It has been three hundred years since Xiong Ba took the throne, making him the longest reigning king.
He has gone through many battles in the north and south, and has gone through ups and downs.
This king with the highest military exploits has a very important position in the hearts of the people and his opponents.
"My lord, you are taking too many risks, if you fall into a trap!" Yuan Chi was the first to object.
"It's impossible without taking risks. If I don't go there in person, I'm afraid I won't be able to negotiate good terms."
There is another important reason why it is so urgent, that is, Xiong Ba is almost dead.
He was dozens of years younger than Zhang Wulang. If Zhang Wulang died, he would be almost the same age.
Before dying, take a risk and do something that will benefit your descendants. For Xiong Ba, this risk is nothing.
And Xiong Ba knew he had to go.
The other party has already set its sights on me, so now it's time to be polite before attacking. If you don't follow the right path, the next step may be to attack.
The situation will be even more dangerous by then. Once the merchants from Dayi also take action against the Chu State, and the surrounding countries are watching with eager eyes, the Xiong clan will have no choice but to flee.
Due to emotions and reasons, Xiong Ba must have a good relationship with Dayi merchants, otherwise their destruction will be waiting for them.
…
In the next few days, everyone in the Chu State prepared for several days and specifically asked about the relevant etiquette.
For example, how many people should you bring and what gifts should you bring? In addition to the king himself, you should also bring heirs, princesses, etc., and the Dayi Chamber of Commerce will reward you.
These are established rules and it is impossible for someone to go alone.
Yuan Chi asked the Plum Blossom Fairy Zhang Mei to tell the fortune.
"How's the hexagram?"
"Good fortune and misfortune depend on people, both good and bad." Zhang Mei gave this answer.
Zhang Mei's plum blossom divination method is very magical. As the first female witch in Chu State, she has very important decision-making power on many major events.
"Okay, I will tell the king about this hexagram." Yuan Chi heard the words and left.
Zhang Mei sighed deeply.
It's not because of anything, it's mainly because of her own personal affairs. Since she died once, her lifespan is still relatively sufficient, probably about a hundred years left.
What really makes her feel uneasy is that the inheritance cannot be passed on.
Until now, no one has been able to understand the Plum Blossom Divination Algorithm.
Yuan Chi couldn't do it, and neither did Mudan. There were other descendants, no matter it was the Xiong family or the Zhang family, no one could understand this technique.
This made Zhang Mei worried that the inheritance was about to be cut off.
A few days later, the clouds broke through the sky, and a bronze black bird with a wingspan of thousands of feet came through the clouds.
The eyes are inlaid with rubies the size of millstones, and there is a bronze palace on the back, as well as ghost warriors from Dayi Shang. Half of the ghost warrior's face is a living person, and the other side is an indigo ghost face.
On top of the black bird chariot, there is also a strange-looking bird-headed man.
The chariot floated a hundred feet high in the sky, and the bird-headed man flew down.
"Excuse me, where is the king?"
Xiong Ba led his family and men into the chariot.
The black bird flapped its wings, and a strong wind suddenly rose, leading everyone to Chongguo in the northwest.
This incident spread instantly throughout the surrounding countries, and the kings of all countries speculated about the transactions between Chu State and Dayi merchants.
If a strategic alliance is really reached, wouldn't there be another thorn in the side of the Shang Dynasty in the south in the future?
Some people wanted to take this opportunity to attack Chu, but after thinking about it, they decided not to.
The chariots of the Shang Dynasty are here. It doesn't take long for them to come from afar. They may also bring reinforcements from Chongguo. It is too risky to take action now unless others are allowed to take action.
So, they encouraged some tribes to come and harass them, but unfortunately others were not fools either.
Chongguo court.
The king of Chongguo was wearing tiger-patterned armor, he was tall, and he wore a silver crown on his head. The crown was so big that it covered most of his facial features.
Beside him lay a liger with five-colored haze.
This is Chonghou. Chongguo is a country of marquises. He is the head of the local priests and has participated in the conquests of surrounding countries.
"The prince will meet with the leader of the Chu Kingdom?" Chonghou asked his subordinates.
"Yes, in the Yincheng area."
"Then let him go and ignore him. Since I won't be notified, I don't have to take the initiative to go."
After all, the Crown Prince is the Crown Prince, and he is considered an important official of the imperial court. Too much communication with the Crown Prince is not a good thing, and it gives the King a feeling that he can't wait to join his side.
An important minister of his level no longer needs to maintain his own glory and wealth by taking sides.
On the contrary, the princes want to gain their own support to increase their bargaining chips in the fight for the throne.
Yin City.
