811: Chapter 807: Sima Yun’s Strength 811: Chapter 807: Sima Yun’s Strength “No wonder…”
Ye Tian said with a bitter smile.
Ye Zhicang stopped him from killing Daichong because he feared provoking Tian Men.
A sect like Tian Men does not interfere in disputes between its disciples and outsiders.
Thus, if Sima Yun wanted to kill Ye Tian, he had to do it personally.
If Sima Yun failed, Tian Men would not make trouble for Ye Tian.
However, if Ye Tian killed Daichong, who served as the referee, the wrath of Tian Men would be inevitable.
That was why Ye Zhicang appeared suddenly to explain everything to him…
“But Sima Yun is acting strangely.
If he wants to kill me, why is he being so blatant about it?
Wouldn’t it be easier to assassinate me when the opportunity arises?”
Ye Tian voiced his confusion, and Ye Zhicang immediately explained, “Ye Tian, the reason you think so is because you haven’t considered things from Sima Yun’s perspective!
The truth is, when you and your Night King Hall killed Sima Feng, uprooted the Sima Family’s ancestral home, and destroyed their millennium-long plans, the entire Sima Family became a laughingstock.
Sima Yun and the remnants of the Sima Family were left with nowhere to go.
Out of desperation, Sima Yun brought his followers to temporarily reside at the Tian Shan, where Tian Men is located.
Yet even there, Sima Yun and his people had to tread cautiously, constantly under the watchful eye of Tian Men—a humiliating existence for a once-proud hero like Sima Yun!
Therefore, Sima Yun took this urgent assembly of Tian Men as an opportunity to publicly declare to all its disciples his enmity with the man who burned down the Sima Family’s sanctuary—Ye Tian.
He also vowed to kill you within a month!
This is Sima Yun’s only chance to establish his authority within Tian Men.
Only by killing you in front of everyone can he vent his anger and reclaim a foothold for himself and the Sima Family within Tian Men!”
“So it’s a matter of pride!”
Ye Tian muttered worriedly, his thoughts quickly turning to a more pressing concern.
“But, Ye Zhicang, when I destroyed the Sima Family’s sanctuary, I killed everyone and burned the entire estate to the ground.
There shouldn’t have been any clues left behind!
Ye Zhirong also assured me that the Sima Family’s remnants didn’t know it was me who did it.
So how does Sima Yun now know that I’m his enemy?
Could it be that there were survivors at the Sima Family’s sanctuary?
Or perhaps someone leaked the information?”
“Ye Tian, your concern is indeed the same as mine!”
Ye Zhicang’s expression darkened, his mood equally troubled.
“Initially, the Sima Family had no idea it was you and your martial artists from Night King Hall who annihilated their sanctuary.
Moreover, you incinerated everything, leaving no traces for them to identify your martial techniques.
Our intelligence was also clear: at least when Sima Yun brought the remnants of the Sima Family to Tian Men, they had no knowledge that you were behind it all.
Yet just recently, Sima Yun made an unshakable declaration to everyone that the Dark Lord of the Night, Ye Tian, was his sworn enemy.
This is indeed suspicious.
Who could have leaked the information?”
“…”
Ye Zhicang’s words deepened Ye Tian’s unease.
It wasn’t Sima Yun’s strength that worried Ye Tian most; rather, it was the identity of the person who leaked the information.
Who could it be?
Was it a martial artist from Night King Hall?
Highly unlikely!
The martial artists of Night King Hall were deeply loyal to him, connected to him by ties both physical and mental.
Betrayal was out of the question, and Ye Tian was confident in their faithfulness.
The only time Ye Tian had suffered betrayal was when Sima Feng used the Puppetry Technique to control Ye Xuong, who then poisoned and killed an important hostage.
But with Sima Feng dead and the jade flute now in Ye Tian’s possession, the Puppetry Technique was no longer a threat.
Without anyone to manipulate the martial artists of Night King Hall, betrayal was impossible.
Moreover, none of them would divulge such critical information to outsiders.
Could it be someone from the Ye Family?
That theory had some merit.
However, the entire Ye Family consisted of only four individuals—all of them elderly.
Could one of them truly have a reason to betray the alliance between the Ye Family and Night King Hall?
Ye Zhicang glanced at Ye Tian, reading something from his expression.
He immediately said, “Ye Tian, I know what you’re thinking.
On this matter, I can assure you that none of us four brothers have betrayed you!
Even after you infiltrated the forbidden grounds of the Ye Family and stole the tadpole-script records of our family’s history, neither the Clan Leader nor any of us leaked a single word about it.
So please, do not doubt us.
The Ye Family, too, has its pride.
If we were truly angered by your trespass, we would have taken action ourselves rather than relying on others!”
“Ye Zhicang, I’ve never doubted you,”
Ye Tian replied with a smile, breaking the tension between him and Ye Zhicang.
Ye Zhicang continued, “At this point, it no longer matters who leaked the information.
