After Emperor Aventus killed the hall master of the Rising Sun Supreme Hall and the holy lord of the Blue Jade Holy Land, he left the scene while carrying his son"s lifeless body.
Everyone sighed in pity while looking at his desolate back figure. Even a top expert like the emperor wad not immune to emotional pain.
Just then, the n.o.bles who had defected to the deceased second prince earlier shuddered involuntarily. They knew that their days were numbered in the Celestial Sword Empire, and most likely, the emperor would also cleanse the ranks of the n.o.bility.
The empire would undergo a thorough cleaning after this event which made all the n.o.bles incomparably uneasy.
Duke Abil and Duke Maynard glanced at each other and they both saw the glint in each other"s eyes.
And as if they had reached a tacit agreement, the two dukes stood up and instantly turned to flee, but how could General Lexus allow them to do so?
"Stop right there! Old man Argus, help me stop those snakes!" General Lexus leaped and flew straight towards the two escaping dukes. Duke Argus who remained loyal to the emperor also followed behind him.
The traitors and the loyal subordinates of the emperor fought for almost one whole day with no clear victor between the two sides.
They knew that the emperor left those traitors to allow his loyal subordinates to finish those people themselves.
And then at the latter half of the day, Duke Shutra Ignius ignored his injuries and joined the fight.
With his appearance, the side of the traitors slowly lost hope and admitted defeat one by one.
The grand army of the outsiders was also forced to retreat by the empire"s soldiers. Even the two remaining old men who were at the late stage of the Immortal-Cla.s.s level left the scene without daring to fart.
Both Duke Abil and Duke Maynard were also captured and imprisoned inside the empire"s underground prison.
The next day, everyone was busy repairing the damages done on their capital city"s walls. As for the empire"s defensive array, Duke Argus volunteered to repair it himself.
Aside from being a late stage Immortal-Cla.s.s level expert, the old duke was also an array master. And it was his forefathers who maintained the defensive array of Sword City.
In terms of strength, he was only below Duke Shutra, but of course, the latter still has room for growth since he was significantly younger than the former.
Meanwhile, inside the imperial palace"s imperial chamber.
"Your majesty, I am here to give you the second treatment," Cale said with a slight bow of his head. He did not dare act arrogantly in front of this man at all, and besides, he admires him greatly in his heart.
"Oh, isn"t this... ah... What was your name again, young man?" The emperor"s eyes looked dispirited, but he still forced out an embarra.s.sed smile.
This was the young man who had saved him from death, but he did not know this young man"s name at all. He was very anxious about the empire"s situation that he had even forgotten to ask his benefactor"s name.
Cale smiled faintly and said.
"Your majesty, this one"s name is Cale Sylvann, but your subjects know me as Wolf King."
The emperor was stunned for a brief moment before he broke into loud peals of laughter.
"Good! Young people should be like this, free and unrestrained. Am I right, Cale?"
Cale did not expect that the high and mighty Emperor Aventus would actually be this easy-going. He then nodded his head in agreement with a smile on his face.
"You"re right, your majesty. A martial cultivator should be free and unrestrained. If we shackle ourselves in front of someone else"s laws, then what right do we have to call ourselves as cultivators? Only by being free and unrestrained would we be able to show our true potentials."
The emperor was stunned once again and nodded his head in approval after muttering Cale"s words silently to himself.
"I didn"t expect to meet a young genius inside my Celestial Sword Empire. If I"m not wrong, you should be the four-elemental Saint that everyone was talking about."
Cale merely smiled at the emperor"s words. The crown prince should have told the emperor about his origins, so he was not that surprised about him knowing his ident.i.ty.
"Young man, tell me. What is your purpose in going inside my empire? I know you are not a local here." The emperor smiled at Cale, but looking at that smile, Cale inwardly shuddered.
"This one can truly not hide anything against the emperor sights. Your eyes are like burning torches, I concede." Cale shook his head while maintaining the smile on his face. He then continued.
"You are indeed right, your majesty. I am not a local here and it was also fate that brought me here inside the Celestial Sword Empire. If I did not meet an Adamantine-Rank mercenary from the Mercenary Guild along the way, I would not have gone here at all. But rest a.s.sured, I bring no ill-will."
The emperor stared deeply at Cale, and he could not feel any hint of maliciousness and deceit in his words.
"That"s good then. So now, tell me about the poison that you mentioned..."
The atmosphere suddenly turned serious after the emperor said those words.
Cale was silent for a moment before he told him everything he knew about the Soul Devouring Demonic Poison.
The emperor"s expression was incredibly solemn as he silently listened to Cale"s explanation about the poison. In the end, he sighed weakly while shaking his head.
"I don"t believe that t.i.tus would be able to do something this vicious. He was the most talented among my three sons, and he was even named as the most talented person of the younger generation in the empire. He was ambitious, unruly and unyielding, but he does not know how to scheme deeply like this."
"Your majesty, we will eventually be able to unveil the truths behind the scenes. But for now, please drink this gla.s.s of wine." Cale said as he took out a gla.s.s of Heavenly Restoration Wine from his storage s.p.a.ce.
The emperor"s nose twitched after smelling the aroma of the wine and he also felt his pores opening naturally. The effect of inhaling the wine alleviated the numbing sensation on his body, making him unconsciously close his eyes with a contented expression.
"Fine wine! Is this the one you gave me yesterday?" The emperor asked excitedly. His former serious bearing was gone and was replaced by an excited look. He was like a child who had seen a nice toy.
Cale nodded his head while giving him the gla.s.s of Heavenly Restoration Wine.
"Yes, your majesty. This was indeed the one that I let you consume to heal your soul and expel the poison on your body. Don"t look down on this wine, your majesty. It was only by lucky chance that I was able to get one bottle of this wondrous wine for myself. As for the effect... You have experienced it yourself yesterday."
The emperor held the gla.s.s of wine in his hands and inhaled its fragrant aroma with a pleased look. He then slowly placed the gla.s.s of wine towards his lips and gave it a light sip.
"Truly a miraculous wine. You actually gave me such a valuable wine. Now, this emperor is greatly indebted to you, young man." The emperor exclaimed softly after savoring the wine"s taste.
Cale smiled and bowed his head lightly.
"Your majesty, honestly, I could not bear to see a thriving empire such as the Celestial Sword Empire get destroyed just like that. Also, I have taken a liking to this place. Giving you seven gla.s.ses of this wine is worth it."
The emperor laughed lightly and downed the entire gla.s.s of wine. He felt the pain in his body subside by a great margin, shocking him inwardly.
If not for Cale being his benefactor, he would have s.n.a.t.c.hed the wine from him just based on its effects alone. It was even able to stimulate his elemental essence and soul force! What does that mean? It means that it could help someone breakthrough to an unimaginable speed!
"This Cale... Just who is he?"
Inside a luxurious villa.
"Bang!" A table made from valuable materials disintegrated into dust after a young-looking man smashed it with his hand which was still covered with black-purple flames.
The young-looking man peered deeply towards the majestic-looking imperial palace which was visible from his location.
"Someone was actually able to remove the Soul Devouring Demonic Poison from the old man"s body! Even though it was only the weakest of its kind in terms of potency, it should still be enough to kill that old man. Not even the Holy Nouris.h.i.+ng Crystal could save him, but that person was able to make him recover... Just who is this person that foiled my plans?!"
His eyes turned incomparably malicious as he clenched his fists which were covered by black-purple flames.