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Before Cui Jingyan’s voice had even finished echoing through the air, the two streaks of light caught up to them.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The skies shook as the misty light transformed into two figures, one man and one woman.
The man wore Confucian robes and a broad belt, and he had a willowy beard.
The woman was movingly beautiful but icy and aloof. The aura emanating from her made the entire landscape tremble, and everything else seemed dimmer by comparison.
These were none other than the early-stage Profound Illumination Empress, Third Libationer Yuan Linning, and peak Spiritual Revolution Realm Fifth Libationer Lu Changqing.
As soon as the two of them arrived, Yuan Linning’s oppressive Imperial aura spread out, enveloping the surrounding thirty thousand feet.
It was like an invisible web. Those within range felt trapped, as if they could neither run nor hide!
Su Yi and the old blind man stopped in their tracks.
The old blind man stiffened, but he was relatively calm.
This was because when they first left Naihe Divine Mountain, he’d already predicted that Yuan Linning would come after them. Furthermore, Su Yi proceeded at a leisurely pace; he was obviously giving her time to catch up…
“Third Libationer, you… really got here quite quickly…” Cui Jingyan sighed.
“Yesterday, Su Yi said he planned to teach me how to conduct myself. I naturally can’t keep him waiting,” Yuan Linning said indifferently. She was dressed in gray Daoist robes, and she wore no makeup or adornments as she looked up into the sky, yet her beauty was extraordinary.
It was just that her disposition was far too cold.
And furthermore, her Imperial aura meant that none dared blaspheme against her, not even in their hearts.
The ice-cold mockery was readily apparent in her voice.
Su Yi said airily, “If you were truly open-minded and eager to learn, I’d have to revise my opinion of you and declare you a good, teachable pupil. Alas, you’re not here to learn, but rather… to be taught a lesson.”
The old blind man couldn’t help but titter, while Cui Jingyan facepalmed in utter frustration. What time does he think this is? He seriously can’t tone it down a little?
If he provokes her to the point that she insists on dealing a lethal blow, I won’t be able to stop her!
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Just as Cui Jingyan feared, when Yuan Linning heard that, her expression darkened, and the rage and hatred accumulating in her heart overflowed like a volcanic eruption. She was on the brink of losing control.
Lu Changqing, meanwhile, said nothing. He just stood and watched silently from the sidelines.
He’d been forced to come here, and his heart was full of alarm and bewilderment. He feared that this impending conflict was a pitfall trap; how could he possibly be willing to get involved?
But it was then that Yuan Linning said suddenly, “Fifth Libationer, this is Su Yi, a Spiritual Incarnation Realm pipsqueak from the Azure Continent.”
“Uh…” Lu Changqing nodded. Inwardly, he was on guard; he had no desire to respond to that.
But Yuan Linning continued, as if speaking to herself, “I heard from the Ninth Libationer that despite his Spiritual Incarnation Realm cultivation, he’s the strongest Spirit Dao cultivator in the Azure Continent, unrivaled beneath the heavens. How about you spar with him? This is a rare opponent. If you win, there’ll naturally be no need for me to bully a Spiritual Incarnation cultivator like him.”
This suggestion caught both the old blind man and Cui Jingyan off guard.
Lu Changqing’s expression shifted back and forth. He wanted to ask, “Can I refuse?”
But that would have seemed too cowardly.
After all, no matter what, he was still Meng Po Palace’s Fifth Libationer! How could he possibly flee from battle when his opponent was just a young Spiritual Incarnation cultivator?
After a while, he let out a deep sigh. “Su Yi, I trust you already know why we’re here. If you ask me, you’d be better off….”
But Su Yi didn’t even let him finish. “Stand aside.”
It was just two light, airy words.
But in Lu Changqing’s ears, they were full of intent to humiliate. This was an utter affront to his pride.
What did those words imply?
Su Yi was blatantly disregarding him!
Here, Cui Jingyan interjected, “Fifth Libationer, I know this might be unpleasant to hear, so please don’t take offense: should this come to a fight, you… you really might lose. Besides, participating in this really won’t do you any good at all.”
“....” Lu Changqing’s face flushed red, and his hair and beard bristled with anger. “As an inheritor of Meng Po Palace, when have I ever been too afraid to do battle?”
Cui Jingyan inwardly cursed, Shit!
She could only watch as Lu Changqing stepped toward Su Yi, his eyes flashing like lightning. “Fifth Libationer Lu Changqing of Meng Po Palace requests your guidance, Fellow Daoist Su!”
His voice shook the heavens.
Not far away, the old blind man shook his head and sighed.
Su Yi looked at Lu Changqing. “You clearly know that this situation is fishy, yet you’re still stepping forward to fight out of concern for your face. How stupid is that? With your temperament, it’s no wonder you’ve yet to even brush against the threshold of the Imperial Realm.”
Lu Changqing’s eyes bulged, and his face was ashen with anger.
Earlier, Su Yi’s words had “only” been deeply humiliating, but this? He felt as if Su Yi were brazenly trampling all over his dignity!
Clang!
Lu Changqing could no longer suppress his temper. He drew a shining sword and slashed at Su Yi from afar.
The sword glinted like snow, and its light soared into the heavens. Its sheer power through the nearby skies into disarray.
Its momentum was such that even the old blind man couldn’t help but gasp. He had to admit that Lu Changqing’s attainments in the Spiritual Revolution Realm were no weaker than Pu Jue, one of the top five Spiritual Revolution experts of the Bright Sky Realm.
Boom!
The sword descended, swathed in misty light.
Su Yi didn’t even look at it. He just waved his sleeves.
Bang!!!
