Chapter 265

What they didn't expect was that the sharp blade tip could not pierce the strange clothing he wore, only leaving a slight dent, and no matter how much force they applied, the knife could not advance a hair.

As the two were stunned and dazed, they clearly saw a mocking sneer appear in Xiao Qidi's eyes.

In the blink of an eye—

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two successive whooshing sounds.

Two crossbow bolts struck the eunuch's heart in succession.

Before they could react, they rolled down the steps beside the throne, fell to the ground, stared, and let out a deathly wail.

At that moment, everyone realized that the one holding the king hostage had an accomplice.

The crowd looked around, but before they could discover anything, Xiao Qidi's words drew their attention again.

"Lord Dingwu, do you really think that secretly sending two eunuchs over can kill me?"

As the words fell, everyone turned their gaze in unison toward the elder among the nobles.

This person, titled Lord Dingwu, is an elder of the Wasteland Nation royal family, and even the king's uncle, Lord Xinping, politely calls him "uncle".

In other words, Lord Dingwu is the current Wasteland Nation king's great‑uncle.

Lord Dingwu, with a light and unhurried demeanor, lifted his cup and said, "Young man, you slipped into the great hall unseen, taking His Majesty as a hostage. Such skill and daring truly impress this old man; even in my youth I could not match you. I toast to you."

Having said that, he drained the wine from his cup.

Xiao Qidi gave a faint smile, casually picked up the wine jug on the table before the throne, and tipped back to drink most of it.

Lord Dingwu said, "The Royal City's defenses are airtight; you could not have entered from outside. I dare guess you are a child from a commoner family within the Royal City, dissatisfied with our policy of refusing to defend the city, and thus slipped in. I admire you; if you surrender, I guarantee to make you a general, and your whole family will not be punished, but will share in wealth and honor together."

Xiao Qidi's eyes held a mocking smile as he asked, "Besides this Royal City, all other places have been conquered by Xuan Guo; the Wasteland Nation is merely a name without substance. What guarantee do you have that my family will enjoy wealth and honor?"

"Hahaha!" Lord Dingwu laughed, stroking his beard. "I cannot speak of the long term, but I am confident that everyone present can live a comfortable, even more pleasant life for the rest of their days. Now we hold the lives of over a hundred thousand Royal City citizens, and that Xuan Guo army claims to be a benevolent force, acting as if they care for the common people wherever they go. Doesn't that give us a soft spot to exploit?"

Xiao Qidi's gaze darkened slightly as he reminded, "They are not merely claiming it, nor putting on an act; they truly act for the people's benefit. Otherwise they could not have conquered the Wasteland Nation so quickly."

Lord Dingwu laughed even more, "Isn't that better? Otherwise how could we use the over hundred thousand Royal City civilians as leverage? How could we remain so calm when faced with the Xuan Guo army's encirclement? I'm not afraid to tell you, whatever we need, the Xuan Guo forces outside will go to any lengths to provide it, so we can live comfortably. Otherwise they'd have to watch us let the guard troops slaughter the Royal City citizens for them to see!"

"You killed… all the Wasteland Nation's civilians," Xiao Qidi said meaningfully, "They are the subjects of you rulers. Now you use them as bargaining chips against the enemy—don't you feel any guilt in your hearts?"

At these words, some nobles showed a guilty expression.

But it was only a slight hint of guilt.

Lord Dingwu's face showed even more disdain, he snorted coldly and said, "Why feel guilt? Nobles are born to rule; commoners are merely our tools. Otherwise, what use would we have in keeping them?"

Xiao Qidi sneered, "You 'raise' them? With what? The land you cultivated? The food, cloth, and daily tools you produce?"

Lord Dingwu boasted shamelessly, "The land was taken by us! We are born rulers! Without us, where would these Great Wilderness peasants come from? They use our land, so they ought to revere us! By permitting them to survive on this land, we are effectively raising them!"

"Wouldn't it be better without you?" Xiao Qidi said abruptly.

Lord Dingwu was slightly startled, then said with even more contempt, "Commoners are all foolish; left without governance they'd become a herd of savages. Even beasts in the wilderness need a leader, let alone humans."

Xiao Qidi said, "Society needs governance, that's true, but what people need is not your kind. Perhaps many citizens of the various nations have not yet realized this; perhaps they think being oppressed is destiny. But I believe that soon more and more people will awaken, will understand that no one is born noble, nor born lowly."

