Chapter 382

"Slap~"

In the forbidden area of the imperial palace, the Retired Emperor slapped the Prince of Shou fiercely.

The Prince of Shou was slapped so hard he staggered backward, and a clear, red finger mark was left on his face; even so, he dared not resist and knelt on the ground with a 'thud': "Father Emperor, this son knows he was wrong."

Chu Tianxun also knelt down: "Imperial Brother, this younger brother is also at fault; it was I who didn't watch over Thirteen."

The Retired Emperor's chest heaved violently; he was clearly furious.

The Prince of Fu wanted to plead for mercy, but didn't dare, instinctively looking at the Emperor, hoping he would say a few words.

Unfortunately, the Emperor turned his head to the side and did not plead for his younger brother as he had in the past.

The consequences caused by the Nanxiang County incident this time were too severe!

The imperial family secretly probing the strength of the Zhu Que Army and killing a few Zhu Que Army members wasn't a big deal as long as they weren't discovered.

The situation in Nanxiang County was chaotic, and with the Lingguang Hall Master killing or capturing many children of noble families, various forces secretly harbored murderous intentions toward the Zhu Que Army.

In such a chaotic situation, there was actually a lot the imperial family could do, but unfortunately, the imperial family had produced two idiots.

Uncle Tianxun still thought the world today belonged to the imperial family, so he acted without any scruples; it was like this when he openly attacked Hua Changxi last time, and it was the same this time when he probed the Zhu Que Army.

The Lingguang Hall Master had already started a massacre and was capturing people on a large scale; it was clear she had already set her sights on the disappearance of the Zhu Que Army. At such a time, lying low was the best response.

But he just wouldn't!

Now it was fine; all parties must have noticed the mass grave in the southeastern area of Nanxiang County.

Thinking of what Thirteen had done beneath the mass grave, the Emperor's head throbbed with pain.

And that Spirit Platform Realm tiger demon!

If some things were made public and the Lingguang Hall Master kept pursuing them, the Chu imperial clan wouldn't even have a place to stand, let alone lay out plans in the Central Continent.

The Retired Emperor was clear about this, which was why he was so angry at Chu Tianxun and the Prince of Shou, but no matter how angry he was, things had reached this point, and he could only think of ways to solve it.

The Retired Emperor looked at Chu Tianxun and the Prince of Shou: "The Zhu Que Army must have noticed the mass grave; you are not allowed to appear there in the short term."

Prince of Shou: "But..."

Seeing that the Prince of Shou still dared to talk back, Chu Tianxun hurriedly pulled him back and promised the Retired Emperor, whose face had darkened: "Imperial Brother, rest assured, I will definitely watch over Thirteen."

The Emperor thought for a moment and said: "Father Emperor, just not letting Uncle Tianxun and Thirteen appear might not be enough."

He paused and glanced at the Prince of Shou.

"Thirteen used the Ghost Hand divine ability to capture the Zhu Que Army; the Zhu Que Army will definitely conduct an in-depth investigation of the mass grave."

Hearing this, Chu Tianxun said proudly: "Then let the Zhu Que Army investigate; didn't the Demon-Suppressing Army investigate it back then, and didn't they return empty-handed?"

The Emperor glanced at Chu Tianxun, somewhat speechless, and continued to say to the Retired Emperor: "Father Emperor, the Ghost Fire Well beneath the mass grave is one of the Cave Heavens of Nanxiang City."

"I have always had a guess: could there be some connection between the Cave Heavens?"

"If it is truly as I suspect, the Lingguang Hall Master might not be unable to find things that others cannot."

As he spoke, he glanced at the Prince of Shou again.

"Thirteen is using the Ghost Fire Well to practice ghost race cultivation techniques; if this matter is exposed, the Chu imperial clan might truly lose the hearts of the people."

"We cannot take this risk, and we cannot afford to."

The Prince of Shou heard the Emperor's dissatisfaction with him in his words and turned his head to snort coldly.

