Chapter 613: New Sovereign of the Huan Yao Realm
At the entrance of the Jinwu Thunder Flame Valley, north of Yao Huang City in the Huan Yao Realm.
The long-silent guardian profound formation suddenly flickered with a red-gold light, then began to slowly rotate. Two figures appeared beneath the radiance of the Jinwu profound formation.
"Finally out." Yun Che took a deep breath of air that was no longer scorching hot. A mere three months, yet it felt like a lifetime.
Beside him stood a girl whose height only reached his shoulders, dressed in gray clothes, delicate and petite. She looked to be only twelve or thirteen years old, with a face beautiful enough to dim the sun and moon and overshadow heaven and earth. But her expression and eyes were filled with boundless indifference, almost no trace of emotion belonging to a living being could be found. The most striking feature was a red-gold flame mark flickering at the center of her brows.
Because this mark burned with her life. The moment it disappeared would be when her lifespan was exhausted.
Her entire aura had also undergone earth-shattering changes. Originally, her presence gave Yun Che an extremely heavy sense of oppression. But now, though she was right beside him, only a step away, with his spiritual perception he could not detect her existence at all...
Yun Che vaguely understood what these feelings meant. The Xiao Yaohou beside him—her power might have already broken through the limits of this world... to the point of being illusory.
"Not a single person here. That's a bit unusual." Yun Che looked around. There was no trace of anyone in sight, nor any presence of living beings. He mused, "Could it be that something major is happening over at Yao Huang City?"
"Um... Xiao Yaohou, which level of the Golden Crow World-Incinerating Record have you reached?" Yun Che turned around. Although his relationship with Xiao Yaohou was "no longer what it used to be," her nearly void-like aura made him unable to suppress a feeling of suffocation when facing her.
"Third level." Xiao Yaohou looked straight ahead, her voice as indifferent as still water, without a ripple.
"Oh... I reached the seventh level half a month ago." Yun Che spoke seriously, his face calm... while quickly glancing away, waiting to see shock, amazement... even admiration on Xiao Yaohou's face.
But to his disappointment, her expression did not stir even a trace. Her dark, dull eyes remained fixed on the direction of Yao Huang City, without waves or ripples, without joy or sorrow... not even a single response.
Although, with the Evil God bloodline—this super plug-in—it wasn't that remarkable to have reached the seventh level in less than two months.
"..." When Xiao Yaohou's bloodline fully awakened and she stepped out of the Jinwu Secret Realm, he had felt her aura undergo a massive change... No, that change might have occurred a bit earlier... Perhaps at the moment she forcibly pressed him to the ground...
For the obsession of revenge and the thirst for power, she seemed to have annihilated everything about herself... including emotions and life.
She had obtained the power she craved, but she had also frozen her emotions, and even her life was rapidly fading away... She stood there quietly, silent and soundless, like the most beautiful and lifelike doll.
Just as Yun Che was desperately thinking of how to provoke her, a gray shadow flashed at the corner of his eye, and Xiao Yaohou had already vanished a hundred zhang away in an instant.
"Ah... Wait for me!!"
Yun Che quickly activated Phantom Lightning Extreme, chasing after her with all his might. Having obtained the Golden Crow bloodline, the Evil God's lightning seed, cultivated the Golden Crow World-Incinerating Record, and continuously absorbed the powerful flame force of the death fire sea for several months, Yun Che's profound strength had undergone earth-shattering changes compared to four months ago.
With his Purgatory unlocked, his King Xuan aura surging violently, his peak speed now several times greater than before... yet he was still being left further behind by Xiao Yaohou. Fortunately, after a short while, Xiao Yaohou slowed down, and Yun Che finally managed to catch up to her back. Looking at her slender, frail silhouette, Yun Che sighed silently in his heart. From the time they entered the Jinwu Thunder Flame Valley until today when they finally left, four months had passed. Four months was enough time for too many things to happen. She must be extremely worried about the current situation in Yao Huang City...
Just as he was also constantly worried about his parents, Xiao Yun, and whether the Yun family and Mu family were still safe...
Her lifespan was only three years left...
Three years...
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As Yun Che had guessed, Yao Huang City today was indeed hosting a major event.
Because today was the day Huai Wang would ascend the throne as Emperor!
