Mutated Tao

At this point, Li Huowang's anger flared from Gao Zhijian's continued skepticism. “How many times must I say that I’m not ill!”

Li Huowang stood abruptly, his voice ringing through the room. “Do you trust me or not? If you don’t, I’ll handle it myself!”

“I trust you,” Gao Zhijian said, trying to calm Li Huowang down. “Still, this is an important matter that must be shared with the others. The Saintess of the White Lotus, the other Dragon Veins, and the other Chiefs of the Surveillance Bureau must learn about it too.”

Li Huowang couldn't argue with that. This was valuable information that could benefit everyone. It was important for the others to know as well.

If he could rally their support, their combined strength would be more reliable than what Zhao Shuangdian or Qing Wanglai could offer.

They were scattered across the world, and gathering them in Shangjing would ordinarily take ages. However, Li Huowang could solve that.

The necessary people were gathered at Shangjing at a moment’s notice.

Bai Lingmiao wasn’t the only one who came. There were also the other Dragon Veins, the Righteous Monastery, the Mo family, the Minglun Hall, the Ao Jing Sect, and the Luo Sect.

Everyone had gathered. The only exceptions were those who were caught in exceptional trouble.

The main hall where Gao Zhijian usually held his morning meetings was filled to the brim.

Jiang Xiangshou’s appearance wasn’t exactly low profile, so almost everyone knew what had happened.

Before Gao Zhijian could say anything, murmurs filled the air, with many casting glances at Li Huowang.

Li Huowang did nothing to hide his status as a Strayed One. He revealed it to everyone.

Still, no one dared to do anything. His standing was now higher than theirs.

Gao Zhijian lifted his arm, and an old eunuch waved a golden horse-tail whisk in the air. “Silence.”

The hall became quiet. Everyone looked at Gao Zhijian and the other emperors on the thrones. The atmosphere was solemn.

“I have summoned everyone here for one reason,” Gao Zhijian said. “I trust you understand this concerns our survival.”

Everyone in the hall quietly listened to Gao Zhijian.

Gao Zhijian stopped his speech momentarily. He waited for the eunuchs to hand him a golden decree and started writing on it. “Nearly all our soldiers have given their lives to shield us, yet the enemy is still on the offensive.

“To protect our world, I, Gao Zhijian, Emperor of the Liang Kingdom, hereby use my authority to declare the activation of the Murderous Aura Command.”

With those words, he stamped the decree with the Liang Kingdom’s jade stamp.

The other Dragon Veins didn’t object. They stood up simultaneously and stamped the golden decree with their respective kingdoms’ jade stamps.

But it wasn’t over. The emperors even dripped their own blood onto the decrees.

Most of the people in the hall didn’t fully comprehend the severity of the ceremony, but some of the oldest knew about the Murderous Aura Command.

An old crone walked forward with a cane shaped like a phoenix’s head. Her body was covered in tattoos depicting cracks seen on a porcelain vase. Her voice trembled. “Your Majesty, is the situation that dire? We didn’t even use it when the Dharma Sect almost invaded us.”

“The Dharma Sect? They didn’t even get past Qing Qiu. The situation today is not the same. The peace we enjoyed last time was earned from the sacrifices of Senior Li and the Chief of the Surveillance Bureau.

“Since the situation is so dire now, I will not hide it further. The Dharma Sect was nothing but a scout from our enemies!”

Everyone felt the crushing weight of Gao Zhijian's words. They still recalled how fierce their battle had been with the Dharma Sect.

If the Dharma Sect was only the scout, just how strong was the main force of their enemies?n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Unrest spread amongst the people. Li Huowang stood forward to calm them down.

“Do not panic. We can win! They are not as strong as you think. If we unite and give it our all, we will prevail!”

“Daoist Li, who are you to speak to us like this?” The Ao Jing Sect’s grand elder, Yan Jianxi, spoke up.

“Me? Who am I?” Li Huowang showed him the identity plate on his waist. “I am the Chief of the Liang Kingdom’s Surveillance Bureau! What about it? Do I not have the right to talk here?”

Gao Zhijian didn’t know about this. He and the others looked at the identity plate in Li Huowang’s hand with shock.

The plate had been Xuan Pin’s. Li Huowang took it from his corpse.

Li Huowang’s voice rang with conviction. “There is no need to fear them! Their elephant is roughly the same size as ours! Use every technique, every hidden weapon, every treasure! Together, we will annihilate them!”

His words didn’t resonate with the others, but with the emperors' guarantee, they had no choice but to admit that Li Huowang was the Chief of the Liang Kingdom’s Surveillance Bureau.

It was clear to everyone what those words meant, as all the emperors had summoned them here.

It was do or die now.

Once the royal decree had been passed, the ministers and officials started working hard for the sake of the Murderous Aura Command.

While some evil sects chose not to help, they were sensible enough not to cause any trouble for the time being.

Li Huowang turned to Gao Zhijian. “Do you intend to expose everyone in this world to the murderous aura?”

“Everyone.” Gao Zhijian’s voice allowed no room for doubt as he sat on his throne.

Li Huowang’s voice trembled. “Including our juniors at Cowheart Village?”

The faces of Puppy, Yang Xiaohai, Zhao Wu, Sun Baolu, Lu Xiucai, and Chun Xiaoman flashed in Gao Zhijian's mind. However, as a good emperor, he still chose the most logical path. “Everyone.”

Bai Lingmiao and Lu Xiucai had both been exposed to murderous aura before, so Gao Zhijian knew what would happen.

If everyone in the world were exposed to the murderous aura, it would become a man-made disaster.

Li Huowang’s didn’t want that to happen, but he could not say anything. The world was in danger right now, so he had to use every method at his disposal. He could argue about it later.

Li Huowang whispered, “Don’t use it right away. Use it only at the last possible moment to summon Jiang Xiangshou.”

He had finally acquired some helpers, which should have been good news for him. However, the price to be paid was too high.

“Of course. They are all my people. They are my mountains and my fields. I love them more than you.”

Li Huowang wanted to rebuke Gao Zhijian, but a woman’s voice interjected, saying, “We won’t be relying only on the people!”