Become a king right from the start, beginning with receiving rewards from all the heavens.

Nowadays, there are no longer any hidden surveillance agents around the Prince Ren's Palace.

Ever since they learned that the maidservant beside King Ren was an invincible powerhouse at the Shattered Realm, no force has dared to monitor this place anymore.

Of course, Xia Zhaoyan wasn't naive enough to think that no one was actually watching him.

Soon, the space within the palace distorted, and several people descended upon it.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

...

"Rise, everyone!" He waved for them to sit down.

Xia Zhaoyan shared his thoughts.

"Gentlemen, I intend to send Xia Jiyun into the territory of the demon race in order to investigate the situation of the demon race."

As he said this, a hint of worry appeared on his face.

From the perspective of the Great Xia Dynasty, the demon race and the Great Xia Dynasty have not fought a war for tens of thousands of years.

From a racial perspective, the Tianhuang Human Race and the Tianhuang Demon Race have not had a real war for tens of thousands of years!

This situation is very abnormal. Looking back at the history of the world, the demon race has never had such a long period of peace in almost every cycle of reincarnation!

Moreover, none of the human forces seem to be paying attention to this point.

If the demon race were to suddenly invade, it would definitely catch the human race completely off guard!

Moreover, within the Great Xia Dynasty, there was also the unsettling bomb of the royal family.

Who knows if they might suddenly go crazy and deliberately provoke the demon race!

The people in front of them also became serious when the demon race was mentioned.

They knew the power of the demon race. Legend has it that in the early days of the world, this world was a place where all races coexisted.

Now, only the demon race and the human race remain.

This already speaks volumes: while the human race is powerful, the demon race is not weak either.

"Your Highness, we do not have a teleportation array that leads directly to the demon race."

"We can only break through space to send people there, and we need the coordinates of the other side!"

Ye Gucheng's expression remained aloof, but no one cared, knowing that this was his current personality.

"With one sword strike, I can cleave a path directly to the demon race, but I cannot guarantee that the demon royal family is on that side."

Ultimately, accurate coordinates are still needed.

Xia Zhaoyan nodded to indicate that he understood, "Don't worry, the royal family has the coordinates."

"I want to modify Xia Jiyun's formation so that it can be viewed from a third-person perspective!"

"To put it simply, it's about his perspective, and also our perspective; we need to be able to share his viewpoint."

After Xia Zhaoyan explained his thoughts, the three top experts frowned and shook their heads at the same time.

"Your Highness, I have recently explored the formations of this world as well."

"Trying to control such a powerful being remotely is simply unrealistic."

After Guo Jing finished speaking, the other two nodded in agreement.

However, Gongshu Chou smiled arrogantly, which attracted the attention of the others.

"Gentlemen, formations are obviously not an option, but my mechanical skills can."

Xia Zhaoyan breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed his intuition was correct.

I knew that Gongshu Chou's mechanical skills, after being mythologized, did indeed have great potential.

"Your Highness, leave this matter to me!"

"However, I need the three of you's help!"

The three were also curious and wanted to see what method Gongshu Chou had to complete the task assigned by His Highness.

Over the next few days, various precious materials were continuously delivered to the Prince's Palace.

Gongshu Chou also rarely left his home, devoting himself entirely to his research.

Aside from cultivation, Xia Zhaoyan dealt with matters concerning the Heavenly Punishment Division.

Now, as his aptitude improves, his cultivation speed also increases!

That day, Mu Wenhan suddenly came to visit in person.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

After gesturing for him to sit down, Mu Wenhan spoke up before Xia Zhaoyan could even ask.

"Your Highness, the purge of the Zhang family is now complete."

"Nationwide, except for three branches that have disappeared without a trace, all the other branches have been dealt with!"

Xia Zhaoyan frowned slightly upon hearing this, a look of curiosity on his face.

"Hmm, so three branches actually managed to escape?"

"Could it be that the plan was leaked beforehand?"

Is such a small branch really that powerful? They even know the internal information of the Heavenly Punishment Division? Xia Zhaoyan was clearly somewhat skeptical.

Mu Wenhan hurriedly replied, "Your Highness, it was not us who leaked the information."

"But they had all disappeared before we even made a move."

"No trace was left behind, which means that someone powerful cleaned up the mess for them."

Xia Zhaoyan was deep in thought. Anyone who could achieve such an effect would at least be at the Shattered Realm.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to hide it from the current investigation by the Heavenly Punishment Division. In that case, the fact that Great Xia possesses forces at the Shattered Realm would make them accomplices.

His expression suddenly turned cold; there were still forces that dared to offend the Heavenly Punishment Division.

It seems I was too merciful; I killed too few people!

"A person who can be so clean must be at the Shattered Realm. Although the Great Xia has many forces at the Shattered Realm."

"But let's exclude sects first; they wouldn't work for aristocratic families!"

The relationships between the various cultivation factions are very delicate. Some sects may have sided with nobles or princes.

However, they still harbored hatred towards the aristocratic families, after all, their positions were somewhat different, and they were inherently hostile and contemptuous of each other.

"Then that leaves the aristocratic families, the officialdom, the military, and the nobility!"

After saying that, Xia Zhaoyan looked at Mu Wenhan.

"I believe you can analyze these things as well."

Mu Wenhan nodded and said, "Yes, Your Highness, and we have also excluded officials, nobles, and the military."

"They are all true beneficiaries of the court's existing interests, and they wouldn't do anything that wouldn't benefit them."

"Coincidentally, the three missing branches of the family were all from states where the Zhang family had formed alliances through marriage!"

"These are the Lu family of Qingzhou, the Shi family of Riyuezhou, and the Sima family of Lingwuzhou!"

...

"So you suspect these three powerful families?" Xia Zhaoyan quickly reviewed the information about the three families in his mind.

Qingzhou, the great state where my mother's clan resides!

The ancestral home of the Lu family is located here, and the lineage has been passed down for nearly 30,000 years.

Six nobles have been born from this family, and now one of the officials in the court and cabinet is a member of this family.

The Shi family and the Sima family each have a history of tens of thousands of years, and many ministers have emerged from these families.

In particular, these three families now not only have people in the imperial court, but also many mid-level officials in their clans.

"Now that the target has been identified, things are much easier."

"Send men to investigate them and see if they can find any crucial evidence!"

Just then, Gongshu Chou suddenly rushed in, a hint of joy on his face.

Just as I was about to speak, I realized there was another person there.

At this moment, Mu Wenhan's pupils had already contracted. No one outside knew Gongshu Chou, but as a high-ranking member of the Heavenly Punishment Division, he certainly knew this person!

Today, the Heavenly Punishment Division has an excellent understanding of the various forces in the martial arts world.

Why would the head of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion appear in His Highness's residence?

Could it be that the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion was also established by His Highness?

Hiss... Just how much influence does His Highness actually have in the shadows?

The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion may seem low-key, but it is a force that specializes in puppetry, so it is destined to be unable to truly remain low-key!

After all, before the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, there was no other force in the entire Great Xia Dynasty that specialized in puppetry!