Chapter 645: Mysterious Master
Translator: Pika
The two of them quickly arrived at the imperial study. Eunuch Wen bowed respectfully at the entrance. “Your majesty, Sir Eleven has arrived.”
“Let him in.” A dignified voice sounded from within.
Eunuch Wen moved to the side and gestured for Zu An to go in.
Zu An nodded with a smile, but he was panicking inside. Could it be that the emperor already came back? That means that big sis sect master is in danger!
Zu An immediately sighed in relief when he saw the giant mirror on the dragon throne inside. Thankfully, it is still just a divine will he is facing.
But why does it look so strange? It looks like a portrait of the deceased. Is he not afraid of this being inauspicious?
There was another person in the room. Cheng Xiong was standing respectfully to the side, but he was looking at Zu An with a sneer, as if he already foresaw his miserable ending.
Zu An didn’t pay him any attention. He greeted the emperor. “I pay my respects to your majesty!”
The man in the dragon robes within the mirror opened his eyes. He didn’t speak any unnecessary words and immediately talked about the main matter at hand. “Left Guard General has claimed that you have colluded with the assassins. Is this true?”
Zu An already had a feeling that this was the case, so he didn’t panic. “Your majesty, this subject is being wronged. How could I possibly collude with the assassins? General Cheng is completely slandering me.”
“Slander?” Cheng Xiong sneered. “Didn’t you seek out soul healing medicine from the imperial hospital not too long ago?”
Zu An felt a thud noise inside of him. This was where the issue was after all.
He replied, “Correct, I have.”
Many people saw him do this, so there was no need to refute it.
Cheng Xiong said, “Why would a grandmaster bother attacking the soul of a nobody like you? Furthermore, the female assassin only showed strength at the master rank at first, so there is no way she would use any soul attack methods. Thus, how could you have your soul damaged? In my opinion, the soul healing medicine was most likely for that female assassins.”
Zu An almost gave this man a thumbs up. This fella already practically guessed at everything himself!
Of course, there was no way he would admit to that. “General Cheng is not a grandmaster, so how do you know what a grandmaster thinks? What difference is there between what you say and a random countryside wife claiming that the empress eats flour cakes too?”
“You…!” Cheng Xiong was so angry his entire body was shaking. This fella’s mouth really was too formidable. He always felt like he fell behind a bit.
You have successfully trolled Cheng Xiong for +311 +311 +311…
“Impudent!” The emperor in the mirror opened his eyes. His dignified gaze landed on Zu An. He was clearly unhappy with hearing the empress being used in an analogy.
Only now did Zu An realize that there was an empress in this world. He was already used to using these phrases in his past world.
Fortunately, the emperor didn’t argue with him over this point. His eyes were like burning torches as he looked at Zu An. “I do not recall your soul being injured the last time you arrived at the imperial study.”
The corners of Cheng Xiong’s mouths were already about to reach his ears. Now that even his majesty said this, everything was already settled. All he had to do now was watch a good show.
Zu An’s mind sunk. He quickly explained, “Back then, I didn’t realize that I was injured. Only after I left the imperial study did my soul injuries erupt.”
The emperor frowned. Grandmasters indeed had such methods.
Cheng Xiong sneered. “Sir Eleven, these lies are meaningless. With his majesty’s cultivation, he can easily tell whether your soul is injured or not from a single glance.”
Then, he bowed towards the emperor. “Your majesty, please preside over this manner!”
The emperor nodded. His sharp eyes stared at Zu An. Two faint streaks of golden light surrounded Zu An as if they were tangible. He wasn’t given the slightest chance to retaliate.
Let’s see how you make it out of this one! Cheng Xiong felt incredible right now. This fella was just way too hard to deal with. He tried different things again and again, yet he failed to make any progress several times. Fortunately, they had such a powerful emperor. No one could deceive him.
Zu An had a strange look on his face. This really was a coincidence. He just used Keyboard Come, which caused him to suffer a soul injury, and he even used the Five Aggregates Root to treat himself. Now, this was exactly what he was being tested on. He almost had a feeling like he was taking an open-book exam!
