"Young Lord of the Divine Marquis, Ye Qingyun came from the countryside and does not understand proper etiquette."
"You are the dignified Young Lord of the Divine Marquis. Surely you would not lower yourself to the level of someone like him."
The Left Prime Minister remained unruffled, a faint, genial smile hanging at the corners of his mouth.
Once those words were spoken, even if Qin Anlan wanted to trouble Ye Qingyun, it became rather difficult.
Ye Qingyun was a country bumpkin who did not understand etiquette.
Qin Anlan, meanwhile, was the Young Lord of the Divine Marquis, someone so lofty and exalted.
Surely he would not imitate Ye Qingyun, disregard etiquette, and forcibly pick a fight with him.
As he spoke, the Left Prime Minister shot a glance at the Heaven's Firmament Academy elder beside him, signaling for him to take Ye Qingyun away.
Regarding Liu Ruxue, Qin Anlan held the Empress's Imperial Decree.
Coupled with the conflict between the Liu Family and Qin Anlan, the Left Prime Minister understood the situation perfectly.
The Liu Family had clearly brought destruction upon themselves. They had no one else to blame.
The Left Prime Minister could not possibly offend the terrifying forces of Divine Marquis of Zhenguo's Estate and the Empress for the sake of a mere Liu Ruxue.
But that did not mean that he, the dignified Left Prime Minister and leader of all officials,
would let a snot-nosed brat like Qin Anlan run wild.
At the very least, as the dean of Heaven's Firmament Academy, he did not wish to see one of the academy's Heavenly Prodigies perish here.
He could only let Ye Qingyun suffer a little grievance for now and temporarily smooth this matter over.
"Esteemed Dean, why go through so much trouble?"
"Let me capture Ye Qingyun, that fellow who knows neither heaven nor earth, on behalf of Heaven's Firmament Academy."
Luo Feng wanted to see Ye Qingyun suffer and suppress his arrogant airs, while also putting on a good performance before Qin Anlan and claiming the first merit.
As he spoke, he struck directly.
Countless rays of light flashed from his hand and shot toward Ye Qingyun.
Rumble!
Several muffled peals of thunder suddenly rang out through the void.
Countless divine lights intertwined, transforming into a terrifying bolt of heavenly lightning.
Without warning, it cleaved toward Ye Qingyun's forehead.
As a Direct Disciple of Heaven's Firmament Academy, Luo Feng possessed formidable strength.
Though not yet forty, he was already an expert at the middle stage of the Violet Palace Realm.
Though he could not contend with Qin Anlan,
among his peers, he stood head and shoulders above the rest.
Even among the younger generation of Heaven's Firmament Academy, he was one of the very best.
Although Ye Qingyun was the Senior Disciple of the Inner Sect, and though no one knew what dogshit luck he had stumbled upon lately to greatly increase his strength,
in just half a year, he had advanced from the middle stage of the Divine Platform to the early stage of the Violet Palace Realm.
Yet before Luo Feng, an expert at the middle stage of the Violet Palace Realm, he was still hardly worth looking at. How could he possibly be Luo Feng's match?
Within the great hall, countless rays of light interwove.
Everyone, including the Left Prime Minister and the First Prince, watched this battle.
Yet no one cared in the slightest about its outcome.
Even if Ye Qingyun had encountered many fortuitous opportunities and his strength had soared by leaps and bounds,
nothing but defeat awaited him.
Everyone present was someone of standing.
For them to intervene in a battle between two juniors now would be beneath their status.
They could not afford to lose that much face.
"Good!"
Ye Qingyun snorted coldly.
Faced with Luo Feng's sudden attack, not only did he show no fear, but an intense battle intent blazed in his eyes.
He madly circulated the internal force within his body, gathering it in his right fist.
Swinging his fist, he charged straight at it.
"What is Ye Qingyun trying to do? Is he seeking death?"
"With mere flesh and blood, he actually wants to take Senior Brother Luo Feng's ultimate move head-on."
"Senior Brother Luo Feng is an expert at the middle stage of the Violet Palace Realm and possesses the Thunder God Body. Even if Ye Qingyun stumbled upon dogshit luck and barely broke through to the middle stage of the Violet Palace Realm, he still could not possibly be Senior Brother Luo Feng's match."
"What is the point of saying all that? Ye Qingyun will probably be beaten to pieces by Senior Brother Luo Feng, leaving neither corpse nor bones behind."
The many disciples wore disdainful expressions.
Before the battle had even begun, its outcome had already been decided.
Ye Qingyun's actions were nothing more than an egg smashing against a stone, courting his own destruction.
In that instant of sparks and lightning, heavenly lightning flashed.
Countless rays of radiant light shot forth, so dazzling that everyone could barely keep their eyes open.
Beneath that blazing radiance, Ye Qingyun's fist collided with the lightning.
Rumble!
A series of explosive booms rang out.
Luo Feng retreated more than ten steps before barely managing to steady himself.
Ye Qingyun, on the other hand, stood where he was like a war god, unmoving as a mountain.
His eyes were filled with incomparable confidence.
"What? Senior Brother Ye Qingyun is actually this powerful?"
"Th-this is simply too terrifying."
Quite a few young and beautiful female disciples had already heard of Ye Qingyun's reputation and held a favorable impression of him.
Now, they stared at him without blinking, their faces glowing with springtime delight.
Ye Qingyun's strength had completely surpassed everyone's expectations.
In a head-on clash, he had forced Luo Feng back with a single move.
Shock.
Other than shock, there was only shock.
"Ye Qingyun only broke through to the Violet Palace Realm three days ago, while Luo Feng has been immersed in the middle stage of the Violet Palace Realm for three years."
"Not only could he repel Luo Feng's attack, he even forcibly drove Luo Feng back. Th-this is far too absurd."
All the elders and disciples could not help drawing sharp breaths at Ye Qingyun's display.
Even the calm and composed Left Prime Minister, renowned for his steadiness, revealed a trace of shock on his face.
Luo Feng was not only above Ye Qingyun in cultivation. More importantly,
he possessed the Thunder Battle Body, and the Thunder Secret Manual he cultivated was also a heaven-grade technique.
Not only was he nearly invincible among those of the same realm, he could even challenge opponents above his level.
Yet such a person, when facing Ye Qingyun, who had only just broken through to the Violet Palace Realm,
had actually been forcibly driven back by him.
Ye Qingyun was extraordinarily gifted, a Heavenly Prodigy.
This was no secret within Heaven's Firmament Academy.
But even a Heavenly Prodigy should not have been this outrageous.
It would have been one thing to challenge someone above his level, but he had even forced back a Heavenly Prodigy possessing the Thunder God Body despite being below him in cultivation.
This was like absurdity opening the door for absurdity's mother—absurdity had come home.
If there was anyone present who was not the least bit surprised by what had just happened and remained utterly unruffled,
there would be no one besides Qin Anlan.
After all, the person standing before him was no ordinary person.
He was the Child of Destiny.
Things like challenging opponents above one's level, showing off and slapping faces, and shocking the entire audience—
were they not the Child of Destiny's everyday routine?
If Ye Qingyun had been defeated by some insignificant lackey, that would have been truly strange.
"You look utterly unruffled. Do you have that much confidence in Ye Qingyun?"
A crisp voice interrupted Liu Ruxue's thoughts.
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