Four Tigers

Recently, a series of incidents have occurred in Chaoge and even the Royal Palace, including a meteor shower, an explosion in the Imperial Study, visitors from the Daoist Sect, the Great King being captured in a magical artifact, the imperial chariot being attacked by vicious dogs, and the Crown Prince being abducted. All of these events have put Fang Bi and Fang Xiang under immense pressure.

In the Imperial Garden, the Great King received a letter carried by a strange gust of wind, which naturally did not escape Fang Bi and Fang Xiang's notice.

Knowing the Great King as they did, since he now knew the Crown Prince's whereabouts, if there was even the slightest chance of rescuing him, the Great King would absolutely not let it go.

Therefore, they had already lined up here, awaiting King Zhou's orders.

As it turned out, King Zhou's single sentence rendered all their preparations useless.

However, since the Great King had spoken, neither Fang Bi nor Fang Xiang dared to say anything more. They merely sent people to report the news outside the palace immediately.

After some time, someone brought Di Xin his Carefree Horse and carried the General-Slaying Saber.

Di Xin did not don his armor. He mounted the horse with the saber and headed straight for the Royal Palace gates.

Outside the palace gates, he happened to encounter King Wu Cheng of Zhenguo, Huang Feihu, who had rushed over after receiving the news. Behind him, the Prime Minister Shang Rong and Deputy Minister Bi Gan were also approaching in their carriages.

News of the incident at the Royal Palace yesterday had spread like wildfire. All the court officials knew that the Great King, who often skipped court, would certainly not be presiding over it today, so they did not go to Longde Hall to request his presence.

After all, they had several decrees issued by the Great King previously that needed to be handled outside the court.

"Great King, may I ask the reason for leaving the palace?"

Huang Feihu was different from Fang Bi and Fang Xiang. He was a powerful minister in charge of the military and the current King's father-in-law. His status and position were naturally undeniable, and he spoke to King Zhou without the extreme caution of those two palace generals.

"What business is it of yours?"

King Zhou frowned, and his horse began to sidestep around Huang Feihu.

Huang Feihu, however, reached out and grabbed the reins, blocking the Carefree Horse. "Great King, forgive my directness, but your person is tied to the safety of the entire nation. You absolutely cannot venture into danger lightly. I beg the Great King to return to the palace. I will go to Tiger Head Cliff on your behalf."

"That assassin can fly, can you?" King Zhou frowned again.

"You can't fly either! This matter... Great King, you absolutely must not go into danger."

At this moment, Shang Rong and Bi Gan had also arrived. They dismounted their carriages and, in almost unison, advised him.

"Yin Jiao is my son, is he not also your son? A father saves his son; you need not stop me." Di Xin opened his mouth wide and directly rebuffed them.

"This... of course, it is the Great King's..."

Which of these ministers dared to claim Yin Jiao as their son? Wouldn't that be pure suicide?

Their replies could not keep up with Di Xin's pace. As soon as these words left their mouths, Di Xin immediately said, "The Crown Prince is in danger. As his Father King, it is my duty to save him. You need not say more. The General-Slaying Saber in my hand is not for show. If even one of you follows me and causes the Crown Prince to be endangered, you will all await burial!"

After speaking, King Zhou struck the horse's flank with the hilt of his saber, released the reins, and galloped along the long street towards the west gate.

The many court officials in front of the palace looked at each other, unsure of what to do.

Only Huang Feihu stroked his beard, pondered for a moment, and decisively said, "Fang Bi will lead three thousand Imperial Guards, and I will lead ten thousand elite soldiers towards Tiger Head Cliff to provide support."

"King Wucheng, do you have confidence in protecting the Great King and rescuing the Crown Prince?" Prime Minister Shang Rong asked urgently.

Huang Feihu gave a wry smile and shook his head. "Even if I personally go to Tiger Head Cliff, I don't know if I can keep my life under the hands of the Daoist Sect, let alone anything else. However, since things have come to this, as a subject, I can only do my best and leave the rest to fate. If the Great King truly encounters danger, I will defend him with my life, without regret."

The crowd looked at each other again, knowing that Huang Feihu spoke the truth, yet no one had a better solution.

Unlike the ministers in front of the palace, Di Xin was not so nervous.

The Daoist Sect's attempt to test whether he possessed Magic Power was already a foregone conclusion.

The people of the Daoist Sect were powerful, but they wouldn't dare to kill him outright. If they could have killed him, Goddess Nuwa would have acted long ago.

Because of the consequences it might bring, which she was unwilling to bear.

It would be a loss that outweighed any gain.

If the Daoist Sect truly wanted to get rid of him, there was no fundamental difference between doing so in the Royal Palace or at Tiger Head Cliff.

Therefore, Di Xin, who had already seen through the truth of the matter, put on an act of sacrificing himself before the palace, but he felt quite relaxed on the way.

As he traveled, he deduced all sorts of possible scenarios.

It was all about what method the other party would use to test him, and how he could avoid revealing that he already knew their intentions, otherwise, it would be tantamount to confessing.

Although the other party would not dare to kill him, if they were to definitively prove that he was the thief of their treasure, they would still have many ways to punish him.

In fact, with just this charge alone, even killing him might not be considered a violation of heavenly principles.

Therefore, the most crucial point was to prevent them from believing that he had stolen their treasure.

Tiger Head Cliff was a dangerous place in Chaoge Mountain, more than thirty li away from Chaoge City.

Chaoge was originally named Mei Xiang, and later renamed Mei Yi, precisely because of Chaoge Mountain to the west of the city, it got its current name.

Thirty li was not a long distance for Di Xin's Carefree Horse.

Di Xin naturally knew the location of Tiger Head Cliff, and in fact, almost everyone in Chaoge City knew.

It was a dangerous place, towering high, with cliffs hundreds of zhang below.

Di Xin had climbed Tiger Head Cliff more than once when hunting in Chaoge Mountain, gazing out at Chaoge and surveying the land under his rule.

From the main road to a small path, they reached the foot of the mountain, where it gradually disappeared into the overgrown grass. Further up, horses could no longer travel, and they had to climb on foot.

Di Xin dismounted, tethered his horse in the nearby woods, and then, holding his General-Slaying Saber, began to climb toward Tiger Head Cliff.

From a distance, he could see the silhouette of Tiger Head Cliff, but reaching it would require climbing at least seven or eight li of mountain path.

Halfway up, Di Xin suddenly stopped, tightened his grip on the General-Slaying Saber, and looked toward a dense forest in the distance.

A gust of wind stirred there, and a massive, vividly striped tiger emerged as if strolling leisurely, approaching him.

Chaoge Mountain was home to many ferocious beasts; Di Xin knew this, which was why he had chosen to hunt here before. However, whether this particular tiger was controlled by someone from the Daoist Sect, Di Xin couldn't quite tell.

He felt no panic whatsoever. He took two quick steps to his right, moving to an open area with sparse trees, and held his saber, staring intently at the tiger.

The General-Slaying Saber had a five-foot shaft; too many obstacles in the surroundings would truly hinder its use.

"Holy crap..."

Soon, Di Xin let loose a string of expletives. Following the first tiger, he saw three more of the same size leap out from the forest, joining the first one.

The four tigers ran side by side, approaching Di Xin together.

At first, their speed wasn't particularly fast, but as the distance closed, the four tigers were already moving like lightning.