# Chapter 587: A Terrifying Guess
Although it appeared to be just a small ice crystal, the reactions of Mu Yubai and the others were enough to show just how rare and powerful this "ice crystal" truly was. Mu Feiyan paid no attention to his three sons' reactions, said with a beaming smile: "This thing is called the Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal, and it is the heirloom treasure of our Mu Clan. Although it doesn't look impressive, if you crush it in a moment of crisis, the released power will instantly condense into an extremely sturdy cold crystal barrier that can last for up to three hours. Within this cold crystal barrier, no one will be able to harm you. Even if your incredible grandfather were still alive, he wouldn't be able to break through it."
"There were originally three of these Heaven-Severing Cold Crystals, but now only this one remains. The other two each saved the lives of two ancestors." Mu Feiyan said with considerable pride.
Even if no one came to rescue him, with his constitution, he could recover his injuries and profound energy to a great extent.
This was truly a treasure he couldn't refuse!
Mu Yubai stammered: "Old Master, this Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal... weren't you saying... that it was prepared... to give to your eldest grandson?!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Mu Yubai regretted them... Sure enough, the moment he spoke, Mu Feiyan's eyes immediately glared at him: "You still dare to mention grandsons to me! Where is my grandson! Where!! That ice wolf I raised a hundred years ago has already given birth to over a dozen pups, but you three useless things can't even produce a fart! You've made me lose face in front of those old bastards for over a hundred years! Now my grandson has restored my dignity, and you still have objections to me giving him a greeting gift?!"
Mu Yuqing and Mu Yukong hastily waved their hands: "Old Master, that was all Big Brother's talk. We didn't say anything. Giving this Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal to our great nephew is absolutely perfect! The Old Master is wise!!"
Mu Yubai's eyes twitched violently, and he dared not speak for a long time. He knew in his heart that the Old Master had been going crazy wanting a grandson all these years, and now that he had a grandson, he naturally wanted to dote on him immensely... But this was practically doting to the heavens! On the very first day, he had taken out all his most precious treasures at once... In comparison, he, the eldest son, hardly had any status at all.
But given Yun Che's excellence, the Old Master treating him like this... well, it wasn't exactly unacceptable.
Mu Yurou's phoenix eyes had already curved into two thin crescent moons. She naturally knew very well how precious the Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal was. If Mu Feiyan had given it to her, she might have refused with some trepidation, after all, it was the Mu Clan's heirloom treasure. But since it was for her son, giving him another life-saving treasure, she naturally wouldn't have any thought of refusing. She said with a smile: "Che'er, why don't you quickly thank your grandfather."
"Thank you, Grandfather!" Yun Che naturally wouldn't refuse either. He put away the Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal, a feeling of gratitude passing through his heart... He knew why Mu Feiyan had unhesitatingly gifted him such a precious Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal. Today, he had thoroughly offended the Prince Huai and the seven clans, sowing the seeds of enmity and thus the seeds of murderous intent. With Prince Huai's power being so great, even the Yun and Mu Clans couldn't guarantee they could always protect him... This Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal could save Yun Che's life when he encountered a crisis... Three hours of absolute protection, and using sound transmission to inform them of his location, would be enough time for them to reach him and resolve the crisis.
"Haha!" Mu Feiyan laughed heartily, without the slightest sign of reluctance: "As long as you like it! We're family, why thank me?"
"But," Mu Feiyan's smile gradually faded, and he said with some worry: "Che'er, there's something I must say. What you did today showed courage and strategy, and your strength and boldness were flawless. Not only did you restore the Yun Clan's prestige, but you also thoroughly defeated Prince Huai, who had left even Little Demon Empress helpless. However, your fierce scolding and humiliation of Prince Huai's faction, as well as the Helian and other Guardian Clans, while exhilarating, was truly unwise."
Speaking of today's events, everyone's expressions turned solemn. Mu Feiyan continued: "Prince Huai is a man of deep scheming and astonishing methods. The power he commands far exceeds your imagination. Otherwise, Little Demon Empress wouldn't have been unable to expose or act against his ambitions despite knowing them. You could have handled things more tactfully today, but instead, you thoroughly enraged him. He will surely bear a grudge against you now, filled with murderous intent. Although he won't attack you openly, he will certainly launch countless underhanded attacks."
