Chapter 2097: Li Taiyi! In the End, You Couldn’t Hold Me Down!

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

Li Xuanyi’s heart sank to rock bottom when he saw Huang Tianzhao.

“Huang Tianzhao, such audacity! You dare to start a rebellion in the Imperial Palace, with His Divine Majesty present?” Zhao Fengchen harshly bellowed, taking out his large Wootz Steel sword as he charged forward.

His eyes were br.i.m.m.i.n.g with killing intent, and a tendril of vicious energy flew through the air to lock onto Huang Tianzhao.

Huang Tianzhao had committed a grave crime in the Rebellion of the Three Princes. He had lived until now purely due to the Sage Emperor’s kindness. For him to rebel now was truly unpardonable.

Moreover, ordinary Imperial Army soldiers could not stop Huang Tianzhao. Only the three Grand Marshals were capable of this.

Huang Tianzhao coldly laughed and rudely replied, “His Divine Majesty? Hmph, which Divine Majesty? This one only recognizes the Sage Emperor!

“And even if the Sage Emperor is no longer here, it should be First Prince Li Ying who inherits the throne. When did it become Li Heng’s turn?”

“Impudent!”

Bai Hanzhou and Li Xuanyi chilled upon hearing Huang Tianzhao’s words.

The Sage Emperor himself had selected Li Heng to inherit the throne, and since his succession, Li Heng’s every word and action had shown that he was a Lord of Resurgence who already had the signs of a wise sovereign. It had already been some time since the Rebellion of the Three Princes, but these people still clung to the already-dead First Prince Li Ying, even harboring thoughts of rebellion. It was truly unforgivable.

“Everyone, there’s no need to be polite with this sort of traitor! Get in there and seize him!” Zhao Fengchen sternly said.

His Stellar Energy boomed as his sword erupted with light, Sword Qi piercing through the clouds.

Huang Tianzhao was not some mediocre individual. Zhao Fengchen’s strength alone would not be enough to suppress him.

The new Emperor had only recently a.s.sumed the throne. It would be best if this battle were decided quickly.

“Seize me? That will depend on your skill!

“You guys, come out!”

Huang Tianzhao sneered as he reached out a hand, the sword of a nearby Imperial Army Marshal flying through the air and into his hand.

‘You guys’?

The three of them were alarmed by Huang Tianzhao’s words. Was Huang Tianzhao saying that he had allies?

Bang! Bang!

As Zhao Fengchen and the others grew uneasy, the earth rumbled and Stellar Energy howled. A moment later, two more storms of energy shot out of the ground.

As the three Grand Marshals stared in shock, two figures landed next to Huang Tianzhao.

“Fumeng Lingcha!

“Duan Zhuyan!”

Even Bai Hanzhou couldn’t help but grimace upon seeing the owners of the two storms of energy.

The first figure was a muscular man with a dark face and black beard. He had the clear Hu traits of deep eyes and a high nose, and these traits paired with his boundless energy marked him as none other than the former Qixi Protector-General, Fumeng Lingcha!

Fumeng Lingcha had not been present in the capital during the Rebellion of the Three Princes, but he had been leading troops toward the capital, ready to cooperate with First Prince Li Ying. He was indisputably one of the First Prince’s conspirators.

Moreover, he was already guilty of deceiving the sovereign and trying to steal the credit for w.a.n.g Chong’s achievements. Given his two offenses, he should have been executed long ago, but to everyone’s surprise, he still lived.

The other figure was the man who had exhibited formidable strength in the Imperial Army compet.i.tion, showing strength on par with Zhao Fengchen, Duan Zhuyan.

The appearance of these two immediately turned the tides. Not even Bai Hanzhou was sure if the three Grand Marshals working together were capable of seizing Huang Tianzhao, Fumeng Lingcha, and Duan Zhuyan.

“Fumeng Lingcha, such audacity! The previous Emperor spared your life for the sake of old affections, but you not only haven’t changed your traitorous ways, you’ve even added to your crimes! Not even death can redeem you!” Li Xuanyi harshly said.

When Fumeng Lingcha was still the Qixi Protector-General, he would occasionally return to the capital to report on his duties, during which Li Xuanyi had met him several times and developed a significant respect for this Protector-General. But to his surprise, Fumeng Lingcha became obsessed and strayed off into the wrong path. It truly made one’s heart ache!

“Hahaha, old affections? What old affections?

“I, Fumeng Lingcha, guarded the western border of the empire, rendering many achievements. If the Sage Emperor really recalled his old affections, he wouldn’t have removed me and put that immature brat in my place!” Fumeng Lingcha snarled, his face twisted. There was no longer any sign of the imposing and majestic Qixi Protector-General.

Though the sounds of battle rang out around him, Fumeng Lingcha’s mind was not focused on this fight.

w.a.n.g Chong!

A figure emerged in Fumeng Lingcha’s mind, and killing intent exploded from his body.

Looking back on his life, in the first half, the name ‘Fumeng Lingcha’ was one br.i.m.m.i.n.g with pride and glory, but in the second half of his life, it was nailed on a pillar of disgrace and carried with it a jail sentence. And the cause of all of this was the now-venerated and supreme King of Foreign Lands, w.a.n.g Chong.

