Imperial God Emperor

The [Demon Sage] was enraged upon hearing Ye Qingyu's words.

He was the Chief Commander of the Divine Guards of the Demon Race, and for him to become a floor sweeper in the Heaven Wasteland Building was a humiliation for the entire Demon Race headquarters.

He could never accept such terms.

The [Demon Sage] made up his mind and was about to say something fitting for the situation he was in, but he caught sight of Ye Qingyu's cold stare when he raised his head. The god of death seemed to be waiting for him to talk back so that he had a reason to slaughter all of the demons. He felt his heart turn cold and his courage disappear, and he no longer dared to speak again. He lowered his head dejectedly and stood off to the side.

The other Black Guards looked at each other, not knowing how to react. They did not dare to leave, yet they were extremely terrified.

"Go," Purple Night said, sounding very much like a common hoodlum now. "All of you, return back to headquarters."

"Yes, sir."

They stood in formation to receive their orders. Finally, they had a reason to leave.

Just like that, the Black Guards, who had made such a grand entrance earlier, fled with their tails between their legs, not even daring to turn their heads back.

All of the humans on Wuqing street felt extremely emotional and excited as they witnessed the demons fleeing.

It was payback for them.

What sweet payback.

A forceful and overpowering manner was the trait a true leader of the humans should have.

Ye Qingyu did not bother himself with the dejected Purple Night anymore. He turned around and walked slowly back to the steps at the gates of Blue Cloud Manor before turning back to look at the prostrate Fang Bule. He felt extremely irritated, as he had to hold back when dealing with humans. He could not kill them as or when he wished, like he could the demons.

After all, it was not easy for his kind to produce experts, and far too much human blood had been shed already.

In Ye Qingyu's mind, he was extremely unwilling to cause the deaths of any of his own people.

"If it wasn't for the fact that you're human, the old me would have slain you right here long ago for your despicable acts and arrogant manner. You were also extremely cruel to your own people..." Ye Qingyu felt melancholic as he watched the sweaty Fang Bule. He shook his hands and continued, "Scram. Go back and tell Ou Wuji that I, Ye Qingyu, will serve as guarantor for the people of Blue Cloud Manor and the old subordinates of Lin Yutang. I'll hold a trial and decide if they're guilty or not. If I hear any news of any innocent human Divine Guards being captured or killed, don't blame me for turning nasty. I'll welcome him anytime if he wishes to discuss it, and I'll personally investigate Mr. Ren Puyang's cause of death. Early tomorrow morning, I'll head to the mourning hall in the divine temple of the humans to pay respects to Mr. Ren Puyang."

"Yes."

Fang Bule was as respectful and obedient as a harmless sheep now.

He bowed and got up before gathering his team of White-robed Divine Guards. They spurred their unicorns and left Wuqing street at top speed.

A strange atmosphere pervaded the quiet air of the street.

All of the experts who had witnessed the entire scene were shocked beyond words, and they also did not dare to speak; they could feel their emotions in turmoil. Blue Cloud Manor should have been easy pickings for the combined might of the White-robed Divine Guards and demonic Black Guards, and no one expected for them to have met with such a formidable obstacle. They suffered heavy losses and their commanders ended up on their knees. This was explosive news.

Aside from the death of Ren Puyang, there had not been news of such magnitude in Heaven Connect City.

One could imagine what sort of terrible repercussions would be caused if news of the guards' defeat were to spread around.

Also, everyone knew that the matter would not be so simply resolved.

Ye Qingyu, the Third Deputy of the humans, had made his stand very clear with his forceful manner and methods. Evidently, he was not in Ou Wuji's camp, and his decision of harboring Lin Yutang and the others was an obvious sign that he planned to reopen investigations into Ren Puyang's death. There were so many things that could be inferred from this act, and it seemed inevitable that the autopsy was going to be overruled or questioned.

Ye Qingyu, Huang Tianfang, and the others turned and returned back to Blue Cloud Manor.

Purple Night followed behind them dejectedly.

The gates of the manor shut with a resounding clang.

It was only then that the long-suppressed tension pervading Wuqing street began to fade.

Everyone, no matter what race they belonged to, could feel a huge weight had been lifted off their shoulders, and they began to take in huge breaths of air. Soon afterward, noises rang out everywhere on the street, as if a dormant volcano had erupted. The entire street began to stir as everyone began discussing what they just witnessed.

Unquestionably, everything that happened here today was going to become a terrible lit fuse.

No one dared to predict where this lit fuse would lead to.

At the very least, they could see the Demon and Human Races being involved.

The incident would ferment at an insane pace in the near future.

Didn't Ye Qingyu mention that he would go to the mourning hall in the divine temple of the headquarters of the Human Race early tomorrow morning to pay respects to Ren Puyang?

I'm afraid that by that time there will already have been a huge uproar in the mourning hall, right?

Everyone was waiting to see what would happen.

...

...

"Lord Ye Qingyu, I, Huang Tianfang, am truly convinced."

The Lord of Blue Cloud Manor laughed heartily in the main hall, as if he had just eaten an icy watermelon during the hottest part of summer.

Ye Qingyu smiled.

"We would like to thank you for saving our lives, Lord Deputy."

"We'll continue to repay your kindness in the next life, sir."

"We're willing to serve you to the death, my lord."

The surviving White-robed Divine Guards knelt down and bowed to thank Ye Qingyu, all of them feeling extremely grateful.

If it were not for Ye Qingyu's efforts to salvage the situation today, they would have been long dead.

