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Hu Xiuwu slowly took off his mask. Li Xingyun, who had been looking forward to seeing him, suddenly stepped back in shock.
Behind the mask was a face without hair or skin, with exposed eyeballs, only flesh and bones left. Even the lips seemed to have been cut off, making the face look as horrible as a bloody corpse that had been skinned and tortured.
Li Xingyun never expected that such a nightmare-like face would belong to the Bad Leader.
"Alas," Hu Xiuwu sighed and began to speak the prepared lines, "My ancestral home is in Yashibadi Jinkun, my surname is Yuan and my given name is Tiangang."
Li Xingyun said in surprise: "You are Yuan Tiangang, the Yuan Tiangang who worked with Li Chunfeng to deduce the Tui Bei Tu."
"That's right." Hu Xiuwu nodded and raised his head slightly.
The deduction of "Tui Bei Tu" was the pinnacle of Yuan Tiangang's divination in his life, and it was also the result of cooperation with his close friends. It was the proudest and happiest thing in his heart. He should be proud of himself.
Hu Xiuwu went on to say, "In the sixth year of Zhenguan, His Majesty Taizong summoned me into the palace to assist him in state affairs."
"In the 13th year of the Zhenguan reign, Emperor Taizong entered the underworld in his sleep. When he woke up, he was shocked to find that he was holding a Chihu Tiger Talisman in his hand. Only then did he know that what happened after death was true."
"After this incident, Emperor Taizong began to fear what would happen after death and to desire immortality, so he ordered his ministers to refine an elixir of immortality."
"The whole country devoted all its resources and spent six years on the elixir. In the 19th year of Zhenguan, when Master Xuanzang returned to Tang after obtaining Buddhist scriptures, he finally completed the elixir."
Then, Hu Xiuwu sighed, "I tried the elixir in front of the emperor, but unfortunately the elixir failed. After taking the elixir, although I gained an immortal body, I also became like this."
"Although Taizong was afraid of what would happen after his death, he did not want to become a half-human, half-ghost like me. After pondering for a long time and being enlightened by Master Xuanzang, he finally gained enlightenment and faced death calmly. He chose to go with the appearance of an emperor and follow the will of heaven."
Hu Xiuwu paused and said, "The elixir refining failed, and my appearance was ruined, but Your Majesty valued my talent, and publicly appointed me as the magistrate of Huobing County, and returned to my hometown to retire, but secretly ordered me to fake my death to escape, secretly formed the Bad People, and gave me the power to patrol and arrest, to support the country."
True and false, false and true, this story of truth and falsehood made Li Xingyun half-believing and half-doubting. He felt that what Hu Xiuwu said was a bit nonsense and vague.
But what he said was very convincing, and some of the details matched up with stories his father told him when he was a child.
Without waiting, Li Xingyun pondered carefully, and Hu Xiuwu knelt on one knee again: "As long as Your Highness holds the Longquan sword, you can solve the mystery of Longquan and find the Longquan treasure."
"With the Longquan treasure as food and fodder, you can buy people's hearts, the bad guys can gather intelligence from all sides, and the underworld soldiers can attack the city and capture the stronghold. Your Highness can also raise your arms and shout in the name of the direct bloodline of the Tang Dynasty Li family, and you will definitely be able to restore the Tang Dynasty in one fell swoop!"
Li Xingyun waved his hand and turned away, avoiding the kneeling of the bad commander, and said in a dull tone: "The Tang Dynasty has run out of luck, and the people's hearts are scattered. The local vassal states have their own thoughts. If we want to revive the Tang Dynasty, we must start a war again, causing the people to be displaced and more people to be like me, with brothers losing their brothers, sons losing their fathers, and wives losing their husbands."
"From now on, I only want to kill Zhu Wen and avenge my father and brother."
Hu Xiuwu stood up and said excitedly: "Your Highness, don't you think that the concepts in your words are contradictory?"
"Zhu Wen is the pseudo-Liang emperor. If Your Highness kills him and does not claim the throne, the world will surely be in chaos. By then, the local vassal states will attack each other, and more people will die."
"Is this what Your Highness wants to see?"
Li Xingyun sarcastically asked, "Have the wars between the vassal states stopped now?"
"Your Highness."
"That's enough. Since you call me Your Highness, you must abide by the distinction between monarch and subject. Stop forcing me!"
Li Xingyun roared angrily and turned to leave.
Hu Xiuwu stopped him and said, "Your Highness, please take the Longquan Sword with you."
Li Xingyun stopped and stood by the door: "The Longquan Sword is related to the Longquan treasure. Many people are looking for it. It will only cause trouble if I carry it with me."
Hu Xiuwu waved his hand, and the blast of air directly blew the heavy sword case on the table away and hit Li Xingyun.
