Chapter 545 - Yun Che’s Attack
“Hahahahahaha!” Duke Huai threw back his head and laughed loudly. He shook his head, and his face expressed mockery, “Tsk-tsk-tsk-tsk, the Yun Family who was once the head of the Guardian Families and gloried for ten thousand years doesn’t even have the guts to accept the competition, and need other families to stand up for them now. So pathetic and pitiful. A Yun Family like this really doesn’t qualify to even look this duke in the eye. If they could still be one of the Guardian Families, it would be the biggest joke in the world, and it would be our Illusory Demon Realm’s number one laughingstock. Hahahaha.”
“Brother Yun, don’t listen to him!” Su Xiangnan's eyebrows lowered as he said, “He was just provoking you. Everyone under heaven witnessed your Yun Family’s honor, and no one dares to erase it. I believe it more than anyone else that the Yun Family being at low ebb is only a temporary thing. The Yun Family has you, Yun Qinghong, and the protection of the heroic spirits of Yun Family’s ancestors. It will one day rise again!”
“I completely agree with what Patriarch Su had said.” Yan Zijing nodded heavily, and directly sent Yun Qinghong a Profound Energy Sound Conversion, “You mustn’t accept the challenge! Or else, there would be no coming back from this; even our families and the Duke Palaces would all suffer a setback.”
Under the gaze of the crowd, Yun Qinghong stood up slowly. He didn’t panic, and didn’t seemed to be expressing any anger. Instead, he looked directly at Duke Huai, and smiled lightly, “I agree with what Che’er had said. This battle, our Yun Family must accept!”
“What!” The three brothers, Mu Yubai, Mu Yukong, and Mu Yuqing, all yelled at the same time, “Brother-in-law, have you gone crazy?!!”
“Not crazy,” Yun Qinghong said smilingly. Even though he was the one standing in the eye of the storm, he was the calmest out of everyone, “If someone wants to challenge, then our Yun Family should naturally accept the battle, and this does not have to do with whether or not it determines our Yun Family’s destiny. For ten thousand of years, our Yun Family had encountered countless of battles, won countless of times, and have also been defeated before, but we have never chickened out!”
“If someone dares to challenge, then our Yun Family would dare to accept! Our Yun Family can lose, and we can afford to lose. But even if we suffered a crushing defeat, we would not lose our dignity!!”
Yun Qinghong’s words resounded and echoed in the hall. It pierced in people’s hearts, and made countless of people feel deep respect and admiration.
Old Man Mu raised his arms. He seemed to want to say something, shook his arms a little, and eventually put them down. He sighed and said, “Sigh, I knew you would make such a decision. You Yun Family are all stubborn. Yun Canghai was so, and so are you… Sigh, I guess that’s that. Since you choose to accept the challenge, then we, the Mu Family, will fight by your side.”
“Hehe, this momentum, sure enough, is still the same Yun Qinghong from twenty-five years ago!” Su Xiangnan bursted into laughter after a moment of silence. “If so, our Su Family will do everything to help!”
“Count our Under Heaven Family in!” Greatest Ambition Under Heaven said loudly. “Since Brother Yun had said so, then we shall advance and retreat together!”
“Can’t do it without us Yan Family!” Yan Zijing nodded heavily towards Yun Qinghong.
The Little Demon Empress who was on the throne didn’t make a statement because of Yun Qinghong’s strong persuasion. Her eyes were flickering, as she looked towards the left side of Yun, Under Heaven, Su, Mu, and Yan Family... Duke Huai’s ambitions, she had known long ago. As for how bad the situation was, she saw that even more clearly.
Under this situation, these five families were still willing to, and insisted, on standing by her side. This kind of pure loyalty, as well as the collective burst of pride in this nearly hopeless situation, let the feeling of being “moved” appear for the first time in hundred years in her emotions that were sealed in ice with resentment and sadness.
“Hehehehe, Yun Qinghong is Yun Qinghong after all.” Duke Huai twisted his mouth, “You really didn’t let me down. Even though you know you would definitely lose, you are not willing to be a coward.”
"But you let me down." Within Yun Qinghong’s calm and indifferent tone, there was deep contempt.
This calmness and contempt caused an incomparable discomfort to surface in Duke Huai’s heart. He scoffed, and immediately looked away.
At this moment, Yun Che stepped forward, and used a voice loud enough so the people surrounding him could hear, “Father, may I take your place and say a few words to this Duke Huai?”
Yun Qinghong gave him a look, and nodded slowly.
“Good!” Yun Che’s raised his head, and faced Duke Huai directly. His question to Yun Qinghong and his actions immediately gathered everyone’s attention towards him.
