“Old Ancestors, please, don't attack!”
Ye Chen felt a cold dread in his heart and immediately stepped forward. “My Master is unfathomably powerful; if you act, you might be wiped out!” To Ye Chen, Lu Xuan was a high-star Great Emperor! In Master's eyes, the Ye Family Old Ancestors would be nothing more than ants! He couldn't bear to see his Old Ancestors fall here.
A moment of silence stretched, then the three Ye Family Old Ancestors decided to proceed regardless. A thunderous roar erupted! Terrifying Emperor Realm pressure surged skyward as the three Old Ancestors unleashed their might. Dozens of meters tall, their Dharma Idols shimmered with brilliant Dao patterns, swirling into boundless cosmic rivers. Before them, elemental spirit flames churned like raging oceans. The three Ye Family Old Ancestors immediately brewed their ultimate killing strike, aiming to obliterate Lu Xuan.
Lu Xuan stated calmly, “You've made a grave mistake.” He was just about to activate his One-star Great Emperor Experience Card.
Suddenly, the Ye Family's protective formation pulsed, its brilliant patterns activating. The next moment, a figure in a flowing crimson gown descended gracefully. Her face was exquisitely beautiful, radiating a soft, divine brilliance, her curvaceous figure a picture of perfect elegance. She surveyed the kneeling Ye Family members below, a faint frown creasing her brow. The figure was none other than Ji Fuyao!
Behind her, Wang Man and Qing Yan, the two Dragon Guards, followed closely, each exuding a faint Quasi-Emperor aura. And beyond them, dozens more Quasi-Emperors and Half-Emperors stood, a formidable retinue.
Ji Fuyao's slender hand opened, and the Fuyao Token's spiritual energy surged forth, brilliant Dao patterns spreading outward, filling the air with an ancient, profound aura. Immediately, the three Ye Family Old Ancestors trembled. They stared into the void, their voices choked with emotion, “Empress Fuyao, You... you've returned!”
Ji Fuyao inclined her snow-white neck, nodding subtly. Hearing this, the three Ye Family Old Ancestors declared in a solemn voice, “Our Ye Family humbly welcomes Empress Fuyao's return!” As their words faded, they immediately knelt before Ji Fuyao.
Thud! Thud! Witnessing this, the entire Ye Family knelt like a surging tide. “We welcome Empress Fuyao's return!” “We welcome Empress Fuyao's return!”
Ye Chen's knees bent slightly, but suddenly, Lu Xuan appeared beside him, catching his arm with a faint smile. “You don't need to kneel.” Ye Chen blinked, startled. At that moment, only Lu Xuan and Ye Chen remained standing.
A Ye Family Old Ancestor snapped, “Chen'er, kneel!”
Ye Chen looked at Lu Xuan, who lightly patted his shoulder, easing his tension. Lu Xuan then turned his gaze to the void above and slowly spoke, “Fuyao, you actually came.”
At his words, the entire Ye Family froze, stunned. What in the world? Lu Xuan knew Empress Fuyao? How was that possible?!
It was then that Ji Fuyao's delicate frame trembled. Only now did she spot Lu Xuan! Earlier, the Old Ancestors' formidable Quasi-Emperor aura had been so overwhelming that Lu Xuan had been completely overshadowed, and she hadn't noticed him! Immediately, Ji Fuyao stepped through the air towards Lu Xuan, a radiant smile gracing her lips. “Master, what are you doing here in the Ye Family?”
The crowd stood dumbfounded. Master? Did Empress Fuyao just call Lu Xuan ‘Master’? Had they misheard?!
The Ye Family Old Ancestors' scalps prickled, their faces twitching. They stared at Lu Xuan in disbelief, their voices trembling as they asked, “Empress Fuyao, is Lu Xuan truly your... Master?”
Ji Fuyao nodded, smiling as she looked at Lu Xuan. A deathly silence fell over the entire area. Everyone was utterly flabbergasted. So, all this time, Lu Xuan was Empress Fuyao's Master! But... Ye Chen had just said Lu Xuan was his Master! Could it really be such an unbelievable coincidence?
Lu Xuan chuckled, looking at Ji Fuyao. “Fuyao, your cultivation has improved quite a bit this past month.”
