After returning to his quarters, Oliver Sheng began his cultivation.
To appease Zane Wang, he promised that next time he would definitely take him to Misty Willow House to see Fairy Isla Qin. Only then did Zane relent.
At night, Oliver continued his cultivation. The Great Sun Heart Sutra circulated within him, pure yang energy surged like a blazing sun, causing his True Qi and blood to boil and burn.
It was fortunate that his previous self was a poor scholar who only knew how to study hard and had no money to indulge in brothels, thus maintaining his pure yang body.
As the Great Sun Heart Sutra operated, he resembled a burning sun, with his blood, bones, muscles, and flesh all being tempered and strengthened. His physique was gradually becoming tougher and stronger.
Martial artists value their physique and blood energy, as all their strength originates from these.
Even with a Golden Finger, Oliver Sheng still insisted on daily cultivation, all for the sake of becoming stronger.
To become stronger, he could endure abstinence.
All just to become terrifyingly powerful!
In the following days, Oliver Sheng did not leave the military camp, either training the soldiers or cultivating.
He dared not visit Magistrate Chen, for fear that he might tempt him to go to Misty Willow House again.
The snow in the Northern Frontier was slowly melting, and the first snowfall had quickly passed.
Zane Wang waited and waited, but Oliver Sheng never came to take him to Misty Willow House, leaving him waiting with longing eyes.
......
Oliver Sheng looked at the golden Light Screen.
Name: Oliver Sheng
Race: Human
Realm: Innate Great Perfection
Cultivation Methods: [Great Sun Heart Sutra (Small Accomplishment)] [Wild Bull Strength (Small Accomplishment)] (+) [Blood Fiend Saber Technique (Great Accomplishment)] (Deduction) [Overlord Spear Technique (Small Accomplishment)]
Strength: 85,000 pounds
Talent: Sharpshooter
Kill Points: 4717
System Upgradable
Over the past few days, Oliver Sheng had quietly advanced his cultivation to Innate Great Perfection.
His single-arm strength had increased to a terrifying 85,000 pounds. To put this in perspective, a normal martial artist at Innate Great Perfection has a single-arm strength of only 50,000 pounds, while Oliver Sheng had reached a terrifying 85,000 pounds.
Advancing from the early stage of Innate to the mid-stage consumed 2,000 Kill Points, from mid-stage to late-stage consumed 3,000 Kill Points, and from late-stage to Great Perfection consumed 4,000 Kill Points.
Each advancement consumed an additional 1,000 Kill Points, making Oliver Sheng realize that the further he progressed, the more Kill Points were required.
Advancing from the early stage of Innate to Innate Great Perfection consumed a total of 9,000 Kill Points.
He couldn't imagine how terrifying it would be to break through to Grandmaster or Great Grandmaster.
If he hadn't started by killing enemies at the border, he wouldn't know if he could sustain this Golden Finger.
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Now that he had quietly broken through to Innate Great Perfection, no one knew. Oliver Sheng chuckled to himself, thinking that anyone who dared to provoke him would be slapped to death.
Now, even facing a Grandmaster, he wouldn't feel as if he were facing a deity.
He wanted to grow stronger quietly and then amaze everyone.
......
The Luo Capital of Great Wei was as prosperous as a blooming flower, gathering the nobility and the immensely wealthy from all over the land.
The entire Luo Capital was resplendent and magnificent, a thousand-year-old city that had flourished to the extreme and continued to this day, its vast expanse stretching beyond the eye's reach.
Pavilions and palaces stood in a haphazard array, with a permanent population reaching a staggering three million.
The bustling capital city was brightly lit.
The Second Prince's Mansion!
Second Prince Han Feiyu's eyes were cold. Recently, his uncle, General Li, had led an army of 200,000 northward, only to be pinned down by 400,000 Huns in the three states of Yan and Qi, unable to extricate themselves.
This had significantly weakened his influence in Luo Capital, with other princes and ministers continuously suppressing him.
These days, his role as the acting regent had been anything but stable.
"Your Highness, last night, Minister Wang of the Ministry of War visited the Crown Prince's Mansion," a spy reported.
"That old fool! I've tried to win him over countless times, but he always evades me. Has he now completely sided with my elder brother?" Han Feiyu's anger surged. He was currently the acting regent and the most likely candidate for the throne.
"And what about Minister Zuo of the Ministry of Revenue?"
"Minister Jasper Zuo visited the Third Prince's Mansion a few days ago."
"Good, very good," Han Feiyu laughed in his fury.
These court officials, none of them supported him, did they?
What was it about him, Han Feiyu, that they found lacking?
"And what about the Left Minister?"
"The Left Minister is still claiming illness and resting at home, not having left his house for many days."
The Right Minister, Xie Yan, supported the Ninth Prince, so there were few high-ranking officials in the court who supported the Second Prince.
"Is Jasper Zuo, the commander of the Black Robe Guards, still wavering?"
"Commander Zuo said he only takes orders from the Emperor."
