by Mars Gravity
“No!” Ye Meixie said in a cold, emotionless voice, “Supreme Ocean Palace is merely organizing the Devil Sword Conference, but the ones who suggested holding this meeting in the first place was Mighty Heavenly Sword Region.”
“Ah, so it was as I thought! So Mighty Heavenly Sword Region is admitting that they stole away the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword all those years ago?”
“Humph!” Ye Meixie gave a cold laugh, “Did you actually expect that sly old fox Xuanyuan Wentian to admit to such a thing? According to his own words, they had only recently found this sword in some remote and desolate region. After recognizing that the sword was actually the Eternal Night Royal Family’s Heavenly Sin Divine Sword, they proclaimed that this divine sword should not be monopolized by their Mighty Heavenly Sword Region alone, but it was something that should be shared with all the heroes of the realm. Thus, he proactively suggested holding this Devil Sword Conference. And in order to make it clear that he didn’t have any selfish ambition or dark schemes involving the sword, he also proactively suggested that the Devil Sword Conference not be held in Mighty Heavenly Sword Region and even directly passed the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword to Supreme Ocean Palace.”
“Mighty Heavenly Sword Region must take us all for fools!” Ye Guying said with sunken brows, “One thousand years ago, the Four Sacred Grounds joined hands to eradicate the Eternal Night Royal Family, but it was only after we had done the deed that we discovered we were all being used by Mighty Heavenly Sword Region! The Eternal Night Royal Family was consigned to oblivion while the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword disappeared as well. In all likelihood, it had long ago fallen into the hands of Mighty Heavenly Sword Region! So organizing this so-called ‘Devil Sword Conference’ clearly indicates that Mighty Heavenly Sword Region spent an entire millennium unsuccessfully trying to discover the secrets of the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword, so now they have no choice but to borrow our strength as well.”
“It is indeed as you have said. But the gimmick behind this Devil Sword Conference is sufficient inducement to entice everyone.” Ye Meixie continued as his voice grew soft, “Xuanyuan Wentian personally said that it is extremely likely that the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword contains the secret of attaining divinity!”
“This…” Ye Guying lapsed into a short stupor before shaking his head resolutely. “Those are merely cheap words flung our way by Xuanyuan Wentian, it definitely isn’t possible! If not, how could the guardians of this sword, the Eternal Night Royal Family, have been purged!”
“The secret of attaining divinity. Even though it is clear that this is something cooked up by Xuanyuan Wentian to reel us in, for those of us who have lingered at the peak of the Sovereign Profound Realm for hundreds of years without being able to advance even a step further, it is irresistibly enticing. Moreover…” Ye Meixie’s tone changed and his pupil’s grew dark as he continued, “It might not just be empty words.”
“The Heavenly Monarch’s meaning is…”
“One thousand years ago, the strength of the King of Eternal Night was the weakest amongst the rulers of the Five Sacred Grounds. But when he went berserk and devilized, it took fourteen hours of fierce battle and the combined might of the leaders of the other Sacred Grounds along with seventeen elders to defeat him! And even though his flesh was destroyed, his soul did not dissipate. Not only that, it was fully preserved and all the might we could muster was not enough to destroy it. In the end, we could only pay a huge price to seal him into a soul coffin and allow him to dissipate naturally.
“Till this day, the power displayed by the King of Eternal Night after he went berserk still causes my heart to tremble with fear. Death of the body but not the soul is a divine power that transcends the Sovereign Profound Realm. Every time I think of it, I have this profound feeling that this ability cannot be so easily dismissed as a byproduct of devilization… and if one was to say that this was the power of someone who had transcended the Sovereign Profound Realm and taken half a step into the Divine Profound Realm, it isn’t beyond the bounds of logic.”
“…” Ye Guying did not say anything. He had not been present at the fierce battle with the King of Eternal Night all those years ago, nor did he have the qualifications to be present. So he was unable to truly understand Ye Meixie’s words.
