26: Half-step Martial Saint? Crunchy chicken flavor!

Imperial Palace, Imperial Study.

"Smash!"

A precious white jade teacup was smashed violently onto the ground, shards flying everywhere.

The Emperor of Great Xia looked at the Third Prince, who had been carried in with a face swollen like a pig's head and half his teeth missing; he shook with rage, his Dragon robe trembling.

"Rebellion! This is rebellion!"

"Beating a prince, killing an auspicious beast, stealing tribute horses... Does this Gu Yang have any respect for Us? Does he have any regard for the law?!"

"Lawless! Simply lawless!"

The Emperor's roar echoed through the hall. The surrounding eunuchs and palace maids knelt on the floor, not daring to breathe loudly.

"Calm your anger, Your Majesty."

A feminine, high-pitched voice suddenly rang out from the shadows.

A withered old eunuch with graying hair appeared out of thin air like a ghost.

Holding a fly-whisk in his hand, his aura was unfathomable, as if he had merged with the surrounding darkness.

Wei Xian, the Chief Eunuch of the Inner Palace.

Known as Eunuch Wei, the true foundation of the Imperial Family, a half-step Martial Saint expert!

It was said that he cultivated the "Sunflower Manual," a fragmented divine technique left over from the previous dynasty; his speed was ghost-like, killing people invisibly.

"Companion Wei!"

The Emperor looked as if he had caught a life-saving straw, a flash of ruthlessness in his eyes. "Regardless of whether he is the Marquis who Guards the Nation, regardless of what contributions he has made! Tonight, I want to see his head!"

"If this person is not eliminated, where will the prestige of the Imperial Family lie?!"

Eunuch Wei bowed slightly, a cold smile curling at the corners of his mouth:

"This old servant obeys your decree."

"I have served three generations of emperors, and I have never seen a young man as 'lively' as this Marquis Gu."

"Tonight, this old servant will go and help him loosen his bones."

...Late at night, the Estate of the Marquis who Guards the Nation.

Gu Yang sat cross-legged on his bed in the bedroom, his body digesting the "buffet" he had eaten at the hunting grounds during the day.

The flesh and blood of high-tier exotic beasts turned into a surging heat, constantly nourishing his Primordial Indestructible Golden Body.

"*Burp—*"

Gu Yang let out a satisfied burp and opened his eyes, feeling somewhat unsatisfied.

"The taste of that White Jade Elephant was indeed good, but there was just too little meat, not even enough to get stuck between my teeth."

Just then.

The candlelight in the room suddenly went out without warning.

A bone-chilling cold instantly enveloped the entire room, and even the air seemed to freeze.

*Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!*

Without any nonsense, countless silver cold glints suddenly lit up in the darkness.

It wasn't light, but needles!

Hundreds of cow-hair-thin needles, carrying Aura-Breaking True Qi capable of piercing through metal and stone, shot from all directions toward the three hundred and sixty vital points across Gu Yang's body!

Fast! Too fast!

So fast that not even an afterimage could be seen!

"Heh, a needle-player?"

Gu Yang didn't even move as he sat on the bed; he even let out a yawn.

*Hum—*

Golden light flowed over the surface of his body as the Primordial Golden Body automatically protected its master.

*Clang, clang, clang—!*

A dense sound of metal clashing rang out, sparks flashing in the darkness.

Those silver needles, capable of killing a Grandmaster in an instant, pricked Gu Yang's skin like toothpicks hitting a steel plate, being deflected and broken one after another.

Not even a red dot was left behind.

"Hmm?"

A soft sound of surprise came from the roof beam.

Eunuch Wei's figure hung upside down from the beam, a flash of astonishment in his eyes.

"What a hard turtle shell. My 'Sunflower Divine Needles' actually can't break through his defense?"

"Old man, instead of sleeping in the middle of the night, you came here to do embroidery for me?"

Gu Yang looked up, his gaze like lightning, instantly locking onto Eunuch Wei's position.

"Since you're here, don't leave."

"Arrogant!"

Eunuch Wei sneered, his figure instantly turning into a red afterimage, moving at high speed within the room.

His speed was extreme, as if a dozen Clones had appeared simultaneously, each one launching a lethal attack at Gu Yang.

"I admit your skin is thick, but in the world of martial arts, only speed is invincible!"

"Sunflower Facing the Sun—Explosive Qi Kill!"

Finding a "flaw" in Gu Yang, Eunuch Wei turned the fly-whisk in his hand into a sharp sword, concentrating his lifelong Cultivation to thrust directly at Gu Yang's eyes.

"Only speed is invincible?"

Gu Yang's lips curled into a mocking arc.

"That was before you met me."

At the exact moment Eunuch Wei's fly-whisk was about to strike Gu Yang.

