"I understand. I will simulate a meridian system right now and re-cultivate the Startling Thunder Saber Art..." Ye Jingyu nodded seriously, then mobilized the Tyrant Origin Force within his body, directly manifesting the Eight Extraordinary Meridians internally. With a full inhalation, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth surged wildly into his body. In mere moments, a massive amount of True Qi condensed within him, quickly transforming into Innate True Qi. In the blink of an eye, he became an Innate Martial Master.

"I have a thousand-year-old Lingzhi and ginseng I got from the Gongsun family. Take them together and fake it until you reach the Grandmaster realm for now!" Seeing Ye Jingyu cultivate into an Innate Martial Master in just a few breaths, Liang Xiaoke’s eyes were filled with envy. He pulled out a ginseng root and a Lingzhi, handing them to Ye Jingyu...

Ye Jingyu accepted them without ceremony, swallowing the two spirit herbs. He used the Tyrant Origin Art to directly convert them into True Origin Force, which immediately gathered within the simulated Eight Extraordinary Meridians in his body. The medicinal power of these two spirit herbs was extremely potent, and the spiritual energy they contained was incredibly rich—it was equivalent to the cultivation power of a martial artist spanning several hundred years...

This directly propelled Ye Jingyu to the peak of the Grandmaster realm. If Ye Jingyu wished, he could even condense a True Elixir in his simulated Dantian...

This was the terror of the Chaos Body: absorbing all things, yet capable of containing all things.

He converted the excess medicinal power into Tyrant Origin Force, maintaining his whole being at the level of a Peak Grandmaster. His physical body showed no difference from any other Grandmaster; even a Martial Saint, or perhaps a Martial God, would be unable to detect any anomaly within him.

"Not good, someone is approaching. We must leave quickly..." At this moment, Ye Jingyu suddenly sensed several immensely powerful forces bearing down on them and spoke.

Liang Xiaoke also felt those powerful auras, knowing they were attracted by the lightning tribulation. Gongsun Lu was his trump card, and he couldn't let others discover her. Without another word, he followed Ye Jingyu and Ni Bo south.

When the Gongsun family members arrived at the location, there was not a single trace left behind. Even the layer of skin that Gongsun Lu had shed was casually destroyed by Liang Xiaoke. Besides a pile of ashes and severely damaged ground, there was nothing else.

Ye Jingyu and Liang Xiaoke traveled south, only to find the armies of the Tianyuan Empire everywhere. The entire Yanzhou province had completely returned to the control of the Tianyuan Empire, and even the rebellions had been entirely purged...

Seeing all this, Ye Jingyu dared not linger any longer and rushed toward Yunjing at full speed. However, when he arrived outside Yunjing City, he found at least thirty thousand troops completely encircling it—all of these belonged to Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan's forces...

Ye Jingyu was profoundly shaken. In the short span of just over a month since he left Yunjing, Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan had already advanced to the city walls. The speed was simply too fast! Even if his son marrying Gongsun Xiangyi was just a smokescreen and Luo Muoyan had been tricked, the collapse shouldn't have been this swift, right?

But he failed to understand that Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan had only spent a few days conquering Yanzhou. Luo Muoyan’s thirty thousand troops collapsed entirely. Afterward, the armies led by Xiao Geng and Qin Yunxiao were routed in a single battle by Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan. Only Zhuge Yishi, leading the Iron Army, managed to halt Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan’s advance.

Yet, when Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan personally entered the fray, breaking Zhuge Yishi's successive formations with his overwhelming personal strength, the Iron Army also declared its defeat.

After all, a single Martial Saint was enough to alter the outcome of a war, let alone someone who very likely surpassed the Martial Saint realm.

Over these years, no matter what difficulties Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan faced, he never allowed his personal combat power to dictate the course of the war. At their level, commanding warfare was also a process of mental cultivation; they wouldn't resort to brute force to crush opponents. But this time, his personal intervention suggested that besides the increased pressure at Storm City demanding a swift resolution, the greatest factor was likely the pain of losing a son.

Even a figure like Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan could not remain entirely devoid of emotion.

However, even with thirty thousand troops, preventing Ye Jingyu and Liang Xiaoke from entering the city was utterly impossible. Ye Jingyu possessed the Chaos Body; if he wished, he could completely conceal his aura. Liang Xiaoke, on the other hand, had no life energy fluctuations to begin with, and he was skilled in Earth Evasion techniques. Even Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan himself would find it difficult to detect them.

The two infiltrated Yunjing City directly and arrived at Ye Jingyu’s mansion. Seeing that Gongsun Xiangyi and the others had already returned, the tension in Ye Jingyu’s heart finally eased.

Learning about the recent events from Lin Xiaoyi, Ye Jingyu was secretly alarmed by Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan’s terrifying might. Still, only when he heard that Luo Ruofeng, Zhuge Yishi, and the others, though defeated, had all safely returned to Yunjing did he truly relax...

Furthermore, Lin Xiaoyi informed Ye Jingyu that the Emperor had issued an edict: as soon as he returned, he was to immediately enter the palace for an audience.

With Yunjing City in imminent danger, Ye Jingyu knew time was critical. He didn't have a moment to secretly check on Luo Ling'er and headed straight for the Imperial Grand Hall.

Inside the Imperial Grand Hall, Luo Xiaofeng, clad in a bright yellow dragon robe, sat upon the Dragon Throne, his face etched with gloom.

Crown Prince Luo Haitian, Prince Yong'an Luo Ruofeng, the Seventh Prince Luo Xiaoyuan, along with Marquis Baiyun Qin Yan, Marquis Xiaotian Qin Yunxiao, Marquis Wei Wu Xiao Geng, and all the civil and military officials stood on either side of the hall. Every face showed alarm and deep worry; even Zhuge Yishi had been summoned to the hall.

To demonstrate his respect for the Zhuge family, Luo Xiaofeng had bestowed a specially crafted chair upon him—an unprecedented honor in the Southern Cloud Empire, and even in the former iteration of the Shuyun Kingdom.

After all, the Zhuge family stood as the head of the scholarly path. Moreover, the recent defeat of the Iron Army was not due to Zhuge Yishi’s inferior strategy, but rather the overwhelming personal combat power of Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan. When one person's strength exceeds the limit by such a margin, all strategy and maneuvering become useless.

The entire hall was utterly silent. Faced with the siege of thirty thousand troops outside the walls, no one dared to step forward at this critical moment to further provoke the already enraged Luo Xiaofeng...

"Tell me! How long has it been? Less than a month, and they've already advanced from Lanzhou all the way to Yunjing! Aren't you all self-proclaimed new Gods of War? What use are you to me now that you're useless? I nurture you for what purpose?" Luo Xiaofeng was on the cusp of breaking through to the Martial God realm, but at this most crucial juncture, Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan arrived with thirty thousand troops at the city gates, forcing him to emerge from seclusion prematurely. How could this not incite his fury?

Faced with Luo Xiaofeng’s roar, no one dared to speak. Xuanyuan Xiao Zhan was simply too strong, whether in military tactics or personal combat prowess, he had reached the apex of the known world. Even if someone on their side could match him in strategy, their high-end combat strength was nowhere near a match...

A figure like that was almost invincible. Who would dare to take on the burden?

"Report! Loyal and Brave Earl Ye Jingyu requests an audience..." At that moment, the eunuch Yan Lun's voice sounded from outside the doors. Everyone froze, especially Luo Xiaofeng, whose face instantly broke into a flicker of joy...