Beast

What Zhou Yi said was seven parts truth, three parts false.

That Pu Du Ci Hang had close ties with the Buddhist Sect was true.

That the officials had been devoured was true.

That the Dragon Qi was being refined was true.

As for whether he intended to eat Li Yu, Zhou Yi could only say it was unsubstantiated.

With a flicker of thought, Zhou Yi's True Essence enveloped the area three zhang around him, ensuring no sound within could escape to the outside.

"Since Pudu Cihang wants to refine Dragon Qi, then let's raise a dragon for him to swallow, and His Majesty will naturally be safe."

Li Yu's face turned pale. By now, he was especially sensitive to words like eat, swallow, and chew.

"Grand Tutor, Dragon Qi is the focus of fate and fortune; none but a sovereign can possess it."

Li Yu shook his head. "With Great Jing teetering on the brink, if a real dragon truly rises in rebellion, I would rather die at the hands of that Demonic Monk."

Zhou Yi said in a deep voice, "Then what if this dragon is someone from the imperial clan?"

"Who?"

Li Yu's first thought was that some member of the royal family was trying to seize power.

"Among the many imperial clansmen, only the Crown Prince is most suitable... The Crown Prince is already a hidden dragon. With proper nurturing and guidance, and with popular support, generating Dragon Qi would be extremely easy."

Zhou Yi spoke slowly. "Moreover, the Crown Prince was personally appointed by His Majesty, so he will naturally inherit the throne in the future, with no risk of rebellion."

"But the Crown Prince is my most valued son—how could I let the Demonic Monk... let the Demonic Monk..."

Li Yu couldn't bring himself to finish, yet a chill ran through his heart as he realized this plan was not bad.

"Your Majesty has seven sons and six daughters, and you are still in your prime..."

"Grand Tutor, say no more. How could I sell out my own son!"

Li Yu waved his hand in irritation. "Grand Tutor, withdraw. I am tired."

"Your servant takes his leave."

A faint smile curled at the corner of Zhou Yi's mouth as he turned and left.

Li Yu sat blankly on the dragon throne, lost in thought, no one knew what he was pondering.

Chu Xiu, standing nearby, felt restless for the first time, silently cursing Zhou Yi for discussing such matters in front of him.

Before long, a eunuch broke the silence.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince requests an audience."

"Summon him!"

Li Yu's voice had grown much more resolute.

An hour later.

News spread from the palace.

Prince Guangyang had plotted rebellion.

After the Crown Prince was ambushed, he led troops to exterminate Prince Guangyang's entire household.

The Emperor praised the Crown Prince, saying he was brave and skilled, with the style of the Great Ancestor, and appointed him to jointly command the Imperial Guard alongside the Grand Tutor.

Three pieces of news in succession shook the capital.

Prince Guangyang—one of Great Jing's eight hereditary princes, whose lineage had guarded the capital for generations—had his entire household wiped out in a single stroke.

Some who were sensitive to such signals had already begun trying to flee the capital, only to find at the city gates that they were tightly shut.

Patrol Camp soldiers stood guard, warning that anyone approaching within ten zhang of the gates would be killed without mercy.

At this moment.

Zhou Yi and Crown Prince Li Zhu, along with a thousand soldiers from the Patrol Office, headed straight for the Imperial Guard Camp.

With Prince Guangyang dead, remnants would surely try to save their own skins by inciting the Imperial Guard to revolt.

Li Zhu, still flushed with excitement from his father's praise, felt his heart surge.

The style of the Great Ancestor—that was the highest honor for any member of the imperial clan.

"Master, the Imperial Guard is said to number a hundred thousand. Are we really going with just a thousand men?"

"Afraid?"

Zhou Yi said, "Tell me the truth."

Li Zhu obediently answered, "...Yes. The Imperial Guard is said to be a hundred thousand strong, and even with padded numbers, there are at least thirty to forty thousand soldiers. We only have a thousand."

"A true sovereign must possess an invincible conviction!"

Zhou Yi said, "Once in history, there was a great emperor who, when he was still Crown Prince, broke a hundred thousand rebel troops with just a hundred cavalry..."

Li Zhu listened, utterly captivated, his heart pounding with excitement, wishing he could be the hero in that story.

"Master, I understand. For this pacification campaign, I volunteer to be the vanguard!"

Zhou Yi shot a glance at Li Zhu. A perfectly fine person, ruined by a bunch of great scholars—utterly lacking in worldly wisdom.

"Who said we're going to pacify a rebellion?"

Zhou Yi said, "Among the Imperial Guard, some officers under the rebel princes are plotting treason. We only need to seize them, and everything will fall into place."

