Chapter 673: Secret Talks in the Palace

In fact, He Lingchuan had something else he didn't say:

The immortal elixir case had been exposed for over a month. Did the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang truly have no counter-measures? Bai Ziqi's investigation was squarely aimed at her; was she the type to do nothing? Given the circumstances, what would the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang do now?

As the Chiyan people withdrew from Qing Palace, Fu Shanyue didn't forget to send a goshawk soaring high to Tianxin Island to scout the latest situation. Meanwhile, the crowds gathering around Qing Palace swelled, everyone craning their necks, eager for a juicy piece of gossip. Over the past month, the scandals unearthed in Lingxu City had been sweeter than the last. But Heavenly Palace guards suddenly besieging Qing Palace? This was absolutely the most outrageous event of the year—no, of the past century! Especially with the immortal elixir case having brewed for a month, everyone basically understood the cause and effect. If they could unearth some explosive news today, wouldn't their evening fireside chats be lively?

On Tianxin Island, at Lingxiao Palace. The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang stood behind a door, listening to the hurried footsteps outside the walls, back and forth, and the sound of people arguing loudly. She looked up at the high walls of the imperial palace; a branch of late osmanthus, more than half withered but still fragrant, extended over them. Looking up again, she saw a patch of sky no bigger than her palm. The sunlight was already slanted now, unable to penetrate the deep, well-like courtyard. The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang remembered standing in this very spot when she first entered the palace at age twelve, looking up at that same patch of sky. The sky had remained unchanged. But back then, the osmanthus tree hadn't grown tall enough to reach over. Over one hundred and seventy years had passed in a flash. How quickly time went by. She sighed softly. The commotion outside the door stopped at some point, and the footsteps faded away. A moment later, the door was pushed open, and a palace maid whispered, "Imperial Preceptor, please come this way."

The maid closed the door and led the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang further inside. Despite it being late autumn, the path was lined with lush greenery, vibrant and showing no signs of decay. The palace maid had a head full of silver hair and her shoulders were slightly hunched. Following behind her, the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang remarked, "Xiao Yatou, it's been a long time." The palace maid turned, seeing her walk past a cluster of fragrant white jasmine, truly a scene where the beauty of the person and the blossoms intertwined. Although, upon closer inspection, there were faint lines around the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang's eyes.

"You needn't worry," the palace maid said earnestly. "Even those guards from the Heavenly Palace wouldn't dare trespass into Ganquan Hall and cause trouble! This is the safest place in the world." The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang sighed, "I never thought I'd one day seek refuge here." "The Emperor told you long ago that if anything happened, you should come here and wait for him," the palace maid said. "It's just a pity that His Majesty went to Xushan this afternoon and isn't in the palace, otherwise he could manage the whole situation for you!" The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang murmured with a self-deprecating laugh, "Manage the situation? I fear the die is already cast." She understood that the Heaven Gods summoning the Emperor at this moment was to cut off her escape. However, no matter how overbearing the Celestial Envoy and the Heavenly Palace guards were, they surely wouldn't storm the royal palace and turn everything upside down, would they? Her entire first half of life was spent in battle, the latter half in strategizing, dedicating everything to Lingxu, all for the Emperor's single promise: no matter how the court situation changed, she would always be able to see the Emperor in Ganquan Hall.

The palace maid invited her into a warm chamber, brought a silk quilt, then served hot tea and snacks, saying, "Please just stay here. If you're tired, you can rest. The Emperor only went to Xushan this afternoon, so he won't be back until evening at the earliest." The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang asked her, "Is there an incense burner?" The palace maid paused, then said, "Oh, yes, there is." She found a small incense burner and a bundle of red incense from somewhere. "Thank you very much." The palace maid shook her head, "Please don't mention it. Fifty-five years ago, if you hadn't carried me back from the snow, I wouldn't be here today. If there's anything you need, just say the word." After seeing to these things, she backed out and gently closed the door as she left.

The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang rested with her eyes closed for a while, then took a walk around the small garden outside the hall. Only after confirming that the area was not monitored did she return to the warm chamber and tightly close the door. She lit seven slender sticks of incense, placed them in the incense burner, and then positioned the burner facing east. The gap under the door was very small, preventing the autumn wind from blowing in, and the smoke rose straight up. The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang knelt, muttering incantations. Above the incense burner, the smoke column paused slightly, then, after rising to a certain height, pressed downwards, condensing but not dispersing. After about fifteen minutes, the smoke gathered into a plain gray mass, which gradually transformed into a human face. The features of this face were very vague, barely discernible as two eyes and a mouth. Then, a majestic voice spoke:

"Where are you?" "Lingxiao Palace," the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang replied, stopping her prayers. "After you notified me, I rushed here. Bai Ziqi led the Heavenly Palace guards directly to Qing Palace; who authorized this?" "Your Lingxu Saint Lord!" the voice said. "It didn't even consult with us; it issued the decree directly." Despite being mentally prepared, the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang's face still turned pale. After all, being directly targeted by such a powerful entity felt dreadful. "We didn't have time to discuss this in detail earlier. You just mentioned that Bai Ziqi left the city on the day of the Grass Sea Hunt's opening to find Kong Jiaxiang in Chiyan?" The voice snorted, "Yes, to Yangshui, Kong Jiaxiang's hometown. But Bai Ziqi never reported this lead, nor did he report his itinerary, which kept all the gods in the dark." Or perhaps, Bai Ziqi was guarding against them! "He truly is loyal to Lingxu."

