Translator: Fate Translation Checker: Silavin As the sky trembled, the mountain shook with a crushing, rumbling sound like thousands of troops and horses charging in for the kill. A shadowy army filled with murderous intent and regality descended from beyond the sky. This was an elite squad. Even their mounts were ferocious terrifying beasts of pure blood. Their scarlet eyes, silky fur, and powerful demeanour made them a dazzling sight to behold. “Charge!” These troops only took a short time to arrive after they received word of the current situation when they were at the imperial palace. The Empress being under attack shocked and angered the many authoritative figures of her inner circle. The troops from the imperial palace quickly assembled, and they rushed to Black and White Academy through the teleportation array. At this moment, they were rushing forward like a torrent, as they began to encircle and wipe out many assassins who hadn’t escaped. A massacre immediately began, resulting in wailings and screams everywhere. Now that things weren’t looking so bright for the assassins, they had to scatter off despite how reluctant they were to run away. However, the speed at which they fled could not compare to the speed at which the army chased after them. Seeing that it was difficult to escape, many chose to blow themselves up on the spot, their bodies and souls destroyed and turning into Bloodmist that dispersed in the air. Their methods were odd and cruel, but they couldn’t leave behind any survivors. Many breathed a sigh of relief as a feeling of lament washed over them when they watched everything unfold. “It’s over. The assassins have started to retreat. They have all fled outside.” “We managed to fend them off. What a frightening experience that was. We’re lucky Young Master Changge held the Night Demon back. It would have ended up way worse otherwise.” “Indeed! Her Majesty could’ve been in danger if it wasn’t for Young Master Changge. I find it hard to believe that the enemies would prepare so much to assassinate Her Majesty, and even take out an artifact used by the Solar Demon Overlord.” “That’s an Nirvana Grade Artifact! It might have been hard for Young Master Changge to block their attack if he didn’t have the Tower of World Domination.” Just like the assassins, a lot of them were wounded during the battle. However, compared to their injuries, they were more worried about the poison that got Empress Yao Xi. If the poison turned out to be a potent one, the Demon World would soon fall into utter chaos, and its residents would no longer be able to live in peace. Many important figures would probably be involved in the attack this time. Not even the Empress could defeat a Sacred King Realm Master like the Night Demon armed with the Solar Heavenly Blade in her prime.. “Hmph! They got away! The mastermind didn’t even dare show his face while he let his underlings do everything!” “But I’m glad Her Majesty is safe.” The Quelling Chaos King, the Grand Tutor and others all fell down from the sky. They were all covered in red, and in some places, white where the bones stuck out. They were badly injured. They had fought with someone that could even be stronger than them. In fact, they might have perished if it wasn’t because they won in terms of numbers. Whoosh Whoosh Soon, before everyone recovered from their injuries, they turned into divine rainbows and headed towards the top of the Sacred Mountain. “This is great! We held out, and the assassins ran away!” When the battle was finally over, the faces of the many young prodigies were joyful as they let out a long sigh of relief. A lot of them even fell limp on the floor. They had only managed to keep themselves standing with the one breath they were holding. [We failed this time, but we’ll always have our next chance to strike.] Jun Fan closed his eyes and sat cross-legged like the rest of the young prodigies who were resting and recovering from their injuries. He was unwilling to accept how things went, but no one paid attention to these things at this time. Song Youwei, whose body was bloodied, asked respectfully after she came from the foot of the Sacred Mountain, “Are you alright, Your Majesty?!” “I’m fine,” replied Empress Yao Xi as she shook her head. She was standing on the top of the mountain, looking into the far off distance. With her current ability, she couldn’t sense the battle happening there. Even though she knew that Gu Changge was very powerful, she couldn’t be sure until the result was out. After all, the other party was the Night Demon, a figure who was one of the strongest experts of the Demon World 6000 years ago. Adding the Solar Heavenly Blade to the mix had practically made him invincible. And just when Empress Yao Xi was deep in her thoughts, there was a sudden faint fluctuation from outside the Domain, and the void in front of her blurred before Gu Changge’s figure