The second day broke, and the first dispatch arrived! Furthermore, a second update will be delivered tonight! Li Shang’s dim, aged eyes widened to saucers at that moment, remaining motionless for a long while.

The room was thick with choking smoke.

After a long silence, the three of them burst from the room almost simultaneously. Tearing open the door curtain, a thick column of smoke surged skyward, as if the building were ablaze. Household servants and guards swarmed forward, buckets in hand.

Li Youran coughed a few times, then quickly regained his composure. Staring at the rising smoke, he remained silent for a long time.

Li Shang took the falcon dispatch, rereading it from beginning to end, word by word, with an exceptionally grave expression. After a very, very long pause, Grand Tutor Li Shang slowly raised his head, gazing at the dark smoke climbing into the sky beneath the gloomy, heavy clouds. He let out a long, drawn-out sigh, murmuring, "I tried my best to overestimate, but it seems I still underestimated him. Heaven, it is destined to change."

Li Youran’s face darkened, and he muttered under his breath, "Fighting the Four Divine Xuans... fighting the Four Divine Xuans." The usually composed Young Master Youran, on this day, showed a rare lapse in self-control.

At that very moment, all the major powers, the great families, and even the Imperial family were receiving the same news through their respective intelligence networks. Though the wording varied slightly, they all concerned the same monumental event.

Tianxiang City shook once again!

It was earth-shattering, world-altering, perhaps even reality-reversing!

The shocking, scandalous news about Jun Moxie and his uncle’s wife had previously caused an earthquake! And that earthquake had yet to subside! Under the manipulation and encouragement of interested parties, its influence continued to expand, the backlash growing louder and louder, and the voices of condemnation echoing ever higher!

Nearly half the people of Tianxiang were preparing. When that shameless fellow finally returned, they would make sure he paid! They would curse him to death! Even if curses couldn't kill him, they would drown the despicable wretch in spittle!

Currently, Jun Moxie’s reputation in Tianxiang was definitively worse than it had been before he transmigrated! He had become the very synonym for shameless, filthy, despicable, vile, and vulgar behavior! Even Guan Qinghan suffered collateral damage; inns and taverns across the city buzzed with tales of this adulterous pair, cursing them venomously.

It must be said, the efforts of the civil officials to stir up sentiment had been incredibly effective, perfectly executed. The uninformed masses were indeed easy to incite, especially given the societal backdrop of this era, which dictated that such actions were utterly unacceptable. Thus, the literati had successfully turned the entire city into an ocean demanding Jun Moxie’s condemnation!

They believed that the moment Jun Moxie set foot inside Tianxiang City, he would be immediately submerged by this tidal wave of sound. Even if the Young Master could ignore it, could Guan Qinghan withstand such an excruciating situation?

But now, this latest stunning piece of news struck like the explosion of a bomb—or perhaps, more accurately, the detonation of a nuclear device—unleashing a far more turbulent upheaval! It caused the exact same reaction in everyone who heard it: stunned silence, frozen like wood, as if struck by lightning—utter disbelief!

Except for that faction purely composed of scholars, who remained somewhat dismissive, everyone else felt a sense of having hoisted a rock only to drop it squarely upon their own foot.

Third Young Master Jun was actually that formidable? How could he be so fierce?!

He single-handedly defeated the Four Divine Xuans and emerged completely victorious! Damn it! Everyone who understood what a “Divine Xuan” was felt a chill rise from their core. To fight four Divine Xuans alone—didn't that make him of the Supreme rank? Didn't that mean he was invincible under heaven? Didn't that imply the current Jun family was equivalent to a colossal entity like Fengxue Silver City? Perhaps even a superior, ultimate existence?

To oppose such a terrifying power—didn’t that mean they had a death wish? Instantly, some people rushed to clarify the facts, trying to retract the rumors they had spread just yesterday, rushing to issue retractions...

But once a rumor is loosed upon the wind, no one can control the extent of its impact. As the saying goes, it is harder to stop the mouths of the people than to dam a flowing river—and this was especially true for gossip fueled by such sensational content!

Moreover, those initial reports weren't entirely groundless rumor! A large portion of it was, in fact, the truth!

As for those pure scholars, frankly, they only understood the difference between literary and martial pursuits, adhering to the maxim, "Of all occupations, only scholarship is supreme." They knew that a Xuan practitioner, or Xuanzhe, was just a martial man, or perhaps a legendary roaming swordsman. Even a Divine Xuan was just a slightly higher-tier martial man or swordsman.

But even legendary swordsmen were subject to the restraints of the law. Without rules, nothing can be accomplished. These men simply could not believe that there were people in this world who could truly transcend imperial authority and exist independently of mortal society! The notion that martial attainment, upon reaching a certain ultimate realm, could surpass the throne itself, struck them as utter nonsense!

All under heaven belongs to the sovereign; every inch of earth is the subject's domain!

