by Mars Gravity
“It would produce the opposite of his desired result?” Yun Che asked in shock.
Yun Qinghong’s eyes grew distant and he slowly began to recount, “Ten thousand years ago, the Illusory Demon Realm was a sea of chaos. The human and demon races were locked in battle and the fire of war had spread to the four corners of the realm; this left the people in dire straits. But after that, the Demon Emperor Clan inherited the legacy of the Golden Crow and received a great power. Henceforth, they led the Twelve Families and began a campaign that lasted several hundred years before they finally conquered the Illusory Demon Realm. Under the brilliant leadership of the Demon Emperor, both the human and demon races stopped fighting. After that, he gradually began to eliminate the conflict between the races and brought peace to the realm; this has persisted to this day. And the primordial divine beast, the Golden Crow, became something that the people of the Illusory Demon Realm have put their utmost faith in for the last ten thousand years. As such the Demon Emperor became a figure that has been loved and revered by the citizens of the Illusory Demon Realm through the generations.”
“If Duke Huai forces the Little Demon Empress to abdicate so he can take her place, then there would be rejoicing throughout the land only if the Demon Emperor bloodline had always led the people to calamity and caused them to undergo unspeakable hardships. But it just so happens that it is the opposite of that scenario, so if Duke Huai truly did that, all he would invite would be the wrath, rebellion, and rebuke of the people of the Illusory Demon Realm! Even if the power that Duke Huai holds is one thousand times what he has right now, how could he afford to provoke the burning wrath of the seventy billion citizens of the Illusory Demon Realm? This is the main reason Duke Huai is has never dared to make any hasty moves.”
“Ah, so this’s how it is.” Yun Che said as he lapsed into a momentary daze, “So what action will Duke Huai actually take?”
“He will definitely create a reason that is sufficiently adequate, a reason that will cause all the people to be convinced during this grand ceremony.” Yun Qinghong said with a grave expression, “The Little Demon Empress has always been very clear about Duke Huai’s disloyalty but she has never taken any actions against him because she does not want to give him something that he can use, like saying ‘her nature is brutal and vicious and that she harmed other members of the royalty for no rhyme or reason’. So during today’s events, the reason that he will concoct will be fairly simple… for example, he will implicate the Little Demon Empress in a few rumors that would cause all the people to rise up in fury, scandals that he himself has created, of course! And they will be the most vicious and evil of rumors possible… Such as promiscuity, harming her loyal citizens and even feasting on the innards of children.”
Yun Che’s eyebrows slanted fiercely and he said in a low voice, “And if these kinds of rumors were to be shouted out by a single person, no one would pay any attention… but if half of the Guardian Families and half of the royalty support these rumors and join their voices to rebuke the Little Demon Empress, then all these people who have arrived from all over the Illusory Demon Realm won’t have a reason to doubt such lies! Furthermore, the public opinion will be manipulated in such a way that it will create universal fury throughout the lands. Thus, the Little Demon Empress’ reputation would be completely swept away and she would even become a villain in the eyes of the public… Once that happens, it would only be logical that Duke Huai succeeds the position, and it will even be done with the full support of the people!”
“That’s right!” Yun Qinghong said as he nodded his head with a heavy expression. Because once he noticed the strange seating arrangements, he immediately saw through all of Duke Huai’s thoughts.
“So does Father have a plan to help the Little Demon Empress avert this calamity?” Yun Che asked in a serious voice.
Yun Qinghong lapsed into a momentary silence, and then slowly said, “The plan is actually fairly simple, but now that seven Guardian Families and the majority the royalty have sided with Duke Huai, it will be even harder to realize it, nearly impossible in fact.”
“What is the plan?” Yun Che asked swiftly.
“The plan is that we incline the hearts of the heroes gathered towards the Little Demon Empress before Duke Huai can begin his scheme, so as to not allow his people to voice out the accusations they had already prepared…”
As Yun Qinghong finished speaking, he gave a long exhalation and he shut his eyes. It was clear that he was bitterly pondering how he should face and deal with the coming scenario.
