Chapter 1203: Warning Sign

Yun Che completely recovered his injuries and profound energy within the Heaven Smiting Pearl. He then immediately closed the Heaven Smiting Barrier, not staying inside to cultivate further. Simply training there for a few months would almost certainly not be enough to reach a level where he could contend with Jun Xilei.

Before confronting Jun Xilei, he had to maximize the utility of the seven Heaven Smiting Pearls he possessed; otherwise, they would be wasted.

After a quiet night, Yun Che optimized his condition. When he opened his eyes, it was already broad daylight.

Today's battle had arrived quickly. His opponent: Shui Meiyin.

Sensing a shift in his aura, Mu Bingyun approached him. "The time is almost upon us. Let's go."

Yun Che rose and, after a moment's thought, said, "Palace Master Bingyun, Brother Poyun still seemed a bit off yesterday. I'll go check on him. It would be ideal if I could persuade him to come and watch the match."

"...Very well," Mu Bingyun nodded. She had noticed during this time that Yun Che genuinely considered Huo Poyun a friend and remained concerned about his despondency over Jun Xilei.

Yun Che arrived at the Flame God Realm residence but did not detect Huo Poyun's presence.

"Oh... Senior Brother Poyun went to the Conferred God Stage with the Sect Master quite early," said the Golden Crow disciple who remained. As he spoke, his eyes gleamed with an unusual reverence.

It was far, far more intense than any admiration shown towards Huo Poyun.

"I see."

As Yun Che departed, the Golden Crow disciple, unable to contain his excitement, called out, "Young Master Yun Che... good luck in today's Conferred God Battle!"

Yun Che ascended into the air, flying alone towards the Conferred God Stage. Huo Poyun had finally accompanied Huo Rulie to the spectator stands today, appearing to have emerged from his gloom. Yet, Yun Che felt no relief; instead, a certain heaviness settled in his heart.

The Golden Crow disciple's intensely fervent gaze had suddenly made him realize something.

"Sigh," Yun Che murmured to himself with a soft sigh. "Youth..."

It seemed he had forgotten that, by physiological age, he was actually slightly younger than Huo Poyun.

As he neared the Conferred God Stage area, a group of three people flew in from another direction. Yun Che glanced over and was instantly startled.

Among the three, the one leading them was none other than Shui Yingyue! And the most striking, the one who instinctively drew immediate attention, was the delicate, petite, young girl in the black dress positioned between them.

It was Shui Meiyin, his opponent for today!

The third person was a young man in blue robes, fair-skinned and handsome, with delicate features, yet possessing a certain heroic spirit.

"Oh?" Just as Yun Che noticed them, Shui Meiyin also spotted him. Her beautiful eyes shifted, and she suddenly tugged her sister, flying directly towards Yun Che.

"Big Brother Yun Che!" Shui Meiyin's delicate brows arched as she waved her small hand at Yun Che. "What a coincidence! We meet again."

"Uh... ah, what a coincidence, indeed." Yun Che was quite caught off guard by the sudden initiative of this world-renowned prodigy to speak with him.

Shui Meiyin tilted her face slightly, her starry eyes twinkling. "Big Brother Yun Che, your performance yesterday against Big Brother Leng Chuan was truly incredible! I really admire you!"

"..." Yun Che paused, noticing that Shui Yingyue and the young man accompanying Shui Meiyin were even more taken aback by her words, their expressions seemingly shifting.

Seeing Yun Che's clear look of disbelief, Shui Meiyin pouted her tender lips. "I'm telling the truth! And this is the first time I've genuinely admired someone, because Big Brother Yun Che is truly, truly amazing... Oh, that reminds me!"

Shui Meiyin turned slightly. "This is my elder sister; you've met her."

Shui Yingyue nodded slightly towards Yun Che. There was no doubt that her gaze towards Yun Che now was entirely different from when they first met.

"This is my ninety-ninth older brother," Shui Meiyin continued, pointing to the young man. "He also participated in this Profound God Convention, but he was defeated in the third preliminary round. He's so, so far behind you, Big Brother—he can't even compare to your little finger!"

To be traveling with Shui Yingyue and Shui Meiyin, the young man's identity was naturally extraordinary. When he stood before Yun Che, he exuded an air of nobility, proud of his status as a son of the Glazed Light Realm King. Yet, Shui Meiyin's few words instantly deflated his entire presence, leaving him with an awkward expression as he addressed Yun Che: "Ahem, I am Shui Yinghen, the ninety-ninth son of the Realm King. Young Brother Yun, your battle yesterday truly opened my eyes."

