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Chapter 1151 Zhou Nanwang, the Martial Saint of the Netherworld

The Imperial Palace for Offering Sacrifices to Heaven!

The smooth, black floor was like a large mirror, reflecting the gold-lacquered decorations on the ceiling of the main hall.

The firing process of the floor tiles is extremely meticulous. They appear cool but are actually warm and smooth, so even if you take off your shoes and step on them, your feet will not feel cold or slip.

The craftsman's skill in laying the floor tiles is superb; there are no gaps in the floor, as if it were fired from a single piece.

A figure was reflected on the ground, walking slowly forward, the sound echoing between the pillars.

"The Sacrificial Palace, the residence of the human ruler and the common master of the world, is imbued with the painstaking efforts of dozens of martial saints."

"Who could have imagined that one day someone would be so heartless as to plot against a feudal lord in the palace?"

“Even if he makes a grave mistake due to a momentary lapse of judgment, he remains in office. To plot against him without removing him from office is a crime punishable by heaven and earth.”

The voice came from Zhou Nanwang. No one expected that he would suddenly come to Dijing from the distant southern border. While the outside world was in the midst of a fierce battle, he broke into the Sacrifice Heaven Palace alone.

He seemed to be talking to himself in front of the empty hall, but in reality, he had a goal, and the other party responded to him.

"Hehe, the assassin who killed Fengjun is named Musigui. He is a mixed-blood witch and an ally of your adopted son Zhou Daqian."

"Zhou Daqian's original name was Zhou You. He was a commoner boy from the north who rose to prominence while fighting against the invasion of the witches. You took him in as your adopted son and brought him to the capital. It was there that he met Mu Sigui."

"Zhou Nanwang, now that these clues are out in the open, can you guess who the prime suspect is in the plot to murder the feudal lord?"

Chongyang Gong hunched over, leaning against a bronze lamp and squinting at a stack of yellow paper. Although he was completely focused, it did not prevent him from responding to Zhou Nanwang's accusations.

He withdrew from the battlefield and returned to the sacrificial palace, all for the sake of the precious books stored there, which recorded many ancient secrets.

Many of the characters are ancient and obscure, and some are even variants of seal script that have long been extinct, but they are very easy to recognize in his eyes.

Zhou Nanwang smiled slightly, "You old dog are a master of scheming. No one who has been targeted by you has escaped. Nothing can be hidden from you!"

"But you don't get to decide who the murderer is. The mere sorcerer is just a tool you're using."

"Who colluded with the Enchantress to instigate the Lord to acquire land in Putuo Prefecture for alchemy? Who deceived the promising Seven Flavors Pharmacist, leading him astray? And who was behind it all, taking advantage of the chaos to harm the Lord's wife, directly causing these tragedies?"

Zhou Nanwang said, word by word, "In the last moments of his life, Feng Jun was still under your control. You deliberately lifted the palace restrictions, allowing the unsuspecting Mu Sigui to break into the palace and kill Feng Jun and... Consort Mei without anyone guarding them."

"Hmm, you killed Consort Mei too. It seems this woman saw through your plan!"

Lord Chongyang licked his fingers, carefully untangled the stuck-together papers, and sighed, "She is a rare talent, but unfortunately she threatens my grand plan, so I have to get rid of her!"

“Zhou Nanwang, I thought you were just another mediocre member of a prominent family, but it wasn’t until I was pondering the name of your adopted son that I realized how deep you’ve been hiding your true abilities.”

"How did Zhou You become Zhou Daqian? You once had dealings with the Human Race Religion, and later became the most trusted confidant of the lord, rising to prominence all the way. On the contrary, Zhou Daqian's performance overshadowed your brilliance."

Zhou Nanwang listened with a smile, "I knew I couldn't hide it from the discerning Chongyang Gong!"

"I don't have the insight to see through everything, because I can't see through who you really are?"

Suddenly, Chongyang Gong raised the bronze lamp, and the warm orange light shone on Zhou Nanwang's face, making the shadows even more intense.

Who exactly are you? What secrets are you hiding?

“Zhou Nanwang, the Zhou family is nothing compared to you. Even Zhou Daqian was raised by you. You are more terrifying than those guys from the Human Race Sect and the Buddhist Sect who rely on the legacy of the Martial Saint.”

Zhou Nanwang did not respond to him, but silently looked into Chongyang Gong's eyes, and spoke after a long time. "From the moment I stepped into the palace gates to this hall, I have passed through 87 traps that you painstakingly set up."

"Among them are 12 deadly character plates, and 7 seal script passages that can teleport people to unknown locations. As for methods such as distracting the mind, hallucinating and blinding, and distorting reality, they are as numerous as the sands of the Ganges."

"You've used all your skills here, so you think highly of me."

Chongyang Gong stared wide-eyed as he listened to the familiar numbers being listed, his heart sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

It was as if countless bright lights illuminated him, making him appear incandescent inside and out, leaving no blind spots and making it impossible to hide any secrets.

This was only the second time in his life that he had experienced a similar sense of powerlessness and despair.

"Who are you? There's no way someone like you could exist in this world today!"

The other party's casual words completely overwhelmed his mastery of seal script, the number one expert in the Golden Immortal Path. No matter how hard Chongyang Gong racked his brains, he couldn't think of a Golden Immortal Path senior who met the criteria.

Zhou Nanwang said frankly, "It's fine to tell you. I believe you won't tell anyone. Well, even if you did, no one would believe you."

"Your descendants generally refer to me as... the Martial Saint of the Netherworld."

"The Martial Saint Who Reaches the Netherworld!"

Chongyang Gong's eyes seemed to jump out of their sockets; he was so shocked that he squeezed the bronze lamp so tightly that it became deformed.

He blurted out, "Impossible! When a Martial Saint dies, the heavens and earth resonate; I've never heard of someone returning."

Zhou Nanwang nodded in agreement, "I don't know about the other Martial Saints, but since my name is 'Tongyou,' do you know what it means?"

All the martial saints throughout history have possessed the characteristics of omniscience and omnipotence. Once they achieve the status of martial saint, nothing in the world remains a secret to them.

The Martial Saint of the Netherworld is an anomaly among them. He not only knows everything under heaven, but also explores a mysterious place called 'Netherworld'.

"The afterlife is a place where the dead cannot see or be seen. During my lifetime, I was determined to break down the barrier between life and death and explore the world after death."

"Unfortunately, life and death are terrifying, and even a martial saint can only glimpse the whole picture."

"But my name is Tongyou, and I have gained some knowledge, which allows me to conceal a trace of fist intent within the darkness."

"Before I passed away, I left behind the key to open it, hidden in... well, what you call the holy artifact."

"After countless years, someone finally discovered the key, and that person was... Zhou Nanwang, which is me!"

Chongyang Gong was shocked and subconsciously said, "The method of resurrection by borrowing a corpse is not new."

"No, no, no, you're mistaken. It's not a case of possession, but rather that I have merged with Zhou Nanwang. Zhou Nanwang's original body remains, but he has absorbed the consciousness of the Tongyou Martial Saint, becoming a completely new being."

Zhou Nanwang pointed to himself, "I am Zhou Nanwang, and also the Tongyou Martial Saint who has been reborn across countless years."

"You old dog, you think you can do whatever you want, but you're far inferior to us back then. You're so proud of your little schemes."

Zhou Nanwang said calmly, "Tsk tsk, it's true that each generation is worse than the last."

Duke Chongyang was speechless. No wonder the other party dared to say that; who could believe it? He didn't believe it either.

(End of this chapter)