Chapter 341: The King's Thoughts

"Click!"

As King Abdullah pressed the button, the True Qi Restrictors and all other restraints on Chen Che and Xie Wanning were released.

Chen Che and Xie Wanning both looked at King Abdullah with expressions of astonishment.

The controller in his hand had a front and a back; one side was for activating the Limiter to release electric current, and the other was for unlocking the shackles.

What King Abdullah had just pressed was precisely the button to unlock the shackles.

"Does Your Majesty believe us now?"

Chen Che asked with a smile, "Are you not afraid of what we might do to you?"

King Abdullah shook his head, "If you were truly going to resist, you would not have allowed yourselves to be captured without a fight when Hogan escorted you to the dungeon."

"As for believing you, that is not quite the case."

The Sovereign sat back down on his throne, "My doing this is more of a helpless move."

"Respected Sovereign, you can trust us; the truth of the matter is not as you all think."

Xie Wanning suddenly remembered something, "Your Majesty, there must be surveillance footage in this palace. We will know the truth at a glance..."

"It's broken!"

King Abdullah smiled bitterly and helplessly, "I don't even believe it myself when I say it, but those things happened to break down today. One can only see the fight between Mr. Chen and the Cult Leader, but nothing before that."

Chen Che frowned and wanted to say something, but the Sovereign spoke first:

"I know there are many suspicious points in this matter, but you should not have killed the Du'e Cult Leader. If he were not dead, I would have had a way regardless, but now..."

Before King Abdullah could finish his sentence, shouts grew louder and louder from outside the palace; it was the public voicing their grievances.

"Severely punish the murderers!"

"Avenge the Cult Leader!"

"We ask the Sovereign to uphold justice for us!"

Outside the imperial palace, the people of Ansili had all gathered. They raised their fists, waved the flags of the Due Sect, and shouted at the top of their lungs to express their demands.

Hogan stood at the palace entrance with his men. He scanned the angry crowd, his gaze fixed, and he locked eyes with someone in the crowd, revealing a cunning smile.

He did not orchestrate this public outcry, but he certainly fanned the flames to allow it to reach such a scale.

The Cult Leader was dead, and the plans he and the Cult Leader had made were forced to be interrupted, but once the gap of desire is opened, it can never be closed again.

Naturally, Hogan would not abandon his inner schemes just because of the Cult Leader's death.

However, the Cult Leader's death could be considered a blessing in disguise for Hogan.

The Cult Leader was too special to the people of Ansili; they could accept him falling from his pedestal and dying of old age like a mortal, but they could not accept him being killed by someone.

Furthermore, there was Chen Che. Since Chen Che had stumbled upon the Cult Leader's actions, he was the only one who knew the truth, so Hogan had to eliminate the root of the trouble forever.

But when at the palace, he had already seen King Abdullah's attitude; relying solely on officials and ministers would not work.

So Hogan thought of using the public. He would use public outrage to pressure King Abdullah.

If King Abdullah, hindered by public anger, executed Chen Che and Xie Wanning, the Xia Empress would certainly blame him, and Hogan could then fan the flames again to cause the King's prestige among the people to suffer a massive blow.

If the King resisted the public anger and did not execute Chen Che and Xie Wanning, Hogan could further mobilize the people, stand on their side, and when the timing was right, force the palace and make King Abdullah abdicate.

Therefore, no matter what King Abdullah chose now, Hogan could achieve his own goals.

Hogan curled the corners of his mouth; he seemed to see himself sitting on the throne, and he signaled to his subordinates hidden in the crowd.

"Severely punish the murderers!"

"Avenge the Cult Leader!"

Receiving the order, the subordinates shouted even more vigorously.

The public was incited and followed suit, shouting and roaring; the sound waves battered the palace walls, spreading inside layer by layer.

Inside the great hall, Chen Che and Xie Wanning both heard the mountain-toppling and sea-draining roars.

King Abdullah sighed and said, "You have heard it too. The truth of this matter is no longer important. Even if I am willing to believe you, the people of Ansili will not. Therefore, I must give the entire country an explanation."

