Chapter 181: Killing at Every Step

Leaving through the back door of the Eastern Depot, Wei Zhongxian’s sedan chair was in front, and Xiao Fen’s sedan chair was behind. The sedan chair Xiao Fen sat in had extremely thick curtains that were tightly sealed. Even the front curtain was incredibly thick. During the journey, not a single ray of light leaked in, showing that they did not intend to let Xiao Fen know what was in the Forbidden City.

Xiao Fen did not mind this. As long as he could leave this Trial World, he would have plenty of opportunities to enter this place in the future. There was no need to insist on seeing it now.

Relatively speaking, he cared more about filling his Staff with several Skills.

If it were against those Filth Creatures, Qigong would naturally be the best choice. But thinking about Wei Zhongxian’s strength, he knew that inside the Imperial Palace, such creatures were definitely very few, to the point of being negligible.

Therefore, the ones that Wei Zhongxian considered dangerous could only be humans, and humans with high combat levels.

If it were someone like Wei Zhongxian, Xiao Fen did not think he had much chance of winning. Of course, if he launched a sudden sneak attack, there might be an opportunity. But without a sneak attack, Xiao Fen knew his own strength very well; he basically had no chance.

However, in the entire palace, there could not be many people with Wei Zhongxian’s skill level. Whether Ke Shi had the ability to command such people was still a question.

Xiao Fen thought and thought, then filled his Staff with an Armor-Piercing Poison Agent, a Paralytic Poison Agent, a Qigong, and a Greek Fire. This was basically all his attack skills. After thinking for a bit, he did not add another Qigong but added another Greek Fire instead.

Facts proved that interrupting an opponent’s recovery was more effective in specific environments than dealing more damage at once.

After making these, Xiao Fen felt dizzy and his brain swollen again. Clearly, the short rest earlier could not fully compensate for the problems caused by his overdrawn Energy. With the new consumption, Xiao Fen once again entered a stage of Energy depletion.

Just like that, after walking for an unknown amount of time, Xiao Fen felt the sedan chair suddenly pause in his half-dazed state. After a while, Wei Zhongxian lifted the curtain, looked at Xiao Fen, and said: “Immortal, we have arrived. His Majesty has been waiting for you for a long time.”

Xiao Fen raised his eyebrows slightly, knowing that Wei Zhongxian’s words likely meant that Ke Shi’s side had already made full preparations.

He gently shook his head to clear his mind a little and said: “Very well, let us go then.”

Wei Zhongxian glanced left and right, saw that Lycaon had followed, nodded, and said: “Please, Immortal.”

The group quickly walked along a corridor outside a hall. After bypassing a row of walls, Xiao Fen vaguely saw a palace not far away, brilliantly lit. There were at least dozens of guards outside the door, all with serious expressions, extremely cautious.

Wei Zhongxian signaled the group to stop. He walked through the guards to the hall door and said in a shrill voice: “Your Majesty, I have invited the Immortal.”

The palace was quiet for a moment, then a shrill voice sounded: “His Majesty invites the Immortal.”

After saying that, the great door opened. A small eunuch walked out and bowed to Wei Zhongxian. The two exchanged glances. Wei Zhongxian nodded slightly, turned to Xiao Fen and said: “Immortal, it is windy outside. His Majesty invites you in to speak.”

Xiao Fen smiled slightly. His spirit had improved. Hearing Wei Zhongxian’s words, he strode forward, ignoring the murderous looks from the guards, and said loudly: “If I feared this wind, I would not have come to the Capital City.”

The group walked in. There was no one on the yellow silk couch in the main hall, but the side hall on the left was brightly lit, with occasional clinking sounds. Other than that, there was no other noise. This was completely different from the scene Xiao Fen had imagined, where Ke Shi would be weeping and wailing.

Following the small eunuch into the side hall, it felt like walking into a carpentry workshop. Planes, chisels, saws, and axes were all there. In the middle of the side hall stood a tall, thin young man. His body was sturdy, but perhaps because he rarely went outside, his face looked somewhat pale. His eyes were narrow and long, looking spirited, but somehow, he seemed a bit old for his age. He was not wearing any silk or satin, just simple coarse cloth clothes. Only the yellow borders quietly proved this young man’s identity.

Hearing Xiao Fen and the others enter, the young man looked up, smiled slightly, and said: “You arrived at a good time. Come and see how is the wooden ship I built?”

Wei Zhongxian quickly shook his head and said: “You flatter this old slave too much. His Majesty’s craftsmanship must be excellent. How would this old slave dare to judge it privately?”

Xiao Fen’s eye twitched. It sounded like this Wei Zhongxian did not respect the Emperor that much either. Thinking of this, he turned his head to look at the wooden ship on the workbench. The ship was about 2 feet long and 1 foot high, carved with extreme magnificence. Even someone like Xiao Fen, who did not understand carpentry, could feel that the ship had a lifelike quality, as if placed in water, it could swim on its own.

At this point, he raised his head and looked at the young Emperor before him. Tianqi also looked at him, seemingly waiting for Xiao Fen to give an answer.

