Chapter 228 - 227: Awe the Four Quarters

Chapter 228: Chapter 227: Awe the Four Quarters

In just a few short days, Xuan Nu Palace, which was already teetering on the brink, showed signs of complete collapse.

Many disciples betrayed the Sect, no longer identifying themselves as disciples of Xuan Nu Palace. Some of the Sect’s upper echelon were either dead or imprisoned. Furthermore, a faction led by Grand Elder Xuan Ping was attacking Xuan Nu Palace, claiming they were "laying down their butcher’s knives to become buddhas," using their actions to wash away their sins.

Under the leadership of Grand Elder Xuan Ping and the others, the remaining forces of Xuan Nu Palace suffered one defeat after another, beaten into a sorry state. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before Xuan Nu Palace was annihilated.

The architect of all this, at this very moment, was lounging in the arms of a Jiangnan Beauty, savoring imported wines and fruits, completely lost to the world.

Surrounding him were gracefully dancing Qiuci Dancers, each one exquisitely beautiful and ready at a moment’s notice to be seized and favored by the elder Crown Prince, Xia Wuyang.

The Palace Attendants standing guard outside had, for the moment, stopped muttering about the elder Crown Prince and were now discussing the events concerning Xuan Nu Palace.

"I never would’ve thought that the renowned Xuan Nu Palace was actually such a den of filth. Hiding evil, training spies, committing murder and arson... They’re practically no different from the Demon Dao."

"Have those seven elders from Xuan Nu Palace lost their minds? To say they’re ’laying down their butcher’s knives to become buddhas’ and then lead an attack against their own Sect... It just feels ridiculous. They even publicly apologized to Yun Liyue and Elder Qing Yin, confessing all the despicable things they did to the master and disciple pair. I can’t believe Yun Liyue and Elder Qing Yin suffered so much at the hands of Xuan Nu Palace."

"I heard it’s all because Elder Qing Yin’s Cultivation is simply heaven-defying. She used a Confusing Skill to make Grand Elder Xuan Ping and the others expose themselves. Otherwise, why would they do something like this? In the end, they were clearly forced into it."

...

Because the matter involved the Eastern Palace’s Main Consort, the Palace Attendants here were quite interested. They were all extremely wary of the unfathomable Crown Prince Consort and the person suspected to be behind her, Elder Qing Yin.

What they didn’t know was that the mastermind behind it all was the very same elder Crown Prince they looked down on, Xia Wuyang.

At that moment, the elder Crown Prince was already tumbling into bed with a Jiangnan Beauty who had just turned eighteen, lost to time and place.

Most of the accumulated snow in White Jade City had melted. Green shoots poked through the soil at the base of the palace walls. Spring had arrived in silence.

The icy surface of Taiye Pool had fractured into a web of fine cracks. Occasionally, a flock of early-returning geese would skim past the palace towers, leaving a few clear calls in the azure sky.

Outside Lizheng Hall, the crabapple tree had produced flower buds. The tender pink blossoms trembled slightly in the biting spring wind.

Inside the hall, however, it was quieter than usual. The prying eyes that used to watch from the shadows, both openly and covertly, had mostly vanished in recent days, and continued to disappear.

Yun Liyue sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, holding the recovered original text of the *Sword Control Skill*.

Sunlight filtered through the branches of the crabapple tree, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow on her moon-white palace attire.

She opened the tome, her fingertips lightly brushing the familiar characters. Her mind, however, was on the previous battle, on the Sword Intent lingering on that Bamboo Sword. She felt more and more insights bubbling to the surface.

"Your Highness, the Ministry of Internal Affairs just delivered this year’s spring tea. They said it’s the pre-Qingming Longjing, a new tribute from Jiangnan," her personal maid reported softly, stepping forward.

Yun Liyue lifted her head, a flicker of surprise in her beautiful eyes.

’The Ministry of Internal Affairs has always been snobbish. Ever since the Eastern Palace fell from favor, they haven’t sent any tribute of pre-Qingming Longjing for years. Now, spring has just begun, the very first batch of tea has arrived, and a portion of it is for me.’

The personal maid spoke again, "The Shangyi Bureau also sent someone to take your measurements. They said they’ll be using this year’s finest Brocade to make some new spring clothes for Your Highness."

Yun Liyue’s elegant eyebrows rose slightly. She already understood what was happening.

All these changes stemmed from the now-tottering Xuan Nu Palace.

The world-shaking battle from before had made one thing clear to everyone: the mysterious expert backing Yun Liyue, the powerful figure suspected to be Elder Qing Yin, was far more unfathomable than anyone had imagined.

Grand Elder Xuan Ping, leading six other elders all at or above the First Grade, had joined forces only to be utterly routed. They were even directly enchanted and made to do so many things against their will. One could only imagine the strength of "Elder Qing Yin," and how ruthless and decisive her methods were.

If before there was reverence, now there was fear.

Even Xuan Nu Palace, with a legacy of over a thousand years, was being crushed, on the verge of collapse. One elder after another was defecting. This was all beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

Just how strong was this "Elder Qing Yin"? At the very least, she was a nearly invincible existence among Celestial Humans, and it was even possible she had already advanced to a higher realm.

Faced with such a terrifying master-and-disciple pair, how could the major powers not be terrified? Even places like the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Shangyi Bureau were filled with dread, scrambling to curry favor with even greater sycophancy than before.

In Yangxin Hall, Emperor Xia was reviewing memorials.

He soon came across several memorials concerning Xuan Nu Palace. Most of them demanded the swift annihilation of the sect to restore clarity and order to the Great Xia Dynasty.

The ones who submitted these memorials were, by and large, people who had suffered significant losses at the hands of Xuan Nu Palace.

As he read, his brush paused. At that moment, the Shadow Guard Chief, Zheng Zhicang, arrived to report on Xuan Nu Palace’s precarious situation.

This made Emperor Xia frown slightly. "The matter of Xuan Nu Palace... what are your thoughts?"

"Your Majesty, Xuan Nu Palace has committed many injustices; its destruction is simply the cycle of heavenly justice. However, the person behind Xuan Nu Palace’s destruction is unfathomably powerful. I fear that beneath the rank of True Monarch, they have no equal. A true master," Zheng Zhicang said gravely, a wary look on his face.

Emperor Xia sneered. "A master? You still underestimate her. To be able to crush seven elders of Xuan Nu Palace in a single night, enchant them, and make them turn traitor... that’s beyond what a mere ’master’ can do. It’s like the work of a Demon Fiend. Even a Demon Fiend might not be capable of such a feat. Having such a figure in the palace is hardly a good thing. I also wonder if she has any connection to the disappearances from the Inner Treasury and the National Treasury, or the many other things that have happened in the palace recently."

"Likely not. With that master’s power, if she truly wanted to deal with the Princes and Princesses, she would have just killed them directly. There would be no need for so many petty tricks," Zheng Zhicang said, shaking his head. "As for the thefts from the Inner Treasury and the National Treasury, a master of that caliber shouldn’t be lacking in such resources and treasures. With her Cultivation and strength, she should be seeking a way to break through to the True Monarch realm. Why would she be interested in such worldly possessions?"

Emperor Xia thought for a moment, then nodded. "That’s true. The resources and treasures stolen from the Inner Treasury and National Treasury were mostly worldly goods, with no Spiritual Objects among them. Even the items lost from Qianqing Palace would be of no help in breaking through to the True Monarch realm. It was probably not her doing. A pity. Her presence here is still... inconvenient."