Sword Aura to the Heavens
Chapter 106 - 102 Emperor of Da Li

Chapter 106: Chapter 102 Emperor of Da Li

The inn where Li Fan was staying had two figures arriving at its entrance.

In the inn’s lobby, a young man glanced at the man beside him and said, "Sir, since you have an appetite, how about another bowl of noodles?"

"No need." The man shook his head, glanced around the surroundings, and then sat down at a spot in the middle, saying, "Everyone, if you could spare a moment, please avoid here for a while."

The people in the lobby turned their gaze toward the middle-aged man who spoke, all frowned slightly; some didn’t bother to respond, while others said, "Your request, sir, is somewhat impolite."

The middle-aged man said nothing, but an intangible pressure emanated from him, making everyone feel as if their hearts stopped beating for a moment, an extreme oppressiveness.

However, the pressure vanished as quickly as it appeared, but the crowd rose up swiftly and left the inn.

"Thank you." The young man smiled at those departing, and even the waiter, after glancing at the two, left quietly without lingering.

With disciples from Li Mountain staying at the inn, and now joined by two extraordinary individuals, they must be seeking that Li Mountain practitioner?

The departing crowd did not go far away; instead, they looked back towards the inn from other places, guessing that these two must be seeking the Li Mountain practitioner.

Who are they?

Wen Ruyu, residing in the inn’s backyard, opened his eyes, sword light shimmering.

Li Fan also awoke from his cultivation.

Who?

"Junior Brother, the arrival is powerful." Wen Ruyu’s voice came, and Li Fan nodded, knowing that since Senior Brother said they were strong, they must be very powerful indeed.

At least of the Sixth Realm, or even higher.

In Chuzhou City, there was no such cultivator.

Among those he knew, if not from Chuzhou City, then it is highly possible they came from the Da Li Imperial City.

However, the other party did not strike directly but arrived in this manner, seemingly not to kill him.

"Senior Brother, I’ll go take a look." Li Fan said.

"Okay." Wen Ruyu replied.

The two exited their courtyard at the same time and came to the inn’s lobby, where only the two were present.

Seeing Li Fan and Wen Ruyu arrive, the two lifted their heads, the young man’s eyes first falling on Li Fan, then on Wen Ruyu; they remained seated as if it was only natural to do so.

"Extraordinary temperament." The young man complimented upon seeing Li Fan’s handsome appearance, smiling, "Sit."

Li Fan sat opposite the young man, while Wen Ruyu stood behind him, his gaze resting on the middle-aged man, who looked up at him and said, "Wen Ruyu."

Wen Ruyu’s eyes were sharp, a formless Sword Intent flowing over him.

"No need to look at me like that. Although you are extremely talented, you’re still young and not my match. If your father were still around, I might have avoided." The middle-aged man said calmly, "But you, you still need time."

"I’ve long heard of Mr. Wen’s name, please have a seat." The young man still maintained courtesy. Wen Ruyu did not sit but quietly stood behind Li Fan.

The Sword Intent on him remained constant; at such close quarters, if the other dared to suddenly attack, although his cultivation might not compare to the middle-aged man, he could still kill that young man.

"Let me introduce myself first, my surname is Ye." The young man looked at Li Fan and said.

"Ye!"

Although he knew the visitor might be from the Imperial City, hearing the surname still stirred a wave within Li Fan.

Senior Sister also bore the surname Ye.

Thus, Li Fan naturally understood what this surname meant.

Da Li, the royal surname.

"Ye Yunke." The young man said.

"I came to find you firstly to meet you. Being capable of defeating Jiang Taie, even in that Imperial City, your talent should be at the very top; your path of cultivation is boundless."

"Secondly, I came here to recruit you."

Ye Yunke did not conceal his intentions for this visit, speaking outright.

"Alright." Li Fan nodded.

"Alright?" Ye Yunke paused, looking at Li Fan with surprise and a hint of interest.

"Aren’t you here to recruit me?" Li Fan said. "If so, can you sit on the throne and give it to my Senior Sister? Then I’ll join you, how about that?"

"Are you joking with me?" Ye Yunke squinted his eyes, looking at Li Fan.

"Are you joking with me?" Li Fan countered, eyes brimming with Sword Intent.

The relationship between the court and Li Mountain, recruiting him?

Did they want him to betray Li Mountain?

Ye Yunke looked at Li Fan, then laughed, saying, "Interesting."

"But don’t you really think that Li Mountain could stand against the entire Da Li Dynasty?" Ye Yunke mocked with a sneer.

"Li Mountain does not aim to stand against the entire Da Li Dynasty." Li Fan responded; it’s just the Da Li Dynasty’s court they are up against, and there’s a vast difference in that.

"Let’s say you’re right, even if it’s the court and the forces they can muster, what does Li Mountain have now to counter that?" Ye Yunke showed some disdain. "Even if the Li Mountain Sword Master were still alive, how many more years can he live? Without him, Li Mountain would have already been wiped out last time, and the court just used a fraction of its power."

"Li Mountain is no longer what it used to be."

"And even so, it’s just Li Mountain. Let alone talking about you; your talent is potent, but a genius not yet grown is not considered a genius, and you are just a talented disciple of Li Mountain."

Li Fan knew that there was some truth in what he said.

The Da Li Dynasty indeed only deployed a portion of its forces last time; the most powerful individuals of Da Li hadn’t arrived, the ’owners’ of the imperial court only sent some subordinates.

The reason there was no second attack might have been due to apprehension of the Li Mountain Sword Master’s presence.

