Chapter 25: Ask Him Yourself
The next day, an imperial decree was publicly announced by the Imperial Palace, and news of Fang Chen’s punishment quickly spread between the people of Grand Xia.
It sparked heated discussions among various factions. Some claimed that the emperor’s actions were equivalent to severing one of Grand Xia’s arm, while others argued that it could help appease the anger of the Qingsong Empire.
General Fang’s Manor.
Fang Canghai surrendered the Tiger Token and was stripped of his rank as the General of the East Tiger Battalion. Moreover, he was demoted to a mere commander in charge of guarding the East City Gate. Even though that should have been considered awful news, the Fang Manor was extremely lively.
Both the main and branch family members gathered to celebrate Fang Chen’s recovery. The Fang family was the only family in the capital with an expert at the Qi Core Stage. Not even the Imperial Palace had such an expert!
Currently, Xu Ge, Tie Ma, and Huang Sihai were catching up with each other. They sat and reminesend about their past. Even though Huang Sihai was a Dragon General and did not know Xu Ge and Tie Ma that well, the three had crossed paths before, and after not seeing each other for five years, they naturally had quite a lot to talk about.
"Chen‘er, I’ll have to return to the palace after finishing this meal." The empress looked at Fang Chen and smiled. "You're twenty-three this year, it's about time for you to start a family. Do you have a girl in mind? I can help with matchmaking."
Fang Canghai, Fang Cangyou, and Fang Cangyue all looked at Fang Chen with a hint of anticipation in their eyes.
"There is indeed someone in my heart." Fang Chen smiled and nodded.
Everyone was surprised at his words, and Fang Zhixue quickly asked, "Big Brother, which family is the girl from?”
Fang Chen shook his head and laughed. "I don't know."
Since that day five years ago, that figure had been deeply imprinted and often appeared in his mind.
When everyone heard Fang Chen’s words, they took it as a lame excuse, and immediately started nagging him. But, they soon stopped. They knew that Fang Chen was different from ordinary people, and that his marriage should not be rushed.
"Father, is grandfather still in seclusion?" Fang Chen casually asked.
"Yes, your grandfather is still in seclusion. If he successfully breaks through, we will have another Qi Core expert." Fang Canghai nodded with a smile.
Everyone became a bit nervous at the mention of his grandfather. A martial artist in the Qi Core Stage was a symbol of a ninth-tier empire. The reason why Grand Xia had declined so much was the absence of such experts. Before Fang Chen, no martial artist had managed to reach the Qi Core Stage for the past decade. Due to that, the Qingsong Empire, which had lagged far behind them for many years, eventually overtook them.
Time passed, and in the evening, the empress returned to the palace, and Fang Chen returned to his courtyard to craft more Purple Lightning Talismans. He didn’t just do that for the talismans themselves. He did it to repeatedly consume and recover his spiritual qi, and in turn, improve his cultivation.
Before he knew it, midnight descended.
Fang Chen's eyes suddenly flickered, and his grayish-white eyes slowly looked in a certain direction. He calmly said, "Goddess Xiao, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be at home?”
In the darkness of the night, Goddess Xiao stared fiercely at Fang Chen, her eyes filled with deep hatred. She looked disheveled. Her clothes were tattered, and her body was covered in injuries of varying degrees. Some of the injuries had already scabbed, while the blood at others had not yet congealed.
"I never expected that the highly regarded Divine General Fang would turn out to be a deceitful and despicable person. To think my father held you in such high regard!" Goddess Xiao gritted her teeth.
"What do you mean by that?" Fang Chen's brows furrowed slightly. "You're quite heavily injured."
"You told me to return to the Qingsong Empire, but secretly sent experts to hunt me down. Don’t act like you don’t know what happened. When I returned to the capital, I heard that you slaughtered the entire Qingsong Superior Academy. You're truly despicable!" accused Goddess Xiao coldly.
"I did indeed exterminate the martial artists of the Qingsong Superior Academy. Why should I let such a malignant tumor continue festering in the capital? But as for you... I didn’t do anything,” Fang Chen answered calmly.
"Who else could it be? You’re afraid to admit it even at this point?” Goddess Xiao’s eyes gleamed with fury.
"If I kill someone, I will naturally accept the responsibility of their death. However, there’s no way I’ll admit to something I haven’t done." Fang Chen showed a smile. "Since you came all the way back here, you probably have some doubts in mind, right?”
Goddess Xiao’s expression shifted; Fang Chen was right. Even though she believed that Fang Chen was behind it all, there was a hint of doubt in her heart. She wanted to confirm it personally. Even if it meant that she might be killed.
"Tell me; what did you run into after leaving the city?" Fang Chen slowly rose from his seat.
He was growing curious. Did someone influential in the Grand Xia capital not want her to return alive?
Goddess Xiao was eventually convinced that Fang Chen was not involved in the matter. She whispered hesitantly, "It had been barely a day since I left the city when we ran into some Daoist. He was extremely strange. He possessed incredible strength. Not even weapons were effective against him. The hundred Wolf Soldiers I had with me were no match for him.”
She continued coldly, "About a dozen Wolf Soldiers protected me as I fled, whilst the rest delayed him. No matter where I escaped, he could easily track me down. One by one, the Wolf Soldiers around me died. I had no choice but to take the opportunity to escape back into the city. His strength is likely to be at the Qi Core Stage. Hmph. your Grand Xia is indeed full of hidden talents. You’ve claimed peace for five years, yet you...."
"A Daoist?" Fang Chen's expression turned grave.
From her description, the immense strength and invulnerability to weapons sounded like the Vajra Talisman and Strength Talisman. Those were basic talismans in the cultivation world and were not exclusive to the Three Thousand Dao Sect, ordinary cultivators could also create them.
Putting two and two together, there should be a cultivator hiding in the capital city.
However... it could also be a martial technique, Fang Chen thought inwardly. There were numerous martial techniques capable of granting invulnerability and immense strength.
"Fang Chen, do you know who might want to assassinate me?” Goddess Xiao asked slowly.
Fang Chen suddenly asked, "You said that no matter what you did, you weren’t able to shake him off? He was able to accurately locate you every time, right?”
Goddess Xiao was slightly startled and nodded subconsciously.
Fang Chen waved his hand and a surge of spiritual energy fell onto her. Soon, his spiritual qi detected something peculiar.
"What are you trying to do?!" she shouted in panic when she saw Fang Chen approaching her.
"Don't move." Fang Chen snorted and grabbed her shoulder. Spiritual power surged through her body, and in the next moment, a white worm wriggled out from beneath her skin.
Goddess Xiao was dumbfounded. Why was there a worm inside my shoulder?
"The Daoist you mentioned was using this creature to track you," Fang Chen explained. With another surge of spiritual energy, he crushed the white worm into paste.
That Daoist was indeed a cultivator, but he was unable to determine the extent of the other party’s cultivation.
"What kind of eerie technique is this!?” The frantic Goddess Xiao regained her senses. Resisting the urge to vomit, she stared at Fang Chen.
"You can ask him yourself." Fang Chen's eyes drifted toward another direction. Following his gaze, Goddess Xiao turned her head and saw a figure standing quietly. It was a middle-aged man who wore a light red Daoist robe.
He was gloomy.
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