Chapter 93: Ji Lengyue
The empress's face darkened as she glared coldly at Consort Hua Gui.
"What has Chen'er done wrong for him to shoulder the responsibility all alone? If it weren’t for Chen’er killing Marquis Xian Yu, do you think you’d have been able to keep you status to this day?”
Consort Hua Gui merely smiled and spoke in a calm tone. "Empress, there is a cause for everything; if not for Fang Chen killing Viscount Zhou Xiu, Longdu wouldn’t have sent their troops over to attack us, and by extension, Frost Water Empire wouldn’t have been here today, as well.”
"Viscount Zhou only has himself to blame..." the empress rejoined.
"But that doesn't give Fang Chen the right to take matters into his own hands," Consort Hua Gui pointed out, her face turning serious. "Grand Xia belongs to His Majesty, not Fang Chen. You better drill that into your skull, Empress.”
Seeing that the two women started bickering, the emperor snapped impatiently, "What are you arguing about? Things have already reached this point. We have to resolve it one way or another!” He paused for a moment, then continued, “Come with me; let’s go welcome the envoy from the Frost Water Empire."
*
The young man in purple looked at Tao Mingsheng, who was kneeling before him, and chuckled, then said, "Grand Xia has been reducing the tributes it sends to my Frost Water Empire every year. Even so, you still had the guts to kill so many calvary from the Longdu Empire. Even Marquis Xian Yu died in your capital city! From what I can see, Grand Xia has not only not declined in recent years but it is in fact thriving really well. Are you planning to annihilate Longdu, Guhe, and Yizhou before replacing my Frost Water Empire?”
The atmosphere suddenly stifled, and his words immediately sent shivers down the spines of the officials.
Replace the Frost Water Empire?
Even with the combined might of the four empires, they wouldn’t be able to match a fraction of the power the Frost Water Empire possessed. They had personally witnessed the strength of the Frost Water Empire back when they were young; just the Nightmare Knights alone were enough to crush all four empires in a month!
Tao Mingsheng lowered his head, and quavered, "Grand Xia is nothing but loyal to the Frost Water Empire! Please be fair in your judgment, my lord.”
"Words alone are not enough. I came here today, and Grand Xia must offer me an explanation." The young man in purple spoke with a faint smile. "By the way, my name is Ji Lengyue. And just so you know, Zhou Xiu, who had died in your fiefdom, was my distant cousin.”
"What!?"
"Zhou Xiu was connected to the Frost Water Empire?"
"No way..."
The crowd was in a state of shock. Even Tao Mingsheng and others were horrified. They finally understood why Longdu's reaction was so intense; Zhou Xiu, their Viscount, actually had blood relations to a higher power!
"Ji Family, could it be..."
Tao Mingsheng quivered terribly, and his face leached from blood; he recalled that there was a very large and influential family with the family name “Ji” in the Frost Water Empire. They controlled almost half of the Frost Water Empire. Even the horrifying Nightmare Knights had been trained by them. Rumor had it that these Nightmare Warhorses that the Nightmare Knights rode were actually captured from a mysterious place that no one else knew about. Each horse could rival a Qi Detonation Stage martial artist, and coupled with the pinnacle Qi Manipulation cavalry, the strength of a Nightmare Knight on the battlefield could almost dominate any situation. They were undefeated in battle; an almost invincible existence!
In the crowd, a few figures glanced at each other with a flickering gaze. Taking advantage of the fact that everyone wasn’t paying attention, they quietly skulked for the Fang Manor.
Ji Lengyue smiled. “Let's go.” he said as he urged his horse forward. “Let’s not keep your emperor waiting."
The Nightmare Knights behind him followed suit, and they trailed Ji Lengyu in a neat formation.
Tao Mingsheng and the rest of the officials jerked to their feet and anxiously jogged to keep up with Ji Lengyue, who was heading toward the imperial palace.
Seeing them go further away, the crowd immediately erupted with discussions.
"Grand Xia is in danger!"
"Zhou Xiu was actually connected to a higher empire! I wonder how the emperor will handle this...”
"I'm afraid... I’m afraid we might have to hand over Fang Chen in order to settle this.”
