Seeing that Xia Wuyang was tired, the beautiful women hurried forward and helped him to the Practice Room to rest.
Many of them might have felt contempt or pity in their hearts, but none could have ever imagined what kind of power this seemingly frail old man actually possessed.
The stone door slowly closed. The look of exhaustion on Xia Wuyang’s face vanished in an instant, replaced by a gaze as sharp as an eagle’s.
He sat cross-legged on the Jade Couch. He did not continue his deductions; he still needed a few days to let things settle and perfect his plans.
But he could already feel a change in the Qi Blood within him. After all, he had begun cultivating the Tiger Roar Golden Bell Shield. His skin, bones, and organs were all undergoing subtle but continuous transformations.
He slowly closed his eyes, his Heart Spirit sinking into the True Realm to continue his cultivation.
Outside the hall, the spring snow began to fall again, covering the traces of the day’s melt and the countless unknown secrets hidden within this Deep Palace.
Meanwhile, far away in Kunning Palace, Empress Murong Wan lay on the Phoenix Couch, her eyes still open, unable to move a single muscle.
She stared numbly at the canopy above her head, listening to the wind and snow outside her window. In the endless darkness, she waited for a dawn that would never come as despair continued to spread.
The last snow of the month lingered over White Jade City for three days before finally, reluctantly, dissipating, its destination unknown.
In its place came a continuous, dreary rain that pattered against the glazed tiles of the palace, shrouding the entire Imperial City in a gray, misty vapor.
This kind of weather was the most draining. It wasn’t cold, nor was it hot, just damp and sticky, making one’s heart feel as if it were growing moldy along with everything else.
Inside Yangxin Hall in Qianqing Palace, Emperor Xia, Xia Shengming, had not had a full night’s sleep in days.
The pile of memorials on his desk was twice as high as usual. Half of them were from the Prince Zhenxi’s Mansion in the Western Territory, the Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion in the Northern Territory, and the Celestial Treasure Pavilion.
Every memorial was fiercely worded. Every memorial demanded an answer to the same question, and the language grew more aggressive with each one.
Who was the culprit?
BANG!
Another gold-rimmed memorial was slammed to the floor, Emperor Xia’s fury plain to see.
It was a personal letter from the Western King, Murong Ba. This wasn’t an official document delivered via a standard post-station, but a secret missive rushed directly to the palace by one of his Royal Guards.
The letter was written on snow wolf skin paper, a specialty of the Western Territory that was tough and waterproof. The characters, however, were written in Cinnabar mixed with blood. Every word was a shocking, crimson red, and the implication was self-evident.
"Your Majesty, my humble daughter Murong Wan has been in the palace for forty years. She has upheld her womanly virtues and served as a model for the women of the realm. Now, she has suffered such a vicious attack within the Deep Palace—her four limbs shattered, her Cultivation destroyed. She endures a fate worse than death, a tragedy of the highest order. This has not only harmed my daughter, but it is also an insult to the entire Murong Clan, an insult to the five hundred thousand soldiers of my Western Territory, and an insult to Your Majesty as well."
"Your subject is old and had no wish to resort to arms or act rashly. However, a blood debt must be repaid. If Your Majesty cannot capture the true culprit within three months and hand them over to my Murong Clan for justice, then your subject will march his troops east. I will personally come to White Jade City to seek justice for my daughter and take the head of her tormentor. The safety of the Western Territory rests in Your Majesty’s hands. I hope Your Majesty will reconsider."
...
At the signature, his name, Murong Ba, was written with enough force to nearly pierce the paper. The final stroke had even torn through it, showing the indignation and fury in his heart as he wrote.
Emperor Xia stared at the letter, his chest heaving, equally enraged.
’March troops east...’ ’These three words were a blatant threat, a sign that he was being utterly disrespected.’
The Prince Zhenxi’s Mansion commanded five hundred thousand Iron Cavalry. One hundred thousand of them were the Iron Blood Cavalry, veterans of perennial bloody wars against the Western Rong and the Northern Desert. Their combat strength was unmatched in the Great Xia, and few armies could compare.