appeared from it. Seeing how calm and clean he was, Empress Yao Xi and Song Youwei were both stunned from the disbelief at how relaxed he looked. There were no injuries on his body, and his breathing was stable without any disordered fluctuations. He didn’t seem any different from his normal self. If they hadn’t witnessed the battle between him and the Night Demon just now, no one would have believed that this would be what he looked like after the battle. As soon as Empress Yao Xi snapped back to her senses, she held her hands together in front of her chest and asked, “Thank you for your help, Young Master Changge. I hope you’re alright.” Song Youwei also had an expression of disbelief as she looked at Gu Changge. [How is this someone who has just come out of a fight?] “No doubt, I’m fine.” Gu Changge waved his hand casually and said in a regretful tone, “That guy is pretty smart for suddenly running away in the end. I didn’t go after him because I was worried about what is happening here. “How are things here? I see that the assassins have retreated.” [The Night Demon got away? That must be the reason the assassins retreated.] Song Youwei was a little stunned, and she began to admire Gu Changge even more. “Thank you for worrying about me, but I’m alright.” Empress Yao Xi shook her head. However, she didn’t actually believe what Gu Changge said. She had a feeling this matter was not as simple as Gu Changge made it sound to be. Despite Gu Changge’s claim that the Night Demon got away, she was convinced the Night Demon had been killed by Gu Changge. Knowing Gu Changge, she thought he wouldn’t carry such a demeanour if the Night Demon really escaped. The Solar Heavenly Blade was probably in Gu Changge’s hands now as well. However, she tactfully avoided asking Gu Changge since he didn’t say anything. She had already accepted a great favour from Gu Changge today. The Solar Heavenly Blade might be precious, but it was probably nothing to Gu Changge. When Purple Mansion was destroyed, most of what they had fell into his hands. One or two Nirvana Grade Artifacts might be precious to most forces, but Gu Changge was someone who even had a rumoured Immortal Grade Artifact like the Tower of World Domination. She couldn’t help being a little curious about how he managed to kill the Night Demon. Hearing that, Gu Changge smiled, seemingly quite concerned. “I’m glad you’re okay.” Naturally, it was as Empress Yao Xi thought. The Solar Heavenly Blade went to Gu Changge after the Night Demon died. Of course, he also took his Sacred Emperor Source. It was just that since he had said nothing about it, Empress Yao Xi was smart enough not to probe. Although Gu Changge’s trip to the Demon World was to find the Heir of the Solar Demon Overlord and Bai Lian’er, he definitely wouldn’t let go of his chance to lay claim over a Sacred Emperor Source when he came across it. It wasn’t that Gu Changge intended to hide the Night Demon’s death. Instead, he had discovered that the Night Demon didn’t leave a Life Plaque or anything like that. Jun Bufan might panic if news of his death came out. As Gu Changge was planning to use Jun Bufan to lure the big mysterious figures behind him, he did not want to do anything to alarm them for now. [Judging from the current situation of the Demon World right now, Empress Yao Xi is indeed just a chess piece. The real chess players are still behind the scenes, and have not appeared yet. Even the Fortuitous One, Jun Bufan, is the same. If I want to make my move in this kind of situation, I need to first lure out the big fishes behind the scenes. Well, the real masterminds should be the Six Demon Overlords who have disappeared. I wonder, what secrets are they hiding?] Gu Changge was very interested in their so-called secrets. There were only two possibilities as to what this ‘secret’ was. It was either related to the Demon World or themselves. [So it could be about the Demon World, or it could be about the Demon Overlords. For them to carry the Fortuity of the Demon World, could it be that they intend to ascend or attack the Celestial Realm?] Gu Changge was very interested to know what the truth was. Afterwards, a group of ministers came, and they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that their Empress was fine. They each expressed their worries and fears. In fact, many were taken aback by the attack, and they hadn’t recovered yet. Nonetheless, Empress Yao Xi survived the catastrophe because of her great luck. If Gu Changge did not suddenly go to the Demon World, Empress Yao Xi might have been no more after today. “I wonder if you have any leads on the rebellion this time?” Gu Changge probed. Gu Changge had been paying attention to Qing Zhu and Jun Bufan’s expressions. Compared to Jun Bufan, who was composed, Qing Zhu was much paler and worked up. Empress Xiyao had already noticed something wrong without Gu Changge telling