Yun Che silently considered Yun Qinghong’s words and he was also drawn into deep thought. After a while, he suddenly opened his mouth and said, “Father, once the grand ceremony starts, no matter what I do, I hope that Father does not stop me.”
Yun Qinghong opened his eyes and gazed at him deeply. But he did not ask what he was going to do exactly, instead he simply nodded his head silently. And in the midst of those eyes which were as deep as the sea, laid the trust that a father had in his son, a trust that needed no reasons.
“The—— Little—— Demon—— Empress—— Has—— Arrived!!”
At that moment, a reverberating, earsplitting voice filled the Demon Imperial Hall and the originally noisy grand hall immediately fell into a hush. It was so quiet that one could hear the sound of pin dropping. Every single person raised their head to the skies and gazed at the sky above the grand hall.
Chapter 540: She’s the Little Demon Empress?!
The sky above the hall was suddenly wreathed in the light of flames as a gigantic three-legged Golden Crow appeared amidst the fiery sky. Its wings were spread wide and it let out a long cry which tore through the air. After this, the three-legged Golden Crow descended from the flames and as it descended, it left a long scarlet curtain of fire in its wake. The fire curtain descended from the top of the hall all the way to where the Emperor’s throne was. Once the three-legged Golden Crow touched the ground, it disappeared. Behind the curtain of fire, a blurry figure could vaguely be seen seated on that throne.
Everyone within the great hall uniformly rose from their seats; Yun Che was also pulled up by Yun Qinghong. After which, everyone present knelt on the ground.
“We respectfully welcome the Little Demon Empress!!”
Every single person who had to privilege to be invited to the Demon Imperial Hall were undoubtedly the strongest of the strong. The sound of one hundred thousand overlaying voices rising in reverence produced such a vastly powerful sound that it caused the ears of the weaker profound practitioners to reverberate, while also causing their internal organs to churn. And if this was just some normal hall, the power of these voices could cause it to vibrate until it collapsed.
“Everyone, you may rise.” A severe voice rang out from behind the curtain of flames.
Everyone returned to their seats and when Yun Che returned to his seat, a look of suspicion crossed his face: This voice… why does it seem so familiar to me? I’ve clearly never seen the Little Demon Empress before.
Following the descent of the Little Demon Empress, the hall became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop; a heavy atmosphere seemed to envelope every corner of the hall. At this time, the figures of two tall women slowly surfaced from behind the curtain of flame. The two women had features that were both pretty and solemn; one of them was human while the other was a demon, and both exuded the powerful aura of the Tyrant Profound Realm. They extended their hands at the same time and took hold of the fire curtain. After which, they slowly pulled the burning curtain of flames to the left and the right, revealing the figure of the Little Demon Empress.
Yun Che had always held a deep curiosity regarding just what kind of person the Little Demon Empress was. So after the curtain of flames had been parted, he steadily stared at the figure which was seated on the throne. Her appearance was exactly as Xiao Yun had described, she was wearing grey clothing and she was not adorned in the imperial splendor expected of a ruler. More
over, her figure seemed exceptionally tiny, and at first glance, she seemed to have the body of a little girl, but once he could see her features clearly…
Yun Che’s eyes widened instantly and his body swiftly withdrew to the back as he placed his body behind Yun Qinghong.
“Eh, Big Brother, what’s up with you?” Xiao Yun hurriedly asked as he noticed Yun Che’s sudden strangeness.
“She… She… She… She’s the Little Demon Empress?!” Yun Che stammered as his tongue tied itself into a knot, as his teeth started chattering.
“That’s right.” Xiao Yun automatically replied as he nodded his head, “Big Brother, you seem to be really strange right now… Could it be that you’ve already seen the Little Demon Empress before?”
