Chapter 624: Awakened Illusionary Nightmare

Performing soul-seizing with profound energy on an Emperor, even a low-level one, is incredibly difficult. However, Prince Huai was severely injured by the Little Demon Empress's Golden Crow Flame, his mind and soul were in disarray, and he was completely suppressed by the Little Demon Empress. Both his body and spirit were virtually powerless to resist. With Yun He, Yun Jiang, and Yun Xi's combined profound energy attacks, a single profound energy stream penetrated Prince Huai's soul in just one attempt.

The pain and ferocity on Prince Huai's face gradually vanished, replaced by a blank stare. His eyes became vacant and devoid of spirit.

"Little Demon Empress, Prince Huai's soul has been seized by profound energy. You may ask him anything; he will reveal all and speak no lies." As Yun He spoke, he slightly bowed and instinctively held his breath. Standing mere steps from the Little Demon Empress, the immense pressure made his blood feel as if it had stopped flowing. He had never felt this way before, not even when facing the Little Demon Empress previously, or even the former Demon Emperor.

After Yun He finished speaking, he carefully retreated. The Demon Imperial Hall, filled with a hundred thousand people, fell silent. All eyes were fixed on the Little Demon Empress. Not a single person dared to utter a sound before she spoke.

She had been the Little Demon Empress for a century. While her status always designated her as the Emperor of the Illusory Demon Realm, today was the first time she truly became its master. Gender, age, and seniority no longer mattered, nor did whether she was the last of the Demon Emperors. For at this moment, she possessed absolute power!

In any world, only with absolute power can one become an absolute master, a true emperor. She had understood this truth since she was very young. The century since she became the Little Demon Empress had only served to continually prove this reality.

However, the Little Demon Empress did not approach Prince Huai. Instead, she turned away and said indifferently, "Yun Che, you ask him."

"Alright!" Yun Che replied without surprise, as if he had anticipated the Little Demon Empress's decision.

Yun Che put away the Heaven Smiting Sword and walked to stand before Prince Huai. He looked down at the man who, just an hour ago, was poised to ascend as the Demon Emperor, commanding power and respect. Now, Prince Huai lay prostrate like a beaten dog, covered in blood, his eyes dull and lifeless. Even an unarmed mortal would feel pity seeing him in this state.

Many of the supreme powerhouses and vast forces that Prince Huai's Manor had gathered were present nearby, yet not a single person stepped forward to save him or even utter a word on his behalf. This was because anyone who dared to stand up or speak for him had already met a gruesome end on the spot.

The focus of everyone's gaze shifted to Yun Che. He scanned the surroundings, meeting every eye without evasion. Then, with a slight frown, he declared loudly, "Everyone present should know that my Yun family's profound energy soul-seizing technique merely causes a person's spirit to temporarily disassociate; it is not mind control! Everything he says comes directly from his own memories and will contain no falsehoods... So listen carefully to this Prince Huai... This man whom you nearly crowned as the new ruler of the Illusory Demon Realm, this man to whom countless individuals eagerly pledged loyalty, even abandoning the Little Demon Empress herself! See what kind of person he truly is!!"

Yun Che turned to face Prince Huai and asked coldly, "Prince Huai, I ask you! Back then, why did people from the Profound Sky Continent suddenly invade my Illusory Demon Realm?"

Everyone had expected Yun Che to first ask Prince Huai if he was responsible for poisoning the Little Demon Empress, thus solidifying his villainy. To their surprise, he instead posed a question whose answer everyone already knew, leaving them stunned.

Prince Huai parted his lips and slowly uttered, "It was Father... who used the Spatial Sound Transmission art... to inform the Profound Sky Continent... that the Demon Emperor family's Wheel of Tribulation Mirror contained divine profound secrets... thus luring them here..."

Without conscious control, Prince Huai's voice was hoarse, but every word was clear enough for everyone to hear. Each word he spoke struck like profound lightning from a clear sky, leaving everyone utterly shocked and pale with disbelief.

"This... this... this... this is impossible!" an old man stammered, trembling as he rose, his face filled with horror. He simply could not believe what he had just heard. The "Father" Prince Huai referred to was, of course, Prince Ming, who had disappeared over a century ago—the very Prince Ming known for his extremely high profound energy cultivation, excellent reputation, and a benevolent, Buddha-like demeanor...

