Emperor Longzheng was sitting in the center of the pavilion, with pens, ink, paper and inkstones placed on a stone platform in front of him. He was holding an imperial pen and writing something casually.
The whole courtyard was quiet, so quiet that it was a bit depressing. The palace maids and some eunuchs standing nearby had their heads lowered and remained motionless, like stone and wood sculptures.
This depression doesn't just envelope this courtyard.
At the same time, it also enveloped the entire palace and even the entire Kyoto.
In front of Emperor Longzheng, a scout from the Dragnet knelt on the ground, motionless.
I don't know how long it took.
Emperor Longzheng stopped writing, put down the imperial pen in his hand, picked up his handwriting, put it in the sun and looked at it carefully, and said in a calm voice:
"So, Zhengnan County also fell?"
"yes."
The scout responded in a low voice.
A month ago, riots began to appear in the four states, including Qingzhou, which was cleaned up by Chen Mu, and Youzhou, which was suppressed by Chen Mu, and they began to be turbulent again.
At first, I thought it was a new round of demonic chaos, but in just ten days, the four states began to notice something was wrong.
Because this round of riots seems to be chaotic, with monsters appearing in large numbers in all states, and there are no signs of gathering in one place... But that is only from the perspective of one state.
When the intelligence from the four states was gathered together, it was discovered that these monsters were all converging in the same direction, and that source was Bingzhou.
Binzhou.
This is a very ordinary state. It ranks last among the nine states and is only slightly better than Youzhou. If there is anything special about it, it is that there is a special boundary in the center of Bingzhou.
It was a bamboo forest that stretched for hundreds of miles. Every bamboo leaf was crystal clear, like sapphire, hence the name Yuzhu Forest.
It seems like it should be a blessed place.
But just the opposite.
That’s one of the thirteen most dangerous places in the Great Yuan Dynasty!
Although the area is not large among many Jedi, it is the strangest Jedi. No one who steps into it can ever return, including a second-grade Grand Master who also disappears in it!
The source of the chaos in the four states points to Bingzhou, and Bingzhou points to the Jedi Jade Bamboo Forest.
A large number of scouts were dispatched to Bingzhou and investigated near Yuzhu Forest. Then ten days ago, all the scouts lost contact, including a martial arts master, who also disappeared without a trace.
The only news that came back was that someone hundreds of miles away saw a vast beam of light rising straight into the sky, accompanied by an almost endless amount of evil energy, turning the entire sky into pitch black!
This kind of demonic energy is not something that a human-level demon can possess.
Combined with the demon riots in the four states and the history of the demons that had caused chaos in the land three times, everything is almost ready to come out.
The demon king appears!
I thought that the Demon King would still come from Nanli, but I never thought that he would be born in Bingzhou!
A full ten days have passed since the birth of the Demon King was confirmed, and during these ten days, there is no specific information about this Demon King, and it is still blank until now.
All the scouts sent out to try to find out the information disappeared without a trace.
The only person who was not missing was a fifth-level magician from Si Tiantai, but only a body was left, and the spirit that wandered away at night never came back.
Centered on the Bingzhou Yuzhu Forest, the area extending thousands of miles outward seemed to have become a restricted area. All living beings who crossed the border were without exception, and all contact was lost.
and.
This disconnected area is still spreading. Everywhere it goes, no matter the villages or towns, it has fallen into silence, and there is no more news.
The only information currently known is that this area is spreading towards Kyoto, and just the day before yesterday, it swallowed up a prefecture three thousand miles away from Kyoto.
Everyone in the county has lost contact.
To this day, there is still no news.
The information that the dragnet can detect is only within the scope of that area, and it has spread to a place less than two thousand miles away from Kyoto as soon as possible.
"..."
Emperor Longzheng was silent for a while: "Go down."
That day, the scouts of Luo Diwang bowed silently and then disappeared in front of Emperor Longzheng.
Emperor Longzheng slowly put down the yellow paper in his hand, and then threw the yellow paper into the pond next to the pavilion. The yellow paper was quickly soaked by the pond water, and little ink marks spread in the water.
Emperor Longzheng walked a few steps forward, came to the edge of the pavilion, and looked up at the sky.
All I saw was that the sky was covered with dark clouds, and the clouds were all of strange shapes, eroding the entire sky like demons, terrifying and depressing.
Quietly.
A figure appeared not far away.
This figure is wearing a white Taoist robe, which is Si Tiantai's Taoist robe, and on the skirt of the Taoist robe, there is a seven-ling flower and leaf embroidered. One caltrop is the ninth grade, two caltrops are the eighth grade... Seven caltrops are the third grade.
