353: Everyone's a mole

"Audacious thief! Let go of my mother!"

Zhao Zhen's long sword left its scabbard, its Sword Qi intimidating.

Zhao Hanxue's fingers moved in a spell, her spiritual power condensing.

After a brief hesitation, the two immediately assumed their mother was being coerced and prepared to attack together.

"Wait, Zhen'er, Hanxue, don't attack yet."

Jiang Muyan's hair was slightly disheveled as she hurriedly stood in front of them. "You've misunderstood. He is actually your Imperial Father!"

Upon hearing this, the siblings were instantly stunned.

Zhao Zhen slowly lowered his hand holding the sword, and the ice crystals at Zhao Hanxue's fingertips also fell to the ground with a "clatter."

They couldn't believe that the young stranger before them was the Imperial Father they had never met.

The gold threads on the black gilded Dragon robe outlined Auspicious Beasts, and the curve of his lips carried the unique arrogance of an emperor.

At this moment, Zhao Zheng exuded a majestic, dominating Qi.

With the corners of his mouth turned up, his expression was seventy percent smug, twenty percent arrogant, and ten percent gentle, making him appear somewhat mysterious and unpredictable.

"Fa... Imperial Father?"

Wasn't their Imperial Father a Puppet emperor of a small Mortal Dynasty? How could he suddenly appear within the Sect?

And... and he's so young.

In an instant, both siblings' hearts were filled with astonishment.

The man before them had a handsome face, appearing to be only around thirty years old.

Looking closer, he even seemed quite heroic and extraordinary.

Despite their overwhelming confusion, the throbbing of their shared Bloodline surged truly within their hearts.

They had to admit that they indeed felt a sense of kinship with the person before them.

But at the same time, the various stories told by Auntie Su Ran and the others flashed continuously in their minds.

That's right, since childhood, they had heard of their Imperial Father's many misdeeds; he was a Tyrant.

Killing people and taking their wives, exterminating clans for wealth, extortionate taxation, filling the Harem, harming relatives, a volatile temperament, killing entire families over a single disagreement... the list of his crimes was endless.

The commoners of the Tianli Dynasty were full of grievances due to his atrocities. Officials and citizens alike were overwhelmed and rebelled one after another, leading to widespread conflict and constant warfare.

Later, the Great General and the Prime Minister seized power and turned him into a Puppet, imprisoning him in the Harem. Only then did the Tianli Dynasty avoid immediate collapse.

All the aunties, including their mother, were victims harmed by this Tyrant Imperial Father.

Although their mother rarely mentioned it, the attitudes of those aunties when discussing the past showed they were full of hatred and complaints toward this Tyrant "Imperial Father."

Zhao Zhen also had some memories from his childhood and knew that what they said was the truth.

Having heard so much about the Tyrant Imperial Father's evil deeds, over time, the two siblings couldn't help but develop a sense of loathing toward him.

In any case, in their impressions, they had no good image of this Imperial Father.

But now, their Imperial Father stood before them, looking quite the opposite of his rumored image.

At the very least, his age was vastly different from what they expected.

Furthermore, calculating from the time, their Mortal "Imperial Father" couldn't practice cultivation, so his actual age should be nearly half-buried in the ground. How could he be so young?

Just then, a "thud" sounded.

Zhao Zheng stood up, and in an instant, an extremely powerful pressure radiated out, making the entire courtyard tremble.

"What a powerful cultivation aura!"

Under this power, the siblings didn't even have the qualification to resist; they could only watch as the other party approached.

Zhao Zheng walked slowly, his pressure almost tangible as it made the siblings tremble slightly.

Zhao Zhen stepped forward half a pace, shielding Zhao Hanxue, his palm tightly gripping the sword hilt, almost breaking into a sweat.

Zhao Zheng looked up, meeting those Phoenix eyes that were almost identical to his own.

In the other's eyes, there was now a smile full of ambiguous meaning.

The siblings were as tense as drawn bowstrings, expecting a sudden attack... however, the anticipated pain did not arrive.

