Chapter 879: Linger's Message

All the disciples from Seven Star Divine Palace who came here, even the weakest among them were King Profound, and there were also two early-stage Tyrant Profound cultivators. Any single one of them was an existence as powerful as a deity to the disciples of Taisu Sect, and even to all profound practitioners in the entire Jiangdong Realm. Yet, in the blink of an eye, they were incinerated by flames and pierced by ice.

Not one of them even touched Yun Che's robe, nor did they struggle for a single moment. They were nothing more than insects rushing forward to be mercilessly trampled and annihilated.

The black-clad Divine Emissary's sickly pale face had morphed into a ghastly white of pure terror. As an eighth-level Tyrant Profound, he had been utterly confident against Yun Che, whose profound aura appeared to be only at the sixth level of Tyrant Profound. But now, even a fool would grasp that Yun Che's true strength was far beyond a mere sixth-level Tyrant Profound.

Most terrifying of all, the opponent showed absolutely no regard for the Seven Star Divine Palace's background. Both times he attacked, it was a merciless, no-holds-barred killing blow!

The black-clad Divine Emissary staggered backward in terror, then violently shoved through the crowd, fleeing at top speed.

But Yun Che would not let him escape. He reached out, a faint blue light shimmered, and an ice wall instantly materialized directly in front of the black-clad Divine Emissary.

Caught off guard while desperately fleeing, the black-clad Divine Emissary crashed violently into the ice wall. Immediately, an irresistible immense force seized him from behind, rapidly dragging him towards Yun Che.

The black-clad Divine Emissary struggled desperately, but despite expending all his might, he found himself utterly unable to break free from Yun Che's grip. Under immense terror, his fear morphed into desperation. He ceased struggling, abruptly spun around, let out a furious roar, gathered all his profound energy into his arm, and unleashed a startling profound energy vortex towards Yun Che's face.

There was no deafening roar or explosive burst of air, only an unusually dull thud. Yun Che's palm had effortlessly grasped the black-clad Divine Emissary's fist, which had gathered all his profound energy. Instantly, the profound energy vortex vanished, and the profound energy the black-clad Divine Emissary had fully concentrated completely dissipated. His entire body froze in mid-air, his eyes, dilated with extreme terror, seemed almost ready to burst.

Yun Che's expression was icy. He tightened his grip slightly, and the distinct sound of bones shattering instantly emanated from his palm.

The black-clad Divine Emissary shrieked, instantly collapsing to his knees. His left arm clutched his right wrist tightly, yet he couldn't break free in the slightest. The immense pain turned his entire body ashen, and sweat poured down his forehead like rain.

“You... who... are... you... exactly...?”

The black-clad Divine Emissary trembled uncontrollably, his voice hoarse with pain. His power as an eighth-level Tyrant Profound was so utterly defenseless before his opponent. To possess such power, it had to be at the Sovereign Profound level.

He never in his wildest dreams imagined that this unfamiliar young man who had suddenly appeared before him would actually be a Sovereign Profound!

Meanwhile, all the surrounding Taisu Sect members were utterly terrified, their souls scattered. Su Haoran, Su Hengyue, and the others had long since lost all color in their faces. They wanted to retreat, but their legs were so weak from violent trembling that they could barely stand, let alone flee.

Their current state wasn't solely due to shock and fear; Yun Che's profound aura had already heavily enveloped them, pressing down on them as if they were crushed beneath ten thousand mighty mountains.

In response to the black-clad Divine Emissary's question, Yun Che offered an incredibly cold smile.

Crack, crack, crack...

As if hundreds of beans burst simultaneously, every bone in the black-clad Divine Emissary's entire right hand was mercilessly crushed by Yun Che in an instant. The black-clad Divine Emissary let out a pig-like shriek, his body convulsing like a dying worm, and large beads of sweat poured frantically from every part of his body.

“Mercy... Young Hero... m-mercy... mercy...”

The instinct for survival made the black-clad Divine Emissary desperately beg for mercy, his distorted face filled with humble pleading. Yun Che still held his shattered right hand without releasing it, stating coldly, “One last time, tell me everything you know about Su Ling’er. Otherwise...”

