Hongyun appeared in the underground city, concealing his presence among the crowd, and silently watching over Elder Xi's courtyard.

The atmosphere in the underground city was heavy. Some timid and cautious residents had already quietly left, fearing they might be implicated.

However, only a minority of residents left; most chose to stay and wait and see.

After Lu Hongbing appeared at the entrance of Xi's old home with a group of soldiers, everyone suddenly realized that things might be more serious than they had thought.

"Greetings, Commander."

Xiao Wenbai, Liu Shu, and Zhang Tianwei saluted Lu Hongbing at the same time.

"Yes, you've worked hard."

Lu Hongbing went in alone.

At this moment, a hushed discussion arose from the crowd: "Even General Lu has arrived; it seems the matter is quite serious."

"Could it be that Elder Xi is ill? Otherwise, why would so many people suddenly come?"

"It shouldn't be. Mr. Xi is very healthy and has regular check-ups. It's impossible for him to suddenly fall ill."

"Stop talking, just watch quietly."

When Lu Hongbing arrived at the courtyard and saw Elder Xi, he was greatly surprised: "You are... Elder Xi? How come you have suddenly aged so much?"

The old man in front of him, with white hair and a wrinkled face, looking like he was about to enter a coffin, was really the old man Xi he had seen a couple of days ago?

Old Master Xi sat on the ground, leaning against a wooden chair with his eyes closed, trying to regulate his weak breathing. Hearing the voice, he slowly opened his eyes and looked at the person who came in. However, after seeing that it was Lu Hongbing, he didn't say anything and lowered his head again.

This is His Highness's man; he must have been summoned by her.

Lu Hongbing crouched down to help him up, but Ye Ling's voice sounded behind him: "Do you know who you're trying to help?"

Lu Hongbing quickly turned around and saw Ye Ling standing in the corridor, looking at them coldly.

In his position, Lu Hongbing could understand something with just a glance or a micro-expression.

He released Xi Lao, stood up, and came to Ye Ling: "Did you discover something?"

Ye Ling raised her hand and touched his forehead, and Lu Hongbing immediately had a series of images in his mind.

The footage is told from Xi Lao's first-person perspective. Through these scenes, Lu Hongbing sees how Xi Lao, starting from the age of twenty, used ruthless and chilling methods to climb the ranks step by step.

When he arrived in the capital and infiltrated the inner circle in just three years, Lu Hongbing looked at Elder Xi with fear in his eyes.

In just three years, he killed so many people in order to climb the ranks!

Among these people were those who promoted him, those who fought against him, those who opposed him in the beginning, those who had verbal disputes with him, his lovers, and so on. In the end, all of these people met with various unexpected events.

What surprised him even more was that he discovered that Master Xi was not an ordinary person; he should be a cultivator like Ye Ling.

He can use magic to bewitch his opponents' minds, and he can use magic to make his competitors reveal their weaknesses, lose control, go crazy, or self-destruct.

It was precisely because of his magic that he transformed from an invisible figure into a wealthy and powerful man in just three years.

He was shocked when he saw that Master Xi had started planning for the apocalypse when he was only 25 years old.

Apocalypse? Strategic maneuvering?

He looked at Ye Ling with a shocked expression, only to see Ye Ling nod slightly: "That's right, the world has fallen into an apocalypse, and that's what he caused."