# Chapter 8: Death of the Angry Lion
A gentle breeze blew in through the window, making the inner hall more comfortable.
The Saint King was dozing off. Judging by the old duke's expression, he seemed quite accustomed to this, and his attitude toward the Saint King was somewhat strange—respectful but not reverent.
Footsteps approached. An elderly man walked into the inner hall, his expression stern. His aquiline nose, combined with his sharp gaze, made it clear at a glance that he was not one for frivolity.
Compared to the old duke, this elderly man, whether in attire or aura, looked more like a true Imperial Duke—stern, unsmiling, old-fashioned yet just.
The elderly man stopped before a chair carved with forest patterns. He did not sit down but instead scrutinized Su Xiao for a moment before finally taking his seat.
"Oh my? Isn't this Duke Lilin? Who let you out... ah no, I'm getting old and senile, how could I say something so rude."
The old duke seemed to have just noticed Duke Lilin's arrival, feigning surprise while still fondling his young wife in his arms.
"Wild dog."
Lilin's voice was not loud, but it was enough for the old duke to hear.
"Little brat, speaking to your 'father' like that will bring divine punishment. What a pity, your mother Fulina is no longer with us, otherwise..."
The old duke's words carried a massive amount of information. This old bastard had lived for who knows how many years; who knows if he really did have an affair with Duke Lilin's mother.
A vein bulged on Duke Lilin's forehead, and then, surprisingly, he said nothing. This made the information even more significant.
In such a situation, silence almost equaled admission, and the old duke most likely really did have some scandal with Duke Lilin's biological mother. After all, the empire's noble circles were quite chaotic.
"The two of you combined are at least over a thousand years old. Have you no shame?"
A beautiful woman walked in gracefully. Her languid yet noble aura completely compensated for any age disadvantage. Besides, she looked at most in her early thirties.
Duke Moon Wolf, Eve, had arrived. She smiled at everyone she looked at. Even without wearing any jewelry, she still appeared dignified. Charisma, sometimes, truly cannot be compensated by external things.
For some reason, almost everyone called Duke Moon Wolf, Eve, Lady Moon Wolf rather than directly addressing her as duke. There must be some hidden reason behind this.
Both Lilin and Lady Moon Wolf had arrived, but the remaining Duke Angry Lion, Gilbert, was still nowhere to be seen. They waited, all the way until nine in the morning.
Gilbert was a duke, true, but he couldn't keep the Saint King and three other dukes waiting for over an hour.
"The Angry Lion has met with trouble."
Duke Lilin spoke in a deep voice. Beside him, Lady Moon Wolf was visibly anxious. Given her status and experience, few things could make her so unsettled.
"The Angry Lion never arrives late. Am I right?"
Lilin shifted his gaze toward the old duke.
"This time... it really wasn't me."
Who knows why the old duke directly denied it. Perhaps this was the result of doing too many bad deeds—whenever something went wrong, the other dukes immediately thought it was the old duke's doing.
"You couldn't have..."
Lady Moon Wolf's smile gradually faded. Her appearance was beautiful, yet deadly.
The old duke was momentarily speechless. Duke Angry Lion still hadn't arrived, meaning something must have happened to him. And he had the "honor" of being the prime suspect.
At Lady Moon Wolf's instruction, a servant quickly left the Holy Court. Within five minutes at most, Lady Moon Wolf learned through intelligence channels that Duke Angry Lion, Gilbert, had been murdered, killed at a winery outside the city.
Dukes were not comparable to imperial officials. Every duke held enormous power. Over 60% of the empire's military authority was in Duke Angry Lion's hands. With the empire currently at war with the Northern Alliance, the death of Duke Angry Lion was almost equivalent to half the empire's sky collapsing.
Upon learning this news, Duke Lilin proposed detaining the old duke within the Holy Court.
"Nonsense! What evidence do you have?"
The old duke's face trembled with anger. In truth, he knew in his heart that neither Lilin nor Lady Moon Wolf actually suspected him. The Sera Empire was the foundation of the Saint Descendants. Destroying the empire's power structure, especially military authority, was almost equivalent to self-destruction.
"Suspicion doesn't require evidence."
Lady Moon Wolf's words were utterly piercing, but she had to act this way. Duke Angry Lion, Gilbert, had died inexplicably. If the old duke took advantage of this situation, they would be in complete disarray.
"Is this your decision?"
"That's right."
"Only if you stay here can we handle the Angry Lion's death."
"Fine then, I'll stay here. Until the cause of the Angry Lion's death is determined, I will reside in the Holy Court."
