Demons had to be destroyed.
Zhao Ji's throat was dry. He wanted to speak, but he did not know what to say.
Being born in an imperial family, he knew that his father's choice was right.
However, he felt that he had simultaneously done a lot and done nothing throughout this investigation.
Should the third prince not be asking for his opinion on the information he had obtained from Su Ming?
Although he did not think that there were good demons, what if Qing Yue was willing to come to third prince's residence and surrender?
What if she really was a good demon?
Once the Demon Extermination Order was issued, both good and evil demons would be killed.
Zhao Ji felt a mix of emotions as he watched his father walk out.
His father did not care about his thoughts at all.
He did not care about the promise he had made to Imperial Censor Su Ming.
"Perhaps one would only be valued if he was strong?" Zhao Ji's eyes lit up as he turned around and looked at the golden plaque at the head of the hall.
[Heaven, Earth, Ruler.]
...
The third prince, Zhao Chong, met the emperor and informed him that the murders in Luojing had been caused by demons. He also said that the minister's disciple had personally witnessed the demons.
The emperor questioned the minister of state with an imperial edict, and Minister Dongfang Jing replied, "Su Ming did not lie."
A day later, the emperor of Zhao summoned Daoist Qingyang, the temple master of Jing Yang Temple, into the imperial city.
The day after that, Jing Yang Temple sent out the Demon Extermination Order, which had not appeared in the mortal world for 100 years.
This order did not involve ordinary people, and martial artists below the Spirit Sensing Realm were also not allowed to participate.
The Dao sects in Zhao had disciples from all over the world stationed there. They were martial arts experts above the second class, and they came to Luojing to eliminate the demons.
The Demon Extermination Order was sent to the other five states. Chu's Jixia Learning Palace, the great Qin's Demon Suppression Department, and the other guarding sects all received the order.
Zhao's Royal Worship Hall and Jing Yang Temple each offered 10 spirit stones, 10,000 taels of gold, martial arts manuals, divine weapons, and dozens of other benefits as rewards for killing the demons.
They were extremely generous this time.
Some people guessed that it was probably because there was no great grandmaster guarding Jing Yang Temple at the moment. Plus, this happened coincide with the Gathering of Immortals, hence Jing Yang Temple was so generous.
When the Demon Extermination Order was released, the world was shocked.
Countless experts rushed to Zhao's capital, Luojing.
Prince Yu Zhao Chong's mission was complete.
In the future, the investigation would be led by the Royal Worship Hall and Jing Yang Temple, and the imperial court would withdraw.
Although the case was not handled perfectly, he managed to detect the presence of demons and respond correctly. His achievement was worthy of recognition.
Many officials in the imperial court praised Prince Yu's contribution, and they suggested that His Majesty reward Prince Yu.
Everyone could see that Prince Yu had gained the emperor's trust again.
However, His Majesty did not show any reaction, and this made the others speculate.
Some people felt that Prince Yu had not done enough.
Some also felt that as long as Zhao Qian was in the emperor's heart, there was no point worrying about being rewarded. Perhaps, the real reward would come later.
Over in the main hall of the eastern palace, Crown Prince Zhao Qian kicked the long table in front of him as his blood boiled.
Bang!
As the crown prince, he should not be so angry and lose his cool.
However, there were only a few trusted aides in the hall at this moment, so he no longer bothered to conceal his anger.
"Third Brother has really matured." Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fists and whispered.
The deadline had been closing in, and the Luojing murder case had been a mess. It was supposed to be difficult for Prince Yu to escape the blame for not doing his job well.
Who would have thought that in just a day, the Demon Extermination Order would spread across the world and Prince Yu's mission would be successfully completed?
Moreover, since he was supervising the murder case, Prince Yu had a lot of information in his hands. He could directly contact the Royal Worship Hall and Jing Yang Temple. They then took over the task of exterminating the demons.
Prince Yu gained a lot this time around.
"Your Highness, this is just the beginning." Gao Shishan, who was standing below, bowed before him. Then he raised his head and said, "His Majesty must have intended for this to happen all along."
The crown prince looked at him, and the others raised their heads too.
"His Majesty has the Royal Worship Hall and the eldest princess' Mystic Moon Guards. He probably knew about the demons in the Luo River much earlier than Prince Yu.
"However, His Majesty did not tell Prince Yu about it. Instead, he set a time limit for him to solve the case."
Gao Shishan looked at the crowd and lightly said, "That is because Prince Yu is not very capable and useful."
How could the emperor not know that there were demons in the Luo River?
He only wanted Prince Yu to find out and report it.
"Unfortunately, he passed the test." The crown prince nodded and said regretfully.
If Prince Yu had failed to find the cause of the murders, he probably would never have a chance to fight for the throne again.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince, if I may be disrespectful, His Majesty is already very old. The throne should be passed to you." Gao Shishan's words made the others around him lower their heads.
How dare he say such a thing?
The crown prince's expression remained unchanged as he looked at Gao Shishan.
"However," Gao Shishan said in a deep voice, "His Majesty has appointed a crown prince but has not given up his power. The main cause is not Prince Yu or the court.
"It's due to the Gathering of Immortals."
The crown prince frowned.
He thought that Gao Shishan would blame it on the minister of state not speaking up for him.
He also thought that Gao Shishan would say that since his second brother, Zhao Cheng, was guarding the border with 300,000 soldiers under his command, he would be killed.
He thought that Gao Shishan would attribute the decision to the support of the Royal Worship Hall's head, Elder Yubing.
However, Gao Shishan was talking about the Gathering of Immortals.
"Mr. Gao, the Gathering of Immortals has nothing to do with the throne of Zhao, right?" Bai Jinyuan, who was standing beside Gao Shishan, said in a low voice.
He was the crown prince's confidant and the person in charge of collecting secret information in the crown prince's residence. He knew about the gathering of information from all sides, so he spoke up.
He never expected Gao Shishan to mention the Gathering of Immortals.
"It is difficult to progress if the ruling dynasty keeps changing, and those banished cultivators rarely live past 60 years.
"His Majesty wants to pass the throne to a future emperor who can guarantee the stability of Zhao for at least 60 years."
Gao Shishan looked at the crown prince, and his face revealed a hint of wisdom.
"Those banished immortal cultivators are the biggest variable."
The crown prince slowly sat down, and his eyes were intense.
The others nodded slightly.
No one knew what abilities those banished immortal cultivators had.
According to the records, most of them would die quietly, but there were also some who would go crazy before they died.
Therefore, the next emperor of Zhao had to be capable enough to suppress the banished cultivators and keep Zhao stable for at least 60 years.
"The minister of state, Dongfang Jing, is already 145 years old this year.
"Great Grandmaster Yubing must be much older than Minister Dongfang, right?"
Gao Shishan's words made everyone in the hall gasp.
Mortals only had a lifespan of 200 years.
Minister Dongfang Jing and the imperial family's head elder, Zhao Yubing had been watching over Zhao. However, they would likely fall in 60 years' time!
Without the protection of a grandmaster and with the immortal cultivators going crazy, would the current emperor be able to protect Zhao from destruction?
The crown prince's eyelids twitched, and everyone else's faces turned pale.
Knock knock knock...
Someone knocked on the hall door a few times and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, there is an urgent report from the border."
The border?
The crown prince received a bamboo tube from the green-robed chamberlain and opened it in confusion. His expression changed drastically as he stood up abruptly.
"Martial King Zhao Cheng has returned."