Chapter 449 It's Too Late

Even if Liu Yan had no motive to kill Qingfeng, Mo Sixuan would never fully trust anyone who had aroused his suspicion.

Along the way, he selected and purchased all the food and drinks himself, without the help of anyone else, and tested each item for poison with a silver needle first.

Without the close protection of assassins, he must remain alert and cautious at all times.

The guards were exhausted, and the horses were moving slowly. Following Mo Sixuan's orders, the group continued on their way, but it was still much slower than before. The journey that should have taken two hours took nearly three hours.

Mo Sixuan was very dissatisfied with this and cursed twice on the way. Now that he had finally arrived in his own territory, he finally showed a slight smile.

It was still a few days' journey to the Blue Feather Kingdom's palace, but it was, after all, his place. Upon arriving, a sense of familiarity and closeness arose spontaneously, and the vigilance and tension he had felt along the way eased considerably.

This is a place where, as long as he reveals his identity, all the officers, soldiers, and civilians must obey his orders and follow his every command.

Mo Sixuan swaggered into the town's most bustling inn, booked a superior room, and arranged for his guards to stay downstairs.

He did not reveal his identity for the time being, and was only staying here for one night. He needed to continue his journey the next day, so there was no need to make a big fuss.

Mo Sixuan slowly entered the room and took a bath first. The weather was hot, so he had to take a bath before he could comfortably enjoy the food and get a good rest.

But when he finished bathing and came out wearing a bath towel, ready to call the innkeeper to bring up the dishes, he was shocked to find that there were two more people in the room.

Liu Yan looked up and smiled at him, still with that honest and loyal look.

Another person who could scare him half to death without him even looking up was his eighth brother, Mo Siyan, whom he had been worrying about and fearing recently.

The two sat at the table, silently drinking tea. There were three teacups on the table; besides the one in front of them, another was placed on an empty seat, clearly reserved for him.

Mo Sixuan, who was used to big scenes, was startled when he suddenly found these two people in his room.

He gripped the bath towel tightly and gritted his teeth.

"Mo Siyan, you really are not dead. Liu Yan, you traitor, how dare you betray me? Have you forgotten that when your mother had no money for her burial, it was I who gave her the money, and it was I who raised you step by step to your current position? You swore to be loyal to me for life, so what is this?"

Liu Yan looked back at him with an open and honest gaze.

"My lord, please put on your clothes first. Your Highness and I are not in a hurry. Once you are dressed, sit down and have some tea. The three of us can drink and chat."

Mo Sixuan was both angry and ashamed. He wanted to kill Liu Yan with a single stroke right now, but he had learned his lesson from being naked before. After thinking for a moment, he walked to the bedside, hurriedly put on his clothes, and brandished his sword at the two of them.

"Traitorous scoundrels! Even if the two of you attacked together, you wouldn't be a match for me. Yet you dare to betray and deceive me! Prepare to die!"

Only when his sword was about to reach Liu Yan's throat did the other party nimbly dodge, and then used both hands to exchange blows with him.

Mo Sixuan had a cold smile on his lips and his eyes were extremely sinister. Even now, although he was shocked, he was not too worried.

He was very confident in his skills.

What he just said was not an exaggeration at all. He knew Liu Yan and Mo Siyan's skills. Even if the two of them attacked together, they would only be beaten by him.

But after the two exchanged about ten moves, the smile on Mo Sixuan's face disappeared, replaced by fear and panic.

His breathing became increasingly erratic, and his attacks became slower and slower. In the end, he was kicked away by Liu Yan and only stopped when he crashed into Mo Siyan's feet.

Mo Siyan, without putting down the teacup in his left hand, pulled him up with his right hand and gestured with his eyes to the seat next to him.

"Sixth Brother, can we sit down and have a proper talk now?"

Mo Sixuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, slumped weakly into his seat, and stared at Liu Yan in disbelief. "You poisoned me? Traitor! I clearly didn't eat anything you gave me..."

"There was a sachet placed inside the carriage to suppress your internal energy. It was placed so faintly that it was almost undetectable. You have been inside the carriage for so long that it has suppressed almost all of your internal energy. Now, let alone me and His Highness the Eighth Prince, even any of the guards outside could easily defeat you."

Liu Yan sat back down, his face expressionless, but his eyes no longer held the humility they once had, only cold indifference.

"My lord has indeed helped me. Although you did it to win people's hearts, I have always been grateful to you. However, after a few years of good life, I really don't want to see the two countries go to war again. During those years of war, my brothers, cousins, uncles and nephews were either killed or wounded. I don't have many relatives left. If the fighting continues, I won't be able to survive either."

Mo Sixuan's lips curled into a mocking smile, "You, a military general, are actually afraid of death? And you betrayed me because you were afraid of death? Hahaha, I really misjudged you..."

"I am not afraid of death." Liu Yan stared at him steadily.

"But no one wants to die if they can live! The previous emperor of Jin Yue was ambitious and bullied our people. I would have died on the battlefield without hesitation. But now the emperor of Jin Yue is honest and knows right from wrong. A truce between the two countries is in the best interests of all people. I cannot abandon the people and soldiers for the sake of temporary morality. I also hope that Your Majesty will not start a war between the two countries for personal grudges..."

"Stop spouting so much nonsense!"

Mo Sixuan felt a surge of irritation, but having lost all his inner strength, he was no match for the two people in front of him. After thinking for a moment, he suppressed his anger and looked at Liu Yan, speaking in a gentle voice.

"We can discuss our matters as ruler and subject another day. I can consider a truce. You should first capture Mo Siyan. If you sit with him and stand facing me with your sword drawn, what else would you be but a traitor? As long as you abandon the darkness and embrace the light now, I will forgive your past transgressions..."

"It's too late. This is the last time I will address you as my lord."

Liu Yan looked at Mo Sixuan with a hint of pity: "The palace is now under the control of His Highness the Eighth Prince. He is now the new emperor of Lanyu Kingdom. I have abandoned the darkness and turned to the light, which is why I drew my sword against you..."

"What?" Mo Sixuan was so angry that he spat out another mouthful of blood.

"If that's the case, you had plenty of opportunities to make your move along the way. Why wait until now? Why bring me here to make a fool of myself in front of Mo Siyan?"

His internal energy was blocked, and he had no bodyguards to protect him. If Liu Yan wanted to kill him, he could have done so on Jin Yue Kingdom's territory. Why did he have to take such good care of him all the way and endure all his difficulties?

"Hehe..." Mo Siyan, who had been silent for a long time, chuckled. "Sixth brother, don't you understand yet? Because you can only die in Lanyu Kingdom, and you can only die by my hand..."

"Sixth Brother, you were really ruthless that day. After I fell into the river, you even sent people to guard the riverbanks and search for me all night. Do you know what it feels like to be soaked in the river all night? Hypothermia, exhaustion, and it even rained in the middle of the night. There were mosquitoes and poisonous snakes all around. It would be an exaggeration to say that I had a near-death experience. Do you know what belief kept me going?"