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Meanwhile, Lu Chen had arrived at the study.

At this moment, Liang Zong and Qin Yushan were standing at the entrance to the study. Upon seeing Lu Chen, the two of them bowed and said in unison, "We pay respects to Your Highness!"

Lu Chen continued walking into the study, saying as he moved, "Dispense with the formalities, come in and speak, what's the matter?"

The two of them followed him into the study.

Once inside, Liang Zong handed an envelope to Lu Chen and began, "An omen has appeared in the Capital city, and it is very similar to the one that appeared at the North Prince Mansion before. It is also a beam of golden light piercing the sky, followed by clouds gathering densely, and thunder and lightning roaring."

Hearing Liang Zong's words, Lu Chen's eyebrows instantly furrowed. No wonder the two of them were in such a hurry; such a thing had actually occurred in the Capital city.

Lu Chen quickly opened the envelope and carefully read the intelligence mentioned within the letter.

Qin Yushan continued, "Recently, there has been a rumor in the Capital city that a Celestial Being has emerged within the royal family. However, there is another rumor claiming that Zhuge Zhongguang is not a true Celestial Being but a Pseudo Celestial, far from reaching the true Heavenly Human Realm."

Listening to Qin Yushan and reviewing the intelligence in his hands, Lu Chen fell into deep thought.

Unexpectedly, in such a short amount of time, someone within the Imperial Palace had touched upon the threshold of the Heavenly Human Realm.

It was unknown who caused the omen, or if that person had truly broken through to the Heavenly Human Realm, or were they, like Zhuge Zhongguang, only one foot into the realm?

If the rumors among the common folk were to be believed, the person in the palace who caused the omen had probably also only stepped one foot into the Heavenly Human Realm. This rumor likely came from within the Imperial Palace itself.

If they knew that Zhuge Zhongguang had not broken through into the Celestial Realm, then it indicated the possibility that person was in a similar situation as Zhuge Zhongguang, not having truly united with the Dao.

Who could it be?

Could it be the State Preceptor, Situ Ce, or his own imperial father?

His father had the Sacred Artifact from the Mysterious Moon Palace, making him the most likely candidate to have broken through to the Celestial Realm.

Seeing Lu Chen remain silent, Liang Zong added, "The elite troops that the Imperial Court had initially dispatched to pacify the south have already been moved to the Qi Country border and are about to enter Qi Country. The number is roughly four hundred thousand."

"However, though the Imperial Court has been frequently moving troops, His Majesty has not been holding court for a long time. Rumors say that His Majesty has fallen seriously ill, teetering on the edge of death. Now, the power struggles among the princes in the Capital city are growing more intense, and their conflicts have come to the surface.

Yet, His Majesty has not intervened at all, making it seem as if something has indeed happened to him."

Hearing Liang Zong's words, Lu Chen, who had been in deep thought, couldn't help but chuckle before replying, "My imperial father is not so easily troubled."

Lu Chen did not believe for a second that the Sum Emperor was on the brink of death; he was a Grandmaster, not so easily felled.

His father must be plotting something again.

Since rumors had spread about Zhuge Zhongguang not being of the Celestial Realm, then it was very likely that the Sum Emperor had become aware of Zhuge's situation. Knowing this, the Emperor would not remain inactive.

So, what would the Sum Emperor do next?

Would he order the Imperial Army to attack the North Country, or would he send a Grandmaster first to assassinate Zhuge Zhongguang?

However, thinking back, the Emperor pretending to be ill did leave Lu Chen somewhat puzzled, unsure of what the Emperor was up to.

Could it be that he thought Lu Chen would believe him to be dying soon and then capitalize on this moment to rebel?

Regaining his composure, Lu Chen said to Liang Zong and Qin Yushan, "Keep the spies focused on the Capital city and the court's movements. Notify me immediately if there is any news."

Liang Zong and Qin Yushan said in unison, "As you command, Your Highness!"

Just then, a servant at the door said, "Your Highness, Princess Wu seeks an audience."

Lu Chen responded, "Let her wait for me in the pavilion of the outer court. I will be there shortly."

As he finished speaking, Lu Chen added to Liang Zong and Qin Yushan, "You may go attend to your duties."

"We take our leave," the two said, and turned to leave the study.

Lu Chen did not head immediately to the pavilion in the outer court. He looked over the intelligence in his hands, pondered for a while longer, and ultimately decided to find Zhuge Zhongguang for a discussion after meeting with Wu Junwan, to see what Zhuge had in mind.

With this thought, Lu Chen promptly went to the outer court.

Dressed in a violet gown, Wu Junwan was already seated in the pavilion, savoring the Prince's Mansion's Dragon and Phoenix Tea. Upon seeing Lu Chen, she smiled slightly and then said, "I did not expect the North Prince Mansion to have such unique tea. I wonder if the North Prince Mansion sells this kind of tea?"

At this moment, Lu Chen glanced at the maid Xiao Rou, who was serving tea to Wu Junwan, and instantly understood what was happening. This must be Mu Zixuan's doing.

Lu Chen was not upset. As his queen, Mu Zixuan probably realized that he was coveting Princess Wu's body.

Moreover, by getting Wu Junwan to take a liking to him—even though there was no real marital relationship between them—he could still gain some benefits through Wu Junwan, so offering her Dragon and Phoenix Tea was not an issue.

Coming back to his senses, Lu Chen said with a smile, "If the Princess likes the tea, I will have someone send a pound of it to you later."

Wu Junwan replied, "How could that be proper? Your tea is obviously no ordinary tea, and as Imperial Highness, how could I drink your tea for free?"