Qin Yun walked up to Mr Zhou’s corpse. Even in death, his eyes were filled with horror. Clearly, he found it unbelievable that he could not survive a single strike from Meng Yiqiu despite being ranked fifth on the Heaven roll.
“Taishu Chen, despite being a well-known Heaven roll expert, you actually changed your entire name. You even became the Eighth Prince’s master. From the looks of it, the Wei Kingdom is burning with ambition. Now that I think about it, the person ranked first on the God roll is now in the Wei Kingdom. He is also the strongest person in this world, so how could he not be an ambitious person?” Qin Yun looked at the corpse in front of him. Through his Dao domain, he could see all the precious treasures on Taishu Chen’s corpse clearly.
Following that, he thought a simple command.
“Whoosh.”
Taishu Chen’s corpse was reduced to powder before scattering into the world. Only a glove as thin as the wings of a cicada and some currency bills were left behind. To Qin Yun, these treasures didn’t matter as he could only have them for fifty years anyway. However, he needed to consider his younger sister, Meng Yuxiang, the one-year-old Meng Huan, and the Zhou Mountain Sword Sect as well.
“Time to leave.” With the spoils of war put away, Qin Yun streaked across the sky. He flashed through the night sky, returning to his residence.
Only bits of blood were left on the quiet and isolated street.
The battle was completely silent. No one knew that Mr Zhou, or Taishu Chen, was already dead!
…
That night, Sovereign Capital was destined to remain sleepless.
Candles were lit.
Although Qin Yun was reading leisurely in his study, his Dao domain covered ten kilometers of his surroundings, including the Duan family.
“Although I could not be bothered to entertain that Crown Prince, killing Taishu Chen was actually helping him in a manner.” Qin Yun chuckled. He could not be bothered to think on it further as he read carefreely. To him, it did not matter who inherited the throne.
******
On the twenty-seventh day of the last month of the year, the sky slowly lit up.
In a hall in Quelling Duke Manor.
Duan Qiyu was sitting there feeling uneasy. The Matriarch, who sat beside him, was also uneasy. The news that they had been receiving was extremely unfavorable towards them.
“Sou!”
The door to the hall remained open as a figure flew in from outside. The moment he entered, he bowed respectfully.
“So how is it?” Duan Qiyu immediately stood up and asked anxiously.
The gray-robed man replied respectfully, “Lord, Matriarch. I just received news from the palace that before His Majesty passed away, he designated that the Eighth Prince would inherit the throne in a testament.”
The color in Duan Qiyu’s face drained as he slumped down. He sat there in a daze, his eyes turbid with despair.
“We’re doomed. We’re doomed.” Duan Qiyu was trembling.
“Eighth Prince?” Matriarch’s expression was contorted but she still managed to wave her hand. The gray-robed man bowed respectfully before making his retreat.
“Li Cheng had a grudge with me because of Yuan’er years ago.” Duan Qiyu’s voice trembled. “Back then, I was high-spirited and thought nothing of a prince that had no hopes of inheriting the throne. I never expected him to become stronger and garner so much support. I obviously stood on the Crown Prince’s side since he was heir apparent, and had numerous advantages. He had the highest chance of inheriting the throne. Who knew… Who knew…”
“Don’t panic.” Matriarch bellowed with a frown.
“Grandmother.” Duan Qiyu looked at Matriarch and knelt down. “It’s me. It’s because of me. It’s all my fault that our family has fallen into this predicament. I helped the Crown Prince at all costs. That Li Cheng definitely hates me even more now. Now that he has inherited the throne… he will definitely not spare our Duan family.”
The Matriarch also knew that the Duan family was truly in trouble.
Since ancient times, the contest for the throne was most heartless and cold!
Even if there was no earlier grudge, just the Duan family’s full support of the Crown Prince was sufficient reason for Eighth Prince Li Cheng to punish them mercilessly once he took the throne!
“I’ll go seek out Meng Yiqiu now.” Matriarch stood up.
“Meng Yiqiu.”
Duan Qiyu’s face was pale as he nodded and said, “At this point, Meng Yiqiu is the only one that can save my Duan family. However, the grudge between me and Li Cheng is too great. If the king truly wants our Duan family dealt with, he might strip away our Duan family’s nobility on account of Meng Yiqiu. As for me, the perpetrator of this all, I will probably not escape death.”
“Don’t panic. I’ll meet Meng Yiqiu first,” said Matriarch.
…
Qin Yun was having breakfast. Gong Yan’er had their child in her arms, feeding him congee.
“Master, the Duan family’s matriarch wishes to seek an audience with you,” said Liu Qingsha respectfully.
“Please invite her in.” Qin Yun nodded and instructed. He could not help but sigh. “That Crown Prince sure is useless. I helped him so much but he still lost in the end.”
The vying of the throne in the Chu Kingdom was so vicious and chaotic that even Qin Yun’s help did not ensure the Crown Prince would come out victorious.
The Crown Prince did hold numerous advantages.
However, the inheritor of the throne was eventually determined by a testament from the previous king! Of course, the so-called ‘testament’ was written by the victor.
