MTLNOVEL Chapter 708: Regent
Lin Rui did not ride his Demon Dragon to the Divine Palace; instead, clad in his Heavenly Demon Armor, he soared through the air and arrived before the Divine Sky Hall.
The Demon Dragon was notoriously cowardly. After helping Huang Fuqing replace the Battle Dragon, it had been trembling pitifully outside the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower.
Luckily, despite its cowardice, it was quite thorough and efficient when carrying out tasks. Otherwise, Lin Rui would have considered killing it long ago.
This creature had lorded over the outskirts of Wangcheng County, defying all laws, but today, during the prison break at the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower, it was so frightened that it practically shriveled into nothing.
Thus, Lin Rui dared not bring it to the Divine Palace at this critical moment. With the Divine's omniscient sight and the Great Celestial Master's keen perception, any slip-up from the Demon Dragon could lead to disastrous consequences.
At this moment, numerous high-ranking officials of the court, noble members of the Great Song imperial family, and forces like the Divine Strategy Army, Imperial Dragon Guard, and Imperial Guard were gathered before the Divine Sky Hall. Among them were several Candidate Divine Envoys and Vice Divine Envoys stationed in the capital.
Upon Lin Rui's arrival, the majority of these gathered figures bowed in respectful salutation toward him.
The Candidate Divine Envoys and Vice Divine Envoys whose statuses equaled Lin Rui's had complex expressions as they watched him continue undeterred, striding boldly into the Divine Sky Hall.
As Lin Rui stepped into the hall, he first directed his salute toward the high platform in the center.
The platform was empty, as the East Abyss had yet to return. Nonetheless, Lin Rui could not forego his respects; he performed his ritual obeisance as though the Divine were present.
At this moment, only the Great Celestial Master, the Second Divine Envoy, and the Fourth Candidate Divine Envoy were present in the expansive hall.
It was the fourth month, meaning the Fourth Candidate Divine Envoy was on duty monitoring the Divine Envoys and thus qualified for an audience with the Divine.
As for the Emperor, the First Divine Envoy, and Luo Wangshu, they were all leading military campaigns outside the capital and unable to return.
After completing his ceremonial rites, Lin Rui noticed the Second Divine Envoy scrutinizing him with an unusual gaze.
He furrowed his brow and questioned with a puzzled expression, "Divine Envoy Yu, is there something amiss with me?"
"There's nothing wrong with the Duke's stature, but judging by your spirit mechanism and energy flow, you seem to have advanced to the Seventh Realm, correct?"
Yu Huaxuan's voice paused briefly before he chuckled lightly, "How curious! Your ally Lin Rui, not long ago, also reached the Seventh Realm Divine Power? The two of you—one earthly, one heavenly—stepped into the Divine Power Realm nearly simultaneously, both within a year. It's hard not to draw some connections."
"Lin Rui?"
Lin Rui shook his head slightly: "I have only worked with Outer Heaven Demons on government matters; there's no basis for an alliance. However, Lin Rui is indeed extraordinarily talented. It's said he possesses an Abyss-level gift among Outer Heaven Demons, surpassing my cultivation aptitude. It's not surprising he ascended to Divine Power within a year."
He looked toward the heavens, his gaze heavy: "It's rumored that he wields a pair of Abyss Weapons; in the future, he might well become a formidable adversary for my Sky Extreme Star."
Yu Huaxuan, observing Lin Rui's earnest nonsense, found himself momentarily unable to discern its truth. Squinting slightly, he then remarked, "So why did the Duke visit the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower today? It's rather intriguing—last year, when you went to the Demon Suppression Forest, it incited chaos; this year, you go to the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower, and it nearly collapses. Then, there was the Abyss Divine Tablet—your knack for drawing trouble truly inspires awe in this Divine Envoy."
Lin Rui's face darkened at those words.
Speaking of this matter, he felt unfairly accused.
He had merely commissioned the Sky Assassin Mercenary Group to blow up three small holes outside the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower, staging a prison break in order to execute a deception swap.
One must understand the bureaucratic style of Great Song—transforming major issues into minor ones and minor issues into non-issues. Such a trifling magical disturbance could be resolved within the Cabinet without escalating further.
Qi Lechun surely wouldn't want the higher-ups to learn, during his impending transfer, that he had failed in his supervision and neglected his duties, leading to Outer Heaven Demons deploying anti-matter annihilation bombs during a near-successful prison break at the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower.
Thus, this matter would neither alarm the Divine Envoy Monitor nor reach the Divine's ears.
But the actions of those aligned with Purgatory had caused this to escalate wildly.
Nevertheless, Lin Rui would not shoulder this blame.
Lin Rui's expression turned steely: "My visit to the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower to cultivate Blood Evil was arranged with Qi Lechun a year ago and previously reported to the Divine Palace. Speaking of which, I find it curious—over the past two years, Luojing's security has been under Divine Envoy Yu's supervision, yet since my arrival in the capital, I've encountered numerous disturbances. In just a year and a half, there have been over ten assassination attempts on me.
