Chapter 316: Following the Trend
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
The 9th Year of Yong An, the First Day of the year.
Xu Ren had arrived at Qiwei Prefecture. He had ordered for a Heavenly Temple to be built and had taken up the appointment of King, with the title of 'Wu'. He was now King Wu. On that night, there was a banquet and a ceremony to declare his wife as the Queen. Xu Ting was appointed the Head General and was in charge of military affairs.
On the same day, one of the district leaders had presented a 5 Coloured Lingzhi, which was subsequently recorded in the books.
On the 3rd Month, Xu Ting had officially led his troop of 10,000 soldiers to attack the capital city of Da Chu!
Outside of the capital city, there were miles of charred land and occasionally, bones were seen lying around. It was a horrific sight to behold.
Xu Ting whipped his horse as they advanced towards the capital city. Seeing that the city was just right before his eyes, he could not hold back but chuckle. "Baili Xuandu has returned to his own town and is no longer a threat! The priority now is to take down the capital city of Da Chu and make our occupation official!"
With almost half of Da Chu's territory in their hands, they had the freedom to choose which direction they would want to attack the capital city from.
They could either strike the capital city of Da Chu, or attack from the Xinfeng Army.
Based on Xu Ting's judgement, although Baili Xuandu had control over 6 prefectures in the north, they were but empty shells and was no threat. Therefore, he would choose to surround the royal capital.
After all, the royal capital was where the headquarters were and therefore, he had to treat it seriously.
Is Wang Xu in charge of the defence of the capital city of Da Chu? He is of the same ethnicity as Wang Qiao. Who would've thought that he would be able to work with the Empress Dowager so closely!"
Xu Ting rubbed his chin and recalled a few rumours that he had heard in the past. "There must be a reason for everything. The royal palace of Da Chu must be hiding some dirty secrets within!"
"Pass down my command, we shall set up our campsite here and officially invade the city tomorrow!"
Thinking about it, he quickly passed down his command.
Although there were a few prefecture districts neighbouring the capital city of Da Chu, these districts were long destroyed and would surrender instantly if they were to set foot in them. It was an easy task to conquer those districts.
At this point in time, his 10,000-soldier army were surrounding the capital city of Da Chu. With a strong backing, this invasion was much different compared to that led by Baili Xuandu. They could afford to surround and contain the capital city and were not afraid to drag the invasion.
With the heavenly trend in place, they did not have to resort to using underhand means to successfully invade the capital city. By dragging the invasion, it was advantageous for the Xu Family.
This was because the way they had executed the invasion was slow but steady. It exemplified the true meaning of the art of war.
"Yes Sir!"
Without hesitation, the instruction was relayed and the campsite was set up promptly. Due to their past experience with demons, they had fortified and strengthened their tents and even had soldiers doing patrol duties. They would boil their water before consumption and were on their guards at all times.
"Previously, the demons had suffered losses as well. Furthermore, I am not Baili Xuandu and I am in no hurry to take down the capital city. Therefore, it is unlikely that there would be any loopholes in our invasion for we are not hasty. The chances of us being attacked are minimal!"
Even so, Xu Ting still sent out a troop of 500 cavalries to perform reconnaissance to make sure that the surroundings were clear of any threats. They were made to report to him every 6 hourly so that they could eliminate any potential threats.
It was nightfall.
There was complete silence in the campsite. Not long after, the only light source was being put out.
"Brother Golden Court, what do you feel about this army?"
From afar, on a plateau, Fang Yuan and Golden Court Dragon God had arrived.
"They are steady like a mountain and are not hasty. They are well-disciplined too! An impressive troop!"
Golden Court Dragon God shook before continuing. "Even you and I are affected by the energy given off by this army. Other demons would surely not dare to approach them!"
"Not just this, but I have seen the energy given off by Xu Ting as well. He has a ring of auspicious energy around him and with the assistance of the water dragon's pearl, he is starting to reveal his dragon entity! He will be a king in the future! In comparison, his father's energy pales!"
