"Princess Ata, can... can you hold on?"
Xie PanâEr saw Princess Ata, despite her severe injuries, persistently playing the flute to summon birds and beasts to aid in their fight. PanâEr felt very distressed and worried about the princessâs condition.
Princess Ata, entirely focused on her playing, did not respond to her.
In the sky, many birds had already arrived with much chirping: sparrows, wild pigeons, geese... All sorts of flying creatures rapidly gathered and then charged towards Mr. Wu, who was opposite Princess Ata.
"Hmph! What a disgrace! Having learned a mere smattering, do you really think you can summon all creation? You play the Soul-controlling Tune well enough, but unfortunately, your power is still too shallow. You canât control these birds and beasts for long."
Not long after Mr. Wu finished speaking, Princess Ata indeed coughed up a mouthful of blood, and the fluteâs melody ceased abruptly.
The creatures from the sky and those on the ground all dispersed and retreated.
However, the sound of a flute echoed once more. Everyone looked towards Princess Ata, yet she held no bamboo flute.
Turning their heads, they saw Mr. Wu holding a bamboo flute, playing a mournful tune.
The birds and beasts that had previously attacked Mr. Wu now turned around and charged towards them instead.
"This... this is not good! The birds and beasts are attacking us now! What should we do?" Xie PanâEr exclaimed in worry.
Furious, Princess Ata quickly picked up her short flute, intending to play again!
However, the Emperor, standing beside her, promptly grabbed her wrist.
"Youâre too severely injured. If you continue playing, youâll lose your life."
The Emperor remained relatively calm. They were currently short-handed. It was said that Dugu had gone out to sea to meet them, but they hadnât crossed paths; he was supposedly still adrift.
Princess Ata is a fairly capable ally. If she were to perish here, it would truly be an irrecoverable loss for the future!
Thinking this, the Emperor stopped Princess Ata.
The National Master, however, was formidable. With a casual wave of his sleeve, he first flung out his silver threads. Another flick of his sleeve batted away the attacking birds, while the silver threads in his hand targeted the bamboo flute in Mr. Wuâs hand!
Seeing the National Masterâs silver threads winding towards his bamboo flute, Mr. Wu quickly sidestepped. However, the National Masterâs true target was not him, but Wu Li, who stood beside him.
The moment Mr. Wu turned, the National Masterâs silver threads instantly changed direction, coiling directly around Wu Liâs waist. A swift pull, and Wu Li was dragged over.
"Ah! Sir, save me! Save me..." Wu Li was terrified, shouting, "Sir, save me!"
Mr. Wu frowned slightly but remained unmoved.
Seeing this, the National Master did nothing more than position Wu Li in front of himself, forcing him to face the onslaught of the birds and beasts.
"Donât... donât play anymore! Sir, save me! Save me..." Wu Liâs cries were heaven-shaking; he looked utterly pathetic.
Seeing Wu Li in such a state, everyone was utterly astonished.
"Look at your pathetic self! You actually dared to dream of inciting rebellion and attacking the capital! Youâre like a thousand-year-old turtle that never looks in a mirrorâutterly ignorant of its own measure!"
The National Master sneered, his hands clasped behind his back, undisguised ridicule playing on his lips.
"Mr. Wu, surely you donât believe that with such a worthless coward, you could actually attack the capital, storm the Imperial Palace, and seize the Emperorâs throne?"
Mr. Wuâs flute finally fell silent. Without a single glance at Wu Li, he brought his hands together and clapped lightly three times, his voice devoid of emotion as he spoke.
"Whatâs wrong with someone like him becoming Emperor? As long as heâs obedient, thatâs all that matters. Young Emperor of Great Han, if you swear an oath now to pledge eternal loyalty to me, and if everyone in Great Han begins to practice Witchcraft and reveres me as the National Master, then you wonât have to die today."
Mr. Wuâs words were brazenly arrogant.
This Mr. Wu isnât just dark on the outside; his heart is even blacker!
the Emperor thought.
"If I appoint you as National Master, then where does that leave my current National Master?"
At this point, the Emperor was no longer afraid of him. With a SWISH, he flicked open his fan. Despite the early winter chill, he wielded the small fan with vigor!
Seeing his merchant-like haggling, as if wanting to compare goods, the National Master couldnât help but roll his eyes.
"Your Majesty! Are you quite sure you want to âcompare the goods,â so to speak?"
The Emperor chuckled sheepishly, flicking his small fan open again with another SWISH. "Havenât I just spent too much time with Ji Youze and picked up his shrewd ways? So, National Master, please deal with this Mr. Wu quickly. You are still my great National Master, are you not?"
The National Master was...
"If you wish to deal with me, Iâm afraid youâll have to wait until your next lives."
Heavy footsteps echoed, and the ground began to tremble. The expressions of the National Master and the others changed. They quickly gathered, vigilantly surveying their surroundings as dense throngs of people advanced, forming an encirclement.
"What are you trying to do? Are you planning to rebel?" Seeing the state of these commoners, the Emperor was inwardly shocked and bellowed sternly.
Yet, not one of the cityâs commoners halted. Turning a deaf ear, they continued to press forward.
"You... what do you think youâre doing?" Seeing the commonersâ advance, the Emperor felt a surge of panic, his questioning voice trembling.
"Your Majesty!" Seeing the Emperorâs anxious inquiries, Princess Ata called out to him, then prompted, "Look at their eyes. They are vacant, as if devoid of all consciousness."
"Devoid... of consciousness?"
Following Princess Ataâs prompt, the Emperor quickly looked at the eyes of the commoners.
Indeed, their eyes were dull and lifeless, their faces betraying no flicker of emotion. They truly seemed to have lost consciousness.
"You... youâre actually controlling so many commoners! You are utterly depraved!"