"The most heartless are those from the imperial family, Dongfang Gui, how ruthless you are."
The tears of the Empress had dried up, but her lips curled into a smile.
The Cold Palace was such a place, where living was harder than dying.
The Emperor Yongye knew everything; in his eyes, she was nothing more than a jumping clown.
Others might not see through it, but how could the Empress not understand?
He was willing to bet his own Dragon Body, catching her off guard.
He pretended to want to pass on the throne, luring Dongfang Cheng into revealing his flaws.
He brought in Dugu Wu and his wife, just to use Dugu Wu’s hand to eliminate her and her son.
She understood it all, but alas, it was too late.
"Arrest the Empress and all her accomplices!"
Before the Empress could speak, Emperor Yongye’s eyes were cold and bone-chilling, without a hint of warmth.
"In your dreams! If we die, we die together!"
The Empress’s face twisted, her voice shrill as she tore open her clothes, the bark-like skin on her body spreading rapidly; within the blink of an eye, it had crept up to her face from her neck, her beautiful face becoming hideously ugly in an instant.
Her limbs also transformed rapidly, turning into branches of a tree.
Apart from her facial features which were still vaguely visible, the Empress had turned into a tree.
A weird sound came from her throat, followed by a rapid growth of cracks on the ground.
Vine after vine burst forth from the ground.
The entire sleeping palace instantly became a cage made of trees.
The Imperial Guards drew their swords, attempting to cut the vines, but the vines moved as if sensing the wind; they were hard and sharp, like spears piercing through the armor, the guards had no chance to resist and were turned into corpses.
The Eldest Prince was frightened silly, and the other Princes were also on high alert, trying to break free.
"Protect the Emperor! Protect the Emperor!"
Prince Mu hurriedly rushed in front of Emperor Yongye.
Dugu Wu’s voice was deep as he issued the command.
The Imperial Army outside the palace simultaneously launched hundreds of arrows lit with fire at the vines.
But the vines writhed as if they had eyes, and the rockets fell harmlessly to the ground without even scorching the vines.
The sleeping palace was wrapped layer by layer in vines, no one outside could enter, and no one inside could get out.
"The Wooden Holy Seal."
Feng Bailing focused and noticed a light flickering at the heart of the Empress, growing increasingly intense.
Dugu Wu moved his cane and floated in front of Feng Bailing, asking in a hushed voice.
Of all the people present, apart from Feng Bailing and the Empress, none could see the Wooden Holy Seal; they only saw the Empress’s frenzied state.
"The Empress wants to perish together with us. The Wooden Holy Seal is within her body, she probably won’t last long."
Feng Bailing spoke softly.
Empress Xiao plotted and schemed, hoping to make Emperor Yongye fall in love with her.
Now that it all had come to nothing, and she was running out of fuel and coming to an end, she might as well destroy everything in a last desperate act.
Emperor Yongye’s complexion also dramatically changed.
He had long suspected the Empress’s connection with witchcraft, but only upon witnessing it today did he realize that the situation was far more severe than he had imagined.
"Feng Bailing, don’t you have some medicine that can deal with those vines, hurry up and deal with them."
Even Nalan Yan’er was scared out of her wits.
She had not expected the Empress to turn into this.
The Dragon Trap Formation also had a significant impact on her, and she could feel her Wen Energy being absorbed away little by little.
Feng Bailing cursed inwardly.
This woman, does she even have a brain?
All the Princes were so frightened at this moment that they were all weak in the knees, not daring to make any rash movements.
Several vines attacked Feng Bailing from all directions.
Feng Bailing had been prepared; he wielded the Herbicide and swiftly dealt with the vines.
The vines withered quickly. Upon seeing this, the Empress’s eyes shifted dramatically, and she immediately remembered that "Mo Qianqian" was actually Feng Bailing. She sneered ominously.
"It was you! You hid the baby girl too! You have always been a nuisance, I should have killed you a long time ago."
The Empress couldn’t help but regret it; she had only been on guard against the Crown Prince Mansion and Dugu Wu and others, not expecting that Feng Bailing could single-handedly destroy her entire plan.
Following the Empress’s order, a large number of vines, like a horde of snakes, swarmed Feng Bailing.
Although Feng Bailing had Herbicide to protect himself, it was rapidly running out.
Sweat beaded on Feng Bailing’s forehead as well.
Over on Dongfang Li’s side, he had already been tightly bound by the vines and could only make weak noises.
The Ninth Prince, Dongfang Mosheng, was faring better than the other Princes.
Being blind, he wasn’t taken seriously by the Empress, who was busy capturing others.
Out of the corner of his eye, Feng Bailing noticed that although the vines were attacking everyone, there were very few around Emperor Yongye.
It seemed as though the vines were intentionally avoiding Emperor Yongye.
Feng Bailing glanced at the Empress, who repeatedly vowed to die together but still couldn’t bear to hurt her partner.
Seeing that Feng Bailing had become the target, Dugu Wu reached toward his waist and drew a Soft Sword, charging it with Gang Qi.
In an instant, the sword Qi burst forth like a rainbow, cutting down the vines in a flash.
"Go protect the Emperor!"
Dugu Wu supported Feng Bailing’s waist and pushed her forward, landing her beside Emperor Yongye.
As astute as Dugu Wu, he also recognized that the safest place was actually by Emperor Yongye’s side.
Just as Feng Bailing found her footing, she saw Dugu Wu leap into the air.
He had feigned slowness earlier to deceive the Empress and Prince Mu, now he moved with lightning speed, shattering the vines into pieces with his sword light.
Seeing this, the Empress’s eyes were filled with rage.
Her vines, impervious to ordinary weapons and even fire and water, could not be stopped by Dugu Wu, a master of the Wuji Wood Seal, especially since his legs were unhurt.
The Empress’s gaze shifted again, this time toward Feng Bailing.
Strike the snake at its vital spot, Dugu Wu cared about that woman.
The Empress, also a woman, had long noticed Dugu Wu’s concern for Feng Bailing.
At the beginning of the vine attack, he had always shielded Feng Bailing.
He was single-minded about getting Feng Bailing out of danger.
The Empress’s body lit up with the Wooden Holy Seal, and the withered vines on the ground returned to life. This time, they split in two—half entangled Dugu Wu and the other half attacked Feng Bailing.
Prince Mu became anxious as Feng Bailing was not there to protect the Emperor.
She was simply a target.
Prince Mu pushed Feng Bailing forward, blocking the murdering vine, while Feng Bailing inwardly cursed him as an old dog.
"Bailing, be careful."
A hand reached out from behind and grabbed Feng Bailing’s hand.
The murdering vine attacked from all directions, but that person kept dodging with Feng Bailing, successfully avoiding the vine’s assaults each time.
Feng Bailing was shocked to see that the person aiding her was Dongfang Mosheng.
"I’m a blind man, unable to see at this moment, but I can hear, so follow me."
Facing the fierce onslaught of the murdering vine, Dongfang Mosheng remained undisturbed, smiling at Feng Bailing.
Not far away, Dugu Wu kept an eye on Dongfang Mosheng’s movements and when he saw him holding Feng Bailing’s hand, he shook his sword.