Tokyo, Imperial Palace Annex.
The Emperor’s residence.
Noon.
The Emperor was still napping, the palace eerily quiet, all servants treading lightly, fearing the slightest noise.
Not long ago, a new servant accidentally broke a glass during the Emperor’s nap, disturbing him. The poor soul was thrown into the lake to feed the fish.
In the bedroom, the sleeping Emperor suddenly opened his eyes, seeing a man in white, a long sword on his back, standing by the bed, staring coldly.
The Emperor sat up, alarmed, “Who are you?”
“Didn’t you conspire with Bai Yujing to kill me? Now that I’m standing here, you don’t recognise me?” the man in white said icily. “Listen well, my name is Ye Wushuang.”
What!
The Emperor’s face paled, shouting, “Guards, assassin!”
Swish, swish, swish!
Countless figures rushed in, surrounding Ye Wushuang, at least four or five hundred strong.
These were the Emperor’s bodyguards.
Many stood outside, gripping samurai swords, radiating killing intent.
“Quick, seize the assassin, hack him to pieces!” the Emperor bellowed.
Instantly, countless bodyguards charged at Ye Wushuang.
“You think these worms can kill me? Naive,” Ye Wushuang sneered, drawing the Seven-Star Dragon Abyss Sword.
Clang!
Sword light flashed, blood sprayed.
Figures fell into pools of blood.
Ye Wushuang was like a god of war, unstoppable. In mere minutes, every bodyguard lay dead, the ground soaked in blood.
A shocking sight!
After killing the bodyguards, Ye Wushuang turned, sword in hand, and approached the Emperor.
“Ye Wushuang, what are you doing?”
“I warn you, this is Dong, you can’t act recklessly!”
“Stop right there!”
The Emperor, terrified out of his wits, shrank into a corner, pointing at Ye Wushuang in panic.
But before his words finished, Ye Wushuang swung his sword.
Pfft—
The blade grazed the Emperor’s cheek, leaving a bloody mark.
The Emperor nearly lost his soul, pleading, “Don’t kill me, please, I beg you…”
“Kneel!” Ye Wushuang roared.
Thud.
The Emperor knelt.
“Coward,” Ye Wushuang said with contempt. “Since you’re the ruler of a nation, I’ll spare your miserable life today.”
“But I’m warning you, if you dare touch my family again, I’ll bury you alive.”
Bang!
Ye Wushuang punched the ground, creating a massive pit with a boom.
The Emperor’s face turned ashen.
“Remember, if you don’t want to die, don’t provoke me again, hmph!”
Ye Wushuang snorted, his body soaring skyward like a divine dragon, vanishing instantly.
It took a while for the Emperor to recover from his terror, shouting, “Guards!”
But no one came.
Only then did he realise Ye Wushuang had killed the servants along with the bodyguards.
The Emperor made a call, and when it connected, he ordered, “I command you to gather all of Dong’s masters to kill Ye Wushuang.”
The voice replied, “Emperor, Ye Wushuang slaughtered eleven thousand of Dong’s martial artists. Apart from the Shuiyue Sect, there’s not a single master left.”
“Besides, Ye Wushuang is a cultivator. Only another cultivator could kill him.”
“This time, he even wiped out ordinary ninjas, destroying Dong’s martial foundation. It’ll take a century to produce another cultivator.”
Unwilling to accept this, the Emperor said, “The Shuiyue Sect is still there, isn’t it? Qianshan Xue is my swordsmanship teacher, and her master is one of Dong’s martial grandmasters. Get them to act.”
“Emperor, I was about to report on the Shuiyue Sect,” the voice said. “Qianshan Xue said if you harm a hair on Ye Qiu’s head, she’ll personally send you to reincarnation.”
Thump!
The Emperor collapsed to the ground, limp.
…
East Sea War Zone Hospital.
Three days later.
Ye Qiu awoke from his coma.
Opening his eyes, he saw familiar faces: Qian Jinglan, Bai Bing, Old General Bai, the War God, and Old Master Ye.
“Auntie, Ye Qiu’s awake!”
Bai Bing, overjoyed, asked with concern, “Ye Qiu, how are you?”
“I’m fine,” Ye Qiu smiled, asking, “Mum, where are we?”
“This is the East Sea War Zone Hospital,” the War God said. “After you killed Cangjing on the uninhabited island and fell into a coma, Elder Tang ordered Wei Donghai to bring you here.”
Ye Qiu asked urgently, “What about Xiao Ye? Is he dead?”
“Dead, killed by the Vatican’s Saintess,” the War God smiled. “Ye Qiu, focus on recovering. Elder Tang instructed me to call him when you woke. I’ll make the call.”
The War God left the ward.
“Mum, weren’t you in Kunlun Mountain with Dad? Why are you here?” Ye Qiu asked Qian Jinglan.
Qian Jinglan said, “Hearing you were in mortal danger, how could I sit still? So I came with your father.”
“Where’s Dad?”
“He went…”
“I’m here,” Ye Wushuang entered.
Ye Qiu turned, stunned.
Ye Wushuang, wearing an apron and holding a clay pot, looked like a chef.
“Qiu’er, I made rib soup with Kunlun Mountain snow lotus. Try it.”
Ye Wushuang smiled, lifting the pot’s lid, filling the room with a rich aroma.
He ladled a bowl and fed Ye Qiu with a spoon.
Ye Qiu, unaccustomed, said, “Dad, I can do it myself!”
“Don’t move,” Ye Wushuang said. “Apart from your mother, no one else in this world is worthy of me serving like this. Don’t be ungrateful.”
“Cough, cough…” Old Master Ye, standing nearby, cleared his throat.
Ye Wushuang realised his slip, forgetting his father was there, and said, “Father, you didn’t hear that, right?”
“I heard,” Old Master Ye said sternly. “What, I’m not worthy of your service either?”
“Father, you’re hale and hearty, you don’t need me serving you. Qiu’er, drink the soup,” Ye Wushuang continued feeding Ye Qiu.
The scene was heartwarming.
As Ye Qiu drank, he quietly checked his condition.
His face soon changed.
His dragon aura was gone, and though his ten true qi remained in his dantian, they were barely an inch long, mere remnants.
Now, his strength was only comparable to a Dragon List master.
All his years of hard training had been for nothing.
“Dad, can my cultivation be restored?”
