Muffled thunder rolled across the black sky. The north wind howled in grief like a mad beast. Layers of dark clouds nearly pressed down to the ground. Sand and stones flew through the air, making it impossible to see even with eyes open. The current clan leader of the Meng family, the iron-blooded military man who controlled the empire’s military supplies and movements, continued in an unchanged tone: “Prince Yan, please verify the criminals.”
A sudden gust of wild wind rose from the ground. The black banners in the square unfurled furiously in the wind, flapping like flames. The golden ferocious dragons on them bared their claws menacingly, as if about to break free from the banners and soar upward. The youth clenched his teeth, his eyes crimson red, his face pale with a purple tinge, his fists tightly clenched, as if a towering fire spread within his chest. Suddenly, with an angry shout, Yan Xun’s figure instantly sprang like a man-eating panther, punching an imperial soldier and seizing a war blade in the next moment. With his sword flashing like a rainbow and his momentum like a crazed tiger, he cut through the crowd, slashing furiously toward the Nine Abyss Platform.
A wave of startled cries immediately erupted. The imperial guards in earth-yellow cloaks rushed forward densely, like the boiling waters of the yellow springs. Chu Qiao stood behind Yan Xun, her brows tightly furrowed, her eyes quickly scanning around. In a flash, the eight-year-old child suddenly kicked a soldier’s shin, leaped up using momentum, and grabbed the banner rope on the execution platform. With a loud “whoosh,” countless black dragon battle flags instantly fell from the sky, covering everyone beneath them.
“Catch him!” Wei Shuyou’s face turned ashen. Being the first to climb out from under the banners, he pointed at Yan Xun who had already run down from the platform, and shouted: “The wolf-hearted Yan Bei dog with wild ambitions, don’t let him escape!”
The soldiers from the Golden Wing Square had now rushed forward. Chu Qiao grabbed the enraged youth, frowned, and immediately threw the warblade. With a crisp “crack,” the blazing fire basins beside the Nine Abyss Platform toppled one after another. Charcoal scattered across the ground, fire oil splashed everywhere, and instantly ignited on the snow-covered ground with a “whoosh.”
“Run!” the child shouted, grabbing Yan Xun and about to flee toward Zhu Wu Street. However, the youth’s strength suddenly became astonishing. He pushed away the child’s pull and darted toward the heavily guarded Nine Abyss Platform!
“Yan Xun!” The strong wind blew back, instantly knocking off the helmet on the child’s head. Her blue-black hair danced in the wind, her small face instantly as pale as paper. With furrowed brows, she shouted sternly: “Are you crazy? Come back!”
With a rumble, blood splattered and bodies fell in disarray. The young Prince Yan had lived in the imperial capital of Zhen Huang for years, known for being unrestrained and carefree. No one had ever seen him truly angered or violent, not even noble youths like Zhuge Huai knew his true capabilities. But at this moment, watching the youth’s agile, panther-like swift figure, watching his ferocious, wolf-like bloodthirsty gaze, even those Western Expedition soldiers who had spent years crawling through battlefields and drinking wine among piles of dead bodies couldn’t help but feel a chill.
It was a kind of power—not martial skill, not wisdom, not the strength to uproot mountains—but a kind of bone-deep hatred, firm belief, and madness and determination to kill anyone who stood in his way, be they human or deity.
The great wind howled, bending all grasses. The broken ancient tree made a wailing sound in the wind, like the mournful cry of ghosts. The youth’s black hair covered his eyes, his shoulders stained with blood, his great fur coat fallen away, veins bulging on his wrists. His eyes were like those of a beast at bay. Gripping the bloodthirsty long blade, he walked step by step up to the Nine Abyss Platform. Soldiers on both sides hesitated to advance, carefully half-bowing. They didn’t know what was wrong with them—over a thousand elite imperial soldiers, yet none dared to move a step in front of this youth with crazed eyes. An immense killing intent filled the air, causing carrion eagles to circle above, thinking there was some gluttonous feast below.
With a soft thud, the youth’s feet stepped onto the last stair. Just one more step forward and he would reach the Nine Abyss.
At this moment, Meng Tian’s voice slowly sounded, cold and deep: “Is Prince Yan here to verify the criminals?”
