Chapter 56: The Eight Masters

“Are you sure it’s the Fourth Prince?” In a concealed corner, Wang Yu once again sought confirmation from Zhao Gao.

Zhao Gao had lived up to expectations, managing to uncover the mastermind behind the scenes within three months.

“Well…” Zhao Gao hesitated somewhat awkwardly. Clearly, these were still just his conjectures; he lacked definitive proof.

“However, my lord, I have confirmed with Elder Ling that the sword manual obtained by Yan Ri contains traces of the sword techniques used by those two unknown masters from that day. Moreover, these techniques complement each other perfectly! Unless one is a Celestial or has an extraordinary understanding of swordsmanship, it would be difficult to discern the connection,” Zhao Gao asserted with conviction.

Then, Zhao Gao mentioned a key figure named Wu Weizhong.

“Very well. Continue the investigation. I want to uncover the complete truth behind this matter!” Wang Yu commanded, waving his hand towards Zhao Gao.

The sword manual alone explained much. Such a manual was no common commodity; it was rare and usually held exclusively by its owner.

Additionally, Zhao Gao’s nocturnal search of the Cheng residence uncovered two kinds of herbs, which helped Wang Yu unravel the mystery of the Drunken Dream Pavilion incident.

Alone, these herbs were harmless and even beneficial to the body. But combined, they induced hallucinations, irritability, and a mild aphrodisiac effect.

One of these herbs had been added to the wine consumed by Lü Chong. No wonder Wang Yu had carefully taken the remaining half pot of wine for examination at the time, yet nothing was detected. The effect of this substance would dissipate completely after half an hour.

The other herb was contained in the scented pouch worn by the Fourth Prince that day. Not only did the Fourth Prince have one, but even Young Lord Cheng Zhe possessed such a pouch.

Truly, this method of attack left almost no trace. This time, Zhao Gao was fortunate to find evidence of these items in the Cheng residence. Otherwise, the exact details of that day’s incident might have remained forever hidden.

Though Wang Yu harbored suspicions, mere doubts against a prince were of no use, and baseless accusations could not be openly voiced.

Moreover, the herbal matter only cast suspicion on the Drunken Dream Pavilion incident, not the assassination attempt.

The Fourth Prince had chosen his timing shrewdly—just as the scandal involving the Crown Prince and Bai Ruolan emerged. From the perspective of interests, most would focus suspicion on the Eldest or Third Prince, or the Crown Prince himself—not the previously obscure Fourth Prince. This assassination attempt was indeed killing several birds with one stone for him.

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No matter what, now that the mastermind was identified, Wang Yu felt relief. As long as this was confirmed, his mission was accomplished. The rest could be investigated in due course.

After all, the system only required one answer. If you were bold and lucky enough to guess correctly, that was your skill.

Although it was largely confirmed that the Fourth Prince was behind it, many questions remained unanswered.

For instance, Zhao Gao had discovered that the Crown Prince’s confidant Wu Weizhong had frequent contact with Left Pinglai of the Imperial Guards and the Gifting Hall. Yet, this lead was abruptly severed.

After this point, Zhao Gao found Wu Weizhong had disappeared without a trace, his fate unknown. Left Pinglai was under joint investigation by the Six Doors and Southern Bureau.

As for the Gifting Hall, it was home to many experts, including multiple Celestials—a cornerstone of the Great Cang Dynasty’s strength. Zhao Gao had no qualifications to provoke them yet.

If only based on Wu Weizhong, everything seemed to point back to the Crown Prince. But Yan Ri found traces of Wu Weizhong’s presence in the Fourth Prince’s residence. Since Zhao Gao had just infiltrated, he was still untrusted, making further inquiry difficult.

Still, combining this with other findings and Zhao Gao’s covert tests on the Crown Prince via Wu Weizhong’s interactions, the focus could be firmly placed on the Fourth Prince.

On the surface, the Crown Prince was the prime suspect in the assassination, yet ironically, he was also the least likely one.

After Zhao Gao left, Wang Yu rubbed his throbbing temples. Though Zhao Gao hadn’t secured concrete evidence, he had traced the matter back to an incident over a decade or two ago—an old affair involving none other than the Fourth Prince’s late mother, Consort Xia.

But Zhao Gao subtly hinted that, given his abilities, uncovering the full truth of that old case was not something achievable in a short time.

That old matter involved powerful figures—such as the Crown Prince’s mother, the current Empress; the Eldest Prince’s mother, the Eastern Consort; and even Wang Yu’s own father, who might have played a pivotal role.

The people and events behind this were a deep pit. Because of that, two wise men, Liu Yunxiu and Ning Buqi, had chosen to avoid probing too deeply, preferring instead to skirt around the edges to avoid incurring the wrath of the Cang Emperor.

“System, submit mission report: the mastermind is the Fourth Prince, Huangfu Mingfeng!”

There was no other choice. Though lacking definitive proof, based on the evidence at hand, the Fourth Prince was almost certainly the culprit. Moreover, Wang Yu no longer had the luxury of time to seek absolute proof.

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Or rather, even the evidence Zhao Gao had uncovered left no tangible proof—only knowledge. Take the sword manual: the assassin was dead; what remained was only Ling Donglai’s judgment.

If Wang Yu had solid evidence implicating the prince, he could demand an explanation. Without it, it was useless—the court would not pursue a prince based on mere suspicion.

“Ding! Congratulations, host, mission completed. Reward: Grand Martial Summon Card (contains 8 martial artists below Celestial rank).”

Well then, it was confirmed—the Fourth Prince was undoubtedly behind this. This only strengthened Wang Yu’s resolve to give him a hard time in the upcoming great battle.

“System, summon them now!” Wang Yu commanded.

Summoning eight master-level experts at this moment would be invaluable anywhere.

“Ding! Congratulations, host, you have obtained Zhu Yuyan. Command 85, martial prowess at peak master level, intelligence 89, politics 72, charisma 99.”

Zhu Yuyan, the Yin Empress, leader of the Yin Gui Sect—the foremost sect of the Demonic Gate. In her youth, she was deceived by the “Evil King” Shi Zhixuan, preventing her from mastering the eighteenth level of the Heavenly Demon Technique.

“Ding! Congratulations, host, you have obtained Shi Zhixuan. Command 80, martial prowess at half-step Celestial, intelligence 95, politics 94, charisma 90.”

The Evil King Shi Zhixuan surpassed Zhu Yuyan by far. At full strength, his combat power rivaled the three great masters. When besieged, Zhu Yuyan unleashed her ultimate skill, ‘Mutual Annihilation,’ sacrificing herself to inflict only a minor injury on Shi Zhixuan.

More importantly, Shi Zhixuan’s true strength lay not just in his martial ability but in his cunning stratagems.