Great Li Martial God

”What exactly should we do? Does anyone here have a plan?”

Someone among the assembled martial world figures spoke up with considerable urgency.

The fate of the Second Prince’s residence was bound up with their own fates, and every one of them was deeply invested.

As for running, even those who harbored the thought did not dare act on it.

After all, no one knew what Li Musheng’s purpose in coming was.

If the man had simply dropped by for a visit, and they rashly turned on Second Prince Li Que, that would be no different from seeking their own deaths.

”We absolutely cannot fight. Unless the Elder Zhe acts, the entire Second Prince’s residence probably cannot withstand even one of a Falling God Peak Peak Master’s attacks, let alone facing that Eighth Prince.”

An elder said with a grim expression, and the people around him all immediately looked at him, every one of them feeling he was stating the painfully obvious.

At that, the Azure Jade Scorpion King and several of Li Que’s closest confidants exchanged glances, and in each other’s eyes could see plainly the look of panic.

After all, they were among those who knew what kind of enmity existed between the Second Prince Li Que and the Eighth Prince.And right at that moment, a servant came rushing over to the assembled group and called out, ”His Highness says to please remain calm, honored guests.”

At those words, the assembled martial world figures gradually settled.

Even so, these people still thought to send one among them who was skilled in stealth and movement to slip away quietly and observe the situation where Li Musheng’s group had gone, so they could respond quickly if needed.

...

At the same time, inside the Second Prince’s imposing and grand reception hall, Li Musheng’s group was led in by the household steward and took their seats.

The steward at that moment was visibly tense and on edge, though Li Musheng was not projecting even the faintest trace of aura.

Even so, he could not shake the feeling that standing before the Eighth Prince was like standing before a towering mountain range that could not be looked upon. Just standing in the man’s presence was enough to make breathing difficult.

”Eighth... Your Highness... Princess, the Second Prince will be here shortly. Please wait just a moment.”

The steward stumbled over his words. A person’s reputation precedes them, and anyone who had heard even a fraction of what Li Musheng had done could not possibly remain composed.

Li Yuanling glanced at him, and then her eyes turned cold, ”Go and tell Li Que not to dawdle. Tell him to come out and see us right away.”

There was a clear thread of anger in Li Yuanling’s words. The steward felt his heart drop.

At the same time, Second Prince Li Que, who had just arrived outside the entrance of the hall, stumbled on his next step.

He had already realized from Li Yuanling’s tone that this was not a friendly visit.

But now that he wanted to back away, it was already too late.

Because he realized that the big black cat crouching on one of the high-backed chairs in the hall had, at some unknown moment, fixed its green eyes on him.

And the look in the cat’s eyes seemed to say that it had already seen him, and he should not even think about running.

For a moment Li Que was caught short, then turned and exchanged a glance with the Elder Zhe beside him.

The Elder Zhe’s aged face was also showing an extremely unpleasant expression.

But by that point there was no way back for either of them. They had no choice but to steel themselves and step into the hall.

”Eighth... royal younger brother. What brings you to my residence today?”

Li Que walked in with a forced and stiff smile, looking toward the very young figure seated there.

Though this was the first time he had seen Li Musheng in person, he felt no unfamiliarity with the man at all.

For weeks, he had been living in Li Musheng’s shadow, sick with anxiety every day. This figure before him had long since become a nightmare he could not shake from his mind.

At that, Li Musheng, sitting in the high-backed chair, raised an eyebrow.

He looked at the arriving Li Que and the Elder Zhe, then let his gaze settle on Li Que, and asked with blunt directness, ”You are the Second Prince who sent the Formless Elder to kill me?”

At those words, Li Que’s half-raised foot froze in midair, and the whole person was as though struck by lightning from a clear sky.

What he had feared most had still come to pass, and to have it said so casually and without the slightest circumspection by Li Musheng.

The man had not made any attempt to speak indirectly. He had simply stated the grievance between them plainly, with no hesitation and no care, as though Li Que were already a cold corpse in his eyes.

In that instant, the hall went so still that a pin dropping would have been heard. Li Que’s face was without color. An endless terror swallowed his consciousness, and his legs could no longer hold him upright, his body beginning to tilt backward.

Fortunately the Elder Zhe beside him moved in time, reaching out to steady him while quietly sending a thread of pure aura into his body, just barely allowing him to keep hold of his composure.

