Chapter 555: The Pink Monk

In the prime minister's manor within the capital of Dayin, Mo Shanhe was seated and drinking tea. Mo Lengxuan's main body stood before him.

"Didn't I tell you already? Don't come over unless you have urgent business. Do you want to invite trouble for yourself?" Mo Shanhe said.

"It's hardly that dangerous, Father," Mo Lengxuan replied.

"Don't be foolish. The Immortal Emperor's plan is incipient. Do you know how many pairs of eyes are on me right now?" Mo Shanhe demanded.

"Isn't it just Xiao Nanfeng and his fellow envoys? Don't we have surveillance on them all?"

"Do you think Xiao Nanfeng's the only one from the Imperial Court here? It's survived for thousands of years—how can the seventy-two Martial Aspects be all the manpower they have? Even Dayin has public and private reserves of strength. Do you really think the Martial Aspects of the Imperial Court are the only ones watching us right now?" Mo Shanhe demanded.

"I—"

"I am the prime minister of Dayin, and there are countless guards by my side. Others might not be able to do anything against me, but they can take my relatives hostage. Why do you think I've been pretending not to know you, nor to interact with you? I sent you to the Taiqing Immortal Sect to avoid trouble—and then, after that schism, installed you on Thousand-Spirit Island. Don't you understand what's going on? If you keep showing up here, prepare to die," Mo Shanhe warned.

Mo Lengxuan's eyes widened. "Father, how long is this situation going to last?"

"Things are almost ready. How many years have you already spent waiting? Can't you last even a few moments longer?"

"No, no—I came here today because I can't stand what Xiao Nanfeng's doing. He has a hundred groups of purple-furred monsters all over the city, proclaiming that the divine empire of Dayin owes 60% of its fortune to the Imperial Court. The whole city is in an uproar, and his actions are tarnishing the reputation of Dayin. Aren't we going to do something about him?" Mo Lengxuan demanded.

"What for? They won't be around for much longer. Let them continue making a mess. Stability should be our top priority," Mo Shanhe said, drinking a cup of tea. Then, he frowned. "Didn't I task you with following the third prince? Why haven't you been interacting with him recently?

"Tang, Yin Tianci's confidant, might very well be working for Xiao Nanfeng. I've tried to convince Yin Tianci many times, but he only trusts Tang and ignores me. He doesn't even let me participate in secret meetings anymore," Mo Lengxuan complained.

Mo Shanhe frowned. "It's all because of your past failures. The third prince must be very disappointed in you."

"Father, why don't I work with the other two princes instead?" Mo Lengxuan proposed.

"What do you think they have to offer beyond a slightly better cultivation?" Mo Shanhe demanded.

"What?" Mo Lengxuan was taken aback.

He didn't understand why his father cared so much about Yin Tianci, who was unskilled, unwise, and unlearned.

"Listen to me: in the divine empire of Dayin, the Immortal Emperor commands the most power, followed by the third prince. Don't care about anyone else. Rectify whatever misunderstanding exists between you and the third prince as soon as possible," Mo Shanhe warned."

"Is Yin Tianci that important? Why doesn't he have many strong guards around him, then?" Mo Lengxuan asked curiously.

"To ensure that few others would pay attention to him, for one. What's more, what makes you think there's no one stronger protecting him?"

"But he was almost melted to death by Xiao Nanfeng's Yin-Yang Cauldron! What protection did he have then?"

"The Yin-Yang Cauldron wouldn't have been able to melt him down."

"Oh?"

"I'm not at liberty to reveal more information about the third prince's circumstances, so don't ask more questions. Just focus on gaining the third prince's trust."

"Yin Tianci harbors deep-set suspicions against me now. I can't gain his trust."

Mo Shanhe frowned at his wayward son before ultimately sighing. "Forget it. Since you don't have any responsibilities at the moment, you might as well head somewhere. There's someone who wants to question you."

"Where? And question me about what?"

"You'll see. It's about the destruction of Thousand-Spirit Island."

"Oh?"

On a floating island in the capital of Dayin, Yin Tianci and Tang were staring at a bustling plaza from afar.

There, ten purple-furred monsters held a banner up high. It read, "Martial Aspect Offers Bounty for Strategy." Beside them was a signboard that explained Xiao Nanfeng's goal of reclaiming 60% of Dayin's fortune. The spectacle had caused considerable commotion within the plaza.

Yin Tianci narrowed his eyes. "What's Xiao Nanfeng trying to do? He's even publicly revealing the fact that he once caught me. He's been unable to secure any fortune, so is he finally recognizing how worthless he is? Is he trying to act recklessly and make this situation even worse for himself?"

"Don't get upset, Your Highness. Xiao Nanfeng's sly and crafty. There has to be a reason he's making such a huge fuss. He might even be trying to get you to make a move, then escalate until the Immortal Emperor is forced to respond. That would stir up trouble between the Imperial Court and Dayin," Tang said.

