The Prince Can Do Divination

Chapter 370 - 235: Father-in-Law’s Terrible News, Farewell Mr. Qi, The Holy Emperor Returns to Court, Laugh It Off?

"Two allied armies received the news and rushed to provide aid. The Vice Alliance Leader, Five-Thunder Upper Immortal, who was at the front lines, learned of the situation in the rear. He tried to help, but before he could arrive in time, he was ambushed by Liu Venerable. A great battle ensued. Afterward, Liu Venerable was besieged and attacked by several Upper Three Grades Great Powers of the Human Race. One of them, a Sword Dao Celestial Monarch from the Sword Palace, severed one of Liu Venerable’s wings, but its current whereabouts are unknown."

"In a short time, the Seven States and Thirteen Counties were turned into a Purgatory in the Mortal World. Wherever the Blood Race army passed, only bleached bones were left behind. Father fought, drenched in blood, but was powerless to turn the tide. He exhausted all his Vast Righteous Qi holding out until the Human Race reinforcements arrived, but he himself passed away at the city gates, and his body was even destroyed by Liu Venerable."

As Qi Muxue spoke, she began to weep loudly, tears streaming down her face.

By this point, she had completely lost control of her emotions. She couldn’t accept the tragic way her father had died.

Lu Mingyuan’s heart was also deeply shaken, a suffocating feeling washing over him. He clenched his fists so tightly they popped audibly, and a cold, murderous intent surged in his eyes.

If Qi Xingyan had been alone, free from the constraints of honor, ethics, righteousness, or morality—if he didn’t have to worry about the lives of the common people—he could have simply lifted his brush to channel celestial phenomena. With a final, desperate counterattack of ten large characters, he could have annihilated the hundred-thousand-strong army. It would have been an absolutely stunning feat.

But he did not choose to do so.

Instead, he chose to shelter the people of the city, using his own body to withstand the power of a Divine Venerable.

In Lu Mingyuan’s heart, Qi Xingyan was a refined and gentle man, exceptionally kind and patient, who never looked down on anyone.

Even a disciple from the Lower Class like Chen Ke was treated with the same kindness.

Throughout his entire life, he had dedicated himself to the country and its people, without a single stain on his record.

He faced Demon Fiends with an unyielding righteousness, hating evil as if it were a personal enemy, unable to tolerate the slightest impurity.

Lu Mingyuan could vaguely remember his time in the Cold Palace.

He had received a great deal of help from Qi Xingyan. Whenever he was in peril, his grandfather and father-in-law were always there, helping from the shadows.

No matter how many memorials the Advisory Platform Bureau submitted, no matter how high the curses from the Court piled up, the old man would suppress them all single-handedly.

One might ask: what does it mean to be the first to feel the world’s sorrows and the last to enjoy its pleasures?

This was him.

He still remembered when Mr. Qi was in the Imperial Palace’s Yangxin Study, teaching everyone: What is the Saintly Atmosphere? What kind of person can become a Saint?

He once said that if you find yourself in a perilous situation where saving someone else means your own death, a Gentleman should prioritize his own safety.

Yet now, he himself had died to protect the people of a city, perfectly embodying the very Saintly Atmosphere he spoke of.

The thought that the upright and noble old man was dead, turned to bleached bones, left Lu Mingyuan in a daze. His eyes, too, unknowingly grew moist.

War, in the end, is cruel and merciless. Perhaps one day, the family and familiar friends by his side would all die in battle.

In a daze, Lu Mingyuan realized the world before him...

Was not the Scroll World.

This was reality. There was no more Reincarnation for him.

If he died, he was truly dead.

There would be no second chances.

’And who,’ he wondered, ’will be the next to die?’

Watching the inconsolable Qi Muxue, Lu Mingyuan felt a deep unease. He knew that these past days, Qi Muxue must have been suppressing her emotions to the breaking point.

During the nine days she waited, she could not afford to collapse.

Because he was still in the Scroll World, his fate unknown.

Given Qi Muxue’s status in the Capital City, it was impossible for her to show such a vulnerable side. Only now, seeing Lu Mingyuan emerge from the Scroll World safe and sound, could she finally release her suppressed grief without reservation.

And she did so before him, and him alone.

This showed just how special a place Lu Mingyuan held in her heart.

’With my current strength, I’m far from being able to protect the people and things I care about. I need to become stronger. Until I reach the Fourteenth Realm, I am nothing more than an ant.’

Lu Mingyuan looked up at the sky, his resolve hardening in his heart.

