The sword's hum tore through the prison formation, sweeping outward rapidly down both sides of the corridor.
Qingyuan was three feet three inches long. When the blade was halfway drawn, the man draped in the purplish-black robe suddenly moved—or rather, His aura suddenly shifted.
The ornate robe fluttered violently in the fierce wind. Beneath the cowl, a pair of eyes as limpid as the deep sea faintly lit up.
In an instant, the starlike radiance enveloping Him abruptly ground to a halt, accompanied by the faint roar of crashing mountains and thunderous howls.
Feng Jiuxuan's lowered eyelids were as calm as a deep pool.
In the space invisible to the naked eye, countless arc-shaped incantation patterns emerged. The pure-white chains shooting from them had already locked firmly around the wrist drawing the sword.
Layer upon layer, they coiled around his arm like an intricate spiderweb.
Feng Jiuxuan's sword hand remained rock steady, yet the speed at which the blade was drawn gradually slowed.
With every fraction of an inch he drew it forth, over a dozen pure-white, crystalline energy chains shattered into starlight and dispersed.
When everything fell into stillness, Qingyuan's drawn length was frozen at two feet four inches.
An inconclusive probe.
Feeling the aura inside the cell gradually stabilize, Orenli thought to herself.
This was somewhat beyond her expectations.
The strength of this Yan man was something she had never imagined.
As she grew older and condensed more magic rings, she had clearly felt that the "Father" seated upon the throne could no longer be called human in any sense of the word.
Yet this man could actually hold his own against her "Father."
With that thought, Orenli's lowered eyes instinctively lifted, looking toward the man bound by the chains.
The cell was cramped and narrow, yet many things still filled her field of vision:
The purplish-black ring-like fissure created by the Boundary Void Stone, the countless pure-white chains, the Emperor's robe whipped up by the fierce wind, and her "Father," holy as a descending high god.
Yet at this moment, only a single sword remained in Orenli's eyes.
Be it a person or an object, when something reached the pinnacle of beauty, one's mind could not help but be captivated by it.
It was a flawless sword. Half-unsheathed, its slender blade gleamed with a magnificent azure glow, so perfect it seemed not of the mortal realm.
Her mind trembled, and Orenli's body began to quiver uncontrollably.
This tremor was something she had only ever experienced from her "Father" before her.
And now, a second had appeared.
Yet before Orenli could even marvel in admiration, almost the very instant she laid eyes on Qingyuan, death gripped her heart firmly.
Everything in the cell began to fade and disperse.
With that sword at the center, all things lost their color, leaving only the blade's brilliance.
The white-robed Yan man's motion of drawing his sword was halted by the Emperor of Sien, but his sword momentum had not stopped.
Her azure pupils, enveloped by magic rings, contracted continuously. Orenli tentatively tried to see this strike from the white-robed Yan man clearly, and unbidden, tears of blood slid down her cheeks from the corners of her eyes.
"Close your eyes."
A calm, familiar voice rang in Orenli's mind.
This voice, which usually inspired dread and fear, now brought her an incomparable sense of security.
She must not look.
Jolting back to her senses, Orenli immediately closed her eyes.
Everything around her instantly plunged into darkness.
And then,
all fell into dead silence.
One second.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
The desolate, soundless darkness left Orenli unaware of what was happening around her, but the beating of her heart told her that she was still alive.
Amidst the silence, Orenli slowly opened her eyes.
Everything around her had quietly transformed.
It was just like a knife slicing through tofu.
The cell was no more. The originally hard, smooth inner walls were now densely covered in sword marks, but what drew the eye most was that single scar.
It was a bottomless sword scar stretching out from beneath the white-robed Yan man's feet, heading straight forward and widening continuously until it formed an abyss of sword intent deep beneath the earth!
Her breath caught for an instant, then Orenli regained her composure, for the back draped in the Emperor's robe still stood before her.
That terrifyingly potent sword abyss had passed by His feet by a hair's breadth.
This strike was deflected by the Emperor...
No.
Not deflected.
The white-robed Yan man's target from the very beginning had never been the Emperor or her, but rather the spatial pendant suspended in midair...
