The Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell

Two weeks later.

The moon was bright and the stars were few. Even at night, the towering city gates of Di'an City were still bustling with activity, as merchants and travelers came in an endless stream along the wide official road.

Amidst the bustling night, a carriage bearing the emblem of the Grand Court of State Ceremonial drove out of the city gate, drawing much discussion from the merchants and travelers along the way. The carriage then proceeded slowly and steadily along the official road into the distance.

As the only political center of the Great Yan Dynasty, the mountains and fields surrounding Di'an City are dotted with manors built by various high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants.

Some estates are located atop high mountains, while others are hidden in mountain valleys.

A stunning blonde woman in an elegant gown glanced through the window at the Nine Dragon Mountain, bathed in the dazzling lights of Di'an City. The expression in her azure eyes was unfathomable.

After gazing for a while, Aurenli quietly withdrew her gaze, slowly closed her eyes, and her beautiful, deep golden eyelashes trembled gently.

The carriage drove out of Di'an City, passed the most bustling official road in the suburbs of Di'an City, and then quietly turned into a tree-lined path beside the official road.

The moonlight filtered through the layers of branches in the woods, and through the window lattice, illuminating Aurenli's flawless profile with her eyes closed, making her look like a saint under the moon.

In this stillness, after an unknown amount of time, Aurenli slowly opened her eyes, only to meet Huron, who had been looking at her from the other side.

As carriages provided to diplomatic envoys, the interiors of the carriages in the Grand Court of State Ceremonial were extremely luxurious and grand, reflecting the majesty of the imperial court.

The interior space was very large; even with a can as big as an iron mountain sitting opposite Aurenli, the carriage still did not feel cramped.

"Your Highness, are you alright?"

Huron's voice came through the tin can, sounding muffled and awkward, unlike the language of the Great Yan.

Aurenli did not answer the question. She slightly raised her hand, and a glass bottle containing a pale blue liquid appeared between her slender fingers.

He casually unscrewed the bottle, tilted his swan-like neck back, and drank it all in one gulp.

As her paleness subsided slightly, Aurenli's gaze calmly drifted towards the moonlit forest path outside the window, her voice soft:

"Xides, do you really think that the Third Prince of the Great Yan Dynasty wants to cooperate with us?"

"I am merely your guardian knight, and know nothing of politics, Your Highness." Huron lowered his head.

"."

After a moment of silence, Aurenli's lips curled slightly. She pulled up the slit of her dress, revealing her long, slender, white legs, and propped her chin on her hand, staring with interest at the tin can opposite her.

"As expected, he's just a warrior who only knows how to fight. How boring."

"Then let me ask you another question. If I said we're in danger right now, could you, the guardian knight, take me back?"

"."

After a moment of silence, Huron's voice, transmitted through his helmet, was earnest. "I'm willing to give my life for this."

"Call"

Upon hearing this answer, a hint of helplessness flashed across Aurenli's slightly languid expression. She gazed at the Di'an City, which had already disappeared from sight, and said softly:

"Perhaps I shouldn't have left the Royal Academy in the first place, and I certainly shouldn't have agreed to come to this unfamiliar dynasty with the Second Crown Prince."

"You judge us to be in danger?" Huron uttered these words as if they were a taciturn mantra.

"Oh."

A clear laugh rang out. Aurenli leaned forward slightly, crossed her legs, rested her elbows on her knees, and lifted her cheeks, asking softly:

"Since we set foot on this unfamiliar continent, you've seen everything we've witnessed. I'd like to hear your assessment of this dynasty."

After a brief silence, Huron replied seriously:

"It was a vast, bloated, and decaying, but powerful empire."

Upon hearing this answer, Aurenli's rosy lips unconsciously curved into a smile, and her slender index finger gently tapped her cheek.

"Your assessment is fair, but you've missed the most important point."

"Arrogant."

Aurenli's jade-like feet, crossed over her shoulders, swayed slightly beneath her amethyst high-heeled boots, her voice soft and melodious:

"From the emperor to the common people on the street, everyone in this empire has an arrogance that comes from the bottom of their bones towards us foreigners."

"Whether the Dongying Island are occupied by you Xien or the Japanese, it makes no difference to our Great Yan. Xides, look at what that prince said back then. To say such things when he needed our help was truly infuriating."

Speaking of this,

Aurenli narrowed her bright, beautiful eyes, and a chilling, maniacal smile curled her delicate, luscious red lips.

