Swear Fealty To Me, My Subjects!

As the chief eunuch of the imperial city, Li Heng was rarely perceived as arrogant in the Divine Capital, even though he had been by the side of the Great Liang Emperor since the days when he was still a vassal prince. Whoever saw this eunuch would always see a smile in his eyes. He never looked down on anyone just because he was a favorite by the Great Liang Emperor's side. While many respected him, they did not take him in high regard. However, in reality, the fact that he could walk out of the Prince's Manor and arrive in the Divine Capital directly as the chief eunuch without any dormancy or waiting period was enough to demonstrate the Great Liang Emperor's trust in him.

For over a decade, there had been no scandals within the Imperial City, it was just calm and quiet. Apart from the Empress managing the harem, in truth, those who were perceptive knew that none of this could have been maintained without Li Heng.

Managing the harem did not mean one could control everything just because they were favored by the Emperor. Li Heng possessed the same iron-fisted tactics and cunning as anyone else, but the harem required these qualities while the world did not, and neither did the Emperor. Hence, Li Heng always presented himself as mild-mannered.

Now, leaving the Divine Capital, word spread among the foreign cultivators that he was carrying a Thousand Year Glacial Stone. Hence, they flocked over, hoping to seize that Thousand Year Glacial Stone from the hands of this chief eunuch. If it were truly that simple, or if Li Heng were just an ordinary eunuch, the Great Liang Emperor would probably not have sent him on this journey personally.

Looking at the cultivators in front of him, after saying those words, Li Heng did not speak again. Instead, a surge of qi emanated from his robes, causing all the cultivators present to furrow their brows in unison.

The qi was too overwhelmingly powerful and terrifying, making them lose all will to resist.

The leading cultivator's face turned grim as he was about to speak, but Li Heng shook his head. The opportunity had already been given, there would be no second chance. Li Heng smiled at the man, who suddenly realized that not only could he no longer move, but he could not speak either.

His eyes were filled with immense fear, but soon they were drowned in a flood of blood. Countless sharp blades seemed to have been placed beside him all along, now slowly closing in. His eyes went blind, then his arms were suddenly severed. Endless blood splattered everywhere like the most vibrant flowers.

Then, his clothes exploded, numerous blood streaks inexplicably appeared on his body, and moments later, he turned into a pile of minced meat, falling to the ground.

The other cultivators were utterly horrified when they witnessed this scene.

Li Heng's eyes showed no emotion. But the same thing was already starting to unfold repeatedly, with countless cultivators being reduced to piles of minced meat.

The man in the carriage lifted the curtain to take a look and frowned, "It's really disgusting when you make a move."

Li Heng chuckled, sat back at the front of the carriage, and resumed driving, "You haven't seen the truly disgusting times. But speaking of which, I haven't taken action in over ten years. The last time was with Ning Ping, standing behind His Majesty."

Mentioning the name of that Lord Warden Commander, the man naturally recalled an old incident he had only heard about but never witnessed. He fell silent for a moment before asking hesitantly, "What exactly happened that night?"

Li Heng smiled, "If you want to know, ask His Majesty. Why ask me?"

The man snorted. If he had the courage to ask, he would not be asking now.

Li Heng continued with a smile, "If that doesn't work, you can ask Ning Ping. But the guy is in the Northern Frontier now, so you'll have to wait for him to return."

The man remained silent.

Li Heng spoke no more, driving the carriage forward. The rest of the journey was smooth and uneventful, and they soon arrived at the foot of Sword Qi Mountain.

Looking at the ordinary carriage, not many people paid attention to it. No one would have thought that the coachman was Li Heng, and even fewer would have guessed that this eunuch was actually a genuine great cultivator.

Before climbing the mountain, Li Heng took the box and ascended alone. Sword Qi Mountain was still filled with pervasive sword qi, making it difficult for many sword cultivators to climb. However, Li Heng walked as if he were strolling in a garden and quickly arrived at the mountain gate. The gatekeeping disciples, seeing this ordinary-looking middle-aged man, found it strange because he did not look like a sword cultivator.

But, remembering Chen Chao's visit, the gatekeeping disciples were sufficiently courteous.

One of them asked, "What brings you here, Fellow Daoist?"

Li Heng smiled and said, "Li Heng, here to deliver something. Kindly report it."

Another unfamiliar name. The gatekeeping disciple thought for a moment, then nodded and indicated for Li Heng to wait a while before turning to report back.

In several minutes, the mountain lord Yang Furen hurriedly arrived. Upon seeing the eunuch in his plain attire, he cupped his hands and said with some difficulty, "I don't know how to address you."

Li Heng did not mind and said, "As you please, Mountain Lord."

Yang Furen thought for a moment and then addressed him as "Mr. Li."

Li Heng nodded with a smile. "When the letter from Commander Chen arrived in the Divine Capital, His Majesty took out what Sword Qi Mountain requested and ordered me to bring it. However, we encountered some troubles along the way, which caused a delay."

Yang Furen led Li Heng into the mountain, smiling bitterly as he said. "His Majesty's influence is truly..."

Li Heng replied, "Mountain Lord, don't overthink it. No matter how aloof from worldly affairs Sword Qi Mountain may be, it is still within the borders of Great Liang. Those terms have been agreed upon many years ago, and His Majesty's actions are not targeted at anyone in particular."