"So it's the Ninety-Ninth Young Master of Glazed Light Realm. A pleasure to meet you," Yun Che returned the greeting, a wave of emotion in his heart. *If this were before the Profound God Convention, would a prodigy from the Glazed Light Realm, standing at the apex of an Upper Star Realm, even bother to spare a glance for someone from a Middle Star Realm? Yet now, this son of the Glazed Light Realm King not only initiated conversation but also addressed himself with such humility...*

Yun Che had a faint impression of Shui Yinghen, vaguely recalling him as one of the thousand chosen sons. However, he had been eliminated in the third round of the Eternal Heaven Tower Battle and did not qualify for the Conferred God Battle.

Judging by Shui Meiyin's merciless teasing just now, this seemed to be a rather embarrassing failure for the Ninety-Ninth Young Master of Glazed Light Realm.

"Big Brother Yun Che, your opponent today is me, so be careful," Shui Meiyin said, her brows arched, her smile sweet and charming, completely lacking the demeanor one might expect from an opponent.

"You as well," Yun Che replied.

"However," the young girl said, her starry eyes shifting slightly, a smile playing on her lips, "you don't seem worried about losing to me at all."

"No," Yun Che shook his head. "I never underestimate any opponent, and certainly not you."

Shui Meiyin blinked, her expression serious, her nose and lips slightly upturned, and stated with absolute certainty, "But... that's exactly what you're thinking inside."

"..." Shui Meiyin's pupils were as pure as crystal, yet as profound as the deepest night, seemingly capable of seeing directly into a person's soul.

Yun Che certainly did not underestimate Shui Meiyin, but due to his extreme confidence in his spiritual power, he had subconsciously never entertained the thought of losing to her. After his victory over Lu Lengchuan yesterday, his entire night had been consumed by how he could defeat Jun Xilei, barely considering his match against Shui Meiyin.

At this moment, facing Shui Meiyin's dark eyes and confident words, a sudden, extremely strong sense of alarm arose within him for the first time.

"Hehe," Shui Meiyin suddenly chuckled softly, her laughter exceptionally sweet and charming. "Even though I'm young and so cute, I might be even harder to deal with than Big Brother Leng Chuan. So, Big Brother, you must be very, very careful."

"Alright," Shui Yingyue took Shui Meiyin's hand, casting a brief glance at Yun Che. "Time is short. Let's go."

"Mm!" Shui Meiyin linked arms with her sister. "Big Brother Yun Che, see you in a bit."

The sisters slowly flew away, one in black and one in blue, their robes fluttering like a pair of dancing butterflies, a truly delightful sight.

Shui Yinghen, however, paused, suddenly turned around, and whispered to Yun Che with a serious expression, "Hey! I'm warning you, don't assume that just because you defeated Lu Lengchuan, you can beat my little sister. My little sister... she's a little demoness thousands of times more terrifying than you've seen or imagined! You fought half to death and won so gloriously yesterday; don't completely fall today!"

"..." Yun Che was slightly startled and nodded. "Thank you for the reminder, Young Master Ninety-Nine."

"Good that you know!" Shui Yinghen said, but instead of leaving, he moved a bit closer, lowering his voice significantly. "Um... look, I gave you a kind warning; shouldn't you... ahem, reciprocate? When you fought Lu Lengchuan yesterday... how exactly did you pull off that 'Illusion God Art'?"

"It's not truly 'Illusion God Art,' is it? Father King said that's an ultimate ability only Divine Master Realm cultivators can use. Why can you use it when you're only in the Divine Tribulation Realm...? Is there some trick to it? Is it hard to learn?"

"Ninety-Ninth Brother! Come... over... here!"

Shui Meiyin's voice echoed from a distance. Shui Yinghen, as if receiving a divine decree, quickly turned his head, hesitated for only half a breath before hurrying to follow, not forgetting to transmit a message to Yun Che: "Later... we'll talk later!"

When Yun Che arrived at the Conferred God Stage, he immediately spotted Huo Poyun. Huo Poyun saw him at the same time and rose to greet him.

"Brother Poyun, you've finally arrived. It seems you've come to terms with many things," Yun Che said with a faint smile.

