Martial Cultivator

The blood on the saber had dried.

The hilt of Cloud Mud transformed from snowy white back to pitch black.

But everyone still had not reacted.

Chen Chao slowly sheathed his saber.

Hearing the sound of the saber entering its sheath, everyone finally regained their senses.

Looking at the corpse lying in a pool of blood, everyone remained in shock.

Tonight's story was truly bizarre, but nothing was as bizarre as this outcome.

The Xie Family's ancestor looked at this young man with a calm face, then glanced at the girl who had remained silent throughout. Her face showed no signs of shock, as if she had known from the very beginning that this would be the conclusion.

Looking at the Deposed Emperor lying in the blood, the Xie Family's ancestor thought of many things. In tonight's story, the Deposed Emperor had righteousness on his side, no matter what he did, His Majesty could not kill him. Unlike the self-immolation from years ago, if he were to die at the hands of His Majesty now, how would the world view the Great Liang Emperor?

The Deposed Emperor clearly understood this, which was why he had come here alone. Even though everyone knew he was surely backed by certain people from the foreign lands, there was no evidence.

Therefore, no one could kill him.

If His Majesty the Emperor killed him, then the spirit accumulated over the years would dissipate, and the entire Great Liang would no longer be a whole. People's hearts would scatter, and those neutral court officials might become disappointed in His Majesty the Emperor.

Yet he had to die.

If he did not die, then who would sit in that chair?

The Great Liang Emperor could not yield, because the Deposed Emperor had the support of the foreign lands, and he must have reached some sort of agreement with them.

It could be said that the Deposed Emperor's appearance here tonight, regardless of life or death, was precisely what the foreign lands wanted to see.

This was not something that could be chosen, no matter how one chose, there would be a great cost.

Everyone was caught in the game.

How could those within the game break it?

The Xie Family's ancestor looked deeply at Chen Chao.

Yes, only Chen Chao.

Only he could break the game.

The Deposed Emperor had righteousness on his side and the support of the foreign lands, as long as he was alive, all stories remained possible.

But he could not live forever.

Just because the Great Liang Emperor could not kill him did not mean that others could not.

But to want to kill him required immense courage, anyone else in this moment would likely lack such courage.

Only Chen Chao taking action to kill would make everything vanish into thin air.

Those who wanted His Majesty the Emperor to return power had lost their candidate, and those who sought to pressure His Majesty had lost their reason.

Just as Chen Chao said, they could only choose him now.

But no one would choose him.

Who would choose someone who killed his own brother right in front of them?

“What else do you all want to say?”

Chen Chao looked at the crowd and smiled.

He spat out a turbid breath.

It was as if he had shed a lot of burden.

The game no longer existed.

He no longer had to be anyone's pawn.

“Your Majesty, this man has the audacity to kill the emperor! He's insane and cannot be tolerated by heaven!”

An official reacted and immediately spoke up.

The Great Liang Emperor glanced at that person and asked, “Where's the emperor?”

The official was taken aback, and his expression immediately turned ugly. Realizing his slip of the tongue, he knelt heavily, “This subject misspoke...”

“This nephew of Ours was ultimately deceived by the foreign lands. Someone, collect the body and bury it somewhere."

The Great Liang Emperor said slowly, his tone cold and indifferent.

“But he was still of Crown Prince Yiwen's blood, a member of the imperial family...”

Another official spoke up, tears streaming down his aged face. It was as if they had just glimpsed the dawn, only for it to vanish in an instant, making it difficult for them to accept this devastating blow.

“So does that mean he isn't?”

The Great Liang Emperor sighed and said, “Imperial Elder Brother has been gone for many years, how could We bear to kill his only bloodline left in this world?”

“You all still cherish the memory of Imperial Elder Brother, so how could you bear to see his bloodline die out?”

……

……

The banquet went on for a long time, and night had long since fallen.

The Imperial City was brightly lit, as if it were daylight. Ordinary people had no knowledge of the events in that Imperial City during this time, events that could shake the entire world.

But, of course, some people knew too.

The Infatuation Daoist Temple Master stood atop a tall building not far from the Imperial City, gazing at the bright moon in the night sky, and sighed, “Who could have guessed the story would play out this way?”

A daoist stood beside him, tall and imposing. Reflecting on the events that had just taken place, he shook his head and said, “I thought Chen Che would lose patience in the end and simply step forward to kill that guy, but it turns out he could truly restrain himself.”

The Temple Master shook his head, replying, “I think it's not about restraint. He simply never intended to kill his nephew at all. I've analyzed that great fire from back then very carefully. He had at least sixteen chances to find that good-for-nothing and kill him, but he did nothing and let him go instead. If that's not intentional, then what is?”

The tall daoist frowned, saying, “A monarch like him, who would've thought he'd hold on to such sentiments?”

In both history and stories, emperors had always valued the world above all else.

“What else could it be? They spent many years and made all those arrangements, why did it fail?"

