Pacifying the Rebellion

Everyone following Prince Jin knew there was no turning back now. They shouted, "Kill!"

Li Qing Shan knew this was Prince Jin's final frenzy and immediately roared, "Protect His Majesty!"

A master-level expert immediately charged at the Emperor, but the instant he closed in, he was driven back by an ink-black saber.

It was Li Qing Shan who had struck. Purple-black mist suddenly seeped out from beneath his iron armor—the sign that the Demon Slayer Blade had reached great mastery.

The Grandmaster's sword suddenly slid three inches from its sheath on its own, its blade reflecting the flowing golden Buddhist script in Li Qing Shan's pupils—this was actually the lost Buddhist visage, Vajra's Wrathful Gaze!

The Grandmaster who had attacked cried out in shock, "Buddha and demon in one body? Are you trying to cultivate an Asura Body?"

Other than a slight surprise, the Grandmaster had little else on his mind. So long as he held Li Qing Shan back, with the manpower they had, the Emperor would still die in the end. Once the Emperor died, their great undertaking would succeed. The advantage was ours.

The rebel troops following Prince Jin shouted as they charged. One ordinary soldier was especially fervent. "Kill! Today is the day we win glory and establish merit! Charge!"

His voice was incomparably fierce, yet his body kept edging closer to Prince Jin, who was fighting and killing ahead.

Seizing his chance, he thrust his sword at Prince Jin's throat. It was Li Chen Zhou, who had changed into rebel armor halfway here.

Prince Jin, caught in battle, did not notice one of his own approaching him at all. When he suddenly sensed danger, he dodged. The longsword brushed past his neck, leaving behind a bloody flesh wound.

Having escaped death by a hair's breadth, Prince Jin turned his head in disbelief and discovered someone had attacked him. Already mad, he flew into an even greater rage. "Who are you, to dare assassinate this prince? Do you take me for some insignificant nobody?"

Li Chen Zhou was slightly moved. Prince Jin was actually an expert as well.

The matter was already set in stone. As long as they held off Prince Jin's attack for this stretch of time, the overall situation would basically be decided. Seeing Li Chen Zhou fighting the boss alone, Liu Xian, a Hundred-Household Officer of the Eastern Depot, immediately turned and stepped forward. He had to get a share of this merit too.

"Young Duke, I'll help you!" His thin voice turned piercing when shouted, raising goosebumps all over Li Chen Zhou's body.

Prince Jin stood among the rebel ranks, glaring at Li Chen Zhou with sinister eyes. "Li Chen Zhou, I never expected you to still be alive. Today, none of you will leave alive!" With that, he retreated and waved his hand, and the rebels launched another fierce assault.

Li Chen Zhou circulated the Golden Bell Shield technique. Golden light spread around his body, and like a god of war, he knocked back the charging rebels one by one.

But there were too many rebels. Wave after wave came crashing in, and he gradually began to feel unable to keep up.

At that moment, the system notification sounded again:

"Ding! Emergency mission issued: Repel Prince Jin within half an hour. Reward: one Heaven-tier weapon."

Li Chen Zhou gritted his teeth. I'll stake it all!

Li Chen Zhou fully unleashed his max-level Golden Bell Shield. At that moment, the Flawless Realm of the max-level Golden Bell Shield was perfectly displayed.

The rebels' weapons struck Li Chen Zhou's body and were all shattered by the Golden Bell Shield's rebounding force.

The rebounding force traveled through their weapons and sent every attacker flying. Those launched into the air were met by Liu Xian's sword, their bodies split into two midair. Liu Xian stepped over the path paved with corpses and advanced toward Prince Jin as well.

Having cultivated the Dark Yin Sword Canon, Liu Xian's moves were ruthless, every strike steeped in eerie strangeness. Working together with Li Chen Zhou, he quickly closed in on Prince Jin.

At this moment, a martial artist under Prince Jin shouted, "This is the highest realm of the Golden Bell Shield, the Flawless Realm! Your Highness, retreat quickly! I'll hold him back."

Prince Jin retreated, while the rebels directly employed human-wave tactics, squeezing Li Chen Zhou in tightly and preventing him from advancing even an inch.

At that moment:

"Ding! Side mission completed. Prince Jin has retreated. Reward: Heaven-tier demonic weapon, Blood Demon Blade. Would you like to extract it?"