Having experienced nine lives of Reincarnation in the Scroll World, he now understood many things he had never considered before.

His Daoxin grew ever firmer.

As time went on, the five-hundred-year cycle of the Celestial Mandate’s changing was approaching. The situation in the Central Plains World would only become more dire. Faced with the surging attacks from two worlds, how long could the Human Race hold out?

No one could say for sure.

The peace they now enjoyed was bought with the flesh and blood of countless predecessors.

Lu Mingyuan shook his head slightly, casting aside his stray thoughts. He looked at Qi Muxue and said softly, "Mr. Qi died for his Dao, and his righteous spirit will live on forever. His sacrifice is worthy of song and tears. We should carry on his will, channel our grief into strength, and fight the Holy Netherworld to the very end. We cannot let his sacrifice be in vain."

As he spoke, Lu Mingyuan walked over to Qi Muxue. The faint, elegant fragrance from her body filled his senses, and a wave of tenderness washed over him. He couldn’t help but reach out a hand and, with his sleeve, gently wipe the tears from her eyes.

He recalled their first meeting during the Lantern Festival. Back then, Qi Muxue was a high and mighty literary genius, like a Fairy from the Nine Heavens, while he was just a Prince imprisoned in the Cold Palace. Lu Mingyuan wouldn’t have dared to harbor the slightest blasphemous thought.

But times had changed. Now, the name of the Crown Prince of Great Yan struck fear across the Central Plains. Who in the entire Imperial Capital did not fear him? And Qi Muxue, in his eyes, now seemed quite delicate.

Lu Mingyuan resolved to break this sorrowful atmosphere and rally their spirits.

He looked at Su Youhuai, his expression calm.

"What other news is there?"

Su Youhuai’s handsome face showed a moment of hesitation before he said, "Also, during the days Your Highness was away, the Holy Emperor’s health improved. Faced with the aggressive Holy Nether Army, he has already resumed holding court. Your Highness, your Supreme Authority of Regency has been reclaimed by the Holy Emperor."

’The Holy Emperor has returned to court...’

Lu Mingyuan murmured softly, ’He’s starting to lose his patience, is he?’

The scene foretold by the divination was finally about to happen.

His father, the Emperor, was already making his move.

Before that happened, he had to consolidate the power of the Three Religions as quickly as possible.

"Relay my command: prepare the procession to the Eastern Palace!"

Lu Mingyuan waved his hand, deciding to return to the Eastern Palace first.

「Inside the sedan chair.」

Lu Mingyuan chose to share a sedan chair with Yun Qinghe, while the others took another.

From the looks of it, Yun Qinghe had already fully integrated the memories and insights from her first life and returned to her peak state. She still sat cross-legged on the floor, but a sharp, imposing aura emanated from her.

Now that she had emerged from the Scroll World, she was like a completely different person.

No longer as weak as she was in the Scroll World.

With Lu Mingyuan’s help, Yun Qinghe had perfected her Daoxin and become even stronger.

But at the same time...

The memories of everything that happened in the Scroll World lingered in her mind, impossible to dismiss.

Every moment they spent together, every word they had spoken.

Yun Qinghe’s eyes were fixed on Lu Mingyuan. Deep within her pupils, a complex emotion flashed and vanished. She asked, "You came here. Is there something you wanted to say to me?"

Lu Mingyuan looked up, met her gaze, and smiled. "I just wanted to ask, what exactly is the relationship between us now?"

"What do you think it is?"

Yun Qinghe averted her gaze, looking rather unnatural, and feigned indifference.

"Are you the master and I the disciple? Or are you the disciple, and I the master?"

’So that’s what you meant.’

A flicker of disappointment, imperceptible to most, flashed in Yun Qinghe’s eyes.

"The Scroll World is the Scroll World, after all. Everything that happened inside was illusory. You know it, and I know it."

"So, it’s best we don’t confuse those memories. Some things are better left buried in the heart. Now is not the time to discuss such matters. You should be quite fond of Princess Consort Mu Xue, and with the Holy Emperor presiding over court again, you must be under a lot of pressure."

"That is true."

Yun Qinghe said in a relaxed tone, "In that case, don’t let her down, and don’t let the situation spiral into the worst possible outcome."

Lu Mingyuan smiled. "The fact that you can think this way, unaffected by the Scroll World, shows that you’ve truly moved on. I’m very relieved."

At this, Yun Qinghe’s expression remained placid.

Everything that had happened in the Scroll World felt so real. Lu Mingyuan had done so much for her.

How could she possibly just laugh it all off?

...