Taking the Stage

Yun Yun withdrew her gaze, preparing to take Nalan Yanran over to join the excitement, when she saw a tall, indifferent-looking youth walking toward them from behind Nalan Yanran.

"Sect Leader Yun?"

"Are you the new Ice Emperor?"

Yun Yun walked to Nalan Yanran's side and curiously sized up the youth who had stopped before her.

Even though Elder Yun Leng had already told her about him many times, upon seeing him for the first time, she could not help but marvel inwardly:

This kid was really young!

"Yes. Sect Leader Yun can call me Wu Yan."

Wu Yan nodded and glanced at the little girl behind Yun Yun. If Yun Yun was not married yet, then this little girl should be Nalan Yanran, the wielder of the "breaking off an engagement" ability, right?

"I heard Sect Leader Yun wished to see me. May I ask why?"

"Does Wu Yan know that Senior Hai Bodong once fought my teacher at Cloud Mist Summit? My teacher won that battle."

"Oh? So what does Sect Leader Yun mean?"

Wu Yan nodded, already having some guesses about Yun Yun's intentions.

"I wish to spar with you and see how much difference there is between you, the new Ice Emperor, and Hai Bodong, the old Ice Emperor."

A hint of seriousness appeared on Yun Yun's face. As her teacher's disciple, she absolutely could not disgrace her teacher's teachings!

"Sure. Follow me."

Wu Yan spread his Dou Qi wings and flew out of Mittel City in an instant.

As a wind-attributed Dou King, Yun Yun's speed went without saying. Holding her young disciple Nalan Yanran, she followed closely behind Wu Yan.

In a quiet mountain forest, two fierce gusts swept through the sky.

"We're sparring. Isn't it inappropriate to bring a child along?"

"Yanran is my disciple. It's fine."

"Sect Leader Yun, don't misunderstand. What I mean is, letting a child watch her teacher get defeated with her own eyes is a little too cruel, isn't it?"

Wu Yan felt that doing this was somewhat improper. Should he go easy on Yun Yun later?

At the very least, he would not defeat her in a single move.

Wu Yan did not consider himself a saint, but when children were involved, he still had some compassion.

"You mean I am definitely no match for you?" Yun Yun's expression changed as she looked at Wu Yan in disbelief.

"I am currently at the Dou Emperor realm. Sect Leader Yun, you should still be at the Dou King realm. In a normal spar, you are most likely not my opponent."

Wu Yan's expression was serious. He did not think he had said anything wrong.

Wasn't this something anyone with eyes could see?

If Dou Kings were stronger than Dou Emperors, why did so many Dou Kings want to break through to become Dou Emperors?

"Hmph, Wu Yan, aren't you being far too confident? Don't forget, the previous Ice Emperor was defeated by my teacher!"

There was clearly more anger on Yun Yun's face. This was the first time she had ever been looked down upon so openly.

Seeing Yun Yun like this, Wu Yan could not help feeling surprised. What was going on? This was a little out of character, wasn't it?

Why was Yun Yun's personality so fiery? Wasn't she supposed to be very gentle?

"Fine. You chose this yourself."

Wu Yan helplessly shook his head. Perhaps this was not the Yun Yun he knew. He should stop holding back.

What if she had some hidden trump card?

With that thought, a large amount of pale, chilling frost energy surged around Wu Yan, tightly protecting him.

Yun Yun, sword in hand, flashed forward and instantly appeared behind Wu Yan, her sharp sword tip aimed directly at his heart.

Yet the moment the longsword touched that ever-shifting white mist, the sword and the wind-attributed energy upon its blade were completely frozen.

The frost spread with incredible speed, running along the longsword and across Yun Yun's entire body, freezing her solid.

In the end, only Yun Yun's head remained free.

Wu Yan walked forward unhurriedly. Seeing the anxious expression on Nalan Yanran's face, he stopped.

Forget it. He should not go too far in front of her disciple.

The freed Yun Yun's face was flushed red. Watching Wu Yan fly away, she felt utterly humiliated.

She had actually been defeated so easily by Wu Yan. How was that possible?!

Even if he was a Dou Emperor, he should not have been able to defeat her, a nine-star Dou King, so effortlessly...

Yun Yun's heart was filled with frustration. She began doubting herself. Could it be that she really was too weak?

After returning with Nalan Yanran, Yun Yun did not see anyone for a long time, reflecting in her room for ages.

She did not appear again until the very end of the memorial service.

At the same time, Wu Yan, who had left ahead of them and should have returned to the city, suddenly changed direction.

Looking at the towering tree several hundred meters away, Wu Yan did not hesitate. With a thought, he condensed dozens of ice spears and sent them shooting toward the tree like lightning.

A black shadow leaped out from behind the towering tree, releasing a large amount of black energy in an attempt to swallow the ice spears.

But the next moment, the ice spears shattered on their own, releasing a vast cloud of white frost that froze the black shadow solid.

Following his usual practice, Wu Yan left the old man in black with only his head exposed.

"Speak. Why were you following me?"

From dozens of meters away, Wu Yan coldly looked at the old man trapped in ice. A dark-attributed Dou Emperor—he must have quite a background...

Wait, a dark-attributed Dou Emperor?!

Countless thoughts arose in Wu Yan's mind, but he suppressed them all without letting anything show on his face.

"Hehe, I heard that the Jia Ma Empire had gained a genius youth, an eighteen-year-old Dou Emperor. This old man grew curious and came specifically to take a look."

"This old man absolutely means no harm. I hope this young brother will show mercy."

The old man in black explained with a smile. It sounded perfectly reasonable, without any obvious flaws.

Wu Yan's expression remained unchanged. His indifferent eyes simply stared at the old man in black.

"Where are you from?"

"Hehe, young brother, the force behind this old man is very powerful. You probably have never heard of it. But with your talent, young brother—"

"Shut up."

Looking at the captive's kindly smile and his apparent attempt to recruit him, Wu Yan's suspicions were confirmed.

Although he was displeased, if it truly was as he suspected, he really could not kill this old bastard.

If he were alone, that would be one thing... But not killing him did not mean he had to simply let him go!

"I can release you. What price are you prepared to pay?"

"I heard that Clan Chief Wu enjoys collecting Magic Cores. This old man has several fourth-tier Magic Cores."

"Not enough."

"Then how about a complete set of ice-attributed, high-grade Profound Tier cultivation methods and Dou Techniques?"

The old man in black hesitated, but after seeming to recall something, he finally offered this bargaining chip.

Wu Yan unfroze the hand wearing the storage ring. Then, he obtained five fourth-tier Magic Cores and a complete set of ice-attributed, high-grade Profound Tier cultivation methods and Dou Techniques.

"This is the last time. If we meet again and you are still sneaking around like this, hiding in the shadows, then do not blame me for showing no mercy."