Chapter 760: Meeting Ling Jie Again
"Yun Che, let go of my mother!!"
Amidst the roar, a young man dressed entirely in white soared through the air from afar. He held the Tian Yuan Sword in his hand, his entire body surging with sword intent as he charged toward Yun Che, who was holding Xuanyuan Yufeng hostage, at his fastest speed.
"Ling Yun?" Yun Che's gaze shifted sideways. Immediately after, he also saw the person following closely behind Ling Yun... He seemed slightly younger than Ling Yun, but his physique was already similar. The face that had once been full of childishness and arrogance now bore more of the coldness and determination that came with maturity.
"Xiao Jie..." Yun Che murmured softly, his expression instantly becoming extremely complicated. The person he least wanted to meet on this trip to Tian Jian Villa was Ling Jie.
It had been several years, and Ling Yun's profound strength had advanced by leaps and bounds, already breaking through to the Heavenly Xuan Realm. As for Ling Jie, because he was greatly favored by Xuanyuan Jue, he had spent these years under Xuanyuan Jue's unsparing personal tutelage, and his progress had been even more rapid. With a single glance, Yun Che could see that Ling Jie had not only entered the Heavenly Xuan Realm but had also almost caught up to Ling Yun in terms of strength. In no time at all, he would surely surpass Ling Yun entirely.
"Yun'er, Jie'er, don't go over!!" Ling Yuefeng shouted, reaching out his hand. Back in the Cang Feng Ranking Battle, Ling Yun was still an opponent on the same level as Yun Che. But now, even ten thousand Ling Yuns would be purely seeking death if they dared to provoke Yun Che.
Ling Yun turned a deaf ear. The Tian Yuan Sword swept out a half-zhang-long sword beam, viciously thrusting toward Yun Che. He and Ling Jie had been practicing their swordsmanship at the back mountain when they received news that a distinguished guest from the Tian Wei Sword Domain had arrived, and they rushed back to the villa with all haste. Along the way, they had noticed abnormally turbulent waves of air and sounds. As soon as they returned to the villa, they saw the scene of Xuanyuan Yufeng being held hostage by Yun Che.
Ling Yun's hair stood on end in fury. But Ling Jie's emotions were far more complicated than Ling Yun's. Ever since he learned that Yun Che was still alive, he had been overjoyed and had lost count of how many times he had barely restrained himself from going to find Yun Che. Now, finally meeting him, what he saw was a scene like this... It left his mind in a blank daze. He followed behind Ling Yun, but his pace grew slower and slower, his whole person lost in shock, confusion, panic, and bewilderment, completely at a loss.
As Ling Yun approached, Yun Che extended his other hand toward him... This movement alarmed Ling Yuefeng, who roared in panic: "Yun Che... stop!"
Boom!!
Before Ling Yuefeng's voice faded, Yun Che had already pushed out a palm strike. In an instant, the air currents within a hundred zhang of space were violently driven, slamming into Ling Yun and Ling Jie. They lost their balance instantly, tumbling several times in the air before crashing to the ground.
Seeing Ling Yun and Ling Jie immediately stand up after falling, completely unharmed and without any weakening of their aura, Ling Yuefeng's nerves relaxed all at once. A wave of exhaustion washed over him, cold sweat pouring down his face. He said in a trembling voice: "Yun Che, what exactly do you want... What did my wife do wrong?!"
"Yun... Yun Big Brother, what... what's going on? What happened?" Ling Jie's face was full of fear and confusion. His address to Yun Che was also completely different from before. He didn't even dare to be sure that the Yun Che before him was really Yun Che.
Yun Che ignored Ling Jie and directly disregarded Xuanyuan Jiuding and Mu Yuanzhi, who were desperately healing themselves. His eyes locked onto Ling Yuefeng as he said in a low voice: "Back then, the matter of Chu Yuechan being pregnant was discovered at your Tian Jian Villa by a person called Granny Jiumu. At the time, besides Chu Yuechan, Granny Jiumu, Chu Yueli, and you, there was no one else present... So why did this matter spread throughout the entire world within a few days, before Chu Yuechan could even return to Bing Yun Fairy Palace from your Tian Jian Villa!? Ling Yuefeng, even if you were ten times more foolish, you should have known what the consequences would be for her if this got out! Did you seal the information or not?!"
Yun Che's words made Ling Yuefeng's heart lurch. He quickly said: "I was naturally aware of the gravity of this matter. Fairy Chu Yueli goes without saying, and Granny Jiumu, who has practiced medicine for a hundred years, would not breathe a single word more. How this matter spread has always been a deep puzzle to me as well..."
