Audience with the Son of Heaven

This place is ominous; what you see with your naked eye may not be the true scene on the mud boat.

Li Weiyi once again used the Heavenly Eye Technique. At the same time, all the Golden Meridian Lines on his body appeared, shattering all illusions and distinguishing truth from falsehood.

A jade-white auspicious light rose into view.

The underground riverbed remained dry, but the mud boat beneath their feet had transformed into a spotless, immaculate Magic Tool Jade Boat, over thirty meters long, its shimmering light enveloping the surrounding world.

The jade boat was crystal clear and exquisitely structured, with countless magical artifacts and scriptures floating inside.

"This... this is what a sacred vessel like that would be used by a governor-level figure should be. The decay of the mud-brick ship is just an illusion, not its true form. This sacred vessel must be of a very high level!"

Li Weiyi suppressed his astonishment and couldn't help but wonder what level of cultivation that governor from a thousand years ago had reached.

What I saw before was all an illusion.

The real Provincial Governor's Seal was not kept in Treasure Box, but was as big as a millstone, more than two meters tall, placed at the bow of the ship, silently exuding a powerful aura.

The Purple Cistanche actually grows at the top of the Provincial Governor's Seal, and its flesh is crystal clear and fragrant.

The spiritual energy between heaven and earth condensed into visible gaseous streams, continuously converging towards the Provincial Governor's Seal, and then being absorbed by the Cordyceps Sinensis.

"Sizzle!"

Li Weiyi swung his sword, severing a piece of medicinal flesh, and handed it to Hidden Twenty-Four: "Take this and give it to Yao Yin!"

The ancient skeleton sitting on the ground next to the Provincial Governor's Seal was startled awake. The skull raised its head and stared at Li Weiyi in front of it. Then, its bones cracked and popped as it slowly stood up.

Li Weiyi was so shocked that her scalp felt like it was going to explode, and she quickly retreated.

"It really is a ferocious beast."

It was definitely this skeleton, which wasn't quite dead, that lured him here.

The skeleton dressed in a purple dragon-patterned official robe rose without displaying any ferocity or launching an attack. Instead, it straightened its clothes, raised its robe to cover its knees, and respectfully knelt before Li Weiyi, proclaiming loudly, "Your subject, Governor Zhu Qingfeng of Yan Province, pays respects to the Emperor."

The skull slammed heavily to the ground with a thud.

His voice sounded slightly aged, but it didn't come from his mouth; it seemed to emanate from within his bones, or perhaps from the very fabric of heaven and earth.

If Hidden Twenty-Four and Yao Yin hadn't been still on the ship, Li Weiyi really would have tried to run away; he couldn't even hold his sword steady. This skeleton with such a terrifyingly powerful background was clearly a case of mistaken identity!

Hidden Twenty-Four could neither see the real scene nor hear the real sound; he was holding Yao Yin and feeding her precious medicine.

Li Weiyi slowly retreated towards them, holding his sword and assuming a defensive stance.

The kneeling skeleton raised its head and cried out in anguish, "After five years of war, Yanzhou fell to the hands of the dead, and darkness swallowed the light. I led all the soldiers and civilians to defend the city, and fought bitterly for three years, but no reinforcements came. The fifteen teams sent out to request help have all disappeared without a trace."

"After a three-year siege, 132 battles of varying sizes were fought. The city ran out of water and food, and of the million soldiers and civilians, only 80,000 remained."

"Your Majesty, I am guilty! I led 80,000 wounded and disabled men in a desperate escape through the ancient underground river, abandoning the city and causing the entire territory of Yanzhou to fall... Alas... What a tragedy..."

Li Weiyi sensed the desolation and sorrow emanating from the skeleton, and heard the helplessness and pain in its tone.

Influenced by their emotions, his fear lessened, and he calmed down, pondering why the other person had mistaken him for the emperor.

This Governor of Yan Province named Zhu Qingfeng, undoubtedly considered Zen Sea Observing Mist to be the emperor.

Why would the other party think he was Zen Sea Observing Mist?

The kneeling skeleton continued, "Upon entering the ancient underground river, we were pursued by the army of the Ember Spirit and fled to this place. Eighty thousand soldiers and civilians perished in battle. As I lay dying from my severe wounds, I left this message on the Provincial Governor's Official Robe, waiting for the Emperor to come and report everything. Even in death, I will have no regrets."

After uttering the last sentence, the skeleton's shoulder and neck bones cracked simultaneously, and it slumped down completely, never to be heard again.

"It turns out that he only had a wisp of thought left, waiting here for the emperor in his heart."

