[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.]