"Although General Fang is famous in Great Xia, in the eyes of the Frost Water Empire, he’s someone they can kill on a whim. Even with the power of the empire, we won’t be able to protect him.”
Long Huixin and the rest revealed looks of satisfaction after hearing the peoples’ comments.
"Lady Long, it seems you’ve finally got what you wanted."
Long Huixin smiled in response. "I knew this day would come. Fang Chen is too arrogant. Obviously, someone will step out to deal with him.”
After she spoke, Long Huixin stared at Ji Lengyue’s departing back, and greed flashed in her eyes. The dignitary from the Frost Water Empire was young, and he came from the Ji Family. Actually, that was only natural; for him to be sent to a vassal state, he had to possess a formidable background!
If she managed to win his favor, the Guhe Empire would benefit greatly! Even more, if she was able to secure his bloodline, the Guhe Empire would basically obtain a powerful protective talisman!
Long Huixin had basically guessed Zhou Xiu origins, and there was only one thing left on her mind at that moment: she wanted to do as Zhou Xiu’s mother had done!
Not far away, Li Daoye sneered. "Such grandeur! Who does he think he is? He’s just a martial artist in the Earth Profound Stage. Does he really think he’s someone important?”
"Earth Profound Realm?" Tie Ma's pupils constricted, and he couldn’t help but ask, "Daoye, can you defeat him? What level is he in the Earth Profound Stage?"
The two just came back from Dragon Ridge and saw what happened. Tie Ma was somewhat surprised by the fact that Zhou Xiu had connections to the Ji Family of the Frost Water Empire.
When he was a spy in the Qingsong Empire, he had seen the power backing them as well. The Frost Water Empire shouldn’t be that different from them. They couldn’t be underestimated.
"Judging by his aura, he should be in the first level of the Earth Profound Stage. As for whether I can defeat him or not..." Li Daoye snorted. "You underestimate me too much. I only have to be wary of you guys when I fight you because you have the Purple Thunder Talisman, Vajra Talisman, Divine Movement Talisman, and Strength Talisman. Against someone at the first level of the Earth Profound Stage, I have a thousand ways to defeat him.”
That was the difference between a martial artist and a cultivator. They couldn’t be measured on the same scale.
"We should go back to the manor first to consult with the lord. Those people don’t seem friendly. We might have a run in with them sooner than later,” Tie Ma suggested.
With that, the two quickly returned to the Fang Manor and saw Xu Ge, Huang Sihai, Fang Cangyou, and others gathered around. They seemed to have already learned of Ji Lengyue’s arrival in the capital.
"You've come just in time. The lord isn’t back yet. We’re discussing what we should do with the envoy from the Frost Water Empire,” Xu Ge explained.
Tie Ma was slightly surprised. "The lord isn’t back?"
Li Daoye panicked when he heard that, and he babbled, "Where did he go? What about Abbess Qing He? Did he kidnap Abbess Qing He and run?! I knew something was fishy when he sent me away! He was luring me away!” He began regretting his decision to listen to Fang Chen.
Seeing him so worked up, Xu Ge rolled his eyes. "Daoye, the lord went to the Southern Immortal Prefecture to deal with something. Now that he’s not here and the envoy from the Frost Water Empire has come, what’s the point of stirring shit?"
Li Daoye frowned. "What’s there to worry about? Isn’t the Frost Water Empire just an eighth-tier empire? There’s nothing to be afraid of!” he said. "As long as Abbess Qing He or I appear before him, he’ll be frightened to death. The most important thing right now is for us to find Abbess Qing He!”
"Huh?" The expressions of everyone changed slightly, and Fang Cangyou calmly looked at Li Daoye. "What do you mean by that, Daoye? Are you and Abbess Qing He well known in the Frost Water Empire?"
"Of course not, but Both Abbess Qing He and I come from the Huoyan Empire—a sixth-tier empire. It’s countless times stronger than that Frost Water Empire you’re talking about,” Li Daoye said.
A sixth-grade empire?!
Everyone was shocked, and Fang Cangyou's face gradually revealed a strange smile. He hadn't expected that there were two influential figures hidden among them. The envoy from the Frost Water Empire was probably going to be in for a lot of trouble....
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