397: Chapter 397 The Tomb Guardian

The underground palace of the imperial mausoleum.

Along the deep, winding corridors, eternal lamps had burned for hundreds of years.

The sound of footsteps—'da, da, da'—echoed through the passageway.

Cold sweat beaded on Li Sihong's temples. He didn't care about disturbing the ancestor's peace and ran directly to a dark, solemn stone gate.

On the stone gate, the two sculptures of glaring guardian deities seemed as if they might come to life at any moment.

Even as the supreme sovereign, Li Sihong dared not look directly at these two doors whenever he arrived before them.

"Ancestor... Your unfilial descendant, Li Sihong, has come to disturb you once again!"

Li Sihong knelt on the cold ground, his tone laced with humility: "Disturbing your cultivation is a capital offense for which I deserve to die."

"But today, your grandson received grave news and had no choice but to come and inform you immediately."

"Lin Xiao, formerly the General of Zhenbei, has now been conferred the title of Prince of Zhenbei."

"He just attended the Tianwu Grand Tournament and, right in front of Old Celestial Master Xiao Dan and Guan Canghai, killed the Blade Emperor Wuming with a single palm strike!"

"Ancestor, Lin Xiao's martial arts are unfathomable. If he is not eliminated, I fear he will carve out his own territory and destroy the centuries-old foundation of the Great Gan!"

Li Sihong's voice echoed in the corridor for a long time.

A full dozen breaths later, the two stone doors slowly emitted a rumbling sound as they opened.

A bone-chilling white mist leaked out from within the stone chamber.

In an instant, Li Sihong felt his entire body freezing, his bones shivering.

Yet he remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to move, his head bowed for fear of offending this ancestor of the Li clan.

On the first night of his succession, the late Emperor had brought him here.

The late Emperor had said that for every generation of emperors, the first thing to do before ascending the throne was to come here and pay respects to The Tomb Guardian.

This ancestor was a patriarch of the Li clan who had fought to establish the empire alongside the founding Emperor, and for hundreds of years, he had been guarding Great Gan.

Unless there was a crisis threatening the nation's survival, one was not to disturb the ancestor.

Li Sihong had once asked the late Emperor if he had ever seen this ancestor, but the late Emperor indicated that including himself, none of the previous several emperors had ever seen the ancestor emerge from seclusion.

When Li Sihong had come last time, he had only received the ancestor's promise from outside the door that he would help him eliminate Lin Xiao.

But the ancestor had not appeared.

And this time... the ancestor had actually opened the door for the first time in history?!

From this, it was clear that Lin Xiao killing the Blade Emperor with a single palm strike had brought a massive shock to this ancestor!

"Lift your head."

A low, detached male voice spoke softly.

Only then did Li Sihong dare to slowly lift his head and look at the mysterious ancestor, The Tomb Guardian, before him.

He wore a jet-black robe of unknown material, spotless and sharply tailored.

His face was imposing and dignified, with a deathly pale complexion, as if he hadn't seen sunlight in a very long time.

And his long, jet-black hair faintly shimmered with a deep blue hue?

Li Sihong felt a bit dazed; why did this face look so familiar?

Or was it because he was the ancestor, and many of them, the royal descendants, shared a facial resemblance with him?

"Look into my eyes and explain clearly: how did Wuming die?"

Li Sihong swallowed hard, steadied his mind, and recounted the sequence of events in detail.

"So, you're saying he took Wuming's blade strike head-on, and then killed Wuming with a single palm strike?"

"Yes! It is absolutely true; your grandson would not dare to utter a single falsehood!"

The Tomb Guardian's deep eyes, with pupils larger than those of an ordinary person, flashed with a hint of amusement.

"If that is truly the case, this Lin Xiao... has already reached the realm of a Land Immortal."

"What?!"

Li Sihong gasped: "Are there really Land Immortals in this world!?"

"Beyond the Great Grandmaster realm lies the Earth Immortal realm; there is nothing surprising about that."

"But Lin Xiao is only twenty-one years old!" Li Sihong said, unwilling to accept it.

"How do you know that Lin Xiao is truly the original Lin Xiao?" The Tomb Guardian retorted with a question.

