King Liqin's words sounded slightly patronizing but his expression remained, as though he had already predicted such a result from the start.
At the same time, a black crack appeared in front of him. It was as big as a door!
King Liqin walked in extremely slowly. As he stepped into the crack, his body slowly became blurred.
Truly mighty warriors would not be troubled by the past. Their only thought would be there's a problem … and they should solve it!
…
The Eastern Gate of the Flame Capital City.
The city gate constructed with countless bronze parts still radiated with a dark green glow, exuding a strange and eerie quality in the darkness of the night.
Those clothed in black were still battling the nobles and the citizens as their battlecries sounded one after the other.
At this moment, a group of people galloped over hastily from afar, their shimmering coats of armor reflecting faint glimmers of radiance under the moonlight.
"It's the Mountain Breaking Army. Xing Hou has arrived!"
"So has Chi Hou from the Divine Constabulary!"
"We're saved!"
The faces of the nobles and the citizens void of hope instantly lit up when they turned towards the figures charging over in the distance.
"Big Brother, it's the Northern Barbarians!" Chi Hou, who donned purple robes, immediately identified the assailants dressed in black after he noticed the armor clad on their bodies.
As the guardian of the Divine Constabulary, one of the five constabularies of the Northern Lands, Chi Hou naturally had a deeper understanding of the Holy Barbarian Empire to the north of the Great Xia Empire.
"The Northern Barbarians?" Xing Hou frowned. Although he did not cross swords with the Holy Barbarian Empire on many occasions, he still knew of their savage brutalities. "Could that be the Near-Life Gate of the Northern Barbarians?"
"No, the Near-Life Gate is the greatest treasure owned by the Northern Barbarians, and that is not the Near-Life Gate. If my guess is correct, that should be the four formations created from the Near-Life Gate … Wait a minute, four?! Could those be the Four Ancient Formations?!" Chi Hou gazed at the bronze city gate which radiated with dark green light, and his face turned pale.
"The Four Ancient Formations! Aren't those the legendary … This is bad! His Majesty is in danger!" Upon hearing this, Xing Hou's body jerked forcefully as his face was instantly washed white.
"Big Brother, with the Four Ancient Formations protecting the city gate, it's impossible for the Red Pinion Squad of the Ten Mile Lake to invade the city. What should we do now?"
"My worthy little brother, lead the Mountain Breaking Army to attack the enemy from within the castle. I'll go to the Imperial Palace to save His Majesty myself!"
"No, the Mountain Breaking Army has always been led by Big Brother. Furthermore, we cannot grasp the situation inside the Imperial Palace at the moment. Big Brother is the leader of the Thirteen Constabularies, and we can only prevail if Big Brother is around. I shall save His Majesty, and Big Brother shall stay here and attack!" Chi Hou immediately shook his head.
"If I perish in battle, you shall lead the Thirteen Constabularies, Little Brother …"
"Big Brother, my mind has been set. If not for Big Brother's reminders, I would have already committed atrocious mistakes in our journey to the Flame Capital City. Only Big Brother is worthy of being the leader of the Thirteen Constabularies. I'll be off, Big Brother!" With that, Chi Hou immediately yanked the reins of his horse and turned around, riding straight towards the Imperial Palace at top speed.
Xing Hou gazed at Chi Hou's figure riding away into the distance, dazed. He wanted to say something else, but he swallowed his words in the end.
"Mountain Breaking Army!"
"Here!"
"Line up, attack!"
"Yes!"
...
The Throne Room of the Imperial Palace.
The worn-down yet quaint bronze Near-Life Gate still stood in the centre of the Throne Room, but its two heavy bronze doors have already been closed shut again. And in front of the Near-Life Gate, stood a man dressed in white like a scholar. His eyes flickered with a demonic and strange green glow.
"Ooo …" Three menacing beasts creeped lowly before the 'Demonic Man', their eyes closed shut as they let out soft moaning sounds.
"Why aren't you bowing?" After hearing the moans of the three beasts, the Demonic Man finally looked at the Emperor Lin Mubai and Chen Feihua. His sound was crisp and clear, and his eyes shimmered with a dark green glow.
"This is bad. Dragon Protection Squad, protect His Majesty and Lady Hua Fei!" Fang Qing subconsciously took a step forward as he met the Demonic Man's gaze.
As the first Dragon Envoy of the Dragon Protection Squad, he was responsible for safeguarding the might and dignity of the Great Xia Empire and his Emperor. Who his opponents were, or how powerful they were, were not in his considerations.
Following his command, hundreds from the Dragon Protection Squad stepped out in unison, spreading themselves in front of the Emperor Lin Mubai and Chen Feihua. Even the Imperial Ranger Squad guarding the doorway of the Throne Room was activated, with each soldier raising their long spears, pointing straight at the Demonic Man.
"Your Majesty? Oh, is this the Imperial Palace?" The Demonic Man scanned his surroundings, glancing past the various soldiers of the Dragon Protection Squad and Imperial Ranger Squad. His eyes flashed with a trace of astonishment.
He then cracked a smile shortly after. It was a smile evoking surprise and curiosity, like a predatory hawk suddenly spotting a herd of sheep.
