Chapter 1035: Zong

Yun Che’s voice fell. He casually swept his hand over his body, and a small jade stone, seemingly flowing with profound light, appeared between his fingers.

"A Profound Shadow Stone!?" The surrounding people recognized the object in Yun Che's hand at a glance. "Could it be that..."

"Hmph, Feng Huituo, see for yourself!"

Yun Che scoffed, flicked his finger, and the Profound Shadow Stone flew out, landing on the ground. The profound array within it activated the moment it landed, emitting clear profound light and sound upwards.

The first scene of profound light projected by the Profound Shadow Stone unmistakably showed Mu Hanyi. However, his expression was sinister, making him appear unrecognizable and unbelievable to everyone. His voice, furthermore, carried a ferocity that should not have been present in him.

"...I will personally offer it to Master. As for you, you won't live to see that moment, because you... are about to die here!"

The image from the Profound Shadow Stone could not be faked. Feng Huituo instantly felt a chill run through him; he simply could not believe his eyes or his ears.

"What did you say? You... you want to kill me? How dare you kill me!?"

"No, no, no, I wouldn't dare. Senior Brother Yun Che is the Sect Master's personal disciple. Even if Hanyi had the greatest audacity, he wouldn't dare harm a single hair on your head. Of course, you weren't killed by me. Instead... you unfortunately fell victim to a trap here while attempting to steal the Kylin Horn!"

"Senior Brother Yun Che, no need to worry... I'll cover it up perfectly. Even if the Sect Master were to personally investigate, she definitely wouldn't find any flaws. You can rest assured and trust me on this."

The atmosphere in the hall abruptly shifted again, and immense shock registered on everyone's faces. The Profound Shadow array clearly showed Mu Hanyi—his appearance, his words... everyone saw and heard it distinctly. It was clear that he had deliberately lured Yun Che into the treasure vault and then attempted to murder him!

To murder the personal disciple of the Great Realm King—what an unforgivable crime, what audacious temerity!

Feng Huituo's anger and sorrow vanished, replaced by extreme terror on a face where every muscle trembled. His body swayed, and with a "thud," he collapsed heavily onto the ground, his pupils trembling so violently they seemed about to burst from their sockets. "No... no... no... impossible... this isn't real... this isn't real..."

Just moments ago, he had been roaring at Yun Che with furious indignation... But if Mu Hanyi had indeed attempted to murder Yun Che first, then not only would his death be deserved, but even dying a thousand, ten thousand times would not atone for his sin.

Feng Hange knelt there, his eyes dulled as if frozen. Compared to Feng Huituo, he found it less difficult to accept. He still clearly remembered the words Mu Hanyi had spoken to him before nightfall—words that had almost made his heart jump out of his chest in fear.

Meanwhile, the Profound Shadow Stone's projection continued.

"You... you're insane!" This was Yun Che's voice. "This place... this is your Ice Wind Empire. If I die, even if Master genuinely believes I died from a trap, given her temperament, all of you would be buried alongside me in her wrath!"

"Oh! You're right, perfectly right." Mu Hanyi nodded, smiling nonchalantly. "Even if you 'died trying to steal my Ice Wind Empire's national sacred artifact,' the Sect Master would, in her fury, flatten the entire Imperial City—that's a normal outcome... But even if all of Ice Wind is destroyed, the Sect Master certainly won't kill me!"

"If it allows me to achieve my goal, what does it matter if the entire Ice Wind is annihilated?"

"...You shook off your guards, so no one will know where you went or with whom. As for me, I'll leave through a secret passage in my palace. In other words, no one will know I've left my palace; everyone will believe that when you 'broke into' the treasure vault and died from a trap, I was soundly asleep in my palace."

"I've even thought of how you'll appear to have broken in. It's just that... my poor imperial sister will have to be sacrificed."

"Enough... enough!!"

Feng Huituo's mind and soul finally shattered completely. With a howl, he lunged at the Profound Shadow Stone, his palm striking it with an incredibly chaotic aura, instantly shattering it and dispersing all profound light.

A deathly silence enveloped the surroundings, broken only by Feng Huituo's extremely ragged breathing. Beside Yun Che, Mu Xiaolan stood completely dazed, as if in a dream. On the other side, Feng Hanjin's face had long since paled, and the Profound Shadow Stone's final words caused her body to slowly soften, her hands clutching her shoulders, trembling continuously.

