Volume 1, Chapter 39: Dragon Battle Loses the Heavenly Sword

[Damn it, what does this woman mean?]

"Uh... I'll work on building up my physical stamina."

"Heh." Li Zhaohua knew Zhao Wujiang had misunderstood her intention. "They all say you are famously romantic, so why do you act like a child in front of this Princess?"

"What does Her Imperial Highness mean?"

Li Zhaohua said bluntly, "If you aren't happy living with Yunrui, the doors of my estate will always be open to you."

[The doors?]

[Which door?]

[Never mind, I'll just play along for now.]

Zhao Wujiang nodded knowingly, "So that's what it was. Then I thank Your Imperial Highness."

Shooting him a sideways glance, Li Zhaohua waved her hand. "Go on. You're about to be married, you should prepare more."

This Zhao Wujiang was a young man after all.

Perhaps he didn't realize the true weight of her words "the doors will always be open to you" right now.

But once he was betrayed and abandoned by everyone on his wedding day, he would probably understand.

People, after all, always had to learn to grow up, and she had gone through the same thing herself.

...

Having returned to the Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion, Zhao Wujiang didn't dwell on Li Zhaohua, but instead began to handle Liu Ruyan.

This trip to the Directorate of Sword Casting had pushed his martial prowess right to the threshold of the eighth rank.

If he found the Dragon-Nourishing Sacred Body to nourish himself once more, he could quickly step into the seventh rank.

Zhao Wujiang's return gave Liu Ruyan a huge fright.

"You—how are you not dead?"

"Did you really want me to die that much?"

Zhao Wujiang smiled. He had disciplined this woman so many times, yet she still held hostility toward him.

As it turned out, all those tropes in novels about conquering women through intimacy were fake.

Any woman with even a sliver of capability had her own rationality and wouldn't surrender simply because of physical relations.

"Impossible! Since my Fourth Senior Sister made a move, there's no way you could return unscathed."

[Your Fourth Senior Sister? She's my woman now too!]

Thinking to himself, Zhao Wujiang couldn't be bothered to waste words on Liu Ruyan.

Liu Ruyan's mind buzzed with ringing noises.

Fourth Senior Sister is your woman too?

Impossible. Fourth Senior Sister had always treated men as if they didn't exist.

Even junior brother, a person with peerless talent, had never caught Fourth Senior Sister's serious gaze. How could she possibly take a fancy to this lecher Zhao Wujiang?!

Yet Zhao Wujiang didn't care about her thoughts at all. He brought out a bottle of honey and poured it over Liu Ruyan's body. "Come on, I'm trying out a new routine today."

...

An hour later.

aided by the Dragon-Nourishing Sacred Body, grew increasingly dense...

Cross-legged, he circulated the True Sun Heart Sutra, and his inner qi erupted like a flood, breaking through the shackles of the eighth rank!

Only then did Liu Ruyan watch in shock, "In a mere ten days, you've actually gone from having zero martial arts to the seventh rank!"

Her breathing was rapid, and she found it increasingly unbelievable.

Even Long Zhan back then had engaged in grueling day-and-night training, combined with the Daoist Sect's martial arts, to barely attain seventh-rank combat prowess.

At most, he possessed sixth-rank combat power now.

By what right had Zhao Wujiang caught up to him so quickly?

Zhao Wujiang couldn't be bothered to pay attention to her.

"When I practice for a few more days, I'll come back to you for an upgrade."

Zhao Wujiang quietly slipped out of the dungeon.

After he left the small dungeon room, Ling Qingxue stared at him from a tricky angle.

A puzzled expression rested on Ling Qingxue's face. Zhao Wujiang had been inside that mysterious little room for two hours. Upon coming out, his True Sun qi seemed much denser, and he looked both exhausted and refreshed at the same time. Just what on earth was hidden inside that small room?

She definitely had to find an opportunity to go in and check it out!

...

Early the next morning.

Summoned by imperial decree, Zhao Wujiang stepped into the council hall.

With a gloomy face, Li Zhaohua intended to interrogate him about hoarding the Heavenly Sword, incidentally demoting Zhao Wujiang to resolve this matrimonial engagement.

Before he could even speak, however, Zhao Wujiang burst into a cry:

"Your Majesty, you must seek justice for this humble subject!"

