9: The Peerless Emperor (Part 3)

Three months had passed since the storm of the Grand Examination.

During these three months, Wu Yun moved into a brand-new palace, living a life of luxury with attendants surrounding him every day. However, he never relaxed for a single moment.

Supported by that forgotten Cold Pond Spiritual Vein, the advantages of the Spirit Ice Soul Physique were utilized to the fullest.

Wu Yun's cultivation progressed at a tremendous pace, quietly climbing to the ninth level of the Qi Nurturing Realm.

However, the cultivation level he displayed to the outside world was the fourth level of Qi Nurturing.

Even so, the speed of breaking through three Realms in three months was still staggering.

Emperor Shenwu finally began to pay a modicum of attention to this son who had suddenly risen to prominence.

One early morning, an imperial decree broke the tranquility of Wu Yun's palace.

“By oral command of Your Majesty, the Thirteenth Prince, Wu Yun, is to prepare immediately to accompany the imperial carriage to the Royal Autumn Hunt in three days. There shall be no error. This is the imperial decree.”

The Old Eunuch delivering the decree finished reading with a fake smile, his gaze lingering on Wu Yun for a moment.

This seemingly immense honor was, in reality, a test.

Wu Yun's mind was as clear as a mirror.

Emperor Shenwu wanted to see with his own eyes whether he was a true Dragon that had successfully transformed by luck, or merely a vulnerable loach.

“This son obeys the decree.”

Wu Yun calmly accepted the decree, his heart without a ripple.

He was just lacking an opportunity, a stage where he could “reasonably” strike ruthlessly.

Meanwhile, inside the Seventh Prince's palace, the atmosphere was so gloomy it could practically drip water.

Wu Yun had taken all the limelight during the Grand Examination and gained Emperor Shenwu's “attention.”

This made him extremely jealous and also felt a hint of unease.

If Wu Yun truly rose up, there would likely be another rival for the position of Crown Prince.

“In the Royal Hunting Grounds, swords have no eyes. Every year, it's perfectly normal for a few people to die from offending nobles or having ‘accidents,’” a marquis's son who followed the Seventh Prince spoke sinisterly.

A flash of ruthlessness crossed the Seventh Prince's eyes.

“Exactly, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” He gritted his teeth. “I'll make that trash spit out everything he's swallowed!”

A hunting trap targeting Wu Yun was quickly planned and formed.

Three days later, the Royal Hunting Grounds.

Banners fluttered, and steeds neighed. Princes and children of the nobility were all dressed in martial attire, holding bows and arrows, brimming with high spirits.

Grand Marshal Xiang Tong, as the person in charge of the hunt, was clad in heavy armor and mounted on a magnificent black warhorse, his gaze sweeping across the field like a hawk.

The Seventh Prince's maternal clan possessed immense power and shared a close relationship with him.

Thus, he saw through the small maneuvers of the Seventh Prince and his group as clearly as fire, yet chose to turn a blind eye.

A prince who had risen through unknown heterodox means dared to oppose the iron-blooded national policy he advocated in a strategy essay; it was simply seeking death.

Moreover, if the Seventh Prince won the succession struggle, he would benefit greatly.

“The hunt begins!”

At Xiang Tong's command, hundreds of royal relatives and nobles, like tigers released from a cage, charged into the vast forest with a roar.

Wu Yun unhurriedly rode a common pony, blending into the back of the crowd.

Before long, he “unintentionally” heard two sons from marquis families talking loudly nearby.

“Have you heard? Someone saw an Ice Jade Grass over in Black Wind Valley!”

“Really? That's a Spirit Medicine that is of great benefit to cultivating ice-attribute techniques!”

Wu Yun sneered inwardly.

“It seems someone wants to get rid of me.”

This bait was too blatant, precisely targeting the hint of cold energy characteristics he had revealed during the Grand Examination.

These people truly thought they could deceive him as if he were a mere nine-year-old child.

But that was fine.

He needed a stage, an opportunity to truly make his mark.

Wu Yun quietly turned his horse's head, detached himself from the main group, and headed toward Black Wind Valley alone.

Black Wind Valley had treacherous terrain with a narrow entrance; the valley was filled with jagged rocks and remained hidden from the sun all year round.

As soon as Wu Yun stepped into the valley, the path behind him was completely blocked by seven or eight figures.