He is another headmaster of Sitiantai and is in charge of Four Seasons of Winter.
Shiyan!
He stood on a rock beside the pool. Just his presence there seemed to cause the temperature in the entire yard to drop sharply, so much so that the rock was covered with a layer of white frost.
Going down the rocks, a thin layer of ice has quietly condensed on the edge of the pond.
"There are seven human-level great demons gathered around the demon king. We are not sure if there are still some who are hiding."
Shi Yan slowly opened his mouth.
After hearing this, Emperor Longzheng still looked up at the sky. After a while, he converged his gaze and looked at Shi Yan. His eyes were dark and he said, "What does Chief Shi think we should do?"
Shi Yan only pronounced one word.
"Shou."
"...Yeah, I can only keep it."
Emperor Longzheng's eyes were dark.
For more than 700 years since the founding of the Yuan Dynasty, the military fortunes have been prosperous. Although it has experienced many disasters, it has been able to survive each time. However, the current Yuan Dynasty should be the weakest in the past 700 years.
There is no second-grade heavenly master who comes to this world, and there is no first-grade martial saint who controls the world.
This may be related to the fact that he is tired of court disputes and ignores government affairs, but it is not absolutely related, because although he has the power of the world, he cannot control martial arts, let alone the ultimate state of martial arts.
When the national power is weak, there may not be a martial saint born. When the national power is strong, there may not be a martial saint born. Maybe the warriors at the bottom can be controlled, but those above the third level cannot be controlled.
The demon king appears.
The common people are in great tribulation.
Faced with such a situation, we can only say that it is destiny.
Shi Yan looked at Emperor Longzheng, said nothing, shook his head slightly, took a step back, and disappeared silently.
Regarding Shi Yan's silent departure, Emperor Longzheng didn't say anything. He just continued to look up at the dim sky, standing there motionless.
I do not know how long it has been.
Zhao Gao's figure appeared quietly in the courtyard, and walked slowly to the side and rear of Emperor Longzheng, bowed and saluted, and whispered: "Your Majesty, Grandmaster Yan and Grandmaster Mu are back. Both of them were injured, but
The boss got some information when we should have cooperated."
The name of Grandmaster Yan in Zhao Gao's mouth is Yan Nan, and the name of Grandmaster Mu is Mu Li. Although they are regarded as "grandmasters", they are not ordinary masters. They are ranked among the seven pillars of the Martial Temple, and they are two of the seven pillars!
All are at the second level of martial arts.
Yan Nan, seventh in the world!
Mu Li, ninth in the world!
As the Seven Pillars of the Martial Temple, his status is also very high, just like the headmaster Shiyan. Even Emperor Longzheng, the Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty, treats him as an equal.
Two of the seven pillars of the Martial Temple were injured. This was undoubtedly a major event that could shock Kyoto. However, Shi Yan did not mention it before, indicating that the injuries of both of them were not serious.
"I have met with Chief Shi."
Emperor Longzheng converged his gaze and glanced at Zhao Gao.
Zhao Gao stood aside with his eyes lowered and whispered: "The Prime Minister and the four princes have just reported that the monster is ferocious and menacing. I hope your Majesty can temporarily leave the capital to avoid its sharp edge."
"Avoid its edge...hey, where can we avoid it?"
After hearing Zhao Gao's report, Emperor Long Zheng chuckled softly as if mocking.
Although it is now obvious that the Demon King is heading towards Kyoto, if Kyoto falls, there will be no safe place in the world.
"Go tell them, what's the point of fearing a mere monster?"
"I'm right here."
"Let's see if the so-called demon king can shake these mountains and rivers of a hundred thousand miles."
The voice was very plain.
Also very light.
There is no advanced martial arts realm, nor the level of a magician, nor any substantial pressure or aura, but it seems to have quietly diluted some of the depression in the courtyard.
For a moment, it seemed that the rolling dark clouds in the sky were no longer so ferocious.
"Here."
Zhao Gao responded softly.
Then he quietly withdrew.
Only Emperor Longzheng was left, still standing by the pavilion, looking at the dim sky with his hands behind his hands.
…
Xuanguo Mansion.
Chen Guang stood in a courtyard.
"Everything is ready?"
He asked slowly.
The old servant next to him lowered his head and responded, "We have already prepared everything and decided on the route. After leaving Kyoto, we will send the young masters all the way south."
The news of the appearance of the Demon King has not yet spread completely, but the Xuanguo Mansion is naturally qualified to know.
Chen Guang is preparing an escape route.