Li Zhaohua was taken aback. Why was this unfolding differently than he had anticipated?

Wiping away a nonexistent tear, Zhao Wujiang poured out a flood of grievances:

"Your Majesty, you might not know this, but in order to fulfill the mission you entrusted to me, this subject disguised himself and endured humiliation to infiltrate the Directorate of Sword Casting. Who would have thought I would be ambushed by treacherous villains? Fortunately, this subject kept Your Majesty constantly in his thoughts, and through countless brushes with death, I fought my way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. I did not disgrace my mission and successfully completed the task Your Majesty assigned!"

"However!"

Zhao Wujiang changed the subject:

"Who could have known that on the way back to the mansion, this subject would still be ambushed by assassins who snatched the Heavenly Sword away!

Protected by Your Majesty's divine grace, this subject only suffered heavy injuries, but I discovered that the person who seized the Heavenly Sword actually belongs to the imperial court!"

Zhao Wujiang's words caused all the ministers in the court to exchange glances.

They had originally expected Zhao Wujiang to be punished by the Emperor today.

Yet they never anticipated Zhao Wujiang pointing the spearhead at them.

"Lord Zhao, what do you mean by this? The civil and military officials of our imperial court are utterly loyal to His Majesty. Who robbed you of your sword?"

"Precisely! Who would dare act wildly right under the Son of Heaven's nose? That's courting decapitation!"

Zhao Wujiang let out a cold snort and directly handed over a token.

That token happened to be the badge of the Black Cavalry Imperial Guard, though very few people could recognize it.

With sharp eyes and swift hands, Li Zhaohua immediately ordered the token to be presented.

An angry look flashed in his eyes. These idiots had actually lost their token and even let Zhao Wujiang pick it up.

"Your Majesty, someone from the imperial court snatched the Heavenly Sword personally designated by Your Majesty. This is a sign of treason!"

Knowing that Zhao Wujiang was trying to corner him, Li Zhaohua countered, "Whether it was someone from the court remains to be verified, but since the Heavenly Sword was lost while in your possession, you must also bear responsibility..."

Who would have thought Zhao Wujiang had already prepared his excuse, casting an expectant gaze toward Long Zhan.

Long Zhan had remained silent all this time precisely because he also possessed a Hegemonic Heavenly Sword in his own hands.

He was terrified that this matter would burn him.

Yet he hadn't expected Zhao Wujiang to look at him anyway.

"Why are you looking at me?" Long Zhan put on a stern expression.

Zhao Wujiang asked in puzzlement, "What is Commander Long waiting for? The sword that was snatched from me was merely a fake; didn't I hand the real sword over for you to bring back? Could it be that you haven't presented it to His Majesty yet?"

At these words, all the civil and military officials in the court stared straight at Long Zhan.

The hair on the back of Long Zhan's neck stood on end, and for a moment, he almost couldn't resist rushing over to butcher Zhao Wujiang.

This bastard—since he lost his own sword, he wanted to drag me down with him too!

"Your Majesty!"

"Long Zhan, do you have the Heavenly Sword?" Li Zhaohua also glanced sideways at Long Zhan.

Silently cursing Zhao Wujiang a few times in his heart, Long Zhan bit the bullet, stepped forward, and nodded. "It is indeed in this humble subject's possession. However, the imperial court is no place to bare blades, and this subject intended to present it only after the court session concluded."

Long Zhan didn't dare to gamble; after all, Li Yunyi was aware of the Heavenly Sword.

Now that Zhao Wujiang had brought it to light, it was impossible for him to commit the crime of deceiving the ruler by continuing to hide the Heavenly Sword.

His only course of action for now was to endure patiently until his senior sisters arrived to assist him, at which point he could steadily slaughter this dog of a Zhao Wujiang!

Right there in the imperial court, Long Zhan was forced to hand over the Hegemonic Heavenly Sword.

Zhao Wujiang wore an expression of utter indifference.

With too many debts to worry about, he certainly wasn't going to fret over this one, and Long Zhan was bound and determined not to let him off anyway.

So he might as well use this opportunity to weaken Long Zhan's combat strength, giving his own little villain persona a better chance at survival.

Meanwhile, an elderly court minister voiced his opinion.

