Chapter 334: Chapter 270: Overturning the Entire Qi Kingdom Single-Handedly
"The Tombstone Mountain Secret Realm was destroyed by the Heir of Calamity!?"
Upon hearing this news, although there was no further detailed information or evidence, Ying Rushi’s mind recalled the figure standing atop a pile of corpses in the Ping City Secret Realm.
Covered in blood, as he sheathed his saber, he probably didn’t recognize me then, but his eyes clearly showed goodwill. When I was about to leave, he even showed concern whether I would face blame upon returning... or perhaps it wasn’t concern, but probing into my relationship with Your Majesty?
The powerful figures of the Central Plains are numbered, each has grown from weak to strong, building mountains from grains of sand, like Black Wolf and Red Snake, the former born of nobility in the Zhou Kingdom, the latter a noblewoman from the aristocracy of the Liang Kingdom. Ying Rushi could even narrow the candidates down to five, but there was no need to investigate further.
The only exception is ’Yellow Dog’.
He and his subordinates seemed to have erupted from the stones, ’Yan San’, ’Ye Si’, ’Jiang Shi’, ’Rabbit Heroine’, and the ’Mouse Monk’ who saved Shang Xuanwen’s life, each one overflowing with talent, each one’s origin unknown.
So whenever a powerful figure with an unknown background appears, Ying Rushi’s first thought is to suspect they are his people.
But why did he destroy the Secret Realm?
This thought is indeed rather bizarre. Ying Rushi is not unaware of the information on the Heir of Calamity. Just as thieves steal and dogs eat feces, the Heir of Calamity destroys Secret Realms out of personal interest, seeking power at the cost of decimating the resources that hundreds of thousands rely on for survival.
But with so many Secret Realms in the world, why choose the Tombstone Military Town, under the direct jurisdiction of Your Majesty, and the most strictly guarded? Shouldn’t the Heir of Calamity be very low-key while developing, like mosquitoes starting to bite from inconspicuous places like an ankle? Yet Yellow Dog seems to be flying up to Your Majesty’s nose, sucking blood while dancing, as if inviting Your Majesty to swat him down.
It seems destroying the Secret Realm was just incidental, his main purpose is... provocation?
As more detailed news arrived, Ying Rushi became increasingly convinced of his judgment—because the Heir of Calamity did not flee but actively approached Nocturnal Heaven City!
Six days ago, he slaughtered his way out of the Tombstone Military Town at dawn, escaping unscathed under a deluge of arrows;
Five days ago, he clashed head-on with a force of fifty Baibao Guards Cavalry, slaying twenty-three members;
Four days ago, amidst a surrounding army, he charged recklessly, darting left and right, occasionally retreating into the forest for rest, only to quickly return to the fight, battling for three hours, leaving over three hundred corpses, devastating the morale of the Shanwen Camp;
Three days ago, he battled Commander Dugu Hong, the Third-Turn Messenger ’Mountain Demon’, killing him!
He has been charging towards Nocturnal Heaven City from the Tombstone Military Town step by step, crossing seventeen cities in five days, fighting across eight hundred miles!
There is no attempt at concealment, as if he intends to overthrow the entire Qi Kingdom by himself!
This madman!
Clearly, he is slaughtering the Qi Kingdom’s army, provoking the Ying Family Royal Family, yet Ying Rushi cannot bring himself to detest him because in this series of battles, the only words he has spoken are:
"Ying Le, not everyone will let you act recklessly."
Such arrogance, such domination, such invincibility!
Ying Rushi can perfectly imagine the scenario of him saying this: standing amidst a field of corpses, he sheathes his blade, leaving behind only the youngest-looking soldier, casually saying, ’Go back and tell Ying Le,’ and the soldier, bewildered, remembers it clearly, returning to report it because he has no knowledge of Your Majesty’s name.
The increasing frequency of message transmission means the Heir of Calamity is getting closer to Nocturnal Heaven City. The ordinary Baibao cannot stop his advance; sending more troops would only be in vain as they would be crushed. But the Heir of Calamity doesn’t just rely on sheer force to crush the army; he seems omniscient, sensing ambushes from afar, never falling into deadly traps, but instead wearing out the military through relentless guerrilla tactics.
More terrifying is that he seems not to need rest; for five days and nights, he is either killing or hiding, and any normal Third-Turn pursued by an army for five days and nights would be exhausted, their reserves depleted, status declining, but he only fights fiercer, and in the end, he doesn’t need much strategy to contend with the army.
One man as an army! One man against a nation!
But how does he dare?
Ying Le is a Foundation Establishment Zhenren, reigning supreme, capable of taking on a million troops, fighting across three thousand miles alone, the gap between a True Man and a mortal is as vast as an abyss, any sane person would know they cannot contend with Ying Le.
What does he truly want to do?
What is he doing it for?
Not only Ying Rushi, everyone in recent days is speculating on the Heir of Calamity’s intentions, suspecting he was sent by an enemy’s Foundation Establishment Sect to provoke Your Majesty, suspecting he seeks to make a name for himself, suspecting he wants to use this to gain the favor of the Zhou and Liang Kingdoms... but as the Heir of Calamity draws nearer to Nocturnal Heaven City, deep within the Qi Kingdom’s heartland, even far-off military towns dispatch troops, nearly a hundred thousand Baibao forming a siege net, now unless the Heir of Calamity achieves Foundation Establishment on the spot, capture is only a matter of time.