“I’ll tell you... I’ll tell you!” The black-clad Divine Emissary nodded frantically, his voice hoarse with immense pain. “Three... three hours ago... we received news... that someone in the Langhuan Mountain Range... saw someone who is very likely Su Ling’er... That’s all the information we have on her so far... Please, mercy... I am from the Seven Star Divine Palace... have mercy...”

Upon hearing the black-clad Divine Emissary's words, Su Hengshan trembled all over, his eyes glowing with intense excitement.

The Langhuan Mountain Range?

The Langhuan Mountain Range, located south of Fusuo Nation, which separates Fusuo Nation from Nantian Nation!

The Cliff of Absolute Clouds, where he had fallen years ago, was also located within the Langhuan Mountain Range.

Yun Che composed himself and continued, “So, if what you say is true, all your Seven Star Divine Palace members have now converged on the Langhuan Mountain Range to pursue Su Ling’er?”

“Yes...” The black-clad Divine Emissary nodded, trembling.

“Good...” Yun Che’s eyes flashed with a fierce glint. “Now, you will honestly do one thing for me. Immediately send a message to your people, ordering them to cease their pursuit of Su Ling’er at once!”

“Ah...” The black-clad Divine Emissary’s eyes widened. “Young Hero... you don’t understand... the people pursuing Su Ling’er... are led by an elder from my Divine Palace... I am merely a minor Hall Master... I was only left here to interrogate... Su Hengshan... I simply... cannot command them... Urgh...”

Yun Che’s face darkened. Without another word, he suddenly extended his other hand, and profound energy surged directly into the black-clad Divine Emissary’s soul.

The black-clad Divine Emissary’s heart and mind were already on the verge of shattering from fear and agony. His soul offered no resistance whatsoever, and his consciousness was instantly invaded by the profound energy.

Yun Che began to rapidly read the black-clad Divine Emissary's memories from the past few months. The full story of the Taisu Sect's recent turmoil, its causes and consequences, gradually unfolded in his mind.

The Taisu Sect’s history was not particularly long, spanning approximately nine hundred years in total. In its sixth century, one of the sect’s ancestors, while traveling to the Southern Territory, coincidentally rescued a dying individual who was being brutally pursued. That person ultimately perished, but before dying, he handed a black box to the ancestor.

Inside the box was something called a Coiling Dragon Whisker.

The Coiling Dragon Whisker, much like the Bodhi Emperor Lotus that Xia Qingyue had consumed years ago, was a rare and valuable item, seen only once every few centuries, truly a "sacred object." Six years prior, Xia Qingyue had consumed a Bodhi Emperor Lotus, refined by the Sky Poison Pearl, and had broken through from the Earth Profound Realm to the King Profound Realm in just one day. However, the medicinal effects of the Coiling Dragon Whisker were far more potent than the Bodhi Emperor Lotus. Profound practitioners below the Sky Profound Realm would instantly explode and die if they rashly consumed it; only those at or above the Sky Profound Realm could use it.

If a Sky Profound practitioner consumed and refined a Coiling Dragon Whisker, they would directly break through an entire major realm, achieving the King Profound Realm.

Additionally, the Seven Star Divine Palace possessed a world-renowned divine pill, the “Seven Star Void-Crossing Pill,” ranked among the top-tier elixirs on the Azure Cloud Continent. Its effect was to allow an individual who had reached the peak of the King Profound Realm to directly break through their bottleneck and achieve the Tyrant Profound Realm, similar to the Tyrant Profound Pill found in the Illusory Demon Realm.

However, the most crucial and hardest-to-find ingredient for the “Seven Star Void-Crossing Pill” was precisely the Coiling Dragon Whisker. Even with the vast resources of the Seven Star Divine Palace, it took them an average of two hundred years to locate a single one. Once they detected the presence of a Coiling Dragon Whisker, they would go to any lengths to obtain it... even if it meant annihilating an entire sect to seize it.

The person rescued by the Taisu Sect ancestor had been pursued by the Seven Star Divine Palace. The reason, naturally, was to seize the Coiling Dragon Whisker he possessed.

