r18novel Page 433
Page 433
Standing behind him, Minister Nangong looked at the crimson Liang Prince's mansion in the distance and the corpses scattered on the ground, and nodded affirmatively.
"Your Highness, be merciful."
News of the destruction of Longhu Mountain quickly reached Tai'an City.
Crown Prince Zhao Zhu reported the news to Emperor Zhao Bing: "Father, Longhu Mountain is gone."
After reading the intelligence, Zhao Bing felt a chill in his heart. Longhu Mountain was gone, all the old immortals of the clan had been killed by Li Chang'an, and the nine golden lotuses that were one with the fortune of the Liyang Dynasty had been completely destroyed.
He never expected that the True Dragon Subduing Demon Formation of Longhu Mountain could block Xu Fengnian's True Martial Dharma Form, but not Li Chang'an.
During the previous negotiations with Xu Fengnian, the Li Yang Dynasty had been playing along, only gaining the upper hand after learning that Xu Fengnian's sneak attack on Longhu Mountain had failed.
But things are different now. The once-proud Longhu Mountain has been completely destroyed, so the remaining resources of the Liyang Dynasty are no better than those of Zhenwu and Xu Fengnian, the reincarnation of Qin Shi Huang.
"Give Yanzhou, Xiongzhou, and Jinzhou all to Xu Fengnian. Let's keep him in check first. The right thing to do now is to join forces to deal with Li Chang'an."
Before Zhao Zhu could speak, he was stunned by a voice from the air, "What time is it? Why are you still worrying about these things? Come to the Imperial Observatory immediately."
The voice sounded very young, with a hint of sharpness. Zhao Bing had heard this voice before; he had met the Celestial Supervisor surnamed Chen when he successfully seized the throne.
Chen Diaosi, a powerful eunuch of the same age and destiny as Li Yangchao, is a celestial being with unfathomable cultivation, despite his youthful appearance.
Zhao Bing and his son hurriedly arrived at the underground of the Imperial Observatory. In that dark and sunless stone chamber, besides Chen Diaosi, there was another young man.
The man was dressed in white, and the scarlet mark on his forehead was very conspicuous. Although Zhao Bing had never seen him before, he could guess that this was Xu Fengnian, the King of Beiliang.
"Xu Fengnian, how dare you come to Tai'an City."
Xu Fengnian sat upright on the stone chair, facing Chen Diaosi. When he heard the emperor speak, he remained silent, not even lifting his eyelids.
"Zhao Bing, do you think you have any right to speak here?"
Zhao Bing was speechless for a moment. Although he was the emperor, the two people in front of him were top experts of the time. Xu Fengnian was able to summon the True Martial Dharma Image, who was said to be at the Great Longevity Realm of the Celestial Beings.
With two celestial beings of great immortality here, he, a mortal emperor, is like a grasshopper, easily crushed with a single hand.
The father and son quickly understood the current situation. Li Chang'an had destroyed Longhu Mountain, and his only opponents were these two, but neither of them was confident that they could defeat Li Chang'an.
Therefore, cooperation between the two is currently the only way to survive.
Chen Diao Temple was protecting the ancestral temples and state of Liyang. It didn't matter to him who the Zhao family member became emperor. In other words, he could depose or install an emperor with just a word.
If Xu Fengnian requires the replacement of the emperor as a condition for cooperating with Chen Diaosi of Liyang, Chen Diaosi will agree without hesitation.
Thinking of this, Zhao Bing, who was dressed in a majestic dragon robe, broke out in a cold sweat and dared not say another word.
Xu Fengnian then turned to Chen Diaosi and said, "Chen Diaosi, Longhu Mountain is gone. If we don't cooperate now, we will only be defeated one by one by Li Chang'an."
On the surface, Chen Diaosi was even younger than Xu Fengnian, and his tone was very calm, "Even with your True Martial and Qin Emperor Dharma Body strength, you are no match for Li Chang'an?"
Xu Fengnian had been defeated by Li Chang'an too many times, and he was traumatized by it. He really didn't dare to fight Li Chang'an rashly.
Moreover, the True Dragon Subduing Demon Formation, which he himself had failed to break, was also broken by Li Chang'an. Even the fortune of Longhu Mountain was completely absorbed by Li Chang'an, and Li Chang'an's strength is now much greater than when he broke the formation.