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Lord Dingwu shouted angrily, "Since ancient times, people have been divided into noble and lowly! To utter such heretical words against the Heavenly Way, you will incur divine retribution!"

Xiao Qidi sighed helplessly, "In any case, you have no chance to awaken."

"Xiao Qidi! You are Xiao Qidi!" Lord Xinping suddenly slammed the table, "Boy! I recognize you!"

At these words, the whole scene was stunned.

The crowd, incredulous, examined him closely again.

The trembling Wasteland Nation king beside the throne was even more astonished, eyes wide open.

"Help… help quickly!" a terrified noble shouted, "Ban—"

Before the word "army" could be spoken, Ning Jinli, hidden in a corner of the hall's beam, fired an arrow from her crossbow.

Pfft!

The bolt pierced his throat, silencing him forever.

With that deterrent, no one dared to shout again.

"He really is Xiao Qidi?" Lord Dingwu asked Lord Xinping.

Lord Xinping's face turned very grim, "It's him, no doubt. When I first saw his face it seemed familiar, and after looking closely at his eyes… I was certain his gaze is exactly the same as in my childhood."

"Not easy, finally someone recognized me," Xiao Qidi said with a cold smile, his gaze like a knife fixed on Lord Xinping.

Lord Xinping felt a powerful aura pressure, a fine cold sweat forming on his forehead. After a brief thought, he stepped forward, forcing himself to speak, "You attacked the Great Wilderness… even personally risked entering the Great Wilderness royal palace. Was all this… for revenge?"

Xiao Qidi replied, "Revenge? Revenge for what?"

Lord Xinping swallowed, saying, "You… you were a Hostage Prince here for many years… during those years, you and your mother…"

"By your words, you clearly know how much suffering and torment I endured here as a child, don't you?" Xiao Qidi's cold smile grew even colder.

Lord Xinping dared not answer.

During those years, within the palace—from the king down to the palace maids and eunuchs—who hadn't spoken of it?

A mother and son abandoned by the then Xuan Guo heir—who would care about them?

The mother and son were neither Great Wilderness people nor had any support, and at that time Xuan Guo's strength was far inferior to the Great Wilderness, so they naturally suffered abuse.

Xiao Qidi was bullied and toyed with like a dog by peers of the Wasteland Nation aristocracy.

Jiang Peihuan was used by other noble men as a tool for sexual release.

The mother and son: the younger was bullied by the younger, the older was insulted by the older.

Even after the two luckily left the Great Wilderness, those events remained jokes among the Great Wilderness nobles.

Among the Great Wilderness nobles, none could have imagined Xuan Guo becoming powerful.

Nor could anyone have foreseen that Xiao Qidi, who should have been bullied to mental collapse and, even if he inherited the throne, could achieve nothing, would become a great ruler of Xuan Guo.

"Xiao… Xiao Qidi…" Lord Xinping said while wiping cold sweat, "During the years you were a Hostage Prince in the Great Wilderness, I… I helped you and Jiang Peihuan a lot. If not for me, you… you would have starved to death…"

Xiao Qidi narrowed his eyes, "I still have to thank you? Should I even enshrine you?"

Marquis Xinping's cheeks trembled as he forced a humble smile, "I don't mean that, I... I..."

He thought that since Xiao Qidi had come for revenge, most of those present would surely not escape disaster, so he planned to seize a chance to save his own life, but for a moment he didn't know how to continue speaking.

"Useless thing!" Duke Dingwu angrily rebuked Marquis Xinping, "Just a mere Xiao Qidi scared you like this? Even if he had the ability to sneak in here, could he really kill us all? Are the Imperial Guard and the guard troops just for show?"

Then he raised his head to look at the ceiling, continually searching for Xiao Qidi's accomplices, and added, "According to my observation, this kid has only one accomplice; although his weapon is formidable, it's absolutely impossible for him to kill the hundreds in this hall in a short time. They have been terrified of being discovered by the Imperial Guard from start to finish; otherwise, they would have already attacked us directly."

Hearing this analysis, Marquis Xinping calmed considerably, his heart less frantic, "Uncle is indeed formidable... I almost fell for Xiao Qidi's trick, scaring myself to death."

"In any case, first keep quiet; leave it to me to handle."

"Yes, Uncle."

Duke Dingwu pondered for a moment, about to speak.

Xiao Qidi suddenly spoke: "Dancers, step aside, continue dancing to the side, don't stop. Those who bullied me back then, step forward yourselves."