Li Xingyun caught it with his arm. Hu Xiuwu then said leisurely:
"You are the greatest treasure in this world. I heard that you first met Ji Ruxue, the maid of the Queen of Qi, in Yuzhou City, and then met the Black and White Impermanence of the Xuanming Sect, and a mysterious person."
"The Xuanming Sect and Miaoyinfang must have known about you. If the news about the Yinbing is true, Longquan can also protect you."
Li Xingyun thought about it and felt that what Hu Xiuwu said made sense, so he put the sword case on his back.
Hu Xiuwu said, "There is a hot spring pool at the bottom of the Cangbing Valley. Although it is not as luxurious and exquisite as the Huaqing Pool, it also has a unique wild charm and can relieve fatigue. Your Highness is tired from the journey, so you might as well give it a try."
"Okay," Li Xingyun agreed, pushed the door open, and stood in front of the threshold without looking back. "Thank you for teaching me martial arts for so many years."
He then left the room and strode towards Lu Linxuan and Shangguan Yunque. Hu Xiuwu's voice arrived from behind him.
"Shangguan, go and prepare a residence for His Highness."
Shangguan Yunque finally calmed down, clapped his hands, and twisted his waist seductively: "Okay, Marshal, don't worry."
Walking out of the room and watching the three people leave, Hu Xiuwu smiled slightly under the mask.
"Interesting, in the original novel, Yuan Tiangang, who was only interested in Li Xingyun, was not trusted by Li Xingyun, but he still had a little gratitude towards me, a fake."
"Sure enough, for most high school students, a strict father who pushes you to make progress and seems to not understand you is never as good as a big brother who gives you a cigarette outside of school."
Unfortunately, candies given by outsiders are usually poisoned.
"Sanqianyuan, let the bad guys undercover in other forces spread the news."
"It is said that Emperor Zhaozong's biological son, Li Xingyun, has been born, carrying the Longquan sword."
"Yes."
Tianzangxing Sanqianyuan, a bad guy who is proficient in the art of disguise and only plays in high-end games, hides in the dark, waiting for the order from the bad leader.
The one serving beside the Bad Commander and responsible for delivering messages was originally Tianzui Star Mirror Heart Demon, but Mirror Heart Demon is now undercover beside Li Cunxu, the legitimate son of Jin Wang Li Keyong, and it is inconvenient for him to come to Cangbing Valley.
Tianzangxing Sanqianyuan temporarily took over Jingxinmo's duties and was responsible for communicating with bad people from all over the place and transmitting information.
Sanqianyuan did not leave after receiving the order, and passed on new information to the Bad Commander: "General, the Bad People of Tongwenguan have sent news that a lone man who calls himself Ding Shiman has attacked the headquarters of Tongwenguan and defeated the leader of the Thirteen Guardians, the Holy Master of Tongwenguan, Li Siyuan."
"The Emperor of the Dark Sect has accepted a new disciple named Shen Chong, who is suspected to have the strength of the middle heaven level. He was named Horse-Headed Rakshasa."
"There is a woman named Xia He, who is born with a charming figure and has a skill level of at least the lower heaven level. She has joined Miaoyinfang."
"King Ma Yin of Chu died, and his eldest son Ma Xiyue succeeded him. The whereabouts of his youngest son Ma Xisheng is unknown."
Hu Xiuwu was surprised and asked, "Hmm? Ma Xiyue is ambitious but incompetent, ruthless and unkind. What made him make up his mind?"
"I heard that after he ascended the throne, he immediately appointed an unknown person named Gong Qing as the right prime minister of the State of Chu."
Chapter 399 Taking a break from the busy schedule
"As expected of the catfish I picked, how come you're already stirring up trouble in the world so quickly?"
Hu Xiuwu had expected Ding Shimaan to challenge the Holy Lord.
The two most frequently used special skills in The Bad Guys are the Supreme Saint Universe Skill and the Nine Nether Mysterious Heaven Skill. One is extremely strong and yang, and the other is extremely evil and yin. Ding Shiman, a martial arts fanatic, couldn't help but be curious.
Although Dante Shimaan is foolish, he is not stupid. He is a good material for practicing the art of martial arts!
The setting of the Heavenly Rank in The Bad Kids was something that they had only seen in the anime before. They still had to encounter the Heavenly Ranks to know how strong they were. Therefore, Ding Shiman was very cautious and did not look for the top strong men in the world of The Bad Kids, such as Jin Wang Li Keyong and Ghost King Zhu Youwen.
Instead, he only found Li Siyuan, who had not yet obtained the Five Thunders Heavenly Heart Sutra and had not yet mastered the Supreme Saint Qiankun Art.
Rely on Li Siyuan to find your own position and see what level your strength is in the world of the bad guys.
