Zhang Dongyun was a little disappointed that Li Jie didn't come to Chang 'an with the rest of the Dahe Longmen.
If he had a Ninth Realm subordinate, it would be much easier for him to do a lot of things.
Before this, there were only three Ninth Realm cultivators in the entire Eastern Tang dynasty. Li Jie was the fourth.
With his personal protection, Master Zhang wouldn't have to worry even if he had to leave Invincible City for a stroll.
Unfortunately, Master Zhang should continue to stay in the city.
There was another person who was also deeply regretful about Li Jie's death.
That person was the current ruler of the Eastern Tang dynasty, King of Tang, Li Xuanxin.
Not only did he let Li Jie escape, but he also received news that his son, Li Yi, and the others were all killed.
This made King of Tang very unhappy.
As he ordered the troops to return to the court, he also ordered the relevant people to gather information about Chang 'an, Green Cloud Temple, and White Horse College.
"Even Gao Yu …" Old Prince Li Dong, who was traveling with King of Tang, was stunned when he heard the news.
King of Tang's tone was emotionless. "There's a 90% chance that Li Yi did it."
Old Prince Li Dong was silent when he heard this.
Naturally, he had heard the rumors about Gao Yu being King of Tang's illegitimate son.
The reason why Li Yi wanted to kill Gao Yu was self-evident.
Old Prince Li didn't want to get involved in this kind of thing, so he could only keep quiet.
Fortunately, King of Tang didn't ask for his opinion.
On the way back to Royal Capital Luyang Castle, all kinds of information came back.
"The House of Stuart, the Zheng family, Fuzhen Guan, and the Mirror Moon Tower have all sent people to Anfu."
King of Tang ordered calmly, "Green Cloud Temple and White Horse College, send gifts to express our condolences to Daoist Master Qing Ye and Dean Hong."
This time, the troops that were completely annihilated outside the city of Chang 'an were all lords of their own regions, except for their own interests.
They were trapped in Chang 'an, declaring that the House of Stuart, the Zheng Clan, the Fuzhen Guan, and the Mirror Moon Tower, the four great powers, were like a group of dragons without a leader.
This was the most unstable and dangerous time for the four clans.
Strictly speaking, other than the House of Stuart, the other three forces did not have a close relationship with the Eastern Tang royalty.
Right now, it seemed to be an opportunity to eliminate and subdue them, so that their autonomous territories would be completely under the control of the Eastern Tang royalty.
However, with the existence of the great threat of Chang 'an, King of Tang could only use conciliatory means at this moment.
After all, these four clans had followed the Eastern Tang to attack the Dahe Longmen and Chang 'an.
Now that the leaders of these clans had fallen, the Eastern Tang royalty had to appease them and help them resist the possible foreign enemies.
Only in this way could the Eastern Tang royalty continue to unite the other forces in their territory and then deal with Chang 'an.
Now, if they stabbed the Fuzhen Guan, the Mirror Moon Tower, and the Zheng family in the back, other famous sects and wealthy families would inevitably have thoughts in their hearts.
"This old subject obeys."
After leaving Royal Capital Luyang Castle, the Eastern Tang Prime Minister Lu Meng, who came to greet them, bowed his head and said, "I will arrange it right away."
Green Cloud Temple and White Horse College gave the same explanation.
Hong Xiao, the Dean of White Horse College, was intercepted by a mysterious Confucian master outside the Eastern Tang, so he could not rush to Chang 'an.
Taoist Qing Ye, the Dean of Green Cloud Temple, also claimed that he was intercepted by a mysterious Taoist master, so he could not meet up with Li Yi and the others in Qinzhou Prefecture. He even lost his junior brother, Taoist Huang Ye.
Although the two clans said that their opponents were mysterious and that they could not see the details in a short time, the implication was that Chang 'an had the support of forces outside the Eastern Tang.
This might even be a nail that other dynasties had nailed into the Eastern Tang.
As for the truth, no one knew.
Because all the people who went to Chang 'an to inquire about the news had disappeared without a trace.
No one knew how Chang 'an managed to screen out all the experienced spies without missing a single one.
Green Cloud Temple and White Horse College's words were difficult to verify. Only the news showed that two battles had indeed broken out outside Longbei County.
On one side, two Confucian masters were fighting, and on the other side, two Taoist masters were fighting.
But because the battle was too fierce and the level of both sides was too high, ordinary people did not dare to get close, so it was difficult to confirm the details.
Regarding this matter, the Eastern Tang royal family could only pinch their noses and accept it. They also sent people to visit and express their condolences to Hong Xiao and Qing Ye.
