son, don't mess around

"You seem to know my every move?"

Liu Su glanced at him, her tone neither cold nor indifferent.

Lin Jiangnian replied matter-of-factly, "Isn't this because I care about you?"

"The world is so chaotic right now. What if you encounter danger while you're out there all alone?"

"How can I not guarantee your safety?"

Liu Su instinctively tried to refute, but found herself unable to.

After all, she almost died at the hands of the cult leader last time.

If it weren't for a chance encounter with Lin Jiangnian, who was traveling north to Jiangnan, she probably would have died that night.

Thinking of this, Liu Su's expression softened considerably, and she stopped arguing with Lin Jiangnian.

She said calmly, "I did go to the headquarters of the Celestial God Sect."

As she spoke, she glanced at Lin Jiangnian again: "After the death of the sect leader, the Heavenly God Sect was leaderless and in complete chaos."

Lin Jiangnian was naturally aware of this matter as well.

The Heavenly God Sect is essentially a third-rate sect. Although it has experts like Liu Su, it doesn't have much of a reputation in the martial arts world. The entire sect relies on its leader to keep it afloat.

Now that the leader of that sect has died, the downfall of the Heavenly God Sect is only natural.

Moreover, after Liu Su's assassination attempt on Prince Lin failed, the Heavenly God Sect's influence in Linzhou was wiped out by Prince Lin's mansion, which was already a significant blow to the Heavenly God Sect.

Later, the Grand Elder of the Heavenly God Sect had a conflict with Lin Jiangnian in Yanzhou. The Grand Elder was seriously injured and fled. On the way, he encountered Liu Su, who took revenge on him and killed him silently.

The remaining Third Elder and Fourth Elder also perished on the night they were chasing Liu Su. The Fourth Elder died on the spot, while the Third Elder, who was seriously injured and barely clinging to life, escaped.

As a result, almost all of the elite middle-level members of the Heavenly God Sect were lost, and it was only natural that the Heavenly God Sect would fall into chaos.

"The Third Elder fled back to the Heavenly God Sect, and most people in the sect are unaware of what happened. However, the sect leader has not appeared for a long time, and some other rumors have also emerged within the sect."

Liu Su's voice was cold as she glanced at Lin Jiangnian: "In a sense, you did indeed destroy the entire Heavenly God Sect."

"It's over?" Lin Jiangnian asked in surprise.

Does the Heavenly God Cult simply disband after its leader dies?

"That's not true."

Liu Su shook her head: "Although the Heavenly God Sect has suffered heavy losses, its leader has laid too many hidden plans over the years. Today, the Heavenly God Sect is no longer what it once was, but it is still a considerable force..."

"The Third Elder also realized this. After returning to the Heavenly God Sect, he recuperated for two months and sent people to investigate. He guessed that the sect leader had died."

"Therefore, he colluded with a group of elders of the cult leader in an attempt to seize power."

Lin Jiangnian pressed on with interest, "And then?"

"he died."

Liu Su's answer was calm, concise, and understated.

The Third Elder is dead.

As for how he died, that goes without saying.

"Did you kill them all?"

Lin Jiangnian looked at her in surprise: "How many people did you kill this time?"

Liu Su glanced at him, expressionless: "Killed all those who deserved to die."

"That seems to be quite a lot."

Lin Jiangnian sighed, "It was an outcome I could have predicted."

Within the entire Heavenly God Sect, apart from the sect leader, in terms of prestige, the Holy Maiden Liu Su far surpasses all the elders.

In terms of martial arts skills, Liu Su was also far superior.

In this way, the elders of the Heavenly God Sect naturally had no chance against Liu Su. Her return to the Heavenly God Sect's headquarters as a Holy Maiden and her taking over the sect became a matter of course.

"So, the entire Heavenly God Cult is now in your hands?"

Lin Jiangnian raised an eyebrow, looking at her with surprise: "Should I start calling you the new leader from now on?"

"I have no interest in the position of leader."

Liu Su pursed her lips and said calmly, "But the position of sect leader cannot fall into the hands of others."

Liu Su is still nominally the Holy Maiden of the Heavenly God Sect. Although the Heavenly God Sect has suffered heavy losses, it still has many strongholds throughout the dynasty, with many elite followers, and can still gather a considerable force.

If it falls into the hands of others, it will certainly not be good news for Liu Su.

Therefore, she chose to return to the headquarters of the Celestial God Sect and, taking advantage of the sect's current state of leaderlessness and its most vulnerable and chaotic state, took over the entire sect as a saintess.

Of course, there were also many people who questioned and opposed it.

But those dissenting voices quickly disappeared under Liu Su's ruthless and decisive methods.

