The Helpless Yongping Emperor

After killing the enemy, Lister swiftly and decisively sheathed his sword.

Since General Yu is the adjutant of this Duke Wei, the conflict between them is irreconcilable.

Lister hadn't considered that when he went on his diplomatic mission in the future, he would be accompanied by someone with such strong murderous intent towards him.

You can't guard against thieves for a thousand days if you're a thief for a thousand days, even if the other party is much weaker than you.

At the same time, this was also a warning to Yongping Emperor.

It is estimated that his attitude in the Imperial City led to a misunderstanding by Yongping Emperor.

They probably thought that the Kingdom of Lucian they represented was weaker than their opponent, or perhaps Yongping Emperor was used to acting freely within the territory of the Great Chu!

He felt he could be manipulated at will and even attempted to force him to depart through the general.

Lister's display of strength was intended to make Yongping Emperor understand.

His strength was far greater than that; even the Duke Wei, one of the eight great generals, couldn't last more than three moves against him.

Unless the entire nation mobilizes its resources, deploying the entire army, or the never-before-seen Prince of Qin comes to challenge him, there's no way to easily command Lister.

As for whether such a thing would actually happen, although Yongping Emperor was unpredictable, Lister was certain that the other party would not.

Inside the Imperial City in the imperial city.

Yongping Emperor was having a passionate encounter in his bedchamber.

Outside, Chief Steward Xia waited anxiously, holding an urgent report in his hand.

"Whew!"

With a long sigh, Chief Steward Xia immediately jogged inside.

"What could have happened? Why are you in such a panic?!"

"Could it be that another bandit is plotting to assassinate me in the palace?"

Yongping Emperor had already gotten up from the bed, and the woman he had been favored was dressing him in his nightgown while she was completely naked behind him.

Even though she had just been favored and her face was still flushed, her eyes still revealed a strong sense of fear.

"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"

Chief Steward Xia's voice was shrill at that moment, and he hurriedly handed over the urgent report in his hand.

Even he hadn't dared to read the entire urgent report, let alone read it aloud to Yongping Emperor himself.

He consciously took a few steps back, inwardly grumbling about Lister.

He seemed like a fairly sensible young man when he first came to the inner treasury, how... how could he dare to be so audacious!

Yongping Emperor saw this urgent report, he seemed to be stunned and stood there in place.

Chief Steward Xia knelt before him, glancing up several times, but dared not utter a sound to interrupt.

After a long while, he gestured with his eyes to the concubine behind him.

"Your Majesty~..."

"Your Majesty! Ah!"

The concubine had been kicked away by Yongping Emperor and crashed into a pillar in the palace, unconscious.

"How dare he... how could he!"

"I have already let bygones be bygones regarding Yu Yang's previous actions, but now he dares to escalate them!!"

"He even dared to kill the Duke Wei! Does he really think I wouldn't dare to kill him?"

"Someone come here!"

Suddenly, a man dressed in a blue flying fish robe appeared outside, with a blade at his waist, and knelt before Yongping Emperor.

"Have your men bring Merrick before me within three days! Just leave him alive!"

"Your Majesty~!"

The man in the flying fish robe did not accept the order, but instead knelt on the spot with a look of fear and worry.

If Lister were present, he would surely recognize this man as Li Fu, the former commander of the Brocade Guard who had appeared in Jiangling Prefecture.

"Your Majesty! Lister is a man of exceptional skill, with unparalleled swordsmanship."

"I... I witnessed his attack; his swordsmanship wasn't complex, yet every strike was incredibly powerful. I and the Brocade Guard are afraid... afraid..."

"Go on!"

Yongping Emperor's face was ashen, and his voice was strained to suppress his anger.

"He's probably no match for a single strike from him."

Li Fu had seen this urgent report before; it was he who reported it. He had even witnessed Lister slaying the Bloodmane Spirit Bear single-handedly.

Not to mention his current impressive record: one strike kills a hundred men, and two strikes kill the Duke Wei.

You must know that the Duke Wei is one of the great generals! There are only a handful of generals in the Great Chu who can rival him.

Although Li Fu was the emperor's henchman, the Brocade Guard) members were only so-so in terms of strength, and usually acted more out of imperial authority. It would be a joke for them to deal with Lister.

Even if they knew they were offending the Emperor, at least they wouldn't die, and they could also get rid of this hot potato.