Yan Xun slowly raised his head. A drop of fresh blood slowly flowed down his well-defined jaw, unknown whether it was someone else’s or his own. The youth’s voice was deep and hoarse, like a demon crawling out from hell: “Get out of my way!”
“Boom!” A sudden thunderclap flashed overhead. On a brilliant winter day, rolling thunder unexpectedly sounded. Snowflakes danced wildly in the raging wind. The youth slowly raised his bloodstained war blade, pointing it from afar at General Meng Tian, coldly uttering a single word: “Move!”
With a muffled thud, the imperial general, whose movements were as ghostly as they were swift, suddenly leaped into the air, carrying the force of a thousand armies. His foot struck the youth squarely in the chest. In an instant, Yan Xun flew like a kite with its string cut. Blood instantly sprayed through the air. His entire body spun in midair, falling onto the high stone steps, and rolling down like a gourd to the ground!
“Yan Xun!” Chu Qiao shouted, her eyes red and nearly splitting. She swung her blade and charged forward. The soldiers finally reacted, immediately surrounding the child. Chu Qiao was, after all, small weak, and short in stature. How could she withstand so many people’s attacks? After just a few exchanges, her arms and legs were wounded in multiple places. Her body weakened, and more than ten gleaming war blades were placed at her neck, preventing her from moving at all.
“Yan Xun!” The child cried out in grief, her eyes blood-red, her hands held behind her back, unable to struggle free.
Time was so urgent, yet so quiet. The fluttering wind sounded like vengeful souls urging death, raging and galloping across the vast square. Inside and outside Zhen Huang City, the empire’s elites, nobles, elders, officials, generals, soldiers, and even ordinary citizens watching from the periphery, all held their breath, craning their necks to look at the youth in a pool of blood with blood-stained clothes. It seemed to last so long, yet it might have been just an instant. The youth lay on the ground, his fingers moved slightly, then firmly gripped the snowy ground, tightened, and got up. His eyes were like those of a stubborn lone wolf. Bit by bit, staggeringly, he got up. His figure swayed slightly, and then, leaning on his war blade, he walked step by step toward the high platform once again.
“Nine Abyss is a restricted area of Zhen Huang. If Prince Yan does not state his purpose, even as the execution overseer, he cannot step forward a bit. I ask you once more, is Prince Yan here to verify the criminals?”
Above, banners flew; below, there was cold silence. The youth’s eyes were like ice. Stubbornly, he fiercely wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and said in a deep voice: “Get out of the way!”
With another boom, and another shocking thunderclap, Yan Xun’s body, along with the thunder, rolled down from the platform once again!
“Yan Xun!” The child finally couldn’t control herself and screamed furiously: “You fool, are you trying to get yourself killed? Come back! Let me go! Let me go!”
All sounds in the world seemed to have left him. His ears roared, unable to hear a sound. His eyes were red and swollen, his face covered with wounds from being scratched by dust and rocks. His hands, dripping with fresh blood, looked as if they had just been soaked in a pool of blood. His chest felt as if it had been heavily hammered by a thousand-pound boulder. It seemed someone was calling him, but he could no longer hear. His mind was filled with the sounds of Yan Bei. He seemed to hear his father’s hearty laughter, his eldest brother’s endless nagging, his third brother and second sister chasing each other with whips, his young uncle’s distant Shang Shen melody, and the hoofbeats of his father’s subordinates, those uncles who had lifted him onto their shoulders for horseback riding and bull-fighting since he was small.
But they were gradually moving farther away, gradually becoming indistinct. The world turned pitch black. Countless cold, hard voices clamored in his mind, softly urging him again and again: “Yan Xun, stand up, stand up, stand up like a man of Yan Bei.”
The world turned dusky yellow. Heaven was without justice. All the people instantly widened their eyes. They watched that blood-covered youth, that former noble of the celestial dynasty, once again rise from the pool of blood. One step, two steps, three steps. Blood prints marked the black stone steps, reflecting the light of the accumulated snow, so piercing to the eyes.
The iron-blooded soldier gradually frowned. He looked at the youth stumbling up, wanting to say something, but not knowing how to express it. Yet at the last moment, he still kicked him down from the platform.
