A wave of uproar swept through the entire hall.
Everyone turned their furious gazes towards Araki Miko. The rage erupting from above their heads nearly lifted the dome of Takiyomi Hall.
"What an unashamed, wretched woman! Someone kill her for me!"
Emperor Kisei was both enraged and annoyed, with a hint of jealous bitterness. He had long coveted Araki Miko's beauty but had refrained from acting due to her status. To think she would debase herself to become a lapdog for a Hua countryman!
"Since she is my disciple, it is only fitting that I personally eliminate her!" Kawashima Kaede stepped forward, assuming a posture of drawing a bow. A bow imbued with spiritual energy appeared in her hands, with a fiery spiritual arrow nocked on the string.
*Zzzzt—*
A six-pointed star, crackling with sparks, materialized in the air, acting as a reticle aimed at Araki Miko.
"You wish to kill someone under my protection in front of me? Have you asked for my opinion?" Chen Xiao narrowed his eyes and said indifferently.
"I am disciplining my own disciple, what business is it of yours? You, young man, do not rush. After I have dealt with my own, you will be the next one I kill!" Kawashima Kaede roared, releasing her fingers from the bowstring.
*Swish!*
The fiery spiritual arrow shot forth, streaking directly towards Araki Miko. However, halfway to its target, it abruptly halted in mid-air, as if frozen in time. Kawashima Kaede was stunned. What was happening? Then, with a *whoosh*, the arrow reversed its trajectory and flew back… *thwack*… piercing Kawashima Kaede's heart.
Chen Xiao stretched his neck and twisted his wrists. "Alright, the hunt has begun!"
"Take him down!" Emperor Kisei pointed at Chen Xiao and bellowed.
Everyone immediately surrounded Chen Xiao, launching their attacks. Chen Xiao walked forward with composure, and with each step he took, a person's body exploded like fireworks. Except these fireworks were the color of blood.
Beside them, the Ise Shrine Priest was utterly dumbfounded. What kind of attack was this? It had never witnessed anything like it. This method of attack seemed to involve no direct engagement. Yet, as he walked past, people around him detonated. The priest felt it keenly, and a look of terror spread across its pustule-covered frog face.
"This is… killing with divine sense?!" It suddenly felt that Amaterasu Omikami's absence was a wise decision. If she had come, she might not have been a match for this young man either.
"Where did this monster come from? How can it be so strong?" The frog's head, covered in boils, could not comprehend this question at all.
As for Emperor Kisei, he no longer had the capacity to ponder how Chen Xiao had become so powerful. For the first time in his life, he felt how close he was to death. He instinctively wanted to flee, but his legs refused to obey. He could only watch helplessly as the leaders and figures of various prominent families died one after another.
*Bang… bang… bang…*
This fireworks display lasted less than half a minute before it ended. Simply because the raw materials ran out. The likes of Iga, Koga, and the Abe of the Soaring Feather clan—those standing at the pinnacle of power and influence in Toyo—were like mere clay chickens and pottery dogs in Chen Xiao's eyes. They were not even as capable as Kawashima Kaede, who at least had drawn her bow. These individuals, however, failed to mount any effective counterattack before turning into bloody fireworks.
Throughout this process, Chen Xiao had simply walked to Emperor Kisei's front without even lifting a hand.
"Wh-what do you want to do?" Emperor Kisei looked up at Chen Xiao, swallowed, and asked a truly foolish question.
Seeing his pathetic state, Chen Xiao simply laughed. "I truly don't understand, with your kind of uselessness, how dare you covet the Dragon Vein?" Chen Xiao had initially assumed the Emperor of Toyo would be some kind of cultivator. But after meeting him, he found the man to be utterly devoid of any aura, short, fat, and weak—a waste even compared to an ordinary person. As for strategic brilliance, there was not a trace of it. The only reason he could command the loyalty of those Onmyoji and ninja was his royal lineage. Seeing this man, Chen Xiao understood where the people of Toyo's overconfidence stemmed from… this man was the root of the problem! When the soldier is weak, the entire army is weak. If the Emperor of Toyo was a foolish entity, then his subordinates, the lackeys, would naturally not be much better.
Hearing Chen Xiao's words, Emperor Kisei suddenly relaxed. "So you've come for the Dragon Vein. I'll give it to you. I will never send anyone to Jiangcheng again!" He naively believed this would be enough to dismiss Chen Xiao.
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiao let out a snort of laughter. He patted the Emperor's fat face and said, "You expect me to accept your concession?"
Emperor Kisei opened his mouth, his eyes flickering. Finally, he said with a show of bravado, "Then what else do you want? Are you going to kill me too?" He declared, "I'm telling you, I'm not like them! They are just a bunch of martial artists; killing them is one thing. But if you kill me, it will cause diplomatic issues!"
"Diplomatic issues?" Chen Xiao sneered and turned away, walking back.
Emperor Kisei slumped onto his throne, finally breathing a sigh of relief. It seemed the young man still had some sense. Behind him stood the entire Toyo Empire. No matter how strong that fellow was, he would never dare to oppose the entire empire.
Just as he was thinking this, a powerful force suddenly enveloped him, his limbs uncontrollably drawing together…
*Bang!*
Emperor Kisei was crushed into a pulp of flesh, splattering across the throne. Chen Xiao ultimately did not spare the Emperor of Toyo, for he intended to make an example of him. It was better to prevent trouble before it started. The fact that there was a Dragon Vein beneath their land could be kept secret for a time, but not forever. Therefore, through this action, he wanted to inform everyone that this was the consequence of coveting the Dragon Vein!
As for the potential diplomatic dispute, it was indeed a slight inconvenience. However, Chen Xiao did not take it to heart. He would deal with whatever came his way. If those Toyo scoundrels dared to pursue the matter, he wouldn't mind obliterating that tiny island nation.
At this point, Chen Xiao had been in Takiyomi Hall of the Imperial Palace for no more than five minutes. Aside from Chen Xiao and Araki Miko, the only other living being in the palace was that stinking toad. Chen Xiao glanced at the stinking toad and asked, "Where is Amaterasu? Is she not going to show herself?"
"Amaterasu Omikami has no intention of being your enemy, *croak*, so she will not come today, *croak*," the Ise Shrine Priest said, calling out.
"No intention of being my enemy?" Chen Xiao sneered. "Then what was that Amaterasu Order?"
"This, *croak*…" The Ise Shrine Priest scratched his head, then felt an immense force begin to compress his body. "Sir, spare me! The divine race truly has no intention of being your enemy. Let's talk this through…"
Chen Xiao's eyes slightly widened. He hadn't expected his Divine Sense Grip to fail to kill the stinking toad. It seemed the power of divine sense ultimately had its limits.
"Very well, then I shall use you to test the limits of this power!" Chen Xiao gathered his focus. This time, the stinking toad could not resist and was directly crushed by his divine sense!
*Clang—*
After the stinking toad exploded, the Amaterasu Order it had hidden in its mouth fell to the ground. A wisp of blue smoke rose from the Amaterasu Order…