Great Li Martial God

Fu Yu watched the black-dressed woman dissolve into shadow and slip away. The constable guards at the door noticed nothing unusual.

A small measure of relief settled over him, and he made up his mind right then to never use her again.

Then he turned and looked at the steward’s body on the floor, standing quietly in place as though carefully guarding the scene.

”Yinyue, everything I am doing is for you.”

Fu Yu’s handsome face was creased with a deep frown.

Before this, he had simply believed that Cang Yinyue had found a useless prince to lean on, and that one day she would come to her senses and realize that he was the right person to rely on.

But from the moment news came back that Li Musheng had led the Tianjin Guards to destroy Falling God Peak, he realized that the one who had been wrong was himself, wrong in a way that was staggering and complete.

Li Musheng, whether in terms of identity or martial cultivation, was undeniably a towering support that inspired awe in everyone. The entire capital could not produce a second person like him.

Cang Yinyue had never chosen wrong. In fact, her judgment was so sharp it was almost impossible to comprehend.

Even so, Fu Yu could not resign himself. Cang Yinyue held a place in his heart that no one else could take.Even though Li Musheng’s transformation from an apparently unremarkable prince living among common people into someone possessing terrifying strength that surpassed the four great sects had left him stunned, he still had not chosen to give up.

In his view, as long as something was not truly invincible, even a Martial God, as long as the person was human, there would be weaknesses. There would be a way to die.

And on top of that, Li Musheng had the particular identity of being the Great Li Eighth Prince. Once drawn into the great struggles of the world, his martial cultivation, however supreme, would ultimately count for little.

Fu Yu stood straight as a pine, his expression inscrutable, ”What does shaking the world matter? It will pass sooner or later. What comes next is where the real spectacle begins.”

...

At the Tianjin Guards headquarters.

Commissioner Yu Jin, who had been out gathering intelligence, came hurrying back to the small courtyard where Li Musheng was staying. He had been sweating the whole way back.

He had originally gone out to find the missing Cang Yinyue, but halfway through he had been hit with a piece of news like a bolt from the sky.

The Eighth Prince, who had supposedly been sitting quietly in the Tianjin Guards headquarters, had at some unknown point slipped off to the Second Prince’s residence, and while he was there had casually killed Second Prince Li Que.

By the time he heard about it, the other forces throughout the capital had almost certainly known far longer. He must have been among the very last people to find out.

”What on earth is His Highness trying to do?”

Yu Jin turned this over inwardly as he came to a stop in front of Li Musheng and bowed.

Killing Li Que had nothing to do with him personally, but the Tianjin Guards was now so closely bound to Li Musheng that the two were nearly inseparable.

Li Musheng’s every action demanded attention. Killing a prince was not a small matter. Even when the Commander returned, he would probably find himself sitting on pins and needles over this.

”Commissioner Yu, how is the investigation going?”

Li Musheng still had that same utterly unruffled manner, clearly not giving the killing of Li Que any thought whatsoever.

At the sight, Yu Jin inwardly sighed. He naturally was not going to presume above his station and ask the man about killing the Second Prince.

He could only think that it was no wonder someone who had single-handedly destroyed Falling God Peak was so unconstrained, even killing a prince and not caring in the slightest.

In the eyes of someone like that, there were probably very few things left that could command much attention.

Though this very likely meant that the Tianjin Guards would be the ones who had to care about everything Li Musheng could not be bothered to care about.

”Your Highness, your subordinate has mobilized a great many Tianjin Guards personnel to search for Miss Cang’s whereabouts, but unfortunately we have still been unable to find her.”

Yu Jin suppressed the thoughts running through his head and replied.

He did not mention Li Que’s matter from first word to last, treating it as something he had never heard about.

At that, however, Li Musheng furrowed his brow and studied Yu Jin with some suspicion, ”Commissioner Yu, this makes me wonder about the Tianjin Guards’s competence.”

At those words, Yu Jin was immediately alarmed, and went straight to his knees, hurrying to say, ”Please do not be displeased, Your Highness. Though your subordinate has not found Miss Cang, I have found some leads pointing to where she was last seen.”

”If Your Highness will give your subordinate a little more time, news of her should come quickly.”

Li Musheng waved a hand, ”Forget it. Finding Miss Cang is important. I will look for her myself.”

He had no particular intention of reproaching Yu Jin. The city of Shangyang was simply enormous, and time was short. Not having results yet was entirely expected.

