Chapter 2975: Yes, of course there are!

In the past, whenever such major matters arose, the late emperor would first summon senior ministers to hold a closed-door meeting, basically settle the direction, then bring it to the court in Wang Ting for broad discussion, to avoid being swayed by every word and keep efficiency from dropping especially low.

This is what is called "hold a small meeting for major affairs."

The former Crown Prince Wu Huan, being still young, has remained playful and fond of amusement to this day, and has not yet begun to study the way of rulership; the mental and psychological maturity of demons develops far more slowly than that of humans, and the previous demon emperor only gradually grasped the rules of court politics upon reaching one hundred thirty or forty years of age; as a result, he passed away too early, Wu Huan ascended the throne hastily, unfamiliar with many rules, and merely wished to act on his own impulses.

Between Between Between Beijia is doomed beyond redemption! Nie Xiaolou felt worry upon worry in his heart:

Emperor, Emperor, what are we to do?

Wu Huan grinned, revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth:

"The Nine Abysses killed my father king, I too will kill his father, to repay blood with blood, tooth with tooth!"

……, the ministers stared at each other. Such a, such a simple reason?

Ling Xu City Guardian Wang Qun immediately stepped forward: "The late emperor met with harm, the culprit remains undetermined..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wu Huan interrupted: "The culprit is the Nine Abysses of Cang Yan, what further determination is needed, will you decide it?"

"I dare not, I dare not." Wang Qun lowered his head, "but no one has seen the Nine Abysses appear inside or outside Ling Xu City, and as for the so-called subterranean emergence of the Earth Mother outside the city, it was merely witnessed by a few soldiers on the city walls; by the time the army and the immortals arrived, there was only a large pit there."

"Isn't one witness enough?"

"Without contact, without combat, it is very difficult to truly confirm the culprit's identity." Wang Qun sweat trickled from his forehead, yet he persisted, "From past records, the Earth Mother's subterranean penetration requires a long time. But on the night the late emperor was harmed, the soldiers on the city walls witnessed only a short moment of submersion, and before the immortals riding clouds arrived, it had already sunk underground."

Wu Huan snorted: "Past records may not be accurate, and besides, didn't the Earth Mother before go to Kun Long Xu to resupply? Perhaps after resupplying, its strength became greater than before, and submersion also faster!"

Even Nie Xiaolou could not help but admit, regarding this inference about the Earth Mother, Wu Huan spoke with reason. But is this not a separate matter from the current trouble? He could only speak: "Lingshan and Mu Guo have just sent flying transmission messages, saying that at the time of the incident, the Earth Mother plain was docked in Baishawan of Shen Guo's southern part; on the day the late emperor was harmed, the leader of Lingshan, Xiao Hanzi, and the Unperturbed Emperor of Mu Guo happened to meet with the Nine Abysses at Baishawan, and could testify for him."

"How could there be so many coincidences?" Wu Huan sneered, "Lingshan, Mu Guo, and Cang Yan were originally of the same ilk, for the Nine Abysses to provide false testimony is only natural, is it not?"

The ministers looked at me, I looked at you, not knowing where to begin the argument.

In the Crown Prince's understanding, whoever has a good relationship with whom will speak for whom.

This thought seems not wrong, but what are the identities of Xiao Hanzi and the Unperturbed Emperor?

One stands at the peak of the immortal sect, the other at the summit of great state power; such figures know their words are golden rules and jade laws, they speak cautiously and act prudently, cherish their reputation, so how could they recklessly open their mouths?

Every word they utter is purposeful, never without cause, even if one had to be pulled apart by worldly standards, ground to powder, turned over and over to savor and ponder, to have one of them testify falsely for the Nine Abysses would already be no small feat; once exposed, the reputation and prestige accumulated over thousands of years would be swept away. To have them both speak with one voice, this...

Even if the Heavenly Dao itself came, it would probably be of no use.

Wu Huan continued: "Lingshan and Mu Guo are our old rivals, you claim they will not provide false testimony for the Nine Abysses, do you have any solid, concrete evidence?"

This left even the Xia Guo Imperial Preceptor speechless.

Indeed, there is none. To prove what a person has done, there is still a way; but to prove what a person has not done, that truly takes one's life. The Crown Prince's reprimand left even Nie Xiaolou unsure how to respond. The court fell silent for a dozen breaths, then Wang Qun spoke again, directly bypassing this unsolvable deadlock:

"The Nine Abysses had already sent an invitation to meet the late emperor; if intent on harm, the most appropriate place to act would be the meeting site, why choose the difficult over the easy, and insist on acting in the heavily guarded Ling Xu City? Moreover, although the Earth Mother has subterranean ability, it cannot ascend to Tian Xin Island, it needs no appearance; appearing in the suburbs would only expose itself, serving no purpose."

Tian Xin Island is one of the Seven Floating Islands, with no connection to the land. Unless the Earth Mother grows wings, it cannot fly up there.

Furthermore, the area of the floating island is far smaller than the Earth Mother plain, making the latter even less likely to hide there.

Wang Qun's words were reasonable, other ministers nodded frequently. The place with the strongest defensive forces in the world, the capitals of the three great emperors should certainly be on the list. Acting here is already difficult enough; no assassin would deliberately create more difficulties for himself, then rush headlong into them.

"Such questions, you do not ask the Nine Abysses, but instead come to me?" Wu Huan said calmly, "The Nine Abysses is a remarkable figure, his thoughts and considerations—could they be the same as yours, ordinary lot? Which of you dares to have caused a great disturbance in the Heavenly Palace twenty years ago, to go to Mount Xushan and seize treasure? Perhaps he simply enjoys overcoming difficulties, displaying strength; or perhaps he has already found a weakness in Tian Xin Island's defense, not as impregnable as you believe, otherwise my father..."

It choked up: "Otherwise, how did the late emperor meet his harm?"

The late demon emperor's harm is an indisputable fact!

It then glared at Wang Qun: "You have said so much, besides the Nine Abysses, is there truly no other suspect or culprit?"

Yes, of course there are. The ministers exchanged several glances, their hearts as clear as a bright mirror:

The Heavenly Gods.

That suspicion is dozens of times greater than that of the Nine Abysses!

Between Between Between Beijia has stood for six hundred years, the Heavenly Palace has taken root in Ling Xu City for six hundred years, not a whit shorter than the time the royal family has spent here.

This is the demon emperor's home ground, but again, how is it not also the Heavenly Gods' home ground?

The late emperor gained advantage in Wang Ting, pressing the Heavenly Palace forces to retreat step by step;

The number of vassal demon states the late emperor won over has already surpassed that of the opponent;

Moreover, the late emperor's agreement to the three-state meeting is highly likely, when the time comes, the content of the talks among the three great emperors will surely be the focus of worldwide attention.

Any one of these three reasons alone would make the Heavenly Gods sit on pins and needles, let alone that they are all about to occur.

At this critical juncture, the Heavenly Gods cannot possibly resolve so many problems, so the best course is to eliminate the person creating the problems. That is, the late demon emperor.

But under such a broad discussion in Wang Ting, under the eyes of all, how could they utter the words "the Heavenly Gods might be the suspect"? Discard their official posts? Discard their futures? Discard their heads?

So, holding a preliminary small meeting is truly important.

This is what everyone has been muttering in their hearts, not spoken aloud, after all, the Heavenly Palace's cloud envoy Ye Zhao stands nearby, glaring tigerishly at the officials. Yet no one expected Wang Qun to actually voice everyone's inner thought:

"Yes, of course there are!"