Legend of Swordsman

Jian Wushuang remained vigilant, observing the situation unfolding before him. In each of the five regions within the city—southeast, southwest, northeast, northwest, and central—there were Ghost Commanders. The Ghost Generals were even more numerous, with each region having hundreds of them.

Sending just a dozen Golden Core stage cultivators would be futile. Once they entered, they would be overwhelmed in no time.

Jian Wushuang did not consider the people outside as true opponents. His concern lay in understanding why this situation had arisen in the first place.

The underground altar was sealed with power from a thousand years ago, belonging to the Divine Image Realm.

And these fierce ghosts appeared to be a part of a blood sacrifice!

He recalled their journey toward Tai’an City, where they encountered numerous corpses, and in the fishing village, he had personally witnessed the dark cultivators performing blood sacrifices on mortals.

This was undoubtedly the work of the Chiyang Sect, and the mastermind behind it was none other than the Tang Emperor.

Jian Wushuang was unaware that the current Tang Emperor had already been exiled by the Li family. If not for preserving the royal family’s reputation, he would have been executed long ago.

“The underground altar… it’s probably not as simple as it seems!”

With his vast knowledge, Jian Wushuang could tell that these evolved fierce ghosts were likely being cultivated to form a perfect Three Souls and Six Spirits.

Once perfected, just a sliver of thought power would be needed to control this flawless soul. If combined with a strong physical body, it would result in a perfect resurrection!

However, such a resurrection required a trace of thought power from the one being revived.

There were countless methods to preserve thought power, and Jian Wushuang knew of over ten thousand of them. However, only a few could manifest in the mortal world.

It wasn’t surprising that in the Crimson Eye Realm, there might be treasures or secret techniques capable of preserving thought power.

“Are they trying to resurrect someone? Or are they intending to devour the perfect soul to enhance their own?”

The latter seemed too wasteful, while the former seemed more plausible.

But who would they want to resurrect?

The Empress?

A thought flashed through Jian Wushuang’s mind, recalling the imperial decree he had heard about during his visit to the First Pavilion.

As he pondered this, he glanced over at Chen Yuan, intending to ask if he knew anything about the matter.

However, when Jian Wushuang looked at him, he noticed that Chen Yuan seemed lost in thought, with a tear streaking down his cheek.

This surprised Jian Wushuang. The last time he had seen Chen Yuan cry was when he had told him about A’Zi.

Who could he be grieving for now?

Jian Wushuang walked over and patted Chen Yuan’s shoulder, asking with concern, “What’s wrong?”

“Ah, it’s nothing!” Chen Yuan’s body trembled slightly, and he forced himself to suppress his emotions. As he replied, he even managed to muster a faint smile. ᚱＡΝÖΒĚꞩ

Anyone with keen eyes could see that Chen Yuan was troubled, and it seemed to be related to the malevolent spirits within the city.

However, Jian Wushuang was more interested in knowing whether the Empress had any connection to this place. Thus, he didn’t dwell too much on why Chen Yuan seemed so sorrowful.

Hearing Jian Wushuang’s question, Chen Yuan’s face turned pale.

“If it’s hard for you to talk about, I can block them out,” Jian Wushuang offered, his tone appearing concerned, but also making it clear that Chen Yuan needed to say something.

Chen Yuan was deeply conflicted because this matter had become a heart demon for him, just like the death of A’Zi.

However, when he saw the city full of vengeful spirits, he thought, what did his heart demon matter compared to the lives of billions?

“No need to hide it; this can’t be kept a secret for long anyway,” Chen Yuan said with a bitter smile, shaking his head.

When the others heard this, they all perked up and looked at him with curious eyes.

Xiang Yang squinted his eyes and teased, “What is it? Don’t tell me all the vengeful spirits in this city are your doing?”

“Almost,” Chen Yuan responded calmly, and everyone gasped in shock.

Even Jian Wushuang couldn’t help but frown, using his Thought power to carefully observe Chen Yuan again and again, only to find that the other man had no demonic aura, not even a trace of evil energy.

There was only a faint aura of karma.

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

Chen Yuan, however, shook his head and said, “I’m not lying. Everything here is because of me. In fact, A’Zi’s death is also entirely my fault. It’s my retribution!”

As he spoke, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. Jian Wushuang feared he might die from sudden shock, so he quickly used his power to clear Chen Yuan’s meridians.

“I shouldn’t have been so greedy, I shouldn’t have been so greedy!” Chen Yuan steadied himself, but tears streamed down his face.

This scene left everyone utterly bewildered.

But once Chen Yuan revealed the truth, they suddenly understood.

Yet some were driven to fury because of it.

Yang Xiao was one of them.

He charged directly at Chen Yuan, grabbing him by the collar and roaring in anger, “It was you who killed Empress Yi! How dare you commit such a treasonous act!!!”

“It’s not his fault!” Jian Wushuang waved his hand, using Thought power to separate the two of them.

If anyone was to blame, it was Emperor Tang, Li Miao.

Empress Yi was merely a pawn being used.

But this was a knot in Chen Yuan’s heart, as well as a knot in the hearts of the Zhanxian Guards.

The former number one beauty of the Tang Dynasty had perished because of an attack by the Yi King.

The Zhanxian Guards had borne three years of infamy.

Failing to protect the Empress was also a source of deep guilt for the loyal Zhanxian Guards like Yang Xiao, who were devoted to the Tang Dynasty.

Now, Chen Yuan was telling them that he had been the one to kill Empress Yi.

This story was a long one.

It was the tale of a scholar who had failed the imperial exam and had no face to return home.

Chen Yuan had not become the top scholar at all. After arriving in the capital, he failed the very first exam, but he was unwilling to give up. Even though he had no money, he stayed in Tai’an City, living alone in a ruined temple outside the city.

Then came a turning point.

The Yi King launched an attack, and Emperor Tang fled from Tai’an City.

Along the way, they unexpectedly ended up seeking refuge in the ruined temple.

That night, only four people knew what happened in the temple.

Emperor Tang, Duke Han, Chen Yuan, and Empress Yi.

The so-called attack by the Yi King was nothing more than an earth-shattering conspiracy.

The Yi King did not seek the throne but rather the Empress.

As for why he desired the Empress, Chen Yuan did not know.

However, at the time, the Yi King was very powerful, with a terrifying force by his side that could suppress the Zhanxian Guards.

Emperor Tang could only flee.

He was afraid.

Afraid that the Yi King would take the Empress, yet he could not bring himself to kill her.

At that moment, he encountered the poor scholar, Chen Yuan, and hinted that he should kill Empress Yi, letting the Yi King bear the infamy.

If he did the deed, he would enjoy all the riches and honors.

At this point, Jian Wushuang’s eyes lit up.

Chen Yuan was just a poor scholar with no background whatsoever.

If he had killed Empress Yi, he would surely have been silenced—how could they have allowed Chen Yuan, who knew the truth, to live?

It made sense to spare Duke Han, as he was an old eunuch who had served the Tang Emperors loyally for hundreds of years and was unlikely to be silenced. Moreover, Emperor Tang had no power to silence him, as he himself was barely surviving at that time.

But killing someone like Chen Yuan would have been as easy as blowing out a candle. Why hadn’t they silenced him?

This led to the involvement of a certain secret method.

Chen Yuan had killed Empress Yi, but Emperor Tang had prepared in advance, preserving a trace of the Empress’s Thought power.

Even if her physical body was gone and her soul had scattered, with that trace of Thought power, a particular memory of the Empress could be revived.

As for her physical body, as long as it was well-preserved, it could still be used for three years.

However, this method of resurrection had one requirement…

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