”Tell me what leads you have found. I will go myself.”

Li Musheng stood up and addressed Yu Jin, who was kneeling on the ground.

At those words, Yu Jin raised his head and saw that Li Musheng did not appear to be angry.

Nor did it seem as though he was about to kill Yu Jin casually, as he had done with Second Prince Li Que. He let out a long and deeply relieved breath, ”Your Highness, according to what our people have found, Miss Cang was last seen near the Champion Marquis’s residence in the city. After that, her trail goes completely cold.”

”The Champion Marquis’s residence?”

Before Li Musheng could speak, Li Yuanling’s brow immediately furrowed.

She was naturally familiar with the Champion Marquis’s residence. It was the family of Li Musheng’s mother, Consort Jing.

Once an enormously distinguished family, the title of Champion Marquis alone spoke to the extraordinary military achievements they had once accumulated and the depth of imperial favor they had received.

But unfortunately, things were very different now. The once illustrious Champion Marquis’s household had long since fallen into decline, unnoticed by anyone in the capital.

A look of puzzlement appeared in Li Musheng’s eyes as well. He had naturally heard Li Yuanling speak of the Champion Marquis’s household before.

He was recalling that they were apparently his relatives on his mother’s side. But going by his earlier thinking, if Cang Yinyue had gone to investigate the third Tianqi Secret Treasury key, she should have been following a thread connected to the Grand Princess. The current lead, however, seemed to have no obvious connection to the Princess at all.

Even so, Li Musheng did not dwell on it.

Whatever connection might or might not exist, in his view Cang Yinyue was reliable enough. Whatever had happened, finding her first was the priority.

With that in mind, Li Musheng waved a hand, ”Prepare the carriage. I am going to the Champion Marquis’s residence.”

At those words, Yu Jin did not dare ask anything further. He immediately acknowledged the instruction and withdrew.

Li Musheng then glanced at Li Yuanling, ”Adopted sister, you know the Champion Marquis’s household better than I do. Come along.”

Li Yuanling gave a nod. Then Shen Anran and the big black cat, which had been lying on the ground nearby, both stood up.

One person and one cat both fell into step behind Li Musheng as he walked toward the exit of the Tianjin Guards headquarters.

Seeing this, Li Yuanling’s gaze lingered briefly on Shen Anran, who was every bit as lovely as she was graceful.

The cat being clingy was one thing, but she noticed this young woman seemed no less so.

Wherever Li Musheng went, Shen Anran followed. Those eyes of hers seemed to hold nothing but this one elder brother of hers, like a small tail that never fell behind.

...

Right as Li Musheng’s group left the Tianjin Guards headquarters in the carriage, the hidden observers lurking in the shadows were thrown into motion once again.

Earlier, when Li Musheng left the Tianjin Guards headquarters, they had no idea where he was headed.

And then the news had come back, and they learned he had gone to kill the Second Prince.

Now Li Musheng had barely returned before he was going out again.

Every last one of those covertly watching immediately felt their hearts leap into their throats.

None of them had any idea where this Eighth Prince was heading next, or which prince, or what other important figure, he intended to kill.

”Quick, quick! Send word immediately! The Eighth Prince has left the compound again!”

”Stay on the carriage. But do not get too close! If we are spotted, we are both finished!”

...

The hidden observers around the Tianjin Guards headquarters erupted into motion once more, all of them slipping quietly and urgently into action. This time, however, they were noticeably more careful than before.

The main reason was Li Musheng’s record. He had come back to the capital and killed someone, and moreover that someone had been a prince. Every last one of them was now even more afraid of this Eighth Prince than they had been before.

And when word spread through the various capital factions that Li Musheng had gone out again, it caused an even greater uproar.

Quite a few people began to fear for themselves, wondering if Li Musheng was coming for them this time, even though they had no dealings with him. The worry gripped them regardless.

But the ones most wracked with anxiety were the remaining princes of Great Li.

At that point in the capital, the Second Prince Li Que and Third Prince Li Zhu were dead. The Seventh Prince Li Zhi was under lock and key in the imperial dungeon.

Beyond Li Musheng himself, only four princes remained.

By any ordinary logic, once those four were removed, the Great Li throne would be Li Musheng’s without question, with no one left to contest it.

And so, in a development that very nearly went unnoticed, several carriages slipped quietly out of various princes’ residences and raced directly for the Great Li imperial palace.