A long silence followed.
"You've forced my hand, you've forced my hand..."
Han Feiyu's expression twisted with rage.
"Notify the palace to prepare for action."
Han Feiyu's voice echoed in the darkness like a sound from the depths of hell.
He could wait no longer.
"Yes!"
The spy vanished into the darkness like a shadow.
"Someone, send word to Generals Tang and Cheng to bring their troops into the capital."
"Take my command token and release General Jin Daorong from the dungeon."
"Have General Wei Wu secure the palace."
"Generals Xu and Deng of the Five-City Military Command are to take over the Imperial City."
Han Feiyu planned to cut through the chaos swiftly, issuing orders one after another.
He intended to strike first, and seeing the determination in his eyes, his advisors and followers were filled with fervor and excitement, albeit with some trepidation.
If successful, they would all be credited with helping a new emperor ascend, their future statuses beyond compare.
"Come, follow me into the palace."
A large group of guards, ministers, and advisors marched towards the palace.
"Halt! Who goes there? The Imperial City is under curfew at night. Any closer and you'll be shot with arrows," the palace guards shouted.
"I am the Second Prince. I have urgent business with my father. Let me through," Han Feiyu shouted back.
The guards looked at each other, then lowered their bows.
They were part of the Imperial Guard, and their commander, General Wei Wu, had ordered that no one but the Second Prince was to be allowed into the palace that night.
The gates of the Imperial City opened, allowing the Second Prince and his entourage to enter the palace.
......
At the Crown Prince's Mansion, a spy hurriedly reported.
"Your Highness, bad news! The Second Prince has entered the palace with his men."
"What? This is bad!"
Crown Prince Han Che felt a sense of foreboding.
"Let's go, quickly leave the city."
Crown Prince Han Che, along with his trusted aides, hurriedly left the city under the cover of night.
He knew what his second brother intended to do, but he couldn't stop him now, nor did he want to.
The Imperial Guard was loyal to the Second Prince, and of the 50,000 soldiers in the Five-City Military Command, only 10,000 were loyal to him, with the rest split between the Second and Third Princes.
At the same time, Third Prince Han Yuan also received a report from his spies that the Second Prince had entered the palace with his men.
"Damn it, has he gone mad?" Han Yuan cursed.
"Send word to Generals Fang and Lu to gather their troops and head to the palace to stop the Second Prince."
"Quickly send a message to General Lu in Yuzhou, ordering him to bring his troops to the capital to suppress the Second Prince's rebellion."
The Third Prince quickly issued orders, planning to suppress the Second Prince after he made his move and seize the victory.
The Second Prince's actions instantly threw Luo Capital into turmoil that night.
The Sixth and Ninth Princes, along with other contenders for the throne, also took action.
At the Left Minister's Mansion, the lights were dim.
Left Minister Quentin Fu sat at his desk, holding a book but unable to focus on it.
He gazed at the stars outside the window for a long time before finally speaking softly.
"The wind is rising!"
......
The Second Prince entered the palace and made his way to the Emperor's bedchamber with ease.
"Second Prince."
Seeing the fierce look on the Second Prince's face, the eunuchs and palace maids knelt in fear, as if disaster had struck.
The palace was now under the control of General Wei Wu, the Second Prince's subordinate.
The Second Prince looked at the old Emperor lying on the dragon bed, his life sustained by medicinal pills, barely breathing.
He was like a candle in the wind, ready to go out at any moment.
"Everyone else, leave. Old Eunuch Wei, stay," the Second Prince ordered.
The palace maids and eunuchs were dismissed, and the guards dragged them away to be executed, leaving no survivors.
"Second Prince, have you thought this through? This will make you a villain in history," Old Eunuch Wei said calmly.
"A villain in history? History is written by the victors," the Second Prince scoffed. At this moment, he didn't care about infamy.
As long as he became Emperor, the entire world would be his, and anyone who dared to speak against him would be killed.
"Do it!" Han Feiyu ordered.
Two assassins stepped forward, approached the bed, and pressed a pillow over the old Emperor's face.
Old Eunuch Wei did not intervene to stop the Second Prince from patricide. Having lived in the palace for so long, he had become numb to such scenes.
In the imperial family, there was no such thing as familial affection. Fathers killed sons, sons killed fathers, brothers killed brothers. This had played out many times in this resplendent palace.
The old Emperor quickly breathed his last, dying in his bed.
The Emperor of Great Wei was dead!
The two assassins left the palace and immediately committed suicide in front of the palace.
"Old Eunuch Wei, I'll leave this Imperial Edict to you," the Second Prince said, producing a prepared edict and stamping it with the Emperor's seal.
Old Eunuch Wei took the edict without expression and tucked it into his sleeve.
The Second Prince waved his hand, and his eunuch loudly proclaimed.
"The Emperor has passed away!"
"The Emperor has passed away!"
The cries echoed throughout the palace.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
The mourning bells rang out across Luo Capital.