Four months ago, the heroes from all over the world who had come to Yao Huang City for the Demon Empress Grand Ceremony were still all in the city, never having left. Because after the grand ceremony was suddenly interrupted, they did not wait for it to resume. Instead, they received the shocking news that Xiao Yaohou had perished in the Jinwu Thunder Flame Valley. They waited bitterly for a month, but there was still no news of Xiao Yaohou, crushing the last shred of hope and luck for those who refused to believe.
In an instant, the imperial city was shaken, and the entire realm was in mourning. Though her body had not been seen, the funeral for the Demon Emperor—or rather, the last Demon Emperor of the Huan Yao Realm—had to be held. Xiao Yaohou's funeral ceremony lasted an entire month. The subsequent question was: after Xiao Yaohou, who would become the Demon Emperor of the Huan Yao Realm?
After all, with no ruler for long, chaos would inevitably ensue.
But with Xiao Yaohou's "perishing," there were no longer any successors to the Demon Emperor bloodline. The closest in blood were the Huan Yao Royal Clan. And among the Huan Yao Royal Clan, the one with the most prestige, the most power, and the most qualifications... without question, was Huai Wang of Huai Wang Manor.
Moreover, in the months since Xiao Yaohou's "perishing," all major and minor affairs in Yao Huang City had been handled by Huai Wang Manor. Even Xiao Yaohou's funeral ceremony was arranged by Huai Wang Manor.
In four months, the claws of Huai Wang Manor's power had extended throughout Yao Huang City at a terrifying speed. Almost every domain had been brought under Huai Wang Manor's control. Many years ago, people in Yao Huang City already knew that the forces loyal to Huai Wang Manor surpassed those of Xiao Yaohou. But now that Huai Wang Manor had truly bared its fangs, people finally realized just how powerful Huai Wang Manor had become...
Those forces that had been wavering, upon hearing the news of Xiao Yaohou's death, all rushed to pledge allegiance to Huai Wang Manor, afraid of being too late. Some forces that had originally been loyal to the Demon Emperor lineage chose to submit to Huai Wang Manor to protect themselves. And those who had been loyal to Huai Wang Manor from the start were even more fortunate and smug to the extreme.
Forces still steadfastly loyal to the "extinct" Demon Emperor lineage were pitifully few... even becoming increasingly isolated, ostracized, and even targeted by more and more forces.
Starting two months ago, the cry "The Huan Yao Realm cannot be without a ruler for a day" resounded throughout Yao Huang City and quickly spread to the entire Huan Yao Realm. Huai Wang's reputation for benevolence and virtue was extolled everywhere across the land. Over ninety percent of the forces in Yao Huang City declared their support for Huai Wang becoming emperor. In an instant, from all corners of the Huan Yao Realm came the clamor for "Huai Wang." He was hailed as the greatest sage of the age, the sole candidate for the new sovereign of the Huan Yao Realm, a great new sovereign who could surpass the era of the Demon Emperor... and also the one with the closest bloodline to the Demon Emperor lineage!
By now, anyone who still opposed Huai Wang becoming emperor would be seen as defying the will of heaven.
The Demon Emperor's Great Hall was packed to capacity. The scene was even grander than the Demon Empress Grand Ceremony four months ago. City lords, domain lords, sect masters, and heroes from all regions of the Huan Yao Realm had never imagined that they would come to Yao Huang City for the Demon Empress Grand Ceremony, only to stay for four months, experiencing the ups and downs of Xiao Yaohou's death and the new emperor's coronation.
All the heroes of the realm gathered in the Demon Emperor's Great Hall, each of them a pillar of the Huan Yao Realm, representing the entire realm. Today, at the Hour of the Snake, the new emperor would be crowned, and Huai Wang would ascend the throne. Now, less than a quarter of an hour remained until the Hour of the Snake. The coronation ceremony was imminent.
The Guardian Clans and the various princely mansions were still in the most central positions of the hall, their seating arrangements exactly the same as four months ago. The Yun family and the Mu family were also present.
Yun Qinghong sat at the head of the Yun family seats, his face showing an unusual calm. Mu Yurou sat beside him, their hands tightly clasped together, never letting go. Compared to the incessant noise in the Demon Emperor's Great Hall, the entire Yun family seating area, along with the adjacent Mu family seating area, was deathly silent. For a full half hour, not a single person had spoken.
"The... Huai... Wang... Manor... has arrived!"
With a long, sharp cry, the Demon Emperor's Great Hall fell silent in an instant. All eyes turned toward the great hall's entrance.
