As Gao Yimin and Dai Ju descended the stairs, the scene before them made their hearts clench.
Several SUVs were parked neatly outside. Their doors swung open, and fully ard mbers of the investigation team filed out.
They were clad in matching uniforms, their faces etched with grim determination.
What was even more shocking was that the local Martial Artist forces of Agarwood City had also been mobilized,
completely sealing off the command center.
Gao Yimin and Dai Ju exchanged a glance. They knew that Her Majesty the Queen must have granted this investigation team imnse authority,
allowing them to imdiately take command of all Martial Artists in Agarwood City upon their arrival.
A man in a suit, flanked by the ard mbers, slowly approached.
He was in his thirties, with a prominent scar running from his forehead, past his eye, and down to his chin. Though healed, it was still a shocking sight.
The scar was like a testant to a life spent on the battlefield, and it gave him an indescribably nacing aura.
"So, it’s you, Gao Yuankui."
Gao Yimin recognized the man in the suit. He was a forr colleague, but now he stood on the opposing side.
Gao Yuankui said nothing more. He simply pulled out two pairs of handcuffs and tossed them at the feet of Gao Yimin and Dai Ju. "Since we were once colleagues, I’ll give you a chance to save so face. Put them on yourselves.
Otherwise, if we have to get physical, it will only be more humiliating for you."
The mont he finished speaking, Gao Yuankui shifted slightly to the side, revealing six Martial Artists standing behind him.
Each one possessed an extraordinary aura. They were clearly all King-level experts.
Gao Yuankui continued, "To capture you, Her Majesty the Queen sent seven King-Sealing Level Martial Artists, including myself. So, I suggest you dismiss any thoughts of resistance."
Looking at the array of power before her, Dai Ju let out a silent, self-mocking laugh.
’So Her Majesty the Queen really plans on using us to stabilize the country.’
’That ans our fate will be utterly tragic.’
All hesitation vanished from Dai Ju’s mind. She knew with certainty that joining the New World Organization was her only chance of survival.
Otherwise, not only they, but their friends and families would be implicated as well.
"How surprising. The King-level experts of our Great Jing Empire are as nurous as the stars."
"It seems that Her Majesty, our noble Queen, is well-prepared for any contingency."
"And yet, several of you King-level experts are complete strangers to ."
From nearby, a cold, sinister laugh rang out, like a winter wind that chilled one to the bone.
Gao Yuankui’s eyes snapped toward the sound, his pupils constricting.
A man in dark robes
was approaching, each footstep seeming to land on the strings of their hearts.
It was Xiao Cangqing.
"Xiao Cangqing? It’s really you!"
Gao Yuankui’s voice was filled with shock. "Her Majesty the Queen has had people searching for you everywhere! Why are you here? Are you here to help us?"
Though his words were a question, Gao Yuankui had already made a subtle hand gesture.
The King-level experts who had co with him imdiately went on high alert, their focus entirely on the newcor.
They could sense that Xiao Cangqing’s words held not a shred of respect for Ji Shengyue, only contempt.
The implications were deeply troubling.
Xiao Cangqing stood before them, his gaze sweeping over everyone present. "I will give you one chance. Beco my followers."
"That way, you might be allowed to live."
"Otherwise, you will remain in Agarwood City forever."
His words were a threat, but they also held a hint of temptation.
He went on, "Ever since Ji Shengyue took the throne, the Great Jing Empire has been plunged into turmoil."
"She is nothing but an incompetent Monarch."
"Will you continue to follow her orders blindly?"
At these words, Gao Yuankui’s expression darkened. "You’re wrong."
"My loyalty isn’t to Her Majesty the Queen’s orders; it is to the Great Jing Empire itself, born from my love for this land."
"But what about you, Xiao Cangqing? What happened to you during the ti you were missing?"
"Have you done sothing to disappoint Her Majesty?"
With that, Gao Yuankui abruptly drew a long-handled war hamr and swung it twice through the air, creating a deafening sonic boom.
He stared directly at Xiao Cangqing. "If that’s how it is, then let see for myself the power of the Great Jing Empire’s supposed new number one!"