Ye Meixie turned around and continued, “Those invited to the Devil Sword Conference all possess the ability to attempt to decipher the secret behind the Heavenly Sin Divine Sword. Only the strongest individuals and powers in the Profound Sky Continent will be present. Considering Yun Che’s ability to kill our Divine Hall’s protectorates, he possesses the qualifications to attend. Given his haughty nature, he should not reject attending a meeting of the strongest powers in the realm. And at that time…”
Ye Meixie did not continue to speak, and despite the glow of the Sun Moon Totem, his pupils were so dark they did not contain a hint of light. Ye Guying rose out of his chair and replied in a respectful tone, “I obey the will of the Heavenly Monarch.”
“You may go… Ask Han’er to attend to me after this.”
“Yes.” Ye Guying retreated two steps before soundlessly leaving.
At the same time: Blue Wind Nation, Floating Cloud City.
Even if one were to beat Yun Che to death, he would not have thought that the name he had casually thought of, “Duotian,” actually belonged to a real person! To think that it was the name of a mythical powerhouse who existed ten thousand years ago and had the strength to shake both the heavens and the earth.
Furthermore, not only did this not expose a flaw in his plan, it actually caused the deterrent he had created to multiply exponentially!
To the point where even Ye Meixie had given personal instructions to not interfere with him!
It had also created the opportunity for him to be invited to the Devil Sword Conference.
At this time, Yun Che, who was unaware of all that was happening, had just flown out and arrived in the area east of Floating Cloud City. He floated hundreds of meters above as he coldly eyed the ground below.
The two hundred thousand Divine Phoenix soldiers were spread across the rolling hills of the land below. They were split into units of ten, a hundred or a thousand. All the movement they were making caused the ground to rumble, producing the incessant sound of rumbling which came from every direction.
Xiao Lingxi had informed him that after the Divine Phoenix Army had arrived, they had never chosen to garrison themselves in Floating Cloud City. From the second day of their arrival, they had engaged in these actions… the concentrated and muffled sounds of explosions continued nearly unabated and had already continued for close to six months. The common consensus among the people of the Floating Cloud City was that the Divine Phoenix Army were training their troops.
But Yun Che was naturally not so naive as to believe that they were really training their troops… because it was impossible that the invincible Divine Phoenix Army was formed and moulded using such a ridiculous method.
But after observing them for a long period of time, he still could not puzzle together what this huge DIvine Phoenix Army was trying to accomplish…The broken and damaged ground had clearly been flipped over countless of times. The movements, range, and frequency of the actions of the Divine Phoenix Army were all uniform and it was clear that “training” for half a year had drilled these actions into their bones.
“Jasmine can you see what exactly they are doing?” Yun Che asked as his brows pinched together.
“Hmph, do you need to ask me when it comes to these kinds of things?” Jasmine replied huffily.
Yun Che’s mouth bent at a crooked angle and he activated “Hidden Flowing Lightning.” causing his presence to be completely concealed. After that, he silently descended and hid himself at the edge of the Divine Phoenix Army’s encampment.
Before too long, a soldier of the Divine Phoenix Army left his “training squad” and slowly shuffled his way towards where Yun Che was hiding, mumbling something incomprehensible
under his breath while trying to loosen the armor around his waist. When he had reached a “convenient” spot that was behind a tall rock, a hand flashed out of thin air and locked onto his throat.
The soldier felt his neck was being held by iron clamps that were as heavy as thousands of kilograms as his eyes bulged out and some of his blood vessels exploded. He could not utter even a single sound despite his shock and horror. Yun Che coldly looked at him and profound light flashed on his arm. His Profound Handle instantly broke through the soldier’s mental defenses and embedded itself into his soul. Following that, memories flowed like water into Yun Che’s mind.
In a flash, Yun Che withdrew his Profound Handle, and with a casual flick of his hand, he threw the soldier to the ground. The soldier’s eyes were still stretched wide open, but he was no longer breathing.
