Monarch of Evernight - Chapter 425

Chapter 425: 425

Chapter 425: Plot [V5C132 – A Distance Within Reach]

Qianye pondered for a moment but wasn’t able to recall immediately which top-grade noble family was surnamed Li . Li was a big surname common among both nobility and commoners . For instance, Li Pei, who had unfortunately fallen in the Bloody Battle along with his sect uncle, was from the Green Sky Li Family of the Transcendent Continent was also a Li .

But the two reports delivered by Lone Ghost proved themselves useful at this time . Qianye probed, “It seems the present empress is also surnamed Li?”

That man’s voice immediately rose higher . “Indeed! This lowly one is Li Xu . We can be good friends in the future . ”

Qianye suddenly laughed . “The Jingtang Li is the Empress’s family . How can such a stately clan be working together with the vampires? Why would such a family rob such a small caravan?”

Li Xu’s expression shifted as he said furiously, “What do you know? It’s not just this caravan . ”

Immediately after saying this, Li Xu realized his indiscretion and stopped talking . He then stared fixedly at Qianye and said, “Young Noble is such a young genius . It will be a waste of talent for you to work under me . I’ll recommend you upward upon my return . With your ability and the support of my clan, it won’t be too difficult to soar into the sky—even becoming the empress’s helper is not impossible . As for the cooperation with the vampires, I would suggest Young Noble to forget about it for the time being . This is a subject best avoided, and not something you should know for now . ”

This Li Xu was indeed good at talking . He was sensible, reasonable, and sounded rather sincere when talking about important matters . Qianye really might’ve been persuaded if he were a person with no connections whatsoever .

“Do you have anything else to say?” Qianye asked as he produced a small leather bag and proceeded to open it, revealing a dozen or so delicate tools within .

Li Xu’s eyelids twitched after seeing the neatly arranged tools . “These are torture equipment used specifically by the elite corps!”

Qianye was somewhat startled because not many people could recognize these things . It seemed Li Xu’s identity was indeed as he had said .

During the half an hour that followed, Li Xu confessed to everything after just a bit of torture .

It turned out that the target of their robbery was a large-scale caravan carrying enough equipment to outfit a regular army division, and Song Yinian’s group was only one of the sub-caravans . However, the caravan wasn’t the main objective of the person behind Li Xu . They had larger plans, and this robbery was only a small part of the big picture .

But Li Xu’s knowledge was limited . The reason for choosing this target, for instance, and the so-called big plot behind the scene was beyond his knowledge . Li Xu only explained that the current partnership involved the Jingtang Li Clan and a major power on the dark race side . Reportedly, the ancient clan had dispatched a person, and he was an expert of extremely high status .

However, Li Xu wasn’t clear as to who that person actually was and only knew that the vampires referred to her as the princess . Li Xu’s position in the Jingtang Li clan was actually quite mediocre, and he only managed to climb his way up by relying on the kingdom-toppling beauty that was his sister .

Listening up to this point, Qianye knew that he could get nothing more out of the man . But the address Monroe Princess made it difficult for him to breathe—it was like a large stone pressing down upon his chest .

Li Xu stole a glance at Qianye while the latter was deep in thought . He smiled cautiously and said, “Young Noble, this lowly one has told you everything he knows . Can you perhaps let me go now? I still have some meager savings on me, and they’re all yours as long as you spare my life . ”

Qianye paid him no heed and was still lost in his own thoughts . The present empress’s family colluding with an ancient vampire clan was, no doubt, an alarming development . Perhaps such matters weren’t limited to the empress’s family—the other major human powers with connections to the dark races probably weren’t few in number either .

This was the first time he had discovered just how deep the undercurrents below the Iron Curtain were . In the midst of all this, Qianye and Dark Flame could easily be torn to shreds if they were the slightest bit careless .

“Sir?” Li Xu asked cautiously .

Only then did Qianye come to . He glanced at the man and said indifferently, “Won’t people arrive to kill me very soon if I let you go?”

Li Xu’s eyelids twitched as he forced a smile . “Impossible . Sire, you jest . ”

He hadn’t even finished speaking when his sentence was cut short . With a raise of his hand, Qianye had run a blade through the man’s heart . Despite his reserved manners, this person was cunning and had a sister who was an imperial concubine . Releasing him would only bring endless troubles . Qianye had no intention to leave Song Zining a troublesome enemy .

Li Xu wasn’t strong, but the fortune he was carrying was nothing to scoff at . The ten-odd black crystals he was carrying added a small fortune to Qianye’s empty purse . None of the man’s equipment sparked Qianye’s interest, except that defensive ribbon—not only was it capable of blocking a heavy blow from East Peak, but it could also be recharged and reused . It was even rarer than the high-ranking defensive tools Qianye had seen back at the Song clan .

But the thing was also quite problematic . It would be quite troublesome if the item was recognized by someone . The Li family wasn’t famous in the empire, but they were definitely not simple . Otherwise, how could they push out the Zhao clan’s daughter to ascend the empress’s position? One had to know that it took more than just good looks to secure this seat .

Qianye walked out of the cargo compartment after storing the defensive ribbon into Andruil’s Mysterious Realm . Song Yinian immediately came over and said, “Young Noble, the battlefield has been cleaned up, and all the important captives are gathered over there . Do you want to go and take a look?”

Qianye nodded and followed Song Yinian over . A number of vampire corpses lay in a nearby open space, and all of them were high-ranking vampires above the knight level .

