Chapter 111: Fanning the Flames (2)

Underwater, everything was silent, and one could only act by touch. Following this waterway, they went deep quickly. Not long after, two water gates appeared in the channel. Faint light could be seen ahead, indicating that the distance to the exit was not too far. Su Ying accelerated forward and found that there were two pairs of locking mechanisms on the gate, which were the Double Dragon Twist exclusively used by the Chu navy. The light underwater was extremely dark, and one could only judge by touch. It was almost impossible to break the blockade. If it were an ordinary person, they would have returned without success long ago. But Su Ying's understanding of various mechanisms had reached the point of being able to use them at will. In just a moment, only a faint "click" sound was heard, and a mechanism turned open.

Even so, most of the air in the water lung had been consumed. Nie Qi immediately pushed the gate with his palm, and Su Ying followed to deal with the second mechanism.

The time taken this time was much shorter than the last. As the mechanism under his hand broke open, Su Ying couldn't help but take a deep breath, horrified to find that the air in the water lung was gone.

Nie Qi borrowed strength from the gate and dragged him to swim toward the exit quickly.

The waterway suddenly widened. The two floated to the surface one after another, both dizzy and unable to distinguish east from west. They breathed the rare fresh air deeply. After a while, they recovered and found that their position was close to the Crystal Terrace Water Pavilion, and the ten thousand lotus flowers blooming on all sides became their best cover.

On the shore ahead, the corridors were winding, the cloud pavilions were crystal clear, and silver silk wind lanterns were dotted along the way, setting off the beauty of the Jun Mansion as if it were a heavenly palace.

A pale moon shone obliquely in the sky. The water pavilion where Huang Fei once drank and talked with Zi Rao was bathed in the moonlight, ethereal and bright. In the tranquility, one could not feel the bloody storm outside at all, and it was more like a clear and beautiful fairyland.

This was the only place in the Shao Yuan Jun Mansion without guards patrolling, just because even a top expert could not enter this core area deep in the inner lake without being discovered. If it weren't for this waterway, Su Ying and the two would never have been able to do it.

At this time, the waves were floating and sinking, and the transparent crystal terrace was flashing with clear light in the water. Han Xi was sitting on the side facing the water, looking at the crescent moon in the sky alone, with a light sigh.

"Brother Zi Hao, is it really you who killed the King and Queen?" Han Xi muttered to herself, "I have never seen Huang Fei so angry. I'm afraid I will never see you again in the future. And Sister Zi Rao, I don't know if what Yan Ling said is true or false. I don't believe it..."

She suddenly stood up, startling Su Ying and Nie Qi, who hurriedly sank into the water quietly.

Han Xi didn't find anyone in the lake and kept walking along the crystal terrace. Nie Qi floated up and said, "What now? Find a way to take her out."

If they acted directly, I'm afraid it would be difficult not to alert others. This water pavilion seemed calm on all sides, but there must be secret sentries, otherwise how could Huang Fei rest assured to leave Han Xi alone here? Su Ying recalled the construction map he had seen and whispered, "If I remember correctly, from here down, it is very likely the Jun Mansion's weapon manufacturing field. Destroying this underground secret place will inevitably cause a considerable blow to the Jun Mansion, and we can also take advantage of the chaos to kidnap people." Saying this, he pulled Nie Qi and dived into the water again. He saw a stone wall going straight down. Su Ying groped for a while and signaled Nie Qi to listen with his ear. Bursts of metal clashing sounds came faintly through the water, proving his guess was correct.

At this time, underwater, one could also see the floating bridge mechanism connecting the crystal terrace to the lake shore. After Su Ying further figured out the situation, the two emerged in a dark place away from Han Xi. Su Ying said, "Keep watch for me, it will be done soon." Saying this, he took out a sealed oil paper from under his water suit, lifted it away from the water surface, and began to fiddle with it.

Nie Qi glanced at the surroundings and poked his head over, "What is this for?"

Su Ying explained while busy, "As long as small holes are drilled in several fixed places on the stone wall below, the stone wall will be stressed and collapse as a whole. The lake water will pour into the weapon manufacturing field. Won't it destroy it completely? The weapon manufacturing field is connected to the secret passage of the Chu Palace. If it can cause greater damage, that would be ideal."

Nie Qi saw that every mechanism he set was unimaginable. Using these few pieces of silver bright iron, he could actually pierce through a stone wall several inches thick. Only then did he know why the Nine Princess was determined to rescue this person from the Jun Mansion on the night of the wedding, and it was no wonder Huang Fei wanted to kill Su Ying several times but kept his hand until now. At this time, Su Ying carefully put away the things in his hand, turned around and dived into the water again.

