Chapter 962: Chapter 956: Your Descendant Has Fallen
[Your descendant Li Tianyue fought a lone battle against the Wu Race. Refusing to abandon her army of 320,000, she led her 320,000 soldiers in a bloodbath, slaughtering a million Wu tribesmen. Acquired Trait: Wu Slaughterer]
[Unwilling to abandon the Soldiers who had followed her from the Eastern Border even unto her last moment. Acquired Trait: Army Soul]
[Acquired Traits: God of Slaughter, Eternal Guardian of the Western Border…]
[Your descendant Li Tianyue…]
[Has fallen in battle.]
….
The Imperial Capital.
Within the imperial court of the Heavenly Palace, the dynasty’s myriad officials were in an uproar, all stricken with panic.
“The Western Border has fallen! Has the Wu Race truly become so shameless as to send a Sage Elder?!!”
“Lotus Ferry Nunnery, what a fine Lotus Ferry Nunnery!
Abbess Dairou, with her Body Integration Realm cultivation, actually avoided the battle!
If she had merely delayed them for a few days, how could our dynasty not have sent reinforcements?
And what of Prefecture Lord Yun Manlou and Marshal Bi Shihu? Where are they?!!”
“The most pressing matter is to find His Highness the Crown Prince.
The Western Border has been breached, and the three prefectures have fallen into the hands of the Wu Race.
Since the Wu Race has broken the rules, we must not show any mercy either.
Dispatch Body Integration Realm cultivators to fight!”
“Conscript the cultivators! Fight to the death!”
“…”
Li Chang’an stood within the imperial court, coldly surveying these officials who had lost their backbone.
He could no longer hear their chaotic clamor in the slightest. Letting out a long breath, he walked out of the Heavenly Palace and headed toward the Heavenly Prison.
Although these officials were gripped by panic over the fall of the Western Border, the matter was ultimately handled properly. Yet, Li Chang’an remained restless and troubled.
“Great-Aunt…”
Li Chang’an felt his head spinning. His great-aunt had lost her life in the Western Border, yet there was complete silence regarding it in the imperial court.
Even though he knew this was not the time for the dynasty to bring the matter up, Li Chang’an was still unreconciled, an inexplicable anger burning within him.
Before long, he arrived at the Heavenly Prison.
This time, Li Chang’an walked straight into the area where Min Youguo was detained.
When this old State Preceptor was away from the imperial court, he was truly amiable and approachable, even pouring tea for a junior.
Seeing Li Chang’an so absent-minded—his face pale as he picked up his teacup, lacking his usual meticulousness, and seemingly unaware even when the tea spilled onto his robes—Min Youguo asked with a smile,
“Has something happened in the imperial court?”
“The Western Border has been breached. A Sage Elder of the Wu Race descended in person, and the Crown Prince is missing. My great-aunt… perished in the Western Border.”
Hearing this, Min Youguo frowned and replied,
“This matter has nothing to do with me. For the past two years, I have been in the Heavenly Prison, never interacting with the outside world.
You can very well ask Ah Hei about this. Back then, Crown Prince Sheng bullied me, but Crown Prince Fei Heng has treated me well.
I have no reason to harm him. Even when the incident with my son occurred, he did not hold me accountable.”
“State Preceptor, you overthink things. I did not come here to test you; there is merely one matter I do not understand.”
Min Youguo breathed a sigh of relief. “Speak.”
“It is just that I do not understand. My great-aunt guarded the dynasty for hundreds of years, but what did she truly gain in the end?”
Li Chang’an’s face was ashen.
“The Eastern Border bullied my great-aunt, and the Western Border abandoned her amidst a heavy siege, yet she did not retreat a single step, even at the very end. Why? Why did you all have to harm her like this?”
Min Youguo fell silent.
He also did not know what had transpired at the Western Border.
After pondering for a long time, he said,
“Human nature. A choice must be made between loyalty and valuing one’s own life.
Your great-aunt chose loyalty, while those who abandoned her chose to value their lives.”
“Yet the life they valued was not my great-aunt’s.”
Li Chang’an had indeed found someone he could converse with.
He detailed the matters of the Western Border one by one, carefully observing the other’s expressions.
Although Min Youguo claimed the affairs of the Western Border had nothing to do with him, Li Chang’an still maintained a skeptical heart.
During their conversation, Ah Hei of the Emberwing Guards also arrived outside the room.
Seeing Li Chang’an present, he did not interrupt.
Min Youguo took it all in, then said in a solemn voice,
“Do you remember when my son allowed the Wu Race to slaughter their way into the Central Plains?”