Zhao Hanxue stared blankly as her Imperial Father's hand reached out; her cold cheek was covered by a warm palm, and a strange yet familiar aura enveloped her.

"Hanxue, Imperial Father has come to see you."

"Zhen'er, you've grown taller."

"Children, I have returned..."

As Zhao Zheng spoke, he gestured to Zhao Zhen's height, the smile on his face growing even broader.

"This..."

"Fa... Imperial Father... You..."

Zhao Zhen was tongue-tied; how could his Imperial Father be so different from what he had imagined?

Zhao Hanxue was also stunned, dazed, seemingly unable to accept the scene unfolding before her.

However, what happened next was even more shocking to them.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! A large swath of light streaks flew rapidly from the distance, arriving in the courtyard in the blink of an eye.

As the light dissipated, it revealed the current Sect Master of the Mingwu Sect, along with a group of male and female Elders with immortal-like bearings.

Seeing this, the hearts of the two siblings and Jiang Muyan tightened.

These high-and-mighty Sect figures were all out in force; were they coming for Imperial Father?

But in the next moment, something astonishing happened.

The Mingwu Sect Sect Master wore a Cultivator's crown, his black Daoist robe fluttering without any wind.

He then performed a hand seal, casting a soundproof Formation to seal the entire courtyard.

Then, taking the lead, he fell to his knees with a heavy thud, facing Zhao Zheng and saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty! We have arrived late to see you! Please punish us, Your Majesty!"

Following closely behind, over twenty Elders also knelt on both knees, their voices resounding: "Long live the Emperor!"

The siblings and Jiang Muyan were beyond shocked.

Why did the Sect Master and all the powerful Elders just kneel like that?

It wasn't over yet; Zhao Zheng waved his hand, and the Mingwu Sect Sect Master and the others turned around, bowing in unison toward Zhao Zhen and the others.

"Greetings, Empress, Your Highness the First Prince, Your Highness the First Princess!!!"

Zhao Zhen was dizzy from the shock of this scene and waved his hands repeatedly.

"This... that... Sect Master, Elders, please rise quickly... How can a Junior like me receive such a grand gesture?"

He was momentarily at a loss for how to handle the situation.

Needless to say, the Sect Master was a Peak Ninth Level Tongxuan expert, only one step away from the Lingyao Realm.

The hundred-year foundation of the Mingwu Sect was also established by him.

And those other Elders were all powerful Elders within the Sect.

But in front of Imperial Father... why were they like servants to a master?

Zhao Zhen didn't know the frustration of Chen Minghe.

The story began several years ago when he, the dignified Sect Master, had just finished his seclusion.

Stepping out of his Immortal Cave and looking closely, the entire Mingwu Sect had changed.

Originally, their Sect was just a small force with fewer than five thousand Cultivators, controlling only two or three small cities.

But after just one period of seclusion, their Sect had developed beyond recognition.

Not only had the number of Cultivators surged, but the territory they controlled had more than doubled.

Regarding high-Realm Cultivators, rogue Cultivators were constantly joining the Sect.

It was a scene of vibrant growth and prosperity.

Initially, Chen Minghe was somewhat joyful.

But as time passed, he suddenly discovered a terrifying fact—those rogue Cultivators were actually all part of the same group!

By the time he realized it, the original high-level members of the Sect had been cleared out or subdued, leaving him as the only one.

Chen Minghe tried to resist, secretly trying to win over some Disciples and Elders.

However, he didn't know that everyone in the Sect was an insider; eighty percent of the people were System Soldiers summoned by Zhao Zheng.

And two days ago, a Lingyao Realm Cultivator named Jiang Wei had quietly come to his door.

The visitor was clearly not friendly, and he was completely outmatched.

After a bout of techniques, Chen Minghe was filled with despair and closed his eyes unwillingly.

Who would have thought that all the other party wanted was his submission?

"Senior! I submit! I submit!"

"Senior, is this Junior submitting to you?"

Jiang Wei shook his head, "From today onwards, the object of your loyalty is the Great Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire—Emperor Zhao Zheng!"