Chapter 193 An unexpected event, as expected, still happened.
Seeing his son's half-dead state, King Ming found it hard to believe his words.
"Qin Heng came to me to complain, saying that you haven't been to the yamen for the past few days."
"I'll go tomorrow."
"You don't need to go tomorrow either. A powerful demon has appeared in Qingzhou. Half of the people in the yamen are dead, and the local governor is seriously injured. Take some men and go take a look."
Bai Xiuming threw down the wine jug in his hand, slowly stood up from the ground, steadied himself by holding onto the eaves pillar, and then replied, "Understood."
"So, what exactly happened?" Having finished discussing the important matter, King Ming did not forget to satisfy his curiosity.
Bai Xiuming held back for a long time, but finally asked the question that had been bothering him.
"Father, do you still remember the fox demon that broke into the capital last year during the Lantern Festival?"
King Ming unconsciously raised an eyebrow: "Of course I remember."
"You said that's your old friend's daughter." Bai Xiuming paused, his gaze fixed intently on him. "Do you know she's not dead?"
King Ming coughed lightly, finally giving in to his son's rather stubborn gaze: "This... I can see that."
Why didn't you tell me then?
Ming Wang's eyes flickered for a moment: "The young girl didn't do anything wrong. It was consensual, so it can't be considered possession."
"So you knew who she was from the very beginning?"
“Ah, well…” Mingwang began to change the subject, “Don’t you like her quite a bit?”
Bai Xiuming felt dizzy and his vision blurred. Although their affair had nothing to do with the Ming King's concealment, he couldn't help but think, if he had known earlier, he would have...
What could it be?
Will you restrain yourself and not have a future with Achan?
The thought of this possibility caused Bai Xiuming a sharp pain in his chest.
Perhaps, it would have been better if we hadn't known the truth back then.
Seeing his son quickly become dejected again, King Ming asked curiously, "Did you quarrel with her because you found out her identity?"
Seeing that he did not answer, the King pressed on, "You're not going to take action, are you?"
Knowing his son's attitude towards the demon race, Mingwang had tried to advise him before, but to no avail. Having too strong an obsession on the path of cultivation is detrimental to breaking through realms, and unfortunately, his advice was useless.
So when he learned that the girl his son liked had a questionable background, he not only didn't stop her, but was actually happy about it.
Could it have backfired? Probably not.
Bai Xiuming twitched the corner of his lips: "No."
He was unilaterally abandoned before they even started arguing.
"That's fine. If there's nothing wrong, just talk it out." The King, who knew nothing about love and romance, couldn't see the breakdown in his son's heart.
"I understand." Bai Xiuming rubbed his throbbing temples, for the first time wanting to shut his father up. "You should go back first."
This time, King Ming truly felt his son's disdain, and he snorted, "Did you think I wanted to take care of you?"
After seeing Ming Wang off, Bai Xiuming went back and took a bath to wash away the smell of alcohol. He then lay down on the bed and fell asleep. He hadn't closed his eyes since returning from A Chan's place.
He didn't sleep well that night; his dreams were filled with Ah Chan's image. When he opened his eyes and looked at the empty room, he felt only melancholy.
Early the next morning, Bai Xiuming led his men away from the capital and headed straight for Qingzhou.
When the news reached Bai Zhanhuang's ears, he was practicing calligraphy in his study.
Bai Zhanhuang had excellent handwriting, and he also had a talent for imitating other people's handwriting. When Achan first arrived in the Northern Wilderness, he taught her to write, and she learned very well.
"Your Highness, Bai Xiuming has already set off for Qingzhou this morning, and news has also come from Beiyan that everything is ready in Qingzhou," Huang Wu reported to him from beside the table.
"Well done." With the final stroke, Bai Zhanhuang put down his pen. "Have a carriage prepared; I need to go to the palace."
"Your Highness, what do you intend to do?"
"I have been in the capital for some time now, and it is time to ask the emperor for permission to return to the Northern Wilderness."
"But Your Highness, didn't you say you wouldn't leave the capital before things were over?" Huang Wu asked, puzzled.
Bai Zhanhuang stood up and said calmly, "If Bai Xiuming is lucky enough to survive, I will take precautions and cut off his last bit of life before he returns to the capital."
Although Huangwu felt that this was impossible, she still did as Bai Zhanhuang instructed.
At this point, Achan finally calmed down and was no longer as upset as she had been the previous two days.
Having already cut off her own escape route, she had no intention of going back on her word. In the past few days, she would spend one or two hours each day mobilizing the demonic energy in her inner core to slowly infiltrate her body.
This is a very time-consuming process, but it is also the most important step in the transformation into a demon. It requires the physical body to gradually adapt to the presence of demonic energy before the transmission of demonic energy can be increased.
As a demon, Achan understood the principles of demonization, but when she tried it herself, it was far from as simple as she had imagined.
Storing faint demonic energy within the body for extended periods can cause various uncomfortable reactions. Currently, she is only storing the demonic energy in the relatively safe area of her arm; she is still slowly experimenting with other parts of her body.
On the fifth day after Bai Xiuming left the capital, A Chan tried for the first time to introduce a wisp of demonic energy into her five internal organs. The five internal organs are the most sensitive, so she carefully guided the demonic energy into her body. Just as it was about to touch her heart, she suddenly panicked, as if something bad had happened.
Achan stopped the attempt, but the feeling of palpitation did not dissipate; instead, it made her restless.
Meanwhile, in Qingzhou.