"A puzzle?" Yun Che's gaze suddenly turned cold, stabbing into Ling Yuefeng's soul like two knives, causing his voice and breath to instantly freeze: "Ling Yuefeng, you have always been called the Sword Gentleman. This forced hypocrisy of yours really doesn't suit you! Were there really only those four people I mentioned who knew about this matter that day? Did you not encounter someone who happened to overhear it that day? Who spread this matter and spared no effort in fueling the flames until it was known even among the common people — do you really have no answer in your heart?!"
"..." Ling Yuefeng's lips trembled violently, and for a long time, he could not speak. From the very beginning, he had known that this was Xuanyuan Yufeng's doing, because there could be no one else. But he had never questioned Xuanyuan Yufeng about it, nor had he investigated or confirmed it. He hadn't even mentioned it. When Chu Yuechan became pregnant with another man's child, most of his heart had died. Since things had come to this, although he was angry at Xuanyuan Yufeng's actions, he could not let their marital relationship deteriorate further. Instead, he had to try to repair it... after all, her father was an elder of the Tian Wei Sword Domain.
Later, he heard that as soon as Chu Yuechan returned to Bing Yun Fairy Palace, she was stripped of her profound arts and expelled from the sect, and there had been no news of her since. Bing Yun Fairy Palace had also closed its doors from then on.
He knew very well that if it hadn't been for this matter being spread throughout the world, putting unprecedented pressure on Bing Yun Fairy Palace, then given Chu Yuechan's status within the palace, even if she had violated the sect rules, she would never have been expelled, let alone stripped of her profound arts.
"That's right... I did it!" Ling Yuefeng was speechless, but Xuanyuan Yufeng let out a shriek, a twisted smile even appearing on her face: "That slut... she committed such a disgraceful act herself. Does she have the right to expect everyone to keep silent about it?! As for the consequences of being discovered, that is the disgraceful act you and she committed. What does it have to do with me? Hahahaha..."
Yun Che's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said in a low, slow voice: "Chu Yuechan and I are in love with each other. The child she and I conceived was a gift from the heavens. How can it be called a disgraceful act?! The word 'slut' coming out of your mouth doesn't anger me in the slightest; it only makes people laugh. I'm sure you know very well in your heart that word will never fall on Chu Yuechan in a hundred lifetimes. As for you, ten thousand of them wouldn't be enough!"
"You..."
Yun Che tightened his grip, cutting off Xuanyuan Yufeng's voice, and said unhurriedly: "Xuanyuan Yufeng, you should actually be thanking my Chu Yuechan, thanking her for the rest of your life. Because you must know better than anyone that if it weren't for the fact that my Chu Yuechan never gave Ling Yuefeng a second glance, not only would you not be the villa master's wife, but Ling Yuefeng probably wouldn't even have looked at you twice in his entire life! In terms of appearance, temperament, cultivation, and heart, the difference between you and Chu Yuechan is like mud underfoot compared to a snow lotus from the Celestial Mountains! Yet, driven by jealousy, you schemed relentlessly to force her to her death... I, Yun Che, rarely kill women, but you, Xuanyuan Yufeng, have successfully made me want to tear you into a thousand pieces!!!"
"Yun Che!!" The chilling murderous intent made Ling Yuefeng, even dozens of zhang away, feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave. He shouted urgently: "Regarding the matter of Fairy Bingchan, my wife has indeed committed a grave sin. But... women are naturally prone to jealousy. Her jealousy toward Fairy Bingchan was also caused by me, Ling Yuefeng. So if we trace it back to the root, it is all my fault! Moreover..." Ling Yuefeng took a deep breath and gritted his teeth slightly: "Although my wife was wrong, she merely spread information that was indeed true out of jealousy. She did not maliciously fabricate or slander. This sin is not worthy of death... Please have mercy, let go of my wife. I, Ling, will bear this crime alone without any complaint."
"Heh, not worthy of death?" Yun Che looked at him askance, his gaze growing colder and colder: "It seems you really don't know anything at all... Back then, after Chu Yuechan voluntarily crippled her profound arts and left Bing Yun Fairy Palace, before she could even leave the Ice Extreme Snow Domain, she was ambushed by three people who had been waiting for a long time. And those three people were all from your Tian Jian Villa! And you tell me 'not worthy of death'?!"
"Wh... what?!" Yun Che's words made Ling Yuefeng jerk his head up, his pupils dilated. Ling Jie, standing below, also stiffened all over, unable to believe every word he was hearing.
"Im... impossible! Impossible! My wife would never do such a thing! No one from Tian Jian Villa would ever commit such an evil act! Absolutely impossible! Absolutely impossible! This must be a huge misunderstanding..." Ling Yuefeng shook his head violently and roared, but his movements and voice unconsciously slowed down. Because he suddenly remembered that back then, on the night Bing Yun Fairy Palace left the villa, Xuanyuan Yufeng had personally dispatched three Tian Jian Elders to escort Ling Kun to a place a thousand li away. At the time, he had found it somewhat strange. With Ling Kun's strength, he didn't need an escort, and it wasn't as if he would get lost. But in Ling Kun's presence, he naturally couldn't refuse or question it. He hadn't thought much about it afterward.
