Lu Yang's act of killing the chicken to scare the monkey was undoubtedly very effective, especially after the disciples of the Three Excellencies confirmed that the "evidence" he provided was indeed genuine.
"What investigating a case? This is clearly eliminating dissidents!"
In the Junior Mentor's mansion, Junior Guardian Li Taian slammed the table, his face full of disbelief. "How could Ning Haohe be a spy from the Demonic Sect who assassinated His Majesty?"
However, no matter how much he questioned it, the "evidence" provided by Lu Yang was right in front of him. It clearly bore the divine sense imprints of Chen Yuanli and Ning Haohe. Such imprints were impossible to leave unless the person applied them themselves. With it present, it truly counted as ironclad evidence.
"Could it be a confession under torture?" the Junior Mentor asked in a low voice.
The Junior Guardian shook his head subconsciously. "Unlikely. Haohe is my good friend and has always had a resolute will. He isn't someone who would succumb to torture..."
His voice stopped abruptly.
Wouldn't succumb to torture? Then how to explain the ironclad evidence before them? For a moment, the Junior Mentor, Junior Guardian, and Junior Preceptor couldn't help but look at each other.
In the end, it was the Junior Mentor who broke the silence:
"This time the Imperial City Division is scouring the whole city. Not only do they have evidence, but they also have the endorsement of Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Crown Prince. The procedure and legitimacy can be said to be flawless."
Li Taian slammed the table instantly. "I knew that demon dragon was plotting something..."
"I don't think so."
The Junior Mentor shook his head. "The Imperial City Division is just a knife. The people wielding the knife, the ones who want to deal with us, should be Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Crown Prince."
If it were just the Imperial City Division, they would never allow Lu Yang to arrest officials like this, even if the evidence was solid and the procedure legal. They would definitely stop it. But if Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Crown Prince were added to the mix, they had to consider carefully and not act rashly.
Just then, Li Taian's expression suddenly changed slightly.
While conversing, he was also using his divine sense to spy on the Imperial City Division's movements. At this moment, he sensed an anomaly: "Not good. That demon dragon went to the Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion!"
Inside the Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion.
Lu Yang walked calmly into the spacious main hall and sat unceremoniously in the head seat. Below him were the five Imperial Camp Commanders named by Empress Xiao.
"Greetings, Lord Du Huan."
"Dispense with the formalities."
Lu Yang smiled slightly, seeing through the petty thoughts of the five Imperial Camp Commanders below. Empress Xiao had mentioned intelligence on these five people during their previous discussion on the Dao.
Simply put, three of the five were die-hard loyalists of Emperor Jiayou, and the remaining two were disciples of the Three Excellencies. This was also a tacit understanding between Emperor Jiayou and the Three Excellencies that went unspoken. Therefore, it was foreseeable that even with the endorsement of Empress Xiao and the Crown Prince, he wouldn't be able to command the five Commanders.
Fortunately, he couldn't be bothered to do so anyway.
Five Imperial Military Commanders—five official positions combined with the Son of Heaven's Seal could form the status of [Imperial Descent], suppressing all official positions including the Crown Prince.
It was indeed very powerful.
However, it was only powerful within the Dao Court system... Setting aside the Dao Court system, these five were just Rank 3 officials at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment perfection.
To put it bluntly, they were fierce in the nest.
Experts in internal strife, laymen in external strife.
Dealing with them was even simpler than dealing with the [Minister of War]. For the latter, Lu Yang at least had to form hand seals and cast a technique, while for the former he only needed—
"[Marionette]!"
Accompanied by a burst of intense brilliance passing by, like a fierce wind blowing across faces, it instantly blew away the suspicion on the faces of the Five Imperial Military Commanders, leaving only loyalty.
Just then.
"Stop!"
A streak of light descended from the sky, crashing into the Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion. It split apart abruptly, and Junior Guardian Li Taian walked out from it.
"Isn't this Lord Junior Guardian?" Lu Yang smiled slightly, actively standing up to salute. "I wonder why Your Lordship came to find this humble subject? Is there something unsatisfactory about the Imperial City Division's work in rooting out Demonic Sect spies? Rest assured, Your Lordship can raise any issues, and this humble subject will certainly urge the subordinates to correct them!"
Hearing this, Li Taian's face darkened slightly:
"Du Huan... The matter of the Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion is of grave importance. Moreover, those who can serve as Five Imperial Military Commanders must be loyal ministers and good generals. Do you think they would collude with the Demonic Sect?"
"How could that be!"
Lu Yang looked surprised and hurriedly waved his hand. "Your Lordship misunderstands. I only came to promulgate the orders of Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Crown Prince to the Five Imperial Military Commanders."
