Chapter 883: Borrowing a Chicken to Lay Eggs

Zu An stared at Mi Li in surprise. She had been empress for so many years, yet she was still a virgin?

This was probably the oldest virgin in history, wasn't it?

But why couldn't he help but smile?

A rare, almost imperceptible blush appeared on Mi Li's face, but she quickly hid it, looking coldly at Xu Fu: "How do you know all this?"

Logically, this was a secret between the emperor and empress. The emperor wouldn't spread such news, as it concerned the royal family's reputation. So Xu Fu shouldn't have known. It seemed there was an unknown hidden secret.

Xu Fu smiled. "A Pure Yin body must be that of a virgin to be effective. Qin Shi Huang desired immortality so greatly; how could he make a mistake concerning this? Naturally, he wouldn't touch you beforehand."

Zu An, standing by, had a strange expression. He recalled Xu Fu mentioning earlier that he was a "Pure Yang body." He thought, "Well, my Yang energy is quite abundant, but if a Pure Yin body requires a virgin, does a Pure Yang body require a virgin too?"

Even with Zu An's thick skin, he couldn't bring himself to say he was still a virgin.

The others nearby naturally didn't know his focus was so odd at the moment. Mi Li spoke, "So Qin Shi Huang set up this Yin-Yang Five Elements Array here for this reason. It's a pity that despite all his meticulous planning, he still didn't achieve immortality."

"His failure to achieve immortality wasn't due to a problem with this array, but because of me," Xu Fu said somewhat proudly.

Mi Li's delicate brows furrowed. "Because of you?"

"Of course," Xu Fu said as if recounting a triumphant feat. "Back then, I spent my life searching for the method of immortality for Qin Shi Huang, wasting countless years. Finally, heaven rewarded my persistence, and I found it. My first thought was to bring it back and present it to Qin Shi Huang, but then I had a change of heart. Why should I? Why shouldn't I become immortal myself?"

Zu An fell silent. This was human nature. If it were other treasures, perhaps Xu Fu would never have dared to betray Qin Shi Huang. But immortality? Who in the world could resist that temptation?

Mi Li couldn't help but sneer. "As expected, you have a rebellious nature. But what right did you have to betray Qin Shi Huang?"

This was what puzzled her most. At that time, Xu Fu's cultivation, status, and available resources were far inferior to Qin Shi Huang's, and even less than some powerful officials in the court.

"Indeed, at that time, I didn't have the means to betray him, and I alone couldn't complete this grand array," Xu Fu said. "So I quietly returned and reported the discovery of immortality to Qin Shi Huang. Of course, I made some alterations to the array myself. Ultimately, it was just a scheme to use him for my own ends."

Mi Li frowned, remaining silent, knowing he had more to say.

Sure enough, Xu Fu couldn't hold back and continued, "When Qin Shi Huang learned that I had successfully found the method for immortality, he was overjoyed and trusted me even more. He sent me to Xiquanqiu to supervise the construction of that grand array for achieving immortality."

"The first troublesome aspect of this grand array was that it required the vital essence of thousands of living beings as its foundation. Unfortunately, Qin Shi Huang was an emperor after all; he couldn't kill his own subjects without cause, as that would easily lead to widespread chaos. So we devised a plan: under the pretext of sailing out to sea to continue searching for the elixir of immortality, we took many experts and three thousand boys and girls with us."

Zu An hadn't expected the truth to be this. He soon realized with a shudder, "Then those three thousand boys and girls..."

"Precisely," Xu Fu nodded, smiling as if describing the most ordinary event. "I took those people out to sea, and we never returned. Many rumors spread throughout the land: some said we perished in the ocean, others that we feared being punished by the emperor for failing to find the elixir, and so we chose to stay overseas and establish our own kingdoms... No one suspected that those three thousand boys and girls and the experts were actually sacrificed not long after."

He pointed to the blood pool slowly flowing and swirling around the platform. "This blood pool was refined from their blood."

Zu An felt a chill down his spine. Bi Linglong dared not look at the blood pool, turning her head away and dry-heaving.

Mi Li said coldly, "After committing such a heinous act against heaven, Qin Shi Huang still desired immortality?"

She was truly enraged. All the education she had received since childhood made her unable to accept the slaughter of thousands of boys and girls as sacrifices.

Of course, Xu Fu, who proposed this vicious scheme to Qin Shi Huang, was even more detestable.

Xu Fu curled his lips. "What's the big deal? During the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, countless slaves were buried alive with emperors."

