Chapter 78

The true noble will appear, the steward, upon hearing this, immediately collapsed, his face pale, devoid of any color, his body trembling, and his teeth chattering.

He was utterly terrified. If this matter were thoroughly investigated, everyone involved would be killed. It was already foreseeable that soon heads would roll, falling in large numbers.

The noble's anger would result in bloodshed, with bodies strewn over ten thousand miles, and no one could stop it! He had no way out, and there was no place in the vast world where he could hide!

Not just him, even Yumeng was in a panic, pacing back and forth, his heart filled with fear. The matter had escalated far beyond what he could cover up. It was the ancestral land of the Shi clan, which could not be desecrated.

"It wasn't me, what should I do..." The steward sat there, his eyes lifeless, repeating himself, completely devoid of his usual authority.

"Get out!"

Yumeng, in a rage, kicked him, and the sound of bones breaking echoed. The steward screamed, coughing up blood, and was thrown into a nearby rockery.

With a "thud," the rockery collapsed, burying him beneath it, dust rising.

Yumeng, with his pale face and no beard, did not exude the usual ferocity of a strong man when he was not angry. But now, his eyes were filled with a fierce light, and he several times wanted to kill the steward. However, he hesitated; killing the steward would be useless. With the Shi clan's immense power, they would thoroughly investigate this matter, leaving nothing out.

Then, he shivered. While he was thinking of silencing the steward, were the clan's elders also considering similar actions? Would they directly eliminate him? Because this matter had truly escalated, being extremely serious and excessive.

In a giant city in the western border, several powerful figures activated rare ancient treasure bones, runes flashing, forming an ancient small altar. They placed a letter on it.

A light flashed, and the letter disappeared.

At the same time, in the capital of the vast Shi Kingdom, several ancient treasure bones of the primordial species glowed, forming a larger altar. A light flashed, and a letter appeared.

"What, the second ancestral land was destroyed, completely burned down, what audacity!"

An elder, after reading the letter, immediately flew into a rage. The Shi Kingdom, ruling over a vast territory, was in its prime, yet such an event had occurred, unimaginable!

"Send the letter out!" He shouted. The letter was copied many times, the original to be given to the emperor, and the others to the Shi clan's nobles. This matter was too significant; he considered it a challenge to the entire Shi clan.

"Boom!"

That day, the capital was like a boiling pot, causing a great stir, and then it completely erupted. Many people were discussing it, hardly able to believe what had happened.

"Who did this, are they defying heaven? The emperor is in his prime, his divine power unmatched, yet someone dared to burn down the Shi clan's revival site, what audacity!"

"Could it be the Shi clan's mortal enemies? But that's not it; even in battle, they would target the living, not do something like this."

"Could it be the Taotie, Chilong, or other primordial species, who hate the Shi Kingdom, and had vicious birds set the fire?"

The news spread quickly, and the entire capital knew about it. People found it unbelievable, and the discussion spread from top to bottom.

"Thorough investigation!" The emperor's decree was only four characters. When this decree was revealed to the public, it emitted a brilliant light, the four characters like a divine sword, dispersing the clouds above the capital, with a terrifying aura.

Golden light surged, like lightning, rumbling, making everyone tremble. At that moment, the entire capital fell silent, with no more discussion.

After a long time, the capital gradually recovered.

In the ancient shrine of the Shi Kingdom, precious offerings were presented, a place for worshiping ancient deities. At this time, several ancient treasure bones of the primordial species glowed.

With a "hum," it seemed as if an ancient deity had awakened, emitting a terrifying aura, and then a golden path opened.

"Go!" An elder shouted. Then, one by one, powerful warriors stepped onto the altar, walking up the golden path, all wearing shiny armor, holding iron spears and war spears, their killing aura reaching the heavens.

Finally, three more nobles appeared, their bodies radiating brilliant light, like three suns, their terrifying aura shocking the world, all stepping into the golden path.

This time, three major nobles were dispatched, responsible for the thorough investigation.

Only after everything calmed down did the royal elders lead everyone in worshiping the altar, with chaotic mist spreading, as if an ancient deity was accepting their offerings.

In fact, there was nothing there!

In the Wu王府 (Wu Mansion), everyone was alarmed, and over a dozen elders had been summoned, because that dilapidated manor was too sensitive, involving their lineage.

"Where is Yi? Was it his people who did this?!" The Fourth Grandfather, like a golden lion, shouted.

"It's impossible. Although Yi is young, he is wise and steady. How could he do such a foolish thing? I think it must be someone else," an elder said.

Soon, news came from the western border. Preliminary investigations suggested that the arson might have been caused by some grievances, possibly involving a major clan of the Shi Kingdom.

The news spread back, causing a stir.

"Isn't this courting death? No matter what grievances, daring to do such a thing means certain death, do they want to be exterminated?!"

"This is a lesson. It must be a young noble, not knowing the gravity of the situation, causing trouble in the western border. This is a disaster for the entire clan."