However, this retreat was not prepared for himself, but for several descendants of the Xuanguo Mansion, who were sent away from Kyoto and all the way to the south.
In this way, even if something goes wrong in Kyoto, at least a trace of his blood will still be left in the world.
As for himself, as the dignified Duke of Xuan Guo, he naturally cannot leave Kyoto. He can only stay in Kyoto if he stays in Kyoto.
"Yao'er still won't leave?"
Chen Guang asked.
The candidates sent to the south were naturally selected carefully, and the most outstanding descendants of the blood were selected from the mansion, including Chen Yao, who returned to Kyoto some time ago.
As Yuan Tianwei, Chen Yao could not leave, but because of Chen Mu's existence, it would be easy for her to leave Yuan Tianwei, but she refused.
"That's all, if you don't want to go, then don't go."
Chen Guang sighed softly.
There are no eggs left behind when the nest is overturned. If Kyoto really falls, it will be the same wherever you retreat. Looking at the whole world, there will no longer be a safe place.
Unless one day, someone comes to the realm of the Martial Saint and drives out the demon king, then the mountains and rivers can be restored and this demonic catastrophe can be quelled.
"Brother Mu hasn't come back yet?"
Chen Guang asked again.
Mentioning Chen Mu, Chen Guang's heart was filled with ups and downs. Even though it had been nearly a month since the news of Qingzhou reached Kyoto, he still couldn't calm down when he thought about it.
Boss!
Third level magician!
I thought that Chen Mu was only at the fifth level. Even the fifth level Si Li was already a very important figure. However, I didn't expect that Chen Mu had hidden it several times. His true level was actually the third level!
Now he is appointed as the head of Si Tiantai!
If the prime minister, who is the head of the civil service, can be said to be 'under one person and above ten thousand people', then the head of Sitiantai should remove the first half of 'under one person'.
A fifth-grade magician can see that the emperor refuses to worship him, and a fourth-grade magician's status is already superior to that of the prince, and a third-grade master, even the emperor in the Jinluan Palace, must be treated equally!
Even if he saw Chen Mu again, he would have to address him as Chief.
Think of this.
Chen Guang couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
On a normal day, if a chief executive were born in the Xuanguo Mansion, it could be said to be extremely respected. All princes, nobles, civil servants and generals would bow their heads to him!
It can be said that even in the most prosperous period of Xuanguo Mansion, it was far from what it is now!
When the news about Qingzhou first came, many of the princes of the Yuan Dynasty almost came to visit him in person to congratulate him. Even those princes and princes treated him with unprecedented courtesy when they saw him.
This was almost unimaginable before Chen Mu rose to prominence. At that time, the Xuanguo Mansion had almost been reduced to the last position in the Duke's Mansion, and it was even about to face the situation of losing rank.
only……
Although today's Xuanguo Mansion has become extremely respected, and even Emperor Longzheng has repeatedly issued decrees to grant favors, it has just ushered in the worst era of demons and chaos in the land!
Now let alone the Xuanguo Mansion, the entire Yuan Dynasty is already in danger.
In normal times, with a leader like Chen Mu here, the Xuanguo Mansion would be able to respect him to the extreme for at least a hundred years. Even if Chen Mu was willing, it would not be difficult to give the Xuanguo Mansion another title.
But now, all this is meaningless.
The demon king comes to the world.
The common people are in great tribulation.
If Kyoto falls, then even the Yuan Dynasty will be destroyed, let alone the Xuanguo Mansion.
Perhaps with Chen Mu's ability, even if Kyoto fell, he could still survive this catastrophe, but compared to the wealth and glory in the prosperous age, the gap is huge.
Awakening to be a third-level magician is an extremely lucky thing for only one among hundreds of millions of people, but encountering the demon king coming to this world is also a misfortune among the extremely lucky. Perhaps this is fate, Chen Mu's fate, and the Xuanguo Mansion's fate.
"There is no news from Chief Chen yet."
Zhao Li stood next to Chen Guang and spoke in a low voice, "It is said that the Demon Realm has advanced to less than two thousand miles away from Kyoto. I am afraid that the attack on Kyoto will only happen in the past few days. I wonder if Chief Chen can catch up."
Chen Guang gathered his thoughts, shook his head slightly, and sighed: "It all depends on God's will."
It may be a good thing that Chen Mu can catch up. A chief can add a strong protective force to Kyoto and have greater confidence in guarding Kyoto.
But it may be a bad thing, and it may fall with Kyoto and fall into the chaos of monsters.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
The word count is a little short, so I’ll catch up on some sleep first, wake up in the afternoon and start writing, and I’ll update it in the evening.