Lu Zhou looked at Yang Yuchen indifferently. Then, he looked at King Chen of Wu and asked, “King Chen, what do you think I should do?”
King Chen of Wu said, “I know the old senior’s cultivation base is profound. Zhao Hongfu is a student of the Runes Academy who had committed a sin. They were only carrying out their duties to arrest her. They didn’t mean to offend you…”
“Are you saying that I deliberately made things difficult for you?”
“Of course not…” King Chen of Wu said, “I’m willing to apologize for what happened today. If possible, I’d like to invite you to the capital for a chat.”
“No need. I don’t have that much free time,” Lu Zhou said as he stroked his beard.
King Chen of Wu thought about it for a moment before he said, “That’s fine.” Then, he called out, “Yang Yuchen…”
“Your order, my lord?”
“Hurry and kowtow to Senior Lu and apologize for your mistake…”
“Understood.”
Yang Yuchen and the other cultivators fell to their knees one after another. It was a spectacular scene.
Lu Zhou said, “There’s no need to kowtow…”
“No, no, it’s what they should do. It’s a small matter after all,” King Chen of Wu said.
“No.”
Lu Zhou’s tone hardened as he said, “If it were someone else in my shoes today, they would have died. Do you still think it’s a small matter?”
King Chen of Wu. “…”
Yang Yuchen’s face paled immediately.
King Chen of Wu said angrily, “Yang Yuchen, who gave you the right to attack with the intention to kill when carrying out your duties?”
“This lowly one is guilty! This lowly one is guilty!” Yang Yuchen kowtowed and admitted his mistake.
King Chen of Wu bowed to Lu Zhou and said, “Old senior, I’ll definitely give you a satisfactory explanation regarding this matter.”
“How do you plan to do that?” Lu Zhou asked.
“Heavily punish Yang Yuchen.”
“Is that all?”
“If that’s not enough, I’ll kill him to assuage the old senior’s anger,” King Chen of Wu said decisively as his eyes shone with killing intent. Despite his words, it was clear his killing intent was targeted at Zhao Hongfu.
Zhao Hongfu shuddered. She was even more determined about not returning to the Runes Academy. There was no doubt she would lose her life if she returned.
“I’m afraid killing him isn’t enough…” Lu Zhou said in a dark voice.
King Chen of Wu frowned. “Killing him isn’t enough? What do you propose, old senior?”
“The Runes Academy kidnapped many from the golden lotus domain. Yang Yuchen is also from the golden lotus domain. In your Great Yuan, how are human traffickers punished?” Lu Zhou asked.
“…”
King Chen of Wu had only vaguely heard of this matter and was not involved in it. Moreover, kidnapping children from other places was a sensitive matter, and therefore, ial. “I… I’m not too sure about the specifics. However, those who commit robbery, theft, forging of treasure notes, rape, arson, and other capital crimes will be handed over to the Department of Punishment.”
Lu Zhou nodded in satisfaction. “This matter concerns the golden lotus domain. Kidnapping a child is no different from committing murder. The murderer will have to pay with his life. Which one of you wants to die first?”
King Chen of Wu said, “These are just allegations. You can’t believe them.”
As soon as King Chen of Wu finished speaking, Lu Zhou took out the Golden Taixu Mirror. A golden beam of light shot out of the mirror immediately.
Under the illumination of the Golden Taixu Mirror, Yang Yuchen and several cultivators’ avatars appeared. The avatars were brilliant and dazzling.
Lu Zhou had confidently brought the Golden Taixu Mirror out because he had the Eye of Truth and had confirmed his conjecture. With the Golden Taixu Mirror, their past could not be hidden.
Yang Yuchen’s eyes widened in shock. His body trembled, and he fell to the ground limply. He looked at the golden avatar in disbelief as he muttered over and over again, “Impossible, impossible, impossible…”
Reality was cruel.
Yang Yuchen had always despised cultivators from the golden lotus domain and the red lotus domain. He thought they were weaklings, like weaklings, not worthy of sympathy. He did not expect he was from the golden lotus domain. How ironic was this?
“This object is called the Golden Taixu Mirror. It can distinguish between the weak and strong. Most importantly, it can reveal the truth…” Lu Zhou said. Following that, he aimed the Golden Taixu Mirror at King Chen of Wu.
King Chen of Wu was shocked and instinctively hid behind one of the palace maids. Unexpectedly, the golden beam of light did not affect the palace maid; it shone through her at King Chen of Wu as though she was transparent. Soon enough, a Five Chart Thousand Realms Whirling avatar appeared.
“…”
Lu Zhou was slightly surprised by this result. During the battle in the Land of Chaos, King Chen of Wu had lost three Birth Charts. To deal with King Chen of Wu now, he did not even need to use the supreme mystic power. He stroked his beard and said, “King Chen, you were an Eight Chart expert. Now that you’ve lost three Birth Charts, you still dare to run around? Is the royal court short of staff?”
