Chapter 459 - 253: The Little Easterners’ Gift
As soon as this was said, the officials in the imperial court began to whisper. It was a grave insult to Princess Yue Ning. Why did he speak with such a thick, provincial accent?
"Male pig? Your whole family are pigs! Your entire Wa Country is full of pigs!"
Lu Yuan took a step forward and said, "Where did this short-legged oaf come from? He can’t even speak properly!"
"You! We are from the Great Wa Country!" another short man jumped out and said.
"Oh, Little Easterners," Lu Yuan said, his tone dripping with arrogance.
"You..." The short man was about to speak but was stopped by one of his companions.
These men had only recently arrived in the Imperial City when they heard about Princess Yue Ning’s grand wedding, and they had presented some specialty products from the Wa Country to the Princess.
Therefore, the Emperor had the Princess and Prince Consort come to the hall to thank them in person.
Who would have thought that as soon as the two parties met, the air would be thick with tension?
The hostility in Lu Yuan’s bones made it impossible for him to speak politely to them. An untamable dog must be met with a stick.
His Majesty the Emperor shot a look at his personal eunuch. The eunuch went down the steps to separate them.
The short man said to the Emperor, "Emperor of the Great Empire, regarding what we just mentioned, we ask for your help in destroying this creature as soon as possible."
Only then did Lu Yuan notice that the third short man had been holding a box all this time, with a Yellow Talisman stuck to it.
Lu Yuan could tell at a glance that it was a Talisman drawn with a mixture of black dog’s blood and chicken blood.
Crown Prince Gu Biao stepped forward and said, "Please be patient. Someone will be here shortly to handle this matter."
This was the Little Easterners’ second attempt to probe the Divine Ling Empire. They were utterly relentless in their wicked ambitions, always coveting the vast lands of the Divine Ling Empire.
The last time, it was the Eight-Headed Serpent, and it escaped before it could even be brought to the imperial court.
It had no trouble crossing the ocean, but as soon as it set foot on the continent, they let the Eight-Headed Serpent escape. One really had to wonder if it was intentional.
And now, just over a year later, they had brought some so-called Da Xingzi.
Seeing that no one was stepping forward to take the box, the short men grew cocky.
One of them even pressed, "Great Emperor, where is the person who can subdue this Demon?"
Hearing this, the civil and martial officials all ground their teeth in anger. They whispered amongst themselves:
"This... this is too outrageous!"
"For a tiny country like the Wa Country to act so insolently."
"Is there any evil demon our great nation cannot suppress?"
"Why aren’t the Elders from the Celestial Dynasty Palace and Le Shen Temple here yet?"
...
The Chief Eunuch by the Emperor’s side took two steps forward and called out in a high-pitched voice, "Your Graces, Dukes, and Ministers, please be patient!"
At the Chief Eunuch’s reminder, the previously clamorous hall gradually fell silent.
Now, they urgently needed a senior Grand Celestial Master to come and save the situation.
After a while, the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple arrived at the hall with several Grand Celestial Masters. It was best for matters like this to be handled by the Royal Family’s personal Celestial Masters.
Immediately after, a few Grand Celestial Masters from the Celestial Dynasty Palace also arrived.
The Grand Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace was not present, citing illness.
The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple saw that only a handful of people had come from the Celestial Dynasty Palace, and they were all Grand Celestial Masters of the younger generation.
Of the second-generation Grand Celestial Masters, only the youngest one had come, leading several third-generation Grand Celestial Masters.
’This lineup...’ The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple felt indignant. ’Aren’t they just here to fill a spot? Or are they trying to let Le Shen Temple take all the glory?’
However, the Emperor didn’t seem to mind.
The Grand Celestial Masters from the Celestial Dynasty Palace and Le Shen Temple had already learned what was happening from the eunuch who delivered the oral decree, and each of them had prepared their Dharma Artifacts.
The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple held the highest status among all the Celestial Masters present, so it was natural for him to take the lead.
The Emperor, seated upon his throne, said, "Grand Elder Qiao, do not bring shame upon our Empire."
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty the Emperor. We will certainly subdue this creature!" said the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple with a cupped-fist salute.
"Good! That concludes this morning’s court session. Let us move to the Training Ground!" The Emperor stood up and waved his sleeve.
The area around the Training Ground was filled with the Imperial Guard and the Jinyi Guard, and several large tents on the periphery were filled with officials.
A golden-yellow tent was, as always, for the Emperor’s exclusive use. On the left side of the grand tent sat Crown Prince Gu Biao, Prince Consort Lu Yuan, and Princess Yue Ning, Gu Ziye. On the right were the three short men.
The sealed box was placed on a table on the Training Ground.
Next to the table was a large cauldron. The firewood beneath it was piled high, and the oil in the pot was shimmering.