“But… Didn’t you tell me that the Little Demon Empress looked terrifying and that her face was fierce and forbidding?! This Little Demon Empress looks completely different from the way you described her!” If this place was not the venue of the grand ceremony, Yun Che would’ve roared at Xiao Yun until saliva sprayed his face.
The Little Demon Empress was swathed in grey clothes, but underneath all of that loose grey cloth lay an exquisite and delicate body. Both her eyes were as gloomy as the night sky and they emitted a coldness that seemed like icy knives. However, her features were exquisite and beautiful, and they seemed to be carved from snow and ice.
This was clearly the grey-robed little girl whom he had seen outside Demon Imperial City three nights ago. She was also the person who had nearly killed him!!
That little girl… was actually the Little Demon Empress!
That she was the Little Demon Empress was nothing much… What was more important was that on that night, in her ignorance, she showed her naked body to Yun Che… and Yun Che had observed every single part of her body; he had even continued to look for fifteen minutes…
And the most important thing was that after he got caught by her, even his face was recorded in her memory!
Is this some kind of cruel and unusual joke the heavens are playing on me?!
Yun Xiao had an innocent expression on his face, “I did say that the Little Demon Empress was very scary, oh… I also recall telling you that I didn’t dare to look directly at her face. What I really meant was that the Little Demon Empress’ aura, gaze and temperament was extremely terrifying. Every time I saw her, my heart would start beating wildly and a chill would run down my spine. But I never said that the Little Demon Empress’ features were scary. After all, everyone recognizes her as the number one beauty in the Illusory Demon Realm.”
“~!@#…” Yun Che suddenly had the urge to throttle Xiao Yun to death, ”That last sentence… Such an important piece of information, why didn’t you tell me that day?!”
Xiao Yun’s neck contracted and his expression grew even more innocent, “You… You didn’t ask me what the Little Demon Empress looked like, Moreover… I felt that this information was not really that important at all.”
Yun Che smacked his forehead as he choked on his words silently.
But now that he thought back to that day, when Xiao Yun called the Little Demon Empress ‘terrifying’ and ‘scary’, he was referring to the feeling she gave off, and he definitely did not say that her features were scary. But the way he described it made it very easy for one to think of a sinister, fierce and forbidding face that people would not dare to look at. Furthermore, since she was even older than his father Yun Qinghong, she should definitely be a middle-aged lady…
So with the description provided by Xiao Yun, he definitely would not be able to connect the Little Demon Empress to a little girl who did not look a day over fifteen!
And even though she was also dressed all in grey, it did not tell you anything, because it was far too normal for those who worshipped the Little Demon Empress to imitate her style of dressing… And even though she used the Golden Crow’s flames… all of the Illusory Demon Royal Family could also use the flames of the Golden Crow…
Right now, Yun Che was tangled into a complete mess… this scenario was simply too stimulating.
Before this, he was calmly thinking of how he and his father could solve the crisis that the Little Demon Empress would encounter during this grand ceremony, but now… the one who faced the greatest danger was actually himself!
Whether he could walk out of this place alive today was totally an unknown quantity right now.
He had actually seen the stately Little Demon Empress naked… this kind of charge perhaps could not be cleared even if he had his head chopped off ten thousands times. After all, this was the Little Demon Empress who had been officially wed to the Little Demon Emperor as it was witnessed by all; this was the ruler of the entire Illusory Demon Realm.
Yun Qinghong shot a glance at Yun Che. His face was filled with suspicion, but just as he was about to ask, the Little Demon Empress slowly rose from her throne.
“From the time this empress had succeeded her husband’s position, in the blink of an eye, it has already been one hundred years. In these hundred years, even though I have been unable to make any great contributions to our people, at the same time, I have also have not led our people into chaos and disaster. So it could be said that I have acquitted myself adequately in this task that my royal father and husband has entrusted to me.”
“The Hundred Year Reign Ceremony is normally an occasion of great celebration, but this time it is different. This empress has reigned for one hundred years, and it has been one hundred years since my royal father and husband have passed away. Even though one hundred years have passed, I have not yet been able to avenge my royal father, nor husband! Under this hatred and enmity, what is joy is there? What is worth celebrating?”
