Chapter 194: My Lords, I Thank You for Your Concession

The State of Qing, the imperial capital.

As the capital of a nation, this place was the stabilizing pillar of the entire State of Qing; whether Qing was in chaos or not could be discerned from the shifting atmosphere within the city.

Early this morning, the city was still peaceful, but as news arrived that the front-line Zhalong Pass had been breached, everyone from the highest officials to the common people panicked; all sorts of rumors spread, growing increasingly absurd, with some even claiming to have seen cultivators from the Mo Sect eight hundred li away.

"Trash! A bunch of trash!"

Inside the Golden Hall, the King of Qing had lost most of his dignified and noble air; his face was twisted with rage, clearly furious to the extreme.

Kneeling below the dais was a young man.

Zhong Xin, the Top Graduate of the current examination.

This former Top Graduate was now half-covered in blood, his vital energy withered, yet he did not speak a single word, appearing ready to accept whatever judgment the King of Qing meted out.

"This humble subject is incompetent."

"You are incompetent! I handed over more than half of the State of Qing to you, ordering you to defend Zhalong Pass; how many days has it been, and already the dead are dead and the fled have fled..."

The King of Qing grabbed a vase beside him and smashed it onto Zhong Xin; the vase shattered, but Zhong Xin's body remained motionless, his head still bowed in silence. Instead, after throwing that one strike, the King of Qing calmed down somewhat and hurriedly walked over to Zhong Xin, personally helping him up:

"I was momentarily blinded by anger... My dear minister, do not blame me!"

Hearing this, Zhong Xin shook his head: "This humble subject has indeed failed Your Majesty's great expectations; therefore, no matter how Your Majesty chooses to punish me, I will willingly accept it."

"Sigh, you... you are simply too loyal!"

Hearing this, the King of Qing sighed with emotion: "Among all the civil and military officials in the court, not a single one treats me as you do; at this moment, I fear some have already packed their things and are preparing to flee!"

Having said this, he picked up a large stack of memorials from the nearby desk.

"Take a look."

Looking powerless, the King of Qing sighed: "Ever since the Jiangbei army arrived at Zhalong Pass, the entire State of Qing has suddenly descended into chaos; there are actually eighty-one routes of rebel forces!"

"Behind these rebel armies lies the handiwork of the Mo Sect; Master Chongguang must be hiding among them!"

Speaking thus, the King of Qing fiercely kicked over a table and chair nearby, trembling with rage: "If this continues, I fear they will truly break into the imperial palace."

Just thinking about it filled the King of Qing with terror; he was the King of Qing, personally enfeoffed by the Son of Heaven of Jiangdong, born with the mandate of heaven as a noble heir. The mere thought that those low-born mud-legged peasants might step foot in his palace and overthrow him made him wish to grind everyone to bone and scatter their ashes.

"Things have come to this; we cannot wait any longer!"

Thinking of this, the King of Qing immediately looked at Zhong Xin: "My decision is made; today I bestow upon you the Son of Heaven's Sword and the authority of the Imperial Tally and Battle-Axe, to sweep away internal and external rebels on my behalf!"

Everything was the immense pressure brought by the Mo Sect.

The system of the Dao Court lay in governance and stability; once plunged into chaotic times, with order nonexistent, the boost that official titles from the Dao Court provided to one's cultivation realm would also weaken.

If this continued, the King of Qing worried that even if he used his own royal position to bolster Zhong Xin, it might not equal the power of a Great True Person; by then, they would truly be at the end of their rope, unable to turn the tide, so he must have Zhong Xin take his place in battle while he could still exert the power of a Great True Person!

In this way, the situation would surely improve.

Thinking of this, the King of Qing immediately began making arrangements, ordering the eunuchs to set up a ritual ceremony, bringing forth the imperial tally and battle-axe, and then drawing the ceremonial sword from his waist.

The Imperial Tally and Battle-Axe allowed one to act with delegated authority.

Such a major matter could naturally not be decided by a single word; it required the King of Qing to personally conduct the rites, which under normal circumstances would require holding a grand ceremony.

However, given the urgent situation, everything had to be simplified.

"My dear minister, henceforth I must rely on you."

With a look of emotion, the King of Qing personally handed the Son of Heaven's Sword, the imperial tally, the battle-axe, and other items into Zhong Xin's hands; transferred along with them was an official title.

【Lingxiao Qingyun Universal Salvation Living Beings Town-North King】.

This was the highest official title in the State of Qing; although within the Dao Court system it was merely a vassal king's position, it still possessed unfathomable power beyond the reach of gods or ghosts.

Zhong Xin did not speak, respectfully accepting it.

Seeing this, the King of Qing nodded in satisfaction, watching as Zhong Xin's vital energy began to surge rapidly, surpassing the limit of the Mid Stage of Foundation Establishment in the blink of an eye.