Furthermore, major incidents continue to erupt near Luojing—Demon Suppression Forest, Divine Palace, sacrilege cases, and the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower. It's one thing for major incidents to occur, but the fact that culprits repeatedly succeed—Divine Envoy Yu, under your supervision, how exactly is Luojing being monitored?"
Yu Huaxuan's face darkened as well, thinking this man had indeed grown bold. In Luo Wangshu's absence, he dared to challenge him within the Divine Sky Hall, even speaking with veiled sarcasm.
Yu Huaxuan thought to himself that he was merely supervising Luojing's security, not directly managing it.
Moreover, the capital was rife with power structures—the Imperial City Department, Capital Administration, Imperial Guard—all issuing commands and competing for dominance. His role was merely nominal.
Not to mention that the magical disturbance this time—wasn't it also the responsibility of the Spy Detection Bureau Commander?
Yu Huaxuan reconsidered and realized Lin Rui indeed bore no responsibility.
The Spy Detection Bureau primarily focused on defending against Outer Heaven Demons, preventing infiltration by Alien Walkers.
"Today's havoc at the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower allowed seventy-seven Ninth Realm demons to escape from their cells. Upon investigating their identities, I discovered that half of them were celebrated ministers and generals from our dynasty over the past four thousand years who had mysteriously fallen to demonic influence and been imprisoned in the tower."
Lin Rui bowed toward the Divine Platform: "I did my utmost to assist in quelling the chaos at the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower, slaying most of these demons. Of the seventy-seven, only two managed to escape."
Had Lin Rui not been present, and had the Sky Assassin Mercenary Group not administered copious amounts of hallucinogens, the number of escaped demons would have been far higher.
In return, Lin Rui had harvested an astonishing amount of soul power points and Blood Evil essence.
At that moment, the Fourth Candidate Divine Envoy also nodded and offered a fair statement: "Based on the outcome, it's evident that Purgatory attempted to exploit the upheaval in the Demon Suppression Forest to release the demons from the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower. Without the Duke's presence today, the consequences would have been unimaginable."
As his words fell, the Great Celestial Master, who had been standing in the center of the Divine Sky Hall, gazing at the Heavenly Curtain and stars, released the Dharma Seal formed by his interlaced hands.
His refined brows furrowed deeply into the shape of a "川" character: "Hold your disputes for now. Based on the star formations, today's disturbances were orchestrated by the Three Gods of Purgatory, and neither of you bear responsibility."
The Great Celestial Master gazed through the traces of fate within the stars but saw nothing, as all marks had clearly been suppressed by the Three Gods of Purgatory.
What he could confirm without a shred of doubt was that the turmoil in the Demon Suppression Forest had been orchestrated by the Great Song's Grand Ancestor and Grand Emperor, who were supposed to be long dead—alongside collusion by internal traitors.
Given that these were the culprits, the imperial court's entire assembly of officials stood little chance of defending against the chaos.
Upon hearing this, Yu Huaxuan's expression relaxed slightly. He had targeted Lin Rui out of fear of receiving blame or punishment from the Divine.
Just then, Yu Huaxuan suddenly stiffened.
The East Abyss had descended!
Through the veiled curtain hanging above the high platform, a faint abyssal form appeared.
As Yu Huaxuan, Lin Rui, and the others quickly re-initiated their ceremonial bows, the Divine voice of the East Abyss resounded in their ears: "Why were the two of you—Great Celestial Master and Yu Huaxuan—so slow to reinforce the Demon Suppression Forest?"
He was specifically questioning the two of them.
The Great Celestial Master spoke gravely, bowing: "Divine One, we feared that these demons might spark further disturbances within the city."
Yu Huaxuan smiled bitterly and added: "Divine One, I also worried that attackers might be misdirecting our focus. Indeed, not long after, an internal riot broke out within the Ten Thousand Dragon Tower."
"That is reasonable." The East Abyss appeared to deliberate: "And were the Emperor's dealings involved in this matter?"
"I am unsure!" The Great Celestial Master replied without hesitation: "I gazed at the stars and found only illusions; all traces were obliterated. Additionally, I confirmed the instigators of today's magical disturbances were that pair of treacherous villainous ancestors."
Yet the very act of suppression raised suspicion—
The Grand Ancestor and Grand Emperor of Great Song had passed onto the heavens long ago, so even mentioning those villainous names was forbidden.
"I see!" The voice of the East Abyss echoed coolly: "In that case, Luojing must appoint a Regent to maintain order within the city."
Outside the hall, among the gathered imperial family members, Candidate Divine Envoys, and Vice Divine Envoys, breaths grew heavy.
Only Yu Huaxuan's face turned grim.
Sure enough, the next moment, he heard the Divine's voice decreeing: "Duke Lin Rui, hear my command! During the Emperor's campaign against the Sky Pond, you shall act as Regent, managing court affairs and suppressing all demonic entities."