Chapter 153: You've already become an emperor, so why spoil them

"Hmm? Why are you looking at me? Don't worry about me; let's continue looking at the map."

Li Chen's gaze was still locked on the drawings, not putting the two people beside him in his eyes at all.

The reason he came here was also following Amir.

A few hours ago, Li Sixing left the Imperial Palace, and Li Chen started preparing to leave the palace.

He first returned to his bedroom; with his ability and understanding of the Imperial Palace, he could really leave quietly without anyone discovering him.

Li Chen had been to the Imperial Clan forbidden area several times, so he naturally came nearby with ease.

Today he was wearing casual clothes and strolling near the Imperial Clan forbidden area.

These so-called restrictions didn't count for anything in front of Li Chen and could be easily bypassed.

During this period, he checked by the way to see if there were any omissions nearby.

Because the era when these formations were set up was very long ago, it was the first few generations of Li family powerhouses who set them up.

With the changes of the times, the formations would definitely weaken, and then past Li family powerhouses would make up for the leaks; it couldn't be said to be improvement, just so-called making up for the gaps.

But the powerhouses of later generations, not many could reach the Sage Realm; they tried hard to make up for it, but there were still some gaps.

This is why some people can enter the edge area without being discovered.

And those pagodas inside were also built later to make up for the formations, and they couldn't be perfect.

Li Chen, as the emperor of the current generation, a Sage Realm powerhouse, could see some clues, so he recorded them in his brain, waiting to go back and let Li Sixing make up for them.

After a while, he discovered a mysterious figure starting to wander on the edge of the formation.

This guy's cultivation technique was very strange, able to leave no traces.

If it weren't for Li Chen's understanding of the formation, waiting specifically in some places, it is estimated that he wouldn't be able to find this guy.

Since he has already been discovered by Li Chen, Li Chen now has a way to solve him on the spot.

But Li Chen's purpose in coming this time was not just to clean up a scout; he wanted to be clear about who these people were, so he let out a long line to catch a big fish.

After waiting for a period of time, this guy finally finished exploring and discovered the shortcomings of the pagoda.

After he went back, Li Chen followed all the way until now.

The tracking of the Great Perfection of the Sage Realm, Amir, this Heavenly Abyss Realm, couldn't detect it at all.

Because in this world, as long as you don't activate pulse techniques, cultivators are about the same as ordinary people.

Moreover, it was a major realm lower; Li Chen following him was like playing.

When passing by nearby, he indeed discovered some secret sentries and simple restrictions.

These were pediatric to Li Chen; restrictions not set by Sage Realm powerhouses had no threat at all.

So he appeared in the room quietly, looking at the drawings together with Amir and Kasim.

It must be said that Kasim is indeed a talent; the drawings indeed marked many flaws in the Imperial Clan forbidden area.

As for now, Amir and Kasim looked at him like they were facing a great enemy; the two of them had even erupted with extremely strong power, but Li Chen still didn't care.

In Li Chen's eyes, these two were just ants he could crush to death casually; the eruption of ants is still ants.

Amir and Kasim looked at each other; the general meaning was that Amir, whose strength was slightly stronger, planned to drag down the mysterious powerhouse in front of him, and Kasim should run quickly.

Spies all know what the outcome is if they are caught.

This guy is obviously a person of the Tian Ce Dynasty, and being able to follow here without a sound, he is absolutely not a simple character.

Can only save one

Just as Amir began to channel his pulse technique, the powerhouse before him simply raised his head and glanced at him.

Boom!

Amir was instantly blasted into a pulp of flesh; whether it was skin, flesh, or bone, he was crushed in an instant.

The blood mist in the room and the various bloodstains and flesh on the walls proved that Amir had indeed existed.

Even as a late-stage Heavenly Abyss Realm cultivator, he had no room to resist at all.

"What about you?" Li Chen glanced at Qasim.

Qasim was now scared out of his wits.

What was going on? The powerful Amir had just died like that?

In his understanding, Amir was already the strongest person below the Sage Realm.

In that instant, Qasim also realized what had happened.

The one who could instantly kill Amir was likely that Sage Realm Emperor.

Qasim had never met Li Chen, but he had heard of Li Chen's strength; in the Wild Mountain Range, the spies of their clan had seen with their own eyes the purple divine dragon and the defeat of the Sage Realm powerhouse Lord Dingtian, so it could be said that Li Chen was a true top-tier Sage Realm powerhouse.

The biggest boss of the May Tian Ce Dynasty was here; how could they fight this?

