Chapter 62: The Life and Death of the Duke
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Rumble——
Su Yu was already dead inside, this battle could not hurt him. Each stroke of his was merciless and murderous.
"Diabolic Sword!"
"Purple Star Thunderbolt!"
In terms of ability, Fang Yun was obviously superior to Su Yu.
But, Su Yu was not afraid of death. Fang Yun was unable to use fear and intimidation to his advantage as a result, and it greatly impacted his ability to defeat Su Yu quickly and efficiently.
The expression on the Fiery Minister's face was grave. To think that an inspector would have such trouble with a candidate!
He slowly rose to his feet and a horrifying aura surrounded him.
The twelve inspectors' expression changed.
The Fiery Minister was going to take care of Su Yu himself?
Level Eight of the Martial Paths—the Minister lived a terrifying and brutal existence.
A powerful aura crashed in like waves, causing Su Yu's blood to curdle despite already being engaged in combat.
A mere release of his aura brought about such terrifying result—were he to truly strike Su Yu… There would be no possible defense.
Just before the Fiery Minister prepared to strike, a light chuckle spread through the arena.
Swoosh——
The figure of a young man strode in from the entrance of the arena.
He was dressed in a white robe, simple and clean.
He had thin eyebrows and charismatic, starlike eyes. His overall appearance was gentle and handsome, with a muscular frame. At that moment, he had a slight smile as he surveyed his surroundings.
The grave expression of the Fiery Minister changed after he noticed the young man.
Step, step, step——
The all-powerful Fiery Minister immediately stood up, visibly nervous. He fearfully walked towards the young man and kneeled in respect. "I, the Fiery Minister, welcome Holy Disciple Qiu!"
The twelve inspectors' expressions changed drastically. Even Fang Yun shuddered—his eyes displayed a mixture of fear and respect.
Fang Yun shoved Su Yu back as he frantically ran over to the other twelve inspectors in order to pay his respects.
Everyone—Minister and inspectors included—were in deep shock, not daring to breathe.
Everyone in the arena was dead silent.
The Fiery Minister, the leader of the Nine Great Ministers, as well as the thirteen inspectors who rule over the empire's martial arts training institutes, were paying their respects to a youth?
Furthermore, the youth acted as if this was natural; his expression was calm as he stood in front of them with his hands behind his back.
Surveying the surroundings, he glanced over to the bloodied heads of the First Prince and the Duke of Xianyu. He then raised his eyebrows and asked, "Speak. What is this all about?"
This was the Holy Meet—had it ever been so unorderly?!
Things had come to the point that an inspector was having a battle with a youth in the arena.
The eyes of the Fiery Minister trembled slightly and a shred of fear welled up within him. He chose his words carefully, "To reply Holy Disciple Qiu, There was a murderer in the meet, and he severely injured the other contestants as well as killed a member of the royal family. We are… We are in the midst of suppressing him."
"Is that the case?" The youth—surname, Qiu—shifted his gaze to the thirteen inspectors.
Of the thirteen inspectors, twelve were jittery and did not dare answer.
The Fiery Minister was in charge of the inspectors—their life and death depended on his whims. How could they expose his deeds? If the Fiery Minister was not appropriately punished they would be in a lot of trouble.
"In reply to Holy Disciple Qiu, this is exactly the case! This person is cruel and merciless. I am in the midst of capturing him." Fang Yun quickly supplied.
That was indeed the case!
The youth Qiu looked coldly at Su Yu, then lifted his finger in preparation to end Su Yu's life.
Swoosh——
At this moment, a slender figure flew down in front of Su Yu.
She was a petite and beautiful as a fairy. Within her lovely eyes was a boiling anger
"Sir, please do not believe the words of those two! The Fiery Minister intended to allow his disciple to commit murder, completely disregarding the rules of the Holy Meet. Du Yuntian was attempting to kill Su Yu in front of the audience—but he could not match up to Su Yu's skill, and was wounded.
