C13 The Great Empress Was Enraged

"He's incredibly skilled."

"Who was it that called Ye Yun worthless?"

The disciples around him gaped at Ye Yun, their eyes wide with shock.

They stood there, stunned, feeling a mix of envy and indignation.

Ye Yun had shed the label of the rumored failure and emerged as a prodigy who had effortlessly bested Faang Qingzhuo within three moves.

Following the duel, everyone regarded him with newfound admiration.

"If only the Eldest Senior Brother were here."

"Indeed, the Eldest Senior Brother would surely win against Ye Yun."

Despite Ye Yun's clear victory, there were whispers of dissent among the disciples.

The murmurs grew louder over time.

Some even claimed the match was unfair and proposed a rematch once the Eldest Senior Brother returned.

Witnessing this, Ye Yun chuckled derisively.

"This is the way of the Evil Cult?" he asked.

"Don't spout nonsense; you're a disciple of the Evil Cult too," retorted a disciple from behind Faang Qingzhuo, quickly ducking back into hiding.

Ye Yun had no interest in engaging with such a coward.

Ignoring their chatter, the disciples grew bolder.

"Eldest Senior Brother?" Ye Yun whispered to himself.

He had heard the title during his days as a menial worker.

The man was a mythic figure, yet Ye Yun had never met him.

Rumors swirled that he was a martial arts prodigy. Many disciples spoke of the Eldest Senior Brother's legendary exploits.

Reportedly, he had ascended to an incredibly advanced level in just six months.

Over the years, he had earned his stripes for the Evil Cult. Now, the Sect Master had dispatched him on a clandestine mission.

Ye Yun snorted in amusement.

The crowd was clueless about the reason for his mirth.

Little did they know, Ye Yun had ascended to the same level as the Eldest Senior Brother in a single day.

In that time, he had also mastered the Evil Sky Sword Technique Manual.

Ye Yun had no intention of sharing these details. Even if he did, no one would believe him.

At that moment, fury was visibly radiating from the Great Empress's face.

"You've all grown far too audacious, acting as if I'm invisible to you."

Leng Wuyan spoke with a detached calm, her presence exuding an undeniable authority.

As her words hung in the air, a hush fell over the room so profound that the buzz of a mosquito would have been deafening.

Naturally, neither Lan Zheng nor Faang Qingzhuo dared utter a single word.

One does not take the ire of the Great Empress lightly.

Just as an elder was about to speak, raising his head, Leng Wuyan's icy voice cut him off before he could begin.

"Have I spoiled you too much? Have you become so utterly blind to your own insolence?"

"How dare you presume to dictate the terms of my marriage?"

"The contest is over. What are you lingering for now?"

Her barrage of questions sent shivers down the spines of the disciples below, who didn't dare to even lift their gaze.

A storm of complex emotions raged within Leng Wuyan. She had already been seething with anger when Ye Yun fell victim to a sneak attack during the competition.

Was it because the Eldest Senior Brother had left, leading to a lapse in the discipline of these disciples?

She could hardly fathom her disciples resorting to such despicable tactics.

Though they were known as the Wicked Sky Sect, they never engaged in acts that betrayed their conscience.

Her decision not to intervene in the competition was driven by a desire to assess Ye Yun's resourcefulness.

But even more crucially, Leng Wuyan found herself placing an ever-greater trust in Ye Yun.

"This concludes the competition."

"Should anyone still oppose me, they can leave the sect immediately."

Leng Wuyan declared with an air of command, gesturing toward the door.

She was giving the dissenters a choice: leave now, and she would let bygones be bygones.

After all, the Sect Master had given them refuge; the Wicked Sky Sect was their sanctuary. Where else could they possibly belong?

Realizing that Leng Wuyan's fury was genuine this time, everyone clamped their mouths shut.

In an instant, the hall was enveloped in a silence as thick as stone.

The matter of the competition was settled.

Ye Yun's lips curled into a satisfied grin.

Then, ascending the steps, he approached Leng Wuyan.

"Wife, you're truly formidable," he complimented her. "You silenced them all without breaking a sweat."

"If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn't have bothered with such a grueling match," Ye Yun murmured, leaning in to whisper in Leng Wuyan's ear.

Leng Wuyan's cheeks flushed a deep crimson.

She had lived for a millennium without ever experiencing romance, much less the flirtations of a man!

Her mind went completely blank. Then, Ye Yun's voice tickled her ear once more, "Sweetheart, aren't you the least bit concerned about me? I nearly fell victim to a sneak attack just now."

Leng Wuyan's thoughts raced: "My heavens! Does Ye Yun actually want my concern?"

This was uncharted territory for Leng Wuyan, being addressed with such familiarity. She was momentarily frozen in shock.

By the time she came to and looked up, Ye Yun was already gazing into her eyes.

They were inches away from a kiss!

"You're playing with fire! We're in the Asura Palace; such disrespect is forbidden." Leng Wuyan's voice was a forced whisper, betraying no anger.

Initially, Ye Yun had genuinely feared for his life at the hands of the Great Empress. But once he sensed she harbored no real intent to kill him, he became bolder.

He even had the audacity to flirt with the Great Empress in front of the entire assembly of disciples.

Ye Yun had interpreted the Great Empress's earlier words to mean that he might be allowed certain liberties when they were alone.

He was eager to leave, consumed by the thought of being intimate with the Great Empress.

With a goofy grin, Ye Yun indulged in his fantasies about the intimate encounter he anticipated with the Great Empress.

But Leng Wuyan ruthlessly snapped him back to reality.

Annoyed, Ye Yun rolled his eyes at Leng Wuyan, silently chastising her for interrupting his reverie.

Their exchange had not gone unnoticed; every disciple in the Asura Palace had seen everything!

"What just happened?"

Some disciples had witnessed the exchange between Ye Yun and the Great Empress, but doubted their own eyes.

They conferred with their peers, seeking confirmation that the scene they'd witnessed was indeed reality.

The revelation left them utterly astounded.

The Great Empress was an untouchable, divine presence to them.

While some disciples harbored feelings for her, they chose to serve as her guardians. Take Lan Zheng, for example; his opposition to the marriage stemmed from his belief in the Great Empress's sanctity, and his conviction that Ye Yun was unworthy of her.

Yet, the Great Empress had just blushed!

She exuded the shyness of a little girl, yet she outshone any child in beauty and poise.

For the first time, all present witnessed the Great Empress with a bashful demeanor.

Ye Yun's gesture only intensified the resentment brewing within the crowd.

They loathed him for taking what they couldn't possess, or more precisely, for claiming the very person they wouldn't even dare to fantasize about.

By what right, they wondered?

With envy and spite festering in their souls, they begrudgingly attended the wedding ceremony.