Chapter 1932: A Single Move Is Enough
What the hell?
That was the first reaction of all those present. Had this kid eaten the gallbladder of a leopard or something? He wasn't even giving an earth immortal any face!
Zhao Chen was also a bit stunned. Zu An had just done all this to denounce the Meng clan and King Dai for plotting against the Qin and Murong clans and harming them badly, acting out of anger, right? But then, shouldn't Zhao Chen have been able to state that the Meng clan had made a mistake and that they had already received their due punishment, handing down an order for twenty lashes of corporal punishment to console this young man and bring the situation to a close? After all, his status in the royal family was revered, and now that he had the power of an earth immortal, who would dare to ignore his opinion?
And yet, he could never have expected that this kid wouldn't listen at all! He had just flaunted his own earth immortal rank cultivation a moment before, but this youngster didn’t give him any face. If he didn’t do anything here, what dignity would he have left?
“Very good… Could it be that just because you are a bit young and have had some fortunate encounters, you think that you are unequaled in this world?” Zhao Chen remarked with a scowl.
The fact that this youngster was able to grow to such a ridiculous degree must mean that he's definitely had many miraculous encounters.
But he's looking down on the heroes of this world too much, isn’t he? Does he really think he has the final say in the capital just because he won against Meng Jing?
You have successfully trolled Zhao Chen for +666 +666 +666…
Zu An calmly said, “The human and fiend emperors are no longer with us, so I am, indeed, already unequaled in this world.”
The eight dukes were speechless, as were the experts of the great clans who had been watching.
They had all thought that Zu An would be courteous in this situation and that the eight dukes would give him a chance to stand down, after which the whole situation would pass. How could they have expected that he would be so resolute and not back down an inch? Many people felt their blood boil when they heard his response.
This is how a manly man should act! When will I be able to be like this?
However, the elders of the different clans shook their heads.
He’s too impetuous. If he's going to embarrass Zhao Chen like this, how can Zhao Chen let him go?
Sure enough, Zhao Chen raised his head and laughed out loud. He said, “Fine. It has already been many years since this old one last met such an arrogant young man. I must properly discipline you, so do not blame this old one for bullying the young. You can take the first move. I will give you the first three strikes."
Zu An was a bit surprised. He said, “If I make my move, you might not have a chance to do anything anymore.”
“What?” Zhao Chen exclaimed; he was stunned at first and thought that he had misheard things. Then, he was so angry he actually laughed, asking, “Youngster, are you joking right now?”
You have successfully trolled Zhao Chen for +444 +444 +444…
After some hesitation, Zu An replied, “What if I accidentally end up killing you? What should we do about that then?”
“If you are able to wound me from three strikes, that will only mean that our Great Zhou Dynasty has produced a genius who has surpassed all others of his kind before and since. That would be a blessing for our country, so how could I blame you for that?” Zhao Chen said with a cold sneer.
How does this guy’s mind work? Don’t tell me that he really thinks he can challenge someone so far above his cultivation rank and fight against an earth immortal?
Still, he couldn't blame Zu An. After all, he'd once had similar delusions. He'd long felt as if his fate mortal soul was merely half a step left from the earth immortal rank, and as a stunning genius with countless skills, he would stand a chance against an earth immortal too.
However, only when he truly reached the earth immortal rank had he realized just how ridiculous his previous way of thinking was. Everyone else was an ant to an earth immortal. That wasn’t a mere saying; it was the truth. No matter how powerful a grandmaster was, even if they were unstoppable within that rank, they would be pitifully weak in the eyes of an earth immortal.
Everything had clearly gone too smoothly for this brat; he'd never had to be taught a lesson, which was clearly why he was so arrogant.
Zu An asked with a frown, “What if I accidentally kill you?”
The onlookers erupted into an uproar. This brat was going way too far!
Zhao Chen’s expression also grew cold. He said, “If you can kill this old one, it will only mean that this old one’s skills are lacking. Everyone, listen well; no one is allowed to get revenge for me, whether it is the court, the royal family, or my own children. All of you will serve as witnesses.”
All of the other dukes sighed. It sounded as if Zhao Chen had already decided to end Zu An’s life here.
Taobao Official Yu Rui tried to dissuade him, saying, “Imperial Tutor, there is no need to take things this far.”
Zhao Chen didn’t pay him any attention; instead, he looked at Zu An and asked, “Then what if you end up dying because of me?”
“Of course I would say the same,” Zu An said calmly.
