Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

Jiang Yi"s premonition was extremely accurate. If Zhan Wushuang and Qian w.a.n.guan had gone back, the two of them would have definitely died!

Qian Xue and his men total up to 130 people. All of them were Soul Travel Realm experts, and there were around 15 of them at the peak stage of the Soul Travel Realm!

This was a group of terrifyingly formidable experts. This group which numbered in over a hundred were sufficient to raze a small city and slaughter an ordinary army which had tens of thousands of soldiers. However, the 130 of them had actually been wiped out in the Divine Martial Kingdom"s territory, in the Zhan and the Qian Clans" territory. No one survived to even report such news. If it wasn"t because of the intense commotion of the battle—which had alerted a few Soul Travel Realm experts who were in the vicinity, no one would have known about this news right now.

After Zhan Wushuang and Qian w.a.n.guan heard of this news, their complexion turned extremely gloomy. These experts made up about half of their elite forces. Among them were their collateral relatives or clan elders. They even addressed some of them as uncles while there were also elders who had watched them grow up.

"Yun Fei, Zhuge Qingyun, Qian Xue… mysterious person…"

Jiang Yi turned silent after he heard the news. His mind was brainstorming all the recent events as he started to a.n.a.lyze them. Vaguely, he discovered they were all somewhat affiliated with one another.

A long time later, his eyes shot out two rays of cold radiance as traces of cold intent leaked out from the corner of his mouth. He finally came into a realization and had also faintly guessed the mastermind behind the scenes.

The Martial Arts Hall!

It would be normal if the mysterious person wanted to kill Yun Fei and Zhuge Qingyun. It became abnormal once they killed Qian Xue and his men. Of these three targets, the only similarity between them was that they all were returning from the western sea.

What was in the western sea?

The underground world, the savage Devil Star Vines, as well as the frightening zombies!

This underground world wasn"t the Netherworld Realm. Inside it hid a startling secret, and someone didn"t wish for this secret to be exposed to the world. Therefore, those people who knew of this underground world all had to die.

Shui Youlan mentioned this before. The incident in of the Black Wasps was probably planned by Saint Lady Ji. Her aim was to lure Jiang Yi so that she could make use of the Devil Star Vines" power to kill him.

Since Saint Lady Ji knew that the Devil Start Vines were there, there was a high chance she also knew of the underground world. That world could very likely be related to the Martial Arts Hall.

How powerful was the Martial Arts Hall?

No one knew. However, it was very easy for them to place one of their chess pieces in Mt. Spirit Beast College. It was rumored that the Martial Arts Chief Hall Master strength was immeasurable. If it was him who had killed Zhuge Qingyun, everything would become very rational.

The mysterious person who had intercepted Princ.i.p.al Qi and his men, the mysterious person who attempted to kill Yun Fei, as well as the death of Qian Xue and his men!

The Divine Martial Kingdom was the Qian and the Zhan Clan"s territory, and yet Qian Xue and his men had actually got slaughtered in their own territory so mysteriously? Jiang Yi believed that the Azure Dragon Empire did not possess such a capability.

However, the Martial Arts Hall did have such capability!

Every city of the continent had a Martial Arts Hall Branch. As to how many people were hidden in the Martial Arts Hall or how many clans had been controlled by them? No one knew.

Previously in the royal city, Jiang Yi could tell from Qian Gui"s tone that he did not have much understanding of the Martial Arts Hall. For such a colossus to actually conceal themselves in every corner of the continent and to have been in existence since the start of history; this was sufficient to show how great their strength was. Wouldn"t it be a piece of cake for them if they ever wish to kill over a hundred Soul Travel Realm experts?

"After entering the Martial Arts Hall, it would be deep like the sea; henceforth, heaven will become h.e.l.l!"

Jiang Yi recalled the statement Zhuge Qingyun had once told him. He said that the Martial Arts Hall had attracted hundreds of Honorary Elders. In the end, all of them disappeared. The only thing that Zhuge Qingyun knew was the disappearance of these hundreds of experts; what about the things he didn"t know?

"The Martial Arts Hall"s influence is larger than you can ever imagine!"

He also recalled the words of the Skyplume City"s Martial Arts Branch Hall Master. Gradually, his complexion turned cold. This time, he had offended a formidable enemy. An enemy that was numerous times stronger than the Old Ancestor of Azure Dragon Empire, Xiao Longw.a.n.g, and the others altogether.

Most importantly…

The Martial Arts Hall was hidden in the dark. Jiang Yi didn"t even have any idea where the Martial Arts Hall headquarter was located. He couldn"t possibly lead a large number of troops to destroy the Martial Arts Hall Branches one by one, right? Furthermore, there were Martial Arts Hall branches in every city. Wouldn"t that mean that he had to conquer the whole continent?

Enemies hidden in the dark were the most terrifying ones, and he still had to factor in a demon-like knowledgeable Saint Lady Ji. From Yun Fei, Zhuge Qingyun, and Qian Xue"s incident, he could tell that this person was a true strategist who could devise countless schemes!