her. Empress Yao Xi sighed deeply when she heard his question. She knew that Gu Changge was talking about. “Thank you, Young Master Changge, for your reminder. I was betrayed by those close to me because of my ignorance and arrogance. This will never happen again.” Gu Changge smiled, “You’ll have to act quickly, Your Majesty. You know that dead men tell no tales.” “Dead men tell no tales?” Empress Yao Xi was slightly taken aback. When she later realised what he meant, her complexion turned even colder. “Guards! Bring Qing Zhu over here!” she demanded in an emotionless and dignified tone. Gu Changge glanced at Jun Bufan in the crowd with great interest. [As expected of the Fortuitous One. How meticulous.] In his opinion, the reason why Jun Bufan remained calm was that he was not worried that Qing Zhu would expose his true identity. He must have already thought of a way out. After all, the person who could keep a secret best was a dead man. Still, Gu Changge was somewhat curious about how Jun Bufan controlled Qing Zhu’s life or death. [Does he have a hold of her soul? A curse? Or could it be poison? If Qing Zhu had prior knowledge about it, Jun Bufan must have control over her using her soul or a curse. That way, it would allow him to have control over her life and death at any time.] Generally speaking, the onset time of poison or venom couldn’t be controlled at will. But there were exceptions to everything; Gu Changge didn’t know how cruel Jun Bufan was. Upon hearing this, everyone froze for a moment before their expressions changed suddenly when they realised the meaning of those words. Who other than the people closest to the Empress could poison her? And from the looks of it, the female official, Qing Zhu, seemed to be the perpetrator. No one could believe it when they were hit by the realisation. The four female officials around Her Majesty could be said to be her right-hand women, who had been by her side for hundreds of years. Many even treated them like they were the Empress herself. That was why it was so shocking for them to learn that Qing Zhu actually betrayed Her Majesty the Empress. “What…” “How can this be? Qing Zhu…” In disbelief, Qing Mei, Qing Lan and the others stared wide-eyed at their ‘sister’ who had been with them for hundreds of years. It was impossible to believe that she actually betrayed Empress Yao Xi! However, they had no choice but to believe it when they saw how ashen Qing Zhu was as her lips quivered. On the other hand, Jun Fan remained calm despite his thundering heartbeat. According to his original plan, he would trigger the poison in Qing Zhu’s body to destroy both her body and soul before the Empress found out who had betrayed her if the assassination failed. But in his opinion, it would still take some time. He believed that Empress Yao Xi would not be able to find out who betrayed her immediately. That an investigation was necessary before she would find out the truth. However, judging from the current situation, Empress Yao Xi seemed to already know who it was that betrayed her. Qing Zhu herself didn’t seem to be trying to hide the truth at all. This wasn’t at all what he expected would happen. [I’ve overestimated Qing Zhu and underestimated Yao Xi.] Jun Fan frowned as those thoughts crossed his mind. At the very least, he was glad that the poison he poisoned Qing Zhu with wasn’t a regular one. He could still freely control the poison’s reaction. [If the situation in a while doesn’t look too good, I’ll have to deal with the pain and control the outbreak of poison in Qing Zhu’s body so that she won’t reveal my identity.] He felt a lot more at ease at the thought of this. [It’s Gu Changge’s doing again… If he hadn’t reminded Yao Xi just now, this kind of thing would never have happened. I have nothing against him, but he has sabotaged my plan time after time.] Jun Fan’s face turned glum when he stole a glance at Gu Changge. Right then, everyone was quietly watching Qing Zhu being escorted by several guards to Empress Yao Xi. Her face was pale, and her lips were trembling. It was obvious that she was extremely frightened now. “I have never treated you poorly. Seven hundred years ago, you were an ordinary bamboo that was almost swallowed by an Ox Demon. I rescued you and brought you back to the imperial palace.” Empress Yao Xi’s face was calm without a hint of emotion. She wasn’t angry as well when she nonchalantly brought up their past. She didn’t ask Qing Zhu her reason for betraying her. In her eyes, Qing Zhu had grown from an ordinary bamboo tree, with a little spiritual energy, to what she was today thanks to her guidance, step-by-step cultivation and morphing. Although she was her female official, Empress Yao Xi didn’t think of her as just anyone else. If they were family, Qing Zhu was like a child she helped raise. The pain from being betrayed by her was beyond words. Everyone, too, fell silent