Chapter 835: Being Discovered

A hint of mockery flashed in the Crown Prince's eyes. "It's too late to realize it now," he said.

Hearing his admission, not only Lu Xiao but even Zu'an, hidden in the shadows, was utterly shocked. Although he had entertained similar suspicions, he still found it somewhat unbelievable the moment the truth was revealed.

In fact, he had felt something was off both before and after entering the secret realm. The Emperor had arranged for him to provide secret protection, and Zu'an wondered not only if he could handle Prince Qi's people, but also why the Emperor trusted him so much. Later, after entering the secret realm, he witnessed Prince Qi's elaborate and cunning schemes. While admiring Prince Qi's methods, he also disdained the Emperor for being completely oblivious, thinking it was no wonder the Emperor hadn't been able to deal with Prince Qi for so many years, given the vast difference in their planning abilities.

He never expected that he himself was the clown!

But why was the Crown Prince the Emperor? Zu'an simply couldn't reconcile the clumsy, simple-minded fat man with the majestic and powerful Crown Prince. At this moment, Lu Xiao shared the same doubt. He cried out, "Impossible, impossible, how could you be the Emperor?"

The Crown Prince looked at him coldly, with no intention of explaining.

Lu Xiao suddenly had a flash of insight. "I understand now," he exclaimed. "You used the body-snatching method! Back then, you had Mi Lianying search for a method of immortality. He returned empty-handed several times, but later brought back a body-snatching technique to complete his assignment, for which he was severely punished by you. Now that I think about it, you secretly practiced that body-snatching technique!"

"Body-snatching?" Zu'an's heart skipped a beat. He was all too familiar with the concept; Old Man Mi had once tried to snatch his body. From Lu Xiao's words, it seemed Old Man Mi had likely acquired this body-snatching technique while searching for methods of immortality for the Emperor.

Lu Xiao's voice continued, "The Crown Prince wasn't foolish from the start. He suddenly became dull after a severe illness in his youth. Everyone in the capital believed Prince Qi was behind it, which perplexed Prince Qi himself. We all knew it wasn't Prince Qi's doing. Now I realize it must have been you who used the body-snatching technique on the Crown Prince back then, damaging his soul and causing him to become more foolish than ordinary people."

A hint of approval appeared in the Crown Prince's eyes. "You are very clever," he said. "No wonder you became Zhao Jing's foremost retainer. It's a pity you didn't know when to adapt and chose the wrong allegiance."

Lu Xiao gave a bitter laugh. "To receive a word of praise from His Majesty, I, Lu, have not lived in vain," he said. "However, there's one thing I don't understand: if you performed body-snatching, how can His Majesty and the Crown Prince exist simultaneously?"

Having received such an indirect compliment, the Crown Prince's expression softened slightly, clearly feeling at ease. "I can answer your question," he said, "but first, you must answer a few questions I have about Prince Qi."

Lu Xiao hesitated, but still nodded and said, "Please speak, Your Majesty." After learning that the Crown Prince was the Emperor, he understood that Prince Qi was doomed. Whether he spoke or not wouldn't change the outcome; he might as well die understanding the truth.

"Was the Libationer involved in this secret realm affair?" the Crown Prince asked, his gaze incredibly sharp. He had originally trusted the Libationer, but with Prince Qi bringing so many people into the realm this time, the Imperial Academy couldn't possibly be uninvolved.

Lu Xiao shook his head. "If Libationer was willing to collaborate with Prince Qi, why would Prince Qi resort to such schemes and tricks?"

"Three years ago, when the Academy's secret realm opened," Lu Xiao continued, "the person in charge of the realm's entrance was Sir Yin Shi, the Eleventh Master."

Although he didn't elaborate much, it was enough.

"Yin Shi!" The Crown Prince's eyes grew cold, clearly having condemned the man to death in his mind.

Zu'an secretly breathed a sigh of relief. When he originally heard that the Academy was involved, he had been very worried. People like Jiang Luofu and Qi Yaoguang were all teachers from the back mountain, and the Jiang family leaned towards Prince Qi's faction. He was truly afraid that Jiang Luofu was involved, in which case he wouldn't know how to help her. Even if it wasn't Jiang Luofu, but someone like Wang Weiyang or Black & White, he would have been in a difficult position, as those people had all been very kind to him. Fortunately, it was that argumentative Yin Shi. Zu'an knew his thoughts were somewhat unkind, but in such a situation, it was a matter of self-preservation.

"Besides sending you in this time, does Zhao Jing have any other tricks up his sleeve?" the Crown Prince continued to ask.

