TGPSAC 05

Chapter 05

This Woman Is No Ordinary Person

Book: The War God’s Consort Stops Pretending—She Is a Cultivation Master
Author: Lin Yilei

After reading the evidence Qin Ziguang had submitted, the Emperor’s face turned as black as thunder.

“Xiahou Ying, your imperial surname is stripped from you. I bestow upon you the surname Jian. From now on, your name shall be Jian Zhong. Drag him away and execute him.”

Consort Lan let out a miserable scream before fainting on the spot.

The guards rushed in to drag Xiahou Ying away.

He struggled desperately, his eyes bloodshot, even injuring several guards in the process.

Xuanyuan Qingyun tried to save Xiahou Ying but was knocked unconscious by Xuanyuan Yu with a single strike.

Xuanyuan Yu stepped forward to subdue Xiahou Ying.

But suddenly, Xiahou Ying’s aura exploded.

He let out a deafening roar as a violent force erupted from within his body.

Then, strand by strand, his jet-black hair turned completely white.

Even his eyes became cold and devoid of emotion.

Qin Ziguang stared in shock.

That appearance…

His silver-white hair looked exactly like Yan Ying, the cultivator who had practiced the Emotionless Dao.

Could it really be him?

Had he also perished and been reincarnated?

Xiahou Ying fixed Qin Ziguang with an icy stare and stretched out a hand toward her.

“I’m going to kill you!”

Sensing the terrifying power radiating from him, Qin Ziguang acted first.

She activated a Binding Talisman, sending it flying toward him.

The talisman immediately immobilized him, freezing him where he stood.

Although Xiahou Ying could no longer move, some hidden power deep within him continued awakening.

He looked at Qin Ziguang with murderous indifference.

“Qin… Zi… Guang…

“I… will… destroy… you.”

His voice sent chills through everyone’s hearts.

Yet to Qin Ziguang, it sounded incredibly familiar.

Yan Ying.

It really was Yan Ying.

She wanted nothing more than to ask him why.

Why had he stolen her spiritual artifact?

Wasn’t he always proud and aloof?

How had someone like him stooped to becoming a thief, stealing her spiritual treasure and robbing her of her chance to ascend?

Using her divine consciousness, she spoke directly to him.

“Yan Ying, why did you steal my spiritual artifact?”

If he truly was Yan Ying, he would hear her.

But Xiahou Ying acted as though he hadn’t heard a thing.

He continued struggling wildly inside the glowing prison formed by the talisman.

Qin Ziguang understood.

His soul must have been incomplete.

He no longer remembered who he had once been.

Yet fragments of his former soul still remained, allowing him to retain a portion of his previous strength.

That was why such terrifying power had awakened within him.

Ordinary martial arts were completely incapable of restraining him.

Several guards approached carrying heavy iron chains.

But the moment they came close, they were blasted backward by a protective barrier of light that had naturally formed around him.

Neither the Emperor nor the ministers understood what was happening.

Why had Xiahou Ying suddenly become so overwhelmingly powerful?

“I’ll do it.”

Qin Ziguang took the heavy iron chains from one of the guards and personally bound Xiahou Ying.

She then sent a stream of spiritual energy into his back, shattering the protective barrier surrounding him.

Xiahou Ying roared at the Emperor.

He roared at everyone present.

He looked like a madman who had completely lost control.

The Emperor watched in fear and fury.

With a sweep of his hand, he ordered,

“Take him away.

“Throw him into the death row cells of the Imperial Prison.”

Generally speaking, once someone entered the death row cells of the Imperial Prison, they never came back out.

And so, the once lofty prince was dragged away like a dead dog, shackled in heavy iron chains by several guards.

Everyone present sighed with emotion.

When they looked at Qin Ziguang and Prince Qin again, their eyes now carried a trace of fear.

It seemed that the father and daughter had thoroughly prepared before returning to the imperial capital.

The Emperor had tried to force Qin Ziguang into an imperial marriage.

Instead, they had publicly humiliated him by exposing that he had unknowingly raised another man’s son.

Not only that, they had also brought down the Second Prince for embezzling military provisions from the frontier army.

This father and daughter…

They were absolutely ruthless.

Only then did Xuanyuan Yu truly look at Qin Ziguang for the first time.

What kind of martial art had she just used?

It was incredibly strange.

This woman…

She was far from ordinary.

After the banquet ended, the Empress kept her elder brother, the Left Chancellor, and her nephew, Xuanyuan Yu, behind in the palace to discuss matters.

The Empress smiled happily.