"The Fiery Minister became furious and continuously picked on Su Yu. As for the First Prince, their dispute was the result of a personal grudge between him and Su Yu." Xia Jingyu mustered up her courage—she stood up for Su Yu when everyone else was afraid; Xia Jingyu spoke the truth.
The Fiery Minister was frantic. He looked back in anger, "Do not spout nonsense…"
"So you are Su Yu." The youth Qiu dropped his finger and interrupted the Fiery Minister as if suddenly coming to a realization.
Hm… Both the Fiery Minister and Fang Yun were surprised. Holy Disciple Qiu knew of Su Yu's existence?
"Come here." Holy Disciple Qiu motioned with his hands. Three figures strode in from the entrance of the arena.
It was the grandmaster, Bai Qixiong, and Guard Chen!
A murderous glare flashed in Su Yu's eyes. "Bai Qixiong! Guard Chen! It's you guys!"
"Indeed." Holy Disciple Qiu stroked his chin—everything was clear to him now.
Glancing over at Su Yu, Holy Disciple Qiu gently nodded his head. "Yes, since the First prince sent someone to assassinate you, he should, logically, be executed. You did a great job killing him—in fact, you saved me the trouble of doing it myself."
The entire arena exploded in commotion at his words.
The First Prince had sent someone to assassinate a Holy Seal bearer? Did the First Prince not learn from the former monarch's mistakes? His death was justified after committing such a crime! History had grown too far from the present—people had forgotten about the punishments at the hands at the Sanctuary.
"As for the two of you, Bai Qixiong and Guard Chen, I will let Su Yu decide your fate. Your life and death depend on his whims." Holy Disciple Qiu calmly glanced past Bai Qixiong and Guard Chen.
"As for you, grandmaster—you were not only aware of the First Prince's scheme, but you also aided him in his crime. Let your death be a lesson to all." Qiu flicked his fingers and a stream of terrifying vital energy pierced the air.
Ah——
The grandmaster, a Level Seven Peak, did not even have the chance to hide. The grandmaster dropped dead where he stood.
Fear seeped into the hearts of many. Holy Disciple Qiu had killed with the intent to teach a lesson, and he had achieved in spreading a potent warning to all.
The assassination of a Holy Seal bearer had not happened in many years—many had forgotten the lessons of the past, and they needed to be reminded through blood.
Holy Disciple Qiu swept his gaze to Du Yuntian, his killing intent apparent, "Disregarding the restrictions, killing people in front of others in the arena—you deserve death too!"
Crash——
A finger of vital energy ended Du Yuntian's life.
"Even though Su Yu committed the offense of severely wounding his opponent, it was Du Yuntian who struck first, and thus I shall not pursue the matter." Qiu was impartial.
Finally, he shot his gaze to the Fiery Minister and Fang Yun. "Fiery Minister, the Holy King let you govern the affairs of the Fenglin Empire—he put his trust in you. But, you manipulated the masses and hid facts for personal gain. You completely disregarded the instructions of the Holy King, disrupted the Holy Meet, and impacted the reputation of the Sanctuary. Do you plead guilty?"
The Fiery Minister's body quivered, his heart felt as if it was dropped into a frozen chamber. A hatred for Xia Jingyu welled in his heart.
If not for her, there would be no one in the Fenglin empire who would dare to stand up to him—he would have been able to regain control of this situation.
"Hmph! Unrepentant!" Holy Disciple Qiu was incredibly perceptive—he detected the hatred in the Fiery Minister's heart in a matter of seconds.
"The Sanctuary does not need a failure like you!" Qiu's gaze was sharp and his voice was stern, "I, with the title Holy Disciple, announce that, from this day onwards, you will be relieved of your duties as Minister of the Sanctuary and be expelled from the Sanctuary.
"Furthermore, your actions were improper and evil. I will destroy your cultivation level so you cannot harm people." The youth of surname Qiu was merciless and left no time for the fiery Minister to react. He immediately struck with a strong vital energy, severing the Fiery Minister's internal energy source.
Ah ——
The Fiery Minister let out a howl of pain. His internal blood energy channel was severed—his vital energy was no longer able to circulate. He could no longer use any abilities and was destined to become an ordinary old man.
