Chapter 765: An Extra Me Won't Make a Difference

When Chu Liang went back to the courtyard, he told the others what had happened after he entered the building. He couldn't help but remark, "Such a tough armor."

Earlier, he had sensed that something was wrong and crashed into the tall building. He arrived just in time to see Jing Wuya, the General of the Royal Wave Bureau, murdering someone.

Initially, he had intended to fight. However, when he struck with his sword, he realized that even the Sword Strike of Severing the Void could not break through the heavy armor protecting Jing Wuya. If that was the case, it would be hard for him to win.

Moreover, the internal strife in the Fuyao Kingdom had nothing to do with him, and there was no point in fighting recklessly here. Even though he had gone there as a clone, the death of the clone would result in him losing a lot of valuable items, so he didn't think there was a need for him to take such a risk.

However, due to his promise to Hu Sanlang, he still took advantage of the chaos to rescue Han Lingshou, the king of the Fuyao Kingdom, and left with him.

Jing Wuya was powerful, but he would not be able to stop Chu Liang from leaving if that was what Chu Liang intended to do.

At this moment, Han Lingshou sat in the inner courtyard, appearing a bit confused. He stared at Chu Liang, Tie Chui, and Xue Lingxue...

His eyes lit up. "Eh? Miss Xue? You saved me?"

"I was the one who saved you..." Chu Liang said as he stepped forward, blocking Han Lingshou's line of sight. "I am Chu Liang of Mount Shu."

"Ah, many thanks, Young Hero Chu." Han Lingshou nodded in gratitude, but his head had already shifted past Chu Liang, refocusing on Xue Lingxue. "If it weren't for Miss Xue, I would have surely lost my life this time."

"If you hadn't left the palace to see Miss Xue, you might not have gotten into trouble in the first place," Chu Liang muttered, feeling quite speechless as he once again blocked the king's line of sight. Then he asked, "Your Majesty, you should start thinking about how to deal with the General of the Royal Wave Bureau, shouldn't you?"

If Jing Wuya had been the one who started this entire matter related to Xue Lingxue, it meant that they now had a common enemy. Taking him down would also resolve the issue with the fake Xue Lingxue.

Furthermore, Chu Liang had a feeling that even the matter concerning the Golden Toad had something to do with the mysterious enchanted artifact known as the Mirror of Captured Light. It was very likely that the Jing Wuya had some connection with the Celestial Charm Sect.

Fortunately, they had rescued the king of the Fuyao Kingdom, who still had a considerable amount of influence in the City of Azure Waves.

"Jing Wuya?" At the mention of this name, Han Lingshou's expression darkened. "Once I return to the palace and gather my forces, I will wipe out that treacherous villain and the entire Royal Wave Bureau!"

"You must not!" a stern voice interrupted him.

Hu Sanlang strode in from outside.

Earlier, while the others had rushed back with Chu Liang, Hu Sanlang had been out gathering intelligence. Now, he had returned in haste.

Han Lingshou shuddered at the sight of him. "You? Weren't you dead?"

Hu Sanlang stepped forward and bowed. "Your Majesty, I was framed by Jing Wuya and barely escaped with my life. He even had someone impersonate me to carry out an assassination..."

Chu Liang added, "I only arrived in time thanks to Hu Sanlang's warning."

"I see," Han Lingshou said and slammed the table with a heavy hand. "That old scoundrel..."

Then, as if suddenly struck by an amusing thought, he turned to Xue Lingxue and chuckled. "Miss Xue, your name has the character ‘Ling' in it, and so does mine. Wouldn't you call that fate...?"

Lin Bei cut in without hesitation. "Coincidence. Pure coincidence."

Hearing this, Chu Liang pressed his temples and spoke up. "Your Majesty, can we focus on the important matters first?"

Seeing Chu Liang's displeasure, Han Lingshou quickly nodded. "Alright, alright."

Hu Sanlang frowned and said, "Jing Wuya has already spread the news that an assassin attempted an attack during the performance. He claims His Majesty had anticipated the threat and used a body double, who was killed in his place. According to him, the real king has already returned safely to the palace."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized the gravity of the situation.

It seemed Jing Wuya had successfully copied the king's appearance and seized the throne. Now, it would no longer be easy for the real king to return to the palace and reclaim his position.