Yang Furen nodded, somewhat helpless. He had originally thought that the favorite eunuch of the Great Liang Emperor would more or less have to give Sword Qi Mountain some face. But as soon as Li Heng spoke, Yang Furen knew that the Great Liang Emperor saw nothing inappropriate with the incident in question.

This was expected by Sword Qi Mountain. It was not unacceptable, but knowing it was indeed the case still felt a bit bitter.

Li Heng smiled and said, "Commander Chen is young and promising, and His Majesty admires him greatly. Since Sword Qi Mountain has the ability to support him, why not discuss the matter openly? Great Liang is vast, what is there that cannot be brought out? Why keep others at a distance?"

Yang Furen said softly, "Every family has its troubles, I hope you understand, Mr. Li."

Li Heng glanced at the green bamboo in the distance and smiled lightly as he said, "Delivering a message from His Majesty to Mountain Lord: being a mountain lord is much like being the emperor. Your words need to be heeded, and you must be decisive. Otherwise, it's hard to be content. "Great Liang and Sword Qi Mountain actually have many topics to discuss. If Mountain Lord is willing, these discussions can happen."

Yang Furen nodded, "Naturally."

Li Heng continued, "A lot has happened in the past two years, yet His Majesty remains well. Many of those incidents shouldn't have occurred. By forcing these issues, no one looks good.

Li Heng suddenly said with vicissitudes of emotion, "His Majesty's generosity is immense. A piece of Thousand Year Glacial Stone might be a rare treasure to Sword Qi Mountain, but to His Majesty, it's merely a pretty rock. If it can be of use, he'll naturally bring it out. Otherwise, whether kept for a hundred years or a thousand, it remains just a stone."

“His Majesty's magnanimity indeed can't be matched by ordinary people,” Yang Furen said softly. “It is a blessing for the people of the Great Liang Dynasty to have this emperor.”

Li Heng chuckled quietly, “But it might not be a blessing for the foreign cultivators.”

While Li Heng could say this, Yang Furen dared not respond in kind. He glanced at Li Heng and remained silent.

Soon, they arrived at the mountaintop. In front of the great hall, numerous swordsmiths had gathered once again. In fact, there were even more than when Chen Chao had ascended the mountain previously.

Many swordsmiths who were usually focused on forging swords in the back mountain had all been startled now.

After all, everyone had heard that what Li Heng brought was none other than the Thousand Year Glacial Stone. Every swordsmith understood the rarity of this item.

As some of the best swordsmiths in the world, naturally, each of them hoped to obtain this Thousand Year Glacial Stone to forge a peerless flying sword.

Yang Furen looked at this group of people. As the mountain lord and a swordsmith himself, he could naturally see the longing in their eyes.

All eyes were on the wooden box in Li Heng's hands.

Li Heng suddenly asked, “Mountain Lord, how will the remnant Thousand Year Glacial Stone be distributed after repairing the saber?”

Yang Furen was taken aback. Initially, it had been decided that the remaining glacial stone would be used by that grand martial uncle to forge another flying sword. Although this decision was not likely to be opposed by the swordsmiths on the mountain, it would certainly cause discontent. By bringing this up in front of everyone, Li Heng was putting him in a difficult position and drawing the attention of all the swordsmiths to him.

Anticipation.

It was all anticipation.

Just as Yang Furen was about to speak, Li Heng shook his head and smiled, “Actually, this matter is not that complicated. I'll kindly trouble Mountain Lord to summon Commander Chen.”

Yang Furen was stunned and then looked into the distance.

A disciple quickly left.

After some time, Chen Chao slowly arrived, still dressed in black. However, unlike before, the broken saber was no longer at his waist.

Upon seeing Li Heng, Chen Chao greeted him respectfully. He had a good impression of this eunuch. Li Heng smiled and said, "Commander Chen, we meet again."

Chen Chao said with some surprise, "I didn't expect it would be you. Is His Majesty really so reluctant to part with this piece of glacial stone?"

Li Heng laughed, "If His Majesty were truly reluctant, why would I be here?"

Chen Chao thought for a moment and realized this made sense. If the Great Liang Emperor were really reluctant to part with it, he would probably just issue a decree.

Why bother sending Li Heng on this trip?

Chen Chao asked, "How was your journey...?"

Li Heng shook his head, signaling him to stop asking.

Chen Chao wisely kept quiet.

Li Heng then looked at Yang Furen and said with a smile, "Mountain Lord, His Majesty has given a decree."

Yang Furen was taken aback and said solemnly, "Please, go ahead."

Li Heng smiled and said, "His Majesty says that the leftovers of this stone naturally belong to Sword Qi Mountain, but who it goes to will be decided by that kid."

Who was that kid?

Who else could that kid be?

Li Heng handed over the box.

Chen Chao was momentarily stunned, then immediately understood something, his eyes lighting up.

He turned around and looked at the swordsmiths, his smile playful.

Back then, none of them were willing to forge a saber for him. But now?

The swordsmiths looked at Chen Chao with complicated looks.

While Chen Chao asked with a grin, "Which of you wants it?"