They traveled all the way to the Imperial Guard Camp.

From a distance, Zhou Yi saw that the gates, usually wide open to receive visitors, were now tightly shut.

On the camp walls, several officers spotted the Patrol Office soldiers and shouted from afar.

"Halt! This is the Imperial Guard Camp. State your business!"

Zhou Yi declared, "I am the Grand Tutor, appointed by His Majesty as Imperial Guard Commander, here to assume my post."

One officer bellowed, "You're the murderer of the prince, and you dare come to the camp? Brothers, avenge the prince!"

Zhou Yi snorted coldly, took a Hard Qigong bow from a soldier, and drew it taut like a full moon, True Essence clinging to the arrow.

Swish, swish, swish!

Three arrows in quick succession, and three officers on the wall toppled backward, crashing down.

"This Grand Tutor has limited patience. Anyone daring to defy orders will be deemed plotting rebellion and executed with their entire clan, nine generations!"

The remaining officers dared not show their faces, yet they refused to surrender, instead stirring up the soldiers under their command.

The law cannot punish the masses—if the Imperial Guard made a ruckus, the emperor wouldn't dare kill them all; he'd likely hand out extra pay to appease them.

"Hmph! Truly unafraid of death!"

Zhou Yi soared into the air on his flying sword, rising high, and surveyed the camp from dozens of feet above.

Inside the camp, a vast number of soldiers were gathering, led by officers who were all remnants of Prince Guangyang's faction.

After generations of cultivation, the Imperial Guard had nearly become Prince Guangyang's private army.

The men numbered over ten thousand, stretching endlessly.

The Imperial Guard Camp itself was built to the scale of a secondary city, reputedly capable of housing two hundred thousand troops.

With a casual sweep of his gaze, Zhou Yi saw at least ten to twenty thousand Imperial Guards gathered. Even if their combat strength was poor, they could surely take the capital without issue.

By now, some soldiers had spotted Zhou Yi flying in the air.

The ancients mostly believed in ghosts and gods, and a few soldiers knelt to worship him, praying for blessings.

"Surrender and you won't be killed!"

Zhou Yi's voice descended from the sky.

The leading officer was a trusted confidant of Prince Guangyang. He feared the immortal, but he feared death even more.

"Don't be afraid! It must be some sorcerer causing trouble. Get the ballistae ready!"

Swish!

Before the words faded, a flash of golden light streaked by.

The officer's head thudded to the ground.

"Prince Guangyang has rebelled. Surrender and you won't be killed!"

Zhou Yi's voice rang out again. Nearly half the soldiers had already dropped their weapons.

"Oh? So stubborn!"

Zhou Yi frowned, scanning the soldiers for any furtive figures.

"Worthy of death!"

The Dark Gold Flying Sword fell with each strike, claiming a life.

No matter how they dodged, under Divine Sense, nothing could hide.

The soldiers watched helplessly as all the officers were killed. Faced with an immortal, they had neither the will to fight nor the courage to shout.

"Surrender and you won't be killed! Kneel and you won't die!"

The third proclamation fell, and with a clatter of weapons hitting the ground, over ten thousand soldiers knelt.

Those slower to react saw dozens more bodies split in two. In an instant, the entire camp was kneeling.

Not a single one dared to defy the heavenly might.

Li Zhu led a thousand Patrol Office soldiers into the Imperial Guard Camp.

The boundless sea of Imperial Guards knelt in utter silence, not a sound to be heard.

Zhou Yi sat on the stone platform that had belonged to the officers, his feet resting on several corpses, coldly gazing down at the kneeling troops.

"Tie them all up."

Patrol Office soldiers fetched ropes and tied them up in a string, driving them like cattle or sheep.

Twenty thousand Imperial Guards—not a single one resisted. Some even helped bind their comrades before being bound themselves.

Li Zhu sighed in dismay. "This is the Imperial Guard that swept the realm with the Great Ancestor, fighting to the death without retreat? How disappointing. Might as well go back to the countryside and be a farmer."

"You're wrong. They can't be let go."

Zhou Yi's face darkened as he swept his gaze over the Imperial Guards tied in rows. "Come with me."

Li Zhu, puzzled, followed close behind.

The Imperial Guard Camp wasn't just walls—inside stood orderly rows of barracks.

Zhou Yi casually pushed open one door. Inside, people were chained up—men and women, all of prime age.

When the people inside saw Zhou Yi and the others, they cowered in terror against the walls.

He pushed open one barracks after another. All were penned with people, mostly women, fewer young men, and not a single elder or child.

Zhou Yi had a Squad Leader dragged over and pointed at the barracks. "What's this about?"

"They're... livestock we caught..."