Chapter 667: Ice Cloud's Way Out

Night Qingsheng's memories revealed that the abduction of Xia Qingyue was indeed ordered by Night Xinghan, a fact unknown to his father, Night Moye, the Divine Palace Master. Night Xinghan held Xia Qingyue in extremely high regard. He had originally intended to go to Frozen Cloud Asgard himself, but a sudden loosening in his profound cultivation bottleneck forced him into seclusion, which is why he sent Night Qingsheng and Night Ziyi instead.

Why exactly did Night Xinghan want to capture Xia Qingyue?

Furthermore, Night Qingsheng's memories confirmed that Night Xinghan had never actually met Xia Qingyue! Before six months ago, he had not even mentioned her name.

Heavenly Sword Villa... an Elder?

Yun Che remained silent for a long time before a name suddenly flashed in his mind...

Ling Kun!!

"Jasmine..." Yun Che asked with a furrowed brow, "Back during the Profound Ranking Tournament in Cangfeng, when you told me Xia Qingyue possessed the 'Ice Snow Glass Heart' and 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body,' you mentioned that her 'Ice Snow Glass Heart' shouldn't appear on this plane, making it unrecognizable to anyone. However, you said there was a possibility her 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body' could be discovered..."

"So you believe Night Xinghan abducted Xia Qingyue because of her 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body'?" Jasmine said indifferently.

"Exactly," Yun Che nodded. "Night Xinghan learned of Xia Qingyue's existence from an elder of Heavenly Sword Villa. And... Frozen Cloud Asgard is basically isolated year-round, with disciples rarely leaving and no interaction whatsoever with the Four Sacred Grounds! However, there was indeed one person from the Four Sacred Grounds who had seen Xia Qingyue... and he was precisely from Heavenly Sword Villa!"

"That was Ling Kun, from Heavenly Sword Villa, at the Profound Ranking Tournament held five years ago at Heavenly Sword Mountain Villa!"

"In Night Qingsheng's memories, there was more information about this 'Ling Kun' than about anyone else from Heavenly Sword Villa. In Heavenly Sword Villa, only those who reach the Sovereign Profound Realm are qualified to become elders. However, Ling Kun, despite his profound strength being merely at Level Six of the Tyrant Profound Realm, was appointed as an official elder within Heavenly Sword Villa. The reason for this was that, although his profound strength was somewhat lower, he was exceptionally resourceful... or rather, incredibly cunning and deeply scheming. He served as the 'strategist' for Heavenly Sword Villa and was highly trusted and valued by Sword Master Xuanyuan Wentian. The other elders of Heavenly Sword Villa, far from despising him for his lower profound strength while holding the same rank, deliberately fostered good relations with him. Additionally, he was the person who spent the most time outside Heavenly Sword Villa and possessed incredibly vast knowledge. Whenever Heavenly Sword Villa required an envoy for important matters, it was usually Ling Kun who was dispatched!"

The information about Ling Kun from Night Qingsheng's memory secretly startled Yun Che. He had crossed paths with Ling Kun twice: once at Heavenly Sword Mountain Villa and once in the Divine Phoenix Empire. At Heavenly Sword Mountain Villa, Ling Kun had openly and publicly invited him to join Heavenly Sword Villa. At that time, Yun Che's profound strength was low, he had no background, and no reputation, yet Ling Kun made a move that shocked and confused everyone. Yun Che now realized how much that demonstrated Ling Kun's incredibly sharp judgment.

And at the Seven Nations Profound Ranking Tournament in the Divine Phoenix Empire, Absolute Monarch Sanctuary sent the highly esteemed Old Man Gu Cang; Sun Moon Divine Palace had Young Master Night Xinghan attend in person; Supreme Ocean Palace sent Ji Qianrou, whom even Feng Hengkong and Night Xinghan somewhat feared. Only Heavenly Sword Villa sent Ling Kun, a "low-level elder." Thinking back now, it wasn't that Heavenly Sword Villa had no interest in the Primordial Profound Ark; rather, Ling Kun possessed sufficiently matching abilities.

