Chapter 45: Famous in the World, Emperor’s Ambition
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
After the Four Seas Sage left, Jiang Changsheng fell into deep thought.
He was wondering why the Mahayana Dragon Tower was involved.
Where was the Xiansheng Grotto-heaven that the Four Seas Sage mentioned? How many unknown experts were hidden there?
Jiang Changsheng estimated that the Universe Realm should be the next realm after the Golden Body Realm. His Dao Technique had broken through one level, and the difference of two major realms in the martial arts realm was already very exaggerated. It was impossible for there to be a difference of more realms.
The realm of martial arts should be divided into third-rate, second-rate, first-rate, True Qi, Spiritual Sense, Heaven Arrival, Divine, True God, Golden Body, and Universe!
There should be True Gods in the Mahayana Dragon Tower, but not many. In the knowledge of the Four Seas Sage, the strongest should be at the Golden Body realm, while Jiang Changsheng was at the stronger Universe Realm.
In that case, he was invincible?
No, it was just that he was invincible in the near region. He could not be too conceited.
Jiang Changsheng thought silently and relaxed a lot. He could not be rash when he was strong. Being cautious did not mean that he was too afraid. It was fine as long as he lived comfortably in his environment.
Huang Chuan came over and asked excitedly, “Master, what is the True God? Is the True God realm above the Heavenly Arrival realm?” He had memorized all the words of the Four Seas Sage.
He was fascinated by the wider world and higher realms.
Jiang Changsheng smiled and said, “Above the Heavenly Arrival realm is the Divine realm. Above that is the True God realm. Xu Tianji is the Divine realm.”
“Then you’re a True God realm expert!”
Huang Chuan said with admiration. Jiang Changsheng could not deny it.
The news of the Four Seas Sage being frightened away did not spread in the martial arts world because his name was unknown in the martial arts world. Only a few people had heard of him.
Days passed.
It was autumn, and the forest was turning yellow.
On this day, Meng Qiushuang came to visit Jiang Changsheng. “Daoist Master, it’s time to choose the next eldest disciple.”
Meng Qiushuang said worriedly. This Eldest Senior Sister, who was once in her prime, was now old. Although she had taken good care of herself, she could not hide the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and hands.
When one was old, they would be tired and their energy would not be able to keep up.
Jiang Changsheng pondered and said, “How about Wan Li?”
Meng Qiushuang nodded and said, “Of course, but Daoist Master still has to consider the next generation. It’s time to select a young disciple from Longqi Temple to cultivate in front of you.”
Jiang Changsheng was a martial arts legend, but the three disciples under him were not pure disciples of Longqi Temple. Moreover, they had followed King Wei down the mountain, and Huang Chuan did not have a good relationship with the other disciples. He was always immersed in martial arts, so it was very difficult for him to become the eldest disciple in charge of Longqi Temple.
When Jiang Changsheng heard this, he said, “That makes sense. I’ll choose another disciple in the next few days.”
Meng Qiushuang smiled and began to reminisce with Jiang Changsheng about his childhood. Jiang Changsheng also liked to listen. As one got older, they would miss the past.
In the 3rd year of the Zhen Yu Era, King Wei led 100,000 iron cavalry to the north and defeated 300,000 troops of the Jin Dynasty with 100,000 troops. In that battle, there was a name that shook the Jin Dynasty. His name was Ping’an, and he killed 8,000 enemies alone. He could be said to be a devil in the human world. Such a battle achievement spread throughout the thirteen prefectures, and it was also unbelievable to the Jing Dynasty.
Most of the commoners thought that it was a rumor. This battle record was too exaggerated.
In April, King Wei attacked the Shen Province and swept through the 150,000-strong army of Ancient Han. He chased them for a few days and killed all the soldiers of Ancient Han. From then on, the Shen Province returned to the hands of Great Jing!
The successive good news made the people of Great Jing excited. Could it be true?
For a time, the legend of King Wei began to spread. He was born with three eyes, the reincarnation of the Golden-Winged Giant Roc, the disciple of a martial arts legend, and so on. This imprinted the image of King Wei into the hearts of the people of Great Jing.
The rise of King Wei also put great pressure on the Crown Prince and the other princes. Seeing this, the Emperor had no choice but to send more troops to support the Crown Prince, worried that King Wei would be too powerful and affect the Crown Prince’s status.