Nie Qi followed, and under Su Ying's command, helped him fix the silver pieces on the outer wall of the weapon manufacturing field in a special way. A string of tiny bubbles soon appeared on the stone wall. Su Ying waved his hand, signaling Nie Qi to leave together, and by the way, destroyed the floating bridge mechanism sunk under the water, so that when the change happened, the path of reinforcements could be cut off.

Unexpectedly, as soon as they acted, the mechanism in the middle of the lake suddenly began to rotate, and the two floating bridges slowly rose from the bottom of the water.

The two called it bad luck. They saw the floating bridge rise a few inches above the water surface. The lights on the opposite bank were more than twice as bright as before. Looking at the formation, it was Shao Yuan Jun returning to the mansion.

Han Xi ran quickly toward the floating bridge. On the opposite side, the waves were surging, and there were no attendants following. Huang Fei stepped onto the bridge alone. Su Ying and Nie Qi had no time to leave, so they could only sink to the bottom of the bridge and extend the copper tube above the water surface to maintain breathing. Fortunately, the Shao Yuan Jun Mansion had not yet built the bridge with spirit stones, otherwise the two would have been exposed immediately.

Han Xi stopped on the bridge, looking at Huang Fei walking to the front without blinking, and asked, "How is it, Sister Zi Rao..."

Huang Fei's voice seemed unusually cold, but it was as if some dark emotion was buried under the pitch black and coldness, like an undercurrent at the bottom of the lake, with dark tides crisscrossing, "I have brought her corpse back. Three days later, I will hold a funeral for the wife of Shao Yuan Jun."

Han Xi took a step back with an "Ah" and said, "You... you confirmed it yourself?"

Huang Fei answered, "Yes."

One word thrown down, not only Han Xi, but the two people at the bottom of the water were also shocked, and their breathing became slightly heavier. Huang Fei immediately sensed it, his eyes changed suddenly, and he shouted, "Who is there, get out!" His figure seemed to have not moved, but he moved backward like lightning, and a palm wind hit the position where the two were hiding.

The pressure of the lake water increased sharply, and the force broke the waves. Su Ying and the two already knew it was bad, but they didn't expect Huang Fei's palm speed to be so terrifying.

With a loud bang, the lake water splashed into the air, and the two under the bridge vomited blood almost at the same time. Just at this moment, the bottom of the lake suddenly followed with a violent shock. After several muffled sounds, a piece of heaven-shaking water light exploded, reaching several feet high.

Under this impact, the lake water surged upward violently. The force was so great that it lifted the entire floating bridge into the air. The mechanism that fixed the floating bridge had just been loosened by Su Ying in two places. One end broke instantly and threw it toward the air. Let alone Han Xi on the bridge, even Huang Fei could not maintain his balance.

The lake water fell all over the sky. The entire inner lake suddenly seemed to be attracted by some terrible force, rolling up stormy waves. A huge vortex slowly appeared in the middle of the lake. Su Ying knew that the stone wall of the weapon manufacturing field was completely destroyed, and the lake water was pouring into the underground wildly. Once the key support was destroyed, the entire Shao Yuan Jun Mansion might collapse at any time, and all the mechanism weapons in the weapon manufacturing field would also be destroyed.

Nie Qi had been prepared. At the moment the floating bridge was shaken and broken, he dragged Han Xi, who had lost control and fell into the water, to the bottom of the lake. Su Ying sent the water lung in time. The two held Han Xi before the vortex rolled over, tried their best, and swam rapidly toward the water outlet.

Emerging from the water at one end of Xilin Lake, Su Ying and Nie Qi were both exhausted. The two held the unconscious Han Xi and climbed onto the lake shore with great difficulty.

An hour later, a carriage with an ordinary appearance drove out of the city. No one noticed that Princess Han Xi, who was crucial to the Chu State, had been quietly taken away from the Chu capital.

When the Mingyi Tower secret department escorted them to avoid the garrison along the way and took a detour through the Yuan River back to Western Mountain Temple, the moon had set and the stars were dark, and the sky was about to brighten. The two unexpectedly found that there was an extra group of people in the temple. More than ten armored warriors stood with swords. Just looking at their standing posture and momentum, one knew that they had all undergone special and strict training. Each person had the same mark on their arm, indicating that they were experts from the Helian Martial Arts Hall, now serving the Western Mountain Daying.

