The Yun clansmen blurted in shock at the unexpected scene . Both the second elder Yun Fu and third elder Yun Hua felt their hearts skip a beat when they hurried forward to check Yun Jianâs injury .
The Yun clansmen were unaware of what had happened earlier, but they did . When they recalled what they had said to Yun Che, what Yun Che had said to them, and his relationship with Yun Shang⌠they felt like a giant stone was sitting inside their hearts . They couldnât breathe under the pressure at all .
The rest of the elders and the grand elders looked ashen-faced as well, but no one dared to direct their ire at Yun Che .
The Yun clansmen werenât the only ones who were confused . The shaking Desolate Heaven Devil Dragons and Nine Lights Heavenly Palace profound practitioners were dumbfounded as well .
What was going on?
Wasnât he recruited by the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan to save them?
Why was he beating his own people to death?
The old man in blue clothes was clearly surprised as well . The smile on his face grew more amiable as he said, âI understand now, you are neither a member of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan nor a friend of theirs . It even looks like you hold a grudge against them . I see now that everything is just a misunderstanding . â
Although Yun Che had slaughtered hundreds of Desolate Heaven Devil Dragons, killed the Desolate Heaven Dragon Chief, severely wounded the Nine Lights Heavenly Sovereign in one strike, and even 'sword-slappedâ half the life out of the Yun Clanâs great elder, the old man continued to chuckle like nothing had happened at all . For some reason, he didnât look shocked or afraid in the slightest .
It was a fact that a terrible pressure was hidden behind his graceful, godlike demeanor .
The old man cast his sight downwards and asked, âClan Chief Yun, who is this expert youâve invited to your clan?â
Yun Ting opened his mouth and bowed deeply toward the old man . Only then did he answer with a bit of difficulty, âVenerable Empty Mind, this⌠expertâs name is Yun Che . He is our⌠honored guest . â
âHonored guest?â the old man said with a smile . âYour hospitality must be lacking then . It would appear that your honored guest is very unhappy . â
â . . . â Yun Ting wanted to look at Yun Che, but he was afraid to look him in the eye . He couldnât say a word for a long time .
Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that Yun Che was this powerful .
The only reason he stayed behind was because of Yun Shang .
Had he successfully gotten into Yun Cheâs good graces, the Heavenly Handle Yun Clanâs situation mightâve been a lot less dire .
But they⌠they . . .
Regret, self-loathing, and powerlessness tore at his heart and soul like countless devils . He did not dare to even recall what had happened in the ancestral shrine a moment ago .
Unfortunately, there was no such thing as a cure for regret in this world .
Meanwhile, at the ancestral shrine, Qianye Yingâer hadnât moved an inch since the start of the fight . She was still leaning lazily against the stone pillar with an unconscious Yun Shang right next to her feet .
She shot a glance at the horrific floor of dragon blood and corpses before whispering to herself, âSo much hatred⌠Long Bai probably doesnât realize that he condemned every dragon in the world to death when he killed Mu Xuanyin . â
She suddenly recalled the few times Yun Che had lost control and taken it out on her . Sometimes, he would cry out the word âmasterâ . . . She suddenly narrowed her eyes and uttered coldly, âIn the end, Snow Song Realmâs famous âIce Immortal of the Northâ is just a lecherous woman on the inside . What a joke!â
âFellow cultivator Yun,â Venerable Empty Mind swung his whisk once and said amiably toward Yun Che, 'since this is just a misunderstanding, surely we can come to an agreement? The reason the Desolate Heaven Dragon Clan and the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace showed up today is entirely private, and they attacked you only because they mistook you for a member of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan . You are certainly not their target . â
âThe Desolate Heaven Dragon Clan suffered huge losses, and the dragon chief himself has died for his transgressions . Iâm sure they have paid a high enough price to quell your anger, havenât they? Please show mercy now that the misunderstanding is resolved . Iâm sure that both Desolate Heaven and Nine Lights wonât forget this . Wouldnât it be nice if we can drop our enmity and all become allies instead?â
Yun Che examined him for a moment before relaxing visibly, âAnd who are you?â
This old manâs aura was similar to, no, slightly stronger than the Nine Lights Heavenly Sovereign . He was obviously another peak Divine Sovereign with incredibly high status . His confidence alone revealed who he belonged to in this Thousand Desolation Realm .
