Outside the Golden Hall of the Imperial Palace in Heaven-Bearing Prefecture, eunuchs loudly relayed the weeping within and the news of the emperor's death. Outside, Imperial Guards, palace maids, and eunuchs all began kneeling toward the Golden Hall.
Yet an old man and a Confucian Scholar seemed strangely out of place, strolling leisurely up to the Golden Hall. They looked inside at the chaos and the weeping crowd, watching as the Imperial Guards escorted out a somewhat stupefied Zhuang Shengyi.
But neither the surrounding Imperial Guards nor the eunuchs outside seemed to notice them. Well, there were not just two of them-a little marten sat on one man's shoulder.
The sight of Zhuang Shengyi inevitably reminded Hui Mian of that alchemist from years ago, whose head had been full of wondrous ideas.
"Alas, that fellow Jiao was right after all. His disciple lacked the temperament and spiritual aptitude, and passing down the alchemy manual would bring him a fatal disaster. Yet he passed it down anyway."
"Senior Gray, you can't put it that way. He later made further breakthroughs in his alchemy. How could he possibly not pass them on? Seeking immortality was the aspiration of their lineage!"
As Stoneborn spoke, he looked toward the Golden Hall and shook his head slightly. Though he had arrived in Heaven-Bearing Prefecture later than Qi Zhongbin, his understanding of the whole affair was by no means shallow.
"Come to think of it, Xiang Yi certainly did plenty of absurd things. But in his earlier years, although he generally lacked ambition, he had some capable ministers. He just about managed to preserve what he had, and could be said to have prolonged Great Yong's golden age to some extent."
Qi Zhongbin spoke as well.
"Only when he began to feel his strength failing did