… are you planning to continue suppressing the martial world?” Ling Ye asked calmly. “And what do you intend to do with the three of them?”

“Use them? Hehe!” Ye Tianji chuckled. “Do you think I’m lying to them?”

“Isn’t that difficult to deny?” Ling Ye replied with a soft smile. “If even you can’t subdue the martial world, how could you expect them to do it? They’re no match for the task.”

It was a simple truth. What Ye Tianji had failed to achieve over many years, he now expected the three Ye Lin siblings to accomplish? The idea was absurd.

Ling Ye knew this well, just as he understood that the sword wound he’d inflicted on Ye Tianji years ago had not been fatal.

“I… have indeed been using them,” Ye Tianji admitted, his tone suddenly somber. “But I haven’t deceived them.”

Pausing, he unbuttoned his dragon robe, revealing the hideous scar left by Ling Ye’s sword.

“Your sword couldn’t kill me, but someone else’s sword almost did.”

He turned abruptly, exposing his back to Ling Ye.

Ling Ye’s expression shifted slightly. A second scar, horizontal and deep enough to wound vital organs, marred Ye Tianji’s back—a stark contrast to the vertical slash he had inflicted.

“Who did this?” Ling Ye asked, his brow furrowed.

In this world, who else could injure Ye Tianji so grievously?

“An unknown assassin,” Ye Tianji said, his tone matter-of-fact. “After you wounded me, I didn’t announce it publicly. I left the palace in secret to seek out a doctor. On the way, I was ambushed.”

“The assassin wasn’t as strong as you, but at the time, I was already seriously injured and unable to defend myself. The Twelve Heavenly Martial Stars fought with everything they had, barely managing to fend off the attacker.”

“In the end, the assassin sacrificed his own life, leaving only his head behind—and this sword wound on my body.”

The second wound, more than Ling Ye’s, had truly endangered Ye Tianji’s life. He wouldn’t live for many more years because of it.

Ling Ye narrowed his eyes. In this world, who else could face the Twelve Heavenly Martial Stars alone and nearly succeed?

“Follow me,” Ye Tianji said quietly, leading Ling Ye to the main hall.

Once there, Ye Tianji dismissed everyone with a wave of his hand, leaving only himself and Ling Ye.

He approached the dragon throne, lightly patting its armrest. A hidden compartment popped open, revealing a collection of swords and daggers.

“For years, you weren’t the only one who tried to assassinate me,” Ye Tianji said with a slow exhale. “These weapons were left behind by other assassins.”

“But they’re all dead. Among them, only you survived.”

Picking up a dark golden sword from the collection, Ye Tianji studied it for a moment before continuing. “This is the sword used by that assassin—the one who pierced my back.”

The blade matched the width of the scar on Ye Tianji’s back, its cold steel a grim reminder of the near-fatal attack.

“This sword isn’t as extraordinary as your Blood Flame Excalibur, but it’s still a fine weapon,” Ye Tianji remarked.

Ling Ye took the sword, examining its blade closely. Strange symbols were engraved along its surface—ancient characters not native to the Middle Kingdom.

“These symbols… they match some of the scripts I found in the book at the bottom of Longtan,” Ling Ye said, his expression darkening. “What foreign land does this writing come from?”

“I don’t know,” Ye Tianji admitted, shaking his head. “I’ve searched extensively, both within and beyond the empire, but I haven’t found any country or race that uses this script.”

His words deepened Ling Ye’s unease. A script untraceable to any known nation or culture?

Ling Ye frowned as he considered the implications. If the origin of this sword couldn’t be determined, how could they uncover the identity of its wielder?

The peculiar symbols matched parts of the manual Ling Ye had recovered from Longtan’s depths, but that only raised more questions. Some truths seemed destined to remain hidden for now.