If Murong Ba truly marched his troops into the capital, it would not just be a matter of the Royal Family losing face. It could trigger a civil war and shake the very foundations of the Dynasty.
"This old bastard is truly going too far! Does he even have an ounce of respect for me?" Emperor Xia gritted his teeth, but he was helpless.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to catch the culprit. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to give all parties an explanation. And it certainly wasn’t that he didn’t want to recover the stolen goods.
But the problem was, he couldn’t catch them! The Northern Desert Da Kuo Royal Court, the Southern Barbarian Hundred Races... neither was much weaker than the Great Xia Dynasty. Even if he was certain they were the culprits, there was nothing he could do.
Sun Wuyang of the Celestial Eye had led the Divine Capture Sect, the Shadow Guards, and the Imperial Guard in turning White Jade City upside down. To say they left no stone unturned would be an understatement. They had even searched the villages and towns thirty li outside the city, yet they hadn’t found so much as a single hair from the culprit. He had no idea how the Northern Desert Da Kuo Royal Court and the Southern Barbarian Hundred Races had managed it.
The culprits behind it all seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no clues to follow. It was simply impossible to find them, let alone capture them.
While some clues pointed directly to the Da Kuo Royal Court and the Southern Barbarian Hundred Races, the perpetrators themselves were nowhere to be found.
Zheng Zhicang cautiously stepped forward. "Your Majesty, the secret envoy from Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion is still waiting in the side hall. Should I have him come in?"
Emperor Xia rubbed his throbbing temples. "Let him in. Might as well see him."
A moment later, a middle-aged man dressed in snug, dark-black martial attire strode into the hall.
The man was powerfully built with a resolute face, marked by a hideous saber scar on his left cheek. It was none other than the number one expert of Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion, Blood Saber Li Feng.
He cupped his fist in salute, his voice as cold and hard as iron. "This humble general, Li Feng, comes on the order of the Northern King and his consort to inquire about the progress in the case of the Third Prince’s assault. Has the culprit been caught?"
Emperor Xia’s brows furrowed, and his expression darkened.
The maternal grandmother of the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen, was the current Northern King’s Main Consort.
This old Princess Consort doted on her grandson, Xia Wuchen, more than anyone. She had spoiled him since he was a child, giving him anything his heart desired, and had sent him countless treasures over the years.
Now that Xia Wuchen had been made a eunuch and his Cultivation destroyed, the old lady had fainted from crying three times. Everyone in Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion was furious, and by extension, they held the Emperor in contempt.
Emperor Xia suppressed his irritation. "General Li, please be seated. I have already ordered a full-scale investigation. It’s just that the culprit is cunning, and so far, we have not..."
"Your Majesty!" Li Feng cut him off directly, his gaze as sharp as a blade. "Before this general came, the Princess Consort had a message. Chen’Er is the child she watched grow up. Now that he has suffered such a vicious attack and endures a fate worse than death, if the Imperial Court cannot provide an explanation, then Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion will investigate on its own and find the culprit’s whereabouts."
"Investigate on your own?" Emperor Xia’s face fell. "What do you mean by that, General Li? Do you not trust the Imperial Court? Do you not trust me?"
"This general wouldn’t dare. But the Princess Consort said that Chen’Er’s incident happened inside the Imperial Palace. For a culprit to be able to silently cripple a Prince, and then escape unscathed from under heavy guard, so much so that they can’t even be found... it’s either because our enemies have infiltrated us deeply, or..." Li Feng said he wouldn’t dare, but his tone was utterly devoid of respect.
As a Celestial Human at Super Grade Perfection, a peerless master on the same Level as Emperor Xia himself, Li Feng had the confidence to be so brazen.
He paused, not finishing his sentence, but his meaning could not have been clearer: either someone within the Imperial Court was causing trouble and had harmed the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen.

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