King Liqin looked like he was reminiscing something of old, but his eyes were incredibly complicated and it was impossible for others to know what he was thinking.
That being said, there was one thing all of the officials could be sure of.
King Liqin's appearance in the throne room was definitely not a coincidence. Furthermore, Chi Guyan, the top ranked youth of this generation, was by his side.
Would Chi Guyan come into the throne room for no reason?
Definitely not.
For the past year, Chi Guyan has stayed away from politics. She had confined herself within the Heaven Dao Pavillion. She had only decided to descend from the mountain a few month ago, but had never taken a step into the courts.
As such, King Liqin and Chi Guyan's arrival must be about the sword.
How was the aged uncle of the Emperor going to resolve this conflict?
Upon hearing what King Liqin had to say, Emperor Li Mubai nodded lightly. Then, he was silent. He definitely knew why King Liqin and Chi Guyan were here.
However, as an emperor, he had no need to guess what methods King Liqin would use to solve this problem. All he had to do was nod or shake his head.
As the emperor, his decision was final.
King Liqin looked at the sword. He did not let Emperor Lin Mubai wait too long. After glancing at the Traceless Sword, he began to speak, almost as if he was murmuring to himself.
"Good sword, this is really a good sword. Is this the sword from the World of the Sage? Is this Meng Tian's sword? I have heard my servants talking about this blade over the past few days whilst I've been lazing around in my residence. I never expected to see it for myself in the throne room. Not bad, not bad..." King Liqin praised the sword, but he did not move a single step.
All of the officials were trying to guess what King Liqin was thinking? Was King Liqin eyeing the sword as well?
The courts were still calm and silent. No one spoke other than King Liqin.
King Liqin began to murmur to himself again.
"All these years, I have not had any hobby other than collecting swords. However, with my age, I have become less and less mobile. I wonder if you can help me remove the sword so I can take a look at it?" King Liqin said.
General Jin flushed when he heard this. He was the closest to the sword and he would be happy to help King Liqin, but he could not do anything.
All of the other officials finally understood what King Liqin wanted. He wants to extract the swords too?
King Liqin had not determined who would be the one to extract the sword.
His statement was extremely simple.
But, it was actually quite loaded. Now the Emperor had a perfectly legitimate reason to try to extract the blade.
News would spread that the current Emperor went to extract a sword from the ground just so his uncle to admire it.
This would ensure that the Emperor's reputation was unsullied. In fact, people will even praise him for being filial. He would also be able to prevent people from calling a thief.
If Emperor Lin Mubai did not choose to step out, then there was only one person who could extract the sword.
That man was Fang Zhengzhi.
That was also quite the perfect plan. As a filial nephew, the Emperor could order Fang Zhengzhi to extract the blade and present it to his uncle. That would also satisfy the courts.
No matter what the Emperor decided, his reputation would not be at risk. More importantly, his decision would reveal whether he wanted the sword.
If he did, he would extract it himself.
If he didn't, he would make Fang Zhengzhi do it.
King Liqin murmured to himself then stepped back into position. As an official and an uncle, he left the final decision to the Emperor.
All of the officials looked to the Emperor, keenly awaiting his decision.
Emperor Lin Mubai gently raised his hands and placed them on the dragon table. He calmly looked at the officials, then at the slightly anxious King Duan and Heir Lin Tianrong.
Finally, his gaze landed on Chi Guyan.
Chi Guyan did not speak. She had been completely silent since entering the throne room. She stood quietly by King Liqin's side, supporting him by the arm.
She looked like a granddaughter taking care of her granddad.
Even so, no one ignored her presence. She was the leader of the two dragon roles. She was also the one in the prophecy. As such, one day, she would become the most powerful in the world.
Chi Guyan's expression was calm as a lake.
All of a sudden, Emperor Lin Mubai chuckled.
"Haha... what's so difficult about uncle's request? This blade was brought out of the World of the Sage by Fang Zhengzhi. I think he should extract it."
Many of the officials were in shock when they heard this. Most of them thought that Emperor Lin Mubai would extract it himself, considering the significance of the sword.
