Chapter 497: The World's Number One

As Jasmine’s voice faded, a strong gust of wind swept in from the north. Yun Che saw a green blur, and a tall male figure appeared in his line of sight as if by teleportation.

The man, dressed in green, was uncommonly handsome with resolute eyes. His ears were noticeably larger than the elf woman’s, and his entire body exuded a formidable aura. Even his two pairs of transparent, cicada-like wings shimmered with intense profound energy. Seeing the elf woman, he descended from the air like lightning, landing beside her. "Seventh Sister, are you hurt?" he asked.

"Big Brother, you're finally here!" The elf woman completely relaxed at the sight of the tall man. "I'm not badly hurt," she said, "but Brother Yun Xiao has serious injuries..."

"Hmph!" Seeing his sister was fine, the tall man let out a long breath. Then he snorted coldly, turned around, and glared directly at Yun Xiao, his whole body seething with anger. "Yun brat! I knew it was you again! It's a good thing Seventh Sister is alright this time, otherwise... I'd personally cripple you!"

"I..." Yun Xiao opened his mouth but offered no rebuttal, instead lowering his head in shame.

"Big Brother! You can't talk to him like that!" The elf woman quickly grabbed his arm. "It's not Brother Yun Xiao's fault, and... and he got such serious injuries trying to save me. It's bad enough you don't thank Brother Yun Xiao, but you're so fierce with him!"

"Thank him? Hmph!" The tall man's gaze darkened. "Didn't he invite you out this time?"

"I... No, it wasn't. I secretly invited Brother Yun Xiao out. If you want to blame someone, blame me." The elf woman said, puffing out her cheeks. However, she was clearly not good at lying; her wandering eyes and sulky expression betrayed her.

"It has nothing to do with Seventh Sister; it's all my fault." Yun Xiao lowered his head, his face full of guilt and unease.

"Since you know it's all your fault, stay away from Seventh Sister from now on!" the tall man said with a cold face. "If there's a next time, I'll personally cripple your legs! I mean what I say! Seventh Sister is not someone you're worthy of... Hmph! You're just a bastard picked up from who knows where, and you actually think you're the Young Patriarch of the Yun Family!"

"Big Brother!" The tall man's words made the elf woman's expression change drastically. She glanced anxiously at Yun Xiao's face and said angrily, "How can you say such things to Brother Yun Xiao... If you keep acting like this, I'll never speak to you again!"

"Seventh Sister, I... forget it, hmph!" The tall man blurted out in exasperation. Feeling he had said too much, he turned his face away and said no more.

Yun Xiao's face darkened. He bit his lip, then gave a faint smile and shook his head. "Seventh Sister, don't blame Big Brother. What he said is true... but," Yun Xiao raised his head and said decisively, "But no matter what, even if you want to break my legs, I will never give up on Seventh Sister! It was indeed because of me that Seventh Sister was almost ambushed this time. I will cultivate diligently from now on and never let Seventh Sister be bullied by anyone again, so that you and Uncle can rest assured and entrust Seventh Sister to me."

"Brother Yun Xiao..." The elf woman's eyes shimmered tenderly, already misty with tears.

The tall man, however, dismissively looked away. When he looked at the elf woman, his gaze quickly turned to concern and solemnity. "We'll talk about your two's matter after we return to the city... Seventh Sister, what exactly happened? You just sent a sound transmission saying you were besieged by three black-clothed individuals with Tyrant Profound Realm strength? Where are they?"

The elf woman's gaze turned to Yun Che. "Brother Yun Xiao and I almost died at their hands just now. It was this Brother Yun Che who saved us. If not for him, by the time you arrived, you would have only found our corpses. You really must thank him properly."

"You?" The tall man turned to look at Yun Che, his gaze suspicious. He had noticed Yun Che upon arrival, but Yun Che's profound energy aura was only at the Sky Profound Realm, and he was an unfamiliar face, so the tall man had selectively ignored him.

Yun Che smiled faintly. "My name is Yun Che."

The elf woman continued, "Brother Yun Che and Brother Yun Xiao are similar in age, but he's incredibly powerful. He killed one of the black-clothed men with a single move, and the other two were scared away... truly, just one move! Those three black-clothed men were all at the Tyrant Profound Realm, and Brother Yun Xiao and I couldn't even defeat one of them together."

The tall man's gaze swept over Yun Che's entire body, but his brows slowly furrowed. He repeatedly sensed Yun Che's profound energy aura, but it consistently remained at the tenth level of the Sky Profound Realm... And at that level, one could only be considered weak in the entire Demon Imperial City. How could he possibly kill a Tyrant Emperor... and instantly at that!

Under his scrutinizing gaze, he found that Yun Che remained composed, completely unaffected by the pressure of his aura. He secretly sighed in admiration. Then, without a word, he took a step forward and suddenly pushed his palm towards Yun Che.

What appeared to be a casual palm strike caused a shocking, massive vortex to appear in the space between him and Yun Che. Immediately, this massive vortex instantly dispersed into ninety-nine smaller spatial vortices, which then converged into a single force, striking directly at Yun Che's chest.

Wind-element profound energy?

This was a strike from a High Tyrant Emperor, arguably the most terrifying attack Yun Che had directly faced since his birth. But he showed no panic, nor did he retreat; he didn't even move his feet. He simply pushed out a single hand, a ball of Phoenix Flame burning in his palm, directly meeting the fierce and unparalleled profound energy vortex.