When Han Lingshou heard that, he froze. Then, as the realization fully sank in, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Oh, no! I've become the body double!"

...

"The Royal Wave Bureau has placed the entire city under lockdown," Hu Sanlang reported. "The palace and the outer city are heavily guarded. Leaving the city or entering the palace won't be easy. If His Majesty reveals himself recklessly, he'll be in grave danger."

Han Lingshou pondered for a moment before saying with a sigh, "So what do I do now? If I show myself, I'll be in danger. But if I don't, I won't be able to expose his scheme."

As he spoke, his gaze once again drifted toward Xue Lingxue. "Miss Xue, you're not married yet, are you? Would you mind someone a few years older?"

Lin Bei scoffed ruthlessly. "A few years? You're more than a full zodiac cycle ahead of her. If you had worked hard enough, you could have a daughter around her age. And besides, is this really the time for that?"

"..." Xue Lingxue was utterly speechless.

"To be honest, there's a simple solution," Chu Liang said. "Can't we just call for reinforcements using the Circle of Immortal Friends?"

With a single distress signal, thousands would come rushing in. No matter how strong Jing Wuya was, how many Di Nufengs could he possibly fend off?

The problem would be easily solved if his teacher arrived and unleashed a sweeping wave of fire, refining Jing Wuya's iron armor into molten slag.

Wanting to say something, Xue Lingxue uttered hesitantly, "But—"

Having already guessed her thoughts, Chu Liang interrupted, "Before anything else, we need to uncover the true identity of the fake Miss Xue."

By calling for reinforcement, they could easily overpower Jing Wuya. However, doing so would undoubtedly alert their real enemies, making it even harder to uncover the full truth.

After all, their primary goal in coming here was to investigate the imposter masquerading as Xue Lingxue.

Even with the Mirror of Captured Light, no one could perfectly replicate Xue Lingxue's guqin skills. Yet, this fake not only played with remarkable proficiency but also cultivated techniques from the South Melody Conservatory. That was very weird...

Could it be that someone within the South Melody Conservatory was a spy?

"How do we investigate?" Lin Bei asked in confusion. "At this point, we can't just go up to Jing Wuya and ask him directly, can we?"

"Why not?" Chu Liang suddenly countered.

"Huh?"

Everyone froze, caught off guard by his response.

Meanwhile, Han Lingshou glanced at Xue Lingxue and suddenly blurted out, "Miss Xue, your canine teeth resemble a tiger's fangs!"

"Oh, you! Shut up!" everyone shouted in unison. Even Hu Sanlang couldn't be bothered to show his king any respect.

Chu Liang, however, simply smiled. "If I investigate directly, I might find nothing. But what if His Majesty investigates? If the real king can't uncover the truth... what about the fake one?"

As he spoke, a misty swirl of energy formed in his palm, rapidly condensing into a brilliant, resplendent mirror.

This was one of the advantages of being a clone.

During his last journey, Chu Liang had discovered an intriguing phenomenon. Although his External Manifestation clone couldn't carry the same valuable artifacts as his real body, he could still access the White Pagoda. It was likely because the pagoda was linked to his soul, and since both his true form and clone shared the same soul, he could retrieve any enchanted tools stored within it, even as a clone.

Back inside the tower earlier, when the mysterious mirror had shone upon him, he had instinctively reacted, raising his hand and unleashing the Precious Phantom Spirit Embryo onto the mirror. The misty spiritual essence had not only blocked its reflection but also made direct contact with the artifact.

As he had suspected, it was none other than the legendary Mirror of Captured Light.

Now, as Chu Liang conjured the Mirror of Captured Light, he suddenly turned it toward Han Lingshou.

"Eh?" Han Lingshou flinched in surprise.

Then, to everyone's astonishment, when Chu Liang flipped the mirror around, Han Lingshou's reflection remained inside, lingering instead of vanishing.

Chu Liang reached out, pulling at the reflection, and merging the light with his body. As the radiant glow flickered around him, his facial features began to shift.

A moment later, an exact copy of Han Lingshou stood before them.

"And just like that..." Chu Liang said with a smirk. "It may be difficult for His Majesty to return to the palace, but it will be easy for me to sneak in. Since there are already two kings... one more won't make a difference."