Chapter 611: I Didn't Do It!

"There must be some misunderstanding!" Yao Guang exclaimed hurriedly. "This token couldn't possibly..."

"Of course, it's a misunderstanding," Chu Liang said calmly, patting Yao Guang's shoulder. "The fact that this token is here likely has nothing to do with Warrior Yao."

"And how can you be so sure?" Li Chengfeng asked.

"First, we can't yet confirm whether these items were left behind by the real consort or planted here by the imposter to frame someone," Chu Liang explained. "Second, even if these do belong to the real consort, consider this: if Warrior Yao were conspiring with her, she would have had free access to the Dragon-Keeping Pool without the need for a token. The fact that she possessed this token actually proves she wasn't connected to Warrior Yao and needed it to gain access on her own."

"That makes sense," Li Chengfeng agreed.

Yao Guang let out a visible sigh of relief. "Thank goodness for Your Highness' sharp insight."

If someone less perceptive were handling this, the Dragon-Keeping Eunuch might have been implicated. While a full investigation would likely never touch Yao Dengxian, every minor wrongdoings of his underlings could certainly come to light.

Chu Liang's attention shifted to a porcelain bottle nearby. Unlike the tightly sealed poison vial, this one was closed with a simple wooden stopper, suggesting it was less dangerous.

He carefully removed the stopper, revealing a crimson liquid with faint golden undertones, radiating a subtle spiritual energy. The liquid swirled like living blood, infused with a strange vibrancy.

He handed it to Li Chengfeng, who examined it closely and said, "This appears to be Spirit Fox Blood."

"Spirit Fox Blood?" Chu Liang repeated. He had heard of it before.

The fox clan was renowned for their mastery of transformation techniques. Upon attaining Dao, a fox demon could assume human form so flawlessly that it left no trace of demonic aura unless deliberately revealed. Their transformation abilities far surpassed ordinary camouflage, making them true masters of deception.

The immortal art Spirit Fox Illusory Transformation was a mimicry of the fox clan's divine technique, capable of achieving a flawless disguise that could deceive even the keenest senses.

As the saying goes, "The antidote would always be seven steps away[1]," the most effective way to counter such transformations came from the fox clan itself.

If one could acquire the blood essence from the heart of a fox demon that had attained Dao and refine it through sacrificial rituals, it would produce Spirit Fox Blood.

Even a single drop of the Spirit Fox Blood was enough to unravel any disguise or transformation.

However, Spirit Fox Blood was an exceedingly rare item. Fox demons who had attained Dao and reached a cultivation level of the seventh realm or higher were few in numbers anyway.

Most of these powerful beings resided in the Far West and over the past few millennia, only a handful of such fox demons had been seen within these lands.

To harvest the blood essence from the heart of a seventh-realm fox demon, one would first need to slay it. Yet with fox demons being legendary masters of transformation and divine abilities, how much more daunting would this already difficult task become?

Even after successfully refining a Greater Fox Demon at the seventh realm, one would only be able to extract this small bottle of blood essence.

Calling the Spirit Fox Blood rare would be an understatement. In truth, this item had likely not surfaced for thousands of years. Li Chengfeng had only been able to identify it due to the unmistakable scent unique to fox blood.

"Now we can conclude that these items do indeed belong to the consort," Chu Liang said decisively. "It couldn't have been items that belonged to the imposter as the imposter would never have left something that could counter their own divine abilities."

"True," the other two agreed in unison.

The three of them simultaneously turned their gaze to the final item on the ground, falling silent for a moment.

It was a red silk garment, adorned with gold embroidery and intricate patterns in vibrant colors. There were two delicate ties at the top and sides.

The clothing looked very delicately made.

This item was commonly known as a

dudou

.

Chu Liang stared at it, his expression blank. For a moment, he wondered why he kept encountering such items.

"This is the consort's personal belonging," Yao Guang whispered. "Even if her reputation is now in question, she's still a noble consort. We shouldn't touch it."

Chu Liang raised an eyebrow. "Eunuch Yao, would you carefully hide a

dudou

inside a storage artifact?"

"Huh?" Yao Guang jolted as if struck by lightning. Jumping back a step, he raised his hands defensively and exclaimed, "What are you saying? I didn't! I didn't! I didn't!"

Chu Liang couldn't help but exchange a glance with Li Chengfeng, a flicker of surprise crossing their faces.