In the crowd, soft sobbing suddenly began to sound, gradually growing louder. Suppressed crying spread widely among the poor commoners. These low-status, lowly-blooded common people, looking at the noble imperial square, finally could no longer contain the grief in their hearts. After all, he was still just a child.
The nobles’ lips were tightly pressed together, and their cold eyes also showed slight emotion.
The cold wind blew. The youth’s body was like a lump of mud. He could no longer stand up. The empire’s First Marshal, Meng Tian, with exquisite martial skills and mountain-like strength, had once single-handedly killed more than two hundred people from a wilderness horse team on the Western Desert Plateau. Those who survived one of his punches were considered rare anomalies. But no one knew what kind of strength was still supporting him, allowing him to crawl toward the Nine Abyss inch by inch with only his bloodstained fingers.
After kicking Yan Xun down for the last time, the general’s brows furrowed tightly. Finally, he said in a deep voice to the guards on both sides: “No need to verify further. Take him down and carry out the execution!”
“General Meng Tian!” Wei Shuyou frowned, stood up, and said in a deep voice: “I’m afraid this is against the rules. Sheng Jin Palace ordered him to verify the corpses. How can you handle this perfunctorily?”
Meng Tian frowned, turned his head to look at this outstanding youth of the Wei clan, pointed at Yan Xun, and slowly said: “Do you think, in his condition, he can still obey the imperial order?”
Who had expected him to obey the imperial order? Sheng Jin Palace’s intention was merely to find a reasonable excuse to kill him. With the Shang Shen rebellion, the empire and the Council of Elders together pushed the blame onto the King of Yan Bei. The entire family of the King was slaughtered, leaving only this one bloodline. Yan Xun had been in the imperial capital for many years, detached from the affairs, and could not be implicated. The territory of Yan Bei was hereditary for generations. With Yan Shicheng gone, it was only natural for Yan Xun to succeed. But how could the empire risk letting this wolf cub go west? So, they set up this trap. If Yan Xun disobeyed the imperial order, he would be disrespecting Sheng Jin Palace, disloyal as a subject. If he obediently complied, he would be considered weak and incompetent, treasonous, and unfilial as a son. Either way, it was a deadly situation with no escape. The empire’s move was merely to explain to the common people across the land and to the various feudal kings, to silence the murmuring voices. Who among the court officials and military officers didn’t know this?
But such a reason couldn’t be openly used as a justification for intervention in broad daylight. Wei Shuyou gritted his teeth in anger, looking hatefully at Yan Xun, saying coldly: “General Meng, by doing this, aren’t you afraid of being blamed by His Majesty and the Council of Elders?”
“Whether I am blamed or not, I will bear the responsibility alone. No need for you to worry.”
Meng Tian turned around, glanced at the child being forcefully suppressed below, silently sighed, and then turned back, about to proceed with the execution.
However, at this moment, an elderly voice suddenly sounded. Huang Qizheng, the deputy official for the execution, slowly walked forward, half-squinting his eyes and saying leisurely: “General Meng, before coming here, Master Mu He specifically instructed that if there were any changes, this should be shown to you.”
Meng Tian took the document, glanced at it once, and his expression immediately changed greatly. The general stood on the platform for a long time, finally turned his head, looking heavily at Yan Xun, and slowly said: “Prince Yan, please don’t be stubborn anymore. Whether they are or not, you only need to nod. They are all your father, brothers, and relatives. Only you have the most right to identify them.”
Yan Xun’s body was pressed to the ground. The entire person no longer resembled the once gallant Prince of Yan Bei, but rather an evil ghost or vengeful spirit crawling out from hell, full of bloodthirsty hatred and killing intent.
Looking at the youth’s stubborn eyes, Meng Tian finally sighed helplessly and said in a deep voice: “Since Prince Yan defies the imperial order, don’t blame me for handling this impartially. Come, drag him up!”
“Wait!”
The strong wind blew back, and black clouds rolled. A crisp voice suddenly sounded. Everyone turned their heads to look. Clear hoof beats suddenly came from the direction of the Purple Gold Gate. A woman in white ermine fur with ink-black flowing hair rode on horseback, enunciating each word slowly: “I will verify them!”