Ji Fuyao nodded, her gaze soft. Seeing this, Dragon Guard Commanders Wang Man and Qing Yan, along with their retinue, immediately descended, appearing beside Lu Xuan. They stared at him in utter shock. This was Empress Fuyao's Master! To think they'd meet him so soon! Remembering Ji Fuyao's prior instructions, they respectfully bowed to Lu Xuan. “We humbly greet Peak Master Lu!”
Lu Xuan gave a slight nod, then turned to Ji Fuyao. “These are your subordinates?”
Ji Fuyao's starry eyes flickered with a hint of apology. “Forgive me, Master, I hadn't had a chance to tell you about the secrets of my past.”
Lu Xuan simply smiled. “No worries. You handle your business first. I just happened to stumble upon this place and take on a new disciple.” With that, Lu Xuan pointed at Ye Chen. “Ye Chen, quickly, greet your Senior Disciple Sister!”
Ye Chen paused, then looked at Ji Fuyao. “Senior Disciple Sister!” He was still trying to process it. The powerful patron of the Ye Family had suddenly become his Senior Disciple Sister? It felt like a dream.
Just then, “Cough, cough, cough!” Not far away, the three kneeling Ye Family Old Ancestors began to cough awkwardly. Their Ye Family was subordinate to Empress Fuyao! And now Ye Chen had become Empress Fuyao's Junior Disciple Brother? This... the seniority was completely thrown into disarray!
Ye Chen turned to the Old Ancestors. “Old Ancestors, is something amiss?”
The Ye Family Old Ancestors' faces twitched. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”
Ji Fuyao assessed Ye Chen. “Junior Disciple Brother, your talent is truly exceptional; Master indeed has a keen eye!”
Ye Chen's face flushed slightly, a little embarrassed. “This is all thanks to Master. I was afflicted by a trace of Eerie Power, and my cultivation plummeted. Even the Old Ancestors couldn't do anything, but Master helped me suppress it.”
Ji Fuyao's expression shifted slightly. “Eerie Power?” She stared at Lu Xuan in shock. That was one of the forbidden powers of the cultivation world! One was Ominous Power, and the other, Eerie Power! Even high-star Great Emperors afflicted by such forbidden powers would suffer immense harm and be powerless to resist. To think her Master Lu Xuan possessed such heaven-defying abilities?!
At that moment, the Ye Family Old Ancestors collectively gasped, a cold dread washing over them. “H-hiss!” Just moments ago, they had actually intended to attack Lu Xuan! What audacity had possessed them? This was a formidable figure capable of suppressing even Eerie Power! Fortunately, Empress Fuyao had arrived just in time, and they were all on the same side. Otherwise, they might have been utterly annihilated by Lu Xuan! The thought was terrifying!
Lu Xuan then offered a faint smile. “Fuyao, you go handle your affairs; we can chat later.”
Ji Fuyao nodded, then turned her gaze to the Ye Family members and commanded, “All of you, rise.” The Ye Family members slowly rose to their feet.
Qing Yan looked at the three Ye Family Quasi-Emperors. “Now that Empress Fuyao has arrived, it's time for you to swear the Heavenly Dao Oath.”
The Ye Family Old Ancestors nodded, then looked towards the Grand Elder's branch. “Empress Fuyao, before your arrival, some matters occurred within our Ye Family. Chen'er, please inform Her Majesty.” Hearing this, Ye Chen recounted the Ye Family's recent troubles to Ji Fuyao.
Ji Fuyao's beautiful eyes subtly furrowed. To think such events had transpired within the Ye Family! A Young Master Challenge! If not for Lu Xuan's timely arrival and his assistance in Ye Chen's rise, she might have returned today only to find the corpses of Ye Chen and his father.
The Ye Family Old Ancestors wore bitter expressions as they explained, “Empress Fuyao, we are guilty. We indulged the Grand Elder's branch, thinking that since you were about to return, a Young Master Challenge was a trivial matter, and we didn't intervene. We never imagined things would escalate to this point.”
Ji Fuyao looked at Ye Chen. “Junior Disciple Brother, you decide.”