King Chen of Wu was, naturally, embarrassed. He could only say, “I have made a fool of myself. Despite my position, I’m unaware of the affairs in the royal court. I didn’t expect the royal court to do such a thing. Forget it. I have nothing to say if you kill them…”
Moreover, these people had already seen that he had lost three Birth Charts. If Lu Zhou killed all these people, it could be considered as silencing the witnesses, and he could still maintain his prestige as King Chen of Wu.
Lu Zhou shook his head and said, “I have two conditions. I won’t kill anyone; I’m not a demon after all. First, I’ll be taking Zhao Hongfu away. Second, I want five obsidian essences…”
Upon hearing this, Yang Yuchen relaxed.
On the contrary, King Chen of Wu thought to himself it would be better if Lu Zhou killed these people.
Before anyone could speak, Lu Zhou added, “Think about it, and choose wisely.”
Yang Yuchen was in a daze. No one knew what he was thinking at this moment.
Meanwhile, the other cultivators shook their heads and sighed. They were unwilling to believe the truth before their eyes.
After a long while, King Chen of Wu finally said, “I heard old senior killed the First Elders of the Black Tower Council and White Tower Council. Is it true?”
At that time, he was injured during his chaotic battle with Ning Wanqing so he did not see Lu Zhou killing the First Elders of the Black Tower Council and the White Tower Council. He had always been skeptical of that rumor. It seemed somewhat unbelievable that there was a golden lotus cultivator with 12 Birth Charts. He decided that he would agree to Lu Zhou’s request only if Lu Zhou showed him his astrolabe. This was also the order from the higher-ups.
Lu Zhou asked, “Do you doubt my words?”
“I don’t dare!” King Chen of Wu said.
“Ten obsidian essences. Deliver it here in three days. Otherwise, only death awaits all of you…”
King Chen of Wu no longer dared to speak unnecessarily. He hastily said, “Alright. We’ll deliver ten obsidian essences in three days. Let’s go!”
Following that, King Chen of Wu flew to his flying chariot.
At this moment, Yang Yuchen and the others who were on the ground cried out one after another.
“M-my lord, please don’t leave me behind!”
King Chen of Wu was already furious, to begin with. He did not even deign to look at them and leaped into the flying chariot as he said, “Scram!”
With that, the flying chariot flew away from the small village.
Yang Yuchen wanted to cry, but he had no tears.
At this moment, Yu Zhenghai said, “Even if the heavens allow you to live with your sins, how can you live with your sins? If it weren’t for the fact you’re from the golden lotus domain, I would’ve killed you…”
Yang Yuchen and the cultivators struggled to their feet and ran out of the village. However, they were all troubled; where could they go now?
Lu Zhou looked at Zhao Hongfu and smiled in a gentle and amicable manner. “Don’t be afraid.”
Zhao Hongfu shrank back. “I… I… I’m very afraid!”
“Where do you think you can go?” Lu Zhou asked. “The black lotus domain will not tolerate your existence. You’ll only be safe with me…”
“…”
“If you don’t believe me; go out and manifest your avatar… This has always been the way since ancient times…”
How could Zhao Hongfu not understand Lu Zhou’s words? When she was in the Runes Academy, she was often discriminated against. She had been so angry at that time.
Lu Zhou tried his best to be gentle as he said, “As long as you join the Evil Sky Pavilion, I definitely won’t mistreat you…”
“Really?”
“I’ve never lied.”
Zhao Hongfu said, “I burned down the largest library in the Runes Academy. They’ll do everything they can to catch me and make me write down everything I memorized. They won’t stop chasing after me. You… Aren’t you afraid?”
Lu Zhou said indifferently, “The person who sent you to me understands me. If he wanted to harm you, he wouldn’t have sent you to me. I don’t think much of the Runes Academy at all…”
Zhao Hongfu seemed to believe most of Lu Zhou’s words, but her expression was still skeptical.
When Lu Zhou saw Zhao Hongfu was still hesitating, he thought it was time to bring out the big guns. For the sake of recruiting a talented person, it was worth it. He crushed the Disguise Card that appeared in his hand.
A 1,050-foot golden avatar that towered past the clouds appeared immediately. Twelve distinct patterns shone dazzlingly among the 36 triangles on the Birth Palace.
The astrolabe was dozens of meters in diameter and was as bright as a moon.
Yang Yuchen and the others who were near the entrance of the small village felt the shift in energy and turned out. The sight that greeted their eyes stunned them to their cores.
…
Meanwhile, King Chen of Wu, who had flown a distance away, was furious. His anger did not abate at all. He smashed the tables and chairs in the flying chariots into pieces.
However, when King Chen of Wu saw a golden avatar that was 1,050 feet tall in the distance, he felt as though he had been splashed with a pail of ice water. His flames of fury were instantly extinguished. He staggered back and slumped onto a chair as he muttered to himself, “This… Is this a slap to my face from the old senior? Forget it. I can’t afford to offend such a person…”