“Lord Xie, it’s been a while.”

Yang Chuannan stood outside the prison bars, his right hand resting on his sword and back straight. His deep voice resonated: “This winter has been particularly harsh. I thought you would die in prison, but surprisingly, you survived.”

Xie Lu’s head stirred slightly, his gaze piercing through his disheveled hair as he looked at Yang Chuannan beyond the bars. His voice was hoarse: “Why are you here? To persuade me to submit to the rebels?”

Yang Chuannan nodded: “This is your only way out. Don’t count on the imperial court to save you. A Provincial Administrator imprisoned for half a year, and not a soul has inquired about you. Lord Xie, you’re a clever man. You should understand what this means.”

Xie Lu spoke slowly: “Yun Province has already slipped from the imperial court’s control. If I’m not mistaken, even before I took office, you already controlled the provincial officials.”

Yang Chuannan smiled: “Not under my control, but under the City Lord’s control. Since becoming the Provincial Administrator of Yun Province, I’ve been secretly nurturing supporters and promoting trusted allies. It wasn’t until a year ago, when Song Changfu’s Wu Shen Sect forces were eliminated, that I finally gained complete control over Yun Province’s officialdom.

“Now all of Yun Province, including your life, is under our control.”

The local gentry, prominent families, and scholar-officials of Yun Province had all submitted to Qianlong City.

Some submitted willingly, having no choice, while others had been secretly supported by Qianlong City all along.

The fact that Yun Province, spanning thousands of miles, could quickly break away from the Great Feng Dynasty’s control demonstrated Qianlong City’s centuries of accumulated influence.

“Lord Xie, you’re a distinguished scholar who passed both imperial examinations, and your reputation in office is stellar. Qianlong City needs talents like you. Lord Xie, as they say, ‘A good bird chooses its tree to perch upon, and a worthy minister chooses his lord to serve.'”

Yang Chuannan earnestly advised: “Qianlong City is where you can truly display your talents.”

Xie Lu laughed: “What a pity.”

“A pity?”

“A pity that this seven-foot frame, filled with knowledge of the sages’ teachings, can only wield a brush, not kill. They say scholars are useless, and though I was unwilling to admit it, it’s indeed true now.” Xie Lu lamented.

Yang Chuannan’s expression cooled: “Ten years of study isn’t easy. Lord Xie, you’ve risen from humble origins to your current position. Can you bear to see half a lifetime’s work scattered in an instant?”

“I can’t bear it,” Xie Lu leaned against the cold wall, once again raising his head to look at the sunlight streaming through the air holes. His hoarse voice mumbled: “But I fear more the contempt of future generations. Yang, do you know whom I admire most?”

Yang Chuannan coldly watched him.

“It’s Zheng Xinghuai, the Provincial Administrator of Chu Province. He showed all scholars what it means to ‘sacrifice life for righteousness.'”

Xie Lu sneered: “Enough, what’s the point of talking to someone like you?”

Yang Chuannan nodded: “If that’s the case, there’s no need for further words. Lord Xie, you’ve chosen your path.”

He drew his sword and cut through the iron chains.

Bang!

The prison door was kicked open, and Yang Chuannan stepped forward, thrusting his iron sword forward, its tip piercing Xie Lu’s chest and pinning him to the wall behind.

Xie Lu gripped the blade with both hands, struggling painfully for a few moments.

His hands were stained with warm blood, his life rapidly draining with the flowing blood.

Yang Chuannan smiled mockingly: “Forgot to give Lord Xie time to write a final letter. If you have any last words, speak them now, or you’ll never have the chance.”

Xie Lu had nothing to say, only remembering his youth, studying by lamplight.

Back then, the Shanhai Pass battle hadn’t yet begun, the previous emperor hadn’t started cultivation, and Great Feng was peaceful and prosperous.

But after the Shanhai Pass battle, everything changed. Great Feng’s national power gradually weakened, with disasters occurring every year and intensifying annually.

Xie Lu had lived through the golden age and watched with his own eyes as this country stepped toward decline, becoming increasingly frail.

Like many scholars, he had devoted himself wholeheartedly, hoping to save this country and restore it to its former glory.

But he couldn’t accomplish this, because he was about to die.

In his final moments, Xie Lu shouted fiercely: “Someone will avenge me! You treasonous rebels will die without burial grounds!”

He stared intently at Yang Chuannan, laughing wildly.

The laughter stopped abruptly at its peak.

[…]

In Yun Province City, at the Commander’s mansion.

Yang Chuannan returned to his residence, striding toward the study. Opening the door, he saw Ji Xuan reviewing official documents.

“Young Master! The coronation ceremony is about to begin, why are you still here?”

Yang Chuannan frowned repeatedly.

“The gathered refugees number less than ten thousand, far below our expectations.” Ji Xuan put down the documents and asked:

“What’s going on?”