King of Tang returned to Royal Capital Luyang Castle. Crown Prince Li Hong and the others hurried to greet him.
"Where are Hu Yinghua and the others?" King of Tang asked when he returned to the palace.
"Put them all in custody. They can be interrogated at any time," Crown Prince Li Hong replied. At the same time, he ordered people to bring in the key members of the Hu family.
Hu Yinghua and the others were brought to the main hall. Their bodies were full of torture instruments, but there were few wounds.
They were not tortured in prison.
When they were captured, on the one hand, there was a mole in their family who was attacked by the enemy. On the other hand, Li Hong and the others were stronger than Hu Yinghua and the other members of the Hu family, so the Hu family was quickly taken down.
At this moment, facing King of Tang, Hu Yinghua looked calm. "His Majesty, I have nothing to say. I only want to die quickly."
"Although I am angry that the Chen family went to Chang 'an, at least I know what they are thinking. I am confused about your actions." King of Tang looked down at Hu Yinghua.
Hu Yinghua said calmly, "His Majesty is pretending to be confused. My Hu family has been living with our tails between our legs in recent years. Fortunately, we have not been slaughtered by His Majesty.
However, our family's development space is limited. Not only can we not leave Chaohe County, but even our ancestral property in Chaohe has been suppressed by His Majesty.
I want to seek some natural treasures to nourish my Qi and blood to break through to the eighth realm, but I am also blocked by His Majesty.
In the long run, the butcher's knife will fall one day, right?
Of course, I don't want to live such a fearful and uneasy life. "
King of Tang was not angry. He just asked calmly, "Chang 'an allows your Hu family to continue to grow?"
"At least, he is more tolerant than His Majesty," Hu Yinghua said.
What he said was true, but he did not mention the main reason why he went to Chang 'an.
He was shocked by Chang 'an's power.
Between Eastern Tang and Chang 'an, Hu Yinghua bet that Chang' an would win.
But he did not mention it at this moment.
The more King of Tang underestimated Chang 'an, the more confused he was about Chang' an, the better.
If he told him that Chang 'an was powerful, he would not spare the Hu family because he was afraid of Chang' an. Instead, he would only fly into a rage out of humiliation.
"You are so stubborn that you deserve to die. Your heads can serve as a warning to the world," Crown Prince Li Hong said coldly.
King of Tang waved his hand and said, "No hurry. I am more tolerant than Minister Hu thinks."
He said to Majordomo Ma beside him, "Take them away."
Majordomo Ma took the order and took Hu Yinghua and the others away to be detained again.
"I overstepped my boundaries just now. Please forgive me, Father," Crown Prince Li Hong bowed and said.
"It doesn't matter."
King of Tang shook his head and said, "After taking them away, keep a close watch on them. Interrogate them if necessary, but don't kill them."
"Yes, Father." Li Hong thought carefully.
King of Tang glanced at him and said, "The Hu family just went to Chang 'an. Their lives can't be controlled by Chang' an."
"Father, you mean …" Li Hong seemed to understand something.
"Let's try and see if we can get a few people back." King of Tang said, "They may not all be dead."
"Second Brother and Fourth Brother." Li Hong nodded.
King of Tang shook his head and said, "Let's see how their injuries are."
"Yes, Father." Li Hong understood tacitly.
"Prepare an imperial envoy to go to Longbei County to negotiate with Chang 'an," King of Tang said.
Li Hong took the order and left.
He knew that King of Tang, who had always been stubborn, didn't really want to negotiate with Chang 'an.
It was just a gesture to confuse the enemy.
Li Yi and the others suffered a big setback this time and suffered heavy losses, but it didn't completely hurt the foundation of Eastern Tang royalty.
The Zheng family, Mirror Moon Tower, and Fuzhen Guan were not the foundation of the royal family.
The royal family, Baihong Peak, Songyang Academy, and Qingbokgung were.
Of course, there was also the Cheng family.
The loss of Eastern Tang royalty this time, to a certain extent, could be said to be a one-sided loss for Prince Muhira and Li Yi.
Whether it was him or his mother's House of Stuart.
In addition, as long as King of Tang himself was still there, the Eastern Tang royalty could not be crossed.
The war potential of Eastern Tang was still extremely huge.
However, they couldn't fight with Chang 'an wholeheartedly.
Green Cloud Temple and White Horse College were still there.
If they could let the two families fight to the death with Chang 'an first, that would be the thing that the royal family would be most happy to see.
Of course, there were difficulties …
Crown Prince Li Hong walked out of the palace and happened to meet a tall young man on the way.