The Temple Master smiled and said, "What an unexpected story, it rendered all those schemes useless. After tonight, the Great Liang Dynasty will be more united than ever. Come to think of it, His Majesty's cunning and strategies are no less impressive than his cultivation realm. I even suspect that when he let that good-for-nothing go back then, he was already envisioning tonight's outcome. We tried to manipulate him, yet hasn't he used us instead to clear away those things that can't be easily seen?"

The tall daoist exclaimed in surprise, “If that's the case, then he's too terrifying!”

The Temple Master sighed, smiling as he said, “Such an interesting person, I'm actually a bit reluctant to kill him.”

“What a pity. If he'd killed that good-for-nothing, I could've allowed him to keep sitting on the throne. But since he didn't, we'll have no choice but to kill him.”

The Temple Master murmured to himself, “But he truly isn't easy to kill.”

The tall daoist remained silent.

Anyone who could face the Demon Emperor in battle without being defeated was never easy to kill.

“This is fine as well. Letting him win once might actually be a good thing instead.”

The Temple Master said with a smile before vanishing from the spot, as if he had never been there.

……

……

“Pass down His Majesty's decree: In extraordinary times, we must take extraordinary measures. Marquis Zhongyong Zhang Yu is to be reinstated to his former post and will lead the Patrol Camp tonight to guard the Divine Capital. Not a single horse is to leave the city.”

“Commander of the Right Guard Song Lian is to take charge of both Left and Right Guards and oversee the Ministry of Penalty's retainers. He is to conduct an immediate search of all residences throughout the Divine Capital, ensuring that the traitors from the foreign lands are thoroughly purged. Song Lian is granted authority to act at his discretion and to deal with matters as needed.”

"The Heavenly Imperial Institution is to fully cooperate with Right Guard Commander Song Lian, and all matters are to be decided by him."

"All other ministries and offices are to follow Song Lian's orders."

Decrees were issued one after another from the palace, and shadows swiftly left the restricted area of the Imperial City, heading out in all directions.

The banquet had ended.

But the story of this night would not end.

The Great Liang Emperor gave Chen Chao a glance, then waved his hand and turned to leave.

Li Heng said in a soft voice, "My lords, you may return to your residences. I hope to see you all at tomorrow's court session."

At these words, those harboring guilty thoughts could not hide their unease.

Tonight would undoubtedly be a massive purge.

All the preparations they had made would cease to exist after tonight.

Years of scheming had come to an abrupt end tonight.

Some people began searching for Chen Chao.

Searching for that true culprit.

But soon, people realized he had already disappeared.

The princes also slowly left. The Second Prince had a hint of unwillingness in his eyes, but at this point, no one would remember him.

The First Prince and the Second Prince met at the palace gates. The First Prince took one look at his younger brother, coughed a few times, and sighed, "If you had known it would come to this, why do it in the first place?"

The Second Prince had a cold expression, saying nothing as he boarded his carriage.

The carriages of the two princes headed off in different directions.

……

……

The Divine Capital was filled with noise, implicating many people.

The Three Judicial Chief Ministries, Six Ministries, Left and Right Guards, Heavenly Imperial Institution, Patrol Camp...

Nearly every office in the Divine Capital was affected.

The events of this night would likely surpass the commotion that took place the night before His Majesty ascended the throne.

Many strange sights occurred, such as officials from the Court of Judicial Review arresting officials from the Ministry of Penalty, while officials from the Ministry of Penalty arrested those from the Court of Judicial Review.

Absurd stories like these kept unfolding.

It was a sleepless night.

On this dark night, many remnants of the previous dynasty, who had long since infiltrated the Divine Capital, were apprehended and taken away, with numerous hideouts cleared out.

Many powerhouses who seldom appeared, were now all involved in the arrests.

People had never imagined there were so many hidden powerhouses lurking in the Divine Capital, though it somehow seemed reasonable.

Yet, among all of this, there was no trace of Chen Chao.

He had vanished once again.

No one cared about where he had gone.

No one had time to care.

……

……

At the Second Prince's manor, the Second Prince had just returned with a sullen expression. As he entered the courtyard, he was accidentally bumped by a maidservant carrying a basin of water, who stumbled in her haste.

Frightened, the maidservant immediately knelt, pleading, “Your Highness, please spare my life, this servant knows her mistake.”

The Second Prince gave her a cold look, took the basin, and struck the maidservant on the head with it.

With just one blow, her head was bloodied, but the Second Prince did not stop, hitting her on the head again and again with the basin.

At first, the maidservant tried to hold back her cries, but eventually, she could no longer make a sound.

The servants behind the Second Prince lowered their heads when they saw this scene.

No one spoke.

No one knew how much time had passed, but the maidservant had already become a corpse.

Yet, the Second Prince continued hitting her.

For a very long time.

The maidservant's head no longer resembled a head. Only then, did the Second Prince stop, going to a nearby pond to wash his hands.

The blood on his hands slowly washed away.

Absorbed by the fishes in the pond.

The water reflected the Second Prince's somewhat savage face.

Knock, knock, knock...

At that moment, there was a knock at the main gate of the Second Prince's manor.

A young man dressed entirely in black was currently standing at the door, knocking very seriously.

He was carrying a saber.