Chapter 8: A Solitary Skiff

Yu Changsheng raised his right palm to signal the captain of the guard to wait a moment. He put down his chopsticks, chewed the food in his mouth a few times quickly, and swallowed it.

"Speak! What is the matter?" he asked, wiping his mouth as he stood up.

The captain of the guard hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back, and glanced back at Leia, who was closing the door.

"It's fine! She is not an outsider, just speak freely!" Yu Changsheng said.

Hearing these words, Leia, who was in the midst of closing the door, felt a sudden warmth in her heart, and in a momentary lapse of concentration, she almost caught her hand in the gap.

"My Lord, your subordinate received news from an informant that a coup has taken place in the palace. Just moments ago, two queens sent people to invite Emperor Riar to journey to the earthly paradise, but their actual intention is to take him to the subterranean conservatory for forced dehydration."

"What? How is King Riar's condition? Quickly muster the troops, we are charging in right now to save him." Yu Changsheng anxiously moved to put on his armor.

"My Lord, wait!" The captain of the guard stopped him. "Among those carrying out the dehydration, as it happens, there is one of our own. He found an opportunity to release the old king, replacing him with the desiccated fiber of a death-row prisoner."

Yu Changsheng breathed a sigh of relief and slowly sat back down. Only then did he notice that Leia had collapsed weakly to the ground, and he hurriedly stood up again to comfort his fiancée.

"Leia, it's all right. As long as he is still alive, we can find him and bring him back safely. Don't worry."

Tears streaming down her face, Leia said sorrowfully, "I have already lost my mother; I do not want to lose my father as well." She raised her head, looked at Yu Changsheng, and pleaded, "Changsheng, help me, will you go save my father?"

Seeing her cry so bitterly and recalling his own experience of losing both parents, Changsheng immediately agreed. "Leia, rest assured, I will lead men to find your father. In truth, by all rights, he should be considered my father as well."

The captain of the guard advised, "My Lord, before the Sovereign Lord left, she specifically instructed that regardless of what happens within their nation, we need only remain as onlookers and should not intervene..."

Before he could finish, Yu Changsheng interrupted him. "I understand your meaning, but this is no longer a simple political upheaval; this is mutiny, a rebellion. If they have killed the old king now, will their next step be to turn their blades upon our hundreds of people? Rather than sitting here waiting to die, we should take the initiative and strike first. Furthermore, given how brazen they are, I have every reason to suspect they might be engaged in some unspeakable conspiracy with the Dark Fiend Clan."

Hearing Yu Changsheng speak thus, the captain of the guard said no more. He immediately stood at attention, executed a military salute, and solemnly declared, "We will obey all the Lord's arrangements!"

"Assemble the guard, we depart shortly!"

Seeing this, Leia instantly regained her spirit. Struggling to her feet, she smoothed out her disheveled clothes, smiled at Yu Changsheng, and said, "Changsheng, wait for me just a moment, I will be right back."

With that, she turned and hurried into the bedroom. Before long, the door opened, and Leia appeared before Yu Changsheng clad in full military uniform, looking heroic and full of high-spirited vigor.

"You are going too?" Yu Changsheng, who had just finished putting on his armor, asked in surprise at the sight of her.

Leia nodded and stepped forward to tie the straps of his armor for him.

Though he originally intended to persuade Leia otherwise, the words hovered on his lips before Yu Changsheng ultimately failed to voice them. He only said, "Stay by my side and do not wander off."

Leia smiled faintly and said, "Rest assured! Do not think me so frail; I have studied swordsmanship since childhood, and there is no doubt I can protect myself."

Yu Changsheng shed his usual frivolous demeanor; at this moment, his expression was as still as water, composed and entirely calm.

A mighty fleet composed of Dragon-Tooth Giant Ships and Mighty-Bull Warships sailed at full speed through the boundless void.

"Are the Mulan Boats all prepared?" Zhuohua asked.

Qin Ying cupped her hands in a salute and replied, "All the Star Lords of the grand formation have assembled and stand ready, and the ritual instruments of the array have already been loaded onto the Mulan Vessels."

"Good! Then depart immediately! I have also completed the final consecration of those ritual instruments; it will only be necessary to recite the command formulas to deploy them when the time comes. Set out!"

With these words, Zhuohua strode toward the cabin door.

"What are you doing?" Qin Ying stretched out her arm to block him.

"Boarding the Mulan Vessels, of course!"

"You are not allowed to go!"

Zhuohua was amused to the point of laughter and asked, "Why can I not go?"

Qin Ying stammeringly replied, "Yu Heishi said... he is responsible for your safety, and you... simply cannot board a Mulan Vessel."

Zhuohua smiled, reached out, and tucked a strand of hair that had fallen across Qin Ying's face behind her ear, speaking in a gentle voice, "Rest assured! I will take good care of myself."

"What if I insist that you do not go?" Qin Ying raised her chin and asked stubbornly.

"You cannot beat me anyway," Zhuohua replied with a mischievous smile.

"Fine!" Qin Ying sighed. "Blue Ascension was right after all." She silently pulled a crystal-clear object from her bosom and pressed it into Zhuohua's hand.

"The Crystal Celestial Garment?" Zhuohua glanced at the item in his hand and asked.

"Blue Ascension said that if I stopped you, I was to return this to him. If I failed, he instructed me to give it to you, saying you would know how to use it."

"This fellow! When did he learn to be so circuitous?" Zhuohua laughed in reprimand, casually stowing the Crystal Celestial Garment away into his Universe Infinite Pouch.

"You are always so careless with your own safety. Where is there a Sovereign Lord who personally charges into the fray? Do you know how worried I am every time you go out?" Qin Ying said, tears welling in her eyes as she looked at Zhuohua's retreating back.

Without turning around, Zhuohua tilted his head and said, "I am sorry for making you worry. Guard the fleet and wait for my return." With that, he stepped out of the cabin.

One by one, the Mulan Vessels broke away from the fleet—which trailed long pillars of light—like raindrops scattered from the sky, speeding rapidly toward their predetermined targets.

"Blue Ascension, you are truly fortunate! With such a massive display of force this time, nearly the entire Cloud Palace has been mobilized just to heal your arm. You are truly worthy of being the Sovereign Lord's brother-in-law!" Ghost-Gold Sheep said with a grin.

The space within the enclosed Mulan Vessel was extremely cramped, capable of holding only five people. Blue Ascension, acting as the helmsman, sat at the very front.

He sat upright with great dignity, maintaining a solemn expression as he steered the tiny Mulan Vessel.

Seeing that no one responded, Ghost-Gold Sheep wore a somewhat sheepish look, but he quickly found another topic: "Do you all think those Dark Fiend scum will come here to cause trouble this time?"

Bi-Moon Crow of the White Tiger Palace let out a cold snort. "Let them come if they dare. Are we afraid of them?"

Wing-Fire Snake of the Vermilion Bird Palace chimed in, "Exactly! In terms of strength, which of the Star Lords dispatched this time does not possess unfathomable cultivation and countless battles behind them? Why would we fear those scum who specialize in assassination and sabotage?"

"Pay attention, prepare for a turnaround deceleration, hold on tight everyone." As soon as Blue Ascension finished speaking, he violently spun the helm. The tiny Mulan Vessel immediately spun like a fallen leaf in a fierce gale, flying toward the destination while simultaneously swinging its thruster nozzles forward to initiate deceleration.