Seizing Destiny From Heavens Hands

Chapter 360: Defying Imperial Might, Disrespecting Imperial Authority—Deserving of Death

Shen Mo turned his gaze toward the speaker.

The woman was dressed in a waist-length white ruqun, with a pure white cross-collared top tightly wrapping her full chest.

A belt, adorned with several jade-green beads, cinched her slender waist at just the right spot.

Her long, silver-white hair cascaded to her waist, and her almond-shaped eyes reflected a deep, snowy vastness within their pupils.

Her presence exuded both intellect and ethereality—a beauty that carried an air of profound wisdom and composure.

Shen Mo contemplated.

He had already scanned the backgrounds of everyone present. Naturally, he was familiar with this woman as well.

Her name was Yue Yingrong, the snow maiden of Grand Snow Palace.

Among all the factions, Grand Snow Palace was undoubtedly the most enigmatic.

They never involved themselves in worldly disputes, instead choosing to remain secluded in Han Prefecture, the northernmost region of the continent.

Had it not been for the looming threat of the ten thousand demon kingdom, Grand Snow Palace likely would not have sent anyone to the imperial capital at all.

The palace had a palace master, yet no successor—instead, it had the snow maiden.

Every snow maiden, barring unexpected circumstances, would one day inherit the position of palace master.

However, what Shen Mo couldn’t understand was why Grand Snow Palace would freely offer cultivation resources to the three-sect alliance without asking for anything in return.

Yue Yingrong’s words also puzzled the others, especially Emperor Jing.

As emperor, he had some knowledge of Grand Snow Palace’s secrets.

Their greatest strength was not in combat, alchemy, artifact forging, or formations—but in divination.

Thousands of years ago, before Jing Country had even existed, its first human emperor was merely a slave under the rule of the monster race, toiling endlessly in a mine.

One day, a snow maiden was captured and thrown into the same mine.

Using fifty years of her lifespan, she performed a divination—and was astounded by what she saw.

A few years later, Grand Snow Palace rescued her from the mines and took the future founder of the empire with them.

That was the moment the first human emperor began his rise.

Rumors claimed that many of his miraculous survivals and impossible victories had been due to Grand Snow Palace’s prophecies, warning him of dangers ahead of time.

"Could it be… that she foresaw something?"

A sliver of caution surfaced in Emperor Jing’s mind.

From a distance, Shen Mo cupped his hands toward Yue Yingrong. "Many thanks, snow maiden."

Yue Yingrong gave a slight nod but said nothing more, as if this was merely a trivial matter.

Lin Dongtian’s gaze lingered on her and Shen Mo for a moment, a fleeting chill passing through his eyes.

But soon, he smiled.

"Grand Snow Palace has set an example. What about the other sects?" he asked with a gentle smile.

Zhou Mingyi of Tianhe Sect spoke loudly, "Tianhe Sect is also willing to provide resources to the three sects. However, we cannot do so for free."

"We hope the three sects will trade their unique treasures in return."

"Tianhe Sect is willing to offer a higher purchasing price as a gesture of goodwill."

Shen Mo gave a small nod. "Many thanks, Daoist Zhou."

Zhou Mingyi smiled in return.

The negotiations over resources lasted the entire day.

Finally, a tenuous agreement was reached.

Grand Snow Palace would provide free cultivation resources—including pills, spirit artifacts, and formations—to Jade Cauldron Sect, Sea God Island, and Qian Yuan Sect.

Tianhe Sect would also supply resources, though at a cost, with the benefit of purchasing treasures from the three sects at fairly high prices.

Grand Snow Palace, Tianhe Sect, Mad Blade Alliance, Holy Spirit Sect, and Shadow Pavilion each agreed to deploy three divine transformation realm cultivators and twenty nascent soul realm cultivators, along with necessary supplies, to be stationed in Qianzhou, Yuzhou, and Haizhou.

The imperial court committed three ironclad cloudships to the three sects, in addition to a fleet of ten ironclad cloudships that would patrol the borders of Qianzhou and Yuzhou.

Should the monster army invade, they would immediately mobilize for battle.

With the exception of Grand Snow Palace and Tianhe Sect, the other factions' contributions—whether in manpower, wealth, or resources—could not be considered their best effort, but were at least passable.

Shen Mo, however, did not care.

