Who is the reigning Emperor Jianwu?
Looking at the corpses of the Four Sons of Tianwu, Su Chen fell silent. A suspicion he held was starting to feel true.
'Perhaps Old Emperor Tianwu is still alive.'
After all, he had never seen the Old Emperor's body.
'If it really is Old Emperor Tianwu, he's a true survivor. He endured two assassination attempts, took the identity of the fifth son, and has been Emperor Jianwu for nine years. He must be over sixty by now…'
His goal achieved, Su Chen prepared to leave the Imperial Study and slip back into his Martial Pavilion Book Collection Tower.
Before leaving,
He inspected the bodies of the Four Sons of Tianwu. Finally, as if he'd discovered something, he stopped in front of the beheaded and unrecognizable corpse of the Eldest Prince.
The Eldest Prince's body wasn't just beheaded. His heart and internal organs had been dug out, and it was covered in countless incisions, as if someone had been searching for something inside him.
Su Chen was immediately reminded of Huang Yi. She had hidden her Secret Treasure within her Internal Organs.
That wasn't important.
What was important was that Su Chen could faintly see a strange glow near the Eldest Prince's second right rib.
Lifespan?
No!
It was more like the aura of life…
'There's something hidden inside the rib.'
Su Chen broke the second rib. A cyan ring, shaped like a simple Copper Ring, fell to the ground.
'A Void Ring?'
Su Chen raised an eyebrow.
'It looks like one, but it probably isn't.'
'After all, this world seems to be a Low Martial world, just one with Demon Fiends and slightly higher power levels. It's not some Xianxia world where people fly and their Power Values shatter the heavens. How could something like a Void Ring possibly exist here?'
The strongest person Su Chen had encountered in this world was a First-Grade Expert who could turn a snowstorm into a single sword strike. While that level of power was absurdly high, almost inhuman, the range from Second to Fifth Grade was still relatively normal.
'How could it be an Immortal Martial world?'
In this world, even in the historical records, he had never seen anyone live past the age of one hundred and ten.
Human lifespans have a limit.
Even a Grandmaster's life is limited to about a century.
'Even if you gorged yourself on Human Blood Life-extending Pills, stained with the sin of countless murders, you'd only add a few years to your life at most.'
'How could a world like this be a high-level Xianxia or martial world?'
'It must be something good.'
'Emperor Jianwu, or perhaps the Old Emperor, was looking for this…'
Su Chen tucked it away and left the underground ice cellar, leaving the Imperial Study behind as well.
「At this moment.」
Countless torches illuminated the Imperial Palace. Fires raged everywhere, and the shadows of people locked in combat flickered.
Rebels!
And Forbidden Guards were locked in a chaotic melee!
The scene was utter chaos.
Within the Imperial Palace were Jianghu Heroes, Eastern Depot Agents, Royal Guards, the Hidden Guard's Demon Ghosts, and even many Death Warriors from other unidentified factions.
Many powerful figures in the Imperial City, and even some of the Noble Families from the Nine Commanderies of the Great Liang, wanted a piece of the pie in this chaos.
But among these people, regardless of their faction, the Second-Grade Experts had a tacit understanding not to act.
First-Grade was the Peak of the world.
Second-Grade was the strongest fighting force that walked openly. Every one of them was a well-known figure. If any dared to show their face, their Martial Arts techniques would surely expose their identity.
Those Second-Grade masters, much like the five Chief Stewards, cherished their lives. So far, aside from the Black Lotus Saint who had fallen to Su Chen, no other Second-Grade Expert had even appeared.
The strongest participants tonight were only Third-Grade Experts!
'The true outcome of tonight's battle was never going to be decided by these numerous experts. It's being decided by the clash of First-Grade Junior Grandmasters in the Tianwu Tower…'
Su Chen hurried back to the Martial Pavilion Book Collection Tower and glanced at the adjacent Tianwu Tower.
It was just as it was when he left.
Shrouded in mist.
The Tianwu Tower was enveloped in white fog, making it impossible to see anything happening inside.
In the Great Liang Imperial Palace, nothing else mattered.
The Emperor could die.
Even the Martial Pavilion Book Collection Tower, with its countless Cultivation Secret Scriptures, could be burned to the ground.
But the Tianwu Tower alone could not be lost!
It held the foundation of the Great Liang Royal Family's First-Grade Junior Grandmasters. No one knew how many of them were still in the Tianwu Tower, their lives not yet extinguished…
'But with seven Junior Grandmasters joining forces, plus the Chief Eunuch—number one on the Martial Arts List and a Dual Peak First-Grade expert—there's no doubt they'll slaughter everyone in the Tianwu Tower!'
"Isn't that right, friend from the Demon Ghosts!"
A voice rang out.
Before the entrance to the Martial Pavilion Book Collection Tower, a figure had appeared. He wore an ornate red robe, had an Eastern Depot token hanging from his waist, and had a feminine look about him, but his eyes held an indelible, vicious glint.
It was a Eunuch!
A Third-Grade Expert from the Eastern Depot!
