System Granted Me Immortality; I Outlived Everyone

Chapter 34: Devouring the Fruit Platter; Chen Changsheng: It’s All Trash

Faced with Chen Changsheng’s suggestion, Zuo Xinghe remained silent, offering no response.

Seeing this, Chen Changsheng smiled faintly and said nothing more.

Emperor Zuo had lived for two thousand three hundred years. His lifespan was double that of a Soul Formation cultivator.

As the ancient saying went, age breeds cunning. The current Chang’an City was nothing short of a dragon’s pool and a tiger’s den.

If not for investigating the clues surrounding the ancient bronze palace, he would absolutely not involve himself in this matter.

…

Chang’an City, the Imperial Palace.

The nine princes of the Xuanwu Kingdom gathered within the grand hall. Seated high upon the dragon throne was a young man.

This young man was the strongest ruler in the history of the Xuanwu Kingdom—Emperor Xuanwu.

He rested his chin on his hand, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he observed his nine sons.

At that moment, one of the princes stepped forward. “Imperial Father, your son has visited recluses far and wide, searching every famous mountain and great river within the Xuanwu Kingdom.”

“Finally, I have located a Dragon Hole for Imperial Father. With this Dragon Hole, you shall surely grasp a second life.”

Seeing a brother take the initiative, the other princes refused to fall behind, each eagerly recounting the painstaking efforts they had expended to uncover a Dragon Hole.

Yet, among the nine, only the eldest prince, Zuo Xinghe, remained utterly silent.

He kept quiet for a simple reason: Chen Changsheng was ruthlessly annihilating the fruit platter before him.

Watching his brothers present their discoveries, a heavy anxiety clawed at Zuo Xinghe’s chest.

“Sir, perhaps we should set the food aside for a moment.”

“Should we not introduce our Dragon Hole first?”

Hearing Zuo Xinghe’s ‘suggestion,’ Chen Changsheng swallowed a mouthful of spirit fruit.

“This is a banquet. Eating is the primary business. Besides, your attention is entirely misplaced.”

Zuo Xinghe’s face contorted in confusion.

“If I do not focus on the Dragon Hole now, what else is there?”

Faced with Zuo Xinghe’s dense skull, Chen Changsheng rolled his eyes.

“Your father is standing at death’s door, and you nine sons are gleefully hunting for his burial plot. Do you not find this scene rather grotesque?”

Zuo Xinghe froze, realization crashing into him.

It was true his Imperial Father sought a Dragon Hole, and true that his lifespan was ending.

But at such a time, a filial son should feel the agony of impending loss, not scramble to dig the perfect grave.

Even if his heart held no such grief, he had to perform the ritual!

Realizing his error, Zuo Xinghe whispered, “Sir, is there still time?”

“It is never too late to mend the fold. Just ensure your movements carry enough weight.”

With Chen Changsheng’s cue, Zuo Xinghe abruptly stood and charged forward.

He dropped to his knees mid-stride, sliding across the polished floor before slamming his forehead violently against the stone.

“Imperial Father!”

“Your son cannot bear to lose you!”

The other princes: ???

Zuo Xinghe’s sudden outburst caught his eight brothers entirely off guard.

High atop the dragon throne, Emperor Zuo shifted his gaze toward Chen Changsheng, who was still plundering the fruit platter.

An old monster who had weathered over two thousand three hundred years naturally possessed unfathomable might.

Not a single whisper in the great hall could evade his senses.

He knew the temperaments and schemes of his nine sons like the back of his hand, but this helper his eldest son had brought along… seemed to possess a bit of flavor.

Emperor Zuo finally spoke. “A grown man sobbing like a child. Where is your dignity?”

Met with this mild reprimand, Zuo Xinghe only wailed louder.

“Imperial Father, they say a man does not easily shed tears, save for when his heart is truly shattered.”

“Facing this eternal parting, your son’s soul is torn with reluctance!”

