Chapter 2326: The Seeds of Discord

She is Mei Wuniang.

It's a pity she can't see the final grand play of the Divine Palace, but the last message from Jiuyou repeatedly urged her to maintain her established persona, to make more harmless little mistakes in front of Aunt Zeng, so that Aunt Zeng would be disappointed but not disgusted with her.

Fine, she'll do as instructed.

She also vaguely guessed why.

Playing a straightforward, simple-minded beautiful fool goes against her nature and comfort zone, but so far she has managed the balance well.

……

The sun was setting.

Nie Xiaolou walked into the magnificent hall of Tianxin Island, treading on the lingering glow of the sunset.

Every Bai Yu pillar he passed was stained a pale red on its surface.

With each step he took, the vast Bai Yu hall emitted a clear metallic chime.

This was because Nie Xiaolou deliberately intensified his footsteps.

It was not impolite, but every minister entering the palace must produce a resonant step to demonstrate integrity.

The palace attendants guided him to the rear of the hall before performing their rites and withdrawing.

Outside the hall lay surging evening clouds, golden-red and splendid, breathtakingly beautiful. Tianxin Island's high elevation meant that the clouds and rosy skies that mortals spend a lifetime gazing at were within reach here.

Inside the hall stood a coiling dragon pillar, upon which a green shadow spiraled.

As Nie Xiaolou steadied his stance, a low voice came from above:

"You have come."

The Demon Emperor was resting with closed eyes, swallowing clouds and exhaling mist.

Half of the mist inside and outside this hall was his breath.

The flood dragon expels the turbid qi from its body at dusk, and at dawn absorbs the purple qi from the east.

This time, the Demon Emperor's exhalation was unusually long—nearly half an hour.

From this alone, Nie Xiaolou knew its cultivation had advanced again.

The flood dragon is a favored child of heaven and earth; it suffers most when spiritual energy wanes, yet cultivates most smoothly when spiritual energy abounds.

Otherwise, how could the hexagrams contain the Hidden Dragon in the Abyss and the Soaring Dragon in Heaven?

"Your Majesty, we have ascertained the cause of our sudden war with Yu State: Zhao Tuo General's left vanguard commander, Huang Mingsheng, accidentally killed the second prince of Yu State on Ying Mountain."

Years ago, when Xu State invaded the territory of Ying Mountain Sect, the two sides fought fiercely for several months. Ying Mountain was defeated and retreated to the Jin Gold Plains.

But Xu State suffered a loss of eight hundred for every thousand inflicted, its national strength severely damaged and not yet recovered; then, its formerly friendly neighbor Yu State suddenly turned hostile, taking advantage of Xu State's armies being abroad to seize its capital in one fell swoop.

Ying Mountain withdrew, Xu State perished, and Yu State became the fortunate fisherman.

Over these years, Yu State gradually consolidated its foothold, annexed two small states, doubled its territory, and now borders Bekka.

Following Bekka's usual method, it frequently pressures neighboring small states and factions, reminding them who is the dominant power in this region.

Yu State has swollen considerably in recent years, even failing to heed Bekka's hints, so Lingxu City naturally must give it a lesson.

Thus, conflicts arose on the border between the two states.

However, the Demon Emperor does not truly wish to destroy Yu State, so he ordered strict control over the scale of conflict, forbidding further escalation. The troops stationed at the border numbered only twelve hundred.

Yet at this juncture, a mistaken killing occurred?

"Details?"

"The second prince of Yu State sneaked near our main camp, shot out a token to provoke. Huang Mingsheng happened to be leading men in inspecting the camp's outer perimeter, saw the enemy's arrows and immediately retaliated; as a result, his personal guard shot an arrow into the prince's skull, killing the Yu second prince on the spot." Nie Xiaolou recounted the details, "The Yu king flew into a rage, and thus the two sides clashed. This is fully documented in the battle report."

"What's wrong with it?" If the events were purely coincidental, Nie Xiaolou would have reported earlier.

"Huang Mingsheng's two close aides say that over the past year and a half, he has been obsessed with the Heavenly Palace maid Tong Yiyi; every time he returns to Lingxu City, he goes to see her; Tong Yiyi agrees to share a meal with him, and he remains elated for days."

"Tong Yiyi?" The Demon Emperor narrowed his eyes, "Why does this name sound so familiar?"

There are countless maids in the Heavenly Palace—no fewer than eight hundred, perhaps over a thousand. They usually work silently like worker bees, unnoticed; why would the Demon Emperor pay attention?

"Tong Yiyi is a first-rank attendant under the former attendant of the Heavenly Palace." And the former attendant is the personal female official of the Ducheng Envoy, having served him for over thirty-five years, whom the Demon Emperor also knows, so no further introduction is needed. Nie Xiaolou's preparation is thorough, enabling him to answer the Demon Emperor's question: "In the past six months, the Ducheng Envoy's condition has rapidly deteriorated; medicines and stones are ineffective, even the gods' favor is useless; only the former attendant can remain in attendance."

Suffice it to say, the Demon Emperor can naturally infer the rest.

"The Envoy's illness is an excellent shield." The Demon Emperor snorted, "At every critical juncture, he just falls ill."

When the Ducheng Envoy wishes to avoid an audience, he feigns a "relapse of grave illness," which the Demon Emperor knows well but cannot act upon, for the Ducheng Envoy is truly ill—over a decade ago he already bore the signs of the Five Declines of Heaven and Man, sustained only by divine elixirs and the gods' favor.

That is a lamp with oil exhausted, dried up again and again, life like a candle in the wind, ready to gutter out at any moment.

Nie Xiaolou lowered his voice to the utmost: "Rumor has it, just these past few days."

The Demon Emperor gave a mocking smile: "I heard that very sentence seven years ago."

The Ducheng Envoy is fine one moment, deathly ill the next—and yet he still draws breath to this day.

Seven years—how many have died in these seven years, yet not the Ducheng Envoy?

The Demon Emperor returned to the matter: "Do you suspect Huang Mingsheng was directed by the Heavenly Palace to shoot the Yu State second prince, provoking war?"

"No evidence." Nie Xiaolou said, "Huang Mingsheng insists it was accidental."

"No evidence needed." The Demon Emperor exhaled mist carrying a chilling, nauseating cold, "A commander whose mind is unclear—how can he deserve to lead troops in that position?"

"The gods desire more slaughter, more nightmare qi." It spoke coldly, "The Heavenly Palace now intends to surpass me and create this on its own!"

The Demon Emperor's anger stems from the Heavenly Palace's overreach.

Mobilizing armies, launching wars—this is the Bekka Emperor's exclusive prerogative; no one dares to encroach!

These years, due to the imbalance of spiritual energy between the two realms, the gods' demands on Bekka have grown ever stricter.

The gods naturally desire and command Bekka to wage war frequently, to gather more nightmare qi for themselves, but the Demon Emperor is unwilling, for this conflicts with Bekka's interests.

The Mou-Bekka War has raged for years, and still no true ceasefire.

Not only is Mou State exhausted, Bekka has likewise suffered severe impact; its war consumption is at least several times that of Mou State.

Seeing Mou State and Cangyan scrambling to develop, does Bekka not feel urgency? Moreover, the Jingzhe period has not yet passed, and on Bekka's vast territory, each day brings new mountain demons, wild monsters, and sect forces to trouble it.

If only Mu State were such a powerful opponent, it would be fine, but behind Mu State, an even more vast territory has risen in Cangyan!

The stances of these two great states are both opposed to the Heavenly Demons, so they naturally can stand on the same front.