Shang Mi narrowed his eyes. "You've gained the support of Prince Feiheng?"
Li Yaoqing simply nodded slightly.
Shang Mi, however, believed her without a doubt.
The Li family would not try to deceive him with a matter that could be clarified with a single investigation.
His brow furrowed, and he said, "Since you want to kill Tian Xing, then how much do you truly know about him? Two thousand years, I have been an official here for two thousand years. I do not have the same deep-seated hatred for Tian Xing as you do, but my understanding of him is no less than yours, and there has not been a single day when I, too, did not want to kill him."
Li Yaoqing's eyebrows arched slightly.
Shang Mi was heard to continue, "I only discovered his existence a thousand years ago. At that time, I always felt that the entire Eternal Sun Prefecture exuded a strange, bizarre aura.
Eternal Sun Prefecture was terrifyingly peaceful; benevolence, wisdom, propriety, etiquette, and faith had forged this place into the most civilized of lands.
But from my time as an official in other places, I knew that cultivators must contend for resources, and that managing them is an endless task. Yet this place, peculiar as it was, needed no management."
"Especially the geniuses here, I have met every single one of them, but I feel that every single one of them is so familiar."
"Later, I came to know that they were, in fact, all one person: Tian Xing!"
Seeing the disbelief in Shang Mi's expression, Li Yaoqing was not the least bit surprised.
It was likely that anyone who witnessed such an ability as Tian Xing's would be horrified for a long time.
Shang Mi's tone was grave. "I went to find His Majesty. His Majesty also knew of him, but turned a deaf ear. I'm not afraid of you laughing if I say this, but I have fought with him."
"You've fought with him?"
This time, Li Yaoqing was truly a bit surprised.
Shang Mi was seen to give a bitter smile. "Yes, we fought for less than a year."
"..."
Ignoring Li Yaoqing's speechlessness, Shang Mi seemed to have recalled some terrifying event.
His voice trembled, and it was not clear whether it was from fear or from anger.
"On that night," he said, "outside my residence stood a full group of Tian Xing's avatars. For that entire night, they just stood there, staring intently at my residence without saying a single word. But I could feel that they were mocking me. As long as they wished it, they could mobilize the entire Eternal Sun Prefecture to tear me to shreds!"
The more he spoke, the more agitated Shang Mi became.
His eyes were bloodshot. "On that day, I knew that this person, Tian Xing, was by no means someone to be trifled with. His Majesty doesn't kill him, and the Imperial Preceptor lets him run loose; sooner or later, they will suffer a backlash! He refuses to be disciplined. He is all alone, without the slightest attachment. All he needs is an opportunity."
"Your Li family is different. You, at least, are loyal to your homeland and will fight the Wu Clan for the sake of your homeland!"
"I will help your Li family, just as I have helped you in the past."
"I, too, have waited for this day for a very long time!"
He seemed a little crazed!
At this moment, seeing Shang Mi in such a strange state, Li Yaoqing was stunned for a moment.
For some unknown reason, as she listened carefully to Shang Mi's every word, a terror grew within her the more she thought about it!
But before she could even ask anything,
The sound of footsteps came from outside the room. It was a cultivator from the government office. That person was seen to be panicked and at a loss, so much so that his words were unclear. "Pre... Prefect... outside... outside, there are so many masked people..."
At the same time, wave after wave of powerful auras came from outside the government office.
"Pharmacist! It's Divinity Transformation, the aura of Divinity Transformation!"
Xian Tong's eyes went wide as he warned Li Yaoqing.
Sensing the killing intent coming from outside, he too became brimming with killing intent and glared angrily at Shang Mi!
But Shang Mi showed not the slightest hint of surprise.
He silently looked towards the vigilant Li Yaoqing, and his madness transformed into a fervent, savage grin!
"I have investigated for a thousand years, searching for a way to kill Tian Xing.
The Imperial Preceptor and His Majesty both thought he was an object already in their grasp, but only I knew that a person like him had already figured out a way to survive."
"I knew that as long as you Li family members were not fools, you would come and find me sooner or later!"
"As for how to truly kill him, I will only demonstrate it once!"
"Now..."
Shang Mi sneered and walked out of the government office.
"Run, Li Yaoqing. Bring the news of his death to my grave, or find me in the underworld to keep me company."
"Madman!"
Li Yaoqing's face changed. She took a deep look at Shang Mi as he walked out of the government office and quickly fled with a completely bewildered Xian Tong.
Xiantong scratched his head. Sensing the terrifying aura coming from behind them, he asked Li Yaoqing, puzzled, "Pharmacist, what's going on? How... how did he summon Tian Xing himself?"
"Because he's a lunatic."
Li Yaoqing's face was unsightly. "The Human Emperor truly raised a good dog."
...
Imperial Capital.
High above, upon the floating Imperial City, the aged Human Emperor sat cross-legged within a splendid, golden palace.
A pale white mist rose up around him, yet it carried a hint of a setting sun.
Beneath his snow-white hair, his face was like withered wood.
Who could have imagined that this was the Human Emperor, the one who stands highest above all in the entire Azure Dynasty?
Spiritual Qi entered the palace from outside. The Human Emperor opened his eyes, and with a deep and powerful voice, he asked, "News from whom?"
"Reporting to Your Majesty, it is news from Shang Mi of Eternal Sun Prefecture, from Lord Shang." From the sharp voice outside the palace, one could tell it was a eunuch.
"Present it."
As the Human Emperor's voice drifted out of the palace, a scroll fell into his hands.
A few large characters came into view, causing the Human Emperor's pale face to sink even further.
[Letter Of Confession]
[Your guilty subject, Shang Mi, if not for Your Majesty's recognition, I fear that today I would still be but a disciple of a small family with no chance of ever making a name for myself. And yet now, in Eternal Sun Prefecture, I stand above ten thousand people...]
It was a long, nostalgic preamble, but what truly moved the Human Emperor were the few inconspicuous lines within.
[First Confession: Your subject has brought harm to the loyal and good.
The Imperial Preceptor asked this subject to test the Li family, but this subject instead used the Imperial Preceptor's order to seek out Tian Xing.]
[Second Confession: Your subject has deceived his lord.
I once said I would guard Eternal Sun Prefecture for Your Majesty for all eternity, yet before my lifespan has reached its end, I now journey far into the netherworld.]
[Third Confession...]
Each and every crime was laid out, yet there was not one that did not reveal his loyalty.
Until the final words of counsel.
[Your Majesty, Azure Cloud Region cannot be lost. This is the face of our Human Race, and it is also the face of Your Majesty.
Tian Xing cannot be trusted; neither the Grand Tutor nor Min Youguo can truly control him.
Your subject has no choice but to act personally to let Your Majesty see the truth.
It is only a pity that your subject has nevertheless brought harm to the Li clan.]
[The Li clan is proud and untamable, but they are not disloyal or wicked people.
At the very least, they will fight the Wu Clan to the death for the sake of the Azure Cloud Region, staking the destiny of their entire clan.
Jade and gold must both be polished, and now... Tian Xing can be exterminated, and the Li family has also had its sharp edges worn smooth.]
[May Your Majesty's lifespan be equal to that of Heaven, and may you enjoy immortal fortune for all eternity!]
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