NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 15:
Chapter 15: The Power of Chiba Rizhao
In the capital of the Great Xia Empire, everyone said that Zhao Wujian was a lustful and depraved man. That’s why Chiba Rizhao believed that with just a little effort, her beauty alone would be enough to make him fall.
“Heir Zhao, wasting such a wonderful moment like this between us… isn’t it a shame?”
“A wonderful moment? Where did that come from?”
“Oh, you’re so annoying. A man and a woman alone in a room—isn’t that the perfect atmosphere?”
As she spoke, Chiba Rizhao deliberately struggled a little. The sheer white veil and the iron chains clinked and swayed, tightening around her already voluptuous figure, making her look even more seductive. She softly bit her red lips with a hint of shyness and said, “There’s no one else around now. Why are you still pretending to be a gentleman?”
The most skilled hunters often appear in the guise of prey. Chiba Rizhao was confident in her beauty. Though she stood high above others in Hansang, she knew many men fantasized about her. They simply never had the chance to get their way.
But in the next moment—
“Get lost.”
Zhao Wujian coldly spat out a single word.
“Your Highness… what do you mean by this?”
“Enough with your games. Do you think I don’t know about your Yin Severing Stealth Technique? It’s meant to specifically suppress men, isn’t it?”
Chiba Rizhao’s mind buzzed. Her secret had been exposed in an instant.
This technique had been secretly passed to her by her mother, worried that she might be taken advantage of by men. She had trained hard in it since childhood, and only her mother knew about it. How could Zhao Wujian possibly know?
[This damn woman from the island nation. Good thing I remembered what the novel said about her. Otherwise, she might have succeeded in scheming against me.]
Hearing his inner thoughts, Chiba Rizhao’s breathing quickened. Novel? Could it be… the Great Xia Empire possessed some sort of secret record about Hansang?
[Once she truly submits to me, then I’ll take her. There’s no reason to leave a piece of meat that’s already in my hand uneaten.]
Chiba Rizhao’s expression turned grim. Submit to you? You don’t even know who I really am, and you want me to surrender? Just another arrogant and ignorant man from the Great Xia Empire… how ridiculous.
While she scoffed internally—
[But for now, it’s best to use her identity to stir things up. After all, the novel said she’s the only daughter of the Emperor of Hansang. She came to the Great Xia Empire under a hidden identity to request peace, but it’s really just a stepping stone so she can return home with prestige and rightfully claim the position of heir.]
Upon hearing this thought, Chiba Rizhao’s gaze toward Zhao Wujian changed completely—shock, followed by fear.
How did he know her identity?
She had come to the Great Xia Empire under the guise of a diplomatic envoy and talented scholar. In Hansang, only the Emperor and her mother knew her true status. There was no way Zhao Wujian could know! If he used her identity to pressure Hansang into submission and made outrageous demands, it would be disastrous.
“Your Highness… let’s talk this through.”
She tried to plead, but Zhao Wujian had no interest in listening.
“Talk my ass. Don’t try to trick me. Stay put and behave yourself.”
She didn’t know that Zhao Wujian had no intention of revealing her identity. Once people knew that Chiba Rizhao was the princess of Hansang, she’d only die faster.
Thanks to the Emperor’s schemes, Zhao Wujian and Chiba Rizhao were already tied together. If she died here, and the Emperor of Hansang went mad and attacked the Great Xia Empire, Zhao Wujian would be the one to take the blame.
“Guards!”
Zhao Wujian stepped outside and ordered in a low voice, “Keep a close watch on her. No one is allowed to approach her except me—not even a fly!”
“Yes!”
The elite residence guards responded respectfully.
Zhao Wujian returned to his room. Since he had already begun his cultivation, he wouldn’t slack off. Only by becoming stronger could he deal with the many dangers ahead—especially with that so-called Son of Destiny viewing him as a thorn in the side.
In the martial world, the levels went from ninth-rank warriors to first-rank, and above that were the Grandmasters and Great Grandmasters.
According to the original novel, there were three Grandmasters in the Great Xia Empire, one of whom was his cheap father—the Northern Guardian Prince. And above all of them, there was only one Great Grandmaster, seated upon the Dragon Throne—the Emperor.
At the end of the novel, Long Zhan reached the level of Great Grandmaster and, with help from ***, led a hundred thousand elite soldiers to storm the city, finally killing Li Zaiyuan and taking his place. Even then, it was only possible because Li Zaiyuan had grown old. After all, even Great Grandmasters couldn’t live forever.
“I don’t know if I can reach the level of Great Grandmaster, but at the very least, I can’t be slower than Long Zhan. If he gets there first… he could kill me with a flick of his hand.”
Zhao Wujian felt immense pressure. After receiving Liu Ruyan’s Dragon-Nourishing Sacred Physique, and cultivating the True Yang Heart Technique, he had broken into the ninth-rank warrior realm.
