Chapter 137: Azure Wood Puppetry

After sending off Hu Yihu, Hu Mo knew he had to make a trip to the imperial palace. The news that Zhu Xinyue had fainted from shock had already left him deeply unsettled. If she were to wake up, she would undoubtedly worry terribly about him, and if Hu Mo failed to visit her, his own peace of mind would remain completely out of reach.

Standing before his room, Hu Mo rapidly cast several layers of protective barriers. After all, Hu Baimei was currently in the critical stage of consolidating her power, leaving her defenses dangerously low. Any external disturbance at this moment would be absolutely fatal!

With these preparations complete, he hurried out of the Hu residence and mounted a horse, galloping toward the imperial palace.

Hu Mo had now become the central figure of focus throughout Blaze City. Wherever he went, he was met with countless gazes of adoration.

Challenging the Emperor face-to-face in front of the entire world, issuing a challenge to the crown prince of a neighboring allied state, brutally beating him into critical condition, and provoking a life-and-death duel between the Valley Master of the Fire God Valley and the Sect Master of the Divine Wood Sect—this series of legendary achievements had simply driven the common people wild with excitement! To the war-loving citizens of the Heavenly Fire Empire, Hu Mo was unequivocally an idol-level figure.

Feeling these burning gazes upon him, Hu Mo could not help but offer a wry smile. Who would have thought that becoming an idol could be such a simple matter?

Thanks to his token, Hu Mo encountered no major obstacles entering the imperial palace. However, when he reached the entrance to the inner sanctum, he found himself in a difficult position. Last time, he had relied on the assistance of the Fourth Princess to successfully reach Zhu Xinyue's quarters. Coming alone this time meant getting inside would pose a serious problem.

Knock out the guards at the gate? If he were to do something like that, it would only prove that his brain had been kicked by a donkey. The Emperor was currently looking for any opportunity to discipline him, and such an action would play right into the ruler's hands.

Just as he was hesitating and wondering what method to use, a light chuckle suddenly rang out from behind him.

"Isn't this the legendary Mighty Dragon General? What brings you the elegant leisure to come guard the inner sanctum?" A familiar, teasing voice came from behind Hu Mo. A moment later, a gorgeously adorned Zhu Xinluo appeared before him. With that smug, self-satisfied look upon her face, she resembled someone who had just returned from draining the vital essence of a cultivation partner.

Walking beside her was a familiar face—Situ Jie, the second young master of the Situ family.

Situ Jie’s complexion was much paler than when Hu Mo had first seen him. And it was hardly surprising; Zhu Xinluo’s dual cultivation technique was overbearing in the extreme, and because she heavily favored Situ Jie, she expended far more effort on him than on others.

Situ Jie glared fiercely at Hu Mo, as if harboring the hatred of a murdered father and a stolen wife. Hu Mo, however, glanced at him with mild interest, then smiled and bowed to Zhu Xinluo. "Your Imperial Highness, the humble subject would certainly love to, but I fear His Majesty would not permit it! My reputation in Blaze City is less than stellar, and all of you princesses are as beautiful as celestial beings. How could His Majesty ever feel at ease letting me guard Your Imperial Highnesses?"

Hu Mo knew Zhu Xinluo's temperament all too well, which was why he dared to speak with a slightly frivolous and slippery tone. Had he been facing Zhu Xinshui, he certainly would not have been able to joke around so naturally.

"Impudent! How dare you speak with such levity and offend the Princess! Guards, take him—"

"Shut your mouth, Second Young Master Situ. I am speaking with Her Imperial Highness the Grand Princess; what right do you have to interrupt?" Hu Mo said flatly. He cast a cold glance at Situ Jie, and that single look caused Situ Jie’s expression to freeze completely, his entire body stiffening as if covered in a layer of biting, bone-chilling frost.

He tried to open his mouth, but not a single sound came out, and even breathing became an arduous task.

Zhu Xinluo gave a faint smile and said softly, "Situ Jie, withdraw. Come see me again tonight."

