What were the Immortal Gods?
Countless people had different thoughts in their hearts, but one thing was certain: those who could ride the clouds and drive the mist were immortals!
"Immortal Gods!"
"The Moth Bandits really have a god!"
"Holy Venerable Huang Tian!"
"..."
Shouts rose and fell from the city wall.
Everyone, including Liu Hong, guessed that the young man was none other than the Sovereign Yellow Absolute God, the legendary protector of the Moth Bandits.
"...Ride the clouds and drive the mist?"
Liu Hong's mind went blank for a moment. He was torn between his anxiety about defending the city and his overwhelming yearning for immortal arts.
The high ministers around him were no better. Though they had already confirmed the existence of immortals from Cao Cao and Dong Zhuo, who had fled back to Luoyang, witnessing an immortal cast a spell with their own eyes was another matter entirely.
The older ministers in particular—Yang Ci, Zhang Wen, and Yuan Wei—found themselves breathing heavily.
If immortals and immortal arts existed, did that mean eternal life was possible?
"Elder brother, are we... really up against a True Immortal?" Behind Liu Bei, the mighty Zhang Fei tugged at Liu Bei's sleeve and asked in a low voice.
Guan Yu, standing nearby, also looked to Liu Bei. He considered himself a match for a hundred men, but against an immortal, he didn't think he was any different from an ordinary mortal.
Liu Bei swallowed nervously and replied in a low voice, "All men have died since ancient times. I'm protecting His Majesty and repaying the kindness he showed me. Even if I die, so what? No matter how much power an immortal possesses, he can still take my head and kill me!"
Emperor Liu Hong had promoted Liu Bei, and the two men he trusted most, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, had naturally risen along with him, each receiving a military post. It was only fair to say that Liu Hong had shown them great kindness.
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei nodded slightly.
In these times, people prized loyalty and filial piety. Kindness had to be repaid, and vengeance avenged. The three of them had to repay the emperor's favor.
Liu Bei quietly instructed them, "That God Huang Tian wields formidable power. I'm deeply uneasy. I fear Luoyang's walls won't hold for long. We must watch the situation closely. If the city falls, take His Majesty and flee at once, heading for Dongyang Gate. There are few enemy troops there. Understood?"
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei replied, "Understood."
Only then did Liu Bei turn back to face the area beyond the city. His gaze wandered until it suddenly met Yuan Shao's. Liu Bei paused and gave a slight nod. He knew Yuan Shao, who came from the Yuan Clan, a family that had produced three dukes across four generations, and was a renowned scholar in the capital. Liu Bei had long wanted to make his acquaintance.
But Yuan Shao clearly had no intention of befriending him, especially in such a fraught situation. He gave no response to Liu Bei's nod, merely turning his expressionless gaze away as he thought:
"Immortals really do exist. Can Luoyang truly be saved? It seems I'll have to leave for another province as planned..."
Nearby, the handsome Gongsun Zan drew in a breath of cold air, filling his lungs with the chill of the overcast day. He shivered. "Immortal Gods! What an absurd world this is..."
Sun Jian had lost his usual fearless composure as well. His hand instinctively gripped the Ring-pommel Saber at his waist, and a flicker of relief rose in his heart. "Good thing His Majesty refused when I volunteered to fight that day. If I'd led the army out alone, the Moth Bandits might have captured and killed me by now."
He was reckless, but not stupid. Faced with an immortal whose powers were beyond all understanding, he thought it was perfectly acceptable to lie low...
On the city wall, the ministers and generals each had their own thoughts, and the atmosphere grew increasingly strange.
By then, Huang Tian was standing atop the high platform. He looked up at the sky, where a few dark clouds gathered beneath the gloomy overcast, as though rain was threatening but would never come.
"After waiting several days, at last I've got an overcast, rainy day..."
A smile touched his lips. He lightly tapped the air with his right index finger, and brilliant golden light blossomed from his fingertip. Threads of spiritual energy drew in every trace of moisture between heaven and earth.
This was... the Lesser Cloud and Rain Technique!
Though its name had the word "lesser" in it, when cast on an overcast, rainy day, that word could be dropped entirely.
"Wind, come!"
His clear voice rang out across the land, reaching everyone's ears.
Whoosh—
First came a bleak, cold breeze. Then a fierce gale swept in from the depths of Mang Mountain, surging with the force to overturn everything. It sent sand and stones flying, swayed the tall trees, and set the banners snapping!
The gale drove Liu Hong and the nobles and ministers back from the wall. Sand stung their eyes, leaving them unable to open them, and terror spread across their faces.
Liu Bei rushed forward, seized Liu Hong by the arm, and shouted. His voice was swallowed by the wind. "Your Majesty, that false god must be casting a fearsome spell! We must hurry down, lest his evil magic harm us!"
Liu Hong nodded frantically. "Yes, yes! Hurry down!"
He shielded the Heaven-Reaching Crown on his head as it whipped about and hurried toward the tower stairs under Liu Bei's protection. But the soldiers on the wall also tried to leave. There were too many of them, and they jammed together, pushing and shoving until no one could get down.
Some soldiers, seeing no way out, fell to their knees in terror and kowtowed to Huang Tian. Others threw themselves on the ground, clutching their heads and trembling.
"Don't block the way! Don't block the way! Let His Majesty down first!"
Liu Bei shouted at the top of his lungs, but no one paid him any attention. He didn't dare draw his sword and cut a path through them. In their crazed state, the soldiers' reaction was impossible to predict. If they drew their weapons in return, Liu Hong and the ministers would be in grave danger.
The city wall descended into chaos.
Below, the gale whipped Huang Tian's robes with a sharp crackle, but he paid it no mind. He called out again, "Rain, come!" The dark clouds overhead quickly gathered and deepened to the color of black ink. They hung low and churned, as if brewing something terrifying.
Patter, patter—
Raindrops drifted down from the sky, falling onto the small flags planted around the platform with soft taps. Then the rain grew heavier and heavier, until a vast white curtain of water veiled the world and blotted out countless people's vision.
The gale howled and the rain poured down in torrents, as though the world had been turned upside down. Chaos spread across Luoyang's city wall, where people fought for space, frantically scrambling down.
Sun Jian was a brave man. If he couldn't deal with God Huang Tian, surely he could handle a few mere soldiers. He immediately drew his saber and, with a savage expression, brought it down on the neck of a young soldier who had dropped his helmet and armor. Splurt—the soldier's hot blood sprayed out, and his headless body crashed into the cold rainwater, splashing it into sparkling droplets.
"Clear a path for me, all of you!"
He roared and carved his way forward with his saber, cutting down anyone who stood in his way. Most of his personal guards had been scattered by the crowd, but a few still followed close behind, swinging their weapons as wildly as he did. Limbs flew across the ramp leading down from the wall, and the place became a Purgatory.
Then someone cursed and shouted at him through the downpour. Sun Jian could just make out the voice hurling insults and curses. He glared viciously toward it—and his pupils suddenly contracted. A crossbow bolt flashed coldly before plunging into his left eye with a splurt.
"Ah! It hurts like hell!"
Gripping the bolt that had pierced his left eye, blood gushed between Sun Jian's fingers as he let out a monstrous howl...
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