Ye Chen paused, surprised. Instantly, all the members of the Grand Elder's branch dropped to their knees before Ye Chen like a surging tide. Thud! Thud! They knew now that Ye Chen held absolute sway over their lives. If Ye Chen willed their death, they would surely perish! They began to plead with him. “Chen'er, all of this was the Grand Elder's doing, targeting you and the Patriarch! It has nothing to do with us!” “Chen'er, let us pledge our loyalty to Empress Fuyao!”
But Ye Chen's face remained cold. He knew exactly what the Grand Elder's branch had done to him and his father over the years. It wasn't just the Grand Elder and Ye Liangchen! The animosity between the two factions ran deep, long past the point of reconciliation. With this thought, Ye Chen looked at the Old Ancestors. “Old Ancestors, annihilate them. Even if they swear a Heavenly Dao Oath, I cannot trust them! If they live, I fear their vengeance!”
Hearing this, one of the Grey-Robed Old Ancestors nodded, then directly raised a hand and brought it down upon the Grand Elder's branch. Boom! A terrifying, destructive palm strike descended! The Grand Elder's branch was completely eradicated, root and stem!
For a moment, all the other Ye Family branches panicked. While they hadn't openly opposed the Patriarch like the Grand Elder's branch, their younger generations had certainly mocked Ye Chen! Now that Ye Chen had risen so powerfully, what if he decided to settle old scores? The elders of numerous branches stared at Ye Chen in alarm. “Chen'er, we admit we were cold to you over the years, even ridiculed you, but honestly, it was all for the good of the Ye Family.” “Today, we apologize to you; we shouldn't have abandoned you back then!”
Hearing this, Ye Chen sighed faintly. “Elders, I understand. Let's put an end to this.” He didn't pursue further retribution. These branches didn't harbor any deep, irreconcilable hatred. Their conflicts were merely internal power struggles within the Ye Family. If he were to settle accounts for everyone who had abandoned him, the Ye Family would likely be decimated! That wasn't what he wanted to see. He was a Ye Family member too!
Seeing this, the Ye Family Old Ancestors breathed a collective sigh of relief. They genuinely feared Ye Chen would order the eradication of these other branches; such an action would leave the Ye Family a mere shell of its former self!
Seeing that matters were handled, the three Ye Family Old Ancestors immediately led the entire Ye Family in swearing the Heavenly Dao Oath. A Grey-Robed Old Ancestor unsheathed the spirit sword at his waist. ZING! A sword hum resonated, sword qi surging like an ocean, its chilling intent washing over the surroundings.
Qing Yan looked at the spirit sword, recalling events from long ago. She sighed, “Ye Beichen, it was with this very sword that you cut down two Quasi-Emperors of the Heavenly Net Temple back then, though you yourself were gravely wounded!”
The Grey-Robed Old Ancestor, Ye Beichen, reminisced with a sigh, “Indeed! Our survival was entirely thanks to Empress Fuyao. If she hadn't, in the end, single-handedly held off all the powerhouses of the Heavenly Net Temple, how could any of us have escaped?”
As he spoke, the eyes of every Ye Family expert above the Profound Saint realm reddened. They had lived through that war! It was utterly brutal! Empress Fuyao had fought three Great Emperors alone, and simultaneously held back other Quasi-Emperor experts, allowing them to split into three factions and flee the Fuyao Dynasty! That memory was eternal, never to be forgotten!
How many lives had the Heavenly Net Temple taken from their Fuyao Dynasty? The faction the Ye Family belonged to back then had suffered countless casualties! The Ye Family had endured to this day solely to await Empress Fuyao's return! The old hatred remained unavenged! The burning resentment, when would it ever be extinguished?
As these thoughts consumed them, the spirit sword in Ye Beichen's hand responded, emitting a fierce, cold gleam. Killing intent! The old sword, unsheathed before the Empress once more, its cold light as sharp and clear as it was three millennia ago! In that instant, the Ye Family Old Ancestors' hearts surged with emotion as they led the entire Ye Family in swearing their Heavenly Dao Oath. “Our Ye Family pledges to brave any trial, any tribulation, and dedicate everything we have for Empress Fuyao!”