Chapter 1152

Treasure Lizard, well, just hearing the name, one knew it wasn't easy to find. "What's the use of eating it?" Is hundred-year-old dried skin also okay?

Dong Rui chuckled: "You'll know later."

He pointed at the bear corpse again: "You don't need this either, so give it to me."

He Lingchuan had no objection to him picking up scraps, only pondering the Heart Scale he had just obtained in his heart.

The Panlong world guided him to see the whereabouts of the White Bear King, just to let him come and raid the bear's den in reality? So what exactly was special about this Heart Scale? An ordinary treasure shouldn't be worth the Great Fang Hu spending this much effort, right?

Walking out of the cave door, the zircon in the groove was already gone, probably taken away by the Gold Essence as a snack.

As for this Gold Essence, the Divine Bone Necklace had no interest in it, because the Yuzhi Gold used to refine Fusheng was a type of mutated Gold Essence, which it had probably eaten before. Besides, White Hair Mountain itself had mineral veins, and this Gold Essence came and went without a trace, so He Lingchuan was too lazy to set his sights on it.

The two searched the cave clean and returned fully loaded.

A few days later, just as He Lingchuan and his companion returned to the territory of the Xiaoyao Sect, Jin Bai came knocking, his face full of murderous intent:

"The Emperor has issued a decree for us to take action. Mr. He, will you participate?"

He Lingchuan was a Cloud-Turning Envoy and was not a citizen of the Mou Nation. Having spent these days with He Lingchuan, Jin Bai also knew he was the Lord of Yangshan Island and did not need to obey the orders of the Mou Nation.

Therefore, he only asked and did not force He Lingchuan to carry out the mission with him.

Looking at his demeanor and tone, He Lingchuan thought to himself that it had come; the Mou Emperor finally had a decision:

This matter could not end well.

The wrath of the Son of Heaven would cause blood to flow and oars to drift. With one decision from the Mou Emperor, the Bo Nation was bound to suffer.

He said quite straightforwardly: "Sorry, I can only wish you a triumphant victory."

Destroying nations, killing monarchs, and treating human lives like grass—this kind of karma was something he, a wandering traveler, did not want to get involved in for the time being.

For the time being.

Jin Bai was somewhat disappointed: "Very well, then I accept Mr. He's auspicious words."

This Mr. He had his own opinions and was good at making decisions; having spent these few days together, Jin Bai had unknowingly begun to trust his judgment.

If He Lingchuan were willing to participate, this operation might be easier.

Dong Rui was curious: "Where are the people coming from?"

Jin Bai did not hide it from them: "Several nearby sects, such as the Taihang Sect, are all willing to respond to the Emperor's call, so we have gathered about 1,800 people."

He Lingchuan's brows moved slightly; wasn't the "Taihang Sect" Fang Canran's sect?

That was it; it was inconvenient for the Mou Nation to take action, but the sects under Lingshan could. Lingshan had once laid out plans on the Flash Gold Plain, and although Fang Canran said it wasn't very successful, looking at it now, there was still some foundation left after all.

"We also found a gang of pirates in the southeastern waters and told them that if they came ashore to do a job, they would receive a large sum of money, so they came happily," Jin Bai said. "There are about three hundred pirates."

Needless to say, these were cannon fodder.

Dong Rui couldn't help but laugh. Using pirates to attack a capital city was just too absurd.

But this was the Bo Nation; if they were effective at suppressing pirates, could the pirates still be so rampant?

So, it was a case of past causes and present effects.

"By the way, the day before yesterday, a group of Bo Nation rebels also came to defect. The leader is surnamed You, with about eight hundred people, and their equipment is quite good."

"Rebels?" He Lingchuan was greatly surprised. "They were actually able to find this place?"

Once Nangong Yan died, the rebels within the Bo Nation naturally clapped and cheered, wishing for the Bo King to fall quickly. But which faction could actually find Jin Bai directly?

Dong Rui also said: "So well-informed? Very promising."

This group of rebels had latched onto the Mou Nation's thigh; once the Bo Nation was defeated, they were very likely to share in the spoils.

"They have people in the palace and knew that the tribute sent to our country by the Xiaoyao Sect was intercepted halfway, so they guessed that our country would not let the matter rest, and thus actively came to defect, willing to be of assistance," Jin Bai said. "They are very familiar with the Bo Nation, so we accepted them."

When they launched an uprising in a foreign land, the biggest problem was not having enough manpower.

The rebel army also had eight hundred people, all locals of the Bo Nation. Jin Bai had no reason to refuse help that was delivered to his doorstep.

Once foreign enemies colluded with internal traitors, the probability of a successful uprising would greatly increase.