“Consort Lan and Xiahou Ying were once our greatest enemies. We spent years trying to bring down that mother and son, yet never succeeded.

“And yet Prince Qin and Qin Ziguang dealt with them effortlessly.

“That was truly satisfying.”

For the first time in over twenty years, the burden weighing on the Empress’s heart had finally lifted.

As Empress, she had endured Consort Lan constantly threatening her position all these years.

Now she could finally breathe freely.

She liked Qin Ziguang very much.

The Left Chancellor nodded.

“It is obvious that Prince Qin and his daughter returned to the capital intending to oppose His Majesty.

“It also seems clear that Qin Ziguang has no desire whatsoever to marry into the imperial family.

“If His Majesty insists on forcing her into the royal household, she will likely turn the entire palace upside down.”

The Empress nodded thoughtfully.

“What should we do next?”

The Left Chancellor replied,

“Prince Qin has shown no concern whatsoever for preserving His Majesty’s dignity.

“He openly indulges his daughter’s reckless behavior.

“The Emperor will never tolerate someone like him.

“We don’t need to do anything.

“We can simply stand by and watch how His Majesty deals with Prince Qin.”

Xuanyuan Yu agreed.

“Father is right.

“Aunt, there’s no need to rush.

“For now, we simply observe the situation.

“With Xiahou Ying gone, no other prince currently poses a threat to the First Prince.

“As long as none of the other princes marry Qin Ziguang, everything will be fine.”

Sitting quietly nearby was the frail Xiahou Hong.

After coughing several times, he suddenly made a shocking declaration.

“Mother…

“I want to marry Qin Ziguang.”

The Empress looked at him in surprise.

“Hong’er…

“You’ve fallen for Qin Ziguang?”

Xiahou Hong’s gaze was unwavering.

“Yes.

“I want to marry Qin Ziguang.

“Since Cousin’s relationship with her is innocent, then I have already made up my mind.

“I will marry her.”

He turned toward Xuanyuan Yu.

“Cousin, nothing really happened between you two, right?”

Xuanyuan Yu frowned.

“Your Highness, I cultivate the Golden Armor Technique. I cannot lose my virginity.

“If others don’t believe me, surely you do.

“Nothing happened between Qin Ziguang and me.

“But if you intend to marry her, you’d better think it through.

“That woman is not easy to control.

“You must be capable of handling her.

“Otherwise, she will become a disaster.

“Xiahou Ying is already a perfect example.”

Xiahou Hong coughed several more times.

Slowly but firmly, he said,

“I’ve already made up my mind.

“I will marry her.

“There is a kind of energy surrounding Qin Ziguang.

“Whenever I’m near her, the darkness inside my heart seems to become bright.

“So I want to marry her.

“Besides, Father has already declared that she is destined to become the Crown Princess.

“If I want to become Crown Prince…

“Then I must marry her.”

Xuanyuan Yu fell silent.

Qin Ziguang waited an entire day.

No imperial decree arrived.

Logically, since the Emperor had already promised she would become the Crown Princess, an official decree appointing her should have arrived shortly afterward.

But nothing came.

She wasn’t disappointed.

Instead…

She was delighted.

She let out a long sigh of relief.

It seemed that after everything she had stirred up in court, the Emperor no longer wanted her to marry into the imperial family.

With her personality, she would undoubtedly throw the entire royal household into chaos.

The Emperor was probably having a headache trying to figure out how to withdraw his earlier promise.

There was also the matter of Xiahou Ying.

He should have been executed already.

Yet Qin Ziguang had discovered that the Emperor had merely imprisoned him and had still not carried out the execution.

“Father, why do you think that old Emperor hasn’t executed Xiahou Ying?”

The father and daughter were playing chess as Qin Ziguang asked the question.

Prince Qin calmly replied,

“Xiahou Ying behaved strangely that day in court.

“His Majesty probably has his suspicions.

“That’s why he has temporarily spared his life.”

Qin Ziguang hesitated.

“Father, do you think my actions that day aroused suspicion?”

She had already tried her best not to use cultivation techniques.

But the method she had used to subdue Xiahou Ying was clearly different from ordinary martial arts.

People had probably become suspicious.

Prince Qin smiled confidently.

“So what if they are?

“What can any of them possibly do to us?

“Your father commands two hundred thousand soldiers.

“Who do I have to fear?

“And my Zi’er…

“You were born extraordinary.

“All I want is for you to live freely and happily, doing whatever your heart desires.

“As for everything else…

“Your father will handle it.”