"Oh?" Yin Tianci frowned. He considered the problem carefully and thought that Tang had a good point.

"Didn't Mo Lengxuan come find Your Highness a few days ago?" Tang asked.

"He did. I ignored him."

"Well done, Your Highness. I believe Mo Lengxuan will strike Xiao Nanfeng soon enough. Let's keep watching and not act rashly."

"You don't think we should make a move?" Yin Tianci frowned.

"Xiao Nanfeng has already played his hand. We can't let him succeed—why not let Mo Lengxuan be our guinea pig?"

"And what if he doesn't do anything?"

"Then we'll keep waiting. At any rate, we can't let Xiao Nanfeng's scheme take effect. You should keep some surveillance on Mo Lengxuan, Your Highness. If he does anything, we'll learn of it right away. In that case, we'll be able to respond swiftly to whatever happens."

Yin Tianci was silent for a moment before he nodded. "Very well. I'll put more men on Mo Lengxuan. If there's any news, we'll learn of it immediately."

Over the next few days, the purple-furred monsters continued to advertise within the capital of Dayin, tarnishing its reputation. Many of the soldiers of Dayin scowled, wanting to take down the monsters and the nonsense they were spewing, only to receive strict orders from their superiors to leave the purple-furred monsters alone.

In the loft of a restaurant, Xiao Nanfeng was imbibing alcohol as he watched the purple-furred monsters continue their bustling campaign outside. On the ground floor, a drunkard was guzzling down a vat of alcohol.

Xiao Nanfeng sent the drunkard a mental transmission. "Anything outstanding?"

"Our leader himself is spying on Emperor Feng, Your Majesty. He's been wandering all over the city, as though he's in search of something. He hasn't been back in his palace at all."

Xiao Nanfeng frowned and considered his next steps. After quite some time, he replied, "Have You Jiu send a few more subordinates into the capital. Inform him to continue pursuing Emperor Feng. What Emperor Feng's looking for—I think that'll be the biggest reward from out trip."

"Understood!"

"Go on. If there's more information you have for me, have your avatar contact mine in Yongding directly. This sort of urgent meetup can easily give things away," Xiao Nanfeng instructed.

"Understood!" The drunkard stumbled off.

Xiao Nanfeng continued to sit by the window as he watched the hustle and bustle of the city.

Suddenly, a group of purple-furred monsters rushed over from afar, as though they were looking for him.

"I'm here. Were you searching for me?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

The purple-furred monsters flew into the restaurant. Some established a formation of fog that isolated sound, preventing anyone outside from gleaning anything about the disturbance.

"Martial Aspect Xiao, something happened to Princess Lingjun," one purple-furred monster began.

"What's the matter?"

"Today, she brought us out shopping and picked out a certain set of robes for you. As she left the tailor, she came into contact with you."

"With me? I didn't see the princess today. Could someone be impersonating me?" Xiao Nanfeng frowned.

"Indeed. He impersonated you and invited the princess out of the city, saying that there was some major discovery. He brought the princess into a forest and had us wait by its boundary. We finally realized that something was amiss after some time and rushed into the forest to search for her, but they were nowhere to be found. After that, we immediately rushed back into the city to check on your location. When we learned that you were here and had never left, we realized that something was very wrong. The princess has been kidnapped," the purple-furred monster recounted.

"There's a True Immortal within your group. Weren't you able to detect whether or not my doppelganger was a fake?" Xiao Nanfeng was clearly frustrated.

"We didn't notice anything amiss. That person's aura was just like yours, Martial Aspect..."

"How could that be? No—forget it. Head to our island and gather all the lifeforms there. Immediately split up into search parties and investigate outside the capital. There must be traces of my doppelganger somewhere. Find them!"

"Understood!" the purple-furred monsters replied.

Half a day later, within a hall of the Dazheng Empire, Tang's avatar told a spectral guard, "I've had my own subordinates investigate. There were plenty of forces keeping tabs on the princess as she went shopping. The most likely culprit is Mo Lengxuan."

"His Majesty wishes to know how you came to that conclusion," the spectral guard replied, communicating with Xiao Nanfeng in real-time.

"I had Yin Tianci dispatch a few subordinates to keep an eye on Mo Lengxuan. He appeared somewhere secret to watch over the princess from afar, with a masked pink-robed monk beside him. Mo Lengxuan specifically pointed out the princess to the monk, who quickly vanished from sight. Then, as the princess was brought away, Mo Lengxuan disappeared as well."

"His Majesty asks if you know where Mo Lengxuan went recently."

"To some extent, but not completely. I'll try to get Yin Tianci to investigate. I hope the spectral guards can cooperate as well."

"His Majesty will have them cooperate to the best of their ability."

"Very good." Tang nodded.