Right at that moment, Li Yuanling shot to her feet, her eyes on Li Que as she snapped, ”Li Que, you have thoroughly disgraced the name of an elder brother. Your scheming, venomous heart is willing to harm your own flesh and blood. Your crimes are beyond forgiving. I will be reporting this to His Majesty to see that you are properly punished for your vile actions.”

At those words, something in Li Que’s expression shifted sharply.

If this was only going to be reported to Emperor Yuanwu, there was perhaps still a chance he would be left alive.

But then he heard Li Yuanling’s voice continue in his ears, ”Or, you can atone for your crimes on the spot right now. I can ask my elder brother for clemency, and preserve what little dignity you have left, rather than letting your name become a byword of shame and dragging the entire Great Li imperial family through the mud with you.”

At those words, Li Que’s entire body shuddered again.

The small thread of hope that had just barely risen in his heart plummeted from the heights into the depths, and his face went the color of a ghost.

And in the next instant he fell to his knees with a thud, pressed his forehead to the floor toward Li Musheng, and begged, ”Please... Royal Younger Brother, spare my life. I was lost and foolish, taken in by the Right Minister’s manipulation, and committed this unspeakable act against you...”

”I know my sins are unforgivable... but I beg you to take into account our father’s wishes and the bond between brothers, and give me one chance to live. I will spend the rest of my life making amends for what I have done...”

At the same time, the Elder Zhe, who had been standing beside him, slowly knelt as well, ”This old one bears responsibility for encouraging this course of action. If Your Eighth Highness seeks to assign blame, please accept this old one’s life in partial payment for Your Highness’s anger.”

At this point even he had no further moves to make. As for striking at Li Musheng and fighting to the last, the thought did not even cross his mind.

Rather than provoking the man, it was better to acknowledge the wrong openly, and offer his own life in exchange for Li Que’s slim chance of survival. That would count as his repayment of the debt he owed.

At that moment, the big black cat crouching in the high-backed chair, having seen only two sentences exchanged before both Li Que and the Elder Zhe were on their knees confessing, immediately waved a paw at the two of them and then looked at Li Musheng, its manner clearly that of a cat that wanted to personally scratch both of them to death.

Li Musheng, however, raised an eyebrow and glanced at the big black cat. He had noticed this cat’s taste for violence was quite pronounced.

Even so, in Li Musheng’s view, whether he killed Li Que or not was not really the point.

His most important purpose in coming today was not to kill anyone. It was to retrieve something.

”I understand you have a Tianqi Secret Treasury key in your possession?”

Li Musheng turned and looked at the Second Prince Li Que, who was kneeling and begging for his life, and asked this out of nowhere.

At those words, Li Que, who had been trembling on the floor pleading for mercy, jerked his head up sharply, and immediately nodded with frantic speed, ”Yes, yes, I do have a Tianqi Secret Treasury key. If Royal Younger Brother wants it, I will go and retrieve it right now and present it with both hands.”

Li Que’s barely settled heart soared like a rollercoaster again. He naturally seized every possible chance at survival.

Li Musheng gave a slow nod and said, ”In that case, go and bring the key here.”

At those words, Li Que looked at Li Musheng with a flash of excitement, then immediately scrambled up from the floor in a frantic hurry, his voice eager and urgent, ”Of course, right away, I will bring the key to Royal Younger Brother at once!”

As he spoke he scrambled toward the exit, moving at something between a run and a crawl.

Before long, his figure had disappeared entirely from everyone’s sight in the hall.

At the sight, Li Yuanling raised one delicate brow and gave Li Musheng a questioning look, ”Surely not. You just let him go? Are you not worried he will simply run?”

At those words, Li Musheng said nothing, but gave a calm glance at the Elder Zhe still kneeling on the ground, ”What do you think? Will your master obediently bring the key back, or take this chance to make a run for his life?”

At those words, the Elder Zhe’s aged face went through several shifts of expression. He then looked back toward the exit of the hall for a moment.

In the end he fell silent, and slowly shook his head.

Honestly, even with all his knowledge of Li Que’s character, in a situation like this he could not say with certainty which way the man would go.

At the same time, Li Que’s pace after leaving Li Musheng and the others was growing faster and faster.

He channeled his Martial True Qi to the limit and his figure became a streak of light racing through the residence.

Eventually he came to a stop outside his study, then flashed in and disappeared.

The stealthy martial artist the other men had sent to gather intelligence, after Li Que vanished into the study, emerged slowly in the courtyard.

He did not enter, only furrowed his brow and waited, quietly thinking, ”Is His Highness really going to hand the key over to that Eighth Prince?”

