Chapter 12 Protection Her petite frame stood firmly protectively in front of him…
The Heavenly Emperor arrived extremely quickly. Accompanying him were not only high-ranking celestial officials of the Heavenly Clan, but also the Lord of the Jade Realm, Sheng Yuanting's father, Sheng Feng.
Unlike the others, Sheng Feng's expression was not solemn. As soon as he entered the room, he went straight to Sheng Yuanting's corpse on the ground. His eyes were bloodshot as he knelt beside him and wept bitterly, "My child, my child! How could this happen..."
The cries were so heart-wrenching and sorrowful that Mu Meng couldn't bear it and glanced over.
The Crown Prince of the Celestial Clan was assassinated, but it was discovered that his heart was made of stone. This news was like a bolt from the blue, and all eyes were on him, making the identity and fate of the person who assassinated him seem less important.
Suppressing his grief, Sheng Feng slowly placed his withered, aged hand over Sheng Yuanting's tightly open eyes and closed them for him.
His facial muscles twitched uncontrollably, and he whirled around, his eyes flashing with intense hatred: "You killed my son...you killed my son!"
His eyes were filled with such hatred that they seemed to be dripping blood. Mu Meng was startled and unconsciously turned slightly to shield Mu Qingheng from view.
Mu Qingheng said indifferently, "He attacked first and tried to take my life. How can I tolerate him?"
"Nonsense!" Sheng Feng said angrily, "Why would Ting'er kill you for no reason?"
"Sheng Yuanting colluded with the third young master of the demon race. The two intended to seize the demon race's throne first, and then rebel against the celestial race. I intercepted his secret letter and questioned him, hoping to persuade him to repent and turn back from his misguided path..."
At this point, Mu Qingheng sneered, "Who knew he would be so foolish, panicking and disregarding the occasion, trying to kill me to silence me."
“Impossible…impossible…” Sheng Feng shook his head repeatedly, then suddenly turned and knelt before the Heavenly Emperor. “Heavenly Emperor, you are wise! My Yu Rujing clan is loyal and righteous. Ting’er would never collude with the Third Prince of the Demon Clan, much less attempt to assassinate the Crown Prince!”
Sheng Feng gritted his teeth, suppressing his sobs, and shouted, "What's more, Mu Qingheng has a different bloodline. He was born with a heart of stone. He is actually the son of a demon! He is treacherous and cunning by nature. His words cannot be trusted!"
Yes, the son of the demon race.
All eyes were on Mu Qingheng, even the Heavenly Emperor's unreadable eyes looked over.
Mu Meng's heart pounded wildly—if the expressions of the crowd just now contained doubt, hesitation, and reluctance, they could now be described as defensiveness and hostility.
Sheng Feng stood up from the ground, pointed at Mu Qingheng with one finger, and said in a hateful voice: "You remnant of the demon race, you killed my son and then slandered him. How vicious you are!"
"Slander?" Mu Qingheng repeated calmly, a mocking smile slowly curving his lips. "What good does it do me to slander him and cause this current situation?"
Sheng Feng froze, his hand trembling slightly as it hovered in the air, but he couldn't speak for a moment.
The group looked at each other in bewilderment once again.
"Yes, that wound was fatal, no joke."
"It's obvious they used a lot of force; they couldn't have stabbed themselves, could they?"
"Even so, revealing that he is a demon would be detrimental to him in every way..."
Mu Qingheng seemed oblivious and calmly said, "I understand that the Realm Lord is unwilling to believe it, but you can examine my wounds, which are not yet healed. Whether the wound was caused by Sheng Yuanting's sword, whether the remaining energy is his spiritual power, and whether he is being controlled by someone—you should know these things better than anyone else."
Sheng Feng's lips trembled as he stared intently at Mu Qingheng for a moment before suddenly striding forward.
His gaze was terrifying, as if he wanted to tear his enemy to pieces. Mu Meng was terrified and stood motionless in front of Mu Qingheng.
"Get out of my way!" Sheng Feng shouted at Mu Meng, almost losing his mind.
The Heavenly Emperor's lips were almost pressed into a straight line.
Those around him frowned in disapproval, and whispers began to circulate.
Mu Qingheng narrowed his eyes slightly: "Lord of the Realm, even though I am of lowly status, Mu Meng is still a princess of the Celestial Clan. Please show me some respect in your words."
He gently nudged Mu Meng and whispered, "Mengmeng, stand further away."
Mu Meng glanced at Sheng Feng, then looked at Mu Qingheng. He stood calmly, his posture like a bamboo, his clothes stained with dirty blood, and stray hairs hanging down at his temples. In her memory, her brother had never been so disheveled and lost his composure.
Mu Meng tried to help Mu Qingheng to sit down on the chair behind her: "Brother, are you in pain? Even if you need to have an examination, please sit down first..."
Mu Qingheng froze, patted the back of her hand and forced a smile: "No need, don't worry."
Sheng Feng sneered, "There's no need for that. Her Highness has already treated half of it with the Crimson Heart Pill, so it should be fine by now."
As he spoke, he raised his palm and held it two inches in front of Mu Qingheng's heart, emanating a powerful spiritual energy from his palm.
