Yun Huang lightly tapped the dark jade armrest with his fingertips. The tap, tap echoed through the deathly silent hall, each beat striking Yun Chi's heart with the precision of a heavy hammer.
Yun Chi went rigid as frozen stone. Cold sweat burst from his forehead, ran down his temples, and soaked his collar. He dropped to his knees with a thud, pressing his forehead firmly against the icy jade tiles, his voice trembling beyond recognition. "Y-Young Lord, please judge fairly! Your younger brother was merely worried about our cousin and spoke out of turn. I beg the Young Lord to punish me!" Terror surged through him. Had he seen through my attempt to sow discord? How does Yun Qing get every opportunity and win the Young Lord's special favor?!
Yun Huang lowered his eyes. His gaze, cold as ice frozen for ten thousand years, swept indifferently over Yun Chi's violently trembling back, as though inspecting an object that had developed a flaw.
"A Spirit-Devouring Body... rare enough, I suppose." His tone was flat, revealing neither praise nor criticism. "Unfortunately, with pearls and jade before us, rubble can hardly measure up. Such meager aptitude is useless in the end, isn't it?"
"Pearls and jade" naturally referred to the Chaos Dao Embryo! The Spirit-Devouring Body belonged to the same category as the Chaos Dao Embryo, but ranked several tiers below it, merely one of its lesser spirit bodies.
Yun Chi's heart convulsed! The Young Lord... had he known about Grandfather's plans all along?! A chill shot from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. He no longer dared call himself "your younger brother" to claim kinship, much less entertain any thought of imitating Yun Qing.
He kowtowed repeatedly, his forehead striking the golden tiles with loud bangs, his voice thick with tears. "I know my mistake! Thank you for your mercy and guidance, Young Lord!"
Yun Huang waved a hand indifferently. "You may all leave."
As though granted a pardon, Yun Chi fled with the Fifth Elder and the others, his retreating figure utterly disheveled. All that remained in his heart was the lingering terror of a narrow escape and bitter resentment. If Heaven gave birth to Zhou Yu, why did it also give birth to Zhuge Liang! Must Yun Qing forever stand above me? Why should Yun Qing be those 'pearls and jade'! If I had a Chaos Dao Embryo...
Silence returned to the hall. Yun Huang gazed impassively at the empty doorway. A wisp of Radiant Sun divine flame flashed from his fingertips, scorching and purifying the floor where Yun Hao and Yun Chi had knelt.
As a reincarnated Immortal Emperor, he had borrowed the Yun Clan's fortune to stabilize his foundations, and thus regarded the clan as his responsibility. He would not slaughter its children without cause, but if someone sought death, they could hardly blame him for gladly accepting.
Unfortunately, the owner of that Chaos Dao Embryo knew far too well how to behave, leaving him without a pretext to "enjoy" him for the moment. Still... an exceedingly subtle ripple of darkness flickered deep within Yun Huang's eyes. Fortunately, this "Spirit-Devouring Body" appeared to be a fool. Once he broke the rules, Yun Huang could use him as a cultivation vessel to replenish himself. It would be better than nothing.
With a calm expression, Yun Qing finished giving instructions to the elder on duty. "The chief offender, Yun Hao, will be left to the Young Lord's personal judgment. The other servants who took part in the fighting or fanned the flames will receive thirty lashes of the Discipline Whip, have their cultivation sealed, and be sent immediately to the Cold Iron Vein in the Northern Border to serve for a hundred years, as a warning to others."
"Yes, Eldest Young Master." The elder bowed and accepted the order.
Having finished his official duties, Yun Qing followed the corridor of the Perching Phoenix Palace's main hall back toward Serenity Courtyard. His injuries had yet to heal, however, and his steps were less steady than usual.
Dusk closed in on all sides. Palace lanterns lit up one after another, their dim yellow halos swaying across the blue-gray bricks and stretching his shadow long.
Yet just as he rounded a corner of the hall, he came face-to-face with a party leaving the main hall.