Li Weiyi's fear vanished, replaced by a profound sense of emotion. As he walked over, a feeling of admiration arose within him.

Despite their best efforts, Yanzhou still fell.

A thousand-year-old longing awaits only your arrival.

He will only breathe his last when he sees the emperor.

The Spirit Tablet Master, who had been observing the outside world with his mental power, spoke from the Dao Ancestor Taiji Fish: "If I'm not mistaken, Zen Sea Observing Mist left something on you. That's why Zhu Qingfeng mistook you for her."

Li Weiyi nodded slightly, trying hard to recall her several encounters with Zen Sea Observing Mist, not missing a single detail.

Even if it were to remain, it should be his own blood, which she would absorb.

"What could it be?" he murmured to himself.

The Spirit Tablet Master said, "Zen Sea Observing Mist's cultivation is far superior to ours, reaching a level that the three of us cannot fathom. Her methods must be extremely secretive and sophisticated. However, she is currently very weak, while your cultivation is rapidly improving, meaning you have likely surpassed her. Find her as soon as possible and resolve this threat."

In Li Weiyi's mind, the image of the Red-clothed Immortal Maiden on the tombstone appeared one after another, followed by the White Bone Demon in the tomb, and finally the figure of Qi Shanshan.

"They actually tampered with my body in secret."

Facing a being like Zen Sea Observing Mist, standing proudly at the pinnacle of the world, Li Weiyi felt considerable pressure, regarding her as his most formidable enemy. But now was clearly not the time to ponder how to deal with her.

The most urgent task is to figure out how to escape.

"I understand, it's an official's robe."

The Coffin Master's voice suddenly rang out, and he continued, "Zhu Qingfeng's will borrowed the magical energy within the Cordyceps Sinensis to activate the Provincial Governor's Official Robe, and then opened the purple mist passage to guide you here. I once served as a governor, and even if the robe falls into dormancy, as long as the fire of will within it is not extinguished, it can be used one or two more times."

"Wei Yi, put on your official robes and use your mental power to check if there is still any remnant flame of Zhu Qingfeng's will within them. If there is, immediately use your magical energy to activate it."

Li Weiyi withdrew his Heavenly Eye, Golden Meridian Lines on his body extinguished and turned dark.

The radiant Magic Tool Jade Boat beneath their feet, instantly transformed into a large mud boat, making it difficult to distinguish between reality and illusion.

After bowing three times, Li Weiyi squatted down and quickly removed the purple official robe from the skeleton, racing against time while shouting, "Take Yao Yin and get off the ship first to wait for me!"

Hidden Twenty-Four was puzzled, but guessed that Li Weiyi must have found a way to escape, so he immediately picked up Yao Yin and jumped off the mud boat.

Li Weiyi quickly put on the purple official robe.

The front and back are embroidered with cloud and dragon patterns, the cuffs are wide and decorated with silver buttons, and the waist is adorned with a wide brocade belt inlaid with exotic gemstones and jade pendants.

The official robes could automatically shrink and loosen according to the wearer's body shape.

"Whoosh!"

Li Weiyi put on his official hat, made a hand seal, and released his Psychic Power Spiritual Light into his official robe.

Using his mental perception, a vast and dark world inside the official robe instantly appeared in his Sea of Consciousness. In the darkness, he could see the scattered embers of Zhu Qingfeng's willpower rapidly dissipating and extinguishing.

"Excellent! As long as these flames of mental energy haven't completely died out, we can activate the official robes once more."

Li Weiyi jumped off the mud ship, disregarding the issue of exposure, and activated the Spatial Power of the Buddha's Sarira to collect the entire ship into the Blood Mud Space.

Hidden Twenty-Four was stunned to see the large yellow mud boat disappear into thin air.

Li Weiyi shook his arms, and all eight springs in his body gushed out magical power, which flowed into his official robes.

The empty space inside the official robe was like a bottomless pit, impossible to fill.

Seeing Zhu Qingfeng's spiritual fire quickly extinguished, Li Weiyi was so anxious that sweat beaded on his forehead. He shouted, "What are you standing there for? Come and help! Infuse all the magical energy in your body into your official robe!"

Hidden Twenty-Four came to his senses, stepped forward without a word, and placed his palm on Li Weiyi's back, injecting a torrent of magical energy.

"No, the Provincial Governor's Official Robe have become dull; my magical energy cannot penetrate them," she said.

"Then why can I?"

Li Weiyi muttered a sentence to himself, his eyes filled with suspicion, thinking to himself, "Could it be related to what Zen Sea Observing Mist left in my body again?"