Of course, this was merely holding it in trust.

The Imperial Tally and Battle-Axe emphasized the word "delegated"; as long as the King of Qing wished, this official title could be revoked at any time, so he felt very assured about it.

However, very soon, he realized something was wrong.

Because Zhong Xin's vital energy was still climbing; after reaching the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, it showed no sign of stopping, and waves of colorful divine abilities surged forth from within him!

"So powerful?"

Until this moment, the King of Qing had not yet sensed anything amiss, merely surprised that his royal title could allow someone to ascend to such a high realm.

It was only when Zhong Xin's vital energy encountered no shackles whatsoever, bursting through the bottleneck of the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, and his entire presence manifested an intent of "perfection" and "flawlessness," that the King of Qing finally noticed something wrong: how could this proxy holding be even more powerful than his own personal wielding of it?

'Something is wrong!'

In an instant, the King of Qing's pupils constricted sharply; almost instinctively, he tried to revoke the official title he had just bestowed, but a sudden chill pierced his chest.

All words were blocked within his chest.

Because behind him, accompanied by a burst of brilliant white divine light, a figure had silently appeared, an invisible sword edge already having pierced through his chest.

【King-Stabbing】! 【Coiled Steel】!

With the blessing of these two mysterious abilities, the edge of the Invisible Sword encountered no obstruction whatsoever!

'An assassin!? Impossible!'

The King of Qing widened his eyes, unable to believe that an assassin could infiltrate the heavily guarded Golden Hall; this place should have forbidden void teleportation!

Who was it? Why?

The King of Qing strained to look backward but did not see the person who had assassinated him; he saw only a hand, and a book of talismans held in that hand.

The pages flipped rapidly, revealing the characters written upon them: 【Lu Yang kills the King of Qing before the court】.

Heaven and Earth's killing intent! A fate-sealed death!

With the blessing of this Heaven and Earth killing intent, Lu Yang for the first time experienced what it meant to have divine assistance, what it meant for heaven and earth to unite their strength in one's favor.

From start to finish, he had done only one thing.

His innate divine ability, 【Determining Closeness and Distance】!

Normally, he and the King of Qing had never even met, sharing no karmic ties, making it impossible to teleport directly beside him using 【Determining Closeness and Distance】.

However, propelled by the Heaven and Earth killing intent, he not only clearly sensed the karmic connection between himself and the King of Qing, allowing him to teleport from ten thousand li away to behind the King with a single thought, but he also intuitively grasped the perfect timing, slaying him without the slightest effort!

"Puchi!"

The Invisible Sword flashed and vanished, trailing a streak of blood, splitting the King of Qing, who died with his eyes wide open, in two; blood instantly dyed more than half of the Golden Hall red.

In an instant, heaven and earth fell silent.

The eunuchs surrounding him, the King of Qing's expression, the myriad sounds—all seemed to vanish in this moment; dark clouds had somehow drifted over the sky above the capital of the State of Qing.

"Rumble-rumble!"

The entire capital trembled slightly in this moment; the howling wind sounded like someone roaring, scraping against Zhong Xin and Lu Yang like steel blades.

Yet at this very moment, Zhong Xin raised his head.

That face, usually so "loyal" and "respectful," diligent and cautious for decades without showing the slightest anomaly, now wore a mocking smile.

Had the King of Qing not died, he could naturally reclaim his authority.

But now, he was dead.

Not only did he die deep within the palace, but just before dying, he had delegated his authority to another; with this exchange, Zhong Xin had unexpectedly become the person with the highest authority in the current State of Qing!

"My lords, I thank you for your concession."

As his voice fell, Zhong Xin's appearance continued to change; flesh and blood sloughed off as if removing a mask, revealing a face familiar to Lu Yang.

True Person Master Chongguang!

'Just as I thought...'

Seeing this scene, Lu Yang immediately spoke to himself in his heart.

Zhong Xin was Master Chongguang!

All that talk about just having reincarnated was nonsense meant to fool people; with the help of True Person Qingcheng Qingcheng Feixue, he had even concealed the karmic threads of heavenly secrets!

No wonder he had not chosen to go overseas back then.

The one who initially appeared in the Sacred Fire Cliff was likely a clone-like existence from start to finish, and the infants appearing throughout the State of Qing were merely tricks to deceive the eye.

He had actually reincarnated long ago!

As for what True Person Yinshan had told Lu Yang about reversing the rules of the Dao Court from the bottom up through 【uprising】, that too was deliberately released to confuse public perception!

His goal was to openly repair the plank roads while secretly crossing at Chencang.

After all, to reverse the rules of the Dao Court in the State of Qing, it did not necessarily have to be an 【uprising】 from the bottom up; it could also be a 【seizure of power】 from the top down!

Master Chongguang was about to achieve the Dao!

(End of Chapter)