Once the Boundary Void Stone was severed, the purplish-black ring-like fissure had already begun to distort. It lasted for a dozen breaths before finally shattering into motes of starlight that dissolved into the void.
This strike was a warning, and a threat.
Having done all this, Feng Jiuxuan looked calmly at the foreign man cloaked in the purplish-black robe:
"You are the Emperor of Sien?"
He spoke the language of Great Yan, yet the words seemed to reach directly into the mind.
Saint origin.
The Emperor of Sien glanced down at the sword abyss at His feet, seemingly pondering something:
"I am."
His voice likewise reached directly into the mind.
*Clang.*
He sheathed his sword, a gust of fierce wind lifting the hems of both their robes.
Amid the boundless silence, Feng Jiuxuan's voice was very soft:
"Someone wanted me to pass along a message to you."
The Emperor of Sien's gaze fell once more upon the white-robed Yan man:
"The sovereign of your empire?"
Feng Jiuxuan glanced at Him, ignoring the Emperor of Sien's question, and continued in a gentle, unhurried tone:
"He asked me to ask you whether you are willing to cooperate with us."
"..."
The Emperor of Sien did not speak.
In that brief silence, Orenli immediately realized that the white-robed Yan man's dismissive arrogance had provoked some anger in her "Father."
Feng Jiuxuan was in no hurry, quietly awaiting the other party's reply.
Silence stretched.
The gaze beneath the robe remained fixed on Feng Jiuxuan, as if evaluating the Yan man's strength before Him, or perhaps weighing the proposal he had spoken of.
The soundless silence lasted for perhaps a dozen breaths before the Emperor of Sien's voice, deep and calm as surging mountain waves, rang out once more with a single word:
"Speak."
Feng Jiuxuan raised his eyes and swept a glance over Him:
"We need Boundary Void Stones."
Meeting his gaze, the Emperor of Sien flatly uttered three words:
"Give the details."
"..."
Feng Jiuxuan's narrow eyes narrowed slightly, the tip of his scabbard tapping toward Orenli beside them:
"That person said: leave her behind, and he will speak with you in person."
After a moment of eye contact, the Emperor of Sien spoke:
"She leaves first. I stay to speak with him."
Hearing this, Feng Jiuxuan's expressionless face shifted slightly, a spark of eager anticipation entering his calm eyes:
"This is a notification, not a negotiation."
"..." The Emperor of Sien said nothing.
"You have three breaths to consider."
Holding the scabbard, Feng Jiuxuan stared calmly at the magnificent blue eyes beneath the cowl.
In the silence,
the man cloaked in the purplish-black robe seemed to let out a soft sigh.
Seeing this, Orenli realized in an instant that negotiations had broken down.
Her "Father" was about to get serious with this white-robed Yan man.
He was not a benevolent monarch.
His temper was quite foul.
Ever since He ascended the throne, the terror of death had loomed over the court of Sien.
His might commanded awe, His methods inspired dread, and His temperament made others dare not look Him in the eye.
He had arrived only a few minutes ago, yet whether it was the white-robed Yan man's arrogance or the utterly insincere terms he offered, both had already infuriated her "Father."
Pursing her crimson lips, Orenli did not know whether this decision was born of His mercurial nature or His confidence in Himself, but she knew she could not stop Him.
The ten-odd magic rings circling her heart began to spin rapidly, yet her preparations were far too slow in the eyes of these two.
In an instant, violent winds erupted throughout the dungeon. Dazzling, holy light burst forth like a rising sun, and countless arcane patterns resonated and shone across the air.
The Emperor of Sien moved, but Feng Jiuxuan was faster.
His white robes, whiter than snow, tore through the void, arriving before the Emperor of Sien as if teleporting.
If the previous strike had been built upon gathering momentum, this strike was fast to the absolute extreme.
Thanks to the sword abyss carved out earlier, their surroundings were no longer cramped.
Striking second yet arriving first, Feng Jiuxuan cut a streak of cold light through the air like a startled swan or a soaring dragon, instantly arriving before the Emperor of Sien's fluttering robe.
Layer upon layer of protective light membranes surfaced in an instant, but wherever the sword's edge reached, all things lost their color.