To Mu Xiaolan, Mu Hanyi was the most respected Senior Brother.

To Feng Hanjin, he was her most beloved and admired elder brother.

To Feng Huituo, he was his most cherished son...

To everyone present, even if he hadn't become the Great Realm King's personal disciple, he was still the undisputed genius of the Snow Song Realm—unrivaled by anyone...

Who could have imagined that this peerlessly noble young master, who was considered flawless in every aspect, would turn out to be such a sinister, vicious, and unscrupulous individual? For the mere possibility—just the possibility—of becoming the Great Realm King's personal disciple, he was willing to secretly harm Yun Che, sacrifice his own homeland, and even poison his own imperial sister with his own hands!

Yun Che did not stop Feng Huituo from destroying the Profound Shadow Stone. With lowered brows, he spoke coldly, "Didn't you insist on knowing the reason? Are you satisfied with this one?"

Feng Huituo lay there, completely unresponsive to Yun Che's words, as if his soul had left his body.

"He tried to kill me, but I killed him instead. It's that simple." Yun Che's brows furrowed. "If my Master were to learn that Mu Hanyi laid such a vicious hand on me, given her temperament, the entire Ice Wind might be implicated, and at the very least, the royal family would suffer."

Yun Che's words made Feng Huituo's body tremble violently, and the eyes of all the royal family members simultaneously showed immense dread... They were perfectly aware that Yun Che's words were by no means an exaggeration.

"Therefore, I intended to keep this matter hidden to prevent it from escalating too much. After all, this was merely Mu Hanyi's personal ambition and vicious act; it had nothing to do with others, and there was no need to implicate all of you." Yun Che's gaze turned cold. "But you insisted on being aggressive, hmph! Now, it's exactly as you wished!"

Feng Huituo's entire body jerked. He scrambled and stumbled toward Yun Che, tears streaming down his face. "This humble king was foolish, this humble king was blind, completely unaware that I raised such a monstrous offspring... and I wrongly betrayed Nephew Yun's great benevolence and kindness... This humble king deserves to die... I beg... I beg Nephew Yun not to inform the Great Realm King of this matter. This humble king... will remember your great kindness forever..."

The pain of losing a son, dread, regret, fear... Feng Huituo felt as if he had plunged into purgatory, regretting his past actions and wishing he could die. If the clear image from the Profound Shadow Stone hadn't appeared before his eyes, he would rather die than believe that his most cherished son could possess such terrifying ambition and heart...

They say no one knows a son better than his father, let alone the emperor of a nation. Yet, at this moment, he agonizingly realized that he had never truly known his own son.

And with this realization came the terrifying possibility that the entire Ice Wind Imperial Family could be implicated by Mu Hanyi's actions and face utter destruction.

"It's too late." Yun Che's gaze swept coldly across the surroundings. "Given the circumstances, do you think it's still possible to keep it a secret?"

Feng Huituo froze, then his head slumped deeply, his face ashen. In front of the great hall, there were not only members of their imperial palace but also numerous distinguished guests who had come to offer birthday wishes. Even if all of them swore a solemn oath never to reveal a word, the news of Mu Hanyi's attempt to murder the Great Realm King's personal disciple would spread rapidly.

Because the only ones who can truly keep a secret in this world are the dead.

"Lord of Ice Wind, you don't need to be so pessimistic." Yun Che looked sideways and spoke indifferently. "While annihilating an imperial family is but a flick of a finger for Master, she is by no means an unreasonable or cruel person. After I return to the sect, I will inform Master of the full story, explaining that it was solely Mu Hanyi's idea, and since I am completely unharmed, Master might not bother to hold your Ice Wind Imperial Family accountable. Furthermore... I will present that sacred artifact to Master on your behalf. If Master perceives your sincerity, she might be even less inclined to pursue the matter."

Feng Huituo abruptly looked up, and a trace of color finally returned to his pale face. He nodded frantically. "Nephew Yun's kindness... This humble king... This humble king... has no way to repay it... I beg... I beg Nephew Yun to please speak highly of me before the Great Realm King. This humble king's loyalty to the Great Realm King is as clear as the sun and moon, evident to heaven and earth... From now on, if Nephew Yun speaks a single word, my Ice Wind will not flinch from a thousand deaths..."

Under the immense shock, excitement, and terror, Feng Huituo was completely incoherent.

