[Three days later.]

[Ye Yu officially issued a decree to marry Huangfu Baizhi as the Empress.]

[This immediately met with opposition from the civil and military officials.]

[Although they wanted Ye Yu to marry soon and produce an heir to ensure the continuity of the Great Yong Dynasty, having Huangfu Baizhi as the Empress was absolutely unacceptable.]

[In terms of background, Huangfu Baizhi was the daughter of a rebel general from an enemy nation.]

[Moreover, just a few days ago, she had led a rebellion.]

[Although it had not caused too much impact, she had still rebelled.]

[For the Emperor to marry such a person was utterly inappropriate.]

[And to make her the Empress, the mother of the nation—]

[How could that be allowed?]

[Ye Yu did not speak, but cast a look at Sun Longhai below.]

[The Great Yong court’s enforcer once again began to unleash his wrath upon the officials.]

[When he got worked up, he struck decisively.]

[The beating was quite exhilarating!]

[However, after a century of changes, the officials in the court had long been Ye Yu’s trusted subordinates.]

[They were loyal to him, but the more loyal they were, the more they opposed the idea.]

[They were genuinely afraid that Huangfu Baizhi might pose a danger to Ye Yu.]

[After all, the battle prowess of this female general was well-known.]

[And His Majesty had no martial skills.]

[If Huangfu Baizhi truly harbored any ill intentions, they would regret it too late.]

[Therefore, even in the face of Sun Longhai’s iron fists, no one yielded.]

[They knelt on the ground, continuously advising against it.]

[Ye Yu slowly rose.]

[He released the pressure of his Ascension Realm cultivation, instantly enveloping the entire palace. He spoke indifferently:]

[There is no need for you all to worry about my safety.]

[As for making Huangfu Baizhi the Empress, I have made up my mind. No more discussion is needed.]

[Even after a long while, the court remained silent.]

[They could not understand why the Emperor, who had never practiced cultivation, possessed such terrifying strength.]

[Moreover, considering his age, he was only a little over a hundred years old.]

[An Ascension Realm cultivator at just over a hundred years old was truly a miracle in the cultivation world! Unbelievable!]

[Half a month later, on the auspicious day, Ye Yu’s wedding was celebrated nationwide.]

[When Huangfu Baizhi was officially made Empress, she was overjoyed to the point of tears.]

[She knew this was the result of Ye Yu overcoming all objections.]

[Her heart was filled with immense gratitude.]

[Her gaze towards Ye Yu was full of affection.]

[And Ye Yu did not forget, taking advantage of this joyous occasion to splurge wildly and waste money.]

[A hundred years later, Ye Yu’s cultivation level had not improved significantly.]

[Since reaching the Ascension Realm, spending money had become ineffective for providing any rewards.]

[Only by using spirit stones could he trigger his prodigal talent.]

[This troubled Ye Yu greatly.]

[Although the Great Yong Dynasty had nearly unified the entire Northern Desolate Continent, the amount of spirit stones available for extraction was still limited.]

[Moreover, most of them were controlled by the sects.]

[To break through this predicament, Ye Yu deliberated for a long time and made a major decision.]

[That was to conquer the sects!]

[Unifying the human kingdoms was not a big deal.]

[He needed all the sects of the Northern Desolate Continent to bow and offer spirit stones continuously.]

[Those unwilling to submit would face destruction!]

[This decision was indeed quite insane.]

[But Ye Yu felt it was the only way forward.]

[To ascend to the Heavenly Realm, he had no other choice.]

[Under Ye Yu’s mobilization, the Great Yong Dynasty’s cultivators began their campaign.]

[Initially, due to their large number of cultivators, they managed to subdue several smaller sects.]

[However, soon several sects allied together to resist the invasion of the Great Yong Dynasty.]

[This led to heavy losses for the Great Yong Dynasty’s cultivators.]

[After all, compared to the cultivation sects, the foundation of the Great Yong Dynasty was still somewhat lacking.]

[At this time, Huangfu Baizhi voluntarily requested to join the battle!]

[Even though she was honored as the Empress, she never stopped her cultivation.]

[With the techniques and spirit stones from her storage ring, she had successfully reached the Tribulation Crossing Realm in these hundred years.]

[This was enough to prove Huangfu Baizhi’s extraordinary talent.]

[However, her request to join the battle was not approved by Ye Yu.]

[Over these hundred years, their marital relationship had been extremely good.]

[It could be described as a perfect match.]

[Ye Yu was very satisfied with Huangfu Baizhi.]

[She never caused trouble and often encouraged Ye Yu to take more concubines.]

[She was completely unjealous, and even felt very guilty for not bearing him any children during this hundred years.]

[With such an understanding wife, how could Ye Yu not be fond of her?]

[It was precisely because he liked her so much that he didn’t want Huangfu Baizhi to take any risks.]

[But Huangfu Baizhi insisted that she was from a military background and was already accustomed to the bloodshed of the battlefield.]

[Moreover, her cultivation level was not weak, and she was only applying to command on the battlefield, which would not be dangerous.]

[Through persistent persuasion, Huangfu Baizhi finally got the opportunity to go.]

[For this, Ye Yu even assigned her eight top-tier cultivators to escort and protect her.]

[He aimed for safety.]

[And it must be said, Huangfu Baizhi was indeed a strategic talent.]

[Under her command, she consistently avoided strong opponents and attacked the weak, winning many impressive battles.]

[As time passed, except for a few major sacred lands on the Northern Desolate Continent still holding out, all other medium and small sects had submitted to the Great Yong Dynasty and continuously supplied spirit stones.]

[During this period, Ye Yu began to ease off.]

[He ordered the cessation of further attacks and allowed the cultivators to rest and recuperate.]

[Ye Yu understood well.]

[The sacred lands of the Northern Desolate Continent had a long history and a strong foundation.]

[Trying to conquer them would be extremely difficult.]

[Moreover, and most importantly, after so many years of war, the accumulation of spirit stones was already nearly sufficient!]

[For a long time thereafter, Ye Yu once again entered his prodigal mode.]

[The difference was that last time he squandered silver, but this time it was spirit stones.]

[Various extravagant and reckless spending operations were continuously carried out.]

[In a very short time, all the accumulated spirit stones were spent.]

[Such behavior left everyone feeling quite regretful.]

[The ministers, seeing that they could not persuade Ye Yu, decided to take an indirect approach and petition Huangfu Baizhi.]

[They hoped that the Empress could stop Ye Yu.]

[But Huangfu Baizhi’s response was very straightforward.]

[If His Majesty wants to play, let him play. Even if the spirit stones are gone, this Empress can still ride a horse and wield a spear to get more spirit stones for His Majesty. So what is there to fear?]

[You should not meddle in His Majesty’s affairs. Disrupting His Majesty’s enjoyment is a serious offense!]

[This answer made many ministers break into a cold sweat.]

[The Empress of the Great Yong Dynasty was known for her iron-blooded ruthlessness.]

[She had accomplished what Grand Marshal Meng Shifang could not, by conquering the sects!]

[Such achievements were destined to be remembered for generations.]

[Under this intimidation, the ministers had no choice but to leave.]

[Six months later, Ye Yu finally broke through to the peak of the Ascension Realm, on the verge of ascending.]