Another half-month passed.
The Emperor and his ministers of Great Ling sat dumbfounded in the imperial court, their faces filled with doubt about life itself.
Of the Ten Great Sects that once flourished in Great Ling, only one remained…
Although the Emperor of Great Ling harbored considerable resentment towards the Ten Great Sects,
he had to admit, in all honesty, that there were matters he still relied on them to help manage.
This current situation was certainly not what he had hoped for!
"Minister Li, what should we do now…" the Emperor of Great Ling asked weakly.
"Your Majesty, this…" Old Man Li was momentarily speechless.
You're asking me?
Who am I supposed to ask?
After the first four sects were wiped out, I suggested we just give up.
But you, in your fervor, insisted on continuing. What could I do?
If you weren't the Emperor, I would have slapped you long ago!
"Perhaps, I could make a trip to the Jade Sword Sect?" At this point, he had no other choice but to embrace the disaster.
After all, nine were already ruined; one more wouldn't make much difference…
"Very well, as Minister Li suggests!" the Emperor of Great Ling immediately decided.
Fortune favors the bold.
Moreover, the Sect Master of the Jade Sword Sect, ranked first, possessed strength far surpassing the other nine Sect Masters. Perhaps this time it would succeed!
The summoning process this time was not as smooth as before.
"Your Majesty, it appears the traitor's strength is likely superior to this Sect Master's," the Sect Master of the Jade Sword Sect said with difficulty. "Our Jade Sword Sect may not be a match for them."
"Yu Wushuang, our ancestor has not yet emerged from seclusion. I can only rely on you," the Emperor of Great Ling said with utmost sincerity. "It seems this traitor's schemes are immense. They might even intend to annihilate our Great Ling! When the nest is overturned, how can the eggs remain intact? If Great Ling falls, your Jade Sword Sect will not fare well either!"
"Your Majesty, the risk is still too great…" Yu Wushuang refused with extreme hesitation.
However, as he refused, he began to pinch three fingers together…
"What I promised you before, I will double!" the Emperor of Great Ling replied through gritted teeth.
Yu Wushuang left the imperial palace with a smile.
After such a long time, news of the other nine sects' demise could no longer be contained.
Objectively speaking, his cultivation at the fifth level of Void Transformation far surpassed that of the other nine sect leaders.
If he willed it, he could have annihilated them in an instant.
However, the traitor was simply too extraordinary, and he truly lacked confidence.
The people of the nine sects were dead, but they couldn't even ascertain the enemy's cultivation level before their deaths, which was immensely frustrating!
Yu Wushuang was faced with only two possibilities.
The first was that the traitor's strength was comparable to his own, allowing them to easily defeat the nine sects.
The second was that the traitor's cultivation was higher than his.
Regardless of whether it was the former or the latter, neither was good news for him!
If their strength was equal, it meant he couldn't defeat the opponent. Even if he could, he would inevitably pay a heavy price.
The second situation was even worse; going would be tantamount to suicide.
However, as a principled man, Yu Wushuang had to do his job once he was paid, didn't he?
Therefore, he decided to go and take a look first, to see what the opponent's cultivation level truly was.
Of course, it was only to take a look.
Informally known as going through the motions…
Then, he would quietly stand at a distance and just glance at them.
The opponent couldn't possibly attack him just for taking a look, could they?
In that case, wouldn't they have to kill everyone they saw?
Seven days later.
Following the clues, Yu Wushuang successfully arrived at Falling Star City.
More precisely, he arrived outside a small town several dozen miles west of Falling Star City.
At this moment, Ye Fan and Liang Rujing had just finished exploring the small town and were preparing to head to Falling Star City.
Yu Wushuang, leading his men, quietly observed from a distance of over ten feet.
Upon this glance, he was instantly stunned.
In his eyes, both Ye Fan and Liang Rujing's cultivation levels were at the peak of the fourth level of Void Transformation.
Yu Wushuang nodded in realization.
The strongest sect masters among the nine sects were only at the third level of Void Transformation, so it was no wonder they were all wiped out.
At the fourth level of Void Transformation, it seemed entirely effortless.
The Emperor of Great Ling had promised him that if he could capture the traitor, the reward would include three prime imperial clan spirit mine areas.
And they were all rich veins!
Although the Ten Great Sects often bullied the imperial clan, they dared not go too far.
He had long coveted those three spirit mine areas. If not for the imperial clan still having a loyal ancestor suppressing them, he would have seized them long ago!
Now, it was perfect.
As long as he captured these two scoundrels, those three spirit mines would be his!
In the eyes of this mighty figure at the fifth level of Void Transformation, those at the fourth level of Void Transformation were indeed merely "scum."
The next moment, Yu Wushuang and the elders flashed onto Ye Fan's path.
"Traitor, surrender obediently, and you shall be spared physical suffering!" Yu Wushuang said indifferently, with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Traitor? Are you talking about me?" Ye Fan, sitting on his flying bed, pointed at himself in bewilderment. "Did you mistake me for someone else?"
Hearing this, Yu Wushuang almost spat out a mouthful of blood!
The cultivators of our Great Ling are almost all gone because of you, and you're here pretending to be clueless?!
However, he was indeed wronging Ye Fan.
Apart from the initial wave of cultivators from the imperial clan and officials' families, the people from the Ten Great Sects later never even managed to reach him.
Or rather, even if they did, he was asleep at the time.
Ye Fan was truly unaware…
"Sect Master, this brat is definitely faking it," the Grand Elder of the Jade Sword Sect narrowed his eyes. "He's probably trying to use this crude method of provocation to buy time and play some dirty tricks."
"I know," Yu Wushuang replied calmly.
Normally, anyone at the fourth level of Void Transformation who saw him, a fifth-level Void Transformation cultivator, would be terrified.
Even with the strongest mental fortitude, they wouldn't be this calm.
It seemed this brat really had some hidden trump card?
Wait…
Isn't this brat being a little *too* calm?
In the cultivation world, cultivation is an immutable law.
Even with hidden tricks, a cultivator at the fourth level of Void Transformation couldn't possess the strength to cross an entire major realm.
Could this brat have a more powerful external helper?
But he had already scanned the area with his divine sense on the way here. There was no one stronger than him!
Unless the opponent's cultivation surpassed the Nascent Soul stage, they couldn't escape his perception.
The problem was, if he had the protection of a Nascent Soul stage expert, why would he be wasting time talking to him?
They would have crushed him with a single palm strike!
Thinking of this, Yu Wushuang became even more vigilant.
At least, until he completely understood the situation, he couldn't act rashly!
After listening to their conversation, Ye Fan was utterly astonished!
What the heck?
Are you serious?
Is it okay to force such a dramatic scene upon yourselves?
I don't even know you!
After a moment's thought, Ye Fan seemed to understand.
Needless to say, the scummy system must be causing trouble behind the scenes!
Speaking of which, this scummy system hadn't made a sound for over half a month…
He remembered a similar situation occurring previously, which later turned out to be because the scummy system was running out of power…
However, this thing had become completely twisted in its mind now, so it couldn't be ruled out that it was a fabricated illusion!
But no matter what, there was no harm in trying!
"It seems I couldn't escape Senior's keen eyes," Ye Fan thought, then smiled and clasped his hands together, extending them outwards. "Since that is the case, this junior can only accept it."
"Senior, please strike!" Ye Fan's expression was extremely sincere. "I will not retaliate!"