Chapter 2291: Chapter 2291 Misunderstanding
King Zhongyuan then ordered Xue Rongwu to lead a rescue mission for Xue Jinling.
Xue Rongwu readily agreed and gathered his forces. After assembling his troops, he marched out of the city and instructed Xue Jinling to remain hidden until his return.
Meanwhile, the clone followed Xue Rongwu and his men out of the city.
Once beyond the gates, he transformed into Xue Jinling’s likeness and set off with over a dozen newly subdued guards. Catching up with Xue Rongwu, he pretended to bear a direct order from King Zhongyuan, claiming they were to seize the spiritual spring.
Feigning caution, Xue Rongwu even pretended to confirm the order through a Sound Transmission Talisman before leading his troops toward the spiritual spring.
Upon arrival, the martial practitioners of Elysium Dynasty naturally emerged to receive them. With both a prince and a royal lord present, there was no reason to doubt their legitimacy—such figures would only appear if officially sanctioned.
Playing the part of a man with secret orders, the clone called the martial practitioners aside one by one. Working alongside Qiong Qi and Xue Rongwu, he placed Slaving Seals on each of them. With their new subordinates under control, they then led the charge against the martial practitioners of the two opposing Royal Management.
Meanwhile, Qiong Qi and the clone slipped on their Concealcapes and approached the spiritual spring in secrecy.
"You’re quite the mastermind." Qiong Qi transmitted to Ye Liuyun in admiration.
Together, they effortlessly reached the spiritual spring and began their observations.
Ye Liuyun informed Qiong Qi, "From what I gathered from Xue Rongwu, Elysium Dynasty has secretly nurtured nearly ten thousand Royal Court descendants and fifty thousand praetorians, all at mid to late Ninth Realm. We need to act before they make their move."
"What they obtained from the planetary envoy was indeed the same grand hall as ours. Along with the distress talisman, it was now in King Zhongyuan’s possession."
"Then we can’t waste time. We must seize the entire spiritual spring." Qiong Qi declared.
Though called a spring, it was merely a small pool, barely larger than a clenched fist. It contained no more than a hundred drops of luminous emerald liquid.
Ye Liuyun’s Golden Phantom Eyes pierced through the depths beneath the spring, revealing a jade-green gemstone embedded in the earth. It continuously absorbed underground energy, refining it into the liquid essence that filled the tiny pool.
"Did you see anything?" Qiong Qi urged impatiently, knowing that Ye Liuyun was using his Golden Phantom Eyes to observe the area.
The air was thick with the sounds of battle, but their forces held the upper hand. None of the martial practitioners or soldiers could get close to the spiritual spring.
Ye Liuyun remained silent, his gaze fixed downward. What he discovered shocked him—beneath the mountain lay a high-quality Spirit Crystal mineral vein. The entire mountain was buried with top-grade Spirit Crystals.
These Spirit Crystals were the true source of energy for the Emerald Jade beneath the spring. The jade itself merely served as a conduit, absorbing and concentrating the energy before releasing it into the pool above.
Once Ye Liuyun had confirmed his findings, he relayed the information to Qiong Qi.
"First, we take the jade and the spring. Then, we extract the Spirit Crystals," Qiong Qi declared. Without hesitation, he scooped up a small vial of Emerald Essence Liquid, securing at least a dozen drops.
Drawing his Demon Slayer Blade, he swiftly carved out the entire pool along with the jade. Then, without hesitation, he cut away the surrounding soil, ensuring nothing was left behind. Finally, he sealed everything within his Spatial World.
With that done, both he and Qiong Qi joined the fray, unleashing their Divine Soul abilities.
Once they had annihilated the remaining martial practitioners from the other two Royal Management, they then commanded the surviving 130 martial practitioner experts and 3,000 soldiers to begin mining the Alora Crystal mineral vein.
Their mining method was purely destructive. The martial practitioners bombarded the mountain with relentless attacks, reducing it to rubble, while the soldiers swiftly gathered the extracted Spirit Crystals, storing them in Interspatial Rings.
