CHAPTER 608: 608 THE MISCALCULATING EMPRESS DOWAGER

"Chi Yan!"

Before Xuan Jiuding and the Xuantie Army soldiers could react, Yun Xiao sensed a familiar aura and suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder, the small figure radiating intense heat landing there.

"Squeak Squeak!"

It was none other than the Fire Cloud Rat Chi Yan, standing upright on Yun Xiao’s shoulder and emitting two sharp squeals.

"Chi Yan, you stay at the entrance of this great hall. Don’t be as foolish as that big guy!"

Seeing this, Yun Xiao couldn’t help but rejoice, casting a somewhat helpless glance at the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion before giving his shoulder a shake, and Chi Yan soared into the air.

Whoosh...

After being shaken off by Yun Xiao, the palm-sized Vein Demon, which was a rat, swelled against the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it transformed into a massive creature two to three zhang in length that almost blocked the entire hall entrance.

"Eh? The cultivation level of this little fellow..."

Not until Chi Yan grew in size did Yun Xiao sense the Demon Meridian Qi’s cultivation level. It had apparently soared dramatically in this period and had reached the middle level of the Sixth Rank.

In fact, after the annihilation of the Song Family, Yun Xiao hadn’t seen Chi Yan in the Jade Pot Courtyard, but who would have thought that at this critical moment, the latter would suddenly appear before him and even give him a pleasant surprise.

A middle-level Sixth Rank Vein Demon had combat power that was much stronger than a cultivator in the Spirit Vein Realm Middle Stage. Moreover, as Chi Yan belonged to the Fire Cloud Rat with extraordinary bloodline, its combat power was astounding.

Crack Crack Crack...

As Chi Yan guarded the entrance of the great hall, it swung its claws non-stop, and bodies of Xuantie Army soldiers fell, with no one able to withstand a single blow from Chi Yan.

With this, Yun Xiao finally breathed a sigh of relief. At last, there was some time for him to recover his Meridian Qi. As the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique activated, the Heaven and Earth Energy in the air was gradually absorbed into his body, flooding through all the major meridians.

This was the greatest advantage of the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique. Although the Cultivation Technique’s speed of cultivation wasn’t fast, its ability to recover Meridian Qi was unparalleled by any other technique in the world.

Splash!

However, just as Yun Xiao wanted to recover more Meridian Qi, a loud noise suddenly came from behind him, causing his head to swivel around immediately.

At the top of the great hall, tiles and wooden debris flew all around. Then, a figure descended from the sky, aiming straight for Xuan Haoran, who was sitting cross-legged on the bedstead, regaining his strength.

"Damnable!"

Yun Xiao was startled at the sight, recognizing the figure—it was the Empress of the Xuanyue Imperial Family whom he had met once before. No, now she should be referred to as the Empress Dowager.

Although Yun Xiao had only seen Nie Yi once when he cured Xuan Jing, he was acutely aware of her imposing strength, having etched it deep into his bones—and he knew that Nie Yi’s power was not inferior to the formerly mighty Xuan Haoran.

The one arriving was none other than the Empress Dowager Nie Yi. After receiving the report about the Xuan Jiuding, knowing that something had changed, she did not lose composure on the spot. Taking advantage of the Xuantie Army’s siege on Yun Xiao outside, she secretly manoeuvred her way, entering through the broken roof of the great hall.

Naturally, Nie Yi’s target wasn’t Yun Xiao. As she broke into the hall, she saw Xuan Haoran sitting cross-legged and recognized the urgency of not allowing him to regain strength, as that would mean a lost cause.

Fortunately, at this moment, Xuan Haoran seemed to be at a critical juncture, and even as Nie Yi descended from the sky, he gave no reaction nor any attempt to dodge, which delighted and shocked her.

Nie Yi believed that as long as Xuan Haoran was killed, all her and her son’s actions would remain concealed. They could explain it however they wanted once Xuan Haoran, the person involved, was dead.

Moreover, given such a distance, Nie Yi believed that even if Yun Xiao saw her, he wouldn’t be able to come to the rescue in time. Under her single strike, the husband she had spent many years with would meet his end.

Swoosh...

However, just as Nie Yi was about to smash her palm into Xuan Haoran’s critical spot at the top of his head, expecting to have her way, a streak of black light suddenly flew at high speed, aiming precisely for the delicate spot between her palm and Xuan Haoran’s head.

Even though Nie Yi’s heart was set on killing Xuan Haoran first, she was clear that if she ignored the incoming attack, she might not be able to keep her hand any longer.

And even losing her hand, she might not be able to kill Xuan Haoran, so Nie Yi very quickly made a decision. With a swift change in posture, she executed an extremely exquisite movement technique and dodged the black light’s strike.

"Little bastard, ruining my perfect plans again!"

When Nie Yi turned her gaze to see what that streak of black light was, she was secretly relieved she dodged in time, but she couldn’t help but curse out loud.

