Chapter 644

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Protagonist:

Shen Yao

The matter Lin Xingzhi mentioned about the Ministry of Justice and Jingzhao Prefecture joining forces to investigate was put on the agenda.

Not only that, several residences of Princes under house arrest all had incidents, and the residual demonic energy found there had not yet dissipated. Several Buddhist temples and Daoist temples, including Huang Jue Si, were all arranged by the Emperor to be entered.

Families in East City began to be vigilant one by one; there really were demons!

The deaths of these dandy sons were once again dug up and laid out in the open, after all they were the first batch of victims and also the instigators causing the current situation.

What? Not admitting it?

If it weren't for these brainless dandy sons who only thought about matters between the bed and insisted on bringing beautiful young women into their homes, how could the residences of the several Princes under house arrest have had incidents?

The Emperor was not wrong, the Royal Family was not wrong; only others could be wrong.

The wealthy families of East City:...

No matter how much they cursed in their hearts, on the surface they could only lower their heads and admit their mistakes.

A society of imperial power, where power and influence were concentrated in one person's hands; even if they had ability and talent, what of it? Wasn't it said that after mastering literary and martial arts, one sells them to the Emperor's family?

They couldn't possibly offend their greatest backing just to prove their innocence, could they?

Shen Yao, after hearing the system bring back the causes and consequences of the whole matter:...

Tsk tsk tsk

There was actually a day when the ruling class was humbled; truly, one mountain is higher than another, and evil people need evil people to grind them.

'Do you know what kind of demon this is? The Jingzhao Prefecture and the Ministry of Justice don't know, and those masters and Daorens don't know either.'

Because after eating people, the Mantis Demon already showed signs of giving birth.

Nowadays, the masters and Daorens wandering all over Jingcheng was simply wrong; they had to go to the most dangerous place to find it.

'Host means the Mantis Demon is hiding in the Imperial Palace?!' The system was greatly shocked.

My goodness, if that were true, the Mantis Demon really didn't care about its own life or death.

Shen Yao waved her hand, leaning against the soft pillow behind her to relax her mind, 'This Imperial Palace is not that Imperial Palace; the place where the Emperor lives is protected by Dragon Qi and blessed by national fortune. How could a mere Mantis Demon dare to overstep?'

Others just wanted to safely give birth to the child in their belly; they weren't seeking their own death.

Rolling her eyes at the simple-minded system, Shen Yao reminded it that where there was noble bloodline and the Emperor often visited, the Mantis Demon was most likely hiding there.

Two places suddenly jumped into the system's mind: the Cold Palace and the Imperial Noble Consort's Palace.

'Hmm, go around there when there's time; maybe we can catch one in the act!'

Shen Yao held her smooth and delicate fingers up to the light from the window, then called out loudly for the maid to bring the cinnabar rouge for dyeing.

With the festival approaching, it should be red and lively to show celebration and liveliness.

The system couldn't help but make a trip to the Imperial Palace (the Cold Palace and the Imperial Noble Consort's Palace), and sure enough, it encountered the Mantis Demon with a pregnant belly, eating heartily everywhere!

System:?...!!!

Ahhhhhhh

The system screamed and ran back; at this time Shen Yao was busy painting her nails.

The red cinnabar rouge was brilliant and beautiful under the sunlight; such a beautiful painting was directly destroyed by the system.

Shen Yao:...

I'm truly speechless at this old six of a system!

The system made whimpering sounds, 'Host, so scary, that Mantis Demon is eating heartily in the Cold Palace.'

Wow!

Its belly looks so big, as if it could burst at any moment!'

The system felt that as a system it shouldn't be so unworthy, but who let the Mantis Demon's image be too shocking to the system; it was simply a nightmare-level monster!

Shen Yao raised an eyebrow and curiously asked the system to release the corresponding image; she really wanted to see this female mantis.

System:...

The system reluctantly released the image, and Shen Yao was immediately attracted by the mantis in the center of the image, which was about half a house tall, with a swollen abdomen like a hot air balloon.

Hiss

Glancing at it unexpectedly was indeed scary; it couldn't even maintain a human form, and must have eaten many people to reach this state of nutritional excess.

'The masters of the entire Cold Palace have been eaten clean, along with those guards and palace maids; anyway, none escaped,' the system felt this Mantis Demon was quite smart, knowing that compared to the Imperial Noble Consort's Palace, the Cold Palace was safer, so it stopped at the Cold Palace first to eat heartily.

The Cold Palace was closest to the Imperial Noble Consort's Palace; after passing through that small door, there was fresh and delicious food. Was this demon always thinking about how to eat when it had nothing to do? Otherwise, how could it calculate the distance so clearly? Even the Cold Palace and the Imperial Noble Consort's Palace were among the places closest to the city wall outside the city; wanting to escape, just climb over the wall.

Shen Yao's expression was deep, 'With its eating habits, it won't be long before it's discovered.'