After a short while, his face turned pale, but as if he was unwilling to give up, he channeled his spiritual energy again, and only after the third attempt did he dejectedly put his hand down.
Mu Qingheng smiled enigmatically: "Well, has the Realm Lord made a decision?"
Sheng Feng raised his eyes, his cloudy eyes bloodshot, staring at Mu Qingheng's tattered chest, examining the shape of the wound.
Suddenly, he swiftly reached out, grabbed Mu Qingheng's still-healing wound, and yanked it outwards violently—
Instantly, the flesh tore open, and blood gushed out, staining Sheng Feng's hand red. Mu Qingheng's heart was also completely exposed to everyone.
"What are you doing?!" Mu Meng exclaimed, shoving Sheng Feng away violently.
Things happened so fast that she didn't have time to react. She watched helplessly as her brother suffered a second injury, his previously unhealed sword wound now even more bloody and mangled.
Tears welled up in Mu Meng's eyes as she covered Mu Qingheng's bleeding chest with both hands, feeling as if the scalding blood was almost corroding her hands.
"Heavenly Emperor, you've seen it clearly too," Sheng Feng said, his face ashen, slowly turning to face the Heavenly Emperor. "The injuries on Mu Qingheng were caused by Ting'er. The angle, the wound, the spiritual energy—all are facts. No one coerced him, and judging from the time of the injury, it's true he struck first. I have nothing to say about that. But—"
He shouted sternly, "This remnant of the demon race has held the position of crown prince for many years. May I ask how you intend to deal with him?"
From that moment on, the Heavenly Emperor did not utter a single word. After Sheng Feng finished asking his question, everyone looked over, but he did not immediately speak.
In the deathly silence, only Mu Meng's heart-wrenching sobs could be heard.
Mu Meng bit her lower lip tightly: "Since Sheng Yuanting attacked first, what wrong did my brother do? Why should he be punished? If we're talking about punishment, how will your actions just now be accounted for?"
Sheng Feng laughed loudly, his laughter filled with sorrow: "If he were truly the Crown Prince of my Celestial Clan, what would it matter if I gave my life? But this mere Demon Clan should have been wiped out in the desolate wilderness, yet somehow he was secretly replaced by this person, thus preserving a sliver of life! The Demon Clan's heart is despicable! And this person deserves to be killed without mercy!"
Mu Meng's eyes widened in disbelief that Sheng Feng would say such a thing—his brother had devoted himself to the Celestial Clan for so many years, and his contributions to the peace and stability of the world were indispensable. When had he ever done anything wrong? Was he to be killed just because of his bloodline?
Her mind and spirit were shaken; her spiritual energy surged within her body, like a vast ocean, almost bursting forth—
Mu Qingheng stood beside Mu Meng, gazing at her petite figure in a daze for a moment. He lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes concealing the complex emotions within them.
The hand beside him unconsciously gripped the scattered clothes.
"Alright." Suddenly, the Heavenly Emperor spoke calmly, "Mengmeng, don't cause trouble."
Mu Meng released all his energy, his heart pounding in his chest as he watched the Heavenly Emperor slowly step forward, wondering what conclusion he would ultimately reach.
The Heavenly Emperor stood in the center and surveyed the surroundings, his voice deep: "Back when I was fighting against the Demon Clan, Heng'er had just been born. If someone concealed his aura and altered his bloodline, it could only have happened at that time."
"But in that sense, he is a child I raised myself, and you all have witnessed his hard work and great achievements over the years. I would like to hear your opinions on how to deal with him."
Mu Meng felt a little relieved. Judging from her father's tone, he didn't seem to have a deep hatred for the demons and wouldn't kill them indiscriminately.
At first, the crowd was completely silent. Gradually, very faint sounds began to emerge, slowly coalescing into a wave of noise:
"The two races are sworn enemies, even if they were raised from childhood, now that they have torn off all pretense of civility, how can they be allowed to live together..."
"Those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts..."
"kill……"
Kill...kill...kill...
Mu Meng looked around blankly. Everyone had their heads down; some looked reluctant, while others frowned in disdain. But all those voices converged into one word that filled her ears—
kill.
Mu Meng felt a pang of heartache and spread her arms to shield Mu Qingheng: "You can't kill...you can't kill my brother! Father..."
The Heavenly Emperor interrupted her calmly: "Mengmeng, your father knows that you and your brother have a deep bond..."
"It's not because of that!" Mu Meng's eyes welled up with tears, and she kept her arms in a protective stance. "I'm not protecting him because he's my brother. Even if he wasn't my brother, but a stranger, I would still protect him. Only those who have made mistakes need to be punished. My brother has done nothing wrong, so how can we just take his life?"
Mu Qingheng pursed his lips slightly, staring intently at Mu Meng's back.
Sheng Feng sneered at the opportune moment, "Even if he didn't do anything wrong before, he's a demon. The demons replaced our clan's true son of the Heavenly Emperor with this bastard. What good intentions did they have?"
“Your Highness, you are still young and do not understand these things. One day you will realize that this person does not deserve to live. If we do not kill him now, it will be too late when you wake up.”
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