"Chen Diaosi, you don't need to test me anymore. I'm doing this to ensure everything goes smoothly. If anything happens to me, do you really have the ability to stand up to Li Chang'an alone?"
"Unity benefits both sides, while division harms both sides; the current situation is crystal clear."
"If we can destroy Li Chang'an and divide his territory, it's fine if Daliang and Liyang split the world equally, or we can regroup and fight again. Your fortune will certainly benefit you."
Everyone here is intelligent; the situation is indeed very clear now, and there's no need for further haggling. If we continue with this pretense and wait for an agreement to be reached, Li Chang'an will have already dispatched his troops.
Although Chen Diaosi was not in court, he had been closely monitoring the situation there, given the imminent danger facing Li Yang. He knew that while things were still unresolved with Li Chang'an in the Northern Barbarian lands, there was still some room for maneuver.
"According to King Liang's opinion, what should be done now?"
Xu Fengnian said bluntly, "There is no better way. You and I will join forces, secretly infiltrate Liangzhou, and fight Li Chang'an."
"With the combined strength of the two of us, no matter how many experts Li Chang'an has under his command, they can't stop us. He has to make a move."
As the situation has developed to this point, three celestial beings with strength far surpassing that of the others have emerged.
Li Chang'an and Xu Fengnian disrupted Huang Longshi's original plan and absorbed too much fortune, causing the situation where a large number of land immortals did not appear in the martial arts world, but instead gathered on these two.
Of course, Li Chang'an absorbed most of it.
Therefore, the battles of thousands of troops cannot control the situation of the world; only when these three people decide the outcome of the battle, life and death, can the world be at peace.
Just as Xu Fengnian and Chen Diaosi were discussing things, a knight with a flustered expression arrived outside the gate of Tai'an City.
"Urgent report from Jizhou!"
"We request an audience with the King of Liang!"
Chapter 257 Shattering the Void! Seven Deadly Realms! Breaking Through the True Martial Dharma Form!
Li Chang'an destroyed Longhu Mountain, then massacred the Liang Prince's Mansion. More than 10,000 Northern Liang soldiers in Jizhou died, and tens of thousands were scattered.
In Jizhou City, only Xu Longxiang remains with more than 50,000 soldiers who are unaware of the situation. The Northern Liang soldiers who witnessed Li Chang'an's actions have all fled.
That night, they were terrified. They knew that if they continued to oppose Li Chang'an, they would only face death.
If the Li Yang Dynasty had lost an arm, Xu Fengnian had been skinned alive and had his tendons pulled out; he no longer had any leverage to negotiate with the Li Yang Dynasty.
The envoy relayed the events of Jizhou to Xu Fengnian in fits and starts, but neither the Emperor of Liyang Dynasty nor Chen Diaosi showed any joy upon hearing it.
Because they all knew very well that Li Yang Dynasty and Xu Fengnian were now interdependent, and if one was to suffer, the other would suffer as well. If Li Chang'an could easily slaughter the Northern Liang soldiers, then slaughtering the Li Yang Dynasty army would be even easier.
Chen Diaosi had no choice. Li Chang'an had made it clear that he wanted to destroy the Li Yang Dynasty. Once the Li Yang Dynasty was destroyed, his life would come to an end.
In his opinion, he was somewhat unsure about Xu Fengnian's thoughts.
Since Xu Fengnian had no burdens, he could easily take his younger brother Xu Longxiang and flee far away. At worst, he could give up the struggle for the world and escape to some corner of the Western Regions or the South China Sea, where no one would easily find him.
Now that Xu Fengnian has suffered great losses, Chen Diaosi is worried that Xu Fengnian will no longer resist Li Chang'an.
"King Liang, we can't wait any longer. I will go with you to find Li Chang'an and fight him to the death."
At this moment, Xu Fengnian was expressionless, and no one knew what he was thinking.
He has regained some of his memories from his past life, but Xu Fengnian's memories are also there. In this life, he was captured twice by Li Chang'an and suffered countless humiliations.
His two older sisters were kidnapped, his father was killed, the royal palace was massacred twice, and both women who were in love with him were killed by Li Chang'an.
Now, apart from his younger brother Xu Longxiang, all the old retainers of the Northern Liang Prince's Mansion and his close associates have died at the hands of Li Chang'an.
