Chapter 40: Internal Strife in the Great Yong Dynasty

Meanwhile, Chunxiang and the other three were rushing toward the Morning Light Sect with Li Wei's letter. By this time, the Sword Sect, the Tianyuan Sect, and the Changle Sect had also sensed that something was amiss. After making some inquiries, the people of the three sects finally realized that Li Wei had seized imperial power. According to their prior agreement with Li Wei, once he became the new emperor, he was required to grant each sect ten thousand mu of spiritual farmland alongside an entire city.

However, now that Li Wei had effortlessly ascended the throne of the Great Yong Dynasty, he was naturally unwilling to hand over such immense benefits to the three sects for nothing. To the emissaries sent by the three sects, he could only offer vague evasions. When he could no longer stall them, his only option would be to abdicate and let Li Yuanyuan handle the mess; otherwise, if he committed an act that defied ancestral precepts, he would surely face the collective wrath and crusade of the Li Imperial Clan.

Hong Xiaotian, the patriarch of the Sword Sect, Shi Yigong, the master of the Tianyuan Sect, and Gu Huaixuan, the master of the Changle Sect, saw that Li Wei was endlessly delaying the fulfillment of his promise, so the three of them agreed to go together to demand an explanation. Entering the imperial palace as if no one was there, the three of them were all powerful experts at the third level of the Saint Realm. Even before Li Yuanyuan had abdicated, it would have been difficult for her to gain any advantage against the three of them.

Upon seeing Li Wei, Hong Xiaotian cut straight to the point. "Li Wei, what on earth do you mean by continually delaying our previous agreement? Do you really expect the three of us to come and take it ourselves?"

Shi Yigong chimed in from the side, "Indeed. Li Wei, you know our methods. If the three of us have to take it by force, it won't be as simple as ten thousand mu of spiritual fields plus a city anymore. At that time, what we will take is your entire Li Family dynasty!"

Li Wei forced a bitter smile. "The three fellow Daoists, please do not be angry. It is not that I, Li, am unwilling to grant the requests of the three of you, but there are extenuating circumstances. Although I am now the new emperor of the Great Yong Dynasty, I am merely a puppet emperor with an empty title and no real power. The true power of Great Yong still remains firmly in the hands of the former Empress, Li Yuanyuan. If I were to agree to the demands of the three Daoists, I fear I would ultimately be held accountable. Perhaps the three Daoists are unaware, but the former Empress has already entered the Morning Light Sect. Without her consent, it is utterly impossible for me to fulfill this promise."

Naturally, Gu Huaixuan refused to believe this. "Well, well, Li Wei! If you didn't want to fulfill your promise, you should have said so earlier instead of dragging the Morning Light Sect into this! The former Empress long ago passed the imperial throne to you, making you the supreme ruler of the Great Yong Dynasty. If you do not agree today, I suppose you won't need to be emperor anymore!"

Li Wei had already prepared for the worst outcome. With an indifferent expression, he said, "If the three of you feel that I, Li Wei, am lacking in integrity, feel free to abduct me. I am quite done being the Emperor of Great Yong."

At this, the three of them were momentarily left speechless. Never had they imagined that this old fellow, who had previously clamored incessantly about wanting to be emperor, would now want nothing to do with it once he actually got the throne. What kind of nonsense was this? Seeing that Li Wei did not care for the imperial position, the three exchanged secret telepathic messages and quickly devised a new plan.

"Li Wei, the throne is not something you can just take when you want and abandon when you don't. According to our previous agreement, if you break your word, your little life will be forfeited, and your family won't be left unscathed either. When the time comes, our three sects will join forces and turn your Li clan upside down. Let's see if you still dare to go against our three houses then."

Hong Xiaotian did not believe that Li Wei could disregard his own life, let alone the lives of his family members. Sure enough, hearing the three sects threaten his family caused Li Wei to instantly lose his composure.

Pleadingly, Li Wei cried, "Three Sect Masters, misfortunes do not extend to wives and children! You are all respected leaders of major sects, how can you stoop to such despicable tactics? Besides, it's not that I refuse to grant your wishes, but that I genuinely lack the authority to do so!"

Shi Yigong, seeing that the other party was still stalling for time, cast aside all courtesy. He said coldly, "Li Wei, we have exhausted both kind words and harsh warnings. Since you show no benevolence, do not blame us for being heartless. The entire Great Yong Dynasty shall belong to our three sects now!"

"Men, bind all members of the royal family!"

"Understood, Sect Master!"

Soon, a group of people marched into the grand hall and proceeded to restrain Li Wei under orders.

Though Li Wei possessed cultivation at the early stage of the Imperial Realm, he offered no resistance when facing these intruders. After all, three Saint Realm experts stood right before him; to make a move would only mean meeting an even quicker death.

