Chapter 23: The Whole World Rebels

Zhang Gui has returned.

This news spread through the court and the realm with terrifying speed.

Three years ago, that overbearing Director of the Eastern Depot returned, carrying the severed head of a First-Rank Minor Grandmaster from the Xuanyang Sect, stepping into the Golden Throne Hall one step at a time.

Subsequently, he stepped into the Tianwu Tower to debate the Dao with the various First-Rank powerhouses, not yielding a single inch!

A First-Rank Minor Grandmaster!

The world was in an uproar, struck by profound shock!

A twenty-eight-year-old First-Rank Minor Grandmaster! What did this concept imply? In all likelihood, he could soon catch a glimpse of the Grandmaster Realm, which existed only in legends.

In an instant, the winds and clouds shifted. The nobility of the court and the titans of the imperial halls all sent formal invitations to this Director of the Eastern Depot.

The Purple-Robed First Supervisor even retreated back to the Tianwu Tower!

Soon after.

Emperor Jianwu personally bestowed a title, reinstating Zhang Gui to command the Eastern Depot as the Purple-Robed First Supervisor of Great Liang.

Inside the Library of Hidden Books.

Clad in robes as red as fire, Zhang Gui stood with his hands behind his back. His eyes were like deep pools, and a smiling expression was perpetually etched upon his lips as he watched Su Chen, who was tending to the flowers and plants in the library.

"I did it."

"The Purple-Robed First Supervisor!"

"I have never forgotten my promise to you. If I am the Purple-Robed First Supervisor, then you shall be the Second Red-Robed. You must be tired of staying in this library; how about moving to the Martial Pavilion to read books as the Second Red-Robed?"

Three years had passed since they last met.

Zhang Gui’s hair had turned white prematurely; he no longer possessed the youthful countenance of his past. Every movement he made was filled with the unique majesty of a high-ranking official.

"You've reached the First Rank?"

"Logically speaking, it shouldn't be so."

"Whether it is breaking through the profound barrier in the Furious Astral Realm to birth True Essence, or tempering the internal organs to break through limits to achieve seamless unity and a body without leaks—none of these are easily accomplished."

Su Chen finally stopped tending to the plants and looked at the transformed Zhang Gui, letting out a long, low sigh.

In his eyes.

Zhang Gui’s body was seamless and his aura was undetectable; he was already a seamless Minor Grandmaster.

Furthermore.

The Furious Astral energy within his body surged like a churning ocean, capable of breaking through the profound barrier at any moment to become a True Essence Minor Grandmaster.

At that time, a dual First-Rank Grandmaster would be a rarity under heaven.

Even the World Martial Rankings would see him leap directly into the top three, or even take first place, with ease.

Zhang Gui was only twenty-eight—hardly in his prime, more accurately in the peak of his youth; he had at least seventy-two years left to live.

However.

In Su Chen's vision.

The lifespan within Zhang Gui's body was like a flickering candle in the wind, gasping for its final breaths.

He had at most three years left to live.

"What did you do? Why is it like this?"

To this, Zhang Gui did not answer. He merely looked at Su Chen with a smile, waiting for his response.

In the past.

He was merely a Green-Robed Eunuch of the Martial Bureau, arrogantly claiming that if he ever became the Purple-Robed First Supervisor, he would surely grant Su Chen the title of Second Red-Robed. Now, he had truly done it. Five years had passed, and he had come to fulfill that promise.

"Fine!"

"I will go to the Martial Pavilion."

At this, Zhang Gui nodded and turned to leave with a smile.

Su Chen knew.

Zhang Gui, with only three years left to live, would surely complete his plan with madness before his death. His resentment toward Great Liang had not diminished even after becoming the Purple-Robed First Supervisor; instead, it had burned like a raging fire for five, ten, or even twenty years.

"Do you really intend to rebel?"

"Many people will die in this world."

"Is it possible not to rebel?"

Watching this figure in red, returning as if to meet his death, Su Chen tried to persuade him.

At this.

Zhang Gui paused.

He did not turn around.

"The world thinks you, Su Chen, are merely riding on my coattails. They do not know that whether it was the opportunity granted by Consort Liang or my current cultivation as a First-Rank Minor Grandmaster, it was all given to me by you."

"That single stalk of grain gave me a life. I owe you too much; I shall repay you in the next life!"

"The blood debt of my clan must eventually be settled by someone!"

Zhang Gui left.

Su Chen knew that the world was about to fall into chaos.

