"Zixin, is what you said true? Is that really what you think?"
Faced with Xiao Fan's persistent questioning, Nangong Zixin could only turn her face away in pain.
At this moment, Nangong Kuang, Nangong Zixin's father, spoke to Mu Qiuyao, begging for mercy: "Your Majesty, please show mercy. It's all because Xiao Fan has been pestering my Zixin. She really wants to marry into the Heavenly Severance Holy Land."
Then, he glared at Nangong Zixin: "You rebellious daughter! What status does the Holy Son have? And you treat him like this! Do you want to ruin my Nangong family!?"
Nangong Zixin was already in tears.
Everyone in this family treated her as a tool for exchanging benefits; it was truly too difficult for her.
Mu Qiuyao scanned the crowd with a blank expression, seemingly searching for the target with the Pure Yang Physique.
However, after sweeping her divine sense across the area, she found no target.
Xiao Fan then said to Lü Baichuan, "Lü Baichuan, you are the groom today. Tell me, how do you want to handle this? I will make the decision for you."
Lü Baichuan smiled slightly and then looked at Nangong Zixin and her group, saying, "Your Majesty, since Zixin is willing to live a good life with me, I am also willing to give her a chance. The wedding can continue.
As for Xiao Fan, as long as he makes a Heavenly Dao Oath to guarantee that he will not disturb Zixin and me in the future, he can be released."
The guests present nodded upon hearing this.
"They say the Holy Son is arrogant and overbearing, but it seems he's not so bad, right?"
"Exactly! He's willing to reconcile even after such a humiliating thing happened. It seems we've misunderstood him all along."
"Holy Son, if it doesn't work out, you can consider me! I can also marry you."
For a moment, everyone's impression of Lü Baichuan was greatly improved.
Xiao Fan glared fiercely at Lü Baichuan, and said, word by word, "Even if I die, I will never make such a disingenuous oath!"
Nangong Zixin, upon hearing this, mustered all her strength and slapped him directly.
Xiao Fan was stunned, covering his face as he looked at Nangong Zixin in disbelief. "Zixin, you... hit me?"
Nangong Zixin said resolutely, "Xiao Fan, don't be ungrateful. Her Majesty the Empress and the Saint have already given you a chance. Don't be ignorant of what's good for you; make the oath quickly."
Xiao Fan's cheeks twitched. "You really want me to make a Heavenly Dao Oath?"
Nangong Zixin's eyes were red, and a line of tears fell. Unable to bear seeing Xiao Fan's despairing face, she turned her face away.
"I'm sorry, Xiao Fan gege, we are ultimately fated to be apart."
"Why! Why! Why, Zixin!"
This moment, Xiao Fan also broke down.
Just as Xiao Fan was about to fight to the death, Jian Dian stopped him, whispering, "Young friend, listen to Miss Nangong. Don't let her efforts be in vain. Staying alive is the most important thing."
"Aaaah~~"
Hearing this, Xiao Fan immediately burst into tears.
"Alright, I swear, I swear!"
When he uttered these words, Xiao Fan felt as if all his strength had been drained, and he knelt down in a daze.
Just as he was about to begin the oath, a melodious singing voice suddenly rang out from behind him.
"A wandering knight, his name far spread, now spoken of in the jianghu. ...
"Many foes, a few friends, but a worthy opponent is hard to find.
Rain shatters, wind like a tide, a strike unleashes a storm.
Before the move is retracted, three laughs resound, all are intoxicated..."
Immediately, everyone was drawn to the singing, their gazes sweeping towards Shen Zhao.
They saw Shen Zhao, oblivious to the world, tapping a chopstick against his wine cup to keep the rhythm.
Yu Xiyan's bright eyes lit up, and she looked at Shen Zhao with some surprise.
She had heard this song in her previous life, sung by someone named Wuyazi on the streets of Chang'an.
Unfortunately, she had never managed to meet him.
"The wind blows hard, suddenly turning back, bright moon over a thousand mountains.
The world is vast, filled with spirit, singing all the way to Chang'an.
Shadows of lanterns, wine is warm, everyone is enjoying themselves.
Everyone is drunk, they brush their sleeves and disperse, dark clouds gather…"
Such a familiar tune even attracted Mu Qiuyao, who momentarily forgot to deal with the dispute at the scene, gradually immersing herself in the singing.
"Only the young people of this Jianghu, especially love to roam the world.
