Many children, many blessings; a stunningly beautiful wife is given to you right from the start.

"It didn't go well! Your Highness, please calm down!"

Wenruo waved her hands repeatedly, her voice hoarse from shouting.

"The moment the Seven Deadly Gu worm burrowed into the princess's body, Lin Mo, using some unknown method, forcibly pulled it out of her flesh with a red thread!"

He swallowed hard, his voice still trembling.

"The princess is full of energy now, and can eat three large pork knuckles in one meal!"

Xia Xiong's tense muscles finally relaxed.

He flung Wenruo's collar away and slammed back into the armchair.

Despite the sweltering heat, he was covered in a thick layer of white sweat.

"Corpse Puppet Gu, Seven Deadly Gu..."

Xia Xiong rubbed his stubble-covered chin.

"This is not some street performer's trick."

"Looking across the entire Ten Thousand Mountains, you could count on one hand the number of people who can use these two kinds of deadly Gu so skillfully."

He counted on his thick fingers.

"That old monster Wu Qiu from the Ten Thousand Gu Tower is one of them."

"But that old geezer is a loner by nature. He won't even give me face. There's no way he'd go and be Xia Yuan's dog."

"The rest are just a few elders who are in seclusion."

"But those old geezers, half their bodies are already in the ground, how can they still go to fight in the North?"

Xia Xiong ruffled his already messy hair into a bird's nest.

"How strange! From which graveyard did Xia Yuan dig up such a top-tier Gu Master?"

"Your Highness, could it be that Xia Yuan... offered a huge reward?"

Wenruo asked tentatively.

Xia Xiong scoffed coldly.

"High profit?"

"Are those lunatics at the Ten Thousand Gu Tower short of money?"

"What they lack are living people to use as a catalyst!"

"Besides, the rules of the Ten Thousand Mountains state that anyone who dares to leave the mountains to help outsiders is guilty of a capital offense!"

If I can't figure it out, I'll just stop thinking about it.

Snapped!

Xia Xiong slammed the palm-leaf fan heavily on the table and turned to look at Wen Ruo.

"So... the Gu Master was crushed by Lin Mo, and Xia Yuan's hundreds of thousands of troops were scattered. And then what?"

Xia Xiong leaned forward, exuding a strong sense of pressure.

"Where's my daughter?! Why did you come back all alone?!"

thump!

Wenruo skillfully buckled his knees and slammed them solidly onto the blue bricks.

"I have failed in my duty! I have failed to bring back the princess! Please punish me, Your Highness!"

Xia Xiong stood up abruptly.

Wenruo shrank her neck and closed her eyes.

But I waited for ages.

The expected flying kick did not land.

"Forget it, get up."

Xia Xiong waved his hand irritably.

Wenruo was startled, and then boldly opened her eyes.

"Your Highness...you're not going to kick me anymore?"

"What good would kicking you do!"

Xia Xiong cursed irritably.

"That brat's temper is just like mine, so stubborn!"

"She's set her sights on that kid Lin Mo, and nothing can pull her back. You think you, a withered old man like you, can forcibly bring her back?"

Xia Xiong leaned back in his chair, staring at the roof beam, and exhaled a long breath.

"A daughter is like a tree that cannot be kept at home once she grows up."

"I raised her for eighteen years, and she won't even get the moon if she asks for the stars."

"And what happened? The young man waved, and without even saying goodbye, he ran off!"

He muttered a few curses, but then lowered his voice.

He smacked his lips, his expression becoming somewhat complicated.

"However... this brat has a sharper eye than I do."

"He single-handedly defeated an army of 400,000 and could even pull out the Seven Deadly Gu with his bare hands."

"Such methods are worthy of my daughter, Xia Xiong."

"pity……"

Snapped!

Xia Xiong slapped his thigh.

"Too bad he's a traitor! What the hell is this?!"

Wenruo got up and patted her knees.

"Your Highness, Lin Mo is now a traitor."

"But in the future, it's really hard to say who the thief will be and who the king will be."

He took out a scroll of secret reports from his sleeve and presented it with both hands.