"A bunch of useless trash!"

Yongping Emperor shouted sternly, and at the same time raised his foot to kick Li Fu.

But when the soles of my feet reached his face, I finally stopped.

Li Fu dared not breathe loudly, his eyes fixed on the boots in front of him.

He was secretly delighted. It was just a kick; as a member of the Brocade Guard, taking a kick was nothing.

"In your opinion, how can we get this Lister to comply?"

"I have already been so lenient with him! I didn't even pursue the matter when he killed Yu Yang!"

"They dare to kill the Duke Wei, completely disregarding me! I cannot swallow this insult!"

"Your Majesty, given Lister's abilities, I fear only His Highness the Prince of Qin can intervene..."

"How could such a trivial matter warrant the intervention of a pillar of the state like the Prince of Qin!"

Before he could finish speaking, Yongping Emperor interrupted him sharply, as if the Prince of Qin were some kind of forbidden zone.

Li Fu had anticipated this, and quickly spoke up.

"Then let several generals join forces, or send a large army to advance; otherwise, I fear even I would be no match for him."

Yongping Emperor had already considered all of Li Fu's words, but he simply refused to believe them.

In his eyes, the Kingdom of Lucian was just another new continent, and its actual strength was nothing special; it was definitely no match for his Great Chu Imperial Dynasty!

As a result... Lister dealt him a heavy blow.

When he thought of Lister's words in court, that there were several strong men like him in the Kingdom of Lucian, he felt a surge of emotion.

Yongping Emperor hadn't paid much attention before, but now his regard for the Kingdom of Lucian has increased significantly, and he truly acknowledges the other side's strength.

"Your Majesty, I believe that Lister's stay in Jiangling Prefecture is merely an attempt to investigate the customs and traditions of our Great Chu."

"But eventually, they will want to return. In order to reach the Kingdom of Lucian, I suggest we proceed cautiously."

"Once we find the Kingdom of Lucian, we'll have plenty of ways to deal with him, even making a deal with the King of Lucian!"

"If Your Majesty is truly angry, then send troops immediately or dispatch several generals!"

Li Fu's opinions were quite in line with Yongping Emperor's wishes, especially regarding the methods for dealing with Lister later.

Sometimes, it's true that you don't need to rely on direct methods; direct methods require you to be stronger than your opponent.

By exploiting the psychology of the opposing king, or through various covert means, killing someone is actually the easiest thing to do.

"Whew!"

"Send the Duke Zhenguo to Jiangxia Prefecture to await orders."

"Follow him immediately once Lister returns home."

"Secretly instruct him to find a way to kill Lister once he discovers the Kingdom of Lucian."

Lister's strength ultimately forced Yongping Emperor to back down; that's the reality.

In this special ancient era where individual combat power could be extraordinary, even Yongping Emperor could not completely do as he pleased.

The Prince of Qin of the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty was also a very special one among them. Although he was the younger brother of Yongping Emperor, his strength had long surpassed that of other generals.

If the other party hadn't been uninterested in the throne, he really wouldn't have been able to ascend to the throne back then.

This is also why Yongping Emperor is trying to minimize the presence of the Prince of Qin. It's not that he's unwilling to kill his own brother, but rather that he can't!

Lister's strength is now comparable to that of the Prince of Qin. Even Yongping Emperor would not be able to withstand sacrificing more of his forces for such a person.

Not to mention, the other party also possesses the information about the Kingdom of Lucian that he currently needs, so killing them before achieving his goal would be pointless.

The Duke Zhenguo was the strongest of the eight generals, second only to the Prince of Qin.

Yongping Emperor was confident that the Duke Zhenguo's strength was no less than that of Lister, so he dared not order the Duke Zhenguo to force the other party to return to his country. Instead, he secretly allowed Lister to act.

"As for the matter of the Duke Wei, keep it under wraps in Jiangling Prefecture and publicly declare that the Duke Wei and his adjutant, General Yu, died in the monster tide!"

Did you understand?

Both deaths were too sudden, and Jiang Province was located on the border, so news traveled slowly.

For the sake of long-term considerations, including the face of the Great Chu, Yongping Emperor ultimately changed his approach.

"Your humble servant obeys. After tomorrow, the news of Duke Wei's death in fighting the demonic beast will surely spread throughout the Great Chu!"

"Get lost!"