Chapter 442: Take Them All Down

The moment Xiao Yin appeared, everyone was stunned.

He was clad in heavy armor, his whole body awash with blood, and the Dragon Spring Sword he held, having soaked up too much blood, emitted a low, chilling sword hum.

All the court officials and nobles in Shang Jing heard about Xiao Yin only through word of mouth, even the story of his first defeat seven years ago, when he fled in disgrace from Qi Sha Gu back to Shang Jing.

They had only seen his disheveled appearance with their own eyes, never his aura of killing intent.

Each of them was so frightened they could not speak; even Xiao Wei, who had previously swung his sword around carelessly, seemed more gentle compared to the current Xiao Yin.

Xiao Wei took several steps back, staring at Xiao Yin in disbelief.

Isn't this fellow still convalescing at Rui Wang Fu?

Even though the poison in his body was dispelled by Gu Jiu Ling, it shouldn't have allowed him to contact the Imperial Guard so quickly, and the troops behind Xiao Yin were clearly not from the Imperial Guard.

Since when does Xiao Yin have his own private force?

At this moment Xiao Wei felt wave after wave of despair surge in his heart; if anyone else had appeared here, Xiao Wei might have had some chance of victory, but this was Xiao Yin.

The former war god of Southern Qi, his appearance already foretold his irreversible path.

"Xiao Yin! I will kill you!"

Xiao Wei roared, raising his sword and lunging toward Xiao Yin.

With this strike, he nearly exhausted all his lifelong strength, condensing the essence of all his martial arts into this single move, unleashing his ultimate technique.

The blade, following Xiao Wei's thrust, emitted a series of low hums, wrapped in myriad killing intent as it stabbed toward Xiao Yin.

The powerful sword aura spread, lifting sand and stone into the air, slashing the faces of the surrounding onlookers.

Xiao Wei was actually a Southern Qi expert as well, a top among the younger generation of swordsmen, yet he faced Xiao Yin.

Seeing Xiao Wei's sword head straight for Xiao Yin's face, targeting the most vital spot, intending to kill him with a single thrust.

The two drew ever closer, so close that Xiao Wei could even see the hint of mockery curling at Xiao Yin's mouth corner.

When he met Xiao Yin's half‑smiling, peach‑blossom eyes, a chill ran through Xiao Wei's heart.

The Dragon Spring sword aura suddenly erupted, and Xiao Wei was blasted away by the powerful internal force emanating from Xiao Yin, crashing hard, shattering several tables before finally landing heavily on the ground.

He spat out a mouthful of blood, clutching his chest in disbelief as he watched Xiao Yin approach slowly, terror flooding his eyes; he opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

He tried to flee backward, only to find all his meridians shattered by the shock, rendering him unable to move.

Xiao Yin disabled him completely with a single sword!

Xiao Yin leaned down slowly, pausing between each word: "To kill you, it's not even my turn to act! How have you trained your sword for over a decade? Useless!"

That word "useless" swept an even more overwhelming wave of despair into Xiao Wei's heart.

He stared fixedly at Xiao Yin when sudden rapid footsteps echoed from outside, followed by the sounds of people on both sides kneeling and shouting "Three cheers, ten thousand years!"

Then he saw Emperor Longqing, dressed in a dragon robe and looking disheveled, entering amid a crowd of Imperial Secret Guard.

Beside him followed Gu Kang, also in a filthy official robe; this time Gu Kang had performed a great feat.

Earlier, Emperor Longqing had intended to reform the Jiangnan salt tax, planning to send Gu Kang to Jiangnan for a thorough investigation of the salt merchants, but a mutiny broke out at that moment.

When members of the Duan family stormed the palace, Gu Kang hurriedly protected Emperor Longqing's escape, while the Imperial Guard around them were slain wave after wave by those mysterious assassins.

In his haste, Gu Kang alone hid Emperor Longqing in a sewage well near the Taiye Pool, where waste water was discharged.

The well wasn't deep; Gu Kang jumped in, letting Emperor Longqing ride on his shoulders, bracing against the well wall for a full two hours.

Those two hours were excruciating for Emperor Longqing, with the wails of palace maids and eunuchs being slashed all around, frantic footsteps searching for people, and the thuds of fallen guards' bodies.

The most harrowing moment was when a head fell straight down, rolling into the well.

If Gu Kang hadn't been quick and risked his life to protect him, Emperor Longqing would likely have already been cut down by his own son.

It wasn't until Cheng Ming arrived with the loyalist White Tiger Army, suppressing the Duan family's forces, that Emperor Longqing managed to escape with his life.

Cheng Ming personally escorted Emperor Longqing toward the imperial manor outside the city; the palace was no longer safe, and the emperor didn't want to stay there even for a moment.

Halfway, they ran into Duke Duan and others pursuing and blocking them, but Xiao Yin arrived with the Imperial Guard in time.

Duke Duan, still vigorous, along with his sons—the second and third young masters of the Duan family—couldn't have been dealt with without Xiao Yin stepping in to fight.

Even so, Xiao Yin's Imperial Guard were few in number, making it somewhat arduous.

Fortunately, Zhao Lang had received the news and was on his way back; part of the Zhao family army had already rushed to the Western Rong frontier to suppress the Duan family's rebellion.

Although the shouts of battle still rang through Shang Jing's streets and alleys, the outcome was decided, and the rebellion had been quelled.

When Xiao Wei saw Emperor Longqing walk in, the despair in his eyes deepened, and he completely fainted.

Soon, the martial assassins in the Flower Hall were all slain by Xiao Yin's personal guard, the White Tiger Army under Cheng Ming took over the Flower Hall, and Gu Kang together with Wang Gonggong stood by the emperor's side.

Emperor Longqing ordered the rebels captured and locked in the death cells of the Imperial Clan Office.

The remaining terrified crowd knelt before Emperor Longqing.

"Long live the emperor, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand!"

Emperor Longqing's gaze was icy as he slowly scanned the officials before him, saying nothing.

At that moment, Princess Yuan Qing, dressed in wedding attire, rushed in in terror, her face turning pale at the sight of Xiao Wei bound tightly.

Earlier she had heard the clash in the wedding hall in the rear courtyard, but outside, Xiao Wei's men had locked her up.

Now the people who had locked her up had somehow fled, allowing her to rush to the Flower Hall, only to find that in a few short hours the outside world had turned upside down.

"What are you doing? Why have you captured my husband?"

"Let him go! Let him go!!"

Princess Yuan Qing instantly became furious.

She finally understood; she had been sent by her brother from Bei Di to Southern Qi, likely never to return, and now she should try to win over Xiao Wei.

After all, Xiao Wei's family background was not low, backed by the Duan family's army.

She hadn't expected it to be wiped out in a single day.

She rushed forward like a madwoman, tearing at the guards protecting Xiao Wei, looking like a lunatic.

Xiao Yin watched the absurd scene before him, a hint of mockery curling at his mouth; shortly after, someone retrieved Princess Yuan Qing's personal sword from the wedding hall of Xiao Wei and Yuan Qing, and a secret letter was hidden inside the scabbard.

What was written was that Xiao Wei this time wanted to rebel and seize the throne of Southern Qi, and in the future he also hoped that Bei Di would... how things would go……

Emperor Longqing coldly looked at the Princess Yuanqing who seemed to have gone mad; he could no longer tolerate this arrogant foreign princess, and coldly said, 'Take them all down!'