Silver Sun's flames of retribution

Yang Qing couldn't help but smile when he saw the man approaching. He quickly rose from his seat, prompting Cheng Yuan to turn and see who it was. The man wore a light yellow robe, form-fitting and neatly rolled up at the sleeves to his elbows. His medium-length beard had a rough, unkempt look, and his hair was tied into a round bun, though loose strands escaped in every direction. His light brown eyes matched the color of his hair, and his stocky build gave him the appearance of a blacksmith rather than a chef. What convinced Cheng Yuan he was indeed a chef—and not a blacksmith dabbling in the culinary arts—were his spotless robes and his hands, which were as clear and smooth as crystal. They stood in stark contrast to his muscular frame.

"Don't stare at his hands too much, Cheng Yuan," Yang Qing's voice suddenly echoed in Cheng Yuan's mind, though the man himself hadn't made a sound, his smile still firmly in place. "Even though Jiang Fu never says it, he doesn't like people staring at his hands for long."

Cheng Yuan was startled by the voiceless transmission. "How is he able to do this?" he wondered. 

"As far as I know, voiceless transmission isn't something one at the Core Formation Realm can achieve. Master told me only those at the Palace Realm are capable of such feats… Could he be? No, it can't be. He's a Superior Core Court Judge, so it's expected he'd be at that stage.

But how old is he? He looks barely twenty. The Order may have its prodigies, but even I doubt they'd have a twenty-year-old Palace Realm cultivator. Unless Core Formation experts from the Order are on a completely different level like the case with Cao Ying."

With these thoughts racing through his mind, Cheng Yuan quickly averted his gaze from the man's crystal jade-like hands.

In the cultivation realms, once one reached the Palace Stage, they gained the ability to transmit their thoughts using their spiritual sense, colloquially dubbed the palace sense by some. At this level, their senses expanded far beyond the ordinary, enabling them to perform extraordinary feats, including thought transmission. This was also why spirit beasts could communicate with Palace Stage cultivators without the need for voice transmission beads.

"Master Jiang Fu," Yang Qing greeted cheerfully as he walked over, exchanging a hearty back pat with the shorter man. Jiang Fu returned the gesture with equal enthusiasm, a few small chuckles escaping his lips.

"Young Master Yang Qing, I've told you to stop calling me that," Jiang Fu said, his tone light and joking. "It's embarrassing to be addressed as 'master' by someone a thousand times more powerful than I am. Where would I even hide my face if a Palace Stage expert like you called a puny Core Formation expert like me 'master'?"

"I'll stop when you stop calling me 'young master,'" Yang Qing shot back with a grin. "You make me sound like some spoiled scion from a noble family." Both men burst into laughter, their shoulders shaking as they leaned into each other. Their camaraderie seemed far deeper than the typical friendly rapport between a regular customer and a chef.

Cheng Yuan's mind, however, was in complete disarray the moment Jiang Fu revealed Yang Qing's status as a Palace Stage expert. He nearly yelped aloud in shock but managed to restrain himself, his self-control the only thing keeping him from making a scene.

"How… how… how… how… WHAT?!" Cheng Yuan internally screamed, his mind reeling in disbelief and fear as he stared at Yang Qing with wide, terrified eyes. Despite his gaze, he still couldn't reconcile the truth. There was no aura of an expert emanating from Yang Qing—in fact, it felt as though any presence he might have had was being completely swallowed by Jiang Fu, who exuded a tempestuous stillness, like a dormant volcano ready to erupt at any moment. Even though Jiang Fu had suppressed most of his pressure, Cheng Yuan's palms were slick with sweat, and his heart raced just from being in such close proximity to him.

As for Yang Qing, he seemed almost nonexistent. He didn't add or subtract anything from the atmosphere around him. He was just a green-haired youth with a slovenly appearance and a carefree, happy-go-lucky demeanor. Cheng Yuan struggled to reconcile the image before him with the stories he'd heard about Palace Stage cultivators. The contrast was staggering.

