200: Welcome back to the palace!

As the corpse of the Nether Kun was torn apart, the Spatial Vortex, emitting a deep blue light, slowly rotated in the deep sea, resembling a solitary eye leading to another world.

Ye You was still clinging to Su Lin like a koala bear, clearly not yet recovered from the pleasure of the recent devouring.

"Revered Master... You haven't answered Youer yet."

She breathed into Su Lin's ear, her voice soft and sweet, yet carrying an undeniable persistence.

"After we rescue Eldest Senior Sister... will you belong to Youer?"

"Ahem."

Before Su Lin could speak, several extremely deliberate coughs came from the side.

Luo Ximei crossed her arms, her platinum-gold right eye filled with coldness, staring at Ye You with a fake smile.

"Fourth Senior Sister, that's enough. Is Revered Master's waist something you can keep squeezing? Can't you see Revered Master's face is pale?"

"Exactly!"

Chu Weiwei fanned the flames from the side, holding several silver needles and gesturing toward Ye You's exposed thigh.

"Fourth Senior Sister just ate so many dirty things; she must be full of parasites. Get down quickly, let Junior Sister give you a few jabs to disinfect you, don't pass anything to Revered Master!"

Even Su Hongling, who usually only acted and didn't speak, couldn't help but hold her great sword horizontally in front of Ye You.

"Old Four, get down. Otherwise, I'll cleave you like the Nether Kun."

Facing the siege of her three Senior/Junior Sisters, Ye You not only didn't let go but hugged Su Lin even tighter, even wrapping her legs provocatively around Su Lin's waist.

"I won't!"

"This is my reward! Revered Master promised! You're just jealous!"

It looked like it was about to escalate into an all-out underwater brawl.

"Enough."

"Smack."

Immediately after, that enchanting little face flushed visibly red, and even her earlobes looked like they were about to drip blood.

"Ma... Revered Master..."

Her voice became as thin as silk thread, and her previously arrogant demeanor instantly melted away like spring water.

"Get down."

Su Lin's voice was calm, yet carried an unyielding majesty.

"We need to hurry."

"Oh..."

Ye You reluctantly slid off Su Lin, but before leaving, she grabbed Su Lin's hand unwillingly and rubbed his palm against her burning cheek.

"Then Revered Master, remember you owe Youer one."

Su Lin helplessly withdrew his hand and didn't dwell on the matter.

He turned around, facing the deep blue vortex.

"Let's go."

"We're going to Southern Yu to bring your Eldest Senior Sister back."

...Canglan Floating Continent, Nanyu Divine Dynasty.

This place was unlike the numerous Sects of the Eastern Continent, nor was it like the desolate savagery of the Western Desert.

This was a massive landmass suspended ten thousand meters above the ground, with a sea of clouds as its foundation and stars as its canopy.

Here, there was only one voice: imperial authority.

However, at this moment, this Divine Dynasty, usually radiating golden light and auspicious energy, was shrouded by a thick layer of blood-red ominous clouds.

A drizzling bloody rain fell from the sky; every drop was terrifyingly corrosive, landing on the glazed tiles of the magnificent palace with a sizzling sound.

In the center of the Imperial City, the Heaven Sacrificial Platform, which symbolized supreme power, had now been converted into a massive cage.

Countless chains inscribed with Seal runes stretched out from the Void Realm, weaving into an airtight net.

"Boom!!!"

A clap of thunder exploded.

The Void Realm above the Imperial City suddenly shattered, and a massive black hole appeared out of thin air.

Immediately afterward, five figures, wrapped in world-destroying Aura, descended from the black hole.

The person leading them wore a Starlight Dharma Robe, their dark hair fluttering. Although their Aura was restrained, the transcendent temperament that surpassed all living beings caused the bloody rain everywhere to avoid them.

It was Su Lin.

Behind him, his five great disciple—Su Hongling, Luo Ximei, Chu Weiwei, Mu Qingxue, and Ye You—stood in a line.

The terrifying Divine Might of the Mahayana Stage was released without reservation, instantly enveloping the entire Southern Yu Imperial City.

"Cold Moon!!"

Su Lin's Divine Sense spread out like a tide, instantly sweeping across the entire Imperial City.

However, what made his heart sink was that he did not sense that familiar Aura.

Inside the Imperial City, there was dead silence.

There were no guards, no palace maids, not even the cries of the common people.

The entire city was like a massive empty tomb.

"Where are the people?!"

Su Hongling violently swung her great sword, and a ten-thousand-foot-long Sword Qi directly split open the gates of the Imperial City.

"Where did those bastards hide?!"

"Don't rush."

Luo Ximei's platinum-gold right eye scanned the surroundings, her brow tightly furrowed.

