The Rebellion Army had been unstoppable until they encountered great resistance upon reaching the outskirts of the Imperial City after only six days, even when including the time it took them to march there.
Almost all of the Rebellion Army believed that the assault on the Imperial City would be just as smooth.
But they never expected to face such formidable resistance in the Imperial City.
The defending soldiers of the Imperial City fought as if they were trading life for life in their resistance.
“What exactly is going on? I’d understand if it were the Great Zhou Imperial Family, but why are the ordinary soldiers doing the same? What benefit do they have in obstructing us?”
The leaders of the various factions of the Rebellion Army held a council.
Unable to capture the city after prolonged siege, everyone gathered to devise a plan to overcome the Imperial City.
Hearing this, a few leaders showed scornful expressions.
What’s going on? Of course, it’s because some Rebellion Army’s actions had been exploited by members of the Imperial Family.
The Rebellion Army was founded on righteousness, but with the deliberate push by the Overlord-Level forces, the truly powerful and resolute warriors had died in the early battles.
The leaders now were either the pawns placed by Overlord-Level forces or greedy, ambitious opportunists.
When an empire falls, anything is possible—a completely unknown and powerful individual emerged from the last Treasure Bead war.
Overlord-Level forces fear the emergence of a genuine Rebellion Army that could overturn the dynasty. What they gain by toppling the Empire is troublesome if they end up equal with them.
The world is vast but cannot accommodate too many powers.
Thus, from the start, the Rebellion Army’s leaders were being manipulated—they were extortionate and evil, no better than the officials they despised.
This is one reason, a reason to annihilate them.
It would be inconvenient for Overlord-Level forces to personally overthrow the Great Zhou Imperial Family, so they need the Rebellion Army. However, to kill the so-called Rebellion Army will not be so troublesome.
With the actions of these Rebellion Armies, even burying them would garner support and even, eventually, merit, possibly giving their own forces an edge in the final struggle for power.
Leaders of the Rebellion Army planted by Overlord-Level Grandmasters had long understood the fate of the other Rebellion Armies.
After helping to overthrow the Great Zhou Imperial Family, they would then become merit for the Overlord-Level forces.
Fight, let them all fight fiercely.
After all, the final fate will not change.
Even their deeds had exceeded their expectations, leaving a path of destruction where “not a blade of grass grew,” earning the hatred of countless people.
Whereas their forces were slower, they would never act in such a way but chose to soothe and win support.
To Overlord-Level forces, everyone has value, and their goal is to extract every bit of that value.
The current situation was favorable.
As for that initial leader’s anger over the failure to take the city, it was irrelevant—in the end, no matter how many Rebellion Army soldiers were sacrificed, they would eventually breach the Imperial City.
Especially with many of their own men being those truly willing to sacrifice themselves in battle, as ready to trade life for life as the Imperial City’s defenders.
Taking the Imperial City was only a matter of time.
Watching the arguing leaders, they hid in the shadows, witnessing the development of events, occasionally fanning the flames and sowing discord.
In the end, some leaders were indeed incited.
“Damn the commoners, once the Imperial City is breached, we’ll show them!”
This was the effect that the Overlord-Level forces wanted.
The more odious the Rebellion Army’s actions, the bigger the reward when they’re ultimately crushed.
The era had changed, and after the complete downfall of the Great Zhou, such forces were considered “treasures.”
The dozen or so Rebellion Armies could not devise an effective strategy.
The Imperial City was indeed difficult to take unless a Great Grandmaster arrived.
It would take a Martial Artist capable of reaching Great Grandmaster level, and none of them were simple—knowing about the backlash lifted, they still would not reveal themselves.
In the end, the decision was straightforward—launch a full assault!
Countless people advanced towards the Imperial City.
Some rallied their troops openly before the battle.
“Kill! The leaders have ordered, upon breaching the Imperial City, three days of unrestrained action!”
“Oh!”
Three days of unrestrained action in the Imperial City was a temptation too hard for many to resist.
That was the once unscalable Imperial City, after all!
Most of the original Rebellion Army were like this, while many soldiers from the later recruited Rebellion Armies frowned upon hearing this.
“Are they still the Rebellion Army? They’re more like bandits!”
“So many days and you haven’t understood? Their marching speed is faster than ours, and much of the cities’ destruction is their doing.”
“Why cooperate with them?!” Someone could not comprehend.
“The leaders said the Imperial Family’s influence is vast and without cooperation, conquering the Imperial City is impossible, so we must unite,” a Martial Artist explained to the soldiers, who inquired because they knew he had access to more information.
“It disgusts me to partner with those people, I really want to kill those beasts.”
“Be cautious!” The Martial Artist gestured for silence, “Such things must not be spoken carelessly.”
But after saying this, he huddled everyone close and whispered faintly: “Do not let the following information slip out.”
Seeing his seriousness, everyone nodded.
The Martial Artist then confided, “When I was delivering something to the leader, I overheard him saying that those beasts will be dealt with sooner or later, so rest assured, the honor of the Rebellion Army will not be tainted by them.”
“Is that true?” Someone who had seen the other Rebellion Armies’ atrocities was pleasantly surprised.
