by Mars Gravity
Fang Feilong, second level of the Spirit Profound Realm; Feng Bufan, third level of the Spirit Profound Realm; Fen Juechen, fifth level of the Spirit Profound Realm…” Cang Yue softly read through the names on the list of names once. She asked in a somewhat absentminded manner: “So it just happens to be the top three on the Inner Palace’s Heavenly Profound Ranking. If I remember correctly, when I returned to the palace eight months ago, Fang Feilong and Feng Bufan were already twenty years old. Will they be over the age limit?”
“Regarding this point, Your Highness can be at ease. Fang Feilong and Feng Bufan are both about a month away from reaching twenty one years of age, and therefore, both are within the twenty year old age limit. I even used the Profound Assessment Stone to test the age of their bones, and it showed that both are still twenty years old.” Qin Wushang said respectfully.
Chapter 195: The Return
“Fen Juechen is from the Burning Heaven Clan and is also their Clan Master’s son. If he represents the Blue Wind Profound Palace in the tournament, we would undoubtedly be criticized. Furthermore, even if he manages to get into the top hundred and defeat Fen Juebi, no one would recognize him as a representative of Blue Wind Profound Palace and accept our Palace’s ranking. Instead, we would be mocked. Father would definitely not feel proud about this… What do you think, Palace Chief Qin?” Cang Yue calmly said.
“What you said is definitely true Princess. It would definitely bring us large amounts of criticism and mocking,” Qin Wushang nodded, and continued helplessly: “However, the only reason Fen Juechen entered our Profound Palace was so he could participate in this year’s Blue Wind Ranking Tournament . He wishes to rank higher than Fen Juebi in order to avenge his shame. This point, the third prince had also specifically instructed before. Furthermore, he indeed is a Profound Palace disciple. If we kick him out, I’m afraid…”
“Since that’s the case, then let’s just let it be. I will explain to father.” Cang Yue took the namelist over and replied. Her tone was casual and weak as though she did not care about this namelist or even this year’s Blue Wind Ranking Tournament.
Cang Yue’s reaction made Qin Wushang sigh again. He bowed and said: “All shall be as Princess has arranged. We are only three days from the tournament. Shall we set off tomorrow morning? What time would be more appropriate for you, Princess?”
“Me?” Cang Yue shook her head and replied dejectedly: “I had forgotten to inform you earlier Palace Chief Qin. I won’t be going for this year’s Blue Wind Ranking Tournament. I would have to trouble Palace Chief Qin and Palace Chief Dongfang to bring the team this time.”
“Ahhh? This…” Although Palace Chief Qin could have guessed Cang Yue’s reaction from the way she acted, hearing the cold words straight from her mouth still made his heart fall. With a dark expression he continued: “But Princess, Palace Chief Dongfang had always been hard to track down. Ever since his majesty became sick, he rarely stayed in the Palace. More than a year ago, he left the Palace on a tour, and no one has seen him ever since. Not even the Sound Transmission Talisman could contact him.”
“Furthermore, even if Palace Chief Dongfang was able to get back in time, me and him bringing the team there would be highly inappropriate. Blue Wind Ranking Tournament is the most prestigious tournament in the country and is held by one of the top ten sects in the world. The people attending are all of the status of at least Sect Elders. There are even sects where the Sect Masters themselves personally bring the teams in. Our Palace has always brought a prince or princess to lead the team. If we were to send a Palace Chief this time, it would likely cause the other sects to feel that we are looking down on them. The Heavenly Sword Villa might even hold grudges against us.”
“His Majesty’s body is unwell and he cannot move around much. The princes are all involved in the battle for power and therefore would not concern themselves with this. Therefore, we can only trouble you, Princess. Three years ago, our Blue Wind Profound Palace merely ranked two hundred and twenty three, but your elegant demeanor stunned the entire crowd, completely overshadowing out pathetic results. This time, we have no choice but to trouble you again. If not… I really do not know what to do.”
