Chapter 57

"Your Majesty, you have overestimated the Ninth Prince, which is why you have lost your composure. Otherwise, Zhao Lin, Yao Su, Zhao Xiwu, and Han Qingluo would not have all fallen victim to the Ninth Prince's schemes." Lin Chenyu, seated at the lower end, said.

That day, Lin Chenyu and Lin Nishan were summoned to the palace by the Empress to discuss a strategy.

Lin Chenyu was the Seventh Prince's servant, and Lin Nishan was the Seventh Prince's fiancée. Now, the entire Lin family was bound to the Empress's chariot.

If one thrives, all thrive; if one falls, all fall.

The Empress, after all, was also a martial arts expert, gradually recovering from her initial panic. She coldly snorted and said, "You say I overestimated the Ninth Prince? You are wrong! I underestimated him, which is why I was outmaneuvered, leading to the deaths of my four disciples. At his young age, he is already so formidable. If he grows any further, what will become of us?"

Lin Chenyu replied, "Actually, to kill the Ninth Prince, there is no need for the master to return personally, nor do we need to act ourselves. Why not hire assassins from the black market?"

"Reasonable!"

The Empress's eyes brightened, and she said, "This matter will be handled by you. If you succeed, your Lin family will surely benefit in the future."

"This is a trivial matter that Your Majesty should not trouble yourself with. Leave it to us, your servants, and we will guarantee to take the Ninth Prince's head in the shortest time possible." Lin Chenyu smiled flatteringly.

Lin Chenyu and Lin Nishan knelt before the Empress, bowed respectfully, and then left the Empress's chambers.

The Empress's maternal family, the Xue family, was a seventh-tier clan with a Heaven Extreme realm expert as its guardian. The Seventh Prince was a heaven-defying prodigy.

In the eyes of the Lin siblings, serving the Empress and the Seventh Prince would surely lead to a bright future. The Lin family would also benefit, becoming a prominent clan in Yunwu County.

...

The Ninth Princess sighed and said, "Unfortunately, the martial artist who went to break the prisoners out and the other two who went to kill you all took poison and committed suicide. Even their bodies were corroded by the toxins, making it impossible to identify them."

The deaths of the Empress's three disciples were all due to Zhang Ruochen's schemes.

Those three were all suicide soldiers who took poison and died.

Their deaths were identical to Han Qingluo's.

"According to reports, the martial artist who went to break the prisoners out had reached the Earth Extreme realm and killed over two hundred imperial guards. If it weren't for General Luo and General Xiao Ling, she might have escaped. Unfortunately, she also died, making it impossible to trace her mastermind." The Ninth Princess said.

Zhang Ruochen showed a thoughtful expression and smiled, "To mobilize an Earth Extreme realm expert, the mastermind must be a very formidable existence."

Zhang Ruochen had always suspected that the person trying to kill him was in the palace.

So, at noon today, he specifically checked the recent personnel changes in the palace. Indeed, he discovered something suspicious.

Just last night, the Empress's four personal maids were all executed by the Empress for angering her.

How could this be a coincidence?

Therefore, Zhang Ruochen deduced that those four maids were not executed by the Empress. They were the four female assassins who committed suicide last night. The Empress just found a suitable reason to make them disappear.

Of course, these were just Zhang Ruochen's speculations. Without concrete evidence, it was impossible to prove that the female assassins were sent by the Empress.

The Empress held great power and had the seventh-tier Xue family behind her.

With Zhang Ruochen's current strength, if he were to confront her without a solid plan, it would be like hitting a stone with an egg.

"The Empress's influence is too vast. Even the Duke of Yunwu County must yield to her. Now, I must be patient. If I do not, I will be courting death." Zhang Ruochen was certain that the Empress was the mastermind behind the attacks.

But he could do nothing about it now.

Ultimately, his cultivation was too weak.

Zhang Ruochen frowned deeply and thought, "If the Empress intends to kill me, staying in the palace is not safe. But leaving the palace would be even more dangerous."

As Zhang Ruochen was pondering, the Ninth Princess said, "Ninth Brother, the Death Sword assassin who was brought back yesterday has woken up. Should we go see him?"

