"Can someone tell me what in the world happened here!"
When Shangguan Qiuyue arrived at the Jing'an Division, she found the place in complete disarray. Not a single scene remained intact, leaving her utterly bewildered.
Her first thought was: Could the Enemy Nation have taken advantage of Her Majesty's ascension to the throne to make a show of force in the Imperial Capital?
But this ridiculous thought was quickly dismissed by Shangguan Qiuyue.
The Jing'an Division's position in the Imperial Capital was insignificant. The Enemy Nation wouldn't choose such a low-level government office to carry out an act of sabotage for the sake of achieving a sense of accomplishment.
If they were going to do something, they would have taken care of the Prime Minister's Mansion's group of fools first. At the very least, they should have organized a street assassination of important officials to stir up attention.
Moreover, although the Jing'an Division's several hundred guards were beaten to a pulp, wailing constantly, some even had their arms and legs broken, and their noses were crooked.
But after Shangguan Qiuyue carefully examined them, she found that none of these hundreds of people were in any mortal danger. It was clear that the person who attacked them had shown restraint and didn't want to kill anyone.
Facing her questions, Cao Yuan, the head of the Jing'an Division, clutched his swollen buttocks. With the support of two subordinates, he wore a mournful expression and limped over to Shangguan Qiuyue.
"General Shangguan, please forgive me. It was Deputy Captain Shen Zhao. For some unknown reason, he suddenly seemed to have a seizure. He said he wanted to leave the Jing'an Division and run away. Of course, we couldn't just let him do that, and then he beat us all up."
Shangguan Qiuyue looked disbelieving, even finding the situation absurd. "Cao Yuan, are you joking with me?
How could Shen Zhao possibly want to leave the Jing'an Division? You should know that Shen Zhao is Her Majesty's fiancé! The Retired Emperor personally designated him as the future husband of the princess!
He's going to be an Imperial Relative. You're telling me he'd give up all that wealth and status to run away? Do you even believe that yourself?"
Cao Yuan replied with a sorrowful expression, "General Shangguan, I swear everything I say is true! Today was Her Majesty's coronation ceremony. We prepared early to go to the Imperial Palace to be on duty.
But who would have thought that Shen Zhao would act as if possessed, beating us all up. He even threatened to break anyone's legs who tried to stop him."
"You can ask my colleagues. Even if I had the guts, I wouldn't joke about this!"
Seeing Cao Yuan's sincerity, and looking at the horrifying scene around them, Shangguan Qiuyue believed him a little.
But soon, she seemed to realize something and exclaimed, "Even if what you say is true, you couldn't stop Shen Zhao with hundreds of you?"
Cao Yuan immediately thought of something terrifying, and his body trembled. He hurriedly said, "General Shangguan, you haven't seen how brutal Shen Zhao is when he attacks. His fists are all about hitting flesh, and we couldn't even defend ourselves."
"Cao Yuan, what's your cultivation level?"
"Eighth rank of the Qi Condensation Realm."
"Shen Zhao is at most the sixth rank of the Qi Condensation Realm. How could he beat so many of you into this state?"
"Shen Zhao's fists are really evil. Not only are they incredibly powerful, but the main thing is that as soon as we clash with his fists, our qi seas seem to be strangled by something, and we can't activate our spiritual energy. It also depletes very quickly!"
After listening to Cao Yuan, Shangguan Qiuyue took a deep breath, trying to digest the shocking news.
The cultivation realms on the Xianwu Continent were divided into: Body Tempering, Qi Condensation, Spirit Gathering, Qi Absorption, Soul Sea, Mysterious Void, Nirvana, No-Self, Supreme, Manifestation of Sainthood, Quasi-Emperor, and Great Emperor.
Each realm was further divided into nine ranks. Since the Divine Realm (Feathering Realm) rarely appeared in the mortal world, only those at the Great Emperor realm could dominate the continent.
Yet, Yu Xiyan, at the young age of seventeen, had already broken through to the Soul Sea, third rank, becoming the second most powerful person in the Yin Tian Dynasty in the last thousand years, second only to the Yu family's ancestor.
Advancing in realm not only brought about a geometric increase in one's own strength but also extended one's lifespan indefinitely, even preserving one's youthful appearance.
However, without exception, regardless of the realm, the use of cultivation techniques required the use of spiritual energy stored in one's own Qi Sea and Dantian.
The news of Shen Zhao single-handedly defeating hundreds of people with just his fists and then casually leaving, was unheard of, not just in the Yin Tian Dynasty. Even across the entire Xianwu Continent, it was probably a unique case.
If Shangguan Qiuyue hadn't sensed any fluctuations in spiritual energy around, she would have suspected that Cao Yuan was joking and would have chopped him with her blade long ago.
After a moment's thought, Shangguan Qiuyue immediately ordered, "Seal the city gates immediately! Notify all government offices to arrest Shen Zhao throughout the city! He must not be allowed to leave the Imperial Capital! If you fail to capture him, you'll have to answer to Her Majesty yourselves!"
With that, she immediately returned to the palace to report this shocking news to Yu Xiyan.
This is bad. The future imperial son-in-law has run off, this is a serious matter.
Although Her Majesty didn't like Shen Zhao, using him as a shield to deflect those wealthy families' marriage proposals was still a very good choice.
After all, Shen Zhao was truly, incredibly handsome, and didn't look at all like he came from a humble background. The key was that he was also very obedient. Keeping him around as a mascot was a pretty good option.