when they heard the Empress’ words. [Why would Officer Qing Zhu betray her Majesty? Just what is going on?] Song Youwei also thought all this was unbelievable. Among the crowd, Jun Fan suddenly felt happy looking at Empress Yao Xi’s expression. This was exactly how he felt back when the Empress betrayed him. She was only having a taste of her own medicine now. After hearing what Empress Yao Xi said, Qing Zhu fell on her knees with a pained look on her face. “Kill me, Your Majesty!” She cried. “I’ve wronged you!” “Kill you?” Empress Yao Xi turned around to look at her with an unreadable gaze. She should have been more careful after asking Qing Zhu that night. However, thinking that it wasn’t that big of a deal, she was convinced Qing Zhu would go ahead and do as per her instruction after they had that talk. It turned out that she had overestimated Qing Zhu’s loyalty. “Please kill me, Your Majesty… I betrayed you. I shouldn’t have poisoned your food.” Qing Zhu looked agonised as she kneeled on the floor. Empress Yao Xi shook her head and calmly stated, “Tell me who told you to do this. You’re not the only one involved in this. The royal wine was also poisoned. The poisons will only take effect when they are used together.” Hearing that, Qing Zhu forcefully shook her head and yelled, “Just kill me, Your Majesty! I can’t tell you.” That put a frown on Empress Yao Xi’s face. “You fool.” She didn’t think Qing Zhu would still protect the person behind her at this point. Right then, Gu Changge, who had been watching everything unfold, suddenly smiled and suggested,” Your Majesty, I doubt you’ll get an answer by just asking. Why don’t you use Soul Search? It’ll be a lot quicker.” He knew that Empress Yao Xi was too soft-hearted to do such a thing. However, as the Empress, how could she go soft because of such a small matter? Since she was subconsciously against it, he would play the part of the villain by suggesting Soul Search. [Gu Changge!] Jun Fan’s face immediately froze when he saw how things were playing out. It was safe to say that he abhorred Gu Changge. Empress Yao Xi took a glance at Gu Changge when she heard his words, and she nodded. “Young Master Changge is right. If you won’t confess, Qing Zhu, I have no choice but to use Soul Search on you.” She didn’t think Gu Changge would force her into doing this, but now that he had said it outright, she had no reason to reject him. Someone of her status should never be soft-hearted. “I’ll tell you, Your Majesty!” Qing Zhu paled in fear. She knew that Soul Search was a kind of agony comparable to torture. It would cause so much pain that its victims might perish at any time because they couldn’t bear it. Furthermore, her secret with Jun Fan could no longer be contained if Empress Yao Xi insisted on using Soul Search. “It was the Night Demon who wanted me to join hands with him.” As Qing Zhu was still hoping that Jun Fan had a way to save her, she came up with an excuse to lie to them and drag the time on. “You really are a fool,” Gu Changge couldn’t help chuckling, his eyes holding a hint of contempt. “Shut your mouth! You’re hiding the truth and lying to me even now!?” Empress Yao Xi’s face was cold. She knew what Qing Zhu was up to. More than rage, her heart was filled with desolation. But the next moment, Qing Zhu’s eyes suddenly widened, as if in disbelief, and black blood gushed from the corners of her mouth. She seemed to find it hard to believe that all this was true when she turned her head and tried to look somewhere below. However, the light in her eyes finally went out, and she was completely destroyed on the spot. “She didn’t commit suicide in fear of getting caught for her crime. It seems that the other party has already left a way out. The person who pulled the strings behind the scenes must still be around Sacred Mountain.” Empress Yao Xi’s expression didn’t change at all despite this. She thought that Qing Zhu had been ready for such an end the moment she agreed to doing such a thing. According to the Empress’ judgement, everyone present was a suspect. However, they could narrow down the search scope as long as they found out who Qing Zhu had been in contact with. Seeing this, Gu Changge smiled again. “Indeed. I trust you’ll be able to catch the culprit, Your Majesty.” He had already expected Qing Zhu’s death. He knew that Jun Bufan would definitely not allow Qing Zhu’s Soul Search, or else his current identity would be exposed. Gu Changge didn’t want Jun Bufan’s identity to be exposed so quickly either. He was still waiting for this ‘bait’ to lure Bai Lian’er to show up. If he guessed correctly, the items in the brocade bag should have a relationship to the secret of the whereabouts of the Six Demon Overlords. Having already calmed down, Jun Fan looked at all this with a relaxed expression. The current dilemma had temporarily been resolved, but there were still some problems