Still so arrogant, sweeping the Cold Palace clean in one breath; although to a certain extent it solved many troubles for the Emperor, its location was not far from the Emperor's residence, and the Emperor also needed to consider his own safety, right?

One person and one system discussed the situation of the Mantis Demon; soon, hearing the door lightly move, they saw Lin Xingzhi sneak in.

Hmm?

'Yao Niang'

Lin Xingzhi came to Shen Yao's side, raised his head and pulled her into his arms, 'Recently there are few matters at the Qin Wang Fu; we should set off immediately for the Suburban Villa.'

Shen Yao asked without changing her expression, 'In a few days it will be the New Year's Palace Banquet;' although they didn't need to attend, after the New Year's Palace Banquet there was still entering the palace to participate in ancestral sacrifices; at that time all court officials and Royal Family Members had to attend; if they weren't in Jingcheng, where could they act?

Lin Xingzhi:...

Curling his fingers slightly and coughing lightly, Lin Xingzhi lowered his head and whispered two words; seeing Shen Yao's eyes widen more and more, he directly personally picked her up.

Shen Yao subconsciously raised her hand to wrap around Lin Xingzhi's neck, 'Yan'er and the others'

'They have already sat in the carriage with the wet nurses; wife, we should go.'

Lin Xingzhi felt he had ample strength and means, walking with bold vigor.

Shen Yao leaned against his chest and sighed helplessly, saying only that the current emperor was still quite fond of his own life, having already left the palace under the pretext of rejoicing with the common folk; it seemed the mantis demon's every move was under the Imperial Court's control.

Boarding the carriage, they set off for the capital the very next second.

Clearly, after receiving the news, Lin Xingzhi had already ordered his servants to prepare, and many other wealthy families in East City were also hurrying away in small carriages.

But compared to the Royal Family's swift departure, these households left covertly, obviously not wanting to expose too much, after all, the emperor had not permitted them to leave.

Bored on the carriage, Shen Yao had the system secretly broadcast the scenes from the palace.

In just a short while, the mantis demon had grown to the height of a house, its round belly so distended that the small mantises moving inside could be seen.

At this moment it was moving toward the Imperial Noble Consort's palace; although the emperor had issued an imperial decree to leave the palace, there were too many people in the palace, some moved slowly, some were careless, and in the end they all became food for the mantis demon's birthing.

Seeing the mantis demon lose its sanity after devouring people one by one, Shen Yao rubbed her forehead and signaled the system to switch the screen, to see where those masters and Daorens were.

The screens split from one into two, then two into four; naturally, the top corner showed the protagonist mantis demon, while the bottom corners displayed a row of bald heads and the backs of figures in Daoist robes.

Shen Yao sat up straight, her movement startling Lin Xingzhi beside her.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Shen Yao smiled, her eyes flickering slightly, using the corner of her eye to stare at the several screens before her.

The masters and Daorens were waiting for the right moment; the mantis demon had lost its sanity, its mind left only with supplementing nutrition and producing offspring, but it had eaten too much, and the offspring in its belly were overnourished, sooner or later they would burst out of its belly.

What they were waiting for was this very node; taking advantage of the moment the mantis demon's vital energy was severely injured, they would subdue it and successfully kill it.

As for the remaining small mantis demons, the Buddhist Gate had long had a saying of conversion, and the Daoist Sect also had means of cultivating mounts; the small mantis demons had not yet had time to commit crimes, the death penalty could be waived but the living punishment could not be escaped, naturally they must repay for their mother's lifetime of sins.

"Hmph!"

Speaking so righteously, it was nothing but the thought of gaining benefits for themselves under the banner.

Could the mantis demon not be eliminated right now? Watching people in the palace die unnatural deaths one by one, all just to accelerate the maturation of the mantis demon's offspring in its belly.

Shen Yao closed her eyes slightly, forcibly suppressing the stifled feeling in her heart.

Something she had long known should not make her so agitated; besides, she was a demon yet not a demon, and the children she bore were human-hearted and human-bodied, why should she feel indignant for a demon that had actively brought wrongs upon itself?

"Host, perhaps we can help conceal them, letting the small mantis demons escape as far as possible," the system, seeing the host was not right, cautiously suggested.

"No need; the mantis demon is in the wrong, and the small mantis demons are not innocent either."

Those people eaten were not merely nourishing the mantis demon alone; the small mantis demons had gained benefits, otherwise they would not be impatient to be born.

Believe it or not, without the scheming of those masters and Daorens with ulterior motives, these small mantis demons would, at the moment of birth, madly attack the remaining people in the palace.

A demon is a demon, a wild beast wearing a layer of human skin!

Slowly letting herself come to terms with it, Shen Yao did not understand why her mood felt unsettled, but fortunately her ability to regulate was quite outstanding.

Having the system put away the projected screens, Shen Yao turned her head and leaned against Lin Xingzhi's shoulder.

