Chapter 685 – Then That Is Simply Too Wonderful!
In the middle of the Divine Phoenix Army’s encampment lay a large crimson tent that was shaped like a flame; it was especially eye-catching.
As Divine Phoenix Empire’s designated commander stationed at Floating Cloud City, Feng Huwei had been in a good mood all this while because he knew the importance of this “mission” that he was overseeing. Being entrusted with such a heavy responsibility clearly showed the trust and how highly the sect leader and the elders regarded him. Once this mission was over, it was extremely likely that his position in the Divine Phoenix Sect would rise.
However, for the past two days, the army which had launched the assault on Blue Wind Imperial City had suddenly ceased all communication, so he felt somewhat ill at ease.
“Is there still no news from the main army?”
There were only two people in the big tent. Feng Huwei was dressed in light clothes, and he sat slumped on a wooden chair, a cup of strong liquor in hand, as he listened to his vice commander’s report.
“It isn’t only the main army, the west army’s commander Han Xingzhao personally went with the Twenty-Fifth Elder to investigate the situation at Blue Wind Imperial City and we have also lost contact with them. They even brought along fifty thousand troops and thousands of Fire War Horses and aerial profound beasts, so it should have been no problem for them to advance and retreat as needed, but…” Feng Huwei’s number one deputy general, Tian Yi, said even as a look of profound fear creased his face. They had galloped from one battlefield to another for more than a hundred years, but they had never encountered such terrifying situation before. Those tens of thousands of troops seemed to have simply evaporated from the face of the earth in the space of a minute.
Feng Huwei furrowed his brows as he sunk into a contemplative silence. After a short while, he slowly began to speak, “To cause tens of thousands of troops and three elders of the Divine Phoenix Sect to disappear in such a short span of time that they did not even have the opportunity to send out a sound transmission, to be able do this… the only possibility is that a guardian who is at the Sovereign Profound Realm has appeared at Blue Wind Imperial City!”
“Sovereign Profound… A Monarch?!” Vice Commander Tian Yi’s head jerked up as he yelled in alarm, “How is that possible?! The Emperor Profound Realm has always been the limit in Blue Wind Nation, and in their thousand year history, not even a single Overlord has ever risen from there. So how could there suddenly be a Monarch?! Moreover, profound practitioners who have attained the power of the Sovereign Profound Realm are existences which are akin to absolute emperors within this continent, so why would they bother lifting a hand to aid a lowly nation such as Blue Wind Nation.”
“Besides this, there can be no other explanation. I also believe that the Sect Master and all the other Elders have definitely come to the same conclusion.” Feng Huwei said without the slightest hesitation, “If one were to say that Blue Wind Nation has no Monarchs… then how do you explain that terrifying black-clothed man in Floating Cloud City?!”
Tian Yi’s words died in his throat. As he remembered the horrifying scene that he had witnessed half a year ago and that aura which seemed to come from the very depths of hell, his heart still violently seized up in his chest.
“Therefore, I do believe that the Sect Master and all the Elders have also reached the same conclusion.” Feng Huwei threw the now-empty pot of liquor away as he continued to speak calmly, “However, even if there is a Monarch guarding Blue Wind Nation, he can only do so for so long! Our Divine Phoenix Sect has twelve such Monarchs! So that person is truly naive if he thinks that he can challenge our Divine Phoenix Empire just because he is a Monarch as well!!”
“My general’s words are absolutely right. Whoever dares to challenge our Divine Phoenix Empire, even if they are Monarchs, are only courting their own deaths in the end!” Tian Yi declared as he nodded his head, “The loss of seven hundred thousand troops and the blood debt that must be paid for the deaths of three of the Divine Phoenix Elders, I believe our Emperor will make him pay ten times the price!” He stopped for a moment and then cupped his hands respectfully before continuing, “This commander also has an important matter that the general needs to make a decision on.”
“Speak!”
“Yes!” Tian Yi strode forward two steps and spoke in a low and suppressed voice, “Just this afternoon alone, eleven soldiers have been killed, and their bodies were all found several kilometers away from the encampment…”
“Heh.” Feng Huwei was not even shocked, so he naturally did not get angry. That was because too many similar occurrences had happened within this half a year. After a period of time, soldiers would suddenly go missing, and when their corpses were found, they bore the traces of terrible torture, so it was clear that they had underwent interrogation. He gave a cold and disdainful laugh, “Do not worry about it. No matter what methods they use, they will not be able to get any useful information out of them.”
“No, this time the situation is rather different.” Tian Yi immediately replied, “This time, the bodies we found all had no external wounds, but every single one of the soldiers had stiff and dull expressions on their faces. So it is extremely likely that someone… invaded their souls!”
