The veteran minister Zhong Yudai led over a hundred men through various towns. Along the way, many came forward to make inquiries, but he ignored them all, galloping along the dirt road lost in his own anxieties. After giving instructions to an Embryonic Breathing subordinate, he simply left the troops behind, rode the wind into the sky, and flew toward Mulu Town, the capital established by Mu Jiaoman.
It had still been early morning when he departed. After riding the wind for an hour, Mulu Town was already emerging on the horizon. The sun rose, warmth gradually returning between heaven and earth, while dew clung to his entire body.
"Mulu Town..."
Zhong Yudai shook the dew from his body and flew directly over the city beneath his feet, ignoring the Shanyue nobles looking up from below. After flying for a short while, the magnificent palace appeared before him.
Just as he was about to set foot inside the palace, the palace's grand formation had unexpectedly already been raised. A transparent barrier of light enveloped the entire palace tightly. It was something Mu Jiaoman had secretly hired rogue cultivators from the lake to construct during his lifetime, at immense cost.
"Please open the formation! I am Minister Zhong Yudai, here on urgent royal orders!"
Zhong Yudai had no choice but to halt and shout twice. But upon the palace wall, a figure mounted the parapet. She bore the features of an Eastlander woman, appearing to be middle-aged with slender eyebrows. Dressed in sumptuous and dignified robes, she carried an extraordinary bearing as she looked down at him coolly.
"Royal Consort?!"
That woman was none other than the Li family clanswoman married into the tribe, a consort to Mu Jiaoman. Zhong Yudai blanched in shock. Having served under Mu Jiaoman for so long, the title slipped straight out of his mouth.
"Zhong Yudai... to think you returned alone. Qimu's momentum is truly spent."
The clanswoman gave a faint smile and spoke softly. The formation carried her voice outward. Hearing it, Zhong Yudai felt his limbs tremble. Seeing her stare down at him coldly, he said, both shocked and furious:
"Li Feiruo... Why is it you! Where is the grand shaman-priest?!"
"Right here."
Li Feiruo chuckled softly, bent down, and tossed out a blood-smeared head. The head rolled twice atop the palace wall, then tumbled over the exterior wall with a thud, struck by the defensive formation and reduced to a cloud of flying ash.
"Open the formation at once..."
Zhong Yudai cried out almost pleadingly. He could not comprehend how a Qi Refinement cultivator could have died at the hands of a mortal who had no cultivation whatsoever. Despair filled his heart. Yet Li Feiruo simply waved her hand, and someone behind her brought forward three children—two girls and one boy. The eldest was no more than ten, while the youngest was only six. All were weeping as they gazed at Zhong Yudai, tearing his heart to pieces at the sight.
"Is Lord Zhong Yudai looking for them?"
Li Feiruo spoke while looking directly into his eyes, carefully discerning his emotions. As if anticipating what was to come, tears streamed down Zhong Yudai's face as he shouted:
"You... you are a royal consort of their house, after all..."
Li Feiruo acted as though she had not heard, smiling:
"If Lord Zhong Yudai agrees to one request of mine, I might spare their lives."
"Speak!"
Without a second thought, Zhong Yudai rushed up to the barrier of the formation, staring fixedly into Li Feiruo's eyes. Li Feiruo murmured:
"Slit your own throat."
Zhong Yudai was horrified. His cultivation at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement surged forth violently as he cried in anguish:
"Vicious woman... you!"
Li Feiruo, however, had already drawn a sharp dagger and pressed it against the little girl's neck. The girl immediately burst into wailing sobs. Zhong Yudai cried out in rapid succession:
"Hold!"
Zhong Yudai froze in place for several breaths, his expression agonized. At last, he raised his blade and set the edge against his own neck, saying softly:
"The late king and I both underestimated you."
Li Feiruo nodded slightly. With a flick of Zhong Yudai's blade, his head flew off, greying hair scattering. A dignified cultivator at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement lost his life in an instant. As Zhong Yudai's headless corpse collapsed with a heavy thud, a gaze from high in the clouds slowly pulled back, glancing down at Li Feiruo with an appreciative sigh.