Before long, Li Que’s figure flashed back out of the study.

His hair was disheveled and he looked somewhat the worse for wear, a wooden box pressed to his chest, and he immediately made to run back toward the reception hall.

But at that moment, the martial artist took one step forward and appeared before Li Que in almost an instant, blocking his way, ”Your Highness, you are truly going back?”

He looked at the wooden box in Li Que’s hands and shook his head, ”Has Your Highness considered that even if you hand that over to the Eighth Prince, he may well not let you go?”

At those words, Second Prince Li Que pressed the wooden box to his chest and looked at the martial artist before him, his gaze settling and resolute, ”And if I do not go back, what then?”

The agile martial artist’s expression shifted, and he clasped his hands in a bow, ”I am not without ability, and my speed and movement are exceptional. I can take Your Highness and escape right now. Once we are out of the prince’s residence, even with his extraordinary martial arts, that Eighth Prince would have no way to stop us.”

But Li Que shook his head, ”I am a prince of Great Li. This residence is a gift from my father. If I flee from here, where would I go?”

”And besides, running now buys me time, not a solution. Rather than hiding in shadows for the rest of my life, never able to show my face, it is better to go back now and take whatever slim chance still exists.”

At those words, the martial artist looked deeply at the Second Prince before him.

Then he let out a quiet sigh and slowly lowered the hand he had stretched out, and at last stepped aside without blocking him further.

Li Que said nothing more and walked away, his figure disappearing toward the reception hall in moments.

The martial artist watched Li Que’s retreating back, his expression slightly moved, ”I had not seen it before. It seems His Highness has had a backbone in him all along.”

...

Very quickly, Li Que’s figure reappeared outside the entrance to the hall.

The Elder Zhe, still kneeling on the floor, looked up and saw him, and the heart he had been holding in suspense finally fell halfway into place.

When Li Musheng had asked that question earlier, the Elder Zhe had already known that even if Li Que took this chance to run, there was no escaping the Eighth Prince’s reach.

If Li Que had actually done that, it would have been all but certain death.

That Li Que had taken the initiative to come back with the Tianqi Secret Treasury key at least meant his odds of survival had increased by a fraction.

At that, Li Que rushed back into the hall, knelt again before Li Musheng, then produced a plain wooden box from inside his robe and held it out with both hands, ”Inside this is the Tianqi Secret Treasury key that I came to obtain through a chance encounter with a monk from Hanguang Temple. Please, Royal Younger Brother, accept this, and in doing so, I ask for your mercy and one chance at life.”

With those words, Li Que’s body trembled as he pressed his forehead to the floor and said no more.

Seeing this, Li Yuanling gave a small nod toward Li Musheng, ”This Li Que has committed serious wrongs, but at least he keeps his word.”

The meaning behind her words was already clear enough. She was inclined toward leaving Li Que alive.

But right at that moment, the big black cat suddenly bounded over and let out a sharp meow.

It had always been the sort to return every grudge and repay every wrong. It was not entirely prepared to let Li Que off.

And besides, if Li Musheng was not going to kill anyone, then there would be no scene of carnage to witness, and it would have made this whole trip for nothing.

Li Musheng’s expression throughout had remained entirely composed. He looked at the kneeling Li Que, then reached out and took the wooden box, and asked, ”I seem to recall that Hanguang Temple is the foremost Buddhist sect of the Great Chu dynasty. How did one of their monks end up in Great Li?”

At those words, Li Que, still pressing his forehead to the floor, immediately replied without holding anything back, ”That was a traveling monk from Hanguang Temple. His martial cultivation was exceptional, and I once followed him for some time hoping to bring him into my household as a guest. But he had no interest in that, and I was never able to persuade him. Even so, upon our parting, he saw my sincerity and gave me the Tianqi Secret Treasury key as a gift.”

Li Musheng gave a quiet nod, then opened the wooden box in his hand. Inside lay a silver orb roughly the size of a palm, carved with intricate and elaborate patterns.

The appearance of this item and the wooden box it came in were quite different from the other Tianqi Secret Treasury key he had previously obtained.

Even so, Li Musheng was able to sense through the wooden box and the key within it that the sealed lodestone hidden inside the silver orb shared the same magnetic field, mutually attracting and clearly of common origin with the other.

This confirmed that the silver orb before him was without question a genuine key.

With that thought, Li Musheng reached out and picked up the silver orb to examine it. Before long, however, his brow rose, and he turned to look at the Second Prince Li Que still kneeling below him.