He knew, of course, that if he ran away, the world would be vast and Li Chang'an might have a hard time finding him.
However, he possesses the memories of the True Martial Emperor and the Qin Emperor, and he truly does not wish to hide and live in seclusion.
"Chen Diaosi, how confident are we of defeating Li Chang'an if we join forces?"
Chen Diaosi shares the same fate as the Li Yang Dynasty. The Li Yang Dynasty has already fallen apart, and his current Heavenly Longevity Realm cannot be maintained for much longer, which is why he is anxious.
"If the two of us join forces, it shows that you are sincere in becoming the Liang King of the Li Yang Dynasty. The fortune of Li Yang can be restored to some extent. Even if I leave Tai'an City, I can still maintain the Great Longevity Realm of Heaven and Man."
"But what about you? Just how strong is your True Martial Dharma Body now?"
The so-called True Martial Emperor is a god who values martial arts. If he were to flee from battle, his Dharma body would only become weaker and weaker.
In other words, if Xu Fengnian doesn't fight, he will only be able to hide away and die of old age, and will never have a chance to turn his life around.
Moreover, after breaking the formation at Longhu Mountain, his golden body Dharma form learned new moves, giving him even more confidence in dealing with Li Chang'an.
"The power of the gods is enough to kill Li Chang'an!"
Chen Diaosi sneered inwardly. If Xu Fengnian was truly confident in killing Li Chang'an on his own, why would he need to come looking for him?
However, now that the situation is urgent, it's all the better that Xu Fengnian has no intention of backing down.
"Since King Liang has such ambitions, I will risk my life to accompany you."
Lingzhou, Wudang Mountain.
Having lost all his martial arts skills, Wang Chonglou sat listlessly in the Zhenwu Hall, his aged face full of wrinkles and his expression full of sorrow.
"Sect Leader, the Tang army has entered Lingzhou!"
Lingzhou is bordered by Youzhou to the north, Liangzhou to the west, and Qingzhou to the south; it is surrounded on three sides by Li Chang'an's territory. Lingzhou is like a piece of fat meat in a tiger's mouth, just waiting for Li Chang'an's army to open its jaws.
Huo Qubing was attacking Beidi City, the capital of Northern Mang, while Zhuge Liang was still stationed in Nanjing City, the capital of Northern Mang. The Mang army in the south had been completely wiped out, and Li Cunxiao was hastily marching south to Lingzhou.
The garrison in Lingzhou was already small, and with the help of Yao Jian and Ye Xizhen's persuasion to surrender, Li Cunxiao captured Lingzhou with virtually no effort.
The original three prefectures of Beiliang—Lingzhou, Liangzhou, and Youzhou—were all taken over by Li Chang'an.
“Jade Axe, smash the statue of Zhenwu, then demolish the Zhenwu Hall, and from now on Wudang will no longer worship Zhenwu.”
Upon hearing Wang Chonglou's order, Li Yufu was shocked. The Northern Zhenwu Emperor, whom Wudang Mountain had worshipped for hundreds of years, was now about to do something so treasonous.
This means that Wudang Mountain has completely abandoned its faith. Does that mean Wudang Mountain still has any reason to exist?
"Sect Leader, without the True Martial Emperor... what is there left for Wudang Mountain to worship?"
Wang Chonglou said, "From now on, Wudang will only worship Lu Zu."
He had already heard that Li Chang'an had trampled through Longhu Mountain, but had not touched the Taoist temples or the statues of the Celestial Masters in the mountain, and that the Celestial Masters sect of Longhu Mountain had not been destroyed.
Longhu Mountain has already declared that from now on they will only cultivate Taoism and not practice martial arts, and will have no further dealings with the Liyang Dynasty.
In other words, as long as one no longer participates in the struggle for power and does not help Li Yang or Bei Liang, the lineage can continue.
Xu Fengnian is the reincarnation of Zhenwu. Wudang Mountain still has a portion of the Taoist fortune. If they continue to worship Zhenwu the Great, it means that Wudang Mountain is still supporting Xu Fengnian.
Words are not enough; only by completely destroying the worship and sacrifices to Zhenwu the Great can we demonstrate Wudang Mountain's determination to no longer support Xu Fengnian.