“Soul search?” Feng Huwei wondered as his brows furrowed together, but he followed that up with a cold snort, “To have the ability to use a soul search technique… it looks like after they had spent a long time groping around in the dark, they finally decided to send out some experts.”
“This commander believes that the general must pay even more attention to his own security from now on,” Tian Yi suggested.
“There is no need to worry,” Feng Huwei said with a dismissive wave of his hand, and he continued speaking in an unworried tone, “So what if they are from Four Great Sacred Grounds? Our Divine Phoenix Sect has the protection of the grandPhoenix God, so even if they have the guts to kill our troops, they will not have the guts to make a move against this general. This general has the bloodline of the Phoenix, so I am under the protection of the Lord Phoenix God himself!”
“Then this commander has worried too much about this,” Tian Yi said respectfully. Looking at Feng Huwei’s confident demeanor, he hesitated for a moment before finally gathering up his courage and speaking, “General, besides stationing our troops and keeping them prepared, why exactly are we ‘training’ our troops everyday? This commander does not dare to make any assumptions or conjectures, but in the past few months, all of our soldiers and officers have also…” When he spoke of this matter, he suddenly felt Feng Huwei’s gaze grow ice-cold and dense. His entire body stiffened, and he did not dare to continue speaking about this topic any further. He instead hurriedly said, “This commander has spoken out of turn, I beg the general for his forgiveness.”
“As long as you know you have spoken out of turn, then it’s fine!” Feng Huwei said with a loud harrumph. He turned his gaze away from Tian Yi before continuing to speak calmly, “Never ask this question ever again! All you need to know is that this was something personally ordered by the Sect Master himself! If we accomplish our mission, all of us will return to the country covered in glory! If we mess this up, then even this general will not be able to bear the consequences of our failure! So when it comes to questions that should not be asked, you should just be a good lad and keep your mouth shut! When you need to know about what is happening, it will naturally be revealed to you!”
“Understood!” Tian Yi replied hurriedly and he did not dare speak after that.
“Oh, is that so? Then it’s such a pity that all of you most likely won’t have the chance to make your triumphant return after all.”
A haughty and mocking voice suddenly rang through the air and seemed to come out of nowhere. Tian Yi vigorously bounded up from the ground with his longsword instantly coming out of its scabbard. “Who is it?!!”
This was the great general’s main tent, and it was heavily guarded by layers of defenses. And aside from all of this, Feng Huwei himself was a mighty early stage Overlord while Tian Yi was also a third stage Throne. But this voice still rang out as if that person was right beside them and they had not even noticed the presence of anyone before this. So even though their reactions were extremely swift, the hairs on their bodies instantly stood on end due to this great shock.
Tian Yi gripped his longsword tightly as he swiftly surveyed his surroundings, but he did not even catch the shadow of the one who spoke. He turned around and prepared to take his place beside Feng Huwei. But to his shock, he saw a young man clothed in golden robes silently standing not even a foot away from Feng Huwei’s back. That person wore an extremely cold smile on his face, and his eyes were as black as the pools of the underworld. Feng Huwei, who had the strength of an Overlord, was emitting profound energy from every pore of his skin as he glared furiously… yet he did not notice the young man who was standing right behind him!!
The longsword in Tian Yi’s hand fiercely shook as he yelled in alarm, “General, be… behind you!!”
Feng Huwei automatically turned his head, and his face came within inches of touching the face of another person. Instantly, his pupils shrank into pinpoints as he sprang backwards. When he had straightened up, his entire body was covered in a sheen of cold sweat. He extended a finger towards the young man, and just as he was about to say something, he realized that the face of this uninvited guest seemed vaguely familiar. But after that moment of bafflement had passed, his expression suddenly changed and he croaked out the words, “You… you are Yun Che!”
“Oh?” Yun Che crossed both hands over his chest and coldly smiled as he looked at him askance, “The Divine Phoenix Empire’s famed and brilliant Great General Feng Huwei actually recognizes me. Ah, this is a great honor indeed.”
“Yun… Yun Che?” Tian Yi turned his head to look at Feng Huwei. “That Yun Che? Didn’t he already… die three years ago?”
As a member of the Divine Phoenix Sect, not only did he have the status of a great general, his profound strength had also reached the Tyrant Profound Realm, so naturally he had the qualifications to compete in the Seven Nations Ranking Tournament. So this face which belonged to the person who had trampled all over the dignity of their Divine Phoenix Sect, how could he forget it.