For a sect like the Celestial God Cult, solving problems with force is often the simplest and most practical approach.

"Then what are your plans next?"

Lin Jiangnian seemed to be deep in thought. Liu Su had integrated the Heavenly God Sect, but the Heavenly God Sect was, after all, a 'cult' and didn't have a good reputation among the people. Liu Su's excessive contact with the Heavenly God Sect was not a good thing either.

"Don't know yet."

Liu Su's tone was very calm, and she said indifferently, "We'll see when the time comes."

She didn't have any particularly strong purpose in taking over the Heavenly God Sect.

After Lin Jiangnian was assassinated that night, she left Chujiang City, originally aimlessly intending to go out and clear her head.

However, they discovered traces left by the Heavenly God Cult along the way. Following the traces, they found several members of the Heavenly God Cult and learned that the cult was in chaos and that the Third Elder had returned to the headquarters.

So, Liu Su took the opportunity to return to the main altar to seek revenge!
That night, she was chased and nearly killed by the Third Elder and the Fourth Elder.

Now that she has recovered from her injuries and her martial arts skills have returned to normal, it's time for her to take revenge.

The process of taking revenge went smoothly, with almost no setbacks.

Liu Su's safe return to the main altar caused an uproar within the sect, and also caused the Third Elder's face to turn pale. He tried to escape but failed and struggled to survive, ultimately dying casually under Liu Su's sword.

With the death of the sect leader and many elders, Liu Su, as the Holy Maiden, became the most respected person in the sect and naturally took over the affairs of the entire sect.

"I see."

Lin Jiangnian listened quietly as Liu Su described her activities over the past few months. Liu Su's description was simple, but one could still sense her busyness and hard work during this period from her words.

Such a huge mess is no small matter no matter who gets it.

"By the way, why did you suddenly come to the capital this time?"

Lin Jiangnian suddenly thought of something and looked at Liu Su.

The headquarters of the Heavenly God Sect is located in the southern border region, and most of its influence is spread throughout the southern states of the Great Ning Dynasty. It does not have much influence in the north.

Since Liu Su decided to take over the Heavenly God Sect, she should naturally stay in the south to consolidate the sect's power. Why did she suddenly leave and come to the capital?

She previously said she needed to speak with Lin Jiangnian about something important... but what could it be?

When this matter was mentioned, Liu Su's eyes flickered, and a strange light seemed to flash in them.

Then, her gaze fell on Lin Jiangnian, staring at him for a while, her lips curving slightly into a beautiful smile.

"I have some crucial news here. Do you want to hear it?"

"what news?"

Lin Jiangnian asked.

"A secret that may be related to you."

Liu Su smiled enigmatically: "Do you want to hear it?" Lin Jiangnian sighed: "Are you still keeping me in suspense? Just tell me already."

"Such a secret cannot be revealed casually."

Liu Su's eyes sparkled with amusement: "Want to know? Beg me!"

Lin Jiangnian: "..."

"You actually like this kind of thing?"

Seemingly noticing something amiss in Lin Jiangnian's gaze, Liu Su realized something and spat lightly.

"You're obscene!"

"I didn't say anything, you just made it up in your head."

"That's because you're vulgar!"

"..."

Seeing that Lin Jiangnian remained silent, Liu Su snorted and pouted, saying, "I wasn't planning on telling you this secret anyway, since it has nothing to do with me."

"But after thinking about it, since it concerns the safety of the people, I decided to come to you in person to save innocent people."

"People of the world?"

Lin Jiangnian was taken aback. It sounded a little awkward coming from Liu Su's mouth... For the sake of the people?
Could this be something Liu Su would do?
She was a holy maiden of the Heavenly God Sect, but in the eyes of the court and the people, she was undoubtedly a witch and a villain.

Liu Su never considered himself a good person, much less someone who cared about the well-being of the people. He traveled all the way from the south to the capital just to tell him this in person.

Is this still the Liu Su he knows?

Obviously not.

So the answer is obvious... Women, they're all just excuses!

Lin Jiangnian understood, but didn't expose it: "Tell me, what is it that could involve the people of the world?"

Liu Su did not answer immediately, but spoke softly: "This time I returned to the Heavenly God Sect headquarters for two reasons. First, to eliminate dissidents and take control of the Heavenly God Sect. Second, there is another matter I want to investigate..."

"The cult leader is dead, but he left behind many things. Over the years, the Heavenly God Cult has amassed a great deal of treasure by plundering the people. At the same time, the cult leader also hid many secrets within the cult..."

"I always thought the cult leader's identity was mysterious. When I went back this time, I looked into it, and unexpectedly, I actually found out some things..."

