The fallen Xiao Mingzhao still wore a look of astonishment on her jade-like face, but that breathtakingly beautiful countenance still brought a trace of a blissful smile to the lips of her executioner, Tuoba Xiangtai.
"Luan'er, you finally will not leave me."
"I said I would be with you for all eternity."
"The road to the Yellow Springs is long, and the nights in the underworld are dark. Do not be afraid, I am coming to accompany you!"
Tuoba Xiangtai raised the dagger he used to kill Xiao Mingzhao, turned it around, and slashed his own abdomen to commit suicide, immediately collapsing to the ground with a heavy thud.
However, in the moment he fell, he suddenly realized that he had not held Luan'er tightly in death, so that they could be an envied, loving couple in the underworld.
At once, using his last breath, he dragged himself toward Xiao Mingzhao. Every movement left a bloody trail, yet his face was covered in an intense, unconcealable happiness.
Just as he was barely half a foot away from Xiao Mingzhao, a large foot viciously kicked him away.
"Get lost!"
"Get lost!"
"You savage barbarian! Even in death you dare to humiliate the Emperor of Yu! Get the hell away!"
Pei Jingzhi's shouts shook the heavens and the earth, his face streaked with an old man's tears. He was merely a civil official with no martial prowess whatsoever, completely unable to stop Tuoba Xiangtai's fierce blade.
As a minister of the Great Yu, whose family had received the dynasty's grace for generations, he had failed to serve his country, forced to watch helplessly as Her Majesty died a bitter death right behind him.
He was unworthy to be a minister!
How could he allow a lowly barbarian like Tuoba Xiangtai to approach Her Majesty's dragon body? Thus, when Tuoba Xiangtai tried to draw near again, he delivered another ruthless kick.
This kick, fueled by Pei Jingzhi's hatred, carried his full strength, sending Tuoba Xiangtai another foot away, further distancing him from Xiao Mingzhao.
With this, Tuoba Xiangtai had no strength left.
His eyes widened as he exerted all his might, but only more blood poured out. His body grew weaker and weaker. Inexplicable, broken sounds escaped his lips, but they too grew fainter and fainter...
Ultimately, carrying his unwillingness, he died full of resentment!
Pei Jingzhi cared nothing for this scene. Right now, he only wanted to save the Empress, Xiao Mingzhao. Feeling what seemed to be a faint pulse on Xiao Mingzhao's arm, he immediately said, "Your Majesty, hold on. You must hold on. This old minister will go find a royal physician for you..."
Pei Jingzhi sprinted out as fast as his legs could carry him.
The inner courtyard of the Imperial Chen Mansion was empty, still looking desolate and uninhabited.
He cursed in anger. As he rushed toward the outer courtyard, the clashing sounds of metal weapons reached his ears. He saw flickering flames, and the shouts of battle grew increasingly fierce.
When he reached the outer courtyard, he saw it had descended into complete chaos.
The border army soldiers, fully clad in armor, had already begun a slaughter of the barbarians within the mansion. Without their horses and forced to fight in haste, these barbarians were practically reduced to easy targets for the border army.
The border soldiers cut them down effortlessly.
In no time, the ground was covered with the dead and wounded.
This bloody scene of blades and gore did not give Pei Jingzhi the slightest pause. He charged fiercely toward someone who looked like a general. Grabbing him as he drew near, he realized it was Ren Tianye's deputy general, Wang Ming.
Wang Ming was holding a sword, fighting like a madman. Bathed in blood, he looked like a demon on the battlefield, but Pei Jingzhi felt no fear whatsoever. Instead, he rejoiced, "General Wang Ming, quick, quick, quick, come with me, come with me..."
"Her Majesty has been assassinated; her life hangs by a thread."
"Quickly, fetch a royal physician, fetch a royal physician..."
"What?" Wang Ming put on a look of great shock. "Her Majesty's life is in peril? That is terrible, we must find a royal physician! However, my lord, the barbarians have not yet been wiped out. If we do not finish killing these barbarians, how can this humble general go find a royal physician?"
"Just wait a moment. Once this humble general finishes killing the barbarians, I will immediately go get a royal physician, I promise without any hesitation."