That sense of powerlessness and despair was manifested in him to the fullest.

Seeing that Qasim dared not make a move, Li Chen simply raised a hand, and Qasim was struck as if by a heavy blow, passing out instantly.

This was only because Li Chen knew his strength was weak and had dialed back his force significantly when acting; otherwise, he would not have been able to withstand it at all.

After all, he still needed to capture him alive; perhaps he could ask something out of him.

As for interrogation and capturing people, Li Chen did not need to do it personally.

He went back and told Li Sixing, and Li Sixing immediately brought the Imperial Guard to make arrests, taking away the people here and the surrounding hidden sentries.

Seeing the Imperial Guard appear, the surrounding residents were terrified while also speculating about who had been arrested and what crime they had committed.

The next day, after the morning court session, Li Sixing came to report on the interrogation situation.

Last night, he had captured over thirty people, basically all from the Sassanid Dynasty; these fellows had stayed in the Imperial Capital for a long time under the guise of merchants.

The leader, Qasim, was very stubborn, stubbornly insisting that he was a merchant.

Even though a lot of evidence had been collected in the room, he would not admit it.

Because he knew that admitting it would cause huge consequences.

Anyway, since they had been captured, they had already put life and death out of their minds.

Even if he did not admit it, Li Sixing still had traces to follow.

Now, what Li Sixing presented before Li Chen was Qasim's file; he was a member of the Nasser family of the Sassanid Dynasty.

After Li Chen finished reading, Li Sixing asked how to handle it.

The Nasser family was a major clan of the Sassanid Dynasty; if not handled well, it would lead to conflict between the May Tian Ce Dynasty and the Sassanid Dynasty.

Normally, there was a set of procedures for this.

Those who acted as spies were the elite of the elite.

The May Tian Ce Dynasty could use these captured people for diplomacy, making the Nasser family pay a price.

After all, these people had indeed not stolen anything.

Moreover, if the Nasser family did not redeem them, who would dare to sell their lives for them in the future?

Of course, important people like Qasim still had to be imprisoned, just using some small figures to exchange for benefits.

That is to say, telling the Nasser family that they had leverage here.

Li Sixing understood, but he did not have the authority to make the decision and could only wait for Li Chen's judgment.

Li Chen put down the file and said to Li Sixing: "Pass down the order, the May Tian Ce Dynasty declares war on the Sassanid Dynasty."

Once these words were spoken, Li Sixing was directly shocked on the spot.

He had envisioned many kinds of plans, but Li Chen simply did not play by the rules.

Declaring war just because a spy was caught?

Moreover, this was a member of the Nasser family, not a member of the Sassanid Imperial family; they were going to fight over this?

And hadn't the north just started fighting? The Sassanid Dynasty was not some small country; it was a relatively large super-power in the west.

The May Tian Ce Dynasty still had to guard against the Third Prince and the Prince of Zhennan internally; did they really have the military strength to fight?

For a moment, Li Sixing actually did not know what to do.

At this time, Li Chen threw a file to him.

It was a secret report sent over by the Minister of War yesterday, which was the military mobilization of various legions of the Sassanid Dynasty moving eastward.

Li Sixing was only the Commander of the Imperial Guard; he was not clear about these matters.

After reading it, he roughly understood Li Chen's meaning in declaring war.

Anyway, the Sassanid Dynasty would make a move sooner or later.

According to Li Chen's character, rather than timidly hoping others would not attack, it was better to just fight them all directly.

Let them know that if they dared to spy on the May Tian Ce Dynasty, they would have to pay the price of rivers of blood.

Pursuing stability was not Li Chen's style; what he wanted was absolute hegemony!

Since he was already the Emperor, why indulge them?

After Li Sixing received the order, he left the Imperial Study to notify the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War.

Since His Majesty said so, then he must have a way; as a subject, one only needed to trust His Majesty.

Li Chen's strength gave his subjects an inexplicable confidence and trust in him.

It was just that once this news was released, there would be many voices of discussion in the court tomorrow.

That was not within Li Sixing's scope of consideration; he was only the Commander of the Imperial Guard, not the Grand Marshal of the Three Armies.

If the person who said this was an Emperor with an unstable position or an Emperor with poor strength, Li Sixing would have dared to directly refute it, telling the Emperor to calm down and not be impulsive. But since the one speaking was Li Chen, how could Li Sixing dare to say anything?

The national celebration was about to begin, and envoys from ten thousand nations were arriving in the Imperial Capital one after another.