Mu Yubai slowly nodded: "Che'er, your grandfather is right. Although your contribution today was the greatest, you have also brought great danger upon yourself."
Yun Che, however, smiled faintly and said: "The blade above the word 'patience'—it takes enduring what others cannot endure to live a life of peace and to rise above others. This was something my medical master often told me since childhood, and it was once one of my life's principles. But in the end, my master died at the hands of those toward whom he had endlessly yielded and tolerated..."
Mu Feiyan: "..."
Yun Qinghong: "..."
"From that day on, I truly understood—the blade above the word 'patience' not only causes oneself pain and suffocation but sometimes can also take one's life. So rather than letting it hang over my own head, it's better to drive it into the enemy's body!"
Although Yun Che had a smile on his face, everyone could hear a kind of soul-deep indifference and hatred in his voice. These words made it almost impossible for them to believe they were coming from a young man only twenty-two years old, and even harder to imagine... just how many storms and hardships he had endured to reach his current state of mind and achievements.
For a moment, everyone fell silent, unable to refute him. Yun Che continued: "I understand that Prince Huai is extremely difficult to deal with. He is ambitious, and the decline of my Yun Clan to this state must have been orchestrated by him behind the scenes. If it were simply a matter of whether he wants to kill me, I have no reason to yield to him! On the contrary, he is a man of meticulous thinking, and such people tend to be overly cautious and overthink things. Today, I not only thoroughly offended him and the seven clans but even publicly insulted them, causing them to lose all face. Besides arousing his murderous intent, he will also wonder whether my attitude stems from reckless ignorance and a death wish, or from some backing... Today, he suffered a crushing defeat at my hands, and every attack he made was countered several times over. So, the former possibility is naturally ruled out. He will think that my recklessness must mean I have powerful backing... backing strong enough that I need not fear his murderous intent."
"Coupled with the strength I displayed, the profound arts that surpassed everyone's understanding, and the fact that I could silently travel from Tian Xuan Continent to Huan Yao Realm, this possibility will be endlessly magnified in Prince Huai's mind. Right now, he must be intensely suspicious that behind me lies an extremely powerful, even transcendent master or even an entire force. Thus, he will have reservations. He will be hesitant to act rashly, afraid of repercussions, and will not dare to strike at me recklessly until he has thoroughly investigated my background."
Mu Feiyan looked at Yun Che with an incredibly amazed expression. Today was clearly the first time he had met Prince Huai, yet he had judged the Prince's nature with almost perfect accuracy. Prince Huai was indeed a meticulous and cautious man who would not act without absolute certainty. He was ambitious, and the forces under his command had long surpassed those of Little Demon Empress, yet he had held back, waiting only for today... Today, he had what he thought was absolute certainty, but then he encountered Yun Che and suffered a disastrous defeat.
"Well said!" Mu Yuqing said: "To be honest, even I, your uncle, strongly suspect that you must have a transcendent master backing you! Otherwise, you definitely wouldn't be so ridiculously strong, nor would you dare to be so cocky in front of Prince Huai."
Yun Qinghong didn't speak, but he nodded slightly.
"Che'er is indeed right," Mu Yurou said. "Prince Huai will surely have this suspicion and thus will have some scruples. And many others will likely think the same. But Prince Huai was scolded so harshly by Che'er today. He has probably never suffered such humiliation in his life. Even a cornered dog will jump over a wall. I'm afraid... so we must still be extremely careful."
"I'm not worried about that," Yun Che laughed instead. "For anyone else, there would indeed be a high chance of them jumping the wall in desperation. But he is Prince Huai! If he were so easily impulsive, he wouldn't have achieved the position he holds today. Let that blade above the word 'patience' cut deeply into him. From now on, I won't hide at home. Instead, I will appear openly and boldly. I am ninety-nine percent certain... he will not make a move against me. At least not in the short term."
Yun Qinghong nodded: "I agree with Che'er. Given Prince Huai's nature, even though he feels a strong murderous intent toward Che'er, he should not act in the short term. Now that Che'er has the Heaven-Severing Cold Crystal for protection, even if he encounters a fatal ambush, he can safely survive it."
"Hmm... let us hope so." Mu Feiyan frowned slightly and nodded.
"Regarding Prince Huai, I have a very terrifying guess." Yun Che suddenly said seriously.
"Terrifying guess?"