âHehe,â the old man said, âthis humble one is the Thousand Desolation Divine Sectâs chief enforcer, Shen Xuzi . If you donât think itâs beneath you, you may address me as Devotee Empty Mind . â
âThousand Desolation Divine Sectâ . The words themselves seemed to carry a heavenly weight which intimidated all creation, and that wouldnât be a mistake in the Thousand Desolation Realm . Here, the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect was the infinite heavens themselves!
Tens of thousands of years ago, when the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect received a king realm mandate from the Burning Moon Realm to replace the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan as the new realm king sect, their position had become absolutely unshakeable . Even the realmâs old name, Heavenly Handle Yun Realm was changed to Thousand Desolation Realm .
Since then, the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect had subjected the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan to countless cruel punishments⌠even their final fate was up to the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect to decide .
The Thousand Desolation Divine Sect rose, and the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan declined . Now, the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect had grown to the point where they could easily decide the life or death of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan even without a king realm mandate .
The Heavenly Handle Yun Clan did everything in their power to curry favor with the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect . Their efforts only increased as the day of the deadline drew ever closer .
The Thousand Desolation Divine Sectâs unclear attitude also nurtured that hope further .
The realization that they were facing the chief enforcer of the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect made the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan act even more humbly . They did not dare to show even the slightest impoliteness or disobedience .
âThe Thousand Desolation Divine Sect?â The corner of Yun Cheâs eyes seemed to twitch a bit .
âThat is correct,â Devotee Empty Mind stroked his beard before chuckling, âyouâve probably heard of us, Iâm sure . If fellow cultivator Yun is displeased with this sinful clan, why not be a guest at the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect? We will certainly give you the treatment a guest of honor deserves . â
âIf youâre a member of the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect, then why are you here?â Yun Che asked in an indifferent tone . It was difficult to identify the emotion behind his voice, âSurely you arenât here to fish for a quick profit, are you?â
Devotee Empty Mind smiled and shook his head . He said, âWe may have been ordered by the Burning Moon King Realm to punish a sinful clan, but we would never stoop so low . This humble one rushed here simply because he heard that the Desolate Heaven Dragon Clan and the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace had descended upon the sinful region, and was afraid that it might give birth to great chaos . I have come to act as a mediator, so to speak . Still, this one considers it lucky that it resulted in a meeting with fellow cultivator Yun . â
Yun Ting bowed deeply again after hearing this, saying, âOur sinful clan is very grateful that Venerable Empty Mind would travel so far to protect us . Our sinful clan doesnât know how to repay Venerable Empty Mindâs kindness . â
The rest of the Yun disciples hurriedly performed their own thankful salutes and bows toward Venerable Empty Mind⌠Although everyone knew that the old man was probably lying through his teeth, they couldnât wait to prostrate themselves and express their infinite gratitude toward him .
âI see,â Yun Che replied as if placated . He slowly lowered the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor Sword, and the abyssal darkness that surrounded the weapon had even thinned a little .
Yun Cheâs reaction was perfectly normal in Devotee Empty Mind and everyone elseâs opinion . Yun Che might be bold enough to kill the Desolate Heaven Dragon Chief and the Nine Lights Heavenly Sovereign, but who would dare offend the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect in their own territory, not to mention that the chief enforcer himself had been nothing but friendly and admiring toward him?
âIn that case,â Yun Che said in a leisurely tone, âyou may go rest in peace . â
Devotee Empty Mindâs smile froze . By the time his expression changed, a sword beam was already falling toward his face, pitch black darkness devouring all the light in his vision .
Although surprised, Devotee Empty Mind was on his guard from the start . He immediately swung his whisk forward; every strand on the weapon discharging black light powerful enough to shatter mountains and seas .
However, the power he unleashed lasted only an instant before it suddenly vanished like mud in water!
Although Devotee Empty Mind had already witnessed Yun Cheâs power before, he didnât realize how terrifying it really was until he tasted it firsthand .