Yang Chuannan smiled bitterly: “Yang Gong has sealed the Qing Province border. Refugees can’t come through unless they cross mountains and ridges or go through neighboring provinces to reach our Yun Province. This Yang Gong won’t be easy to deal with.”

Ji Xuan nodded.

Yang Chuannan urged again: “In half an hour, it will be His Majesty’s coronation ceremony. As the Crown Prince, you cannot be absent.”

But Ji Xuan shook his head: “I won’t appear at the coronation ceremony. I have somewhere else to be.”

Qianlong City had been a “hiding place” during the period of dormancy. Now that Father was ascending the throne, it naturally had to be made public. The coronation ceremony was being held in the center of Yun Province City—the White Emperor Temple.

Ji Xuan asked: “That Xie Lu, was he willing to submit?”

Yang Chuannan shook his head: “This official has already killed him.”

“That’s for the best.”

Ji Xuan spoke in a casual tone: “Scholars fear most to tarnish their reputation in their final years. This is a kind of fulfillment in its way.”

[…]

White Emperor Temple.

Today, all officials of Yun Province gathered at the White Emperor Temple, including officials from Qianlong City. A sea of dark figures stood in the square, civil officials on the left, military officials on the right, arranged in orderly fashion.

Amidst drum and music accompaniment, a middle-aged man wearing imperial yellow dragon robes and a flat-top crown stepped out of the White Emperor Temple.

Typically, a crown prince’s ascension to the throne is a major national event with complex ceremonies, especially during the transition between old and new emperors, often accompanied by mourning. Usually, only whips are cracked, without music.

The new emperor would wear mourning clothes, perform three kneelings and nine kowtows before the previous emperor’s spirit tablet, and conduct ceremonies at the ancestral temple, among other rituals.

However, these didn’t apply to the current situation, so they were omitted.

This yellow-robed emperor led all civil and military officials in paying respects to heaven, then stood on the high platform before the White Emperor Temple, looking down at the officials in an imposing manner.

A white-robed celestial master from the Imperial Observatory stood to the side below, facing the hundred officials. He unfolded the imperial edict in his hands and proclaimed loudly:

“Since Wu Zong’s rebellion, our ancestors have hidden in the wilderness, enduring humiliation while passing down our legacy through generations. I have never forgotten the ancestral teachings for a moment, determined to govern diligently and reclaim the empire…

“Now the Great Feng court is corrupt, the new emperor incompetent, leading to widespread suffering among the people. As a descendant of the Ji family and legitimate royal lineage, I am deeply pained and must naturally rise to save the situation…

“Today I ascend the throne in Yun Province, taking ‘Restoration’ as the kingdom’s name, hoping for your loyal assistance in pursuing our great endeavor.

“The foundation of the state lies in establishing an heir, following the principle of primogeniture. My eldest son Ji Xuan, accomplished in both civil and military affairs, blessed by heaven’s will, is hereby established as Crown Prince, taking his rightful place in the Eastern Palace.”

The white-robed celestial master finished reading and collected the edict, standing silently to the side.

The civil and military officials all knelt, shouting “Long live Your Majesty!”

Above Yun Province City, a wind-riding ship floated silently.

Ji Xuan stood by the ship’s rail, listening to the thunderous cheers below. Even at this height, he could hear them.

The common people of Yun Province City gathered in the streets and alleys outside the White Emperor Temple to observe the ceremony.

For them, who became emperor was irrelevant; the common people always cared only about food and clothing. Father had easily won over Yun Province’s people just by exempting taxes for three years.

“If not advance to the Transcendent realm now, then when?”

A gentle voice suddenly rang out, and amid rising clear light, the white-robed Xu Pingfeng appeared inside the wind-riding ship.

“I was waiting for the Imperial Mentor!” Ji Xuan smiled.

Xu Pingfeng nodded slightly and raised his hand to grab at the air.

Those scattered dragon qi strands emitted silent roars, unwillingly being drawn into his palm.

Then with a flick of his fingers, more than ten streams of dragon qi all rushed into Ji Xuan’s body.

His eyes seemed to contain golden dragon shadows swimming about, shooting forth brilliant golden light.

Xu Pingfeng then flicked out two formless and substanceless streams of fate, merging them into Ji Xuan’s body.

These were the fate energies of the two vajras, Du Nan and Du Fan. With his Second-Rank Qi Master abilities, he transformed these two fate energies for his use.

Of course, personal fate energy couldn’t compare to national fate, and merely relying on these three combined sources, Ji Xuan couldn’t absorb the blood pill and advance to Third Rank.

That’s why there was the earlier investiture.

The Crown Prince of Yun Province naturally carried the burden of fate.

However, this fate couldn’t compare to Xu Qi’an, who carried half of Great Feng’s national fate.

“I can only keep the dragon qi in your body for a quarter-hour. Advance quickly,” said Xu Pingfeng.

