Where exactly were Soren and the others now? What was their precise location?
It was an utterly maddening question, almost completely impossible to solve.
Even if Soren ran onto the deck right now and looked around carefully, all he would see was the endless sea with no landmarks whatsoever.
Furthermore, from land to sea, Soren had been unconscious for several days and nights. How could anyone possibly know where they were?
Soren closed his eyes and calculated rapidly in his mind.
The countdown ended.
Princess Wanyuan revealed a devilish smile and waved her hand. “Go. Enjoy this supreme handsome man. Do not leave a single part of him untouched. Make him suffer until he longs for both life and death.”
Immediately, the four Demon Continent brutes lunged forward wildly.
Soren suddenly opened his eyes and said, “We are in the western sea of the continent. Using Dadan City on the western frontier as the reference point, our current position lies at a forty five degree angle northwest of it, approximately three thousand one hundred li away in a straight line.”
The moment those words were spoken, Princess Wanyuan was utterly stunned.
She stared at Soren in complete disbelief.
This was an answer that should have been impossible to obtain, yet Soren had answered with astonishing precision, even more accurately than her own calculation.
How was this possible?
Soren swept all the black and white pieces off the board, then picked up the black pieces and replayed Princess Wanyuan’s earlier moves exactly, placing thirty pieces in total.
“In the first thirty moves, you played entirely according to whim, without following proper chess principles,” Soren said. “So I remembered them perfectly clearly. Because I was worried about interfering with your arrangement, I deliberately played more casually as well. You played your game, I played mine. Those first thirty moves were actually mapping out our route on the board.”
Then Soren pointed at the first piece and said, “This marks the place where I was captured, Doom Mountain in Black Furnace County of the Furious Wave Kingdom. Then the route continued westward across twenty four spaces on the board, approximately eight thousand seven hundred li in a straight line, which corresponds exactly to Dadan City on the western frontier of the continent. From there, it moved diagonally northwest by six pieces. Since the route was diagonal, the distance between each piece became approximately 1.412 times the original, around five hundred and eleven li each. That gives the final answer. We are in the sea northwest of Dadan City at a forty five degree angle, approximately three thousand one hundred li away in a straight line.”
Princess Wanyuan fell silent, staring at Soren for a long time, completely unable to suppress the shock and admiration in her heart.
Meanwhile, Soren sighed softly and said, “Which means I must have been unconscious for at least more than ten days, correct?”
A moment later, Wanyuan’s beautiful eyes lit up once more. Taking a deep breath, she said, “Lord Soren, you truly are exactly as the legends describe, your intelligence is almost demonic.”
Then she applauded forcefully. “Very good. You have won the first round. You may all leave.”
The four Demon Continent brutes retreated unwillingly.
For such an exceptionally handsome man as Soren, not even being able to touch a finger of his was truly regrettable to them.
Then Wanyuan said, “Lord Soren, have a good rest. We will soon arrive and disembark. The second round of our intellectual contest will begin after we go ashore.”
After saying that, she left directly.
Inside the magnificent cabin, only Soren remained.
He immediately closed his eyes, cold sweat breaking out across his back from lingering fear.
This Wanyuan was absolutely a devil woman, exactly the same kind as Ashiro, caring only about her own pleasure and capable of doing absolutely anything.
Only, she was even more cunning than Ashiro, and possessed far greater power.
How could he possibly escape from her hands?
He had won the first round of this battle of intellects, but what would the second round be?
Did his family in Tianshui City already know something had happened to him?
However, Zhiyan and Zhili certainly already knew. At this moment, the royal capital Zhidu was probably already facing tremendous upheaval.
…
The royal capital Zhidu appeared calm on the surface. But beneath that calm, everything had already undergone terrifying changes.
On the second day after Soren’s incident, Princess Wanyuan of the Demon Continent had already sent a message to Zhili containing only four simple words: Soren is dead.
Along with it, she sent a skull and Soren’s golden crown.
The people Zhili dispatched to investigate the scene also reported back that the valley where the incident occurred had become a living hell, with not a single survivor remaining.
Upon receiving news of Soren’s death, Zhili’s entire body trembled and he collapsed into his chair, overwhelmed by endless joy and relief.
