“What’s the matter?” Qianye Ying’er said as her eyebrows arched.

“...” Yun Che did not say anything. He simply turned around and looked to the sky.

"You still want to run?” Lu Bubai’s hands did not even move. A black light flashed through his eyes and a layer of thin black energy engulfed the young girl’s body, completely suppressing her body and profound energy. She could not even move a single muscle, much less think of escaping.

However, it was very clear that Lu Bubai did not intend to kill her and he was extremely careful even when he bound her with his power.

“Vill... ain!” The girl shouted through her gritted white teeth. There was no fear on her face and her widened eyes were filled with unyielding hatred.

“The Great Elder... and Big Brother Xiang... will definitely come and save me, and they definitely... won’t let any of you off!”

Her voice still contained several traces of childishness that had yet to completely fade away, proving that her age did indeed match her appearance. She should only be around fifteen to sixteen years old.

“Save you? Let us off?” Lu Bubai gave a cold laugh. “With just your Sinful Yun Clan alone?”

Yun Che, “...”

Once the three words “Sinful Yun Clan” were spoken, whispers immediately broke out around the battlefield. The Northern Chill Divine Sovereign realized what was happening and asked, “This girl is from the Sinful Yun Clan?”

Beihan Chu’s hand covered his chest as he panted heavily. He spat out venomously, “Yes! Master, Junior Master and I managed to meet members of the Sinful Yun Clan by coincidence when we were on our way here.”

“I thought the members of the Sinful Yun Clan were not allowed to leave the sinful region as they pleased?” The Northern Chill Divine Sovereign’s eyes gleamed. “Could it be that they are trying to escape?”

“Probably,” Beihan Chu replied. “The members of the Sinful Yun Clan scattered as they fled in all directions. Master went after them and that is also the reason why he was not able to be here today.”

When he said those words, Beihan Chu gritted his teeth fiercely... If Venerable Hidden Sword had been here, he would not have needed to suffer such great humiliation.

“But we met this little lady by coincidence and we captured her without any trouble.” Beihan Chu suppressed his voice. “Junior Master said that she probably possesses an extraordinary status within the Sinful Yun Clan, and the Chief Palace Master just so happened to be... Bringing her back to the Heavenly Palace will at the very least lessen my sin of losing the Hidden Heaven Sword.”

“Get back there!” Lu Bubai flipped a hand. He was about to sweep the young girl back onto the profound ark.

The girl could not move a single muscle of her body and even if she were a thousand times more powerful than she was today, she still would not be able to put up any resistance, much less the current her. However, she stubbornly refused to resign herself to her fate and a beam of deep purple light suddenly shot out from her slender, white hand.

There was no way a profound practitioner in the Divine Soul Realm could escape the suppression of a Divine Sovereign, no matter what they did, no matter whether it was their body or profound energy. However, that beam of purple light was truly released from that girl’s arm and it had not come from some profound artifact that could be controlled by one’s will.

Purple light pierced the sky and shot straight towards Lu Bubai’s eyes...

When he saw this purple light, Lu Bubai completely froze and even his eyes dramatically widened.

Bang!!

The purple light hit him straight between the eyes, but it did not cause any damage at all. However, Lu Bubai was actually stunned for a moment. But after that instant had passed, an incomparably fervent light blazed in his eyes.

On the ground below, Beihan Chu’s body violently shuddered as he blurted out, “A Purple... Purple Devil Handle!?”

“He... Haha...” Lu Bubai suddenly started laughing, and he was filled with an uncontrollable, wild joy, the sort of joy a person would feel if they were suddenly blessed by the heavens. “We’ve truly picked up a treasure... Hahaha... Eh!?”

A figure suddenly appeared before his eyes, causing his uncontrollable joyful laughter to cease.

Yun Che stood at the young girl’s side and he slowly extended a hand and pushed the young girl behind him. At the same time, he undid the darkness seal that was placed on her body.

“...” The young girl was stunned as she dazedly stood behind Yun Che. A layer of power that originated from him covered her body. It seemed to be protecting her, but it also did not allow her to flee.

Lu Bubai’s smile froze on his face. His eyebrows sank slightly as he said, “What do you mean by this?”

“I want this person,” Yun Che said in an icy voice.

Qianye Ying’er, “...”

“You!” Lu Bubai took a step forward, but after that, he fiercely suppressed his anger again as he spoke in a calm voice, “This girl is a descendant of that clan of sinners, I need to bring her back and punish her accordingly. Even if the honorable one’s surname is also Yun, it is clear that you have no connection to this clan of sinners, so why is there a need for this unnecessary show of pity?”

Yun Che simply grabbed the girl’s tiny hand and descended with her.

No matter how strong Lu Bubai’s restraint and patience were, he was already on the verge of exploding with rage. He turned his body around and suddenly stood in front of Yun Che, blocking his path. His face had already grown dark as he said, “Our Nine Lights Heavenly Palace has no grudge or grievance with your honor, but we were deceived by you and as a result, we lost the Hidden Heaven Sword and allowed one of our young palace masters to suffer great humiliation and a devastating setback. But even so, the Young Palace Master and I gave way to you again and again... Please do not take a mile when we have already given you an inch!”