His reaction was extremely swift . He managed to escape Yun Cheâs attack because he gave up his defense and propelled himself several kilometers away with a speed that was almost unnatural . Meanwhile, the location he was at just a moment ago had been engulfed in a terrible whirlpool of darkness .
âYun Che!â Devotee Empty Mind broke out in a cold sweat as he shouted with a frigid expression . The only reason he was on his guard was because he was cautious by nature . He never thought that Yun Che would dare attack him after learning that he was the chief enforcer of the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect, âHow dare you⌠Uuaah!!â
Booom!!
Golden flames suddenly exploded behind his back . The sea of flames parted to reveal Yun Che .
Although Devotee Empty Mindâs decisiveness and speed were impressive, there was simply no way he could be faster than Yun Che .
Devotee Empty Mind screamed as the Golden Crow flames burned him . He detonated his own energy again and again and successfully suppressed over half of the Golden Crow flames that were licking at his body, but Yun Che appeared behind him again like a ghost and smacked scarlet Phoenix flames this time at the exact same spot .
The attack nearly burned through the old man there and then .
âYun⌠Che!!â Devotee Empty Mind roared in pain and anger, âYouâre making an enemy⌠out of us⌠aaaaah!!â
Devotee Empty Mind did everything in his power to suppress the flames and escape⌠the whole place reeked of dragon blood, and he wasnât stupid enough to think that he could defeat Yun Che .
Unfortunately, how could he live if Yun Che wanted him dead?
Buzz!!
Yun Che didnât give chase . He simply clenched his hand into a fist .
The Golden Crow flame and the Phoenix flame that were burning Devotee Empty Mind alive immediately started merging into one . They quickly became the much more powerful crimson divine flames .
âAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!â
The only thing scarier than a drastic increase in the enemyâs power was the drastic increase of oneâs pain . It was terrible enough to wring out a tearful, despairing howl from even a peak Divine Sovereign .
Devotee Empty Mind struggled in midair before collapsing to the ground abruptly . He rolled back and forth on the ground like a dying larva, but the crimson flames that clung to his bones like termites showed almost no signs of fading at all .
Bang!!
Yun Che dropped down from the sky and stepped on Devotee Empty Mindâs chest with his right foot . The force was so great that the poor manâs chest caved in like it was made of rotten wood .
âPwahâŚâ Blood spilled out of Devotee Empty Mindâs mouth like a fountain . His confidence and elegant outlook had long since been replaced by pain and fear, âYou⌠you dareâŚâ
At first, he wanted to threaten Yun Che and say, âAll those who threaten the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect are digging their own grave!â But he quickly changed his mind halfway and begged, âFellow cultivator⌠you and I arenât enemies⌠thereâs no need forâŚâ
âYou didnât have to die, but then you lied to me . Thereâs almost nothing I hate more than someone lying to my face . â Yun Che was stepping on Devotee Empty Mind, but his gaze was directed to the front . âYou were hiding here from the start, but you lied to me and said that youâre here as a mediator . Since you think Iâm an idiot, I have no choice but to relieve you of your life . â
âMercy⌠fellow cultivatorâŚâ A lie was all it took to drive this ruthless madman to kill him, the chief enforcer of the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect? Whatever resistance the old man mightâve mustered crumbled into nothing as he begged in the humblest manner possible, âI, Shen Xuzi⌠swear to be your friend⌠no⌠I swear to be your servant⌠I will obey your orders absolutely⌠please⌠venerable one⌠mercyâŚâ
âYun Che⌠Yun Che!â Yun Ting cried out in panic as he half-crawled towards the young man . The faces of the Yun clansmen following behind him looked just as bloodless . He opened his arms and begged shakily, âPlease⌠please show mercy⌠please donât kill him, or the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan willâŚâ
Croosh!!
Yun Che stepped on Devotee Empty Mind again, and this time the horrifically burned old man exploded into a black flash . Some of his body parts flew at least several kilometers away .
âUgh!â Yun Ting staggered and fell on his knees . His face became as pale as death .
Yun Che withdrew his leg slowly before turning to look at him with dark eyes . None of the blood or dust from the explosion touched his upper torso at all . âWhat the f*ck does the fate of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan have to do with me?â