The light filling the air suddenly went out. Lu Changqing’s sword was like a blade of grass caught in a windstorm; it was sent flying from his grip, the blade wailing and trembling.
Lu Changqing himself was like a kite with his strings cut. He too was sent flying, and he fell to the ground a thousand feet away, stirring up a cloud of dust.
When he next stood, his hair was disheveled, his face was covered in dirt, and blood poured from the corners of his mouth.
A single swoosh of the sleeves, and he’d suppressed a peak Spiritual Revolution cultivator!
Everyone present fell silent.
The old blind man was instantly stunned. Indeed, after his visit to the Divine Cave of the River of Forgetfulness, His Excellency Su’s cultivation has grown even stronger!
Cui Jingyan’s lips quivered, and her eyes bulged. She, too, was stunned.
She’d witnessed several of Su Yi’s battles back in the Azure Continent, and she was naturally well aware of how heaven-defying he was.
Still, she wouldn’t have guessed that Lu Changqing would seem so pathetic against him…
After all, he was Meng Po Palace’s Fifth Libationer, and his master was Third High Elder Lu Changming. Of all the disciples the sect had accepted over the past thousand years, he was one of the few with the greatest hope of becoming an Emperor!
Even by the standards of the Netherworld as a whole, he was a top-notch Spirit Dao cultivator.
Yet Su Yi had just swatted him as if he were a fly, defeating him with a single, casual, understated swoosh of the sleeves!
Of course Cui Jingyan was stunned! How could she not be?
No wonder that boy is so unbridled and arrogant. His Spirit Dao cultivation really is shockingly strong. I’m afraid that even I was a bit inferior to him when I was in the Spiritual Revolution realm… Yuan Linning’s eyes flashed, and waves coursed through her heart.
But although she didn’t know it, the dazzling record she’d set in the third testing ground of the Divine Cave of the River of Forgetfulness wasn’t just a “bit” inferior to Su Yi’s.
Far off in the distance, Lu Changqing crawled to his feet, quivering from head to toe. He was so angry and ashamed that he almost wanted to die, and he longed for nothing more than a hole to hide himself in.
Even more tragically, no one was paying any attention to him…
Disregard had always been the greatest expression of contempt.
“Your turn.” Su Yi looked at Yuan Linning. As he spoke, he stretched, then said to his companions, “You two should step back.”
Cui Jingyan was just about to say something when the old blind man tugged her by the arm and dragged her off. “Miss Jingyan, don’t interfere with His Excellency’s good time any further!”
“???” Cui Jingyan’s eyes bulged.
How infuriating! If I weren’t acting out of consideration for ‘Your Excellency Su’, why would I still be involved in this?
You people don’t appreciate my good intentions at all!
And that blind man! He really is blind!
She stood in the distance, muttering angrily to herself. Su Yi, I’ll be interested to see if you’re still having such a ‘good time’ when they beat you bloody and you’re forced to repeatedly beg for mercy!
Yuan Linning’s expression gradually calmed down, her eyes as cold as snow. She could tell that Su Yi was utterly fearless.
And Lu Changqing’s defeat told her that she couldn’t judge this unreasonably strong young man by the standards of the Spirit Dao.
“Listen up! I won’t show mercy, not unless you freely offer up the Seed of the Azure,” Yuan Linning said icily.
All of her hatred and rage had given way to calm tranquility. When she opened and closed her eyes, they flashed with icy blue flames.
Boom!
Heaven and earth shook, and the mountains and rivers swayed.
The overflowing, unstoppable, and terrifying aura of the Imperial Realm emanated from Yuan Linning’s slender figure, making the skies tremble.
The distant onlookers, Cui Jingyan and the old blind man, felt their hair stand on end. Even Lu Changqing couldn’t help but look up at Su Yi.
The Profound Dao was like the heavens, and Emperors were like gods!
Everyone beneath their level was like an ant!
Throughout history, no small number of advanced cultivators of the Spirit Dao had dared to test themselves against emperors, but practically all of them had been squished like ants.
Yet now, Su Yi dared to proclaim that he’d teach Yuan Linning, an Imperial expert, how to behave herself!
Their fight was about to begin!
“You’d bet not hold back. If you do, I can’t be bothered to teach you a lesson,” said Su Yi. As he spoke, he raised his hand.
Clang!
A clear hum rang out, and Abstruse Celestial fell into his palm.
In an instant, his aura soared to its peak state, and streaks of the light of the Grand Dao revolved around him. He looked as transcendent as a banished immortal.
The depths of his profound gaze silently blazed with the will to fight.
Last night in the fourth testing ground of the Divine Cave of the River of Forgetfulness, he’d defeated nine early-stage Profound Illumination combat spirits in a row, each stronger than the nine before.
But they were ultimately just combat spirits, not true Emperors.
Now that Yuan Linning had taken the stage, Su Yi could finally test how he’d fare against a true Emperor, and what his odds of victory were.
“Go!” Yuan Linning didn’t hesitate. Her long, fair, slender fingers tapped the air.
Boom!
A streak of icy white light appeared, transforming into a three-foot light blade that cleaved down from the sky.
The surrounding air suddenly froze solid as a dense layer of ice and frost covered everything throughout the surrounding area.
And that three-foot light blade blazed with strange, cold and serene ice flames. The chilly aura emanating from it was terrifying beyond limit.
While the light blade was still in mid-slash, a layer of frost spread across Su Yi’s hair, clothing, and skin, and cold black flames spread throughout the frost.
In the blink of an eye, it seemed as if Su Yi had been frozen into an ice statue!
This unbelievable scene filled the onlookers’ hearts with terror.