Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

Of course, it wasn’t a blind guess, but a deduction. Lu Chao had never met the Dragon Flame King.

He had also never heard that the Dragon Flame King was a Martial Arts Powerhouse—after all, even Sun Shijin hadn’t known.

But...

A powerhouse whom Marquis Yin Ye trusted completely, one brought directly to the rear mountain of Dragon Flame Academy without going through Sun Shijin.

Besides the Dragon Flame King, there was almost no one else who fit that description.

As for an old disciple of the Azure Flame Sect...

This had also astounded Lu Chao just moments ago, because Marshal Fan had never mentioned such a formidable old disciple from the Azure Flame Sect.

Which meant...

Marshal Fan was also unaware that such an old disciple of the Azure Flame Sect still existed in this world.

Combine that with the fact that forty years ago, the Dragon Flame King, then just a Dragon Flame Prince, had vehemently opposed the destruction of the Azure Flame Sect.

Add to that how the Dragon Flame King had tacitly allowed Marquis Jilong to protect the Descendants of Azure Flame and even given them a land to survive on, and you could deduce, step by step, the true identity of the black-robed man before him.

But clearly, the Dragon Flame King’s identity as an old disciple of the Azure Flame Sect had never been made public.

At Lu Chao’s words...

The Dragon Flame King revealed an exceedingly kind smile, but his gaze gradually grew profound.

He slowly looked at Sun Shijin and replied softly, ”Yes. I am, in fact... a disciple of the Azure Flame Sect.”

Sun Shijin’s jaw dropped, his mind reeling in a momentary daze.

”As of now, the only people who know I am an old disciple of the Azure Flame Sect are you three, plus Dongfang Ren.”

”Before today, not a single person in this world knew, not even Senior Brother Fan.”

”Yin Ye, too, only just found out.”

As the Dragon Flame King spoke, the pupils of both Lu Chao and Sun Shijin constricted sharply, their eyes flashing with utter disbelief.

As for Yin Ye, he gave a quiet, wry smile...

’Today, the King suddenly summoned Dongfang Ren and me to a secret chamber, and then he even fought him.’

’Only after that did I learn that the King was actually an old disciple of the Azure Flame Sect.’

One could only imagine how shocked Yin Ye must have been at that moment—so shocked his jaw could have hit the floor.

The Dragon Flame King smiled faintly and sighed. ”It’s a pity I lost. My True Qi Realm is higher than Dongfang Ren’s, but I haven’t been in a fight for a full forty years. My combat experience is far worse than his.”

This statement once again left Sun Shijin completely dumbfounded.

’The Dragon Flame King’s realm is even higher than Dongfang Ren’s? But he’s the acknowledged number one powerhouse in the Hundred Countries!’

”Now, let me tell you my story.”

The Dragon Flame King began softly, ”Forty years ago, I was a very unremarkable Dragon Flame Prince. But I became the Closed-door Disciple of the Azure Flame Sect Leader. My master told me not to tell anyone.”

”At the time, my master said the Azure Flame Sect would face a terrifying crisis, and he asked if I was willing to become his disciple.”

The situation was simple. It was a small gamble on the part of the Azure Flame Sect Leader, taking an unremarkable prince as his disciple.

He was betting on a chance for the Azure Flame Sect to avoid annihilation.

But in the end, it wasn’t enough. Forty years ago, the Dragon Flame King was a man of little influence; though he vehemently objected, he was unable to change the outcome in any way.

Later, he gradually rose to power and became the King of the Dragon Flame Kingdom.

But the pressure from all sides was too great. He could only cultivate in secret, unable to publicly reveal his status as a disciple of the Azure Flame Sect.

Even now, it cannot be revealed...

Otherwise, the Six Great Flame Countries would surely use it as a pretext to send troops and attack the Dragon Flame Kingdom.

Powers like the Saint Bone Zheng Family would also apply all sorts of pressure. Even when he had wanted to help the Descendants of Azure Flame, he couldn’t do so openly. He had to weigh many different factors.