After Yun Che had absorbed the soldier’s memories, not only were his doubts not cleared up, but his brows knit together even more tightly. That was because the information he had retrieved from the soldier indicated that his orders were to undergo special training in this location.
The content of this special training was to gather up all of one’s profound energy and smash it against the ground. The louder the better and the heavier the better… if anyone was caught slacking, they would be slapped with heavy punishments, and the punishments were severe to the point where soldiers could be executed on the spot.
However Yun Che did not come away completely empty handed. At the very least, he now knew one person’s name, likeness and the location he was normally at!
Feng Huwei—the great commander of these two hundred thousand Divine Phoenix Soldiers, the famed and brilliant Great General Huwei of the Divine Phoenix Empire. He was someone who possessed the bloodline of the Phoenix and also belonged to the Divine Phoenix Sect.
The most important thing, however… was that when the Divine Phoenix Army descended upon the Floating Cloud City, it was him who tried to seize Xiao Lingxi! If not for the aid of Fen Juechen, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
Yun Che’s gaze shot towards the south-east… that was where Feng Huwei’s large tent was located! In an instant, he had morphed into an after-image that was hard to discern with the naked eye as he rushed towards that location. An icy-cold killing intent rippled in those calm eyes.
Chapter 685: Then That Is Simply Too Wonderful!
In the middle of the Divine Phoenix Army’s encampment lay a large crimson tent that was shaped like a flame; it was especially eye-catching.
As Divine Phoenix Empire’s designated commander stationed at Floating Cloud City, Feng Huwei had been in a good mood all this while because he knew the importance of this “mission” that he was overseeing. Being entrusted with such a heavy responsibility clearly showed the trust and how highly the sect leader and the elders regarded him. Once this mission was over, it was extremely likely that his position in the Divine Phoenix Sect would rise.
However, for the past two days, the army which had launched the assault on Blue Wind Imperial City had suddenly ceased all communication, so he felt somewhat ill at ease.
“Is there still no news from the main army?”
There were only two people in the big tent. Feng Huwei was dressed in light clothes, and he sat slumped on a wooden chair, a cup of strong liquor in hand, as he listened to his vice commander’s report.
“It isn’t only the main army, the west army’s commander Han Xingzhao personally went with the Twenty-Fifth Elder to investigate the situation at Blue Wind Imperial City and we have also lost contact with them. They even brought along fifty thousand troops and thousands of Fire War Horses and aerial profound beasts, so it should have been no problem for them to advance and retreat as needed, but…” Feng Huwei’s number one deputy general, Tian Yi, said even as a look of profound fear creased his face. They had galloped from one battlefield to another for more than a hundred years, but they had never encountered such terrifying situation before. Those tens of thousands of troops seemed to have simply evaporated from the face of the earth in the space of a minute.
Feng Huwei furrowed his brows as he sunk into a contemplative silence. After a short while, he slowly began to speak, “To cause tens of thousands of troops and three elders of the Divine Phoenix Sect to disappear in such a short span of time that they did not even have the opportunity to send out a sound transmission, to be able do this… the only possibility is that a guardian who is at the Sovereign Profound Realm has appeared at Blue Wind Imperial City!”
“Sovereign Profound… A Monarch?!” Vice Commander Tian Yi’s head jerked up as he yelled in alarm, “How is that possible?! The Emperor Profound Realm has always been the limit in Blue Wind Nation, and in their thousand year history, not even a single Overlord has ever risen from there. So how could there suddenly be a Monarch?! Moreover, profound practitioners who have attained the power of the Sovereign Profound Realm are existences which are akin to absolute emperors within this continent, so why would they bother lifting a hand to aid a lowly nation such as Blue Wind Nation.”
“Besides this, there can be no other explanation. I also believe that the Sect Master and all the other Elders have definitely come to the same conclusion.” Feng Huwei said without the slightest hesitation, “If one were to say that Blue Wind Nation has no Monarchs… then how do you explain that terrifying black-clothed man in Floating Cloud City?!”