"The best explanation would be to execute us, but Your Majesty does not seem to have that intention."

Chen Che said.

"I know the identities of you two. Executing you is equivalent to completely offending the Xia Empress. To be frank, I do not have the guts for that."

King Abdullah rubbed the bridge of his nose, "However, although it is somewhat inappropriate, I still want to thank you."

Chen Che did not understand, "I do not understand what Your Majesty means by that."

"The Due Sect has too deep a foundation in Ansili, and the Du'e Cult Leader's prestige among the people exceeds that of the royal family. This is not a good thing for a country, and certainly not for me."

The Sovereign spoke frankly, "I had originally thought of proceeding step by step to eliminate the Cult Leader's status in the hearts of the people bit by bit, but now the Cult Leader is dead, and the entire nation of Ansili knows he is dead."

"People have no attachment to the dead. Even if they are making a huge fuss now, as time passes, people have to live their lives, and the Cult Leader will be forgotten, to the point where the Due Sect will also disappear from people's hearts."

"This is also one of the reasons why Your Majesty does not intend to execute us, then."

Chen Che looked at King Abdullah, "Then what exactly does Your Majesty intend to do?"

"You will escape on your own, and I will issue a wanted notice for you throughout the country."

The King said, "I am very clear about the abilities of you two. It can be said that if we speak solely of Martial Dao Cultivation, no one in my entire Ansili is your match."

"Therefore, a wanted notice does not mean much to you. Additionally, I will notify the Xia Sovereign to explain the matter; when you escape to the border, there will be people to receive you."

"We have felt Your Majesty's goodwill. After all, this matter started because of us, so we should be responsible and bear the consequences."

Chen Che bowed to King Abdullah, "Please rest assured, Your Majesty; I will definitely investigate the truth and provide an explanation to Your Majesty, the Queen, and the Princess."

"Additionally, before I leave, I would like to say one last thing."

Chen Che subconsciously looked around, "Please be careful of the people around you, Your Majesty, especially General Hogan."

"I appreciate Mr. Chen's good intentions, but Hogan and I have decades of friendship, and he is my Grand General; there will be no problems."

Chen Che wanted to persuade him further, but King Abdullah did not give him that chance again.

The Sovereign waved his hand, "Alright, you two should go quickly."

Chen Che swallowed the words that had reached his lips, leaped into the air together with Xie Wanning, and smashed through the palace window, deliberately knocking out several guards as they swept past the palace gate.

Outside the palace.

A guard hurriedly arrived before Hogan and reported: "General Hogan, the two people locked in the dungeon have escaped!"

"What did you say?!"

Hogan was shocked and roared out directly.

To him, Chen Che was a hidden danger and also an important pawn for dealing with King Abdullah.

Now that they had escaped, his original plan would be affected.

"What are you still standing there for? Send men to pursue them at once!"

Hogan kicked the guard down and roared angrily.

The guard scrambled away, yet the clamorous crowd quieted down at this moment.

Hogan turned his head suspiciously, but his expression froze; he bowed slightly and said respectfully: "Your Majesty the King."

"Your Majesty the King!"

The other guards and the commoners all shouted in unison: "Your Majesty the King."

King Abdullah scanned the sea of people before him, took a deep breath, and said in a loud voice: "The Cult Leader has met an untimely death, and the culprits are cunning and have already fled the palace.

But I will not allow them to remain at large, nor will I allow Lord Cult Leader to die with grievances!"

"Therefore, I issue my orders here."

"First, a nationwide manhunt for the culprits; anyone who discovers the culprits' tracks may kill them on the spot!"

"Second, Lord Cult Leader has ascended to the Heavenly Kingdom, and the whole nation is in sorrow; three days from now, we shall hold a funeral for Lord Cult Leader, and the whole nation shall mourn!"

The commoners shouted in unison: "His Majesty the King is wise!"

Hogan, however, stared up at King Abdullah, gritted his teeth, and silently gripped his sword hilt.

………