by Mars Gravity
Ling Yuefeng’s respectful posture belied his fear. He personally served tea to his two distinguished guests… It was a hundred year old collection known as the Swordgreen Tea, a tea so precious that he would usually be unwilling to drink it.
“It is a pleasant surprise that both uncles are here. You should have notified Yufeng in advance so that I could welcome you along with my husband.”
Compared to Ling Yuefeng, Xuanyuan Yufeng was more at ease. Although the two distinguished guests present were indeed her uncles in terms of seniority, both of them had showered her with tender loving care when she was young.
The two people appeared to be past their fifties, but their hair and beards were still black. The man on the left wore a green gown, had a medium build, and wore a cheerful expression. The one on the right wore a gray gown, was slightly taller than the other, and had a thick beard that reached his chest. He similarly had a warm expression. If one were to look purely at their appearance, they were both simply two gentle, middle-aged men, but to sword expert Ling Yuefeng, he could sense gusts of cold from them… Even though they were just sitting there, their profound energy suppressed, a formless sword energy shrouded them. The sword energy was majestic, as if were a boundless, immeasurably deep ocean.
Their eyebrows were shaped, pointing upwards as if two sharp swords were stabbing into the sky, and instilled fear in others.
“Hoho.” The elder dressed in green said with a mild smile, “The two of us were instructed by the Sword Master to make a trip to the Black Fiend Nation, and before we departed, Ninth Elder made a request. Once we settled matters in Black Fiend Nation, we made a detour here.”
Xuanyuan Yufeng stepped forward and said, “This must be an important task since the Sword Master himself gave these instructions, and it was personally attended to by both elders. With such an important matter on hand, both elders still made a detour to visit us. We are certainly honored.”
The elder dressed in gray stroked his long beard and said with a mild smile, “ Not at all. We are obliged to fulfill Ninth Elder’s request. Yuefeng can be considered a part of our Sword Region, and Yufeng is all the more so. Both of you should ease up on the formality, hohohoho.”
“For my father-in-law to have requested both elders to come personally… should he have any instructions, Yuefeng will be happy to fulfill them.” Ling Yuefeng said respectfully. If it was three years ago, he would not have dared to say “father-in-law,” but he was now used to it.
“It’s nothing that important.” The elder in green said with a dull smile, “Ninth Elder likes Ling Jie very much. Ever since he left the Sword Region to return here, Ninth Elder has missed him daily even though it has been less than half a year. He instructed us to bring Ling Jie on our way back once we settled issues in Black Fiend Nation.”
“If neither of you have anything important to attend to, it would be best to return with us.” The elder in gray continued, “Ninth Elder rarely smiles, but he is always overjoyed when he reunites with all of you.”
Ling Yuefeng and Xuanyuan Yufeng smiled at each other, their faces revealing joy. Xuanyuan Yufeng and her father Xuanyuan Jue had originally “severed” their ties, but Xuanyuan Yufeng was the only daughter of Xuanyuan Jue after all. After some time, the anger subsided. Although he missed his daughter, it was difficult for him to admit it because of his pride. Three years ago, when both husband and wife brought Ling Yun and Ling Jie back to the sword region, the strained relationship began to soften… Furthermore, Xuanyuan Jue liked Ling Jie so much that not only had he personally guided him in swordplay, but he also spent a generous amount of the sword region’s resources on him. This helped Ling Jie’s profound strength and sword art to improve tremendously in the past few years.
The main reason for Xuanyuan Jue’s relationship with the husband and wife softening so much over the past three years could be attributed to Ling Jie.
Xuanyuan Yufeng smiled and was just about to accept when, suddenly, a deep, thunderous voice boomed from outside.
“Xuanyuan Yufeng, come on out!!”
*OverTheRanbow: This is a stupid 4th wall break joke because of the proverb 秦晋之好, which refers to an alliance sealed by marriage between Qin and Jin Dynasty in the real world’s chinese history. Obviously Yun Che had never heard of such dynasties because they do not exist in the ATG world, so he’s reacting to it.
Chapter 756: Condemnation
“This stretch of mountain was conferred on Heavenly Sword Villa by the Blue Wind Royal Family a thousand years ago. Since then, it has been renamed as the Heavenly Sword Mountain Range. The summit of the tallest mountain is known as the Summit of Cloud Piercing Sword, and it is also the highest peak in Blue Wind Nation.”