he had to deal with later. What happened in the Sacred Mountain and the Black and White Academy today soon shocked the Demon World, and the news was so widespread that many in the Upper World also caught wind of it. The scale of the assassination attempt this time was the biggest one in 6000. There was even a powerful Sacred Emperor Realm Master who appeared, holding the Solar Demon Overlord’s Solar Heavenly Blade. There were also a great number of skilled assassins in the Sacred King Realm and Sacred Lord Realm who took many lives. Many great Clans of Demon World also suffered heavy casualties in this attack. Among the servants who followed the Empress, many of them suddenly became violent and killed anyone in sight. In addition, a number of young prodigies had died, having been brutally murdered by the assassins. The most shocking news was that Empress Yao Xi was poisoned, and it was the person closest to her who did it. Although the person who poisoned her had died, things were far from being over. With that, Empress Yao Xi began to thoroughly check the people around her, and the court filtered through all the staff. Not one of the officials in charge of wine was left unchecked. No matter what was the reason for the betrayal, all of them, plus their families, were executed. The entire Demon World was a bloody mess. Everyone in the major Clans began to live their days with their hearts in their mouths, for fear that Empress Yao Xi would suddenly take them down. Of course, while some people were executed in this rebellion, there were others who were rewarded instead. Empress Yao Xi had seen how the Quelling Chaos King, the Grand Tutor and other groups and individuals had bravely fought off their enemies during the rebellion, and so she rewarded them with riches and Artifacts. Many of the young prodigies had also gained a reputation, and were generously rewarded for protecting the Empress After ‘cleaning up’ the court, Empress Yao Xi began to send people around to find traces of Jun Bufan. She also began an investigation on Qing Zhu’s many whereabouts and movements before, trying to find clues from them. A lot of things seemed to become clearer after she changed the way she thought. Since Jun Bufan was likely to be reborn, he would definitely have relatives in this life. This was something she completely left out before this. As a result, many whom she knew very well became suspicious to her. Moreover, Jun Bufan’s parents in this life could be kept in the dark by him, or they could be his accomplices. Now that she had this clue, Empress Yao Xi was no longer worried that they couldn’t find the culprit. It was only a matter of time before it all came to light. Of course, during this period, she told Gu Changge the truth about everything that happened more than 6000 years ago, as thanks for saving her, and part of a promise, Dealing with all this soon wore her out. Fortunately, the poison in her body was not causing her much damage. After a few days of being treated by many doctors, the poison began to recede, and she could use her Qi again. Currently, in a bathing pool made of green stone, in the impartial palace, where water vapour rose like Celestial Mist from the petal-filled surface. Right then, an ethereal, beautiful body that seemed to have taken shape from celestial jade of the highest quality was soaking in the water. She had silky hair spread out, and with eyes half-closed, she murmured softly, “Were you helping me willingly, or is it purely a deal between you and me? I wouldn’t be here now if I rejected you back then, would I?” She couldn’t say for sure what it was about Gu Changge that had confused her. The perfect image he had was nothing more than the side he showed, and wanted people to see. At the very beginning, she regarded Gu Changge as a Junior, or even a confidant, who she could talk to because Gu Changge understood the many intentions and painstaking efforts she had made for the Demon World. However, the more she got to know Gu Changge, the more she noticed how every word he said and everything he did was intentional. He was definitely worth relying on, but of course, only on the premise that the other party, herself, was of value to him. If he wasn’t promised anything in return, he could cruelly throw just about anyone aside. The reason he was so unrealistically perfect was that he only showed the side of him he wanted others to see. There was no way anyone could ever see through someone like him. “Not necessarily. Real life has no place for ‘ifs’.” Gu Changge was behind the curtain concealing the pool when he brought a cup of wine to his mouth. After taking a small sip, he calmly smiled and continued, “Furthermore, all that isn’t important when we both consented to this. Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?” Empress Yao Xi nodded in response. Splash With a splash, she got up and walked towards him.