Well, well... This was an unexpected discovery...

Yao Guang, after composing himself, straightened his back and forced a nervous smile. "Gentlemen... why are you looking at me like that? Is something wrong?"

Chu Liang turned to Li Chengfeng and asked casually, "Celestial Official Li, would you hide a dudou in your storage artifact?"

"Of course not," Li Chengfeng replied, spreading his hands in mock disbelief. "Why would I even have such a thing?"

Chu Liang mimicked the gesture and turned his gaze back to Yao Guang. "Don't you think that's the normal reaction to my question?"

"Ah..." Yao Guang froze, his expression stiff.

Didn't expect you to be a dudou thief in the imperial palace. Truly, appearances can be deceiving.

"Don't worry," Chu Liang said calmly. "Such matters in the palace have nothing to do with us. Our priority is solving the consort's case. Anything she kept in the storage artifact must hold some special significance, right?"

With that, he unfolded the

dudou

to examine it.

On the front of the

dudou

was a delicate illustration of autumn waters blending into endless skies, with a pair of mandarin ducks nestled closely together. Beside the image were two finely embroidered lines of poetry:

"Water and sky, emotions untold,

"Each to their longing, distant and cold."

Li Chengfeng read the lines aloud, his gaze lingering on the garment before shaking his head. "It doesn't seem like there's anything special about this

dudou

."

"It does seem that way," Chu Liang agreed, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he carefully put it away.

By now, all of the consort's scattered belongings had been thoroughly examined. While they revealed many of her hidden secrets, none seemed to provide a direct clue to the murderer.

Yao Guang hesitated before turning to Chu Liang. "What should we investigate next?"

Chu Liang fell silent, thinking for a moment before replying, "It seems the only clue we can use is that token."

...

Chu Liang, Li Chengfeng, and Yao Guang once again entered the Night Dragon Hall, stepping before the emperor.

The emperor gazed at the items laid out on the table, lost in thought.

The imperial city map, the bottle with the poison, the Spell-Disrupting Golden Hairpin, the token, the dudou...

Earlier, Chu Liang had presented the consort's belongings, exposing her hidden intent to assassinate the emperor.

His most beloved consort had harbored malicious intent all along, scheming to take his life. While the emperor had long suspected that her identity was not as simple as it seemed, he hadn't expected her plans to have advanced this far.

After a long silence, the emperor sighed and said, "Enough. She has died; there's no point dwelling on it. Issue an order to investigate how the consort was selected and who she was closely associated with. These people must have been plotting for a long time to extend their reach into the palace. Even if we cannot uproot them entirely, we must sever this hand that has now reached into the palace."

"Your Majesty," Chu Liang interjected, "those connected to the consort may not all be within the palace. Some could be operating from outside."

"Oh?" The emperor raised his eyes, his gaze sharp. "Are you suggesting there is a path linking the imperial palace to the outside world?"

"The small lake in the consort's garden has an underground waterway that leads directly outside the imperial city," Chu Liang explained. "The consort often sat by the lake. It's possible she was using it to communicate with her allies."

"I see." The emperor nodded thoughtfully before turning to Warrior Lao. "Go. Inspect the area around the lake. If you find no activity after waiting for a while, seal it off completely."

Hearing this, Chu Liang's eyes flickered as a realization struck him. He seemed to understand what the fake consort had been doing by the lakeside after committing murder.

However, since the matter wasn't fully resolved, voicing his guess wouldn't help just yet.

"Your Majesty summoned me?" At that moment, Yao Dengxian strode into the hall and knelt before the emperor.

"Warrior Yao, rise quickly," the emperor said calmly. "I summoned you to clarify something. The token of the Dragon-Keeping Pool is supposed to be carried by you personally. How did it end up in the consort's hands? She must have used it to enter the Dragon-Keeping Pool and conspire with the Golden Dragon to plan its escape."

Yao Dengxian's brow furrowed deeply as he stared at the token. "This token..."

"Did she ask you for it?" the emperor asked again.

"Someone did request the token from me," Yao Dengxian said, "but it was not the imperial consort."

He paused briefly before finally revealing, "It was the Second Prince."

1. The author really wrote antidote would be five steps away. But the actual idiom is seven steps. This refers to how when you get bitten by a venomous snake, you can often find plants that can treat it seven steps away. ☜