Chapter 705: Hate Fills the Universe

Feng Feilie negotiated with Yun Che, exercising immense patience, constantly reminding himself to remain calm and not be rash with every passing breath. Even so, when Yun Che declared his fourth condition, Feng Feilie’s eyes blazed with fury, and he nearly spat blood.

Ceding territory was, without a doubt, the most humiliating loss of sovereignty for any nation. How could his Divine Phoenix Empire endure such disgrace?

“Yun Che, you are going too far!”

“Going too far?” Yun Che said coldly, “Compared to the heinous crimes your Divine Phoenix committed in Azure Cloud, I am practically more benevolent than the legendary saints!” He turned his gaze to Feng Hengkong, smirking at his ashen, twisted, and utterly grotesque face. “Phoenix Sect Master, you should have heard these four conditions clearly by now. I’ll give you five breaths to consider. If you cooperate obediently, your son will live, and I won’t bother coming back tomorrow. But if you remain as defiant as yesterday… then I’ll simply send him to his death immediately!”

Yun Che’s face maintained a serene, almost gentle smile, as if discussing the most trivial matter imaginable.

Even though his entire body seemed to be on the verge of exploding with rage, Feng Feilie maintained his composure with the greatest self-control he had ever known. At this moment, preserving Feng Xichen’s life was paramount; whatever conditions Yun Che proposed, they had to be accepted first. Fearing Feng Hengkong would lash out, Feng Feilie immediately interjected, “The life of my Divine Phoenix Prince is more important than anything else in this world… Very well! My Phoenix Divine Sect can agree to these four conditions, but…”

“That’s excellent!” Yun Che instantly turned around, smiling warmly at Feng Feilie, his arrogant voice cutting off Feng Feilie’s next words. “You, Grand Elder of the Phoenix, are far more sensible than that disgusting Phoenix Sect Master. Since you’ve agreed, I have no reason to kill your precious Thirteenth Prince. The rest will be much simpler.”

He slightly loosened his grip on Feng Xichen’s left hand, then slowly extended a finger from his raised right hand. “I’ll give you ten breaths to send a message to all your troops stationed on my Azure Cloud land. Tell them to retreat immediately, crawling back if they have to. Your Phoenix Divine Sect has the finest sound-transmitting jades; it shouldn’t even take ten breaths.”

“You…”

“And then…” Yun Che extended a second finger. “Have your Phoenix Sect Master immediately write an official apology scroll… Oh, he can write it right here. After writing it, remember to affix the Phoenix Seal, and then have your Phoenix Sect Master read it aloud. With his peerless profound strength, projecting his voice two hundred miles away should be effortless.”

“I’ll give you another thirty breaths to prepare the documents for the cession of Scarlet Jade City, sealed with the Great Phoenix Seal. Just hand them directly to me; it’s quite convenient.”

“Finally, I’ll grant you an extra fifteen minutes to prepare twenty billion Purple Profound Coins. Hand them directly to me as well. Not a single coin less.”

“After that, your Thirteenth Prince can live safely and peacefully.”

“Furthermore, you have no right to bargain. Do not attempt to exceed the time limit I’ve just given you… not even by a single breath!”

Yun Che was perfectly aware of what schemes these people were plotting. If he were so easily outmaneuvered, he wouldn’t have survived to this day.

Feng Feilie’s already grim face instantly turned ghastly to the extreme. “Yun Che, you… you… you are truly despicable!”

“Oh? And what does the Grand Elder mean by this?” Yun Che sneered. “It was you who personally agreed to the four conditions I proposed. What I just said is perfectly consistent with those four conditions, without the slightest deviation. What’s with this attitude now, Grand Elder? Don’t tell me… your agreement just now was merely empty words?”

“Yun Che!!” Feng Feilie roared furiously, trembling all over, but he was too choked with rage to speak.

“Feilie, stop wasting words with him!!”

Feng Hengkong spoke, and his expression, as well as his voice, suddenly became calm. His gaze hardened, not towards Yun Che, but towards Feng Xichen, whose face was filled with fear and pleading. “Xichen, listen. You are a prince of my Divine Phoenix Empire, with the most noble Phoenix bloodline flowing through your veins. We can die, but we must never bow down in subservience! We must never let our five-thousand-year Phoenix reputation be tarnished!!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you die in vain! I will… personally avenge you immediately!!”

