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Chapter 70: Impersonating the Sword God, From Entry to Giving Up

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

After a full quarter of an hour, the empress finally broke the silence. “I originally thought that with Grandpa Sword God’s appearance, we would at least be able to buy some time. I didn’t expect the Great Yong Dynasty to be so ambitious. First, it was an assassination. Now, they have developed such a thing. If Qiyun didn’t discover it, I wouldn’t know danger is so near.”

When Huo Qiyun heard this, his expression changed and he hurriedly stood up from his chair. “Your Majesty, you were assassinated? When did this happen?”

“Just a few days ago.”

The empress roughly told him about the assassin pretending to be Consort Rong. Originally, only she and Lin Ran knew about this. Now, there was also Huo Qiyun. It was obvious that she trusted him a lot.

“Damn Great Yong Dynasty!”

Huo Qiyun was furious. He swung his sword and cut off a corner of the desk. Then, he looked at Lin Ran and said with a murderous aura, “Let’s set off now and go to the Great Yong Dynasty to cut off that evil emperor’s head! You’re at the ninth level of the Senior Grandmaster Realm. Even if they have this pill, none of them can hurt you!”

Lin Ran was also a little angry, but he remained seated on the chair and said calmly, “Enough. With my cultivation level, we’ll be in big trouble if I really go with you!”

Huo Qiyun looked disdainful. “Are you afraid?”

“You…”

Lin Ran was about to curse, but at the thought that he owed Huo Qiyun so much, he restrained himself. “There’s an agreement between the countries that those above the Grandmaster Realm are not allowed to participate in the battle. If I interfere, the Heavenly Saint Dynasty will become the target of public criticism.”

Huo Qiyun clearly didn’t know about this agreement. He was stunned for a moment before scolding, “What kind of a bastard would agree to this kind of an agreement?”

“I was the one who agreed,” the empress said angrily.

Huo Qiyun smiled awkwardly and stopped talking.

After a moment of silence, the empress continued, “No matter what the Great Yong Dynasty is planning in secret, even if they are really prepared to start a war, they will still need a justifiable cause. There’s no need to worry too much.”

Lin Ran and Huo Qiyun nodded in agreement. The empress continued, “The most important thing now is to stabilize the Heavenly Saint Dynasty. We have to get rid of those martial artists who participated in the rebellion as soon as possible.”

“They are already afraid of us settling scores with them. If they join hands with the Great Yong Dynasty at this juncture, we will be done for.”

“In that case, let’s bring forward the state banquet.”

Lin Ran said, “Tomorrow at noon, hold a state banquet in the square in front of the palace!”

When the empress heard this, she frowned slightly. “Although this is an urgent matter, isn’t tomorrow a little too early? There are many things that we can’t prepare in time.”

Lin Ran sneered. “What preparations are needed? This is a state banquet. If the emperor invites them to a banquet, even if there is only tea to drink, it’s enough for them to brag about for half their lives!”

The empress thought for a moment and still felt that it was inappropriate. “It’s already past noon. We have less than 24 hours. Even if we immediately send out the invitation letters, some of them might not be able to make the journey here in time.”

“Then they don’t have to.”

As Lin Ran spoke, he grabbed the invitation letter and added something on it. “Those who are far and unable to make the journey in time can hang a yellow flag outside their gate to express their gratitude to His Majesty.”

The empress frowned. “Will that work? If they can’t see Grandpa Sword God in person, I’m afraid they won’t sincerely side with us, right?”

Lin Ran smiled, but his tone was extremely cold. “To put it bluntly, this state banquet is just an occasion for them to show their attitude. As for whether they’re sincere or not, is it that important?”

The empress looked puzzled, not completely understanding what Lin Ran meant.

Huo Qiyun’s expression changed slightly as he looked at Lin Ran in surprise. “Are you trying to make an example out of some? If you wipe out a few large sects that don’t hang yellow flags outside the gate, the remaining small fries will naturally be terrified!”

Lin Ran smiled in approval. Actually, he didn’t want to do such a cold-blooded thing.

But now, the Great Yong Dynasty was eager to make a move. Who knew when a war would break out? He could only try to settle it in the quickest manner, even if it meant he had to do something he did not want to do.

As for whether the empress would agree, Lin Ran was actually not worried.

From the way the empress dealt with the traitors in the imperial court, it could be seen that although she was a woman, she was not so benevolent. Otherwise, she would have lost her power long ago.

As expected, after only half a minute, the hesitation in the empress’s eyes disappeared.

“Let’s do it your way.”

As the empress spoke, she picked up the invitation letter and said, “I’ll immediately get someone to send it. I don’t know how many people will come tomorrow. To what extent they will be intimidated depends on you.”

Lin Ran nodded with a smile. Huo Qiyun said, “It’s too early to smile. Since the state banquet is brought forward, we have to start preparing now. Let’s go back to Mingzhao Hall. I’ll teach you how to act like Grandpa Sword God!”

“Thank you, then.”

Lin Ran smiled again, but his eye expression had turned serious.

Although Lin Ran had been pretending to be the Sword God for a while, he spent most of his time in the palace. As long as he covered his face and released his sword intent, the civil and military officials and palace eunuchs would not be able to tell if he was real or fake.

However, at the state banquet tomorrow, there would be a large number of martial artists present. Most of them had seen the Ten Miles Sword God with their own eyes. Some of the sect masters and elders of large sects had even interacted with the Ten Miles Sword God closely.

If Lin Ran couldn’t fool them, the entire plan would be ruined.

After finalizing the plan, the three of them split up.

The empress summoned Li Tianyi and instructed him to distribute the invitation letters.

Lin Ran and Huo Qiyun returned to Mingzhao Hall and began the lesson of impersonating Ten Miles Sword God Imitation.

The two of them sat facing each other. Huo Qiyun pointed at Lin Ran and said, “The human skin mask can’t hide your expression. Grandpa Sword God is a powerful master. He definitely won’t show his thoughts on his face like you. So the first step is to put away your stupid expression.”

“Why do I feel like you’re using this opportunity to take revenge on me?”

Lin Ran pursed his lips and touched his face. “When did I write my thoughts on my face?”

Huo Qiyun didn’t say anything. With a flick of his thumb, he unsheathed his sword and held it in front of Lin Ran to use it as a mirror.

Lin Ran looked at himself in the sword and saw that he was frowning and pursing his lips. It was indeed not the expression of a master.

“Sigh, I’ve been troubled by too many things these days.”

Rubbing his slightly furrowed brows, Lin Ran asked, “Why don’t I cover my face tomorrow?”

“No!”

Huo Qiyun firmly denied it. “Grandpa Sword God never wears a mask. You have to show your face at the state banquet tomorrow. You have to tell everyone that the Ten Miles Sword God is back and that those who dare to play dirty tricks will die!”

Lin Ran smacked his lips and didn’t say anything, but he already had the thought of giving up. This was much harder than he had imagined!