Chapter 1986: The End of Helian (Part 1)
Soon, Yun Che met the monarch of the Helian Imperial Dynasty, the nominal ruler of the Linyuan Realm.
Helian Xun.
"Lingzhu, Cangying, you’re back."
He stood in the main hall, his imperial robe and crown both a withered yellow as expected. His eyes held three parts sharpness, three parts majesty, but seemed to suppress the natural arrogance and disdain that a realm sovereign would instinctively release.
His gaze fell on Yun Che but did not linger overly long.
"Father, we made you worry." Helian Lingzhu stepped forward with her head bowed, bowing gracefully.
"It’s good that you’re safe." Helian Xun sighed. "It is your father’s incompetence that forced you to personally venture into danger."
He turned his gaze to Yun Che: "And this is the extraordinary person you mentioned in your transmission?"
Yun Che stepped forward: "I am Yun Che. Greetings to the Helian Nation Lord."
"Hmm." Helian Xun responded indifferently, but his brows involuntarily furrowed.
The man before him had a face like flawless jade, without the slightest blemish. His eyes were as black as night, almost without any trace of grayish haze. His entire being seemed never to have been tainted by Abyss Dust.
What surprised him most was that although Yun Che was at the peak of the Divine Sovereign Realm, his entire aura did not waver in the slightest under his direct gaze.
Untainted by Abyss Dust, with an outstanding temperament—could he be from a Divine Kingdom? he thought to himself.
"I heard you were being pursued and fled into a sandstorm. When you woke up, you had lost all memory of the past?" he asked, his gaze scrutinizing.
"Yes," Yun Che said. "I am grateful to the Princess and Brother Mo for saving my life."
Although the Helian Nation Lord before him had not released any Profound Force externally, at first glance Yun Che was certain that this person’s cultivation surpassed anyone he had encountered in the Divine Realm... surpassing the boundaries of his own world.
Though not yet reaching the Demigod level of Mo Beichen, he was only a hair’s breadth away.
Half-step Divine Annihilation Realm!
After all, this was the Abyss! In a remote place below a Divine Kingdom, its ruler was a being surpassing the highest Divine Emperor.
"Father, don’t ask too many questions for now. Let him take a look at the hidden injury you sustained back then." Helian Lingzhu gently pushed Yun Che forward.
This slight, casual movement made Helian Xun’s brows rise sharply, though his face remained expressionless: "It’s rare for Lingzhu to be so impressed. Your medical skills must be extraordinary. Then I’ll trouble you to take a look."
His injury was left by a Demigod. It was fundamentally beyond the scope of "medical skills" to resolve. Naturally, he did not hold any real hope; he simply did not want to disappoint Helian Lingzhu.
Yun Che said nothing more, directly reached out, and touched his fingertip to Helian Xun’s wrist. A very faint strand of Profound Force emerged and quickly circulated once through his body.
Then the Profound Force dissipated, and Yun Che withdrew his finger.
The entire process took no more than three breaths.
Such a speedy examination surprised the three of them. Helian Lingzhu tentatively asked, "How is it?"
Yun Che said, "The force invading your heart vessels is very powerful. It’s no wonder the Helian Nation Lord cannot eliminate it. Moreover, this force is mainly binding and entangling; it won’t endanger your life in the short term. It was clearly done deliberately."
Helian Xun’s expression dimmed, and he said with regret, "He hates me to the bone, and yet he disdains to stain the honorable name of an Abyss Knight with my blood... It’s all fate."
"Then... is there a way?" Helian Lingzhu was still full of hope.
Yun Che smiled faintly: "With my cultivation, I certainly don’t have the ability to expel this binding force, but I can draw it out of the heart vessels."
"Ah?" Helian Lingzhu was clearly stunned, then a huge joy burst onto her face: "Really... really?"
Compared to Helian Lingzhu’s excitement, Helian Xun and Mo Cangying were slightly surprised, but showed no hint of joy.
If this force could be drawn out of the heart vessels, then dissolving it or forcibly expelling it would no longer require any scruples and could be easily accomplished.
But that was a Demigod’s power!
Even the strongest guardian patriarch of the Helian Imperial Clan was helpless against it. How could a junior at the Divine Sovereign Realm dare to say such a thing!
"How do you plan to draw it out of the heart vessels?" Helian Xun asked, his face calm.
Yun Che’s tone was indifferent, as if confident: "The method of guiding involves medical principles that I find difficult to explain clearly. But the most important thing about this method is the Helian Nation Lord’s trust in me."
Helian Xun narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at him to continue.
"The Helian Nation Lord must allow my Profound Force to enter your heart vessels and create seventeen wounds on them. Then I have full confidence that within thirty breaths, I can draw out all the binding force within."
"Outrageous!"
Before Helian Xun could respond, Mo Cangying roared in anger: "Yun Che! How dare you utter such nonsense! Or... do you actually harbor malicious intentions this time?"
Allowing someone else’s Profound Force to enter one’s heart vessels... that was completely equivalent to handing over one’s life to the other party.
Creating seventeen wounds on the heart vessels... those were the heart vessels! The slightest mistake would cause irreparable severe injury, and at worst, could be fatal.
Yun Che’s words were nothing but a blatant, murderous scheme.
"Elder Ninth Brother!" Helian Lingzhu was startled and quickly pulled him: "Yun Che definitely doesn’t have the malicious intent you think."
For their reaction, Yun Che was not surprised at all. He said calmly and honestly: "I have only just arrived in Linyuan Realm and have no enmity with anyone. The Princess even saved my life. I came here to repay that kindness. There is absolutely no reason for me to harbor any malicious intent."