Before, when the Little Demon Empress asked Yun Qinghong of his identity, it let everyone here know that he wasn’t one of the Yun Family, and instead was Yun Qinghong’s adopted son. Just now, when he yelled “accept the battle” before Yun Qinghong had even spoke, it made many people despise him, and now that he suddenly wanted to come out and speak to Duke Huai, they scoffed against this as well.
"Oh? You have something you want to say to this duke?” Duke Huai looked at him with a sideways glance, and laughed softly.
“I just want to ask Duke Huai a few questions.” Yun Che smiled innocently, “You asked for this battle, does that mean if we lose, our Yun Family would have to leave the Guardian Families?”
“That’s right.” Duke Huai laughed mockingly. “As for the reason, this duke thinks that it had already been stated clearly enough.”
“Oh!” Yun Che nodded, and said, “Then, what if we win? What good does it do for us?”
“Win? Hahahaha.” Duke Huai looked to the side, threw his head back and laughed loudly. The east wing also immediately fell down laughing, as if the whole group just heard a huge joke. Even the face of the people sitting in west wing were twitching.
Yun Che said smilingly, “What? What is the meaning of Duke Huai laughing loudly like this? If the two sides were competing with our strengths, then there will be winners and losers. And in this world, there are no competitions that one side will ‘absolutely’ win! If there really were, then the match would be meaningless, and there would naturally be no need to continue this… Duke Huai, do you agree?”
Duke Huai’s smile converged, and for the first time, he looked at Yun Che with some interest. The youngster in front of him was extremely calm and leisurely, even his gaze was unflinching. Duke Huai could vaguely see the shadow of Yun Qinghong within him. He smiled lightly, and said, “You are quite right. Since it’s a duel, naturally, anyone can lose, and anyone can win. But no matter who loses and who wins, the results will be pretty clear. If we win, then your Yun Family will have to leave the Guardian Families. But if you win, then you can naturally stay within the Guardian Families, and the people who are against would have no complaints.”
“Duke Huai, don’t you think what you’ve said was ridiculous?” Yun Che’s expression suddenly changed, and revealed a mocking smile.
“Ridiculous?” Duke Huai’s eyebrows slanted.
“Not only is it ridiculous, it’s extremely ridiculous.” The expression in Yun Che’s eyes became full of aggression. Even facing this imposing Duke Huai, his face clearly showed an incredible amount of contempt. “If we lose, the entire Yun Family would have to leave the place where we have stayed for a whole ten thousand years. The lives and destinies of the top and bottom of the whole clan would be turned upside down, and the consequences would be extremely tragic.”
“But if you lose, you don’t suffer any consequences!” Yun Che scoffed. “How in the world could there be something so unfair! This duel can be described as a gamble. And the bargaining chip on our side is the destiny of the Yun Family. And you… don’t even have any bargaining chips. This kind of duel that doesn’t even have the most basic fairness, what point is there for a duel?”
Duke Huai’s eyes narrowed. Then, he laughed loudly, “Hahahaha, Yun Qinghong, you really did adopt a good son. I’m surprised that he knows how to advance while stepping back. But attempting to get this duke to give up with this kind of clumsy method, that’s too ridiculous. You want this duke to wager something? Very well. This duke shall give you this opportunity. Just tell me, what kind of leverage should our side give?”
“Since Duke Huai had said so, then I will not hold back.” Yun Che steadily raised his arm, pointed at the seven Guardian Families behind Duke Huai, and said, “If we win in the end, then of the families of Helian, Chiyang, Bai, Nangong, Lin, Jiufang, and Xiao, each family must turn in two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals in a month! And you, Duke Huai, must gather ten kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals to our Yun Family!
As soon as Yun Che said this, everyone in the hall was stunned. The expression of the seven great Guardian Families in the east wing suddenly changed. Even Yun Qinghong’s facial muscle twitched violently.
If defeated… every family would have to turn in two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals… Two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals, not Purple Veined Heaven Crystals, not even normal Purple Crystals!!
Two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Heaven Crystals were already priceless. As for Purple Veined Divine Crystals, that was something that could be called as a worldly treasure. To more than ninety percent of the citizens in the Illusory Demon Realm’s worldview, it was a mythical item that only existed in legends. It was so precious that even the word “precious” couldn’t describe it.
A whole two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals, even the Guardian Families who had the top strength, skill, and resources would have to take hundred of years to accumulate two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals!
With the power of two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals and the background of the Guardian Families, they could easily cultivate at least five Overlords of the age under thirty. This generation of Yun Family’s young disciples’ strengths had fallen back greatly, and the main reason was because of the extreme limitation of resources, especially of the Purple Veined Divine Crystals… in the past hundred years, they weren’t able to receive any of it.
If a Guardian Family really handed over two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals, then their strengths would definitely fall just like the Yun Family in the following generations of the next hundred years… and the Yun Family who received a large amount of Purple Veined Divine Crystals from the seven families, would not find it hard to become strong.