"Something is strange here."

"Although it seems empty, every inch of the air here is permeated with a... very uncomfortable power of Law."

"It's a Formation."

Mu Qingxue spoke coldly. She reached out and caught a drop of the bloody rain.

The drop of bloody rain did not freeze in her palm; instead, it wriggled as if alive, trying to burrow into her skin.

"This is not rain."

Mu Qingxue expelled cold Qi from her palm, freezing the drop of bloody rain into powder.

"This is... a medium for Illusion Arts."

"Illusion Art?"

Hearing this, Chu Weiwei immediately pulled out a small bottle and sprayed a puff of purple mist into the air.

"Shatter Delusion!"

As the purple mist spread, the previously desolate and bloody scene of the Imperial City began to ripple like water.

The bloody rain filling the sky vanished.

The gloomy dark clouds dissipated.

Replacing it was a scene of peace, celebration, and even extravagance.

Inside and outside the Imperial City, lanterns were hung, and red silk covered the ground.

Countless palace maids and eunuchs in colorful robes were busily moving between the various palaces, carrying fine wine and delicacies.

And the Heaven Sacrificial Platform, which was originally thought to be a cage, was now decorated as a massive, magnificent... wedding platform?

"This..."

Su Lin was stunned.

The five disciple behind him were also stunned.

The shift in scene was so rapid that their surging Killing Intent was stuck in their throats, unsure where to vent.

"Didn't they say... the ruler changed?" Su Hongling scratched her head. "Didn't they say it was for a heaven sacrifice? Why does this look like they're celebrating a wedding?"

"Could it be..."

Luo Ximei's expression changed. "Could it be that Sima Rongrong not only usurped the throne but is also trying to forcibly marry Eldest Senior Sister?!"

"Seeking death!!!"

This speculation instantly ignited everyone's fury.

"Dare to touch my Eldest Senior Sister! I'll chop him up and make dumplings!"

Su Hongling roared and charged directly toward the Taiji Hall, deep within the Imperial Palace.

The other four followed closely behind.

Although Su Lin felt something was suspicious, he couldn't worry about it now. His figure flickered, the Space Law activated, and he instantly crossed layers of palaces, arriving before the Taiji Hall.

"Old Thief Sima! Get out here and face death!"

Su Lin shouted sternly, the sound waves rolling, shaking the glazed tiles of the hall until they rattled down.

"Creak."

The heavy vermillion gate of the Taiji Hall slowly opened.

However, the ones who walked out were not ferocious rebel leaders, nor was it the rumored sinister and ruthless Great State Preceptor Sima Rongrong.

Instead, it was a group of young maidens dressed in pink palace attire and holding flower baskets.

Seeing the murderous Su Lin and the others, they were not afraid. Instead, they all bowed simultaneously, revealing sweet smiles.

"Welcome, Emperor Lord, back to the Palace."

"Em... Emperor Lord?"

Su Lin pointed to himself, looking utterly bewildered.

"Are you calling me?"

"Precisely."

A leading female official stepped forward. Although trembling slightly under Su Lin's terrifying Divine Might, she forced a smile and said:

"Her Majesty the Empress has been waiting for a long time."

"Empress? Cold Moon?"

Su Lin was even more confused.

Didn't they say she was imprisoned? Didn't they say she was going to be sacrificed to heaven?

Why is this script different from what Gu Qiuyue said?

"Lead the way."

Su Lin suppressed the doubt in his heart and said coldly.

Whether this was a trap or something else, he needed to see Cold Moon with his own eyes... Passing through layers of palaces, the group was led to a place called the "Hall of Mental Cultivation."

It lacked the festive atmosphere of lanterns and decorations seen outside, appearing instead exceptionally quiet.

Incense smoke curled inside the hall, and thick white animal hides covered the floor.

And on the soft couch in the center of the great hall, a woman wearing a bright yellow Dragon Robe was reclining on her side.

She possessed a face of peerless beauty, not inferior to anyone present, but her expression held more of the majesty and dominance of someone long accustomed to power.

It was the Imperial Aura cultivated by years of holding the power of life and death, where a single word could decide the fate of thousands.

Cold Moon.

Su Lin's Eldest Disciple, the Empress of the Nanyu Divine Dynasty.

At this moment, she was holding a scroll of memorial and casually reviewing it.

Kneeling by her feet was a woman in a black robe, trembling slightly.

The woman was sweating profusely, holding a peeled lychee in her hand, carefully offering it to Cold Moon's mouth.

"Your Majesty... please partake."

Cold Moon opened her mouth, elegantly ate the lychee, and then glanced at the black-robed woman with disdain.

"Sima Rongrong, why is your hand shaking?"