Zi Shou was dressed in fine clothes, and there were two people standing next to him, one with white hair in Tsing Yi and the other with white hair in Tsing Yi.
"Di Feng and Di Shui, you two will maintain order for a while. If there is any disobedience, kill them immediately."
"yes!"
The two guys who didn't look like mortals said in unison.
These are the spirits of heaven and earth, summoned from the void by Zi Shou, and obey their orders.
The lowest level of cultivation for everyone is traveling.
Above Refining Qi is Dinxia, above Dinxia is Travel, and above Travel is Human Immortal.
Most of the emperors in the world are almost in the realm of immortals, and beyond that is the realm that can only be achieved by characters in mythology.
Zi has been cultivating for thousands of years, but he is nothing more than a human immortal.
The palace maids, attendants, flying birdmen, and earth-escaping stone men all got busy, setting up the banquet venue, and dozens of slaves were escorted out and subjected to various punishments.
In the open space outside the house, a five-color earth altar is nine feet high, white flags are hunting in the wind, mugwort is burning to form wolf smoke, and a bird-headed wizard wearing a red mask is singing softly.
The ghosts and gods of the underworld descend to earth in green whirlwinds to enjoy the sacrifices.
Halfway through the ceremony, the wizard stopped the incantation and came forward to pay homage to Zishou.
"Your Majesty, there is another important sacrifice to worship God."
"No rush, just wait a moment."
Soon, the big bird flew over and landed in the open space outside the city.
Zi Shou raised his head to signal.
Di Feng and Di Shui flew out to greet them and diverted the crowd.
A minister has his place as a minister, and a monarch has his place as a monarch.
Only Xiong Ba is qualified to come to this place.
Among them, Xiong Ban, as the crown prince, received the most attention.
"Crown Prince of Chu, please come this way." The bird-headed wizard pointed in another direction.
Yuan Chi suddenly thought of something and shouted: "Your Majesty!"
"You are over here!" The white-haired Di Shui's eyes narrowed, and an infinite chill came over him. Yuan Chi suddenly felt a pressure that suppressed him to the point that he could not speak.
On the other side, Xiong Ba has been led to the main hall to meet with Zishou.
On the way, he saw at least twenty-five kinds of punishments.
In the large wooden hall of Nuo, with soft moss and flower petals underfoot, a young man sat in front of Xiong Ba. There was an empty table in front of him.
There were fruits, vegetables and various meats on the table, including the flesh and blood of the sacrifices.
"Greetings to the Crown Prince!" Xiong Ba said, cupping his fists.
"Please sit down, don't be polite." Zi Shou pointed to the table opposite.
"This is Chaoge Jade Dew, the dew of the Nine Heavens Clouds. Lord Chu, please have a taste." Zi Shou held the wine bottle high, and the liquid in the wine bottle bloomed with light.
Xiong Ba heard this and took a sip, feeling that his true energy had increased a lot.
"It is indeed a divine thing." Xiong Ba admired.
"Haha, it's just a small path. These are all things outside the body, whether it's magical skills, holy objects, or even the best bloodline in the world, they are all illusions. Only one's cultivation is the foundation of one's self."
A mortal with the most ordinary bloodline, if he cultivates to the level of human immortal, can also completely defeat those with noble bloodline who do not have the realm of human immortality.
Zishou realized this very early, so unlike other nobles, he did not value bloodline, but only ability and future potential. Therefore, he was always surrounded by a group of subordinates with high abilities but average status.
Others often say that the prince likes to appoint "little people" (people with low status), which is why the saying comes from this.
If Xiong Ba is willing to join, whether sincerely or not, as long as it adds to his glory, Zishou can give him a lot of conveniences.
Xiong Ba ate a lot of food, but maybe because he didn't like human flesh, he never touched the meat. He ignored the human flesh while talking to Zi Shou.
During this period, Xiong Ba discussed many titles and awards.
Zishou didn't seem to hear, and just chatted about homely matters.
Just when Xiong Ba couldn't help but want to show off his cards, Zishou put down his wine glass and sighed:
"It's not that I, the prince, have gone back on my word, but you are disobedient to the king. Now that you have the opportunity to become civilized, you are willing to degenerate. How can the heaven trust you?"
"What do you mean, Crown Prince?" Xiong Ba felt a chill in his heart. It seemed that he had to eat human flesh today.
"The major affairs of the country are the sacrifice and the army. The army was born by the king, and the sacrifice was also ordered by the king. If you use barbarian methods, you are barbarians. How can the great merchants accept barbarians?" Zi Shou asked rhetorically.
"Okay, what the prince said is true." Xiong Ba looked at the human flesh in front of him, picked up the chopsticks, and was about to pick up a piece.
