Chapter 112 Target, Xie Changqing!
Spring, the nineteenth year of Yongtai.
Four months have passed since the death of the water ghost.
In the study.
Xu Chong took out a small bell and poured his strength into it.
There was no "ring-ring-ring" sound, only invisible waves rippling out in circles.
When the fluctuations stopped, Xu Chong put away the bell, sat on the chair and closed his eyes to rest.
A moment later, a thin figure in black clothes and holding a fishing rod stepped out of the void and suddenly appeared in the study.
It was Dou Tianyuan.
As soon as Dou Tianyuan came out, he looked around.
After making sure that there was no one else around, he staggered and his face turned pale.
"You bastard... you called me over here for no reason?"
"I have warned you repeatedly to use the Cloud Piercing Order only in life-or-death situations!"
"Do you know how far it is from the capital to here?"
"I was almost beaten dry..."
Dou Tianyuan's voice stopped abruptly.
Because Xu Chong opened his eyes.
"Your subordinate greets the commander-in-chief."
Xu Chong got up and left for a week.
Murderous intent!
Dou Tianyuan saw a murderous intent so strong that it was almost tangible in Xu Chong's eyes!
Moreover, this murderous intent doesn't seem to be directed at me?
Inner demon?!
Dou Tianyuan's face changed drastically. He threw away the fishing rod, took a step forward, and directly grabbed Xu Chong's wrist. "Ninth level of body cleansing... You actually completely ignored the rules of calming the mind. How long have you been accumulating this inner demon?"
"It starts with the fifth level of body washing."
Xu Chong smiled.
To be precise
Ever since the death of the water ghost, Xu Chong has been troubled by his inner demons every moment.
He couldn't remember how many scenes he had seen.
Shouting, demanding lives, and seducing are the lowest level.
Massacres, rapes, looting, and all kinds of hellish scenes have occurred.
And the cruelest thing...death replay.
Including what happened, whether he witnessed it or not.
Liu Er, Aunt Ma, Zhang Bozi, Lao Li, Master...
Including things that haven't happened yet.
Zhao Liu, Li Xiangxue, Sun Yourong, Ge Wanshan, Kou Ruohai, Jiang Zhihong, Dou Tianyuan...
Anyone who had a little bit of a close relationship with Xu Chong, whether dead or alive, would die in different ways in front of Xu Chong hundreds or thousands of times due to their inner demons.
"You can still laugh?!"
Dou Tianyuan's face was grim. "Why don't you wait until you resolve your inner demon before breaking through?"
If you don’t get rid of the inner demons, you cannot cultivate the Tao.
Therefore, no matter who you are, you must be alert at all times in the body cleansing state, and immediately look for solutions when you have mental demons.
But Xu Chong, after he cleansed his body to the ninth level, his inner demon also followed him to the ninth level?
"I have discovered that when the inner demon is around, the true strength will far exceed the current realm."
Xu Chong replied.
"……so what?"
Dou Tianyuan's expression became even uglier. "I'm afraid that if you walk out of the Imperial Observatory now, you will be killed by your inner demon on the spot!"
"Your Excellency is worrying too much."
Xu Chong shook his head. "It was indeed a bit difficult at the beginning, but after getting used to it, I can easily distinguish whether it is a demon or not. Now it doesn't even affect my interactions with others. It's just that the murderous intent in his eyes is too obvious and can't be hidden at all."
Upon hearing this, Dou Tianyuan was not happy but shocked.
Martial arts have been around for so many years, and people have long tried to make use of inner demons.
It also proves the saying that the stronger the inner demon, the stronger the strength.
But the problem is that this situation cannot last long.
Either they die suddenly from the backlash of their inner demons, or their hearts are assimilated by their inner demons and they become evil monsters who do all kinds of evil.
Xu Chong’s situation is very similar to the latter.
"Who is your inner demon?"
Dou Tianyuan asked.
No matter what the cause of the inner demon is, it will ultimately befall the person.
It could be one person or a group.
The only solution he could think of was to take Xu Chong with him immediately to deal with this person or these people.
"Marquis Taiping, thank you Changqing."
Xu Chong did not hide it, "I took the liberty to invite you here just to ask you about this beast."
"Xie Changqing..."
Dou Tianyuan's expression eased slightly, and he sighed, "It seems that the water ghost is not doing you any small favor."
As the intelligence chief of Daqing, Dou Tianyuan knew about the death of the water ghost earlier than the imperial court.
He didn't take it seriously at first, but now it seems that this water ghost is definitely very important to Xu Chong.
What happened between the two of them?
“It has long gone beyond this.”
Xu Chong smiled and shook his head, "Now, I just want to kill him."
"this……"
Dou Tianyuan hesitated for a moment, "Xie Changqing has only the third level of cleansing, and is indeed far from being your opponent, but in order to set an example and attract more rebels to join the court, the court has always protected Xie Changqing very well..."