Huo Poyun, however, shook his head with a bitter laugh. "To tell you, Brother Yun, it would make you laugh. Yesterday, I, too, for a time thought I had broken free from my inner demons, but..."

"Sigh," Huo Poyun sighed softly, his eyes clouded. "Knowing it's an inner demon, yet unable to escape it. Knowing it's a thought that shouldn't be, yet unable to shake it off... It was only when I came to this Eternal Heaven Realm that I truly saw how useless I am."

"Hahahaha," Yun Che, however, laughed. "Brother Poyun, remember what I told you. Don't view inner demons as a bad thing. On the contrary, they are merely a necessary hurdle in life. Once you overcome them, you will see a whole new world."

"Mm!" Huo Poyun nodded emphatically. "I won't let myself continue to be so shameful. Brother Yun, if you win today's battle, you'll enter the top four! You'll become one of the 'Four Conferred Gods'! I recall the voice of the Eternal Heaven saying that the top four ranked individuals would receive special rewards from the Four King Realms. So... you must do your best, you must win."

"Of course!"

Today was the sixth battle of the loser's bracket, comprising two matchups. With Honored One Qu Huiting's announcement, today's Conferred God Battle quickly commenced.

The first match was Jun Xilei against Meng Duanxi. The outcome was without suspense or surprise: Jun Xilei easily won by using only six sword strikes.

"Meng Duanxi has lost and is eliminated from the Conferred God Battle. Jun Xilei wins and will advance to the seventh round of the loser's bracket in three days!"

"The second match of the sixth round of the loser's bracket: Shui Meiyin of the Glazed Light Realm against Yun Che of the Snow Song Realm!"

Before Honored One Qu Huiting's voice even faded, all eyes in the audience—including those of the various God Emperors, Star Gods, Moon Gods, and Guardians—simultaneously focused on Yun Che. This single scene alone was enough to demonstrate the immense impact Yun Che's battle yesterday had created.

"Be extremely careful," Mu Bingyun cautioned.

"Brother Yun, I suggest you use your profound energy to suppress her as quickly as possible, denying her any chance to unleash spiritual attacks," Huo Poyun whispered.

Yun Che nodded slightly, then flew up and landed on the Conferred God Stage, facing Shui Meiyin from a distance. With a flash of crimson light, before his profound energy even stirred, the Heaven Smiting Sword was already in his grasp.

In contrast to his serious gaze and poised readiness, Shui Meiyin stood with her hands clasped behind her back, her delicate fingers still daintily fiddling with the ribbon tied around her slender waist. A gentle, charming smile graced her small face, giving no sense of nervousness or intimidation.

The spectator stands were remarkably quiet; everyone collectively held their breath.

Because for this particular matchup, no one dared to predict the outcome.

Yun Che's strength was beyond doubt; yesterday's battle had truly astonished the entire Eastern Divine Region.

However, Shui Meiyin was an exceptionally unique individual.

Her profound energy was only at the first level of the Divine Spirit Realm—an absolutely astonishing cultivation for her age, yet it was the lowest among all participants in this Conferred God Battle. Nevertheless, she had progressed all the way to this point in the Conferred God Battle without a single defeat, apart from actively conceding in her battle against Shui Yingyue!

Moreover, she won every battle with remarkable ease.

Furthermore, in every battle, she never relied on profound energy, but instead depended on extremely high-level movement techniques and an incredibly potent spiritual power.

On the other hand, these two happened to be the ones with the lowest profound energy among the thirty-two Conferred Gods, and indeed among all thousand chosen sons.

One was at the first level of the Divine Spirit Realm, the other at the eighth level of the Divine Tribulation Realm.

And it was these two who had surpassed numerous late-stage Divine Spirit Realm cultivators, standing on the battlefield vying for a spot among the top four—undoubtedly a great marvel in the history of the Conferred God Battle.

Under Yun Che's intense gaze, Shui Meiyin tilted her head, her eyes, already full of charm, curving into two slender crescents. A very soft and gentle soul voice then transmitted directly into Yun Che's mind:

"Big Brother Yun Che, be careful."

"Begin battle!!"

Honored One Qu Huiting's voice boomed like thunder. At the very instant the words fell, Yun Che shot forward like an arrow from a bow, his profound energy erupting at full power...

His intention, like Huo Poyun's, was to immediately suppress her with overwhelming power, directly denying her any opportunity to unleash her spiritual abilities!