The Seventy-Two Earth Fiends?
Black Buddha Fiend?
Gu Qingfeng's expression froze for a moment, then he broke into a laugh as the figure of a person gradually surfaced in his mind.
It was a fat man.
A bald, fat man.
A fat man who smiled like Maitreya Buddha.
He was also a fat man who was utterly despicable, shameless, and lecherous to the extreme.
"Is this Great Tycoon you speak of surnamed Dong, given name Hu, known as Dong the Tiger, nicknamed Black-Hearted Buddha?"
"Of course it's that damned fatso surnamed Dong."
Shui'er seemed quite displeased, muttering, "But that damned fatso is now the wealthiest man in our Yanluo Kingdom, a tycoon with countless assets, rich enough to rival a nation."
"Your Yanluo's wealthiest man, rich enough to rival a nation...
Hahaha!"
Gu Qingfeng laughed heartily.
He truly hadn't expected that sleazy, wretched fat man from back then to have now become a great tycoon, and a nation-rivaling one at that.
However, upon careful thought, it was also to be expected.
Fatty Dong had loved wealth since childhood, the typical type who valued money over his own life.
He still clearly remembered that back when the Chixiao Sect went to seize the Immortal Dynasty's spirit veins, it was always Fatty Dong who snatched the most. That fellow had an innate, special nose for all kinds of treasures, was skilled in business, and was a master at speculation and profiteering.
This made Gu Qingfeng feel somewhat emotional.
Back in the day, there weren't many fat men in the Chixiao Sect, but each one was a shrewd character.
One Fatty Wang had gone to the Southern Sea, founded a kingdom, and become an emperor.
Now this Fatty Dong had become a tycoon and the wealthiest man in Yanluo Kingdom.
They were all a bunch of unscrupulous, shameless bastards!
...
That night.
The starlight was brilliant, the moonlight gentle.
In the Cloud-Hao Royal Manor.
Within a separate courtyard.
Tang Manqing stood quietly, gazing at the bright moon in the night sky, lost in a daze. After a long while, she took out a painting from her storage pouch.
The painting was ethereal, like mist and clouds, as if it could change, even as if it possessed life.
It was a spiritual painting, also a painting of the spirit.
The painting was left behind by the Yanluo Empress, Tang Henghe. Tang Manqing had found it by chance. It was from this painting that she learned about her aunt and Monarch Chixiao. This ethereal, spiritual painting carried the entire process of her aunt and Monarch Chixiao's meeting, their indebtedness, their acquaintance, and their mutual understanding.
Sensing it with her divine consciousness was like a dream, an illusion, even as if she were personally experiencing it.
From the painting, Tang Manqing could clearly feel her aunt's state of mind at the time, and also clearly sense the endless longing her aunt held for the Monarch when she composed this painting.
If one Monarch Chixiao knew these things, he might be the true Monarch.
But what if two Monarch Chixiao knew?
Why was that?
Even now, she couldn't figure it out.
Why did both men who claimed to be Monarch Chixiao know about the Monarch's meeting and acquaintance with her aunt? How did they know?
She didn't know.
"Princess, are you unhappy?"
Shui'er walked over. Seeing Tang Manqing lost in thought alone, she asked, "Is it because of that swindler Gu Qingfeng impersonating the Monarch?"
"Before, when I met the Monarch Chixiao enshrined by Lord Black Buddha, I asked him about my aunt's matters. He knew everything clearly. I thought he might be the real one..." Tang Manqing murmured somewhat dejectedly. "Until this Gu Qingfeng also knew about my aunt's matters, I realized I had been too naive..." Was Tang Manqing unhappy?
No.
She was just somewhat disappointed.
Not for herself, but for her aunt, Tang Henghe.
How she wished to meet the true Monarch Chixiao and tell him that her aunt had been searching for him all along.
She had originally thought that Monarch Chixiao was real, and she had hoped he was...
Now?
That hope had been shattered...
How could she not feel disappointed?
"Princess, don't trouble yourself over this matter. That fellow clearly isn't a good person. Forget being the Monarch, it's not even certain if he's the Monarch's successor. He might even be impersonating that Chiyan Young Master from the Great Northwest."
Remembering Gu Qingfeng's sloppy posture, neither sitting nor standing properly during the day, Shui'er grew a bit angry and said, "How about this, Princess, I'll go question him. If he doesn't confess honestly, I'll use torture on him! Let's see if he stays honest then."
"He's extremely weak right now. If you lay hands on him, it would be no different from taking his life."
"Then what should we do?"
"Let's wait a bit."
"Wait? Wait for what? Princess, you still want to keep him around?"
"I want to understand how he knows about those matters between my aunt and the Monarch. This is very important to me."
As the two were talking, an old man entered the courtyard. It was Fengbo.
Seeing Fengbo arrive, Tang Manqing immediately inquired, "Fengbo, how did things go? What was Elder Zhu's reply?"
Her return this time.
Was not to verify the authenticity of Monarch Chixiao.
Encountering Gu Qingfeng was entirely a coincidence.
The only reason for her return was an ancient relic from the Dark Age of the primordial era. This relic had appeared within the borders of Yanluo Kingdom. By reason, by law, it belonged to Yanluo Kingdom, and the Immortal Dynasty should not interfere. But now, not only did the Immortal Dynasty intend to interfere, they seemed bent on seizing it.
Moreover.
This was not the first time the Immortal Dynasty had acted so unreasonably and arrogantly. There had been several instances before, each more domineering than the last.
The Yanluo royal family's repeated concessions had not earned them the Immortal Dynasty's goodwill. Instead, it had made the Immortal Dynasty grow even more brazen.
Therefore, this time, the Yanluo royal family was prepared to make no further concessions and intended to negotiate with the Immortal Dynasty.
As a member of the royal family, Tang Manqing naturally would not stand idly by. Moreover, she understood clearly that negotiating with the Immortal Dynasty required the support of the forty-nine major domains within Yanluo Kingdom and all its various forces, big and small.
The four great families and seven major sects within Yanluo Kingdom were being negotiated by her uncle, who was also the Yanluo Emperor. She was responsible for negotiating with the sects and families of the Jinxiu Major Domain in Yanluo Kingdom.
The Jinxiu Major Domain was one of the prosperous major domains of Yanluo Kingdom.
The domain was filled with countless forces, big and small. Though not as massive as the four great families and seven major sects, none could be underestimated.
Since her return, she had been running around everywhere, meeting and negotiating with the sect masters and clan leaders of the various great families and major sects in the Jinxiu Domain. However, the situation was not optimistic. Though most sects and families spoke nicely, saying they would support Yanluo Kingdom, it was merely lip service. As for whether they would support the Yanluo royal family in negotiating with the Immortal Dynasty, their answers were ambiguous. Even some sects and families that had been close to her father in the past were the same.
"Elder Zhu is like the others, his attitude is also ambiguous. They're all watching and waiting."
Noticing Tang Manqing's disappointed expression, Fengbo added, "Princess, do not worry too much. In a few days, when His Highness the Prince returns, as long as he steps forward, all these forces, big and small, in the Jinxiu Domain will agree. They dare not refuse His Highness the Prince's face."
"My father..." Though she had already notified her father, still...
There had been no reply from her father's side. Tang Manqing couldn't even be sure if her father had received her message talisman.
"Moreover, their wait-and-see attitude is also directed at the four great families and the seven major sects. As long as they nod in agreement, all the forces, big and small, in Yanluo Kingdom will also step forward to support us."