The Empress's Scheme, Great Gan on the Brink of Chaos

"I do not care about glorious achievements."

After hearing Phoenix's words, a vicious glint appeared in the Empress's eyes. Her voice was ice cold as she said, "I care only about the present. How can a dignified Son of Heaven be manipulated like a puppet?"

Then.

The Empress looked at Phoenix and said.

"Have the Shadow Guard hasten their actions. The next batch of Martial Artists in the Heavenly Human Realm must be cultivated as quickly as possible. You have full authority over matters of life and death; act as you see fit."

"Your Majesty's decree shall be obeyed!"

After receiving the Empress's orders.

Phoenix hurriedly departed from the Imperial Palace.

Within the vast palace hall.

The Empress stood alone, gazing up at the starry sky as she murmured, "So what if the world is drenched in blood? Better that I betray the world than let the world betray me!"

Imperial Observatory.

After several days of treatment, the Devil Master's body, which had previously been grievously wounded and on the verge of collapse, had recovered nearly ninety percent.

Even the Devil Master found it hard to believe. His injuries had been far too severe, yet Ren Xiaoyao had forcibly healed him with heaven-defying medical skill.

Naturally, the Devil Master had countless questions about Ren Xiaoyao.

Ren Xiaoyao's combat strength, Ren Xiaoyao's medical skill—both had exceeded the Devil Master's understanding.

No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand how a seventeen-year-old youth could possess two such heaven-defying abilities at once.

Yet the Devil Master knew his place.

He was merely Ren Xiaoyao's servant. No matter how many doubts he harbored, he did not dare ask a single extra question.

However.

The Devil Master naturally did not know.

What he could see of Ren Xiaoyao.

Was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Ren Xiaoyao would not let anyone know his true combat strength.

That included Li Chunfeng and the Devil Master before him.

After all, keeping a low profile was the eternal law of survival.

Only by holding enough trump cards in one's hand.

Could one handle any sudden crisis.

At this moment.

Ren Xiaoyao looked at the Devil Master and asked.

"Devil Master, did you have any contact with my mother, Luo Mengshen, back then? Logically speaking, you should have been figures of the same generation."

"Your mother was far too mysterious. I had little contact with her, but I had indeed heard Luo Mengshen's name in those days."

The Devil Master nodded and said.

"It was said that the key person behind the Empress's rise to power was precisely her. It was also because of this that Luo Mengshen successfully established Facing Heaven Pavilion, becoming almost half an emperor of Great Gan."

At this point, the Devil Master shook his head and said.

"But I have always had a question. Luo Mengshen was such an unparalleled figure—why did she marry Ren Xuanji? And not even as his principal wife, but merely as a concubine. I truly cannot understand it. Given their statuses at the time, Ren Xuanji was far from worthy of Luo Mengshen."

When Ren Xiaoyao heard this.

He fell into thought.

From the perspective of a modern transmigrator.

There seemed to be one reason that could explain it.

Why Luo Mengshen had married beneath herself to Ren Xuanji.

And that reason.

Could also explain why Ren Xuanji loathed Ren Xiaoyao so deeply.

But Ren Xiaoyao did not say it aloud. Instead, he looked at the Devil Master and asked, "The outside world claims that my mother died of illness. Do you think that is true?"

"That is naturally impossible."

The Devil Master shook his head.

"I can say with certainty that, even back then, Luo Mengshen was already a Martial Artist in the Heavenly Human Realm. Those in the Heavenly Human Realm do not suffer from illness or calamity. Her death must have concealed something suspicious. Dying of illness was likely only an excuse."

At this point.

The Devil Master recalled a past event and said.

"After news of Luo Mengshen's death from illness spread, the Empress seemed to have encountered an assassination attempt. Though she luckily survived, her injuries were said to have been extremely severe. For a full half year, she did not attend court or involve herself in state affairs."

"And I seized that opportunity to break free from the Imperial Court's control. From an Undercover Agent of the Imperial Observatory, I completely became the Sect Master of the Demonic Sect."

Recalling those years.

The Devil Master was naturally filled with endless emotion.

When the time was right, even Heaven and Earth lent their strength.

For him to transform from an undercover agent into the Devil Master.

Heaven's timing, favorable terrain, and human support had all been indispensable.

Ren Xiaoyao nodded as well.

Then he asked the Devil Master about Qianqiu Pavilion.

But even the Devil Master.

Knew very little about Qianqiu Pavilion.

He had only once heard that such a sacred land existed in the martial world. Over a thousand years, the rise and fall of countless dynasties seemed to have been connected to Qianqiu Pavilion.

Ren Xiaoyao could only let the matter rest.

He told the Devil Master to continue gathering intelligence on Qianqiu Pavilion.

At the same time, he had him prepare some medicinal herbs for him.

Ren Xiaoyao had already understood most of the theoretical knowledge of alchemy. He intended to refine some pills in his spare time.

The Devil Master naturally obeyed Ren Xiaoyao's orders.

Although some of the medicinal herbs Ren Xiaoyao required were exceptionally precious.

And practically impossible to obtain even with a thousand gold pieces.

For the Devil Master, who had recovered his Heavenly Human Realm strength.

Obtaining them was not too difficult.

After the Devil Master left.

Ren Xiaoyao cultivated quietly for three days. Three days later, Li Chunfeng, who had escorted Bai Su and Yao Luochen to Great Zhou, returned to the Imperial Observatory from outside.

When Li Chunfeng saw Ren Xiaoyao.

He spoke of what he had seen and heard during his trip to Great Zhou.

Great Zhou was Great Gan's neighboring country.

The two nations possessed similar national strength and territories of roughly equal size. Thus, wars frequently broke out between Great Zhou and Great Gan along the borderlands.