Once they had gathered a sufficient amount, Xue Rongwu ordered ten of his martial practitioners to escort the soldiers back to Greenfield City, where they would await Xue Jinling’s command.
Meanwhile, the clone reinforced his control over the remaining martial practitioner, branding those who had yet to receive a Slaving Seal. He then deployed the Blade Legion, who unleashed a furious assault on the mountain, extracting every last Spirit Crystal before sealing everything away.
With the mission complete, he transported everyone into his Spatial World and used the Black Tower’s transmission gate to return to Ye Liuyun’s side.
Back in Greenfield City, Xue Jinling received Xue Rongwu’s message. He was free to reveal himself. He was to lead the ten martial practitioners and 3,000 soldiers back to Regalty without delay.
When he inquired about what had happened, Xue Rongwu simply told him to follow orders, stating that it was a confidential decree from King Zhongyuan and that asking too many questions would only invite trouble.
Obediently, Xue Jinling refrained from pressing further. He emerged from hiding and led his troops directly toward Regalty.
However, by the time he arrived, all three of Royal Management had already learned of the battle at the spiritual spring. Outraged, they were now demanding an explanation from Elysium Dynasty.
King Zhongyuan attempted to contact Xue Rongwu, but all efforts proved futile.
Upon hearing that Xue Jinling had returned with several martial practitioners and 3,000 soldiers who had been guarding the spiritual spring, King Zhongyuan immediately ordered an investigation.
Xue Jinling recounted his own experiences but deliberately avoided mentioning anything about the spiritual spring.
"Where have you been these past few days?" King Zhongyuan questioned him directly.
"I was in hiding, evading pursuit from Jade Grove City," Xue Jinling replied, feigning composure.
Yet even King Zhongyuan, Xue Rongtian, no longer believed him.
All ten martial practitioners and 3,000 soldiers consistently testified that the orders had come directly from Xue Jinling, who had personally led them into battle under King Zhongyuan’s command.
If only one person had made such a claim, there might still be room for doubt. But how could over 3,000 people conspire to tell the same lie?
To eliminate any possibility of mind control, King Zhongyuan even summoned a soul cultivator expert to examine Xue Jinling and the soldiers. The results confirmed that none of them had been manipulated.
At this point, King Zhongyuan was nearly certain that Xue Jinling was lying.
Maintaining his composure, he pressed on, "Where is Xue Rongwu?"
"I don’t know! Maybe he was looking for me, and we simply took different paths!" Xue Jinling stubbornly insisted, still oblivious to the magnitude of the disaster he had caused.
King Zhongyuan shook his head in disappointment. He no longer had the patience to argue with Xue Jinling and ordered his men to take him away for interrogation.
His frustration with this son had reached its limit. Rather than waste any more energy on him, he left the task to others.
Under the relentless torture, the Eighth Prince soon broke and revealed everything he knew.
However, since he had no knowledge of the attack on the spiritual spring, he never confessed to it.
"Why would I forge an order to attack the spiritual spring?" Xue Jinling protested, insisting that he was being framed.
The interrogator, an expert in his craft, sighed and attempted to reason with him. "Over 3,000 soldiers witnessed it with their own eyes. Do you still intend to resist until the very end? The Majesty simply wants to hear the truth from you."
"After all, you are father and son. Even if you confess, no real harm will come to you. Why endure this suffering?"
"What? More than 3,000 soldiers?" Xue Jinling paused in thought before suddenly shouting, "I know now! The one who set me up was Xue Rongwu! Go find him!"
The interrogator was momentarily speechless. His primary goal had been to extract information about Xue Rongwu’s whereabouts. "So, you refused to tell us where Xue Rongwu is?" he asked, his voice turning cold.
"I really don’t know! I’ve already told you everything I know! He deceived me into waiting for him in Greenfield City. After that, I never saw him again!" Xue Jinling insisted.
But no matter how much he tried to explain himself now, it was too late. His words no longer held any credibility.
The interrogator shook his head, exhaling in exasperation. "Since you’re so determined to hold your tongue, then don’t blame us for what comes next."
