Chapter 366: The Divine Phoenix Prince
From the direction of the hall entrance, Xia Qingyue's ethereal figure walked in slowly. Her appearance was like the bright moon emerging from behind clouds, instantly stealing all radiance and causing the previously noisy hall to fall silent. Every gaze converged upon her, especially among the younger disciples, whose eyes went wide, breaths held, and hearts nearly stopped. But then, they finally remembered her identity as Yun Che's wife, and they hurriedly lowered their heads, not daring to look again.
Yun Che quickly approached her and said, "Qingyue, you've come... Two months ago, why did you leave without saying goodbye?"
Xia Qingyue spoke softly, her voice gentle as gossamer: "That day, Young Master Yun had already awakened, and his injuries were not serious. Moreover, there were urgent matters at the Ice Palace, so I left without taking my leave. I hope you will not take offense. Today, Qingyue comes on behalf of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace to congratulate Young Master Yun on his wedding."
Yun Che naturally did not believe Xia Qingyue's words. He moved half a step closer and lowered his voice: "That day, could it be that you... heard I was going to marry Senior Sister and got jealous?"
"Cough..." Chu Yueli walked over and stood beside Xia Qingyue, saying coldly, "Young Master Yun is only nineteen, yet his strength already rivals a mid-stage King Xuan. His future achievements are bound to be limitless. My master and I come on behalf of the Ice Palace especially to offer wedding congratulations... Qingyue, let us take our seats."
With that, Chu Yueli ignored Yun Che and pulled Xia Qingyue away. The look in her eyes toward him was somewhat unfriendly.
The reason was simple: her sister was now missing, whereabouts unknown, yet he was getting married. Her disciple Xia Qingyue was his lawful wife. She had not been particularly willing to acknowledge this relationship before, but times had changed. Now Yun Che was marrying Cang Yue again, and as Xia Qingyue's master, she felt somewhat displeased... And the occasional unusual emotions Xia Qingyue revealed, though not obvious, were enough for her to sense.
Yun Che walked to the front of the hall, and many people hastily came forward to greet him.
"Brother Yun, I am truly delighted that my imperial sister can marry you as her husband. From now on, we are family. Brother Yun's—ah, no, brother-in-law's affairs are my own. If there is anything I can help with, please do not hesitate to ask."
Crown Prince Cang Lin stepped forward quickly, saying this. Though he acted generous, free-spirited, and excited enough, Yun Che could see at a glance the anxiety, fear, and terror he desperately tried to hide deep in his eyes.
"Imperial sister and brother-in-law are a match made in heaven. I am overjoyed beyond words that my imperial sister has found such a destiny. On such a joyous occasion, three days of heavy drinking would not be too much, haha... hahaha!" Third Prince Cang Shuo laughed dryly. But he seemed less "seasoned" than Crown Prince Cang Lin, for when speaking to Yun Che, the muscles on his face were clearly twitching constantly, revealing the panic in his heart.
These two were now undoubtedly terrified of Yun Che to the extreme. They could not forget what they had done before. Now that Cang Wanhe's illness had miraculously recovered and he had reclaimed power, and Yun Che was marrying Cang Yue, Cang Wanhe had gained what could be called the greatest backing within the Cang Feng Kingdom. This had completely shattered their ambitions overnight. They no longer dared any seditious moves and spent their days in constant fear. Previously, they might not visit the imperial bedchamber even once in half a year; now, they paid their respects every morning, noon, and evening without fail, for two months straight.
When facing Yun Che, thinking of his terrifying methods that annihilated the Fen Tian Gate, they trembled all over in fear.
Yun Che smiled faintly and did not respond. Ling Jie squeezed in at this moment and said with a grin, "Boss, congratulations! Hehe... You and Princess Sister have finally achieved the right result. Princess Sister is someone I originally wanted to marry as my wife, so you'd better not bully her in the future."
"Haha," Yun Che laughed heartily. "If I bully her, I'll let you chop me with a hundred swords, alright? ...How is your grandfather's injury?"
Speaking of Ling Tianni, Ling Jie showed no sign of awkwardness and said calmly, "Grandfather's injuries are severe, but they didn't damage his vital points and are healable. He's about sixty percent recovered. Thanks to you holding back that day... During this time, Grandfather had people collect all the information about you. He basically knows everything about you now. Though he still holds a grudge against you for annihilating the Fen Tian Gate, he no longer has murderous intent toward you. Once, I heard him sigh with my own ears, saying that he nearly ruined a fundamentally good peerless genius by acting rashly."
"Hahaha!" Yun Che laughed loudly, and his resentment toward Ling Tianni dissipated by seventy or eighty percent. After all, Ling Tianni was by no means an evil person. His desire to kill Yun Che that day was originally out of the intent to eliminate a major scourge for the Cang Feng Kingdom.
"Young Brother Yun, Xiao Juetian offers my congratulations here. Back at the Ranking Battle, I was already greatly impressed by you. I never thought that in less than two years, your strength would be worthy of being called the number one in the Cang Feng Kingdom. Such an achievement is truly astounding, unprecedented, and awe-inspiring." Xiao Juetian personally stepped forward, speaking in as calm a tone as possible.
