# Chapter 812: Whetstone
The Supreme Sea Palace was shaken from top to bottom... She didn't kill Xuanyuan Wentian, she didn't kill Ye Meixie, but from her words, it was clear she was going to kill Qu Fengyi!
Qu Fengyi was even more terrified, unable to utter even a single word. On the entire Tian Xuan Continent, anyone trying to kill her would find it harder than reaching the heavens, but if Mo Li wanted to kill her, even combining the power of the Four Sacred Grounds wouldn't be able to stop her for even an instant.
At that moment, Zi Ji rushed out in haste, pleading: "For... forerunner, the Sea Emperor indeed harbored selfish motives and committed a grave error first, but... but her crime does not warrant death. If the forerunner wants to kill her, could you first listen to a few words from this junior?"
"Crime does not warrant death?" Mo Li suddenly turned her gaze. Under her stare, Zi Ji's legs went weak, and he dropped to one knee, his heart filled with extreme terror: "Qu Fengyi plotted to harm Yun Che and steal his Lunhui Jing. Her intentions were malicious and greedy, yet you say her crime does not warrant death. Then when Yun Che was unjustly forced into a deadly situation, why didn't you even let out a single fart? Could it be that this princess's disciple's life is more worthless than this woman's life?!"
"No, no, no," Zi Ji shook his head frantically: "This junior would never dare... Even if this junior had ten million guts, he would never dare to have such intention..."
Under the almost soul-crushing pressure, Zi Ji didn't even dare to lift his head to look into Mo Li's eyes. He steeled his heart, scrambled over to Yun Che's side, and shoved a blue profound jade into his hand: "Palace Master Yun... please look at this..."
It was a precious Mysterious Shadow Stone. As the image imprinted within it began to play, Yun Che could tell at a glance that the location was the eastern part of Cangfeng Imperial City. A massive army of Divine Phoenix soldiers was advancing from west to east, marching mightily toward Cangfeng Imperial City. And standing in front of this Divine Phoenix army was none other than... Tianxia Diyi.
In the image, Tianxia Diyi countered the Phoenix Flame unleashed by the accompanying elders of the Phoenix army, releasing a powerful gale profound force that swept the flames back toward the Divine Phoenix army.
And as Tianxia Diyi unleashed his full power, his previously hidden Elf Wings spread out clearly...
"You..." Yun Che's brow furrowed. At this moment, he finally understood why, when he last left the Black Moon Merchant Guild, Zi Ji had suddenly asked him in an eerie tone: "Have you ever heard of the Twelve Guardian Clans of the Huan Yao Realm?"
"Correct!" Zi Ji quickly said: "In fact, from that time on, I knew he was someone from the Huan Yao Realm, and you must have also returned from the Huan Yao Realm... Besides this Mysterious Shadow Stone, our Sea Palace, like the Tian Wei Sword Domain, also left many informants in Yao Huang City. Other than myself, the Sea Emperor has also seen this Mysterious Shadow Stone, and only the two of us have ever seen it. If the Sea Emperor truly had malicious intentions toward you, how could she have done this? Today, circumstances forced her hand; as the Sea Emperor, she had no choice."
"Please, Palace Master Yun, in light of this, ask your... esteemed master to show mercy and spare the Sea Emperor. Our Supreme Sea Palace will remember this grace forever, never to forget. In the future, whatever Palace Master Yun or your esteemed master requests, our Sea Palace will carry out even at the cost of death..."
In Yun Che's memory, Zi Ji was like an ancient well that had remained unchanged for ten thousand years, extraordinary in bearing, containing rivers within. But now, his eyes were full of pleading, and both his knees were completely on the ground before Yun Che... Because in the face of overwhelming absolute power and the other party's ruthless and merciless methods, all he could do was beg.
Bam!
The Mysterious Shadow Stone shattered in Yun Che's hand. He let out a low sigh and said: "Senior Zi, please rise. Rest assured, if my master truly wanted to kill the Sea Emperor, she would have done so long ago."
