Chapter 59: Entering the Palace to Regicide

The next day.

Shen Dao finally woke up, and he even seemed more spirited than before.

Lu Ge watched and sighed deeply.

The medical divine powers of the Master of Mu were truly formidable.

With just a brief touch, it was as if Shen Dao had received a rejuvenating revitalization treatment.

"Ancestor, I am so glad you are alright."

Shen Dao gripped Lu Ge's hand, his eyes brimming with tears.

Heaven knows how heartbroken he had been when he previously learned that Lu Ge had fallen in battle.

Lu Ge disgustedly pulled his hand back.

A grown man, holding hands and clinging like this—what proper decorum was there?

"You are still worrying about me? You had better worry about yourself."

"When you saw the divine dharma manifestation descend, you should have run away."

"Your brain turns slowly and your feet are sluggish, so you ended up getting caught by that Donghuang Taiyi."

"And you took a beating for nothing."

Lu Ge wore an expression of disappointment in not achieving his expectations.

"Remember this: I have backing above; I cannot die."

"The next time you encounter such a situation, immediately turn on your heels and bolt. No need to worry about me."

"I am much better at surviving than you."

Shen Dao nodded repeatedly, indicating that he had memorized it.

Seeing this, Lu Ge said no more, merely waving a hand. "Alright, now that you are fully recovered."

"Go prepare the carriage."

Without a second word, Shen Dao headed straight out the door.

Before long, the carriage was ready.

"Ancestor, where are we going now?"

Lu Ge gazed into the distance, toward the direction of the royal palace of the State of Chu.

"Into the palace, to regicide."

Shen Dao was slightly startled upon hearing this, but he quickly calmed down.

This was not his first time experiencing such an event; he was already somewhat accustomed to it.

As for the King of Chu, Shen Dao did not hold an ounce of pity.

Even though he had previously fallen into the hands of Donghuang Taiyi and was originally destined for immediate execution, it was only because the King of Chu intervened that he narrowly survived.

However, the intention of the King of Chu was to hold him hostage in order to command the Taoist school.

That sinister motive was even more vicious than that of Donghuang Taiyi.

Compared to that, Shen Dao would rather have dropped dead on the spot than let the Taoist school suffer harm because of him.

The wheels rolled forward, bringing them once more before the gates of the royal palace.

This time, the palace gates were heavily guarded by numerous imperial guards.

Yet how could mere guards possibly block Lu Ge?

Lu Ge didn't even need to make a move.

Having survived this ordeal, Shen Dao's cultivation had increased once more.

Although he was still inferior to top-tier powerhouses like Xunzi or Donghuang Taiyi, he was undeniably of the first rank in the contemporary world.

"Step aside."

With a single shout from Shen Dao, the might of heaven and earth followed his command.

The numerous imperial guards blocking the path ahead seemed to lose control over their own bodies as they retreated to either side in unison.

Each of them could only watch helplessly as the carriage rolled right past them.

They arrived all the way at the palace where the King of Chu resided.

Lu Ge stepped down from the carriage, with Shen Dao following closely behind.

The State of Chu currently possessed almost no high-end combat power to speak of.

Donghuang Taiyi, who had taken orders from the King of Chu, was already dead.

Meanwhile, the Lord of the East, the Lord of the Clouds, and others had been suppressed by the leaders of the various philosophical schools and dragged back to the Jixia Academy.

They were bound to suffer a miserable fate there.

Before the King of Chu, there was no longer anyone capable of protecting him.

Tap, tap, tap...

Lu Ge slowly stepped into the palace hall and caught sight of the King of Chu within at a single glance.

"You've come after all."

The hands of the King of Chu, hidden within his wide sleeves, clenched into tight fists as he desperately suppressed the terror of death rising in his heart.

He was a king.

The sovereign of the State of Chu.

Even in the face of death, he should remain composed and not show disgraceful panic.

Yet the body was always honest.

The slightly trembling arms and the dread hidden behind his calm gaze had already betrayed him.

Lu Ge walked up casually and plunked himself down directly opposite the King of Chu.

He poured himself a cup of water.

Taking a small sip, he thought to himself—oh, it was even honey water.

"My original intention was merely to settle a personal grievance with Donghuang Taiyi."

"As for Your Majesty, I harbor no desire to kill you."

"Yet why couldn't Your Majesty see reason, insisting on using Shen Dao as a hostage to coerce the Taoist school?"