The Retired Emperor's brows knotted as he looked at the Emperor: "What solution do you have?"

The Emperor continued: "Even if we seal the Ghost Fire Well now, the Lingguang Hall Master will likely continue to investigate in depth; we cannot stop this, so we can only find a way to forcibly divert her attention."

Having said this, the Emperor fell silent.

The Prince of Fu couldn't help but ask: "Imperial Brother, what solution have you thought of? Just say it."

The Emperor looked at the Retired Emperor: "Expose another Cave Heaven discovered by the imperial family."

Once these words were out, the imperial clan elders who had been silent all voiced their opposition.

The Retired Emperor was silent for a long while before asking the Emperor: "Which one do you want to expose?"

The Emperor: "The one closest to Lingguang Hall."

Hearing this, the Prince of Fu shouted directly: "No, that Cave Heaven was taken a fancy to by Princess Princess Zhao Huang; she said that area could make her Phoenix bloodline even purer."

The Retired Emperor also showed reluctance on his face, but he still let the Emperor continue.

The Emperor: "It's just exposing the location of that Cave Heaven, not giving it away; far from giving it away, if planned properly, perhaps we could even let Princess Princess Zhao Huang openly occupy that Cave Heaven."

The Retired Emperor's eyes flickered.

Seeing that the Retired Emperor was interested, the Emperor continued: "The Cave Heavens are all located within sealed spaces and are blocked by barriers; outsiders who want to enter must break the barriers."

"But over these years, the imperial family has used many methods and still hasn't been able to break the barriers."

"Rather than guarding an empty location, it would be better to unite with others to launch a strong attack; who knows, we might be able to break the barrier."

The Retired Emperor looked at the Emperor: "Who do you want to unite with?"

The Emperor: "The Phoenix clan of the demon race."

"Since that Cave Heaven can activate the Phoenix bloodline in Princess Princess Zhao Huang's body, it must definitely have a fatal attraction for the Phoenix clan."

"It just so happens that in this incident, the demon race lost a Spirit Platform Realm commander, so we should also show some gesture."

The Retired Emperor narrowed his eyes and seriously considered the Emperor's proposal: "Joining forces with the Phoenix clan—if the barrier is really broken, whose will the Cave Heaven be then?"

The Emperor laughed: "If the demon race seizes the Cave Heaven, will the Lingguang Hall Master stand idly by?"

The Prince of Fu understood the Emperor's plan and immediately laughed: "Imperial Brother's method is good; let the demon race fight with the Lingguang Hall Master, and Princess Princess Zhao Huang only needs to find an opportunity to occupy the Cave Heaven."

The Retired Emperor thought more deeply: "However, there are still too many uncontrollable factors."

The Emperor: "Father Emperor, nothing is absolute."

"If the plan succeeds, Princess Princess Zhao Huang gains a Cave Heaven, and the Chu imperial clan gains another territory; even if it fails, it diverts the Lingguang Hall Master's attention, buying time for Thirteen to take the Ghost Fire Well."

As he spoke, he looked at the Prince of Shou.

"Thirteen, you must quickly obtain the token of the master of the Ghost Fire Well."

"Once you control the Ghost Fire Well, the Lingguang Hall Master won't be able to do anything to you."

The Prince of Shou finally understood that the Emperor's planning was all to clean up his mess and help him buy time to take the Ghost Fire Well, so he couldn't help but smile apologetically.

The Emperor ignored him, and seeing that the Retired Emperor was still frowning, he added: "Occupying a Cave Heaven should require a specific opportunity."

"Just like the Ghost Fire Well, practicing ghost race cultivation techniques makes it easier to trigger the ghost fire."

"The opportunity for the Cave Heaven closest to Lingguang Hall should be the Phoenix bloodline."

"Princess Princess Zhao Huang's Phoenix bloodline has been nurtured for so many years and is already very pure; this son feels that the possibility of Princess Princess Zhao Huang taking the Cave Heaven is very high."