I'm modifying myself into the ultimate demon.

Chapter 211 Jiang Hongyue vs. Empress Xiao!
The disheveled old man stared intently at the woman in red before him, his cloudy eyes gradually brightening and then gleaming with a sharp light.

The disheveled old man even blinked, as if afraid he was seeing things.

When she opened her eyes again, she still saw the woman in red in front of her, and then she spoke: "Yes, it's Xiaoyue. You, how did you come back?"

"Xiaoyue? Bah! Disgusting!" The woman in red spat directly in the face of the disheveled old man. "Don't use such a disgusting name."

The disheveled old man wasn't angry. He just trembled as he reached out and wiped the saliva off his face. "I treated you like that back then, so it's only right that you spit in my face. I don't blame you."

The woman in red stood ramrod straight in the distance, looking down at the old man lying on the ground, and said coldly, "Logically speaking, you should be dead. You've actually survived until now. It seems that bitch treated you quite well."

The disheveled old man's lips twitched; he knew this was sarcasm. "Let's not talk about those messy things. You... now that you've returned to life, haven't you let go yet?"

"lay down?"

Jiang Hongyue said coldly, "I, Jiang Hongyue, ended up in such a state entirely because of you and that bitch. If it weren't for this resentful anger, I would have died in the underworld long ago. How could I have come back to life? Now that I've finally returned to the world of the living, you want me to let go? Su Hetu, what do you think you are? Are you still the emperor you once were? You still can't shake off that arrogant attitude. It disgusts me."

The disheveled old man lowered his head, looking extremely remorseful: "In the end, it is I who have wronged you. Even if you hit me or scolded me, it was all justified. Now you have seen it, I have suffered retribution. Consider it atonement for my past mistakes."

Jiang Hongyue said, "Even if you die ten thousand times, it wouldn't be enough."

The disheveled old man sighed, "I'm going to die. Don't get so agitated. You shouldn't have come to this place. Leave as soon as possible. The palace now is not the palace you once thought it was. The longer you stay here, the more danger you'll be in."

Jiang Hongyue said, "Stop with that hypocritical face of yours, it makes me want to vomit."

The disheveled old man lowered his head and muttered, "Red Moon, don't be so willful. Leave the palace as soon as possible. This is not a place for you."

Jiang Hongyue gave the slovenly old man a severe dressing-down, but perhaps having vented her anger, she stopped cursing him. Instead, she stood under the eaves beside her, gazing up at the high walls of the imperial palace outside.

It started to rain.

She murmured to herself, "A hundred years. A whole hundred years. I, Jiang Hongyue, have finally returned to this homeland. I see these dilapidated and filthy walls. This palace is a place that everyone in the world would do anything to get into, but I never imagined... what's so good about this place?"

"Within these high walls lies scheming, loneliness, and filth. The ugliest things in the world gather here, and are magnified."

The disheveled old man said, "Then why did you come back?"

Jiang Hongyue's initial anger had subsided, and she simply said calmly, "I just came to take one last look and settle some things on my mind."

After saying that, Jiang Hongyue turned to look at the disheveled old man: "I originally came to kill you. But seeing you like this now... I don't feel like doing it anymore."

The disheveled old man said, "You still have a kind heart."

Jiang Hongyue cursed directly: "Kind-hearted my ass. I just think it's better to see you in this miserable state than to kill you. That bitch finally did something good."

The disheveled old man twitched his lips, and the light in his eyes, which had been somewhat bright, finally dimmed.

For Emperor Tianbao, wasn't he the only one true love in his life?
That's Jiang Hongyue right in front of me.

However, once he sat on the throne, his mind was focused on consolidating power, eliminating threats, and removing dissidents. He became blinded by greed.

Now that I have nothing left, my mind has become clear.

Looking back, a century has passed.

Those youthful days, those words... I can't say them anymore.

After a long while, the disheveled old man spoke, "Looking back on my life, the person I have wronged the most is you. Even if you don't kill me, I still want to say sorry to you."

"Come on, you disgusting piece of trash." Jiang Hongyue showed no mercy. "You can stay here and wait to die, and repent properly. I'm going to see that bitch."

Upon hearing this, the disheveled old man immediately curled up and crawled to Jiang Hongyue's feet, clinging tightly to her leg.

