Traveling through another world to stir the emperor's heart

Three quarters past midnight, Zichen Palace.

The old eunuch Li Dequan hurried through the corridor carrying a palace lantern, his silk boots making almost no sound on the bluestone slabs.

He straightened his clothes outside the imperial study and knocked lightly on the carved door.

"Your Majesty, the Goddess and Lord Jun are outside the palace gates, requesting an audience. They say they have urgent matters to attend to."

The red pen paused slightly on the memorial, and Lan Xuanming raised his head.

The candlelight cast shadows in his deep eye sockets. "What time is this?" He glanced at the copper clock. "Announcement."

---

When Feng Qingyue stepped over the threshold of the imperial study, the ends of her hair were still stained with night dew.

Jun Linyuan followed her half a step behind, with traces of bandages faintly visible under his black cloak.

Hearing footsteps, he raised his head, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes: "A Yue? Coming to the palace so late, is there something urgent?"

Feng Qingyue knelt on one knee, her dark clothes stained with night dew: "Your Majesty, please forgive me for disturbing you so late at night."

"Get up quickly." Lan Xuanming put down the red pen.

His eyes swept over Jun Linyuan's pale face, and his brows furrowed slightly. "Is Pavilion Master Jun injured?"

"No problem." Jun Linyuan bowed and saluted.

Feng Qingyue and Jun Linyuan looked at each other.

He took three steps forward and saluted solemnly: "Your Majesty, we have discovered that the Regent King is colluding with the Northern Cultivators and privately cultivating an army of blood puppets."

“Bang—”

The wolf-hair brush in Lan Xuanming's hand fell onto the table.

---

He slowly stood up, the jade beads on his crown tassels colliding with each other, making a crisp sound. "Ayue, do you know how serious a crime it is to falsely accuse a royal relative?"

Feng Qingyue suddenly lifted her robe and knelt on one knee: "I guarantee it with the reputation of the goddess of Lan country."

The candlelight in the hall flickered violently.

The shadows of the three people were twisted and entangled on the Panlong Pillar.

"Evidence." Lan Xuanming's voice tightened. "I need solid evidence."

Feng Qingyue took out the blood-colored crystal fragment from her arms.

"Tonight, the Regent's men and the Northern Cultivators were handing over puppets, and we encountered them."

We saw with our own eyes the blood puppets eating living people.

She tapped the crystal with her fingertips, and a scarlet evil spirit suddenly emerged. "This item can only be refined by the bloodline of the Northern Cultivation Royal Family."

---

Lan Xuanming's expression instantly became solemn, and his bright yellow dragon robe glowed faintly in the candlelight.

The imperial study was completely silent, with only the dripping sound of water from the copper clock being clearly audible.

"Ayue, do you know that if what you said is true..." Lan Xuanming's voice was so low that it was almost inaudible.

"What kind of bloody storm will this unleash?"

Feng Qingyue's eyes were firm: "That is why I must report this to the king immediately."

Feng Qingyue took a step forward and placed the blood-colored crystal fragment on the imperial desk.

"This is a fragment taken from the puppet's heart. It has runes unique to Northern Cultivators on it."

Lan Xuanming's fingers trembled slightly.

He held up the crystal and examined it closely against the candlelight, his expression growing increasingly grim. "It is indeed Bei Xiu's 'Blood Curse'... After the great battle ten years ago, I thought I would never see anything like it again."

"Your Majesty," Jun Linyuan said in a deep voice, "the most urgent task is to investigate the extent of the Regent's collusion with Bei Xiu and how many blood puppets he has hidden."

Lan Xuanming suddenly started coughing violently, and the eunuch beside him hurriedly handed him a handkerchief.

After he calmed down, he found a little blood on the handkerchief. Feng Qingyue's heart tightened: "Your Majesty, you..."

"No problem." Lan Xuanming waved his hand and said with a wry smile, "It's an old problem. Ah Yue, do you know why I have never been able to touch the Regent in all these years?"

---

Feng Qingyue shook her head.

"Because the late emperor left a secret decree before his death."

Lan Xuanming pulled out a yellowed silk scroll from the secret compartment of the dragon table and said, "You order me to protect the Regent's life at all costs."

Jun Linyuan's eyes flashed: "Why did the late emperor..."

"I can't figure it out either." Lan Xuanming returned the secret decree.

"But now it seems that perhaps the late emperor had already noticed his connection with Bei Xiu."

There was an eerie silence in the imperial study for a moment.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning flashed outside the window, followed by thunder and heavy rain.

The hall fell into dead silence, with the only sound being the heavy rain hitting the window frames outside.

---

Feng Qingyue stared at the blood-colored crystal, and her fingertips felt slightly cold.

Twenty years ago, the Zizhu family was wiped out. She had always believed that the Lan Kingdom's royal family was wary of the Zi Clan's growing power, so they used the regent to eliminate dissidents. But now it seems...

