Qian Country, Capital City.

Imperial Palace's Rear Hall, Martial Arts Practice Ground.

At this moment, a man and a woman were sparring. The woman appeared young, with agile and lively body techniques, her jade-like fingers as sharp as swords, making fierce attacks.

The man stood his ground, slightly bending his knees, his feet seemingly rooted to the ground, unwavering.

No matter how aggressive the woman's attacks were, circling him continuously, the man easily neutralized them.

Their fighting styles and even body techniques were fundamentally different.

The woman's moves were flexible and variable, a mixture of real and feigned attacks.

In contrast, the man's fist techniques were ancient and simple, yet carried a grand momentum, using force to break through finesse.

"I won't fight anymore,"

The woman suddenly stopped her attacks, slightly panting, and said, "Even if you don't use your inner qi, I still can't match you."

The woman appeared youthful, with an ethereal beauty, her face slightly flushed, forehead lightly sweating, an unparalleled beauty. She is the Eldest Princess of Qian, Yuan Qingmu.

The man opposite her appeared to be in his thirties, wearing a blue brocade robe with golden dragon patterns, tall and handsome, dignified and authoritative, with deep eyes. He is the current Emperor of Qian, Yuan Qingshan.

Yuan Qingshan smiled and said, "You studied under Elder Feng Xu of One Step to the Clouds, and are most skilled in lightweight skill body techniques. In this aspect, I can't compare to you."

"Big brother, where did you learn these skills?"

Yuan Qingmu, somewhat curious, couldn't help asking, "Although my master is best at lightweight skills, his hand and foot skills are also strong, yet I can't gain any advantage over you."

Yuan Qingshan took the towel handed over by a nearby palace maid, wiped his sweat, and responded with a smile without answering.

Yuan Qingmu pouted and said, "Humph, being so secretive, fine if you don't want to say."

At this moment, a Black Tortoise Guard entered and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, the Vermilion Bird Lord requests an audience."

"Let her in,"

Yuan Qingshan nodded.

Soon after, the Vermilion Bird Lord came in from outside, bowed, and said, "Greetings, Your Majesty, greetings, Eldest Princess."

"No need for such formalities,"

Yuan Qingshan raised one hand slightly, indicating she could rise and speak.

"Sister Ling Guang, you've arrived."

Yuan Qingmu greeted the Vermilion Bird Lord affectionately as she approached her side.

The Vermilion Bird Lord smiled and nodded, then glanced at the surrounding palace maids and attendants.

Yuan Qingshan understood and waved his hand.

The surrounding palace maids and attendants gradually withdrew.

Yuan Qingmu blinked and said, "Big brother, then I'll leave first and come back to find you later."

"Stay. It's fine,"

Yuan Qingshan said, "Don't you also have something to ask the Vermilion Bird Lord about?"

Yuan Qingmu knew she couldn't hide it from her brother, so she said, "You talk about the important matters first. I'll ask about mine later."

Yuan Qingshan asked, "What has happened?"

The Vermilion Bird Lord said, "I have just received information; the son of the Former Emperor Wu is not dead. His whereabouts have been identified!"

"Oh?"

Yuan Qingshan was somewhat surprised and asked, "Where is this person, and has there been any unusual activity?"

The Vermilion Bird Lord said, "It is said that this person is in Bingzhou, doesn't understand martial arts, is married, and has a daughter, living under an assumed name in a village, with no unusual activities or signs of rebellion over the years."

Yuan Qingshan thought for a moment and said, "In that case, let it be. Allow him to live as a common man for this life."

The Vermilion Bird Lord shook her head and said, "His whereabouts were first discovered by the Yuwen Family. And Yuwen Mao has informed the Profound Celestial Sect Leader of this. It is said that the Yuwen Family and the Profound Celestial Sect plan to bring back the son of the Former Emperor Wu."

Yuan Qingshan frowned slightly.

In truth, he had long known that the son of the Former Emperor Wu might still be alive.

Because, Feng Xu once sneaked into the Imperial Palace twice, stealing away two people.

The second time was him and Yuan Qingmu.

And the first time, was on the eve of the collapse of the previous dynasty, rescuing the son of the Former Emperor Wu!