"Don't go to her, don't go. This person is extremely dangerous."

"roll!"

Jiang Hongyue kicked the disheveled old man away, saying, "What I, Jiang Hongyue, do or don't do is none of your business."

The disheveled old man was kicked more than ten meters away, crashing into the wall before sliding down to the ground, spitting out blood. Yet, he still crawled like a maggot to Jiang Hongyue, screaming hysterically:

"Look at where I've fallen to now, it's all because of that woman. She's no longer the Xiao Nanfeng she used to be. How can I watch you take the risk again?"

Jiang Hongyue ignored her and continued walking outside.

Behind them, the disheveled old man's heart-wrenching pleas still echoed: "Don't go to Shou Kang Palace! Never go to Shou Kang Palace! Never go to Shou Kang Palace! Even if you have to see this woman, go outside. Absolutely not to go to Shou Kang Palace!"

Although Jiang Hongyue loathed the slovenly old man and was filled with anger, she was not without reason. Hearing the old man's pitiful cries, Jiang Hongyue finally stopped and slowly turned to look at him in the room.

Why can't we go to Shou Kang Palace?

The disheveled old man saw Jiang Hongyue turn around and a hint of joy appeared on his face. "I don't know. I was tricked in Shou Kang Palace. Otherwise, I wouldn't have ended up like this. There are very terrifying beings inside Shou Kang Palace."

"understood."

Jiang Hongyue uttered three words, then transformed into a wisp of red light and disappeared.

call.

The disheveled old man watched Jiang Hongyue's disappearing figure, a relaxed expression appearing on his face.

Immediately afterwards, the disheveled old man returned to the corner and curled up, a chilling laugh suddenly appearing on his face.

"Jie Jie Jie~"

"Jie Jie Jie~"

Before long, a faint baby-like sobbing sound came from the disheveled old man.

Xiao Fangzi, who was stationed outside the courtyard wall, rubbed his eyes, slightly curious: "Eh? How did I fall asleep? I'm usually very awake at this time. Eunuch Fu instructed me to keep a close eye on the old man inside. If anything happens to him, Eunuch Fu will definitely kill me."

Thinking of this, Xiao Fangzi lit a red lantern, slowly pushed open the door of the Cold Palace, and went inside.

The stench inside was unbearable, but Xiao Fangzi still tiptoed to the chamber pot in the corner to check, only to find it filled with disgusting excrement.

vomit~
Xiao Fangzi made a vomiting gesture, then carried the lantern to the room in the Cold Palace, where he saw the old man curled up in a corner, eating insects such as centipedes and earthworms.

He even showed a very excited expression, repeatedly saying "Delicious, delicious".

"Disgusting stuff. Serves it right."

Seeing that the old man was unharmed but still acting crazy, Xiao Fangzi breathed a sigh of relief and went up to the old man and started punching and kicking him.

“When I make a mistake, this is how Grandpa Fu treats us. He has nowhere else to vent his anger, so he takes it out on you.”

The slovenly old man was beaten and howled in pain.

But they did not resist, and even said, "Don't take away my meat."

"What a madman. He's perfect as a punching bag." Little Fang was even happier and continued to punch and kick him. He only stopped when he was tired and panting heavily.

He stood up straight, looking quite smug.

The eunuchs in the palace mostly lived miserable lives, being bald. They could only survive by relying on the imperial family. Outside, no one treated them like human beings.

The palace rules were strict, and the methods used to train eunuchs were brutal, with beatings and scoldings being commonplace. If a eunuch was injured and never fully recovered, he was considered worthless and could only wait to die.

Xiao Fangzi was with his godfather, Xu Fu. He was sent here to watch over the old man in the Cold Palace. He didn't know the old man's identity, only assuming he was someone his godfather disliked. He often took his anger out on the slovenly old man.

They vented all the grievances they suffered outside on this slovenly old man.

If Xu Fu hadn't instructed him not to kill the old man, given Xiao Fangzi's ruthless nature, he would have beaten the old man to death long ago.

"You deserved to have offended my godfather.

Xiao Fangzi kicked the slovenly old man twice more before leaving, finally feeling relieved.

After Xiao Fangzi had walked away, the slovenly old man slowly sat up, leaned against the wall, and stared intently at Xiao Fangzi's departing figure.