“Attack… Kill Yun Che!!”

As Feng Hengkong’s words fell, his telepathic message exploded like thunder in the ears of all the Phoenix Elders. Yet, none of them moved immediately, their eyes filled with deep struggle and hesitation… because Yun Che held not an ordinary Phoenix disciple, but a prince.

But in an instant, a burst of Phoenix flame shot into the sky, as Feng Hengkong was the first to charge towards Yun Che. The astonishing surge of energy clearly indicated he was unleashing all his profound strength. The Phoenix Elders could no longer hesitate. They all roared, Phoenix flames erupted around them, and they attacked simultaneously. In a flash, dozens of fiery streaks hurtled at high speed towards Yun Che’s location, and a terrifying pressure heavily enveloped the entire Divine Phoenix City.

“Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!”

It wasn’t Yun Che who screamed, but Feng Xichen in his hand. “Imperial Father… I don’t want to die… I don’t want to die!!”

“Hahahaha!” Yun Che, surrounded in the center and seemingly facing a dead end, laughed instead. “Feng Hengkong, do you even deserve to speak of ‘reputation’? Are you even qualified to talk about ‘Phoenix bloodline’?”

“There’s one thing you should remind yourself well: it wasn’t me who killed your two sons, but you, Feng Hengkong! This is your retribution for your heinous actions against Azure Cloud!”

“And… this is only the beginning!!”

“Attack!” Feng Hengkong roared.

BOOM!!!!!!

Neither Feng Hengkong nor the Phoenix Elders approached Yun Che, but the Phoenix flames around them violently erupted. In an instant, the sky above the entire Divine Phoenix City transformed into a vast sea of flames. The Phoenix flames from dozens of Overlord Emperors were intensely hot to the extreme, eclipsing the light of the sun, and the space itself was distorted beyond recognition.

They hadn’t forgotten the speed Yun Che had displayed yesterday. Therefore, without waiting to get close, their Phoenix flames unleashed with full power, completely engulfing the sky for dozens of miles around. Even if Yun Che’s speed were ten times greater, it would be absolutely impossible for him to escape.

The Phoenix Sect Master and all the Phoenix Elders present attacked simultaneously. Such a grand display was unprecedented in Divine Phoenix history. Although Yun Che’s profound strength was only at the King Profound Realm, he ignited the greatest fear and hatred the Phoenix Divine Sect had ever known.

As this sea of Phoenix flames engulfed Yun Che, it naturally also engulfed Feng Xichen. They were certain that beneath this inferno, Yun Che had no chance of survival… and Feng Xichen was surely dead.

To kill Yun Che, they had to sacrifice another prince’s life… Even if Yun Che truly died, this humiliating mark would forever be etched in Phoenix history.

However, the Phoenix Divine Sect never had, nor had the chance to realize one crucial point: mere Phoenix flames could not inflict the slightest harm on Yun Che. On the contrary, the intensely concentrated flames and aura became the perfect cover for his safe escape!

Feng Xichen was casually tossed aside by Yun Che. Even at full strength, Feng Xichen would not have survived three breaths in such flames. With his strength sealed by Yun Che, he merely let out a final, desperate scream before being completely engulfed and incinerated by the flames. Like Feng Xiluo yesterday, not a speck of ash remained.

The difference was that Feng Xiluo died by Yun Che’s Phoenix flames, while Feng Xichen died by the Phoenix flames of their own Phoenix Divine Sect.

Combining Star God Broken Shadow with Illusionary Demon Lightning Flash, Yun Che soared out of the churning sea of flames. In an instant, he broke free from the edge of the inferno, and as he escaped the flames, he also directly broke through the encirclement formed by dozens of Phoenix Elders, then shot directly eastward.

“As expected of a beast in human skin, a Phoenix Sect Master with a malicious heart, to actually kill his own flesh and blood son! Poor Thirteenth Prince, under the flames of his own father, I estimate not even a wisp of ash remains now… Hahahaha!!”

Empowered by Illusionary Demon Lightning Flash, Yun Che moved with a speed that instantly filled everyone with despair. In a flash, he vanished completely from sight, only his mocking laughter echoing from afar.