Though Gao Xianzhi had also made him gnash his teeth in hatred, all Gao Xianzhi had done was collude with Bian Lingcheng to go over his head and report his achievements to the Sage Emperor before Fumeng Lingcha could steal it. Gao Xianzhi had chosen to not stir up a bigger fuss.

Thus, after the incident, he had not been heavily punished and had been moved over to Qixi to serve as its Protector-General.

But w.a.n.g Chong, that immature brat, had used a similar situation to cause a great storm, pulling him down from his Protector-General post and straight into the imperial prison.

From a major official of the border to a prisoner was far too precipitous a fall.

Fumeng Lingcha had always been proud, but after this incident, there was no was.h.i.+ng away his disgrace.

His imprisonment after the Rebellion of the Three Princes was also because of w.a.n.g Chong.

If not for w.a.n.g Chong serving as a hindrance, the First Prince would have successfully taken the throne and become the new Emperor. Meanwhile, Fumeng Lingcha would have been at the apex of power, not once more reduced to a humiliated prisoner.

The war of the northwest had come hot on the heels of the Rebellion of the Three Princes, and then the Sage Emperor had died and the new Emperor had been enthroned, leaving the court so busy that it barely had time to rest. As a result, little attention had been paid to him, or else he probably would have been executed long ago.

With this rebellion in the imperial prison, he was finally out, and he would not let this opportunity go.

“w.a.n.g Chong, I will kill you!” Fumeng Lingcha viciously said.

He finally turned to Bai Hanzhou, Zhao Fengchen, and Li Xuanyi.

“Kill!”

Before the three Grand Marshals could respond, Fumeng Lingcha bellowed and charged.

“Hundred Battles in Yellow Sand!”

Fumeng Lingcha raised a sword, and Stellar Energy surged as a heaven-splitting beam of Sword Qi shot toward Li Xuanyi.

Whoos.h.!.+

The temperature of the surrounding area instantly soared, becoming as scorching as a desert.

“Black Heaven Blood Omen!”

“Zhuyan’s Fury!”

The earth shuddered as Huang Tianzhao and Duan Zhuyan followed Fumeng Lingcha.

Boomboomboom!

These three Grand Marshal–level figures were immensely powerful, their three Stellar Energies combining into a ma.s.sive wave that swept forward. Screams tore through the air as Imperial Army elites were knocked away like ragdolls.

Fumeng Lingcha and the others were like tigers amongst sheep, sowing chaos wherever they went.

“Go!”

“Stop them!”

Zhao Fengchen, Bai Hanzhou, and Li Xuanyi all exploded in fury, drawing their weapons and unleas.h.i.+ng their Stellar Energy as they rushed at Fumeng Lingcha and company.

“All soldiers, hear my order! Advance and seize all the prisoners! All prisoners attempting to escape are to be executed, as are all those who attempt to resist!

“All Marshals, hear my order! Move out to seize Fumeng Lingcha, Huang Tianzhao, and Duan Zhuyan, these three felons of the court!” Zhao Fengchen bellowed.

This was not some one-on-one fight. Their mission was to seize these three as quickly as possible and pacify the rebellion.

“Kill!”

Answering Zhao Fengchen’s call, the Imperial Army Marshals led their elites in charging at Fumeng Lingcha’s group.

At the edge of the battlefield, the master archers standing on the roof or in dark corners unleashed a barrage of arrows, their cold tips flas.h.i.+ng in the darkness.

“Careful!” Fumeng Lingcha roared.

Although the three of them were extremely powerful generals, they had just broken free of prison, and were facing a sea of soldiers while bereft of weapons or armor, still wearing their prison clothes. In the face of these tens of thousands of Imperial Army soldiers, they were immediately pushed back.

Under the vicious a.s.sault of the Imperial Army elites, the escaping prisoners were thrown back, and even Fumeng Lingcha’s group was just barely holding on. Defeat and capture were only a matter of time.

But suddenly—

Clang!

The sound of a snapping chain came from deep underground, akin to a clap of thunder. A moment later, the earth rumbled as a terrifying energy that outshone even Fumeng Lingcha, Bai Hanzhou, and Zhao Fengchen erupted from the depths of the earth.

Bang!

Before anyone could react, the area for tens of thousands of feet around the imperial prison began to shudder, an area covering more than half of the Imperial Palace swaying around like the deck of a boat. The fissure spanning the ruins of the imperial prison instantly grew several times larger.

A black silhouette shot out from the depths of the earth.

An immense pressure instantly descended upon everyone present, almost pus.h.i.+ng the breath out of their lungs.

“Who’s there?”

Zhao Fengchen and Bai Hanzhou paled as they looked to the skies.

“Hahaha, after thirty years, this prince is finally out!”

In the sky was a domineering figure, standing in the sky like a s.h.i.+ning sun. He was wearing an imperial robe of black and gold, and his eyes were so aloof and tyrannical that they struck fear into anyone who looked into them.

Most terrifying of all were the waves of energy coming off him. Bai Hanzhou and the others could be considered peak experts of the realm, but when compared to this energy, they were like fireflies trying to vie against the moon.

This man’s energy had completely surpa.s.sed the Great General level, even the Subtle realm!

Just one glance at this man would wipe away any thought of resistance.

“Li Taiyi! In the end, you couldn’t hold me down!”

That cold voice rumbled like thunder across the skies, causing even the fabric of s.p.a.ce to tremble.