"Wait, all of you just wait."

……

Shoukang Palace.

Empress Dowager Xiao Nanfeng sat behind a long table reading a book.

Xu Fu held up a lamp nearby.

There are also rules for lighting lamps.

Bending over, holding the lamp holder in one hand and protecting the wick with the other, he remained motionless, not allowing the candlelight to flicker.

Xu Fu was also physically strong, and he remained motionless for a full two hours, just like a wooden sculpture.

Only the sound of Empress Xiao turning the pages of a book remained in the room.

After a long while, Xiao Nanfeng finished reading a book and put it down. With his hand adorned with gold finger guards, he took the teacup offered by Liu Momo and took a small sip of tea.

"I haven't been sleeping well these past few days. Has something happened in the palace?"

Xu Fu put down the lamp and began to recount the trivial matters that had occurred in the palace. Finally, he said, "Nothing else is wrong. It's just that Her Majesty the Empress has fallen seriously ill and went to the Jiang family ancestral temple outside the palace to pray and offer incense. She hasn't returned for seven days."

Empress Dowager Xiao asked, "Is the Emperor aware of this matter?"

Xu Fu said, "I know. His Majesty approved this. At that time, His Majesty invited the imperial physicians to treat the Empress, but they couldn't cure her. So His Majesty allowed the Empress to go home to visit her family."

Liu Momo, who was standing nearby, spoke up, "Her Majesty the Empress has always been filial to the Empress Dowager. She has also always been proper and steady in her actions. It seems that she is truly seriously ill and misses her family."

Empress Dowager Xiao said, "The Empress is the head of the six palaces, and it is not appropriate for her to be away from the inner palace for too long. Liu Momo, go to the Jiang family tomorrow and ask the Empress to return as soon as possible. Otherwise, the concubines in the inner palace will become jealous and quarrelsome, which will spoil the Emperor's temperament."

Liu Momo replied, "Yes."

Just then, Empress Dowager Xiao seemed to sense something and turned to look outside Shou Kang Palace.

Xu Fu followed Empress Dowager Xiao's gaze and said, "It's windy outside. It's also raining. This old servant will go and close the doors and windows so as not to disturb Your Majesty."

Empress Dowager Xiao slowly stood up: "No need, it's raining heavily today. But it's a fine day. I'd like to go for a walk." Xu Fu was slightly surprised: "It's raining heavily today, I'm afraid it's inconvenient... Yes!"

He wanted to offer some words of advice, but Empress Dowager Xiao glared at him and shut him up.

Soon, Xu Fu took the umbrella and accompanied Empress Xiao out from under the eaves.

"Your Majesty, it's raining heavily today. Please be careful not to catch a cold."

"You stay here. I'm going out for a walk by myself." Empress Xiao took an umbrella and walked alone into the vast rain.

Xu Fu watched the Empress Dowager's departing figure with great unease. He said to Liu Momo, "Liu Momo, go with the Empress Dowager to see what's going on. In this rainy weather, if something happens to the Empress Dowager, what will become of us? Even if the Empress Dowager doesn't blame us, His Majesty will surely blame us if he finds out."

Liu Momo was much calmer: "We can't force the Empress Dowager to make her decision."

……

Empress Dowager Xiao, carrying an oil-paper umbrella, wearing a golden phoenix robe, a gold hairpin in her hair, a string of emerald green prayer beads hanging from her chest, and holding a string of blue prayer beads in her hand, slowly walked out of the gate of Shou Kang Palace and onto the outer corridor.

Upon seeing this, some of the guards and eunuchs on duty knelt down on one knee, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

Empress Dowager Xiao ignored them, focusing only on her embroidered shoes as she walked forward step by step. She soon disappeared at the end of the corridor.

Following the rain, Empress Dowager Xiao walked to the Cold Palace.

When Xiao Fangzi, who was guarding the door, saw the Empress Dowager arrive, he was so surprised that he quickly kowtowed to the ground and said, "Xiao Fangzi greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

Click.

Empress Dowager Xiao stopped and looked at the tightly closed door. "Has that disgusting madman inside made any noise these past two days?"

Xiao Fangzi recounted the whole story in detail, and even went to open the door at the end, saying, "If Your Majesty the Empress Dowager doesn't believe me, you can go inside and see for yourself."