From a bird’s eye view, Yun Che introduced the area in detail to Feng Xue’er. When he first arrived at Heavenly Sword Villa years ago, he was awed by the Heavenly Sword Mountain Range with its surging sword aura. Coupled with the Heavenly Sword Mountain Range’s reputation, a reverence was naturally born in his heart.
This time however, when he faced Heavenly Sword Villa once again, he felt mildly scornful. This feeling of scorn definitely did not emerge from him being strong and looking down on the weak. It was contempt birthed from his heart for all of Heavenly Sword Villa!
When he first arrived at Heavenly Sword Villa six years ago, it never crossed his mind that Heavenly Sword Villa of Blue Wind, in all its tremendous overshadowing power and magnificence, would land in such a sorry plight when faced with Blue Wind Nation’s difficulty and Frozen Cloud’s crisis.
“Big Brother Yun, I’d like to know, how do you plan to deal with Heavenly Sword Villa with your visit this time?” Feng Xue’er asked gently, her words imbued with worry, “Are you going to just to teach them a small lesson, or go… go…”
He had previously damaged Phoenix City into a complete mess. As for Heavenly Sword Villa… to the current Yun Che, even if he wished to demolish them, it was not going to cost him much effort.
Yun Che was slightly startled by Feng Xue’er’s question. He lifted his gaze and his vision was filled with the surrounding range of mountains around the villa. He said regretfully: “Perhaps I’m here solely to vent my anger. Although Heavenly Sword Villa was morally despicable because of their betrayal, they were able to preserve their Heavenly Sword Villa’s thousand year foundation. Besides, selfishness is human nature. Thinking from this angle, I have constantly attempted to absolve Heavenly Sword Villa during this period, but in the end… I still cannot forgive Heavenly Sword Villa. Since they chose to betray the trust placed in them, they naturally have to bear the consequences of that betrayal. Back then, both the Blue Wind Imperial Family and Heavenly Sword Villa pledged to survive or perish together. With this catastrophe that Blue Wind has suffered through, Heavenly Sword Villa has no right to escape unscathed after their betrayal!!”
“And… even if I were magnanimous enough to forgive Heavenly Sword Villa, Little Fairy’s matter… simply cannot be overlooked!”
Recalling the incident involving Chu Yuechan, Yun Che’s peaceful mindset abruptly emanated an aura of viciousness… with this nascent aura, he became irascible and uncontrollable. Ever since Zi Ji disseminated the “free” information of the mastermind behind Chu Yuechan’s incident, the formerly fading memory of the name “Xuanyuan Yufeng” was brutally nailed into his heart and soul with bitter vengeance.
“Big Brother Yun…” Feng Xue’er instantly sensed the change in Yun Che’s emotions. She turned her face and looked at him with bright and clear eyes. Whenever the name “Little Fairy” was mentioned, his breathing and aura became agitated. Now at Heavenly Sword Villa, the aura he suddenly emanated was frighteningly maniacal, his gaze turned terrifying.
During the past three months of constant day and night companionship, Feng Xue’er’s initial surprise and anxiety gradually changed to understanding… Towards Chu Yuechan, Yun Che held deep affections, worry, yearning, guilt… and fear, of not seeing her again. That was wh
y whenever he mentioned her, or thought of her, he would fall into a state of agitation for a long period of time.
Grabbing Feng Xue’er’s hand, Yun Che hastened down towards Heavenly Sword Villa. At the same time, a deep, somber voice with a ruthless aura encompassed Heavenly Sword Villa, and even the entire Heavenly Sword Mountains Range.
“Xuanyuan Yufeng, come on out!!”
Yun Che’s profound strength was robust and powerful; a frisson of shock ran through the dignified sword aura surrounding Heavenly Sword Villa purely from his roar. The several thousand swords dancing in the Sword Management Terrace became chaotic. All at once, the originally tranquil and solemn Heavenly Sword Villa was thrown into turmoil. Almost all disciples, pavilion masters, sword attendants and elders rushed out in rage, as if facing their nemesis.
After all, no one has ever dared to provoke Heavenly Sword Villa since their establishment a thousand years ago.
“Heavenly Sword Villa seems to have two incredible guests today.” Jasmine said suddenly.
“Incredible… guests?” Yun Che frowned.
“Two level six Monarchs, one mid-stage, and one late-stage. Seems like you won’t be getting your way today.” Jasmine said lightly.
