"Consort Su must not take such risks!" Qin Feng exclaimed in alarm.
Su Wanqing trembled, "Marquis, if she remains at large, millions of soldiers and civilians will suffer. I have followed her for many years and know her methods too well. Even Marquis An Guo has not been able to bring her to justice. Before she even came of age, she colluded with Zen Master Longyue to orchestrate the Great Qian fire incident, which led to the tragedy of the Great Heng remnants..."
Qin Feng was astonished.
He, Liang Xiao, and Mu Cheng had underestimated the capabilities of the Rebirth Cult leader.
Was even a remarkable woman like Su Wanqing her favorite disciple?
"I am prepared! For the sake of the common people, and to repay His Majesty's grace of rebirth, I beg you, let me take this risk, even if there is only one in ten thousand chance!" Su Wanqing suddenly knelt before Qin Feng, her expression resolute.
"I cannot fail my father's entrustment..." Qin Feng looked panicked. Zhi Rou immediately helped Su Wanqing up.
"If I cannot, I shall remain kneeling here indefinitely," Su Wanqing sighed.
The couple, in their urgency, did not know how to persuade her.
At that moment, a figure emerged from the depths of the secret chamber, laughing heartily.
"Consort Su, your ambition is clear to me. However, relying on you alone may not inspire confidence. I have a plan that is sure to succeed!"
"Qin Xun, you..." Qin Feng saw the newcomer and his expression was equally resolute, with a hint of difficulty.
Qin Xun appeared calm and admonished, "Marquis, with the enemy at our doorstep, if you fail the common people, what is the point of being worthy of me and Consort Su? Ultimately, it would mean we have failed the common people!"
Before Qin Feng could respond, Ye Chengxiu's voice was heard from outside, "Regent, Sword Tutor has arrived!"
Qin Xun urged, "See to the Eighth Prince's accommodation first, then we can discuss important matters."
Sword Tutor entered the secret chamber and was startled to see Su Wanqing kneeling on the floor.
After listening to Qin Feng recount the events, Sword Tutor sighed several times and nodded, "His Majesty had also entrusted me with a similar task. I understood His Majesty's profound intentions long ago, and I shall personally escort this child."
Su Wanqing's face finally broke into a smile.
...
"Cult Master, Wanqing sent Qin Xun's head, inviting us to the imperial harem for a talk. The scummy emperor's security in the harem has been lifted..."
At the southern city inn, in a secret chamber, Duan Hong reported to Iris, holding a box and looking puzzled.
Iris exclaimed, "Is it confirmed to be Qin Xun's head??"
"Absolutely certain, it is Qin Xun himself, no forgery whatsoever. The bloodstains have not even dried! The core disciples witnessed firsthand how Wanqing sent Qin Feng away, deceived Qin Xun into staying, and then had our sect's warriors capture him, slice him into a thousand pieces, and finally be beheaded by Wanqing herself..." Duan Hong explained with a smile, not forgetting to open the box.
A bloody head was presented to Iris, its eyes wide open.
"Worthy of being my favorite disciple! Qin Xun, you have met your end!"
Iris cried out in ecstasy, grabbed the whip from the table, and lashed at the head ferociously.
"Have Qin Xun's head made into a libation vessel as soon as possible, and let's go meet Wanqing!"
In the deep courtyard of the imperial harem, Su Wanqing was waiting with a group of Rebirth Cult palace maids who had been lurking there for a long time.
Iris, accompanied by Duan Hong, disguised themselves as eunuchs and palace maids. Assured by the absence of any Xuan Guards and the presence of their own moles, they slipped in and finally met Su Wanqing.
"Master, your disciple has finally found an opportunity to strike. He was barely hanging on to life, so I administered the 'Extreme Bliss Powder' secretly prepared by Master, causing him to spit blood and die. It is a pity that he had already handed over military power to that dog thief Qin Feng beforehand, and I had no chance to stop him..." Su Wanqing's expression was frenzied, and she clasped her hands in regret.
Iris waved her hand, "Your teacher understands your plight. It was not easy to find an opportunity to strike. After all, that dog emperor and Liang Xiao are often together, so he might have learned Liang Xiao's caution. Furthermore, deceiving and killing Qin Xun is enough to comfort Zen Master Longyue in heaven!"