"..." Mo Li's lips twitched. She shot Yun Che a fierce glare, then suddenly swung her small hand forward.
SLAP!!!!!!
On the Sea God Platform, a sound rang out that was surely the loudest slap anyone present had ever heard in their entire lives.
Qu Fengyi, ten zhang away, was struck by a slap that came from the void, letting out a miserable shriek. Her body, wrapped in her sea-blue palace robe, flew sideways like a rapidly spinning top. After hitting the ground, she rolled dozens of times before barely stopping at the edge of the Sea God Platform.
Qu Fengyi lay prostrate on the ground, coughing up more than a dozen mouthfuls of blood. Each mouthful brought out a few teeth... Her entire mouthful of teeth was shattered, not a single one remaining.
"S-S-Sea Emperor!" The venerables and elders were terrified, their hearts nearly splitting. They cried out in alarm and rushed toward her.
"Who dares to help her?!"
Mo Li's cold shout, just four short words, struck the Sea Palace crowd like a thunderbolt from heaven, freezing them all in place, not daring to move even an inch.
"Hmph!" Mo Li snorted coldly, her tone mocking: "Despicable person, despicable heart, despicable life, yet she still calls herself the Sea Emperor. What a joke."
Mo Li's words were not simply pure disgust and ridicule, because from the level of her own realm, the realm of Tian Xuan Continent was indeed a lowly place. In the entire Tian Xuan Continent, apart from Yun Che, there was no one worthy of her attention. If it weren't to vent Yun Che's anger, she wouldn't have bothered to humiliate and kill these people... because it would sully her status and hands.
Her icy voice fell, and her gaze landed on Huangji Wuyu.
The miserable fates of Xuanyuan Wentian, Ye Meixie, and Qu Fengyi were right before his eyes. Although none of them had died, they had all lost their lifelong prestige and dignity. So when Mo Li's gaze shot toward him, Huangji Wuyu's entire body trembled violently, his face alternating between ashen and pale.
Mo Li looked at Huangji Wuyu, a corner of her mouth curling up into a cold smile that made his entire body turn cold and his soul convulse. But then she averted her gaze and said flatly: "Do you know why this princess didn't kill you all?!"
"In this continent, you are the so-called Sacred Masters, but to this princess, whether there are millions more like you or millions fewer makes no difference at all! Never mind four Sacred Grounds, even if there were ten thousand of them, if this princess wanted to annihilate them, it would only take a flick of her finger."
Every word of Mo Li's speech was earth-shattering to those present... But the fact that she could casually tear open space for dozens of li, and destroy the Northern Domain of Tian Wei Sword Domain from seventy thousand li away, was something they had all witnessed with their own eyes. With her power resembling that of an ancient demon god, these terrifying words were not an exaggeration for her.
"But leaving your lives still has some use." Mo Li swept her gaze across the entire scene, not dealing with Huangji Wuyu, and walked back to Yun Che's side: "Although this princess could kill you all with ease, this princess's disciple Yun Che is not yet your match. You are, after all, the strongest in this continent. If you all died, leaving Yun Che with no opponents, it would be detrimental to his growth. The four of you, clean your necks and stay alive! When his strength is sufficient, whoever he wants dead among you will die!"
Huangji Wuyu, Qu Fengyi, Ye Meixie, and Xuanyuan Wentian's trembling gazes all converged on Yun Che... Indeed, with Mo Li's strength, killing them was no different from stepping on an ant. And although she had dealt harshly with them, she hadn't taken their lives — it was so that Yun Che could kill them!
They, the four Sacred Masters, were to serve as Yun Che's whetstone!
That is to say, from this moment on, their lives were in Yun Che's hands! Once Yun Che's strength surpassed theirs, he could kill them at any time to vent today's hatred. And with a master like Mo Li, a demon-like goddess guiding him, that day would not be far off. At the same time, as long as Mo Li existed, there was absolutely no way for them to escape this fate.