In no time, the members of the Great Yong royal family were subdued by the three sects, and the entire Great Yong Dynasty temporarily fell into their hands. This filled the three sects with great excitement and elation—after all, with the resources of an entire dynasty to sustain them, why should the three major sects worry about failing to prosper? Yet, shortly after their jubilation, they quickly discovered the crux of the problem. Although the Great Yong Dynasty was now controlled by the three major sects, the various powerful aristocratic families refused to submit. Immediately, a scramble for imperial resources erupted, with factions large and small fighting fiercely over wealth and territory. The entire dynasty was plunged into the flames of war, leaving the common people to suffer in the depths of misery.

Meanwhile, the four sisters Chunxiang arrived at the Myriad Monster Mountain Range, but they found themselves utterly unable to enter the Morning Light Sect for the time being. At the outer perimeter of the sect, the Fox Clan had received no prior notice. In their minds, the Invincible Ancestor only had four direct disciples, one of whom was none other than the young master of their own Spirit Fox Clan.

No matter how eloquently Chunxiang and her sisters pleaded, the Fox Clan simply refused to let the four of them enter the sect, driving the women to utter despair.

"Sister Chunxiang, if this continues, the Great Yong Dynasty will be ruined!" Xiaoxian said anxiously. "Why don't we just force our way into the Morning Light Sect? Once Miss realizes we've arrived, she'll surely step in, and everything will be resolved!"

Before Chunxiang could reply, Qiuxiang and Dongxiang hurriedly intervened, calling out, "Elder Sister, you must not!"

Qiuxiang then analyzed the situation: "Elder Sister, what Second Sister says makes some sense, but aside from the fact that we can't possibly force our way into the Morning Light Sect, we probably can't even defeat the Spirit Fox Clan out here. If the Spirit Fox Clan strikes us down, the Morning Light Sect won't punish them in the slightest, and it will only ruin our mission. I received word from the Golden Guard that the three sects have already taken control of the royal family and internal chaos has engulfed the Great Yong Dynasty. If Miss does not step forward, the entire dynasty is on the verge of destruction!"

Chunxiang nodded thoughtfully and said, "Three younger sisters, we can no longer afford to sit here passively. How about I go and plead with the Patriarch of the Spirit Fox Clan once more? If I fail, you can each try one by one. I refuse to believe this Fox Clan would slaughter all four of us sisters!"

The other three women nodded helplessly. After all, marching together to their deaths was a waste, whereas trying individually might still leave a sliver of life. Without further ado, Chunxiang set off once again to seek an audience with Hu Baoshan of the Spirit Fox Clan.

Before Chunxiang could even catch a glimpse of Hu Baoshan, the fox guards intercepted her.

"Hey! Why don't you listen to reason, woman? We've already told you, the Patriarch will not see you! Even if you came back a hundred times, our Patriarch still wouldn't see you."

Daring not to provoke conflicts with these fox guards, Chunxiang lowered her pride and continued to plead. "Fellow Daoist fox guards, I truly am the guard of the Invincible Ancestor's personal disciple. At this very moment, my Great Yong Dynasty is in grave peril, and only my young lady can step forth to quell this crisis. I beg you fellow Daoists to show some convenience."

A guard sneered, "Impossible! I told you before, no means no! How could your young lady possibly be the personal disciple of the Invincible Ancestor? Only peerless prodigies like our clan's young master are worthy of becoming the Ancestor's personal disciples."

Seeing that these guards were completely unyielding, Chunxiang chose not to leave in a rush. She simply refused to believe that not a single person in the Fox Clan possessed reason. Thus, she patiently waited. This wait lasted for two whole months. Finally, heaven rewards those with persistent hearts: a middle-aged female fox cultivator happened to be heading out. This person was Elder Lingxi, the former guardian of Hu Ling'er. Seeing a human expert lingering indefinitely on the grounds of the Fox Clan without leaving, she asked the guards what was happening. After a thorough explanation from the guards, Lingxi felt that perhaps this matter was not as simple as it seemed. If the woman refused to leave, maybe the Invincible Ancestor really had taken a fifth personal disciple. If that turned out to be true, the Fox Clan could ill afford to provoke her; otherwise, being driven out of the sect by the Ancestor was a distinct possibility.

With that thought, Elder Lingxi walked up to Chunxiang and asked, "Fellow Daoist, did you just say that your young lady is the personal disciple of the Invincible Ancestor?"

Overjoyed, Chunxiang immediately affirmed, "Fellow Daoist, every word I say is absolute truth! Two months ago, a powerhouse who called himself the Invincible Ancestor took my young lady as his personal disciple in Wanxiang City. He even bestowed upon her a quasi-Emperor-grade weapon, along with two bottles of seventh-grade pills—oh, and a seventh-grade Fire Spirit Pill as well."

Lingxi had not expected the Invincible Dao Ancestor to be so remarkably generous. At that moment, she grew somewhat certain that this must indeed be connected to the Invincible Ancestor; ordinary sects simply could not produce such high-value medicinal pills. Without further ado, Lingxi led Chunxiang toward the interior of the Morning Light Sect. Along the way, no one dared to block their path, and the two quickly arrived within the sect grounds.

Since all the disciples of the Morning Light Sect recognized Elder Lingxi, not a single soul stood in their way.