Yun Yang took in a deep breath and began re-adjusting the energy of the Endless Divine Art within himself.
A quarter of an hour later, Lao Mei came over to see Yun Yang already in a state of cultivation as layers of mist engulfed him from head to toe.
Being a cultivation expert himself, Lao Mei knew that he could not be disturbed. He was relieved nonetheless, excusing himself and stepped out of the door unhurriedly, seating himself right in front of it.
The four little guys knew well enough not to take advantage of the situation as each of them picked a window and stayed there, the last one hopping up to the roof and sat there leisurely.
Eight tiny ears perked up at the same time, eight tiny eyes darted around to keep guard.
…
The moon hung high in the sky.
Yun Yang woke up again and sat up.
He tried getting off his bed but his feet were wobbly, barely able to support his weight. He made several attempts, finally succeeding in standing up by holding onto the bed. After moving around for a while, he finally felt his feet stepping on solid ground. With more exaggerated movements, his bones cracked throughout his body like beans being stir fried.
"Young master is finally alright." Fang Mofei and Lao Mei were all smiles.
"I’ve troubled both of you greatly this time." Yun Yang wore a soft smile as he said this.
"Being able to serve young master is a blessing we aren't able to get again in this life." Fang Mofei and Lao Mei said respectfully, "Such insignificant work is nothing compared to that."
Fang Mofei hesitated for a bit and finally asked carefully, "Young master, what has happened this time?"
Yun Yang sighed softly.
This time was really a narrow escape from death.
To be even more accurate, he just picked his life back up!
The hazards of this incident were even more severe than that one time at Tianxuan Cliff.
Just as the elder had lifted his head, Yun Yang could sense that he had been locked in as a target. It was within that instant that the wind Yun Yang had turned into threw itself upwards a further five hundred feet into the air.
Then he saw the elder raise his arm as a devastating attack came from all around him.
If he had not noticed earlier and managed to put some distance between himself and the elder, he might be roaming the Underworld now, ten lives notwithstanding.
The flash of terror was something Yun Yang still felt until now and shivered from.
He was too strong!
He was too formidable!
There was no way to defend himself against him!
Yun Yang still could not understand how he, who had turned into the autumn wind in the sky, could actually be discovered.
It was probably his inadequate cultivation base and inability to understand the state those highly proficient cultivators were in as well as the responses they could make.
All in all, he was almost dismembered under the terrible onslaught.
If he had not just advanced and reached the fourth stage of Mystique Wind Conjuration, if Emmie had not lent him support just in time to maintain his basic Qi and forcefully keep his form of wind, then he would really have died – the type of death where his cultivation skills and soul were destroyed, an irreversible death!
Having survived the attack and being severely injured, Yun Yang wanted to leave fast and far but he knew that the elder would not let it go just like that. Therefore, he maintained his form of wind with all the strength he could muster and kept on circulating through the air. Indeed, this formidable elder had tested him for an entire night!
In the end, Yun Yang had wholly depleted himself and had to depend on Emmie’s support to make it home.
If there had been any blunders in the process, he would have died, his soul shattered!
Before this, Yun Yang had not known there was such an elder in the crown prince’s residence. He had thought that he was just an old scholar, an aide; at most, he had more experience in life and had higher intelligence but that was all.
Looking at his age freckles and his wobbly walk, this old man had people thinking he might only have a few years of life left.
Yet when he struck, he had revealed himself to be an earthshattering, formidable presence!
It was only at dawn that the elder finally gave up and retracted his aura. When he returned to his residence, Yun Yang was barely holding himself up.
Even then, the elder had actually said wheedling words that were extremely deluding.
How he lacked trust, and yet, was still confident.
Yun Yang had judged the elder in his heart – he was not a martial artist of the fifth, sixth or seventh peak.
Even Marquis Yun or Old Dugu who had been waiting for the brothers in the small alehouse had not exuded such a formidable aura like this Old He!
This person must have exceeded Tenth Perfection!
His attack that needed no preparation, had no foretelling signs, and could not be defended against, had left Yun Yang terribly close to death, shattering his soul almost to the point of no return.
How should one fight against someone so formidable? He could not challenge him with force. Even if he had thousands of clever plots, they were useless against such power.
Yun Yang’s brows locked in a deep frown.
There were two enemies in Tiantang City right now whom his ability could not handle.
One was Mi Kongqun in the palace while the other was this Old He.
What could he do to exterminate them?
"How long have I been unconscious?" Yun Yang asked weakly.
"Including today, it’s been full four days and nights." Fang Mofei’s gaze was still frightful thinking about it.
Watching Yun Yang falling from the sky had traumatized him severely.