"Moreover," Mo Li's gaze turned cold, her voice growing even more sinister, causing the temperature of heaven and earth to plummet sharply: "Among you, there are quite a few who have no small grudges with Yun Che. Revenge is something that must naturally be taken personally!"
A chilling dread crawled up the spines of the four Sacred Masters, spreading to every corner of their bodies and souls... Especially Xuanyuan Wentian and Ye Meixie. Because in addition to today's grievance, they also had past enmity with Yun Che.
Therefore, if they wanted to live, what they had to do was desperately curry favor with Yun Che — to the utmost!
Otherwise, not only their own lives as the four Sacred Masters, but even their Sacred Grounds could face destruction...
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The Phoenix City's messenger had arrived. The engagement between Prince Snow Phoenix, Feng Xue'er, and Palace Master Yun Che of the Ice Cloud Fairy Palace, born of the Sacred Grounds' marriage, should have been a grand celebration across the land.
However, the engagement date was set as a time for the various nations and powers to present gifts. But because of today's events, there might not be a single faction left in the continent that would dare to give gifts...
Because the engagement was between the Snow Princess and Yun Che!
The Four Sacred Grounds had just taken a heavy blow from Yun Che's master, with three of their Sacred Masters almost crippled. If any faction dared to attend the engagement banquet and present gifts, wouldn't that be openly defying the Four Sacred Grounds? Unless they didn't want to live.
At Feng Hengkong's announcement, almost everyone thought so. Although this engagement banquet was huge, at this moment, it was the time of extreme tension between the Sacred Grounds and Yun Che. Even those who wanted to curry favor with Yun Che's master would have to weigh their lives carefully.
But the next scene was completely beyond everyone's expectations.
At the same time that the Phoenix City's messenger arrived, another messenger arrived from the Heavenly Sin Sword Domain... to report that Xuanyuan Wentian's right arm had been shattered by Yun Che's master, Mo Li. The Heavenly Sin Sword Domain's northern domain had been demolished, and as for the engagement banquet, he would definitely bring a heavy gift to attend in person.
Almost at the same time, the Sun Moon Divine Palace also sent a messenger, and it was even their Palace Master, Ye Meixie's personal messenger, bearing an invitation letter and a heavy gift list, both trembling in fear.
Immediately after, the Supreme Sea Palace and the Huangji Sacred Domain also sent messengers.
The whole world was stunned.
The Four Sacred Grounds, at a high level, had always looked down on the Phoenix Sect. Even at Yun Che's engagement, it was said that they had only sent representatives. But now, even though their three sacred masters had just been crippled, they were all scrambling to bring heavy gifts to attend in person.
This was simply... slapping their own faces and then forcing a smile!
But from another perspective, this was also a sign of submission. The four sacred masters had their lives hanging by a thread, so how could they dare not show up at the engagement banquet of Yun Che's master's disciple? Unless they didn't want to live.
However, for the smaller forces, it was initially a terrifying situation. But seeing that even the Four Sacred Grounds were frantically sending gifts, they naturally knew what to do.
The strong were in charge of everything; and while Mo Li's power was unparalleled, she was Yun Che's master. And Yun Che was engaged to Feng Xue'er, the Phoenix Sect's sect master's daughter. If they followed the trend and kowtowed to the sect master, Mo Li wouldn't care about them.
If they didn't follow the trend, the Four Sacred Grounds would be the first to make things difficult for them. They might even vent the anger they suffered at the Supreme Sea Palace onto them.
So at this point, who would dare not to curry favor?
Besides, Mo Li's strength was too terrifying. If you could get a word or two from her, it would be a huge fortune. No one was stupid; all these forces that had survived so long had their own shrewdness.
But the Four Sacred Grounds had sent people to flatter and give gifts, and their own people would naturally follow suit immediately. The fact that the Phoenix Sect had such a powerful backer was the greatest fortune. If they could get close, they would naturally take the opportunity to climb up.
Moreover, Yun Che was engaged to the Snow Princess from the beginning, and they had never dared to speak up. It was just an engagement banquet.
But this time, the situation was completely different.
