Chapter 580

Everyone present was filled with sorrow and regret. No one had imagined that Yun Canghai had not perished in the Azure Cloud Continent a hundred years ago, but had only truly passed away three years prior. A century had passed since the Great Calamity of the Demon Emperor, yet only today did they truly grasp the full extent of what lay behind it. The truths and wrongs they had once firmly believed and thought they understood were now completely overturned in their hearts.

"I always thought that Brother Yun and I were separated by death, never imagining he only passed away three years ago... Alas." Mu Feiyan let out a long sigh, a mix of sorrow and joy washing over him. He grieved for Yun Canghai's past century of suffering, but rejoiced that he had such a descendant. He believed that seeing his own grandson before his death, entrusting to him what he had fiercely protected, and witnessing his extraordinary talent, Yun Canghai must have departed with peace and a smile.

In the Demon Emperor Hall, every gaze directed at Yun Canghai's remains was filled with profound lament, admiration, respect, and deep remorse—remorse for having, for a century, followed popular opinion and wrongly considered him a "sinner."

The Yun family elders were already teary-eyed. The younger Yun family disciples clenched their fists, staring directly at Yun Canghai, their gazes as if gazing upon a deity. Since their birth, the Yun family had been in decline, and Demon Imperial City was constantly filled with various criticisms against them; when facing other guardian families, they had always felt inferior. But at this moment, they felt an overwhelming pride in being a son or daughter of the Yun family.

Prince Huai's chest heaved. He said, relatively calmly, "So that's how it is. That truly was heaven's arrangement. However, there is one more thing I don't understand... and it's extremely important." His eyes narrowed. "How did you get from the Azure Cloud Continent to the Illusory Demon Realm?"

"The Azure Cloud Continent and the Illusory Demon Realm are vastly separated; even peak Sovereign Emperors cannot cross between them. The hidden spatial channel used by the Azure Cloud Continent to invade our Illusory Demon Realm back then has long been sealed by us, and three major powers guard it day and night. If they dared to invade again, we would detect them immediately. Yet you arrived from the Azure Cloud Continent completely unnoticed! If you hadn't admitted it yourself, none of us would have even known you were from there! Could it be that the Azure Cloud Continent has opened another spatial channel? Or possesses some treasure capable of transcending dimensions? If that's the case..."

"Wouldn't those villains from the Azure Cloud Continent be able to secretly infiltrate at any time? Then our Illusory Demon Realm could easily face the same sky-borne crisis we encountered a hundred years ago!"

Prince Huai's words caused many to hold their breath and turn their gaze to Yun Che. Yun Che glanced at Prince Huai and said without changing his expression, "Your Highness Prince Huai, you're worrying needlessly. If the Azure Cloud Continent truly had a way to secretly infiltrate here, given their covetousness for the Wheel of Myriad Tribulations, they would have acted many times over the past century. Why would they go to such great lengths to send a message here, demanding to exchange my grandfather's life for the Wheel of Myriad Tribulations?"

Yun Che slowly explained, "Three years ago, when I learned of my origins and was entrusted with my grandfather's dying wish, I naturally longed immensely to return to the Illusory Demon Realm—both to rejoin my ancestral family and to fulfill my grandfather's final charge. So for these three years, I exerted all my efforts to find a way to reach the Illusory Demon Realm. Indeed, the heavens did not disappoint me. Through a fortunate coincidence, I found a treasure capable of transporting me here, and thus I returned to the Illusory Demon Realm three months ago."

Yun Che naturally couldn't reveal the fact that he was brought there by the Primordial Profound Ark, but his description wasn't entirely made up, as the "treasure" he referred to was indeed the Primordial Profound Ark. Prince Huai frowned, about to speak, but Yun Che immediately continued, "As for what this treasure is, it is now my personal possession. Prince Huai, you wouldn't be so rude as to inquire about that, would you?"

Yun Che effectively blocked Prince Huai's impending question. He said nothing further, but his brows secretly furrowed, and a chilling killing intent flickered deep within his eyes. The Little Demon Empress glanced at Prince Huai, then turned her gaze to Yun Che, raising her arm. From beneath her grey sleeve, a pale, slender arm emerged. "Yun Che, first return the Demon Emperor Seal to me."

Prince Huai's face twitched, but he was utterly helpless. He knew well that once the Little Demon Empress obtained the Demon Emperor Seal, his goal would become dozens of times harder to achieve, and he might even suffer adverse consequences. Yet, during this Demon Empress ceremony, he couldn't stop it. At the same time, the appearance of the Demon Emperor Seal was bound to stir the Little Demon Empress's emotions. Holding the Demon Emperor Seal, she would truly be the Emperor of the Illusory Demon Realm; her power and situation would undergo monumental changes.

Thus, Yun Che displayed the Demon Emperor Seal, but instead of presenting it, he put it away. This made the Little Demon Empress, usually as calm as a deep pool, unable to contain herself, and she actively turned to face Yun Che.

Faced with the Little Demon Empress's direct request, Yun Che did not step forward, nor did he make any move to produce the Demon Emperor Seal. Instead, he stood his ground, his expression perfectly calm, and said, "I refuse."

Yun Che's answer took everyone by surprise. The Little Demon Empress's slender brows subtly arched, and everyone in the hall looked astonished, exchanging bewildered glances.

"This..." The Yun family elders were all dumbfounded. Yun Qinghong twitched his brows but remained silent, quietly observing Yun Che.

