Chapter 69: The Monarch Won
Chapter 69: The Monarch Won
Thud!
Sun Qingbo fell to the ground, his eyes wide open in death.
In the entire conference hall, nearly a hundred people were completely dumbfounded!
They stood as still as wooden chickens.
The Imperial Guard outside were about to charge in madly when a cold shout suddenly rang out—
“By the Monarch’s oral decree, all Imperial Guards, stand down!”
In the pouring rain, that icy voice almost enveloped the entire Imperial Garden.
Inside the conference hall.
Ling Yi held his sword, blood dripping from its blade.
He glanced calmly at Second Prince Qin Xu, who was sitting to the side.
Qin Xu’s face was deathly pale as he stared at Ling Yi in terror, unable to utter a word.
Ling Yi then looked at the Cabinet bigwigs sitting on the other side of Sun Qingbo.
Every one of them was as silent as a cicada in winter.
This was not the time for them to hide behind the scenes, strategizing and giving orders.
A madman had just killed the Deputy Prime Minister of Great Qin with a single sword strike!
Would he stop?
Ling Yi slowly walked toward the second person, who was sitting right beside Sun Qingbo.
As he approached, Qin Xu, seated there, suddenly felt a warmth spread beneath him…
That person stared at Ling Yi. “Are you insane? Who are you? What do you want?”
“I’m not insane.”
“You know me.”
“I came to kill you!”
Thrust!
Another sword strike.
Another Cabinet bigwig of Great Qin had his throat pierced.
Dead.
Then, the next.
And the next.
And another next.
In the conference hall, one powerful figure after another, who had once smiled at the shifting winds, turned into corpses.
When Ling Yi reached the last person on the Qin State side of the conference table, that person fell to his knees with a thud.
“I wasn’t involved in plotting against your father! It was all them, they did it! They were the ones who contacted the experts from Chu State and Zhao Country to ambush your father. The mastermind was Sun Qingbo, the executor was Zhao Tianping, and the ones you just killed were all involved! But I had nothing to do with it! I wasn’t involved… Ah!”
Swoosh!
A flash of cold light.
Dead.
Ling Yi now turned his gaze toward the high-ranking members of the diplomatic missions from Chu State and Zhao Country on the opposite side.
Those people dared not move a muscle!
Outside, thunder roared and rain poured.
Inside the conference hall, the air was thick with the smell of blood.
A slightly lazy voice, as if not fully awake, echoed in Ling Yi’s mind—the voice of the Enchantress.
“Well done!”
“But as for those on the other side… let it go. Your country can’t withstand a major war right now.”
Ling Yi himself had never intended to touch those people on the other side.
His enemies were Sun Qingbo and his group, and Lu Qingming and his followers.
They had nothing to do with the people across the table.
Ling Yi carried his sword and, under the watchful eyes of everyone, walked to the conference table. He stared indifferently at the three contracts lying on it.
With a light flick of his sword, all three contracts were sent flying.
Bright sword light flashed, and scraps of paper fluttered through the air.
“Everyone, the contracts cannot be signed. I’ve ruined your great accomplishment, but I won’t apologize. Please, return to your countries.”
After Ling Yi spoke these words, the people on the other side almost collectively let out a sigh of relief.
This was a madman, but a rational madman!
They exchanged glances and silently stood up.
“Also, who is the envoy from Chu State?” Ling Yi asked.
“That would be me,” said an elegant-looking old man, his face somewhat pale as he looked at Ling Yi.
“Please, sir, return and tell your State Preceptor Lu Qingming to wash his neck clean. Tell him Shen Xiaowu’s son is coming for his head.”
The old man looked at Ling Yi, his lips twitching slightly. He wanted to say, “Young man, you are overestimating yourself.”
But after seeing the room full of corpses and considering the powerful interests each of those corpses represented, he couldn’t bring himself to say it.
It wasn’t that he was afraid Ling Yi would kill him with a sword strike—this young man dared to kill such people, so he certainly didn’t lack the courage to face Lu Qingming!