"This is Eagle Letter, which just arrived yesterday."

"Hai Wang Xia Heng, taking advantage of Qi Wang's setback in the northern border, directly sent troops to take down Xicang City."

"Xia Yuan led 30,000 remaining soldiers back, but was refused entry by Xia Heng and killed by a hail of arrows."

"More than half of the 30,000 people died, and the moat was filled in."

Xia Yuan vomited blood and fainted on the spot; his fate is unknown.

Xia Xiong grabbed the secret report and glanced at it.

stab.

He tore the secret report in two and threw it on the ground.

"That fourth brother is a cunning bastard. He pretends to only know how to eat, drink, and have fun all the time, but when it really matters, he's the one who stabs you the hardest!"

"I heard that he not only robbed Xia Yuan of his grain and silver, but also took over Xia Yuan's twenty-eight concubines who had just entered the household."

Wenruo added.

Xia Xiong rubbed his temples vigorously.

"The hatred of killing his father and the humiliation of stealing his wife—Xia Yuan didn't die of anger on the spot; he's lucky to be alive."

"Hey... Old Wen, look at the state of Great Xia!"

Xia Xiong strode to the front of the hall and looked out at the towering mountains of the Ten Thousand Mountains.

"My elder brother became emperor, but instead of thinking about how to govern the country, he hides in the deep mountains every day practicing alchemy to seek immortality, leaving the affairs of state to that immature Xia Jie!"

"Second Brother Xia Yuan, who held military power and was ambitious, ended up kicking Lin Mo, a tough nut to crack, and his teeth were shattered."

"The fourth brother, Xia Heng, is taking advantage of the chaos and has no regard for his own family."

Xia Xiong scoffed.

"The very foundation of this Great Xia is truly rotten to the core."

Wenruo leaned closer and lowered her voice.

"Your Highness, since the world is in chaos, and we in the Southern Frontier hold considerable military power, should we also...?"

"What? You want to fight over that broken chair too?"

Xia Xiong glanced at Wen Ruo.

"I don't have that kind of free time."

He raised his thick arm and pointed to the vast, desolate mountains outside.

"I am the king of the southern border, and my responsibility is to protect the millions of Miao people living in these mountains and forests."

"Let whoever wants to clean up the mess outside do it."

"All I care about is peace in Miao territory and my daughter's safety. The rest is none of my business!"

Xia Xiong walked back to the large chair and sat down again.

His once straight and upright back now showed signs of fatigue.

He picked up the palm-leaf fan and waved it idly.

"As for Lin Mo..."

Xia Xiong chewed on the name repeatedly.

a long time.

"never mind."

"Let him be."

"I'm too old to keep up with all this. Let these young people do it."

"Even if the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up!"

Xia Xiong's tone turned serious.

"Pass down the order to seal off all passes in the Ten Thousand Mountains and intensify the training of the Baiyue troops."

"No matter how chaotic the fighting is outside, if anyone dares to put their hands in Miao territory, I'll chop off their claws."

"As for Man'er..."

Xia Xiong paused.

"Let her stay in the North."

"Draft a letter and send it to that brat Lin Mo urgently."

"Tell him that if he dares to let my daughter suffer even the slightest grievance, he'll lose a single hair on her head..."

Xia Xiong suddenly tightened his grip, and the wooden fan handle in his hand snapped in two with a "crack".

"Even if it costs me my life, I'll take my sword and head to the North to skin him alive!"

"Yes, sir!"

Wenruo bowed deeply.

The hall fell silent.

Xia Xiong propped his feet up on the large rosewood table and casually pulled a piece of Xuan paper over his face.

"Get lost, I'm going to catch up on some sleep."

"Yes."

Wenruo tiptoed out of the door.

As Xia Xiong listened to the footsteps fade into the distance, his broad chest heaved slightly.

Lin Mo.

That sickly son of the Lin family, so weak he could be blown away by the wind.

It actually became a true dragon capable of devouring the heavens and the earth.

This world...

It seems like things are really about to turn upside down.