As she spoke, she slowly walked between the two of them. Hu Mo smiled faintly and instantly withdrew the wave of spiritual pressure. Situ Jie’s burden was abruptly lifted; a look of sheer terror filled his eyes as he fled from the scene as if escaping for his life.

Zhu Xinluo turned around, maintaining her smiling expression as she looked at Hu Mo. "The Great General Hu certainly has a silver tongue. I'm afraid I might not be able to resist fighting my little sister for such a prime catch."

As she spoke, Zhu Xinluo’s slender, jade-like finger reached out toward Hu Mo's face. Hu Mo deftly sidestepped with a subtle movement and smiled faintly. "Your Imperial Highness, this humble subject lacks the fortune, nor do I have the confidence to compete with those brilliant talents."

"Oh? That's hardly certain. Some things must be tried before you know the outcome." After her hand missed Hu Mo, Zhu Xinluo instantly spun around and reappeared right beside him, her delicate fingers lightly brushing against his arm, leaving behind a very peculiar sensation.

Hu Mo’s expression shifted, and he immediately retreated several paces, employing his Lingbo Wind Cloud movement technique this time around.

*Such bizarre movement techniques! I never expected this woman to hide her true strength so deeply!* Hu Mo thought to himself, frowning slightly.

"Indeed an extraordinary man. Quite flavorful," Zhu Xinluo murmured, licking her lips.

The two of them locked gazes, resembling a standoff between two supreme masters. After a long moment, Zhu Xinluo broke the silence with a smile. "Hurry on inside. My little sister hasn't had a moment of peace since last night. If you don't go over there soon, she's going to turn the imperial palace upside down. Don't thank me, and don't ask me why—who told you to be so much to my liking?"

Zhu Xinluo winked at Hu Mo, then strolled away with a beaming smile. The two guards stationed at the entrance of the inner sanctum bowed in a trance-like daze, speaking with utmost respect, "As Her Imperial Highness the Grand Princess commands!"

Hu Mo watched Zhu Xinluo's receding back, then turned his gaze back to the two guards. A deep frown settled across his brow. Between the eyebrows of both guards lay a pale green, root-like tendril. These two tendrils were writhing rhythmically against the skin of their foreheads, resembling a pair of living, crawling insects.

*Azure Wood Puppet Technique? This woman actually dared to make a move on the palace guards?* A chill ran through Hu Mo's heart, and Huang Sheng's earlier words suddenly echoed in his mind. Zhu Xinluo was truly far from simple.

*It seems I must thoroughly investigate this woman; otherwise, I might end up dead without even knowing how it happened. If she dares to use a vicious method like the Azure Wood Puppet Technique, there is nothing she wouldn't dare to do,* Hu Mo thought darkly, pretending not to notice anything amiss as he strode toward the inner sanctum.

In truth, had Hu Mo not acquired the Wood of Chaos, he probably would never have detected this poison art. Zhu Xinluo likely had no idea he possessed it; otherwise, she would not have been nearly as polite to him.

Upon entering the inner sanctum, Hu Mo’s expression changed completely. With just a brief sweep of his gaze, he spotted the same uniform green root-like tendrils everywhere. Although everyone wore smiles on their faces, their souls had already been seized by the practitioner of the art. With just a single thought from the controller, every single one of these people would drop dead without a shred of doubt.

*Terrifying. Could all of this be the work of that woman? How has no one noticed? No, there must be a conspiracy behind this!* Hu Mo thought, his brows knitting tightly together.

Were the Divine Wood Empire and the Heavenly Fire Empire truly as brotherly as they appeared on the surface? Did the Divine Wood Empire harbor some hidden agenda?

The Azure Wood Puppet Technique could generally only be sensed by martial artists possessing pure wood-element battle energy. Because the Heavenly Fire Empire possessed an overwhelmingly dense concentration of fire energy, anyone lacking the bloodline of the Divine Wood Empire could never cultivate a pure wood-element battle energy. Even Yan Jiulin’s wood-element combat strength could not be considered entirely pure; it was merely an infinite approximation.

