Of course, Jiang Yi could not have been the Saint Empress’ illegitimate child. If one wanted to calculate, the Saint Empress was not that young. She was at least 80 years old—old enough to be Jiang Yi’s grandmother.
Cao Shishui could not figure it out, and neither could Cao Peiwen and Mantis Blade. Jiang Yi all the more could not figure it out either!
Before he came to the Snow Region, he did not even know the Heaven Hidden Sect. He only found out about it from the mysterious elder he met at the North Lake on the Buddha Mountain. He had never met any of the disciples from Heaven Hidden Sect either. The only people he knew were Fifth Eldress and the three Saint Ladies.
When he went up the Saint Mountain earlier, he tried to meet the Sect Matriarch of the Heaven Hidden Sect. In the end, however, no matter how much trouble he went to, he did not get to meet the Sect Matriarch. It was obvious then that she was not eager to meet him. Rather, she did not even care about him.
Now, after he made a mess out of the entire Snow Region and killed so many people within it, the Saint Empress was showing her face? Moreover, she was speaking up for him at that?
This… was illogical!
“Hehe.”
Cao Peiwen’s giggle pulled Jiang Yi back to reality. Curmudgeon Cao raised a hand up to the air and said, “Cao Peiwen greets the Saint Empress. Of course, you are important enough. I would not dare to disregard you, but… if Saint Empress would not give me a reason, I would not be contented.”
Cao Peiwen’s final words were amplified using his essence force, so that his voice traveled for hundreds of miles beyond where they were standing. Naturally, everyone nearby heard his words loud and clear. Although their faces showed no expression, it was obvious that they felt the same discontentment inside. The Saint Empress was really not making sense. Perhaps everyone would have felt slightly more content if they knew that Jiang Yi was actually one of them.
Countless eyes turned toward the void as if they could see the Saint Empress hiding within. Jiang Yi looked up as well. Even with his divine senses, he could not tell where she was.
“You won’t be contented?”
The Saint Empress spoke up, and her voice was still as gentle as ever. She was already 80 years old, and yet her voice did not sound old at all. What she said next everyone shut up. “So what if you would not be content? I am going to take him away today. If you’re not content, you can take action!”
“Wow!”
There was a stir throughout the entire region. The scene was exactly what a crowded market would look like if someone threw a bomb inside it. Mantis Blade and Mo Shen jumped. Even Jiang Yi thought he had misheard her. Only the Fifth Eldress and the few Saint Ladies remained unmoved. The corner of Fifth Eldress’ lips twitched as if she was holding back a smirk.
“Pfff…”
Cao Peiwen spat out blood. He had never felt so insulted in all of his life. Nobody had ever dared to offend him like that. As the second-best in all the Snow Region, who would not show him the respect that he deserved? He had always been the one to insult others; since when did he ever feel this humiliation?
“Little Fifth, bring him away!”
The Saint Empress’ emotionless voice traveled toward them. The Fifth Elderess immediately flew up. With one hand, she lifted Jiang Yi by the shoulder and flew away. Cao Peiwen’s eyes turned red. He was panting so hard from anger that his beard was flying back and forth.
“Hold it!”
Cao Peiwen’s lips were trembling. He gritted his teeth and let out a low growl, but Fifth Eldress did not even spare him a glance. She kept flying with Jiang Yi in tow. Cao Peiwen’s expression was twisted now, and he looked almost crazed. Both his hands lit up, and one of his hands shot out rapidly, intending to stop Fifth Eldress and Jiang Yi.
“Hmph!”
The Saint Empress tutted. The skies changed immediately as a huge handprint formed. The handprint looked about nine hundred meters big. It was multi-colored and bright. Everybody’s heart seemed to stop on seeing the handprint. Countless low-level martial artists fell to the floor from the pressure that the handprint took with it.
“Nine-star dao pattern—the Demon-Killing Seal. Holy ancestors!”
Cao Duantian shouted, his face a mask of terror. His entire body was trembling as the color drained out from the faces of the other elders of Tiger Subdue Sect. Many other people were trembling, not knowing what to say for fear of dying.
Tsk! Tsk!
The nine-colored huge handprint came down with a loud noise, slapping Cao Peiwen’s hands down immediately. The huge handprint stopped for just a second before a formidable suppressive force came down on the entire region. Everyone within hundreds of meters from the place fell to their knees from the pressure. A lot of them suffered internal injuries and coughed up blood.
Boom!
The huge handprint did not even pause. Instead, it fell down to the ground with a loud crash. A huge pit appeared where Cao Peiwen had been standing. Cracks formed around the pit and spread outward until they reached hundreds of meters away. Everybody nearby spat out fresh blood once again. Mantis Blade and Mo Shen were no exception.
Ss, ss…
Mantis Blade and Mo Shen sucked in a deep breath at the exact same time. Mantis Blade especially was extremely troubled. He had thought that his power was comparable to the Saint Empress’. Now, he knew that he was far off. The nine-star dao pattern was too horrifying. It was obvious that the Saint Empress was holding back as well; otherwise, the damage would have been far greater.
The Saint Empress finally ceased her attack because the Shield of the Earth—the eight-star dao pattern that Cao Peiwen had taken so much pride in—was finally broken. At the exact same moment that the Shield of the Earth broke apart, the handprint disappeared as well. Otherwise, Cao Peiwen would have been smashed to smithereens by now.
Even so, Cao Peiwen’s bones had already been broken. He looked like a spineless worm, smashed into the ground. His body was covered in fresh blood, and his face was covered in defeat and embarrassment.
This is the power of a nine-star formidable martial artist?
Jiang Yi had not felt any pressure at all. Nothing untoward happened to him, Fifth Eldress, or Su Ruoxue and the others standing with him. However, when the handprint slapped the ground, Jiang Yi felt his entire soul shake.
He met nine-star formidable martial artists before. Ao Lu was one of them. However, he had never seen a nine-star martial artist attack. Now, seeing the bottomless pit in front of him, and the cracks that stretched far beyond his eyes could see, he started to tremble. His breathing seemed to have stopped altogether as his mind filled with the image of the giant handprint slapping down into the ground. It was an unmatched power.
Who could have fended themselves against this blow?
This question surfaced in Cao Peiwen’s mind as he lay there like a boneless bug, all his bones broken beyond repair. He did not have to think that hard—apart from another nine-star martial artist, nobody would have been able to.
The North Thearch Wu Shang is also a nine-star martial artist. I wonder how scary his blows would be.
Jiang Yi let out a soft sigh. If he wanted to take revenge on behalf of Jiang Bieli, he still had a long way to go. Was it even possible to kill a nine-star martial artist?
“For the past 700,000 years, how much has the Heaven Hidden Sect given up for the Snow Region? How many invaders has the sect gotten rid of for the region? Without the Heaven Hidden Sect, would the Snow Region still be standing today?”
The Saint Empress’ emotionless voice filled the entire region. Everybody within thousands of miles of the area heard her voice and stared. Once again, they looked up into the void. The Saint Empress continued speaking. “Our Heaven Hidden Sect never interferes with the conflict between the various sects in the Snow Region. That has always been our policy, but it is not because you have forbidden us from interfering.
“I naturally have a reason for whatever I am doing. I can choose to give you an explanation, and I can choose not to as well! The Heaven Hidden Sect will not take a challenge from anyone. You, Cao Peiwen, are no exception! I will give you an explanation for this in the future, but… I will not right now!”