Perhaps Emperor Jianwu was delighted to have the assistance of a First-Rank Minor Grandmaster by his side, believing that in time, he could return the imperial power of Great Liang to its peak. But perhaps he would not have that chance.

No one could have imagined that the Purple-Robed First Supervisor, the Director of the Eastern Depot who was supposedly fiercely loyal to the throne, would be the rebel most desired by the world to see Great Liang vanish into nothingness.

Xu Xiaohan approached, looking somewhat terrified.

"Master Su, Godfather, he..."

He was afraid of being purged.

After all.

His hands were stained with the blood of his former brothers-in-arms; he had essentially betrayed Zhang Gui, selling out both the Eastern Depot and the Martial Bureau to Emperor Jianwu as a stepping stone for his own advancement.

"The Eastern Depot and the Martial Bureau no longer matter."

"Don't worry."

"You are still Vice-Chief Manager Xu."

The next day.

The transfer order arrived.

By imperial decree of Emperor Jianwu, the First Red-Robed Chief Manager of the Martial Pavilion Library, Chu Shanhe, had passed away due to the exhaustion of his lifespan last night. Su Chen, the Sixth Red-Robed Manager, was ordered to take up residence in the Martial Pavilion to guard the classics.

"Was his name Chu Shanhe?"

Su Chen took up his post.

He gathered the items from the Library of Hidden Books—primarily the Thousand-Year Ginseng King—and hurriedly assumed his duties.

The Martial Pavilion Library was located in the core heart of the Imperial Palace, adjacent to the Tianwu Tower; it was the core of cores. The other four Chief Managers, whom the palace viewed with disdain, sent formal invitations to Su Chen out of respect for the Purple-Robed First Supervisor, Zhang Gui, hoping to build a relationship with him.

To this.

Su Chen did not spare them a single glance.

He spent his days entirely to himself, reading cultivation classics within the Martial Pavilion.

The twelfth floor of the Martial Pavilion Library.

Even the top three floors contained records of the legendary Grandmasters. Unfortunately, the top three floors were protected by ancient methods that only a Grandmaster could tread upon, and Great Liang had long since lost its Grandmasters.

"These nine floors are enough for me."

Su Chen rarely left his quarters, spending day and night reading the classics in the library.

Spring passed and autumn came.

Year after year.

In the seventh year of Jianwu, the final year of Zhang Gui's life, Emperor Jianwu was overjoyed to see two First-Rank Minor Grandmasters—who had been notorious in the martial world and hunted by two major sects—come to seek refuge in the imperial court. He issued a general amnesty to the world.

In this year, the prestige of the imperial court was at its zenith, and Emperor Jianwu showed signs of rivaling the founding ancestor.

The court was filled with countless civil and military officials.

Furthermore, the imperial army boasted three hundred thousand soldiers!

Seven years ago, the Prince of Zhenbei, who had dominated the north and been granted a kingdom, had been driven into a corner and wiped out in the northern border city; his descendants were nowhere to be found.

On this night, Emperor Jianwu held a banquet for his ministers and wrote a wild poem, comparing his achievements to those of the Great Ancestor.

The ninth floor of the Martial Pavilion Library.

Su Chen put down the classic in his hand and rubbed his aching brow. The single strand of Thousand-Year Ginseng root had already been refined by him.

His blood and qi surged, a rolling flame of blood like a dragon!

His steel-like bones possessed a gilded luster, reaching ninety-nine percent completion!

"Thunderous Body Tempering."

As he completed a set of fist techniques, dense, rolling thunder erupted. Ninety-nine cracks of thunder exploded in an instant, and the terrifying sound could be heard for ten miles, causing the clear, moonlit night sky to tremble in shock.

The Fourth-Rank Bone and Muscle Realm was perfected.

At this moment.

The gilded bones spread throughout his entire body, and the final fraction of gold was filled in.

BOOM!

Simultaneously.

Across the nine provinces of Great Liang, countless refugees brandished hoes and attacked the prefectural and county yamen.

The two major martial sects had committed all their resources, bringing forth four First-Rank Minor Grandmasters.

A total of seven First-Rank figures gathered at the Tianwu Tower.

The leader stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes like deep pools and cold, piercing light. His purple robes snapped violently in the wind, and his voice, like thunder shaking the nine heavens, echoed throughout the entire Imperial Palace.

"Purple-Robed First Supervisor, Zhang Gui, requests the Emperor to meet his death!"

On this night, the whole world rebelled.

(End of Chapter)