"As for you!" Qiu shot a cold gaze to Fang Yun, "You abused your influence and fabricated lies in an attempt to deceive the Sanctuary. You should be executed."
"Ah! No!" Fang Yun was immensely regretful.
But, in front of the Level Nine of Qiu Changjian, he could not even fight back. Fang Yun was killed on the spot with a mere finger.
The arena gasped.
Who exactly was this Holy Disciple Qiu?
He was merciless and decisive. Since he had appeared he had already killed three people and destroyed the cultivation level of the Fiery Minister.
It was truly gruesome—there had never been a scene so harsh before in history.
But, undoubtedly, the reputation of the Sanctuary had raised in the hearts of many once again. There was still justice in the Sanctuary. People like the Fiery Minister and Fang Yun were but black sheep.
After he executed Fang Yun, Holy Disciple Qiu scanned the ten people in the preparation area...Or, rather, the eight left—Su Yu had been stripped of his right to participate and Du Yuntian had been killed, and thus neither were considered Holy Talents.
"You people are this generation of the Holy Talents? Okay, follow me, accept the test." Holy Disciple Qiu calmly ordered the group, bringing them into a secret chamber.
Xia Jingyu was included among them.The group hurried over.
"Su Yu…" Walking past Su Yu, Xia Jingyu paused.
She gently bit her lip. Su Yu had lost his right to enter the Sanctuary—it was difficult for her to see him in the future.
After the massacre, Su Yu gradually slipped out of his muderious haze. The blood red color in his eyes receded like the tide.
As he looked at Xia Jingyu's face, a warmth overcame him. In the face of crisis, only Xia Jingyu had come forward to defend him.
"'I'm fine. Make sure to train hard once you entered the Sanctuary." Su Yu knew that this would perhaps be the final meeting between Xia Jingyu and himself.
One would become a Holy Talent while the other would wander the mortal world—the gap between them would get larger and larger.
Xia Jingyu could not bear to part with Su Yu. She did not blink as she gazed at Su Yu.
If Su Yu had told her to stay, she would not have refused.
"Go." Su Yu smiled, his heart in agony.
Are you not asking me to stay? Xia Jingyu's eyes dulled, her heart felt empty.
At that moment, the people in the front hurried her along. She took a long look at Su Yu, then turned to leave.
With her leaving, Su Yu felt a sudden loneliness. He was all alone once again.
The Duke was dead. Xianer had gone to a faraway place. His only friend, Xia Jingyu, was entering the Sanctuary to further her training.
He was the only one left, entirely alone.
With that realization, Su yu lowered his body and searched for a container to take the duke's head away in.
However, a pair of legs entered his field of vision.
He lifted his head. It was the Third Prince; his eyes were full of respect, and he wore a mysterious smile.
Lin Xiao was standing by his side, his eyes were also full of respect. He laughed, "Su Yu, let me give you a present."
Lin Xiao clapped his hands and at the entrance, under the support of two servants, a middle-aged man with a slender physique and weakened expression made his way into the arena.
Su Yu only caught a glimpse but felt as though he was shocked by lightning. He froze where he stood.
"Father?!"
Su Yu rubbed his eyes in disbelief. It was the Duke of Xianyu, albeit weakened and haggard. How had Su Yu mistaken him for another?!
Whose head was at his feet?!
Lin Xiao grimaced as he picked up the head and carefully peeled off a layer of skin to reveal the face of a stranger.
"He was a person the Third Prince had saved in the past, adept in the art of disguise. He volunteered to be sacrificed for the Third Prince. Originally, the plan was for him to die for the Third Prince when he was captured. The guards and warden of the jail are loyal to Third Prince and thus it would not be difficult for us to make the switch when necessary.
"When it became clear that your victory was uncertain, the Third Prince decided to transfer the plan to save his own life to the Duke of Xianyu. He was deeply moved by your act of gratitude and was willing to give up his wild card. You should thank him—without him, the Duke of Xianyu would truly be dead."