Prince Zhong, who had been internally anxious and frustrated for a long time, finally seized an opportunity to attack Yun Che. He stepped forward and loudly declared, "Yun Che! How dare you! The Demon Emperor Seal belongs to our Illusory Demon Royal Family and is of utmost importance to us! Do you intend to usurp it for yourself?!"

Yun Che cast a sideways glance and said coldly, "Prince Zhong, you've got three things wrong. First, the Demon Emperor Seal belongs to the successive Demon Emperors, not the Illusory Demon Royal Family! Only past and present Demon Emperors are qualified to possess it. As for princes or external kings, they naturally lack this qualification."

"You..." Prince Zhong's body trembled, and Prince Huai's lips instantly turned purple. They couldn't fail to hear Yun Che's thinly veiled sarcasm: How could a mere prince be worthy of touching the Demon Emperor Seal... or of becoming the Emperor of the Illusory Demon Realm?

Yun Che completely ignored their expressions and continued, "Second, while this Demon Emperor Seal is a supreme treasure to a Demon Emperor, to me, it's nothing more than a hot piece of jade. Aside from looking at it, it's useless, and I have no interest in possessing it for myself."

"Third..." Yun Che's gaze turned frosty. "Since you are merely a prince, you naturally have no right to interfere with or decide its ownership. For a hundred years in the Azure Cloud Continent, it was guarded by my grandfather with his life, and then I brought it back here after immense hardship. Now that it is in my hands, I naturally have the freedom to decide whom to give it to! As for recovering the Demon Emperor Seal, you contributed no effort, earned no merit, and have no relation to it whatsoever. It's not your place to tell me what to do!!"

By this point in the Demon Empress Ceremony, everyone had recognized the sharp and biting edge of Yun Che's words. The seven patriarchs, who had been arrogant earlier, were now all deflated, and no one from the various royal families dared to speak against Yun Che again. Prince Zhong had initially thought that Yun Che's public defiance of the Little Demon Empress was self-destructive, making his own accusations perfectly justified. Unexpectedly, Yun Che instantly counter-attacked, leaving him utterly humiliated. Prince Zhong felt a blockage in his chest, his upper body trembling with rage, his vision blurring, nearly spitting blood.

The Little Demon Empress did not get angry; she calmly said, "Since you know it is a supreme treasure of the Demon Emperor lineage, and you were entrusted by your grandfather, the Demon King, to return it to me, why do you refuse now? Do you have any requests? You brought the Demon Emperor Seal back from the Azure Cloud Continent, a deed of unparalleled merit. If you have any demands, as long as I can fulfill them, I will certainly agree."

Yun Che let out a faint chuckle, then shook his head. "Demands? When I received it from my grandfather, I thought day and night about how to reach this Illusory Demon Realm and deliver it to the Little Demon Empress. It was solely to fulfill my grandfather's dying wish; I never considered using it to gain any reward. For the Demon Emperor Seal I carry bears my grandfather's life and his pure sincerity."

"However, after arriving in Demon Imperial City, what I saw was the Yun family's tragic decline, and what I heard were all sorts of criticisms against them. Even the entire Illusory Demon Realm believed my Yun family, and my grandfather, were sinners! Heh..." Yun Che laughed, his laugh particularly sarcastic. "When my grandfather spoke to me about our family, his face was full of pride. He said our Yun family was the strongest family in the Illusory Demon Realm, the most unyielding protective barrier beside the Demon Emperor. He told me that even without him, the Yun family would surely prosper even more, because the Yun family had always been the head of the Twelve Guardian Families, and had always been most highly regarded by the Demon Emperor."

"But my grandfather, to save the former Demon Emperor, didn't hesitate to take all the pillars of our family to the Azure Cloud Continent... And while he endured a century of torment to protect the Demon Emperor Seal... what reward did my Yun family receive? What reward did my grandfather receive?!"

"If my grandfather had known all this, how could he rest in peace?!"

"To save the former Demon Emperor, ten Supreme Elders of my Yun family perished in vain. To protect the Demon Emperor Seal, my grandfather died after enduring a century of torment. Yet my Yun family bore a century of infamy, suffered repeated punishments and suppression, endured endless scorn and ridicule, and has now declined to a truly miserable state... My Yun family bore all the sacrifices, carried all the accusations, and grit its teeth through all the punishments..."

"Now the Demon Emperor Seal has returned, yet you demand that I just hand it over... How can I willingly return it to you?!"

Yun Che's eyes blazed with fury, his voice like thunder. "If I just hand over the Demon Emperor Seal like this, how can I face the century of injustice my Yun family has endured?! How can I face the century of undeserved infamy my grandfather bore?!"

"Little Demon Empress, if you were me... would you be willing?!" Yun Che stared directly at the Little Demon Empress, his gaze fixed as he questioned her.

The Little Demon Empress froze, speechless for a long time. A profound silence fell over the hall. When Yun Che had shouted his refusal to return the Demon Emperor Seal to the Little Demon Empress, everyone had thought him audaciously defiant. But as they listened to his every question, they all fell silent... All the sacrifices, punishments, and infamy had been borne by the Yun family. Now that the Demon Emperor Seal had been brought back by a son of the Yun family, to simply hand it over... How could they be willing?! Who could be willing?!

Had everything the Yun family endured for the past century been for naught?

They asked themselves, if it were them, they would never willingly accept it... absolutely never.