During the previous few Blue Wind Ranking Tournaments, the Blue Wind Emperor himself personally brought the team to the tournament. But now, he was sick and unable to do so. Despite the power struggle within the family, the princes all know the importance of this event. However, the Palace’s results were always pathetic and going to Heavenly Sword Villa would only cause them to be embarrassed. Therefore, none of them were willing to go for it. That was why Cang Yue had to bring the team to the Blue Wind Ranking Tournament three years ago.
This year’s predicament was the same one as the one three years ago. Qin Wushang knew that the only one he could rely upon was Cang Yue.
Yun Che’s matter, had already caused Cang Yue to become dejected and devastated. There were even several times when she felt absolute despair. She really had no more intention to bother with anything concerning the Blue Wind Ranking Tournament. However, hearing what Qin Wushang had said, Cang Yue knew that she did not have any choice. She had to consider the reputation of the imperial family and the relationship with Heavenly Sword Villa. She nodded slightly and closed her eyes: “I know… Prepare the flying profound beasts. We will leave tomorrow morning.”
“Yes.” Qin Wushang finally heaved a sigh of relief.
——————————————————
The next morning, Blue Wind Profound Palace Inner Palace.
The sky was already bright and it was silent in the Inner Palace. Although it was still early, most of disciples had already entered the Profound Gathering Tower. In the Inner Palace, disciples usually woke up and entered the Profound Gathering Tower before sunrise. Some even stayed inside the tower for several days and nights. Inside the tower, every second of cultivation was extremely precious and disciples did not dare waste it. After leaving Blue Wind Imperial Palace, it was nearly impossible for them to enter the tower ever again.
In front of Supreme Profound Hall, three Giant Snow Eagles stood majestically; every one of them emitted a faint cool aura. With the Giant Snow Eagle’s speed, they were able to travel up to several thousand kilometers a day. It would take them at most two days to reach Heavenly Sword Villa. Beside the Giant Snow Eagles was Qin Wushang, who was already waiting there. To his right were two Inner Palace disciples who looked around twenty years old. They looked average, but their eyes held glints of arrogance. They stared at each other with obvious signs of enmity.
These two, were the Inner Palace’s second and third ranked disciples, Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong respectively. Although the two of them were only twenty, there were the idols of all the disciples in the Profound Palace. Even the entire Blue Wind Imperial City knew of them and recognized them as geniuses The crown prince and the third prince also favored them and people expected them to be of great power in the future. Having such achievements at such a young age made ninety-nine percent of the youths in the city comparably envious. This naturally fueled their ego and made them arrogant.
Since they had pledged their allegiance to the crown prince and the third prince factions respectively, they naturally as incompatible as fire and water. Not only did they see each other with enmity, their words were also full of insults and mockery.
Finally, Cang Yue had arrived. She did not wear anything special, nor did she put on makeup. She had also not brought along anyone as she arrived alone.
Qin Wushang went forward hastily: “Good morning Your Highness. Princess, you…… Why are you alone? Why is there no one protecting you?”
Cang Yue forced a smile and shook her head: “There’s no need. When going to Heavenly Sword Villa, it is better to have less people than to have more. Also, we have you here Palace Chief Qin…… Aren’t these two Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong?”
Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong came forward to greet the princess. Although they were
courteous, they did not have the fear and agitation commoners usually had when they encountered royalty. After following the crown prince and the third prince, they knew that Blue Wind Princess held very little weight in the contest for power. She did not have any influence and merely held the title of princess. Perhaps her only influence was the influence still held by the current emperor —— Which also included this the Profound Palace. When the current emperor passed away, the fight for power between the crown prince and third prince would be concluded. At that time, the fate of the princess would also be decided. Even if she was not sought after by Burning Heaven Clan, Cang Lin or Cang Shuo would definitely use her as bargaining chips in order to obtain benefits.
“Where’s Fen Juechen?” Cang Yue looked around and asked.
Qin Wushang shook his head helplessly: “Yesterday, I already informed Fen Juechen of the time. However, we have already waited for an hour and he still has not arrived. Fen Juechen was highly arrogant and does not wait for people. Perhaps he will arrive at towards the end of the morning. Other than that, everything is already prepared. Princess can rest assured.”