Seeing Li Chang’an nod, Min Youguo continued,
“A probe. That was the Wu Race probing us, testing whether our dynasty still had the strength to resist.
When the Xu Weng Demon Emperor of the Northern Border intruded into the north and confronted Lin Jiu, that was likewise a probe.
Through these repeated probes, they have already seen that our dynasty is decaying.
But what they are testing is not only the mortal realm; they are also testing the mighty figures of our dynasty.”
“A probe?” Li Chang’an’s grip on his teacup tightened.
“Indeed. There is no telling how many people in this world wish for it to descend into chaos. You hold onto the concepts of family and nation, but once they reach their realm of cultivation… heh.”
Min Youguo smiled and said,
“What I refer to as the decay of the dynasty is not political corruption, but the human heart.
For the hundreds of thousands of years of our dynasty, His Majesty has been mighty, capable of suppressing all people in the world.
Experts in the Mahayana Realm are exceedingly difficult to kill or destroy, yet the Human Emperor can slay them.
If even a Mahayana Realm does not dare to bring chaos to the world, how could those in the Body Integration Realm dare?”
“But over these hundreds of thousands of years, quite a few Void Refinement, Body Integration, and Mahayana Realm cultivators have emerged in the world.
Having cultivated to such an age and witnessed all the prosperity the world has to offer, their humanity is slowly fading away.
How many of them no longer have any earthly ties or shackles?
The only things they truly care about are eternal life and becoming an Emperor(Twenty-Four Imperial Thrones).”
“For this, they are willing to pay any price.”
Li Chang’an’s expression changed. His years were too few; he could not empathize with these old monsters.
He only heard Min Youguo say, “Take a guess. The Nirvana Sage Elder who slaughtered his way into the Western Border—did he truly kill for the sake of the Wu Race?
Their Wu Race has a much longer lifespan than our Human Race. If an expert of his realm were to hide, not even a Mahayana cultivator could find him.
Moreover, his blood ties to his tribe have long since thinned. Why, then, would he wade into these muddy waters?”
“Take another guess. Why did Abbess Dairou flee without a fight?
As far as she was concerned, why should she battle the Nirvana Sage Elder?”
Seeing Li Chang’an deep in thought, Min Youguo sneered,
“Your Azure Cloud Li Clan should have understood this long ago, because you have encountered it before.
The patriarch of the Zhao Clan could even devour his own clansmen.
That fellow, the Yidian Holy Monk, controlled by the Dao Seed, would even betray His Majesty.
And the True God of Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems—he clearly could have helped Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems escape, yet he chose to flee with the Corpse Dragon, never concerning himself with the affairs of Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems again.”
“There is also my son, Min Tiange…”
Min Youguo stroked his teacup, his eyes unfocused.
“The mortal world bustles only for profit.
Every single one of them yearns for that realm of eternal life.
Everyone in the world can be their chess piece, and can also serve as their bait.
Among those who have lived through the long years, not a single one can be trusted.”
“And what about you?”
Li Chang’an asked casually, yet his gaze was locked onto Min Youguo’s eyes.
He only heard Min Youguo sigh, “As long as the nation remains, I remain.”
“I understand.”
Li Chang’an took a deep breath.
If his great-aunt could hear these words, she would surely feel comforted.
His heart soon at ease, he stood up and smiled, “Lord State Preceptor, I shall take my leave.”
“Mhm.”
Min Youguo raised his hand slightly.
“Tell your clansmen that the great war in the Western Border that has lasted for years, and Crown Prince Fei Heng personally leading the expedition there for over a century—none of this is a coincidence.
He is not Lin Jiu, nor can he be Lin Jiu; he must be after something.
My son possesses extraordinary methods, yet he set his sights on the Western Border, exposing numerous hidden trump cards.
No matter how you look at it, it was not worth it.
Furthermore, the Wu Race breaking conventions and the Nirvana Sage Elder arriving in person were definitely not acts done on a whim.”
“Also, tell your Li Clan: anger can drive a person, but only by maintaining a clear-headed anger can one tread safely through this chaotic world.”
Hearing this, Li Chang’an turned around, bowed to Min Youguo, and silently departed.
…
In the Western Border, a white lotus could be seen slowly advancing through the clouds, trailing scattered specks of spiritual energy behind it.
This was, in fact, a Grotto-Heaven.
[Lotus Ferry Nunnery]
Many women in the world who had seen through the vanity of the mortal realm entered this Lotus Ferry Nunnery.
Initially, there were only Buddhist nuns. However, after the Buddhist sects were destroyed by the Yidian Holy Monk, Lotus Ferry Nunnery also took in Daoist nuns.