Watching Zhong Yudai fall with her own eyes, Li Feiruo's gaze dimmed slightly, the aura of having everything under control fading away. A confidant behind her, feeling some pity, whispered:
"My Lady, was this perhaps a bit..."
"He had no choice, nor did I."
Li Feiruo sighed, the jade ornaments at her neck chiming softly. She murmured, "Zhong Yudai was one of the few men utterly loyal to Qimu. The elders of our family are not here; if he had escaped and later plotted in secret against me or our family's younger generation, wouldn't that bring endless trouble? Even though the elders of our clan far surpass him in cultivation, they cannot stand guard beside the juniors every moment of the day. If he had succeeded in striking back, even ten thousand deaths could not redeem my failure.
"And I am merely a mortal. Though I relied on the city's nobles to kill the grand shaman-priest, I can only rely on the formation to protect myself. How could I have dealt with a cultivator at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement? Dirty though this tactic may be, it was the only path available to me... In a life-and-death struggle between two houses, my only fear is leaving loose ends behind."
Supported by several trusted attendants, Li Feiruo walked down the palace wall and quietly looked down upon the Shanyue ministers kneeling across the courtyard. Flowing blood pooled all the way from the base of the palace to the hem of her skirt, staining the opulent silk with streaks of dark crimson. Li Feiruo offered a faint smile and said gently,
"Rise, all of you."
The kneeling ministers rose meekly, not daring to look up at her. Li Feiruo traversed the blood-spattered steps and hall, stepping into the dark main hall. Fallen candles burned quietly upon the floor, and the wounded still groaned endlessly within the chamber. Stepping through the blood, she walked all the way to the highest seat and asked in a low voice,
"Has the Young Patriarch replied?"
"He has."
The confidant presented a secret letter. Li Feiruo read it thoroughly, then tucked it into her robes. Only then did one of the ministers below dare to speak up:
"My Lady, how should we deal with Qimu's children?"
"One way or another, death awaits them. Lock them away for now, and let the main family handle it."
Li Feiruo gave a faint nod, took up the brush and ink from the desk, and wrote several lines on a piece of silk cloth. Handing it to the confidant, she said gently:
"Deliver this to the Young Patriarch."
***
The four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators surrendered to Shamoli, calling him Great King. Together, they descended to the ground to pay homage to the main family. The four cautiously traversed the battle lines and saw a dark carriage of black metal flying several banners that drifted in the sky.
A youth stood atop the carriage, looking dashing and valiant in a white robe. He wore a genial smile, looking warmly upon them in the morning breeze. Raising the cup in his hand, he chuckled,
"Congratulations, Great King!"
"This subordinate dares not."
Still covered in blood, Shamoli bowed respectfully. Not grasping the situation, the four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators awkwardly imitated his bow. Shamoli rose, cupped his hands, and said,
"That this subordinate could reach this day is entirely due to the cultivation and support of you esteemed lords. I would never dare style myself a king before my lords. However, this lowly one has already consolidated Qimu's forces. According to the surrendered generals, Qimu released one man ahead of time—a loyal confidant with a cultivation at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement. This person poses quite a threat, and I hope my lords will remain wary of him.
"This lowly one also thought that Qimu still has children and confidants in Mulu Town. I hope to lead men on the wind to eliminate them, lest they escape and cause future trouble..."
"Oh," Li Yuanxiu nodded and replied. "An elder has already followed that Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivator; he won't be escaping. As for Mulu Town..."
Li Yuanxiu smiled faintly, casting his eyes down at the five Shanyue men below. Waving the secret letter in his hand, he chuckled,
"Qimu had left Mulu Town for barely an hour before the entire palace fell under my clan aunt's control. Qimu's children have fallen into our hands, and his confidants have all been slaughtered by my clan aunt. If my calculations are correct, someone is already on their way to offer their surrender."
Chapter 182