Chapter 1649
Chapter 1649
In the critical moment of life and death, they went to meet the leader of the Alliance of Heavenly Attack.
It was already well-known in the imperial capital of the Heavenly Chu Haotu that the God General faction and the Champion Marquis had a strained relationship. However, no one expected that on the day the Champion Marquis left, the God General faction would do something so infuriating and shameful. Even the Emperor Chu Gucheng, in order to prevent the situation from escalating, stepped in to cover for the God General faction, even sending trusted subordinates to assassinate the Champion Marquis Chu Heng’s confidant, Han Feng.
This incident caused an uproar in the imperial capital, leaving countless cultivators and living beings shocked and unable to believe it. On that same day, the Martial God General who remained in the capital appeared, solemnly clarifying that this matter had nothing to do with the God General faction. While they had conflicts with the Champion Marquis, they would not sink to such despicable levels of attacking his family when he was not in the capital.
However, despite the Martial God General’s clarification and their vow of disassociation, many still did not believe it. If they were not responsible, then why would Emperor Chu Gucheng send trusted subordinates to assassinate the Champion Marquis Chu Heng’s confidant?
The former Grand Tutor had not made any statements and still led the officials to join Han Feng, Chu Bai, and others in requesting an explanation from Chu Gucheng. The situation was growing more serious, and it seemed to be getting out of control. Chu Gucheng was eventually forced to appear.
He met with the officials in the imperial palace and stated that he was unaware of the situation and did not know why his subordinates would attack the confidant of the Champion Marquis Chu Heng. Chu Gucheng suspected that his subordinates had already conspired with outsiders and betrayed him. After all, everyone was aware of Gu Changge’s strength, and if he wanted to control Chu Gucheng’s subordinates, it wouldn’t be impossible.
At this point, Chu Gucheng directly blamed Gu Changge, believing that it was part of Gu Changge’s strategy against the Heavenly Chu Haotu. However, his explanation and speculation did not convince many, as many believed that with Gu Changge’s terrifying strength displayed on that day, if he truly wanted to harm the Heavenly Chu Haotu, there would have been no need to resort to such methods.
Han Feng, Chu Bai, and others were even more furious, as it was Gu Changge who had saved them that night. Now, Chu Gucheng was turning the tables, accusing Gu Changge of controlling his subordinates, causing them to betray him.
However, their actions were not really aimed at forcing Chu Gucheng to provide an explanation, but rather to get him to hand over the body of the Champion Marquis’ wife. The former Grand Tutor understood the gravity of the matter and did not expose Chu Gucheng’s lies in public, but merely expressed his desire to bury his daughter and requested to take her from the imperial tomb.
Up until now, Chu Gucheng still had no idea who had killed the trusted subordinate he sent to assassinate Han Feng, nor who had saved Han Feng and the others. This was his greatest concern. As for the request made by the former Grand Tutor to retrieve his daughter’s body from the imperial tomb, Chu Gucheng did not refuse, as he had already anticipated that the former Grand Tutor would make such a request. Therefore, he had already ordered the removal of all the belongings from the Champion Marquis’ wife’s body, ensuring that there were no traces or clues left.
The Heavenly Chu Haotu’s vitality was severely damaged, and many developments were beyond his control. Now, he hoped that the situation would not worsen and that as long as he obtained the Reincarnation Mirror, he could stabilize the situation again.
“Father…” In the depths of the imperial capital, the Crown Prince Chu Wushang looked at Chu Gucheng with a worried expression, hesitant to speak.
Chu Gucheng rubbed his temples in frustration before finally looking at him and saying, “This matter has been handled, but what about the jade pendant you mentioned? Where is it now?”
“I don’t know. At the time, I didn’t pay much attention, and when we later went through Qing Lan’s belongings, we didn’t find the jade pendant. I suspect it might have been lost. If the jade pendant was in the former Grand Tutor’s hands, they wouldn’t have been so eager to take back Qing Lan’s body,” said Chu Wushang, his face grave.