“Thus, during this grand ceremony, there will be no singing and dancing, no praise and acclamation, and no one will be allowed to present tribute. Today we will only speak of the events that have happened over my hundred year reign and of our plans for next hundred years.”
If one observed the features of the Little Demon Empress, one would discover that she was so beautiful, even the sun and the moon paled in comparison. But accompanying those beautiful features was a heavy oppressive aura which could overturn both heaven and earth… Even if she was a ruler, this kind of oppressive aura was simply too heavy. It was so heavy that it was sufficient to cause a powerhouse of the profound world to have difficulty breathing when they faced her.
This kind of oppression, which was terrifying enough to cause one’s heart to palpitate, was completely enough to cover up her breathtaking looks.
She stood in front of the throne, coldly surveying the one hundred thousand experts of the Illusory Demon Realm gathered here, and began to slowly speak. Every word that proceeded from her mouth was ear-splitting to the point where one might go deaf; each word contained the power to completely shake one’s heart and soul. Every large force in the hall did not only have great strength, they also held key responsibilities within the Illusory Demon Realm, but every single one of them bent their heads and silently listened; no one dared to raise their head to look directly at her, and not a single disrespectful movement was made.
A girl who only looked like she was fifteen at most… and she was even recognized as the number one beauty in the Illusory Demon Realm… Yet she was the ruler of the billions of citizens within the Illusory Demon Realm!!
For the Yun Che who had ‘seen’ the Little Demon Empress for ‘the first time’, the impact it had on his spirit and eyes was undoubtedly extremely big.
The Little Demon Empress raised her right arm and her broad grey sleeve hung down to expose her snowy and tender palm, while also revealing a part of her white jade arm. The maid who was standing to her right slowly stepped forward, bending her head as she presented a small scarlet wine cup.
The Little Demon Empress slowly picked up the wine cup, and the audience hurriedly scrambled to pick up the wine cups that were prepared for them. Once they had done so, they held the wine cup in clasped hands and held
them out towards the Little Demon Empress.
“Today’s grand ceremony will begin with this cup of wine!” The Little Demon Empress raised her hand to the sky and she wore an expression of such majesty on her young and girlish face that no one could despise her.
“This cup, is to first salute our Illusory Demon Realm!”
“To secondly salute all the ancestors of the line of the Demon Emperor!”
“And to thirdly salute all of you who are gathered here today! All of you are the cornerstones, pillars and walls of my Illusory Demon Realm and for the past one hundred years, this empress has completely relied on your strength to assist me… This empress will make the first toast to show my respect!”
As the Little Demon Empress’ voice fell, she had already raised her head high to drink the wine in her cup.
“Thank you, Little Demon Empress!”
All the people gathered were terrified without exception, and they hastily drank the wine in their cups in panic, not daring to leave even a single drop. There were some who were so excited that their hands began to shake, because in the Hundred Year Reign Ceremony, it has always been them who toasted the Demon Emperor first. But this time, it was the Little Demon Empress who made the first toast, and this naturally filled them with extreme terror.
The Little Demon Empress set down her wine cup and surveyed the people once more. Those eyes which were already filled with a heavy aura of death suddenly released a bone-piercing coldness. She asked in a bland voice, “Who was it that planned today’s seating arrangements?”
Everyone in the great hall immediately held their breaths; those who were not in the know looked at each other helplessly while the faces of those who dwelt in the Demon Imperial City suddenly changed… The seating arrangements of the Twelve Families had been constant for ten thousand years, and everyone did not doubt that the Little Demon Empress could tell the problem of this grand ceremony’s seating arrangements with one glance. But no one had guessed that a mere second after she had toasted all the heroes and important ministers of the land, she would, in front of all who were present, suddenly inquire regarding this matter in the middle of this grand ceremony.