“How audacious!” Archduke Xi Kang suddenly roared furiously.
However, Gu Hai continued glowering at Xi Yong, watching Xi Yong’s expression fluctuate wildly.
“I…I am a Yuan Nation official! Gu Hai, how dare you?! How dare you?!” Xi Yong shouted indignantly.
Gu Hai’s eyes remained as cold as before, brimming with hate.
This was the hatred for his wife’s murder, an absolutely irreconcilable hatred.
“You want Xi Yong’s head? What does that have to do with the ritual array?” Imperial Emperor Xi Yu asked.
“There is a connection. I am here only because he killed my wife. I’ll use his head as a sacrifice to the ritual array, to avenge my wife,” Gu Hai said.
“Oh?” Imperial Emperor Xi Yu narrowed his eyes as he turned his head to look at Xi Yong.
“I did not! Your Reverence! I did not kill her! It was my guard! Gu Hai already killed that guard! He also killed Number Eight Dongfang!” Xi Yong immediately protested fearfully.
At this moment, even a fool could tell that Imperial Emperor Xi Yu cared greatly about everything in the Slaughter Nation’s imperial palace. Now, Gu Hai was pivotal to entering the Slaughter Nation’s imperial palace.
Gu Hai used this to set a condition, putting a price on Xi Yong’s life.
One was a person that Imperial Emperor Xi Yu did not care about, and the other was a treasure that he was determined to get. The difference in value was clear.
Nearly none of the officials in the plaza spoke.
If the person under discussion were Mister Mo, the officials would plead for mercy. After all, they could not damage the Yuan Nation’s prestige for Gu Hai. However, it was different for Xi Yong. Xi Yong had a bad reputation and did many evil deeds. Who knew how much harm he had inflicted on the Yuan Nation already? He had even bullied some of the officials here. When these officials heard what Gu Hai said, they felt happy.
“Your wife? Humph! Gu Hai, I don’t care who your wife is. Xi Yong already said that it was not him. Are you trying to frame my son again?” Archduke Xi Kang glared furiously.
“I say it is him, and that is it.” Gu Hai showed a serious expression.
After that, Gu Hai ignored Archduke Xi Kang and looked straight at Imperial Emperor Xi Yu.
“Imperial Emperor Xi Yu, this is my only condition,” Gu Hai said.
“Your Reverence, you can’t! There is no way Gu Hai can lay this ritual array!” Archduke Xi Kang cried out.
“Your Reverence, spare me!” Xi Yong exclaimed.
Imperial Emperor Xi Yu looked at Gu Hai, not immediately agreeing. Instead, he said indifferently, “We can discuss this again when your ritual array succeeds.”
Phew! Xi Yong let out his bated breath.
Xi Yong feared that the emperor would agree and immediately kill him.
However, Archduke Xi Kang’s expression changed, as this meant that Imperial Emperor Xi Yu was considering the condition.
It was one thing if Gu Hai failed. However, if Gu Hai succeeded…
“Many thanks, Imperial Emperor Xi Yu!” Gu Hai nodded as he inhaled deeply.
“You will lay the ritual array, and Mo Yike will accompany you throughout the process,” Imperial Emperor Xi Yu said.
“Thank you, Your Reverence!” Mo Yike said with a smile.
Gu Hai looked at Mo Yike and said, “Alright.”
“Many thanks, Mister Gu!” Mo Yike said gratefully.
“We only allow you eight days,” Imperial Emperor Xi Yu said seriously.
“As long as Major Metropolitan City fully cooperates, eight days are sufficient.” Gu Hai nodded.
Imperial Emperor Xi Yu nodded.
“Mo Yike, take our token and use all the resources in the entire city to coordinate with Gu Hai. All officials are to cooperate with Mo Yike with their full effort. Anyone who disobeys will be guilty of treason,” Imperial Emperor Xi Yu ordered.
“Your subject obeys!” all the civil and military officials immediately responded.
Gu Hai nodded again.
The officials provided a floating island in the palace for Gu Hai’s use.
Mo Yike quickly arranged for people to gather spirit stones. After all, thirty billion superior-grade spirit stones could form a mountain.
Gu Hai started surveying the entire city from the floating island to determine the locations for the spirit stones.