Moreover, with Duke Huai’s full ten kilograms… even if Duke Huai plundered everything from the sixty Duke Palaces that were on his side, it might not even add up to ten kilograms. And if he really did that, it would definitely induce the hatred of many of the Duke Palaces.
The “bargaining chips” Yun Che had shouted out, was far more than a lion opening its mouth wide!!
So, even if they knew they would absolutely not lose, the expressions of the seven great families and Duke Palaces all changed. Several of the Patriarchs’ bodies just shivered, and they couldn’t wait to point at Yun Che’s nose and yell and curse at him.
Faced with this kind of “wager”, Duke Huai was also starting to become unnerved. He laughed in a disdainful manner and said, “This duke didn’t think that with your young age, your appetite would be so large. However, you are merely Yun Qinghong’s adopted son. Even if Demon King Yun Canghai were alive, he wouldn’t have the right to order this duke and the Duke Palaces behind this duke. Why must we listen to your words if we lost? Mn?”
“Duke Huai asked a good question!” Duke Huai’s words not only failed to make Yun Che speechless, it in turn made his voice grow louder, “Let me give Duke Huai a clear answer: If we win, it means we are stronger than you! In this world, strength is absolute! The amount of strength one possesses is equal to how much right they have to speak and how much authority they have! As for the stronger party, they naturally have the right to decide. In regards to the weaker party, they do not even have the right to refuse! No matter what world, what plane, this always holds true!”
“Is Duke Huai satisfied with this answer?”
Duke Huai’s face immediately became stiff, and everyone was stunned once again.
The passionate, ambitious words that Duke Huai shouted out earlier when he faced Greatest Ambition Under Heaven’s questioning, was used by Yun Che without changing a word. Every single word was slapped back onto Duke Huai’s face.
“These are Duke Huai’s original words. I wonder if Duke Huai still remembers them?” Yun Che said smilingly. “Oh, if Duke Huai treats his own words like fart, then just pretend I never said anything, hehe, pretend I never said anything.”
Many people in the west wing were gnashing their teeth. Old Mu Feiyan revealed his grinning lips and said, “Tsk, tsk, this brat… even though we can’t win at all, and it would be useless to ask a hundred times more, being able to slap that guy on the face is also fantastic!”
Duke Huai’s face darkened slightly, and he didn’t make a sound. In this world, his own words were the hardest things to refute… because once he refuted them, then there was no doubt that he would be hitting his own face.
“Arrogant junior, you are not qualified to speak!!” The Jiufang family’s Patriarch, Jiufang Kui, couldn’t hold back anymore, as he stood up and roared angrily. Facing a whole two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals, no one in the whole Illusory Demon Realm would be able to stay calm.
“Duke Huai, you don’t have to acknowledge this junior!” Helian Peng said in a deep voice, “Yun Che, who do you think you are, what qualification do you have to clamor in front of Duke Huai. Get down from there this instant.”
“Hahahahahaha!” Yun Che threw his head back and laughed loudly. He shook his head, looked at Duke Huai and the seven Guardian Families, with a face full of contempt and mockery, “If we lose, the Yun Family would lose ten thousand years worth of mission, status, and honor. But our Yun Family, even facing these cruel consequences, and in the situation with an absolute disadvantage, we still dare to fight!”
“And if you lose, you merely lose two and a half kilograms of Purple Veined Divine Crystals! Compared to the ten thousand years of Yun Family’s honor, let alone two and a half kilograms, even two hundred and fifty kilograms is not worth mentioning! Pity, what a pity… when you were calling us out and trying to expel us, each and everyone of you were more thrilled than the other. And in the case when you have absolute advantage, facing a wager ten thousand times smaller than our Yun Family’s, you chicken out like this. Tsk-tsk-tsk-tsk, it really is ridiculous and pathetic. Lined up with a bunch of families like this as the Twelve Guardian Families, even I, am embarrassed for our Yun Family!”
"And you, Duke Huai!” Yun Che simply ignored the murderous gazes of the various patriarchs. He stared at Duke Huai and laughed coldly, “If you are ready to gather a bunch of people to expel our Yun Family, ready to arrange a battle, and ready to say it’s for the whole Illusory Demon Realm whenever you please… I thought you were bold and daring, but you are nothing more than this! I merely suggested a far smaller wager than our side, but you didn’t even have the guts to accept, and even need the people behind you to clamor and protect you. Hehe, compared to my Father… Oh, no-no, from what it seems like now, you don’t even have the qualifications to be compared to my Father.”
After saying that, Yun Che didn’t even bother to look at Duke Huai. He directly turned to Yun Qinghong and said, “Father, we should just not compete in this battle. The chickens across from us are ridiculous. If we treated them seriously, it would lower our Yun Family’s class.”