Chapter 473: You Are Not Worthy

In the hall, a large number of powerful auras converged on Ye Guan. Despite the intense pressure, Ye Guan remained as calm as a tranquil lake. Ye Guan casually lifted a teacup from the nearby table and took a sip before smiling. "Lady Zhiyan truly has a forthright nature."

Ye Anjun chuckled. "Young Master Ye, the King of the Guanxuan Universe, You are truly remarkable for maintaining your composure even in such a dire situation."

Ye Guan stared alternatingly at Ye Anjun and Ye Shurou. "I presume you two have already reached some kind of arrangement. Am I correct?"

"Indeed," Ye Anjun nodded and took a seat across from Ye Guan. Then, he smiled lightly and said, "Young Master Ye, care to make a guess?"

Ye Guan stated, "A marriage union."

Ye Anjun’s eyes narrowed, and Ye Shurou was astonished.

"You two will get married. You'll become the emperor, and she'll become the empress. The vested interests of both factions will be satisfied that way."

The two of them were from the same clan, but Ye Shurou’s family bloodline had been diluted to the extent that they could hardly be considered close relatives.

Ye Anjun acknowledged. "Young Master Ye, you're indeed astute.”

Moving on, Ye Guan asked, "Do you trust the words of the Time Reversers?"

"Absolutely not," Ye Anjun replied.

"Why choose to help them, then?"

Ye Anjun stared at Ye Guan and said, “Young Master Ye, you're smart, so why don’t you guess?”

Ye Guan chuckled. “I believe they presented you with a condition. They will help you become supreme elites capable of entering the Time River. That way, even if the Universe Tribulation erupts, all of you will be completely fine.”

The smile tugging at Ye Anjun's lips vanished slowly as he stared deeply at Ye Guan. Ye Shurou, observing Ye Guan from the side, also revealed a hint of anxiety in her expression.

"You want to have your cake and eat it, too," Ye Guan explained, "It'd be great if you could save the Eternal Night Realm, but even if the Eternal Night Realm ended up falling, your safety is still ensured.

"The Time Reversers will help you become even stronger, after all, and you will eventually become strong enough to enter the Time River."

"Your intelligence is remarkable, Young Master Ye," Ye Anjun praised, "As you've pointed out, the throne is appealing, but it pales in comparison to the supremacy of the Great Dao. I am not too concerned about the myriad beings as well, as they are mere pawns.

"If they are useful, we can make use of them. Otherwise, we can just discard them."

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Ye Guan chuckled and shook his head. Then, he stood gracefully and turned around to leave.

Ye Anjun glared coldly at Ye Guan and asked, "Do you really think that you can leave just like that, Young Master Ye?"

Ye Guan came to a halt and swept his gaze across Ye Anjun and Ye Shurou.

Ye Anjun smiled, "Young Master Ye, I must admit that you're smart. Ye Shurou would have accepted your offer if it hadn't been for the unfortunate fact that I had already reached an agreement with her.

"We'll have a marriage alliance, and our descendants will ascend to the throne till the end of time."

"Do you really believe that I was choosing between the two of you?" Ye Guan asked.

Ye Anjun was caught off guard.

Ye Shurou’s delicate brows furrowed.

Ye Guan faced them with a smile, saying, "Forgive my frankness, but neither of you is worthy enough to work with me."

Ye Shurou's pupils quivered as she exclaimed, “You chose His Majesty!"

Ye Anjun's expression changed drastically, and he roared, "Kill him!"

Rumble!

The nearby elites prepared to take action, but the old man who had been hiding in the corner of the hall suddenly transformed into a streak of light and appeared before Ye Guan.

The old man produced a golden dragon token and yelled, "Ye Anjun and Ye Shurou colluded with the Time Reversers, and they are planning a rebellion! Subdue them immediately by His Majesty's decree, and if they resist, execute them on the spot!"

Dozens of auras flooded the hall, and Ye Anjun froze in horror as he cried out, “The Eternal Night Army!”

Ye Shurou stared at the old man with a grave expression, and her eyes trembled as she muttered, “Elder Mu, why did you betray me?”

Elder Mu calmly explained, “My allegiance has always been with His Majesty.”

Ye Shurou trembled like an aspen tree. Elder Mu had been serving their clan for a few hundred years now, and Elder Mu had even watched her grow up. Elder Mu raised her and taught her martial arts; he was like a father figure to her.

Ye Shurou had infinite trust in him, but it turned out that Elder Mu had been serving the emperor all this while.

Elder Mu’s expression turned complicated as he said, “Shurou, I've recorded everything, and I've just transmitted everything to His Majesty. Sorry, but... you've lost."

Ye Shurou slumped into a chair, and she looked like she had just lost her soul.

Elder Mu turned toward Ye Guan and bowed, “Young Master Ye, His Majesty the Emperor wants to meet you.”

Ye Guan turned around and walked away. Just as Ye Guan reached the door, he came to a halt and turned to face Ye Shurou and Ye Anjun. "You two seemed to have forgotten the reigning emperor while you were busy with your power struggles."