He continued, "Besides these three thousand boys and girls, the second difficulty was finding people who matched the Five Elements. Although I could hide these actions from most people, I might not be able to hide them from other skilled alchemists and diviners. Among these, Lu Sheng and Han Zhong were the most proficient. Especially Lu Sheng, who possessed the 'Lu Tu Shu,' posing the greatest danger to me."

Zu An's heart stirred. No wonder Han Zhong, who had lost his sanity, panicked upon hearing Xu Fu's name. And the danger Lu Sheng had foreseen was probably him as well, because Xu Fu was also hidden within this palace. To prevent his residual soul from being exposed, Lu Sheng deliberately erased memories related to Xu Fu.

"It wouldn't have mattered much if the news leaked to others, but my biggest worry was that they would discover the manipulations I made to the array and make Qin Shi Huang suspect my intentions." Xu Fu stood with his hands behind his back and soon chuckled. "Wouldn't you say it's quite a coincidence that these two, one with a Metal elemental fate and the other with a Wood elemental fate, perfectly matched the Five Elements? So I quietly informed Qin Shi Huang of this. Qin Shi Huang, always harsh and ungenerous, immediately harbored murderous intentions towards them."

"Unfortunately, Lu Sheng's 'Lu Tu Shu' was too powerful; he preempted our surprise attack and secretly escaped. Qin Shi Huang was furious about this, then launched a nationwide search, interrogating all diviners connected to him. Finally, after burying hundreds of people close to him alive, they managed to force him out."

Zu An's mind stirred. The same piece of history, when told by different people, would reveal new discoveries. Everyone was essentially describing the same event, but because their perspectives and positions were different, what they saw also differed.

Mi Li said, "Lu Sheng's 'Lu Tu Shu' could reveal heavenly secrets, yet you still managed to capture him in the end."

"Knowing heaven's will is easy," Xu Fu paused, then added, "but defying it is difficult."

He then continued, "Next, dealing with Han Zhong, I initially thought it would be much easier. Who knew he somehow got wind of our plans, causing my ambush to fail again. However, he suffered severe head injuries in that battle; although he escaped, he became deranged. Eventually, he couldn't escape the pursuit of the imperial experts and was captured at Xiquanqiu."

Zu An mused that Lu Sheng, through the 'Lu Tu Shu,' had probably glimpsed fragments of the future and quietly warned Han Zhong when he escaped, which allowed Han Zhong to prepare. Unfortunately, he still couldn't escape the clutches of evil.

Mi Li said with a cold face, "So you were behind the affair with Fusu as well?"

With her knowledge, she naturally knew Fusu's fate was aligned with the Fire element.

"Precisely. To achieve my ultimate plan, I had to eliminate Qin Shi Huang's helpers, starting with Crown Prince Fusu and the illustrious Meng family," Xu Fu recalled the past, a victor's smile on his face. "I keenly perceived Qin Shi Huang's anxieties about the foreign relatives of Chu, so I used this to make him resolve to act. Fusu had half the blood of the Chu royal family. How could a figure like Qin Shi Huang, who prided himself on unifying the world as an unparalleled achievement, allow half the fruits of his victory to go to the Chu people?"

"Coupled with Fusu's Fire elemental fate, Qin Shi Huang finally made up his mind. And since the Meng family was close to the Crown Prince, with Meng Tian spending long periods with him, eliminating Fusu necessitated purging the Crown Prince's faction, led by Meng Tian. Coincidentally, Meng Tian himself possessed the most perfect Earth elemental fate, which naturally removed any remaining hesitation Qin Shi Huang had."

"So you were the mastermind!" Mi Li's eyes were red with fury. Fusu was her own sister's son, and the entire Chu foreign relative faction had been implicated back then.

She tried to burst forth and attack, but her form immediately dimmed. Countless invisible energy currents tightly locked her in place.

"Your Majesty, don't get agitated. With so many sacrificial souls in this grand array, suppressing spirits is its primary function. Your current state is naturally restrained; the more you struggle, the faster your soul will dissipate," Xu Fu chuckled.

Zu An hastily tried to comfort Mi Li, afraid she might impulsively cause her soul to scatter.

To distract her, Zu An quickly asked, "Among the Five Elements, the Water element is still missing. Who is that person with the Water body? And why is there such deep resentment?"

Hearing him mention this, the smile that had been on Xu Fu's face vanished, replaced by a trace of weary lament. "She was the person I loved most in this life."

Zu An: "???"

Mi Li: "???"

Bi Linglong: "???"

None of them had ever expected such an answer from him.