Martial Arts Master: The Lin Family Sword God, who swept through the Five Mountains and Four Sects

These envoys, all dressed in court robes, harbored treacherous intentions; their desire to overthrow the Qin dynasty had never waned; and they had long since colluded with the inner court, secretly exchanging pleasantries.

Lin Tian gripped the silk scroll tightly, the tip of his sword pointing diagonally at the ground, his voice like thunder striking the slumped man: "Speak! Why don't you confess the truth?! Who is the mastermind behind this?!"

Lin Tian's gaze was like a knife, aimed straight at Lü Buwei's face—what he wanted was to throw this mess of mud at Lü Buwei's face.

"Grand Preceptor, spare me! I was bewitched and confused for a moment!" The Grand Preceptor's face turned pale. Before he could finish speaking, he trembled and burst into tears. His forehead slammed heavily against the blue bricks, making a thud. He kowtowed and confessed everything as he did so.

It turned out that as soon as the Qi delegation entered Xianyang, they visited each of the important officials in the court, stuffing their sleeves with gold and silver and filling their chests with jade and silk. They also presented each person with a scroll of Qi's handwritten "Seeking Talented Individuals" letter, promising them the position of one of the Nine Ministers, a fief of a thousand households, and ten beautiful maids. All they had to do was secretly stir up trouble in the court, and when the situation became tense, they could abandon Qin and join Qi, and wealth and glory would be within their grasp.

Da Xingling cried until he was breathless, but Lin Tian pressed the Heavenly Question Sword firmly against his neck, its chilling aura penetrating to the bone.

He closed his eyes for a moment, his voice as cold as if it had been tempered with ice: "Gai Nie, present the silk scroll about the Xianyang magistrate in your arms to the King."

"Yes, Your Excellency!" Gai Nie responded by taking out a yellowed parchment scroll and presenting it with both hands. Ying Zheng sat upright on his throne, his brows furrowed into knots, and his eyes filled with frost.

The silk scroll had barely been unfurled when Ying Zheng slammed his hand on the table, causing the bronze wine cup to bounce three inches into the air: "Magistrate of Xianyang! How dare you collude with the enemy and betray your country? Working together from within and without, plotting to overthrow the Qin Dynasty?!"

"Your Majesty, have mercy!" The magistrate of Xianyang, all his arrogance gone, knelt down with a thud, his forehead pressed to the ground, his voice hoarse: "Your humble servant is a former subordinate of the late king... I beg you to spare the lives of my entire family! The Qi people have taken my son, who was studying in Linzi, hostage! I deserve to die a thousand deaths, I only beg for mercy for my family..."

The Qi envoy was already limp as a rag doll, sweat rolling down his forehead. In the sweltering heat of the palace, his thin official robe was soaked through and clung to his back, making him look as if he had just been pulled out of the water—not from the heat, but from fear.

"Confess?" Lin Tian suddenly opened his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Too late."

Before the words were even finished, Tianwen was unsheathed!

A flash of silver light appeared, so fast that only a blur remained.

"Pfft!"

The head of the chieftain was severed from his neck and rolled forward, stopping at the feet of several kneeling officials, his eyes wide open, blood spurting three feet.

"ah--!!"

"Murder!"

Several civil officials who were usually dishonest immediately rolled their eyes and fainted, while the rest trembled all over, their teeth chattered, and they even held their breath.

Lin Tian flicked his wrist again, the sword blade swept diagonally, its cold light tearing through the air—

With a soft "crack," the neck of the Xianyang magistrate snapped, his head flying off and crashing heavily to the ground, rolling to the base of a palace pillar.

Lin Tian stood with his sword drawn, his voice like thunder: "Traitors shall be killed without exception! According to the laws of the Great Qin, their entire family shall be exterminated! Where are the judges of the court?!"

"Your humble servant is here!" A trembling old official, with snow-white hair, held the seal of the Court of Justice, crawled forward on his knees, touched his forehead to the ground, and raised the official seal high with both hands.

"I have already executed the Magistrate of Xianyang and the Grand Chancellor according to the law." Lin Tian lowered his eyes and stared at Tian Wen, slowly wiping the blood off the sword with his sleeve. His tone was terrifyingly calm. "The punishment of three generations of a family being implicated—do I really have to do it myself?"

The old official choked, almost suffocating, and after a moment's hesitation, he hoarsely replied, "According to the law... men will be branded on the face and exiled three thousand li, and women will be forced into prostitution in the military camp! This old minister will draft the decree immediately, without daring to delay!"

"Alright." Lin Tian nodded. "I expect you to follow the rules strictly and without bias—you may leave."

The old official crawled backward, his forehead covered in sweat like raindrops, not daring to straighten his back.

Lin Tian then turned around, surveying the kneeling officials in the hall. His voice was not loud, but every word pierced the ears: "If you have any dealings with the State of Qi today, surrender now, and Tianwen will forgive and forget; if you wait for me to expose you one by one... this hall floor will probably not be able to hold a ninth head."

Three breaths of silence.

One person stood up, his robes trembling in the breeze.