At the same time, a carriage with wheels rolling fast made its way toward the less trafficked outer edges of Shangyang City, and eventually came to a slow stop before an old residence that saw very little foot traffic.

”Originally the imperial-gifted Champion Marquis’s estate stood next to the central imperial city. But after your Champion Marquis uncle fell from favor, the Huo family voluntarily relinquished that gifted estate and moved back here to the Huo family’s old home.”

Li Yuanling was the first to step down from the carriage, and looked at the desolate old residence with peeling wall plaster and worn gates, letting out a quiet sigh.

Then Li Musheng, Shen Anran, and the big black cat stepped down as well.

The big black cat treaded across the soft layer of fallen leaves piled up before the residence, its green eyes sweeping around. When it saw the clearly dilapidated state of the building before it, its eyes showed a faint look of disdain, clearly not very impressed.

As expected, it still preferred shiny gold and grand, clean residences.

At that, Li Musheng glanced at the big black cat, reached out and patted its head, and said, ”Materialistic cat.”

At those words, the big black cat startled at once, and immediately composed its expression.

Then it voluntarily walked toward the worn old residence, jumped up and crouched on top of the surrounding wall, making a show of genuinely liking the crumbling place just fine.

Li Musheng, however, could not be bothered to look at it, and led Shen Anran and Li Yuanling directly toward the tightly shut gate.

Above the gate hung a clean plaque bearing the four bold, iron-brush characters of ”Champion Marquis’s Residence.” The Huo family had moved out of the imperial-gifted estate, but this title symbolizing the family’s honor had been retained.

When they reached the gate, Shen Anran moved to knock on her own initiative. But at that moment, a startled child’s cry rang out from within the wall.

”Wow, such a huge black cat...”

”It looks so impressive!”

At those words, the big black cat crouching on the wall turned its head to look inside, then held its head a little higher and gave its tail a gentle sway.

The residence might be a bit run down, but these two children at least had good taste.

With a creak, the Huo family’s gate was opened from within, and an old stooped servant peered out.

He looked over Li Musheng’s group of three, and then his gaze settled on Li Yuanling, and he immediately bowed in greeting, ”Why, it is Her Highness the Princess! This old servant pays his respects to Your Highness.”

At that, Li Yuanling immediately reached out and helped him up, ”Old Zhang, there is no need for formalities.”

”Your Highness has not come to visit in quite some time. Both the young lady and young master have been missing you greatly.”

Old Zhang straightened slightly, a smile spreading across his wrinkled face, clearly delighted to see Li Yuanling.

Then his gaze moved to Li Musheng and Shen Anran, and he asked, ”And these two are?”

At those words, Li Yuanling turned and glanced at Li Musheng, but Li Musheng shook his head at her slightly.

Seeing this, Li Yuanling pressed her lips together and swallowed the introduction she had been about to give, simply saying, ”These are two close friends of mine. We happened to be passing through today and thought to stop in for a visit.”

Old Zhang gave a quiet nod, then immediately said, ”Your Highness and your two honored guests, please come in. This old servant will take you to see the Master.”

With that, Old Zhang bowed and invited Li Yuanling’s group of three inside, then closed the gate behind them and began shuffling ahead to lead the way.

”Old Zhang, you should rest. I know this household well enough to find my uncle myself.”

Li Yuanling waved her hand, but Old Zhang shook his head, ”That would not do at all. This old servant cannot forget what is proper.”

At that moment two young children came running over from nearby. A little girl in a pink dress and a little boy in green clothing.

Both of them ran toward Li Yuanling, calling out as they went, ”Your Highness the Princess!”

”Your Highness the Princess!”

Li Yuanling broke into a smile at the sight of the two children, reaching out as they threw themselves into her arms.

”Little Yi, little Qing, you have both grown taller again.”

As she said this, Li Yuanling turned to look at Li Musheng and explained, ”These are Third Uncle’s youngest granddaughter and youngest grandson. Second Uncle also has a granddaughter, but she is not here right now.”

At those words, Li Musheng gave a small nod.

Though the Huo family was his mother’s family, he genuinely had no familiarity with any of these people.

As for these blood relatives of his, he had no particular desire to reach out. After all, there was simply no emotional foundation between them.

In his view, letting things develop naturally and not disturbing one another was probably the best approach for everyone involved.