Li Chen Zhou's ten years of inner force erupted in full, blasting everyone away. "Extract."

A long blade with a scarlet sheen appeared in Li Chen Zhou's hand. Its edge was not sharp, but covered in tiny serrated barbs. Cracks ran across the blade, and between them, blood-colored light could faintly be seen flowing.

Li Chen Zhou slashed down. The weapons of the soldiers blocking his path were severed at once. With another slash, violent blade qi tore a massive gash through their bodies, and the crisscrossing blade qi began to slaughter in swathes.

Anyone who looked closely would discover that the blood qi in the air was continuously gathering toward the blade, then slowly passing through it into Li Chen Zhou's body to replenish him.

At that moment, several martial arts experts turned and began surrounding Li Chen Zhou.

Li Qing Shan, who was fighting the Grandmaster, wore an expression of disbelief on the face where Buddhist light and demonic qi intertwined. It was as though he were meeting this son for the first time.

When Liu Xian unleashed the sword techniques of the Dark Yin Sword Canon, sword shadows flickered like ghosts weaving through the air. His sword moves were strange and treacherous, their speed reaching the utmost extreme. Every thrust seemed to come from an unimaginable angle, leaving opponents unable to guard against them.

The two worked in perfect coordination, as though they had entered an empty realm.

Li Chen Zhou turned to Liu Xian. "Eunuch Liu, this won't do. Help me break through. To capture the bandits, first capture their king."

Liu Xian let out a shrill cry. "All right..." The Dark Yin Sword Canon displayed its divine might again, its sword shadows growing ever denser as they forced the martial arts experts surrounding Li Chen Zhou back like a violent storm.

Li Chen Zhou erupted once more. With Liu Xian's aid, he broke through the encirclement and charged straight at Prince Jin.

Prince Jin's personal guards came forward to block him, only to have the Blood Demon Blade sweep across them. Their weapons shattered, and they all spat blood as they flew away.

Li Chen Zhou swung again. The Blood Demon Blade absorbed the blood on the ground, gathering and solidifying it before slashing out with full force, forming enormous blood-colored blade qi. Prince Jin raised his sword to block, but the blade qi severed it. Prince Jin gathered his inner force and resisted with all his strength, yet he was still blasted away in the end.

Tai Xuan Hall was now covered in blood. One could well imagine the combat boost it granted the Blood Demon Blade, though overusing it also had an enormous effect on Li Chen Zhou.

Prince Jin was sent flying and fell to the ground, blood soaking his clothes red. When he tried to rise again, Li Chen Zhou stepped forward and kicked him back down.

Li Chen Zhou planted his foot on Prince Jin, pointed his long blade at him, and shouted, "Prince Jin has been captured! Why do you not surrender at once?"

The martial arts experts under Prince Jin, who had been confronting the palace's top experts, heard that Prince Jin had been captured and scattered in all directions.

The black-clad man leading them looked at Prince Jin beneath Li Chen Zhou's foot and cursed, "Trash."

He then looked at Li Chen Zhou and sneered. "The Li Family really knows how to hide its strength. We will surely meet again." With that, he vanished into the darkness amid the chaos.

Li Chen Zhou did not pursue the black-clad man. Stabilizing the palace situation was the top priority now; naturally, others would handle the rest. He turned to the Emperor, dropped to one knee, and planted the Blood Demon Blade against the ground. "Your Majesty, the traitor has been captured. The palace is safe for now."

"Ding! Prince Jin's capture detected. Mission complete. Reward: one randomly drawn cultivation technique."

"Ding! Would you like to begin the draw?"

Li Chen Zhou said, "Not yet."

The Emperor looked at the captured Prince Jin, his eyes filled with complicated emotions. In the end, he waved his hand. "Take him away. My dear ministers, you have worked hard. Withdraw as well. I am tired today. We shall speak again tomorrow."

Soon afterward, the Capital City garrison finally arrived. They swiftly cleared the battlefield and wiped out the remaining rebels in one sweep.

Led by Li Qing Shan, Li Chen Zhou slowly walked out of Tai Xuan Hall.

After that vicious battle, he was exhausted, yet his eyes remained fixed on Li Qing Shan's back before him. He had truly underestimated the old man of his family.

That old bastard was so strong, yet he had actually planned to sacrifice his own son. He simply did not deserve to be called a father. Later, he would have to see whether the man had an illegitimate son and kill one first to vent his anger.