In Feng Jiuxuan's eyes, Qingyuan sliced through these thick membranes like cutting tofu and plunged straight into the Emperor of Sien's chest. The tremendous force behind it carried both men away from the spot in an instant, hurtling along the carved-out sword abyss.
Whistling winds rushed past their ears, crimson blood splashing along the way and blooming gorgeously in the air like spider lilies.
Looking at the instantly grievously wounded Emperor of Sien, Feng Jiuxuan's eyes showed not the slightest ripple.
The tactile sensation in his hand conflicted with what his eyes saw.
Whether in his sight or through his qi dynamic perception, the Emperor of Sien had been pierced, yet the sensation transmitted through his hand told a completely different story.
This was not the feeling of a blade sinking into flesh.
In other words, the scene before him was an illusion created by his opponent.
The saint origin qi dynamic surged around him. Following a shuddering vibration, the scene before Feng Jiuxuan's eyes shifted in an instant.
They were still hurtling along the sword abyss.
Only, his sword tip had not pierced the Emperor of Sien's chest. Instead, it was caught by a fair, pure hand of light condensed by the Emperor, unable to advance even an inch.
The Emperor of Sien's sleeve was raised, a palm poised beside Feng Jiuxuan's head, radiating ripples capable of inducing illusions.
Before he could think further, a qi dynamic of death crept quietly into his heart.
That brief moment trapped in illusion had given the Emperor of Sien the opportunity to lay down an inescapable killing formation, the surrounding space already crawling with intricate incantation runes.
Dividing His mind three ways... no, four ways.
Glancing slightly downward, Feng Jiuxuan saw the Emperor of Sien's finger pointed toward Orenli.
His opponent had actually retained enough leeway under his sword to protect His daughter...
No, not just protect.
As his intent-soul sensed it, in that brief instant earlier, the blonde woman kneeling on the ground had already been enveloped in a dense layer of minute runes.
The moment he sensed it, the runes had already formed, and space began to shudder.
Feng Jiuxuan realized what He was doing.
This Emperor of Sien wanted to use that so-called spatial magic ring to teleport Orenli away...
"..."
In Feng Jiuxuan's normally placid heart, a sudden urge to laugh welled up—or perhaps it was excitement.
Feeling the deathly aura surging like towering waves around him, Feng Jiuxuan gripped Qingyuan, staring at the Emperor of Sien, his voice ringing clearly:
"Before you arrived, I heard your daughter say that you are the strongest person in Sien."
"..."
The Emperor of Sien gave no answer. His crystalline golden hair billowed in the wind, and His indifferent gaze from beneath the cowl looked at him as if looking at a dead man.
Feng Jiuxuan merely smiled.
He felt the world was turning rather strange.
Even he, Feng Jiuxuan, had a day where he was underestimated.
***
The snowfall gradually grew heavier.
As a side gate opened, a carriage quietly rolled out of the Imperial City and headed into the pitch-black night.
The streets and alleys were quiet, the clatter of hooves crisp. Most of Di'an's myriad lights had already gone out, leaving only high-hanging red lanterns casting bursts of warm light across the frigid, snowy night.
After traveling through the wind and snow for who knew how long, the carriage finally came to a stop before the lofty gates of a manor beneath the Imperial City. The three large characters carved into the horizontal plaque above still gleamed brightly in the dark.
Through the window lattice, Li Junqing looked at the three large characters reading "Chancellor's Manor" on the plaque. He swept a glance over the deep, shadowed alleys around them, the corners of his lips curling unbidden into an arc:
"Imperial Brother, many eyes must be watching this place tonight."
The Crown Prince sat upright across from him, his voice gentle:
"I naturally know this."
Li Junqing grinned with a hint of teasing:
"You came even knowing that? Have you thought through what this represents, Imperial Brother?"
"..."
Silent for a moment, Li Yucheng smiled faintly:
"Junqing, your elder brother merely wishes to prove a few things to Imperial Father."
With that, the Crown Prince did not wish to say more and rose to alight from the carriage. Yet the moment he moved, he felt a tug on his robe.
He slowly looked back.
The carriage fell quiet for an instant.
Li Junqing exhaled a soft breath of turbid air, a rare solemnity appearing on his cynical face. Looking straight into his elder brother's eyes, he asked in a low voice:
"Brother, tonight Imperial Father sent me here to demand an explanation from the Chancellor's Manor. Do you know why I went out of my way to send word to you?"