Divine Ability—Dharma Image of Heaven and Earth (Partial Activation)!

*Boom!*

Gu Yang's originally normal-sized right hand instantly tripled in size, transforming into a giant spirit palm that blotted out the sky!

This giant hand ignored all afterimages and all techniques, directly covering all of Eunuch Wei's evasion space.

"Caught you."

Gu Yang's voice was like the whisper of a demon god.

Divine Ability—Extreme Dao Force Field! 10x Gravity!

*Buzz!!!*

Eunuch Wei felt his body suddenly sink, as if Mount Tai were pressing down on his back; his proud extreme speed instantly slowed to a crawl.

He watched helplessly as the giant hand closed.

*Clap!*

Gu Yang grabbed Eunuch Wei in one fell swoop.

Like pinching an annoying fly.

"Let... let go of me!"

Eunuch Wei struggled desperately, the Innate Protective Aura in his body exploding wildly, but before Gu Yang's terrifying monstrous strength, it was like an infant pushing against a giant.

"You cannot kill me! I am the foundation of the Imperial Family! I am a half-step Martial Saint..."

"A half-step Martial Saint?"

Gu Yang lifted Eunuch Wei to his eyes, looking at the terrified old eunuch, his nose twitching.

"Such rich blood and Qi... though a bit old, it's still a great supplement."

"I wonder if eating you will allow me to Breakthrough to two thousand energy points?"

Hearing this, Eunuch Wei's Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering in fear.

"Eat... eat people? You are a demon?! You..."

"Enough talk, be on your way."

Gu Yang's five fingers suddenly exerted force.

*Puchi!*

A sound like a rotten watermelon bursting rang out.

The Chief Eunuch of the Inner Palace, who had awed the court for sixty years and struck fear into the hearts of countless experts, was thus crushed by Gu Yang's single hand, turning into a cloud of extremely pure blood mist.

Gu Yang took a deep breath, the furnace of his five viscera operating frantically.

*Whoosh—*

The cloud of blood mist was swallowed into his stomach in one gulp.

[Killed a half-step Martial Saint! Plundered high-level martial arts essence!]

[Obtained energy points: 800!]

"Refreshing!"

Gu Yang's whole body shook, and the energy points on his attribute panel instantly broke through the two-thousand mark.

He shook the bloodstains off his hand and looked toward the Imperial Palace.

"The little one was beaten, so the old one came. The old one was killed, so this grudge... should it be settled?"

...The next day, the morning court session.

The atmosphere in the Golden Throne Hall was eerie to the extreme.

The Emperor sat on the Dragon Throne, his face pale, his gaze wandering, occasionally glancing toward the hall entrance.

Eunuch Wei went to kill Gu Yang last night but had not returned all night, and even the life-bound jade tablet he left in the palace had shattered into powder!

That was a half-step Martial Saint!

Not even his corpse returned?

Just then.

"The Marquis who Guards the Nation, Gu Yang, has arrived—"

Following the announcement, Gu Yang strode inside.

Today he had changed into new clothes (made from Dragon skin), looking energetic and radiant.

And in his hand, he carried a fly-whisk—it was Eunuch Wei's personal weapon, now broken into two pieces.

"Good morning, Your Majesty."

Gu Yang casually threw the broken fly-whisk into the center of the golden hall.

"An old gentleman came to my estate as a guest last night and left something behind. I've specifically brought it back."

"Oh, by the way, that old gentleman wasn't in very good health; he passed away quite 'peacefully'."

Dead silence filled the room.

Everyone recognized that fly-whisk.

It was the weapon of the Chief Eunuch, Eunuch Wei!

Eunuch Wei... is dead?! Killed by this Gu Yang?!

The Emperor trembled all over, feeling a chill rush from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

Even the Imperial Family's final trump card had been broken by him; who else in Great Xia could control him?

He was afraid.

Completely terrified.

The Emperor forced a smile onto his face that looked worse than crying:

"Mis... misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding!"

"Beloved Minister Gu is a pillar of the nation. How could We send someone to harass you? It must have been that old servant acting on his own! He deserved to die!"

"Someone! Reward Beloved Minister Gu with another ten thousand taels of gold! And a pair of jade Ruyi! As a token of Our condolences!"

Gu Yang looked at the Emperor's cowardly appearance and curled his lip in boredom.

"Forget the gold, it's too heavy and hard to carry."

"Your Majesty, I heard there are still a few exotic beasts in the Imperial Hunting Grounds I haven't tasted yet..."

The Emperor's heart was bleeding, but he could only say through gritted teeth:

"Grant... granted! If Beloved Minister Gu likes them, feel free to eat! We... We don't mind!"

"Thank you for the Imperial grace."

Gu Yang grinned and turned to leave.

Looking at his arrogant back, not a single person among the civil and military officials dared to speak.