Whether he could actually kill him was another matter.
“Very well, I will relay the message,” the old man nodded.
Afterward, the members of the diplomatic missions from Chu State and Zhao Country filed out silently in single file.
In the heavy rain, that icy voice rang out once more—
“By the Monarch’s oral decree, escort the guests from Chu State and Zhao Country out of the country!”
A group of Imperial Guards instantly surrounded them.
Not to arrest them, but to see them off.
To escort them out.
The elegant old man, another equally elegant old man from Zhao Country, and their companions were instantly drenched by the pouring rain.
Exchanging glances, they couldn’t help but wear bitter smiles.
Who said the Monarch of Great Qin was senile?
Who said he couldn’t even protect his own seal?
The old fox is cunning; ginger is spicier when old!
Only then did some people arrive with umbrellas.
The milk comes after the baby has died.
Damn it, we’re already soaked through, and now you bring umbrellas?
The leaders of the two diplomatic missions pushed open their umbrellas at the same time.
“A walk in the rain is good, clears the mind.”
“It’s nice and cool.”
Inside the meeting hall.
Only the members from Great Qin remained.
Everyone qualified to sit at the meeting table was dead.
A clean sweep!
Not a single one left!
This was the last thing Ling Yi could do for Qin Hao before he left.
Reputation as a villain, accusations, infamy—none of it mattered.
Retaliation, suppression… if they could survive a new round of purges, then bring it on.
Let his enemies rest assured: he didn’t care about endless cycles of vengeance. Whoever had a grudge against him, he would deal with them. Even if he was lazy, he would be very diligent about this matter.
“Actually, you all deserve to die.”
Ling Yi looked at the people sitting in the chairs at the back.
A strange smell stubbornly cut through the scent of blood in the air.
Qian Luoying subtly retreated a few steps toward the door. Outside, the heavy rain beat against the flowers and trees, releasing a faint fragrance. It felt better by the door.
Ling Yi frowned.
“But forget it. When punishing traitors, we only target the ringleaders. Since you weren’t qualified to sit at that table, you get to keep your lives today.”
Whew!
A large group of pale-faced people let out a long, complex sigh of relief.
Ling Yi turned and looked at the only living person who could still sit at the meeting table.
“Second Prince…”
Ling Yi stared quietly at Qin Xu.
“What do you want?”
“I don’t want anything. I just want to remind you: from now on, wear a diaper when you go out.” After saying this, Ling Yi walked past him without any expression.
The face Qin Xu kept turned away from Ling Yi instantly flushed red, his eyes filled with endless malice.
Swoosh!
A cold wind brushed past him.
Qin Xu shuddered violently.
By the time he looked back, Ling Yi and the woman’s figures were already gone.
But neither he nor anyone else in the meeting hall dared to make a move!
The downpour continued, and that icy voice rang out again—
“By the Monarch’s decree, all Imperial Guards are ordered: no one in the meeting hall is to leave! Await further instructions.”
At this moment, Qin Xu could no longer even feel the dampness under him. He only felt his heart suddenly become empty.
His gaze slowly fell upon the lone seal placed on the table.
Ling Yi and Qian Luoying walked along a small path filled with Imperial Guards. An invisible barrier hovered above their heads, not a single drop of rain landing on them.
Ling Yi said enviously, “Dao Enlightenment is so great!”
Qian Luoying: “…”
At that moment, an old man appeared before them.
Similarly, not a drop of the torrential rain fell upon the old man.
“Both of you, please wait. The Monarch invites you to the palace for a chat.”
Qian Luoying glanced at Ling Yi. Ling Yi looked at the old man: “Sir, did the Monarch say what would happen if we don’t go?”
The old man was slightly taken aback, then shook his head with a bitter smile: “That, he did not say.”
Ling Yi said, “Then we won’t go. Those beyond worldly affairs do not enter worldly affairs. Please go back and tell the Monarch there’s no need to thank me.”