“Palace Chief Qin arranged everything personally. Of course, I’m not worried.” Cang Yue replied coolly: “Since that’s the case, let us wait here for a while more. If he still doesn’t arrive by the end of the morning, there’s no need to wait any longer.”
Cang Yue had not wanted Fen Juechen to represent their Palace in the ranking tournament. Naturally, she did not have much patience with him.
“Yes.” Qin Wushang replied respectfully. However, he was certain that Fen Juechen would arrive before morning ended. Because he trained tirelessly in the Profound Palace all for the chance to defeat Fen Juebi during the Blue Wind Ranking Tournament, to make up for his previous shame. About a year before the tournament, he started cultivating vigorously in the Profound Gathering Tower. He trained like a madman everyday in order to raise his profound strength and profound arts. And in barely one year, he directly stepped over from the first level of the Spirit Profound Realm to the fifth level of the Spirit Profound Realm today… Such an wild improvement made Qin Wushang nervous. It also made him believe that in terms of talent, Fen Juechen did not lose to Fen Juebi, and even exceeded him greatly!
As they were speaking, a figure appeared at the entrance of the inner palace, walking casually in.
“Oh, looks like Fen Juechen is here.” The figure from far away startled Qin Wushang slightly as he spoke to Princess Cang Yue. But immediately, he knitted his eyebrows as his face revealed deep shock.
As the figure approached, he could be seen more clearly. It was a youth of seventeen or eighteen, wearing a simple white shirt that had been stained with travel dust and dew. It looked as though he had been rushing through the night. He did not give off any arrogance —— at least not the type of arrogance Fen Juechen had. With a smart looking clean and white face, he did not possess any of the overbearing aura profound practitioners, and looked more like a sheltered young man.
That person was not Fen Juechen.
He was the Yun Che who had rushed day and night to get back.
From the center of the Wasteland of Death, Yun Che took an entire eleven days to get out. In these eleven days, every step he took was dangerous, especially in the Sky Profound Beast and Earth Profound Beast territories. Every step he took was cautious and difficult. He met with no less than a hundred times of fatal danger. However, he avoided them all. Just like this, only using his strength that was only in the True Profound Realm, he manage to escape half of the Sky Profound Beast territory and escaped from the Wasteland of Death. Then, he rushed day and night, and finally in six days, he finally arrived at Blue Wind Imperial Palace this morning.
Arriving back in Blue Wind Imperial Palace, the first person he saw was Qin Wuyou…… And Qin Wuyou’s expression when he saw him was like seeing a ghost in midday. He then understood that his entering of the Wasteland of Death had already spread around and many thought he had died in the Wasteland of Death.
After that, he heard from Qin Wuyou that the team going to the Blue Wind Ranking Tournament at Heavenly Sword Villa was about to depart. Therefore, he abandoned Qin Wuyou and rushed to the palace at top speed.
When he arrived, he saw the stunned Qin Wushang and Cang Yue.
“Palace Chief Qin, Senior Sister, it’s been awhile… I’m back.” Yun Che stood in front of them and said while smiling.
Chapter 196: Instant Defeat
“Ju… Junior Brother Yun!!”
Cang Yue immediately covered her lips, and looked at the figure that was easily within her reach in disbelief. Instantly, her vision became hazy, making her feel as if she had plummeted into the realm of dreams. Waves of dizziness had even emerged in her brain.
She took a step forward, and even though she forcefully endured the impulse to dive into his embrace, she could not suppress the tears on her face that gushed out no matter what. Looking at Yun Che and suppressing her weeping sound, she tried to speak; but she was already crying to the point of being unable to utter any sound, and couldn’t even voice out a coherent sentence.
Yun Che walked to Cang Yue’s front. Without minding Qin Wushang and the other two people on the side, he reached out his hand, gently wiped away the teardrops on her face and said with an aching heart: “Sorry, Senior sister, I have worried you.”
