Chapter 101: Entering the Palace to Meet the Emperor

“What are you thinking about?”
“I want you to raise it like a child.”
Fan Li was both amused and exasperated.
He had just realized that Wuzhui suffered somewhat from persecution delusions. But why should he bear the blame for Chu Ba Wang’s troubles?
Wuzhui was stunned.
“Raise a child…?”
She had lived for over a thousand years, yet remained a solitary dragon, without a mate or offspring.
“Yes, raise a child.”
“Who says the Great Chu Kingdom can only have one divine guardian beast?”
“You raise Tuan Tuan until he grows up, and in the future, mother and child will protect the Great Chu together. What’s wrong with that?”
“All expenses for raising the child can be freely drawn from the Great Chu treasury. If that’s not enough, I’ll give you the key to the Fan family’s private vault.”
After a brief explanation, Fan Li sent Wuzhui away.
He was truly exhausted today.
Just as he was about to lie down for a good rest, a palace guard reported, “An imperial decree summons the Second Lord to the palace to discuss important affairs.”
...
In the imperial palace, at Chengming Hall.
Letters and petitions piled high, but Xiang Chong didn’t even glance at them.
He rubbed his hands excitedly.
“If this succeeds, I will gain full control over state affairs!”
Standing beside Xiang Chong were two women.
One was dignified and elegant—the Empress Dowager Li, his mother.
The other wore a simple blue robe, her hair tied back, a long sword at her waist. She had a neutral appearance, with a cold and proud expression.
Empress Dowager Li smiled and said, “With the Holy Lord of Cold Moon stepping in personally, this matter will surely succeed!”
“Yes, yes!” Xiang Chong nodded repeatedly. “The Holy Lord of Cold Moon is the foremost female sword cultivator of our era, a third-rank Grand Ascension expert. With the Holy Lord personally intervening, that brat Fan Li won’t last long!”
Praised by the ruler of a nation, Cold Moon remained unflustered.
Her expression was still aloof, lips moving slightly.
“There are three thousand paths of the Dao, yet only the sword’s way of killing is the strongest.”
“Though I am a third-rank Grand Ascension, if I face a fourth-rank Grand Ascension opponent, I still have the power to counterkill!”
Xiang Chong was dumbfounded by her words, then burst into ecstatic joy!
He bowed deeply and said, “If the treacherous prime minister is eliminated, Holy Lord, you will be my benefactor. I am willing to adopt you as my sworn mother!”
At last, the Holy Lord of Cold Moon showed some emotion.
She looked at Xiang Chong in surprise, then at Empress Dowager Li.
This time she had come to Chu at the behest of her friend, the Holy Lord Jin De, to care for Xiang Chong and his mother.
Jin De had been injured earlier, and his treasured artifact, “Woman’s Virtue,” had been damaged. He planned to reforge it and recover, so he could not attend personally.
“Is this… appropriate?” Cold Moon asked with a mix of hope and hesitation.

She had cultivated diligently for centuries, finally achieving great results and had been invited by the First Holy Lord Yao Guang to continue her cultivation in the Pure Land of Buddhist Sound.
She had never experienced the bustling world of mortals.
In her heart, she secretly longed for it.
To be the sworn mother of a nation’s emperor—that was a position of supreme honor and splendor.
Yet now, in front of Empress Dowager Li, his birth mother, how could she accept Xiang Chong as her adopted son?
Suddenly, Empress Dowager Li spoke: “My son, how can you say such nonsense!”
Cold Moon frowned, feeling deeply embarrassed, nearly about to leave in a huff.
But Empress Dowager Li continued: “The Holy Lord intervenes for you personally. Regardless of the outcome, that is a great kindness! How can you say you will only adopt her after success? If the Holy Lord does not mind, you shall kneel now and perform the filial son’s ceremony!”
After speaking, Empress Dowager Li looked at Cold Moon with hopeful eyes, as if pleading for her acceptance.
“Ah? This?” Cold Moon’s anger faded, and a faint joy stirred in her heart.
Xiang Chong, as if rehearsed for this moment, immediately acted enlightened, dropping to his knees and bowing his head repeatedly.
“Your Majesty, mother is here!”
“Your child, Xiang Chong, pays respects to mother!”