Xiao Fen said in a low voice: “It is very well made, like a living thing.”

The Emperor smiled slightly, casually smashed the wooden ship onto the ground with a “pa” sound, and said: “My temper is hasty. I always want to finish today’s work today. It is the same with carpentry. If I cannot finish this ship, I might as well destroy it.”

Pausing for a moment, the Emperor added: “Here with me, Immortal, you need not worry about tedious rituals and etiquette. Let us skip those. Someone, invite the Immortal to sit.”

Xiao Fen pretended to cup his hands and sat carelessly on a brocade stool brought by a small eunuch. Before he could speak, Wei Zhongxian, who was outside the threshold, spoke up: “Your Majesty, the Immortal has been invited. This old slave dares not disturb you and will wait outside the hall.”

The Tianqi Emperor said: “You may go. You have worked hard during this time. I will not speak much with the Immortal.”

Wei Zhongxian nodded, bowed his head, and backed out of the palace.

The hall door gently closed. Except for the small eunuch standing outside the pearl curtain, the entire room fell into silence for a moment.

After waiting for a while, the Emperor suddenly said: “Time waits for no one.”

Xiao Fen was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to respond. He heard the Emperor say again: “Time waits for no one!”

These words sounded incredibly melancholy, not like the emotion someone of the speaker’s age should have.

Xiao Fen smiled and said: “Your Majesty is still young. Why do you say time waits for no one?”

“How long I can live, how long the Ming Dynasty can last—I know more or less. If Wei Zhongxian could live a few more years, perhaps there would be a turning point. But this turning point is so slim that it is no different from having none. The more this is so, the more I must seize the day. Unfortunately, I can seize the day in carpentry, but not for the world.”

Looking at Xiao Fen, the Emperor said: “What the Ming Dynasty looks like, I know without others telling me. It is just a broken ship, with no shore in sight, and the people on board only care about fighting. Even if I want to rally and start again, I am alone. Where are there so many helpers? In the end, I have to rely on the people around me.”

Pausing, the Emperor continued: “I did not study much when I was young. I did not learn the Four Books and Five Classics much. So, in some matters, I see through things better than others. The world is bustling, all for fame and profit. Even those scholars, what do they fight for? Is it not just the two words: fame and profit?”

Xiao Fen did not speak. He was not familiar with this Emperor, nor was he very clear about this history. Aside from knowing that this era produced a peak eunuch, Wei Zhongxian, who killed and dismissed the Donglin Party members, he did not have a deep impression. He just occasionally wondered, how could a chief eunuch like this, not even the real head eunuch, so easily control a country?

Before Xiao Fen could react, the Emperor said: “Wei Zhongxian is loyal to me. Although I know he acts recklessly outside, so what? He is better than those ministers who mouth loyalty to the Emperor and country while privately making deals.”

Xiao Fen smiled bitterly. This Emperor really talked a lot. But he roughly understood; it was nothing more than propping one up to overthrow another, maintaining balance. But frankly, what did this have to do with him?

Even if not for Ke Shi’s sake, just because he was an Immortal summoned to the palace, what was Xiao Fen’s identity? An Immortal!

Would an Immortal care about the deception of the Mortal World? Obviously not. Those who care about worldly fame and profit, how could they be true Immortals?

“I say this to let you know that I can distinguish true from false, good from evil. I also know what you are doing, whether it is good or bad for me. I know even more that with you here, I will be safer, and the Capital City will be safer.”

Pausing, the Emperor continued: “However, the world is the world, and I also have someone I love. Do you know?”

The corner of Xiao Fen’s mouth raised slightly, and he said: “Whatever you want to say, just say it directly. Rambling here for so long is quite boring.”

“My wet nurse has been very good to me. Because of her, I avoided several fatal disasters when I was young. I must repay her. Regarding today’s matter, I will not ask about the cause, nor the result. I only ask: can the Immortal still fight?”

Xiao Fen raised his eyebrows and asked: “Fight whom?”

“My wet nurse recently took in several palace maids. One of them is very good at fighting. She also spoke to me, asking you to fight that palace maid. Life and death are determined by fate. If you win, all past events are written off. If you lose, you pay with your life. What does the Immortal think?”

Xiao Fen frowned and asked back: “Just a palace maid?”

“Just a palace maid.”

“When?”

“Right now.”

“Where?”

Outside the hall.”

“What rules?”

“No rules.”

Hearing this, Xiao Fen nodded and said: “Very well, let us end this here. It is better than being secretly targeted every day.”

“That is it. I will be your witness. If you win, no one in the Capital City will oppose you anymore.”

Xiao Fen smiled, stood up, stepped over the threshold, stood at the door of the side hall, and suddenly turned his head to ask: “Love to this extent?”

Behind the pearl curtain, there was silence for a moment, then the Emperor answered: “The land loves the person; it cannot be weighed.”

Xiao Fen nodded and asked again: “Is there any return?”

The Emperor asked back: “When you love, do you ask for a return?”

Xiao Fen was stunned for a moment, thought about it, nodded and smiled: “What you say is true, very true.”