“Actually, it doesn’t matter. Even if there were people who wish to take revenge for you, they could just come at me. This old one is an earth immortal, so what do I have to fear?” Zhao Chen replied with a sneer. “You can start. Since this old one has already said so, you can take your three moves.”
He had already made up his mind that after these three strikes, he would take Zu An's life. He had to show everyone in the capital the consequences of offending an earth immortal. After all, this was his first battle after becoming an earth immortal. Defeating a junior wasn’t all that glorious of an undertaking, but fortunately, the brat just wanted to keep provoking him. This way, even if he killed Zu An, no one else could say too much about it.
Just then, the empress flew over from the distance and said, “Imperial Tutor, please show mercy!”
She had immediately hurried over when she learned of the situation. However, she hadn’t expected things to develop so quickly. One after another, the giant gold dragon, the Dragon King, and even Zhao Chen had appeared. With the appearance of so many mysterious powers, she had been unable to approach for some time. Now that she heard that Zhao Chen and Zu An were making such a bet, though, she couldn't hold herself back anymore and spoke up to plead for mercy. After all, no matter how strong Zu An was, how could he possibly defeat the earth immortal Zhao Chen?
Zhao Chen didn’t even give her a second look. Even Zhao Han had to treat him with respect upon meeting him. What was so important about a woman from the emperor's harem?
An aura overflowing with power spread outward. The empress had just reached the grandmaster rank, so she couldn't get closer at all. She could only nervously watch the familiar figure at the center of it all.
Ah Zu, how could you be this rash? You could have just talked to me if you needed anything, and I would have helped you find a way to solve things!
But how can we smooth things up now? You’ve even offended the Imperial Tutor, and he has already reached the earth immortal rank!
Zu An chuckled and said, “I actually don’t need three moves. A single move is enough.”
‘What you lookin’ at’ was activated!
The Ikuu Experience Card was activated!
The Star Shattering Imprint was activated!
The Grandgale instant movement skill was activated!
…
A resplendent sword strike that flowed like a celestial stream lit up the capital’s skies.
Zhao Chen’s eyes narrowed. He wanted to react, but it was already too late; his head flew high into the sky. His decapitated body shone with golden light as if it had been about to defend itself, and it still carried the power of an earth immortal. But without his head, not even an earth immortal could recover. His body fell heavily to the ground with a muffled thud.
Zu An was stunned. He wondered out loud, “Why were you so weak?”
He had thought that since the opponent was an earth immortal, he couldn’t hold back at all. As such, instead of being as willful and nonchalant as before, he had used many skills in quick succession. And yet, Zhao Chen had instantly been killed without even being able to react at all.
This guy is just too lacking compared to the Fiend Emperor and Zhao Han! He isn’t even as strong as King Qi was back then.
It seems to have only been a few days since he entered the earth immortal rank, so his fighting instincts and experience were both still at the grandmaster rank. He must not have completely stabilized his current cultivation yet.
Those who had been watching were petrified. Their mouths hung wide open as they stared blankly at the sight before them. At that moment, everything was so quiet that one could even hear a pin drop.
Even though practically everyone in the Meng manor had been massacred and the Meng clan’s great ancestor had been slaughtered like a dog, and even the giant gold dragon had been killed, all of that added together couldn’t even add up to the shock they were experiencing right now.
What had they just seen? A glorious earth immortal had been killed by a single slash!
This is a freaking earth immortal we are talking about, the embodiment of the world’s greatest power!
In the past, his majesty, the Fiend Emperor, the libationer, King Qi… which one of those names hadn't shaken the entire world before?
What countless cultivators yearned for was even the slightest chance to become an earth immortal one day. However, most of them knew that was nothing more than an extravagant wish, as earth immortals were exceptionally rare.
And yet now, one such legendary earth immortal had been completely crushed... and by a young man, no less!
Was that earth immortal a damn fake?!
“You actually dare to kill this court’s Imperial Tutor, the clan leader of the royal family? Demon-Eradicating Great Formation, kill him!” Zhuang He roared furiously. His body erupted with light as he shot straight into the air.
The other dukes were alarmed. They quickly activated their own skills, and streak after streak of light rose. Their movements seemed to be activating some kind of mechanism.
The entire capital rumbled with noise. Immediately after, ripples began to appear in the sky, as if something shocking was about to awaken.
The power of destruction that began to gather was enough to make all of the cultivators in the capital tremble. In that instant, they all had a feeling that even an earth immortal trapped in this formation could very well only have death awaiting him.