That black light was clearly the Dragon Taming Sword controlled by Yun Xiao. During the previous Countries Hidden Dragon Conference, Nie Yi had witnessed the power of this wooden sword. She knew that if she hadn’t drawn back her hand just then, it might have ceased to exist.

Yet the attack she was determined to land was still thwarted by Yun Xiao. How could Nie Yi’s mood possibly improve? This was what she considered a flawless plan, ruined in an instant, all because of this immensely annoying kid. She just couldn’t swallow this indignity no matter what.

However, Nie Yi ultimately remembered her purpose for coming. Yun Xiao, a cultivator in the late stage of the Spirit Vein Realm, who had wiped out the three major families of the Imperial City, even with her extreme confidence, knew she wouldn’t be able to take him down in the short term.

"You will die!"

So as Nie Yi’s eyes spun and she shouted out, she was already striking out with her palm towards Xuan Haoran once again. In her mind, the wooden sword was Yun Xiao’s most powerful weapon. This time, the attack couldn’t possibly come in time to interfere, could it?

Swoosh...

What Nie Yi didn’t expect was that the Dragon Taming Sword, already refined by Yun Xiao, was no ordinary weapon. Under Yun Xiao’s control, it could turn in the air.

Another streak of black light flashed by, and this time, the Dragon Taming Sword’s target was shockingly Nie Yi’s vital spot at her back, forcing her to abandon all other thoughts. As for Xuan Haoran’s life, naturally, it was saved once again.

At the same time, Yun Xiao had already arrived in front of the bed. Looking at the Empress Dowager, who looked somewhat familiar, a glint flickered in his eyes.

"With me here, you will never succeed!"

Yun Xiao’s voice was calm and contained a trace of extreme confidence, which finally eradicated the last bit of hesitation in Nie Yi’s heart.

Since she couldn’t kill Xuan Haoran first, she might as well take the life of this detestable kid. Nie Yi knew that everything, every failure, was because of Yun Xiao. If not for this kid, how could her son have ended up this way? How could her plans suffer defeat repeatedly?

At this moment, Nie Yi seemed to forget about Yun Xiao’s achievements during this period. Her own strength might not necessarily surpass that of the Family Heads of the three major families of the Imperial City. Even now, with Yun Xiao’s Meridian Qi severely depleted, she couldn’t simply declare his death.

Descending from the Lingtian Empire’s Royal Family, Nie Yi’s fighting methods were somewhat different from those of the Xuan lineage. After several moves, what Yun Xiao saw in Nie Yi was a shadow of Nie Qianqiu.

Yun Xiao didn’t know that the Empress of Xuanyue Country before him was actually the paternal aunt of Nie Qianqiu, the Crown Prince of Lingtian. Regardless of whether it was Nie Qianqiu or the woman before him, he had no fondness for either, naturally not showing any mercy.

"Damn it, how can this kid be so powerful?"

As time passed, Nie Yi felt her Meridian Qi running slower, as if a special aura was continuously emanating from this young man. No, it wasn’t just one kind of aura, but several.

Whether it was Yun Xiao’s Fire Attribute Ancestor Vein or the Ice Cold Attribute Ancestor Vein, they would augment Yun Xiao in combat, making his efforts twice as effective, especially when fighting against cultivators of the same rank or lower-level practitioners. This impact was even more significant.

Although Nie Yi’s cultivation was a minor realm higher than Yun Xiao’s, whether during her time as a princess in the Lingtian Empire or as the Empress in the Xuanyue Imperial Family, the number of times she fought was exceedingly few.

With these two identities, who would dare disrespect Nie Yi? Even King Xuan Haoran of Xuanyue Country probably wouldn’t dare to raise his voice to her, right?

This battle against Yun Xiao could be considered Nie Yi’s first full-force fight in decades, and compared to the battle-hardened Yun Xiao, her lack of combat experience was finally showing.

It’s like a brawl between ordinary people; a husky man who exercises daily, when faced with a skinny person who fights regularly, the victor is likely to be the latter, without a doubt.

Furthermore, even when facing cultivators who battle daily, with Yun Xiao’s methods and combat power, he would not be at any disadvantage. The only reason this has been drawn out was because of his severe earlier exertions and some internal injuries.

"This place is no longer safe, it’s best to make a getaway!"

The more Nie Yi fought, the more terrified she became, knowing that with Yun Xiao here, she couldn’t possibly kill Xuan Haoran. Moreover, if the delay was too long, even escaping would become incredibly difficult.

Swoosh!

Nie Yi employed some unknown method without directly breaking through the palace doors because there was the Fire Cloud Rat Chi Yan. She threw out her hand, and a nearly invisible thread shot up into the sky, carrying her body up through the broken hole in the dome from which she had descended, and she leaped out.

Yun Xiao could not fly, so he could only watch as Nie Yi soared into the sky, finally disappearing atop the grand hall. But just at that moment, a burst of astonished cries suddenly came from outside the hall, making his gaze involuntarily look outside the doors.

And with that look, a flicker of surprise burst in his eyes, thinking that today’s fierce battle would likely end soon.