Whether it was Xiaomei or Su Qingqing, it was enough that Qin Hao and Gu Tong would take care of them.
There was no need to mention this kind of thing.
Those beyond worldly affairs do not enter worldly affairs?
Yeah, right!
The big shots lying all over the meeting hall probably had something to say about that too…
The old man almost rolled his eyes, but facing Ling Yi’s refusal, he did not try to persuade further.
This young man, relying on his own strength, accomplished a major task that the Monarch had wanted to do for the past two years but couldn’t!
So that “no need to thank me” really wasn’t spoken without cause, and it certainly wasn’t bragging.
“Alright, then this old man will go back and report.” As the old man spoke, his figure flashed, disappearing into the rainy night.
Ling Yi and Qian Luoying walked unimpeded all the way out of the Imperial Garden.
Qian Luoying looked at Ling Yi and asked softly, “Where do we go next?”
Ling Yi said, “To the Military Headquarters. I want to see Qingqing and Ling Yun, to give them some instructions. Then we’ll pick up Yunwu and Yun Tong, and we’ll leave.”
Qian Luoying nodded: “Okay!”
She hadn’t yet figured out how to persuade the Sect Leader to abandon the grudge against Ling Yi, but deep down, she very much hoped Ling Yi would return to the Heaven’s Gate Sect with her.
If she could convince the Sect Leader to let Ling Yi join the Heaven’s Gate Sect, that would be even better!
Although the hope was slim, without trying, how would she know if it was impossible?
After all, Ling Yi had even achieved this seemingly impossible task.
In the pouring rain.
At the entrance to the Imperial Palace.
Cai Chunming and two other Dao-Entry Grade powerhouses stood silently.
Their faces all showed surprise.
Wang Tingjian stood together with Dong Ming. Besides them, a very young-looking man who appeared to be in his thirties stood beside Dong Ming.
Three against three.
Qin Hao and Gu Tong were followed by a large group of people.
Wang Tingjian looked at Cai Chunming: “Sun Qingbo is dead. Those with him are probably all dead too. You were too overconfident, thinking no one would break in there. You used all your forces to guard against us entering the palace. So this time, you miscalculated.”
Cai Chunming said calmly, “Senior brother, you’ve grown old. When did you learn to lie like others?”
Wang Tingjian smiled: “You know Ling Yi, right? He and that Sect’s Dao-Entry master fought their way into the Imperial Garden. If nothing went wrong, what I just said should have already come true.”
Cai Chunming couldn’t help but laugh: “Haha, senior brother, enough already. That Ling Yi may be daring, publicly executing Zhao Tianping, but I don’t believe he has the guts to kill a Deputy Prime Minister! Nor do I believe he has the ability!”
Wang Tingjian sighed: “Not everyone is as cautious as you. Really, turn back while you can, junior brother. This time, the heavens have completely changed. It’s not too late to turn back now.”
Just as Cai Chunming was about to say something else, someone hurried out from the palace. It was a Golden Body Realm expert, also someone responsible for “guarding” the Monarch.
This person’s face was pale. He came to Cai Chunming’s side, about to whisper.
Wang Tingjian said, “Say it out loud. No need to hide anything; everyone knows what happened.”
The Golden Body Expert was stunned. Cai Chunming glanced at him: “Speak.”
“Something has happened at the Cabinet!”
Just that one sentence was like the thunderclap of the night, striking Cai Chunming speechless for a long moment.
“Deputy Prime Minister Sun and all the others… were all killed by that madman Ling Yi. The members of the Chu and Zhao diplomatic missions… were shamefully driven out. They should be almost at the airport by now. We… we just received the news…”
Cai Chunming sighed. He seemed to age decades in an instant. He waved his hand: “No need to say more.”
Then, looking at Wang Tingjian across from him, he said with a bitter smile, “Senior brother, you’ve won.”
Wang Tingjian shook his head: “No, I haven’t won. The Monarch has won.”