After all, this was the embodiment of the national power of the glorious Great Zhou Dynasty, the ultimate formation created to defend the capital. It was the final measure to guard the nation against something on the level of an invasion from the Fiend Races’ endless army. As a weapon designed be used on the level of a grand battle, how could it possibly be something a single person could deal with?
The empress was shocked and furious when she heard them. She cried out, “Who permitted you to use the Demon-Eradicating Great Formation?!”
However, the dukes didn’t listen to her at all. They all urged on the formation’s awakening, as if only by doing that would they have any sense of safety.
Zu An sized up the great formation. A hint of surprise appeared in his eyes. Even though he was proficient in formations because of the Baopu Sutra, he had to admit that the level of this formation was very high. It had practically become one with heaven and earth. To a certain degree, the attacks of the great formation could manifest the power of the world.
Suddenly, a streak of green light flew into the sky. Then, a small figure floated into the air with a formation disc in hand. His hand moved around a bit, and the Demon-Eradicating Great Formation gradually faded.
“Yan Xiangu, what are you doing?” Zhuang He exclaimed, feeling shocked and furious. He stared at Yan Xiangu, and yet was helpless to do a thing about it.
After all, Yan Xiangu had participated in the creation of this formation in the past. In terms of control over it, his mastery even exceeded that of Zhuang He.
Those from the capital’s great clans all began to whisper among themselves.
“Sir Yan has appeared.”
“That’s not all. The other academy teachers are also following behind him.”
“It seems they're taking a stand on Zu An’s side.”
“Of course! Zu An is the Royal Academy’s libationer, you know?”
“Hasn't it been said that the academy teachers are all proud and haughty, that they're normally all incredibly arrogant? Does that brat Zu An really have the skill to tame those prideful people?”
…
Yan Xiangu led his group of fellow disciples. He calmly looked at Zhuang He, saying, “Actually, I wanted to ask what the Grand Tutor’s intention was. The Demon-Eradicating Great Formation is to be used against foreign enemies, so why was it used against our academy’s libationer?”
Zhuang He quickly said, “He just killed the Imperial Tutor, the imperial family’s clan leader!”
Jiang Luofu spoke up and replied, “If I am not mistaken, the Imperial Tutor stated earlier that this was to be an equal fight, and that even if he lost, he would consider it to be a sign of his own skills being lacking, and asked others not to get revenge for him. Even though I personally do not approve of that kind of of decision to put lives at stake, I have to admit that with so many people serving as witnesses, it is something that needs to be enforced.”
Zhuang He’s expression changed. He had never expected what Zhao Chen said to actually end up serving as the ultimate bail for this brat.
Taibao Official Yu Rui said, “That’s right. Since it was a fair battle, this matter indeed cannot be blamed on him.”
The other dukes all reacted and spoke up in agreement. At the same time, they wiped away their sweat. Even though Zu An had killed Meng Jing and Zhao Chen, what did that have to do with them? And yet, if they had accidentally ended up being dragged into a battle by that old bastard Zhuang He... With the terrifying power Zu An had displayed, even if the formation ended up killing him, some more of the dukes would definitely die as well. That would really be a huge loss then!
The empress finally found a chance to fly over to them. She declared loudly, “The Meng clan instigated King Dai to scheme against the crown prince, and he greatly harmed the court’s veteran generals. Sir Zu came here on this empress’ orders to investigate the case, but these scoundrels actually committed treason when driven to desperate actions. He has defended the solidarity of our nation and stabilized the capital, establishing great contributions! Thus, he is to be given the title of king!
“Furthermore, he came back with news from his majesty, who entrusted him to assist in ruling the government. He is henceforth granted the title of Regent!”
King Dai immediately cried out, “We’re being wronged here! This bastard Zu murdered a member of the royal family, so why did he freaking end up getting the title of king?! And how did I commit treason? Didn’t you all tacitly agree to my…”
Before he could even finish, with a brush of Eunuch Lu’s sleeves, an invisible force twisted his jaw, preventing him from saying anything else.
Meng Chan’s face also became deathly pale. Now, the Meng clan really was beyond saving. The crime of treason was normally met with nine generations of executions. Previously, even if the Meng clan’s powerful cultivators perished, with the Meng clan’s resources, they would still have been able to rebuild their clan again after some time. But now, the entire Meng clan was about to be pulled up by the roots.
What do we do? I have to save the Meng clan, but what exactly should I do?