Boom!! The fierce wind profound energy and the flame profound energy collided head-on without any frills. Although it was merely the simplest of probes, in that instant, space was violently torn apart. The raging storm tore at the flames, and the rampaging flames scorched the storm, completely disrupting the airflow in the surrounding dozens of meters as the wind and fire churned.

Yun Che and the tall man both took three steps back simultaneously amidst the clash of storm and flame. They looked at each other, their eyes completely different from before. The same two words emerged in both their minds: So strong!

Yun Che possessed the Dragon God bloodline and immense arm strength granted by the power of heaven and earth, giving him a great advantage in a head-on collision. Even so, in this close-range, unembellished exchange with the tall man, he hadn't gained the slightest upper hand... and this was without knowing how much strength the other party had used.

The tall man's shock, however, was undoubtedly much greater than Yun Che's. Because Yun Che, standing before him, clearly exuded only the aura of the Sky Profound Realm, and from what Seventh Sister had just said, he was only in his twenties... What was the origin of this person? Why had he never seen him before?

"Big Brother, what are you doing!" the elf woman admonished. "Brother Yun Che is my and Brother Yun Xiao's savior! It's bad enough you don't thank him, but you even attacked him suddenly! That's too much."

"Hahahaha!" The tall man let out a hearty laugh. He cupped his fist at Yun Che and said sincerely, "Brother, please don't take offense. Although I belong to the Elf clan, I am naturally warlike, and I can't resist a challenge when I see a master. My name is Tianxia Diyi (First Under Heaven), and I thank Brother Yun for saving my Seventh Sister's life. My Elf clan will certainly repay this great kindness with all our might."

"..." Yun Che opened his mouth, speechless for a moment. He had seen arrogant people, but never someone this arrogant, claiming to be "First Under Heaven" right off the bat! While you might be powerful, is it really "First Under Heaven"? Even if you really are "First Under Heaven"... would it kill you to be a little more modest!?

Seeing Yun Che's expression, the tall man knew what he was thinking. He immediately gave a wry smile and said, "Brother Yun, please don't misunderstand. I am by no means arrogant or conceited. My surname is Tianxia (Under Heaven), and my given name is Diyi (First). This name was bestowed upon me by my father; it's quite unavoidable."

Surname Tianxia... given name Diyi... What a truly unique naming convention!

Although Yun Che tried his best to control himself, his eye twitched violently twice. He glanced at the elf woman and nodded. "So that's it. Then, is your esteemed sister's name perhaps..."

"Oh, my younger sister is the seventh in rank, so her name is Tianxia Qizhong (Seventh Under Heaven)..."

"Don't say it!! Ugh..." The elf woman's attempt to stop him was a split second too late. She could only cover her face in vexation. "It's all Father's fault for these terrible names... Just call me Seventh Sister! Seventh Sister!"

"..." Yun Che used immense willpower to stifle his laughter. No wonder Seventh Sister had been so adamant about not revealing her name before. The eldest is called "First Under Heaven," and the seventh is "Seventh Under Heaven"... It's obvious even with one's toes that the second to sixth siblings must be called "Second Under Heaven," "Third Under Heaven"... "Sixth Under Heaven"...

He wondered if there was also an "Eighth Under Heaven," a "Ninth Under Heaven"... In short, their family seemed to have monopolized all the top ranks in the world!

"Brother Yun, you look quite unfamiliar. Are you new here?" When Tianxia Diyi revealed his name, Yun Che's reaction confirmed to him that Yun Che could not be from Demon Imperial City. Moreover, with such an age and profound energy level yet such astonishing strength, if he were from Demon Imperial City or its surroundings, Tianxia Diyi would certainly not be unfamiliar with him.

"That's right." Yun Che nodded. "I have never truly stepped foot in Demon Imperial City in my life."

"I see." Tianxia Diyi nodded, then said sincerely, "Seventh Sister is the most important treasure of my Tianxia family. You saved her life, which makes you a great benefactor to my Tianxia clan. If you don't mind, how about staying at my Tianxia family's residence for a while? I also have quite a bit of free time recently and can accompany Brother Yun to tour Demon Imperial City anytime."

Yun Xiao and Seventh Sister both showed surprise simultaneously... They knew perfectly well what status and position Tianxia Diyi held in Demon Imperial City. All their lives, they had never seen him so actively try to befriend someone... But thinking of Yun Che's age and strength, they quietly understood. With his strength at this age, he was at the absolute peak, even in the entire Demon Imperial City. Although the Tianxia family was powerful in Demon Imperial City, having such a friend would only bring benefits in the future.

Yun Che smiled slightly. "I appreciate Brother Tianxia's kind offer. Brother Yun Xiao and I share the same surname, Yun, which is quite a coincidence. I have already agreed to stay as a guest at the Yun family for a period. However, if I become familiar with Demon Imperial City another day and know Brother Tianxia's location, I will certainly visit you actively."

Tianxia Diyi glanced at Yun Xiao and slowly nodded. "Since that's the case, I won't insist. This Yun brat knows the location of my Tianxia family. If you encounter any difficult problems in Demon Imperial City, you can come to me anytime. Although my Tianxia family is not large, it holds some weight in Demon Imperial City and even the entire Illusory Demon Realm."

Yun Che raised a hand. "In that case, let me first thank Tian..."

Yun Che's words suddenly halted. He stared ahead, momentarily stunned... Illu... sory... Demon... Realm... Illusory Demon Realm!?