But it looked like the Emperor wanted Fang Zhengzhi to do it.
How is this possible?
No one was willing to believe this. This was something that no one had expected. Is the Emperor really going to gift this powerful sword, the sword that represents Meng Tian's will and our country's prowess, to a commoner?!
Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping paled. If he had not said what he had said, none of this would have happened.
Fang Zhengzhi would not have drove the blade into the ground.
No one would have tried to extract the sword.
Was this a coincidence?
Or did Fang Zhengzhi plan this?
Yu Yiping's eyes glowed icily. If it was the latter, Fang Zhengzhi was a scary man and a threat to his position.
King Duan and the Heir both bit their lips. They had linked the sword to the battle for the throne. But now, the all powerful sword was about to be given to a commoner?
How could they ever be happy about that?
Even though all of the officials were stunned, they still turned their gazes on Fang Zhengzhi.
Yan Xiu, Xing Qingsui, and Nangong Mu also turned to look at him, nodding their approval.
Ping Yang smiled widely, almost as if she saw victory within her grasp.
Fang Zhengzhi heaved a sigh of relief. He had never lusted for power, and had did not want to challenge the Emperor's authority.
All he wanted to do was keep the sword.
But now, even though he did not know what was going on, it seemed like the sword... was safe?
The Emperor had asked him to extract the sword.
It was all too easy now. All he had to do was extract the sword in front of all of the officials and hand it over to the old man to take a look...
And it would all be over?
Fang Zhengzhi was ecstatic.
"Yes your highness!" Fang Zhengzhi bowed deeply towards the Emperor, then glanced at the officials, a smirk at the edge of his mouth.
Then, he began to saunter up to the sword.
General Jin was quite relieved to see this. Before Fang Zhengzhi could say anything, he stood to the side, his hulking arms wiping the sweat from his forehead.
All of the officials looked on solemnly as Fang Zhengzhi prepared to extract the sword.
It would be extremely humiliating if an immature 15 year old commoner managed to do something none of them could do, extract the sword.
Fang Zhengzhi did not think of all this. All he knew was that this blade was his and he had no intention of giving it to anybody. Even if the opponent was the Emperor himself, he had to give it a try.
"Extracting a sword, how simple!" Fang Zhengzhi hummed a little tune as he extended his hand and lightly gripped the hilt. Then, he tugged lightly.
"..."
All of the officials cursed as they saw Fang Zhengzhi move so casually. Must he humiliate them so badly? He could act a little at the very least?
They did not have to think for very long.
They all realized that Fang Zhengzhi was putting in quite a bit of effort.
However...
The sword was not extracted.
"Could it be that this fella has some manners?"
"No matter what, he has not humiliated us completely."
All of the officials were quite glad to see that the sword was not extracted. The more effort Fang Zhengzhi required, the better they would look.
Fang Zhengzhi was slightly doubtful.
Whilst it looked like he was doing it rather casually, he was putting in a significant amount of effort.
"Could it be stuck?" Seeing that the blade was still in the ground, Fang Zhengzhi grabbed the hilt with both hands and tugged.
"..."
The only sound was that of the cold wind blowing in from outside the throne room.
Fang Zhengzhi's smile was frozen. The Traceless Sword was still stuck in the ground.
"Could it be that even he cannot extract it?"
"Haha... that's impossible. The sword has already recognized him as the owner, how can he not extract it?"
"He should just be acting."
The officials looked on as Fang Zhengzhi failed to extract the sword a second time. They began to hold little discussions amongst themselves, appreciative of Fang Zhengzhi's effort to make it look difficult.
"Fang Zhengzhi, be a little quicker, the Emperor's uncle is waiting for you!" Ping Yang pouted as she saw Fang ZHengzhi struggling.
Fang Zhengzhi ignored Ping Yang, his eyes fixated on the Traceless Sword. Sweat dripped from his forehead. I thought the sword already recognized me as its owner? Was my faith misplaced?
F*ck me...
Where is my fairytale ending?!