The Emperor and his wife exchanged a glance.
Everything Dong Yuexian had just recounted far exceeded their expectations. It turned out that it was Qin Feiyang and his companions who had taken back their mother's remains.
"Is everything she said true?" the Divine Kingdom Master turned to look at Dong Ping and Dong Xin, asking.
Naturally, Dong Yuexian alone could not be fully trusted. After all, she was currently allied with the Inner Demon, and it was entirely possible she was fabricating stories to protect him and deceive them.
Faced with the Divine Kingdom Master's inquiry, Dong Ping remained silent. A silent struggle flickered in his eyes. If he now claimed that Dong Yuexian's words were false, would it provoke his grandfather's displeasure toward her? Doing so might possibly pave the way to avenge his eldest brother. However, Dong Xin was standing right beside him. To achieve the outcome he desired, he needed Dong Xin's cooperation. If she refused to help him, such a move could instead spell his doom.
Dong Xin glanced at Dong Ping, hesitated not a moment longer, and, raising her head to look at the Divine Kingdom Master, nodded. "Grandfather, what Yuexian said is the truth."
Hearing this, Dong Ping immediately turned his head and glared at Dong Xin.
"Although our relationship is good, I cannot lie and deceive Grandfather, Sixth Uncle, and Sixth Aunt just because of Dong Tianchen's death," Dong Xin said indifferently.
"You—" A furious rage churned inside Dong Ping, but feeling the cold gazes of Dong Yuexian and the Inner Demon, he forced it back down.
"Dong Ping, you might as well save it!" Dong Yuexian scoffed with a derisive laugh. With a wave of her hand, a Sovereign Divine Weapon materialized in the air—it was none of other than the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace!
Seeing the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace appear, cold sweat instantly broke out all over Dong Ping. Dong Yuexian might lie, but the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace could never lie, for it was Ji Suyi’s Sovereign Divine Weapon and had sworn a blood oath to her. Therefore, as long as the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace was present, he could not distort these facts. Instead, his lies would be thoroughly exposed by the furnace itself.
It was truly a fortunate escape. He had held his tongue just now; otherwise, the subsequent consequences would have been unimaginable.
"Is what Xian'er said true?" Ji Suyi looked at the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace and asked.
"It is true," the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace replied. "From the moment we entered the gates of the Secret Realm, it was Qin Feiyang and the others who protected us all along."
Hearing this, Ji Suyi turned to the Emperor and the Divine Kingdom Master, sighing, "It seems we owe them a massive favor!"
"Humph!" The Divine Kingdom Master let out a cold grunt. He could owe a favor to anyone, but absolutely not to these people, Qin Feiyang and his crew.
"You can't really call it owing them a favor," the Emperor said. "If not for us, they wouldn't have had the chance to enter the Secret Realm in the first place, so we're even."
"Are you certain we're even?" The Inner Demon sneered. "When we entered the gate of the Secret Realm, we faced that giant rat. Everyone could have entered smoothly, but your trusted aide Dong Qingyuan and Dong Hanzong, whom you always held in such high regard, actually startled the beast just as they were entering. If not for Qin Feiyang, Long Chen, the Big Brother, and that mysterious young man, not a single person—aside from Dong Qingyuan and Dong Hanzong—would have survived entering the Secret Realm."
"What?" Shock colored the Emperor's expression as he demanded angrily, "Dong Qingyuan and Dong Hanzong dared to pull such a stunt?"
"What else did you expect?" The Inner Demon mocked. "Two wolves with wild ambitions, yet you regarded them as your confidants and repeatedly shielded them. I truly admire your boundless generosity to the point of absolute awe."
Clenching his fists tightly, the Emperor looked toward the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace and asked, "Is this true?"
"Yes," the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace replied. "You shouldn't have been soft-hearted back then and let them enter the Secret Realm together."
"Scoundrels!" Fury made the Emperor's hair stand on end.
"Father, Dong Qingyuan and Dong Hanzong even wanted to kill me back then!" Dong Yuexian sighed.
"Where are they? I'm going to slaughter them!" the Emperor roared.
This time, his anger was genuine.
"I don't know," Dong Yuexian shook her head. "I didn't see them come out of the Secret Realm; they probably died in there."
"That lets them off too easily." Putting aside Dong Hanzong for a moment, take Dong Qingyuan alone. The Emperor had shown him indulgence and protection time and time again, yet never had she imagined that he would dare to harm her daughter. It was simply unforgivable.
"After we successfully entered the Secret Realm, we met in the Starry Sea. Originally, Qin Feiyang and the Madman intended to kill Xian'er, Dong Tianchen, Dong Ping, and Dong Xin, but because of me, they spared them," the Inner Demon continued. "Later, as we traversed the four major restricted zones and faced the various Beast Emperors, it was us who took care of them. Even the Profound Meanings of Law in Dong Tianchen and the others' hands were all gifts from us. To be honest, during all these years adventuring in the Secret Realm, aside from Xian'er, the rest of them were utterly useless."
The Inner Demon cast a look of utter disdain at Dong Ping and Dong Xin.
"Don't push your words too far!" Dong Ping raged.
"Isn't it the truth? Let me ask you, what did you ever do in the Secret Realm?"
"Conquering the Seven Stars Island was the credit of the Madman and Xian'er."
"Conquering the Ancient Relic Island was Qin Feiyang's credit."
"Conquering the Capital of Ferocious Beasts was also the credit of the Madman, Qin Feiyang, and the others."
"When we conquered Demon City, you did pitch in a bit, but to put it bluntly, your contribution was negligible."