Reserved demeanor, sharp eyes, deep cunning, extensive knowledge... it's very possible he knew about your 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body.' Jasmine had said that a key characteristic of the 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body' is its ability to defy rules... And when Xia Qingyue fought Ling Yun, facing Ling Yun's sword spirit clone, she used her Earth Profound Realm profound energy to unleash a Frozen Cloud Domain, which could normally only be performed by someone at the King Profound Realm... Ling Kun, being present, naturally witnessed the entire event!

If he was the one who discovered Xia Qingyue's 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body,' then everything became easily explainable.

Jasmine said faintly, "The Nine Profound Exquisite Body is an excellent cultivation cauldron. If it truly was Ling Kun who discovered Xia Qingyue's Nine Profound Exquisite Body, why wouldn't he take it for himself, or hand it over to someone from Heavenly Sword Villa, instead of revealing it to someone from Sun Moon Divine Palace?"

"It's simple," Yun Che said in a low voice. "The Nine Profound Exquisite Body is rarely seen in ten thousand years. If he had used it himself and been discovered, he would surely face dissatisfaction, or even wrath, from Heavenly Sword Villa's high-ranking members! And if he had handed it over to a supreme expert within Heavenly Sword Villa, it would merely be a subordinate showing due reverence to a superior, at most earning him some 'reward.' But handing it over to Night Xinghan is entirely different!"

"Night Xinghan cultivates a type of dual cultivation evil art, a fact that is almost universally known among those aware of the Four Sacred Grounds' existence. Each year, he secretly abducts a large number of women to use as cultivation cauldrons. Upon hearing of the 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body,' he would undoubtedly be ecstatic and spare no expense! Therefore, Ling Kun didn't lay hands on Xia Qingyue himself, nor did he inform Heavenly Sword Villa; instead, he informed Night Xinghan... The reason Night Xinghan only learned of this six months ago is likely because Ling Kun initially only told him of the 'Nine Profound Exquisite Body's' existence, but not who possessed it, while proposing an extremely high price. It was only six months ago that Night Xinghan finally managed to gather the required payment and obtained Qingyue's name and location from Ling Kun!"

As Yun Che spoke, his brows furrowed even more deeply, because the more he considered this possibility, the more plausible it seemed.

"Ling Kun..." Yun Che murmured the name quietly, marking it as dangerous in his mind.

Furthermore, from Night Qingsheng's memories, Yun Che received a surprising piece of information... the Phoenix God of the Divine Phoenix Sect was apparently not dead and had reappeared three years ago after the Primordial Profound Ark vanished, unleashing an overwhelming aura to deter the people of the Four Sacred Grounds, and even punishing Night Xinghan.

What was going on? Feng Xue'er herself had said that the Phoenix God had long since passed away. And Feng Feiyan, the Grand Elder of the Divine Phoenix Sect, had colluded with Night Xinghan precisely because the Phoenix God had supposedly vanished...

Could there be some hidden truth to this?

But... regardless, even if the Phoenix God was truly still alive, the Divine Phoenix Empire's trampling upon the Cangfeng Nation... they would have to repay it tenfold!!

"Sun Moon Divine Palace... why would it be Sun Moon Divine Palace?" Murong Qianxue's face turned pale. She felt anger, confusion, and an unsuppressable panic... That was the Sun Moon Divine Palace, the foremost of the Four Sacred Grounds on the Profound Sky Continent, the absolute pinnacle of existence. Forget confronting them; simply hearing their name evoked an incredibly heavy pressure. "We have no grudges against Sun Moon Divine Palace, we haven't even had the simplest contact with them. Why would they strike at us so viciously!?"

"Sun Moon Divine Palace... how could this be..." Chu Yueli's eyes were clouded with confusion. Not just for Frozen Cloud Asgard... this was a name capable of instilling despair in nearly every force across the Profound Sky Continent.

"The Sun Moon Divine Palace's motive is still somewhat unclear for now, but it will come to light eventually," Yun Che calmly told the women. "Both Palace Mistresses perished in this calamity, and you all undoubtedly harbor deep hatred for the Sun Moon Divine Palace. Furthermore, all the individuals they sent have died by my hand... Their objective was not achieved, and they suffered losses, so the Sun Moon Divine Palace will certainly not let this go. As things stand, for our Frozen Cloud Asgard to continue existing under the shadow of the Sun Moon Divine Palace, there are only two paths we can take."