Could it be...
"Impossible? A huge misunderstanding? Hahahaha..." Yun Che laughed scornfully: "Xuanyuan Yufeng, you have the guts to do it, so do you have the guts to admit it?!"
"What’s there to be afraid of admitting?!" Xuanyuan Yufeng screeched. On her hideous, pale face, there wasn't even much fear. Relying on her identity as the daughter of a Sword Domain elder, she was still convinced in her heart that Yun Che absolutely did not have the courage to kill her. Instead of being overly frightened, her voice and expression were still arrogant and haughty: "I only hate that those three wastes were so incompetent that they let that slut escape... Urgh!"
Under Yun Che's abruptly tightened grip, Xuanyuan Yufeng's entire throat cartilage twisted, her eyeballs bulging out. She could no longer utter a single word.
Xuanyuan Yufeng's own admission shattered the luck and illusions Ling Yuefeng had been desperately clinging to. The world spun before his eyes: "Yufeng, how... how could you do something like this..."
"It's not true... This can't be true..." Ling Jie collapsed limply to the ground, mumbling to himself in a daze.
"Heh, since you've already admitted it... very well, then die in peace!" The cold smile and low tone vanished from Yun Che's face, replaced by an expressionless indifference. In the space around them, a bone-piercing, heart-stabbing murderous intent stirred.
This killing intent startled Mu Yuanzhi and Xuanyuan Jiuding greatly. Mu Yuanzhi could no longer care about his injuries. He stepped forward and roared: "Yun Che! She is the daughter of the Ninth Elder Xuanyuan Jue..."
"Shut up!!" Yun Che turned his head, and his terrifying glare made Mu Yuanzhi shiver violently: "I don't care who she is, nor do I care who you are... Whoever dares to stop me from killing her today, I will kill!! Mu Yuanzhi, the Fifteenth Elder of Tian Wei Sword Domain... Heh, I seem to remember that the Sun Moon Divine Palace elder who died before me three months ago was also ranked fifteenth. Are you itching for me to send you to the gates of hell to keep him company today?!"
Mu Yuanzhi's entire body went cold, and he actually took a step back. Enveloping him was a chill and murderous intent that made even him, a mid-stage Emperor Lord, fear for his very soul. If these same words had come from someone else's mouth, he would have just laughed heartily. But the person before him was Yun Che... a madman who had single-handedly killed two Emperor Lords of the Fenghuang God Sect and nearly destroyed Shenhuang City!
Perhaps, based on Yun Che's own ability, he couldn't kill him. But the Snow Princess by his side absolutely could!
Beside him, Xuanyuan Jiuding reached out and firmly grabbed his arm, signaling with his eyes not to anger Yun Che... Feng Xue'er, who was next to Yun Che, had the power to leave all of them here forever. So, in this situation, even if they had to watch Xuanyuan Yufeng die, it was absolutely not the time to threaten or provoke Yun Che.
"No... please don't."
The pleading voice was trembling with pain. Below, Ling Jie had already knelt on the ground. The Tian Yang Sword, which he valued as his life, had been drawn from its sheath. He looked up at Yun Che in the air, his face streaked with tears: "Yun Big Brother, my mother is absolutely not a vicious, evil person. She just... she just acted on impulse... I beg Yun Big Brother to spare my mother's life. Let my life atone for her crime. I beg Yun Big Brother to grant this."
As his voice fell, the Tian Yang Sword swept out a cold light and suddenly thrust toward Ling Jie's throat.
"Jie'er!!"
Ling Yuefeng and Ling Tianni were greatly alarmed, charging toward Ling Jie like madmen. Xuanyuan Yufeng's pupils contracted sharply, the last trace of color draining from her face in terror, turning into a deathly pale...
Clang!!
A streak of flame descended from the sky, instantly blasting the Tian Yang Sword far away. At the same time, Xuanyuan Yufeng was dropped from the air by Yun Che, crashing down onto Ling Jie.
"Mo... Mother!"
"Yufeng!!"
Ling Jie and Ling Yun hurriedly grabbed Xuanyuan Yufeng's hands, still unable to believe their eyes in their agitation. Ling Tianni and Ling Yuefeng also rushed over, encircling the mother and her three children.
"Xuanyuan Yufeng..." Yun Che had already turned his back in the air, his expression unreadable. His voice was still cold, carrying deep hatred: "From today onward, you had better pray desperately every single day that mother and child are safe. If not... then..."