"Yes, Father." Helian Lingzhu hastily explained: "Yun Che was saved by me and Ninth Brother voluntarily. After he woke up, he was afraid of causing trouble for us and wanted to leave despite his severe injuries. It was only when I saw his extraordinary and astonishing medical methods when he treated a junior apprentice brother that I took the initiative to bring him here."
"Ninth Brother can testify."
Mo Cangying could not deny it.
Yun Che said: "What I mentioned is merely a solution derived from my understanding of the medical arts. Of course, as a nation lord, and involving the heart vessels, it is only natural to be wary of a stranger you’ve just met. If you had agreed directly, that would have been beyond reason."
Helian Xun’s expression did not change. He looked at Yun Che: "Are there any other methods besides this?"
Yun Che said: "My cultivation is still shallow, and since it involves the heart vessels, this is the only method I can think of. But now that I consider it, speaking so directly to the nation lord given my status was indeed too presumptuous."
"It’s good that you know." Helian Xun said indifferently, with no visible joy or anger, but his tone had clearly turned colder.
"Father." Helian Lingzhu sensed her father’s displeasure and once again defended Yun Che: "Daughter swears to you that Yun Che is absolutely not a person with ill intent. His treatment of that junior brother that day was witnessed by me and Ninth Brother throughout. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have brought him personally before you."
"I believe my daughter, of course." Helian Xun said. "But to trust a stranger with no known past with my life—that is simply absurd."
"Furthermore," his eyes narrowed into a sharp slit: "He spoke such absurd words, yet you still defend him sentence by sentence. You’ve known him for less than three days, and he has already earned such trust from you? This fellow’s methods are probably far more brilliant than his so-called medical skills."
"Father..." Helian Lingzhu opened her mouth but was momentarily speechless.
"Helian Nation Lord, I have no defense against your words." Yun Che’s expression was calm, so calm that it made Helian Xun frown inwardly: "Then I have no reason to stay any longer. I take my leave. As for the life-saving grace, once my injuries recover in the future, I will definitely repay it."
Helian Xun turned away: "No need. The Helian bloodline never demands repayment for kindness. This is no place for you, and my daughter is not someone you should approach. Immediately leave the Linyuan Realm—that will be the best repayment."
"Father, I..."
Helian Lingzhu wanted to say more, but Helian Xun waved his sleeve: "Cangying, see him out."
"Yes!"
Mo Cangying responded.
But at that moment, a sandstorm suddenly howled outside the hall, carrying a wildly arrogant laugh: "Hahahaha! Zhai Liancheng of the Rock Mystery Sect specially requests an audience with the Helian Nation Lord."
He said "requests an audience," but he barged in uninvited, and the sandstorm directly surged into the imperial hall.
Before the guards at the hall entrance could assume a blocking stance, they were struck by the raging sand and sent flying far away amidst consecutive screams.
"Rock Mystery Sect!?" The name and the suddenly approaching aura made the three of them change color drastically.
"Bastard!"
Mo Cangying turned around in anger, releasing a sudden yellow light around his body. On both arms, a thick, solid rocky glow condensed, directly meeting the figure behind the sandstorm.
A crashing boom like a rock burst accompanied the violent tearing of the sandstorm. Space quaked, and gravel flew.
In the scattered withered yellow Profound Light, Mo Cangying spun downward. When he landed, his feet sank nearly a foot deep into the ground, and the surrounding floor shattered.
After a violent shake of his body, he stabilized himself. His face was ugly for just a moment, then turned as fierce as a hungry eagle.
"Oh? So it’s Brother Cangying."
A tall and upright figure approached from afar, emitting an unrestrained arrogance and mockery: "Haven’t seen you in thirty years, and you’ve made no progress at all. Could it be that you, who back then claimed to soar through the Pure Land, have plucked out your own wings just to become the Helian’s consort?"
"You!"
Mo Cangying’s fierce aura intensified, his clenched fingers almost dripping blood.
The person before him was Zhai Liancheng, the Young Sect Master of the Rock Mystery Sect.
Thirty years ago, they had exchanged blows and ended in a draw.
Now, with just a single clash, the difference was clear.
A broad hand gently patted Mo Cangying’s shoulder. Helian Xun walked forward slowly, his imperial eyes emitting a faint but imposing aura: "Youngster from the Zhai family, your etiquette when requesting an audience is becoming more and more audacious. It seems your father hasn’t taught you well in recent years."
It wasn’t just audacity; even the most dim-witted person could tell this was a blatant provocation and contempt.
To put it more bluntly, they didn’t regard this monarch at all.
Zhai Liancheng hadn’t come alone. By his side was a man who looked exceptionally young, of medium build, with an unremarkable appearance, and at the peak of the Divine Sovereign Realm.
Whether it was Helian Xun or Mo Cangying, this face was completely unfamiliar. But this person, facing Helian Xun, was completely at ease, a faint smile on his lips, his gaze casually sweeping over the several people.
His arrogant posture even surpassed Zhai Liancheng.
His position was also beside Zhai Liancheng, not behind him.
"Yun Che!" Helian Lingzhu urgently sent a sound transmission to Yun Che: "Find a chance to leave later. This person is the Young Sect Master of the Rock Mystery Sect, extremely difficult to deal with. I’ll come to see you later... and personally send you away."
Yun Che smiled in response but didn’t move an inch.
Rumble!
Dust rose again as a swarm of imperial guards came surging in, their overwhelming aura locking firmly onto the two seemingly outnumbered intruders.
But Helian Xun raised his hand and lightly shouted: "All of you, withdraw."
Under the monarch’s order, the auras soon dissipated along with the dust.
A slight mocking curve appeared at the corner of Yun Che’s mouth... On the surface, the monarch appeared broad-minded and steady as a mountain. In truth, he was fearful and hesitant.
When he was the Cloud Emperor, who would dare to trespass into the Imperial Cloud City? They would have been torn apart by Yan San’s claws long ago.