I Can Deduce Arts by Slaying Demons

The following day at the hour of the dragon, the golden tiles of Yuji Hall reflected the cold.

Below the vermilion steps, the full court of civil and military officials prostrated themselves, their ashen faces mirrored on the gilded tiles.

Some ministers had necks trembling slightly, eyes filled with panic, stealing glances at Emperor Qianxi on the dragon throne.

Emperor Qianxi was seen slumped on the dragon throne; the once valiant and resolute emperor, whose eyes shone like bright stars, was now devoid of vitality.

His gaze was stagnant like ancient jade covered in dust, sitting with an expressionless face, resembling a puppet whose soul had been extracted.

Even the nine-dragon crown symbolizing imperial power was askew, with the beaded curtains clashing with hollow sounds.

"By order of His Majesty, all officials shall kneel and greet!" The sharp voice of a eunuch announcing the decree pierced the deathly silence of the hall.

The voice of the eunuch announcing the decree echoed throughout the hall, reaching each and every person’s ears clearly.

"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: I am suddenly struck by a vicious illness, my mind muddled... fearing it would delay state affairs."

"...As of today, I specially appoint my benefactor, Mr. Lu, as the regent minister to govern state affairs, to jointly handle the military and political matters of Daqian with Crown Prince Qian Yuanqin."

"From royal relatives to court officials and common folk, anyone encountering Mr. Lu should regard him as if they were meeting me in person; they must perform the three kneelings and nine prostrations ceremony!"

The hall fell into a deathly silence like an abyss until the unfamiliar eunuch’s sharp voice abruptly stopped.

The full court of officials, startled like birds, raised their heads trembling with fear.

When their gazes met, shock and near despair reflected in their eyes.

The cries rising in their throats were forcibly swallowed back, and the jade tablets quivered, producing a faint sound of colliding.

What did they just hear?

The decree was like thunder from the nine heavens shattering the firmament—this so-called "regent minister" was clearly an attempt to entirely usurp imperial power!

Mr. Lu acted under the guise of a mentor while actually committing treason, manipulating the emperor at his fingertips.

How was this different from donning the imperial robes?

It was merely using the name of the Crown Prince to disguise his ambitions, only a step away from cloaking himself in the dragon robes!

"Absurd!"

The Imperial Censor of the Left, Zhang Changwang, suddenly stood upright, with whiskers bristling like spears, his purple official robes heaving with his chest.

"His Majesty is in the prime of life, only yesterday he was reviewing memorials in Huawen Hall, how could he possibly—"

Before he could finish, the Deputy Director of the Censorate, Wang Suke, dashed forward, his jade belt jingling as it collided.

He pointed directly at the eunuch announcing the decree, his finger almost piercing the eunuch’s pallid face, "Eunuch dog!"

"How dare you disrupt politics with treacherous words, fabricating imperial decrees, deceiving the people under Heaven."

Every word was like thunderclaps, startling the bronze crane palace lights at the corners of the hall to quiver slightly.

"You eunuchs should all be punished with the capital crime of exterminating nine generations!"

After these two leading voices, the civil and military officials below also began to stir.

But then, the gray-haired Assistant Minister of Rites, Li Gong, stumbled forward from the ranks of officials.

The old man’s withered fingers like eagle claws reached out, his official boots producing chaotic echoes on the dragon-pattern golden tiles.

"I... I don’t believe it, I must see the decree, I have to check His Majesty’s pulse!"

Li Gong’s hoarse shout mixed with bloody froth in his throat, causing the caisson ceiling to tremble and dust to fall.

He suddenly lunged toward the dragon throne, his plain gold belt hook snapping with a "clack", his frail body crashed heavily on the imperial steps.

Assistant Minister Li Gong lifted his head toward the dragon throne, only to see under the nine tasseled crown.

Emperor Qianxi’s mouth was slowly curling into a smile—that smile was precisely terrifying, like that of a fool without intelligence.

"Pooh!"

A pitch-black short sword suddenly protruded from the old official’s back.

Lu Jinchang stood in the shadow of the hall column at some unknown point, his Black Tortoise armor unstained by blood.

"Pooh!"

A black iron short sword suddenly jutted out from Assistant Minister Li Gong’s back, the droplets of blood from the sword tip blossoming like a sinister ink plum on the imperial steps.

"Bold rebel, dare to desecrate the decree."

Lu Jinchang slowly withdrew the short sword, and Assistant Minister Li Gong’s body slumped to the ground like a broken sack.

These damned old things couldn’t even see the current situation clearly; keeping them alive was of no use.

In time, they could cause some unnecessary trouble.

"This rebellious traitor has been executed."

Lu Jinchang lightly pulled back the short sword, his tone as casual as discussing the day’s breakfast.

"Any objections from you, lords?"

At this time, the sound of orderly footsteps suddenly came from outside the hall—three thousand Tiger Roar Guards had already surrounded Yuji Hall impenetrably.

Sunlight streamed through the main door of Yuji Hall, casting fence-like shadows on the ground, as if this Jinluan Hall... had long become a cage.

At this moment, the vermilion hall doors burst open, an icy cold air carrying a chilling murderous intent rushed in.

In the backlight, the figures of Lu Jinyun and the others descended, their dark brocade robes fluttering in the wind.

As they stepped across the white jade steps, each step Lu Jinyun and the others took seemed to weigh upon the hearts of the officials.

The civil and military officials of the full court, seeing this, instinctively held their breath, as if even the air condensed.

When Lu Jinyun finally stood before the dragon throne, even the idiotic Emperor Qianxi instinctively shrunk back in fear.

"Gentlemen!"

Lu Jinyun’s lips curved in a quasi-smile, his voice calm yet carrying an unquestionable authority, each word like an ice awl penetrating to the bone.

"Now that Mr. Lu has entered secluded cultivation, he specifically commands me, Lu Jinyun, to assist the Crown Prince in managing the politics of Daqian as the Patriarch of the Lu Family."

As his words fell, the hall became deathly silent.

Lu Jinyun slowly raised his hand, pulling out a gilded token engraved with entwining dragons, reflecting light and shadow; it was none other than the Tiger Talisman symbolizing the supreme commander of all military forces.

A glint of cold light flashed, and the token stood firmly on the throne’s table, issuing a heavy sound—

From this moment, all within and outside Qian Ning City, from palace walls to alleyways, became possessions within the Lu Family’s grasp.