The deception that he spoke of was naturally referring to Yun Che’s deliberate act of spreading out darkness to obscure the battleground from everyone’s vision when he fought the ten great Divine Kings. As a result, no one was able to see the battle play out and everyone came to the conclusion that he had definitely used some sort of extremely strong devil artifact, arousing Beihan Chu’s curiosity and greed... Everything that happened afterwards was a result of that act.

Even though he was fully aware that Yun Che had deliberately deceived them, he still admitted defeat.

However, with Yun Che being so overbearing... even he would despise himself if he backed down any further, much less other people.

Besides, they definitely... they definitely had to bring this girl back to the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace!

He was apprehensive about Yun Che’s possible background, but that absolutely did not mean that he was scared of Yun Che. Furthermore, even if Yun Che’s true strength was truly not inferior to his, there was still Northern Chill City, Eastern Ruins Sect, and Western Ruins Sect around!

As he spoke, his body had already started to radiate the thick and heavy oppressive might that belonged to a Divine Sovereign. Dark sword energy projections appeared on his arms and over his shoulders as they faintly flickered and radiated a dreadful devilish might.

Yun Che, “...”

A tiny hand tightly grabbed onto the corner of his robe from behind, its grip growing tighter and tighter with each passing moment.

Lu Bubai continued, “The Five Nether Ruins have always obeyed the orders of our Nine Lights Heavenly Palace. Besides me, there are seven Divine Sovereigns from the Five Nether Ruins present. With a single command from me, and this includes the Southern Phoenix as well, we will all attack you together, and even if the honorable one has incredible strength, you still will not be able to leave this place alive.”

“We can still be friends. Your honor is a smart man, so why would you want to lose your life over a girl you don’t even know?”

Lu Bubai’s words were both a piece of advice and a threat. Before they could verify Yun Che’s identity, he did not want to fall out with him. But if Yun Che insisted on taking the girl by force... he would have no choice but to kill him right here.

Yun Che’s reply only consisted of five words:

“Either get lost or die!”

“...” Qianye Ying’er heaved a weary sigh.

The expression on Lu Bubai’s face changed, but it did not grow darker or more solemn. Instead, his expression became completely calm, but killing intent suddenly erupted from his body and in his eyes.

“It looks like you are determined to behave shamelessly even though we have already given you face.”

Rumble!

The wrath of a Divine Sovereign shook the earth and caused the heavens to weep. Black clouds roiled in the skies as a dark wind started gathering underneath. The killing intent and rage that Lu Bubai no longer needed to restrain erupted at the same time. He raised a hand and a black light wreathed it, resembling a sinister howling evil spirit.

Yun Che’s expression also changed. The corner of his lips started to curl, the curve of his lips boundlessly sinister.

“Today, you will be leaving behind her, the Hidden Heaven Sword... and your own life!” Black energy instantly covered Lu Bubai’s entire body, with his hair and beard dancing in the air. The oppressive might of a Divine Sovereign engulfed the entire area, causing the profound practitioners below to shudder uncontrollably in fear. “You don’t know how to appreciate the kindness shown to you and you have sought your own death instead. Right now, even if you were to kneel down and beg for mercy, it is already too late!”

As a dreadfully shrill noise rang in the air, a beam of dark sword energy suddenly shot out from Lu Bubai as it dove straight at Yun Che. The beam of dark sword energy caused cracks in the ground that were more than ten kilometers long as it zoomed overhead.

In the same instant, an invisible barrier instantly appeared over Yun Che’s body.

Sealing Cloud Locking Sun!

He carried the girl in his arms and in a flash, he dodged the sword beam. The Heretic God Barrier completely blocked any aftershocks left by the attacks, preventing the girl from being harmed.

It was at this moment that Lu Bubai let out a furious roar and rushed forward, but his five fingers were not pointed at the white-robed girl, they were pointed at Yun Che’s chest.

With a sweep of his arm, Yun Che hurled the girl far away. The Heretic God Barrier surrounding him left his body and followed the girl. After that Yun Che’s body flashed forward as he, shockingly enough, chose to close the distance between him and Lu Bubai. He also arched his fingers into a claw as he met the blow directly.

Pfffbooom!

The two claws clashed and the space five kilometers around them shattered like brittle ice. The dark storm produced from this clash of blows instantly swallowed the girl and she let out a startled scream... But she immediately realized that the mystical barrier which encased her was faintly releasing some light, blocking out all of the calamitous power and darkness that raged around her.

Boom!

Boom!!

BOOOM!!!

Darkness energy continued to explode and the arms of the two combatants clashed once again, causing the space around them, which had just endured a disaster, to violently collapse once more.