Amused by his eldest son’s flawless performance, Emperor Zuo smiled faintly, sending forth a wisp of Qi to gently lift Zuo Xinghe from the floor.

“I know your filial heart. But life, death, and the separation between them are simply the Laws of Heaven and Earth. Do not let grief consume you.”

With a flick of his wrist, Emperor Zuo signaled a nearby servant, who promptly delivered an enormous, overflowing fruit platter directly to Chen Changsheng.

Receiving the Emperor’s bounty, Chen Changsheng grinned, revealing a row of stark white teeth.

“Many thanks, Emperor Zuo!”

Having offered his thanks, Chen Changsheng resumed his ruthless consumption, eating with one hand and stuffing extras into his robes with the other.

The other princes: “…”

Have you no shame? How did you even conjure such a brazen tactic?

Why couldn’t I think of that?

Though Emperor Zuo offered no explicit praise, the remaining eight princes understood immediately. Zuo Xinghe’s theatrical grief had won him immense favor.

With the minor interlude concluded, Emperor Zuo addressed the heavy matter at hand.

“My lifespan reaches its end. I seek a land of immortal fate to reverse the cycle of death and grasp a second life.”

“A decade ago, I decreed that whoever unearthed a true land of immortal fate would inherit the throne of the Xuanwu Kingdom.”

“The time has come to present your harvests.”

As his voice faded, eight princes exchanged meaningful glances with the ‘experts’ standing at their flanks.

One by one, these experts stepped forward, exuding absolute confidence as they detailed the Dragon Holes they had scouted.

Their descriptions were woven with profound mystery, painting pictures so miraculous that even Zuo Xinghe felt a twinge of envy.

Yet his own expert, Chen Changsheng, remained utterly engrossed in the solemn duty of plundering the fruit platter, showing zero inclination to speak.

An hour drained away, and all eight Dragon Holes were laid bare before the court.

The collective gaze of the hall finally converged upon Chen Changsheng. Disgusted by the man’s crude display, the Second Prince sneered.

“Eldest Brother, from what backwater ditch did you drag out this peasant? We stand at the precipice of Imperial Father’s grand millennial design.”

“Allowing such a creature to dirty the grand hall… does it not trample upon the face of our Xuanwu Kingdom?”

Zuo Xinghe stiffened, preparing to retaliate, just as Chen Changsheng swallowed the very last spirit fruit. He wiped his mouth and drawled leisurely.

“Have you never heard of a grand finale?”

“The truly formidable always take the stage last. Cease your panicking.”

Brushing the crumbs from his robes, Chen Changsheng lifted his eyes to Emperor Zuo.

“I dare ask Emperor Zuo, do you possess a map?”

“Preferably, one as vast and detailed as possible.”

Emperor Zuo flicked a finger. In mere moments, five brawny guards hauled a massive scroll into the hall.

The map unfurled, swallowing nearly half the floor of the sprawling chamber.

Chen Changsheng’s gaze swept over the ink and parchment, his mind calculating as he precisely marked the locations of the eight previously lauded Dragon Holes.

Having set his board, he clasped his hands in a perfunctory salute.

“Emperor Zuo, please forgive my candor. But in my eyes, these eight locations are nothing but absolute trash.”

“If you truly wish to defy death and claim a second life, there is only one patch of earth that holds a sliver of hope.”

The words dropped like a thunderclap. The assembled experts erupted in fury.

“Insolent! Which sect claims you, that you dare to spew such arrogant madness in the Imperial Court?”

“Name your master, so we might discipline you in his stead!”

Surrounded by their boiling rage, Chen Changsheng nonchalantly dug at his ear.

“Apologies, but my lineage has no skill in divining earth veins or pinpointing Dragon Holes. I picked these tricks up on my own.”

“My true profession is selling coffins. Divining gravesites is merely a side venture to round out my comprehensive, all-inclusive rites of burial.”