Even a Third-Turn Messenger cannot withstand the army, defensive items have their limits.
Even if Ying Le does not act, his fate is sealed.
At this moment, Ying Rushi finally understood why the Heir of Calamity had to destroy the Tombstone Mountain Secret Realm.
Because only by destroying the Secret Realm would Qi Kingdom focus on him, allowing him to arrive at Nocturnal Heaven City in such a ’grand’ manner.
It was not for profit, not for fame, not even intending to survive.
Even if he dies, countless people will know that on this land, not everyone will endure Ying Le’s tyranny.
He has come to overthrow the tyrant Ying Le!
...
...
At the Thief Hall, Pharmacist’s Wish stood in front of Yan Qing’s door, raised her hand but hesitated to knock.
She turned her head to look at the stone table where three plaques lay with the names [Yellow Dog], [Black Wolf], and [Red Snake]; all were covered, indicating none would join tomorrow’s gathering. The [Yellow Dog] plaque hadn’t been turned over for five days.
Upon hearing the news that the Heir of Calamity wreaked havoc in the Qi Kingdom, Pharmacist’s Wish immediately thought of Yan Qing, especially since five days ago, at their last gathering, he mentioned he was going to do something ’colossal.’ Yet Pharmacist’s Wish waited and waited, and Yan Qing never appeared.
In the end, Pharmacist’s Wish did not knock, for in her perception, although [Fairy Travel] cooled down now and then, the [Unity Lock] had never been activated, indicating Yan Qing had not encountered any life-threatening danger these days, so she didn’t need to worry.
Also, for reasons unknown, after the third mission, Pharmacist’s Wish felt more uneasy around Yan Qing, even slight physical contact during training made her nervous, even though she used to dare poke him with a spear. Actively seeking out Yan Qing seemed like a trivial matter, but Pharmacist’s Wish felt very awkward, as if she had somehow lost.
Though she couldn’t tell where she had lost, Pharmacist’s Wish didn’t want to lose!
However, she also thought, if Red Snake knew about this, he would surely knock on Yan Qing’s door without hesitation. Thinking of this, she felt inexplicably discouraged.
Returning to Taibai Mountain Military Town, Pharmacist’s Wish summoned the maid to help her change into armor in preparation for the afternoon’s Secret Realm strategy. Shidong, while helping her armor up, casually asked: "Hasn’t he come to see you yet?"
"Hmm... what are you talking about?"
"Our master-in-law," Shidong pursed her lips, a mischievous smile appeared on her cute face: "Haven’t you been unable to see him these days?"
"Don’t talk nonsense!" Wuqiu smacked Shidong’s head hard: "How dare you tease the young lady, know your place!"
Pharmacist’s Wish was at a loss for words for a moment, then finally retorted: "Why do you think I haven’t met anyone?"
"Because, young lady, you haven’t drunk any wine these days," Shidong said: "You only abstain from alcohol when you’re in a bad mood."
"I’m just refraining from drinking to focus on attacking the Secret Realm!" Pharmacist’s Wish replied in annoyance: "Don’t overthink!" Saying that, she hurried out, almost as if fleeing with her tail between her legs.
...
...
Prince Lanling’s Mansion.
The servants looked worried, glancing occasionally towards the Golden Cup Garden. Compared to other ruling families in Nocturnal Heaven City, Prince Lanling was undoubtedly a benevolent and kind master, caring for the servants in the mansion, punishing unjust stewards, and all the servants genuinely respected Prince Jun. Prince Jun had not left his room for two days, and everyone was starting to worry.
Inside the room, Ying Rushi appeared pale, her eyes vacant and unfocused, she had become dazed and disoriented over the past two days, hiding in the corner of the room hugging her knees, like an abandoned doll of millennia.
Ying Rushi didn’t even know what was wrong with her. When she learned the Heir of Calamity raised the banner of rebellion against Ying Le’s tyranny, she felt as if her spine had been pulled out, her body growing weak, leaving her limp, wanting only to hide in the corner away from everyone’s gaze.
No, she actually knew what she was avoiding... she was avoiding the whispers of the undead.
"Did you hear that, not everyone will let Ying Le have his way!"
"You think you’re conscientious, but you’re just an accomplice, watching and doing nothing!"
"Why did you send the Other Shore Flower... if you hadn’t, Ying Le wouldn’t have killed me! I hate you so much!"
"It’s too late, too late indeed, if someone had resisted earlier, the twenty-five members of the Yuan Family wouldn’t have died!"
"Your Highness." A servant cautiously called from outside: "There’s a fast rider’s message... it’s the one you instructed us to watch for."
Ying Rushi’s body trembled, a great unease engulfing her heart, and she couldn’t tell if she was anticipating or fearing: "Speak."
"The Heir of Calamity severely injured Gonghou Huang Yan’s forces, less than thirty miles from Nocturnal Heaven City."
Ying Rushi’s eyes, as if dust-covered, gradually gleamed with light, then transformed into resolve.
"Someone, dress me, I’m going out."
But before Ying Rushi could leave, the decree arrived at the Commandery Prince’s mansion: Your Majesty personally leads the campaign against the Heir of Calamity ’Yaksha’, with Prince Lanling accompanying.