"Please enlighten us, Palace Master," they said. As they listened to Yun Che, each woman's gaze became solemn and earnest.

"The first path is to evacuate the Icy Cloud Snow Region," Yun Che said slowly. "All twelve of those individuals died here, and given Night Xinghan's temperament, he will undoubtedly be furious. It won't be long before more people from Sun Moon Divine Palace arrive, plunging Frozen Cloud Asgard into even greater peril. Therefore, this place is no longer suitable for us to remain."

Leave the Icy Cloud Snow Region...

Gazing at the endless ice and snow stretching as far as their eyes could see, and at the familiar ice flowers and snow corals, their eyes trembled, and they remained silent for a long time.

Murong Qianxue sighed softly and said, "Palace Master, we all understand what you mean. If we continue to stay here, a greater disaster could strike at any moment, and our strength is simply insufficient to contend with the Sun Moon Divine Palace. However... our Frozen Cloud Asgard has a thousand-year history, and for all those thousand years, this has been our home. Our resources, memories, cultivation techniques, heritage, foundation, and even the remains of our ancestors are all here. Furthermore, in terms of environment, perhaps there is no other place in this world more suitable for cultivating the Frozen Cloud Arts and Ice Phoenix Divine Art. If we all leave, this place will certainly be utterly obliterated by the enraged Sun Moon Divine Palace... Even if we all survive, our Frozen Cloud Asgard... would merely exist in name only..."

"Palace Master, what is the second path you mentioned?" Mu Lanyi asked hopefully.

The Frozen Cloud disciples' reactions were much as Yun Che had anticipated. This was an isolated, frigid land. Aside from the dignity and foundation of their sect, they had long grown accustomed to everything here, accustomed to the endless ice and cold. Their resistance to outsiders had almost become instinctual, and they felt a deeply ingrained repulsion towards integrating into the outside world. He said gravely, "The second path is very simple: it is to directly confront the Sun Moon Divine Palace and protect this place with our own strength... and even one day make the Sun Moon Divine Palace pay a blood debt!"

Yun Che's words once again left them stunned, silent for a long time.

Because... that was the Sun Moon Divine Palace.

In the Cangfeng Nation, they were a transcendent existence; even when facing Heavenly Sword Mountain Villa, they would not feel the slightest fear. But the Sun Moon Divine Palace... that was a colossal entity against which they could absolutely not contend, even if their strength were to increase tenfold or a hundredfold.

Throughout the entire Profound Sky Continent, who would dare to offend the Sun Moon Divine Palace? Who would dare to become its enemy... and who would dare to utter words like "make the Sun Moon Divine Palace pay a blood debt"?

"But..." Feng Hanyue timidly began, but Yun Che immediately cut her off: "There are no 'buts.' Our remaining here is absolutely not a meaningless wait for death, and my words just now were certainly not a fool's fantasy!"

"The current situation isn't actually that pessimistic," Yun Che stated seriously. "Those twelve individuals deliberately concealed their identities when attacking our Frozen Cloud Asgard, clearly not wanting to be exposed. After all, the Sun Moon Divine Palace is known as a 'Sacred Ground'; if it got out that they unjustly attacked our Frozen Cloud Asgard, it would undoubtedly tarnish their reputation. Moreover, this matter was orchestrated by Night Xinghan, the Young Master of the Sun Moon Divine Palace, and the Divine Palace Master, Heavenly Sovereign Night Moye, was unaware. Therefore, Night Xinghan's subsequent actions should not be too overt, and he might even try his best to conceal them."

"With your current strength, even a few minor figures from the Sun Moon Divine Palace would be difficult to resist. However, if you believe in me..." Yun Che's gaze became resolute: "I have a way to make all of your profound strengths—every single senior and junior sister—reach the King Profound Realm within half a year!"

"And for the six senior martial aunts and uncles who are already at the King level... to all achieve the Tyrant Emperor realm!"

Feng Hanyue's and Feng Hanxue's crystal-like eyes widened to their fullest, and their mouths dropped open... all the women of Frozen Cloud Asgard were similarly stunned in shock.

Because the words Yun Che had just spoken were a thousand times more fantastical than "make the Sun Moon Divine Palace pay a blood debt"...