"I killed Xie Changqing not just to vent my anger."
Xu Chong shook his head, "I have predicted that once Xie Changqing is killed, my cultivation will definitely succeed... even if it is the Purple Mansion cultivation!"
"real?!"
Dou Tianyuan's eyes suddenly widened.
"Your Excellency should know that the Purple Palace is the residence of the soul and should not be touched easily, but..."
Xu Chong raised his hand and pointed at his forehead. "The inner demon wandered around the Jade Pool and the Yellow Court before going in."
"What?!"
Dou Tianyuan exclaimed again.
He has lost his composure more than once today.
It’s all because of Xu Chong.
"The inner demon has condensed to the extreme. It is no longer a completely empty existence, but has become something similar to strength."
Xu Chong patiently explained, "The place where it finally settled was the Purple Palace between the eyebrows."
"For example, the murderous intent in my eyes that you saw was only a tiny part of my inner demon that leaked out."
"Also, I can feel that my Purple Palace is becoming stronger every moment."
"Perhaps... this is the inner demon preparing to replace me?"
Xu Chong smiled and said, "In short, I have a hunch that once I can kill Xie Changqing, my inner demons will turn into nutrients to create the strongest purple palace that has never been seen before."
"...Fuck the horse!"
A deep chill rose in Dou Tianyuan's heart.
Zifu Seeding Dao has always been the biggest problem since ancient times.
First of all, the gods and humans who cultivate the Tao in Zifu are extremely rare, and most of them will hide their true nature of cultivating the Tao and pretend to be celestial beings who cultivate the Tao in Huangting.
Secondly, even if you can find a deity who can cultivate the Dao in Zifu, and he is willing to tell you the truth, it will be useless... The reasons for each successful cultivation of the Dao are different, and there is no regular pattern.
If Xu Chong's speculation is correct, then... this will be a change that concerns the entire power system!
After all, the seeds cannot be controlled by humans, but the inner demons can!
If it were to be made public...
Think about it, how many people will deliberately create disputes and expose themselves to humiliation, hatred, guilt and other emotions in order to cultivate their inner demons.
Even killing one's father, mother, wife, and children is possible.
"I can help you kill Xie Changqing."
Dou Tianyuan slowly exhaled, "But you must remember, you cannot reveal this to anyone else. Once the Taiping Dao finds out..."
The imperial court still has laws to regulate it, but the Taiping Dao doesn't care so much.
Once leaked, it will be a catastrophic disaster.
"Your Excellency has misunderstood."
Xu Chong shook his head, "Xie Changqing, I have to kill him myself, not anyone else."
"Um?"
Dou Tianyuan's heart sank, "Is this a necessary condition for turning the inner demon into nutrients?"
"Exactly."
Xu Chong nodded with a smile.
"But the problem is, that kind of protection, you..."
Dou Tianyuan hesitated to speak.
"I have the Wu Xiang Yi in my hand. If I pretend to be blind, I should have a chance to get close."
Xu Chong had already made plans.
"I'm afraid this opportunity is not easy to find..."
Dou Tianyuan was not optimistic. He shook his head and said, "Forget it. I'll tell you his information first. You can decide for yourself."
"Thank you for your consideration, sir."
Xu Chong clasped his fists and bowed, then invited him with one hand: "Please sit down, sir."
"Um."
Dou Tianyuan nodded, took a seat, and spoke slowly.
It was a small matter for Xie Changqing to accept the amnesty and help the court to wipe out a branch hall in a province. The huge prestige brought by this matter was what the court valued most.
After all, the Taiping Dao was like a flea, always jumping around in Daqing.
The losses in warriors and supplies were not worth mentioning, but the loss of people's hearts was indeed a headache for the court.
According to the investigation of the Chief Guard, even in the capital, there were many officials who secretly colluded with the Taiping Dao and sought huge profits.
This kind of behavior of having one's cake and eating it too is unacceptable to the royal family.
However, this matter involved so many people and no substantial evidence could be found, so the royal family could only stare blankly and sulk.
At most, it would just make things difficult for the few people who are most suspected.
Those who should be in two minds continue to be in two minds, and those who should sell out the interests of the court continue to sell out the interests of the court.
But now it's different.
Even the Xie family, one of the six major families of the Taiping Dao, defected to the imperial court.
What concept?
If you continue to cooperate with the Taiping Dao, who knows, your partners might defect to the imperial court one day.
I just want to ask you if you are afraid.
Thus, the former rebel Xie Changqing transformed himself into Taiping Hou Xie Changqing, and concurrently served as the Left Governor of the Selangor Province.
Things don't end here.
Because of the title "Taiping".