Because the person engaged to the Snow Princess was Yun Che!
Not to mention the seven countries, even the Four Sacred Grounds... if they wanted to survive, they had to flatter and curry favor to the utmost before Yun Che grew strong. And the engagement banquet was certainly a perfect opportunity. Even a fool could figure out that the Four Sacred Masters would definitely attend in person, one and all, and would tremble as they brought heavy gifts.
Unless they didn't want to live.
Naturally, just like these small forces facing the Four Sacred Grounds.
As soon as Feng Hengkong finished speaking, the Sea God Platform fell silent for a moment, and then all kinds of promises and even flattery erupted like a tidal wave:
"Congratulations to the Phoenix Sect Master. We will definitely attend, definitely..."
"This old man will bring his entire family. Congratulations, congratulations..."
"The Snow Princess and Palace Master Yun are a match made in heaven. It should be celebrated by all the world. Such an enviable event, if missed, would lead to a lifetime of regret."
"The Phoenix Sect Master has such an excellent daughter and such an excellent son-in-law. It truly... truly makes others envious."
"May I ask what the young lady and Palace Master Yun like? Please enlighten us, Sect Master Feng, so that this humble one can prepare early..."
...
...
In the blink of an eye, the various Tian Xuan overlords had surrounded Feng Hengkong like stars surrounding the moon. Mo Li looked back, snorted coldly, and flew away in a huff.
"Xue'er, Yuanba, let's go." Yun Che picked up Xiao Yun and quickly followed behind Mo Li. This time, Mo Li didn't angrily scold him, which was quite generous of her.
Strange, she had long known about my and Xue'er's situation, so why is she suddenly angry now?
Could it be... is it possible... she's jealous?
... Theoretically, that shouldn't be possible... right?
Also, why did Mo Li want to stay an extra day at the Supreme Sea Palace? If she wanted him to recuperate, wouldn't it be better to return to Liu Yun City or the Ice Cloud Fairy Palace?
Bam!
As Yun Che was lost in thought, he didn't control his speed well and crashed into Xia Yuanba's back in front of him.
Xia Yuanba turned around, wide-eyed, and asked: "Brother-in-law, what's wrong?"
"Oh... nothing, nothing. Just a little distracted. Xiao Yun should be waking up soon. Let's hurry back to the Taizun Cloud Palace first." Yun Che waved his hand.
At the same time, with Mo Li's departure, the oppressive, fearful, and bloodstained atmosphere on the Sea God Platform finally eased.
The only Sacred Master not punished by Mo Li, Huangji Wuyu, had every inch of his robes soaked through with cold sweat. Being unharmed made him feel as if he had survived a great calamity. His fear lingered long, unable to dissipate. But as his mind calmed, he realized that the main reason he had come out unscathed was Xia Yuanba.
In addition, Gu Cang had also spoken up for Yun Che earlier... He was the only one among the Four Sacred Grounds, besides Xia Yuanba, who had said anything for Yun Che.
On the other side, Xuanyuan Wentian had been helped up by the Sword Domain people. Xuanyuan Wendao's face was still pale, and he wept bitterly: "Father, what do we do now... what do we do..."
Xuanyuan Wentian had only injured his right arm. Although it was bloody and mangled, his bones were not broken. For someone of his level, it was not a serious injury and would heal in half a month. But far more terrifying than the injury was the fear and humiliation branded into his soul like a demonic curse. He gasped heavily and said hoarsely: "Let's go... let's go!"
The Demon Sword Assembly was his production, and everything had proceeded and concluded perfectly according to his plan... But in the end, because of Mo Li's appearance, it was a complete defeat.
The Tian Wei Sword Domain and the Sun Moon Divine Palace left the Sea God Platform directly, slinking away without greeting anyone. The Huangji Sacred Domain did not leave... because Mo Li was staying in their Taizun Cloud Palace, so they didn't dare to leave immediately. As for the Supreme Sea Palace, they remained in a state of trepidation.
Because Mo Li was going to stay for another day.