"Have you heard anything from the north?"
Inside the imperial study, the emperor and his current empress enjoyed a rare moment of peace, thanks to the arrival of a Ziyi sorcerer.
There are four court sorcerers who are not from aristocratic families, and this one is the last one left by the emperor's side. If Chen Qing sees him, he will be surprised because this person looks exactly like the Zhulong sorcerer who went with the court before!
" The Lu Household has lived up to the emperor's expectations and successfully opened the Ten Thousand Snakes Valley!"
The emperor was not surprised at all. The Lu Household had a strong foundation, with many elders being martial artists of the Above First Rank. After Lu Ming led the Lu Household to further advancement, the Lu Household directly controlled the vast resources of the East and West Seas. These old guys benefited a lot. Although they were old and frail, with the nourishment of various precious medicinal herbs, they were definitely not much weaker than when they were in their prime.
If a group of such powerful individuals were to collectively open up the Ten Thousand Snakes Valley, it would be impossible to stop them unless all the powerful families in the north joined forces to resist.
It has to be said that Chen Qing really did a great favor. Originally, I was worried about how to make the Lu Household despair. After all, there are few people in the world who can match Lu Ming's strength on their own. Even if I took action myself, I would need the right time, place, and people to be extremely compatible for me to have any chance of taking down Lu Ming.
Lu Ming is not only powerful, but also meticulous. He himself has not found this opportunity in the twenty years since the founding of the dynasty!
Even with all her scheming, her elder sister couldn't kill Lu Ming, but in the end, she was defeated by that brat Chen Qing!
He's such a good son-in-law!
If Yuchi Feihong were here, he would surely marvel at how accurate Chen Qing's predictions were.
The Lu Household's collective trip to the north was indeed orchestrated by the emperor behind the scenes!
"Your Majesty, the Earth Serpent has awakened, but the Earth Mother remains unresponsive."
"No rush," the Emperor laughed. " The Earth Mother was severely injured and frozen by the King of Qin's top-tier ice-sealing technique. To awaken her, she needs a large amount of warrior's blood essence, so she can't awaken in a short time. But we don't need to worry; those snake sorcerers are more anxious than we are!"
The Ziyi sorcerer nodded upon hearing this. The demonized creatures of the Southern Barbarians were on the verge of physical collapse. They relied on large human sacrifices and secret medicines to barely maintain their bodies. They were afraid of being devoured by their own kind and dared not go into deep hibernation like the Earth Serpent. They were almost driven to despair.
If it weren't for the Thousand-Faced Fox incident, and if the court had proceeded cautiously, it would have inevitably started a war with the Southern Barbarians!
According to the intelligence provided by the Lu Household, those Southern Barbarians have been itching to act for a long time.
"Your Majesty, the number of Earth Python is greater than expected, and the Lu Household is more ruthless than anticipated, secretly helping to assassinate the northern aristocratic families. Even the heir of the Duke of Wei almost got into trouble. Isn't this a bit..."
Others may not know, but the Ziyi sorcerer does. The Duke of Wei is truly loyal and has always believed that the king was bewitched by demons, which led him to use ancient methods. In fact, there is still a chance to recruit him into his ranks.
After all, they're elderly people who have lived here for many years.
When the emperor heard the name of the Duke of Wei, a complex emotion flashed in his eyes.
The Duke of Wei has followed me for many years, even before I reached the pinnacle of my power. Over the years, he has worked diligently to stabilize the north and establish the Great Jin. While most dukes enjoy wealth and honor in their fiefdoms, he remains in the harsh lands to fight against powerful enemies for me. Several years ago, he even helped me conquer the Seven Cities of Youyun in the north!
It would be a lie for such a person to say that they have no feelings at all, but...
"Do you know why the King of Qin failed?" the emperor asked, looking at the other man.
The Ziyi sorcerer hesitated. The emperor disliked discussing the former King of Qin. After all, as the King of Qin's greatest supporter, he had ultimately betrayed King of Qin and seized the throne. If recorded in history, no matter how one tried to explain it, it would still look bad.
For so many years, everyone tacitly avoided mentioning it, but today, he brought it up himself.
"Were their demonic identities revealed too early?" the Ziyi sorcerer asked uncertainly.
