Chapter 95 - 77: That Is My Dearest Kin and Friend, My Very Own Brother

Chapter 95: Chapter 77: That Is My Dearest Kin and Friend, My Very Own Brother

The Holy Sect!?

Hearing those two words, Zhao Yong’s pupils contracted.

He was still young and hadn’t lived through the chaotic era of the Demon Monarch. However, his mother, a royal consort, had just entered the palace during that period and would often recall the despair of those times.

The Great Yu of that era was not the Great Yu of a golden age, but one teetering on the brink of collapse.

In the north, the four nations of Longyuan were constantly invading, while in the south, the seventeen vassal states were stirring with rebellion.

But none of this could easily affect Lingge.

And yet, Lingge at that time was in a greater state of panic than the borders themselves.

All because of the legendary Demon Sect.

The Demon Monarch in particular was a being who, with his power alone, could shatter the defenses of the entire Imperial Palace and had come close to assassinating the emperor.

If not for the numerous top-tier masters hidden within the Royal Family, coupled with the fact that Xiang Tiange happened to be in Lingge, the Demon Monarch might have claimed the achievement of Great Yu’s first-ever regicide.

Back then, the very name of the Demon Sect was enough to stop babies from crying in Lingge.

Although the Demon Sect’s activities vanished along with the Demon Monarch, their name was firmly seared into the nightmares of that generation.

This included Zhao Yong’s mother, who would shiver uncontrollably at the mere mention of them.

Zhao Yong knew the Demon Sect hadn’t disappeared; their shadow loomed behind many incidents. But compared to the past, the current Demon Sect was like thin air—no one knew what they were up to.

For them to suddenly appear now...

And they had directly contacted the Crown Prince, who had then sent them to him.

What’s more, they were to work together to kill Zhao Ci?

’No!’

’I just wanted to be your right-hand man.’

’Isn’t asking me to kill my own brother going a bit too far?’

’And I have to cooperate with the damn Demon Sect?’

Zhao Yong’s expression stiffened. "Your Excellency must be joking. Lao Shi is my own flesh and blood! You want to kill him, yet you come to me for cooperation. Isn’t that a bit... inappropriate?"

He said this without any intention of hiding his words from the Shadow.

He was expressing his dissatisfaction toward the Crown Prince.

The Shadow’s face remained utterly expressionless, making it impossible to read his thoughts. Perhaps he had no thoughts of his own, for he was merely a tool for passing messages between the Crown Prince and Zhao Yong.

The Demon Sect elder gave a faint smile. "Your Highness! There’s no point in speaking like that. Everyone in Lingge knows about the matter between you and the Tenth Prince. Tonight, he even crippled one of your Mansion Officials. Do you truly feel no hatred in your heart?

Or perhaps...

did that Flesh Soul of his not make you feel uneasy?"

’As expected...’

Zhao Yong sighed inwardly. ’The members of this Demon Sect are certainly well-informed. Or perhaps the Crown Prince is the one keeping them informed.’

Whatever the case, it proved they were not to be trifled with.

The Demon Sect elder smiled and shook his head. "Besides, my sect is showing great sincerity this time. We won’t let Your Highness be implicated in any way. All you need to do is cooperate with us and act out a little scene of being in distress."

Zhao Yong narrowed his eyes, his voice tinged with ridicule. "Oh? Then I’m all ears. How exactly does your esteemed sect plan to assassinate Zhao Ci?"

The Demon Sect elder said coolly, "The Northern Three Prefectures. The Emperor’s Gift Pill!"

Zhao Yong: "???"

Although he had anticipated it, hearing those words from the elder’s mouth still startled him.

To be honest, the Northern Three Prefectures was indeed the most suitable place to make a move.

After all, Lingge was teeming with powerful experts and crawling with the Court’s hidden sentinels. To forcibly assassinate a Prince there would require a tenfold price.

But the Northern Three Prefectures was different.

Due to its harsh environment, the Northern Three Prefectures had a large population of refugees, and its public order was naturally poor.

Furthermore, it was adjacent to the entrance of the previous dynasty’s ruins, and all sorts of minor gangs were stationed there.

It was the perfect place for murder and arson.

Zhao Yong said in a low voice, "For this Emperor’s Gift Pill mission, my Father the Emperor has designated it as a task for the Ministry of Revenue. Although it offers little merit, you should be well aware of what a House Competition task entails."

Any matter involving the House Competition is stripped of external influence as much as possible in order to assess the true abilities of the various Houses’ young members.

Therefore, even when starting a business, all external support is calculated as a cost, and only profits exceeding the average are counted as merit.

For other House Competition tasks, no external help is permitted aside from the Householder and their Mansion Officials. Even hiring people is subject to cost supervision by the Imperial Clan Court.

And in the first year of establishing a House, almost no one’s cultivation will break through the Physical Body Realm. This is because the War God Tower is an unparalleled holy land for condensing a Flesh Body Divine Pattern, and it only opens at the end of the first year of the House Competition. No one is willing to miss this opportunity.

Therefore, in the first year, the strength of the various Houses cannot be too great.

Life-threatening situations often occur during the execution of these tasks.

However, this absolutely does not mean that villains can take the opportunity to assassinate these young geniuses.

Each time a House accepts a mission, the Imperial Clan Court issues a Peace Jade and dispatches experts to follow in secret.

Crushing the Peace Jade will form a temporary Protective Array and simultaneously notify the hidden experts to intervene.

Generally speaking, such experts are considered god-like killers among the common folk.

If a Peace Jade is crushed, someone is guaranteed to suffer terribly.

If it is discovered that the danger stemmed from the mission itself, that House will be deemed incompetent and cowardly, permanently losing their eligibility for the House Competition, and all its members will be barred from holding official positions for life.

If it is discovered that the danger came from outside villains, the Court will inevitably uproot the malevolent forces—they’d even pour boiling water into a passing anthill. This is because such an act is a grave provocation against the Court.

This... is an Amulet of last resort.

Throughout the entire history of Great Yu, a Peace Jade has only ever been crushed three times.