Chapter 221 Part 2
Chapter 221 Part 2: Entering the Imperial Palace, See Emperor Yonghe Again (2)
This is not only his favorite job as a Fantastic Faction storyteller, but also something that makes him happy.
As a storyteller of the Tide Listening Building, Clairvoyance is actually quite unique. He has a third eye on his forehead and is half-demon with some demon ancestry.
His father was once one of the generals of the past, who bravely explored the Hundred-mile Desert, searching for his roots.
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Before Qiao Mu and Captain Hai set off, they planned to borrow two fast horses from Madame Bai, the guardian of Anxi Pass.
When they found Madame Bai, she was chatting happily with the old man of the arsenal in front of the city walls of Anxi Pass.
The old man of the arsenal is Li Changge’s younger brother, so Madame Bai is actually his sister-in-law. They are old acquaintances and have a common relative.
Qiao Mu and Captain Hai were getting ready to go to the Imperial Capital, but the old man of the arsenal stopped Qiao Mu before they left.
"If you are going to the palace to meet the Emperor, you might as well take this with you."
The old man of the arsenal suddenly produced a storage pouch.
"The storage bag is a magical item for cultivators, usually protected by a spell. It requires greater power than the original owner to forcefully break it open."
"And this storage bag was stolen by Earth Sword Immortal from the storeroom. He managed to unlock the spell using an unknown method, so even non-cultivators can use it, although the space inside is a bit small."
"I already have Stone City left by Earth Sword Immortal. It’s an unrestricted storage bag, so let’s give it to Elder Lao," said the old man of the arsenal.
"The things inside the storage bag may be useful for your audience with the palace."
For cultivators, a storage bag is nothing special, and every cultivator from Nine Immortal Gates has one.
But a storage bag without a spell, that can be used by ordinary martial artists, is quite rare.
All the people of Lonely City are grateful to the Qiao family member.
That’s why, even though Qiao Shui is just newly acquainted, the old man of the arsenal is willing to give him a valuable item as a gift.
Qiao Mu sighed softly, "I’ve been around for nearly two hundred years, and I finally have a usable storage bag."
He weighed the storage bag in his hand and saw that it was full, as if it was stuffed with things.
The old man of the arsenal explained. In addition to the things needed for the Mission Statement, there are actually many hand-copied manuscripts of ancient techniques from the lonely city arsenal in the storage bag. There are a total of nine Spiritual Refining Techniques, as well as other secret techniques collected in the arsenal. They are all inside, considered as a gift to the Qiao family.
Qiao Mu was slightly stunned; this was indeed a generous gift.
Obviously, it wasn’t a gift for "Qiao Shui," but a gift for brave warriors like Qiao Shuangsen who sacrificed themselves for the lonely city.
Since the old man of the arsenal was generous to him, naturally he wouldn’t be stingy either. He conveniently took out another storage bag from his body and handed it to the old man of the arsenal.
"This was handed over to me by Qiao Xiaoming, it’s something from a cultivator named Dao Ni."
"I don’t really know any cultivators, so you might as well have this item. It’s better to make full use of it."
As they were about to part ways, Qiao Mu casually asked the old man of the arsenal about his plans.
The Li family, where the old man of the arsenal was from, wasn’t a big family. Returning to Jiu Province meant that they were already homeless and had no way to go, so he just sighed lightly.
"Having guarded the city for half a lifetime, even though I can no longer go to the battlefield, at least I have practiced some magical skills and possess Stone City left by Earth Sword Immortal. It can provide some shelter for the people of this lonely city."
"I have nowhere else to go. If I can find a place to settle down for myself and for the women, children, and elderly who have come out of this lonely city, it would be considered a regret-free life from now on."
The old man of the weapon store paused for a moment and continued,
"I heard that when Great Qin Prefecture was first built, it was a time of great potential. And King Qin of Great Qin Prefecture is said to be someone who holds the flag of martial arts. I’m curious about what it means to enter the Dao with martial arts…"
"Perhaps Great Qin Prefecture could also be a place for retirement and settling down."