Empress Dowager Xiao waved her hand in front of her nose twice: "Since there's nothing wrong, there's no need to go see him. Such a disgusting fellow would only bring me bad luck if I saw him. Just keep an eye on him."

After saying this, Empress Dowager Xiao slowly left, walked through the passage, and arrived at a secluded courtyard.

This courtyard was originally used exclusively for the royal family to watch operas, and occasionally it was also used to host family banquets. When there were no family banquets, the place would be empty.

The courtyard is very large, with a lotus pond and a plum garden next to it.

The scenery is absolutely stunning.

Empress Dowager Xiao strolled alone to the pond, watching the drizzling rain. After a long while, she finally spoke: "Come out. I know you're here. You lingered at the entrance of Shou Kang Palace for quite some time, refusing to come in. I've been waiting for you for a long time. I suppose you dare not come to Shou Kang Palace to see me."

Wow.

A ray of red light suddenly appeared on the other side of the pond.

Then a woman dressed in a red Xiuhe dress appeared in the red light. She did not cover her head with a red veil, revealing a very beautiful face. She was thirty years old, charming and graceful, like an empress.

It was Jiang Hongyue.

The two people gazed at each other from a distance of two hundred meters.

After gazing at her for a long time, Empress Dowager Xiao suddenly smiled and gave Jiang Hongyue a curtsy, saying, "This concubine greets Your Majesty the Empress."

Jiang Hongyue stood there, saying calmly, "My name is Jiang Hongyue, and I am not an empress. I have no connection with the royal family anymore. Don't you dare make sarcastic remarks here, you vile woman."

Empress Dowager Xiao, however, disagreed: "Those in the palace must still observe the proper etiquette. As long as Your Majesty the Empress is alive, you will always be the Empress of this palace. Do I not still remember the days when Your Majesty and I served the late Emperor together? During that time, Your Majesty took great care of me. How could I forget?"

Jiang Hongyue: "You're not surprised that I've recovered."

Empress Dowager Xiao said, "Your Majesty the Empress is a master of Taoism and was a martial arts grandmaster in her day, wielding countless spells. She and the one from Jade Capital Mountain were known as the two peerless talents of the Great Qian Dynasty. With Your Majesty's skills, bringing her back to life should not be difficult."

Jiang Hongyue said, "Let me ask you, did you worship the Twin Demons? Moreover, you placed the Twin Demons' incarnation in the Shou Kang Palace."

Empress Dowager Xiao said calmly, "Didn't your clone go to Shou Kang Palace to check? If I don't leave Shou Kang Palace, your clone won't dare to go in. I have no choice but to grant your request."

“Amazing. Truly amazing. No wonder the Tianbao Emperor was tormented by you like this.”

Ha ha ha.

Empress Dowager Xiao said, "Back then, it was thanks to Her Majesty the Empress who paved the way for me that I realized Emperor Tianbao was a heartless and wicked wretch. I don't want to follow in Her Majesty the Empress's footsteps, so I have to plan for myself."

Jiang Hongyue: "So, you banished Emperor Tianbao to the cold palace and supported your own son to ascend the throne."

Empress Dowager Xiao said, "It's really windy in this palace. I'm a woman, so I can't be the emperor. I can only be the empress dowager. Only in this way can I reach the highest position and not have to worry about those vile women plotting against me."

Jiang Hongyue didn't speak, but her face turned deathly pale.

Her alter ego died in Shou Kang Palace.

It caused considerable damage to the original body. However, it also confirmed some things.

After a moment, Jiang Hongyue spoke up: "Xiao Nanfeng, you will be punished by heaven for doing this. The entire Great Qian Dynasty will be destroyed in your hands."

Empress Dowager Xiao said calmly, "Your Majesty, you know far too much. I have been waiting for your return. Now that you know, I am very curious. Where is that demonic fetus?"

“You’ll never find the demonic fetus in your lifetime.” Jiang Hongyue slowly stepped back. “We’ll meet again another day.”

Before entering the palace, Jiang Hongyue was very confident in her abilities and even looked down on the palace. However, after entering the palace, she found that this place was really terrifying.

Having verified the message with his clone and then been injured, he began to consider retreating.