"That's not important." The emperor sneered. Many people already knew his identity before he was even exposed. Although he was a demon, he had worked tirelessly for the human race, moving many people in the past, especially during the final sealing of the ancient world. His influence was so strong that Cloud Capital were willing to serve him. In fact, he was already considered the ruler of the world. But what was the result?
Didn't you just trick me?
The Ziyi sorcerer rolled his eyes inwardly, but dared not say it aloud, and could only reply, "Forgive my ignorance."
"The reason is actually very simple: his stance is not thorough!" the emperor said coldly. "Humans and demons coexisting is easy to say. When both sides were fighting against the ancient times, they could barely cooperate, but what about afterward? What about when they occupied the world? According to the King of Qin, at least half of the high-ranking nobles are demons. Do you think the noble families of the world would be willing to live in such a world?"
"This"
"That's why when the King of Qin was driven to despair, not a single noble family came to his rescue!"
The emperor sneered, " The Duke of Wei is loyal to me because he believes I will be a more perfect King of Qin. I stand firmly on the side of humanity, but I will not use the power of the ancients." He then looked at the other man, "During the ancient invasion, humans Magic City coexist. What do you think was the reason? Many people believed in the King of Qin's doctrine back then. My becoming king was also a promise to inherit the King of Qin's ambition and not touch the ancients. After all, for most aristocratic families, being able to stably maintain their wealth and status is already enough; they simply keep their distance from the power of the ancients."
" The Duke of Wei is a typical example of this group of incompetent people. If he knew what I am doing now, he would never be loyal to me again."
The Ziyi sorcerer lowered his head, remaining silent. The emperor's thoughts were truly chilling. Whether the Duke of Wei would betray them was merely a hypothetical question, but the emperor preferred not to take that risk.
Just like with the Duke of Song back then.
"I remember that the Duke of Wei has been loyal for many years." The emperor sighed and said, "Try to preserve his descendants. I remember he has an eldest grandson, right? Notify our spies in the north and find a way to protect him, to leave a bloodline for his family. It would be a way to repay the loyalty we've shown to our so many years."
"Yes!!"
After the Ziyi sorcerer withdrew, a short while later, the alluring figure embraced the emperor once again.
"You're so kind-hearted."
"The Duke of Duke of Wei is full of loyal martyrs; over a hundred of his direct descendants alone died fighting for me," the Emperor said calmly. "He deserves it."
"Hehehe," the Empress chuckled softly, embracing the other person, "You're so kind."
"Are you confident?" The emperor finally got to the point. "Back when the King of Qin was alive, everyone was extremely wary of the Heavenly Python. It is said that a fully grown Heavenly Python can encircle an entire country?"
"More than that," the Queen said, biting the other's ear. "An older Heavenly Python is even more extravagant; if it were to coil its head and tail around, it could circle your entire world!"
"Can it circle the world?" The emperor's pupils contracted. "Can you handle this thing?"
"Scared?"
Isn't awe of the unknown a human instinct?
Hahaha, I love your personality!
emperor. "."
"Don't be afraid. Everything is under control. You'll soon find out that the terror of this world is far greater than you imagine. Dragons that can summon wind and rain, snakes that coil around the world—ha, they're just delicacies on the table!"
--
"Someone come here!"
In the Northern Frontier Cloud City, the newly awakened prince called out with difficulty to those outside.
"The prince has awakened?"
A group of martial arts practitioners who guarded the gate around the clock showed surprise and quickly approached to ask.
"What's the situation now?"
"The situation is dire," one of the tall warriors shook his head. " The Seven Cities of Youyun have completely fallen, North Sea City is also surrounded by giant serpents. We are caught in the middle of this encirclement, and the situation is very bad!"
"Cities are very difficult to defend. Those giant snakes can emerge from the ground, and you never know when or from which location they will appear. They are extremely difficult to defend against and have a powerful destructive effect on the rear. Often, by the time you organize your army and arrive, the place where the giant snakes have emerged is already littered with corpses!"
"Yes, these monsters are enormous and elusive. We soldiers can't spread out, so we can only keep shrinking our defensive lines. But at this rate, we can't keep up with logistics!"
" Jiangnan."
" Jiangnan?" a burly, dark-faced man said. " Jiangnan's plea for help is hopeless, North Sea City has already fallen. We..."
"Take it!" The prince struggled to his feet. "Find a way to contact Jiangnan and capture North Sea City. This is our only way out in the Northern Frontier!!!"