Ye Shurou's face was pallid as she asked. "So you had no intentions of working with me? You just wanted to talk to me? Was that it?"

"No, I wanted to work with you. I wasn't sure about His Majesty's stance, after all." Ye Guan replied, "However, I realized that you two fall short compared to His Majesty, and forgive me for the blunt words, but Lady Shurou... your status is too low. You're not qualified to get involved in my affairs against the Time Reverses.”

Ye Guan turned around and left.

Ye Shurou smiled bitterly—years of planning had collapsed in an instant.

Ye Anjun's face was dark as he muttered, "We still have the Time Reversers..."

Ye Shurou turned to Ye Anjun, and her eyes were filled with disappointment as she muttered, "They're not going to spare us another glance, as we've already lost the qualifications to compete for the throne."

Ye Shurou was right, as the powerful auras outside suddenly receded like a tide.

Ye Anjun slumped into a chair. The Time Reversers had abandoned them.

Meanwhile, over a dozen figures in black battle armor appeared on both sides of Ye Guan. They were members of the Eternal Night Army.

Every single one of them exuded an extremely terrifying aura. They were Great Destiny Sovereigns, but Ye Guan could feel that they were far stronger than the average Great Destiny Sovereigns.

Ye Guan walked away under the escort of the Eternal Night Army. Ye Guan was about to walk out of the main hall when his gaze landed on a tall building to his right.

A young man in white was standing on the roof of the tall building, and he was smiling as he said, "Young Master Ye, I really didn't expect you to choose the emperor. You've truly surprised me."

Ye Guan ignored the young man in white and walked away.

The young man in white frowned and asked, "Young Master Ye, do you really think that you can win?”

Ye Guan stopped in his tracks and turned to the young man in white.

“Wanna duel?”

The young man in white’s eyes narrowed.

“Let's duel right here, and I'm not going to ask for help. Let's decide life and death in one duel.”

The young man in white didn't respond and stared at Ye Guan in silence.

Ye Guan smirked and suggested, “Tell the Clan Leader of the Past Clan to find another opponent for me. You're not worthy to be my enemy.”

Ye Guan turned around and walked away.

Elder Mu cast an admiring gaze upon Ye Guan. What a ruthless young man!

Elder Mu recalled something, and he sighed softly. Shurou and Ye Anjun were indeed no match for the young man in terms of intelligence and strength.

Ye Guan found Song Zhiyan outside the hall.

“It's nice to see you again, Lady Zhiyan," Ye Guan said with a smile. Then, he turned around and left.

Song Zhiyan stared at Ye Guan's departing figure in silence.

Ye Guan had to admit that he was surprised by the fact that Song Zhiyan had obeyed his instructions about hiding his identity from Ye Shurou. Song Zhiyan was indeed an upright young woman.

Song Zhiyan's expression was complicated as she stared at Ye Guan. She was thankful that Ye Guan had uncovered Ye Shurou's scheme before Song Zhiyan could declare her stance to stand on Ye Shurou's side.

Otherwise, the entire Song Clan would have been annihilated.

Ye Guan had just indirectly saved the Song Clan. After all, the losers would always get annihilated, while the winners would survive.

Soon, Ye Guan was escorted to the Imperial Palace of the Eternal Night Realm. Ye Guan looked around and found that it was indeed worthy of its status as the imperial palace, as it was both exceedingly magnificent and grand.

Naturally, security was incredibly tight, and there were multiple arrays in place. Quite a few imperial guards examined the palace nonstop with their divine senses, creating a massive net that enveloped everything.

It soon became clear to Ye Guan that the emperor was afraid of the Time Reversers.

Elder Mu led Ye Guan to a grand hall.

Elder Mu bowed at the hall and retreated while bowing all throughout.

Ye Guan entered the hall and was surprised by its vastness. There was a large golden dragon throne in the distance, and a middle-aged man wearing a dragon robe was sitting on the throne. The middle-aged man had long hair, well-defined facial features, and an imposing aura.

Someone else was in the hall, and they were none other than the Great Daoist Brush Master! It turned out that the true goal behind their journey here was the emperor's help rather than the help of either of the two candidates for the throne.

The Great Daoist Brush Master smiled upon seeing Ye Guan."This is Emperor Ye Jun, and you can simply address him as Senior."

Ye Guan nodded and turned to Ye Jun. "Greetings, Senior!"

Ye Jun stared deeply at Ye Guan. After a brief moment of silence, Ye Jun chuckled and said, "As expected of the True God's chosen one, you're not only smart, but you're also invincible among your peers."

Ye Guan smiled and replied, "Unfortunately, my opponents aren't my peers."

"Indeed, but the enemies of a true genius are always opponents who are stronger than them!" Ye Jun said.

Ye Guan fell silent.

Easy for you to say when you're not in my shoes!

Ye Jun suddenly said, "I've been talking with the Great Daoist Brush Master for quite a while now, and he wants my Eternal Night Realm to assist the True Universe. I agree, but I have a one and only condition."

Ye Guan asked, "What is it?"

Ye Jun stared at Ye Guan and replied, "Marriage!"

Ye Guan went silent.