Chapter 136
Chapter 136
“My imperial city!”
The emperor stared at the ruins in anguish. Almost immediately, however, he hurried to Liu Ye and began pleading.
“Immortal Master Liu, please save me! If you preserve my life, I will give you anything!”
He could feel his body weakening. He did not want to die. He wanted to live a hundred years and rule his dynasty forever.
A troop of soldiers rushed in from outside the city. Their commander sighed in relief when he saw the empress unharmed, then dropped to one knee.
“Commander Xiao Shen pays his respects, Your Majesty.”
“Rise.” The empress smiled at her younger brother.
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
She had prepared these soldiers in advance, originally intending to conceal them around the contest grounds and launch a coup when the opportunity arose.
Eunuch Wu had advised her to station them outside the city instead.
“Why outside?” everyone had asked.
“I have a bad feeling,” Eunuch Wu replied, his mouth twitching.
After traveling with Liu Ye, he understood the man’s destructive potential all too well. The empress followed his advice and kept an army beyond the walls.
His premonition had proved painfully accurate.
“Empress, why are you just standing there? Plead with the Immortal Master for me!”
She did not even look at the emperor. Instead, she made an announcement before the assembled court.
“Demonic Daoists staged a rebellion, and the emperor was tragically assassinated. Thanks to Lord Liu, order has been restored. Before his death, the late emperor issued an oral decree passing the throne to the crown prince.”
“Do you realize what you’re saying?” the emperor shouted in disbelief. Rage overcame him. “This is treason! Guards, kill that wicked woman!”
No one obeyed.
“You traitors! I treated you well, yet you repay me like this! I-”
He coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed.
“Empress, for the sake of our years as husband and wife…”
“General Xiao, take care of this.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
“What are you doing? I am the emperor! You-”
Veins bulged across his face. Then he fell to the ground and stopped breathing.
The instant the emperor died, a voice sounded in Liu Ye’s head.
[Sob… Mission complete.]
“Little System, you’re back! Why are you crying? Did you miss me?”
[Sob… Please, I don’t want to talk to you. Mission rating: SSS. Mission reward: Summoning Token.]
Hearing the System, Liu Ye knew the game had ended.
“Qiqi, I have to go.”
Her eyes reddened instantly. She threw herself around his leg.
“No! Boss, don’t leave!”
Qiqi looked up at him through tears. Her boss might be unreliable, but he had always treated her well and even helped her find her mother. She did not want him to go.
“It’s fine. You can come visit whenever you miss me.”
Physician Zhou and the others stared at him. Was that even possible?
“Boss, can I really visit you?” Qiqi asked tearfully.
“Of course. You still need to attend school. The education here is terrible. After spending some time at home, you’ll come with me, and I’ll ask my big brother to find you a good school-”
“Goodbye, Boss!”
Before he could finish, Qiqi darted to her mother’s side and stared fearfully at him.
Liu Ye smiled and waved. His figure vanished completely from that era.
As soldiers cleared away the Daoist’s corpse, a book fell to the ground.
Physician Zhou picked it up. Four large words were written across the cover.
“Yin-Yang Secret Codex!”
At the same time, John and the others sat in the Fiend Investigation Bureau, staring silently at the book before them.
Its contents had been changing continuously for more than ten days. Toward the end, it seemed to give up entirely and burst into flames.
Only a few words remained: The Legend of Liu Ye on Nine Worlds Mountain.
John and the others were speechless.
What exactly had Brother Liu done in the past?
Shadow was also on the verge of madness. Each time he dug a sealed object out of the manure pile, it broke the very next second. Every single one failed.
People at the foot of the mountain were already spreading rumors about a lunatic digging through excrement atop Nine Worlds Mountain.
Some heartless bastard had even invented a song:
“I am a mighty dung-hole man, digging dung as best I can. I’ll take this mountain of manure and shovel it all the way to the moon…”
In the end, Wang Xu recalled Shadow. Whatever Liu Ye had done in the past, it had made their goal impossible to achieve.
…
Ding-dong. Ding-dong.
The doorbell rang at Rose Apartment. The Driver came downstairs in confusion. Had Old Wu tricked another person into moving in?
He opened the door.
“Big Brother!”
Bang!
The door slammed shut. The Driver leaned against it, his face filled with terror.
“A hallucination. It has to be a hallucination. I haven’t slept well lately. That’s all.”
“Brother Lü, what’s wrong? Who was at the door? Don’t tell me a new resident arrived and you want to keep all the food for yourself.”
The Shadow Fiend grinned and pulled the door open.
“Ah Biao!”
Bang!
The Shadow Fiend pressed himself against the door, equally horrified.
“What did I just see?”
“Nothing. You saw nothing. We’ve both been under too much stress, so we’re hallucinating…”
Click.
The door opened, and Liu Ye walked inside.
“Big Brother, Ah Biao, why didn’t you open the door? My hands are full.”
He complained for a moment, then broke into a smile.
“Are you surprised to see me?”
“Surprised. Very surprised.”
The Driver and the Shadow Fiend embraced and burst into tears.
Their peaceful days were over!
Seeing how emotional they were, Liu Ye could not hold back his own tears. His time away had taught him just how well the Driver and the others treated him.
“Big Brother, I brought gifts for everyone.”
“You should have saved your money. We don’t need anything.”
Saving enough to go home sooner would have been the greatest gift Liu Ye could give them. Still, the Driver was curious.
“Ta-da! Nuclear-fission thermal pants! A man on the road recommended them. He said the nuclear radiation improves blood circulation and helps people grow extra hands-I mean, live longer. Something like that. I bought a pair for each of you.”
The Driver and the Shadow Fiend stared at him.
Extra hands, indeed. Did Liu Ye think they were not mutated enough already?
Then they saw the enormous floral print. Yes. That was unquestionably Liu Ye’s taste.
“So, Liu, did you have fun this time? If not, you can go back for a few more days. I know a place, and the price is cheap…”
“No, Big Brother. I can’t leave again. I need to work and earn money. I’ve already wasted too much time.”
Yellow Hair came downstairs. When he saw Liu Ye, he forced a smile.
“Teacher, you’re back?”
“Yep. Little Bu, I brought you a present.”
Yellow Hair contemplated the floral thermal pants in his hands.
“Where’s the Old Man?” Liu Ye asked.
“Uh… his heart condition flared up.”
“What? When did that happen?”
“Just now.”
The instant he saw Liu Ye return.