Even after the three incidents, there weren"t any traces left behind. It was probable that only he and Shui Youlan were the only ones in the continent that held such suspicion towards the Martial Arts Hall.

A formidable enemy that had hidden in the dark was like a malevolent monster that had concealed itself in the void. No one would have any idea when would it stretch out its terrifying fang to tear someone into shreds. Such feelings were extremely unbearable and could easily cause one to turn mad and crumble.

At this moment…!

Jiang Yi felt that he should bring everyone and escape out of the Stellarsky Continent. This enemy was too terrifying for him. He was afraid that everyone would get killed one by one, dying horribly.

However, he cast away the unrealistic thoughts very quickly. Su Ruoxue would never abandon her citizens, and he had already developed some sentiments to the Great Xia Kingdom. Now, there was also an addition of Mt. Spirit Beast College. If he was to leave, his conscience would never have peace in his whole life.

Living a life of unease and guilt!

This wasn"t a life he wished to have. Therefore, he quickly regained his confidence and made a firm resolution to fight to the death!

"Transmit a message to Grandma Silver Flower. Tell her not to wait for the bridal escort army and to bring Yun Fei over immediately. Also, tell her to be extra careful herself. At the same time, send an order to Hostess Shui. Tell her to be on guard against Saint Lady Ji. Secondly, w.a.n.guan, Brother Wushuang, and all of you mustn"t leave the royal palace. Defying the orders is equivalent to cutting off ties with me."

Jiang Yi"s orders were somewhat outrageous. However, it was clear-cut and resolute so as to prevent anyone from questioning it. He sent his gaze over to Su Ruoxue and continued, "Ruoxue, our wedding has to be postponed. I have to go into seclusion immediately. Help me prepare sufficient celestial stones. Xiaonu, you should also go into seclusion immediately."

Buzz!

The Universal Palace on Jiang Yi"s hand brightened up, and the Yazi Beast appeared in mid-air. Following which, Jiang Yi gave an order to the Yazi Beast, "Demon king, I"m going into seclusion to cultivate and comprehend the sorcery arts. While I"m in seclusion, you are to oversee the royal palace. You have to be vigilant at every moment. If there are any suspicious personnel entering the royal palace, you can kill them without hesitation."

After a series of orders were pa.s.sed down, everyone discovered traces of solemnity in Jiang Yi"s tone. It seemed like the situation was a lot more severe than they thought to be.

"What about my father and the others?" Qian w.a.n.guan inquired worriedly.

Monarch City was in upheaval while Qian Xue and his men were killed. In Qian w.a.n.guan"s opinion, there was someone trying to deal with the Qian and the Zhan clans, and Zhan Wushuang was also very concerned.

Jiang Yi thought for a moment before replying, "There are two ways. First is for your clans to continue guarding Monarch City. At the same time, disperse your clan"s younger generation. I reckon there shouldn"t be any big factions who would annihilate your clans because this time, their target was Qian Xue and his men. The other way is to migrate your clan over to the Summer Rain City. However, if I am to perish, both of your clans would definitely be annihilated. Send this message over to the uncles and let them decide which method they prefer."

"Yes…"

Qian w.a.n.guan and Zhan Wushuang nodded their heads. If both of them were to follow Jiang Yi, they might not implicate their clans. If they were to migrate their clans over—once Jiang Yi perished, their clans would be brought down together as well.

"Old General Lu!"

Jiang Yi walked out and yelled out for Old General Lu, "From today onwards, there is no need for any guards inside the royal palace. Just leave behind a few palace maids and eunuchs. In addition, we don"t need those palace maids and eunuchs who are of the Soul Travel Realm. Pa.s.s on my orders for me. The royal palace has the Yazi Beast keeping watch. If anyone is to infiltrate into the royal palace without any orders, they will be killed without hesitation."

Setting up a wall and clearing the weeds!

Didn"t the Martial Arts Hall have a lot of hidden chess pieces? Jiang Yi would just need to eliminate all the outsiders. That Saint Lady Ji might have heaven-defying wisdom, but if she wished to kill Jiang Yi, she could only force her way through.

He had the Nine Heavens" Dragon Flames, the Yazi Beast which was a peak-grade demon king, and Jiang Xiaonu who had astounding combat strength after transformation. It meant that the royal palace had three fifth-stage Vajra Realm martial experts.

The three-year deadline had yet to arrive. Therefore, it was impossible for the Azure Dragon Empire"s Old Ancestor to attack them openly. As for those who prefer to scheme behind the dark, Jiang Yi would just have to kill whoever that came. Unless the Martial Arts Hall have Heaven Monarch Realm absolute experts or wasn"t afraid of the Demon Empress, the royal palace would be absolutely safe for the next two years.

When Su Ruoxue, Qian w.a.n.guan, and the others heard Jiang Yi"s order, their eyes all lit up. There were two more years, and if Jiang Yi was to achieve a huge breakthrough, it would be unknown who would be the final victor.