At this point, Liu Su's smile faded slightly, revealing a hint of seriousness.

"I've found something, something very important..."

Liu Su slowly raised her eyes, her gaze falling on Lin Jiangnian, and said slowly, "Perhaps, from the very beginning, all our guesses were wrong."

"We've all been misled by the cult leader..."

"..."

The night is deep and quiet, the moon is bright and the stars are few.

A cold wind howled through the streets and alleys of the capital, and the entire city seemed to fall into silence.

In the center of the city, in the imperial capital.

The palace gates opened slowly, and a carriage emerged from the palace.

After leaving the palace, the carriage slowly returned to Cuiwei Residence.

"Your Highness, we're home!"

The voices of servants could be heard outside the carriage.

Inside the carriage, a figure was reflected in the dim light, expressionless, yet his slightly handsome face couldn't hide his gloom.

That profound sense of melancholy was deeper than the surrounding darkness.

Li Chang'an straightened his clothes, got off the carriage, and limped into the mansion.

"Your Majesty!"

Inside the mansion, several figures who had been waiting for a long time stepped forward to greet them.

Li Chang'an entered the room expressionlessly. A maid had already prepared a soft couch for the prince to sit on before leaving the room.

Three figures stood inside the room.

"Your Highness, I have investigated in Jiangnan and confirmed that Yue Qing is not dead. He disappeared after his failed assassination attempt on the Prince of Lin's heir, and has been hiding in the shadows ever since, without returning to the Yue family..."

"His whereabouts are still unknown, but the possibility that he has fallen into the hands of the Prince of Lin cannot be ruled out."

A figure spoke in a deep voice: "If he really falls into the Prince's mansion, it means that we have been exposed, which will probably be extremely detrimental to the Prince's plans."

Li Chang'an's face was filled with coldness as he sneered, "So what if we're exposed? It's no longer important."

The others were taken aback by the prince's words, exchanging glances as if they understood something. One of them cautiously asked, "Your Highness, how did your audience with the Emperor go today?"

Li Chang'an's gaze was sharp, and he sneered, "My elder brother is indeed nearing the end of his life."

He entered the palace tonight and met his elder brother, the Emperor. As expected, Li Cining's health was very poor.

It's worse than I expected!

Although he tried his best to endure it, Li Chang'an still noticed something was wrong.

Upon hearing this, the others' eyes lit up with excitement: "So, does that mean our plan is going to succeed?"

"Great! The opportunity will be right in front of us soon."

"Just wait a little longer, all we need to do is wait a little longer..."

Looking at the three people in front of him who were excitedly discussing, Li Chang'an interrupted them with a cold laugh: "Wait, I can't wait any longer!"

"The longer the night, the more dreams there are!"

The others' gazes sharpened: "Your Highness, what are you going to do..."

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Li Chang'an took a deep breath, trying to keep his expression calm, but he couldn't suppress the excitement in his heart: "Now, the situation in the palace is already under my control. We are all ready, and all that's left is to take action!"

After these words were spoken, there was a moment of silence.

"But Your Highness, His Majesty is still alive. If we act rashly and fail, we will all be doomed... We must not follow in the footsteps of the Third Prince!"

Someone gave a stern reminder.

The situation in the capital is now entirely under their control. They only need to wait for His Majesty's death, at which point everything will fall into place, and no one will be able to stop them.

We should act while His Majesty is still alive; if we fail, we will surely die.

The fate of the Third Prince Li Yuan serves as a cautionary tale.

Li Chang'an glanced coldly at the man: "How can Li Yuan be compared to me? He is stupid. He didn't even understand the situation inside the palace, yet he dared to lead his troops into the palace in such a grand manner. He is utterly foolish."

"I have been planning this for so many years, and I want to do it silently and without bloodshed!"

Li Chang'an's eyes blazed with fury: "I have found out that my elder sister is not in the palace. The greatest threat is gone, and the rest are nothing to fear."

The people nearby exchanged glances, and one of them tentatively asked, "What about His Majesty's side?"

Li Chang'an sneered: "He is already terminally ill and incapable of ruling the world. Stepping down and handing over the reins to a more capable person is his best option."

"After all, we're brothers. When the time comes, I will personally see him off!"

Then, Li Chang'an looked up at the people in front of him and said, "You are all my trusted confidants who have followed me for many years. Only you know the details of this plan. Once the plan succeeds, you will be my loyal subjects."

"I will guarantee you wealth and honor for generations to come!"

The men were all jolted, realizing something, and said in unison, "Your subordinates swear to serve Your Highness to the death!"

"..." (End of this chapter)