Martial Cultivator

The Divine Capital was not peaceful that night. The Left Guard made a big show of searching the entire city, naturally stirring up much dissatisfaction. However, for some reason, those dissatisfied big shots remained silent. No one was willing to step forward and clash with the Left Guard at this moment.

Inside the Right Guard's office, Commander Ye Dayuan sat in the main hall. There was only one trusted subordinate beside him, Deputy Commander Yao Dao.

Yao Dao was thinking about the continuous stream of reports entering the hall and said rather uneasily, "Your Excellency, is Song Lian going mad?"

Though the Left Guard was responsible for defending the Divine Capital, this large-scale operation all over the city tonight was bound to cause much talk.

Ye Dayuan said with a cold sneer, "That's exactly what I want - to drive him mad. Once tonight is over, Your Father will submit a memorial to impeach him. Now that the Lord Warden Commander isn't in the Divine Capital and isn't protecting him, His Majesty won't have any reason to turn a blind eye."

Yao Dao nodded, somewhat excited as he said, "If Song Lian is removed from his post, Your Excellency, you'd be the one closest to the position of Lord Warden Commander in the warden faction. It probably won't be long before that vacant seat becomes yours."

Ye Dayuan was more experienced than Yao Dao, shaking his head as he said, "As for whether or not I can take that position, the most important thing is that I need to step into that realm first. Without cultivation realm, even if His Majesty promotes me, I won't be able to convince the masses. But since I've done what I did tonight, I'm probably not far from that seat."

Among the many people involved in tonight's events, almost none, except Zhang Yu, had the Great Liang Emperor's interests at heart. Everyone had their own motives, pursuing their own gains.

Ye Dayuan sought the position of Lord Warden Commander. Someone had promised him that seat, so he wanted to see if he could claim it.

Yao Dao said with vicissitudes of emotion, “Following you, Your Excellency, is the best decision that this subordinate has made in all these years.”

Ye Dayuan glanced at him and said, “Don't worry, once I take that seat, you can choose between the Left Guard and the Right Guard as you like.”

Yao Dao stood up and was just about to express his heartfelt gratitude again when suddenly, a loud rumbling noise was heard from outside the hall. Ye Dayuan's expression changed slightly, and he immediately got up. The two of them quickly went out to the courtyard of the Right Guard's office, only to see that the Right Guard's front gate had already been shattered. Countless splinters of wood scattered all over, piling up across the courtyard.

“Song Lian, you've got some nerve! Do you really think that my Right Guard is an easy target?!"

Ye Dayuan's expression turned ugly as he stared at the middle-aged martial artist who had just kicked down the Right Guard's gate. His blood surged with anger. Although he felt a bit guilty facing Song Lian due to what he had done, it was not to the point where he would be polite while the Left Guard was kicking down his front door.

Moreover, Song Lian had shattered the front door of his Right Guard's office with one kick. This clearly meant that this middle-aged martial artist was slapping the Right Guard's face in front of the countless Left Guard officials!

Song Lian had a cold expression, looking at Ye Dayuan in front of him. “Your Father doesn't have time for your nonsense. Tell me where Chen Chao is, otherwise, Your Father will tear your Right Guard apart today!”

Ye Dayuan’s face turned ugly, his anger barely contained as he shouted, "Good, good, good!" "Song Lian, do you really think that just because the Lord Warden Commander is gone, no one can control you anymore? Your Father is the commander of the Right Guard, and this is the Right Guard's office, not a subordinate of your Left Guard. You're so arrogant and tyrannical, tomorrow, this official will submit a memorial against you to His Majesty. Let's see what His Majesty says about it!"

Song Lian was unfazed, he just took a step forward, staring at Ye Dayuan as he said coldly, "If you don't give Your Father an answer, you might not live long enough to write that memorial."

Ye Dayuan was both furious and shocked, "Song Lian, do you know the offense of killing an official of the court without authorization?"

"This official doesn't know. This official suspects that there's a traitor hiding in your Right Guard," Song Lian narrowed his eyes, staring at Ye Dayuan. "And maybe you're the biggest traitor of them all!"

"Song Lian, you keep insulting me! Do you really think my Right Guard is easy to bully?" "Men, take this person down! Tomorrow, this official will personally escort him to the palace for His Majesty's judgment!"

With a wave of Ye Dayuan's hand, several officials charged at Song Lian. But Song Lian's expression remained unchanged. As soon as the officials approached, they were instantly sent flying by the protective qi surrounding him. In the blink of an eye, this Left Guard Commander had appeared in front of Ye Dayuan, delivering a heavy punch. The force of the punch whistled through the air, heading straight for Ye Dayuan.

Ye Dayuan's expression changed drastically. Unable to avoid it, he had no choice but to gather all his qi into his arms and brace himself to receive Song Lian's punch.

When their fists collided, waves of qi rippled across the courtyard, dispersing in all directions. The sound was like rolling thunder, and the Left and Right Guard officials nearby retreated. Several low-ranked officials had blood streaming from their ears, suffering from intense ear ringing due to the impact.

Within just a moment of their exchange, Ye Dayuan was sent flying several yards. Before he could steady himself, Song Lian had already arrived in front of Ye Dayuan again, delivering another heavy punch.

Ye Dayuan crossed his arms and gritted his teeth as he tried to block the punch, but the sheer force of the punch made this Right Guard Commander drop to one knee on the ground.