Yun Che's brow furrowed, and his voice dropped significantly: "I suspect that Prince Huai's ambition did not arise only after the former Demon Emperor and Little Demon Emperor were killed. Instead, he had been nursing it for a long time, even when the former Demon Emperor was alive! And... it was done in collusion with Tian Xuan Continent!"
"Ah!!" Yun Che's words were like a thunderbolt from the heavens, causing Xiao Yun to cry out in shock.
"What?!" Mu Yubai and the other two also changed color dramatically.
Yun Qinghong quickly stood up, his arms flashing out like lightning, and the power of rushing thunder surged forth, instantly forming an extremely powerful sound-isolation barrier around them. Although they were inside the Mu residence, even in Mu Feiyan's own courtyard, the matter Yun Che was about to speak of was far too significant and absolutely could not be overheard by anyone.
"Continue!" After setting up the sound-isolation barrier, Yun Qinghong looked at Yun Che and said in a deep voice.
Yun Che saw that Yun Qinghong and Mu Feiyan both had grave expressions but not too much surprise. Clearly, they had also already suspected this. He took a slight breath and continued: "I have this suspicion for four reasons."
"First: Back then, Tian Xuan Continent suddenly invaded Huan Yao Realm, aiming to seize the Demon Emperor Clan's supreme treasure, the Lunhui Jing! But before this, Tian Xuan Continent and Huan Yao Realm had basically no dealings with each other. They only knew of each other's existence. Why did they suddenly learn of the Lunhui Jing's existence? Stranger still, although the Lunhui Jing was the Demon Emperor Clan's supreme treasure, no one knew what its function was, nor did anyone know how to use it. For ten thousand years, it had been a useless object. Yet the people of Tian Xuan Continent wanted to seize it at any cost... It seems someone informed the people of Tian Xuan Continent of the Lunhui Jing's existence and deliberately fabricated and exaggerated its effects, thus arousing their greed and ambition!"
"And such a person could only be someone from Huan Yao Realm!"
"Second: This is clearly the territory of Huan Yao Realm, yet the invaders from Tian Xuan Continent could directly strike at Yao Huang City and move freely. Even when Yao Huang City was fully prepared, they still managed to retreat unscathed each time, as if they were completely familiar with everything in Yao Huang City, even the countermeasures! The most likely explanation is that they had an inside agent in Yao Huang City!"
"And this inside agent is not only located within Yao Huang City but also holds a very high status!"
"Third: A hundred years ago, my grandfather led the Yun Clan's ten Grand Elders to rescue the former Demon Emperor... Eleven high-level Emperor Lords. This was a force enough to shake the world. With eleven high-level Emperor Lords joining hands, even if they couldn't rescue the former Demon Emperor, they should have been able to retreat safely... At least, I absolutely refuse to believe there is any force in this world capable of stopping the combined might of eleven high-level Emperor Lords!"
"But... my grandfather told me that as soon as they arrived at Tian Xuan Continent, they directly fell into the 'Heavenly Might Soul-Suppressing Array'! A Heavenly Might Soul-Suppressing Array capable of sealing the profound energy of eleven high-level Emperor Lords—even if it lasted only a single breath—would require an enormous consumption! There is absolutely no way such an array could have been maintained there indefinitely. It was clearly set up because someone knew the time and place of my grandfather's arrival and was lying in wait... In other words, before my grandfather and the others went to Tian Xuan Continent, someone used some method to inform those people of the time and location of their arrival and teleportation!"
"And the ones capable of accurately knowing my grandfather's movements and having the ability to transmit messages over such a great distance are, similarly, only forces with status no lower than the Yun Clan!"
"Fourth: Little Demon Emperor's death has too many suspicious points and abnormalities! At today's grand ceremony, although I claimed that he personally went to rescue the former Demon Emperor out of extreme disappointment with the Guardian Clans... In truth, I absolutely do not believe that Little Demon Emperor would do something as foolish as getting drunk, losing control, and charging alone into Tian Xuan Continent! Even if he really wanted to go, he should at least have left an heir with Little Demon Empress. Otherwise, he would be cutting off the Demon Emperor bloodline! As the son of the Demon Emperor, how could he possibly do something so incredibly stupid!"
"Little Demon Emperor's death... is highly likely to have been a result of underhanded schemes!"
Yun Che raised his head and said slowly: "And all of these... point toward the Prince Huai's Estate!"