The added weight on his shoulder brought Lin Xingzhi back from his daze; he smiled and said that the suburban villa they were going to was a Royal Garden, bestowed upon him by his elder brother, the Prince, after handling the affairs of Floating Cloud City, and it had been under repair all along, but he had not had time to see it.

"The Former Emperor loved various garden architectures; whenever he was in power, he would order the construction of manors," countless craftsmen were worked to death, and the vast majority had never even lived in them.

After the emperor ascended the throne and wanted to cut expenditures, he bestowed these Royal Gardens upon meritorious officials or gifted them to the remaining Royal Family Members; this move not only earned him reputation and fame but also saved state treasury funds, achieving two goals at once.

Except for the Former Emperor who ascended to the Extreme Bliss early, everyone else was very happy.

Listening to Lin Xingzhi mention the Former Emperor without any emotion, Shen Yao knew their father-son relationship was not good; perhaps someone like the Former Emperor, who liked to act recklessly in life, would not care whether his descendants were filial after death.

After all, when a person dies, the lamp goes out; no matter how much one believes in an afterlife, it cannot change the fact that the person is gone.

Even an emperor of tremendous power and influence ultimately turns into a cup of yellow earth; it shows that between people it is both unfair and fair, everyone has only one life, everyone can only live one lifetime.

The carriage soon arrived at the suburban villa Lin Xingzhi mentioned.

The two got off the carriage one after another and saw the exquisite villa standing before them.

The courtyard was secluded, with lush plants, pavilions and waterside terraces, and a Nine-Curved Corridor.

Palace attendants had always been responsible for daily cleaning; seeing their master arrive, they hurriedly saluted and asked after their well-being; Lin Xingzhi waved his hand for them to withdraw, and personally brought his beloved wife and young child into the courtyard to rest.

At this moment, the system suddenly said that the mantis demon had already been executed; barring accidents, they would not be able to stay here for long and would have to return to the Qin Wang Fu.

"Ai, that scene was truly miserable.

With a bang, the mantis demon's belly burst open directly, and the small mantis demons inside ran everywhere.

Those monks and Daoists caught the mantis demon while rescuing the remaining people, and quite a few were accidentally injured."

The system sighed; humans facing demons, their individual combat strength was still too weak.

Even the masters of Huang Jue Si had to join forces to restrain the mantis demon, let alone certain great demons among the mantis demons; a single demon could easily overturn the entire field.

"So Yan'er and the other two's talents are even more precious; the Human Race's cultivation relies on comprehension, but demons do not; a demon being able to transform into human form represents being favored by heaven; demons are to some extent children of the Heavenly Dao, but the higher a demon goes, the harder it becomes, unlike the Human Race who can attain the Dao and ascend."

Besides, in a world where the Heavenly Dao favors love and affection, demons on the path of cultivation will encounter countless obstacles.

This is also why Shen Yao, even while pregnant, was willing to risk bodily harm to purify the bloodline for her three children; whichever path is easier, take that path; this is not opportunism, but rather following the Heavenly Dao.

The system could not argue with the host, because it found that no matter how the host spoke, it was clear and substantial; in other words, it was persuaded!

The family of five lived in the suburban villa for three days, and Lin Xingzhi received a secret letter from Jingcheng.

Learning that the crisis was resolved and all was well, Lin Xingzhi turned and led his family back to the Jing Wang Fu in the capital.

The households in East City that had originally hung white sails had long since removed them; instead, the entire palace was covered in silver and white, accompanied by a heavy snow that had just fallen not long ago, dyeing the whole palace with a layer of sorrow.

In such an atmosphere, the family of five who had not entered the palace for the New Year's palace banquet entered the palace to ask after the well-being on the first day of the new year.

Shen Yao immediately noticed the Empress's expression was off; even though the two had only met a few times, when had the Empress ever been so emotionally restrained.

"Ai, a favored concubine in the palace is ill, a Prince is critically ill, the Empress is reprimanded and neglected by the emperor; how could she remain as high and mighty as before."

An old Wang Fei beside her, who often entered the palace, chatted with Shen Yao during a spare moment.

As a newbie among the Wang Feis, Shen Yao always maintained a humble posture toward everyone; even upon suddenly hearing such huge gossip, she still maintained her background character persona and did not rashly inquire about anything.

Since Lin Xingzhi married and had children outside, the whole person became low-key and restrained; the entire Jing Wang Fu line was not very prominent either, and even gave a feeling of being on the edge.

Actually, they as a couple just did not want to participate too much in Royal Family affairs.

Like this old Imperial Consort beside her who was gossiping, her husband was the Former Emperor's half-brother, she herself came from a Noble Family, not only were many of her clan's juniors serving in the military, but even her niece had entered the palace as an Imperial Consort.

Among so many Imperial Consorts and side consorts who had married into the Royal Family present, if one truly spoke of a clean background, it was Shen Yao.