Now that Ding Shimaan has defeated Li Siyuan, it means that the heroes in the world of Yiren are still among the top level in the world of The Bad Guys.
Hu Xiuwu had a hunch that after Ding Shimaan found a way to crack the Supreme Saint Qiankun Art, he would most likely challenge the Hades Emperor again and experience the power of the Nine Netherworlds Mysterious Heavenly Art.
To experience martial arts in the world, learn from their strengths and overcome their weaknesses, feed back into oneself, reach perfection, become invincible, and be invulnerable to all things, this is Ding Shimaan's obsession.
First the Holy Lord, then the Underworld Emperor, the four corpse ancestors, and King Qi Li Maozhen. It’s like a level-breaking game. As long as you can pass each level, you will finally challenge the undisputed number one in the world.
Bad handsome.
If Ding Shimaan really wants to realize his ambition, his next step would probably be to ask Hu Xiuwu to send him back to the world of the living, to mount the dragon and tiger, and fight the Heavenly Master.
Hu Xiuwu could mostly guess what Xia He, Shen Chong and others were thinking.
However, Gong Qing actually ran to the territory of the King of Chu and imitated his ancestor, the black-robed prime minister Yao Guangxiao, and gave Ma Xiyue a white hat, obviously wanting to join the competition.
Hu Xiuwu also came with the news of the Bad Guys world. Except for Baron who knew about it because of the Fire Ganoderma incident, no one knew about it yet. No one knew about the news that he replaced the Bad Guys.
Therefore, Gong Qing pushed Ma Xiyue to ascend the throne and participate in the competition. I am afraid that it was not only because he wanted to try to unify the world, the most difficult game in the world, but also because he wanted to play against the world's strongest chess player, Buliang Shuai.
"This Gong Qing is still the same as before, he likes to get involved in things far beyond his ability and dance on the edge of a knife."
Hu Xiuwu shook his head.
If the real Bad Leader was still here, it would be fine if Gong Qing knew what was good for him and bowed down to Li Xingyun, but if he refused to change his ways, he would definitely become a pawn of the Bad Leader and a stepping stone for Li Xingyun to learn the art of power.
Hu Xiuwu ordered the Three Thousand Courts: "Keep a close eye on the new King of Chu. He is young and strong. Since he has killed his father and expelled his brother, he will not be content to be just the King of Chu."
Sanqianyuan accepted the order: "Yes."
"Go."
Hu Xiuwu left with his hands behind his back, and the Three Thousand Courts went to the Eagle's Nest in the Cangbing Valley and used a messenger eagle to pass messages to the bad guys in each branch.
······
In the secret passage of the underground palace, a man in a cloak walked slowly down the passage. The candlelight flickered with the breeze caused by his walking. The elongated figure was reflected on the winding stairs, twisted like a melting evil spirit.
After going up several flights of stairs, deep into the underground palace, and landing on the flat ground, he finally looked like a human being.
This is the underground palace under the Cangbing Valley.
In addition to the weapon storage pavilion in the valley, General Buliang also built a very large underground palace under the weapon storage valley.
The overall shape of the underground palace is like a pagoda inserted upside down into the earth. The layout is based on the Eight Formations, with each layer having eight sides, which shrink gradually.
Not only are there a number of weapons and food supplies hidden in it, but there are also Bad People sorting out intelligence from all over the place here. More importantly, the Bad Leader will also practice in seclusion in the quiet room in the underground palace, refining medicine and making pills.
The man in the bamboo hat seemed to be very familiar with this place. He turned left habitually without having to identify the direction. The passage of the underground palace was very wide. Even a dragon could hide here and move freely.
At the end of the passage, the stone door opened wide, revealing a brightly lit quiet room inside.
The quiet room was as tall as the Jinluan Palace, where the emperor held court. There were thousands of niches carved out of the stone walls, densely packed like a chessboard. Lamps were placed in the niches, making the whole quiet room as bright as day.
There is a round altar in the center of the quiet room, and on the altar is a stone jade bed. On the bed is a beautiful woman sleeping soundly, with long hair like ink and half exposed shoulders. The thin blanket only covers her legs, and the graceful figure under the blanket makes people imagine a lot.
Even when lying down, the thin blanket can still be higher than your toes, which is truly a stunning sight.
Hu Xiuwu stood beside the jade bed, brushing the beauty's face with his fingertips. Even when the cloaked man came in, he did not turn around, but only said in a cold tone:
"You heard what Your Highness and I just said."
The sound of clenched fists and cracking joints is very obvious in the underground palace where you can hear a pin drop.
"What? You don't accept it?" Hu Xiuwu turned his head and looked at the cloaked man under the altar.
"Boss, you said that whoever can restore the Tang Dynasty will be the emperor you support, does it still count?"
The man who had been hiding under the cloak threw it aside.
"count."