Lu Xiao shook his head. "No, there's nothing else," he replied. "Originally, with our strength, it would have been easy to eliminate the Crown Prince's group. In fact, at first, we were a bit resentful, thinking that any retainer could complete the mission, so why did the Prince make such a big fuss? Later, after encountering Zu'an, we admired Prince Qi's foresight. However, despite all his calculations, he never expected to ultimately fall into His Majesty's trap."

Zu'an's face turned ashen. The Emperor had been in the group all along, yet he had sat by and watched as members of various noble families sacrificed themselves to protect him, never lifting a finger. Although the other party didn't explicitly state it, Zu'an understood the Emperor's plan. First, the matter of body-snatching the Crown Prince absolutely could not be revealed. Second, for many years, Prince Qi had maintained a reputation as a virtuous prince, widely praised by both court and commoners. If the Emperor wanted to move against him, he needed an ironclad charge. Clearly, if news of massacring the children of various noble families and openly plotting to murder the Crown Prince and Crown Princess got out, Prince Qi's hard-earned reputation as a virtuous prince would be completely ruined, and no one would come to his aid.

Indeed, a single general's success is built upon countless lives. The children of various families who, moments before death, still tried to drag enemies down with them, could never have imagined that the very person they desperately protected wished for their most miserable deaths. What a bitter irony that was.

The Crown Prince asked Lu Xiao a few more questions, and Lu Xiao answered them all. Then he timidly asked, "Your Majesty, I have told you everything I know. Could you now resolve my doubts?"

Seeing his hopeful yet fearful gaze, the Crown Prince scoffed. "You needn't worry," he said. "Would I ever go back on my word?"

Hearing his words, Zu'an secretly sneered. *Heh, this old schemer has deceived and sold out countless people, and now he wants to pretend to be virtuous after all his misdeeds.*

At this moment, the Crown Prince spoke slowly. "Years ago, I had Mi Lianying lead people to search for a method of immortality," he began. "He spent decades searching across the land and found a body-snatching technique. At first, I looked down on it. However, as Mi Lianying consistently failed to find a true method of immortality, and with my five decays approaching, I had no choice but to begin studying that body-snatching technique."

"Body-snatching goes against the heavens, and its success rate is very low," the Crown Prince explained. "There are only two ways to increase the success rate: first, practice the same cultivation method; second, use a direct blood relative. Therefore, Ruizhi was the prime target." A look of recollection crossed his face. "However, Zhao Jing was constantly lurking nearby, and I had to suppress him at all times, making it inconvenient to perform the body-snatching too early. Yet, I dared not wait until the very last moment, as failure then would mean eternal damnation. Later, I came up with a perfect solution: I would first split off a wisp of my soul and inject it into Ruizhi's body."

"Humans possess three souls and seven spirits," he continued. "The seven spirits represent joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, and desire. The three souls are the Heavenly Soul, Earthly Soul, and Life Soul."

"The experiment's result was perfect," he continued. "A wisp of My split soul successfully entered Ruizhi's body, replacing his own Life Soul. However, I couldn't control his body at all times; normally, I would lie dormant. As the Life Soul governs thought and wisdom, and his own Life Soul was damaged, he appeared somewhat dull in his daily life."

"I suspected that Zhao Jing would certainly scheme something during this secret realm examination, but I wasn't sure exactly what his plans were. So, I bestowed a wisp of aura upon Linglong for her to use to save herself in times of crisis. Once she used it, this wisp of My split soul would awaken smoothly. That way, no matter what Zhao Jing's scheme was, I could still control the entire situation."

Zu'an listened, utterly speechless. *Indeed, what an old schemer!* The thing bestowed upon Bi Linglong was no life-saving measure at all; it was entirely a "wake-up call" for him! Bi Linglong had been kept in the dark and manipulated from beginning to end.

Lu Xiao also sighed deeply. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for resolving my doubts," he said.

The Crown Prince stood with his hands behind his back, a satisfied smile on his face. "You don't need to thank Me," he said. "Mainly, I've had these clever schemes for many years and haven't been able to share them with anyone. It's truly like wearing fine clothes at night. Today, I finally have an audience, and my thoughts can be fully expressed."

Lu Xiao's expression changed. He knew he was doomed after that statement. Just as he was about to speak and try to change allegiance, the Crown Prince raised a hand and pointed. Instantly, a bloody hole appeared in Lu Xiao's glabella, and his life force immediately extinguished.

After dealing with Lu Xiao, the Crown Prince walked over to where Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun lay. "Oh, they're still alive," he remarked.

After speaking, he raised his hand, clearly intending to silence them permanently.

Seeing this, Zu'an's heart involuntarily leaped. Just then, the Crown Prince suddenly turned his head and stared in Zu'an's direction. "Who's there?" he demanded.