Master of Strange Dao

"""

"Is this true?"

"You sit down first."

You Zhen, standing by, cast a glare at King Xiang, who immediately lowered his banners and settled back into his seat.

"The excuse I mentioned, of course, isn't this.

But I've also received news that the Old King Qi once possessed a piece of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures tainted with the aura of Immortal Herbs, capable of extending life by at least a thousand years."

Upon hearing this, You Zhen furrowed his brows slightly.

King Xiang frowned.

"I heard the Old King Qi died naturally of old age.

Furthermore, there was never any mention of that top-tier Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

This..."

You Zhen also sighed softly.

Back then he didn't want King Xiang to inherit the throne of Emperor Zhen. It wasn't out of unwillingness, just that he didn't want him to be used and discarded.

Yu Ziqing also sighed inwardly and spoke plainly.

"The Old King Qi has only been dead for over a thousand years. The experts who followed him back then should still be the main pillars, all under King Qi's command now.

If you want to find a reason to eliminate King Qi, it will certainly be difficult. Whether his troops or experts, none would agree to it.

In the end, it would still result in chaos.

However, by my estimation, this King Qi is far less talented than you, yet still managed to advance to the Ninth Tier.

That isn't something ordinary resources can achieve.

Perhaps it's challenging for him to advance to the Ninth Tier on his own, but if he had a piece of top-tier Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures tainted with the aura of Immortal Herbs, there might still be a chance for it.

I bet, the Old King Qi's funeral back then wasn't organized by Emperor Zhen.

It was personally handled by the current King Qi, wasn't it?

Doing so helped rally people's hearts at the time.

You tell me, if this Old King Qi actually didn't need to die but was harmed by his own son, what then?

Even if the Old King Qi hadn't consumed that piece of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, he wasn't yet at the end of his lifespan.

If those old folks within King Qi's fiefdom were to learn of this, would they still protect King Qi?

As long as you remove him and the people within King Qi's fief don't stir up trouble, then behind the scenes you can slowly interrogate about the event involving your father back then.

Do you understand?"

"I understand." King Xiang nodded sincerely.

Earlier, he indeed hadn't figured out this twist.

He had only heard that the Old King Qi participated personally in harming his father, and he was a little agitated.

In retrospect, it makes sense. Without someone's help or creating an opportunity back then, his father would not have been exploited by the Heavenly Demon.

"Just go back and tell your Second Uncle. Don't get directly involved, and don't manage it."

"I understand."

King Xiang left quietly and returned to Dazhen. He met with Emperor Zhen and mentioned the matter.

"I understand, don't manage it, and don't get involved. You know nothing, understood?"

"I understand." King Xiang nodded in agreement. In fact, he didn't grasp much about this "understanding" but figured he would just follow orders.

King Xiang slipped away quietly, while Emperor Zhen turned, gazing at the map on the wall behind him with a sigh.

"King Qi..."

Although the Old King Qi wasn't renowned for his power, he managed his fief quite well, with a multitude of experts under his command.

This provided the current King Qi with a solid foundation.

Moreover, King Qi always maintained an image of loyalty and filial piety before others, so naturally, the Old King Qi's subordinates continued to devote themselves loyally to him.

Due to this, even though there were recent disturbances, Emperor Zhen could at best rebuke him, but couldn't take action.

Any action would immediately spark a civil war.

But now, there was indeed a very good excuse.

Whether it was true or not didn't really matter.

That piece of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, whether the Old King Qi deliberately left it for King Qi or if King Qi secretly seized it, thereby harming the Old King Qi, both possibilities exist.

In truth, Emperor Zhen also believed that the Old King Qi most likely met with a violent death.

Using this as an excuse would make it much easier to capture King Qi.

Once apprehended and taken to prison, they could then question him about his brother's matter.

Upon hearing that the Old Emperor Zhen's harm involved the Old King Qi directly, he decided not to hold back anymore.

It's time to deal out death.

The leader of the Faceless Men, Li Xingchen, silently appeared beside Emperor Zhen.

"Did you hear what was said earlier?"

"I heard it."

"You handle this matter. Remember, it should only involve the Old King Qi, no more."

"I understand."

Li Xingchen, with a composed expression, left. Once back, he immediately started consulting various records, from classics to archives.

He unearthed a volume of records concerning the Old King Qi.

After half a day, he put away the stack of documents covering the table, gaining a rough understanding in his heart.

The words King Xiang returned to say weren't entirely impossible.

When the Old King Qi died back then, indeed some people felt something was amiss, claiming the Old King Qi's lifespan hadn't yet run out, and there was no reason for him to die.

However, validation at that time confirmed that indeed the Old King Qi's lifespan had expired and he died.

But an exhausted lifespan doesn't necessarily mean natural death.

If employing certain Secret Techniques with a steep cost, what burns out is life span.

The records explicitly stated 'death from an exhausted life span,' rather than 'natural death.'

Looking again at the inspectors from those times,

Three persons, all dead within ten years.

The last one even died out in the East Sea, said to have fallen victim to a sea demon.

Li Xingchen immediately saw the issue; this clearly pointed to the person noticing the deaths of the other two and trying to escape, only to be silenced in the East Sea.

Continuing to sift through the records, among those involved in the validation, one was also a Faceless Man.

The record stated he died during a mission inside a new Grotto Heaven, with no more details provided.

However, there was no record regarding that piece of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Yet this wasn't much of a problem because if that piece really retained the aura of the Immortal Herbs, once consumed by King Qi, it would surely be detectable on him.

"""