This gave the other princes a chance. Therefore, every king would go through cruel battles to take the throne. This also made it so that every king of the Chu Kingdom possessed powerful means. With God of War Li Ruji presiding over Sovereign Capital, he could watch the princes battle in Sovereign Capital. But he would also ensure that Sovereign Capital did not fall into total chaos.
Li Ruji was very pleased with the cruel struggles for power that determined the final king.
“Matriarch.” When Qin Yun saw the Duan family’s matriarch arrive with Meng Yuxiang, he immediately said with a smile, “Matriarch, have a seat.”
The Matriarch sat down with a smile.
As for Meng Yuxiang, she sat beside Gong Yan’er.
“Sister, Yan’er, leave us two alone for now,” instructed Qin Yun.
“Alright.” Meng Yuxiang and Gong Yan’er nodded immediately.
Soon, only Qin Yun and Matriarch were left inside the hall. Liu Qingsha was left to stand guard at the entrance.
“I believe Young Master Meng already knows that the new king of our Chu Kingdom is the previous Eighth Prince,” said Matriarch. “After his ascension to the throne today, it will be made known to the entire world.”
The country could not be leaderless for a day.
Once the king passed away, the new king would inherit the throne the next day. The new king would also lead the funeral for the late king and announce his coronation to the world.
“I did hear of it.” Qin Yun nodded.
“The present king, Li Cheng, has an old grudge with my Duan family. And with my Duan family strongly aiding the former Crown Prince, Li Cheng will definitely want to settle scores with us,” said Matriarch worriedly. “I can only come to seek your help, Young Master Meng! My wish is that you will protect my Duan family on account of our relationship and the promise you made.”
“Back then, I promised to protect your Duan family in exchange for reading through your Duan family’s White Jade Repository,” said Qin Yun with a smile. “Matriarch, don’t you worry.”
Matriarch nodded. “Young Master Meng, if King Chu is bent on dealing with my Duan family, it will probably be difficult for you to stop him. If it comes to worse, it’s fine if my Duan family is stripped of its nobility! If that isn’t enough, my Duan family will be willing to sacrifice Duan Qiyu.”
Although experts on the Heaven roll enjoyed high statuses that even King Chu had to entertain, King Chu was still the country’s sovereign. Backing him was the God of War, Li Ruji. If a family clan were ordered to be destroyed, there was no way a single expert on the Heaven roll could stop it. At best, the punishment would be made lighter on account of the Heaven roll expert.
“Matriarch, be at ease and return,” said Qin Yun. “I will definitely ensure your Duan family’s safety with regards to His Majesty.”
“Thank you, Young Master Meng.” Matriarch immediately bowed deeply. Qin Yun immediately stood up and stopped her. “Matriarch, there’s no need to do so.”
“I’ll be troubling you then, Young Master Meng.”
Only then did the Matriarch leave.
However, as she left, she remained uneasy. “Meng Yiqiu will aid my Duan family with all he has. However, with the new king inheriting the throne today, his spirits are at their highest. Will he be able to secure us? All I can do is hope that the forfeit of our noble titles and Qiyu’s life will allow my Duan family to endure this calamity.”
The Duan family was a large family clan after all. The Matriarch had to consider the lives of thousands of clansmen. For them, she was willing to make certain sacrifices.
…
In Myriad Flower Brothel in Sovereign Capital, three men were gathered.
“Mr Zhou nearly ended up having Eighth Prince destroyed. Eighth Prince was just this short of being finished.”
“I never expected the Eighth Prince to turn the tables under such perilous circumstances!”
“The Eighth Prince is indeed impressive.”
The trio was filled with delight.
“By the way, Blackhawk, is Mr Zhou in the East Lake outside the city?”
“He’s not there! I just sent someone there to search for him.”
“He’s not at East Lake? That is troublesome. Last night, I sent someone to find Mr Zhou but he couldn’t be found in Sovereign Capital. If he’s not at East Lake, where is he?”
“Mr Zhou is as elusive as a ghost. At times, he vanishes to enter seclusion. But typically, he leaves a message when he does so. And last night was such an important night. He shouldn’t have vanished without a word.”
The trio turned a little flustered.
Mr Zhou was, in secret, the supreme leader of the Wei Kingdom forces in Sovereign Capital! His identity was so secretive that even the three of them did not know. They had no idea that Mr Zhou’s real name was Taishu Chen.
“Elder Zhou’s true strength is said to be ranked within the top five of the Heaven roll. Even if he were to encounter the Chu Kingdom’s God of War, Li Ruji, there is a chance for him to flee successfully. He shouldn’t vanish that easily.”
“Search for him again. If we can’t find him today, we have to immediately inform the Wei capital.”
The trio made a decision.
Men from the Wei Kingdom had been frantically searching for Mr Zhou in secret.
They looked for him inside and outside Sovereign Capital.
However, for all their searching… they would never find Mr Zhou!
…
And that day, the twenty-seventh day of the last month of the year of Chu Baohong’s 36th reign, the new king of the Chu Kingdom, Li Cheng, inherited the throne. He became the seventh king of the Chu Kingdom and presided over the funeral of the previous king.
All of Sovereign Capital was filled with flailing white funeral cloths. The brothels and restaurants closed for the day. During the period of mourning, marriage ceremonies and forms of entertainment were banned.