"Hahaha …" He chortled loudly and maniacally, thrusting his body forward and backward. As his laughter reverberated , the entire Throne Room shuddered violently.
"Rumble!"
Countless fragments of rubble cascaded down from the ceiling as multiple cracks extended swiftly throughout the floor.
"Boom!"
The few golden pillars holding up the Throne room seemed to have been destroyed by something, and collapsed instantly as the ceiling crashed down.
"The Throne Room is collapsing!"
"Quick, protect His Majesty!"
"Your Majesty, please leave!"
Voices rang out from the Dragon Protection Squad and the Imperial Ranger Squad.
Then, a ray of green light dispersed outwards from the Demonic Man like a ripple spreading out in all directions.
"Slash!"
The soldier from the Dragon Protection Squad standing at the front of the vanguard was immediately severed into two, not leaving any room for resistance.
"Quick, block it!" Upon witnessing this sight, Eunuch Wei did not hesitate any longer and immediately screamed at the two squads.
"Slash! Slash!"
"..."
Amidst the uproar, tens of soldiers from the Dragon Protection Squad toppled over one after the other.
They were the most elite force of the Great Xia Empire. Every single person in the squad possessed a level of strength minimally above the Supernatural State. But under the effects of the green light, their resistances were completely nulled.
A golden ray of light then shot up.
Golden mist blanketed the skies as a figure leapt up, delivering a swift punch into the green glow.
"Boom!"
The golden light was immediately blown backwards.
And at the same time, another golden ray of light propelled upwards. Following that, clouds and mist rose into the air. A golden dragon bolted through the clouds as two demonic streams of crimson light shot down, colliding with the green glow.
"Boom!"
The dark green light vibrated, but still penetrated through the bodies of several soldiers in the Dragon Protection Squad, and they disappeared like dust into the darkness of the night.
"Boom!"
The ceiling of the Throne Room crashed down onto the ground, as the four walls quickly followed. An enormous crater appeared on the ground with the Demonic Man in the centre.
The magnificent Throne Room, once the symbol of the Great Xia Empire's unrivalled might, has been reduced to dust!
And this was all due to a single attack from the Demonic Man. How ridiculous is that?
Shivers inevitably ran down the backs the remaining soldiers from the Dragon Protection Squad and Imperial Ranger Squad guarding their emperor as they stared at the Demonic Man standing by the Near-Life Gate.
"Blurt!" Lin Mubai's body jolted as he expectorated a mouthful of blood violently. He was already wounded, and his condition deteriorated after using the Green Dragon Eye.
Chen Feihua, who was standing beside Lin Mubai as she witnessed this scene, instinctively support Lin Mubai's arm. But such an ordinary action caused dense sweat droplets to ooze from her forehead. Her chest rose up and down as her face flushed extremely red.
"Blurt!" Chen Feihua also expelled a mouthful of blood.
A single blow from the Demonic Man caused the Throne Room to collapse, and dealt severe injuries on the Emperor Lin Mubai who possessed the Green Dragon Eye as well as his concubine Chen Fei Hua.
"Your Majesty!"
"Lady Hua Fei!"
Several guards from the Dragon Protection Squad immediately stepped forward. Each of their gazes wavered in anxiety.
The Crown Prince Lin Tianrong gazed at the crumbled remains of the Throne Room and the Demonic Man still standing beside the Near-Life Gate. He was completely petrified.
"A De … Demon King?!" Lin Tianrong's eyes were wide open. Naturally, he knew that anyone capable of emerging from the Near-Life Gate could not possibly be human.
However, his opponent was in the form of a human! That means …
He can only be a demon!
He belonged to race that was rarely documented even in the Great Xia Empire's literature, a race that evolved from the beasts, a race that possessed intelligence that rivalled that of humans, and a race that wielded bodies capable of further training like humans.
They concealed themselves amidst the mountains and rivers, feasting on the richness of nature and absorbing the essence of the sun and moon. They were an existence that surpassed all types of beasts.
And the Demonic Man standing before him was evidently no ordinary demon.
He boasted absolute fluency in his linguistic abilities and was dressed in such an immaculate manner, and a single blow from him could destroy the sturdy Throne Room.
Such power …
"A Demon King!"
After this thought flashed through the Crown Prince's mind, he was completely dazed. He did predict that Qian Wu would produce some sort of trick, but he definitely did not imagine Qian Wu summoning a Demon King from the Near-Life Gate.
And a Demon King with a country under his rule, no less.
How could Qian Wu possibly be sharing any benefits with him?
A contract?
Memories of him signing the contract with Qian Wu quickly surfaced in Lin Tianrong's mind, recalling the generosity that Qian Wu showed when distributing his loot.
Back then, Lin Tianrong thought that Qian Wu did not know how to negotiate.
But now … he finally understood.
It was not because Qian Wu was unsure on how to negotiate; he did not intend to negotiate at all. That was because he never wanted any of the conditions stated on the contract; he wanted the entire Great Xia Empire.
"What's going on? How could the Throne Room … What … is that?!" A familiar voice sounded behind the dazed Crown Prince, his legs rooted to the ground.