Fang Yuan replied. "Xuan Zhen Sect would throw in everything they have!"
"This is where I am confused. After conquering the capital city of Da Chu, Xu Ting would be able to unify the entire Da Chu. By then, what should we do? Should we... leave before things get out of hand?"
Golden Court Dragon God broke the silence.
Hearing him, Fang Yuan nodded his head in agreement.
This dragon god was indeed wise to be able to think of such a step. When the humans rule, everything else would have to give way for them.
After the country is being rebuilt, the brave and courageous generals would have to be contained and nullified. Otherwise, any small trigger might cause a big trouble! It would be a display of might, similar to how Zhu Yuanzhang killed the ministers who had worked hard.
Although there were big changes everywhere, the basic principle of how things work would always remain the same!
Furthermore, there was something more threatening to them! Ministers and generals would require the support of the government and they could be controlled. However, the few gods like them harness power in themselves! If the king could not control them, he would fear them even more!
"With Xuan Zhen Sect sowing discord, we should really think about how to take our leave..."
Fang Yuan did not rebut. Instead, he let out a cold laugh. "Does Xuan Zhen Sect really think that they can expand their influence? Dream on! After clearing out demons and gods like us, the king would target the daoists next."
"Mmm, as long as Xu Ting can successfully invade the capital city of Da Chu, he would be credited for it. Even if we were to take our leave, it would not affect anything. Instead, we might benefit from it..."
The Golden Court Dragon God nodded his head and replied.
As a king, Xu Re would be able to gather dragon energy. They could not only cover up their weaknesses with the dragon energy, they might even strengthen themselves.
"Mm... As demons and gods, we are ultimately not human. However, as long as we understand something, we can still survive!"
Fang Yuan appeared serious as he continued. "The uprising of the humans is the heavenly trend. Humans with dragon energy would rise everywhere in the realm and Xu Ting is just one of them. Although many would pin their hopes on him, he is still not irreplaceable! We need to go with the flow, which is to simply eradicate the evil demons!"
"As long as we can achieve that, we would have followed the heavenly trend. If the people dao's dragon energy decide to wipe us out, we can simply retaliate!"
"You're right, young god!"
Hearing Fang Yuan, the Golden Court Dragon God's heart wavered as though he had understood something important.
Xu Ting was merely a pawn in the heavenly trend and was not representative of the entire people dao. As long as Fang Yuan and the Golden Court Dragon God follow the heavenly trend, nobody could do anything to them.
Furthermore, they would be allowed to strike back if anyone were to touch them.
After all, there would be no more problems once the humans rise up and the true dragons appear among the humans.
"Therefore, this operation would be extremely crucial!"
Fang Yuan continued. "Invading the capital city of Da Chu was initially a mere contest among the humans. However, if any demons were to get themselves involved in the invasion, then we will have to take action! Since we have brought along all our water dwellers with us, it is only a small matter if we have to sacrifice all of them. If the Divine Demon Queen were to stop us, we will still put up our best fight!"
Although the soldiers in the dragon palaces were only good in battles underwater, they could still hold their ground on land; they would merely be a little weaker than they used to be.
However, to Fang Yuan, none of this mattered.
Instead, if the casualty rate of his water dwellers were high, the power of Qi Lake would be weakened. This would be aligned with the heavenly trend and therefore, there was nothing to be pity about!
This was breaking things up into two steps. Firstly, he would continually do good deeds to gain heavenly dao karma. As for the people dao, as long as he did not oppose the heavenly trend, he would not be at risk of anything.
After all, the heavens were cruel. No one could say for sure if the true dragon would come from the Xu Family.
Seeing how Fang Yuan's eyes were glistening, the Golden Court Dragon God shook.
Being so decisive and meticulous as to deal with issues separately in terms of heavenly dao and people dao and having such a deep understanding of the people dao meant that there was no way they could fail!