”But now, the situation has changed. The Dragon Flame Academy has finally seen a glimmer of hope.”

”The Six Great Flame Countries today have been weakened by the war between the Great Wu Empire and the Hundred Countries. This is the perfect time to re-establish the Azure Flame Sect.”

As he finished speaking, the Dragon Flame King’s voice grew gradually deeper...

But a flicker of doubt crossed Lu Chao’s eyes. He asked softly, ”Martial Uncle, you want to re-establish the Azure Flame Sect?”

’From his position as the Dragon Flame King, it seems he shouldn’t be the one re-establishing the Azure Flame Sect.’

’After all, the Azure Flame Sect of forty years ago stood above the Hundred Countries. Even if the Dragon Flame King is an old disciple, he of all people shouldn’t be thinking of reviving it.’

”The Azure Flame Sect must be re-established. Otherwise, this land of ours will be plunged into devastation, and a great disaster will befall us,” the Dragon Flame King said, his gaze distant.

At his words, even Sun Shijin and Yin Ye were left speechless.

Lu Chao, of course, was also baffled. ’Why would there be a great disaster just because the Azure Flame Sect is gone?’

Taking a deep breath...

The Dragon Flame King suddenly asked Lu Chao, ”Do you know what the Heavenly Destiny World is like beyond Great Wu, the Hundred Countries, and Nanye?”

Sun Shijin jumped in to answer. ”Beyond is Cyan Sword Mountain, and past that is the Cyan Sword Great Empire.”

The Cyan Sword Great Empire lay to the north of Great Wu, the Hundred Countries, and Nanye. This was practically common knowledge.

But for the most part, no one from their lands had ever made contact...

As for the other directions, there were only deep mountains and old-growth forests, even more mysterious and leading to unknown destinations.

”Then do you know how large the Cyan Sword Great Empire is?” the Dragon Flame King asked again.

Sun Shijin and Yin Ye exchanged a blank look.

They had no idea. The Cyan Sword Great Empire had heavily garrisoned Cyan Sword Mountain, making it impossible for anyone from their lands to cross.

Anyone who tried to get past was either driven away or killed.

Some had managed to get through, but they were never heard from again...

But at this moment, Lu Chao answered softly, ”It is said that the Cyan Sword Great Empire could conquer us with ease... and that it’s at least ten times the size of the Great Wu Empire.”

At this, both Sun Shijin and Yin Ye looked at Lu Chao in surprise, astonished that he knew this.

Of course, Lu Chao knew. This was something Lu Dingtian had once told him.

It was due to the mystery of Lu Chao’s origins; he possessed three Saint Bones, yet his background was untraceable. This naturally led to the suspicion that he was from outside their region, possibly from the Cyan Sword Great Empire itself.

Thus, he had also searched for a great deal of information about the Cyan Sword Great Empire, but the records were few and far between.

A great deal of information had been lost over long years of war.

”More than that. The Cyan Sword Great Empire is even larger than ten Great Wu Empires.”

”But why haven’t they conquered us? Why haven’t they taken this land for their own?”

The Dragon Flame King said this while staring intently at Lu Chao and Sun Shijin.

Yin Ye’s pupils instantly shrank. He answered swiftly, ”Because... of the Azure Flame Sect’s existence?”

Hearing this, the Dragon Flame King nodded gravely...

”Correct. It is precisely because the Azure Flame Sect existed...”

”According to my master’s teachings, there is an even more powerful Sect that stands above both the Azure Flame Sect and the Cyan Sword Great Empire. Both are under the banner of this greater Sect, which means they are equals.”

”That is why the Cyan Sword Great Empire cannot attack us.”

”But if the Cyan Sword Great Empire were to learn that the Azure Flame Sect is gone... I’m sure you can imagine the consequences.”

Yin Ye and Sun Shijin exchanged another look...

The consequences, of course, would be total devastation. The Cyan Sword Great Empire would slaughter them all, leaving not even dust behind.