"It's more than just fear." She whispered, her voice so soft that it was almost drowned out by the thunder.

Lan Xuanming slowly raised his head, a trace of pain in his eyes: "Ayue, what do you mean..."

"The Zizhu family has guarded the northern border for generations. They are proficient in the secret techniques of northern cultivation and can even suppress blood puppets."

Feng Qingyue's eyes were sharp, and every word was like a knife. "If the Regent is really colluding with Bei Xiu, the Purple Clan will be his biggest obstacle."

Jun Linyuan stood beside her and said in a low voice: "Destroying the Zizhu family is not just about eliminating the threat, but also for..."

"—For the bloodline of the Purple Clan."

Feng Qingyue took over his words, her fingertips unconsciously clenched, "The blood of the Zizhu family can restrain the evil magic of the Northern Cultivator."

Lan Xuanming stood up suddenly.

The cuff of his dragon robe swept the teacup off the table, and the sound of porcelain shards breaking was particularly harsh in the silent hall.

---

"So, the Emperor's uncle privately raised a blood puppet and colluded with the Northern Cultivators, not just to seize power and usurp the throne..."

His voice was hoarse, as if something was strangling his throat. "What he really wants is to use Bei Xiu's power to achieve his goal?"

There was a sudden flash of lightning outside the window, making his face look pale.

Jun Linyuan's eyes darkened slightly. "If that's the case, then what is the Regent's purpose? What other plans has he made?"

Feng Qingyue closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, there was a cold look in her eyes.

"Your Majesty, no matter what the Regent's purpose is, this matter is no longer just a blood feud for the Zizhu family, it concerns the survival of the Lan Nation."

Lan Xuanming was silent for a long time before he finally spoke slowly, "Ayue, I have a secret order for you to mobilize the Imperial Guards and your shadow forces to thoroughly investigate this matter."

He paused, his voice low, "If the evidence is conclusive... I allow you to execute first and report later."

Feng Qingyue knelt on one knee and bowed solemnly: "Your Majesty, I obey your command."

---

赵府

"Snapped--"

A celadon teacup smashed to pieces on the ground.

Zhao Qian suddenly stood up from the armchair and stared at the dark shadow that suddenly appeared in the study.

"Sir?" His voice was stuck in his throat, and his fingers unconsciously clenched his sleeves.

The candlelight flickered, making the black iron mask on the man in black glow faintly.

The man in black didn't say anything, but walked slowly to the desk.

His fingers, wearing black leather gloves, gently ran across the military book on the desk.

Leaving a thin trail of dust in the candlelight.

"Sir Zhao is in a very elegant mood." The man in black suddenly spoke, his voice as hoarse as sandpaper rubbing against his face.

"Still studying the art of war late into the night."

Zhao Qian's forehead was covered in sweat. "Your subordinate, your subordinate is just..."

"Where is your son?" The man in black suddenly turned around, and the eyes behind the mask stared at him like a poisonous snake.

Zhao Qian's legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground: "Heng'er is not... not escorting the goods on the orders of the adults..."

---

Oh! Really! But the goods are lost."

The man in black pulled out a bloodstained bronze fragment from his bosom and gently placed it on the table. "All the people who were escorting us are dead."

"What?!" Zhao Qian's face turned pale instantly, and he held on to the desk with both hands to prevent himself from collapsing. "Then Heng'er..."

"Don't worry," the man in black sneered, "there is no son among the corpses."

He leaned over and pinched Zhao Qian's chin, "So he colluded with outsiders to rob the goods?"

The flickering candlelight illuminated Zhao Qian's pale face.

He slumped to the ground, his fingers digging into the gold weave of the carpet, his voice trembling.

"No, impossible... Heng'er would never betray you!"

---

The man in black stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes cold under the black iron mask.

"The absence of a body is the biggest suspicion."

He walked slowly, his boots rolling over the scattered letters on the ground.

"Ten blood puppets are so important to you, sir. I am fire, but their whereabouts are unknown.

——Master Zhao, where do you think your son is now?

Zhao Qian was trembling all over, and suddenly rushed forward to grab the hem of the man in black's clothes.

"Sir! Heng'er is loyal to you. He must have been kidnapped! Please..."

"boom!"

The man in black kicked him away.

Zhao Qian slammed heavily onto the sandalwood table, and a fishy-sweet taste surged in his throat.

---

"Loyal?" The man in black sneered, "Then why didn't he tell her when he saw a woman in Tianxiang Pavilion before?"

Zhao Qian's pupils suddenly shrank: "Tianxiang Tower?!"

The man in black suddenly leaned over, grabbed Zhao Qian by the collar and lifted him up: "Who is that woman?"

Zhao Qian's lips trembled: "Your subordinate, your subordinate does not know..."