Today, both Buddhist and Daoist nuns were numerous.
Within this vast Grotto-Heaven, one could see both Buddha statues and array formations.
Lotus Ferry Nunnery cultivated both Buddhist and Daoist paths, making it a true, unparalleled marvel under the heavens.
Now that the Western Border had fallen, Lotus Ferry Nunnery had fled, abandoning the lands of Shadowfell Prefecture that they had once sheltered.
The Buddhist and Daoist nuns within Lotus Ferry Nunnery all put on expressions of pity.
The nunnery was endlessly filled with the merciful and compassionate sounds of Buddhist chants and Daoist scriptures, seemingly for the salvation of all living beings.
Within the Grotto-Heaven, a Buddhist pagoda had been erected, yet beneath the pagoda lay an Eight Trigrams array formation.
Above it, a Daoist nun in a blue robe could be seen meditating, holding Buddhist prayer beads in both hands as she recited Daoist scriptures.
Though this Daoist nun kept her eyes closed and wore a Daoist cap, it was hard to conceal her beauty.
With her delicate and frail appearance, even if she were to vanish into a crowd, no one would ever realize that she was the Body Integration Realm expert of the Western Border, Abbess Dairou.
Not long after.
Footsteps sounded outside the Buddhist pagoda. A Daoist nun could be seen approaching.
She bowed and said,
“Abbess, guided by your Daoist arts, we have already found traces of Li Kuanghua.
The Abbess’s Daoist Spiritual power reaches the heavens; the Crown Prince was indeed escorted away by Li Kuanghua.”
“Alas.”
Abbess Dairou opened her eyes.
Beneath her long eyelashes, her clear eyes were filled with compassion.
“This is very good. We miscalculated the strength of the Wu Race.
By managing to leave in time to find an escape route for the common people of Shadowfell Prefecture, we have achieved a great heavenly merit.
Now that we have found the Crown Prince, it can be considered a blessing for the dynasty, a blessing for the Human Race.”
“The world is now in great chaos. Hongzhen, go and invite the Crown Prince and that Li Kuanghua into our Grotto-Heaven.
In these chaotic times, only our Lotus Ferry Nunnery can ferry them to a path of survival.”
Upon hearing this, Daoist nun Hongzhen nodded slightly.
“Yes, Abbess. With your protection, the Crown Prince and Li Kuanghua are safe.”
After Daoist nun Hongzhen departed, Abbess Dairou murmured to herself,
“All eyes are gathered on the Western Border.
Crown Prince Fei Heng cultivated in seclusion within the Li Clan for three hundred years before entering the imperial court.
He handed over the myriad and complex affairs of the court to the Immortal Suppression Department, seemingly unafraid of his authority being usurped.
He has fought in the Western Border for over a hundred years, refusing to leave.
Can the Western Border truly not survive without Fei Heng?”
“That son of the Min family possesses heaven-defying means, but the dynasty views him as a thorn in its side. How would he dare to strike again?
The people of the world will not let him off. Furthermore, the Wu Race has attacked with such haste this time… my fated opportunity for the Great Dao…”
“…is drawing near.”
The white lotus in the clouds came to a sudden halt.
Below it, amidst the mountain forests, commoners were fleeing for their lives.
Li Kuanghua was carrying Crown Prince Fei Heng on her back, her teeth grinding loudly.
She wanted to kill Fei Heng.
She had already entered the Ancestral Space, met with her clansmen, and learned of the tragic events in the Western Border.
“I should have… I should have killed you back then. But now, I cannot bring myself to do it.”
Li Kuanghua’s eyes brimmed with anger.
Her aunt had deceived her; she was supposed to be in the Western Border, fighting alongside her. But only now did she understand the truth.
Back then, there was never any seventy percent chance of victory. With the forces of the Shadowfell Prefecture fleeing, there was not even a ten percent chance of survival.
Her aunt had made her take Fei Heng away as a way of arranging her final affairs.
How could she possibly raise a hand against this useless Crown Prince now?
Her steps were heavy, but as she moved forward once more, Li Kuanghua’s expression drastically changed.
“Void Refining!”
In an instant, the panicked, fleeing commoners around her vanished.
The mountain forest spun and tilted, carrying Fei Heng on her back, She had already been transported to another location.
Looking up, she saw a compassionate-looking nun standing before her, chanting.
Li Kuanghua remained expressionless.
The rage in her heart blazed like Sage Elder Nirvana’s Heavenly Fire, yet she recalled what Chang’an had told her within the Ancestral Space.
Calm down, stay calm!
—
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