A few steps away, the Jiuyi tribe and the Mingyi Tower subordinates also stood on opposite sides. It was obvious that it was a negotiation situation. Shang Rong saw Su Ying and Nie Qi bring Han Xi back safely, and only then did he truly let go of his heart.

A burst of laughter came.

The room door opened wide.

Shusun Yi accompanied a person to stand up, "Marquis, you have worked hard. Please let the end general send the guest on behalf of the Lord."

Helian Yiren bowed respectfully to the person on the seat, "In this case, the subject will not disturb the Lord's rest and will retire first." A young man with a thin figure and silver armor followed him out. It was Helian Wenren's son, the current commander of the Western Mountain Daying, Helian Xiao.

The three stepped out of the room and just met Su Ying and Nie Qi. Helian Yiren saw the unconscious Han Xi at a glance, his eyes flashed slightly, and he couldn't hide his surprise.

"Now that Huang Fei no longer has any bargaining chips to compare with the Marquis, the Marquis should be completely at ease, right?" Shusun Yi said with a smile. Helian Yiren laughed, "Failing to keep Mr. Su is truly a big loss for Huang Fei! In the future, there will be many places where I will have to rely on Mr. Su, and I hope Mr. Su will not refuse!" The implication was very close. Although he was in a predicament, he still did not lose the demeanor of an old and scheming minister.

When the Houfeng State was destroyed in the past, the army surrounded Hao Shan and burned the Sword Hut. Helian Yiren was the main war commander, and the elite Western Mountain troops he led were exactly this group. Su Ying had the hatred of the destruction of the country and the killing of his master. Seeing the other party suddenly, he looked coldly, and his fists couldn't help but tighten.

Helian Xiao's eyes flashed with light. He pulled his body forward a step, pressed his hand on the hilt of his sword, and the atmosphere suddenly changed. Just at this moment, the cold and warm words of the East Emperor came from the room, "Is it Nie Qi and Su Ying who are back?"

"I will see the Marquis off, Marquis please!" Shusun Yi inserted at the right time and gave Nie Qi a wink. Helian Yiren now had to rely on the Di Du to fight against Huang Fei, so he naturally wouldn't offend Su Ying. He said "hard work" without changing his smile and left with Shusun Yi. Nie Qi was in a hurry to report to the Lord, so he dragged Su Ying in first.

The room was still lit with lamps. The faint light poured down, intersecting with the cold dawn outside the window, falling on the tired brows and the elegant white clothes. Nie Qi carefully put Han Xi down and knelt down with Su Ying, "Lord, your subordinate has brought Princess Han Xi back."

I don't know if it was because of excessive mental fatigue for days, and yesterday he used the jade flute to manipulate the spirit array at Miaoyin Lake, causing damage to his True Essence, Zi Hao felt unusually exhausted at this time. Even if he calmed his mind to regulate his breathing, he could not relieve the feeling of dizziness. And since night fell, there had been a strange feeling flashing frequently in his heart. Unlike the opportunistic attack of the poison, the occasional fluctuation of his mood made people feel inexplicably irritable and uneasy.

Just now, the negotiation with Helian Yiren was barely supported. At this time, his mind relaxed slightly, and this feeling became more intense. Zi Hao frowned slightly. Han Xi, whose acupoints were tapped by Nie Qi in front of him, was sleeping soundly. Her long eyelashes covered her once-spirited pretty eyes, but there was a trace of light sorrow on her brows, adding a bit of fragility that made people feel pity to her peach-like face.

Zi Hao sent people to sneak into the Chu capital to bring her back. Besides disrupting Huang Fei's deployment, it was even more because there were too many doubts in Shangyang Palace that needed to be verified from her. At this moment, he supported himself up from the couch. Who knew that as soon as he stood up, he felt a palpitation in his heart, as if he had been grabbed by a hand, and even his breathing was almost cut off.

His hands tightened to stabilize his body, and his consciousness blurred instantly. Just at this moment, he heard Nie Qi kneeling under the lamp, lowering his head and reporting in a muffled voice, "Your subordinate received news from the Jun Mansion that Huang Fei has brought the Nine Princess's corpse back to the mansion. Three days later, he will hold a funeral for the Princess in the name of Shao Yuan Jun's wife."

Everyone was shocked. Zi Hao raised his head violently and asked hoarsely, "You, what did you say?"

Nie Qi's eyes showed grief, "Back to the Lord, we accidentally heard the conversation between Huang Fei and Princess Han Xi. He personally went to confirm the Princess's death today."