The perimeter of the Training Ground was lined with Dao Banners. The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple, along with the other Grand Celestial Masters, was beginning the ritual at an altar.
In a tent to the side, the Little Easterners sneered. ’They don’t believe this group of Daoists has what it takes. A simple deep-frying of a ghost won’t work on this one.’
Sealed in the box was a Da Xingzi that the Emperor of the Little Easterners had nurtured with his own blood. This Da Xingzi was no longer afraid of official authority.
Even the Dragon Dao Fortune on Emperor Gu Yuanzhang had no significant effect on it.
At the height of the midday sun, the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple held the Celestial Master Sword and initiated a Technique.
The Flame under the cauldron grew much stronger, and the oil in the pot began to boil violently.
The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple used the Object Control Skill, pointed his sword at the box on the table, and caused it to float into the air.
Inside the tent, Lu Yuan used his wide sleeve to cover Gu Ziye’s face.
Gu Ziye pushed down Lu Yuan’s raised arm and said, "Yuan~ what are you doing?"
Lu Yuan noticed the Emperor staring at him, so he explained to Yue’Er, "I’m afraid it might scare you in a moment!"
Before Gu Ziye could say anything, the Emperor spoke first. "Prince Consort, you worry too much. This daughter of mine was born bold. She is not afraid of evil spirits."
Lu Yuan, sitting to the side, cupped his fist and said, "His Majesty the Emperor is right!"
Though Lu Yuan said this, in his heart he knew very well, ’Deep-frying a ghost might work on an ordinary lesser ghost, but can a Da Xingzi of this level also be dealt with by simple frying? If it were really that easy, the Little Easterners wouldn’t have come all this way to the Divine Spirit Empire.’
The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple had also considered this point. As he tossed the box into the cauldron, the other Grand Celestial Masters all revealed their Dharma Artifacts to aid in the Suppression.
A Fine-Mesh Net soaked in black dog’s blood was spread over the top of the cauldron. Four Grand Celestial Masters held its four corners taut.
The box, thrown into the cauldron, let out a piercing shriek. The sound continued for a long time without any sign of weakening.
The continuous shrieking gave the officials splitting headaches, and one of the older Civil Servants fainted from the sound.
But this did not affect the Grand Celestial Masters performing the ritual in the slightest.
Lu Yuan took a pair of earplugs from his robes and personally put them in for Yue’Er.
Gu Ziye felt much better and nodded with a smile.
Crown Prince Gu Biao, sitting next to Lu Yuan, leaned towards him and shouted, "Prince Consort, let me use a pair too!"
Lu Yuan replied, "Crown Prince, I’m not deaf. I can hear you."
After speaking, Lu Yuan took another pair of earplugs from his robes and handed them to the Crown Prince.
After putting on the earplugs, Crown Prince Gu Biao’s expression relaxed. Without the loud noise, he was naturally much more comfortable. He adjusted his clothes and sat up straight again.
The Emperor sat there steadily. Seeing how useful the things in Lu Yuan’s hand were, he didn’t ask for them directly. Instead, he cleared his throat and coughed once.
Lu Yuan took the hint. He beckoned with his hand and called softly, "Eunuch, come here~"
The old eunuch beside the Emperor walked over. Lu Yuan handed two pairs of earplugs to the eunuch and whispered a few words in his ear.
After receiving the Emperor’s permission, the old eunuch personally put them on for him. He was left with one pair in his own palm.
The old eunuch clutched the earplugs, thought for a long time, and finally tucked them into his pocket.
The old eunuch would rather be dazed by the noise than wear the earplugs, lest he miss one of the Emperor’s commands.
Such loyalty was truly moving.
Even with the combined efforts of the Grand Celestial Masters on the Training Ground to suppress it, the box floating in the cauldron began to vibrate violently, as if it were about to break the seal and leap out.
Seeing this, the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple dipped his Celestial Master Sword into a bowl of dog’s blood ink on the table, then touched a Talisman to the sword’s tip. He used the flame of a candle to ignite the Talisman on the Celestial Master Sword.
The four Grand Celestial Masters holding the Fine-Mesh Net naturally understood the Grand Elder’s intention and removed the net.
At the same moment the Fine-Mesh Net was removed, the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple flung the flaming Talisman into the cauldron.
The cauldron immediately erupted in violent flames. The entire cauldron was engulfed in a great fire, and the intense heat it gave off made everyone present feel scorching hot.
The shrieking from the box grew fainter and fainter, until it could no longer be heard.
The civil and martial officials wiped the sweat that had beaded on their foreheads from the heat, and exclaimed excitedly:
"It worked! It worked! The Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple is truly incredible."
"He has truly demonstrated the might of our nation!"
...