Before the celebration began, being able to resolve some troubles was also a good thing.

Li Chen continued to review files in the Imperial Study; at this rate, resolving the remnants of the previous dynasty would have to wait until after the celebration ended.

After handling the matters, Li Chen returned to his sleeping quarters.

Compared to the previous coldness, it was much livelier now.

Today, there was also a very critical matter, which was that Li Sining intended to break through.

She had been cultivating for a period of time, and with the addition of various Heavenly-Grade elixirs and props, her speed was extremely fast.

There were quite a few cultivators in Li Chen's harem, and even Wu Nanzhi had a certain cultivation base.

Mu Qingrou, who had the highest cultivation, originally intended to advise Li Sining that cultivation could not be rushed and that the foundation had to be laid well.

!

Especially when at the Opening Meridian Realm, one needed to settle down for a period of time.

Mu Qingrou had also encountered many disciples whose cultivation speed in the early stages was very fast, but upon reaching the later stages, the strength of their meridians could not keep up, and no matter what, they could not advance further.

It was said that ancient cultivators cultivated faster, but when ascending, they fell due to various reasons.

According to the understanding of traditional cultivators, Li Sining needed to settle down in the Opening Meridian Realm for half a year to consolidate her foundation.

Even if there were no problems, there was nothing wrong with settling down a bit more.

Mu Qingrou was even slightly angry at the time and said: "Who let you cultivate so fast? It's simply irresponsible."

As the Master of the Purple Cloud Immortal Mansion, she paid great attention to the foundation polishing of her disciples.

What's more, she was now Li Chen's woman, and Li Sining was her sister-in-law.

She actually wanted to know who let Li Sining practice so recklessly.

However, when Li Sining said that it was Li Chen who let her cultivate like this, Mu Qingrou instantly went silent, and the anger on her face completely disappeared.

Then she changed her tone and said: "Actually, there is nothing wrong with you cultivating like this; people are different, and perhaps your brother's method is more suitable for you."

Just kidding, even the Flawless Sword Venerable would not dare to question Li Chen.

Li Chen's strength was placed here; this was the truth.

Could Li Chen be wrong? That was obviously impossible.

If his judgment was wrong, how could he have such terrifying cultivation today?

Mu Qingrou would rather think that her judgment for so many years was wrong than think that Li Chen was wrong.

The so-called 'standard' was only a judgment made by top-tier powerhouses based on the overall situation of cultivators over so many years.

It was just a kind of experience, suitable for the so-called 'majority of people'.

But according to Li Chen's theory, everyone's body structure was different, their bloodlines were different, and their talent and comprehension were also different, so cultivation methods might not be exactly the same.

Experience could be used as a reference, but there was no need to copy it rigidly.

You want to consider whether ascension will have problems, but the problem is you have to cultivate to the Sage Realm first.

If you can't even cultivate to the Sage Realm, what the hell are you considering ascension for?

When Li Chen returned to the vicinity of his sleeping quarters, he saw a bunch of women surrounding Li Sining, expecting her to successfully break through.

That feeling seemed even more nervous than when they broke through themselves.

When Li Chen arrived here, Li Sining had already reached the final stage.

At this moment, the meridians on Li Sining's body were constantly glowing, and purple electricity was flashing around her body.

And behind her, there was a faint purple light circle phantom present.

As long as this light circle condensed successfully, it would prove that she had successfully broken through.

But just at this time, the sky was suddenly covered with dark clouds, and there was thunder and lightning.

It was unknown whether it was a heaven-and-earth phenomenon caused by her talent being too monstrous, or a special situation that only occurred when lightning-attribute cultivators broke through.

The dark clouds did not last long; after Li Sining successfully broke through, they dissipated, and everything returned to calm.

At this moment, the light circle on Li Sining's body could already be displayed; this was the sign of the Condensing Essence Realm.

Next, in the cultivation from the Condensing Essence Realm to the Six Realms Realm, Li Sining needed to open nine light rings to be able to break through to the Observing Heaven Realm.

After the Observing Heaven Realm, it was the advanced stage.

It is worth mentioning that Li Sining's current light rings are different from Li Chen's divine rings.

Only cultivators who open divine rings can reach the Sage Realm.

After the Sage Realm, it is not that the more divine rings one has, the stronger one is; some only have one divine ring, but this divine ring is huge, and they can still beat cultivators with multiple divine rings.

The number of divine rings only depends on the cultivation technique the cultivator practices.

