"Your Majesty, please rest assured. If the Witch Fiend Sect ever betrays you, I ask you to be the first to kill me."

Ling Chen knew that at this moment, he absolutely could not be ambiguous. When it was time to make a statement, he could not leave even a hint of ambiguity. He had to completely reassure the Empress Yunyao to preserve the Witch Fiend Sect.

Otherwise, if the Empress Yunyao got angry, it would be just a wave of her hand to destroy the Witch Fiend Sect right now.

"Very well, I will trust you this time."

This allowed Ling Chen to breathe a sigh of relief. He originally thought it would take some effort to reassure the Empress Yunyao, but he didn’t expect her to trust him so readily.

It seems this Empress indeed places great importance on him.

Actually, the Empress Yunyao’s confidence wasn’t in his strength. After all, his strength wasn’t that formidable; rather, she believed he could control the entire Witch Fiend Sect. Of course, mainly he could control Xia Yunxin.

However, after this great war, the Empress Yunyao must have also seen that the relationship between Ling Chen and Xia Yunxin was not ordinary; they definitely weren’t just a normal couple. Their bond was so rare—that they were willing to sacrifice their lives for each other—so why wouldn’t she be reassured?

"Now that the matter is resolved, I won’t linger. Ling Chen, take care of yourself."

The Empress Yunyao looked at Ling Chen, "I have high expectations of you. Do not let me down."

After speaking, she instructed Liu Chengyuan and Liu Mengru, "Let the Liu Family’s forces temporarily station nearby to prevent that Ling family from launching a surprise attack."

"As you command."

Liu Chengyuan and Liu Mengru bowed in response.

With a "swish," the Empress Yunyao turned around, and in an instant, she was back on the massive Dragon Boat.

The colossal Dragon Boat started moving slowly, turned its bow, and entered the clouds, leaving this horizon with two escort warships from the Royal Guard Army.

Only then did Liu Chengyuan and Liu Mengru raise their heads. Although they didn’t believe the Ling family had the audacity to defy the Empress Yunyao’s orders and launch a surprise attack, to be safe, it was best to stay vigilant. After all, what if Ling Yi lost his mind?

Moreover, Liu Chengyuan also wanted to stay to chat with his nephew, whom he had never met before.

...

After this fierce battle with the Ling Family Army, the Witch Fiend Sect lost more than thirty percent of its strong warriors, and about thirty percent were injured to varying degrees, resulting in significant losses. However, fortunately, the top-tier combat power didn’t suffer much, and several Saints were still alive and well.

However, Xia Yunxin was seriously injured this time and returned to the Witch Mountain Blood Sea as soon as the war ended.

The time needed for her recovery this time is likely to be much longer than before.

Initially, Xia Yunxin left seclusion hastily, and her strength hadn’t fully recovered to her peak. She was also severely injured by Ling Yi’s Seven Ancestral Swords, harming her foundation.

What worried Ling Chen was that even if Xia Yunxin could come out of seclusion this time, it would be difficult for her to return to her peak state.

As Xia Yunxin re-entered the Witch Mountain Blood Sea to cultivate, all matters of the Witch Fiend Sect naturally fell to the Left Guardian. Spirit Snake Island entered a state of reconstruction, with countless buildings and array formations destroyed in the previous great war. These needed to be completely rebuilt, which would naturally take a considerable amount of time.

As for Ling Chen, although he didn’t involve himself in matters of the Witch Fiend Sect, the entire sect had a trend of considering Ling Chen as its leader. This was not only because Ling Chen played a crucial role in preserving the Witch Fiend Sect during the great war but, more importantly, because of his relationship with Xia Yunxin.

If Xia Yunxin was regarded as the Sect Leader of the Witch Fiend Sect, then Ling Chen’s status was somewhat akin to that of the Sect Leader’s spouse.

Of course, Ling Chen himself would never acknowledge such a status, yet in the minds of many, this was already the prevailing thought.

Spirit Snake Island, Central Hall.

In a courtyard, Ling Chen, Liu Chengyuan, and Liu Mengru sat around a stone table.

"To think that in just a few short months, you have grown to such a level. Your mother, if she knew, would surely be relieved. She has always been concerned about your safety."

Liu Chengyuan looked at Ling Chen, a very satisfied expression on his face.

"Indeed, my aunt isn’t aware that Ling Chen is Ling Yu. If she knew, she’d certainly be overjoyed," Liu Mengru added with a smile.

"Uncle, how is my mother faring now?"

Mentioning Liu Xiling, a gleam appeared in Ling Chen’s eyes. The last time he saw his mother Liu Xiling was when she was taken by Liu Feng’s people. Now, two or three years have passed, and he wonders how Liu Xiling has been doing.

"Her situation has never been great, being pressured by her family to marry someone she doesn’t love. How could anyone be alright with that?"

Liu Chengyuan shook his head, then smiled, "However, fortunately, you exist, and those old folks never managed to remove you as an obstacle, preventing the marriage alliance between the Xing and Liu families from progressing."

"And now you’ve caused such a stir, throwing the Ling family into chaos. Within three days, your name will spread across the Nine Provinces Land. The old folks in the Liu family will soon hear about this, making things even more difficult for them."

The current Ling Chen is vastly different from before, being a talent favored by the Empress Yunyao and closely related to the Witch Fiend Sect. Now, those old folks in the Liu family would face double risks of offending both the Witch Fiend Sect and the Empress Yunyao if they attempted to remove Ling Chen.

As a family that supports the new faction of the Empress Yunyao, the Liu family could neither become enemies with the Witch Fiend Sect nor offend the Empress Yunyao.

So long as Ling Chen remains, attempting to forcibly arrange a marriage wouldn’t only be a loss of face for both families, but Ling Chen would surely not tolerate his mother being oppressed. In doing so, the two families must consider whether Ling Chen would seek revenge in the future. Given Ling Chen’s growth speed, his future promotion to a Saint is almost certain. Unless he falls prematurely, he is destined to become a formidable Sword Saint.

"That’s good. My mother at the Liu family, I must trouble you and my cousin to take care of her."

Hearing that Liu Xiling was temporarily alright, Ling Chen also breathed a sigh of relief. He was someone who could never tolerate his loved ones being wronged.

"Rest assured. But as for you, young man, you must protect yourself well."

Liu Chengyuan advised Ling Chen seriously, "You have made quite a few enemies among the great families. As they say, ’the tree that stands out is the one the wind blows down.’ You are the champion of the Heavenly Sword Conference and known as the number one of the younger generation in the Nine Provinces. In the shadows, there are unknown numbers eyeing you, not just wanting to seize your fortunes but also wanting to rob your destiny and replace you."

"Although the Witch Fiend Sect isn’t weak, in the vast Nine Provinces land, it’s not considered a particularly powerful force. Now, with the Witch God in seclusion, uncertain of when he will emerge, you don’t have many resources to rely on."

"I understand."

Ling Chen nodded. He naturally knew that excess would lead to loss. For the mysterious and unpredictable Nine Provinces land, a sense of reverence was required. Ling Chen did not believe himself to be the number one genius of the Nine Provinces because, while openly the Nine Great Families seemed the strongest, many forces stronger than them actually existed.

Such as the Taiqing Palace mentioned earlier by Liu Mengru.

Or the emaciated elder who took away Ling Yin, belonging to the ancient "Heavenly Eye Clan."

This shows that what Ling Chen saw of the Nine Provinces land was only the tip of the iceberg, and the true world was far more vast than he imagined.