Bamboo Case Chapter Thirty-Eight: Hatred

"Is this the boy you picked up?"

An Luo crouched down with a smile, looking Song Lian over. For some reason, while Song Lian had felt no fear when facing Lu Yun, he found himself involuntarily stepping back under An Luo's gaze.

"Don't scare him," Lu Yun said helplessly.

An Luo chuckled, ruffled the boy’s hair, and winked. "Stick with Brother Lu, and you'll have a bright future ahead of you."

"What are you talking about?" Lu Yun interjected. "I heard there is a bookstore in this city, a rarity in the Wilderness. Let's go take a look, and I'll buy you a few books while we're at it."

"I don't want to read..." In Song Lian’s mind, reading was a completely useless endeavor. Could reading a book somehow kill his enemies?

Sensing the boy’s rebellious tone, An Luo narrowed his eyes. This boy was being a bit ungrateful.

Danger!

Song Lian immediately changed his tune. "Well, taking a look wouldn't hurt..."

Lu Yun saw everything, yet he said nothing, merely patting Song Lian on the shoulder. He knew that his encounter with Song Lian was no coincidence; it was tied to the Changxing Kingdom and even Zhou Mi, but it didn't matter to him. He had felt a strange sense of déjà vu the moment he first saw the boy. He understood the look in those eyes and the depth of the hatred hidden within the boy's heart. Lu Yun understood him because he, too, had once been that boy. That was why he had saved Song Lian beneath the Holy Mountain. The Holy Mountain did not believe in tears, but Lu Yun believed in the power of hatred.

...

The new emperor of Qianjing City had left, heading personally to the front lines, claiming he would force the Changxing Kingdom to bow before the Baiyuan Kingdom. The immortal from the Hundred Flowers Pavilion was nowhere to be seen. An Luo, the only prince of the Baiyuan Kingdom, had departed with the new emperor for the battlefield. The newly migrated demon clans suddenly sensed that this day in Qianjing City felt different.

In front of the newly repaired vermilion palace gates, a crowd had gathered. These were the remaining cultivators from the thirty-seven cities of the Baiyuan Kingdom, summoned to Qianjing by Yuan Mo. Though their cultivation levels were generally modest, they were the best of what remained in the current Baiyuan Kingdom. They gathered in a throng before the imperial city.

Facing the obstruction of the Imperial Guards, they reacted with disdain.

"Qianjing City is currently leaderless! Are we just going to let it stay this way?!" someone shouted angrily. "The emperor is gone; someone must take charge of Qianjing. If thieves set their sights on the city now, how would you handle it?!"

The Imperial Guards protecting the palace wore grim expressions. These old relics spoke high-minded words about fearing for the safety of the city or the kingdom, but in reality, they simply wanted to seize the imperial palace for themselves. Though the guards tried their best to block them, they were no match for these veteran cultivators. Moments later, the old demons reached the foot of the Purple Gold Hall.

"Heh, heh, heh! The Baiyuan Kingdom is ours now. In the past, we wouldn't have dared to dream of becoming emperors..." A burly man walked up to the golden throne, drooling as he stared at the lifelike golden dragon carved into it.

"Boss, what if Yuan Mo returns with that immortal-tier expert?" a demon behind him warned.

"What if?" The man scoffed. "The Changxing Kingdom may be small, but I hear they have a priest at the Jade Purity realm. That’ll keep them busy for a while. Besides, even if they do return, they’ll surely be wounded..." The man seemed to envision a glorious future and couldn't help but laugh. Why had he been so timid before? It didn't matter now; the top echelon of the Baiyuan Kingdom had mysteriously perished. From now on, this land was theirs!

"You! From now on, you are the Grand General!"

"You shall be my Chancellor!"

"You, you, and you—all of you are my ministers!"

The man pointed at one demon after another, bestowing titles upon them. The demons were delighted, growing increasingly excited.

Just as these demons were intoxicated by the prospect of rising to the top of the state, a figure appeared, sitting on the threshold of the hall. An old man watched them, observing their uproarious laughter. He picked at his ear and said flatly, "What kind of things are you, to think you belong here?"

"Who are you?!" The burly man was the first to react, shouting at the old man, "Get out, now!"

The old man chuckled and pointed at himself. "Are you talking to me?"

"Who else? Watch it, or I'll—"

Before the demon could finish, the old man stood up slowly and took a leisurely step. The next moment, he appeared right behind the burly man.

"Young man, be more careful in your next life. Don't be so arrogant."

The tone was as calm and ordinary as if he were simply telling him he was about to die. You are going to die—it was that simple.

That was the last thing the man heard. To his horror, he felt his body slowly crumbling like a stone statue. Unable to speak, only his pupils trembling, he watched his own body fall apart. He looked at the generals, chancellors, and ministers he had just appointed as they scrambled backward...

*No, no, no...*

The man watched helplessly as he died, his grand ambitions crumbling into dust along with his body.

"You are Luo Ze!" a demon recognized the old man. The lord of Luo Ze City was named Luo Ze, and he was the grandfather of An Luo and Shui Ze.

"Oh ho, you recognize me? But it's too late." Luo Ze stood with his hands behind his back. "If you had stayed quietly in Qianjing City, you might have eventually entered the court as generals or ministers. But there is one thing you should never have done..."

Watching the demons running for their lives, Luo Ze looked at them as if they were already corpses.

"Step into this imperial palace."

...

The old man remained seated on the threshold of the Purple Gold Hall. His back was to the resplendent throne, his silhouette looking somewhat hunched. Before him, guards rushed over to sweep away the fine stone fragments scattered on the ground. Luo Ze looked up at the sky and murmured, "By sacrificing the rest of my life to grant the Baiyuan Kingdom one year of ascension, what kind of promise can you, Yun Mo, give me?"

...

Yun Mo finally met the Emperor of the Changxing Kingdom. They stared at each other across the rushing river, measuring one another.

*He looks like a coward.* That was Yun Mo's first impression of the future King of Changxing.

*He looks like a sinister young man.* That was the Emperor of the Changxing Kingdom's first impression of Yun Mo.

Despite their differing impressions, there was no doubt that neither held the slightest bit of goodwill for the other.