Chapter 471: Yao Yue Martial Emperor

He was also quite curious as to why a statue of himself would appear in Gale Light Academy.

In his memory, he couldn’t recall having any connection to Gale Light Academy.

In his previous life, he had never even been to the Dream Realm Plain.

"I remember now! I know where I’ve seen the name Ye Xiaoyao before."

A student suddenly exclaimed, "I remember! In the 2014 edition of *Basic Properties of Medicinal Herbs* published by the continent’s Alchemist Association, the name Ye Xiaoyao was in the list of compiling elders, and it was even ranked first!"

"I remember too! I once read a book about the human body’s Profound Veins called *Human Meridian Theory*. The author was also named Ye Xiaoyao."

"The primary author of the *Soul Refiner’s Code* is also named Ye Xiaoyao."

All at once, nearly every student present recalled the name Ye Xiaoyao. After exchanging a few words, they were all left dumbfounded.

They had made a shocking discovery: the name Ye Xiaoyao could be found in the most authoritative books in almost every field.

This was simply too incredible.

Every expert’s energy is finite.

If you counted the most powerful experts on the continent today, many of them had side professions.

Some were Soul Refiners, some Alchemists, some Talisman Masters, and some Array Pattern Masters. But someone as astonishing in every field as the Carefree Soul Emperor, Ye Xiaoyao, was one of a kind—truly unique.

"If I could just meet a man like that once, I would die without any regrets."

Countless female students gazed adoringly at the statue of Ye Xiaoyao, their hearts fluttering.

Beauties love heroes. There wasn’t a woman alive who wouldn’t admire or be moved by a figure like Ye Xiaoyao.

"The Carefree Soul Emperor... Yes, Ye Xiaoyao is my ideal man. My husband must be someone like him, an expert standing at the pinnacle of the continent."

Zhou Qingwei clasped her hands to her chest, her face flushing as her heart filled with adoration.

It wasn’t just her; nearly all the female students felt the same way.

The male students, however, were different. Looking at the statue, their blood boiled with heroic ambition.

’To be a man is to be like the Carefree Soul Emperor—an indomitable figure whose name is sung by millions.’

But they also knew that while they were the top geniuses of the Dream Realm Plain, they were still worlds apart from a continental prodigy like the Carefree Soul Emperor.

Just to be able to follow such a legendary figure would be a blessing earned in a past life.

"Master Qingfeng, why is the Carefree Soul Emperor’s statue here? Does our academy have some connection to him?"

As soon as these words were spoken, almost all the students grew excited.

’That’s right, why is his statue here?’

There are countless experts and geniuses on the continent. The academy must have placed his statue here because of some special connection.

If that were true, they might even have a chance to meet the Carefree Soul Emperor himself.

Master Qingfeng smiled slightly. "As for connections, the Carefree Soul Emperor does indeed have a slight one with our academy."

Seeing the students’ curious and excited gazes, Master Qingfeng said with a smile, "Our academy’s current headmaster—Huangfu Xiuming—once received guidance from Master Ye Xiaoyao. This statue was erected in commemoration."

’Huangfu Xiuming?’

Ye Xuan frowned slightly. ’The name doesn’t ring a bell.’

The other students all held their breath.

Heavens! Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming actually received guidance from the Carefree Soul Emperor? That’s incredible!

"Master Qingfeng, does that mean our headmaster, Huangfu Xiuming, is a disciple of the Carefree Soul Emperor?" a student asked excitedly.

Qingfeng shook his head. "He wouldn’t count as a disciple. Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming is the current headmaster of our Gale Light Academy, and also one of the most outstanding figures in our thousand-year history. It is because of him that our Gale Light Academy was able to reclaim its former glory."

"Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming has admired Master Ye Xiaoyao since he was young. Back in his day, he was only an ordinary disciple here at Gale Light Academy. His talent was not exceptional; in fact, you could even say it was poor. When he graduated, he was merely a Tier Six First Layer Martial Venerable."

’A Tier Six First Layer Martial Venerable?’

Everyone was dumbfounded. Gale Light Academy was the number one academy in the Dream Realm Plain; it was anything but ordinary. To graduate with the cultivation of a Tier Six First Layer Martial Venerable wasn’t just ordinary—it was rock bottom.

’The most outstanding headmaster in the glorious history of Gale Light Academy was that bad back then?’

As if reading their minds, Qingfeng smiled. "You’re not mistaken. Back then, Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming’s talent was among the worst in our academy. But he refused to accept his fate. After graduating, Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming traveled to the Profound Domain alone. He endured countless hardships to meet the Carefree Soul Emperor and finally received his guidance. That is how he achieved what he has today."

"In his heart, Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming has always considered the Carefree Soul Emperor his master, but Master Ye Xiaoyao never accepted him as a disciple. He was only given guidance by Master Ye Xiaoyao once."

Everyone was stunned. "Once!" they exclaimed in shock.

"Yes." Qingfeng nodded. "Although it was only once, it brought about an earth-shattering change in Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming. Furthermore, he earned that one chance with his life. To get it, Headmaster Huangfu Xiuming braved the Forbidden Ridge, a famous forbidden land in the Profound Domain!"

’Forbidden Ridge?’

Ye Xuan’s entire body shook. He whispered the name, finally remembering who Huangfu Xiuming was.

