Chapter 1379: Chapter 1374: The Monster of Long Guan City

Mu Ronghuan’s military rebellion had been quelled by Mu Rongche, who alone had ridden into the imperial palace to calm the mutiny, further elevating his reputation in Lian Hai Kingdom.

The old emperor knew that after surviving this palace coup, he would no longer wallow in the pain of having lost a woman like he had in the past two years, incapable of freeing himself from it.

Yet, when he appointed Mu Rongche as the Crown Prince, he still could not find himself particularly pleased.

He suggested that they should pay their respects to his mother together, to share the good news with her, hoping she would rest in peace beneath the nine springs.

However, Mu Rongche, with a dim look in his eyes, said, “Father, please visit mother on my behalf.”

He dared not go, nor did he know how to face his mother.

He had wronged his mother.

But his mother had wronged Xiao Bai even more.

Both people he owed, and he would never be able to make it right in this lifetime.

After being appointed Crown Prince, Mu Rongche numbed himself with court and military affairs; only by doing so could he prevent himself from sinking into the sorrow of losing Xiao Bai.

Yet, whenever he paused, the girl’s crisp voice would still ring by his ear, twisting his heart like a knife.

This life continued for over a year until Ji Yun Country’s growing strength caught the attention of Lian Hai Kingdom, and his anxious father told him that they must be wary.

His father summoned him to the study to discuss matters, and the ministers, worried, discussed the changes in Ji Yun Country:

“Your Majesty, the old emperor of Ji Yun Country is gravely ill, and now it is unclear who holds the power there. They are ambitious, swallowing up neighboring tribes with exceptionally vicious means; we must guard against them!”

“Yes, Your Majesty, we have defeated Ji Yun Country before, forcing them to pay tribute annually. Our relations are already extremely tense; if Ji Yun Country harbors any vile intentions this time, I fear we may have to prepare for war again.”

“Please prepare early, Your Majesty!”

Naturally, the old emperor was also worried. He instinctively looked at Mu Rongche and asked him, “My seventh son, what do you think?”

Mu Rongche calmly said, “If it were any other country harboring ulterior motives, I would certainly send troops in advance to deter them, but Ji Yun Country…”

It was where his heart was tied.

He owed Xiao Bai, and even more so, he owed the sorcerers who had once lived peacefully in Ji Yun Country. Leading the cavalry to trample over the land of Ji Yun Country, he could not decisively do it.

He could only suggest, “I intend to make a diplomatic visit to Ji Yun Country to talk to them first.”

“This won’t do!” the old emperor immediately objected, “Now that you are the Crown Prince, if Ji Yun Country acts deceitfully and detains or harms you, what then?”

He could not afford to lose Mu Rongche, his son; Lian Hai Kingdom could not be without Mu Rongche as the Crown Prince.

Besides having a kind heart and being braver and skilled in battle, among his sons, no one was more suitable as a successor than Mu Rongche.

He would never allow Mu Rongche to take risks!

Mu Rongche knelt before him, “Father, please allow me this caprice just once, I want to see the places where Xiao Bai had been, to look for the traces she left behind.”

He missed that girl terribly.

In his prince’s mansion, every object she had used, he had touched a million times.

In the imperial palace of Ji Yun Country, where she had lived for seven years and grown up, there should be some traces of her life.

He wanted to see them.

The places where she stayed as a child.

“No!”

The elderly king immediately objected, for he was furious that he indulged in his children’s personal affairs.

Yet as a father who loved his son, he knew very well the harsh environment in which Chen Ruobai, this woman, had grown up.

Having survived all the way to Lian Hai Kingdom, she had already suffered enough humiliation. In the palace of Ji Yun Country, anything related to her would likely make Mu Rongche feel even more distressed and sink deeper into guilt.

He did not want to see him heartbroken again.

But once Mu Rongche was determined about something, nobody could change his mind.

Mu Rongche’s mentor and an old minister suggested, “Why not let the Crown Prince make the trip? If war is inevitable one day, it would be beneficial for us to know more about Ji Yun Country, to avoid being blind in battle.”

“No, how can his safety be guaranteed?” The old king firmly objected.

The old minister said, “Even if the two countries go to war, envoys are not to be killed. Years ago, Ji Yun Country had good relations with Lian Hai Kingdom. Now, it might be necessary to go and investigate the temper of their new person in power.”

Better to be prepared.

Moreover, how could Mu Rongche resolve his inner conflict and succeed to the throne in the future?

In the end, the old king was persuaded. He sent his most trusted bodyguards to protect Mu Rongche, repeatedly instructing him, “When you go to Ji Yun Country, do not let your emotions rule you. You must come back safely!”

Mu Rongche bowed, “Yes, Father.”

He would come back safe.

He bore the responsibility for Lian Hai Kingdom on his shoulders.

It prevented him from indulging himself or allowing himself to visit Xiao Bai and his mother when he missed them too much.

Three days later, Mu Rongche arrived in Ji Yun Country.

To his surprise, the city gates were opened for him; before leaving, his mentor had warned him that if Ji Yun Country was overly courteous, it might be a trap, and he must be very careful.

Mu Rongche kept this in mind, wanting to see the environment Xiao Bai grew up in, and he also needed to understand the temper and disposition of the new person in power, so he wouldn’t be caught unprepared if a war broke out.

But first, he wanted to visit Long Guan City.

That was the origin—the place where he discovered Xiao Bai’s mother.

He wanted to go there to pay tribute to Xiao Bai’s mother and the witch tribe people who had tragically died because of him.

When he reached Long Guan City, he remembered it as a city of eternal spring with picturesque landscapes, but when he came back after many years, it had changed so much that he couldn’t recognize it.

He thought he had gone to the wrong place.

Because the mountain he had once loved, where he had saved Xiao Bai’s mother, had turned into a barren mountain.

No!

It was now more terrifying than a barren mountain!

There were man-eating beasts!

The few remaining villagers at the foot of the mountain warned him, “Don’t go up the mountain; it’s a devil’s place with monsters that eat people. Those monsters are too terrifying, they howl at night, and they eat the hearts and flesh of living people. Many young people from our village have been eaten and died.”

Mu Rongche tightened his grip on his knife, “Then I must go up and see!”

What kind of monsters had invaded this once pristine and beautiful place and turned it into this!

Mu Rongche, along with Luo Heng and the bodyguards, ascended the mountain at night with torches.

They hadn’t even reached the mountain when they smelled a strong stench of blood, permeating their surroundings, especially chilling in the deep of the night, causing several of his bodyguards to shiver in fear.

Holding the torch and clutching the knife, he spoke in a loud voice, “Do not be afraid. We have faced a hundred thousand cavalry on the battlefield. The monsters here cannot be more terrifying than that. Let’s steady our minds and see exactly what these things are before we eliminate them!”