Chapter 1069: How Am I Supposed to Stay in Wuwang After This, Lu Ding!!!

.......First, Prince Feng died, killed by Lu Ding's hand.

It was a gruesome sight, his body utterly obliterated.

Upon hearing this news, the Empress of Baoji Kingdom was struck as if by a thunderbolt.

She couldn't bring herself to believe the truth of this intelligence.

But Prince Feng's prolonged failure to return had already shattered her illusions with cold reality.

Next, the Great Han's civilian and state media mobilized at full force, spreading news across the world about what Baoji Kingdom had done at Black Phoenix Gathering, inciting public outrage in nations including Great Han itself.

For a time, public opinion was in an uproar.

Online, the criticism only grew louder, amplifying the impact. When a wall is falling, everyone gives it a push. Everything was accelerating Baoji Kingdom's destruction.

Photo after photo. Video after video.

When the Empress of Baoji Kingdom saw all of this,

She couldn't help but turn her gaze to Nishang.

Her eyes seemed to say: This is what you told me was destroyed, never to be leaked.

And in Nishang's eyes,

The special angles of those photos, the specific positions captured in those videos - almost instantly, she thought of her Brother Yuwen.

"No, no, Mother, how could it be Brother Yuwen? How could Brother Yuwen have betrayed us!!!"

"How could he have colluded with 749? Isn't he a Wuwang member? Doesn't Wuwang hate 749 the most?"

Nishang stumbled backward several steps.

Mother and daughter alike fell into collapse and grief.

Now, multiple nations were united in condemning Baoji Kingdom.

The kingdom's situation had suddenly become precarious.

Granted, some nations were already aware that Baoji Kingdom was dabbling in such things.

But before, it hadn't been brought out into the open. Everyone tacitly understood each other.

In fact, some would even come to Baoji Kingdom to purchase human-demon hybrid projects.

Using them to strengthen their own suicidal martyrs, suicide squads, soldiers, and so on.

But now that it was out in the open, known to the public, this was absolutely unacceptable, an act of inhumanity that shook foundations, something that had to be eradicated.

It could be said,

That now, Baoji Kingdom

Had entered its countdown to annihilation.

All that remained was for time to tick, tick, tick away, and Baoji Kingdom's existence would vanish into the river of history, becoming nothing more than a page in the history books.

Fading further and further in public memory.

Until people completely forgot that such a kingdom had ever existed on this land.

And Baoji Kingdom's territory would be carved up by neighboring nations.

For a moment,

The Empress sat somewhat dejectedly in her chair.

There was no use saying anything more now; the deed was done.

And the consequences were something Baoji Kingdom simply could not bear.

No matter how much she blamed or scolded Nishang, it wouldn't change the outcome.

"Go, Nishang, run. Run as far as you can."

"After this calamity passes, come back. If Baoji Kingdom still exists. If it doesn't, remember to change your name, your identity..."

"Mother!! I'm not leaving!"

Nishang cried out loudly through her sobs.

"I am the princess of Baoji Kingdom! I will live and die with Baoji Kingdom!!!"

"Staying here will only be a pointless sacrifice, utterly meaningless. I'll personally pack your things for you in a bit. After this parting, Mother and daughter may never see each other again. Take care of yourself. Live a good life with Su Yun."

"Yuwen Longyuan..."

Speaking that name, a bitter smile flickered across the Empress's face.

Even though Yuwen Longyuan had betrayed Baoji Kingdom,

She found it hard to muster much hatred toward him.

Because this was all karma.

"Mother, let's leave together, okay? Let's leave together!"

The Empress shook her head. "I am the Empress of Baoji Kingdom. If Baoji Kingdom ceases to exist, then I am no longer Empress."

"I've paid too much for this position, lost too much. I can't accept living on as someone who is no longer Empress."

"Your uncle is gone too."

"In this world, I have no family left."

"It's better to fulfill my role as Empress to the very end, and then go reunite with your uncle, your grandmother..."

At this moment, the Empress of Baoji Kingdom appeared quite calm.

Everything was just accepting the consequences of a gamble.

This didn't start with Baoji Kingdom's human-demon hybrids. It began that day, when she decided to fight for her own destiny. That was when this grand wager had already commenced.

Once you sit at the table, there's no getting off.

But in gambling, there are no permanent winners.

It's just a matter of when you lose.

"Mother..."

Before she could finish her next words,

The Empress merely cast a glance, and the force of it knocked Nishang unconscious.

She raised her hand.

The unconscious young girl floated slowly into the Empress's grasp.

She gently cradled the girl, rocking her back and forth.

Just as when she was small.

"You used to be so obedient. They say all children have a rebellious phase, but you never seemed to resist my wishes. Forgive me for forcibly cutting short and crushing your first defiance of my ideas today. Just listen to me one last time, my good girl..."

The Empress softly hummed a lullaby.

She summoned a comb with a wave of her hand and began to brush Nishang's hair, stroke by stroke.

Meanwhile,

Elsewhere.

Western New City.

A temporary rest had ended.

Lu Ding unfurled his [Rivers and Mountains, Society and Millet Painting] at the Mouth of the Evil Prison, combining it with [Ink-Stained Mountains and Rivers] as he personally threw himself into the Mouth of the Evil Prison's infrastructure projects.

Secret techniques became his brush.

Spiritual Energy was his ink.

He altered heaven and earth, mountains and rivers, and set the four seasons in their proper order.

With a flick of his brush in a sweeping stroke, numerous buildings rose from the ground.

Waving his hand, [Touch of Gold Turns to Stone]; reversing his hand, [Qi of the Ticket Wind]. Lu Ding wasn't just speeding up the Mouth of the Evil Prison's construction.

He was also expanding its boundaries.

Manually reclaiming land from the sea, working himself into a frenzy.

Progress was astonishingly fast.

Yet the quality didn't suffer in the slightest.

Until,

Yuwen Longyuan, who had also learned of the outside news, sent an invitation to meet in the Nowhere Room.

Only then did Lu Ding stop what he was doing.

He formed a hand seal and entered the Nowhere Room.

The moment he stepped inside,

Yuwen Longyuan, usually so docile, was like a lion with its fur standing on end.

He roared without preamble.

"Why did you release the video that way!!!"

"By doing this, you've put me on the fire to roast!!!!"

"My allegiance is with Wuwang!!! Now it's practically out in the open that I'm colluding with 749. How am I supposed to stay in Wuwang after this, Lu Ding!!!!"

This was the first time Yuwen Longyuan had openly and directly shouted out Lu Ding's true identity.

It was clear just how desperate a corner he'd been backed into.

Lu Ding walked over.

Pulled out a chair, and slowly sat down.

"What are you yelling about? You're still safe, aren't you? Besides, if I hadn't done it this way, who would have helped me keep an eye on Su Yun's movements?"

"I can't just waltz into Baoji Kingdom whenever I want. That means I can't touch him for now. When war breaks out with the kingdom and everything descends into chaos, if he manages to run, I wouldn't even know where to start looking."

"Now it's perfect. You're the traitor, I'm the mole and spy. We keep working together. You keep tabs on him for me, and I'll help clean up the fallout for you."

"When the time comes, we stage a murder to silence the witnesses, take out Nishang and Su Yun, and no one will ever know it was you who leaked the intelligence, that you were the one colluding with 749. So relax."