Imperial Emperor Xi Yu looked at Gu Hai, then at the Slaughter Nation’s imperial palace in the sky. After that, he flung out his sleeves and returned slowly to the Great Sigh Palace Hall.
Mister Dongfang stood on the plaza and stared at Gu Hai for a while. He withdrew into another large palace hall only after some time.
The Bat Ancestor showed a sullen expression. As he looked at Gu Hai, he revealed a faint sneer.
At the same time in Gu Hai’s manor:
Li Shenji goggled.
When Gu Hai left the manor earlier, Li Shenji thought that Gu Hai would go to the Divine Night Guards for help. Unexpectedly, he went straight to the Great Sigh Palace Hall. Based on his expression, it looked like Gu Hai had demanded Xi Yong’s head from Imperial Emperor Xi Yu.
Has Gu Hai gone mad? Isn’t this just seeking death?
However, Imperial Emperor Xi Yu did not blame Gu Hai at all. He even assigned the civil and military officials to Gu Hai to command.
What’s going on?
On another distant floating island:
Long Shenwu and Gongyang Sheng frowned as they watched this strange scene.
“Why did Gu Hai end up commanding the Yuan Nation officials?” Gongyang Sheng asked with a frown.
Long Shenwu remained silent for a while before venturing, “Maybe a coincidence?”
Gongyang Sheng: “…”
Right now, what depressed Gongyang Sheng the most was hearing about Gu Hai’s “coincidences.” Gu Hai discovered Gongyang Sheng’s location by coincidence. Gu Hai rescued him by coincidence. Gu Hai also found the entrance that Gongyang Sheng could not find by coincidence. Now, there was another coincidence?
Gu Hai had already comprehended the Thirty Line-Pair World Ritual Array while in the century lifespan immortality peach tree. Naturally, he was no stranger to it.
After taking a careful look at Major Metropolitan City, he started drawing on paper.
Mo Yike observed from the side, having made the necessary arrangements.
“Mister Gu, can I help you with anything?” Mo Yike asked politely.
“I will draw some diagrams first. Mister Mo, find some people with keen senses to take charge of burying the spirit stones. The positions cannot be wrong,” Gu Hai said gravely.
“Of course!” Mo Yike nodded.
“I will be drawing the diagrams soon. If you don’t understand anything, you can ask,” Gu Hai said.
Mo Yike’s eyes lit up. He immediately said gratefully, “Many thanks, Mister Gu!”
“However, I do have a favor that I would like Mister Mo’s help with.”
“Oh?”
“I want the enchanted treasures that Old Mister Guan Qi left behind. Your Yuan Imperial Dynasty is near the Thousand Islands Sea. I believe that the Yuan Nation has obtained many of the treasures in the Innate Puzzle World that Old Mister Guan Qi forged back then, right? I would like these treasures, as many as possible. May I trouble Mister Mo to arrange for people to collect them?” Gu Hai said gravely.
This slightly startled Mo Yike. Eventually, he nodded. “Mister Gu, rest assured. I will do my best. The four major clans all have some. However, since His Reverence ordered everyone to cooperate with you, it will not be difficult to obtain them.”
“Many thanks,” Gu Hai said seriously.
“I’m just going with the flow. Mister Gu is too polite.” Mo Yike smiled.
Gu Hai shook his head, not engaging in pleasantries. Right now, he was still grieving and did not want to speak much.
Mo Yike could also sense Gu Hai’s sorrow, so he did not say much.
Archduke Xi Kang’s residence:
“Father, what should we do? That Gu Hai wants to kill me!” Xi Yong said with fear and trepidation in his voice.
“Humph! Look at what you have done! Who told you to assassinate him?” Archduke Xi Kang retorted in a rage as he knocked a vase to the ground.
“I…I did not expect things to turn out this way. How about… How about we send some people again, to assassinate him while his guard is down?” Xi Yong suggested with some anticipation.
“You are crazy!” Archduke Xi Kang roared in rage.
“Even if you want to die, I don’t! Right now, His Reverence is monitoring him, and you dare to try and assassinate him? If you do that, not only will I fail to protect you, I will be implicated!” Archduke Xi Kang roared furiously.