Revenge and gratitude take advantage of youth, light swords and swift horses.
The mortal world is not yet broken, there is nothing to worry about, only love for life and death."
"Drunk, discussing the Dao; sober, breaking flowers..."
After the song ended, Shen Zhao calmly walked to Xiao Fan's side and held his arm, saying, "A man's knees are worth gold, what's with all this crying? Get up!"
The next moment, the emperor's might pressing down on the five people instantly shattered.
Mu Qiuyao finally reacted and asked coldly, "Who are you?"
Shen Zhao sighed softly, then hung the Public Arbitration Council's insignia on his chest, put one hand behind his back, and closed his eyes to take a deep breath.
When he opened his eyes again, his temperament had completely changed.
A solemn pressure intimidated the entire scene.
"Shen Zhao, an executive elder of the Public Arbitration Council, greets the Profound Heaven Empress."
"Shen Zhao? Shen Zhao!"
Mu Qiuyao looked at the man in front of her and immediately stood up, a hint of barely concealed excitement flashing in her icy eyes.
She suppressed the urge within her and asked calmly, "Young man, are you also planning to wade into these murky waters?"
At this moment, Yu Xiyan finally reacted. Shen Zhao had actually confronted the Profound Heaven Empress directly, and she was about to speak up to stop him.
But then she heard Shen Zhao shake his head. "I don't want to get involved in your squabbles. I am here today, representing the Public Arbitration Council, only to handle one matter."
"What matter?" Mu Qiuyao asked, surprised.
Shen Zhao pointed at Lü Baichuan. "To enumerate the crimes of Lü Baichuan and the Lü family in the mortal realm."
The entire scene was immediately in an uproar.
"What's he rambling about?"
"I don't know, but he's provoking even the Heavenly Severance Saint Son?"
"Doesn't he want to live? Daring to show off in front of the Profound Heaven Empress?"
Huang Xiaoting sneered, "Hmph, this must be some low-class man's trick to get the Empress's attention.
Such a degenerate actually dares to covet the pure and chaste Empress. He's probably read too many romance novels; it's so cringe."
Liang Hao immediately retorted upon hearing this: "I advise you, you female dog, to stop talking nonsense. My big brother wouldn't do something so low."
Huang Xiaoting glanced at Liang Hao, "Right, right, your big brother is so noble, he looks down on the high and mighty Empress. Who would believe that?
Maybe your big brother is fantasizing about crawling under the Empress's skirt and licking her toes like a dog. How cringe. If it were me, I'd make him drink the foot-washing water first."
"I... damn it!"
Liang Hao was about to explode on the spot, but fortunately, Ding Buer held him back tightly.
Lü Baichuan heard this and calmly said, "Recount my crimes? What a joke, what crimes could I, the Holy Son of the Heavenly Severance Holy Land, possibly have!"
Mu Qiuyao also said, "You better have solid evidence, or I won't let you off."
Shen Zhao immediately took out a thick ledger and read out one item after another:
"In the thirteenth year of the Yellow Dragon era, on the third day of the fourth month, Lü Baichuan took a liking to a good woman on the street and forcibly dragged her into a room, defiling her purity, and then brutally killed her. Later, the girl's family came looking, but they were all killed by the Lü family under the charge of trespassing."
"In the thirteenth year of the Yellow Dragon era, on the eighteenth day of the fourth month, Lü Baichuan and his cronies defiled two female Purple Cloud Sect disciples who were out on a training mission on the banks of Xilan Lake, causing their deaths. Afterwards, they framed the Mount Wu Sect, leading to conflict between the two sects, resulting in hundreds of casualties."
"In the thirteenth year of the Yellow Dragon era, on the ninth day of the fifth month, Lü Baichuan, along with the Lü family, forcibly seized the official spirit vein south of Tianlan City. This action caused the people of twelve nearby towns to lose their livelihoods, ultimately leading to a drought the following year that displaced one hundred thousand people."
"In the fourteenth year of the Huanglong era, on the sixth day of the sixth month, Lü Baichuan took a fancy to an Earth Grade Spirit Sword. He did not hesitate to ambush the escort team, posing as a heretical cultivator and robbing them, leading to the deaths of one hundred and seven rogue cultivators and forty-five innocent civilians."
"In the fifteenth year of the Huanglong era, on the third day of the second month…"
As Shen Zhao publicly announced Lü Baichuan's crimes one by one, the guests present were shocked.