Another person slowly stood up, their calves twitching.

Then three, four... and nine people left their seats one after another, heads bowed, faces ashen.

Lin Tian's gaze swept over them, and he immediately understood: they were all members of the old faction whom Lü Buwei had personally promoted back then, the nine most deeply rooted figures from the previous dynasty, four of whom still held the titles of Marquis Che and Marquis Guannei.

He held his sword horizontally across his chest and declared loudly, "This sword is named Tianwen, a divine weapon bestowed by the King, dedicated to slaying treacherous officials and showing no mercy to rebels."

The leader immediately knelt down and wailed, "Imperial Preceptor! We confess! We confess everything!"

"Very good." Lin Tian suddenly smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Don't worry—Tianwen, I won't take your heads today."

Just as a glimmer of hope appeared on the faces of the nine men, Lin Tian suddenly shouted sharply, "Guards! Immediately arrest these nine traitors, take them to the main gate of Xianyang Palace, behead them, and hang their heads on poles to announce this to the world!"

His gaze was like a blade, piercing straight at Gai Nie: "Gai Nie, take this silk scroll as proof, and order your men to carry my coffin with you—let the elders of Xianyang see for themselves how these high-ranking officials betray their country for personal gain and treat human life like dirt!"

Before he could finish speaking, he added, each word as cold as ice: "My coffin will be lined with their heads."

"Your Majesty, have mercy!"

"Imperial Preceptor, spare my life! This old minister has served three dynasties!"

"I'm willing to be your slave..." One of them knelt down with a thud, clutching the hem of Lin Tian's robe tightly, his forehead bruised and swollen, tears streaming down his face.

Lin Tianfei kicked him, knocking him to the ground. His eyes were as cold as a frost-quenched knife: "If officials are like you, what use are they? — They deserve to be skinned alive."

The palace gates burst open with a roar, and a squad of armored guards rushed in, twisting their arms behind their backs and dragging away nine people. Gai Nie had already ordered his men to carry out the black lacquered coffins, and wrapped the bloody heads of the Xianyang Magistrate and the Grand Chancellor in white silk, carrying them out of the main hall and heading straight for the palace gates.

The entire court watched helplessly as the blood was still wet on the ground, and the man was already dead. The charges against him were clearly written in black and white, signed by his own hand, leaving no room for denial.

Lin Tian swung his knife swiftly and decisively, without the slightest hesitation. His ruthlessness was even more thunderous than when Shang Yang established the reforms by placing a wooden pole in the ground—the law showed no mercy, and sentimentality could not forgive crimes.

"Grand Preceptor! How could you kill so indiscriminately?! They were all pillars of the previous dynasty, vital assets of the court!" Lü Buwei could no longer contain himself; his chest felt as if it were being scorched by fire. Pointing at Lin Tian, ​​a sweet taste rose in his throat, and blood welled up to his lips, which he swallowed hard. Only through gritted teeth did he utter the words: "You are the treacherous villain who has brought ruin to the country and disrupted the government!"

Lin Tian glanced at him sideways, a slight smile playing on his lips, but the smile didn't reach his eyes: "Afraid there won't be enough officials? Prime Minister Lü, aren't you still firmly in your position as prime minister?"

The tone shifted abruptly, his gaze fixed on Lü Buwei's face, and he said slowly and deliberately, "Prime Minister Lü's fury... could it be that you feel sorry for your accomplices? Or—do you also have a secret letter hidden in your sleeve?"

"You... traitor! The root of all evil for the Qin Dynasty!"

Lu Buwei's fingers trembled violently, and before he could finish speaking, he spat out a mouthful of thick blood, his body went limp, and he fell backward.

"Lord Xiangguo!"

"Prime Minister Lü?!"

The officials swarmed around, and Li Si rushed forward, grabbed Lü Buwei by the back of the neck, and called out urgently.

Lin Tian glanced up and saw Ying Zheng's furrowed brow on the throne. He immediately raised his voice, "Quickly summon the imperial physicians from the Imperial Medical Bureau to accompany Prime Minister Lü back to his residence to recuperate!"

Several imperial guards entered in response and carried the couch out. Li Si followed closely behind and quickly left.

The hall fell silent; everyone held their breath and lowered their heads, waiting for Lin Tian to speak.

Lin Tian slowly put the Tianwen Sword into its ebony sword case, straightened his clothes, clasped his hands, and faced Ying Zheng: "Your Majesty, the traitor has been executed, but the affairs of state cannot be neglected for even a day. The important matters of the prefectures and counties, the allocation of granaries, and the implementation of laws and regulations all require capable people to take charge. I earnestly request Your Majesty to personally select loyal and talented individuals to fill the vacancies as soon as possible, so that each can perform their duties and ensure the stability of the nation."

Ying Zheng nodded, his expression solemn: "I will immediately select a person of both virtue and talent, and he will take up his post within three days—Rest assured, Grand Preceptor."

Lin Tian immediately turned around, his gaze like lightning, sweeping over the Qi envoy in the six kingdoms' envoys' seat—that fat man with a protruding belly and sweat beading on his forehead.