“Level six Monarchs?” Yun Che startled slightly but did not express any worry and sneered instead, “Don’t tell me they’re from Mighty Heavenly Sword Region? Heh, it looks like I’ve come at the wrong time. Heavenly Sword Villa is really clinging on to whoever is backing them for dear life.”
Yun Che suddenly recalled a conversation he had with Ling Jie three years ago in Phoenix City, when he met the latter unexpectedly after the Profound Sky Seven Nation Ranking Tournament…
“Back in the day, mother chose father over grandfather, causing grandfather to be furious. A few days back, father and mother brought big brother and I to Mighty Heavenly Sword Region to meet grandfather. Mother and grandfather finally resolved their differences. Eh… grandfather even seemed to like me a lot, and even said that he would personally teach me the complete Heaven’s Might Absolute Sword, hehe…”
“…” Yun Che’s expression subtly turned complicated.
Yun Che did not conceal himself, but blatantly showed up above Heavenly Sword Villa, coldly staring down.
There were many shadows scurrying around in Heavenly Sword Villa. Directly below Yun Che, a silhouette accompanied by a cold, dense sword aura shot upwards and appeared in front of him in a split second… It was Ling Yuefeng. At the same time, a number of Heavenly Sword pavilion masters and elders, wielding profound strength in the Earth Profound Realm and above followed hot on his heels, quickly falling into their battle formation and surrounding Yun Che and Feng Xue’er.
“Yun Che, it’s really you.” Ling Yuefeng’s expression became especially complex when he saw Yun Che, and he said with a mild smile, “You came later than I expected.”
Indeed, he had predicted that this day would come.
At first, in order to protect the thousand years of foundation of Heavenly Sword Villa from the chaos brought by Divine Phoenix, they chose to violate the promise made by their ancestors, committing a betrayal of trust that breached morality. The villa was sealed, and the pleas for assistance sent by the Blue Wind Imperial Family and Frozen Cloud Asgard were ignored. At that time, it had never occurred to them that the Blue Wind Imperial Family would survive, much less this complete reversal of what was supposed to be an expected outcome.
And the reason for this variance, was Yun Che’s return.
Yun Che was infamous for seeking revenge for any grievances suffered. The tragic extermination of the Burning Heaven Clan that year was an event nobody dared to let slip from their memory. After Yun Che survived, the first thing he did upon his return was to serve a revenge many times more devastating than the extermination of the Burning Heaven Clan… towards the Divine Phoenix Sect which had the Profound Sky Seven Nations under their thumb. He made them suffer a crushing defeat, and threw them into a state of chaos and unrest. Eventually, they were forced to withdraw and even offered an apology and an enormous compensation to Blue Wind Nation… Moreover, it was rumored that these were the consequences after Empress Cang Yue pardoned them. Otherwise, the Divine Phoenix Sect might have had to pay a more tragic price.
With Yun Che’s character, it would have been impossible for him to forget Heavenly Sword Villa’s “sin of apathy” after the war. After all, Heavenly Sword Villa was different from the other profound cultivating forces… At the same time, there were rumors that he saved Frozen Cloud Asgard from an imminent demise. He assumed the new appointment as the Asgard Master, as both the former Asgard Mistress Gong Yuxian and the Grand Asgard Mistress Feng Qianhui had perished…
At Yun Che’s hands, the Divine Phoenix Sect was left devastated beyond hope; Heavenly Sword Villa would not even stand a chance.
The current Yun Che was worlds apart from himself of three years ago.
Ling Yuefeng’s gaze roamed towards Yun Che’s side, and he startled slightly. The young girl next to Yun Che wore a snowy white robe, her waist wrapped with thin jade silk, signifying an outfit of the Frozen Cloud Asgard. Her face was obscured by a muslin, and one could only vaguely see a pair of beautiful eyes.
Although her face could not be seen, her entire body exuded an ethereal and fairy-esque aura. Merely looking at her would cause one to feel ashamed and inferior, and would have qualms about being disrespectful…
This feeling, it was exactly the same back when he first met Chu Yuechan… That particular scene, that moment his heart palpitated wildly, he would never forget it even on his deathbed.
