Dugu Bo sensed Chen Xin Chen Xin's probing and glanced at her subtly, his expression indifferent.
Go ahead and look. So what if you look again? You dare to lay a hand on me?
Anyway, I'm not afraid to fight anyone right now. If a fight really breaks out, the only ones who will be afraid are the others.
Otherwise, when he went to the Star Luo Empire to cause trouble last time, the Star Luo Empire's emperor wouldn't have backed down so quickly.
Bone Douluo Gu Rong also Frisk Dugu Bo's change, and a look of solemnity flashed in his eyes.
This Old Poison is getting more and more difficult to deal with.
How did this guy's cultivation level rise so fast? He's already at the same level as the Sword Master. Could it be that I can't even beat Dugu Bo, who was once at the bottom of the Titled Douluo?
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
Lin Mo stepped forward and greeted Xue Qinghe, "It's been a long time, Your Highness."
He paused, then corrected himself, "No, it should be His Majesty the Emperor."
Xue Qinghe waved his hand, his smile gentle, "Brother Lin Mo, that's too formal."
In private, there's no need to be so formal. Just call me Brother Xue, like before.
He looked at Dugu Bo: " Senior Dugu, today is just a casual gathering, there's no need to be so formal."
"Then I shall accept your offer, Brother Xue." Lin Mo readily agreed.
Dugu Bo also hummed in response.
Then, at Xue Qinghe's invitation, the group went into the pavilion and sat down.
The stone table inside the pavilion was spacious enough, and servants had already added seats for it.
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling sat down next to Lin Mo, while Dugu Bo sat on the other side of Lin Mo.
When Prince Xue Xing escorted them to the Imperial Garden, he wisely chose to leave.
Only Xue Qinghe, the people from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Lin Mo and his group remained.
After the eunuch served tea and snacks, he bowed and retreated to a distance outside the pavilion to wait.
Lin Mo picked up his teacup, his gaze sweeping over everyone present without making a sound.
Xue Qinghe, or rather Qian Renxue, did not appear much different from before; she still had that gentle and refined demeanor, only now her brows held a touch of imperial majesty.
Ning Fengzhi's smile remained unchanged, but Lin Mo could clearly sense the scrutinizing gaze in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect School Master's eyes as he looked at him.
Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo focused their attention more on Dugu Bo.
Ning Rongrong's gaze shifted back and forth between Lin Mo, Dugu Yan, and Ye Lingling. She especially noticed the intimate gesture of Dugu Yan linking arms with Lin Mo, and a hint of envy flashed in her eyes.
Soon, Lin Mo couldn't help but recall the information about the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect that Prince Xue Xing had revealed to them on the way.
Ning Fengzhi, the sect leader of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, was favored because of his master-disciple relationship with Xue Qinghe, and because the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had made great contributions during Xue Qinghe's ascension to the throne.
Ning Fengzhi was granted the title of "Imperial Tutor".
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has reaped considerable Harvest this time.
After the purge of the imperial court, many important positions were vacated, and most of the new occupants were from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Others also had the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's influence behind them.
When Prince Xue Xing said this, his tone was full of sarcasm and resentment.
The reason is simple: the vast majority of the positions occupied by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect belonged to the factions that had been purged.
Although Prince Xue Xing managed to save his life and retain his title, his faction's influence in the court was almost completely eradicated, and the vacant positions were naturally divided among the victors.
The biggest winner among them was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Lin Mo didn't say much about it.
The struggle for power has always been like this: the victor is king, the loser is villain.
Moreover, judging from the surface alone, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's gamble this time was perfect and Harvest.
They had bet on Crown Prince Xue Qinghe long ago, and now that Xue Qinghe has successfully ascended the throne, it's time for them to Harvest.
Compared to another investment that Ning Fengzhi had lost everything in his memory, this time he undoubtedly made a fortune.
This investment in Xue Qinghe, however, yielded tangible and immediate power and benefits.
Of course, Ning Fengzhi will probably never know that the prince " Xue Qinghe " he invested in was actually Qian Renxue from the Spirit Hall in disguise.
I wonder what the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect School Master will think when Ning Fengzhi learns the truth.
The atmosphere inside the pavilion was initially quiet.
As the host, Xue Qinghe was the first to break the silence.
Xue Qinghe smiled and continued, "To be honest, there's nothing particularly important about why I invited you all here today."
"This is just a casual chat and doesn't involve any internal affairs of the empire. I'm here simply because it's been a long time since I last saw you, and I'd like to take this opportunity to ask you some questions."
Ning Fengzhi nodded, indicating that this was indeed the case.
Xue Qinghe looked at Lin Mo and said sincerely, "The reason I took it upon myself to have my uncle invite you all Lin Mo is because I heard Lin Mo you recently emerged from seclusion and your cultivation has advanced further. I wanted to congratulate you in person."
At this point, Xue Qinghe paused briefly, a perfectly measured hint of sorrow appearing on his face:
"In addition, my father's dying wish was to make up for the reward he had promised you."
"Previously, in the Soul Master Tournament, as the captain of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy Team, you led the Heaven Dou Team to win the championship and brought glory to the empire."
"Your father promised you a generous reward back then, but unfortunately you went into seclusion to cultivate, and that's been delayed for several years."
"Although Father has passed away, his last wishes cannot be ignored. In addition, with Brother Lin Mo by your side, you have now emerged from seclusion."
That's why I invited you here today—to give you this reward in return."
Upon hearing this, Lin Mo nodded in agreement, speaking humbly, "Your Majesty and Brother Xue are too kind."
Bringing glory to the empire is the duty of every student at the Heaven Dou Academy; rewards and such are not something to be so concerned about.
But he couldn't help but feel a surge of discontent in his heart.
The Emperor's dying wish? That sounds nice.
Don't you, Qian Renxue, know how Xue Ye died?
It wasn't a natural death at all; he was poisoned to death little by little by you.
Now they're putting on a show of filial piety, bringing up Xue Ye's last wishes—it's truly ironic.
However, Lin Mo also understood that this was just an excuse Qian Renxue had come up with, a reason to invite him over for a meeting in a seemingly logical way.
Seeing Lin Mo agree, Xue Qinghe's smile deepened, and she immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
A good start is all that matters.
What I said earlier was just a pretext.
Xue Qinghe, or rather Qian Renxue, had a deeper purpose in inviting Lin Mo and the others this time.
She needed to confirm Lin Mo's attitude, and also to use this opportunity to confirm the attitudes of Dugu Bo and Ye Linyuan, the two Titled Douluo.