"As for coming out of Demon City, that was entirely the credit of our family of three, and had nothing to do with you."
"You and your eldest brother Dong Tianchen are completely worthy of only one word: dead weight." The Inner Demon spoke with a sneer.
"Bastard!" Fury burning in his eyes, Dong Ping roared, "I want to duel you!"
"On the strength of your Undying Realm?" The Inner Demon looked thoroughly unimpressed.
"Shut up!" The Emperor glared at Dong Ping. Wasn't he embarrassing himself enough?
The Divine Kingdom Master looked at the Inner Demon and asked, "What were those places you just mentioned—Demon City, Ancient Relic Island, the Capital of Ferocious Beasts?"
"The Starry Sea is divided into four sea areas: the Southern Sea Area, the Eastern Sea Area, the Northern Sea Area, and the Western Sea Area," the Inner Demon answered coolly. "And in each sea area, there is a restricted zone, which are precisely Seven Stars Island, Demon City, the Capital of Ferocious Beasts, and Ancient Relic Island. These four restricted zones are either ruled by ferocious beasts and the Skeleton King of the New Realm, or they are places that even powerhouses of the New Realm dare not set foot in."
"You went to all four restricted zones?" The Divine Kingdom Master asked in alarm.
"Of course. How else could we have obtained so many Profound Meanings of Law?" The Inner Demon smiled proudly.
The Emperor asked in astonishment, "Just how many Profound Meanings of Law did you actually get?"
He had originally thought there were only a few on the Inner Demon and the others, but hearing this, it seemed far beyond that.
"How many? Beyond your imagination," the Inner Demon said. "Everyone who entered the Secret Realm this time got one. Xian'er even got two. As for the Profound Meanings of the Supreme Law, there are more than a dozen of them."
"What?" The Divine Kingdom Master and the Emperor and his wife were struck dumb with shock.
One for each person! And more than a dozen Profound Meanings of the Supreme Law—it simply defied imagination. Especially for the Emperor and his wife: when they entered the Starry Sea last time, they hadn't even found a single ordinary Profound Meaning of Law. By comparison, it was utterly humiliating.
"So, aside from the two Supreme Law Profound Meanings on you and Xian'er, all the other Supreme Law Profound Meanings are in the hands of Qin Feiyang and the others?" the Divine Kingdom Master asked.
"Yes," the Inner Demon nodded.
Upon hearing this, the Divine Kingdom Master's pupils constricted. The Emperor and his wife exchanged a helpless look. If Qin Feiyang and his companions all comprehended the Supreme Profound Truths and stepped into the New Realm, just how terrifying would they become?
Dong Yuexian waved her hand, and the Profound Meaning of the Law of Life materialized, floating right in front of the Emperor.
"Xian'er, what is the meaning of this?" The Emperor looked at Dong Yuexian with suspicion.
Dong Yuexian said, "Imperial Father, this Profound Meaning of Law was a gift to you from Qin Feiyang and the others."
"A gift to me?" The Emperor was stunned. Did people like Qin Feiyang have such kind hearts?
Dong Ping chimed in, "Sixth Uncle, don't listen to her nonsense. She must have begged them for it."
"Do you dare to talk nonsense with your eyes wide open?" Dong Yuexian flared up. "Ask Dong Xin and the Heaven and Earth Bronze Furnace if Qin Feiyang didn't actively let the Inner Demon hand this Profound Meaning of the Law of Life over to me!"
The Emperor looked toward Dong Xin.
Dong Xin glanced at Dong Ping and nodded. "It is indeed true that Qin Feiyang gave it to Yuexian of his own accord."
Hearing this, the Emperor glared at Dong Ping and raged, "If you dare to fan the flames again, don't blame me for being discourteous!"
Dong Ping's expression shifted, and he hastily lowered his head, his eyes burning with unwillingness.
"Although Qin Feiyang didn't explicitly say this Profound Meaning of the Law of Life was a direct gift to you, he knew that once I obtained it, I would certainly give it to you." Dong Yuexian moved to the heart of the matter, beginning to persuade the three of them. "Imperial Father, Mother, Grandfather, grievances are best resolved, not prolonged. Why don't we seize this opportunity to make peace with them? Doing so will be beneficial to them and to us alike."
Reaching the core of her objective, she began to urge the three of them.
"Make peace?" Hearing this, the Divine Kingdom Master flew into a rage. "Can Elder Yu's death be resolved with peace? Can the countless heinous crimes they committed in the Divine Kingdom be resolved with peace?"
"Grandfather, they certainly did many things in the Central Dynasty, but let us ask ourselves honestly: were these deeds truly heinous?" Dong Yuexian sighed. "They merely rose up to fight our Divine Kingdom for the sake of the living beings of the Tianyun World. And speaking of the Tianyun World, whose fault was all of this to begin with? Grandfather, do you have any idea how much devastation our invasion of the Tianyun World brought upon them last time?"
"Do you need to teach me how to do my job?" the Divine Kingdom Master snapped angrily, his patience wearing thin. "Has your spine grown too stiff now?"
"I am not teaching you, nor would I dare," Dong Yuexian lowered her head. "I merely hope that Grandfather, for the sake of Xiaoxi and me, can bury the hatchet with them."
"Impossible!" The Divine Kingdom Master shook his head decisively.
"Why must it be like this? Must it truly be a fight to the death?" Dong Yuexian pleaded. "Grandfather, even if you do not think of yourself, you must consider our Dong clan's kin and the billions of living beings in our Divine Kingdom. Can they withstand the ravages of such a war?"
"Judging by your tone," the Divine Kingdom Master sneered, "our Divine Kingdom is no match for Qin Feiyang and the others?"