The clash between Yun Che and Lu Bubai had been so sudden that it was impossible for anyone in the Central Ruins Battlefield to react. This sort of power was undoubtedly a terrifying natural disaster to them, causing wails of misery to rend the air as countless people fled for their lives.

Superior Unwhite, who had kept giving in to Yun Che, who had obviously felt great apprehension towards Yun Che, had actually launched a sudden attack on him.... He had even attacked with all of his might, his killing intent flooding the area. This had caught Beihan Chu and the other great Divine Sovereigns completely unprepared.

But what caused them even greater shock was that Lu Bubai’s power... was actually being matched by Yun Che’s in a direct clash!

Lu Bubai was a level four Divine Sovereign! Furthermore, he was someone who had been at the level of a Divine Sovereign for just over eight thousand years, so his profound strength was as deep and boundless as the ocean. Yun Che had defeated Dong Xueci, he had defeated the ten great Divine Kings, he had defeated Beihan Chu, and right now... he was actually resisting Lu Bubai’s strength in a direct clash of power!

But the profound strength that radiated from his body was still at the fifth level of the Divine King Realm!

What sort of monster was this!?

“Junior Master has attacked!” After he recovered from his shock, Beihan Chu, who had been suppressing his boundless humiliation and discontent, was shaken greatly. “Royal Father, Senior Realm Kings, we need to quickly attack together! Let’s tear Yun Che apart!”

“No,” the Northern Chill Divine Sovereign said calmly as he looked at the sky. “What sort of status does Superior Unwhite have? If we rashly attempt to aid him, it would only arouse his ire. Furthermore... He alone is enough.”

RUMBLE!!

Another beam of black light ruptured the air. Yun Che’s arm was violently thrown aside and Lu Bubai’s fingers arched into a sword. His hand smashed into Yun Che’s chest, sword might erupting from it, sending Yun Che flying.

𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

“Oh no!” Nanhuang Chanyi gave a low cry. She took a step forward, but her body immediately ground to a halt after that... Because she suddenly saw that Qianye Ying’er, who stood in the middle of the battleground, did not seem to be the least bit concerned.

After he blasted Yun Che aside, Lu Bubai did not try to capture the white-robed girl. Instead, he rushed toward Yun Che once more. Because it was not possible for her to escape, and since things had already come this far, Yun Che had to die!

Yun Che’s body flipped in midair and the profound energy radiating from his body suddenly changed in a bizarre manner.

Rumbling Heaven, open!

His profound energy, which had become many times more violent and frenzied in an instant, directly smashed aside Lu Bubai, who had rushed in with all of his strength. Before Lu Bubai could even grow shocked, a pair of crimson-black eyes already appeared right in front of him as an arm that was wreathed in bloody light smashed down towards him.

RUMBLE!!

Both arms collided in midair and Lu Bubai’s eyeballs instantly bulged to the point where they nearly exploded. He felt as if his fist had smashed into a slab of indestructible profound steel. He instantly lost all sensation in his right arm. All five fingers on his right hand broke and the sound of his blood vessels rupturing was deafening.

But in the end, his experience in the profound way was extremely strong and solid, and he used the remaining power behind his attack to move backwards at the fastest possible speed as he just managed to escape the full force of Yun Che’s attack.

“You...” He used his left hand to grasp his right arm and a frightened cry escaped from his trembling lips. Shock and fear danced in his eyes and it was as if he had seen a god or a ghost. Even after several seconds had gone by, his arm still remained numb. He was unable to lift it and a large amount of blood crazily flowed down its length.

“Junior... Master!” Beihan Chu was nearly shocked to death, and even the other Divine Sovereigns were so shocked that their souls shuddered.

Once again, Yun Che had violently smashed apart their knowledge and previously-held beliefs.

Yun Che did not make a follow-up attack, because the consecutive energy impacts had very nearly exhausted the Heretic God Barrier that protected the white-robed girl. He turned around and arrived at the girl’s side. After he stretched out a hand, a new Heretic God Barrier covered her body.

But at this moment, Beihan Chu’s head suddenly swiveled as he abruptly shot into the air like an arrow. In an instant, he arrived in front of Qianye Ying’er, a sword energy projection that was about nine feet long exploding out from his palm and coming to rest against Qianye Ying’er’s throat.

“...” Qianye Ying’er did not move a single muscle.

This sudden change in the situation caused everyone to look at her in shock.

“Yun Che,” Beihan Chu said as he gasped roughly. If the sword energy projection in his hand moved a single millimeter closer, it would slice open Qianye Ying’er’s throat. “This is your woman, right? Hand over that girl... to Junior Master! Then both you and she can leave safely, and you can also take the Hidden Heaven Sword with you.”

“If not, I’ll kill her!"

Well done... As he grasped his still numb arm, Lu Bubai, who would normally despise such behavior, was full of praise for Beihan Chu at this moment.

Yun Che did not respond, but a trace of pity flashed through his cold and indifferent eyes.