This is almost the same as slapping Tai Ping Dao in the face, and it's the kind that is slapped left and right over and over again.
Snapping sound.
Naturally, the Taiping Dao wanted to get rid of Xie Changqing as soon as possible and revive the glory of righteousness.
Unfortunately, the court had already anticipated this.
The entire Selangor Provincial Administration Office was set up with numerous ambushes, causing the Taiping Dao to lose batches of manpower, and in the end, they didn't even get to see Xie Changqing.
"What kind of ambush?"
Xu Chong asked with a frown.
"It is a Taoist artifact called Pure Heart Glaze. Anyone with hostile intentions will be discovered immediately once they step into the Ministry of Civil Affairs."
Dou Tianyuan replied, and then added: "Zhaixing is not possible. This Taoist weapon is controlled by Xie Changqing and provides him with extremely strong protection... Unless you find a hidden weapon of the same Taoist level."
"Will we be discovered if we harbor hostility?"
Xu Chong felt a little depressed.
Can something as intangible as hostility be detected?
It is indeed a Taoist weapon...
Unfortunately, the formless clothes can only conceal one's appearance and aura. If nothing unexpected happens, it cannot conceal hostility. Otherwise, it would not be called the formless clothes, but the invincible clothes.
What's more, his attitude towards Xie Changqing went far beyond the concept of hostility and was pure murderous intent.
"It's not just a Taoist weapon."
"The force guarding him is the Xuezhou Province's Commander-in-Chief. Although they are not as powerful as the Blood Robe Guards, they have more people and are equipped with bows, crossbows, swords, and armor, all of which are of the magic soldier level."
"We patrol and stand guard for twelve hours non-stop. If there is any sign of trouble, we will cover it up immediately."
"Even if Xie Changqing goes out, the protection he brings with him will not be lax at all."
Dou Tianyuan sighed after he finished speaking, "I don't see any hope for you to kill him... forget it, I'll help you kill him and make your inner demon disappear, and it will be the same if you follow the Jade Pool Seeding Path."
"Your Excellency just said..."
Xu Chong grasped the key point in the conversation and asked instead of answering, "Will Xie Changqing go out too?"
"Of course."
Dou Tianyuan looked at Xu Chong speechlessly. "After all, he is a marquis and a high-ranking official. How can he be willing to stay in the government office from beginning to end? What's more, the court wants him to move around..."
really.
The more blatant the betrayer is, the greater the stimulation to the betrayed party, and the greater the prestige of the party that accepts the betrayer.
Xu Chong frowned and thought.
"Listen to me. If there is really no other way, just let me take action."
Dou Tianyuan repeated it again.
"I want to try again."
Xu Chong looked determined.
In fact, he had just lied.
As long as Xie Changqing dies, his inner demon will turn into nutrients to nourish and strengthen the purple palace between his eyebrows.
There is no such thing as having to kill with your own hands.
The reason why he told this lie was because he knew that even with Dou Tianyuan's status, he would be criticized for killing Xie Changqing today.
It’s nothing that officials wrote letters to impeach him. Having served as the commander-in-chief of the Blood-Cloth Guard for so many years, Dou Tianyuan should have been accustomed to being impeached.
But it is unclear what Emperor Qing would think and what kind of punishment he would impose.
As for not being discovered...
It is true that Zhishou Potian can come and go without a trace, but it is precisely this very reason that makes it easy to suspect Dou Tianyuan.
So unless it is absolutely necessary, it is best not to let Dou Tianyuan take this risk.
So he thought he would try again on his own.
"Let's try... How long can your inner demon remain stable?"
Dou Tianyuan asked.
"If I stay in the Imperial Observatory, it will be fine if I continue like this."
Xu Chong replied, "If I go out, I'll take the tea grown by Yuan Jianzheng with me. It will take about three months."
"Three months?"
Dou Tianyuan pondered for a while, his eyes sharpened: "Okay, I will give you three months. After three months, if Xie Changqing is not dead, I will take action."
"...What kind of punishment will you receive?"
Xu Chong asked in a deep voice.
"I shouldn't die."
Dou Tianyuan touched his chin and said, "But he might be imprisoned in the imperial prison for five, six, seven or eight years."
Imperial Prison...
Xu Chong's heart tightened, and he became more determined to kill Xie Changqing with his own hands.
The imperial prison is not a fun place.
The materials used to make the forbidden shackles came from the imperial prison.
"Don't be so sad. I have always been in charge of the Imperial Prison. I have been in and out of it tens of thousands of times. I am familiar with it, just like home."
Dou Tianyuan smiled and said, "At worst, you can come back to save me when you become successful."
"Uh...Is that so?"
Xu Chong touched his nose and felt a little relaxed.
"Moreover."
Dou Tianyuan winked at Xu Chong, "What if you can really kill Xie Changqing?"