The King of Chu swallowed hard and squeezed a smile onto his face.

"Master Lu, you have misunderstood my well-intentioned efforts."

"When Master Shen fell into the hands of Donghuang Taiyi on that day, he was on the verge of perishing instantly."

"I spoke those words deliberately in order to save Master Shen."

"Afterwards, I sent a letter to the Jixia Academy; it looked like taking hostages, but in truth, it was a stratagem to make the Taoist school come to the rescue."

"I... I am a good man."

Lu Ge raised his head to glance at the King of Chu, a bizarre expression in his eyes as he asked, "Are you trying to treat me like a fool?"

"You are the ruler of a state. No matter how powerful Donghuang Taiyi was, he was merely assisting you."

"If you truly wished to protect Shen Dao, what need was there for such rhetoric?"

The King of Chu's expression turned anxious, and he opened his mouth as if to explain further.

However, Lu Ge had already put down his bronze cup and slowly stood up.

The words of the King of Chu could no longer find a way out of his throat.

This time, Lu Ge did not touch the King of Chu, yet he still completely drained away the remainder of his lifespan.

In the moment of life and death earlier, Lu Ge had comprehended the profound truth of it.

Abandoning the carrier of sword energy, he had fully grasped the Dao of the Big Dipper Governing Death.

It was only a pity that, limited by his current realm of cultivation, he could not yet strip someone of their lifespan from thousands of miles away whenever he wished.

According to Lu Ge's own insight, he needed to be within ten zhang at the very least.

Within ten zhang, I am invincible; the life and death of all things rest in a single thought.

Thud.

The body of the King of Chu collapsed powerlessly, slumping forward onto the desk in front of him.

Without looking back, Lu Ge turned and left, taking Shen Dao with him.

Considering he was the ruler of a state, leaving him an intact corpse was already the greatest mercy.

They strolled out of the palace, and not a single person dared to obstruct them.

Not until they crossed the gates of the royal palace and re-boarded the carriage did the terrifying might of heaven and earth that suppressed the guards begin to dissipate.

The palace instantly erupted into a clamor.

The crown prince prepared to seize power, the royal descendants harbored burning ambitions, and treacherous ministers plotted with varied agendas.

Everyone was busy with their own affairs, striving for a bright future.

Only the King of Chu lay dead in the hall, ignored by all.

......

Along the ancient Yangguan road, overgrown weeds flourished everywhere.

The road was strewn with jagged rocks, making travel difficult for carriages and horses.

Most travelers journeyed on foot.

Yet today, a carriage had arrived here.

As the carriage rolled over the gravel, it did not reveal the slightest bump or vibration.

A closer look would reveal that while the carriage appeared to travel upon the gravel of the ancient road, it was actually suspended nine inches above the ground.

Shen Dao had truly been thoughtful.

Fearing that his ancestor would suffer the torment of bumping along inside the carriage, he had used his "word-follows-law" ability to command the might of heaven and earth to levitate the carriage.

It looked as though it were traveling on land, but in reality, it was flying.

"Your ability to make your words manifest into law is growing increasingly refined."

Lu Ge said with a chuckle.

Shen Dao replied with some embarrassment, "It is all thanks to the ancestor's guidance."

Lu Ge's face fell, and he chose to remain silent.

He also wanted the divine power of making words manifest into law.

Yet he had never managed to grasp even a hint of it.

During his leisure time, he had engaged in discourses on the Dao with Shen Dao, hoping to secretly learn a thing or two.

By now, he had thoroughly mastered the Daoist methods that Shen Dao had comprehended.

Yet the divine power simply refused to manifest itself.

Fortunately, Lu Ge practiced the philosophy of the Supreme Forgetting Emotions; if nothing else, his state of mind was absolutely rock-solid.

As for divine powers, if one hasn't comprehended them for the moment, there is no need to rush.

The more anxious one is about such matters, the harder it becomes.

He would simply wait until his mastery of the Dao was complete; when conditions matured, the divine power would naturally arise.

"Ancestor, are we still going to look for the next enemy?"

"The family we visited a few days ago had already cleared out and was completely empty."

"Now that Donghuang Taiyi is dead, those people are likely frightened out of their wits and have all fled."

"The world is vast; trying to track them down is like searching for a needle in a haystack."

Shen Dao said with a slight frown.