In that instant, his brilliant gaze seemed to pierce through time and space, fixing on the distant horizon. A memory buried deep in his heart suddenly surfaced in his mind...

「That year, at the Carefree Palace in the Profound Domain.」

It was the fourth day of the first lunar month.

Heavy snow was falling.

Late at night.

On the steps outside the Carefree Palace, a young man knelt, his body covered in snow, motionless as an ice sculpture.

He had been kneeling there for seven days and seven nights.

From the first day he knelt, a heavy snow had begun to fall across the Profound Domain. The frigid air was cold enough to freeze one’s blood.

A layer of frost coated his eyebrows. His lips were frozen a deep purple, and his body gave off not a wisp of warmth, making him resemble a frozen corpse.

He just knelt there silently, as if he would kneel until the end of time.

In the pavilion atop the Carefree Palace!

Outside, the bitter cold raged, but here, it was comfortably warm.

Candlelight flickered. Scented by incense added by a red-sleeved attendant, a woman in purple rested her hands on a jade zither, a smile on her cherry lips.

Her posture was graceful, like a celestial fairy descended to the mortal realm, beautiful enough to topple nations.

Her jade-white fingers, slender as spring onions, danced across the zither, producing a celestial melody that seemed not of this world.

When the song ended, the entire world seemed to melt into the heavenly music, serene and gentle.

"Xiaoyao, what did you think of my song?"

After the piece concluded, the purple-clad woman rose gently and asked in a soft voice, a sound as moving as an orchid in a secluded valley or the song of an oriole.

"In this world, when it comes to the art of music, if we were to name the best, it could only be you, Yao Yue Martial Emperor."

Ye Xiaoyao said with a light sigh, his voice full of admiration.

Yao Yue Martial Emperor—Yingtai Yue, the Palace Master of the Moon God Palace.

One of the continent’s most powerful Martial Emperors.

She was the object of pursuit for countless powerful Martial Emperors on the continent.

Her beauty was peerless, enough to topple nations. Her strength was astonishing, her Profound power reaching the heavens. She founded the Moon God Palace, making it one of the top factions on the continent.

This caused countless young talents and powerful Martial Emperors in the Profound Domain to fall for her.

In the past, countless men had brought lavish gifts to the Moon God Palace to propose marriage. Among them were young masters of the continent’s top sects, handsome Martial Emperors who roamed the lands, and even the son of the Profound Domain Sacred City’s City Lord.

But they were all rejected before they could even step through the gates of the Moon God Palace.

The Yao Yue Martial Emperor had let it be known that she had already given her heart to someone.

This declaration immediately shook the Profound Domain. Countless young masters and Martial Emperors searched for the identity of this person.

Eventually, someone figured it out: the one who held the Yao Yue Martial Emperor’s heart was none other than the Carefree Soul Emperor, Ye Xiaoyao.

Only when facing the Carefree Soul Emperor would the Yao Yue Martial Emperor smile, and only for Ye Xiaoyao would she play her zither.

Whenever the Carefree Soul Emperor appeared, the Yao Yue Martial Emperor would be by his side.

Everyone envied them, calling them a match made in heaven.

But only the Yao Yue Martial Emperor knew that, on one occasion, the Carefree Soul Emperor had rejected her.

"I, Ye Xiaoyao, yearn only for the pinnacle of the Martial Dao. Until I enter the Saint Realm and glimpse the Celestial Realm, I will not speak of love."

That’s what he had said back then.

His heart was consumed by the vastness of the Martial Dao, leaving no room for anything else.

But the Yao Yue Martial Emperor did not give up. Like a faithful companion, she often stayed by Ye Xiaoyao’s side, a perfect pair, like a dragon and phoenix, or mandarin ducks.

She had said, "If that is the case, then I will accompany you to the pinnacle of the Martial Dao. This path is desolate and endlessly lonely. With me by your side, perhaps you won’t feel so alone."

She meant what she said, and she did as she promised, always quietly accompanying Ye Xiaoyao.

Even Ye Xiaoyao’s heart had quietly cracked open a little.

’A gentle, jade-like man, accompanied by such a woman—what more could one ask for in life?’

However, a vow had been made, and with Ye Xiaoyao’s character, he would never go back on his word.

And so the two of them continued to wander the world together daily, still like a celestial couple.

"Xiaoyao, that man has been kneeling here for seven days and seven nights. It seems that if you don’t take him as your disciple, he’ll kneel there until the end of time."

Her beautiful, oriole-like voice drifted over.

The Yao Yue Martial Emperor’s gaze pierced through space, landing on the young man on the steps.

This young man, it was said, came from a remote part of the continent. His name was Huangfu Xiuming, and he had braved countless dangers just to ask Ye Xiaoyao to be his master.

Ye Xiaoyao’s indifferent gaze fell upon the young man. "I’ve said it before," he stated calmly. "I, Ye Xiaoyao, will not take any disciples in this life. It will do him no good to kneel there, even if he kneels to death."

"Besides, a twenty-five-year-old Tier Six Martial Venerable who hasn’t even reached the Martial King realm... what right does he have to become my, Ye Xiaoyao’s, disciple?"

Ye Xiaoyao’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was clear enough to reach Huangfu Xiuming’s ears.

Huangfu Xiuming remained motionless, as if he hadn’t heard Ye Xiaoyao’s words, his expression resolute.

Seeing Huangfu Xiuming, Yingtai Yue felt as if she were looking at herself.