"I'm so annoyed that I wish I could see that handsome foreign prince kneeling at my feet, licking my shoes."

"."

Huron Xides remained silent, as still as an iron mountain, without responding to these words.

Aurenli glanced at the knight opposite her and asked with a smile:

You think I can't do it?

Huron lowered his head under their gaze:

"My lord's will is my heart's desire."

The Blood Rose of the Empire, a madwoman who killed three of her own siblings, and a noblewoman who enjoys toying with the strong.

"Hehehe~ Just kidding."

A burst of silvery laughter echoed, and Aurenli lowered her legs. The murderous intent on her face vanished, replaced by a saintly gentleness.

"This Great Yan Empire is different from the natives we've encountered before. Let's be pragmatic and think about how to get out of here."

"After all,

"We have achieved our goal in coming to the Great Yan Empire."

"Hey, didn't you say Xu Changge would be coming?"

At the entrance of the manor hidden in the mountain valley, Li Yunqing glanced at the figure shrouded in a black robe and then at the empty forest behind him, and suddenly felt an urge to slam the door shut.

Xu Yuan casually pulled down his hood, and without any hesitation, pushed aside Li Yunqing, who was blocking the doorway, and walked into the garden. His gaze swept casually around the exquisitely decorated courtyard, with a hint of admiration:

"You certainly know how to enjoy life, owning a property in a place like this. Why is it so dark inside? Where are the servants? Oh, right, you're such a miser, you've probably already moved them."

As he spoke, he walked towards a pavilion on one side of the courtyard as if he were the host. "Since you're Li Capital the capital anyway, why don't you sell this property to me? I happen to need a manor to relax in."

Dressed in a blue and white outfit with purple dragon tattoos, Li Yunqing quickly followed behind Xu Yuan, saying rapidly:

"Stop with the nonsense. If Xu Changge hadn't come, I wouldn't have gotten involved tonight."

Upon hearing this, Xu Yuan gently waved his hand:

"Don't rush, there's still a while until your agreed time."

As he spoke, Xu Yuan walked into the pavilion and sat on the stone bench. Looking at the Third Prince, whose face was full of resentment, he smiled with slight interest:

"Besides, haven't you already broken through to the third rank?"

"My trip to Eastern Isles is already settled, so there's no need to suppress my cultivation anymore."

Upon hearing this, a hint of smugness appeared on Li Yunqing's face, but it quickly vanished as he glanced at the tranquil classical manor.

"Judging from your confident attitude, Xu Changge must have arrived by now, right?"

Xu Yuan then smiled:

Maybe.

"Maybe?"

"."

After a brief silence, Li Yunqing asked tentatively:

"What did you tell Xu Changge?"

Xu Yuan raised his gaze slightly, a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, and said:

"After that day, I went back to the manor to find him and told him that I had met the princess of the Kingdom of Xien, and that the two of us might not be able to defeat her, so I wanted to ask him to help me tie her up."

Li Yunqing gasped upon hearing this:

"Hiss, you're so direct?"

"I've always been this direct."

"What did he say?"

He told me to get out.

"." Li Yunqing.

Rubbing his temples, Li Yunqing rested his elbow on the stone table, rubbing his forehead, and stared at Xu Yuan with a pained expression:

"So, your older brother didn't agree to tonight's plans at all, right?"

"Right."

"Xu Changtian, if we make a move tonight, we'll be tearing off all pretense of civility. The Kingdom of Xien doesn't care about your status."

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush."

"Why wouldn't I be in a hurry?! If you want to die, don't drag me down with you."

Li Yunqing stood up abruptly, as if to leave.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan quickly pulled him back and whispered:

"Don't worry, I was just joking. Xu Changge will come."

"A joke? You mean Xu Changge actually agreed?"

No, not at all.

"." Li Yunqing.

Meeting the other person's look of utter disbelief, Xu Yuan said confidently:

"You don't understand my older brother. If I say he'll come, he definitely will, even if he's unwilling."

"Why?" Li Yunqing frowned.

Xu Yuan spread his hands and said loudly:

"If he dares not to come, I'll kill myself!"

"." Li Yunqing.

"." Xu Changge.

The sounds that had echoed through the mountain valley faded away, and the courtyard returned to silence.

In this stillness, Xu Yuan inexplicably felt a chill run down his spine and quickly coughed lightly:

"Well, I know what I'm doing. Just proceed according to plan."

Li Yunqing rubbed his temples and reminded him in a somewhat unfriendly tone:

"Alright, I've already broken through to the third rank. Even if I can't win, this place is only three hundred miles away from Di'an City. If I want to escape, they won't dare to chase me."