Before the words had even left his mouth, the sound of rushing wind suddenly filled the air.
Xiao Cangqing’s figure vanished. In the next instant, he reappeared behind Gao Yuankui.
A putrid, rotting stench that churned the stomach filled the air.
Before Gao Yuankui could even react, a decaying hand clamped down on his neck.
The hand’s strength was incredible, as if it would snap his neck.
At the sa ti, a corrupting, rotting power spread from Xiao Cangqing’s hand, rapidly eroding Gao Yuankui’s body.
His neck began to putrefy, flesh sloughing off in chunks. Blood welled from the ruined flesh, only to be instantly consud by the horrifying corrosive power.
The war hamr slipped from Gao Yuankui’s grasp and crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Gao Yuankui’s eyes filled with terror and despair. He could never have imagined being defeated so easily at Xiao Cangqing’s hands.
Gao Yimin and Dai Ju both gaped in shock.
They had seen that rotting power before—it was the sa aura that had emanated from the terrifying man above the Demon Cave.
Now, that sa power was manifesting in Xiao Cangqing.
They finally understood why he had said they were all the sa, and why he had invited them to join the mysterious New World Organization.
Thinking back to the incident at the Demon Cave, they realized Xiao Cangqing had never actually resolved the crisis or dealt with the Evil Spirits.
He had made so sort of secret deal with that decaying man.
The Demon Cave crisis had been nothing but a lie, a smokescreen to hide the truth.
And now, the rampant Evil Spirit incidents plaguing the Great Jing Empire were all originating from the depths of that sa Demon Cave.
By the ti Gao Yimin and Dai Ju processed all of this,
Gao Yuankui had already dissolved into a foul puddle, his very existence erased by the rotting power.
Xiao Cangqing turned, a grotesque smile on his face. "Do you want to end up like Gao Yuankui, reduced to nothing? Or will you beco my followers and build a new world with ?"
The other King-level experts had always prided themselves on their strength, but now, facing Xiao Cangqing, they felt an unprecedented and crushing pressure.
The sheer gap in power made them realize that any resistance would be a pointless sacrifice.
One by one, they lowered their weapons and chose to submit.
Xiao Cangqing smiled, satisfied. He began issuing his orders: "From this mont on, I am in control of Agarwood City."
"All who oppose will be killed without rcy."
anwhile, thousands of miles away, Chu He was aware of everything that had just transpired.
He gave a cold smile. ’This is just Ji Shengyue reaping what she sowed.’
He had no intention of intervening, but he had beco quite interested in this New World Organization.
The changes occurring within Xiao Cangqing’s body intrigued Chu He.
With the help of the New World Organization, the entity of the "rotting man" seed to have fallen into a deep slumber, unable to reawaken.
anwhile, Xiao Cangqing was able to wield that rotting power as if it were an extension of his own body.
However, Chu He wasn’t concerned.
As long as the Immortal Primordial Spirit he had left behind existed, no matter how powerful Xiao Cangqing beca, Chu He could erase him with a single thought.
He decided to let Xiao Cangqing continue to grow, curious to see what secrets were hidden within the New World Organization.
And Xiao Cangqing, completely oblivious, had unknowingly beco the bait Chu He had cast into the turbulent undercurrents.
...
「In the Royal City of the Great Jing Empire, a press conference was underway.」
Ji Shengyue sat on the stage, facing questions from nurous reporters.
"Her Majesty the Queen, there are rumors circulating that Xiao Cangqing has defected to another country.
What is your comnt on these rumors?"
one reporter dared to ask.
A flicker of displeasure crossed Ji Shengyue’s face, but she quickly composed herself and replied with a firm voice, "Xiao Cangqing is the candidate I personally selected for the title of National Guardian War God."
"His talent, potential, and loyalty to the Great Jing Empire are all beyond reproach."
"I am certain he would never commit such an act of treason."
However, the mont she finished speaking, a chaotic murmur erupted among the reporters below.
Strange looks were cast in Ji Shengyue’s direction, as if they were all questioning her statent.
A sense of unease washed over Ji Shengyue. She had a premonition that sothing terrible was about to happen.
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