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“Shh, keep it down, it should be correct, anyway, just make sure not to let it slip, it’ll be trouble if it gets out!”
“Of course, we’re all in this together!”
Eventually, everyone left, and the Martial Artist watched them go, his smile fading, returning to indifference.
“As expected of the lowly commoners, believing every flawed word.”
Though they talked about keeping it a secret, the news still spread quickly.
“Big brother, after we take the Imperial City, we should be able to go home and live the good life, right?”
Someone beside him smacked his head, “Little two, are you dumb? After we take the Imperial City, we’ll be turning over a new leaf; only then can we live the good life. The question is whether our leader can become the Emperor.”
“Heh heh, I’m just not as knowledgeable as my big brother!”
“If you know that, then learn something. With big brother, wearing any of that fine clothing won’t be an issue.”
The two chatted for a while, discussing rumors among the troops.
“Big brother, those guys must have backgrounds like ours, right? How did they become so loathsome so quickly, even worse than our county’s County Magistrate?”
Big brother didn’t know why, either; he could only end up saying, “Who knows? But those people are all beasts. When we joined the army, we said we must slaughter all these beasts, and we can definitely do it.”
“Big brother, I believe in you!”
Little Two always believed in his big brother.
The battle began again, and Little Two joined his big brother on the battlefield.
In the end, only Little Two returned; to save him, his big brother’s body couldn’t even be found.
He became silent, only remembering his big brother’s words, to slaughter all those beasts to live the good life.
The war continued, with casualties on both sides quickly exceeding a hundred thousand.
Yet this time, unlike before, none of the Grandmaster Level Martial Artists fell; they did not enter the battlefield.
They had fought to this point, and no one was willing to die when they were about to enjoy the fruits of victory.
Meanwhile, inside the Imperial City, seven or eight Grandmasters surrounded the Clan Elders.
This was the Imperial Family’s last resort.
“Clan Elder, not a single Grandmaster from the Rebellion Army has attacked.”
“Hmph, I know exactly what they’re plotting. Prepare, we’ll all go up on the city walls to use others as our shield.”
“Yes, Clan Elder!”
In the end, not a single member of the Great Zhou Imperial Family ran away, and the Emperor himself remained within the Imperial City.
Those who left were all juniors.
The Clan Elders, after all, were not as ruthless as Zhou Tianyuan and the Master of Destiny when it came to letting the younger generation take the fall.
Thus, the older generation all stayed behind to fight to the death.
At the same time, they spread the Rebellion Army’s atrocities back to the Imperial City to provoke spontaneous resistance from the city’s troops and civilians.
Only then did they hold out for so long.
But the Clan Elder knew there would be an outcome, eventually.
In the year 539 of the Great Zhou era, September.
The Rebellion Army amassed an army of five hundred thousand to attack the Imperial City; the soldiers swarmed like locusts, piling the corpses so high they made the ground rise.
The Imperial Family deployed nine Grandmasters to resist the Rebellion Army’s attack.
But Grandmasters, after all, are not Great Grandmasters. Facing the human wave tactics, they would still meet their doom.
Two days later, the last remaining Grandmaster of the Great Zhou Imperial Family in the Imperial City fell.
The Emperor took to the city walls, leading a resistance that, for a brief time, managed to fend off the attack again.
But the Great Zhou’s doom was inevitable. A skilled archer spotted the Great Zhou Emperor on the city walls and with a single arrow, the Emperor was killed.
“Kill them all, the Great Zhou Emperor is dead!”
“Gold, beauties, and wine are within our grasp; those who enter the city first will gain the most!”
With the death of the Emperor, the city walls’ defense crumbled in an instant.
In late September of the year 539 of the Great Zhou era, the Imperial City fell, with countless members of the Rebellion Army pouring into the Imperial City.
“The leader commands, pillage at will for three days!”
The leader of the Rebellion Army issued a direct order, allowing his men to loot wildly within the Imperial City.
Meanwhile, a group of people hidden in the shadows moved toward the Imperial Palace.
Many knew that the palace was where the greatest spoils of war could be found.
Mo Yang was among them; he witnessed the Rebellion Army’s relentless brutality and wanted to intervene, but was held back by Xing.
“Xuan Yang, the Martial Arts Secret Manuals are of utmost importance; they are our foundation for the future.”
“But those people…” Mo Yang hesitated.
“Xuan Yang, you can’t save these things now; only a true revolution can completely solve them.”
Mo Yang watched as a soldier barged into a civilian’s home. Before long, two life forces disappeared from inside.
Such incidents occurred throughout the city, and he knew Xing was right.
In the end, he nodded, out of sight, out of mind.
“Let’s head to the Imperial Palace.”
The knowledgeable headed straight for the place where the Martial Arts Secret Manuals were kept, while others went directly to the Inner Palace.
Outside the Imperial Palace, naturally, the “paradise” belonged to the low-level officers and the ordinary soldiers; officers headed to the Inner City, and soldiers were in the Outer City, “distinct in their ranks.”
And as one of the largest residences in the Inner City, the Martial Family’s residence naturally became a target…
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