Chapter 0062

Chapter 62: The Real and Fake Zhou Tong

At the sound, everyone turned and looked. A youth walked in at an easy pace, and when they saw his face, they all looked as if they had been struck by lightning.

Qian Miao Yu rose from the throne to greet him and said: “Guest Minister, you are here. Please take the seat of honor.” She had his seat placed beside her, and that favor spoke for itself.

Chen Ling’er forced down the Love Gu and asked with tearful eyes: “Junior brother, why are you here?”

[That shameless woman!] Tang Qi cursed in his heart. No wonder the Love Gu could not fully control her. She had feelings for Zhou Tong and had fought off the Gu’s corrosion.

Mo Liu Su was the first to recover and said coldly: “Your Majesty the Empress, you had better give me an explanation: why has my disciple become your guest minister!”

She felt she had been played. She had asked Qian Miao Yu to watch Zhou Tong, but the Empress had claimed him for herself. This was not a joke. Zhou Tong’s backing had not been cut; he had even gained another. Mo Liu Su felt numb. If this went on, Zhou Tong would not return to her side, and she would fail to pass the Three Calamities and Four Tribulations. How could she bear that?

Qian Miao Yu lifted the corner of her lips, then forced the teasing smile down and said: “Did you misunderstand something? This man is my guest minister, not your disciple. They only happen to look very much alike.”

The four people below looked at one another and saw the same shock in each other’s eyes. The reason was so explosive that, for a moment, none of them could refute it.

Mo Liu Su grew even angrier and turned on Zhou Tong as she said: “Do you think I will believe that nonsense? Since you are standing before me, why will you not acknowledge me? Or are you afraid to face me? So timid and weak, you are not worthy to be my disciple.” Her heart trembled; she had wanted to speak gently, but then she remembered Xia Hong Xiu’s warning. [If I want Zhou Tong to return, I must crush his dignity and break his pride.] She kept that in mind.

With a bang, the Empress slammed her fist on the dragon desk and said: “Do not go too far. I respect you as honored guests, but that is not a license for rudeness. If you dare be disrespectful to my guest minister again, I will not be polite.”

Right after she spoke, there was a clatter as a stack of documents fell at Mo Liu Su’s feet. Qian Miao Yu pointed and said: “This is the guest minister’s family register. His ancestors have always lived in the Imperial Capital, and it can be traced back three thousand years. I followed the sketch you gave me and found him. For that, I must thank Immortal Mo. Without your hint, I would not have found such a talent.”

Mo Liu Su frowned, picked up the forged register, and read it page by page, but she could not spot a flaw.

Just then, a guard called from outside and said: “Your Majesty, the State Preceptor seeks an audience.”

Qian Miao Yu answered at once: “Let him in.”

A tall figure strolled inside, shot Mo Liu Su a look of disdain, and then moved past the others. He finished his bow and said: “Greetings, Your Majesty.” After the formalities, Zhao Wu Tian turned to Zhou Tong, bent at the waist, and said: “I offended you before, Guest Minister. Please do not hold it against a petty man.”

This scene shocked Mo Liu Su. The dignified State Preceptor, the sect master of the Heavenly Dao Manor, bowed to a youth. Even as an act, it was over the top. Did Zhao Wu Tian have no pride?

Mo Liu Su seized the chance and said quickly: “Sect Master Zhao, you came at the right time. Judge this for me: Zhou Tong is clearly my disciple, yet the Empress insists he is her guest minister, and even claims they are two different people. Do you think that is reasonable?”

Zhao Wu Tian answered without pause and said: “Not reasonable.” Mo Liu Su’s face showed sudden delight, but then he added with a cold snort as he said: “How can your useless disciple compare to the Guest Minister? Does he have the qualification? Does he have the strength?”

Mo Liu Su was stunned. Was she the only one who had lost her mind?

Xia Hong Xiu stood up and said: “Please hear me. Even if two people look exactly the same, their life fates are different. I remember Zhou Tong’s fate. Guest Minister, may I cast a hexagram for you?”

Hearing this, Mo Liu Su’s spirit rose. If the two had the same fate, the Empress would have nothing to say.

Zhou Tong’s voice was flat as he said: “Please.”

Xia Hong Xiu stepped forward, opened her Heavenly Eye, and studied Zhou Tong’s face. This was her unique secret art. At close range she could judge a person’s fate by face reading alone. She clearly remembered that Zhou Tong’s fate was the special Lone Fiend Star. He could block disasters for others, but misfortune wrapped around him. Even with peerless cultivation, he would face a world where everyone was his enemy and die in misery.

[No matter how you disguise yourself, you cannot escape my eyes,] Xia Hong Xiu thought with a cold smile. From beginning to end, she had believed this man was Zhou Tong. In the cultivation world, the chance of two identical people was too low. If it really happened, there was only one possibility—

Right as her confidence peaked, Zhou Tong’s body burst with dazzling light. Each ray was like a sharp sword that stabbed straight into her eyes.

She cried out as she fell, and said: “No!” Blood flowed from both eyes as she hit the floor.

She pointed at Zhou Tong with a shaking hand and said: “He… he is…” Her pretty face had turned paper white with fear.