"Your Majesty, Lord Zhao's trip to the Directorate of Sword Casting helped the court purge the treasonous Director Jian Donglai, and he exercised meticulous care with a foolproof strategy to preserve the Heavenly Sword. He richly deserves a reward."

Another veteran minister chimed in, "Indeed, Your Majesty, Lord Zhao's contributions on this mission are monumental!"

Zhao Wujiang swept a glance over the ministers who had spoken up for him.

These officials appeared to be part of the Grand Princess's faction; speaking nicely for him now—was this her doing?

Li Zhaohua looked down from above upon the courtiers in the hall.

Could this Zhao Wujiang have already formed a faction behind closed doors?

Glancing sideways at Long Zhan, he said in a deep voice:

"Though Zhao Wujiang has merit, he also suffered a loss.

On the contrary, Long Zhan rendered meritorious service in escorting the Heavenly Sword. Effective as of today, he is promoted from Commander of the Xiaoj骑 (Xiaojji) Guard Battalion to Deputy Commandant of the Xiaoj骑 Camp, assisting the Commandant of Xiaoj骑 in overseeing the Lance Battalion, Artillery Battalion, Rattan Armor Battalion, and Guard Battalion..."

Hearing this, Long Zhan wore a pleasantly surprised expression and dropped to one knee:

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The rest of the courtiers wore varied expressions.

Zhao Wujiang's achievements were brushed over with a single stroke, while Long Zhan's merits directly earned him a promotion?

This Deputy Commandant of the Xiaoj骑 Camp was destined to be the Commandant in the near future—the bonafide head of the imperial guards.

Long Zhan was already a rising star, and the commanders of the other three battalions in the Xiaoj骑 Camp were senior to Long Zhan in terms of seniority. What on earth was His Majesty plotting...

Zhao Wujiang's eyes narrowed slightly. While his cheeks displayed no great emotional fluctuation, a trace of chilliness crept into his heart.

This chill stemmed not only from Li Zhaohua, but even more so from Long Zhan.

He hadn't expected that even after trapping Long Zhan and weakening his combat strength, Long Zhan would still get promoted, marching steadily toward the highest military office in the imperial guards.

Once he truly sat in the seat of Commandant, Long Zhan would possess the authority to execute first and report later!

Was this the protagonist halo?

If things kept going like this, how could he possibly win against Long Zhan?

Could this be the destiny of his role as a minor villain—that no matter how much he struggled, he could never escape the end of inevitable death, serving merely as an experience pack for Long Zhan?

He could also feel Long Zhan's gaze upon him.

Cold, arrogant, confident!

It was as if no matter how Zhao Wujiang struggled, the ultimate beneficiary would still be him, Long Zhan.

Damn it all!

Gritting his teeth, Zhao Wujiang thought, *My fate is determined by myself, not the heavens! Just you wait, I'm going right now to vent on your Fourth Senior Sister!*

...

After the court session ended.

The Emperor summoned Long Zhan alone.

"Long Zhan pays respects to Your Majesty, long live Your Emperor."

"Rise."

Li Zhaohua looked Long Zhan up and down. He possessed a tall, robust build, abundant blood vitality, high spirits, and quite handsome features.

In his eyes, he was far more pleasing to look at than the thin and gaunt Zhao Wujiang.

"Yunrui's wedding is approaching..."

Li Zhaohua took a sip of the tea Li Yunrui had brewed earlier and casually blurted out those words.

Long Zhan was bewildered. Li Yunrui was about to marry Zhao Wujiang, a fact that left him full of regret yet helpless. Why was the Emperor suddenly bringing this up now?

Pondering for a moment, he cupped his fists and spoke with utmost respect:

"Long Zhan will certainly secure the security on that day to ensure that absolutely no one disturbs Her Royal Highness the Princess's wedding..."

Li Zhaohua smiled and shook his head, his expression turning slowly serious. Looking at Long Zhan, he asked in return:

"If I were to tell you that if you snatch Yunrui away, you will be the imperial consort—would you dare to go up against Zhao Wujiang?"

Long Zhan paused.

Very quickly, he caught the subtext: the Emperor was actually telling him to snatch back the Seventh Princess?

Heaven helps me!

Yet Long Zhan knew that the more crucial the moment, the calmer one had to remain.

He forced down his churning emotions.

"As long as Your Majesty desires Lord Zhao's death, this subject is willing to act as that executioner!"