Song Lian did not stop there, sending a kick to Ye Dayuan's chest, kicking him flying onto the steps and shattering a stone tile upon impact.

Ye Dayuan was a pure martial artist with a fairly tough body. But unfortunately, the person he was up against was not just anyone, it was a berserk Song Lian. Though both were commanders of the Left and Right Guards and appeared to be martial artists in the same realm, Song Lian had retired from the frontier army and had diligently refined his cultivation all these years. He was already on the verge of stepping into the Nepenthe Realm, how could an ordinary Great Beyond martial artist like Ye Dayuan possibly compare?

Song Lian moved swiftly, stepping on Ye Dayuan's chest before he could rise, slamming him back to the ground once more.

The Right Guard officials present were shocked to see their commander completely overpowered in such a short exchange with that Left Guard Commander. They were stunned, and just as they considered stepping in, Song Lian turned and swept his gaze over them. His cold eyes froze them in place, and none of the officials dared to act.

Song Lian kept one foot on Ye Dayuan's chest, slowly turning to look at the man, who now had blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. With a mocking tone, he said, “With your paltry skills, you still have the nerve to find trouble with Your Father? If it weren’t for that official uniform of yours, Your Father could crush you with one hand.”

Ye Dayuan's face twisted in anger and humiliation as he spat out a mouthful of foul blood and sneered, “Song Lian, you better have evidence that Your Father is a traitor. If not, once tonight is over, you're dead for sure!”

Song Lian said indifferently, “To tell you the truth, I don't. But if Your Father is going to die tomorrow, do you really think you'll survive tonight?”

Ye Dayuan glared at Song Lian, “Do you actually dare to kill Your Father?”

Song Lian smiled faintly. “You can try and find out.”

Since Song Lian had already chosen to come to the Right Guard and lose all decorum with this sly old fox, he was no longer worried about what came after.

Ye Dayuan was expressionless as he said, “I don't know what you're trying to find out. All I know is that you came to my Right Guard to provoke me without reason. I'm not even sure, in your mind, whether this Divine Capital belongs to His Majesty or to you, Song Lian!”

Song Lian did not speak, he just pressed down harder and snapped a few more of Ye Dayuan's ribs.

He had spent many years killing demons in the Northern Frontier, and after returning to the Divine Capital, he had served as the Left Guard's commander for many more years. His loyalty to Great Liang was known by all. Throughout all these years, he had never committed any mistakes, always performing his duties diligently, and being a good official.

Tonight was the first time he wanted to disregard the laws of Great Liang and take matters into his own hands.

“Ye Dayuan, you and I both know the truth about certain things. If you don't know what kind of man I, Song Lian, am, Your Father can tell you now!”

With another heavy stomp, Ye Dayuan spat out more blood, his expression ugly to the extreme.

“Tell me, where he is right now!”

Song Lian stared at Ye Dayuan, his eyes now filled with a hint of murderous intent.

A chill ran through Ye Dayuan's entire body. Although he had been certain earlier that Song Lian would not kill him, at this moment, even he could not shake the feeling that he might very well die at the hands of this Left Guard Commander.

Everything he had done tonight was for something he wanted, but no matter what you desire, you can only have it if you're alive. Once you lose your life, nothing remains.

The reality was that even if Ye Dayuan wanted to tell Song Lian something, it definitely would not include revealing Chen Chao's fate at this moment.

His only mission had been to lead the Left Guard away, and he knew nothing of the rest.

Looking at Song Lian, Ye Dayuan opened his mouth, about to speak.

Suddenly, a soft voice sounded from the entrance. "Commander Song, you've gone a little overboard."

Song Lian turned his head in confusion, and upon seeing who it was, his expression changed slightly. "Eunuch Li."

There were many eunuchs in the Imperial City, but there was only one Eunuch Li - Li Heng.

This chief eunuch was holding a lantern as he approached. Looking at Song Lian quietly, he said softly, "Commander Song, please lift your foot."

Ye Dayuan also saw Li Heng, his expression changing before he shouted loudly, "Eunuch Li, Song Lian is rebelling! Song Lian is rebelling!"

Song Lian was silent for a long time, then asked, somewhat disappointed, "Is this the will of the palace?"

As the chief eunuch, Li Heng often represented the will of His Majesty. His presence here might very well signify that His Majesty's will had arrived.

If it was indeed His Majesty's will, then there was nothing that could be helped.

It was still that same sentence: in the Divine Capital, if His Majesty wanted someone dead, that person would surely die.

Li Heng glanced at the brightly lit Right Guard's office and smiled. "No, this is just my will."

Song Lian raised an eyebrow. He did not speak, nor did he lift his foot.

If it was not His Majesty's will, then why had Li Heng come here?

Li Heng sighed softly and said, "There's still time to stop before you fall off the cliff, Commander Song. You must know that His Majesty holds high hopes for you. If you commit an irreversible mistake, aren't you afraid of letting down His Majesty's painstaking efforts?"

Song Lian furrowed his brows. He understood these words, but he was unwilling to accept them.

Li Heng continued, "Don't be hasty. Be patient and wait for a while."

Song Lian asked, "What if I refuse to wait?"

Li Heng sighed, "I'm already here. If you don't want to wait, what can you do?"