Nearly a hundred young nobles of the Wasteland Nation panicked instantly.

Xiao Qidi pressed the blade tip against the Wasteland Nation king's finger, "I remember each and every one of you; if even one is missing, I will cut off a finger of his."

"Xiao Qidi... you..." the Wasteland Nation king exclaimed, both shocked and angry.

Smack!

Xiao Qidi slapped him across the face, coldly saying, "Speak again, and I'll cut off your tongue first."

The Wasteland Nation king trembled with fright and hastily clenched his mouth shut.

The young nobles in the hall remained motionless; Xiao Qidi exerted a little force, causing a finger of the Wasteland Nation king to bleed.

Seeing this, Duke Dingwu had to step forward to urge those young men to come forward quickly.

Not long after, over ninety people stepped forward one after another.

They trembled, huddled together, and dared not meet Xiao Qidi's gaze.

At this moment, a middle-aged man knelt and said, "My son back then... back then was too young, didn't understand things, please... please spare them..."

Xiao Qidi turned his gaze toward the voice, "Who is your son?"

The man trembled as he raised his hand and pointed.

Xiao Qidi said, "If that's the case, I now demand you bind your son's hands behind his back, then kneel and kowtow to me— is that unreasonable?"

"Not unreasonable at all!" the man immediately drew his belt, ran over, and bound his son's hands behind his back tightly.

Others likewise thought Xiao Qidi had come for revenge, believing that as long as they complied with his wishes and appeased him, they could save their lives, so they followed suit.

A group of fathers and uncles rushed over in a flurry, tying up all the juniors who had bullied Xiao Qidi back then, pressing them to kneel on the ground.

Xiao Qidi added, "Now that those who bullied me are bound, then... those who once insulted my mother— please step forward as well."

"What the heck is this kid up to? I feel something's off— is he planning to take His Majesty hostage and then kill everyone who once bullied him and his mother?" Marquis Xinping muttered with a grim face.

Duke Dingwu said softly, "I doubt he has that much capability; I think at most he'll insult us to vent his hatred. If he really dared to kill our Great Wilderness nobles or even take His Majesty's life, he wouldn't escape either. No matter, let's endure for now and see what tricks he can pull."

Marquis Xinping, as if having taken a calming pill, set an example by asking his uncle Duke Dingwu to help bind his hands behind his back.

Subsequently, over a hundred men stepped forward one after another, bound by the remaining nobles and officials, and joined that group of young people.

Xiao Qidi looked at so many enemies, and his killing intent surged like an overturned river and sea.

He wished he could rush over and kill each one personally with a single blade.

But this operation is not solely for revenge; if he really did that, the hall would surely descend into chaos, alerting the Imperial Guard outside to come rushing in, so he must force himself to stay calm.

The reason he used this method to have these Wasteland Nation nobles bind their own people is, on one hand, to stabilize the situation and as much as possible restrict the movement of this large group; on the other hand, it is to shield Ning Jinli.

"All set." Ning Jinli's whisper came through the earpiece.

Xiao Qidi slowly exhaled a turbid breath, then ordered the palace maids and eunuchs present to bind the remaining over a hundred nobles and officials as well.

Now Duke Dingwu refused to comply, glaring angrily at Xiao Qidi and demanding, "Those who once insulted you and your mother have already bound their hands behind their backs as you demanded and are kneeling before you in apology— don't push your luck!"

Xiao Qidi covered the Wasteland Nation king's mouth and slowly drove the blade tip into his arm.

The Wasteland Nation king wanted to scream from the pain but couldn't make a sound; he tried to struggle but was firmly suppressed by Xiao Qidi's strength.

Duke Dingwu was both furious and enraged, but having no way to counter Xiao Qidi's move, he could only order the palace maids and eunuchs to act.

Thus, all the nobles and officials present were bound one after another, Duke Dingwu included.

Xiao Qidi took off his tactical backpack and unzipped it.

Inside was stuffed with a bunch of small explosives.

This was a special new-type weapon specially procured by Ning Jinli from Shangguan Ying.

Each explosive is less than a quarter the size of a normal grenade, yet more powerful, and can be detonated remotely.

Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi each carried a pack; Ning Jinli had already placed her pack of explosives in various corners of the hall earlier, and now it was Xiao Qidi's turn with this pack.

"What... what is this?" the Wasteland Nation king couldn't help but ask.