Arikar hurriedly said, "I'm sorry, I … I don't know him, but I've heard some things about him. He has a grudge against the Blaze Realm, and he even extorted our disciples. That's why I said that."
"Blackmail?" Ming Zhaoshu's eyes flashed.
Arikar nodded and told Ming Zhaoshu what he had heard about Lu Yin's kidnapping of Craynor and the other students.
Ming Zhaoshu muttered, "Got it. Take him away. Don't let him die."
Not long after Arikar was taken away, Tang Si entered the study.
"Your Highness, news of the princess has already spread. There's no way to hide it," Tang Si said in a low voice.
Ming Zhaoshu was infuriated. "You've gone too far! Ming Hao has planted such audacious spies in my manor. He must have ordered them to do so behind the scenes. They want to ruin Yan 'er's reputation."
Tang Si's gaze turned cold. "The most important thing right now is to capture that outsider called Lu Yin and use his death to prove the princess' innocence."
Ming Zhaoshu's eyes flickered as he fell into deep thought.
Tang Si did not say anything.
"Leave for now and continue looking for that Lu Yin. But remember, you're not allowed to take his life," Ming Zhaoshu ordered.
Tang Si immediately acknowledged and retreated.
Ming Zhaoshu pondered for a moment, then walked out of the study and arrived outside Ming Yan's room. "Yan 'er, may I come in?"
"Imperial Father, please come in," Ming Yan said softly.
Ming Zhaoshu opened the door and saw his daughter staring blankly at the mirror with a bitter look in her eyes. The Shenwu Continent valued a woman's chastity greatly. If a woman's body was seen naked, the consequences would be severe, and it would be very difficult for her to marry someone else. This was the custom of the Shenwu Continent.
Thinking of this, Ming Zhaoshu was furious. That outsider had fallen into Yan 'er's bathtub, and Ming Hao's people had spread the news. Not only had his Wang Mansion lost face, but it would also ruin Yan' er's life.
"Yan 'er, are you alright?" Ming Zhaoshu walked behind his daughter and asked tenderly.
Ming Yan shook her head sadly. "Father, what happened to that person?"
"He got away. But don't worry, Yan-er. Father will definitely catch him and make him pay the price!" raged Ming Zhaoshu.
Ming Yan was silent. No one knew what she was thinking.
Ming Zhaoshu looked at his daughter's pale face and sighed. "Yan 'er, do you still remember what that person looked like?"
Ming Yan's body shook as she shook her head.
Ming Zhaoshu was puzzled. "Father remembers that you have a photographic memory since you were young. You are also very good at calligraphy, painting, and the zither. How can you not remember what he looks like?"
Ming Yan blinked and pursed her lips. "I don't remember. It was too chaotic back then."
Ming Zhaoshu looked at his daughter for a while and nodded. "Alright, it's fine if you don't remember. Rest well and don't think too much about it."
"Mm, your daughter understands," Ming Yan replied. As she watched Ming Zhaoshu leave, she recalled the scene of Lu Yin standing in the bathtub and staring blankly at her, and the scene of him wrapping her in her clothes. It was so embarrassing, but he was so interesting and stupid. Ming Yan couldn't help but smile when she thought about it, but then she restrained herself. What's wrong with me?
She touched her lips with her fingers. He had touched her here.
She had been born in the Reverent King's Household since she was a child, and she had rarely seen other people. The infighting between the members of the imperial family had left her with no friends, and her only family member was her father. She did not understand much about the outside world, and she could only rely on music, chess, calligraphy, and painting to keep her company. Lu Yin was the first man who had come into close contact with her, and he was also the first man who had seen her. Ming Yan could not help but feel that he had left a shadow in her heart.
The next day, everyone from the Reverent King's Household left for Qiong Island.
Lu Yin remained in the distant forest. During this time, the Reverent King's Household's soldiers had been searching for him everywhere, but to no avail. Even a Martial Emperor like Reverent King Ming Zhaoshu could not do anything to Lu Yin, let alone the others. However, Lu Yin had discovered an expert who was also a Limiteer, but whose strength was comparable to the Astral Combat Academy's student leaders.
Information was relative, and the Reverent King's Household had been searching for him. Naturally, Lu Yin had learned a few things about the Reverent King's Household, such as Arikar's capture. He knew that he had been exposed, and Lu Yin did not believe that the Blaze Realm's people would cover for him.
"Strange, the Reverent King's Household's people haven't appeared since yesterday. Did they leave?"
Lu Yin muttered to himself as he looked at the Reverent King's Household's manor. He felt a sense of loss as he thought about that girl. Her face was devastatingly beautiful, and although Bai Xue was beautiful, Lu Yin had not been moved. However, this girl was different. Her purity was unforgettable, and his heart had been moved.
He shook his head and decided not to think too much about it. This was the Shenwu Continent, a place that was comparable to the entire Darkmist Weave. If he was not careful, he would die. Some feelings could not be allowed to sprout, and they were destined to never continue. Forget it, he decided to focus on his own matters and continue robbing.
Coincidentally, a group of carriages arrived.
Qiong Island was next to Ming Island, which was the center of the Shenwu Empire. Of the thirty-six continents, at least seven had to pass through Qiong Island in order to enter Ming Island.
Lu Yin did not know, but there should be a lot. He planned to stay here for the next few days and rob a few batches. With his strength, he should be fine as long as he did not run into any Martial Emperors. Currently, most of the Martial Emperors in the Shenwu Empire were concentrated on the five sealing planets, so he should be fine as long as he was careful.
