Please, Young Master, Slay the Demon!
Chapter 626 - 90: Farewell [Requesting Monthly Votes!]_1

Chapter 626: Chapter 90: Farewell [Requesting Monthly Votes!]_1

The flowers wilt in the evening, their brilliance fallen.

Destiny falters on the decaying avenue of the world.

A woman in a palace dress sits quietly in the desolate palace, the once bustling Empress’s Sleeping Palace is now devoid of maids, with no one to even light a candle. As the daylight dims, shadows envelop the room.

The Emperor slowly steps in, each step heavy. He has reached the Seventh Realm for several years, even if he cannot concentrate on cultivation now, his physical strength significantly surpasses ordinary people. This is the first time he has felt so fatigued.

In a single day, he learned that the two women he loved most had ulterior motives. If it was only lustful love for the palace consort, he had sincerely regarded the Empress as his lifelong companion.

He never expected that even she was fake.

Even standing in front of her now, he couldn’t recognize her face.

The Empress was naturally plump and dignified, but the woman in front of him was lean and sharp-featured, with thin facial features — politely speaking, she was not too good-looking.

He did not recognize the woman in front of him, and his thoughts were suddenly in a whirl.

He looked at her old white clothes, and her expression seemed a bit frozen.

After a long while, he finally asked, "You have been with me since I was a prince. I was not in a powerful position at the time, how could you know that I would become the Crown Prince and later ascend to the throne? If not, wouldn’t you have chosen the wrong person?"

The Heavenly Master can see everyone’s destiny." The most familiar stranger in front of him finally spoke, "You are destined to become an Emperor. I knew it before you do."

Before the Emperor’s arrival, she was unwilling to reveal even a single word.

"So you are a person from Mars after all." The Emperor took a deep breath and didn’t let it out for a long time.

When Li Chengfeng spoke just now, he was still unwilling to believe it.

He didn’t recognize this face, but the high-ranking officials at the Regent Residence did. The last time Regent Leader arrested Xiao Wuyan, she finally showed her true face when she was caught, exactly the same as her.

Just now, Li Chengfeng personally went to the Sky-north Prison to check, Xiao Wuyan was still being held there. Even if the woman in front of him is not her, she must be deeply connected with her.

Nevertheless, the Emperor still held a glimmer of hope.

Until she said it out loud.

If she was from elsewhere, he might still have hope to protect her. If she was from Mars, there would no longer be any chance of turning back.

"Your Majesty, you don’t need to have good intentions towards me anymore. You can tell outsiders that the Demonic Mars people assassinated the Empress and then disguised as her. You saw through it and then caught and killed her." She shook her head and continued, "But Hai’er is innocent. I have never told him a single truth for the past years and I hope you can treat him as usual. Even if you don’t let him succeed to the throne, please don’t..."

"Rest assured." The Emperor interrupted her. "Regardless of who his mother is, he is always my child."

The Hai’er she was talking about was, of course, the Second Prince.

After a pause, the woman finally said: "Thank you."

The Emperor then asked, "What is your real name?"

"Xiao Wuyin." The woman answered, "The captured Xiao Wuyan earlier is my twin sister."

"Both of you indeed know how to disguise well." The Emperor laughed coldly, seeming to have gotten a little tired from standing. He held onto a nearby chair and gently sat down, "Tell me about your story."

"I..." Xiao Wuyin stuttered for a moment, "I was born as the daughter of the Xiao Family, and was prepared to practice the hereditary Spirit Fox Illusion Technique from a young age. Until when I was twelve years old, the Xiao Family was destroyed by others...the Heavenly Master saved me and my sister."

She slowly recalled her past, from her childhood to joining Mars, many incidents were unrelated to the Imperial Court. But the Emperor still listened quietly, not showing any impatience.

"One year, the Heavenly Master suddenly said there was an important task that one of us sisters had to undertake. It may result in years of freedom deprivation." Xiao Wuyin continued, "I am the elder sister, so I naturally took precedence."

"I never imagined that this task was to replace the Wu Family’s daughter and marry the current Crown Prince."

"Ever since the palace chaos eight decades ago, the Imperial Court has been extremely strict in inspecting the people entering and leaving the palace. By that time, you had already set up a mansion and office outside, which was easier to infiltrate compared to the palace."

"The Heavenly Master said he wanted to set up a long-term plan."

"Heh." The Emperor laughed again, "Really, they planned meticulously."

"I spent several months secretly observing the Wu Family’s daughter, and the day before she was to marry you, I replaced her and became your lawful wife. The Heavenly Master ordered me to live peacefully and he hardly assigned me any tasks. He would contact me only once in several years, and only my sister stayed in touch with me."

"My life suddenly calmed down."

"For decades, I really was about to forget my identity. Many times when I woke up, I would think I was the really Empress." When she said this, she also let out a bitter smile.

"It wasn’t until three years ago, when the Heavenly Master ordered me to arrange for someone to enter the palace, that I realized my identity was ultimately something to be concealed. I almost wanted to refuse, but they had my sister, my identity... I did not dare to act. I’ve been in control of the harem for many years, so it was easy for me to bring a woman in."