At last, the day had finally come.
For more than a year, Soren had practically become his nightmare.
He had become the greatest enemy and greatest obstacle on Zhili’s path to the throne.
In order to eliminate Soren, Zhili had mobilised nearly every resource available.
He had successively deployed hundreds of thousands of troops, used the resources of the Divine Dragon Temple, and spent astronomical sums to hire more than a dozen top assassins from the Underworld Society.
Yet Soren had repeatedly created miracles.
First, despite having almost nothing, he reclaimed Tianshui City and even got Zhili’s only younger sister pregnant.
Then, with less than one tenth of the enemy’s military strength, he annihilated the combined army of more than a hundred thousand troops sent to destroy him.
Not long ago, he had silently supported Ashi Liren into becoming the lord of Rouran City. That alone would have been shocking enough, but under his subtle guidance, the thirty thousand strong army of Yelan Duchy invaded Rouran. It should have been a hopeless situation, yet Soren somehow completely reversed the outcome.
In the end, the greatest feudal lord in the world, Ashi Liren, openly humiliated Zhili at the royal banquet and publicly declared loyalty to Zhiyan.
Although no one voiced anything openly at the time, everyone knew it was an enormous turning point, a massive blow to Zhili’s authority and prestige.
So many miracles. So many extraordinary accomplishments. For an ordinary person, achieving even one of them in an entire lifetime would already guarantee eternal fame.
Yet Soren had completed four such feats within only a year and a half.
And now, he was finally dead.
Without Ashiro’s death, Zhili would never have been able to persuade the Demon Continent to invest such tremendous resources into killing Soren.
Without the strange and mysterious powers of the Demon Continent, using ordinary worldly means to kill Soren had already become almost impossible.
But now, Soren was finally finished.
Which meant there was no longer any obstacle left on Zhili’s road to the throne.
Endless relief. Endless joy.
Without Soren, Zhiyan had completely lost her only great general and no longer posed any threat.
Zhili narrowed his eyes slightly.
The desires he had suppressed for so long finally began to surface.
Now that no one remained to block his ascension, there was no longer any need to restrain himself so much.
Immediately, two breathtakingly beautiful faces appeared in his mind.
The most beautiful one was Ashi Liren. That woman still could not be touched, because she remained the greatest feudal lord in the world and controlled tens of thousands of troops.
At least before officially ascending the throne, he could not touch Ashi Liren.
But another woman perhaps truly had already become prey waiting on the table.
Instantly, Zhili pictured Gui Qinshao’s stunningly beautiful and proud face.
So fiery. So charming. Like a rose ready to drip with dew.
A peerless beauty like her was not someone Ling Ao had any right to possess or enjoy.
…
While Zhili’s Young Lord Manor fell into secret celebration, Zhiyan’s Princess Manor sank into despair.
She received the news one day later than Zhili. On the third day after Soren’s incident, she received a report from Shadow Pavilion.
The Shadow Pavilion warriors escorting Soren had been completely wiped out at Doom Mountain in Black Furnace County.
The entire valley had turned into a hellish swamp, with no remains of anyone left behind. The only thing discovered at the scene was Soren’s command ring.
The platinum command ring had been buried within the disgusting swamp, yet it had not corroded or melted away.
Soon after, Zhili’s side also sent a direct message saying Soren had died at the hands of Princess Wanyuan of the Demon Continent.
The moment Zhiyan heard the news, her mind went completely blank. Endless darkness and endless sorrow engulfed her.
These unprecedented emotions exploded within her heart like bombs.
Previously, she had been almost devoid of emotion or desire. Only after discovering the forbidden relationship between Soren and Ning Bing had a crack formed within her emotions, causing her to experience menstruation for the first time.
Even then, her heart still lacked the full range of human feelings and desires.
But now, news of Soren’s death exploded inside her mind and heart like a catastrophic blast.
For a full half hour, she could barely perceive anything around her or hear the voices calling to her.
When she finally opened her eyes again, two people stood before her.
The king’s most trusted subordinate, one of the top experts of the Furious Wave Kingdom, leader of the Gao faction of palace eunuchs, Gao Yin.