The emperor gave him a look and then calmly said, “His soul is indeed injured, and there are traces of the Five Aggregates Root’s aura.”
“What?!” Cheng Xiong’s smile immediately froze.
How could this be?!
He quickly said, “Is there a mistake…”
But the emperor immediately cut him off before he even finished his sentence. “Are you doubting my judgment?”
Cheng Xiong was covered in cold sweat. “This subject doesn’t dare! But when the assassins invaded, the palace gate guards reported two golden token envoy leaving. However, my investigation showed that there couldn’t have been any other golden token envoys apart from Sir Eleven. This means that he definitely used his uniform to secretly send out an assassin! We will find out the truth if we investigate his uniforms.”
“Oh?” The emperor looked at Zu An again.
Zu An was alarmed. Even though he used Keyboard Come to make a uniform out of thin air, some time had already passed. That uniform already disappeared.
The effects of Keyboard Come were only temporary and would disappear after a while. Otherwise, couldn’t he just brag that he was number one in the world and that his soul was invincible? That would mean that his soul wouldn’t take any damage.
A quiet voice sounded at this time. “There is no need for further investigation. I looked into it myself. Sir Eleven’s uniform was complete, and there were no signs of being worn by anyone else.” Zhuxie Chixin walked in. His long and narrow eyes gave Cheng Xiong a look.
Cheng Xiong began to panic. “Your majesty, the Embroidered Envoy might be shielding each other…”
Zhuxie Chixin’s expression sunk. “Please watch what you say, General Cheng. When have I ever shielded a subordinate in all these years? It is instead a certain someone who loves to frame others.”
“Enough, do not discuss this matter further. Do not fight amongst yourselves in private and focus on your investigations. Zhuxie Chixin, stay behind. Everyone else can leave.” The emperor said coldly, and then he closed his eyes. He didn’t look like he had any interest in speaking more.
“Understood!” Cheng Xiong didn’t dare to say anything else. He quickly withdrew.
Zu An gave Zhuxie Chixin a grateful look, and then he left as well. He didn’t dare to say anything while inside, but once they were outside, he said, “General Cheng, why have you targeted me again and again? I wonder how I offended you?”
Cheng Xiong said indifferently, “I do not know what Sir Eleven is saying. This general never acts based on grudges and always acts impartially.”
Zu An had to admire this guy’s shamelessness. He obviously didn’t keep him here to discuss reason with him, but to collect Rage points. “I really appreciate how even though the general clearly hates me, there’s nothing you can do but appear helpless, ha ha ha.”
He strutted off after saying this.
Cheng Xiong was left standing there by himself. His face began to twist, smoke rising from the top of his head.
You have successfully trolled Cheng Xiong for +999 +999 +999…
Cheng Xiong’s trusted aides quietly walked over. “General, why do we keep going after him? He is a golden token envoy after all and not that easy to deal with.
A golden token envoy alone was already hard enough to deal with, and this one even had Zhuxie Chixin backing him. They felt like Cheng Xiong really did make a miscalculation this time.
Cheng Xiong snorted and said, “You all know nothing! His majesty has wanted to take out King Qi’s faction for a while now, and this asssassination is the best reason to do so. He clearly plans to remove me first. I need to strike first and find a scapegoat to get through this ordeal.”
Whether or not he found out the truth of this matter actually didn’t matter at all. What was important was that he had to find someone to shoulder the blame.
Golden Token Eleven looked like the most suitable candidate. He had enough status, and his foundation wasn’t firm enough yet. Furthermore, this fella’s relationship with the assassins was suspicious to begin with. He was the perfect scapegoat!
Zu An was just about to return to his big sis sect master after leaving the imperial study and discuss Cheng Xiong’s matter together, but a servant girl suddenly approached him. “Sir Eleven, my master invites you for a meeting.”
“Who is your master?” Zu An was curious. Who else did he know among the harem chambers?”
That maid didn’t reply. “Sir Eleven will know once you arrive.”