The capital was abuzz with discussion, and many major clans were worried, fearing that it might be their own children causing trouble.

"Alas, Yumeng has sent back news. Although it wasn't our Yu clan who did it, the small actions of our people in the western border cannot be hidden, and it will certainly cause dissatisfaction among the Shi clan's nobles."

In the Yu clan, an elder sighed. Such a disaster had occurred, truly unimaginable. If thoroughly investigated, the Yu clan would certainly be seen in a bad light.

"Brother, you're being too lenient. No matter what, the arson of the Shi clan's ancestral land, we must bear some consequences. I think it was mostly due to that steward, which led to others taking desperate measures, burning down the royal ancestral land."

"Give up all our interests in the western border, and let them kill those people. I think this is the best way to protect Yumeng."

"There are many people in the western border, and they are not easy to train. Let them kill them all?" Someone objected.

"We cannot take the blame ourselves. I think this was mostly done by Shi Ziling, to frame our clan!"

"That's right. We can operate it this way. Tell Yumeng to insist that he found Shi Ziling and try to find some evidence."

The Yu clan discussed their strategy.

In the western border, the warriors were like wolves, their eyes like lightning, all extremely powerful. The next day, they found a lead and took the steward away.

This investigation revealed many hidden matters. Although they did not set the fire, it was clear that they might have been the trigger, and they had even colluded with the servants in the ancestral land, which was a grave offense.

That day, heads rolled, and all servants in the manor who had colluded with outsiders were interrogated and beheaded, their bodies strewn about, blood splattering.

Then, the steward confessed and was executed by slicing, and his clan members were imprisoned. This was because he did not commit suicide, which saved his clan from immediate extermination.

Two days later, Yumeng was brought to the giant city. When he was caught, he tried to argue, but a warrior struck him with a whip, blood splattering.

He was usually very arrogant, but the warriors under the nobles were even more so!

Yumeng was stunned, brought to a grand hall in the giant city, where three brilliant suns hovered above, rumbling, emitting great runes, making it impossible to look directly at them.

He knew these were true nobles, ruling over vast territories, controlling the lives of tens of millions, the most powerful people under the emperor, terrifying and awe-inspiring!

The three suns emitted divine light, runes condensing in the air, as if to purify the world. The three nobles sat on their thrones, their true forms invisible.

Only their eyes were visible, more brilliant than the rising mist, formed of runes, with the destruction of the sun, the sinking of the moon, the birth of stars, and the spread of chaotic energy. Though they were just eyes, they made one feel as if witnessing the creation of the world.

"It has nothing to do with me. I think this might have been done by Shi Ziling," Yumeng said upon entering, following the orders of the clan's elders, trying to clear his name.

"Blasphemy, execute!" A noble coldly said, his eyes shooting out a stream of runes, terrifying, making everyone in the hall tremble.

A warrior stepped forward, drawing a sharp blade, and swept it forward.

"Your Highness, I am a descendant of the Yu clan, I..." Yumeng shouted, but no one paid attention. The warrior's blade flashed, and with a "pu" sound, blood splattered, and his arm fell.

He screamed, never imagining that the nobles would be so ruthless, cutting off his arm without hesitation. Why?

"I am a descendant of the Yu clan, I..." Yumeng tried to argue.

"I do not listen to nonsense, cut again!" The noble on the throne said coldly.

With a "pu" sound, blood splattered, and Yumeng's other arm fell, the pain making him scream, his face pale, almost falling to the ground.

He never imagined such a day. He was a direct descendant of the Yu clan, with a high status, yet someone dared to treat him like this, not even considering him important.

He wanted to roar, "You are a noble, but you should consider that I am from the Yu clan!" But he swallowed his words, fearing greater pain.

Then, he shivered. Could this be targeting the Yu clan? Otherwise, why would they act so boldly? A chill ran through him.

"Speak, no lies," the voice from above was cold and concise.

Yumeng, enduring the pain, used runes to stop the bleeding, and began to "confess," recounting everything. Of course, he did not admit to major faults, trying to mitigate the situation and shift the blame.

"I only want the truth, not your arguments."

A noble snapped his fingers, and a sea of silver light surged, "pu pu" sounds echoing as Yumeng's legs exploded, and he was thrown back.

"Ah..." He could not bear it, almost going mad. How could this be? The noble was too ruthless, and no matter the crime, such treatment was terrifying.

Yumeng felt defeated. The nobles' power was too great, and killing him was as easy as stepping on an ant, with no one able to stop it.

Finally, he could not bear it and confessed everything.

"Take him out and execute him." The voice from above was cold and merciless.

"What right do you have?" Yumeng was desperate, completely giving up.

"Because I am a noble!" The voice from above said coldly, light surging, engulfing the entire grand hall.

This made Yumeng's body go limp, filled with despair.

Two warriors stepped forward,