"Gong Yu’er?" The Emperor asked.

"Correct - you also took a liking to her at first sight." Xiao Wuyin looked up, "The Heavenly Master asked the two of us to create the illusion of palace infighting. Everyone thought we were at odds. But in truth, all the fighting was just for the benefit of Mars."

The Emperor touched his forehead, seemingly struggling to accept this.

"After that, they repeatedly targeted the Wu family, trying to confuse the Imperial Court and make you think that Mars sought to weaken the military power and my influence. This would only serve to consolidate my position."\p>

"It’s very effective." The Emperor said: "If it weren’t for this extravagant move, you would have succeeded."

"Extravagant move?" Xiao Wuyin laughed upon hearing this, "The Heavenly Master would never make such a slip-up. The reason these things have happened today is that I’m no longer on the same side as them."

"Oh?" The Emperor looked back at her.

"Ever since my sister was captured, I have been struggling." Xiao Wuyin gazed at the dome of the palace, somewhat distracted, "I have lived much longer in the palace than on Mars. My sister was my only concern. But she has been held in the Sky-north Prison. If I continued to help them, then what for?"

She looked at the Emperor again, "And my affection for you, my husband, over the years... it is not false."

The Emperor silently shifted his gaze elsewhere.

"The Heavenly Master has been making plans for years. Finally, when it was time to put his plans into action, he began to contact me more frequently. The person who delivered messages to me was changed to the Imperial Concubine. Yet, with many informants all over the palace, I was aware of the channel through which Mars was delivering messages to her."

"I once thought about murdering the Imperial Concubine and severing all ties with Mars, becoming a true Empress." Xiao Wuyin added: "But on that day, I received a letter from the Heavenly Master, telling me to prepare to destroy something."

"Afterwards, it was the real body of the Wu family girl that was dug up from the bottom of the lake. They had preserved the body for so many years, which gave me the creeps. It was the Heavenly Master warning me, showing me that he could still ruin me with ease."

"In recent days, I’ve helped them to sneak more people into the palace. Although they did not notify me, I learned from the Imperial Concubine about the major plan to be executed at the Qinghong Banquet. This plan... includes assassinating the Prince."

"So you killed her and dumped her body in the Qinghong Garden to prevent the banquet?" The Emperor asked.

By this point, one could guess the rest.

"Exactly." Xiao Wuyin admitted, "I couldn’t tell you directly, so I used this method to prevent the Qinghong Banquet and prompt an investigation of the palace. I could then use the opportunity to get rid of all of Mars’ infiltrators."

"You were protecting me?" The Emperor asked in a somewhat mocking tone.

"I’m not sure anymore, whether I wanted to protect you or myself." Xiao Wuyin sighed, "But that’s how life goes, when a person does something, they often can’t think clearly about the reason."

"If according to your plan, the Imperial Concubine would be discovered before the Qinghong Banquet, the banquet would be prevented, and then the palace would be thoroughly investigated..." the Emperor mused, "That might not have been a bad outcome."

"Unfortunately..." Xiao Wuyin said, "There are some things I didn’t consider."

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t foresee that the Guardian of the Royal Family would venture into Qinghong Garden on this day to steal chickens with his daughter, discovering the body prematurely... She also didn’t expect that the girl’s disciple would suspect her in less than an hour, despite the lack of evidence.

"If it weren’t for Chu Liang, this matter might have passed unnoticed." The Emperor said.

"He was an oversight in the Heavenly Master’s plan." Xiao Wuyin said, "In his calculations, it should have been people from the Penglai Upper Sect entering the palace at this time, and the person sought by the Golden Dragon should have been Yang Shenlong."

"Doesn’t he claim to see everyone’s destiny?" The Emperor sneered.

"Perhaps... not everyone, not all the time, can be seen clearly?" Xiao Wuyin also laughed disdainfully, "Like me, he didn’t predict things correctly, did he?"

"If everything had gone according to his predictions, then the world would have long been his, and they wouldn’t have failed eighty years ago." The Emperor said in a cold tone.

"Maybe so, he prides himself on his ability to read people’s hearts, yet he ultimately can’t understand human emotions." Xiao Wuyin echoed.

Afterwards, a long silence ensued.

The two of them sat there, one on the chair, the other on the floor, facing each other in silence until they heard the sound of drums and music in the distance.

"The Qinghong Banquet is about to begin." The Emperor stood up, "Mei... well, how should I address you?"

"Just call me Xiao Wuyin." The woman responded with a sorrowful smile, "The daughters of the Xiao family are born without sound or face... Unable to have anything of their own, living under the guise of others..."

"I hope to be myself now that matters have come to this."

"Okay." The Emperor nodded in agreement, then said, "Xiao Wuyin, I will have people verify everything you’ve told me. If you haven’t lied, I will give you a chance to see your sister."

Xiao Wuyin stood up and walked forward to adjust the Emperor’s Dragon Robe at the collar and sleeve, whispering softly, "As my journey comes to an end, I shall no longer be able to accompany you. May you remain safe amid the stormy and treacherous times ahead."