The old man of the weapon store had already started practicing the path of immortality, but he still found the rumored martial arts practitioners who were expected to challenge immortals quite interesting.
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The three hundred elderly soldiers from the depths of the desert, as well as the considerable number of women, children, and elderly, if so many people suddenly appeared in Anxi Pass, it naturally could not be hidden from others.
Besides, there was no one hiding it.
Tide Listening Building was probably an audience chasing the trend of the times. When they heard about the old warrior appearing outside Anxi Pass from Clairvoyance, one of the pillars of the Fantastic Faction, the whole Tide Listening Building was shocked by this incident.
"Having defended the desert for forty years, if it weren’t for Clairvoyance witnessing it with your own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it."
"This incident may be more sensational in Jiu Province than the ‘Death of the Martial Saint’ previously…" Someone immediately made a judgment.
After all.
The Martial Saint was just a simple martial artist.
While he had great fame and had been slaughtering the martial world for thirty to forty years, his reputation mostly remained within the martial world.
But the matter of the solitary city in the desert is different.
This matter is connected to the Inhuman War forty years ago. For every hundred thousand soldiers, there were a hundred thousand families from all over Jiu Province, plus the original residents of the isolated city…
This matter was both real and strange, causing both the Tide Listening Building and the storyteller factions to be moved by it.
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To the north of Anxi Pass there is a city called Dan City.
Several months ago, Dan City experienced a terrible disaster, with constant thunder and lightning in the sky. It seemed like an epic battle between immortal cultivators, and half of the city was destroyed by the thunderstorm, resulting in numerous casualties.
The city was severely damaged, but after King Qin rose to power, the Great Yan Imperial Court renamed the city "Great Qin Prefecture."
Great Qin Prefecture was only newly established, but both Anxi Town and Anxi Pass were also within King Qin’s jurisdiction.
At this moment, inside the King Qin’s Mansion in Great Qin City.
After listening to the report from the envoy sent by Madame Bai of Anxi Pass, King Qin waved his hand and dismissed him.
However, his expression was somewhat displeased.
Today, along with the envoy from Anxi Pass, there was also an order from the Great Dao Sect. It was said to be a request from an elder of the sect.
"Elder Qingzhuo wants me to handle his tail?"
King Qin felt a little helpless.
Although he became King Qin, a hope for the people to fight against the immortals with martial arts, and had a glorious reputation, he actually acted as a puppet for the Great Dao Sect to handle worldly affairs.
His reputation was good, but he was actually just a disciple of the Great Dao Sect, using their influence to give him the name of King Qin and be known as a martial arts king.
This matter was crucial for the Great Dao Sect’s plans. With the help of their cultivators, it would not be difficult to deceive Emperor Yonghe and create a fake "King Qin" who was expected to use martial arts to defeat the immortals.
Emperor Yonghe might realize the truth later, but by that time it would be too late to change anything.
"Many people have come out of the desert, what can I do about it? If a few dozen people snuck out, I could easily eliminate them, but can I really massacre the women and children in half the city? Can I kill everyone in Anxi Pass who knows about this?"
King Qin furrowed his brow and complained a little.
He wasn’t a soft-hearted person, if slaughtering a city or a fortress could solve the problem, he wouldn’t hesitate.
The situation is not that simple.
Tide Listening Building received this information from somewhere and is spreading the history of the solitary city in the desert in the surrounding area.
Therefore, even though Great Qin Prefecture is not far from Anxi Pass, King Qin, who has reached the level of martial arts, went there personally at the risk of ruining his reputation, but it was already too late.
"You can’t hide the truth forever. Even if Immortal Gate elder requests it, I am powerless." King Qin murmured to himself.
"Even so, isn’t Elder Qingzhuo trying to deal with a member of the Qiao family? There might be a way to remedy this situation…"
Mentioning the Qiao family member, King Qin’s expression immediately turned cold.
The Qiao family member is not just one person, but a whole family.