In a mountain valley, the trees on both sides seemed to have suffered from a natural disaster; some were broken by the roots, and some had been shattered into countless pieces.
A small river flows through the mountains; it must have rained recently upstream, because the water is muddy.
On the overgrown riverbank, a person lay silently, bleeding profusely. The blood fell into the river and was quickly carried away.
About half an hour later, a series of chaotic footsteps sounded, and a Mingjing Guard in official robes shouted loudly, "Lord Bai is here!"
After the sound, several figures rushed over, lifted the man, whose body was half submerged in water, and placed him on the flat ground to the side.
The physician from the Mingjing Division who had followed him hurriedly took out a jade bottle from his bosom, poured out the pills from the bottle, and stuffed them into Bai Xiuming's mouth.
Shen Zhuo, who arrived later, landed and hurriedly asked, "Doctor, how is Bai Xiuming?"
The case in Qingzhou was not originally under Shen Zhuo's jurisdiction, but when Bai Xiuming left the capital, he asked Qin Heng to transfer him and Pang Qi to Qingzhou to assist in the case, which is why he is here.
When he arrived, he thought Bai Xiuming was making a mountain out of a molehill, but when he actually fought against the demons hiding in the shadows, he had to admit that Bai Xiuming's caution was justified.
The demonic calamity in Qingzhou was caused by two powerful demons of the fourth realm, one in the open and one in the shadows. Not only that, but a human cultivator of the fourth realm was also assisting them.
Thinking of this, Shen Zhuo gritted his teeth. Fortunately, Bai Xiuming dodged the fatal blow and killed one and seriously injured another while still wounded, giving them a chance to surround and kill the third one. Otherwise, they would all have perished here.
This was clearly not an accident, but a premeditated assassination.
While Shen Zhuo was deep in thought, the doctor cut open Bai Xiuming's official robe on the spot and treated the wound on his body that had almost pierced his heart. He replied, "Don't worry, Lord Shen, Lord Bai's injury is not fatal, and... eh?"
The doctor looked at the wound and made a puzzled sound.
"What's wrong?"
The doctor shook his head, indicating that he was alright, and then exclaimed in admiration, "Lord Bai's blood and energy are so vigorous that they have already begun to promote wound healing."
Hearing the doctor say this, Shen Zhuo also looked down and was surprised to see that the bowl-sized wound on Bai Xiuming's chest was shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"What's going on?" Some cultivators with minor injuries can heal themselves, but Bai Xiuming's case is a bit exaggerated.
As the doctor sprinkled some tissue-regenerating and hemostatic powder on the wound, he said, "Forcibly repairing a wound at the cost of weakened qi and blood requires qi and blood to be at their peak. It seems that Lord Bai is not far from advancing in his cultivation level."
"Damn it, is he an animal?!" Shen Zhuo couldn't help but curse. Is this the kind of advancement speed a normal person should have? He didn't care about Bai Xiuming's life or death at all now.
The doctor grinned, but didn't forget to add, "Although this wound can heal, it will deplete your qi and blood. Master Bai will need to rest for a while and it's best to avoid fighting again."
"knew."
Although Shen Zhuo really wanted to just leave the man there, in the end, out of camaraderie or perhaps out of fear that the man would hold a grudge and seek revenge later, he still had his men carry Bai Xiuming back.
He himself was also injured, but he still had to stay behind to clean up the mess. Two of the three fourth-realm cultivators had died, and the remaining human cultivator had disappeared without a trace. He might be watching from the shadows, so he couldn't let his guard down.
Shen Zhuo's caution was of no use; that human from the Four Realms disappeared and never reappeared.
At this moment, Bei Yan, covered in wounds, was rushing towards Shangjing.
He had to inform the prince of the mission's failure immediately so that the prince would have time to devise a second plan.
The following evening, Bei Yan returned to the capital, bringing back news that two powerful demons under Princess Xueyao's command had been killed and that Bai Xiuming was seriously injured.
As expected, the unexpected still happened.
Bai Zhanhuang was eating at dusk when he learned of this news. He didn't show much shock or anger on his face, but he lost control and broke the jade chopsticks in his hand.
"How are your injuries?" Bai Zhanhuang quickly composed himself, put down the chopsticks that had broken in two, and inquired about Bei Yan's physical condition.
Bei Yan said with some shame, "I have already taken the medicine and only need to rest for a while to recover. It is I who have failed Your Highness's trust and let Bai Xiuming live."
Bai Zhanhuang waved his hand: "There's no need to belittle yourself. Bai Xiuming is, after all, someone that the Ming King has taken a liking to. If he didn't have some skills, he would have died long ago."
Although he was very displeased with Bei Yan's poor handling of the matter, he did not show it. The matter was not over yet, and it would be of no use to reprimand Bei Yan at this time.
"Your Highness, Bai Xiuming's injuries are more severe than mine. Should we take this opportunity to eliminate him?"
Although the opponent's ability to hold his own against two opponents left Bei Yan still feeling uneasy, he knew even more that letting the tiger return to the mountain would bring endless trouble.
When he fought Bai Xiuming, the other party would definitely remember his inner energy. Cultivators don't need to look at a person's appearance to find them; inner energy is enough.
If Bai Xiuming survives, he will live in constant fear, worried that his past actions of assassinating Bai Xiuming and colluding with the demon race will be discovered.
Bai Zhanhuang narrowed his eyes: "Of course, we have to get rid of the person. Pack your things, pick someone up tomorrow morning, and then we'll go back to the Northern Wilderness."
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