Chapter 128
Chapter 128
Liu Ye’s weapons were far less effective against humans than against Fiends, but that did not make them harmless. Anyone standing nearby would still be caught in the blast.
“Did you take everything back?” Eunuch Wu asked.
“No.”
Another explosion thundered in the distance, making everyone flinch.
“Then hurry up and retrieve it!”
They knew how terrifying the contents of that little bundle could be. A thief had once stolen a comb from Liu Ye. When they found the man, he had died so horribly that none of them wanted to remember the details.
After everything they had witnessed on the road, they regarded every object inside that bundle as a source of unimaginable terror. Physician Zhou had said that any one of them could easily destroy countless cities.
Now the entire collection was scattered among the soldiers. How was anyone supposed to survive?
“Wouldn’t it be rude to take back gifts I just handed out?” Liu Ye asked, looking troubled.
Eunuch Wu stared at him. Allowing the soldiers to remain alive would be the greatest courtesy Liu Ye could possibly show them.
With no better option, Liu Ye went to recover the confiscated items. Fortunately, they were all extremely attached to him and returned without resistance.
As he came back, a high-ranking official arrived with another contingent of soldiers. The official swallowed when he saw the devastation, then immediately bowed to Liu Ye.
“Immortal Master, please forgive us. My subordinates were ignorant and treated you disrespectfully. His Majesty wishes to meet you. Would the Immortal Master please accompany us?”
Liu Ye was curious to see the emperor of this era, so he readily agreed.
They soon reached the imperial palace, where the emperor himself waited with the entire civil and military court.
The emperor had not wanted to welcome Liu Ye in person. It was humiliating. But after learning that the northern gate had been blown apart, his courage had failed him.
Besides, stepping outside once was no great hardship. If Liu Ye truly was an immortal, perhaps he could refine a pill of immortality for him.
The moment the emperor saw Liu Ye, however, disappointment overwhelmed him. Liu Ye looked painfully ordinary. Unlike the elegant Daoist masters of the court, he possessed no ethereal bearing whatsoever.
Liu Ye was equally disappointed. The emperors he had seen on television were all handsome, and even the elderly ones had impressive dignity.
This emperor had none. His face was sallow, deep shadows ringed his eyes, and his body was so hunched that he looked ready to fold in half.
Before the emperor could speak, Liu Ye blurted out, “That’s the emperor? Are you sure? He looks ready to drop dead. No wonder the country is such a mess.”
Liu Ye had formed a very poor opinion of the emperor during their journey. The court was in chaos, the common people were destitute, and bleached bones lined even the most ordinary roads. People had nothing to eat, yet temples and Daoist monasteries were being built everywhere.
On seeing the emperor, though, Liu Ye finally understood. The man looked too close to death to have any energy left for governing.
The courtyard fell utterly silent. No one could believe somebody had dared speak that way to the emperor’s face.
Eunuch Wu alone remained perfectly calm.
Yes. Perfectly calm.
By now, Eunuch Wu had a fairly good understanding of Liu Ye. The man was unreliable, careless, reckless, and impulsive, but fundamentally kind.
After witnessing the suffering along the road, it would have been strange for him to think well of the emperor. Insulting the man to his face was entirely in character.
In truth, if Liu Ye had not said he could not remain in this world, Eunuch Wu might have seriously considered supporting him in a rebellion.
He agreed with Liu Ye’s assessment. The emperor had looked reasonably healthy when Eunuch Wu left the palace. In little more than ten days, he had withered into a man with one foot in the grave.
Eunuch Wu tugged Physician Zhou’s sleeve. “Old Zhou, is His Majesty really about to…?”
“Almost certainly. Someone is using a secret art to drain his imperial dragon energy. At this rate, he will die violently within a year.” Physician Zhou’s expression was grave.
He did not particularly care about the emperor. But if the person behind this plot drained the emperor to death, the entire country would collapse.
The emperor’s face, meanwhile, had turned livid with rage. His lips trembled.
“Insolence! Guards, seize this madman!”
Nearly two thousand imperial guards surrounded Liu Ye and his companions.
“Attack!”
Slap! Slap! Slap!
Moments later, every guard lay on the ground with a swollen face.
Their weapons had been useless against Liu Ye. Spearheads shattered the instant they struck him, and blades snapped against his skin. Some guards tried to bypass him and seize Physician Zhou and the others as hostages, but an invisible barrier seemed to block their path.
Liu Ye’s slaps, on the other hand, left them completely unable to fight. He never seemed to tire. Taking down two thousand men was no harder for him than playing a game.
At last, the emperor and his officials understood that Liu Ye might truly be an immortal.
“Your Majesty!” Physician Zhou stepped forward. “Lord Liu meant no harm. The truth is that your health has reached an extremely dangerous state. Have you not noticed any discomfort?”
The emperor’s expression changed again. Before the fight, he might have dismissed the warning as a lie told to save their lives. Now there was no reason for Liu Ye’s party to deceive him. A man capable of killing him outright had no need for tricks.
“What exactly is happening to me?” the emperor asked hurriedly.
Physician Zhou explained his diagnosis. The emperor might be incompetent, but in this era even a poor emperor was better than no emperor at all. Besides, the crown prince was said to be reasonably capable. They had to preserve the throne somehow.
The emperor believed most of it. His health had indeed worsened lately, and even his vision had begun to blur.
“Wh-what should I do? Immortal Master, I was blind and offended you. Please overlook my transgression and grant me a pill that will extend my life.”
He finally understood. Those elegant, otherworldly Daoists were frauds. A genuine master had no need for empty appearances. The more he looked at Liu Ye now, the more transcendent the man seemed.