He had suffered losses at the hands of the Qiao family member in the past, and even though it turned out to be a blessing in disguise as he became the first person in the Great Dao Sect to reach the level of Golden Body in Martial Arts, it doesn’t mean he should be thankful to the Qiao family member.
"Unfortunately, the Qiao family elder who fought against me back then is already dead, and even though I have achieved the level of Golden Body, I can’t take revenge with my own hands." King Qin murmured to himself.
"But the Qiao family still has other elders, which can bring some comfort to me."
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The city of the Emperor.
During the faint dawn, the Hai family’s mansion welcomed some unexpected guests.
Hai Siyuan Captain Hai, who has been away for forty years, the 210-year-old Qiao Mu, and the old man of the arsenal with half of his face remaining.
All three of them are elderly, with Captain Hai, the youngest among them, already in his sixties, reaching the age of sixty.
Captain Hai, who is sixty years old, has spent years in the desert, fighting continuously, and his appearance is not much younger than his father Hai Wuya’s.
The two of them don’t look like father and son, but more like brothers.
After the Inhuman War, Hai Wuya entered the heavenly prison, while Hai Siyuan was trapped in the desert for forty years. The Immortal Gate’s formation cut off the inside from the outside, and Hai Wuya had no idea that his eldest son was still alive in the world.
Captain Hai and Hai Wuya reunited after forty years, and tears naturally flowed down their faces.
However, Qiao Mu’s time was limited, and he rudely interrupted their conversation, not considering their reunion.
"Mr. Qiao means that he wants me to take you to the palace and meet the emperor?" Hai Wuya understood Qiao Mu’s intention.
"Yes," Qiao Mu nodded.
This time, they were going to listen to the stories of Captain Hai and the old man of the arsenal, who had witnessed the events of the past forty years in the solitary city in the desert.
But the palace was not an easy place to enter freely.
If they followed the regular procedures, they would have to wait for Madame Bai of Anxi Pass to report step by step. By the time the message reached the palace, it would be too late.
Hai Wuya, as a high-ranking official and second-in-command, held a significant position and power.
With his status, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to take a few people to the court.
Hai Wuya also knew the importance of the matter, and after roughly listening to Captain Hai’s story about the lonely city, he immediately agreed.
But after waiting for a few days and seeing the magnificent palace before reaching the imperial palace, these old men all felt emotional.
Captain Hai and the old man of the arsenal were reflecting on how things had changed in the Imperial Capital after forty years. They had grown old themselves.
Qiao Mu, on the other hand, was different.
What he remembered was his wild and reckless youth.
When he was young, he spent his days plotting to assassinate the emperor. When he was over sixty, he attempted to assassinate the emperor at the Xuantian Sect temple. And in his hundredth year, he left the Imperial Capital with the intention of breaking into the palace at night and meet his end.
But now, at the age of two hundred and ten, he was a gentle and peaceful old man. This time, entering the imperial palace, he simply went through the main entrance without any urge to kill the emperor, which could be considered a form of growth.
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The golden hall of the imperial palace.
The morning meeting proceeded as usual, without any surprises.
Emperor Yonghe absentmindedly listened to the ministers’ discussions, occasionally glancing at the Human Emperor Sword hanging in front of the Golden Palace. He seemed distracted.
The Human Emperor Sword was no ordinary object; it represented the destiny of the Great Yan Imperial Court.
However, for some reason, the brilliance of the Human Emperor Sword had dimmed slightly in recent times, as if indicating a decline in the country’s fate.
But why? There hadn’t been any significant events happening in Jiu Province lately.
Ever since the awakening of the Human Emperor Sword, the Nine Immortal Gates, including the Zhong Province Great Dao Sect, had kept a low profile and been quiet. Could it be that the decline in the country’s fate had nothing to do with the Immortal Gates?
While he was pondering, a court official stepped forward from the crowd. It was Minister of Rites Hai Wuya.
"Your Majesty, Minister Hai Wuya has something important to report."
"Speak."