Long Zhan, at present, was at the seventh rank, and with the top-tier martial arts manuals granted by the Dao Sect, he could fight on par with sixth-rank warriors.
But this was expected. After all, which novel protagonist doesn’t defeat enemies above their level?
Zhao Wujian trained tirelessly through the night. The True Yang Heart Technique showed signs of reaching the second layer, but it was just shy of a breakthrough. This technique could greatly boost his strength—if he reached the second layer, he was confident he’d break into the eighth rank.
“Still feels like something’s missing. Should I go find Liu Ruyan again?”
Zhao Wujian pondered. But after their previous experience, he realized that while the Dragon-Nourishing Sacred Physique could enhance his power, it came with limits. He couldn’t rely on it constantly. His dantian also needed rest.
“Your Highness! Something bad has happened!”
Just as the sky was beginning to brighten, the Old Housekeeper, Zhao Manfu, knocked anxiously at the door.
“What’s going on?”
From inside, Zhao Wujian could already hear the increasing noise outside. After becoming a ninth-rank warrior, his hearing had sharpened. He even heard the clashing of armor.
The Old Housekeeper sounded nervous, “Your Highness, the Imperial Cavalry is here again… and this time, even Lord Jingzhaoyin has come!”
Why would the head of the Jingzhao Office be here?
The Jingzhao Office oversaw the security of the capital and enforced the laws of the Great Xia Empire—like the modern-day police bureau. If the bureau chief showed up at your door first thing in the morning, it was never good news.
Zhao Wujian frowned and ended his cultivation, then walked out with the Old Housekeeper. As they moved, the Old Housekeeper explained, “Last night at dusk, in the eastern district of the capital, in the small residence of a seventh-rank official named Cao in Tianshui Lane, a major massacre took place. Everyone inside was killed—except for one survivor. That survivor was Cao Xiaolan, who had just returned home from visiting relatives.”
“Cao Xiaolan?”
Zhao Wujian’s eyes narrowed. “Li Yunrui’s trusted aide—isn’t that Cao Xiaolan?”
The Old Housekeeper nodded repeatedly.
Zhao Wujian immediately understood. With both the Jingzhao Office and the Imperial Cavalry outside his residence, it could only mean one thing—they believed the killer was related to him.
Sure enough, when the Old Housekeeper opened the gate, a crowd of Imperial Cavalry soldiers with blades and Jingzhao enforcers holding batons stood outside. Their presence surged like a tidal wave, pressing toward Zhao Wujian.
“Greetings, Young Master Zhao…”
The head of the Jingzhao Office was an old man with gray hair. He placed his hand on his belt and spoke coldly. Though he offered a greeting, he didn’t bow or nod. As the top law enforcer in the capital, he had the authority to stand up to any aristocrat who committed a crime—especially a fallen one.
“You certainly slept well, Heir Zhao. Do you realize what a foolish thing you’ve done?”
Commander Long glanced coldly at Zhao Wujian, then flicked his hand and tossed out a portrait. “Zhao Wujian, you let this person loose to commit murder and wreak havoc in the capital. What do you have to say for yourself?”
Zhao Wujian looked closely—it was Chiba Rizhao in the portrait.
“Last night, Lord Cao’s entire household was slaughtered…”
With a wave of his hand, the Jingzhao enforcers stepped forward. One of them pulled out a chain, clearly intending to detain Zhao Wujian.
The official’s dry voice was filled with anger: “The only survivor, Cao Xiaolan, personally identified the killer as Chiba Rizhao—the envoy from Hansang under your care. Your failure in duty cost a Great Xia official his entire family. Arrest him!”
The Old Housekeeper stepped forward and stood protectively in front of Zhao Wujian. “This is slander! Anyone who dares harm our young master, I’ll fight to the death!”
The residence guards rushed over, and the standoff grew tense.
“Chiba Rizhao massacred an entire household of a serving seventh-rank official. Zhao Wujian, you cannot escape responsibility!”
Commander Long drew his sword and pointed it at the Old Housekeeper.
Afraid that Long Zhan might repeat the earlier tragedy and kill the Old Housekeeper on the spot, Zhao Wujian quickly pushed him aside and said coldly, “Where’s Cao Xiaolan?”
“Zhao Wujian, are you trying to silence her?”
“Commander Long, why are you so eager? If you want to accuse me of negligence, at least let me confront the witness first, right?” Then he looked at the official from the Jingzhao Office. “Don’t you agree?”
The official lifted his hand, and the crowd parted, revealing Cao Xiaolan.
Her eyes were swollen, and her cheeks were streaked with tears. She wiped her face and walked forward quickly, her face full of grief and resentment, voice trembling with sobs: “Young Master Zhao, it was indeed Chiba Rizhao who slaughtered my entire Cao family!”
“Zhao Wujian, what do you have to say for yourself now?”
Long Zhan, filled with righteous anger, gave the order to the enforcers: “Everyone, move in with the Imperial Cavalry! Arrest Zhao Wujian!”