Pei Jingzhi was furious. "Why are you still killing barbarians?"
"It is Her Majesty whose life hangs by a thread! That is Her Majesty!"
"If you do not go save Her Majesty, what is the point of killing barbarians?"
Wang Ming said weakly, "Aren't the barbarians blocking the way? If I don't kill them, I can't get out!"
"You..."
Pei Jingzhi pointed a trembling finger at him, his anger erupting, yet his mind remained clear. He knew Wang Ming was intentionally stalling. After all, Wang Ming was Ren Tianye's deputy general and was undoubtedly following Ren Tianye's orders.
A wave of regret washed over him.
If Hongxiu had been reliable, this Wang Ming would have been his man by now.
However, he could not afford to dwell on this matter right now. He turned around to find someone else.
But even though his old and frail body moved as fast as it could, grabbing one border army general after another, these generals only cared about killing barbarians. They showed absolutely no concern for Her Majesty.
Pei Jingzhi was also unable to charge out of the chaotic battlefield to find anyone else.
Moreover, Her Majesty might not be able to hold on.
For a moment, his heart burned with anxiety. He felt a monstrous pressure crashing down upon him. So desperate that he no longer cared about anything else, he suddenly screamed, "Generals, I, Pei Jingzhi, beg of you!"
"Save Her Majesty first! Save Her Majesty first!"
His shrill cries sounded exceptionally mournful amidst the slaughter of the battlefield, yet they were still met with total indifference.
With a heavy thud,
Pei Jingzhi fell to his knees.
He kowtowed heavily.
"Generals, I beg all of you!"
"A nation cannot be without its sovereign! Please, save Her Majesty!"
A fierce wind swept up the stench of blood, brushing past the eaves of the Imperial Chen Mansion. The gilded tiles were stained with drops of blood. This ornately carved outer courtyard was littered with corpses and broken blades, overwhelmed by the swarming border army.
But while the border soldiers swung their blades with immense vigor, not a single one of them spared even a glance at Pei Jingzhi.
Pei Jingzhi's heart suddenly sank.
The hearts of the people were scattered, the border army disobeyed royal commands, and Her Majesty's life hung by a thread. Was the vast empire of Great Yu truly going to collapse amidst this sky full of bloody mist?
The shouts of battle gradually ceased. The thousands of barbarians within the mansion were quickly wiped out beneath the blades of the border army. Surrounded by numerous personal guards, a man finally made a leisurely entrance.
Pei Jingzhi looked up and saw that it was none other than the commander-in-chief of the Northern Border Army, Ren Tianye. In the past, Pei Jingzhi wouldn't have given him a second glance, but right now, Pei Jingzhi stumbled and threw himself toward him.
"General... General Ren, save Her Majesty! Her Majesty was wounded by Tuoba Xiangtai's blade and her life is in peril. She needs a royal physician's treatment!"
Ren Tianye's expression instantly changed drastically as he said, "What? That barbarian Tuoba Xiangtai is truly detestable! This general will go chop off his dog head right now!"
"He has already killed himself! General Ren, quickly go save Her Majesty! Quickly summon a royal physician!"
"Of course!" Ren Tianye wore a face full of righteous indignation as he looked at Wang Ming. Understanding his meaning, Wang Ming leaned in close to Ren Tianye and muttered, "It's been almost an hour. By now, her blood should have completely drained."
Ren Tianye nodded, but then his expression suddenly shifted to anger. "Wang Ming, how bold of you! Her Majesty's life is in peril, why haven't you gone to call a royal physician yet? What are you waiting for here?"
"In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, this general must see a royal physician."
"Yes, sir!" Wang Ming understood immediately. He ran out to find a personal guard and relayed the order: "I give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn; the royal physician must arrive by then."
The personal guard, having been trained by Wang Ming, immediately went out and passed the order down the line: "I give you two hours; the royal physician must arrive by then!"
The messenger acknowledged the command and immediately turned to the young man who had just joined their ranks as a messenger, ordering, "You have exactly one day and one night. The imperial physician must be here!"
...
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