For now, Li Mountain couldn’t produce a second Li Mountain Sword Master, so the court seemed not to be in a hurry.

What truly intimidated the court back then, in reality, may have been only two people: the Li Mountain Sword Master and the Grandmaster.

But one thing the other party was wrong about was that he was not merely a talented disciple of Li Mountain.

"I came with sincerity; if you are willing to submit to me, I can assure that my father will not pursue past matters, and I can settle issues with the Lingxiao Pavilion and the Jiang and Chu families for you." Ye Yunke continued, "Moreover, if you submit to me, you can also live in the imperial city with my cousin."

The Holy Empress Dowager lavishes much love on his cousin; if he could recruit Li Fan, perhaps Ye Qinghuang would also stand by his side, and the Holy Empress Dowager might reconsider him?

Moreover, Li Fan’s talent is outstanding, and given him a few decades, he would become another top Great Practitioner.

That would be a great assistance to him.

"The Emperor of Da Li should still be in his prime, right?" Li Fan looked at Ye Yunke; were these members of the royal family preparing so early?

"Certainly." Ye Yunke smiled, "Father is in his prime, fortifying Da Li’s rule, and naturally, we as sons would want to share his burdens."

"Very filial." Li Fan said with a smile, unclear if it was sarcastic.

But the struggle for royal power has always been brutal.

The current Emperor of Da Li must have more than just this one offspring.

Brothers as they might be, between princes there lies, in certain senses, enmity.

"Mr. Wen, you might also want to consider." Ye Yunke looked up at Wen Ruyu.

Wen Ruyu gave him a disdainful glance without replying.

Ye Yunke coming personally to recruit had thought he valued Junior Brother highly, seeing that Li Fan defeated Jiang Taie, but in reality, he had seriously underestimated.

Were he to know that Junior Brother had already inherited the ancestral sword of Li Mountain and assumed the position of Li Mountain Sword Master, he wouldn’t waste time here.

In the eyes of Ye Yunke and those from the imperial palace, Junior Brother was still viewed as merely a supremely talented sword cultivator of infinite potential.

But the truth is the entire Li Mountain exists to support Junior Brother’s path.

Ye Yunke’s recruitment and promises, even from a profit standpoint, were far from sufficient.

Moreover, regarding Junior Brother’s character, Wen Ruyu has never doubted since that incident years ago.

So, he abandoned his own pursuits, willingly supporting Junior Brother’s journey.

"If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading back first." Li Fan stood up and said.

"I came also to save your life." Ye Yunke said solemnly, and Li Fan continued to listen.

"Your Senior Sister has arrived at the imperial palace trying to protect your life; she indeed plays a deterrent role, but for those truly wanting to kill you, they would naturally have their means. You coming down Li Mountain, openly appearing in Chuzhou City, is a very daring act in itself. Even with Mr. Wen and possibly other Li Mountain sword cultivators in your presence, do you think that would be sufficient to secure your safety?"

"Then let them try?"

Li Fan said with just a word and then turned to leave, Wen Ruyu following him.

A pressure emanated from the middle-aged man, but Ye Yunke waved his hand, playing with the teacup on the table, watching Li Fan’s back with keen interest.

Where did Li Fan’s confidence come from?

Then, let’s try it!

"If you change your mind, come find me at the Chuzhou City Lord’s Office."

Ye Yunke placed the cup down and then got up and walked toward the outside.

On the street outside the inn, the rising sun shone high; in the distance, figures were rapidly approaching, and the crowd around the street watched these arrivals with inner turmoil.

The government officials.

And the one leading them was none other than the current Governor of Chuzhou, Meng Yong.

Last night, despite the demon’s invasion of Chuzhou City, this Lord Governor had not shown up, but now, he appeared here.

Besides the Governor of Chu State, the high-ranking officials of Chuzhou were all present.

Meng Yong came closer, looked at Ye Yunke, and numerous people behind him knelt on one knee.

"Governor of Chuzhou Meng Yong, salutes Your Highness." Meng Yong said loudly.

"Salute Your Highness." The people behind him echoed, leaving the street crowd in shock, all eyes fixated on Ye Yunke.

A prince of the Da Li Dynasty had come to Chuzhou City.

For Li Mountain’s sake.

Ye Yunke surveyed the crowd and asked, "Who is Sun Qian?"

Among those kneeling, Sun Qian’s pupils shrank, his head lowered, he replied, "Your Highness, this lowly one is Sun Qian, deputy commander of the Chu State Demon Slayer Bureau."

"I’ve heard from the city’s populace that you have colluded with demons?" Ye Yunke asked in a casual tone.

"Absolutely not." Sun Qian broke into a cold sweat. He had remained hidden behind the scenes during this incident, using the Chen family and those from the Wanxiang Sect to act, seeking to eliminate Li Fan.

However, he hadn’t anticipated that Li Fan would spread the news, divulging his collusion with demons throughout Chuzhou City.

"Since the citizens of Chuzhou City say you are, then naturally, there is a problem. Abolish his cultivation and take him back for investigation." Ye Yunke said calmly.

"Your Highness..." Sun Qian was shocked, but before he could retreat, Meng Yong turned, a palm landed on him, leaving him severely injured and collapsed, and people from the Demon Slayer Bureau surged forward to seize him.

Ye Yunke, as if nothing had occurred, walked toward the street.

Meng Yong led the team to follow.

The crowd around the street, with waves of emotions, found it hard to calm.

Was there another stir in Chuzhou City?

The court and Li Mountain were already mortal enemies!