Tian Yi’s words died in his throat. As he remembered the horrifying scene that he had witnessed half a year ago and that aura which seemed to come from the very depths of hell, his heart still violently seized up in his chest.
“Therefore, I do believe that the Sect Master and all the Elders have also reached the same conclusion.” Feng Huwei threw the now-empty pot of liquor away as he continued to speak calmly, “However, even if there is a Monarch guarding Blue Wind Nation, he can only do so for so long! Our Divine Phoenix Sect has twelve such Monarchs! So that person is truly naive if he thinks that he can challenge our Divine Phoenix Empire just because he is a Monarch as well!!”
“My general’s words are absolutely right. Whoever dares to challenge our Divine Phoenix Empire, even if they are Monarchs, are only courting their own deaths in the end!” Tian Yi declared as he nodded his head, “The loss of seven hundred thousand troops and the blood debt that must be paid for the deaths of three of the Divine Phoenix Elders, I believe our Emperor will make him pay ten times the price!” He stopped for a moment and then cupped his hands respectfully before continuing, “This commander also has an important matter that the general needs to make a decision on.”
“Speak!”
“Yes!” Tian Yi strode forward two steps and spoke in a low and suppressed voice, “Just this afternoon alone, eleven soldiers have been killed, and their bodies were all found several kilometers away from the encampment…”
“Heh.” Feng Huwei was not even shocked, so he naturally did not get angry. That was because too many similar occurrences had happened within this half a year. After a period of time, soldiers would suddenly go missing, and when their corpses were found, they bore the traces of terrible torture, so it was clear that they had underwent interrogation. He gave a cold and disdainful laugh, “Do not worry about it. No matter what methods they use, they will not be able to get any useful information out of them.”
“No, this time the situation is rather different.” Tian Yi immediately replied, “This time, the bodies we found all had no external wounds, but every single one of the soldiers had stiff and dull expressions on their faces. So it is extremely likely that someone… invaded their souls!”
“Soul search?” Feng Huwei wondered as his brows furrowed together, but he followed that up with a cold snort, “To have the ability to use a soul search technique… it looks like after they had spent a long time groping around in the dark, they finally decided to send out some experts.”
“This commander believes that the general must pay even more attention to his own security from now on
,” Tian Yi suggested.
“There is no need to worry,” Feng Huwei said with a dismissive wave of his hand, and he continued speaking in an unworried tone, “So what if they are from Four Great Sacred Grounds? Our Divine Phoenix Sect has the protection of the grand Phoenix God, so even if they have the guts to kill our troops, they will not have the guts to make a move against this general. This general has the bloodline of the Phoenix, so I am under the protection of the Lord Phoenix God himself!”
“Then this commander has worried too much about this,” Tian Yi said respectfully. Looking at Feng Huwei’s confident demeanor, he hesitated for a moment before finally gathering up his courage and speaking, “General, besides stationing our troops and keeping them prepared, why exactly are we ‘training’ our troops everyday? This commander does not dare to make any assumptions or conjectures, but in the past few months, all of our soldiers and officers have also…” When he spoke of this matter, he suddenly felt Feng Huwei’s gaze grow ice-cold and dense. His entire body stiffened, and he did not dare to continue speaking about this topic any further. He instead hurriedly said, “This commander has spoken out of turn, I beg the general for his forgiveness.”
“As long as you know you have spoken out of turn, then it’s fine!” Feng Huwei said with a loud harrumph. He turned his gaze away from Tian Yi before continuing to speak calmly, “Never ask this question ever again! All you need to know is that this was something personally ordered by the Sect Master himself! If we accomplish our mission, all of us will return to the country covered in glory! If we mess this up, then even this general will not be able to bear the consequences of our failure! So when it comes to questions that should not be asked, you should just be a good lad and keep your mouth shut! When you need to know about what is happening, it will naturally be revealed to you!”
“Understood!” Tian Yi replied hurriedly and he did not dare speak after that.
“Oh, is that so? Then it’s such a pity that all of you most likely won’t have the chance to make your triumphant return after all.”