Five years ago.

Great Zhou launched a surprise attack on Great Gan and seized Youzhou, a border city of Great Gan. At that time, Ying Huai had led the army, marched in the Son of Heaven's stead, and recovered the lost territory.

It was precisely because of this.

That Ying Huai was promoted to Pavilion Master of the Imperial Court Pavilion.

His power overshadowed the court.

After speaking of Great Zhou.

Li Chunfeng mentioned another strange matter.

While passing through Youzhou.

Li Chunfeng had traveled through a small town.

He had originally intended to rest there for the night, only to discover that all thousand-odd residents of the town had died unnatural deaths.

The entire town had already become a Ghost Town.

Li Chunfeng had instinctively assumed that the town had been destroyed by bandits.

After all, the borderlands had always been utter chaos.

But after a brief investigation.

Li Chunfeng discovered that this was not the case.

The ones who had slaughtered the entire town were the Government Garrison of Youzhou.

This garrison had originally been ordered to suppress bandits. But the bandits were difficult to find, so in order to report back and claim rewards, they killed innocent civilians and passed them off as bandits to claim merit.

This enraged Li Chunfeng.

He secretly took action and exterminated all Over Two Hundred Youzhou Soldiers.

It could be considered an account given to the innocent townsfolk who had died unjustly.

However.

Li Chunfeng discovered that the matter was not so simple.

Under normal circumstances, if Government Garrison soldiers were killed, all of Youzhou would be placed under martial law. The Youzhou Governor would surely cast a Heavenly Net, digging three feet into the ground to find the culprit.

After all, intercepting and killing Government Garrison soldiers.

Was equivalent to rebellion.

It was a Heaven-defying Crime.

If it was not handled properly.

Even the Youzhou Governor would be stripped of office and imprisoned.

Yet in this matter.

The Youzhou Governor did not intervene.

Instead, he handed it over to the Shadow Guard directly under the Empress to handle discreetly.

It was only then.

That Li Chunfeng discovered.

The land of Youzhou was filled with the Empress's Shadow Guard. They seemed to be carrying out some extraordinarily important mission.

But Li Chunfeng did not interfere any further.

After all, it involved the Shadow Guard directly under the Empress.

The implications were too great.

Ren Xiaoyao sighed as well.

He vaguely had a feeling.

That Great Gan was not far from descending into chaos.

Human lives seemed increasingly like blades of grass.

Not worth mentioning.

Several days later.

Ying Huai also came to the Imperial Observatory.

He found Li Chunfeng.

Getting straight to the point, he directly asked whether it had been Li Chunfeng who acted in Youzhou and killed Over Two Hundred Youzhou Soldiers.

Li Chunfeng did not hide it and directly nodded. "I have always been unable to tolerate injustice. I killed those over two hundred soldiers with a clear conscience."

Ying Huai stroked his beard and said.

"Chunfeng, I did not come to find you because of this matter, but because of something else. When you passed through that slaughtered town, did you notice anything strange about the townspeople's corpses?"

Upon hearing Ying Huai's words, Li Chunfeng frowned and recalled.

"Now that you mention it, there was indeed something strange. The corpses of those thousand-odd townspeople were all eerily pale, as though every drop of blood in their bodies had been drained completely. I was consumed by anger at the time and failed to notice that detail. Now that I think of it, something is deeply wrong!"

After hearing Li Chunfeng's words, Ying Huai's expression became grave as he said.

"Li Chunfeng, have you ever heard of a martial art in the martial world that can extract a person's vital blood in an instant?"

"I have heard of one."

Li Chunfeng continued.

"Twenty Years Ago, a figure known as the Blood Demon appeared in the martial world. He cultivated by devouring the vital blood of Martial Artists, stirring up countless foul winds and bloody rains across the martial world and leaving its people panic-stricken."

"Later, it was said that Luo Mengshen took action and slew the Blood Demon. It was also through that Battle to Suppress the Blood Demon that Facing Heaven Pavilion made its name. That demonic art completely vanished from the martial world thereafter!"

After hearing Li Chunfeng's words, Ying Huai's face turned incomparably ugly. He looked utterly lost as he murmured.

"If that is the case, then most of the clues match up. But... why would she do this?"

Immediately.

Ying Huai did not remain in the Imperial Observatory any longer.

He hurriedly left Fulong Mountain.

Ren Xiaoyao watched Ying Huai's back recede.

He only felt that, in that instant.

Ying Huai had aged countless years.

The vitality, energy, and spirit within his body seemed to have been drained away in an instant. Even his steps had become unsteady.

Seeing this scene.

Ren Xiaoyao let out a quiet sigh.

He knew that Ying Huai had likely been drawn into an enormous whirlpool.

But there was nothing Ren Xiaoyao could do to help Ying Huai. Everyone had their own life.

The only thing Ren Xiaoyao could guarantee.

Was that, at the very end.

He would keep Ying Huai safe.

After all, Ying Huai had treated Ren Xiaoyao.

With genuine sincerity.

Without the slightest falsehood.

Late at night.

The Devil Master also quietly arrived at the Imperial Observatory.

He brought Ren Xiaoyao the raw ingredients needed for pill refinement.

At the same time, the Devil Master brought news from the Capital City.

"At dusk, Ying Huai, the Pavilion Master of Facing Heaven Pavilion, met with the Empress. For reasons unknown, the two had a fierce argument. The Empress flew into a royal rage. If not for her wariness of the Facing Heaven Pavilion behind Ying Huai, she would likely have seized him on the spot!"

The Devil Master said.

"But even so, Ying Huai is likely finished. There isn't room for even a grain of sand in the Empress's eyes. This Pavilion Master of Facing Heaven Pavilion is probably destined to fade into a dim ending!"