However, over thirty years had passed, and there was still no news of the son of the Former Emperor Wu.

Having just learned that he was still alive and harbored no ill intentions, Yuan Qingshan did not plan to pursue it further.

But unexpectedly, the Yuwen Family and the Profound Celestial Sect were still unwilling to let go of the descendants of Emperor Wu, intending to eliminate them thoroughly!

After the rebellion in Pingzhou, Yuwen Mao was reinstated as Grand Commandant and now controls all the troops in the land.

The power of the Profound Celestial Sect spreads across all regions of Qian Country, an indomitable force.

Yuan Qingshan felt a bit weary and exhausted.

Although he was noble as the Emperor of Qian, he essentially lacked foundations in the court, had no prestige in the military and was not a grandmaster himself, he had no control over many issues.

Originally, the Profound Celestial Sect existed in Qian Country as an entity above the imperial power.

He reinstated the Grand Commandant, besides suppressing the rebellion and saving people, another goal was to leverage the power of the Yuwen Family to counter the Profound Celestial Sect, creating a mutual constraint to balance each other.

But unexpected, the Yuwen Family seemingly became quite close with the Profound Celestial Sect.

This matter is a clear indication!

Unfortunately, the descendants of the Former Emperor Wu—

Yuan Qingshan sighed inwardly.

The Yuwen Family and the Profound Celestial Temple joined forces; not to mention that the son of Emperor Wu had no power, even if he could gather former subordinates, they would probably be completely wiped out!

In regard to this matter, he was powerless and saw no need for intervention.

In short, the life and death of the descendants of Emperor Wu had little to do with him.

Yuan Qingshan asked, "Is there anything else?"

The Vermilion Bird Lord said, "In the territory of Bingzhou, we found signs of a former dynasty survivor, possibly one of the Dragon Guards of the previous dynasty, who speaks and discusses matters of the previous dynasty in public, and the White Tiger Guard has already been sent to handle it."

"Hmm."

Yuan Qingshan nodded casually.

These minor matters could be handled by his subordinates; he need not involve himself in everything.

"There is one more thing."

The Vermilion Bird Lord pondered and said, "In the region of Bingzhou, there has been a Wushan Village..."

She recounted in full detail matters concerning Wushan Village, the Ten Ghosts of Wushan, the Profound Celestial Temple, the Ghost Mother Meng Qi, and so forth.

Then narrated how the Jade Flute Fairy from Nanxia and another youth, collaborated with four young individuals from Bingzhou, to kill the Ghost Mother.

"Profound Celestial Temple again!"

Yuan Qingshan frowned slightly, solemnly asking, "Is it true that the Ghost Mother is indeed the Observatory Master of the Profound Celestial Temple in Bingzhou City, involved in the illicit extraction of Purple River Car from pregnant women for evil techniques?"

"Absolutely true,"

The Vermilion Bird Lord stated, "The Vermilion Bird Guard in Bingzhou City went to the Profound Celestial Temple and Wushan Village to investigate thoroughly before reporting to me."

Yuan Qingshan said, "If that's the case, then those acts by the Jade Flute Fairy and the four youths from Bingzhou City were right, well-killed! Conducting such inhumane activities, not executing her would be doing her a favor!"

"What is the stance of the Profound Celestial Sect?"

The Vermilion Bird Lord hesitated for a moment and said, "The Profound Celestial Sect claims that the incident is slander and entrapment by the four youths colluding with people from Nanxia against Meng Qi of the Profound Celestial Sect. Currently, they are cooperating with the Governor of Bingzhou for a province-wide manhunt for the Jade Flute Fairy and those four youths."

The Vermilion Bird Lord sighed slightly and said, "Such disgraceful deeds, the Profound Celestial Sect naturally would not admit."

Yuan Qingmu couldn't help but say, "Didn't the Wushan Village rescue hundreds of women? They can all testify."

The Vermilion Bird Lord fell silent again.

Yuan Qingshan's heart sank, realizing something, and he asked, "Are they all dead?"

The Vermilion Bird Lord quietly said, "I'm not sure, my subordinates couldn't find them."

Even the people from the Vermilion Bird Bureau couldn't find them, which meant those women were likely doomed!

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