"Am I that terrifying?"

"N-no... I wouldn't dare..."

Sima Rongrong, the one called the "Rebel Leader," was now utterly subservient, not daring to lift her head.

"Your Majesty's Divine Might is unparalleled. This humble subject... this humble subject is reverent..."

This scene completely dumbfounded Su Lin and the others who had charged in.

Su Hongling's great sword clattered to the ground, denting the expensive warm jade floor tiles.

"This... this is being imprisoned?"

She pointed at Cold Moon, who was acting like a queen, and stammered.

"This is basically a vacation?!"

"Eldest Senior Sister?"

Luo Ximei also frowned, her heterochromatic eye filled with suspicion.

"You're not hurt?"

Hearing the sound, Cold Moon finally put down the memorial in her hand.

She slowly raised her head, and her eyes, deep and profound like a dark pool, passed through everyone and landed precisely on Su Lin, who was standing at the back.

At that moment.

The majesty in her eyes melted like ice and snow, replaced by an emotion that was extremely complex yet intense to the extreme.

The corner of her mouth curved slightly, revealing a smile that Su Lin was familiar with, yet felt somewhat strange.

"Revered Master."

She stood up from the soft couch, barefoot, stepping onto the animal hide rug, walking step by step toward Su Lin.

"You finally came."

"Your Disciple... has been waiting for you for a long time."

Su Lin looked at his Eldest Disciple walking toward him, and instead of the joy of reunion, an inexplicable chill rose in his heart.

Something is wrong.

Very wrong.

Although the Cold Moon before him was identical to his memory in Aura and appearance, that look... that gaze, as if a hunter was looking at prey caught in a trap, made his scalp tingle.

"Cold Moon."

Su Lin asked in a deep voice.

"What is going on here?"

"Gu Qiuyue said you were imprisoned and going to be sacrificed to heaven. Was that false?"

"Not entirely false."

Cold Moon walked up to Su Lin and stopped just one step away from him.

She was slightly taller than she was a hundred years ago. The Dragon Robe, when worn by her, did not look bulky but instead accentuated her perfect curves.

She reached out, wanting to touch Su Lin's face, but Su Lin instinctively dodged.

Cold Moon's hand froze in mid-air, a hint of gloom flashing in her eyes, but she quickly regained her smile.

"The imprisonment was real."

She pointed to the trembling Sima Rongrong behind her.

"She did launch a coup, and she did activate the Dragon Locking Great Formation."

"It's just that..."

Cold Moon chuckled softly, her tone carrying a hint of disdain.

"Her little schemes were already within my grasp."

"I merely... went with the flow and cooperated with her to put on a show."

"A show?" Su Lin frowned tightly. "Why?"

"For you, Revered Master."

Cold Moon's voice softened. She reached out again, and this time, she didn't give Su Lin a chance to dodge.

She grabbed Su Lin's wrist. The terrifying cultivation of the Late Stage Mahayana instantly erupted, forming an invisible Force Field that enveloped them both.

"If I hadn't put myself in a deadly situation, if I hadn't spread such tragic news..."

She stared into Su Lin's eyes, the madness within them finally undisguised.

"How else would you, my heartless Revered Master, be willing to crawl out of that tortoise shell and rush over countless miles just for me?"

"Do you know?"

She pressed closer to Su Lin, their breaths mingling.

"When I heard the news of your return, how much I wanted to rush over and find you immediately."

"But I held back."

"Because I needed to confirm one thing."

"To confirm... whether I truly hold a place in Revered Master's heart."

"Now, I have confirmed it."

She glanced at the four Junior Sisters behind Su Lin, who were full of Killing Intent and ready to rush up and snatch him away, and her smile became slightly distorted.

"You breached the Sea Eye for me, killed the Foreign Race, and dragged these four Burdens all this way..."

"Revered Master, you truly do care about me."

"Therefore..."

She pulled sharply, dragging Su Lin toward her.

"Since you've come, don't leave."

"This Nanyu Divine Dynasty, this vast territory, and me..."

"From today onward, all of it belongs to you."

Her fingertip traced Su Lin's chest, finally stopping at his neck, which already had three layers of 'Buffs' stacked on it, a trace of violence flashing in her eyes.

"And can only be mine."

"These messy marks..."

"I will help you clean them up, one by one."

As soon as her voice fell.

Four terrifying attacks simultaneously slammed into the invisible Force Field.

"Let go of Revered Master!!!"

Su Hongling's great sword, Luo Ximei's Demonic Light, Chu Weiwei's Poison Needles, Mu Qingxue's Ice Sword.

The four disciple completely exploded.

What is this supposed to be?

They risked life and limb to rush here and save her, only to save nothing?

How is she a victim?