The voice belonging to Yun Che was like the most gentle of wind and reverberated within Cang Yue’s ears. She had thought she would never hear his voice ever again in her entire life. She grasped Yun Che’s hand. Her tears from joy and surprise could not stop as she said while weeping: “I… I had thought… had thought… never again… never again….”
“I didn’t tell Senior Sister that the place I went to was the Wasteland of Death, and it is my fault… However, I’ve returned safely; not a single hair is missing.” Yun Che comforted her while smiling: “Before I left, I had promised Senior Sister I would return within half a year. Even though I was almost late, at least I did not break my promise with Senior sister. Senior sister, don’t cry anymore… No matter where I go from now on, I’ll definitely tell you honestly, and never again let you worry for me.”
Cang Yue’s tears, Yun Che’s whispers… Even if one were an idiot, they would still be able to clearly tell their relationship at this moment. Leaving aside Qin Wushang, who had noticed inklings of this long ago, as Qin Wuyou had also secretly hinted toward him a few times; even though he was somewhat awkward and uncomfortable just watching from the side like that, it was still acceptable. But for Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong, their expressions were much more interesting… Yun Che was someone of broad interest half a year ago; they have also heard news of his death in the Wasteland of Death. Following beside the Crown Prince and the Third Prince, they had also occasionally heard that Blue Moon Princess and Yun Che were somewhat close. But at this time, they were seeing the two’s drifting tears and exposed emotions up close and personal…
Whether Yun Che was dead or alive, wasn’t any urgent concern to them. After all, he was merely a small character in their eyes, and at most, merely had a decent influence within the younger generation in addition to having had the attention of Crown Prince and Third Prince before. But Cang Yue… she was the one and only princess within the Blue Wind Empire’s Imperial Family! And the identity that was even more important —— She was also the woman that Feng Juecheng fancied!
After Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong had finished being surprised, their gazes toward Yun Che instantly had a few more degrees of pity: Putting aside the Blue Moon Princess identity, if Feng Juecheng hears of this Yun Che who dared to taint the woman that he fancied, even if the entire Blue Wing Profound Palace were to cover for him, he would still certainly die an incomparably miserable death, and there definitely would not be a second outcome.
Glancing at Qin Wushang and the two people with abnormal expressions, Yun Che squeezed Cang Yue’s hand, took a step forward and said: “Palace Chief Qin, I had left the prof
ound palace unnoticed on my own accord half a year ago, and I wish for Palace Chief’s forgiveness.”
“Haha, it’s good as long as you returned, well and safe.” Qin Wushang smiled benevolently. Seeing Yun Che’s safe return, he was also truly joyous in his heart. At least, Princess Cang Yue would no longer continue to have an ashen heart be sad to the point of despair. He slightly nodded and said: “Oh! It also seems, that the fruit borne from your half year of training is very shocking. Your current profound strength rank is now… Hm? What!! True Profound Realm ten… Tenth rank? This this this….”
He had originally felt that the profound energy’s aura Yun Che faintly emitted was much more profound and thick than half a year ago, and thus he was very pleased. But only when he truly examined it, did he finally find out with extreme shock, that his profound strength level had actually already reached the tenth level of True Profound Realm!
When he last saw Yun Che, it was six month ago. At that time, during his showdown with Murong Yi, his profound strength was only at the second level of the True Profound Realm… With six months of time, he actually consecutively crossed eight levels!!
“True Profound… tenth level? Ah?” Cang Yue turned back her face that still had tears hanging on it, and spoke with a tone that was both shocked and delighted: “Junior Brother Yun, is that true…. Your profound strength really has already reached the peak of True Profound Realm?”
Qin Wushang’s words, made the expression of both Feng Bufan and Fang Feilong change. They immediately probed for Yun Che’s profound strength; the result they got, made their expression change greatly again, and the shock in their hearts was at their limit. About the matter of him battling Murong Yi half a year ago, they naturally knew about it, and also knew Yun Che’s profound strength at that time…. But a leap of such an extent, jumping eight ranks consecutively in six month’s time, they had never even heard of such a case before.