“You’re actually still alive!” Feng Huwei said in a deep voice. If it was the Yun Che of three years ago, Feng Huwei would definitely not be scared. But just now, Yun Che was standing not even an inch behind him, but he did not notice a single thing! Even if he was a fool, he would recognize the level of power required to perform such a feat. Moreover, even though not a single ripple of profound energy emanated from Yun Che’s body, his mere gaze alone caused Feng Huwei’s heart to start beating rapidly in his chest. All of these things added together proved that Yun Che standing before him, who should have died a long time ago, had a strength that was far more terrifying than it was three years ago.
“And you… are about to die right now,” Yun Che said with a low, cold chuckle as a stream of icy-cold killing intent locked squarely onto Feng Huwei.
“Don’t even think of harming my general!!” Tian Yi gave a ferocious shot as he waved his sword to protect Feng Huwei. After that, he grit his teeth and thrust the sword towards Yun Che’s chest. But at the same time, he was growing more and more flustered because such a great commotion was occurring here, yet there was no reaction from any of the guards outside… Could it be that all the guards had already been taken care of by him? But there clearly had not been any movement outside at all!!
At the same time, all the guards stood at attention outside the big tent, their expressions cold and grave… while a colorless and shapeless “Frozen End Illusory Mirror” had engulfed the entire tent, and in this space which Yun Che controlled, no sound or aura could escape from within.
At tip of Tian Yi’s sword appeared an eye-startling vortex, and even though this sword stroke seemed simple and without flourish, it was an attack that used all of his power. But Yun Che did not even move an inch as he waited for Tian Yi’s sword to pierce his chest.
Seeing that Yun Che had no intention to dodge, a faint glimmer of joy appeared in Tian Yi’s eyes as all of the profound energy in his body surged forth and concentrated at the tip of the sword that was fiercely thrusting towards Yun Che’s heart…
A sword stroke which contained all of the power of a Throne could easily cut through fine steel, yet when this sword solidly came into contact with Yun Che’s chest, not a single sound rang out. Tian Yi felt as if his sword had suddenly slipped into a void and all the profound energy he had released had exploded inside this “void” as it disappeared without a single trace…
Tian Yi’s long sword pressed against Yun Che’s chest as he stood there, completely petrified and at a loss for words. In the next instant, the longsword in his hand shivered, and the body of the sword dispersed into a cloud of tiny dust particles which drifted to the floor. What was left was only the handle of the sword which he was still gripping.
Tian Yi had a dazed expression on his face; his eyes were not focused at all and his entire body stood there, unmoving. Following the destruction of his sword, he too collapsed like a block of wood on the floor. His eyes were wide open, but there was no movement in them… not a single wound could be seen on his body, nor was there any life in him either.
“Tian Yi!” Feng Huwei moved a step forward before immediately bounding backwards. He gazed at Yun Che and his expression was incomparably dark and heavy… he had not even been able to see the method by which Yun Che had used to kill Tian Yi.
“Great General Huwei.” Yun Che gave a cold laugh as he looked at Feng Huwei, and his killing intent was so strong that he caused Feng Huwei’s body to spasm; it seemed like he did not even dare move a muscle. Yun Che continued, “I heard that a few months ago, when you led your troops into Floating Cloud City, you gave orders to capture my little aunt?”
Yun Che’s voice abruptly grew dark and cold, “You have great courage indeed!!”
Yun Che’s words caused Feng Huwei’s eyelids to fiercely twitch. He was extremely clear on who Yun Che was talking about. Because when he had encountered Xiao Lingxi in Floating Cloud City, the two city lords politely introduced her as Yun Che’s little aunt, and that had caused him great excitement at that time. At the moment, he immediately knew why this Yun Che who “had come back from the dead” would suddenly come to pay him a visit and why Yun Che had such a strong desire to kill him… He had heard more than once that one of the strongest sects in Blue Wind Nation, a huge sect which had survived for a millennium, had been viciously wiped off the face of the earth for the crime of kidnapping his little aunt, and he did not even leave a trace of it behind!
Feng Huwei kept his cool and suppressed the fear that was welling up inside of him. A cold smile appeared on his face instead as he said, “You want to kill me? That will depend on whether you have the guts to or not.”
“Oh?” The corner of Yun Che’s eyes twitched.
“You may indeed have the power to kill me right now, but…” Feng Huwei extended a hand and pointed towards his own temple, “But there exists a soul imprint laid down by the Sect Master himself within my soul right now! If you dare to kill me, then the last thirty seconds of my memories before my death will be instantly transmitted to the Sect Master! Heh, if you dare to kill a member of the Divine Phoenix Sect, your ensuing death will be even more miserable, and all the people related to you will die miserably as well! So if you have the guts, then come and kill me!”
“Oh really?!” His expression did not change according to what Feng Huwei expected; rather, his gaze grew amused and he gave a cold laugh which carried contempt that was even more profound, “Then that is… simply too wonderful!!”