Am I the old man who's always by my apprentices' side?

Chapter 395 Emperors need political maneuvering, but Immortal Emperors don't.

As soon as the question was asked, which everyone already knew the answer to, they were all jolted awake and knelt down.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on your success in the path of immortality!"

Zhao Xuan bowed deeply and shouted.

The court officials readily agreed.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on your success in the path to immortality!"

There were only a few dozen people in front of Yanhe Hall, far less imposing than when civil and military officials kowtowed during a real sacrificial ceremony, and not even the scale of an ordinary court assembly. But Liu Dan felt an unprecedented sense of power in his hands.

Having only reached the Foundation Establishment stage, he felt that his strength far surpassed that of before, and he could even easily kill a martial artist with the strength of a Grandmaster like Ye Nanting.

He was even confident that he could easily break through the so-called unstoppable martial arts formation.

Emperors need political maneuvering, but immortal emperors do not.

Power needs to be balanced, but in the face of absolute power, it is no longer necessary.

Liu Dan felt the immense power surging within him, far surpassing anything he had ever experienced before, and slowly swept his gaze over the kneeling officials below.

Those faces that usually act out of compliance, form cliques, or rely on their seniority are now, under the spiritual perception of my Foundation Establishment stage, their emotional fluctuations, changes in aura, and even the slightest panic or fear are as clear as the lines on my palm.

He saw the undisguised fear and calculation deep in Zhao Xuan's eyes, the panic beneath Qian Congli's feigned composure, and the suspicion and faint hope flickering in the eyes of Li Zheng and the others.

"Everyone is safe."

Liu Dan's voice was calm yet imbued with spiritual power, rippling outwards from the front of the Yanhe Hall like waves on a lake. It possessed an undeniable majesty, clearly reaching everyone's ears and causing a slight tremor in their hearts.

Martial artists can certainly achieve this level, but they must be at least at the level of a post-natal Venerable to use their true energy to intimidate others.

That kind of intimidation was like an arrow released from a bow, full of aggression, while the official's voice at this moment was like a knife to the neck, which had not yet hurt anyone and had not yet fallen, but made people fearful and dare not make any rash moves.

The crowd rose as instructed, bowing their heads and standing to the side, their posture even more submissive than during the court assembly. No one dared to look directly at the emperor, who had just experienced a tribulation and whose demeanor seemed to have changed drastically.

Liu Dan smiled slightly, a smile that looked somewhat strange on his charred face, yet added to his unfathomable air.

"Blessed by Heaven, I have made some progress in the path of immortality. I did not intend to disturb you, my beloved ministers. It seems that the Yanhe Hall needs to be properly repaired."

He spoke casually, as if he had only broken an ordinary object, rather than having a palace destroyed by lightning.

"This is an auspicious sign from heaven! Your Excellency has achieved great success in the path of immortality, truly a blessing for our Great Chu!"

Zhao Xuan bowed again immediately, his tone extremely respectful: "I will immediately oversee the repair of the palace!"

"Thank you for your trouble, Minister Zhao."

Liu Dan nodded, his gaze sweeping over Zhao Xuan and then scanning the other ministers one by one.

"I am somewhat exhausted from today's tribulation. If you have any requests, we can discuss them later."

Liu Dan, pulling at his outer robe, casually waved his hand: "All of you may leave now!"

After speaking, he turned and walked towards the Hall of Diligent Governance, leaving behind only one sentence: "You'an, come with me."

"Respectfully seeing off Your Majesty!" The officials bowed, each with their own thoughts.

Ye Nanting, carrying the Shangfang sword, hurriedly followed.

Subsequently, a group of guards, eunuchs, and palace maids followed one after another, all remaining silent. Even Bing Yaban (the Inner Palace Attendant), who could usually exchange a few jokes with Liu Dan, pursed his lips tightly, like a gourd with its mouth pursed.

"You'an,"

As Liu Dan walked, he secretly transmitted his voice to Ye Nanting using his spiritual power, saying, "I intend to wait for a great opportunity. You are the person I trust most. After today, you will leave the capital and go to those... rebels to help them rise up and clean up those corrupt officials one by one..."

"Remember to conceal your identity so you can escape later..."

"Official!"

Ye Nanting was so shocked that he stopped in his tracks and stood there stunned for a while before hurriedly taking a few steps to catch up.

"Your Majesty, but if this happens..."

After saying only a few words, Ye Nanting swallowed the rest of his words.

Not only did Liu Dan stop, but he also suddenly remembered that the Emperor had used the pronoun "朕" (zhen, meaning "I" or "the Emperor") when speaking to him earlier...

Ye Nanting dared not look up at Liu Dan's expression, but instead respectfully cupped his hands and lowered his head, saying, "Your humble servant misspoke."

Upon hearing this, Liu Dan turned around and quietly gazed at Ye Nanting, his childhood playmate and his most trusted "friend".

The charred marks on his face were gradually fading, and the cultivator's powerful self-healing ability was beginning to show.

His face betrayed no emotion, only a long sigh, and he said, "You'an, do you think my actions are self-destructive? Or... inviting a wolf into the house?"

Ye Nanting's heart tightened, and he lowered his head even further: "Your Majesty, I dare not! But... Your Majesty, if the unrest rises, it may damage the foundation of the nation and affect innocent people... Moreover, if I leave, Your Majesty will be in danger..."

"Kunimoto?"

Liu Dan chuckled, his laughter filled with sarcasm: "Is this the foundation of the nation, riddled with holes by those vermin? Or is it the foundation of the nation where even I, who wish to cultivate immortality, must do so in secret, without anyone's notice? I, as emperor, am a pathetic wretch! Utterly pathetic!"

Liu Dan's voice gradually became agitated. He pointed in the direction outside the palace gate and said angrily, "As for the innocent common people... You'an, do you really think that the people under the rule of those parasites are not suffering?"
"Even in the deep palace, I can smell the stench of blood! Do they think I'm deaf and blind? They have no idea how many rebellious refugees there are every year! If they could survive, who would want to rebel!?"
"If I were a commoner, toiling away all year round and still unable to fill my stomach, I would surely rebel!"
"The land of Southern Chu has long been rotten to the core!"

"Without drastic measures, how can a serious illness be cured? Without scraping the bone to remove the poison, how can one survive?"

Ye Nanting kept his head down, remaining silent, knowing that what the official said was true.

The deep-seated problems in Southern Chu are beyond the reach of ordinary means to reverse.

But what he truly worried about was not the foundation of the nation, nor the safety of the officials—

Now that the official is a cultivator, no one in the world, unless they are also cultivators, can harm him in the slightest. What is there for him to worry about?
What he worried about was that once war broke out, the country would collapse and the people would suffer even more!

Those powerful and influential families are hateful, but aren't those refugees also hateful, given their pitiful state?
Yes, to punish without teaching is cruelty, but precisely because of this lack of teaching, those refugees swarmed like locusts, looting and killing wherever they went.

Wherever the rioters went, they did just as much burning, killing, and looting as the military households had moved out of their camps!

Therefore, how many more will be separated from their wives and children, and die?

(End of this chapter)