“What should we do, then?” Xi Yong asked anxiously.
“Just flee. Flee as far as possible and wait for the storm to blow over,” Archduke Xi Kang replied anxiously.
Right after Archduke Xi Kang spoke, a eunuch came to Archduke Xi Kang’s residence. “An edict arrives!”
“Huh?” The two’s expressions changed as they rushed out to receive the edict.
“Archduke Xi Kang to receive the edict. His Reverence decrees that Xi Yong is stubborn and obstreperous, causing endless trouble. As his father, Archduke Xi Kang is guilty of negligence. Xi Yong is to remain in his residence under house arrest. He is to reflect on himself, and Archduke Xi Kang is responsible for monitoring him. Written by the emperor himself,” the old eunuch proclaimed solemnly.
The expressions of Archduke Xi Kang and Xi Yong changed immediately.
“Long live His Reverence! May His Reverence live for ten thousand years!” Archduke Xi Kang received the edict.
The old eunuch left immediately after delivering the edict. As Archduke Xi Kang held the edict, it felt like it weighed several tons.
“Father! Father! What does His Reverence mean by this?” Xi Yong asked in horror.
“You are not to go out. I’ll go visit Mister Dongfang,” Archduke Xi Kang said with a sullen expression.
Xi Yong passed a day, trembling in fear and trepidation, before Archduke Xi Kang finally returned.
“Father, what did he say?” Xi Yong asked worriedly.
“I asked Mister Dongfang. He said that Gu Hai could not possibly succeed and told us not to worry,” Archduke Xi Kang replied after taking a deep breath.
“Ah? Why?”
“Gu Hai was just boasting. How can Gu Hai possibly know the Thirty Line-Pair World Ritual Array? He was just spouting nonsense. Where would he learn it? Furthermore, Mister Dongfang said that it would take at least eight years, if not ten years, to comprehend the Thirty Line-Pair World Ritual Array. Gu Hai cannot possibly succeed. Mister Dongfang knows one of Guan Qi’s nine inheritors, and that person once described it to Mister Dongfang. Given Gu Hai’s age, it would be absolutely impossible for him to succeed,” Archduke Xi Kang said.
“Really? So, won’t Gu Hai be dead for sure when he fails seven days later?” Xi Yong’s eyes suddenly lit up.
Archduke Xi Kang nodded.
“Hahahaha! Excellent! Excellent! I won’t leave, then. I want to see how Gu Hai dies! Let’s see how he dies!” Xi Yong laughed with a ferocious expression.
Eight days passed in a flash.
Gu Hai spent two days drawing diagrams, two days teaching soldiers where to bury the thirty billion superior-grade spirit stones, two days sending the soldiers out to bury the spirit stones, and the last two days checking everything.
With the entire city helping him, the laying of the ritual array proceeded extremely quickly.
On the floating island:
More than one hundred crates and boxes stood before Gu Hai.
“Mister Gu, these are all the treasures that Old Mister Guan Qi forged in the past. However, these treasures all have different effects and are not powerful. Do you want to inspect them?” Mo Yike said with a smile.
“Many thanks, Mister Mo. I feel assured with Mister Mo’s work.” Gu Hai extended his hand and collected all the boxes and crates into his storage item, not even bothering to check them.
Mo Yike smiled and nodded.
“Mister Gu, His Reverence is already waiting at the Great Sigh Palace Hall’s entrance. It has been eight days. Can it be activated now?” Mo Yike asked with a smile.
Gu Hai turned his head and looked at Imperial Emperor Xi Yu and the various officials assembled at the Great Sigh Palace Hall’s entrance.
The people there were almost exactly the same as from eight days ago; only Xi Yong was missing.
Gu Hai frowned slightly.
“Xi Yong is at Archduke Xi Kang’s residence,” Mo Yike said.
Gu Hai turned his head to look and found Xi Yong and the one-armed guard staring at him from a floating island in Archduke Xi Kang’s residence.
“It has been eight days. Gu Hai, let’s see how you die from trying to fool His Reverence,” Xi Yong said with a ferocious expression.
Far away, Gu Hai narrowed his eyes slightly and nodded. “Alright, let’s begin!”
