Chapter 663: New Palace Master

Even if Ye Qingsheng's speed increased tenfold, he could never escape Yun Che's grasp. Yun Che remained still, stretched out an arm, and an invisible surge of cold pierced through space, instantly striking Ye Qingsheng, who was desperately fleeing a hundred zhang away. Ye Qingsheng's body stiffened, and he tumbled to the ground with a cry, his entire form rapidly encasing in increasingly thick layers of ice.

"Leave... leave him alive!" Gong Yuxian said urgently.

Yun Che had no intention of killing Ye Qingsheng, even without Gong Yuxian's reminder. He had confirmed these individuals were from the Sun Moon Divine Hall, but he still didn't know why they would attack Ice Cloud Immortal Palace... especially since they were clearly acting under Ye Xinghan's direct orders!

At the very least, he needed to understand the reason behind this... especially Ye Xinghan's motive.

In an instant, Ye Qingsheng's entire body was completely encased in ice, his physical form and profound energy utterly sealed, leaving him motionless on the ground. Yun Che opened his palm, and with a ripple in the air, Ye Qingsheng's frozen body lifted from the ground, swiftly flew back, landing at Yun Che's feet, where Yun Che heavily stepped on him... The moment Yun Che's foot landed, the ice encasing Ye Qingsheng's body shattered.

Ye Qingsheng's consciousness had not faded; though the ice was gone, he still shivered intensely from the cold, his face a bruised purplish color. However, his profound energy was completely suppressed and sealed by a force so overwhelming it was impossible to resist. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't use even a trace of it.

Yun Che raised his gaze and slowly removed his foot from Ye Qingsheng's back. Even without Yun Che's foot, the overpowering suppressive force remained. Coupled with his body being completely frozen, he couldn't even stand up, let alone lift an arm or turn his head. Only faint, indistinct groans escaped his lips.

Yun Che kicked Ye Qingsheng across the floor into a corner of the Ice Phoenix Divine Hall, then without another glance, quickly went to Gong Yuxian. He could feel that Gong Yuxian's aura was becoming increasingly weak and dispersed; at this rate, her last glimmer of life could vanish at any moment.

"Palace Master, you asked me to spare his life. Is it because you want to know where these people came from?" Yun Che calmly asked Gong Yuxian. At the same time, he was already rapidly circulating the Great Way of the Buddha, gathering energy from heaven and earth.

Murong Qianxue, Jun Lianqie, Mu Lanyi, Chu Yueli, Feng Hanyue, Feng Hanxue... and all the other Ice Cloud disciples stared at him in a daze. Their gazes were hazy like an icy mist, as bewildered as if in a dream... Perhaps even now, they still suspected they were in the most illusory of dreams.

Disaster had loomed, and for the past six months, they had been constantly trapped in desperate straits... Facing them were two Tyrannical Emperors and ten high-level Overlords, forces they could never hope to resist. The Ice Phoenix Divine Hall had been their last resort for survival for six months. Today, when the villains breached the Divine Hall, every single one of them had resigned themselves to death, no longer daring to hope for any miracle... Yet, Yun Che, who had supposedly perished in the Primordial Profound Ark three years ago... their Ice Cloud Immortal Palace's only male disciple, had unexpectedly returned at the very last moment, appearing before them.

Not only had he miraculously returned alive, but his strength had also become unimaginably, incomprehensibly powerful. Ten powerful high-level Overlords were utterly annihilated by him in just two breaths, and the terrifying Tyrannical Emperors, who were nothing short of mythical beings to Cangfeng, were utterly powerless before him, as helpless as newborn infants.

The crisis that had plunged them into despair was resolved in the blink of an eye with Yun Che's return. Eleven of the villains they hated and feared were now dead, their bodies gone, and the one remaining lay paralyzed as if dead. Yet, none of them cheered, for it all felt too unreal. For a moment, they simply couldn't believe that the Yun Che before them was the Yun Che they knew.

"Yes..." Gong Yuxian slowly nodded. "My Ice Cloud Immortal Palace... cannot... suffer this calamity... without knowing why... *cough*... *cough, cough*..."

Gong Yuxian was wracked by a violent cough, and a thin stream of dark blood quickly trickled from the corner of her mouth.

"Palace Master!" Murong Qianxue and Jun Lianqie exclaimed, quickly pouring their profound energy into her body with all their might. Yun Che also stepped forward immediately, placing his palm on her chest and channeling the recently gathered energy of heaven and earth into her heart meridians. "Palace Master, please rest assured. We will get to the bottom of this matter... whoever is behind it will pay a heavy price... Palace Master, don't speak now. Close your eyes and calm your mind... There's no danger anymore. You just need to focus on recovering your injuries, and you'll surely heal quickly."

"No..." Gong Yuxian shook her head. "There are some things I must... say now..."

Gong Yuxian's voice was trembling and weak, but her eyes, which had been unfocused, now cleared completely. Even the faint vitality within her body suddenly stabilized... This change, however, did not reassure Yun Che; instead, his heart sank abruptly...

This was... a final burst of clarity before death!

Gong Yuxian was using all her remaining life force... to gain this last brief moment of lucidity.