Li Si rushed forward and shook her head in disbelief, "Impossible, Nie Qi, you must have heard wrong! How could the Princess..." Before she finished speaking, she saw the Master sway, and before she could reach out to support him, Zi Hao had already spat out a mouthful of blood.

The pain in his heart was like being struck by lightning. Zi Hao's thin lips were tightly pursed, and his right hand holding the spirit stone bead string pressed on the couch and trembled constantly, icy cold without a trace of heat.

Qie Lan was very close to him. She supported him before Li Si, noticing that his True Qi was extremely chaotic, almost showing signs of going into devilry, and also felt that he seemed to be trying his best to suppress something with the Mysterious Penetrating Heart Method. This shock was no small matter.

The light of the spirit stone was chaotic and restless. Zi Hao suddenly raised his sleeve and shook, pushing her and Li Si away, and said with difficulty, "You... all go out."

"Lord!"

"Lord!"

"This news may not be true, we will immediately send someone to check!" Qie Lan saw that his expression was wrong and hurriedly stepped forward to persuade.

Zi Hao closed his eyes and opened them again, his face even paler, "Go out!"

Everyone had no choice but to exit first. Shang Rong and Shusun Yi had already heard the news outside and knew that this matter was a major variable for the Di Du, and they were even more worried. Losing the Nine Princess as the heir to the throne, if the East Emperor had another accident, the Nine Domains would immediately turn into a bloody battlefield. Who would be King, who would be the hegemon, life and death, country destruction—a more tragic struggle and slaughter would be staged.

The darkness of dawn pressed heavily on the horizon, boundless. The core figures of the Di Du and the Jiuyi tribe were all anxious and uneasy, but no one dared to enter rashly.

A burst of hurried footsteps came. Li Si guarded the door, looked up and saw the person coming, and couldn't help but call out unexpectedly, "Young Master Su!"

After Su Ling received the order to mobilize troops into Chu, he set off immediately. Because he was worried about the Lord's safety, he handed it over to Jin Wu Yu to lead the army, and he and Mo Heng rushed over first.

Li Si seemed to see a savior and hurriedly said, "Young Master Su, the Lord, he..." Su Ling had already heard the change in the matter from Qie Lan. He nodded to her, walked to the front, raised his hand to brush his lapels, knelt down and said, "Su Ling requests to see the Lord."

There was no sound in the room for a while. Su Ling waited for a moment, took a deep breath, and said again, "Lord, Su Ling has important matters to see you, so I will boldly enter."

After speaking, he raised his hand, but before he touched the room door, the door opened inward, and he heard the East Emperor's faint and hoarse voice, "Come in."

Su Ling got up and entered, then closed the room door. He saw the Lord sitting alone in front of the couch. The lamps in the room had long since burned out. A little dawn light quietly poured in from the window, staying beside that dust-free white clothes, as if afraid of the cold breath of the figure in the darkness, and dared not approach any further.

Su Ling was used to the tranquility beside the Lord, but at this moment, he felt shocked because of those faintly looking eyes.

That was a look he had never seen before, like a sea of the nether world, without surging waves, without roaring, and without even a trace of emotional fluctuation, only a cold and depressed indifference to all things, revealing a faint, gloomy chill.

Su Ling stopped at the edge of the light and shadow and said in a low voice, "Lord, Su Ling came late, please Lord... take care of yourself."

Zi Hao closed his eyes gently and said lightly, "I'm fine. Where is the army now?"

Su Ling said, "I and Mo Heng arrived here first. Jin Wu Yu led the five thousand troops of Xi Ma Gu and will all enter Chu tomorrow."

"Good." Zi Hao nodded, his words still extremely light, even unable to hide the weakness of his breath, "You temporarily take over all affairs. I want to go into seclusion for two days. Tell Helian Yiren to mobilize troops and prepare for war immediately."

Su Ling looked at him with some worry and said, "Does the Lord really want to support Helian Yiren? In this way, I am afraid that the Chu State will fall into a fragmentation that is difficult to clean up. This person is not enough to be used, but will become a major obstacle."

Zi Hao seemed to smile. The smile was silent and formless. He stood up slowly, his thin figure obscuring the light, and his face was cold as frost, "Su Ling, three days later, I want the entire Chu State to disappear completely from the map of the Nine Domains."

Su Ling raised his head in shock.

Only a faint sound was heard. The white jade porcelain bottle held in Zi Hao's hand burst suddenly. Blood soaked the dawn light along the cuffs. I don't know if it was his or hers. Strands of red-hot pain, pieces of splashing broken blades, shocked the universe, and blood stained the country.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 112 =====