Master of Strange Dao

Within the palace city, some of the figures that appeared were no longer as clear and visible as those outside. Some powerful beings, including Emperor Dui, were merely shadows, reenacting things that had happened in the past.

The only thing within the palace city that truly existed, clearly visible, was a seven-layer White Jade Tower.

The entire structure was made of pure and flawless white jade and even during the daytime, it emitted a faint glow.

Yu Ziqing took steps to ascend it, only to be stopped by the guards.

Yu Ziqing had a thought and took out the Big Seal of the Prefectural Governor of Jiazi City, but he said,

"Lord Chou invited me here."

Hearing this, the guard immediately put down his weapon and let Yu Ziqing enter.

Upon entering the White Jade Building, at its center, he discovered that the building was enclosed on all sides, with a huge Skywell in the middle, only it wasn't open to the sky but rather covered with a dome.

Yu Ziqing also saw Concubine Chen.

After exchanging customary greetings, Yu Ziqing claimed that he was simply there on orders to conduct an investigation.

He stood at the railing of the high tower, overlooking the entire White Jade Building, observing quietly like an ordinary guard.

He saw that Concubine Chen's face resembled that of Ba, resting within the ice coffin, with at least ninety percent similarity.

The ten percent dissimilarity lay in their demeanors and the subtle differences in their brows and eyes.

By now, Yu Ziqing was almost certain that Ba was the transformed body of Concubine Chen.

He didn't know what had happened here in the past, nor why, despite Concubine Chen being sealed here, her physical body had turned into Ba without being sealed.

Yu Ziqing simply didn't believe that she had any twin sister.

He saw clearly; the Concubine Chen of today was just a low-tier cultivator.

At most Fourth and Fifth Tier in Qi Refinement, she should have been First-tier in Body Refinement, but that was probably just for maintaining her physical form.

He couldn't detect any presence of evil or even the slightest hint of demonic intent.

He stood transparently on top of the tower, looking down below.

He saw the banquet spread out below, with indistinguishable figures sitting there, each with a blurry shadow.

He saw Emperor Dui, dressed in imperial robes but with an indiscernible face, sitting at the head, watching as Concubine Chen danced gracefully, her movements as stunningly beautiful as an alarmed swan.

Love was implicitly hidden in his eyes, and it was only when Emperor Dui appeared that she would show a smile.

In their affectionate exchanges, it was evident that Emperor Dui was extremely fond of her.

A few days later, rumors started to widely spread within Dingmao City.

Yu Ziqing descended from the White Jade Tower and came to the place where Emperor Dui summoned his courtiers.

Standing at the very back, he listened to the phantom figures act out the past.

"Your Majesty, rumors have arisen within the city, and I implore Your Majesty to issue a decree for a thorough investigation," someone said on the first day the rumors surfaced in the palace city.

By the third day,

"Your Majesty, Dinghai City has suffered from a severe drought for three years now, and with no means left for relief, rumors are running rampant. I implore Your Majesty to prioritize the state affairs."

Although it wasn't directly stated, Yu Ziqing understood that this referred to Emperor Dui spending two of every three days at the White Jade Tower.

Half a month later,

A minister thundered in court,

"Your Majesty, we face drought within and enemies without. When will Your Majesty come to realize,

since three hundred years ago, Dingyou City has been suffering from continuous drought, and today, its surroundings for thousands of miles have almost turned into deserts, with the population plummeting by eighty percent.

Now, Dinghai City faces a similar drought, while Your Majesty is lost in the pleasures of the flesh.

With ill omens and internal and external troubles, does Your Majesty wish to go down in history as a negligent ruler? Wake up!"

"Insolence! Seize him!"

The faceless minister was engulfed in a flash of blue light and shouted in anger.

"Your Majesty!"

Then he collided head-on with a pillar and died.

A month later, the situation worsened significantly.

"Your Majesty, not only is Dinghai City affected, but rumors have also spread across dozens of cities.

They say that since over three hundred years ago, Your Majesty has been harboring the Demon Concubine, bringing misfortune to our great Dadui Country.

As a result, Dingyou City has suffered droughts since then, with the Ten Thousand Ghosts roaming, while other regions of Dadui have been plagued with natural disasters and calamities.

Today, Dingyou City for three thousand miles is nearly a desert.

Dinghai City experiences drought just as Dingyou City did in the past.

And now, the outskirts of Dingmao City also show clear signs of impending drought.

Your Majesty, please do not repeat the same mistakes, do not be obstinate."

Several ministers shouted in fury, but this time, Emperor Dui had no one left to kill.

The other day, some had died by colliding with pillars, and some had been executed for their earnest advice. Today, several ministers united in their plea.

Emperor Dui couldn't continue the executions.

Yu Ziqing stood quietly at the back, watching and listening all along.

This was the first time he had repeatedly heard news about other cities within a seal.

Only then did he come to know that three hundred years ago, Dingyou City suffered a great drought and the Ten Thousand Ghosts wandered.

Even though all the ghosts had been sealed, the persistent drought couldn't be sealed away.

Being sealed as a disaster didn't magically start the rain, and it remained a drought.

It had been three hundred years, and it hadn't ended yet.

Yu Ziqing remembered that in the year two thousand three hundred and fifty-four of Dingmao, more than two hundred years later, when he visited Dingyou City again, it seemed to have recovered.

Yu Ziqing felt that he was beginning to understand what had happened.

Yu Ziqing stopped watching Concubine Chen and instead focused entirely on the faceless Emperor Dui.

He understood that this seal was different from the ones he had encountered before.

In this seal, many people in the palace were merely shadows, not because they were too powerful.

It was because whoever had created the seal did not want to keep an intact record of events or allow some people to show their faces here.