Qianye searched the corpses briefly and found an engraved token on Karsi’s body . It was an item commonly used to represent the owner’s status among the dark race nobility . It was just that the flower carved upon it was as elegant as an angel’s bugle, yet at its stalk was a depiction of hellish thorns . Qianye felt an indescribable heaviness in his heart .

Datura, the flower of terror, was the insignia of the Monroe clan .

Qianye wasn’t afraid of the Monroe clan . It wasn’t as though he had never killed descendants from the Twelve Ancient Clans before . However, the insignia inevitably reminded him of the same design he had seen on Nighteye’s weapon and clothes . Moreover, there was no telling whether or not she knew this Karsi .

As Qianye and Nighteye’s strength gradually increased, their paths were bound to gradually intersect at one point—but that intersection would likely be on the battlefield .

These people didn’t have a lot of things that interested Qianye . The only thing he needed at the moment was a vampiric blade . Karsi was born of the Monroe clan, while the other viscount, Norris, hailed from a small family . The vampiric blades on them were both grade-five, but Karsi’s weapon was much higher in quality . But after seeing the eye-catching datura symbol, Qianye opted for Norris’s instead .

Song Yinian waited patiently on one side and came over only after Qianye had finished his business . He shot a glance at the nearby vehicle and asked with a whisper, “Young Noble, how is that person?”

“He’s dead,” Qianye replied indifferently .

Song Yinian’s expression changed slightly but soon recovered his composure . “Then how should we deal with him?”

Qianye pondered for a moment and said, “This person has a great background . It’ll be for the best if we act as though he has never appeared . Do you understand?”

Song Yinian was a sly man . He immediately replied, “Understood! I’ll clean up all the traces and make sure the men don’t speak irresponsibly . ”

Qianye nodded . He didn’t stay for long and left quickly .

Song Yinian watched Qianye disappear from his vision before turning back . A trusted aide approached and asked, “Sire, what shall we do with those captives? They’re quite troublesome!”

Murderous intent flashed past Song Yinian’s face . He chopped his hand through the air, indicating that they should all be killed .

Qianye changed his route slightly and headed toward the designated cargo distribution center . Song Yinian’s caravan was only a small part, which meant that this caravan was much bigger, and the goods they were carrying might even be the entirety of Ningyuan Heavy Industry’s fortune . If there were any mishaps, Song Zining’s many years of hard work would go down the drain .

Moreover, Song Yinian was intercepted at such a secret route . This meant that the other rendezvous points were no longer a secret .

But while Qianye was running, he felt his blood core’s pulsations grow sluggish . He was soon overcome by an unstoppable sleepiness, and his eyelids felt as though they were a thousand tons in weight .

“This is bad!” Qianye suddenly cried out in his mind . He recalled that hibernation was a means to accelerate regeneration for the dark races .

Qianye was ambushed by Li Xu’s subordinate, and his blood core was injured . This awoke a terrifying ability which killed everyone in the vicinity and used their essence blood to repair the wound . Apparently, the blood core had decided that it needed to stay dormant to facilitate recovery .

This was really not the time for sleeping, but the weariness was different from pain in that it greatly impaired his willpower . Moreover, as his second heart, the blood core’s effect on his body was rather significant . He simply couldn’t resist the urge to sleep . He had no choice but to find an isolated place as quickly as possible—there, he lay down and fell asleep immediately .

At this moment, the blood falcons released by Viscount Karsi had traversed hundreds of kilometers to arrive above a dense forest . There was a camp in the middle of the woods, but it was well-disguised and noticeable only after approaching .

The specially trained blood falcons descended one after another after recognizing their trainer’s aura . The message they had brought were also removed by specialized staff and sent into the large, central tent .

There, several people were discussing official matters . A short-bearded middle-aged man scanned the secret message and said, “Viscount Karsi sent word that the goods on his side are real . ”

Everyone’s expressions relaxed slightly . Another person spoke at this point, “Since the goods on that route are real, then the others naturally won’t be fake, either . Presently, three caravans have arrived at the rendezvous point, and the remaining one isn’t far off . I think we should make our move immediately, lest more troubles arise . ”

Another person said with a frown, “I think we should investigate more . That Song Zining is notoriously crafty . There must be something wrong if things are going so smoothly for us . ”

The previous man sneered, “Colonel Gu, it’s because of your suspicions that we’ve taken the time to intercept that last caravan . This has already caused quite the delay . Now, you still think it’s not appropriate? There are so many big shots here with heaps of important things waiting for their attention . When was it the turn of a small colonel like you to give orders? I’ll drive you out if you keep being long-winded!”

The person being reprimanded was Gu Liyu . As an imperial army colonel being rebuked so mercilessly, the man’s face was shifting between white and blue—and inexplicably ugly .

However, he could only maintain his silence . It was just as that other person had said . Everyone standing here came from shocking backgrounds, and only he was from a landowning household . Not to mention a colonel, they wouldn’t treat him well even if he were a brigadier general .

Gu Liyu’s previous insistence had led to Viscount Karsi and Zhao Xu being mobilized to rob one of the caravans . They would see if that caravan was real before deciding on the follow-up plans . Now that it had been proven that Gu Liyu’s judgment was incorrect, these aristocratic descendants naturally wouldn’t give him any face . Their stance remained the same despite knowing he had some background support .

Which shocking character from a major clan didn’t have some thugs like Gu Liyu?