"Orders? The Five Imperial Military Commanders only obey Imperial Decrees, not the Empresses' Decrees from the Imperial Harem!"
Hearing this, the Junior Guardian didn't want to waste words with Lu Yang. He looked directly at the two Imperial Camp Commanders who were disciples of the Three Excellencies and said in a deep voice, "Follow me back to the Junior Guardian's Mansion first."
After speaking, he turned to leave.
However, the next second, his movement stopped abruptly.
Because those two Imperial Camp Commanders showed no intention of moving at all. Li Taian looked back, only to see the two revealing expressions he had never seen before:
"Lord Junior Guardian."
"Since we are ordered to command the Five Imperial Armies of the Capital, we have the obligation to be loyal to the country. Now that His Majesty is absent, we naturally should act according to Her Majesty the Empress's Decree."
Li Taian was stunned.
"You!"
For a moment, Li Taian only felt a chill rushing from the soles of his feet straight to his crown. He looked at Lu Yang with a terrified gaze, and after a long time, he said cautiously:
"World Honored One?"
Lu Yang: "...?"
Who are you cursing!
However, on the other side, the more Li Taian thought about it, the more reasonable his guess seemed.
No choice, it was too similar!
Whether it was Ning Haohe or the two Imperial Camp Commanders at this moment, they were all people Li Taian considered absolutely trustworthy, undoubtedly his own people.
But the result? Ning Haohe suddenly confessed, triggering this arrest operation affecting the whole city. Even the two Imperial Camp Commanders chose to defect to Lu Yang. This kind of character change and attitude shift without any prior warning really made it hard for Li Taian not to associate it with that damn World Honored One.
Moreover... the World Honored One had a criminal record!
He had done this once back in the day! Although the current Tianwu Imperial Family were the beneficiaries, the Zou Yu Imperial Family of the previous dynasty definitely had a lot of dirty words to say about this.
Boom!
The next second, Li Taian's figure vanished directly from the spot.
If he stayed any longer, he feared he would suddenly have an epiphany the next second and say something ghostly like, "Alas! Who would have thought I was actually an incarnation of the World Honored One!"
Seeing this, Lu Yang couldn't be bothered to chase.
With the Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion in hand, plus the Son of Heaven's Seal in the Empress's hands complementing each other, the current Tianwu City is already under my control.
Boom!
Raising his head, Lu Yang saw a flicker of starlight appear abruptly in the vault of heaven. Although very weak and fleeting, it ultimately manifested for a moment:
[Heavenly Fire]!
Lu Yang knew clearly in his heart that this was because as Tianwu City, the hub of Jiangdong, fell into Lu Yang's hands, [Heavenly Fire] paid more and more attention to him. Although it was still far from the point of him seeking the Golden Core, the trend was good. To go a step further, he would have to control the entire Jiangdong.
But to achieve that step, the Three Excellencies were ultimately obstacles.
Its a pity that killing alone is useless.
Lu Yang shook his head. The essence of the Dao Court lay in official positions; people were meaningless. If he had gone all out just now, perhaps he could have killed Li Taian.
But if Li Taian died, the [Junior Guardian] official position wouldn't disappear.
And in the system of Dao Court officials, the [Junior Guardian] official position was passed down through generations. It didn't need an Imperial Decree for appointment at all; a new Junior Guardian could take over seamlessly.
This was the terrifying aspect of the Dao Court. No matter how strong you were, as long as you hadn't reached the level of overriding the entire Dao Court, you had to abide by the Dao Court's rules. This was also what the Dao Court liked to do most— drag you down to their level, then defeat you with their rich experience.
Of course, it wasn't impossible for Lu Yang to forcefully break the game.
He still had one chance to false hold [Overturned Lamp Flame]. If used here to kill all the disciples of the Three Excellencies in one breath and suppress the official positions, it wouldn't be impossible.
But what would be the point?
The result would at most be controlling Jiangdong alone. To Attain [Heavenly Fire], his goal was the four borders of the world. That would be the time to false hold the Golden Stature.
In the Dao Court, only name and authority matter... or rather, the position within the official system is the top priority.
Fortunately, he had already obtained half.
The Five Imperial Military Commanders' Mansion is under my control. As long as I get the Son of Heaven's Seal from the Empress's hands, with the Son of Heaven and the Three Excellencies absent, I will be the highest in the Dao Court system.
When the time comes, I'll catch them all in one net and labelingall these disciples of the Three Excellencies as rebel factions!
As for evidence, let the [Minister of War] who i captured just now, and the two disciples of the Three Excellencies among the Five Imperial Military Commanders, be responsible for confessing...