“No… impossible… How did he escape… Impossible!!” All the Phoenix Elders were utterly dumbfounded. The shock this scene brought them was no less than Yun Che suddenly appearing in the center of Divine Phoenix City. That was the Phoenix Flame Great Array unleashed simultaneously by dozens of Phoenix Elders and Sect Master Feng Hengkong. Under such power, even a person at the peak of the Tyrant Profound Realm would be incinerated to ashes in a short time, with absolutely no possibility of survival.

Even if Yun Che were stronger and could survive within it, he should at least be heavily injured… But the speed of his escape was no less than yesterday’s, and his voice was soul-shaking and deafening. Far from being heavily injured, he didn’t even show a trace of minor injury.

And Feng Xichen’s aura had completely vanished within the sea of flames.

Feng Feilie descended from the sky and came to Feng Hengkong’s side, every muscle in his face trembling violently. “Sect Master, should we pursue him?”

With Yun Che’s terrifyingly unmatched speed, they could not possibly keep up. Feng Feilie even doubted if the Grand Emperor who had long been out of public eye—also known as the Grand Sect Master—could even match Yun Che’s speed.

“Pfft…” Feng Hengkong staggered slightly, and a large mouthful of blood mist violently gushed from his mouth.

“Sect Master!” Feng Feilie hurriedly supported Feng Hengkong. The other elders and princes were greatly alarmed and rushed over in a flurry.

With two sons killed one after another before his eyes within two days, Feng Hengkong finally understood what heart-burning rage truly was in this lifetime. His face was ashen, and the scene before his eyes blurred. Looking at the rapidly dissipating flames in the sky, with not a trace of Feng Xichen remaining, grief welled up within him, and he wished he could cry his heart out.

“Imperial Father, please calm your rage and take care of your health… We will surely repay the grudge for Thirteenth Imperial Brother and Fourteenth Imperial Brother a thousandfold,” Feng Ximing said urgently.

“I… I’m fine… I’m fine…” Feng Hengkong reached out and pushed away the arms supporting him, slowly standing upright. But he stood there, his eyes unfocused and vacant for a long time, as if his soul had left him.

“Imperial Father, should we…” Second Prince Feng Xiqian said cautiously in a low voice, “Should we ask Grandfather to emerge from seclusion…”

Feng Xiqian’s words struck a chord with everyone present, for it was the thought that had simultaneously occurred to them. Feng Feiran sighed heavily and said, “In terms of profound strength, none of us fear Yun Che. But his speed truly is… it’s highly likely to be the Illusionary Demon Lightning Flash of the God of Thieves clan. Hua Minghai was only at the late Sky Profound Realm back then, and we still found it hard to catch up to him. Yun Che surpasses Hua Minghai in both strength and speed, and his ruthlessness is beyond compare. Even if it causes the Grand Sect Master to be disappointed and angry, what if, by chance, another prince falls into Yun Che’s hands…”

“Sect Master, this matter only blames our incompetence,” Feng Feilie said with shame.

“Yun Che dares not confront us directly; he only uses my sons to threaten me…” Feng Hengkong slowly spoke, his voice so calm it sent shivers down one’s spine. “Can I not use the same method against him?!”

The elders and princes were stunned. “Sect Master, your meaning is…”

“Our central army was annihilated by Yun Che, and now that Yun Che is here, he cannot possibly attend to Azure Cloud Imperial City.” Feng Hengkong gritted his teeth heavily, his pupils gleaming with venomous hatred. “Order the Eastern and Western Armies stationed in Azure Cloud to each dispatch at least two hundred thousand troops from their closest garrisons, and march at full speed towards Azure Cloud Imperial City! They must arrive before dawn tomorrow, then take Azure Cloud Imperial City by any means necessary!!”

“Slaughter all living people in the city, without exception! Only that female emperor… must be captured alive!!”

Feng Hengkong’s words instantly lifted everyone’s spirits, and the gloom in their chests dissipated by more than half. Yun Che clearly came for the Azure Cloud Nation this time, and while they couldn’t catch him, they could easily seize his weakness! Without Yun Che guarding it, their Divine Phoenix Army would find taking Azure Cloud Imperial City as easy as pie… And Empress Cang Yue was Yun Che’s officially wedded wife!

“Imperial Father, you are wise! Your son will immediately relay the orders!” Feng Ximing quickly left.

“The Sect Master is indeed wise! Once Azure Cloud Imperial City is taken and Empress Cang Yue captured, let’s see how arrogant Yun Che can still be!” Feng Feilie said hatefully.