"Murong Ting, you've returned to the capital?" Li Hong saw the other party and asked first.
"Greetings, Your Highness." The person bowed. "I've been ordered to return to the capital to meet His Majesty."
"I've heard about the Lord Gao's matter, and I deeply regret it."
Li Hong comforted the other party. "Father is magnanimous and won't blame you for this. He summoned you to the capital to meet His Majesty for the Mingguang Pavilion."
"I understand. Thank you, Your Highness." The other party bowed again and left for the palace.
In the palace, King of Tang dismissed his servants and watched the tall young man come to him.
"At this moment, I'm not sure if you were really born as a baby or if you killed my son and replaced him, just like now."
King of Tang looked at "Murong Ting" below.
"Murong Ting" smiled faintly. "You worry too much."
He unbuttoned his clothes.
Two cracks suddenly appeared on the empty skin on his chest, forming the shape of a cross. Blood gushed out, but it seemed to be bound by something and did not leave his body.
"Even after reincarnation, this scar has always been with me. If I hadn't reincarnated, I would've died long ago." The young man sighed.
King of Tang asked, "Then, how should I treat you now?"
"I only ask for a place to stay and avoid being discovered by my enemies. I'm satisfied as long as I can continue to work in the Mingguang Pavilion."
"Murong Ting" seemed to be showing weakness in his tone.
As he spoke, the two cross-shaped wounds on his chest wriggled and healed.
His skin became smooth again, and the injury just now seemed like an illusion.
"We've worked together for so many years. I believe in you." King of Tang said indifferently.
"Murong Ting" smiled. "I don't dare to work together. I should be thanking His Majesty for his protection and helping His Majesty a little in return."
King of Tang said, "From now on, the Mingguang Pavilion will be handed over to Murong Ting."
The young man's expression changed as if he was a subject meeting the king. "Murong Ting obeys the Emperor's order and thanks His Majesty for his kindness."
"What do you think about Chang 'an?" King of Tang asked.
Murong Ting said, "Although the statements of Green Cloud Temple and White Horse College are not entirely true, I agree with one of their statements. Chang 'an should be created by someone other than the Tang Empire."
King of Tang's expression did not change. "Northern Yan? Western Zhou? "
"I can't be sure about that." Murong Ting replied.
King of Tang looked at him. "It's because you haven't seen the city and have no dealings with the people inside, right?"
Murong Ting nodded. "His Majesty has foresight."
King of Tang stared at him. "With your cultivation, you should be able to secretly explore the city, right?"
Murong Ting smiled bitterly. "His Majesty has overestimated me."
"I wouldn't dare. I'm afraid I've underestimated you."
King of Tang's expression was serious. "If you don't dare to go, could it be … that there's a master beyond the Ninth Realm?"
"I'm not sure about that." Murong Ting replied, "But if I want to find out, I'm afraid I'll expose my identity and attract enemies. Therefore, I hope His Majesty can understand my difficulties."
King of Tang exhaled softly. "You don't know the enemy well. That won't do."
Murong Ting said, "His Majesty can rest assured about that.
Although I don't know why Hong Xiao of White Horse College retreated, with his temperament, he'll go to Chang 'an again sooner or later.
When that time comes, we can take the opportunity to see how much power Chang 'an has. "
King of Tang asked, "What if Hong Xiao is defeated?"
"Hong Xiao is defeated, but that doesn't mean His Majesty will be defeated." Murong Ting said, "With Hong Xiao exhausting the opponent, His Majesty can gain the upper hand."
King of Tang, Li Xuanxin, was a true ruler who conquered the world on horseback.
Before Li Jie of Dahe Longmen revealed his true strength, the Eastern Tang dynasty only had three Ninth Realm cultivators: the King of Tang, the Green Cloud Monastery, and the Dean of White Horse College.
But in fact, a few years ago, there were more than that.
At that time, the top forces in Eastern Tang were still the Four Academies, Four Paths, Seven Sects, and Nine Families.
But now, the Great Academy, Two Sects, and the Three Aristocratic Families, including the Chen family, had all become history.
King of Tang had personally killed three Ninth Realm masters, including the former Headmaster of Lingxiao school.
However, at this moment, in the face of Murong Ting's praise, King of Tang was not happy. He just looked at the young man in front of him quietly.
"When the time comes, bring Qing Ye Zhenren. I'll risk my life to fight Chang 'an with His Majesty," Murong Ting said.
"With your help, it's really a blessing for Tang," King of Tang said Slowly.
"His Majesty is too kind. I don't deserve it." Murong Ting smiled and lowered his head.
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