"With such a potential person among us demons, I have no worries!"
The Golden Court Dragon God let out a sigh and released a signal.
From a big river, troops of water dwellers appeared, forming a military formation.
"Some of the Golden Court Army and An River Army have left behind to take care of the lake and river. I have 12,000 of them reporting here today, and I'll let you command them!!!"
A golden glow appeared on the Golden Court Dragon God's hand and transformed into a dragon scale. With that, he passed the scale to Fang Yuan.
"Do not worry. Just remember, we are here to attack the demons who are opposing the heavenly trend. We will not touch a single human regardless of the situation. I'll leave all those problems to Xu Ting!"
Fang Yuan glanced at the outline of the capital city and laughed. "Let's go!"
...
On the city walls of the capital city of Da Chu.
The Divine Demon Queen was sitting atop the city walls, looking pitiful. However, the guards beside her were ignoring everything. It was weird.
Upon closer look, the guards had a demonic glow in their eyes. As the torches illuminated their faces, black streaks were seen on their faces.
"Reporting, Queen!"
A lieutenant walked up and paid his greetings. "All the soldiers who are willing to listen to your command have arrived! We have obtained more than half of the defences of the city!"
He was indeed a powerful demon to be able to take up the form of a human! An independent powerful demon!
Of course, with the Empress Dowager's assistance and the few demon spies around Wang Xu, it was possible to possess people in the royal palace.
"Alright, this time, we shall make use of the city walls to destroy and wipe out Xu Ting's army. It would be even better if we can capture him!"
The Divine Demon Queen commanded.
"Yes, Ma'am!"
With a cunning laugh, the lieutenant's eyes glistened.
As soon as the demon lieutenant was dismissed, the Divine Demon Queen looked down at the sea of black beneath the city walls and let out a sigh.
The previous fight with Baili Xuandu had weakened the dragon energy, but her demons had suffered a high casualty rate. She had even lost some of her elite demons.
Humans were able to reproduce and get their numbers up quickly. In a few years, a huge troop of soldiers were arriving once more.
Furthermore, this time, there were many elite and capable people assisting the soldiers.
Looking at her own demons, she realised that comparatively, her demons reproduce slower. Even if she were to multiply their numbers by 10 or even 100, she would still lose out in terms of numbers!
"For the demons, I'll have to make do!"
"The good thing is that I have received news that we have located a few islands far from here. These islands have an abundance of spiritual energy. I have already instructed the weaker demons to relocate there. With this, I can at least preserve some of our species..."
The Divine Demon Queen looked towards the direction of Xu Ting's campsite and gave a cunning laugh. "Even if I have to sacrifice all my demons, I must ensure that I destroy the people dao's dragon energy completely and ensure that chaos will break out for the next hundred years to come!"
She had made up her mind.
"Kill!"
At this point in time, there were shoutings and warcries. The Divine Demon Queen turned pale. "Jerk, traitors!"
Beneath the city walls, 20,000 water dwellers formed neat rows.
Witnessing this, the Divine Demon Queen was enraged.
She had initially planned to sacrifice all her demons to destroy the people dao's dragon energy and create chaos.
However, if she were to start a war with the water dwellers, regardless of who would win the war, it was their own internal conflict and the humans would be the one who would benefit from their own conflict!
"Roar! Roar!"
Amidst dragon roars, the silhouette of two water dragons appeared. Fang Yuan transformed into a man with a crown. Together with the Golden Court Dragon God, they looked towards the city walls.
"Qi Lake Dragon God, as a dragon, you are an asset to the demons. Why do you want to seek refuge with the humans?"
The Divine Demon Queen had already lost all hope for the Golden Court Dragon God. Looking at Fang Yuan, she was in disbelief.
"Since this is the heavenly trend, how can I oppose it?"
Fang Yuan waved his hands. "This conversation is meaningless! Attack the city!"