"Tuo'er, whatever authority you seek, just say it," the Emperor asked. Since he had already resolved to cultivate Yuwen Tuo, as long as Yuwen Tuo's request wasn't excessive, he could agree to it.
"The authority to slay Evil Soul Masters. I ask Your Majesty to grant me this: hand over all collected information on Evil Soul Masters within the nation to me, and bestow upon me the power to execute Evil Soul Masters first and report later.
From this day forward, for the future of the Sun-Moon Empire, I shall assuredly eradicate all Evil Soul Masters, restoring a peaceful and clear sky to the Empire," Yuwen Tuo declared.
"Slay Evil Soul Masters!" The Sun-Moon Emperor was startled. He had to admit, his son's determination was truly immense.
Evil Soul Masters were public enemies of the continent. If what he said truly came to pass, it would be an immense achievement in any country on the continent, even making him a hero beloved by all within the nation.
But the problem was, this was the Sun-Moon Empire.
He couldn't possibly say outright, "Son, you mustn't fight Evil Soul Masters; our family has already begun secretly cooperating with them."
He guaranteed that if he uttered those words at this moment, the Sun-Moon Empire would fall into chaos tomorrow.
The other three nations would also become restless.
"Prince Yan, We are deeply moved by your resolve, but Evil Soul Masters are extremely dangerous. How could your Imperial Father bear to entrust you with such a task?" The Emperor didn't blame Yuwen Tuo; after all, Yuwen Tuo couldn't possibly know about the intricate dealings between them and the Evil Soul Masters.
A young man in the prime of his hot-blooded youth, eager to establish merits for the nation and increase his capital for the struggle for succession wasn't slaying Evil Soul Masters, whom everyone yearned to kill, the best method?
In the imperial court, officials who had originally viewed Yuwen Tuo with some disdain now looked at him with a few more hints of appreciation.
Regardless of what he himself thought, if he truly carried out this matter, then this person would be worthy of respect.
Jing Hongchen, on the other hand, wore an "as expected" expression. However, his complexion also showed some change; after all, he had only guessed that Yuwen Tuo would try to gain merits, but he hadn't expected him to choose to deal with Evil Soul Masters.
In truth, Mingdetang wasn't entirely clean either now, unable to completely sever ties with Evil Soul Masters. For other matters, he could offer some assistance, but specifically regarding Evil Soul Masters, he would not stop Yuwen Tuo nor would he help him; he could only remain uninvolved.
The most excited person at this moment was none other than Crown Prince Xu Tianran.
Excellent, excellent. Just yesterday, he had discussed with Ju Zi whether to use the power of Evil Soul Masters, but Ju Zi worried about "seeking a tiger's skin" (playing with fire) and being caught with a handle (vulnerable), so she advised against it.
But now Yuwen Tuo himself had proposed provoking those fellows. So, if he were killed in retaliation by Evil Soul Masters, wouldn't that be perfectly reasonable and blameless for others?
"Imperial Father, your son concurs. Prince Yan's determination is a blessing to our Sun-Moon Empire. How could we obstruct his resolve to serve the nation with loyalty!"
Upon hearing this, the ministers secretly praised the Crown Prince's magnanimity. They had all heard about Yuwen Tuo once again scolding the Crown Prince in the Imperial Palace yesterday.
Yet today, the Crown Prince not only showed no resentment but even actively helped Yuwen Tuo petition for the decree. Whether as Crown Prince or as an elder brother, he was truly excellent, demonstrating both the Crown Prince's generosity towards his subjects and a brother's affection for his younger sibling.
The Emperor glanced at Xu Tianran. Others might not see through Xu Tianran's intentions, but could he not?
This was clearly a tactic to "kill with a borrowed knife."
But this time it was an overt scheme, impossible to break, because Yuwen Tuo himself had proposed it that was an undeniable fact.
The Emperor thought for a moment. He didn't have a suitable reason to reject Yuwen Tuo's proposal at this moment, but a proposal was just a proposal.
How easy could it be to find Evil Soul Masters?
The Shrek Investigation Group was famous for exterminating Evil Soul Masters, yet how many had they killed in the past century? Furthermore, to speak of truly killing high-level Evil Soul Master experts,
one had to trace back to the Blood Infant Douluo slain by the first leader when the Investigation Group was initially founded. Since then, no record of slaying a Titled Douluo Evil Soul Master had ever been reported.
Mu En did have a record of defeating Scorpion Tiger Douluo, but actually, when he defeated Scorpion Tiger Douluo, that Scorpion Tiger Douluo wasn't truly an Evil Soul Master yet; after all, Zhang Peng hadn't harmed anyone at that time, merely cultivating with the blood of ordinary animals.
In fact, Yuwen Tuo also often ate "blood food," like duck blood vermicelli soup or Maoxuewang. What was the difference between the two?