"Four days have passed?" Yun Yang exhaled easily and said, "Has anything momentous happened in these four days and nights?"
"We have heard nothing major but maybe it’s because we didn’t really go out." Lao Mei said, "But the four noble young masters have been coming over a few times every day. They also brought a lot of spiritual medicine with them."
Yun Yang nodded.
He had to acknowledge the help he had received during hard times, even if they had ulterior motives.
"Old Marshal Qiu Jianhan came once." Lao Mei rambled on, "But this time was different than the last. He arrived an angry man but was stunned seeing your condition. He then left and sent some medicine over."
Yun Yang perked up at once. "This old man came again?"
Old man…
Fang Mofei and Lao Mei exchanged a look of exasperation.
In the entire world, there would probably only be this one person who dared to call Old Marshal Qiu an old man.
Somehow, they would have admonished Yun Yang about this before they knew that he was Supreme Cloud but now that they knew, they would only disagree in their hearts. Besides, Yun Yang was talking easier now and had even begun to joke, so he must be physically better. That relieved both the elder men as their worrying hearts could finally be at ease.
They knew that Yun Yang’s injury this time was far more serious than they had thought. The recovery process could not have been a walk in the park.
It had been another two days but Yun Yang still felt listless. Despite his condition getting better and the speed of recovery fast enough to shock those who knew him, how could Yun Yang be contented?
The continuous surge of the Nine Heavens Dictum's messages was telling Yun Yang that the Four Seasons Tower was expediting their moves and measures.
"The crown prince’s residence has begun retracting its defense as its aides have started going around to make connections; their contact with officials and generals is unusually frequent, three times more compared to last month."
"Third prince’s residence has similarly begun to contact the officials. In addition, they are figuring out ways to contact men of the Nine Heavens Dictum. Although no contact has been discovered as of now, it doesn’t look promising."
"Fourth prince’s residence is doing the same as well."
"The same goes for the fifth prince’s residence."
"Things are currently uncertain with the Grand Tutor. Hearsay has it that he has argued with General Leng Daoyin but the exact reason is not yet known."
"In the meantime, Marshal Tie Zheng is borrowing money from everywhere to prepare for his wedding."
"The censors and civil officials are still against the Board of War, attacking anything of the military that they could attack. Old Marshal Qiu has deflected all the attacks, His Majesty the emperor’s attitude is clear too."
"This subordinate has managed to find out that His Majesty is not in good health these days. It seems like some issues are going on in the palace but we could not penetrate further to understand the details…"
"The civil and military officials are going head to head with each other – the civils thought that the letter of credence for peace has been signed so there wouldn't be any war for the time being. This could be the opportunity to make peace with other nations and use the gap available to reconstruct the nation and develop the life of our men and the economy; the troops can be deployed home to save money and food. What should be done now is to manage the river system…"
"However, the military side insists on a different option. They thought that the conflict between Yutang and other nations could not be resolved. The rise or fall of the nation is at stake as the so-called letter of credence for peace is but an illusion of peace, the calm before storm… Even when they come to celebrate Tie Zheng’s wedding, it is only a temporary reprieve."
"Both sides are held in a stagnant argument. Among the princes, the crown prince and fifth prince are on the military side while the third, fourth, and sixth princes are on the civil side…"
"The residence of the Grand Commandant is closed all year long but Old Marshal Qiu has entered some days ago to talk to the Grand Commandant. The topic of conversation is unknown. Hearsay has it that the Grand Commandant’s health is also deteriorating and his doom is impending."
"Contact between Residence of Prince of Concord and Residence of Crown Prince has gotten more frequent than usual. It makes contact with the other princes too but it is the most frequent with the crown prince’s residence. This subordinate’s analysis says that Prince of Concord should already have his decision made."
"Northern Trouncing King remains in the north and continues to trounce the grassland. There aren’t any messages or news delivered…"
"Some of the generals from other nations are already halfway here to celebrate the wedding. This subordinate personally feels that Marshal Tie’s wedding will definitely be an intense competition as storms from all over the place are gathering at Tiantang. It is unimaginable what would happen ultimately."
"Martial artists’ entrance to Tiantang City in the last ten days is not frequent. The frequency has lowered significantly compared to previous days."
"When this subordinate was collecting information, this subordinate has discovered someone fishing at the Thousand Feet Lake but no fish has been caught for days. The man fishing seems to be an expert but his motivations are unknown. This subordinate is not sure if this piece of information is of use…"
Doubt was obvious in the last message.
All sorts of irregularities had to be reported when investigating but this fishing news seemed a trifle too... ordinary.
…
The surge of messages clearly indicated that the Empire of Yutang was now like a pile of mud, a pot of porridge that was mushy and weak.
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