Chapter 142 The Ghost Soldiers, Part 18
The Nascent Soul stage is an insurmountable chasm between the Golden Core stage and the Nascent Soul stage; those who break through are extremely rare, only a fraction of geniuses. Countless people spend their entire lives denied entry, never even glimpsing the light of the Nascent Soul realm. It is said that each stage presents its own hurdles; the Qi Refining stage filters out those with potential, the Foundation Establishment stage filters out those truly qualified for cultivation, and the Nascent Soul stage filters out those with both talent and destiny.
When Zhen Su first broke through to the Nascent Soul stage, he was the youngest among all the Nascent Soul cultivators to achieve this breakthrough, which shocked the entire cultivation world and became even more widely known than when he later won the top spot on the Heavenly Origin Ranking.
Now that he has reached the Nascent Soul stage, Zhen Su is undoubtedly excited. At the same time, it also means that his Yin has broken through a minor realm, advancing to the mid-stage of Yin! He can finally cultivate supernatural abilities!
Thinking of this, Shinju was overjoyed and couldn't help but bury his head in the nape of the neck of the King of the Void, the furry animal ears tickling the King of the Void's throat.
Although the King of Zhen couldn't bear to push Shinju away, he only twirled the two soft, triangular ears, which made Shinju raise his head and look at him with his bright golden eyes, making his heart flutter.
"Don't look at me like that, unless Qing'er wants to do it again." Queen Zhen said solemnly, supporting herself with her hands and half-closing her phoenix eyes.
"No!" Shinju was worried about the King's health and had really frightened him just now, so he immediately distanced himself, wiped the King's body, dressed him one by one by himself, and then snuggled up to the King and went to sleep.
The King of Poison glanced at the beautiful, sweet sleeping face of the True Monk, his brows relaxed, and his consciousness focused on another version of himself in the small world of history books.
Nianchao, Zhengren Hall.
Under the pale moon and sparse stars, Prince Zhen suddenly sat up from his dragon bed, quickly put on his shoes, and strode towards the place where the Right Chancellor was staying. The guards and servants outside, including Tang Quan, almost failed to keep up.
The Right Chancellor vaguely sensed someone at the head of his bed, and was immediately terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat as he struggled to wake up.
Upon closer inspection, he discovered it was the King of Poison, sitting cross-legged on his mahogany cabinet, looking down at him and saying, "Pu Qing, are you also sleepless?"
"..." Pu Xunzhi couldn't help but twitch his forehead, suppressing the urge to refute, and helplessly replied, "Your subject agrees."
Then Pu Xunzhi noticed the joy in the eyes of the King of Zhen and asked curiously, "Why is the Palace Master so happy?"
The King of Zhen clenched his fist. "I have completed the transformation of Emperor Yu Hu's dragon energy, and his cultivation has greatly improved. I estimate that his spirit will be able to condense into a physical form in the coming days."
Pu Xunzhi was overjoyed. "Palace Master, how... how did you do that?! Doesn't that mean we can go to the next small world?"
The King of Poison nodded, but subtly omitted a reply and did not respond.
The following day, at the Eastern Palace.
No sooner had the imperial eunuch left than the new Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince hurriedly said, "Your Highness, this trip... in short, we must be extremely cautious."
The Crown Prince, however, did not take it to heart and said with his hands behind his back, "What do you mean by that, Minister Chen?"
The Grand Tutor dared not say that this was likely a trap, so he could only cite classical texts, saying, "There has never been a precedent of an emperor abdicating in his prime, when he was in good health, especially when the country was flourishing..."
The Crown Prince smiled upon hearing this, but he was not surprised at all by his father's decision to delegate power this time. There had been signs of this before, and at first he did not want to believe it, but as his father sent him to the local areas to deal with livelihood issues such as the illegal salt trade, and more and more heavy responsibilities were entrusted to him, he knew that this day would come sooner or later.
Since that person left, Father Emperor has become a completely different person, almost like a stranger. Although he still attends court diligently every day and manages the government, his demeanor is noticeably different to everyone. He no longer cares about many people and things around him, and he doesn't even bother to ask about them. He has never set foot in the inner palace.