The Emperor also believed, based on this, that Yuwen Tuo couldn't possibly just casually encounter a Titled Douluo among Evil Soul Masters, could he?
It might be better to agree for now, then secretly inform the Holy Spirit Cult to try their best to avoid meeting Yuwen Tuo.
No matter how strong Yuwen Tuo's aptitude was, he was still only a Soul King now, not enough to pose a threat to the Holy Spirit Cult. As long as he slowly opened Yuwen Tuo's heart later, won his allegiance, and then gradually informed him of the secrets between the Sun-Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult, it wouldn't be a major problem.
He knew that a hot-blooded youth like Yuwen Tuo would certainly detest Evil Soul Masters in his heart and want to eliminate them.
In fact, it wasn't just him; he felt the same way himself. He chose to cooperate with the Holy Spirit Cult merely to utilize their powerful Soul Master strength.
Cooperating with the Holy Spirit Cult was no different from "seeking a tiger's skin" (playing with fire).
One day, when the continent was unified, the Holy Spirit Cult would certainly have to be purged. As Emperor, how could he not know this?
Therefore, he merely wanted Yuwen Tuo to endure for a while; the time for "killing the donkey after it's done grinding" (kicking someone when they're no longer useful) had not yet come.
When the time was right, he would make this highly righteous son the vanguard for eradicating the Holy Spirit Cult.
"Tuo'er, We grant your request. From this day forward, all records concerning Evil Soul Masters within the palace are yours to examine."
Anyway, the overt intelligence on Evil Soul Masters within the palace was very superficial.
The true high-ranking members of the Holy Spirit Cult the Arch-Patriarch and Deputy Arch-Patriarch, the Twelve Protectors, the Eight Grand Elders even he, as Emperor, didn't know their details very clearly, so how could they be documented in official records?
Based solely on the overt information, Yuwen Tuo wouldn't provoke any significant figures.
At most, he would find some unaffiliated Evil Soul Masters who hadn't joined the Holy Spirit Cult, which would be even less of a concern.
Yuwen Tuo smiled faintly, "Many thanks, Your Majesty."
This imperial decree would provide a legitimate reason for him to cause a huge stir in the Sun-Moon Empire later.
The Emperor would never have anticipated that this decree of his would personally create an Evil Soul Master killing machine.
After the court dispersed, Yuwen Tuo returned to Mingdetang to pack his belongings. He decided to leave this place and reside in the Prince's Residence bestowed upon him by the Emperor. Now, he could summon the Evil Eye Tyrant at any time, and Xu Tianran's Shadow Douluo had been dealt with by him, so there was nothing more to worry about.
"Your Highness, are you leaving?" Meng Hongchen asked reluctantly, watching Yuwen Tuo pack his luggage.
"Yes, Xiao Meng. Thank you for your help these past days. I've inconvenienced you for quite a while, it's time for me to return to the Prince's Residence," Yuwen Tuo said with a smile.
"But… my cold poison hasn't been cured yet," Meng Hongchen said anxiously. She knew that during these past days, she had likely developed genuine feelings for Yuwen Tuo.
She admired his talent, liked his sunny and passionate nature, and revered his confidence and steadfastness, rather than simply being infatuated with his looks as she was at first.
Yuwen Tuo said, "It's alright. The frequency of your cold poison outbreaks has already drastically reduced. Even if there are any issues, my Prince's Residence isn't far from Mingdetang, all within the same city. You're welcome to visit anytime."
Hearing this, Meng Hongchen smiled slyly and pulled out a package from her soul device. "Alright, then let's go."
Yuwen Tuo was stunned. "What is this?"
"My luggage, of course. You just said yourself you'd welcome me to visit anytime, you wouldn't deny it, would you?" Meng Hongchen said with a pout. "Anyway, I heard it, so until my cold poison is completely cured, I'll be staying with you."
"Your Highness, taking me with you will also benefit your ambitions. I know your grand aspirations. My grandfather can't make a choice yet, but I, Meng Hongchen, have firmly decided to choose you.
During this time, although your various plans targeting the Crown Prince have been overly aggressive, they've been very effective. As the Mingdetang Hall Master's own granddaughter, if I go home with you, many in the court will believe that Mingdetang has already chosen you, and there will certainly be no shortage of those who follow suit."
Meng Hongchen explained patiently. In truth, this was what Jing Hongchen had instructed her yesterday.
As the Mingdetang Hall Master, he couldn't take sides so quickly, but Meng Hongchen was different. She was just a romance-obsessed young girl; letting her invest in Yuwen Tuo early on to test the waters wouldn't hurt.
Even if Yuwen Tuo ultimately failed in the succession struggle, he could simply say that Meng Hongchen had merely fallen into Yuwen Tuo's romantic trap, which wouldn't overly affect the Hongchen family.
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