"..." Li Yucheng fell silent.
Regarding tonight's visit to the Chancellor's Manor, had Li Junqing not passed the message, he might not have learned of it until dawn tomorrow.
Li Junqing leaned forward, resting his clasped hands on his knees. With downcast eyes, he said in a hushed voice:
"Before I leave, I want to set up a game for you, Brother."
Li Yucheng's eyes flicked slightly upward:
"A game?"
Li Junqing smiled slightly, his clasped hands tightening a fraction:
"After the new year begins, I will be setting off as an envoy to Dongying. Regardless of how things were in the past, in this lifetime, you and I as brothers will likely never have the chance to feud with one another again."
A strange glint flashed across Li Yucheng's gentle, refined eyes. He instinctively wanted to reprimand him, but the words reached his lips only to turn into a sigh. He uttered a single word: "Mm."
Li Junqing glanced out the carriage window at the Chancellor's Manor swallowed by the dark wind and snow, his tone very soft:
"Tonight, Imperial Father is using me as a spearhead against the Chancellor's Manor. Choosing the Chancellor's grand banquet might not be completely tearing off all pretenses, but only a sheet of window paper remains."
"Your elder brother came for precisely this matter," said Li Yucheng.
"No, you cannot come for this matter," Li Junqing replied.
Li Yucheng's brow knitted slightly.
Li Junqing chuckled and shook his head:
"On the contrary, you must stop me. Prevent me from conveying Imperial Father's imperial decree today."
Li Yucheng's brow furrowed even tighter:
"That would be slapping Imperial Father in the face."
"His face is precisely what must be slapped!"
"You're mad."
"We've been brothers for some twenty years. Do you think I would lose my mind over something like this?"
Li Junqing's clasped hands loosened and tightened, tightened and loosened, as he weighed his words. "Only by doing this will you have a chance to survive."
Li Yucheng rubbed the bridge of his brow:
"Junqing, Imperial Father can tolerate opposing voices, but He will never tolerate anyone defying and ruining His plans."
"Imperial Brother... you are mistaken."
Li Junqing unclasped his hands and looked out the window, his voice quiet and distant. "What Father has ever tolerated was never opposing voices, but opposing voices raised by people who are useful.
"So long as your usefulness to Him is great enough, even if you upend His plans entirely, He will tolerate you."
"..." The Crown Prince fell silent.
Li Junqing smiled and pressed on:
"Aside from your cultivation and your status as the eldest legitimate son, what use do you think you have left to Father?
"The war at the Northern Border is coming to an end, and Li Zhaoyuan will return to the Imperial Capital. When that happens, Imperial Brother, do you think you will have any way to survive?"
His words fell into silence.
Li Junqing reached out and grasped Li Yucheng's hand, took a deep breath, and spoke in a slightly rushed tone:
"Brother, listen to my advice. Tonight, you can offer a pledge of allegiance to both Imperial Father and the Chancellor's Manor at the same time.
"Imperial Father will tolerate you relying on the Chancellor's Manor to fight against the Sect Alliance backed by Second Brother, and Duke Xu will also support you in fighting against the Sect Alliance backed by Second Brother.
"Therefore, stopping me in a moment is your only way to survive right now."
"..."
The carriage was quiet—so quiet that the falling snow could be heard.
Li Yucheng parted his lips, looking at his younger brother with a complex gaze. After a long silence, he said softly:
"Junqing, perhaps if you had been the elder brother, this battle for the succession might have..."
Before the words could fully leave his mouth, they came to an abrupt halt.
The Dao charm he cultivated made Li Yucheng's spiritual senses exceptionally keen to danger. Without any warning, a hair-raising aura of death instantly enveloped his entire body.
Tracing his qi sense outward, Li Yucheng was astonished to discover that this deathly aura actually originated from beneath the Chancellor's Manor!
What was happening?
What was going on inside the Chancellor's Manor right now?
Shock rose in his heart—
And in the very next instant,
a thunderous explosion echoing from within the Chancellor's Manor gave Li Yucheng his answer.
It was a heaven-piercing sword light that illuminated the dark night.
Chapter 506