"Your Majesty is truly naive. What do you take the palace for? A place you can come and go as you please? Since you're here, you will rest here forever. Not only will I kill you, but I will also extract the whereabouts of that demonic fetus from your memories. This is a divine decree. I have been planning this for a hundred years, just to find this demonic fetus."

The moment the words fell, the oil-paper umbrella in Empress Xiao's hand suddenly flew out, transforming into a black magic circle that fiercely severed the red light surrounding Jiang Hongyue.

Almost simultaneously, Empress Dowager Xiao suddenly appeared outside Jiang Hongyue's body, and a black finger suddenly stretched out and pressed down hard on Jiang Hongyue's head.

"This is my domain, you cannot leave! Perish!"

……

Beijing.

Nangong Ye grabbed Chen Mo's hand and ran wildly through the streets and alleys.

I ran a long distance through the streets and alleys.

Before long, Chen Mo could see a massive palace in the distance, with red walls and golden roof tiles. It stood like a majestic mountain in the heart of the capital. Even with the rain falling, the grandeur of the palace was clearly visible.

Chen Mo couldn't help but ask, "Xiao Ye, is that Gongcheng?"

Nangong Ye glanced at the magnificent courtyard wall in the distance. "Hmm, that's where the palace is located. But we can't get there right now."

The palace city of the Great Qian Dynasty was divided into residential areas and markets.

The so-called "fang" were prestigious residential areas, inaccessible at night. A permit was required. The area where the palace was located was even more heavily guarded; even the Demon Suppression Division could not enter without a summons. Princes and members of the royal family were no exception.

Chen Mo continued running after Nangong Ye, but his eyes kept glancing towards the palace. Once they were far away, Chen Mo asked, "Xiao Ye, where are you taking me?"

Nangong Ye spoke up: "Go to the Jiang family and see the Empress."

Chen Mo was taken aback: "Your Majesty the Empress?"

Nangong Ye: "Yes. Outsiders all think that Her Majesty the Empress and I are at odds, but that's not the case at all. Her Majesty the Empress and I have an excellent relationship. Empress Jiang Yan is a good woman. In addition, she is the elder sister of the wife of the Duke of Wei. It would be most appropriate for Her Majesty the Empress to go to the Duke of Wei to see for herself."

Chen Mo was very surprised to hear this, thinking to himself: This Xiao Ye is really extraordinary, she actually has a very good relationship with the Empress?

"The Empress is the head of the six palaces; shouldn't she be able to leave the palace at will?"

"The Empress has been seriously ill these past few days and is praying for blessings at the Jiang family's ancestral shrine."

"I see." Chen Mo said calmly, but he was still a little uneasy inside.

Having just arrived in the capital, he was about to meet the Empress.

The Empress is a key figure in the palace.

To be honest, Chen Mo wasn't entirely ready to make contact with the palace immediately. However, since Xiao Ye had spoken, Chen Mo couldn't very well refuse. After a moment's thought, he made up his mind.

The Jiang family is, after all, my godmother's kinship, and I don't know if she's visited them recently.

After all, his godmother had been gone for almost half a year.

Before long, Xiao Ye pulled Chen Mo to the gate of the Jiang family's mansion.

Although the Jiang family mansion could not compare to the palace, it was still quite grand.

The gate was tall and sturdy, with two huge stone lions and lanterns hanging at the entrance. It was past midnight, but there was no one guarding the gate.

Chen Mo thought Nangong Ye was going to knock on the door, but Nangong Ye pulled Chen Mo around the door instead.

Perhaps sensing Chen Mo's confusion, Nangong Ye explained, "Let's go through the back door to avoid disturbing the rest of the Jiang family. After all, this is a secret."

Chen Mo took the lead in agreeing.

Just then——

A huge commotion came from the sky behind them, and a blinding light was faintly emitted.

brush.

Nangong Ye and Chen Mo stopped simultaneously and turned to look. A blinding red light shot up into the sky above the palace, covering an area of ​​over a thousand meters. Immediately afterward, a black current of energy rose from within the palace, violently entangled with the red light.

Although they were far apart, Chen Mo could still feel the terrifying and powerful nature of the two beams of light.

Moreover, this red light... feels somewhat familiar.

Nangong Ye was quite surprised: "It seems something big has happened in the palace. This kind of entanglement must be at least a duel between two martial arts grandmasters."

(End of this chapter)