The red-golden gates were slowly pushed open. Huai Wang, dressed in light golden robes, stepped into the Demon Emperor's Great Hall, surrounded by the stars of Huai Wang Manor like the moon surrounded by clouds. His demeanor was calm, a smile on his face, yet between his relaxed brows exuded an intangible majesty... His entire being already bore the aura of an emperor.
Without Xiao Yaohou, he was now the Demon Emperor of the Huan Yao Realm.
"Welcome, Emperor Huai Wang!!"
A fervent shout rose from the central seating area. Helian Kuang, the head of the Helian family, rose from his seat, knelt on both knees, and prostrated himself, his posture humble and reverent to the extreme... Even during the reigns of the previous Demon Emperor and Xiao Yaohou, he had never performed such a grand kowtow.
This shout also woke the others as if from a dream. In an instant, the people in the hall hurriedly left their seats, knelt, and prostrated in welcome:
"Welcome, Emperor Huai Wang!!"
The overlapping shouts of nearly a hundred thousand top-tier experts of the Huan Yao Realm shook the entire Demon Emperor's Great Hall, causing it to tremble for a long time. Huai Wang's gaze swept leisurely across the hall, noting in his heart those people and forces who had not knelt in welcome. Then he slowly raised his head and said with a humble demeanor, "Everyone, rise quickly. Although I have received your misplaced favor and been recommended as the new sovereign of the Huan Yao Realm, the coronation ceremony has not yet taken place. This title of 'Emperor Huai Wang' cannot yet be used, and such grand bows are even more unworthy."
"I dare to speak boldly... Your words are erroneous, Emperor Huai Wang!" Zhong Wang cupped his hands and said loudly, "Emperor Huai Wang becoming the new sovereign of our Huan Yao Realm is the will of the people and the expectation of the entire realm—how could it be 'misplaced favor'! After Xiao Yaohou's passing, Emperor Huai Wang maintained the order of the realm, quelled its chaos, and calmed its people's hearts. Without Emperor Huai Wang's virtue and ability, Yao Huang City, and even the entire Huan Yao Realm, would surely be in turmoil by now. In our hearts, even before the coronation ceremony, you have long been the emperor we will follow and serve for life. Today's coronation... forgive my bold words, but it is merely a formality to announce it to the world!"
"Yes! What Zhongjun Wang said is absolutely right!"
"What Zhongjun Wang said is what I have in my heart!"
"Emperor Huai Wang unites the Huan Yao Realm! May your longevity match the heavens!"
"We pledge to serve Emperor Huai Wang unto death!"
...
The new emperor's coronation ceremony had not even begun; Huai Wang had only just appeared, and voices of allegiance had already flooded the Demon Emperor's Great Hall. This undoubtedly demonstrated how astonishing Huai Wang's power and deterrence had become after Xiao Yaohou's death. No one doubted that there was simply nothing in the Huan Yao Realm that could stop Huai Wang from becoming emperor. Pledging allegiance to Huai Wang was the wisest—indeed, the only—choice.
Otherwise, it would be equivalent to seeking self-destruction.
"Hahahaha." Huai Wang lowered his arms, let out a long laugh, and said no more. He strode toward the emperor's throne at the far end of the hall. As he passed the Yun family seats, the corners of his eyes glanced carelessly over Yun Qinghong, and a slight curve appeared at the corners of his mouth.
During these four months, before he formally became emperor, it was naturally not appropriate for him to strike ruthlessly at the Guardian Clan Yun family.
But after today, anyone could imagine that Huai Wang's first target would be the Yun family! When that time came, the Yun family would at the very least suffer a great decline, or at worst, be completely destroyed!
Yun Qinghong had not bowed to Huai Wang, and neither had the entire Yun family. He watched coldly as Huai Wang and everything in the hall, his expression and gaze indifferent, showing not a single ripple. From the moment Huai Wang stepped in until he sat upon the throne, his only movement was to tighten his grip on Mu Yurou's hand.
Mu Yurou's hand also tightened around his in return. The thoughts of this husband and wife were already deeply intertwined.
Huai Wang becoming emperor was unstoppable... Even if they risked the lives of the entire Yun family, they could not stop it. But the man before them, who had caused Xiao Yaohou's death and their son's death—how could they let him have his wish so easily?
They had come to the Demon Emperor's Great Hall today, not for the Demon Emperor lineage, not for the dignity and will of the Yun family... but as parents, preparing to use their own lives to exact blood for blood from the man who had taken away the son they had lost and regained, the son they had missed, owed, rejoiced in, and grieved over!