The old duke's words surprised both Lilin and Lady Moon Wolf. They almost simultaneously thought—could it really be this old bastard's doing?
"But before that, I have something to announce. I once devoured a god, but after that, the curse of immortality made me live in pain..."
"Just get to the point."
Lady Moon Wolf couldn't bear to listen anymore. The old duke living in pain? Don't be ridiculous. This old bastard lived more comfortably than anyone else, marrying a bunch of wives and even bringing two along with him.
"I plan to temporarily set aside my power and entrust it to my nephew, Kukulin Bai Ye. He is now the duke."
"Nephew? Have you lost your mind?"
Lilin looked at the old duke, his face expressionless.
"Since you two agree—no, even if you disagree, it doesn't matter. I'm just announcing this matter today. Whether you agree or not is unimportant."
The old duke stood up, seeming much more relaxed. Judging by his demeanor, he was preparing to take a stroll in the garden behind the Holy Court.
Both Lilin and Lady Moon Wolf looked at Su Xiao, because from beginning to end, Su Xiao had remained silent.
"You two, do you have any prejudice against me, a normal human?"
Su Xiao was chewing Soul Crystal Fragments in his mouth. At the start of each world, he would eat some Soul Crystal Fragments like candy to increase his soul strength.
"Humans cannot be descendants of the Saint Descendants..."
Duke Lilin stopped mid-sentence, finding Su Xiao looking at him with a smile on his face.
After a moment, Duke Lilin's expression returned to normal. He didn't even need to interact with Su Xiao to judge how difficult he was to deal with.
"Duke Bai Ye, the fact that you could make that old bastard back down is truly incredible. Fine, I admit it. You are the acting duke."
Lady Moon Wolf let out a light laugh, not surprised by Duke Angry Lion's death or the old duke's surrender of power. She had experienced too many major events in her life. Surviving until now was due to her venomous, snake-like cunning.
Su Xiao leaned back in his seat. The reason he could reach his current position at this speed was, first, his cooperation with the old duke, and second, because he was strong enough.
Powerful strength brought many conveniences. If Su Xiao hadn't possessed the strength to kill the old duke last night, the old duke would never have compromised.
If the old duke had dared to say no last night, then today, everyone wouldn't be gathering at the Holy Court for an imperial meeting—they would be attending a memorial service at his estate.
Of course, there was also a very important point: Duke Angry Lion's death this morning. If the old duke didn't know the inside story, Su Xiao absolutely wouldn't believe it.
That old bastard was both compromising with Su Xiao and hiding himself. A cunning old fox.
After initial contact, Su Xiao had roughly understood the three dukes. The old duke was a troublemaker. His ambitions were enormous, so enormous that he needed to antagonize all the other dukes to conceal his true purpose.
Duke Lilin was an upright man. He wasn't from the first generation of Saint Descendants. Or rather, he had no choice—born a Saint Descendant and inheriting the duke position.
If the Sera Empire didn't have Duke Lilin, it might have been broken through by the Northern Alliance long ago.
As for Lady Moon Wolf, she was the extremely selfish type. As long as nothing threatened her personally, she wouldn't take risks.
"Since you're that old bastard's acting representative, come along. Saint Descendants are only mortals after all."
Leaving these words, Duke Lilin stood up and walked toward the outer corridor. Lady Moon Wolf thought for a moment, then chose to follow.
"Old fox."
Su Xiao looked at the old duke, who was admiring the scenery by the window.
"Don't be so rude. You're a duke now."
The old duke was clearly in a good mood.
"The first to die should have been you. Last night, you would have died before the Angry Lion. And Lilin wouldn't have sent anyone to kill you."
As soon as Su Xiao finished speaking, a notification from Reincarnation Paradise suddenly appeared.
[The Hunter has triggered a hidden mission: ???]
[Because the Hunter chose to execute the main mission in a high-risk manner, this hidden mission is a reward mission.]
Su Xiao dismissed the notification. It seemed his approach to the main mission was completely correct. Although high-risk, it also brought high rewards.
If he wasn't mistaken, something was brewing in the shadows. The timing of Reincarnation Paradise's transmission aligned with that event. This couldn't be a coincidence.
Su Xiao could choose not to participate in that event, completing the main mission through normal channels. But now, he had chosen to get involved in some incident. Without powerful strength as a foundation, participating in this unknown event might mean not surviving even a single day.
"Lilin won't send anyone to kill me? Perhaps. He's too upright."
The old duke kept his back to Su Xiao. As for the Saint King, he was still dozing off, unconcerned about anything, including Duke Angry Lion's death.