The Holy Lord of Cold Moon stepped back in surprise, watching Xiang Chong bowing profusely.
“Your Majesty… my prince… child, please rise quickly.”
What on earth was going on?
Fan Li had just arrived outside Chengming Hall when he saw Xiang Chong dressed in a dragon robe, looking every bit the majestic emperor, kneeling on the ground and kowtowing to a woman disguised as a man?
Hey? Royal dignity? Imperial bearing?
All thrown to the dogs?
“Jin Gong has arrived!”
Upon hearing the young eunuch’s announcement, Xiang Chong hastily rose to his feet.
Fan Li didn’t wait for an official greeting and strode into the hall.
“What do you want with me?” Fan Li asked coldly.
What does it mean to be a powerful minister?
What does it mean to be domineering?
If the emperor could put him in his place, Fan Li wouldn’t be considered “all-powerful in court.”
Having witnessed Fan Li’s methods by now, Xiang Chong was cautious and dared not confront him directly.
“Jin Gong, allow me to introduce—this is the Holy Lord of Cold Moon from the Pure Land of Buddhist Sound.” Xiang Chong smiled broadly, trying to appear amiable.
The Holy Lord of Cold Moon slightly raised her chin and glanced at Fan Li out of the corner of her eye.
Her pride leaked through!
Fan Li’s reaction to the title “Holy Lord” was equally intense.
Only his face was filled with a fierce glare.
How could he, a mere Qi Refining realm cultivator, dare draw his sword against the Holy Lord of Cold Moon?
Fan Li said deliberately, word by word: “Qin, Qi, Shu, Hua, Jian, Jian— which one are you?”
The Pure Land of Buddhist Sound had ten great Holy Lords, respectively:
Supreme, Fate, Qin (Zither), Qi (Chess), Shu (Calligraphy), Hua (Painting), Jian (Sword), Jian (Arrow), Fa (Magic), and Xue (Blood).
The Blood Phoenix Holy Lord had already perished.
The Calligraphy Holy Lord was Jin De, and the Magic Holy Lord was Qing Qiu.
Fan Li had never met the other seven Holy Lords.
He asked because it was the six Holy Lords of Qin, Qi, Shu, Hua, Jian (Sword), and Jian (Arrow) who had recently abducted Xiang Ning and injured Wuzhui.
“I am the Holy Lord of the Sword.”
Cold Moon said this with increasing arrogance, as if expecting Fan Li to worship her.
The next moment, she felt a murderous intent surge toward her like a crashing wave!
The Holy Lord of Cold Moon broke out in a cold sweat, just about to draw her sword to meet the threat, but the killing intent vanished instantly.
Where had such overwhelming killing intent come from?!
She was filled with suspicion, but her gaze was drawn to Fan Li.
Fan Li was smiling sweetly at the Holy Lord of Cold Moon, looking harmless.
An illusion?
How could he?
In her heart, the Holy Lord of Cold Moon doubted herself—perhaps her failure to advance to fourth-rank Grand Ascension had unbalanced her mind, causing signs of demonic deviation?
With this thought, she dismissed Fan Li from her mind.
After all, he was only at the Qi Refining realm—not worth considering seriously.
“Ahem!”
Xiang Chong coughed, drawing their attention back.
“Jin Gong, the Han envoy has delivered a national letter.”
“To celebrate the arrival of the divine beast, the Han Emperor has changed the era name to ‘Yan Kang’ and is holding a grand celebration.”
At this, Xiang Chong felt his face flush.
Among the Three Kingdoms’ rulers, only he had not even glimpsed the divine beast, let alone tamed it.
“The Han Emperor invites me to Chang’an to attend the ceremony.”
“But as you know, I am somewhat… indisposed, so I ask Jin Gong to go on my behalf.”
At this, Xiang Chong finally grew excited.
“The Holy Lord of Cold Moon, representing the Pure Land of Buddhist Sound, will also attend the celebration.”
“With the Holy Lord’s profound and unfathomable cultivation, Jin Gong accompanying her ensures absolute safety!”
Fan Li felt a twitch at his eyelid.
“Absolute safety?”
More like certain death without a trace.
Still, he could not refuse this diplomatic mission to Han.
Just before entering the palace, he had also received secret letters from Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan, urging him to personally come to Chang’an!