Chapter 134 - 89: Zhao Ci: Performing an On-the-Spot Ascension

Chapter 134: Chapter 89: Zhao Ci: Performing an On-the-Spot Ascension

Once their important discussion concluded, the figure on the black jade dissipated.

Zhao Yong put the black jade away, his expression grim.

He wanted Zhao Ci to die, of course.

But the *how* of his death mattered a great deal.

If he had his way,

he would have preferred Zhao Ci to be struck dead by a falling meteorite. That way, he wouldn’t feel the slightest bit of guilt.

But to indirectly commit murder by cooperating with the Demon Sect...

Even if his own involvement was minor, the psychological burden was immense.

For one, he was terrified of being exposed.

For another, fratricide was not a thought a proper son should entertain.

’His Imperial Father would never want to see such a thing.’

But he had no choice.

He had already come this far. Everything that had happened recently destined him to lead Zhao Ci to his doom.

’However...’

Zhao Yong’s expression flickered. ’The Demon Sect’s methods are truly insidious. They can even determine the entrance point of the ruin... How did they get in contact with the Crown Prince?’

He increasingly felt as if he had boarded a pirate ship. The Demon Sect had stayed hidden for so many years, yet the strength and methods they revealed with their first move were this astonishing.

’After this is done, I must be more cautious in my dealings with them.’

’Otherwise, if I get in too deep, I’ll eventually become a puppet for either the Demon Sect or the Crown Prince.’

’As for Zhao Ci... you’re on your own.’

Zhao Yong sighed, then undressed and went to bed.

But as he lay under the covers, thoughts began to surface, one after another, unbidden.

’Are Miss Luotang and the others asleep now?’

’Are they sleeping together, or separately?’

’I remember they barely interacted in Lingge.’

’So why were they embracing today?’

’Are they still holding each other right now?’

WHOOSH!

Zhao Yong shot upright, his face twisted in a snarl. "Zhao Ci, you really deserve to die!"

...

「The next morning.」

Autumn dew clung to every blade of grass by the roadside.

The weather had, at last, grown cooler.

But as everyone knows, the colder the weather, the warmer one’s bed.

Zhao Ci was burrowed under his covers, enjoying a long-overdue chance to sleep in.

Normally, he would have been up and cultivating by now.

It wasn’t that he was naturally diligent.

It was because he had nightmares every night.

He’d either dream of Zhao Huan, that Old Deng, chasing him through the streets with a scalpel, insisting that father and son have a proper heart-to-heart—literally.

Or he’d dream of Gu Xiangzhu stripping him naked, tying him to a small stool, and lashing him with a little leather whip. CRACK! CRACK!

Under those circumstances,

how could he possibly sleep in?

But he had been so exhausted yesterday that, miraculously, he hadn’t dreamt at all. He had slept like a log!

Although his eyes were still closed,

his sleep was lightening, and consciousness slowly returned.

The sound of fur being scrubbed.

The SPLASHING of water.

And the weak but contented snorts of a horse.

The medley of sounds flowing into his ears was exceptionally soothing.

Zhao Ci felt as if he were back in the days of scrolling through videos, watching people give elephants and hippos baths.

But with only sound and no picture, the stress-relieving effect was cut in half.

So he sat up, threw on some clothes, and pushed open the window.

The white horse was lying on the ground.

The stumps of its severed legs were wrapped in waterproof oil paper.

It was comfortably enjoying a scrubbing from Kan Luotang’s brush, as if the sensation relieved its pain.

The blood and filth from yesterday were gone,

and its coat was a pleasing, brilliant white.

Kan Luotang was still dressed in the same coarse linen, a very rustic outfit that only served to accentuate her pure and clear-eyed temperament. She was squatting down, washing the white horse’s back.

Zhao Ci’s heart ached at the sight. ’Get away from that horse and let me take over!’

’Being bathed by a pretty girl must feel amazing, right?’

Hearing the window open, Kan Luotang couldn’t help but smile. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and turned her head. "Your Highness, you’re awake?"

"I’m awake!"

Zhao Ci hastily straightened his clothes, hopped out the window, and walked over to the horse. "How are its injuries?"

The white horse snorted at him in greeting, its attitude quite friendly.

It seemed to remember the person who had let it ride on his back to get home yesterday.

Hearing this, the light in Kan Luotang’s pretty face dimmed. She gently stroked the horse’s back. "My medical skills aren’t that good. The bones and tendons in all four of its legs were completely severed. It might be able to walk again after they slowly grow back, but I doubt it will ever be able to gallop like it used to."

"What a shame."

Zhao Ci sighed softly, then took a coil of gleaming metal wire from his robes—the very wire that had severed the horse’s legs. His voice was grim. "I examined this carefully yesterday. It’s a tungsten steel wire. This stuff is incredibly hard."

"But to draw it into a wire this fine and engrave a harmful Array Pattern onto it requires some serious skill. The only ones capable of this level of work are the Gongshu Clan’s Artifact Refining Shops."

"If you need proof, you should be able to find something if you ask around at a Gongshu Clan Artifact Refining Shop."

In truth, they didn’t even have to think to know who the culprit was.

The key was finding proof.

But even with proof, the Prefect of Huangjing County would just pin the blame on some underling, some Little Kalami.

Unless Zhao Huan was determined to clean up the Northern Three Prefectures, it was impossible to make any waves.

Even yesterday, he had only managed to force Zhang Delv to cough up forty thousand taels by showing him his willingness to fight to the bitter end.

Kan Luotang clearly knew this as well. She shook her head with a bitter smile. "There’s no need. The priority right now is to get the registers. Who knows how many of them Zheng Huo has already destroyed."

"I doubt it."

Zhao Ci said in a low voice, "Zhang Delv has already taken the lead and yielded. There’s no point in the others resisting anymore. It’s just... continuing to butt heads with them isn’t very meaningful."