Even as a Second-Rank celestial master, he found it difficult to manipulate dragon qi, and could only influence it, for a limited time.

Ji Xuan took out a box from his bosom, opened it with a “pa” sound, and a pure blood light reflected in his pupils.

An enormous life force filled the wind-riding ship.

Ji Xuan’s hands trembled slightly beyond his control, and he heard his heart pounding wildly in his chest.

Once this blood pill entered his body, there would only be two outcomes: either becoming a Transcendent Realm martial artist, joining the ranks of the Nine Provinces’ peak powers, or perishing into dust.

The Imperial Mentor had said that even with dragon qi, the two vajras’ fate energy, and the Crown Prince’s fate, the probability of successfully refining the blood pill was still less than fifty percent.

The moment of gambling with his life had arrived… Ji Xuan held the blood pill and closed his eyes.

What flashed through his mind were the twenty years of enduring humiliation, the sweat-drenching cultivation done in private, and the expectations Master Jiaoyedao held for him before death.

Gulp–

The blood pill transformed into a scalding hot flow, surging into his stomach.

Ji Xuan’s skin visibly reddened, and he curled up on the deck, clutching his stomach in agony.

Pain, heart-wrenching pain…

Pain beyond human limits engulfed him, in just an instant causing him to lose most of his consciousness.

“Heh heh…”

Blood flowed from Ji Xuan’s mouth, and blood seeped from his eye sockets, nose, and ears.

His skin split open extensively, flesh being torn apart from the inside out.

If this continued, the collapse of his physical body would be unstoppable.

Xu Pingfeng watched indifferently.

“Am I dying? Is this death? My physical body has collapsed, my internal organs are damaged, and my life force is rapidly disappearing, why isn’t the Imperial Mentor saving me…”

In his hazy state, Ji Xuan’s remaining will was still thinking. He wanted to call for help but couldn’t make a sound.

Because his vocal cords had also been destroyed.

The blood pill’s power was too overwhelming; a mortal’s body simply couldn’t withstand it.

“It’s hard to imagine how Xu Qi’an endured this… Yes, if he could endure it, why can’t I?”

The moment this thought emerged, Ji Xuan’s obsession could no longer be calmed.

Xu Qi’an could do it, why couldn’t he?

Would he resign himself to perishing like this?

Would he resign himself to watching the other shine brilliantly?

Would he resign himself to letting future imperial ambitions come to nothing?

“Ha, ha ha…”

Meaningless roars emerged from his mouth, like howls of anger and unwillingness.

Blood flowed from his eyes in large quantities; his eyeballs had already melted.

Ji Xuan didn’t see the golden dragon shadows coiling around his body, nor did he see his collapsing physical body showing signs of healing.

Flesh collapsed, healed, collapsed, healed… cycling repeatedly.

After an unknown time, Ji Xuan’s consciousness, which had been on the brink of collapse, gradually recovered, and his mind became clear.

Beside his ear came the Imperial Mentor’s smiling voice:

“Congratulations on entering the Transcendent realm.”

Ji Xuan opened his eyes and saw light again.

The light of rebirth!

[…]

South Border, Heavenly Poison Tribe.

Heavenly Poison Grandmother walked out of the house with its courtyard, stepping onto the roof in one stride to gaze at the sky.

“The Purple Wei Emperor Star moves, the struggle for legitimacy in the Central Plains has begun. Old man, everything you predicted has come true. The Poison God is not far from revival…”

Heavenly Poison Grandmother sighed, fell silent for a moment, then muttered:

“Great chaos approaches, who will be the gatekeeper?”

[…]

Jing Mountain City.

On the barren ridge, Salun Agu held a lamb, his gaze looking toward the southwest.

The mountains around Jing Mountain City had been drained of spiritual energy by him during that battle back then, turning into wasteland.

Although Jing Mountain City had been rebuilt, this place was no longer suitable for human habitation.

“Wei Yuan, this breath you’ve extended for the Central Plains is about to run out.”

Salun Agu drew out a new shepherd’s whip hanging at his waist and lightly tapped beside his feet.

The next moment, a figure appeared in response.

It was Yier Bu.

“Two things: deliver the Xuanming gold stone to Xu Qi’an; go to Great Feng to gather refugees and bring them back to fill the population gaps in Jing, Kang, and Yan countries.”

Salun Agu instructed.

“Yes!”

Yier Bu bowed in acceptance and departed on the wind.

[…]

In the first year of Yongxing, at the end of the eleventh month, the Ji family descendant proclaimed himself emperor in Yun Province, naming the country “Revival.” Yun Province officially broke away from Great Feng.

This pushed the dynasty further toward the abyss of destruction.

When Xu Qi’an received Princess Huaiqing’s letter and learned of this matter, he was already at the border between the South Border and Great Feng.