Meanwhile, deep within the inner chambers of the royal palace, flickering candle flames cast Hua Wanshi's shadow against the stone walls, dancing erratically as if mirroring his mercurial mood.
The Lord of the State, who moments before had played the part of the "magnanimous ruler" outside the ruins, now stood with his hands clasped behind his back, laughing with a wild, sinister frenzy. His laughter crashed against the dark iron walls of the secret chamber with a buzzing resonance that chilled the bone.
He raised a hand to wipe away the tears squeezed from the corners of his eyes by his mad mirth, his fingertips brushing against four bloody characters carved into the stone wall: *Uproot the weeds, eliminate the roots*. They had been written using the heart's blood of Hua Anni, every single stroke brimming with hatred and unyielding resolve.
Chapter 177