The next second, she whirled around and saw a man in a golden robe standing before her.
He was tall and powerfully built, and his long golden hair lent his entire figure a divine radiance.
It was not just his hair; even his skin shimmered with a faint sheen.
When his golden eyes turned toward her, it was as though two beams of divine light had fallen upon her, making her feel ashamed of her own inferiority.
"Liu Tiandao, why are you here? Have you gone mad? This is the core area of the Yuwen Imperial Clan!"
The beautiful woman's panic was plain to see.
How could she not panic?
She was the wife of the Yuwen Imperial Clan's patriarch, and the mistress of the entire Yuwen Imperial Clan.
And this was the bedchamber she shared with her husband, the current patriarch of the Yuwen Imperial Clan.
Judging by how she had addressed the man, he was likely a member of the Liu Imperial Clan.
A member of the Liu Imperial Clan had appeared in the core area of the Yuwen Imperial Clan and was alone with the Yuwen Imperial Clan patriarch's wife.
If anyone discovered them, it would definitely cause a huge scandal!
Unlike the panicked woman, the man showed no concern whatsoever. Instead, he took both her hands and pulled her into the bedchamber.
The man pressed two fingers against her red lips and shushed her. Smiling, he said, "Yingying, it's been so long. I've missed you to death!"
The beautiful woman felt her cherry lips sealed, and it was quite some time before he let her go.
"You look so cute when you're nervous!" The man smiled at her, then, deciding not to tease her any further, explained, "This place is forbidden to everyone but the two of you. Who would dare barge in? As for Yuwen Shendu, my eldest sister has summoned him to the Liu Imperial Clan. He won't be back anytime soon!"
Only then did the tension gradually leave the beautiful woman's face, and her taut body relaxed.
She asked, "He went to the Liu Imperial Clan? How come I didn't know?"
"He was summoned at the last minute. How would he have had time to tell you?" The man smiled and took her chin in one hand. "Otherwise, how would I dare come here at a time like this?"
"Could something earth-shattering have happened?" Now that she no longer had to worry about that, the beautiful woman leaned directly against his chest. "Could it be because of the Devil Race?"
News of the Devil Race's emergence had long since spread.
She even knew of the Zhao Imperial Clan's miserable plight, so the Yuwen Imperial Clan had activated its clan-protecting grand formation and stationed patrols around the clock.
So far, however, no devils had attacked the Yuwen Imperial Clan!
Perhaps that had something to do with the Yuwen Imperial Clan's foundations.
It was the third-ranked imperial clan in the Black-Yellow Realm, with foundations second only to the Liu Imperial Clan and the Su Imperial Clan.
The Devil Race was no fool. Naturally, they would choose to devour the human race bit by bit from the outside, increasing their overall strength before attacking the Yuwen Imperial Clan.
Over the past month, the imperial clans had connected through image stones and held several "video" conferences!
"The Devil Race is only one reason!" The man's voice was gentle, and as he spoke, he gave the impression of a strategist directing events from his command tent. It seemed the devils who had nearly wiped out the Zhao Imperial Clan were not worth mentioning to the Liu Imperial Clan.
The beautiful woman raised an eyebrow, curiosity in her eyes. "Oh? Please, enlighten me!"
"For the sake of our relationship, I'll tell you in advance!" The man brushed a finger over the tip of her nose and said dotingly, "Our Liu Imperial Clan's ancestor is gaining a new lease on life and has already touched upon the immortal domain. What is the mere Devil Race to us?"
At the mention of the Devil Race, contempt appeared on his face. "Once our clan's ancestor has fully succeeded, the balance of power in the entire Black-Yellow Realm will be rewritten. The era of the twelve great imperial clans will be a thing of the past. At that time, there will be only one imperial clan in the entire Black-Yellow Realm: our Liu Imperial Clan!"
"What?" The beautiful woman could not help crying out at his words.
That ancestor of the Liu Imperial Clan had actually touched upon the true immortal domain?
It was no longer a secret that the Devil Emperor of All Living Beings had reached the half-step immortal realm.
Even so, the Liu Imperial Clan remained utterly fearless. That meant that if the Liu Imperial Clan succeeded, a true immortal would be born among them, not some so-called half-immortal like the Devil Emperor of All Living Beings, who had only stepped one foot into the immortal domain!
Not only that, but the balance among the twelve great imperial clans of the Black-Yellow Realm would also be rewritten?
With an immortal among them, the Liu Imperial Clan could indeed accomplish that!
Judging by what the man had said... could they intend to wipe out the other imperial clans?
At that thought, a chill rose in the beautiful woman's heart!
That was far too insane!
As though he had guessed what she was thinking, the man lowered his gaze. "Those who submit to our clan shall prosper; those who oppose us shall perish! It all depends on what your imperial clans decide!"
It would naturally be difficult to make these imperial clans, so accustomed to standing above everyone else, go from masters to servants.
But if the gap between the two sides grew large enough, the way to solve that problem was to kill a chicken to warn the monkeys.
As for who would be the chicken, that depended on who was the most obstinate.
If there was one imperial clan that would find it hardest to accept, it would probably be the Yuwen Imperial Clan, wouldn't it?
After all, although the Yuwen Imperial Clan had seemingly ranked third before, all the imperial clans belonged to the same ranks in terms of status, and could just barely be considered on the same level.
Only the Liu Imperial Clan and the Su Imperial Clan could truly stand a head above the Yuwen Imperial Clan.
Given that the Su Imperial Clan had moved to the Realm Sea a hundred thousand years ago, it posed no threat whatsoever to the Yuwen Imperial Clan.
When the Yuwen Imperial Clan's patriarch met the Liu Imperial Clan's empress, he merely had to pay his respects.
If what the man said was true, then in the future, even the Yuwen Imperial Clan's patriarch would have to kneel before the Liu Imperial Clan.
Moreover, the Liu Imperial Clan had long ago foretold the Devil Race's return, so with their strength, they could have sent reinforcements to the Zhao Imperial Clan in advance.
They had not done so. That showed that even an imperial clan could be of no concern to the Liu Imperial Clan; submission was merely an additional condition under which they would be allowed to live.
Perhaps the Zhao Imperial Clan was already the hidden "chicken" killed to warn the monkeys.
Before disaster befell the Zhao Imperial Clan, that chicken had been chosen at random and could have been any imperial clan. The Zhao Imperial Clan had simply been unlucky enough to be the first targeted by the Devil Race.
Once the Liu Imperial Clan truly dealt with the threat of the Devil Race, there would be another, visible "chicken" among the ten remaining imperial clans.
"All right, enough of that. It's such a mood killer!" Seeing that the beautiful woman's expression had soured, the man hurriedly changed the subject. "Baby! Now it's time for the two of us to have some fun!"
As he spoke, the man pressed himself on top of her.
"No... we can't. Not here!"
The beautiful woman instinctively refused.
This was the love nest she shared with her husband. How could she carry on an illicit affair here with another man?
Although this was not the first time the two of them had done such a thing,
she still found it hard to accept doing it here!
Feeling the resistance in her body, the man's expression darkened slightly. "You wouldn't want your husband and child to become sacrifices to the new era, would you?"
At those words, two tears slid from the corners of the beautiful woman's eyes.
"That's more like it!"
Only then did a satisfied smile appear on the man's face.
Women were always sweeter when they belonged to someone else.
The Yuwen Imperial Clan's patriarch?
Heh!
He, Liu Tiandao, was not only putting a green hat on the Yuwen Imperial Clan's patriarch; he was doing it on the man's own turf, in his bed, enjoying his woman.
It was simply perfect!