What’s important is your current adversary, Sima Yun.
You must understand that Sima Yun is far more formidable than Sima Feng.
If you don’t prepare diligently, you stand no chance of victory!”
“Is that guy really so strong?”
Ye Tian was stunned.
Though he had never crossed swords with Sima Yun, he understood Sima Feng’s strength well.
Sima Feng had indeed been powerful.
Killing him required Ye Tian to exhaust all his strength and rely on luck.
And while Sima Yun was Sima Feng’s elder brother, no matter how strong he was, he couldn’t be too far beyond Sima Feng, right?
After the battle with Sima Yun, Ye Tian had gained experience and grown stronger, likely surpassing Sima Feng’s level.
So why did Ye Zhicang believe he had no chance against Sima Yun?
“Ye Tian, I’m not deceiving you!
Don’t use Sima Feng’s strength to gauge Sima Yun’s power!
We four brothers have fought Sima Yun personally.
His strength is so overwhelming that even with all four of us and the aid of the divine beast Pixiu, we were no match for him!
Were it not for the Four Symbols Formation trapping him, Sima Yun would have broken the formation single-handedly!
He is a truly formidable warrior, and for now, you are no match for him!”
“That powerful?”
Ye Tian was slightly shocked by Ye Zhicang’s account.
If that were true, Sima Yun’s strength indeed surpassed his!
When Ye Tian was intercepted by Ye Zhihuan, Ye Zhiran, and Ye Zhirong, he had used his extraordinary perception to identify the weaknesses of the Four Symbols Formation, breaking through it.
But the formation Sima Yun had faced was complete, on an entirely different scale in terms of power!
Even with the aid of the powerful ancient divine beast Pixiu, the Ye Family had given their all but still failed to rival Sima Yun…
Fortunately, Sima Yun and the Sima Family’s goal had been to break the formation, not to kill the Ye Family Elders and the divine beast Pixiu.
That gave the Ye Family temporary reprieve.
And when Ye Tian and the martial artists of Night King Hall executed a stratagem to destroy the Sima Family’s sanctuary, it forced Sima Yun and the Sima Family’s main forces to retreat, seeking refuge in Tian Men…
Ye Zhirong added, “That’s the truth, Ye Tian.
Sima Yun is immensely strong because he’s been cultivating the force of nature for far longer than you have!
However, you have an advantage: your exceptional talent and ability to continually grow stronger in combat!
So, while the odds are slim, if you can swiftly enhance your strength, there’s a chance you could defeat Sima Yun!”
“Only a chance?”
Ye Tian smiled bitterly.
While Ye Zhicang was an ally, even he didn’t seem optimistic about Ye Tian’s upcoming duel against Sima Yun!
“Ye Tian, given your talent, if you train diligently during this time, you should at least be able to escape with your life against Sima Yun!
Tian Men’s ‘Slaughter Order’ does allow for stalemates, which is why they assigned a referee in the first place.
When both sides are evenly matched and exhausted, the referee may intervene!
This is a safeguard for those affiliated with Tian Men.
In a sense, it’s your opportunity!
Ye Tian, as long as the battle ends in a draw, the ‘Slaughter Order’ becomes void, and from then on, Sima Yun will have no means to harm you again!”
Ye Zhicang reminded him again, and Ye Tian immediately nodded.
“I see, no wonder you came to me specifically!”
To Ye Zhicang, the last thing he wanted was for Ye Tian to go to war with Tian Men.
With Tian Men’s immense power and their backing by the Divine Race, they were an insurmountable force.
No matter how strong Ye Tian became, provoking Tian Men was unwise.
Thus, Ye Zhicang hoped Ye Tian would follow his advice: focus solely on his duel with Sima Yun and avoid making enemies within Tian Men.
This was the only way for Ye Tian to preserve himself…
“The referee—was that the man who just fled?”
Ye Tian asked again, and Ye Zhicang nodded immediately.
“Yes, Daichong.
He’s an Inner Sect Disciple of Tian Men.
His strength isn’t as formidable as Sima Yun’s, but his Qinggong is exceptional.
He’s earned the nickname ‘Divine Travel Protector’!”
Ye Zhicang revealed Daichong’s reputation, leaving Ye Tian a bit puzzled…
“Ye Zhicang, you might not know this, but last time, this guy spied on me while I was training.
I chased him and managed to capture him with less than fifty percent of my power.
He only escaped by resorting to tricks.
But earlier, when I crossed paths with him, I realized that his energy had grown significantly stronger, completely incomparable to when we fought before.
Could it be that his strength has advanced so much in such a short time?”
Ye Zhicang immediately responded, “This is precisely the terrifying aspect of Tian Men!
In truth, within Tian Men, they have numerous elixirs capable of dramatically increasing a martial artist’s strength in a short period.
So, Ye Tian, imagine this—if your former defeated enemies consumed Tian Men’s elixirs and then rose against you collectively, how would you handle it?”