Without time to think, Li Weiyi Jade Void Breathing Technique, activating the eight springs within his body to their fullest extent. His body was completely illuminated by magical power, and the magical energy transformed into brilliant clouds that swirled around him.

"His magical power and magical energy are actually entering the Provincial Governor's Official Robe. Could he be a descendant of Zen Sea Observing Mist? But I've never heard of Zen Sea Observing Mist having a Daoist partner, so how could he have descendants?" Hidden Twenty-Four Bai was puzzled.

"Boom!"

Wisps of purple mist emanated from the official's robes, transforming into purple clouds.

Li Weiyi's face lit up with ecstasy, and he shouted, "Come with me!"

Pulling up Hidden Twenty-Four, the three disappeared into the purple mist.

"Whoosh!"

The next moment, the three of them returned to the pitch-black spider cave.

The sound of an underground Blood River could be heard in my ears.

Hidden Twenty-Four took out a blood-red gem, illuminating the surroundings, and let out a long sigh of relief, "We're finally back! How did you do that? How did you know the Provincial Governor's Official Robe could bring us back? How could your magic power activate it?"

Inside the official robe, Zhu Qingfeng's flame of will was completely extinguished, and Li Weiyi's magic power could no longer be injected into it.

The purple mist that enveloped the official's robes quickly dissipated.

Li Weiyi did not immediately respond to Hidden Twenty-Four's question. Instead, he looked around. The Ash Region had vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed. If he weren't wearing the Provincial Governor's Official Robe, he would have even suspected that it was all an illusion.

On the stone wall ahead, there was a cave with a face as large as it was.

The cave was surrounded by spider webs.

He could sense the aura fluctuations of the Four-Winged Spider King hidden deep within the cave.

The Four-Winged Spider King possesses intelligence and sensed the aura of a martial artist at the Five Seas Realm. It hid inside, too afraid to come out.

Li Weiyi shook his head in disappointment. He had already learned Insect Script from his Spirit Tablet Master, intending to subdue the Four-Winged Spider King and give it to Senior Sister Cai. But it didn't dare to show its face. It turned out that even fierce insects bully the weak and fear the strong.

Riding in a small boat, propelled by the Hidden Twenty-Four magical energies, we returned upstream.

Emerging from the spider cave, Li Weiyi had already removed his official robes, neatly folding them. In a calm yet threatening tone, he said, "Everything you saw today will remain a secret. If a third... or a fourth person finds out, you should understand the consequences."

Hidden Twenty-Four stood at the bow of the ship, his brow furrowed. "Is that all you're threatening? I feel that if your secrets were to be revealed, they would cause a storm in the martial arts world."

"You can try telling Hidden Lord! I guarantee I'll be fine, but you might not be!" Li Weiyi added, "Not killing you to silence you isn't out of kindness, but because I trust you."

Hidden Twenty-Four's heart rippled slightly, but he immediately suppressed the upturned corners of his mouth and said in a deep voice, "I feel uneasy. This matter is strange, especially since that Ash Region doesn't seem to be in a very far place. I should report this to Hidden Lord."

Li Weiyi certainly didn't believe that with his current cultivation level and the power of his official robes, he could traverse such a distant underground space.

Therefore, I agree with her view that the Ash Region are likely nearby.

"Then let's make up a story, go over each other's statements, and then tell the Hidden Lord what we can."

Li Weiyi was still somewhat uneasy about Hidden Twenty-Four, so he added, "Hidden Lord was the Hidden Person of the previous sixty years, while I am the Hidden Person of this sixty years. You must obey me, not him."

Hidden Twenty-Four rolled his eyes, wanting to tell him, "You're not the Hidden Person yet."

Li Weiyi noticed Yao Yin's eyeballs twitch beneath her eyelids, so he said, "Now that you're awake, stop pretending. The three of us will go over your statements together. You're most likely Hidden Twenty-Six, and from now on you'll have to obey me. You should know better than I what the consequences are for betraying the Hidden Person."

Yao Yin sat up; the cracks in her skin had completely disappeared, leaving it smooth and supple again. The medicinal power of the Cordyceps Sinensis had indeed suppressed the Ice Soul Cold Qi within her body. In a melodious and beautiful tone, she said, "Yes, Yao Yin swears to serve the Hidden Person."

Li Weiyi nodded in satisfaction.

"What an imposing official air! No wonder they say that once you've worn an official's robe, you can never take it off!" Hidden Twenty-Four said coldly and sarcastically.