Yun Che glanced at him and smiled faintly: "Sect Master Xiao flatters me. I am but an ordinary man. On my wedding day, Sect Master Xiao personally bestows the honor of your presence. As a junior, I am extremely honored. In the future, I will definitely personally... visit your sect to thank you."
As soon as Yun Che's last words were spoken, Xiao Juetian's heart jolted violently. Xiao Boyun and Xiao Wuji behind him also changed expressions. They could not predict whether Yun Che's so-called "personal visit" meant resolving old grudges or collecting debts.
Given his ruthless and merciless methods, coupled with the old enmity from three years ago and the new grievance of helping the Fen Tian Gate deal with him... the latter seemed more likely.
As the Sect Master of the Xiao Sect, Xiao Juetian found himself instantly drenched in cold sweat at this moment. But he dared not show any abnormality and forced a smile: "If Young Brother Yun truly honors us with your presence, I will lead the entire sect to welcome you with open arms... The Xiao Sect knows that some base individuals in my sect had grievances with you. The Xiao Sect will certainly give you a satisfactory explanation at that time."
If Xiao Juetian had still been hesitant after the Fen Tian Gate was destroyed, then after Yun Che severely wounded Ling Tianni, he no longer had any thought of fighting Yun Che to the death. All he could think about now was how to appease Yun Che's anger... no matter the cost, he would willingly pay it. Because any price was infinitely better than following the Fen Tian Gate's footsteps and having his entire sect slaughtered.
"New Moon City Lord Murong Bo has arrived!"
"Jinzhong Mountain Sect Leader Yujian Zhenren has arrived!"
"Thirteenth Prince of the Shenhuang Empire..."
The master of ceremonies' throat seemed suddenly blocked, his voice halting there. The words "Shenhuang Empire" he had uttered were like four thunderclaps sounding in everyone's ears, making the boisterous hall turn extremely quiet. All gazes converged in one direction.
"The... Thirteenth Prince of the Shenhuang Empire, Feng Xichen, has arrived!"
What? The Shenhuang Empire... the Thirteenth Prince!?
Whether outside or inside the hall, everyone's eyes were fixed on the three people walking in from the entrance... especially the one in the middle. He appeared to be in his twenties, wearing a dark red qilin robe, holding a white jade folding fan in his hand. Amid the crowd's stares, he showed no abnormality, a faint smile on his face as he strolled leisurely into the hall as if entering an empty room. Behind him, a black-clothed old man and a red-clothed old man followed closely, step by step.
Cang Wanhe, who had been sitting on the high throne, suddenly stood up, looking at the young man walking in under everyone's gaze with extremely shocked eyes. Yun Che's brows also furrowed slightly.
People from the Shenhuang Empire...
And a prince of the Shenhuang Empire!?
Was it real or fake?
If real, why would an honorable prince of the Shenhuang Empire come here?
With Feng Xichen's arrival, the atmosphere of the entire wedding hall underwent a drastic change. Because the four words "Shenhuang Empire" themselves carried tremendous shock value, and coupled with "prince," that shock increased a thousandfold, causing everyone, including those normally arrogant sect leaders, to feel a palpitation in their hearts.
The Shenhuang Empire was the empire with the greatest overall national strength and territorial area among the seven kingdoms of Tian Xuan, tens of times larger than the Cang Feng Kingdom. Its national strength and the power of its profound realm far surpassed the Cang Feng Kingdom. Comparing the Cang Feng Kingdom to the Shenhuang Empire was like comparing a village to an imperial capital.
It was said that the four strongest sects in the Cang Feng Kingdom could only barely count as mid-tier sects in the Shenhuang Empire.
And the most crucial point was...
In the Cang Feng Kingdom, though a prince's status was noble, it was limited to the commonfolk. In the profound realm, a prince's status meant nothing. Not only the four great sects, but any sufficiently powerful sect completely disregarded the royal family, and the royal family even had to curry favor with them.
But in the Shenhuang Empire, it was entirely different!
Because the strongest sect in the Shenhuang Empire, and the one recognized as the number one sect on the Tian Xuan Continent besides the Four Sacred Grounds — the Fenghuang God Sect — belonged to the Shenhuang Royal Family! In name, it was the empire's protectorate sect, but in reality, the royal family was the Fenghuang God Sect, and the Fenghuang God Sect was the royal family. Each emperor of the Shenhuang Empire was the current sect master of the Fenghuang God Sect!
The Cang Feng royal family only held the highest political power of the Cang Feng Kingdom.
The Shenhuang royal family, however, not only held the highest political power of the Shenhuang Empire but also the strongest power in the Shenhuang Empire and even the entire Tian Xuan Continent.
Thus, a prince of the Shenhuang Empire and a prince of the Cang Feng Kingdom were two completely different concepts, two different classes!
If this person was truly a prince of the Shenhuang Empire, then even within the Shenhuang Empire, he was a super figure who could truly cover the sky with one hand. His status would be second only to the Shenhuang Emperor and the Crown Prince.
The sudden arrival of such an aloof figure, someone who should not have appeared at this level, undoubtedly stirred up great waves in everyone's hearts.
Feng Xichen walked straight forward to the center of the hall, gave a simple bow to Cang Wanhe, and said with a smile, "Junior Feng Xichen of the Fenghuang God Sect pays respects to the esteemed Cang Feng Emperor. For this presumptuous visit, I hope the Cang Feng Emperor will be magnanimous and not take offense."
...