The leader was none other than the Seventh Prince.

Mounted on a tall horse, he looked down at Wu Yun with the playful mockery of a cat catching a mouse.

“Thirteenth Brother, you actually dare to come here alone to seek death?”

“Do you want to taste the Ice Jade Grass?” another young marquis mocked.

“Stop wasting breath on him. Today, right here, we'll beat him into a cripple and say he accidentally fell off a cliff!” the Seventh Prince said viciously.

He was already impatient to see Wu Yun's miserable appearance as he knelt and begged for mercy.

Facing the encirclement and mockery, Wu Yun didn't say a word, not even lifting an eyelid.

In his view, there was nothing to say to a group of people who were about to die.

“Go! Cripple him for me!”

The Seventh Prince drew the longsword from his waist and was the first to spur his horse forward, the sword's edge whipping up a fierce wind as it pierced toward Wu Yun's throat.

His strength at the fifth level of the Qi Nurturing Realm was fully revealed.

At the moment he moved, Wu Yun moved as well.

He didn't draw a sword, nor did he even dodge.

He simply fully released the Spirit Ice Soul Physique he had suppressed for a long time.

Buzz—

An invisible wave of extreme cold, centered on him, instantly swept through the entire valley.

The temperature in the air dropped abruptly, and the fallen leaves and damp soil on the ground condensed into a layer of eerie white frost at a visible speed.

Everyone's breath hitched, as if they were inhaling ice shards instead of air.

The tip of the Seventh Prince's sword could no longer advance an inch when it was still three inches from Wu Yun's skin.

Wu Yun looked up, and in those pitch-black pupils, there was no childhood innocence, only the coldness and indifference belonging to a Spirit Sect powerhouse.

He reached out his hand; the movement seemed slow, yet it struck second but arrived first.

That fair and tender palm bypassed the sword's edge at a strange angle and landed lightly on the Seventh Prince's chest.

“Bang!”

A muffled sound.

Crack!

That wasn't the sound of bones breaking, but the sound of the Seventh Prince's protective Qi being instantly frozen and then completely shattered.

The terrifying cold energy, like maggots on a bone, surged frantically into his Meridians.

The cruel grin on the Seventh Prince's face instantly froze, and he flew backward like a broken kite. While still in mid-air, he spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with ice shards.

He slammed heavily onto the ground, his body twitching, his Meridians shattered, and his cultivation completely destroyed.

One move.

With just one move, the Seventh Prince of the fifth level Qi Nurturing Realm was defeated!

The remaining people were all scared witless, the arrogance on their faces turning into endless terror.

“Run!”

Someone shouted, and everyone turned around, wanting to flee this terrifying place.

But would Wu Yun give them the chance?

His figure blurred, and he charged into the crowd like a phantom.

A marquis's son lunged from the side; without turning his head, Wu Yun struck back with an elbow.

“Crack!”

A crisp sound of a bone breaking exploded, and the man's arm bent backward at an impossible angle, his screams heart-wrenching.

Another person tried to run in fear but was caught by Wu Yun and kicked hard in the back of the knee.

The person screamed as they collapsed to their knees, the kneecap already pulverized.

Wu Yun's movements were concise, efficient, and lethal, every move aimed at the opponent's limbs and Dantian.

He didn't deliver a killing blow, but every strike was more painful than death.

The entire process took less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Inside the valley, the seven or eight royal relatives and nobles who had been so arrogant just a moment ago were now all rolling on the ground, wailing in pain, completely losing their fighting capacity.

Wu Yun stood in the center of the mess, his clothes spotless.

His cold gaze slowly swept over every “companion” groaning in pain on the ground, announcing his return.

Just then, a soft “thud” came from behind a large rock above the valley.

It seemed as if something had been dropped on the ground.

Wu Yun suddenly looked up.

His gaze, like two solid ice needles, instantly shot toward the source of the sound.

There, a young girl dressed in sleek martial attire and holding a longbow stood stiffly.

Her heroic face was now filled with unconcealable horror and shock, having clearly witnessed the entire bloody and shocking process by accident.

The Sixth Princess of the Shenwu Empire, Wu Chaoyang, who was famous for her martial talent and known for her aloof personality.

Their gazes met in mid-air.