In the imperial study in the palace.
Emperor Jiang Yu was dealing with the memorial when a White-robed Guard came in and knelt in front of the table to start inform with intel. Jiang Yu frowned when he heard what was reported.
“Ping’an, Xu Tianji… Longqi Temple really did not hold back… Was his army recruited by the Yang family?”
Emperor Jiang Yu frowned and tapped his fingers on the table. No one knew what he was thinking.
He never expected King Wei to rise. Previously, he thought that Jiang Changsheng had accepted King Wei because he was forced by imperial power and had no choice but to accept him. He did not expect them to build a deep relationship.
The White-robed Guard said, “Not only the Yang family, but also the Chen family.”
Jiang Yu frowned even more. Before he ascended the throne, these two families had already moved to the south, leaving only high-ranking officials in the capital. If he touched the ministers of the two families now, the two families might rise from the south, which would threaten his imperial power.
He looked at Giu Liu, the leader of the Thirteen Assassins, and asked, “In your opinion, what should we do?”
Gui Liu’s eyes flickered as he said, “The Yang family, the Chen family, and Longqi Temple all support King Wei. Their intentions are obvious, but the Yang family and the Chen family have already evacuated the capital, except for Longqi Temple. Your Majesty, this is worth being careful about.”
Jiang Yu was not stupid. He asked in a low voice, “Do you mean that Longqi
Temple is a knife that can stab me at any time?”
Gui Liu said, “If Your Majesty does not touch the two families or directly suppress King Wei, Longqi Temple would definitely not take action. However… Longqi Temple is determined by the imperial power after all. They know very well about the struggle for the imperial power. They must know that they cannot fail when they make a choice.”
Jiang Yu fell into deep thought.
He looked at the White-robed Guard in front of him and said, “Go down first and continue to keep an eye on King Wei.”
“Yes!”
The White-robed Guard quickly left.
Jiang Yu stood up and paced around the imperial study.
Gui Liu said again, “Your Majesty, it’s not appropriate to deal with a martial arts legend directly. I have a plan now, and that is to summon King Qin back to the capital. When King Qin returns, Zong Tianwu will definitely return. If he returns, Your Majesty can absorb Zong Tianwu’s cultivation, and we will help Your Maiestv take down a martial arts legend. At that time, Your Maiestv’s cultivation will reach an unprecedented height. Your Majesty can even personally lead an expedition and create an unparalleled merit that the late emperor did not create.”
Hearing this, Jiang Yu stopped in his tracks and his eyes lit up. “That’s a good idea. By doing that, we can get rid of King Qin as well.”
King Qin’s existence had always been a thorn in Jiang Yu’s heart. If not for the fact that the country was in danger, Emperor Jiang Yu would have many ways to get rid of King Qin, Jiang Yu.
Emperor Jiang Yu frowned and said, “Can we really take down Zong Tianwu?”
Zong Tianwu, the former supreme of the martial arts world, had never been defeated by the three Grandmasters of Ancient Han alone. As the emperor, Jiang Yu knew this person’s battle results the best.
Gui Liu said, “The Dragon Tower is about to send a Venerable over. This
Venerable is a peerless expert above the Heaven Arrival realm. Coupled with
His Majesty and us, Zong Tianwu won’t be able to escape even if he has wings!”
Emperor Jiang Yu’s eyes were cold as he snorted. “Then I’ll recall them by using the excuse of paying respects to the Empress Dowager.”
In the courtyard, Jiang Changsheng circulated his energy as he stared at the spar between the two people in front of him. One of them was Huang Chuan, and the other was Jiang Changsheng’s new disciple. He was an orphan brought back from his travels in the martial arts world. His name was Ling Xiao. He was only eleven years old, but he had already displayed good martial arts talent.
Huang Chuan did not use his true qi and relied solely on his martial art skills to spar with Ling Xiao. Even though he was seven years older than Ling Xiao, his martial arts did not completely suppress Ling Xiao.
After all, Ling Xiao was one of the top talents chosen by Jiang Changsheng from the more than 200 disciples of Longqi Temple. Of course, this was because Huang Chuan had also shown mercy.
Huang Chuan pushed Ling Xiao back. Seeing that he was already panting, he smiled and said, “That’s it, Junior Brother. You almost defeated me. How impressive.”
