This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

Chapter 126 The Heart of a Mother Goddess Should Not Be Fulfilled

"Holy crap, can it be that weird?"

Xiao Xingchen awkwardly scratched his head, inwardly lamenting that he had caused this whole mess.

Ruoxue glared at him fiercely, her eyes seeming to say, "You're such a troublemaker!"

But Xiao Chun hadn't finished speaking when

"This matter has alarmed the Emperor, and the Dragon-Patterned Imperial Guards have appeared like tigers descending the mountain, driving away the people near the Immortal Pavilion."

The imperial court erupted in uproar, everyone stunned and speechless, submitting petitions demanding that Emperor Wu thoroughly investigate the Immortal Pavilion.

"Huh? What does this mean? It's just a building collapsing, is it really necessary to make such a fuss?"

Ruoxue looked up, her face full of confusion.

"As for, as for, the Immortal Pavilion collapsed, and then a chilling scene was revealed,"

"Terrifying? What horrifying scene? What kind of terrifying thing could be inside a building?"

Xiao Xingchen, unable to contain her curiosity, interjected, asking a question she simply couldn't understand. Xiao Chun took a deep breath, as if gathering her courage, before slowly speaking.

"I only heard this secondhand. Some people witnessed it firsthand. The moment the Immortal Pavilion collapsed, what appeared before their eyes was not a pile of ruins, but a ground covered with white bones. On the walls of the Immortal Pavilion, there were many corpses hanging. These corpses were like cured meat hanging on a rack. There were men and women, old and young, all of them dried into mummies."

"Moreover, below the Immortal Pavilion, there is a towering mountain of bones. It seems that some kind of mysterious ritual was taking place on that mountain, but unfortunately, the earth dragon turned over, and as a result, Pandora's box was suddenly opened, and everything was exposed. The people of Yong'an, who were already terrified by the earth dragon, became even more frightened after witnessing this scene. Fear spread rapidly like a plague, and they all fled in all directions until the Dragon Pattern Imperial Guards appeared like divine soldiers from the sky and completely sealed off the Immortal Pavilion."

Ruoxue's eyes were filled with disbelief. The Immortal Pavilion was a place that only royal guests could enter. Others might not know anything about the people inside, but she had heard Consort Xian mention that Emperor Wu had recruited a group of peerless masters in his early years in order to consolidate his imperial power.

This group of people were all vicious and ruthless; in the parlance of the time, this was a case of fighting poison with poison.

Once the imperial power was consolidated, these people could no longer show their faces in public, so the Shenxianlou (Immortal Pavilion) came into being, where these heinous criminals were enshrined.

Some suggested that these villains be exterminated, but Emperor Wu coveted this power and thus kept it until now.

Consort Xian once said that it would be more fitting to call it the Villain's Tower than the Tower of Immortals.

Often, Huayulou's intelligence would detour around that area, simply because the people there were all ruthless characters who were not to be trifled with.

Little did anyone expect that Xiao Xingchen's outburst would cause such a huge uproar. Dealing with those villains would be no easy task.

"Good heavens, Yong'an City is truly a den of iniquity. So, what exactly is Emperor Wu planning now?"

Seeing Ruoxue remain silent, Xiao Xingchen took over the conversation without hesitation.

"I don't know. Things happened so suddenly that everyone was caught off guard. The Immortal Pavilion is now a forbidden area. The Dragon Pattern Imperial Guards are only responsible for guarding it. As for those people from the Immortal Pavilion, they seem to have something to rely on and show no signs of fleeing."

"They're sure Emperor Wu won't dare do anything to them. It seems these people are no pushovers."

Xiao Xingchen had roughly figured out the ins and outs of this matter, but he had some doubts. In his previous life, when Xiao Jianren was alive, none of what was happening now had ever happened. The course of history was quietly changing. Was it because of his sudden appearance?

"dong dong dong,"

The knocking abruptly interrupted his thoughts. Xiao Chun went to the door, where a note was handed to him. After reading it, Xiao Chun's face instantly darkened, and an uncontrollable surge of anger welled up within him.