At their head was the Fifth Elder, Yun Jun, with a complicated expression. Behind him, two attendants carefully carried a padded stretcher. Sprawled upon it was none other than Yun Hao, his face the color of golden paper, his breathing barely perceptible. Yun Qing's double pupils contracted slightly. One glance told him that Yun Hao's spiritual energy had dispersed and his cultivation had been crippled.
Half a step behind the Fifth Elder walked Yun Chi, his face pale and his eyes shadowed.
The two parties met in the corridor, and the atmosphere turned somewhat delicate.
Yun Qing stopped first and gave the Fifth Elder a slight nod, warm and courteous. "Fifth Elder."
Seeing him, the Fifth Elder forced a faint smile and nodded in return. "Eldest Young Master." His gaze swept over Yun Qing's fitted black robes and somewhat unsteady aura. Recalling the news from the Ancestral Shrine, he understood.
Yun Qing had probably only recently left the Martial Arena. It seemed the Young Lord had shown little consideration during their earlier "sparring." Yet compared with his own grandson's miserable condition, the fact that Yun Qing could stand here intact already spoke volumes.
At the appropriate moment, Yun Qing's gaze fell upon Yun Hao on the stretcher. His brows furrowed slightly, revealing a trace of surprise and gravity. "My younger cousin Yun Hao... what happened to him?"
The Fifth Elder sighed and waved a hand, his tone weary. "Alas, this wretch brought it upon himself. The Young Lord showed exceptional mercy in sparing his life... I dare not trouble you further, Eldest Young Master. Another day, this old man will prepare a modest gift and visit to offer an apology." With that, he motioned for the attendants to carry Yun Hao away and hurried off.
As Yun Chi passed him, he bowed slightly, his voice betraying no emotion. "Eldest Young Master."
Yun Qing nodded mildly without saying anything more and continued toward Serenity Courtyard.
Yun Chi watched his figure disappear into the depths of the corridor, then looked up at the darkening sky, his brows drawing together. At this late hour, Yun Qing is heading deeper into the Perching Phoenix Palace. Does he actually live inside the palace! The Young Lord allows him such closeness?!
Wariness and resentment grew wildly like poisonous vines. He clenched his fists sharply, digging his nails into his palms. He had to tell his grandfather what he had seen today as soon as possible. The Cloud Summit Tournament was approaching. Before then, they had to... eliminate this greatest obstacle!
In the shadows at the end of the corridor, Yun Qing's steps paused briefly. A flicker of icy understanding passed deep within his double pupils.
He entered Serenity Courtyard and laid down an isolation ward with a backward sweep of his hand. Only then did his rigidly straight back slowly relax. Although Yun Huang had held back at the end of their battle, the searing pain and shocks caused by Radiant Sun Divine Power invading his meridians remained considerable, far beyond any ordinary injury.
Yun Qing sat cross-legged and activated his Chaos Dao Embryo to repair his damaged meridians, his brows faintly knitted with pain. The day's many irregularities replayed incessantly in his mind.
Today's events had aimed their sword at Yun Qing, yet they did not seem to be the Fifth Elder's doing. He recalled the veiled jealousy in Yun Chi's eyes as they passed each other earlier...
"The Cloud Summit Tournament," Yun Qing murmured.
The Yun Clan's Twelve Young Masters changed every thirty years. The title was more than an impressive-sounding honor: it determined the allocation of core resources and succession to the elder seats. The Twelve Young Masters were the future twelve elders, as certain as nails driven into a board!
And what determined the selection of those Twelve Young Masters was the upcoming Cloud Summit Tournament-the battle to replace the Yun Clan's Twelve Young Masters!
Generally speaking, the heirs of the Twelve Lineages succeeded to those positions, though occasionally an extraordinary prodigy appeared out of nowhere, as Yun Qing had.
Could this be about a position in the tournament? If they toppled me, the acknowledged "foremost of the Twelve Young Masters," the vacancy would naturally make others salivate. But why was the mastermind so confident that his own descendant could fill it? Who goes after the first instead of the twelfth? There are still things that don't add up.
Knock, knock, knock.
The somewhat casual knocking interrupted his thoughts.
A trace of puzzlement flashed through Yun Qing's eyes. Who would come at this hour?
"Who is it?"
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