Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play-Chapter 848 - 826: Disgust

The cut on Xie Jue’s waist and abdomen was particularly deep. He had always been good at enduring pain, never speaking of such an injury to outsiders. If it weren’t for Ying Yi’s discovery, he would have probably continued to force himself to endure. Actually, for him, at Chaoyang Palace, he really couldn’t feel the pain. The insignia in his hand felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, his eyes were fixed on the charred corpses scattered all over the ground, and his mind was filled only with the image and voice of Fang Chuning, unable to feel even a hint of pain. After the military doctor gave him a bowl of medicinal soup to numb his sense of pain, they sutured the wound. The excessive loss of blood made Xie Jue’s body somewhat cold.

Ying Yi stood guard beside him, reporting the situation in the temple, including Han Ziqi’s cries of injustice. Deep down, Xie Jue actually understood who the mastermind was. Whether Han Ziqi was aware or unaware was actually not important.

"Prince, we must leave Sannan as soon as possible. With such a major incident happening inside the royal palace, if the people of Sannan transfer their hatred onto us and rise up against us, we’ll face an incredibly dire situation. The King of Sangnan holds great prestige in the eyes of the people, and the High Priest has long been spreading the message that it was you who killed the King of Sangnan. By dawn, the news might have spread throughout Mudan City, and the people will certainly come to besiege the royal palace."

Mr. Gu was advising by the side. He also understood that the matter with Fang Chuning had severely impacted Xie Jue, but they needed to consider the upcoming matters. The message had been sent back to the border by messenger pigeon, and Dugu Jing and the Grand Marshal would certainly send troops to attack Sannan. Peace talks had broken down, and Sannan’s desired conditions were almost none. The High Priest had single-handedly destroyed all the royal family’s efforts.

Mr. Gu thought, this really seems like a course for mutual destruction!

He couldn’t understand the High Priest’s mindset; isn’t living well good enough? Why drag so many people to the grave with him?

"Where is Han Ziqi?" Xie Jue asked.

"Outside the temple, being detained by General Lin. The High Priest and others are conducting a ritual inside, undisturbed." Ying Yi reported as calmly as possible, but his sword was eager to move, wanting to kill everyone in the Priest Court to mourn his fallen brothers!

"Understood!" Xie Jue’s gaze was cold as a ghost. After stitching the wound and applying medication, Xie Jue, ignoring the military doctor’s obstruction, led his men to the temple.

Outside the temple, it was brightly lit, the flames making the surroundings of the temple appear like daylight. The Ningzhou Iron Cavalry, fearing their escape, formed a tight encirclement, layer upon layer, not even a fly could get out!

"Prince, they’re inside the temple!" Lin Xiao and Zhang Boxin came to greet him upon seeing him. They had heard about the matter with Fang Chuning but dared not show it in front of Xie Jue.

The pain was hidden beneath each person’s calm exterior.

Han Ziqi eagerly wanted to come over to explain but was stopped by a soldier. Han Ziqi shouted anxiously, "Cousin, you have to believe me, we really didn’t know. The High Priest plotted all this without our knowledge, we also didn’t know the entire Forbidden Army had defected. The High Priest held power on par with the King in Sannan. If he wanted to revolt, I couldn’t stop him. Cousin, cousin, listen to my explanation..."

Xie Jue walked past him without a word and entered the temple. Zhang Boxin dragged Han Ziqi back, who he had been quite polite to before tonight, now dragging him back rudely, brows furrowed with annoyance, "Our prince doesn’t want to deal with you, don’t bother him, go away!"

"..." Han Ziqi dared to be angry but couldn’t speak out. Now the entire royal palace was under the control of the Ningzhou Iron Cavalry. Xie Jue could easily kill him, Han Ziqi just prayed that the concubines and children in the palace had already left the royal palace through the secret passage.

This was Xie Jue’s first time entering the temple of the Sannan Priests. It was resplendent and magnificent, the various priestly instruments solemn and dignified, the reliefs vivid and lifelike. There were holes on all the surrounding walls, each small alcove had an eternal lamp lit within. Han Ziqi had said there were 999 eternal lamps inside the temple to bless the Sannan Royal Family with a millennium of prosperity and the people of Sannan with endless wealth and peace.

Ridiculous!

The priests in white robes sat around on meditation mats, holding small golden bells. They rang the bells with one hand, the sound ceaseless, chanting words that seemed like reciting Sanskrit, long and complex. On the altar, a fire was burning, and in front of the altar was a very complex rune diagram. They appeared to be performing a mysterious ceremony.

In Sannan, it was most taboo to disturb priests during their spell-casting as it would bring misfortune to others. Yet Xie Jue was indifferent, drawing his longsword to cut down the tall candles on the altar and tear apart the prayer flags draped around the altar.

What did he fear about clashing? No matter what demons or monsters, let them come for him. If he cared, he wouldn’t be Xie Jue.

The priests remained unmoved, their expressions numb. But as Xie Jue cut through the prayer flags, their chants abruptly ceased. The High Priest looked at Xie Jue coldly.

Xie Jue sheathed his sword as Zhang Boxin brought in men, brutally dragging out all the priests except the High Priest, ignoring their struggles and curses.

The burning candles and incense in the temple emitted a scent Xie Jue detested the most. He even felt unlucky if a speck of incense ash landed on him. He never donated even one tael of silver to temples, as he never believed in gods or Buddhas, let alone priests.

"Do you have any last words?" Xie Jue asked coldly. Although he had sheathed his sword, his eyes were sharper than the longsword, looking up at the high, golden statue, which was different from Buddha. It wore a long robe, a crown on its head, benevolent and dignified, "Is this the deity you worship? It seems he cannot protect you tonight."

"Your Highness, I do not care about life or death. The flesh may perish, but the spirit remains eternal. You can kill me, but not my spirit," the High Priest smiled at Xie Jue, "The fall of Sannan, the priests’ concurrent burial, is the rule of the Sannan Priest Academy. When my king signed the surrender, everyone was to be buried together."

The High Priest never married or had children, he had long severed ties with his family, aloof and cold, never forging connections with others. He had no weaknesses in this world, embracing death fearlessly.

Xie Jue sneered, "What right do you have to decide the fate of the Sannan Royal Family, dragging them to burial with you? If you want to die, that’s your own business. They still want to live well and seek a future for their descendants. You caused the King of Sangnan to self-immolate at Chaoyang Palace, incited the Sannan Forbidden Army to battle the Ningzhou Iron Cavalry, causing thousands of lives to be buried in the palace tonight, all due to your own selfishness. Is it the rule? Ridiculous. After Sannan’s surrender, the Priest Court will be abolished, what rules are needed then? You launched this rebellion just for revenge, you hated the King of Sangnan, then just kill him, why drag thousands to the grave with him, dragging Sannan along? The duty of the Sannan Priests is to protect the royal family, to pray for the people, yet you’ve confused the priorities. For more than twenty years, you’ve relentlessly monopolized power, you provoked the eldest prince to wage war, launching surprise attacks on twelve states. On the surface, it seems the eldest prince is warlike and dimwitted, but in reality, you were fanning the flames from behind, perfectly hidden, letting him bear all the infamy for you. Under your instigation, how many Sannan soldiers lost their lives? You can’t even call yourself a Sannan priest in that white robe. If Aunt knew that her childhood friend had become a ruthless killer, she’d only feel disgusted!"