"What is going on...?" "The invasion from the Profound Sky Continent was actually... it was... what is this..." The Demon Imperial Hall erupted into a clamor, and everyone's expressions changed drastically. The Guardian Families and Royal Manors, in particular, were dumbfounded and trembling, their souls quivering. Every one of them began to sense something highly unusual—this was the Yun family's profound energy soul-seizing, and not a single word Prince Huai uttered could be false!

Perhaps his treachery extended beyond merely poisoning the Little Demon Empress; perhaps a far more terrifying conspiracy lay hidden behind Prince Huai's Manor.

The crowd's reaction was, of course, perfectly normal to Yun Che. He looked directly at Prince Huai and continued, "I ask you again, were the invaders from the Profound Sky Continent able to move freely in and out of Demon Imperial City, knowing it inside out, because your Prince Huai's Manor was secretly assisting them?"

"Yes." Prince Huai opened his mouth and weakly uttered a single word. This brief word was another thunderclap dropped in the Demon Imperial Hall.

Ignoring the gasps around him, Yun Che said expressionlessly, "Now, honestly tell everyone how the former Demon Emperor... truly died!"

The suddenness of Yun Che's question made everyone hold their breath. The "fact" known by everyone in the Illusory Demon Realm was that the former Demon Emperor, in a fit of rage while personally pursuing invaders from the Profound Sky Continent, impulsively chased them into a teleportation array leading to the Profound Sky Continent and was never heard from again. However, Yun Che's question clearly had a deeper meaning, and combined with Prince Huai's previous answers, a dreadful realization dawned upon everyone's souls.

The answer to this question was a secret Prince Huai would never have revealed in his lifetime. Yet, under the influence of profound energy soul-seizing, he could only answer truthfully: "It was Father... who, taking advantage of the former Demon Emperor's unguarded state... struck him into the profound teleportation array leading to the Profound Sky Continent... causing him to fall directly into the Heavenly Might Soul Suppressing Formation... which was already set up at the other end of the spatial tunnel..."

*CRASH!* The entire hall erupted in a thunderous uproar. Shock, rage, sorrow, and disbelief permeated every inch of space, every corner. The people from Prince Huai's Manor were utterly stunned, unable to believe a single word they heard. Meanwhile, the forces loyal to Prince Huai's Manor trembled uncontrollably, many collapsing to the ground, drenched in cold sweat.

"Villain... you beast!!" Mu Feiyan clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. Four months prior, Yun Che had made a similar, dreadful conjecture... but it was merely a guess. Now, hearing the answer directly from Prince Huai, Mu Feiyan felt his heart and lungs might explode from rage on the spot. If he, who had been mentally prepared, reacted this strongly, imagine the others.

Over a century had passed since the former Demon Emperor's death, and everyone in the Illusory Demon Realm believed he had been killed by people from the Profound Sky Continent. They never dreamed that the true culprit behind the former Demon Emperor's demise was actually Prince Huai's Manor! Moreover, it was clearly a meticulously planned and premeditated act!

"My grandfather, along with ten Yun family martyrs, traveled to the Profound Sky Continent, only to fall into a Heavenly Might Soul Suppressing Formation set up by the enemy the moment they arrived... Was that also a despicable act perpetrated by your Prince Huai's Manor!" Yun Che asked coldly.

"Yes... it was Father... who informed the Profound Sky Continent... of the precise location... and time... where the Demon King and others would arrive..." Prince Huai murmured.

*CRACK!* Dozens of seats and large sections of the floor where the Yun family members stood directly fractured and collapsed. The three grand elders of the Yun family and all the other elders who had followed Yun Canghai gnashed their teeth, their faces flushed crimson, wishing they could rush forward and tear Prince Huai to shreds with their bare hands.

"Then, who killed the Little Demon Emperor, and how did he die?" Yun Che continued to ask.

"On the night of the Little Demon Emperor and Little Demon Empress's wedding... he went alone to pay respects to the former Demon Emperor... and was killed by my Father... Before he died, Father extracted all of the Little Demon Emperor's memories using a soul-searching technique... Then, he sent the Little Demon Emperor's body... through a spatial profound array... to the Profound Sky Continent..."