The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang frowned deeply. "It's impossible for Kong Jiaxiang to still be alive." "Then did Bai Ziqi bring back a dead person? No, no, that's not how he reported it to the Lingxu Saint Lord. Not only is he a living witness, but he also has physical evidence in hand." "I sent Lu Qingzhou to handle the aftermath at Qingfu Temple. Lu Qingzhou personally watched Kong Jiaxiang take poison and die before setting the temple ablaze," the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang said gravely. "The fire started from Kong Jiaxiang's room; he couldn't have been mistaken." "Perhaps that fellow Lu deceived you?" "Lu Qingzhou was utterly loyal to me; there's no way he would betray me," the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang slowly shook her head. "Besides, he died suddenly at home a few days ago; it must have been done by Autumn Palace." The voice said, "Perhaps Kong Jiaxiang faked his death and deceived your apprentice." The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang remained silent. After all, she hadn't handled this matter personally; she wasn't on site. Even if Lu Qingzhou reported back to her afterward, could he have missed some details?

"If you say Kong Jiaxiang is dead, then who is this living person Bai Ziqi found?" "Perhaps a fake." The voice uttered a sound of surprise. "A fake? If you were sure he was fake, why didn't you stay in Qing Palace and confront him? Why did you run straight to Lingxiao Palace?" And she had run without looking back, which was completely unlike the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang's usual style. "Do you think Bai Ziqi is easily fooled? If he caught such an important witness as Kong Jiaxiang, wouldn't he verify his identity?" The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang gave a bitter smile. "Kong Jiaxiang was apprehended in his hometown, and so many relatives and old friends in Yangshui could testify that he is indeed the person. Moreover, I imagine Bai Ziqi would also seek out clues in Lingxu City. Conversely, if he hadn't identified Kong Jiaxiang as irrefutable evidence, how would he dare bring troops to attack my Qing Palace?" "Furthermore, even if I confronted Kong Jiaxiang, would Lingxu City believe him or me? Who would determine the truth or falsehood of his words?" Only she knew what was true and what was false. But how would others believe her? "Lu Qingzhou, who could prove Kong Jiaxiang was dead, himself died suddenly. Therefore, this Kong Jiaxiang must be real." Whether Kong Jiaxiang was real or fake wasn't important; the existence of "Kong Jiaxiang" itself was what mattered. His testimony, his confession, must be true. When Shuangye found this Kong Jiaxiang, or "created" this person, the struggle between them was already decided.

That voice wasn't concerned with the evidence itself; it only wanted to know one thing: "Are you truly condemned, with no hope of overturning your case?" "Perhaps." The smoke swirled twice, ready to dissipate. "True Lord Tongming!" the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang suddenly spoke. "If I am imprisoned and interrogated, you won't escape either." The voice from the smoke responded, with a hint of irritation, "Are you threatening me?" "I know that Miaozhantian possesses a divine artifact called the Touchstone. I fear if I don't pass its test, I will reveal the fact that you secretly supplied me with divine blood." Besides the pulp pearls, there was another indispensable ingredient for making the immortal elixir: divine blood. Without divine blood, piles of pulp pearls would be useless. Clearly, both the Emperor and the Heavenly Palace understood this point; once the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang was apprehended, she would certainly be interrogated about the source of the divine blood. The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang knew that Miaozhantian's Touchstone divine art was incredibly effective for determining the truthfulness of confessions. At that point, wouldn't True Lord Tongming, as an accomplice, be exposed?

However, True Lord Tongming burst into laughter. "You're overthinking it! Miaozhantian just used that divine art, and there was even an unexpected incident during its use, resulting in a huge drain. It absolutely cannot be used a second time within three to five months!" The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang was startled. "An incident?" Could it have been True Lord Tongming's doing? But hearing that Miaozhantian's divine art was temporarily sealed, she also breathed a sigh of relief.

"Miaozhantian tested the boy named He who is with the Chiyan Crown Prince, but didn't get a satisfactory result." The boy named He? He Xiao? The Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang was greatly surprised. He Xiao had indeed created one obstacle after another for her; if not for such a person unexpectedly appearing, Xi Yunhe wouldn't have been able to expose the immortal elixir case even if he wanted to. This young man certainly had some ability, but Miaozhantian actually used divine art on him? As the Imperial Preceptor, Qingyang knew many inside stories, for instance, if Heaven Gods wanted to use divine art in the mortal world, they had to pay an extremely high price. The barrier between realms was no joke; laws could not be easily circumvented. This price was paid not only by the Heaven Gods but also by Lingxu City. And it was Miaozhantian's signature grand skill, which was certainly not easily deployed. What secret did that young man hide that even the Heaven Gods were willing to expend such great effort to test him? Of course, the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang was preoccupied with her own troubles, so this thought merely flashed through her mind before she said to True Lord Tongming, "The attitudes of the other gods towards my case aren't necessarily so resolute, are they?"

"You know," True Lord Tongming said coldly, "even if most gods are indifferent, as long as a small portion insists, you won't escape punishment! Don't think about implicating me; I won't admit it." "Which war didn't result in rivers of blood? My subordinates only killed a few weak demons; the charge can actually be seen as light or heavy," the Imperial Preceptor of Qingyang said solemnly. "I'd like to ask you to put in a good word for me before the assembled gods."