In the end, they would all turn against each other anyway.

And he never intended to rely on anyone else’s strength to fight the ten thousand demon kingdom.

Ultimately, it would all come down to his own power.

At the roundtable, Shen Mo calmly rose to his feet.

The negotiations between Jing Country’s factions had concluded.

It was time to leave.

At that moment, Emperor Jing suddenly spoke.

"Shen Mo, why did you threaten Prince Jing back then?"

"Do you realize that he is my blood brother, a prince of Jing Country?"

Shen Mo turned around and saw Emperor Jing looking at him calmly.

Though his expression was neutral, there was an unmistakable pressure behind his gaze.

That was the immense weight of national destiny, a suppression stemming from the very fate of an entire kingdom.

It was as if the might of an entire nation was pressing down upon Shen Mo.

He frowned slightly.

Had it been any other divine transformation realm cultivator, they would have felt a surge of fear and awe before the emperor, overwhelmed by the force of his kingdom’s fortune.

But Shen Mo’s physical body was already incomparably strong. This kind of pressure meant nothing to him.

Just as he was about to speak, Ji Ping, who had remained silent throughout the discussion, suddenly coughed lightly.

"I’m tired."

Emperor Jing furrowed his brows slightly.

The others in the hall raised their eyebrows as well, exchanging looks, some smiling knowingly.

Emperor Jing’s expression remained calm. "Someone, escort the ancestor to rest."

Ji Ping sighed lightly and said no more.

A young eunuch quickly approached, carefully supporting Ji Ping as he left.

Even though the eunuch knew full well that Ji Ping could erase him from existence with the flick of a finger, he still had to obediently offer his assistance.

Shen Mo glanced at Ji Ping’s departing figure.

It was obvious—Ji Ping had deliberately interrupted Emperor Jing’s words, unwilling to let the emperor confront him directly.

However, by having the eunuch escort Ji Ping away, Emperor Jing had made it clear—he intended to continue the conversation.

Ji Ping had no desire to challenge imperial authority, so he could only sigh and leave.

Shen Mo met Emperor Jing’s gaze head-on and said flatly, "His status, his bloodline, none of that matters."

"He stood in my way. He had two choices—move aside on his own, or be crushed beneath my feet. It’s that simple."

Emperor Jing raised an eyebrow.

He hadn’t expected Shen Mo to be so utterly defiant, refusing to back down even an inch.

"Impressive. The young sect master of Jade Cauldron Sect is truly ambitious."

After a brief silence, he suddenly burst into laughter.

"Many thanks to all for traveling such a great distance to attend the banquet. As a final gesture, I shall drink a farewell toast to you all!"

Emperor Jing lifted his cup with one hand and downed the wine in a single gulp.

Among the gathered cultivators, some left immediately, while others hesitated, picked up their cups, and then put them down again.

Moments later, the hall was completely empty.

Only Emperor Jing remained.

"Defying imperial might, disrespecting imperial authority… deserving of death, deserving of death indeed."

He stared at the vast, empty hall and the heavy palace doors, as if Shen Mo’s unwavering, unyielding figure was still lingering before him.

A flicker of killing intent surfaced in his eyes.

…

Shen Mo and the others walked side by side as they exited the imperial palace.

Just as they stepped outside, they saw a familiar figure waiting quietly in their path.

It was none other than Yue Yingrong, the ethereal snow maiden of Grand Snow Palace.

She seemed to have anticipated exactly which route they would take.

Shen Mo was slightly surprised.

He had a strong feeling that she was here for him specifically.

Nan Gongyun, standing beside him, gave Yue Yingrong a scrutinizing look, her expression turning slightly wary.

Yue Yingrong gave a gentle nod of acknowledgment and spoke.

"Grand Snow Palace will firmly support Jade Cauldron Sect. Please be at ease, Daoist Shen."

With that, she didn’t wait for any response.

With a graceful step, she vanished into the crowd.

Hai Qiankun was astonished. "Grand Snow Palace rarely meddles in worldly affairs. They spend their days secluded in the Snow Mountains, divining the heavens and preaching the Dao. Why are they suddenly taking such an interest in our sect?"

"It’s almost… too good to be true!"

Zhou Mingyi pondered for a moment. "Grand Snow Palace is renowned for their expertise in divination. Perhaps… they foresaw something about the future?"

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