Just like Lord Dingtian only has two divine rings, while Mu Qingrou has five, yet Mu Qingrou is not Lord Dingtian's opponent.

The light rings on a cultivator are actually the so-called 'special effects', and they are also stage proofs that can show one's strength, having no actual effect.

Moreover, opening divine rings requires consuming energy, so when fighting, cultivators basically do not open them, as it wastes their energy.

As soon as Li Sining finished breaking through, she saw Li Chen coming, so she naturally came to Li Chen's side in high spirits, asking about how to cultivate next and so on.

Because it was Li Chen who taught her to cultivate, the other women dared not give pointers.

Li Chen checked her body and confirmed that she had reached the Condensing Essence Realm, so he told her to continue cultivating according to the "Nine Heavens Dragon Meridian Art"; as long as she cultivated to the extreme, she could enter the Great Perfection of the Sage Realm.

Then it was the so-called 'experience' transmission.

Li Chen had cultivated to this level, so he must have his own set of methods.

Many women around pricked up their ears, expecting to hear some secrets from Li Chen.

This was the cultivation method of a top-tier Sage Realm cultivator; learning it was a gain.

Who knew that Li Chen said to Li Sining: "You follow your own ideas, practice however you want; as long as you feel the meridians in your body getting stronger, there is no problem. If you feel them getting weaker, come find me."

This statement left everyone around dumbfounded.

Isn't this saying nothing? What is 'practice however you want'?

But Mu Qingrou was thoughtful; she felt that this should be a self-perception cultivation method.

Because Mu Qingrou knew that Li Sining had not done cultivation homework, that is, the cognition of basic knowledge.

She was completely cultivating through her own instincts, according to the methods recorded in the "Nine Heavens Dragon Meridian Art".

But there were no notes on the "Nine Heavens Dragon Meridian Art".

You know, for a book like the "Nine Heavens Dragon Meridian Art", what is written inside is the so-called 'classical Chinese', and it is very difficult to understand without notes.

That is to say, if one hundred people read it, perhaps one hundred and one ways of understanding could appear.

Understanding it correctly is naturally no problem, but once understood incorrectly, it will lead to meridian reversal and the loss of all cultivation power.

Mu Qingrou felt that Li Chen must have discovered that Li Sining had a special talent for comprehension, which is why he let her understand it herself, so that it would not delay her cultivation.

This statement cannot be said to be wrong, just not very comprehensive.

Li Chen knew that Li Sining had the Bone-Eroding Poison Body, which belonged to a special cultivation holy body; without a specialized technique, who knew how to cultivate it.

Just like Xiao Ming's master, before noticing Xiao Ming's special constitution, he only thought he was an ordinary prodigy.

So following Li Sining's feelings, there would certainly be no major problems.

Only when Li Sining encountered a predicament would Li Chen provide answers.

Li Sining being able to break through is naturally a good thing; once she cultivates to the Great Perfection of the Sage Realm, the Li family will have another powerhouse.

After breaking through, Li Sining kept wanting to cling to Li Chen, but Li Chen told her that such good news needed to be told to her mother and the Empress Dowager.

As her mother, Imperial Consort Yi would certainly feel proud of her.

The Empress Dowager was Li Sining's angel investor anyway; Li Chen wanted the Empress Dowager to know that the investment had returns.

Only in this way would the Empress Dowager constantly approach Li Chen's camp, and even approach Li Chen's side.

Li Chen had also completed the task and obtained the materials for the next stage.

That is the ten Heavenly-Grade Dragon Blood Essence-Condensing Pills obtained in the Combat Academy exam task.

These were good things; when Li Chen took them out, he was nonchalant, letting her eat them at will, as if they were something worthless.

But after Li Chen left, Mu Qingrou said to Li Sining: "Your brother is really good to you; these elixirs are the top grade in the cultivation world, worth ten thousand gold and hard to find."

According to Mu Qingrou, elixirs of this quality, even top-tier alchemy sects would be reluctant to give them to disciples to use.

Being able to take out one pill shows that this disciple has extremely high talent and is given high hopes by the sect.

Countless disciples even fight to the death for such a pill.

This statement surprised Li Sining, because the elixirs Li Chen took out were basically all of this quality.

She even put them on a plate and ate them as snacks.

Li Sining had never cultivated before, so she didn't know this stuff was so precious.

Seeing other women also looking at her with envy, Li Sining felt even more proud, and the favorability she already had for Li Chen overflowed again.

(End of chapter)