The Martial Pavilion was adjacent to the Tianwu Tower. No one, not even the Second-Grade Experts lurking in the shadows, dared to get too close to the heart of this night's storm. But this man did.
"A friend from the Demon Ghosts? Are you talking to me?"
Su Chen was taken aback.
But he quickly remembered the Third-Grade Asura Ghost mask on his face. The man had clearly mistaken him for someone else.
"That's right."
"I am the Asura Ghost, a member of the Demon Ghosts."
"The Great Liang Royal Family will be annihilated tonight!"
Su Chen played along.
However,
He had a bad feeling.
'The Tianwu Tower is too quiet! It doesn't sound at all like a life-or-death battle is raging. The situation inside is probably not what anyone outside imagines.'
'I hope Zhang Gui is all right.'
'Still, as a Dual Peak First-Grade expert, it's no exaggeration to call Zhang Gui the number one person beneath the Grandmaster Realm.'
"You don't recognize me?"
The Feminine Eunuch frowned at Su Chen.
"Am I supposed to know you?"
Su Chen's tone was flat.
Seeing this,
The Feminine Eunuch's frown deepened.
Just as he was about to say something,
The next instant,
A terrifying change erupted from the hundred-meter-tall Tianwu Tower.
The Tianwu Tower exploded!
In an instant,
The heavens seemed to fall and the earth to crack open!
Around the massive Tianwu Tower, countless giant fissures appeared in the ground, as if an earth dragon were turning over. It was a terrifying, apocalyptic scene.
BOOM!
Even Su Chen and the Feminine Eunuch, two Third-Grade Experts, were scared out of their wits by the sight and fled in a panic.
A hundred-meter-tall building was collapsing!
Never mind Third-Grades like them. Even a Peak Second Grade or a First-Grade Junior Grandmaster caught in the collapse would likely be pulverized into a bloody mist, their soul scattered.
"ROAR!"
An inhuman, demonic roar echoed through the night sky.
A monstrous arm, a full thirty feet long and covered in dense, black scales, shot out from the dust and rubble of the collapsing Tianwu Tower. It smashed down toward a fleeing figure in purple.
At the same time,
Mangled corpses and body parts rained down from the sky.
"From the Celestial Master's Mansion, the Poor Daoist!"
"From the Void Sect, Master Wuji!"
"Mr. Ying!"
"The Sword Lord of No Edge!"
"Purple robes and white hair... that's the former First Supervisor!"
"..."
The Feminine Eunuch glanced back and instantly recognized the mangled remains. His face turned deathly pale, and he was so terrified he nearly stumbled into the nearby Taiye Lake.
First-Grade Experts!
All these corpses belonged to First-Grade Experts!
At a glance, he recognized five or six of them.
In the distance, more corpses fell.
A rough estimate put the number of fallen Junior Grandmasters at over ten!
These were First-Grade Junior Grandmasters! The Peak of the world, invincible powerhouses! For over ten to fall in a single night... half of the Great Liang's court and half of its Jianghu had just collapsed.
Countless factions would be wiped out because of this. The world would surely be thrown into upheaval!
"To kill ten Junior Grandmasters!"
"One must be a Grandmaster!"
"Is this a terrifying, Grandmaster-level Demon Fiend?!"
"Why is there a Grandmaster-level Great Demon Fiend in Great Liang's Tianwu Tower!!!"
Countless terrified screams erupted.
In an instant,
No one cared about fighting anymore. Whether they were the Imperial Guard, the Hidden Guard, or the invading rebels, they all scrambled madly to escape the Imperial Palace.
Beneath a Grandmaster, all are ants.
Even First-Grades were no exception.
Let alone them.
"Die!"
From the ruins of the Tianwu Tower, the faint roar of an inhuman monster could be heard.
BOOM!
The thirty-foot-long giant hand struck again, crashing down, intent on annihilating the fleeing figure in purple.
"Hahaha!"
"Grand Ancestor of Liang! It really is you!"
Facing this Great Demon Fiend, the purple-robed figure's Qi and blood burned like a raging fire, like a signal beacon illuminating the night sky. He borrowed power from the stars and the bright moon above, forming a palm strike shimmering with starlight and moonlight to clash with the Demon Hand.
BAM!
The purple-robed figure was sent flying, his robes stained with blood, but he used the momentum to flee, leaving only wild laughter in his wake.
"So this is a Great Demon Fiend? You're not so tough. Grand Ancestor of Liang, you've lived for three hundred years, yet you still can't kill a mere Dual Peak First Grade like me? You're old, you're dying, and it's time for this Great Liang to end..."
"Hahaha!"
Beneath the moon, the man in purple had fought a Grandmaster, been defeated but not killed, and retreated with ease.
Tonight,
The name Zhang Gui would echo throughout the Nine Commanderies of Great Liang, shaking the world. He would become a true Peak First Grade, the greatest expert under heaven.
In the future,
He was destined to reach the Grandmaster Realm!
A Peak First Grade master in his early thirties—how could he not reach the Grandmaster Realm?