While the entire Imperial Capital was in chaos, Shen Zhao had already changed into a set of swordsman's attire, disguised himself, and, carrying a pot of Osmanthus Wine, successfully left the Imperial Capital.
He never used to drink, but after experiencing the torment of surviving nine lifetimes, he had come to enjoy it.
However, he never drank much, only two or three mouthfuls at a time.
Looking back at the majestic city in the distance, Shen Zhao took a deep swig of his drink, recalling the memories of his nine lives within its walls. He then hurled the wine jug towards the Imperial Capital.
"Remembering the past, a new emperor, new officials, the general heads north to Wolf Pass."
"Looking back, power and wealth are like fish crossing the river, a commoner holds the imperial decree in the Imperial Palace."
"Tonight, grievances are laughed over with a cup of wine, lay down armor, discard sword, return to the countryside."
"Don't look up, a beautiful woman in the dim light, a lonely shadow on the cold river, don't pity me."
Letting out a long breath, Shen Zhao entered the dense forest without looking back, unable to help but hum a song:
"...A word in the jianghu, love is set aside, flowers are too fragrant, beneath the flowers, romance, flowers die without permanence, without a single wound, walking with an open heart~~"
On the other side, within the Imperial Palace of the Imperial Capital, Yu Xiyan, upon hearing that Shen Zhao had beaten up several hundred people from the Jing'an Division and then fled, became even colder, her already icy expression hardening further. Even Shangguan Qiuyue, standing beside her, couldn't help but shiver.
After a long pause, Yu Xiyan spoke, asking, "You're saying... Shen Zhao, he ran?"
Her tone held a hint of disbelief.
Shangguan Qiuyue lowered her head and replied, "Your Majesty, your subordinate has ordered the city gates of Chang'an to be sealed. The Ministry of Justice has dispatched personnel to search the entire city, and we will surely capture Shen Zhao and bring him to justice."
"No need." Yu Xiyan gently rubbed her aching temples, speaking softly, "I understand him. Those people from the Ministry of Justice alone won't be able to catch him. Put this matter aside for now. You may leave first; I will handle this personally."
"Yes!"
Shangguan Qiuyue was puzzled, but still complied.
After leaving the palace, she couldn't help but think to herself, Her Majesty has never had any fondness for Shen Zhao. Why does it feel like she cares about him this time? No, I must be overthinking it.
Yu Xiyan sat in her room, lost in thought for a moment before softly calling out, "Elder Mu."
In the next instant, a cloud of black smoke swirled behind Yu Xiyan. After a brief movement, an old man in a black robe and a hooded hat knelt before her on one knee.
"What are your orders, Your Majesty?"
Without turning her head, Yu Xiyan said directly, "I ask that Elder Mu help me with a task. Find Shen Zhao's whereabouts, but remember, do not harm him."
Elder Mu's cultivation was at the Soul Sea Realm, sixth rank, and he was one of the Yin Tian Dynasty's court retainers. He only pledged his loyalty to the emperors of the Yin Tian Dynasty, protecting their safety and carrying out the missions they assigned, handling matters that were inconvenient to address openly.
"This old one obeys!"
Without any hesitation, Elder Mu transformed into a cloud and prepared to leave the palace gates.
"Wait!"
Yu Xiyan seemed to recall something and called out to Elder Mu again.
"Does Her Majesty have any other instructions?"
"Forget it. I will handle Shen Zhao's matter myself. You may leave."
"Yes, this old official takes his leave."
After the person left, Yu Xiyan fell into deep thought again: It shouldn't be like this, according to the natural order of things. Where did the problem arise? Why would he leave the Imperial Capital for no good reason?
Recalling the scene from her previous life, when Shen Zhao didn't hesitate to crush his own heart, Yu Xiyan couldn't help but feel a surge of intense regret and pain.
Yu Xiyan could imagine the despair and agony Shen Zhao must have felt at that moment, facing her plot to harm him. It was simply beyond words.
"Lin Feng! You sowed discord and caused me to misunderstand my husband, and you even caused me to mistakenly kill the love of my life. This life, I, Yu Xiyan, will make you pay a heavy price!"
At this moment, a frigid aura suddenly erupted within the palace. The overbearing pressure froze the walls and pillars, coating them in frost...
In her previous life, which eye had she been blind in? She had actually been willing to make an enemy of Shen Zhao for Lin Feng, only to end up with her nation destroyed and her family ruined.
Thinking it over, if it hadn't been for her, Lin Feng's cultivation and schemes would never have been a match for Shen Zhao.
The reason Shen Zhao died wasn't because of how strong Lin Feng was, but entirely because of her interference. If she hadn't used her own death to force Shen Zhao to stop all actions against Lin Feng, Lin Feng and his so-called forces wouldn't have been able to withstand Shen Zhao's thunderous attack.
In other words, Lin Feng had relied on her protection to gradually reveal his ambitions, ultimately pushing both Shen Zhao and herself to their deaths.
To put it another way, he had been taking advantage of Shen Zhao's feelings for her, repeatedly indulging Lin Feng.
In this life, she would not only make up for her love for Shen Zhao, but also make Lin Feng, that hypocritical and selfish ingrate, pay a hundredfold, a thousandfold price.
"Elder Lu!"
Another command was issued, and a figure in black robes appeared behind Yu Xiyan once more.
"What are Her Majesty's orders?"
"Find a person named Lin Feng for me. Report to me immediately after you find him!"
"As you command!"