At those words, Li Musheng looked the young consort the elder was presenting over.
To speak honestly, the old man had quite good taste. But unfortunately Li Musheng was simply not that sort of person.
At the same time, the nearly twenty consorts who had been seized were each burning with a mixture of shame and fury, directing murderous glares at the assembled Great Xuan martial world experts and Li Musheng alike.
The old veterans had sealed every one of them into silence at the acupoints before the women could say anything offensive, leaving them completely unable to speak.
As for Zhao Muning, when the martial world experts brought the consorts back, she had quietly turned her back.
She did not want any of them to see her face. As a Great Xuan princess, these consorts would naturally recognize her.
Though Li Musheng already had his suspicions about her, she had no desire to reveal her true identity outright.
And besides, she was the one who had brought Li Musheng into the palace, and from the look of things she appeared to be in league with Li Musheng and the others. If the consorts mistakenly believed she had helped abduct them, she would have no way to explain herself.
"Young hero, does this woman not meet your approval?"
Zhao Muning, hearing this, glanced at the young consort and immediately showed an unusual expression, then looked at Li Musheng and said quietly and urgently, "I ask the young lord not to lay a hand on any of these consorts."
Though Zhao Muning's memory held no particular impression of the consort the elder had brought forward, the woman before her was extraordinarily beautiful, and she worried Li Musheng might find it difficult to hold back indefinitely.
If Li Musheng truly did something to humiliate her father in that way, then knowing her father's temperament, releasing anyone would be completely out of the question.
At those words, Li Musheng glanced at Zhao Muning and took in her reaction to the gathered consorts.
Then he waved a hand and gave instructions to the gaunt elder, "Put these consorts inside the courtyard. Nothing else beyond that."
At those words, the assembled martial world experts, the gaunt elder included, all went briefly blank, then exchanged looks with each other.
None of them had expected Li Musheng to show such remarkable self-control, appearing to be genuinely unmoved by the group of beautiful women before him.
The smooth-talking plump old man from before immediately showed an expression of deep admiration, "This is exactly why the young hero has achieved such terrifying martial cultivation at so young an age. There are reasons for everything."
"An ordinary hot-blooded young man could not possibly resist this kind of temptation."
At those words, the other martial world experts immediately caught on and added their agreement in a chorus.
The seized consorts, for their part, mostly let out quiet breaths of relief inwardly.
But at the same time, their gazes all turned toward Li Musheng, their expressions a mixture of curiosity and uncertainty.
These martial world experts had made quite a scene when they seized them, and the consorts had watched the clashes with the palace eunuchs. They understood well enough that the people before them were martial world experts of considerable power. Yet every one of these powerful experts was deferring meekly and obediently to this handsome young man.
This struck all of the consorts as somewhat baffling, and they began speculating among themselves about Li Musheng's identity.
Who could this person be, to dare act so brazenly? Not only breaking into the Great Xuan imperial palace but actually touching the emperor's consorts. This was simply seeking death.
And before long, following Li Musheng's instructions, the assembled martial world experts lined up the nearly twenty seized consorts in the courtyard before them, somewhat haphazardly.
Then they all stood watch along the courtyard walls, waiting for further instructions from Li Musheng.
At that moment, there was still some unease in the hearts of the assembled experts.
Though they had both witnessed and personally experienced Li Musheng's terrifying cultivation, what he was now up against was the entire Great Xuan imperial palace, and countless Great Xuan martial world experts, including themselves, had come to grief here.
They themselves had spent all these years under the Great Xuan imperial palace's control like puppets. It would be impossible to say they felt no fear of it.
But they had no other option now. Swept along by Li Musheng, there was no path other than following him to the very end.
And for Li Musheng, all he needed to do next was wait. Wait for the Great Xuan emperor to come to him.
"If the Great Xuan emperor does not appear, what does the young hero intend to do?"
At that point, the Crimson Cloud Evil Spirit standing at Li Musheng's side suddenly asked.
The Crimson Cloud Evil Spirit, notorious throughout the Great Xuan martial world, kept his loose hair hanging over his face.
He clearly understood that his ugly appearance was not something Li Musheng found pleasant, and so he was taking constant care to keep his face hidden from Li Musheng's view.
Faced with the Crimson Cloud Evil Spirit's question, Li Musheng showed a thoughtful expression. It was certainly possible that the situation the man described might come to pass.
But he was not particularly concerned. He raised an eyebrow and said casually, "If the Great Xuan emperor is that heartless, then I will simply set these consorts free."
At those words, all the surrounding Great Xuan martial world experts went momentarily blank.
They had not quite grasped what Li Musheng meant, but Zhao Muning's quick mind caught it first, and she looked at Li Musheng with a startled and puzzled expression, "What the young lord means... is that if the emperor does not appear, you will actually take these consorts out of the palace?"
At those words, Li Musheng waved a hand, "Miss, please do not use such a crude word as 'take.' I am not that kind of person."
As he said this, Li Musheng narrowed his eyes slightly, "Think carefully, Miss. If the Great Xuan emperor cares so little even for the lives of his own consorts, imagine if you were one of these women. Would that not be deeply hurtful?"
"Rather than spending a lifetime confined in these deep palace halls, being a bitter and forsaken woman for a heartless old man, would it not be better to walk out of this imperial palace and live a free life?"
At those words, a look of slight speechlessness crossed Zhao Muning's fine face.
She could not help but feel that Li Musheng was simply looking for high-sounding justifications for seizing the consorts. Though she had to admit these were justifications she had never heard before.
At that point, Li Musheng glanced at Zhao Muning and asked, "The world is so vast. Whether these consorts or you yourself, Miss, surely you would like to go and see it?"
Li Musheng said this at a volume everyone could hear, and the assembled seized consorts and the Great Xuan martial world experts standing by the courtyard walls all caught every word.
The consorts themselves had not yet felt much from the words. But the assembled Great Xuan martial world experts were an entirely different matter. Each and every one of them suddenly felt their eyes go red.
"Freedom," for people like them who had been imprisoned and manipulated like puppets in the Mystic Mechanism Palace all these years, cut straight to the soul, speaking to the deepest part of their hearts with a resonance they could not possibly resist.
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