Chapter 927: Dark Web

Nanjun said, "I am the highest-level spy secretly trained by the Emperor. I found an opportunity to 'accidentally' meet Zhao Jing. He became interested in me and took me as his concubine, successfully infiltrating Prince Qi's mansion."

"During my time as Prince Qi's concubine, I would secretly relay any information I uncovered back to the Emperor, always ensuring my identity remained hidden. Everything was going well until you entered the secret realm," she said, looking at Zu An with a complex expression.

"It's related to us?" Zu An frowned. At this point, he understood many things. It was no wonder Nanjun could transition seamlessly from Prince Qi's concubine to a courtesan in a brothel; as a top spy, skills like seduction, playing the zither, and dancing would naturally be perfected.

"Yes. At that time, the spatial elements within the secret realm were in chaos; a major change seemed to have occurred. Initially, the Emperor was fine, but one day he suddenly ordered me to ascertain, at all costs, whether Zhao Jing was still in his mansion," Nanjun said, her voice filled with deep resentment. "Zhao Jing was in seclusion then, allowing no one near him. To complete my mission, I had no choice but to risk investigating. Given Zhao Jing's shrewdness, how could I possibly hide it from him? In the end, although I succeeded in transmitting the information, I was also killed by him."

Zu An thought to himself that the Emperor's urgency in confirming Prince Qi's presence was likely due to sensing the destruction of his soul clone, suspecting Zhao Jing had infiltrated the secret realm and was responsible.

Zhao Jing's infiltration of the secret realm alone wasn't a major issue, but it implied an alliance between the Grand Sacrificer and Prince Qi. How could the Emperor not be alarmed? He naturally needed to confirm it immediately to determine his next course of action.

They're all cunning old foxes!

Zu An secretly lamented that the Emperor, when tasking him with the investigation, hadn't mentioned a single word about Prince Qi's concubine being his spy. Furthermore, the investigation itself wasn't to seek justice for Nanjun, but rather to get close, distract Prince Qi, and find a way to give him the fake manual.

He couldn't help but glance at Nanjun. "I deeply sympathize with what you've endured, but did you really turn to the demon race like this?"

"I apologize, but after all, humans and demons are now great enemies." The latter part of the sentence was directed at Kong Nanwu.

Kong Nanwu remained expressionless, making it impossible to tell if she minded or not.

Nanjun gave a desolate smile. "Since childhood, I've been cruelly trained as a spy; I've never truly lived for myself. I had already accepted my fate, believing my life's mission was to gather crucial intelligence and help the Emperor bring down Prince Qi. But I never imagined the Emperor would activate me for such a trivial matter, even at the cost of my life. As a spy, I don't fear sacrifice, but this kind of meaningless sacrifice utterly baffles me. All my years of effort and suffering have become a complete joke."

Zu An thought to himself, this was a result of information asymmetry. For the Emperor at that time, confirming whether Prince Qi had entered the secret realm was critically important. However, as the decision-maker, he couldn't reveal the reasons to his subordinates.

It was also inconvenient for Zu An to tell her the real reason now, as it involved the secret of him killing the Emperor's soul clone, a matter that couldn't be taken lightly.

Nanjun continued, "After Miss Kong rescued me, my first thought was to save my parents and younger siblings. For spies like us, our families are always held as hostages. But I never expected that by the time we arrived, they had already been killed."

"Ha! I risked my life for that dog Emperor, even sacrificing myself in the end. Not only did he fail to compensate or care for my family, but he had them all silenced instead. I want revenge! What's wrong with turning to the demon race?"

She had been killed by Prince Qi, so aligning with him was impossible. Looking across the land, only the demon race remained capable of opposing both the Emperor and Prince Qi.

As if sensing her fury and injustice, a chilling wind swept through the room, making the candlelight flicker as if about to extinguish at any moment.

Kong Nanwu frowned, feeling Nanjun had said too much. After all, the person opposite them was an imperial official. Shouting insults about the "dog Emperor" here was surely inviting trouble.

As expected, Zu An frowned. "Are you cursing His Majesty in front of me as if I don't exist?!"

In truth, hearing the insults directed at the "dog Emperor" brought him a wave of satisfaction; he was almost tempted to praise Nanjun for her eloquent cursing.

Unfortunately, in front of these people whose true backgrounds he didn't know, he couldn't reveal his real thoughts.

The young girl named Hulu immediately said indignantly, "You humans truly aren't good people, all of you are hard-hearted..."