“Ah…” Yue Che let out an ear-piercing sneer, which snapped him out of his fleeting absent-mindedness, “Isn’t this the awe-inspiring Villa Master Ling Yuefeng of the supposed number one sect in Blue Wind Nation, the illustrious Heavenly Sword Villa? To have impulsively dropped by for a visit without prior notice and troubled renowned Villa Master Ling to personally greet me, this junior is intimidated beyond his wits.”
As long as one was not deaf, one would be able to hear the ice in Yun Che’s tone and his derisive sarcasm. The closest Heavenly Sword Elder exclaimed furiously, “Yun Che, don’t forget your status! In our Heavenly Sword Villa, you have no place to behave audaciously!!”
“Step down!” Ling Yuefeng’s chest heaved, as he uttered heavily.
“Villa Master…” the surrounding Heavenly Sword elders and pavilion masters who stood by gravely were shocked and stared at Ling Yuefeng, bewildered and nonplussed.
“Step down, all of you!” Ling Yuefeng’s tone hardened, “Without my order, no one is allowed to come any closer!”
Under Ling Yuefeng’s strict order, all Heavenly Sword elders and pavilion masters retreated gradually while staring at Yun Che with unrestrained alarm, until everyone was a distance away. They were well aware that if Yun Che decided to strike, with his caliber of strength that left the Divine Phoenix Sect in chaos, even if their strength were to be multiplied by ten, it would be moot.
Once everyone had retreated, Ling Yuefeng faced Yun Che and inhaled deeply. The last time he met Yun Che was five or six years ago, and at that time, Yun Che was merely a junior who caught his attention slightly. Today, although the current Yun Che in front of him has not changed much in terms of appearance, with the exception of growing slightly taller. However, when facing him, there was a distinct pressure not unlike facing a mountain.
He held exceptionally complicated feelings towards Yun Che… It could perhaps be understood as a deep envy and jealousy, stemming from his unrequited love for his beloved Chu Yuechan who did not even once spare him a glance, yet towards this twenty something year old boy…
At the same time, there was a feeling of unavoidable resentment, although he was clear that he was not in any position to do so.
“Yun Che.” Ling Yuefeng said with a calm tone, “I have not left the villa these past two months, since I was awaiting your visit, or even someone from the Blue Wind Imperial Househol
d. We sealed the villa for the past few years as we were powerless to help, but we still feel ashamed. I have nothing further to say since you are here to condemn us.”
Yun Che raised his eyebrow and was just about to speak, when an elderly, dignified voice spoke from a distance, “The decision to seal the villa was made by me. The decision to withhold assistance to Frozen Cloud Asgard was also made by me.”
As soon as the voice was heard, an elder dressed in an ash-colored gown arrived beside Ling Yuefeng. He glanced at Yun Che and slowly closed his eyes, “Since you are here today… then I will naturally provide an explanation.”
“Father, these are clearly the decisions I made… you didn’t have anything to do with them!” Ling Tianni’s appearance and his words caused Ling Yuefeng to momentarily lose his train of thought, and he hurriedly added, “Yun Che, my father said all that to shield me. As the current villa master of Heavenly Sword Villa, all of the decisions were made by me and have nothing to do with my father. If you have any grievances, you should just direct them at me!”
“Haha, how wonderful that father and son are mutually protecting each other, simply touching enough to move the world!” Yun Che sneered and directed his piercingly sharp glare at Ling Tianni, “Ling Tianni, you and I have no relations, yet you traveled thousands of miles to the Blue Wind Imperial City to have me killed under the pretext of ridding evil back then, under the guise of justice and under the pretense of purging danger from Blue Wind! Although I was badly injured and almost died by your hands, I still maintained a modicum of respect towards you in my heart because I believed your intention towards me arose from the misunderstanding that I was a malevolent and bloodthirsty person. I thought you were an upright and principled person who loathed evil, a trustworthy and honest man!”
“Yet when the country was facing a real crisis, even if no vow was made with the Blue Wind Profound Palace’s ancestor, Heavenly Sword Villa should have stepped up as the core strength. In the end, under the leadership of Ling Tianni, Heavenly Sword Villa has become Blue Wind Nation’s biggest cowards!” Yun Che criticized unreservedly, “When Blue Wind Nation was enveloped in the flames of war and rivers of blood were shed, Heavenly Sword Villa has suffered not even a single loss in the past three years. It moved not a single muscle, and not even a shadow was seen. Recalling how you used to proudly proclaim those ostentatiously dignified words makes me nauseous!”