"Breaking news: Someone has uncovered the ritual beneath the Immortal Pavilion. It is an evil ritual called the Evil Ghost Sacrifice, which requires 9,999 human heads as sacrifices to summon evil ghosts to the mortal world. In other words, the Immortal Pavilion has unknowingly slaughtered 10,000 people in Yong'an."

"what?"

Ruoxue was horrified and stood up abruptly.

"Don't panic. Even if ten thousand people die, it has nothing to do with you. That's something for Emperor Wu to worry about."

Xiao Xingchen quickly tried to comfort her. To him, the death toll was just a cold number, devoid of any feeling. That was because he didn't consider himself a part of this world. From an outsider's perspective, he naturally didn't see anything wrong with it. But if he were there in person, witnessing ten thousand of his own compatriots being slaughtered, he could deeply understand the resentment in Ruoxue's heart at that moment.

"Damn it, these people deserve to die!"

Ruoxue's face was as cold as frost in the dead of winter, radiating a chilling light. Her killing intent surged like a flood bursting its banks. She asked again, "Do you know what level those people are at?"

Xiao Chun shook her head vigorously, as if it were a rattle-drum, clearly indicating that this was beyond her comprehension.

"Investigate! Thoroughly investigate those people's background. I want to wipe them out completely..."

"Wait, calm down. Why are you so agitated? What does this have to do with you?"

Xiao Xingchen immediately stood up to stop them, as if struck by lightning. They were barely able to protect themselves; why should they play the saintly role of saving the world?

"Xiao Xingchen, are you heartless? Ten thousand lives were brutally slaughtered. How can you expect me to remain indifferent to such a tragedy?"

Ruoxue suddenly turned her head, her sharp gaze fixed on Xiao Xingchen, leaving him somewhat helpless.

"This has nothing to do with you. We haven't even solved our own problems yet, so why should you stand up for justice for strangers? Emperor Wu will handle this matter. The world is so vast that we can't possibly take care of every pitiful person. Besides, in that sense, I'm even more miserable than those people, aren't I?"

These words were impeccable. If it weren't for the anthill incident today, Ruoxue might not have felt anything, but since hearing Elder Xin's words...

The man before them seemed truly unfortunate. The people of the anthill were miserable enough, weren't they? But the old man said that Xiao Xingchen was even more pitiful than them.

"Don't you think so? Shouldn't you have some pity on me first? After all, I still have a glimmer of hope. Why would you give up the chance to save me for the sake of some people who have already died?"

Seeing that Ruoxue was wavering, he pressed his advantage, continuing to fan the flames, secretly pleased with his words. One should never have such an excessive, overly compassionate heart.

Then he looked at Xiaochun and continued speaking.

"Alright, Xiao Chun, you can step back now. Keep a close eye on the reactions from all sides. Such an earth-shattering event is bound to cause public resentment to boil over. We must keep a close eye on Emperor Wu's attitude and the direction of the court. Oh, and also investigate that so-called evil spirit sacrifice. See what those people are up to."

"These people are making such a big fuss, they must have something big on their mind. Although we have no intention of causing trouble, we must be clear about their actions in order to prevent them from getting entangled with us and to prepare for the future."

"Okay, I'll make arrangements right away."

Xiao Chun nodded in agreement. She had no doubts about Xiao Xingchen, this man who had suddenly appeared, because she knew what she should ask and what she shouldn't ask.

Being able to reach the eighth floor signifies trust in itself.

Hearing his words, Ruoxue did not continue to get angry, but slowly sat back down.

"In your opinion, how will this matter ultimately end?"

"Whatever the outcome, it's none of our business. What I care about now is how to save myself. As for the demon sacrifice, we only need to pay a little attention to it; there's no need to worry about it. The one who really needs to worry is that one."

Xiao Xingchen spoke casually, and indeed acted accordingly, keeping to himself what didn't concern him.

However, even if he doesn't go looking for trouble, he can't guarantee that trouble won't come knocking on his door on its own, especially this evil spirit ritual. He couldn't figure it out for a moment, but it seemed familiar. When he came to his senses, he couldn't help but curse inwardly.