Chu Gucheng nodded and said, “If it’s lost, then that’s fine, but I’m worried that the jade pendant might have been stolen and ended up in the hands of the Champion Marquis Chu Heng. Look into it again, and see who has come into contact with Qing Lan’s body. Once my cultivation is restored, I will attempt to deduce things. Currently, the Champion Marquis Chu Heng has not returned, and the situation can still be controlled. But I am worried…”
He did not finish his sentence, but Chu Wushang understood. The Heavenly Chu Haotu’s vitality was severely weakened, the internal situation unstable, and there were two external enemies eyeing them. Furthermore, there was Gu Changge, the deeply unfathomable enemy, lurking in the shadows, ready to strike at any time.
The Heavenly Chu Haotu was truly in a perilous situation.
“Father, don’t worry. If the matter of the jade pendant is exposed, I will know how to handle it and will not let it implicate the Heavenly Chu Haotu,” Chu Wushang said with a solemn expression, a fleeting look of resolve in his eyes.
Chu Gucheng sighed and placed his hand on his shoulder. “I hope it doesn’t come to that. Right now, we’re still far from that point. I need to figure out how to quickly obtain help from the Xiyuan Sacred Hall and have my master recover. The Yinxu Cave is unreliable, and the Xingying old matriarch has been watching idly from the sidelines, unwilling to take risks, which says a lot. The Heavenly Chu Haotu is likely already a chess piece in someone else’s game…”
At the same time, while Chu Gucheng and Chu Wushang were conversing.At the distant border of the Heavenly Chu Haotu, on an ancient floating warship, Champion Marquis Chu Heng, draped in a golden cloak, stared intently at a figure shrouded in a black robe standing before him. His loyal subordinates were all on high alert, tense and ready to take action at any moment.
“May I ask who you are, and why have you trespassed into the heart of our Heavenly Chu Haotu forces?” Chu Heng asked in a deep voice.
With his cultivation, he had almost failed to notice the person’s arrival until they were right in front of the ancient warship. This person was clearly a being of near-ancestral Dao level cultivation.
Recently, Chu Heng had been leading his army on the border, fighting against the Demon Court and Zi Xiao Mountain. He had heard about the events happening in the imperial capital of Heavenly Chu Haotu. He wanted to lend aid, but the pressure from the Demon Court and Zi Xiao Mountain was growing stronger. The leader of Zi Xiao Mountain had ceased direct action but was still looming over him from afar, exerting immense pressure. Furthermore, the Demon Court’s Demon Ancestor, Di Huo, seemed to be stirring, likely planning to personally intervene and join the front lines.
The Demon Ancestor Di Huo was as powerful as the leader of Zi Xiao Mountain, having survived eight tribulations of the sky. The pressure Chu Heng was facing was just as great as what the imperial capital of Heavenly Chu Haotu was enduring. He dared not move recklessly.
“I have come here at the command of my master, to deliver something to the Champion Marquis, with no ill intentions,” the figure cloaked in black spoke, its voice hoarse and indifferent. Its face was obscured, and its eyes were deep and unreadable.
“Who is your master, and what is it that you bring?” Chu Heng did not ease his vigilance despite the other’s words. His gaze sharpened, and he asked the question.
“You will know when you see it.” The figure in the black robe did not answer directly. With a flick of its wide sleeve, a faint glow fell before Chu Heng.
Chu Heng was momentarily stunned, and when he finally saw the glow clearly, his pupils contracted sharply.
“This… This is the jade pendant from Qing Lan. How could it be here?” His voice trembled slightly, filled with disbelief. His outstretched hand, as he reached to take the jade pendant, was shaking.
He had clearly sent his trusted subordinate, Han Feng, back to the imperial capital of Heavenly Chu Haotu, with the jade pendant, to investigate the truth behind his wife Qing Lan’s death. How could the jade pendant end up here? Was something happening in the imperial capital that he was unaware of?