Li Sihong was stunned: "Ancestor, you mean..."

"How could the Empress of Western Shu, the legitimate heir of the dignified Great Zheng Dynasty imperial clan, marry an ordinary soldier from the Border Army?"

The Tomb Guardian said slowly and methodically: "From beginning to end, this is nothing more than a scheme for the Zheng Dynasty to rise from the ashes."

"To create a young hero, one only needs a master to use a top-tier Disguise Technique."

Li Sihong suddenly realized!

"So that's it! That makes sense! Ancestor, you are brilliant!"

"Your grandson could never understand how Lin Xiao could have such means at such a young age!"

"If he is a remnant of the previous dynasty, with the entire group of elders from the Zheng Dynasty supporting him from behind the scenes, then it all makes sense!"

The Tomb Guardian sighed softly, exhaling white mist from his mouth.

"However, regardless of who this person is, he is undoubtedly in the Earth Immortal realm, which is quite troublesome."

Li Sihong said with an expectant look: "From what you've said, Ancestor, do you have a way to deal with him?"

The corners of The Tomb Guardian's mouth lifted slightly for the first time: "I have guarded this underground palace for over three hundred years; it was not time spent in vain."

"I beg you, Ancestor, please save Great Gan!!"

Li Sihong hurriedly kowtowed.

"Saving it is naturally required, but to slay an Earth Immortal—even for me—is not an easy task."

The Tomb Guardian's eyes flickered with a strange ripple as he said: "Emperor, do as I say. Once it is done, the Prince of Zhenbei and the remnants of the previous dynasty will surely die..."

Looking into the other's eyes, Li Sihong faintly felt a hint of 'anticipation'?

Could it be that this ancestor had been bored for too long and wanted to have a great battle with an Earth Immortal?

Although he was not clear about what he needed to assist with, at this point, he had no way out.

"Please, Ancestor, give your orders!!"

...

Nanling, Du Province.

Blade Mountain City.

The city lived up to its name; the establishment and prosperity of the entire city relied on the Blade Mountain sect.

Blade Mountain's main altar, Mount Wanren, stood towering in the center of the city.

In a teahouse within the city, the entire floor had been booked by distinguished guests.

A few passing merchants wanted to go up for tea, but they were stopped by several Blade Mountain disciples.

"Who is it, being so overbearing? Occupying an entire floor in broad daylight? We all supply goods for Blade Mountain; believe it or not, I'll go report this to the Sword Discipline Hall!"

The merchant had drunk a few taels of wine and had a bit of a hot temper.

"Elder Hua and the Head of the Chu family are having tea. What, do you have an objection?" the burly Blade Mountain man asked with a cold gaze.

Upon hearing these two names, the merchant's face turned pale instantly, and he scrambled out of the teahouse.

Meanwhile, the two distinguished guests upstairs were currently frowning, having no mood to care about the trivial matters downstairs.

"Brother Hua, the Blade Emperor is dead, and the Prince of Zhenbei is coming with aggressive momentum. Should we take this opportunity to take our families and go out to avoid the limelight?"

The middle-aged man who spoke was named Chu Xianfeng, the head of the Chu family, an established force of Blade Mountain. Among every three escort agencies in Nanling, one belonged to the Chu family.

"Hide? Hide where?"

The old man with graying hair and beard was named Hua Zhengyang, the Supreme Elder of Blade Mountain, who oversaw the cooperation between Blade Mountain and the imperial court.

He provided fresh blood for the Red Flame Iron Cavalry and was an honored guest of the Prince of Nanling, Li Sixun; many members of the Hua family held official positions because of this.

"We both have large families and businesses, and our foundations are all in Nanling. Do you expect us to hide in foreign lands? Or in the remote, impoverished backwaters of the Great Million Mountains?"

Chu Xianfeng made a bitter face: "But if we don't leave now, I'm worried that we'll end up like the Blade Emperor, just..."

"Brother, do not panic!"

Hua Zhengyang took a sip of tea and said with a smile: "On the contrary, I think this is a great opportunity for us to render meritorious service to the Cult Master and the Moon Worship Cult!"