"Don't worry, you might not be able to outrun me."

"Tsk, that's not necessarily true."

"Hehe."

After sitting down again, Li Yunqing glanced at the sky and said in a low voice:

"There are still about 15 minutes until the time I agreed with them. Let's discuss our strategy."

"Countermeasures? What countermeasures?"

Xu Yuan's eyes were strange, and he said matter-of-factly, "If Xu Changge hadn't come, you, a third-grade Grandmaster, wouldn't want me, a mere Body Fusion, to be in charge of that tin can, would you?"

As he spoke, Xu Yuan lightly tapped the stone table in front of him with his fingertips, and said:

"Instead of discussing that, why don't you tell me what you and Princess Aurenli have been discussing these past two weeks? It's all over Di'an City now that you two have met in secret at least seven or eight times in the last two weeks."

"A secret rendezvous? Ha. All of this is just setting the stage for tonight."

Li Yunqing snorted, "That woman is very clever. Every time I negotiate with her, it takes a lot of effort to move the agenda forward. It took eleven negotiations over the past half month to finally finalize the overall cooperation plan before I could lure her to the Di'an City for the final discussions."

Xu Yuan frowned slightly upon hearing this:

"You've invited him to meet eleven times in half a month? Isn't that too frequent? It might make that woman wary."

Li Yunqing waved his hand and smiled:

"I naturally considered that. I told him that I might have to go on a diplomatic mission to Eastern Isles next month, and under such circumstances, I naturally have to be more diligent."

You're leaving next month?

"Of course I was lying to her. I didn't submit a Eastern Isles."

"In other words, if she knew, then she could be certain it was a trap?"

"Currently, only a few high-ranking officials in the court know about this matter. Where did she get the means to verify it?"

Li Yunqing replied nonchalantly, "Moreover, I have already placed our royal family's Thousand-Mile Dark Soul Incense on her; even if she wanted to run, it would be too late."

"."

After a moment's hesitation, Xu Yuan nodded slightly.

As an envoy entering a foreign empire, if the ruler wants you dead, even if you know it, you have virtually no chance of resistance.

The reason Li Yunqing and he went through all this trouble to choose such a remote and impoverished place to make their move was actually to conceal Xu Yuan's identity and the connection between Li Yunqing and the Prime Minister's Mansion. That's why they couldn't make their move in Di'an City.

Just as I was thinking,

A rather cold yet gentle male voice suddenly reached Xu Yuan's ears:

"You two idiots, still plotting something here. Those two have already abandoned the car and run away. It's not too late to chase them now."

Upon hearing the sound, Xu Yuan immediately stood up and used his Spirit Sight to scan his surroundings, but unfortunately, apart from Li Yunqing, he could not sense anyone else.

Xu Changge's telepathic message

Seeing Xu Yuan suddenly stand up, Li Yunqing asked with slight surprise:

"What's wrong with you? Should we attack them immediately upon meeting them, or should I discuss things with them for a moment before launching a surprise attack?"

Xu Yuan cursed under his breath:

"Stop plotting, you idiot! Those two have already abandoned the car and run away. We can still catch up."

"."

Li Yunqing was taken aback upon hearing this. His powerful Will Soul, belonging to a third-grade Grandmaster, instantly surged forth along the path in front of the manor. After a moment, he frowned and said:

"What are you talking about? I've been watching them the whole time. Those two are sitting in the carriage of the Grand Court of State Ceremonial, only a quarter of an hour's drive from here."

"."

Xu Yuan didn't say much, his eyes flashing with a blood-red light. He leaped into the air and sped away along the forest path.

Seeing this, Li Yunqing looked puzzled but immediately straightened his expression and followed Xu Yuan.

A moment later, two figures slowly landed in front of the luxurious carriage engraved with the emblem of the Grand Court of State Ceremonial.

Through the window of the driverless carriage, Xu Yuan's gaze met that of Aurenli, who was looking out of the carriage.

They locked eyes for a moment,

The Willowwood Ghost Blade instantly appeared in Xu Yuan's hand, and before Li Yunqing could speak, he slashed horizontally with the sword.

The sword mark, accompanied by splashes of ink and blood, stretched for more than ten zhang, directly cleaving the horse and chariot in two horizontally!

Under this strike, the two figures inside the car, severed in two, paused briefly before quietly transforming into starlight and dissipating into the moonlit forest.