The crimes committed were simply appalling, even surpassing those of heretical cultivators.
After the last accusation was read, Shen Zhao looked at Lü Baichuan and asked directly, "The evidence is conclusive. Do you have anything to say in your defense?"
Lü Baichuan's face was ashen. He immediately denied it, "Nonsense! This is all fabricated by you! I didn't do it!"
Ning Ruoxue also said, "Your Majesty, my disciple is incapable of such a heinous act. This Shen Zhao is a notorious villain of the martial world, and he is surely here to spread fallacies and deceive the masses."
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiyan couldn't sit still any longer. She stood up and said, "Sect Master Ning, you are mistaken. The Public Arbitration Council is the guardian of the Profound Heaven order. How could they fabricate such things? Your conclusion is too hasty."
Ning Ruoxue frowned: "Why, the Great Yin Empress is so protective of this outsider? Could it be that you have some sort of relationship with him?"
Yu Xiyan immediately wanted to shout, "He is this Empress's husband," but Shen Zhao spoke first: "There is a Heavenly Dao Oath seal on it. If you don't believe it, Empress, you can personally verify it."
After speaking, he directly threw the evidence towards Mu Qiuyao.
Mu Qiuyao took it and glanced at it, then looked at Ning Ruoxue with an icy expression: "How did you teach your disciple?"
Ning Ruoxue was frightened and immediately knelt down: "Your Majesty, even if everything is true, most of it happened before Baichuan entered the Heavenly Severance Holy Land. Since he entered the Heavenly Severance Holy Land, those previous misdeeds really haven't happened."
Mu Qiuyao nodded upon hearing this, and looked at Lü Baichuan: "Strip him of his Holy Son status, and go to the Thought Reflection Cliff to contemplate for fifty years, to atone for your actions in the mortal world."
Lü Baichuan didn't dare to refute and immediately lowered his head and responded, "Yes."
But Shen Zhao, upon hearing this, let out a soft "Hmm~": "Having committed such a serious crime, and implicated tens of thousands of lives, the Empress intends to brush it off with a simple period of contemplation?"
The guests present immediately felt their hearts leap into their throats upon hearing this.
How dare Shen Zhao question the Empress's decision? Where did he get the nerve and confidence?
Yu Xiyan also broke out in a cold sweat for Shen Zhao, thinking to herself, You fool, don't you value your life? Why are you sticking your neck out for this? Do you enjoy attracting trouble so much?
Sure enough, Mu Qiuyao's face turned cold when she saw Shen Zhao opposing her decision.
"Then, how do you propose we handle this?"
"With the evidence confirmed, Lü Baichuan should pay the price for his actions."
"Evidence?"
Mu Qiuyao sneered, then directly turned the evidence in her hand into dust.
"Now, where is the evidence?"
"Hmm~~"
Shen Zhao's eyes sharpened, and killing intent surged.
"Does the Empress really intend to protect such a disaster-bringing demonic foetus!"
Mu Qiuyao's beautiful eyes slightly nodded: "So what? You don't think that I, the Empress, would actually take a small Public Arbitration Council seriously, do you?"
A gust of wind swept past, and Shen Zhao clenched his fists.
"Once the evidence is announced, Lü Baichuan has no chance of survival!"
"Then I'd like to see how you kill someone under my very nose."
Mu Qiuyao stood with her hands behind her back, completely disregarding Shen Zhao's words.
Seeing that the situation was almost out of control, Yu Xiyan had already begun to consider how to save Shen Zhao from Mu Qiuyao.
But just then, Shen Zhao's voice reverberated across the entire Heavenly Severance Holy Land.
"Conspiring in secret, killing and plundering lives, every act is against the natural order. If this villain isn't executed today, then justice will not exist, and the world will be disgraced. Lü Baichuan, face your tribulation!"
The next moment, he channeled his energy into his dantian, concentrating his qi sea and a single point, transforming spiritual energy into true essence.
Turning his head in that instant, the sound waves erupted.
Immediately, a dragon's roar echoed through the heavens, traversing the nine celestial spheres.
"Ah~ That's~"
Lü Baichuan exclaimed in surprise.
But the next moment, as the sound waves entered his ears, his consciousness and body exploded together, and he died on the spot.
"Candle Dragon's Roar!!!"
Mu Qiuyao never expected that this Shen Zhao would actually dare to kill someone in front of her.
-----------------------
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(End of Chapter)