"Wait a minute." Zishou stopped him quickly, clapped his hands, and Di Feng came in with a wooden box. A strange fragrance emitted from the inside of the box.
When Xiong Ba smelled this fragrance, he instantly thought of the elixir from Qunyu Mountain. No, this product was even stronger than the elixir.
Di Feng opened the box, and Xiong Ba lowered his head and saw that it was a plate of meat.
Xiong Ba's face turned red, and his eyes were frighteningly dim.
"Mr. Chu, this is a sacrifice to God. It is also a sacred object. Try it and see."
Di Feng stood beside Xiong Ba.
Xiong Ba forced a smile on his face, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
After all, he also ate the sacrifices.
In an instant, a stream of pure energy flowed through the limbs and bones, and a large portion of the Zhurong blood in the body was purified.
"You're welcome. Thank you. It's my prince who should thank you." Zishou smiled strangely, "Eat, keep eating."
"good."
Xiong Ba endured the grief and swept it away.
It is not a joke to leave some of the sacrifices for people to eat, but it is really useful. In the words of Dayi merchants, this is a gift from the gods.
After Xiong Ba ate the sacrifice, his cultivation and bloodline increased a lot.
Maybe before the end of his life, he can hit a higher dining level.
But Xiong Ba couldn't accept it in his heart.
He is enduring the humiliation and burden. This is the most difficult moment in his life.
Seeing Xiong Ba slowly playing the CD, Zishou was a little satisfied.
Finally enlightened.
This is not to deliberately make things difficult for Xiong Ba. Dashang has a tradition of sharing food and surrendering to the eldest son of the tribe. The first must be a loyalty test. Since the other party is willing to sacrifice his son, it also proves that he is willing to surrender.
The second is to see whether it accepts Dashang's sacrificial system.
There is no need to say more about this. If you are not willing to accept this, then there is no need to say anything.
Xiong Ba performed well and Zi Shou was very satisfied with it.
"I plan to make suggestions to my father and make you a viscount and a priest in the south."
Shepherd means in charge. Division means military.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Xiong Ba bowed deeply.
Like the Western Zhou Dynasty, he gained the position of local leader at the cost of his own humiliation.
Get rid of the barbarian status, officially enter the stage of history, and leave a complete genealogy in history.
Whether this name is useful or not, whether it has advantages or disadvantages, can only be judged by future generations.
After the meeting between Xiong Ba and the Crown Prince, he staggered out of the hall, his back looking very lonely.
A few days later.
Xiong Ba was officially appointed and received as a gift two bronze black bird chariots with Qi refining level combat power and capable of transporting ten thousand people, which was exactly the way they were transported.
"The Great Shang Dynasty is a country with thousands of chariots. One or two vehicles are nothing." Zi Shou pretended to be generous, but in fact he was showing off his force.
Xiong Ba took the chariot back.
On the way, people kept asking about Xiong Ban's whereabouts. Xiong Ba looked gloomy and remained silent. Only Yuan Chi looked calm, as if he had known about it for a long time.
Chu State, Danyang.
There are two more black bird chariots in the sky above the bustling city.
Xiong Ba led his subordinates back to Danyang and brought back the news of being appointed as a southern pastor.
As for the Viscount, this news was downplayed. The King of Chu was already a king, so how could he be demoted to a Viscount?
Return to the palace.
Only Yuan Chi and Xiong Ba were left.
Xiong Ba suddenly knelt down on one knee, holding the case with his left hand, and clasping his right fingers on his throat. He looked in pain, as if he wanted to vomit something out.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! My condolences!"
Yuan Chi quickly stepped forward to comfort him.
Xiong Ba was breathing heavily, his eyes were red, flame patterns appeared on his body, and the temperature in the room rose by dozens of degrees.
"It hurts! Ban'er! I can't help you as a father!"
He knew that Ben'er would not be in pain before he died, but would sacrifice calmly. It was because of this that Xiong Ba felt extremely guilty.
If he knew this, he would rather be a barbarian and hide in the south to fight against the big merchants.
Unfortunately it's too late now.
"Your Majesty, there is no chance of revenge. You must take care of yourself!"
Xiong Ba suddenly raised his head and said, "Yes, one day we will destroy the merchants and take revenge."
The great merchants conquered the world and left countless blood feuds.
Dongyi, Xirong, Beidi, and even my own Southern Barbarian.
There are too many, and there will eventually be opportunities in the future.
Xiong Ba instantly ignited his fighting spirit, practiced in seclusion, and found a way to break through.
Spring passes and autumn comes, and a year passes by in a hurry.