When the news that Jun Moxie had killed a Divine Xuan reached the ears of the venerable Elder Mei Gaojie, the old man pursed his lips and snorted twice. "His list of accumulated sins has yet to be judged, yet he has already embroiled himself in a case involving murder! This Jun Moxie, so utterly cruel and recalcitrant, deserves ten thousand deaths; if this child lives, the world will never know peace."

The earth-shattering event that shook the entire Xuan world—a case of taking a life—was reduced by the elder to a mere criminal charge. In short, Tianxiang City had instantly become a summer public...

...the second side! The latter two days had tossed a brick out; the maggots were crawling and churning.

In the Imperial Palace.

When His Majesty the Emperor received this news, he was with the Empress and the Princess, venting his frustrations to his wife and daughter.

"Can't this Jun Moxie ever just settle down! First, he created a mountain of messes in the capital, then he packed his bags and left for the Southern Lands. He should have behaved himself in the South, but no, he had to stir up this sordid affair! Now look, if this had happened to anyone else, people would just laugh at them, but with Jun Moxie, it’s the perfect opportunity for an attack. Don’t forget how Jun Moxie insulted those great contemporary Confucian scholars in the Golden Hall recently, in front of all the civil and military officials and the Imperial relatives! Furthermore, that old man Jun Zhantian has always looked down on the civil administration; the friction between the military and political factions has a long history, so how could they pass up the chance to kick someone when they are down?" His Majesty’s expression was one of deep sorrow, showing a distinct feeling of wishing iron could turn into steel.

The Empress sat to one side, her expression unusually cold, appearing neither to hear the Emperor’s words nor to have any reaction even if she had. Only Princess Lingmeng looked rather saddened and anxious, looking towards her father with a look of considerable worry.

This scene had been occurring in the palace with increasing frequency lately. Its primary purpose was merely for His Majesty to find an excuse to speak with the Empress, though this time, the topic had shifted to Jun Moxie.

And the result was always the same: the Empress maintained a cold face, silently still as an ice sculpture, until His Majesty finished speaking, sighed, and departed.

For as long as Princess Lingmeng could remember, her parents had existed in this state. In her heart, she pitied her father greatly. For over a decade, they had lived like this. How could one endure such a life? Her father was, after all, the ruler of a nation, yet he had spent ten full years humbly trying to appease one woman—ten years! Such infatuation surely proved everything!

But her mother remained utterly unchanged.

Why?

Uncle Ye was also pitiful; Father was also pitiful. In Princess Lingmeng’s heart, she felt deep sympathy for both these devoted men. She even felt lost, unsure of where her own loyalties should lie.

How long had this situation persisted? The Emperor only knew it had been a very long time, so long that he had forgotten the precise duration. But the Empress remembered every single detail with perfect clarity.

She had once been the paragon of the empire, and the couple had maintained a relationship of mutual respect, until the birth of little Lingmeng. In his joy and perhaps a moment of carelessness, the Emperor, when drunk, revealed a secret that the Empress should never have known.

It was the true reason behind the massacre of Guan Qinghan’s family back then!

From that moment on, the cold war between husband and wife had continued until this very day! There seemed no sign of thawing—or perhaps, there never would be another day of warmth!

This time seemed no different. His Majesty sighed, finally concluding his complaints. Seeing his wife still unresponsive, he stood up to leave. It was habitual; if the Empress actually responded, that would be the true anomaly.

But this time, events truly deviated from his expectations.

Something happened!

"How Jun Moxie behaved in the capital needs no explanation; everyone is fully aware! But you sent him to the Southern Lands to face death! Now you speak as if you are utterly blameless. Respected Emperor, why must you constantly use such methods to glorify yourself? Can't you find another way?" the Empress spoke slowly.

The Emperor spun around as if caught in a whirlwind. "What did you say? Do you know what you are saying?"

"I know exactly what I am saying. I am asking if you can stop being so shameless! As the ruler of a nation, do you not feel this damages your own image? A true man stands by his actions. Do you qualify as a true man right now?" the Empress stated slowly, enunciating every syllable clearly.

The Emperor was astonished. In all their previous conversations here, she had never replied. He had mentioned Jun Moxie before, and she had always remained silent. But today, she was breaking protocol. She was even sharply and bitingly rebuking him for his deliberate distortion of the truth! This was the first time in over a decade. Why?

Why now?

For years, he had carried a profound sense of guilt towards her, always wishing to make amends, for she was the dream of his youth...

In his memory, the Empress had always been dignified and elegant, never prone to explosive fits of temper. Even when displeased, she rarely spoke so sharply; she had only shown such agitation once, the day she learned of that event. But today...

Princess Lingmeng looked at her father in horror, then at her mother. Long accustomed to the cold war between them, any unexpected deviation from that conflict left her utterly bewildered and unsure how to react.

"I am shameless? Why do you always call me shameless? By what right do you call me shameless!" the Emperor roared in fury. "I am the Emperor! I must consider the entire realm; I must think of the common people of the world. Where have I gone wrong? I support the heavens for hundreds of millions of subjects; in what way do I fail to earn the title of a true man?"

Brothers and sisters, I want to see your monthly votes!