The Taisu Sect ancestor brought the Coiling Dragon Whisker back to Taisu Sect from the Southern Territory. He deeply understood that this single Coiling Dragon Whisker was enough to make Taisu Sect flourish dramatically, yet he also knew that its exposure could lead to the sect’s utter destruction. He hesitated for a long time between keeping it and voluntarily handing it over to the Seven Star Divine Palace, finally choosing the former. He sealed the Coiling Dragon Whisker in a top-secret location and left a special key, which was passed down through each generation of sect masters. Only when a genius of upright character, who had broken through to the Sky Profound Realm before the age of thirty-five, appeared within the sect, could the key be used to retrieve the item, allowing them to consume the Coiling Dragon Whisker, achieve the powerful King Profound Realm, succeed as the new sect master, and lead Taisu Sect to even greater heights of prosperity.

All of this was recorded in the secret tome left by that Taisu ancestor. This tome could only be viewed by each successive Taisu Sect Master. Therefore, apart from the sect masters, no one knew what their "supreme treasure," passed down through generations, truly was; they only knew that it could only be retrieved when a peerless genius appeared within the sect.

Over the years, Su Haoran had always harbored ulterior motives, meticulously plotting to uncover the secret of the sect’s supreme treasure. One time, while Su Hengshan was away from the sect, Su Haoran searched his inner chambers and inadvertently activated a hidden profound formation. This revealed the secret tome to him, allowing him to learn about the origin and secrets of the sect’s supreme treasure.

Upon discovering that only those at the Sky Profound Realm could consume the Coiling Dragon Whisker, and that attempting to force its consumption with insufficient profound energy was tantamount to suicide, he realized it would be useless even if he obtained it. Disappointed and resentful, Su Haoran became deranged enough to consider offering it to the Seven Star Divine Palace to curry their favor.

However, he did not disclose any of this to Su Hengshan or anyone else. Instead, he secretly went to great lengths, sparing no expense, to find an opportunity to speak directly with someone from the Seven Star Divine Palace. After all, this was his "great achievement," and he absolutely could not let others take credit for it.

After more than two years of "effort," he finally secured an opportunity to personally inform a "Divine Emissary" from the Seven Star Divine Palace that a "Coiling Dragon Whisker" was secretly hidden within the Taisu Sect.

Afterward, having gained the "approval" of the Seven Star Divine Palace, Su Haoran returned to Taisu Sect and swiftly allied with Su Hengyue, Su Wangji, and Blackwood Fortress. They then pressured Su Hengshan to hand over the supreme treasure key. With the terrifying backing of the “Seven Star Divine Palace,” the Taisu Sect members, in their terror, quickly defected to Su Haoran.

All those who refused to comply, with the exception of Su Hengshan, were mercilessly slaughtered, their bodies discarded in the bamboo grove behind the mountain.

Yun Che’s hand slowly moved away from the black-clad Divine Emissary’s head. He glanced indifferently at the trembling Su Haoran from the corner of his eye, then lowered his head and slowly said, “It seems you didn’t lie. Since that’s the case, I’ll keep my promise and grant you a swift death!”

“Ugh...” A look of profound terror and despair appeared on the black-clad Divine Emissary’s face.

Yun Che withdrew his palm, flinging the black-clad Divine Emissary to the ground, then brought his foot down.

Pffft!!!

Yun Che’s right foot directly pierced through the black-clad Divine Emissary’s chest, stomping heavily onto the ground. This crushed his chest into a mangled, bloody cavity, sending large amounts of crimson blood, shattered bones, and internal organs violently scattering and splattering the surrounding tens of yards with gore.

The black-clad Divine Emissary’s limbs convulsed, then completely fell silent, his life extinguished.

Yun Che lifted his foot, yet not a single drop of blood stained it. He disgustedly kicked aside the black-clad Divine Emissary’s mangled body, then lightly flicked a finger.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Ice Yi Trees that had entombed all the Divine Palace disciples mercilessly burst apart. The disciples, who had long suffered the torment of the ice prison, let out their final desperate screams, their bodies shattering into pieces amidst the myriad of flying ice shards.

The scattering ice shards and fragments of corpses knocked down many surrounding Taisu Sect disciples. They awoke as if from a nightmare amidst the screams, dropping their weapons and scrambling to escape.

“Heh, still trying to flee!?” A cruel sneer played on Yun Che’s lips. He slowly opened his palm, flames erupted, and the sky above Taisu Sect instantly turned a blazing crimson.