“The item has been delivered, and it is time for me to leave,” the black-robed figure said coldly. “If the Champion Marquis wishes to understand the truth within Heavenly Chu Haotu, it would be best for you to return yourself. Otherwise, you may end up being treated as a pawn, discarded once your value is exhausted, without even realizing it.”
The figure’s tone remained emotionless, unaffected by Chu Heng’s trembling. After speaking, it turned and began to walk towards the exterior of the warship, preparing to leave.
Seeing this, Chu Heng’s subordinates were startled and about to stop the figure, but Chu Heng raised his hand to stop them, allowing the black-robed figure to leave.
“Master, with Madam’s jade pendant suddenly arriving, could it be some kind of scheme?” one of his subordinates asked in concern. “Or is this an enemy strategy to lure us away from the front lines? To disrupt our morale and force us to retreat?”
Seeing Chu Heng’s pained and conflicted expression, several of his subordinates couldn’t help but voice their worries.
“I have a bad feeling. Something has definitely happened in the imperial capital. Many of my spies within the capital haven’t reported anything recently.” Chu Heng shook his head, carefully storing the jade pendant before taking a deep breath and speaking.
He gazed in the direction of the imperial capital, his eyes heavy with thought.
The “master” mentioned by the black-robed figure was someone Chu Heng had some suspicions about, though he was not certain. He couldn’t comprehend why things had taken such a dramatic turn.
Something had undoubtedly gone wrong in the imperial capital. Otherwise, the spies he had left behind would not have vanished without a trace. Moreover, if nothing had happened to Han Feng, he should have already returned to the capital by now. Why was there no news of him?Chu Heng, being a figure at the Ancestral Dao realm, was more than capable of glimpsing the past and peering into the future. However, the future, still undetermined, held infinite possibilities. Normally, when he gazed into the future, the possibilities would already begin to change by the time he looked, meaning that what he saw was no longer the future that was originally there. But when he looked into the future of Heavenly Chu Haotu’s fate, he saw multiple different changes unfolding, yet all of them ultimately converged into the same outcome. This meant that this outcome was likely the future awaiting Heavenly Chu Haotu.
“Leave some people to guard the frontlines, the rest will return with me to the imperial capital,” Chu Heng declared after a moment of contemplation, his voice cold and resolute. “I want to see who dares to go this far against me. If someone wants to stop me from uncovering the truth about Qing Lan’s death, I will see how they plan to stop me.”
His subordinates hesitated but did not dare defy his orders. Soon, commands were sent from the ancient warship, and the army of Heavenly Chu Haotu, facing off against the Demon Court, began to retreat in waves, as though a tide pulling back.
In the starry skies where bones piled up and rivers of blood flowed, Di Kun, the seventh prince of the Demon Court, coldly observed the retreat but did not order his army to pursue. Beside him, a ripple spread, and the Bone Ancestor King, dressed in black robes, appeared, also observing the scene.
“Senior, what should I do next?” Di Kun asked respectfully, bowing to the Bone Ancestor King. He knew that the Bone Ancestor King was someone under Gu Changge’s command.
During the fighting between the Demon Court and Heavenly Chu Haotu’s forces, the Bone Ancestor King had met with Di Kun and had relayed some of Gu Changge’s instructions.
“Wait quietly. Once Heavenly Chu Haotu is in turmoil, it will be the perfect time for the Demon Court to launch a full-scale attack,” the Bone Ancestor King said indifferently.
“Understood, senior,” Di Kun replied respectfully.
He did not know why the Heavenly Chu Haotu forces were retreating. It was not just a simple pullback; many generals and Dao realm experts were also retreating, seemingly planning to withdraw deep into the heart of Heavenly Chu Haotu.
“The master may meet with the Demon Ancestor during this period. The affairs of the Demon Court should be settled soon,” the Bone Ancestor King said as he glanced at Di Kun, as if seeing through his thoughts.
