The next day.
Emperor Xue Ye had learned somehow that Qin Yuan had been assassinated, but he showed no concern, only a hint of surprise.
Who would bother assassinating that good-for-nothing?
He shook his head speechlessly, then sent for Qian Renxue. He had no intention of calling Qin Yuan over to comfort him. There was no need.
He summoned Qian Renxue because he knew Qin Yuan would tell her about the assassination, and that she would surely seek justice for that good-for-nothing.
So he had no choice but to summon her.
Qian Renxue entered the great hall. Emperor Xue Ye regarded her coolly.
"You know that Xiao Yuan was assassinated?"
Qian Renxue nodded.
"You needn't concern yourself with this. I will handle it personally," Emperor Xue Ye said indifferently.
"May I ask how Father intends to handle it?" A cold, mocking glint flashed in Qian Renxue's eyes.
"I'll warn that Li Hong, but..." He paused, then continued, "I can't let this affect relations between our two countries. At most, I'll make Li Hong compensate Xiao Yuan with a little money and property."
"Xiao Yuan almost lost his life, and Father intends to do no more than issue a warning?!" Even though she had known this was coming, Qian Renxue couldn't help growing angry.
"What else?"
Emperor Xue Ye retorted, rose to his feet, and strode toward Qian Renxue. His voice was stern and imposing.
"Would you offend a Star Luo duke beyond reconciliation for the sake of a good-for-nothing? How many years of peace have our countries enjoyed? It's been only thirteen years since our last war!"
"Yes, and those thirteen years of peace were won by Xiao Yuan's father. Yet this is how you treat his only son—your own nephew!"
Qian Renxue spoke, suppressing her anger.
Emperor Xue Ye's expression stiffened. He, too, felt that this was rather dishonorable, but offending a Star Luo duke over a good-for-nothing seemed simply not worth it.
So he said nothing, merely snorted and swept out of the hall.
"This matter is my decision. You are not to interfere!"
Qian Renxue watched Emperor Xue Ye's retreating figure, her gaze cold and distant.
"Too late."
Three days later, on a dark and windy night.
The cold, murderous gale howled through the night. Li Hong stood by the door with a smile on his lips.
"What a wind! What a wind! I can almost smell the blood of Qin Zhan's son. Heh, excellent."
BOOM—!!!
Just then, two fearsome, domineering pressures descended with a crash.
Li Hong, who was only a Soul Saint, and every living thing in Li Mansion—from the oldest to the youngest, dogs included—collapsed to the ground, trembling.
"What's happening?" Li Hong was utterly bewildered.
Only when two black-robed figures descended into the air before him and looked down at him did he hear them speak:
"By the young lady's order, no one in Li Mansion... is to be spared."
In the final moments of his life, Li Hong saw only two pairs of eyes, glinting with icy light.
Then his neck stung, and the world spun around him. One moment he saw the pitch-black sky; the next, he saw a headless corpse spurting blood toward the sky. At last, his vision settled on the pool of blood on the ground. His eyes stared in disbelief, and he fell silent forever.
Even as he died, a resentful question lingered in his soul:
"Why... kill me..."
By the time Qin Yuan learned that the Duke's Mansion of Li Hong in the Star Luo Empire had been wiped out, seven days had passed.
A duke's entire household had been slaughtered in a single night. The news shook the whole continent.
The nobles of the Star Luo Empire flew into a rage. Never before had they been so united; they mobilized all their forces to investigate the matter.
It wasn't because they were close to Duke Li Hong. They were afraid.
If someone could wipe out a duke's mansion overnight, then they could slaughter them just as easily—even the Star Luo Imperial Family!
After hearing about it, Emperor Xue Ye fell into a long silence.
The various powers across Douluo Continent were thrown into a panic by the incident, all afraid they would be next.
What kind of power could wipe out a duke's mansion in a single night? At the very least, a Titled Douluo must have been involved!
How many Titled Douluo were there across the whole Douluo Continent?
Who knew why Li Hong had been so blind as to offend a Titled Douluo? He deserved to die!
Qin Yuan was silent for a long while. He had thought Qian Renxue would only kill Duke Li Hong; he hadn't expected her to slaughter the entire Duke's Mansion.
After a long while, a smile appeared on his face.
"Maybe this is for the best. Pulling up the roots will stop some avenger from leaping out in front of me years from now."
Then he rose and left the Imperial Palace, heading for Dugu Bo's residence.
It was time to harvest the Immortal Herbs.
Dugu Bo knew this day would come sooner or later. When Qin Yuan arrived, he said nothing, simply grabbing him by the shoulder and flying with him to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, deep in Sunset Forest.
They came to a small valley. Before them lay a hot spring.
The spring wasn't very large, but it was divided in two. The water in its oval pools was milk-white on one side and vermilion on the other.
Even stranger, though both pools belonged to the same spring, their waters remained sharply divided, never encroaching on each other and always staying on their own sides.
The billowing steam rose from the spot between the two springs, climbing higher and higher until it slowly dissipated at the mouth of the valley.
All around the spring grew rare and precious plants, making the place seem like a paradise beyond the mortal world.
"Qin boy, this old man always keeps his word. You may choose any twenty medicinal plants here," Dugu Bo said.
"But only twenty."
After emphasizing the limit, Dugu Bo gave Qin Yuan a deep look and flew out of the small valley.
"Whenever you want to leave, just call out."
Dugu Bo's figure disappeared from the valley.
Looking at the rare plants scattered everywhere, Qin Yuan's eyes gleamed. He had planned this long ago, and immediately strode toward the Immortal Herbs on either side of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass looked like a large white flower at its tip, with eight corners and a cluster of glittering, ice-crystal-like stamens in the middle. It gave off no scent. It grew at the center of the side containing the Extreme Cold Yin Spring.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass was a flower of extreme cold. It could chill a person to the bone and numb the body's core.
The air within ten meters of the grass was piercingly cold. Spend too long near it, and its cold poison would attack the heart, with no cure. Eating it was out of the question; even standing nearby brought misfortune. It could only be picked with an object made of gold or iron.
The Infernal Delicate Apricot grew at the center of the blazing Yang Spring. It was a plant shaped like a cabbage, yet fiery red all over.
Qin Yuan used a dagger to cut down the two highly poisonous Immortal Herbs, then held them in his hands. One was a fire-poison Immortal Herb, the other a cold-poison Immortal Herb, and they invaded his body from either side.
Holy white light flared from both his hands, easily suppressing them.
Then, following the method in his mind, Qin Yuan stood at the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and swallowed both poisonous Immortal Herbs in a single gulp.
The Immortal Herbs, radiating extreme heat and extreme cold, slid down his throat and into his abdomen.
Thump!
His heart suddenly beat once, like a war drum.
The next second, his whole body was bathed in pure, holy white light, and the effects of the two poisonous Immortal Herbs began to fuse together at an astonishing speed.
Then, under the effect of Life Miracle, they flowed into his heart.
Thump, thump, thump!!
His heartbeat suddenly accelerated. With every beat, his blood carried the fused effects of the two Immortal Herbs throughout his body.
Three minutes later.
Qin Yuan leaped down into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
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