"Really? Then let's go see him." Zhang Ruochen smiled.

Zhang Ruochen did not share his speculations with the Ninth Princess. The more she knew, the worse it would be for her.

At that moment, Ah Le was lying on the bed, wrapped in white bandages, looking like a mummy.

Although he had woken up, his eyes were vacant, like those of a dead person.

"Your Highness, after he woke up, he did not move at all, not even blinking. Could this be a sign of his final moments?" The maid Yun'er bowed to Zhang Ruochen and whispered.

Zhang Ruochen walked to the bedside, looked at Ah Le, and gently shook his head. "He is alive, but his heart is dead! For a martial artist, a wounded heart is harder to heal than a wounded body. Has he been treated with the Bone and Muscle Continuation Ointment? Once his hands and feet heal, send him away."

After saying this, Zhang Ruochen left.

Zhang Ruochen no longer thought about the Empress and decided to focus on cultivation, striving to reach the Profound Extreme realm as soon as possible.

Once he reached the Profound Extreme realm, Zhang Ruochen could cultivate the spatial domain and the time mark. At that point, his combat power would skyrocket, making him even stronger.

At least, when the Empress sent someone to kill him again, he would have the strength to protect himself.

In Yunwu County, Earth Extreme realm martial artists belonged to the lower class.

Profound Extreme realm martial artists were considered to have entered the ranks of the strong.

Only Earth Extreme realm martial artists were considered true top-tier experts, capable of standing alone and being called martial arts masters.

As for Heaven Extreme realm martial artists, each was a martial arts legend, elusive like a dragon, representing the pinnacle of power in Yunwu County.

If a Heaven Extreme realm martial artist wished, they could destroy the entire Lin family overnight. As long as they had a justifiable reason, the official forces of Yunwu County would not hold them accountable.

Heaven Extreme realm martial artists, to a certain extent, transcended the law.

Of course, those who indiscriminately killed and were bloodthirsty would still be pursued and hunted by the official forces, becoming wanted criminals.

In Yunwu County, there were only fourteen renowned Heaven Extreme realm martial artists. Each was a significant figure, dominating their region, and their influence could shake the entire county.

That day, under the protection of a squad of guards, Zhang Ruochen went to the martial market and purchased a batch of medicinal pills.

He spent 50,000 silver coins to buy twenty Three Pure Qi Gathering Pills.

He then spent 60,000 silver coins to buy one Profound Blood Pill.

The Profound Blood Pill was the top-tier third-grade medicinal pill. When a martial artist attempted to break through to the Profound Extreme realm, taking one Profound Blood Pill could increase their success rate by 50%.

However, the Profound Blood Pill was extremely expensive, valued at 120,000 silver coins. Even the princes and princesses of Yunwu County could not afford it. Qingxuan Pavilion gave Zhang Ruochen a 50% discount, and he still spent 60,000 silver coins to buy one.

Now, every time Zhang Ruochen went out, he was accompanied by a squad of a hundred guards.

The squad leader, Ge Qian, was once the personal guard of the Duke of Yunwu County, with cultivation reaching the Earth Extreme realm. In Yunwu County, Ge Qian was undoubtedly a top-tier expert.

With Ge Qian protecting him, they naturally did not encounter any danger and quickly returned to the palace.

In the palace, in the grand hall.

"Your Majesty, the Ninth Prince is a martial arts prodigy, with talent not inferior to the Seventh Prince. With General Ge Qian protecting him, his life can be guaranteed. However, this also has significant drawbacks." An old eunuch whispered.

The Duke of Yunwu County said, "What do you mean?"

The old eunuch said, "A fledgling eagle raised in complete safety cannot fly high. The palace is too comfortable, which is not conducive to the Ninth Prince's growth."

The Duke of Yunwu County nodded slightly and said, "You have a point. The Seventh Prince joined the YunTai Sect at the age of fourteen, becoming an outer disciple. Two years ago, he became an inner disciple with the top score."

"Speaking of which, the Ninth Prince's cultivation has already reached the Great Perfection stage of the Earth Extreme