Ling Xiao’s face was red. It was unclear if he was tired or shy, but he shook his head and said, “How is that possible? Senior Brother, don’t comfort me. I know what I’m capable of. If Senior Brother is serious, you can defeat me with one
”
move.
Huang Chuan smiled. He suddenly recalled that his master had said that he was close to touching him. Could it be…
He could not help but look at Jiang Changsheng and saw him looking at them. Seeing this, he was so frightened that he retracted his gaze.
Jiang Changsheng said, “Ling Xiao, apart from external martial arts, internal arts are the foundation. You don’t have to listen to the Dao now. You have to
seize the time to cultivate. When you become an adult, you have to take on the responsibility of teaching other disciples.”
Ling Xiao nodded immediately, feeling uneasy.
It had been a while since he became Jiang Changsheng’s disciple, but he was still very nervous. Fortunately, Huang Chuan had a cheerful personality and brought him along.
At this moment, Eunuch Li ran in.
Although Eunuch Li had joined Longqi Temple, he often roamed the capital and helped Longqi Temple buy all kinds of food, medicinal herbs, and so on. He was also managing his own connections.
Seeing that Eunuch Li had arrived, Huang Chuan wisely brought Ling Xiao out of the courtyard. Wang Chen and White Dragon were not around either. They were helping to collect mature medicinal herbs at the back of the mountain.
Eunuch Li came to Jiang Changsheng and said in a low voice, “The Emperor summoned King Qin back to the capital with the excuse of paying respects to the Empress Dowager, but there is no such thing as the Empress Dowager’s tomb in the imperial mausoleum.”
Jiang Changsheng narrowed his eyes and said, “You mean the Emperor wants to attack King Qin?”
Eunuch Li nodded and said, “Recently, there have been kings who have died of illness one after another. I suspect that it was done by the Emperor. King Qin is the brother who poses the greatest threat to him on the surface. With Zong Tianwu by his side, he has no choice but to be eliminated.”
Jiang Changsheng fell silent.
Eunuch Li bowed and left.
Jiang Changsheng’s gaze shifted to a tombstone at the back of the courtyard and he sighed slightly.
In the wilderness, two figures galloped forward on the official road. They were King Qin and Zong Tianwu. The two of them had changed into casual clothes and were not wearing armor.
Zong Tianwu, whose hair was white, frowned and said, “Your Highness, I’m afraid this trip to the capital is walking into a tiger’s den.”
King Qin, Jiang Yu, looked ahead and said, “I naturally know this, but I didn’t return when Father passed away. Then, my mother died of illness, and I still haven’t returned. I can’t miss it again.”
Zong Tianwu sighed.
“After this, you can return to your sect. Although I’m very unhappy with the current emperor, he did give birth to a good son. King Wei is stronger than me,” King Qin sighed.
Zong Tianwu frowned and said, “King Wei is indeed young and outstanding, and he is very courageous. However, Your Highness, if you really don’t fight, you will only die if you give up.”
The struggle for imperial power was something that could be given up just because one wanted to.
King QIn said, “If I can leave alive, I will retire and return to the fields. I will be a swordsman of the martial arts world and travel the martial arts world. It will be a happy life.”
As soon as he finished speaking, King Qin reined in his horse and Zong Tianwu did the same.
A figure appeared on the road ahead. That person wore a purple-red robe and had long hair tied up under a snake head jade crown. His expression was cold, and with every step he took, black aura rose from under his feet, as if he was stepping from the netherworld.
Zong Tianwu frowned and said, “The other party is very strong, not inferior to a grandmaster.”
He was secretly puzzled. When had such a peerless expert appeared in the martial arts world of Great Jing? He had never seen him before.
“Supreme of the martial arts world, Zong Tianwu. Seeing you today, you live up to your reputation. I am Yan She. You can call me Venerable Yan She.”
The other party smiled mockingly, his smile filled with killing intent and ridicule.
Zong Tianwu looked at him disdainfully and said, “Venerable Yan She? You nameless person, you want to fight me alone?”
Venerable Yan She smiled and said, “Since you look down on me, I’ll satisfy you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, figures jumped out from the forest in all directions and quickly approached, surrounding Zong Tianwu and King Qin.
Thirteen Assassins of the Sky!