Upon hearing this, Di Kun’s heart swelled with excitement. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
“Yes, I will discuss this with the Demon Ancestor and inform him of the situation. The entire Demon Court is prepared to welcome the master’s arrival,” Di Kun said, his tone filled with reverence.
The Bone Ancestor King nodded, then vanished into the air, leaving Di Kun alone.
The Demon Court army did not chase after the retreating Heavenly Chu Haotu forces. However, several elders from Zi Xiao Mountain, upon seeing the retreat, began to stir. They quickly relayed the news to the Lord of Zi Xiao Mountain, Zi Wanhe, who sat in a deep space far away, immersed in his meditation.
Zi Wanhe, dressed in a purple robe and crowned with a starry diadem, exuded an aura of overwhelming might. He sat in the vast space, surrounded by the power of the Dao, his presence like a mountain—unmoving, yet terrifying.
“You are not satisfied with the results of this transaction?” Zi Wanhe asked calmly, as his eyes opened, gazing into the emptiness before him.
The voices that responded from the void were a mixture of male and female, imbued with a mocking and disdainful tone, yet still playful.
“Satisfaction cannot be claimed just yet. After all, we are still one step away from completing the transaction. We still require you, Lord Zi Xiao Mountain, to assist us once more,” the voices said.
Within the void before him, the black mist stirred and twisted.
“I have already promised to send the black coffin as a congratulatory gift. Now, factions within the Xiyuan civilization suspect that I am colluding with the remnants of the Black Calamity. Are you not planning to give me an explanation for this?” Zi Wanhe’s voice was cold, as terrifying images of starry rivers collapsing and the universe breaking unfolded in his gaze.
The black mist in the void replied, the voices tinged with arrogance and light laughter: “We had agreed beforehand that you, Lord Zi Xiao Mountain, would bear the consequences. The black coffin was something we obtained by chance. We didn’t know what it contained. And you, as a gift to Heavenly Chu Haotu, should be pleased. Isn’t this a mutually beneficial situation?”
“What dissatisfaction could there be with this?” the voices mocked, with an air of indifference.
Zi Wanhe snorted coldly, causing the entire space to tremble as he spoke: “You didn’t make it clear to me in advance that the black coffin was related to the remnants of the Black Calamity. I don’t believe you didn’t know what was inside.”
The voices in the mist grew colder, as the air turned frigid, and a deep, suffocating chill spread through the space. “So what if we did? This is a transaction you owe us. Are you still going to refuse?” The tone was now icily indifferent, the atmosphere heavy with the threat of imminent danger.The once-thin black mist suddenly shimmered with a strange radiance, as if the entirety of time—ancient, fleeting, and instantaneous—was being born and fading within it.
Zi Wanhe’s expression shifted slightly. Although he was one of the top figures of the Xiyuan civilization, he did not dare to offend the beings behind these voices. This transaction was the result of an earlier cause-and-effect relationship he had established with them. Now that they had come to him, even if he had known that the black coffin was linked to the remnants of the Black Calamity from the beginning, he dared not refuse.
“Now, what do you need me to do?” Zi Wanhe’s expression darkened. He did not dare to go against their will and could only ask in a deep voice.
From the current situation, he had already followed Gu Changge’s orders to deliver a great gift to Heavenly Chu Haotu, even sending people from Zi Xiao Mountain to deal with it. Even if Gu Changge eventually learned the truth, he likely would not blame Zi Wanhe. But the beings behind these voices were not someone he could afford to offend.
Zi Wanhe suspected that these people were the remnants of the Black Calamity. If they could establish a cause-and-effect relationship with him back then, they could likely do the same with others. In the vast world today, countless civilizations and nations had already been infiltrated by them.
“It’s simple. You just need to help us get close to the leader of the Heavenly Attack Alliance and confirm his identity and background,” the voices responded.