"Palace Master, you..."

"Don't... speak... listen to me... just listen..." Gong Yuxian's lips trembled, her weak voice filled with a deep urgency that made Yun Che unable to interrupt her. "Yun Che... can you tell me... what level of strength have you reached now?"

All gazes once again focused on Yun Che. They were all immensely curious about the level of his current strength, but Yun Che knew that Gong Yuxian's question was not born of mere curiosity. He replied seriously, "My profound energy realm is at the third level of the Sovereign Profound Realm, but if I use my full power, I might be able to contend with an Emperor under the third level."

Contend with... an Emperor?

Indescribable shock and disbelief appeared on the beautiful faces of the Ice Cloud disciples, and gasps escaped their lips. Yun Che, at full strength, could contend with an Emperor... This meant that Yun Che's current power had reached the legendary... Monarch Profound Realm!!

This was the highest realm profound practitioners could reach not only in the Cangfeng Nation but throughout the entire Profound Sky Continent! It was the peak of this world! Upon entering this realm, one truly became an Emperor among people! A true legend of the profound way.

Gong Yuxian's face was calm, but a momentary brilliant light flickered in her eyes. She slowly said, "Then... do you still acknowledge... that you are a disciple of Ice Cloud Immortal Palace?"

"As long as Palace Master doesn't expel me, I will always be a disciple of Ice Cloud Immortal Palace," Yun Che said without hesitation. He extended his palm, and slowly, an ice-blue profound crystal appeared within it: "This Ice Cloud Soul Crystal was personally bestowed upon me by the Grand Palace Master back then. It is proof of my status as an Ice Cloud disciple. Although I've been away from Ice Cloud Immortal Palace for three years, it has always remained with me, never leaving."

Looking at the Ice Cloud Soul Crystal in Yun Che's hand, Gong Yuxian's eyes shimmered, and she nodded slowly with all her remaining strength, her voice filled with deep emotion: "Good... good... good... In just six short years... from having no profound energy to being able to contend with an Emperor... only six years... this is unprecedented in the Profound Sky Continent's history... You are now truly capable of looking down upon the entire Profound Sky Continent... Your future achievements are beyond measure... To the current you, Ice Cloud Immortal Palace... is merely a humble existence... yet you still... willingly acknowledge yourself as a disciple of my palace... You are indeed... a man who values loyalty and righteousness... No wonder... Yuechan was willing to betray Ice Cloud for you... Qingyue could never find peace because of you... and Senior Aunt did not hesitate to break a thousand-year-old rule to make you the first male disciple..."

After speaking so much in one breath, Gong Yuxian's complexion, which had been pale, now turned somewhat rosy. Yun Che, however, knew this wasn't a sign of improvement in her condition, but rather that she was one step closer to death. "Qingyue married you... Yuechan left the palace because of you... I once thought you were Ice Cloud's calamity... I also struggled to accept and understand Senior Aunt taking you as a male disciple... Only today do I realize that far from being Ice Cloud's calamity, you are a savior bestowed upon my Ice Cloud Immortal Palace by heaven... If not for you, Ice Cloud Immortal Palace would cease to exist today... Senior Aunt's wisdom was truly profound..."

"Palace Master, please don't speak anymore," Feng Hanyue and Feng Hanxue pleaded, almost in tears from anxiety. "There's no danger now. We'll take you to the Ice Heart Hall right away... Once there, you'll surely recover quickly."

"No..." Gong Yuxian weakly but firmly shook her head. "Don't move me... listen to me... let me finish what I have to say... Yun Che... Since you still acknowledge your status as an Ice Cloud disciple, then... are you willing to obey the command... of me, your Palace Master?"

Yun Che nodded. He didn't try to dissuade Gong Yuxian, for he knew that for someone already brimming with the will to die, even the strongest medical arts would be useless. "As a disciple of Ice Cloud Immortal Palace, I will naturally obey the Palace Master's commands."

"Good..." Gong Yuxian's voice trembled even more violently, and her tone suddenly became incomparably solemn. "Ice Cloud disciple Yun Che... kneel and receive your orders!"

Yun Che paused slightly, but facing Gong Yuxian in that moment, he simply couldn't refuse. He solemnly knelt on one knee before her. Just then, he saw Gong Yuxian's right hand slowly open, and a small, rhombus-shaped ice shard floated in the air above her palm, emitting an ethereal, dreamlike blue light.

Looking at the ice shard, all seven Ice Cloud Fairies were deeply moved, gasping in unison, "That... that's..."

"This ice soul, named 'Ice Cloud Immortal Soul,' carries all the cultivation methods, secrets, and precious memories of past Palace Masters of my Ice Cloud Immortal Palace. With it, you can also unlock all restrictions within the Immortal Palace... And it is even more so the proof of my status as the Palace Master of Ice Cloud Immortal Palace..." Gong Yuxian trembled as she extended her arm, presenting the Ice Cloud Immortal Soul before Yun Che:

"I now... bestow this 'Ice Cloud Immortal Soul' upon you... From this day forward, you shall be the Ice Cloud Immortal Palace's... new Palace Master!"