This made the situation instantly rather peculiar. Only people from the Divine Wood Empire possessed pure wood combat energy. Virtually all martial artists within the Heavenly Fire Empire who possessed pure wood attributes were people hailing from the Divine Wood Empire—envoys sent for diplomatic cooperation, including the women who had come via political marriages. Moreover, the probability of their descendants inheriting pure wood battle energy was exceedingly low. Across the entire Heavenly Fire Empire, including Zhu Xinluo, there were no more than a dozen or so such individuals.

Whether the hearts of these dozen-odd people ultimately leaned toward the Divine Wood Empire or the Heavenly Fire Empire was truly a matter requiring careful scrutiny. Yet from this single incident, it was clear that none of those individuals gifted with pure wood battle energy had reported the matter to the Emperor. Following this line of reasoning, a cold sweat began to seep down Hu Mo's back.

*Could the Divine Wood Empire be planning to annex the Heavenly Fire Empire? Could this be Zhu Xinluo's true objective?* Hu Mo's expression shifted rapidly. If that were truly the case, his entire series of plans would have to be completely revised.

"Hey, what are you daydreaming about, my dear Seventh Brother-in-law?"

A hand suddenly patted Hu Mo's shoulder. He gave a start and almost threw a punch in reflex, scaring the young woman so badly that she immediately covered her face and shrieked, "Stop, stop! It's me, it's me!"

Hu Mo hastily reined in his punch and looked closely. It was none other than Zhu Xinyue’s sixth sister. Seeing her tightly covering her face with an expression of sheer fright, Hu Mo couldn't help but crack a smile.

"So it is Your Imperial Highness the Sixth Princess. This humble subject pays his respects." Hu Mo quickly executed a standard court bow. Although these etiquettes were terribly tedious, as a subject, Hu Mo had to execute them to perfection; otherwise, critics would seize upon any flaw to pick another bone of contention.

The Sixth Princess looked slightly displeased; she quickly gave his arm a light slap and grumbled playfully, "What's with all this 'Princess this, Princess that'? From now on, you're my seventh brother-in-law. We're all family here, what's with all the excessive politeness!"

Among Zhu Xinyue's sisters, the eldest and second princesses both possessed unfathomable depths of scheming, which gave Hu Mo a sense of innate unease. The fourth sister, Ruizhi, harbored a sharp intellect, though not necessarily malicious cunning; she knew when to be playful and when to be steady, carrying herself with poise and grace without any glaring flaws. The fifth and sixth princesses were slightly more childlike—after all, their age gap with Zhu Xinyue wasn't all that large; calling them sisters was a stretch, as they were at most older by a single year.

As for the third imperial prince, Third Prince Zhu Xin, according to Hu Mo’s investigations, he had been cast out of Blaze City by Zhu Yan several years prior and sent to Fire Phoenix City, a small town in the south. He hadn't even shown up for Zhu Xinyue's coming-of-age ceremony yesterday.

Consequently, this Sixth Princess still retained a childlike innocence in how she handled matters, paying little heed to petty formalities.

Hu Mo smiled faintly, his gaze subconsciously shifting to the center of the Sixth Princess's forehead. Seeing her smooth, unblemished brow, the worry in his heart lessened somewhat. He smiled gently and said, "What the Sixth Princess says is true. By the way, is New Moon in her room? I'm going to go find her."

The Sixth Princess arched her delicate brows and pouted. "So you aren't here to play with me? Ah, you're really breaking my heart! Haha, I'm just kidding. Little sister has been waiting for you until her heart is practically breaking, and Father Emperor won't let her out, so she can only stay cooped up in her room! Ah, what a pitifully devoted lover she is! By the way, how did you get in? Did the Fourth Sister help you?"

Hu Mo shook his head and said softly, "No, Her Imperial Highness the Grand Princess brought me in."

"Ah? The Eldest Sister?"