However, some time ago, the Emperor's face showed a familiar expression again. He would always stay in that person's side room and stay there all night.
It's unclear whether the man has come to terms with things or has gone completely mad. The cloud of sorrow in the Crown Prince's eyes lingered, and with a blink of an eye, he rushed towards the Golden Palace.
Seeing that he was completely unmoved by reason, the new Grand Tutor was so angry that he sighed and waved his sleeves behind him.
After entering the hall and completing the kowtow, the Crown Prince was greeted by the Prince of Zhen, who stood beside him with his hands in his sleeves, looking down at him quietly with a sidelong glance.
The crown prince felt a chill run down his spine from the stare, and after a long while, he couldn't help but call out, "Father."
Standing on the steps, the King of Zhen surveyed the vast hall and suddenly asked, "Your Highness, what is most important for a ruler?"
"It is for the people. The country and its people depend on winning their support and gaining the world."
The King of Poison continued to press, "What if the people's hearts belong to someone else?"
The Crown Prince frowned immediately, "Then it was my doing that was not perfect."
"So you're going to abdicate and hand over the position to a more worthy successor?"
The crown prince sensed the test from the poisoned king behind the question, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He stammered and couldn't answer for a moment.
Seeing the prince's conflicted expression, the King of Zhen knew that the prince was not someone who was willing to give up, but was still too inexperienced in dealing with people and situations.
"The most important thing for a ruler is to be a ruler. If you are not the ruler, all your words can be falsehoods and lies. Only when you are the ruler can your words be true."
"The people only listen to the truth, not falsehoods." King Zhen's expression darkened.
The Crown Prince suddenly realized he had been mistaken. His father's words were clearly a warning! Could it be that his recent behavior had sent some wrong signal, or that someone was spreading rumors behind his back, making his father suspicious? Suspecting him of being ambitious and wanting to seize power? And so, had he specially summoned him to discuss the succession to the throne, truly nipping the problem in the bud?
The Prince of Zhen was known for his ruthless and decisive nature, and the royal family never truly considered feelings. However, the Crown Prince believed that he was slightly different. Compared to the other princes, his father was much closer to him, and he trusted the Prince of Zhen wholeheartedly, even to the point of blindly worshipping him.
However, the next moment, the words of the Poison King almost made him lose his senses.
"I hereby abdicate, and Your Majesty's coronation ceremony will be held the day after tomorrow." The King of Zhen placed his hand on the Crown Prince's shoulder. At this moment, the Crown Prince felt a weight he had never felt before.
"Father..." The Crown Prince couldn't believe it, his eyes quickly reddening, and he said in a low voice, "Is Father leaving?"
The King of Poison patted him on the shoulder and left the palace without looking back.
"The Nian Kingdom is now in your hands."
As his thoughts returned, the King of Zhen realized that the person in his arms had woken up. The sleepy golden eyes seemed to be covered by a layer of mist, unable to focus, but the person instinctively snuggled into his arms.
As Zhenwang enjoyed the clinginess and dependence of someone, he gently patted the other's back. Just as he was about to tell Zhensu about his plans for the coming year and ask if Zhensu wanted to go back for a visit, suddenly, a commotion came from the direction of the Underworld.
"Qing'er, I need to go back to the King of Hell's Palace."
Shinjuku refused to let go, murmuring softly at the end of her sentence, "I'm going too, I'm going too."
The Poison King helped him change into a suit repaired with black mist thread, and then hid in the Three Corpses.
When Zhen Su arrived near the Yama King's Mansion, Zhen Wang, shrouded in black mist, hid inside the mansion from the back and then walked out to the group of Yin soldiers waiting behind the door.
"What's the urgent matter?" King Zhen asked.
"Your Majesty! Dozens more souls have escaped from the Black Prison, and the Puppet Sect elder we just captured has disappeared!!"
The King of Zhen immediately turned pale.
He then realized something and met the astonished gaze of Shinju, who was hiding to the side. King Zhen suddenly felt a headache coming on.
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Author's note: Happy National Day! [cat paw][starry eyes][heart][fireworks]
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