And also Duke Zhiting.
Ever since the king’s accident, this was the first time he had left the king’s side.
Zhiting restrained himself for a while before staring at Zhiyan and saying, “This is all your fault. You should have accompanied him back to Tianshui City. You clearly knew Zhili was trying every possible method to kill him. You clearly knew some people from the Demon Continent would blame Ashiro’s death on Soren. The methods of the Demon Continent are impossible to guard against. Ordinary Dragon Warriors simply cannot withstand them. Only a top spiritual expert like you, only a supreme expert from the Divine Dragon Temple like you, could counter those bizarre attacks.”
Princess Zhiyan said nothing and lowered her head.
Zhiting continued angrily, “If you had returned with Soren, nothing would have happened to him. He would not have died.”
Zhiyan’s eyes trembled and two tears slid down her cheeks.
Zhiting had always treated Zhiyan with respect and courtesy. He had never become angry with her before.
Yet now he coldly asked, “Tell me, when Soren asked whether you would return to Tianshui City with him, why did you refuse? And what exactly is going on with this Huai Bingyi? Why did he appear now of all times?”
Zhiyan raised her beautiful eyes and replied, “Soren originally did not need to rush back to Tianshui City. But because he was worried about Yan Naier and wanted to resolve her crisis, he returned early. Huai Bingyi had already agreed to supply weapons and armour for our army of more than a hundred thousand troops. I stayed behind to finish discussing the details with him so we could obtain the equipment as soon as possible.”
“Ridiculous, absurd,” Zhiting snapped. “Since he already agreed, could I not have handled the remaining arrangements myself? Did you absolutely have to discuss it with him personally? Besides, which is more important, weapons and armour for hundreds of thousands of troops, or Soren?”
Without question, Soren was more important.
Without Soren, those weapons and armour were utterly meaningless.
Zhiyan said, “On the night after Ashi Liren publicly declared loyalty to me, Zhili made many unusual movements. I feared he might harm Father King, so I remained in the capital to protect him.”
Zhiting angrily replied, “His Majesty has Shadow Pavilion, Elder Gao, and the royal guards. Even if Zhili were ten times more capable, he still could not kill the king. The king did not need you. Soren did.”
Princess Zhiyan lowered her eyes again as tears continued to fall.
Zhiting said, “Huai Bingyi must have played some hidden role in Soren’s death, otherwise why did his appearance coincide so perfectly? Why did he insist on keeping you in the capital to discuss military equipment? That man’s schemes run deep.”
Zhiyan remained silent, tears falling continuously like broken strands of pearls.
Zhiting sighed deeply in utter despair. “Everything has failed. It was all a fleeting dream. We no longer have any hope. Give up.”
Gao Yin remained silent.
Zhiting said, “Without Soren, the rest of us are nothing. The throne is beyond hope now. Even surviving is probably impossible. Give up.”
The group remained silent.
Duke Zhiting sighed hopelessly and said, “I am no longer young. I have already enjoyed all the glory and wealth life could offer. Death does not matter to me. When Zhili ascends the throne, I shall end my own life with a cup of poison.”
Then he looked toward Princess Zhiyan and said, “You are still young, still in the prime of your youth. Huai Bingyi is both the young lord of Overlord Continent and the direct disciple of a Sky Priest from the Divine Dragon Temple. He is deeply devoted to you and can protect you. Even if he may be one of the hidden masterminds behind Soren’s death, Soren is already gone. The living matter more. Give up the throne and spend your life with him. After all, you have shared more than ten years of friendship and understanding.”
Zhiyan remained silent, tears continuing to fall.
Zhiting stepped forward and gently patted her fragrant shoulder. “Listen to my advice. Only Huai Bingyi can protect you now. Once Zhili ascends the throne, he will never spare you. Go, live your peaceful immortal life with Huai Bingyi.”
At that moment, the voice of a female warrior came from outside.
“Your Highness, Young Master Huai Bingyi requests an audience.”
Zhiyan’s beautiful eyes trembled. She stopped her tears and bit her delicate lips tightly.
Taking a deep breath, she finally made a decision in her heart.