"Disciple is merely helpless. The second son born to that foolish emperor is being protected by Qin Feng. Disciple has come to seek Master's opinion on how to deal with him?" Su Wanqing sighed.
Iris looked at Su Wanqing with satisfaction and nodded, "Since the objective has been accomplished... that child is, after all, your flesh and blood, and still young. It would be a pity to poison him directly, as he has the opportunity to join the sect. He will depend on you for guidance in the future."
Su Wanqing nodded repeatedly, "I shall obey Master's command!"
Saying this, Su Wanqing took the fruit wine from the table and poured a cup for herself, Iris, and Duan Hong.
"Disciple toasts Master and Patriarch Duan as a celebration!"
All present were core disciples of the Rebirth Cult. Iris and Duan Hong, seeing Su Wanqing drink hers in one gulp, suspected nothing and generously drank.
After two cups, Iris and Duan Hong felt a surge of exhilaration.
"Your teacher is not disappointed! Thanks to Wanqing's good fortune, our sect's cause has advanced further. We should now focus on using public opinion and the pressure from noble families to force Qin Feng to enthrone Mu Xuan as the new emperor and return military power. Then our great cause will be achieved!"
Iris's eyes narrowed into slits as she smiled.
"Disciple only regrets that I have never seen Master's true face in this lifetime..." Su Wanqing said with a hint of grievance.
After dismissing the palace maids, Iris removed her veil, revealing her true appearance.
Su Wanqing praised, "Master is a peerless beauty, this disciple cannot compare~"
As Iris was about to reply, she suddenly saw Su Wanqing cough up a large mouthful of blood, and was shocked, "What's wrong... cough cough!"
The three who had been drinking coughed up blood one after another, then lost consciousness, feeling only comfort throughout their bodies, and began to babble incoherently before toppling backward.
Duan Hong, with his robust physique, made too large a movement as he fell, overturning the table, and the wine cups clattered to the floor.
"Master, why would you poison your disciple..." Su Wanqing cried out tragically.
"How is that possible? This, this is the Extreme Bliss Powder?" Iris roared in terror, rolling on the ground and spitting blood, her former dignity completely lost.
The root of all evil in Great Qian and Great Liang, the originator of countless tragedies, Iris, the leader of the Rebirth Cult, finally died from the colorless and odorless Rebirth Cult's sacred medicine, the "Extreme Bliss Powder," without even having the chance to ponder whether her beloved disciple had killed her.
"Marquis, when we arrived, we only saw three bodies: Consort Su and a man and a woman. We also arrested those palace maids and eunuchs according to Consort Su's list..."
At the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion, Ye Chengxiu reported to Qin Feng with a look of grief.
Qin Feng and Su Wanqing, enduring the pain, went to examine the scene and collect Su Wanqing's remains.
Upon seeing Iris's corpse, Qin Feng and Zhi Rou exclaimed in unison, "It is indeed this person!"
The couple had met Liang Xiao's wife, Christina, and knew that Sophia was Christina's elder sister.
Su Wanqing's sacrifice, ensuring their demise, proved this woman's identity.
Su Wanqing had successfully used Mu Cheng's coincidental coughing and spitting of blood in public, and enlisted the testimony of long-uncontacted Rebirth Cult mole palace maids, to "deceive and kill" Qin Xun. Then, using Qin Xun's head as a token of submission, she dispelled Iris's suspicions. Using her own life and Qin Xun's as bait, she eliminated the main culprit of the Rebirth Cult.
Sword Tutor, upon understanding the heroic sacrifice of Su Wanqing and Qin Xun, could not help but sigh.
"Even if I have to give up this old life, I will do my utmost to protect His Majesty's bloodline!"
The next morning, south of the Heng River, thousands of swordsmen awaited.
Under the leadership of Sword Tutor, accompanied by a hundred Xuan Guards and followed by thousands of swordsmen, they crossed the river to Great Qian.
This day, later generations would call it "Myriad Swords Crossing North," symbolizing the decline of the Liang martial arts and the return of legitimate lineage to Great Qian.
Upon arriving in Yanzhou, Liang Xiao was preparing to inspect his troops in the military camp when a hurried report arrived by swift horse from the north city official road.
"Marshal! The first of the Nine Tripods has arrived! It is the Yu Prefecture Cauldron!!"