Ten days later, Qiong Island's army completely sealed off the area. Lu Yin left, knowing that he could not stay any longer. He had robbed five batches of tributes over the past few days, which had attracted a lot of attention. If he stayed any longer, he might attract the attention of the Ming Constables.
Taicang City was the gateway to Qiong Island. Entering Taicang City was the same as entering Qiong Island.
Lu Yin looked around curiously and raised his head to see a giant city gate towering over the city. This was the ancient city wall, and there was something that looked like a glass lampshade that emitted a faint light that occasionally emitted ripples that swept out in all directions. This was a heavenly globe that used martial power to sweep through the entire city. Once it came into contact with star energy, there would be a reaction.
After the great war a thousand years ago, too many trialtakers had come to the Shenwu Continent, which had forced the Shenwu Empire to develop heavenly globes. Because of these globes, countless trialtakers had died tragically.
The heavenly globe's martial power swept past Lu Yin, but there was no reaction. He had already dispersed all of his star energy the day before and replaced it with martial power, so it naturally would not be rejected.
He used someone else's household registration to enter Taicang City, and what greeted him was a bustling scene. It had to be said that the Shenwu Continent had developed quite well, and there were almost no traces of the great war from a thousand years ago. Hawking noises could be heard everywhere, and in the distance, there was a towering restaurant that was almost at the same level as the city wall. Lu Yin was not in a hurry, and he slowly walked forward.
The army rushed past him with a somber aura.
"Have you heard?
Someone's been robbing tributes recently, and five batches have already been lost. The king's residence is furious, and he's ordered the army to investigate thoroughly. The surrounding cities have been sealed off, and even the king's residence has been searched. I heard that there was even a battle. "
"Shh, keep your voice down. The incident at the residence has nothing to do with the looting of tributes. It was an outsider who peeped on the princess bathing, and I heard that he was caught bathing with her. That's why a battle broke out."
"What?
Doesn't that mean that the princess' reputation is ruined?
Who would dare to marry her then? "
"Yes, it's a pity that the empire's twin beauties have been ruined. No matter how beautiful she is, this incident will make countless people afraid to marry her."
…
Lu Yin was stunned. Was that really necessary?
He had only seen her naked. He frowned and tried to recall Wu Xia's memories. It seemed that the Shenwu Continent placed a lot of importance on a woman's reputation. This was troublesome. Did that mean that he had harmed that girl?
Lu Yin was a little absent-minded, and he slowly walked into the restaurant. He chose a seat near the window and casually ordered a few dishes. He was rather vexed, and the image of that girl kept appearing in his mind. He felt a little apologetic.
The Shenwu Continent's military development was extremely fast, and it was even comparable to a weave. However, they were very conservative when it came to thinking. This incident would definitely leave an unerasable scar on that girl's heart.
"Sir, your dishes are all here," the waiter said politely as he poured Lu Yin a cup of wine and retreated.
Lu Yin watched the army rush past the window, kicking up a large cloud of dust. He frowned and decided to close the window.
"Bro, don't close the window," a voice called out from behind Lu Yin.
Lu Yin ignored him and continued to close the window.
Behind him, the man raised a hand and pressed down on Lu Yin's arm. "I'll say it one more time. Don't close the window."
Lu Yin glanced at him. The man was in his thirties and seemed to have experienced the vicissitudes of life. His eyes were tired, but he gave off an uncouth aura. He did not seem like a good person.
At this point, the dust had settled, but Lu Yin did not care. He withdrew his hand and continued to eat.
The man also withdrew his hand and did not cause any more trouble.
Suddenly, a flash of light entered his eyes. Lu Yin's eyes widened as he looked into the distance. Was that an arrow?
There was a whoosh as the arrow shot towards him, but it was not aimed at Lu Yin. Instead, it was aimed at the man behind him.
The man grabbed at Lu Yin, intending to use him to block the arrow. Lu Yin was furious and raised his hand to meet the man's palm. There was a light sound, and the shockwave shattered the table and sent the railings on the second floor flying. The man was forced back by Lu Yin's palm and yelped in surprise. At this moment, the arrow brushed past the man's shoulder and pierced through the floorboards on the second floor, causing the ground to crack.
"Heng Luoshun, surrender!" There was a loud shout as people rushed in from above and outside the window to attack the man, who was Heng Luoshun.
Heng Luoshun gave Lu Yin a deep look before jumping out of the window. "What a joke. The lackeys of the Demon Hunters Society want to capture me? Dream on! I'm not ranked seventeenth on the List of Tempering for nothing."
Not long after, the battle ended.
The restaurant had suffered an unexpected calamity, and much of it had been damaged. The owner hurriedly apologized with a bitter smile.
"I'm sorry to have startled you, sir," the owner apologized to Lu Yin.
Lu Yin was curious. "What's the List of Tempering?"
He had not paid much attention to this list in Wu Xia's memories. His memories were vast, and he had only been able to look through a portion of them in the limited time he had.
"You don't know about it?" The owner was surprised.
Lu Yin smiled. "I grew up in the mountains, and this is my first time coming out to train."
"So that's how it is. No wonder you don't know about the List of Tempering. It's a list created by Crown Prince Ming Hao using the Demon Hunters Society's intelligence network. It lists everyone under the Martial Emperor realm, regardless of age and cultivation. That Heng Luoshun is ranked seventeenth on the List of Tempering," the owner explained.
Lu Yin understood. A list like this could easily arouse a person's competitive spirit and motivate them to become stronger. This applied to both the universe and the Shenwu Continent. It was quite impressive that Crown Prince Ming Hao could achieve this. "Boss, where can I buy the List of Tempering?"