These dozens of survivors felt extremely anguished and angry as they thought back on how much danger they had gone through and how much blood they had shed for their kind. They had held firm to their beliefs even when facing the most extreme dangers and were wounded while serving the divine temple. They had never retreated when facing their opponents, and most of their comrades had already perished in battle, yet they had to bear being called traitors.

They were not afraid of death.

They were afraid that they could not clear their names even after death. They were worried about being cursed by their own kind and about carrying the name of traitors forever.

That was the most terrifying and lamentable thing to them.

"Get up, all of you," Ye Qingyu said as he raised his hand. A force of the five elements surged out and lifted the dozens of White-robed Divine Guards up. He continued, "I saved you upon the request of Commander Tang Chong. Otherwise, I wouldn't have reached this place in time. Also, I'll personally investigate the cause of Mr. Ren Puyang's death. Once I find out why he died, I'll not forgive anyone among you who has done anything wrong to the headquarters of the Human Race or Mr. Ren Puyang."

"Rest assured, sir. If we've done anything despicable like that, you won't have to lift a finger. We'll take care of it ourselves."

"No, we'll swear to the heavens."

"We're willing to give full cooperation to your investigation, sir."

All of the White-robed Divine Guards spoke emotionally.

Ye Qingyu nodded and said, "Fine, all of you can stay in Blue Cloud Manor for the time being. Tomorrow, I'll go and pay respects to Mr. Ren Puyang in the mourning hall, and after that, I'll head to the dungeon myself to meet Commander Lin Yutang. Everything will become clear to me then."

...

... 

Bam!

The ten-thousand-year-old lapis lazuli table cracked into pieces instantly.

Ou Wuji's eyebrows leapt up and down, his anger having evidently reached a boiling point.

The entire meeting hall was completely silent. No one dared to speak, you could even hear a pin drop.

"Did he really say that? That he'll act as guarantor for Lin Yutang and Blue Cloud Manor?" Ou Wuji said. Since becoming the First Deputy of the humans, he had rarely shown his emotions in public or spoken so angrily to his subordinates like this. Obviously, he was shocked by the news that Fang Bule had brought back. He could not imagine how crazy Ye Qingyu had become to have done something like that in Heaven Connect City.

"Yes."

Fang Bule did not even dare to lift his head up as he spoke softly and remained in a kneeling position.

After this fight, his reputation would be tarnished, if not completely destroyed. He would no longer be in a position to give orders, and it would be hard for him even to remain as a member of the Divine Guards. 

"This Ye Qingyu has really gone insane."

Ou Wuji was extremely angry.

He thought that everything would be in his control after Ren Puyang's death and that no one would dare to defy him, especially not in Heaven Connect City, where his word was law among the humans there. He had not imagined that Ye Qingyu would dare to go against his orders. How could he tolerate such disobedience?

"Relay my orders. Activate the White-robed Worship Team and get them to lay siege to the Heaven Wasteland Building. I want every living thing in that building slain," Ou Wuji said, a bloody glow lighting up his eyes. Even though he had not been personally present at the Battle of Wuqing street, the reputation that he had taken such pains to construct had taken a severe beating.

Everyone trembled in fear upon hearing his orders.

Wei Wubing shook the scarlet feather fan in his hand and hurriedly advised him. "Sir, calm down. We should not act hastily over this incident. According to what the commander has just told us, Insane Devil Ye's strength and level of cultivation has greatly increased. I believe he had some chance encounters in the Reincarnation Hall of the Chaos Demon Emperor. If we were to use force against him, perhaps we could capture or kill him, but we would definitely suffer huge losses on our side as well. It doesn't make sense to go into a war of attrition with him, and we still have our task at hand. Things will get harder as we near the finishing point, so we shouldn't act in anger."

Only Wei Wubing would have dared to offer him advice in such a situation.

Ou Wuji's eyebrows moved as he listened to his advisor, they looked like two sharp longswords hanging above his eyes. He was still as angry as before, but he had regained some of his clarity of thought. It was not long before he had calmed down.

"Are you telling me that we should allow that crazy person to do as he wishes?" Ou Wuji asked through gritted teeth. "And what would you plan to do?"

Wei Wubing smiled gently and replied, "What happened at Blue Cloud Manor today was already expected, but I never imagined that this Ye Qingyu could be so deranged. However, this will also work in our favor. Hahaha, the demons have always been so arrogant, and I don't believe they will remain unmoved after Ye Qingyu destroyed twenty of their airships and took their [Demon Sage] hostage. Didn't he say that he'll be coming to the mourning hall in the divine temple to pay respects to Ren Puyang tomorrow? That will be our chance. Perhaps, we may not even need to act; the demons could end up doing our work for us. Why not?"

Ou Wuji nodded.

"I'll not feel satisfied unless I kill him myself, however," he said with a cruel glint in his eyes. "Send someone to inform the headquarters of the Demon Race that Ye Qingyu's actions were not endorsed by us. From now on, he's no longer the Third Deputy of the Human Race, and his well-being is no longer our concern."

Someone went out immediately to relay the message.

"Tomorrow, the [Ice Sword Killing God] will no longer exist."

He spoke in a chilling tone.

Wei Wubing smiled gently and said nothing.

We might not even need to wait till tomorrow, he thought. The demons in their headquarters are not virtuous folk, so how could they wait till then? They'll definitely strike tonight... Hehe, the more chaotic the situation is, the better it'll be.