"So, regarding the sacred artifact..."

Feng Huituo prostrated himself directly on the ground. "I... I trouble Nephew Yun to present the sacred artifact to the Great Realm King. If this item pleases the Great Realm King, it is the artifact's good fortune, and this humble king will be immensely joyful."

"That would be excellent."

Yun Che nodded, then turned directly away. "If there's nothing else, I should return to rest. Tomorrow morning, I will depart directly for the sect; there's no need to see me off."

Without waiting for any response from the crowd, Yun Che flew up and headed straight for Ice Aerie Palace.

That night, the Ice Wind Imperial Palace was destined to be restless. Yun Che was entirely unconcerned with how the Ice Wind Imperial Family would handle the aftermath, as his objective for this trip had been achieved, and far faster than he had anticipated, despite a minor detour.

As he left the Ice Wind Grand Hall, Yun Che's expression gradually relaxed, followed by a sigh. "Master was right. In this world, there is never fairness, only the strong preying on the weak. Alas."

"Right now, I'm just borrowing the tiger's might." Yun Che chuckled self-deprecatingly, and his figure quickly vanished into the night.

High above, where no one could perceive, a long sigh suddenly echoed, followed by a fleeting ice shadow that vanished without a trace, like a shimmering star.

"I still can't believe that Senior Brother Hanyi would be such a person."

On the ice boat soaring through the air, Mu Xiaolan rested her chin in her hands, her gaze dazed. Clearly, she still hadn't fully processed the events of the previous night.

They were already far from the Ice Wind Empire, and in a few more hours, they would return to the Ice Phoenix Realm.

"It seems you completely ignored what I told you earlier," Yun Che said, rolling his eyes, from the other side of the ice boat.

"Such words, when applied to Senior Brother Hanyi, no one... no one would believe them," Mu Xiaolan's voice trailed off towards the end, then she turned around. "It's so strange. Everyone in the sect particularly likes and respects Senior Brother Hanyi; no one ever thought he was... a bad person. But you've only been in the sect for such a short time, so why did you think he was bad so early? I remember... you said something strange the very first day you met him."

"If I were as foolish as you, I'd have died countless times by now," Yun Che said matter-of-factly.

"You're making fun of me again," Mu Xiaolan pouted, but her protest wasn't strong this time. She glanced at Yun Che a few times, then suddenly asked, "Yun Che, you seem to have been distracted this whole time... are you perhaps still bothered by Senior Brother Hanyi's matter?"

"I'm not so bothered as to dwell on a dead man," Yun Che said, rubbing his forehead. "I can now confirm that someone from the sect secretly followed us to Ice Wind."

"Ah!?" Mu Xiaolan rose in surprise.

"And a very formidable person at that!" Yun Che gritted his teeth slightly. Last night, he had been startled several times, feeling chills down his spine. But after returning to Ice Aerie Palace and calming down, he considered... The fact that his own person and the Kylin Horn were untouched, yet Mu Hanyi's corpse was stolen; the "frame-up" technique, though skilled, was full of loopholes; the aura of the Ice Phoenix Conferred God Code on Mu Hanyi's corpse; and the absence of any further anomalies after leaving the Ice Wind Grand Hall...

Considering all this, he concluded that it was clearly a "prank" orchestrated on a whim by that hidden individual! It was absolutely not meant to harm him, but merely to cause him trouble and then enjoy the show.

"...Is there anyone in the sect, perhaps a Palace Master or someone of that level, who is rather... well, mischievous, playful, the kind who likes to tease people?" Yun Che described with some difficulty.

"How could there be!" Mu Xiaolan rejected the idea without thinking. "Palace Masters are very aloof, very serious people. Even Master is considered the gentlest. How could they be like what you described?"

"I guess... you're right," Yun Che rubbed his scalp vigorously; this was the part that had been bothering him. "That kind of trick feels like something a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl would pull off, but at that age..."

In the treasure vault, not only had he failed to detect the hidden person's presence, but Mu Hanyi also hadn't sensed anything. This proved that the person's strength was absolutely far above Mu Hanyi's, surpassing him by at least a major realm... And at that level of power, they certainly wouldn't be a disciple.

Moreover, he was the Sect Master's personal disciple. Anyone daring enough to play such a trick on him would at least have to be at the level of a Frost Snow Palace Master.

"Who could it possibly be?" Yun Che pondered repeatedly.