One such story, recorded by his sect's founder, came to mind. It was about a rank 4 kingdom called the Silver Sun Kingdom, which had once faced a devastating mutiny. Before the uprising, the royal family's power had been steadily eroded by a coalition of powerful noble families. These families had banded together, scheming to dethrone the royals and seize their vast resources. While the royal family held a slight edge in Core Formation experts and resources, the nobles tirelessly plotted to wear them down, testing their limits and probing for hidden trump cards. Throughout it all, the royal family remained passive, striving to maintain a fragile balance.

But that balance shattered when two ancestors of the rebelling noble families made a breakthrough, advancing from the peak of the Core Formation Realm to half-step into the Palace Stage. Emboldened by this newfound power, they rallied the rest of the nobles, even those who had been hesitant. Together, they stormed the royal capital. Within a week, the capital's protective formations and its defenders were obliterated, leaving only the royal palace as the last bastion of the royal family.

Breaking through the royal palace proved far more difficult than the nobles had anticipated. Even after a month of relentless attacks, they couldn't breach the formidable formations and protective measures, including the powerful puppets guarding the palace. These setbacks only deepened the nobles' greed, as they caught glimpses of the royal family's true depth and wealth. The thought of devouring such a "fat sheep" drove them to throw all caution to the wind. They unleashed every trump card they had, sparing no effort to shatter the palace's defenses. Even the two half-step Palace Stage ancestors held nothing back, joining the full-frontal assault.

Two days into their all-out attack, a sudden change swept over the palace and its sprawling grounds, which spanned thousands of acres. A dark cloud loomed overhead, unlike any ordinary cloud. It radiated an overbearing, suppressive energy that weighed heavily on all cultivators present, with the most pronounced effects on the two half-step Palace Stage ancestors. They immediately recognized it for what it was—a cloud tribulation, signaling someone's breakthrough to the Palace Stage. Panic set in as they frantically redoubled their efforts to break the palace's formations, fearing the worst. But it was too late.

After half an hour, the cloud tribulation unleashed a torrent of lightning, striking a specific spot behind the palace grounds. The moment the tribulation dissipated, an overwhelming aura erupted from that location. It spread rapidly, engulfing the entire palace and then extending beyond, covering the invading nobles. An oppressive pressure bore down on them, crushing those in the Foundation Realm into meat paste. Only the two half-step Palace Stage ancestors managed to remain standing, though even they were visibly struggling.

Seconds later, an old man emerged, floating above the palace. He wore pristine white robes, his silver hair flowing freely and glistening like sunlight. This was the trademark of the royal family—their radiant, silver hair, said to be a mark of their rumored silver sun unicorn bloodline. Behind him, a rain of silver flame sword qi materialized, which he then unleashed upon the besieging forces. In an instant, over ten thousand cultivators—whether in the Core Formation Realm or the Foundation Realm—were reduced to ashes. Only the two half-step Palace Stage ancestors remained.

Desperate, the two ancestors attempted to ignite their potential and use forbidden arts to escape. But their efforts were futile. With a single palm strike, the silver-haired old man suppressed them completely, leaving them unable to even detonate themselves in a final act of defiance. Their cultivation realms were crippled, and they were later tied to the gates of the capital as a grim warning to others. In mere seconds, the entire rebellion had been crushed.

It was only during a kingdom-wide celebration that the people learned the truth: the old man was the fourth ancestor of the royal family, and he had successfully broken through to the Palace Stage. The kingdom erupted in jubilation, marking the occasion with grand festivities. When Cheng Yuan first read this story, he was so astonished that he even suspected it might be fabricated. He asked his master about its authenticity, and to his surprise, his master confirmed it was true.

His master explained that the sect founder of the Green Fog Swamp Sect had been sworn brothers with one of the princes of the Silver Sun Kingdom. When the rebellion broke out, the sect founder had immediately offered his assistance to the prince. From the initial uprising to its dramatic resolution, he had witnessed everything firsthand—especially the fourth ancestor's devastating attack.

The story left a deep impression on Cheng Yuan. It was a stark reminder of the overwhelming power of a Palace Stage expert. Against such a figure, even a hundred Core Formation experts stood no chance.

This historic event became known as the Silver Sun's Flame of Retribution, a tale that echoed through the ages within the kingdom as a testament to the might of the Palace realm.