"Silence!" Kong Nanwu sharply interrupted her, then looked apologetically at Zu An. "My apologies, Young Master Zu. Nanjun's family met a tragic end, and she herself lost her life. She spoke disrespectfully out of momentary emotion. I hope you won't take it to heart."

Nanjun also felt some regret. If he reported her recent words, not only would she be utterly annihilated, but Kong Nanwu and the others wouldn't escape either. After all, this was the capital.

Zu An sighed. "Don't preach kindness to those who haven't experienced hardship. Considering Miss Nanjun's ordeal, it's difficult for me to utter any righteous words of condemnation. For Xue'er's sake, I'll pretend I didn't hear it this time, but don't let it happen again."

Nanjun was startled, looking at Zu An with a hint of incomprehension, then bowed deeply. "Thank you for your noble generosity, Young Master."

"And I'm a saint myself," Zu An muttered a joke they wouldn't understand, while his mind began to ponder how to proceed.

A faint smile appeared on Kong Nanwu's face. "Young Master, you truly are different from ordinary humans; you possess a compassionate heart that transcends racial boundaries."

"Don't flatter me," Zu An said coldly. "I have no desire to be accused of colluding with the enemy and betraying the nation. What exactly is your purpose for infiltrating the capital? Are you paving the way for the demon race's advance south?"

"You misunderstand, Young Master," Kong Nanwu explained. "Our journey south has two reasons: first, I was curious about human customs and wanted to experience them firsthand. Second, I won't hide it from you, we do have the intention of gathering intelligence, but it's certainly not to prepare for a southern invasion. It's merely for passive defense. You should know, humans have sent many spies to our demon race; this is merely the usual back and forth."

"That sounds good," Zu An scoffed. "Not long ago, your demon race slaughtered an entire city on the border, leaving no one alive, neither soldiers nor civilians. That doesn't sound very benevolent, does it?"

Kong Nanwu's expression changed. "The massacre of that city was absolutely not committed by our demon race!"

"If not your demon race, then who?" Zu An, of course, wouldn't believe her simply because she said so.

"I don't know who, but there are indeed many suspicious points about that massacre," Kong Nanwu quickly explained. "You must understand that in previous years, the demon race suffered heavy losses from humans. We barely have time to recover and rebuild, so why would we easily provoke conflict, especially with such a brutal act as a city massacre, which crosses all lines? Although I'm not a major figure among the demons, I have some understanding of the high-ranking officials' thoughts, and they would never commit such an unwise act."

"The facts are before us; saying more won't help," Zu An said indifferently. "Furthermore, according to what you said earlier, the massacre happened after you came to the capital. You weren't with those demons, so how can you know their intentions?"

Kong Nanwu's expression changed again. This was indeed one of her concerns. Among the demon race, there were many warmongers filled with hatred for humans. Such individuals were often simple-minded and impulsive, making it entirely possible for them to commit such acts in a fit of rage.

She took a deep breath. "I know anything I say now sounds hollow, but I will investigate the truth as quickly as possible and give you an explanation."

Zu An shook his head. "It's meaningless to talk about this now. The imperial army has already marched north; this war is destined to be unavoidable."

Kong Nanwu fell silent, knowing he spoke the truth.

Zu An didn't want to continue arguing the point and instead asked curiously, "Is this Red Sleeve Brothel an establishment owned by your demon race?"

If that were true, the demon race's influence would be terrifying, having infiltrated to this extent without being discovered by the imperial court.

Kong Nanwu shook her head. "No, it is not. We have our own methods, but I must ask for your understanding, Young Master, as I cannot disclose the specifics."

Zu An frowned. Could it be that some faction in the capital was colluding with the demon race?

For some time now, he had always felt a strange sensation, as if a vast, hidden network existed within the capital. He wasn't even sure if this network was real, especially since the Embroidered Envoy had no information about it.

Yet, for some reason, he always had a feeling, particularly since the last time Yun Jianyue was in the palace and he sensed someone tracking him. To this day, he hadn't discovered who it was.

At this moment, Kong Nanwu's voice rang out, "Young Master, how do you intend to deal with us?"

Zu An was amused. This woman was cunning; he knew her cultivation was extremely high, and combined with that peculiar feather, even if he genuinely tried to capture them, it wouldn't be easy. Yet, she presented herself as if their lives were entirely in his hands. A different person might have become conceited.

But truthfully, deciding how to handle them was indeed quite troublesome.