"Four months ago, in the Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, who was it that forced the Little Demon Empress into the Sea of Death?" "It was me... and Father..." "What was your true purpose in bringing people from the Profound Sky Continent into the Illusory Demon Realm?" "To use the Profound Sky Continent's people... to throw Demon Imperial City into chaos... and after killing the former Demon Emperor and Little Demon Emperor, the blame could be directly shifted onto them..." "As royalty of the Illusory Demon Realm! Why would you commit such a heinous act against the Demon Emperor family!!" "Father was unwilling to remain subordinate... he wanted to usurp the throne..." "When did your father, Prince Ming, first harbor this ambition?" Yun Che narrowed his eyes slightly. Prince Huai opened his mouth but said nothing... Clearly, even he did not know.

Yun Che's questions and Prince Huai's answers, each was soul-stirring, every word striking their hearts like a mighty hammer. Gradually, as their initial anger and shock reached their peak, a chilling dread began to emerge...

For the past century, everyone in the Illusory Demon Realm believed that people from the Profound Sky Continent had killed the former Demon Emperor and Little Demon Emperor, caused the Demon Emperor family's lineage to end, and led to the Yun family's decline. They thought the villains from the Profound Sky Continent had brought about the greatest calamity in the Illusory Demon Realm's ten-thousand-year history. All beings in the Illusory Demon Realm harbored deep resentment towards the Profound Sky Continent. Many newborn creatures, upon their arrival, would first learn that the Profound Sky Continent was the Illusory Demon Realm's eternal mortal enemy!

And now, they horrifyingly realized that every "truth" they knew was a lie... The entire Illusory Demon Realm, everyone present in the hall, had been manipulated like puppets by the true orchestrator of these events!

These devils, who murdered the Demon Emperor, the Little Demon Emperor, and the Demon King, and poisoned the entire Illusory Demon Realm... were today being worshipped in this sacred Demon Imperial Hall, even on the verge of being revered as... the new Emperor!

Had it not been for the return of the Little Demon Empress and Yun Che... everyone present, except for the Yun and Mu families who were prepared to fight to the death, would have become the most tragic laughingstocks in the history of the Illusory Demon Realm.

Terror and fury surged through everyone's hearts, and cold sweat drenched their backs. It was as if they had been living a century-long nightmare, only now awakening from it.

"Your Prince Huai's Manor has committed such heinous acts, truly despicable in the eyes of both gods and men. Yet, there are quite a few families who, despite owing loyalty to the Demon Emperor family, instead chose to pledge allegiance to you," Yun Che sneered. "Prince Huai, please name all the forces and families that have switched their loyalty to you... one by one, without missing a single one!"

Yun Che's words caused many in the hall to tremble uncontrollably with fear. Prince Huai, meanwhile, began to dutifully enumerate: "Prince Zhong's Manor... the Helian family... the Chiyang family... the Jiufang family... Prince Zi's Manor... General Zhenbei... the Bai clan..."

*THUD!* Helian Kuang scrambled forward, practically crawling, and collapsed on his knees before the Little Demon Empress. Trembling all over, his voice choked with sobs, he pleaded, "Little Demon Empress... I was utterly deceived and misled by that villain, Prince Huai... If I had known he committed such evil deeds, I would rather die a thousand, ten thousand times than associate with him... I... I... I truly knew nothing about this... Please, Little Demon Empress, investigate thoroughly... please show mercy..." "My Helian clan has been a Guardian Family for ten thousand years... From this day forward, I, Helian Kuang, will forever pledge loyalty only to the Little Demon Empress... Should I violate this oath... may heaven and earth punish me... may I be struck by divine lightning... Please believe me, Little Demon Empress... I truly knew nothing of what Prince Huai's Manor did..." Helian Kuang's voice was hoarse and incoherent. The once-proud Helian Clan Patriarch was clearly terrified by the Little Demon Empress's oppressive presence and the sheer enormity of Prince Huai's crimes. Every single crime Prince Huai admitted to was horrifying, enough to make the Illusory Demon Realm his eternal enemy, and even the extermination of nine generations would not atone for them! Any forces and families that colluded with him would likewise be reviled by countless people, their names eternally disgraced, never to rise again.