World-Ending Demon Emperor
Chapter 348 - 193: Refusal! Zhi Ning falls! Zhi Wei spits blood!

Chapter 348: 193: Refusal! Zhi Ning falls! Zhi Wei spits blood!

At that moment, Suo Lun’s mind was preoccupied with the thought, if the King granted the marriage, how should he refuse?

Right after, Suo Lun couldn’t help but feel that he might be overthinking it. Since the founding of the Rage Wave Kingdom, there had been no precedent of a princess marrying a noble.

Even Princess Zhining had said, to marry her was purely a daydream, and Zhi Yan’s status was even higher than Zhining’s.

The King asked directly, "Then, do you like Zhi Yan?"

Suo Lun said, "Her Highness is noble and peerless, Suo Lun admires her deeply and does not dare to have the slightest disrespectful thought."

Upon hearing this response, the King looked at Suo Lun for a while longer.

Then, he moved on from the subject and said to Suo Lun, "Tianshui City is in a state of utmost urgency, you must return immediately."

Suo Lun breathed a sigh of relief.

The King continued, "In a few days, when you return to the royal city, I will tell you about your father’s past, our youthful years, and about the cause of his death..."

Suo Lun was taken aback instantly. Count Suo Long’s cause of death?

Regarding this stepfather, Suo Lun knew that he was once a War God figure on par with Turing Tuo, a noble who had been constantly fighting for the Rage Wave Kingdom in the north and south.

However, Turing Tuo was not a noble, so his title could be elevated all the way to Duke.

And as Suo Long was a noble, if his title rose too greatly, would it not surpass other nobles by a head?

Therefore, among the more than twenty Nobles and Lords of the Rage Wave Kingdom, the highest living rank belonged to Marquis Ashimo of Rouran City.

As for Suo Long, he was only promoted to Marquis after his death.

Returning to the main point, according to the information Suo Lun had obtained, Count Suo Long had been injured in a great battle, which left him paralyzed in bed.

However, from the King’s words, the death of Count Suo Long was not so simple.

Although Suo Long was not his biological father, Suo Lun had never had a father. Now that he had inherited the Suo Family, he regarded Suo Long as his father, and so he also bore the responsibility to clarify the cause of Count Suo Long’s death, and even to seek justice for it.

In Suo Lun’s mind, Count Suo Long was nearly a perfect noble.

Brave, upright, selfless, loyal. That’s why he had such disdain for Suo Lun, and why he favored Suo Hanyi so much.

"All right, you may go," said the King.

Suo Lun knelt on one knee, bid farewell with a salute, and said, "Your servant takes leave. As for Your Majesty’s paralysis on one side of your body, it is a stroke’s sequel, which might gradually recover with the passage of time."

"Ha-ha..." the King laughed weakly yet heartily, "As a King, being clear-headed is enough; what’s there to fear if the body cannot move? I’m old, and I’ve suffered injuries from past assaults. That thing has long been useless, and I can’t sleep with women, so being paralyzed isn’t the least bit troubling."

Suo Lun bowed once more, hesitated as if he wanted to say something but ultimately did not ask and was about to bid farewell and leave.

"If you have something to say, say it," the King said.

Suo Lun said, "Your Majesty, even though I despise Zhi Li, he is widely loved by the nobility and lords, and he is also a man of great talent and ambition, a very good King. Why did you not let him truly succeed to the throne, but instead chose a much more difficult path, attempting to have Princess Zhi Yan ascend to the throne?"

The King looked into Suo Lun’s eyes and said, "Suo Lun, I am very gratified that you asked this question."

Then, the King fell silent for a moment, as if in thought.

A minute later, King Quo Bian said, "Zhi Li is backed by three major forces: the Dragon Temple, Yin Zhou, and Mizhou. These forces manipulate most of the world from behind the scenes. Once Zhi Li ascends to the throne, my Rage Wave Kingdom is sure to exist in name only after a few generations."

This answer was almost identical to the one in Suo Lun’s mind.

King Quo Bian then said, "However, all the Nobles and Lords are shortsighted fools, only caring for the wealth and glory of their own families, disregarding the Destiny of the kingdom. Hence, even knowing the background of Zhi Li, they still turn a blind eye and instead compete to swear fealty. I have no sons, so I have to act against the divine will."

After these words, the King’s voice had become very weak.

"I understand," Suo Lun said. "Your servant takes leave."

Zhi Yan’s work was swift; no sooner had Suo Lun descended from Purple Jade Mountain than he spotted a griffin there, with Grand Eunuch Gao Yin of the Rage Wave Palace standing by its side.

Upon seeing Suo Lun, eunuch Gao Yin actually knelt down on both knees and said, "I thank Count Suo Lun for saving my master’s life."

Suo Lun was startled; from the standpoint of seniority, this person was his elder, and such actions were absolutely not appropriate.

Therefore, Suo Lun also hurriedly knelt down and said, "Elder, please don’t act this way; you’re overawing me."

Gao Yin stood up, looked at Suo Lun for a good while, and said, "Everyone says that a prodigal who returns is more precious than gold. After your father left my master’s side, I saw him but seldom. However, I faintly heard that he had a worthless son who was quite wild. Now it seems those people were too vulgar to understand your intelligence."

Suo Lun said with guilt, "Indeed, I have been quite wild in the past few years, and I have deeply disappointed my father."

Gao Yin smiled but did not speak; holding the King’s decree in his left hand and the Divine Dragon Scepter in his right, he said, "We’re pressed for time; let’s set off for Tianshui City immediately."

Then, he lightly leaped onto the griffin. Suo Lun also jumped onto the griffin’s back, sitting behind Gao Yin.

Griffins, should not be used unless absolutely necessary.

But now, the situation was of the utmost urgency. Suo Lun was racing against time as once Zhi Wei’s army attacked Tianshui City, it would be too late.

He hoped there was still time.