"Over two thousand, enough to fight a surprise attack," Dong Rui chimed in excitedly. "The premise is 'speed'; this number of people can only be used for a surprise force. It would be best to get data on Xun City and the palace, the more detailed the better. I think the palace gates are quite thick."

He had been to the Bo Nation palace and felt that the city gates were also very sturdy, probably having been repaired by successive previous dynasties.

He Lingchuan glanced at him. What are you showing off for? You aren't participating, why are you giving people random advice? Dong Rui touched the back of his head and chuckled.

Having listened to He Lingchuan's military reasoning often, he had also learned a few tricks.

"In the past, the Bo King relied most on Nangong Yan and the Feather Guards under his command. This elite force was controlled by evil spirits, knowing neither fatigue nor fear, and coordinated their advances and retreats well, causing others to flee at the sight of them." Although it wasn't spiritual power that drove this army to win battles, but evil spirits, it was already a dimensionality-reducing strike here. Jin Bai added, "Now that Nangong Yan is dead, the Bo King has lost his reliance, and the local military and government of the Bo Nation are in chaos. I hear that all sides have begun to fight for power and profit. Heh, they have no idea that their death is imminent. This is our golden opportunity."

He Lingchuan asked tentatively again, "Then, what about the several suspicious points that appeared in this tribute theft case?"

Jin Bai's expression was somewhat gloomy: "We only follow orders."

He Lingchuan understood.

Jin Bai must have reported everything truthfully from beginning to end. With the Mou Emperor's ability, how could he not see the contradictions in the case, how could he not see that someone was framing the Bo King?

But the petty squabbles in a tiny, insignificant country were of no interest to the Mou Emperor at all.

No interest in understanding, no interest in solving the mystery.

What a great nation's monarch cares about is only the Bright Lamp.

And he only wants the Bright Lamp.

As the Mou Emperor's most loyal guard, Jin Bai could only obey the Emperor's heart and let the matter go.

The lightning strike on the Bo Nation was about to begin, and Jin Bai had no time or opportunity to go looking for the mastermind.

In other words, this case ended here.

He Lingchuan nodded: "I understand."

On the way back to the guest room, they also saw the so-called Bo Nation rebels, coming and going at the Xiaoyao Sect's mountain gate in groups.

Then there were the various factions of the sect, with cultivators coming and going, some even greeting and laughing with each other; it seemed they all knew each other.

The nations of the Flash Gold Plain were weak, so the sects could be a bit stronger.

The ebb and flow between them had a subtle relationship.

New faces were everywhere, and a tense atmosphere permeated inside and outside the sect.

Returning to their residence, Dong Rui immediately said: "The weapons and armor of these rebels are indeed good, actually even better than the official ones."

He Lingchuan casually cast a barrier: "They didn't just come to defect on a whim."

"Ah?" Dong Rui, prompted by him, thought about it and let out a long "Oh." "They were already colluding with the Xiaoyao Sect?"

"Communicating with the Xiaoyao Sect, what's there to talk about?" He Lingchuan said irritably. "I'm afraid this group of people had already been secretly linked with the Mou Nation long ago; otherwise, the moment the Mou Emperor decided to attack the Bo Nation, they would come to offer help. How could things in the world be such a coincidence?"

"Besides, if they were really rebels of unknown origin, would Jin Bai dare to recruit and use them?" Military action is no child's play; after all, it is an attack on the head of state of a nation, and this battle must be won, not lost, so as not to lose face for the Mou Nation again.

"Those who can get the news at this time and rush over to latch onto a thigh are all people with connections," He Lingchuan said. "Once the Bo Nation changes, they will be able to reap massive dividends."

Jin Bai and the leaders were holding a military council within the Xiaoyao Sect, and He Lingchuan and his companion felt it was inconvenient, so they returned to the Bo Nation, only to find the border already closed.

This little matter couldn't stop them; Dong Rui released the Snail Toad and easily tunneled underground to cross over.

It had rained recently, and the ground was very wet; if there was any sign of trouble, the two of them could escape underground.

The Bo Nation guarded the southwestern gateway to the Flash Gold Plain. He Lingchuan had walked to this point, but it was only his first entry into the plain, and there was still a vast territory waiting for him to explore.

The road to Xun City was even harder to travel.

Villages in the wilderness were sparse, and the weeds in the wild were dense. Dong Rui went into the wild to relieve himself, and before he could even squat down, he kicked two skulls out of the grass.

He Lingchuan had only walked seventy or eighty miles when he encountered three batches of robbers and four pickpockets; this frequency was far higher than on the Red Cliff Road and the Longchuan Trade Route.

They even rescued two civilians from the blades of the robbers along the way.

This was probably because Nangong Yan had died suddenly outside the pass, and the wind was blowing everywhere, with local government offices and armies having even less interest in maintaining order.

However, the towns were permeated with a strange atmosphere; the passing government officials and armies seemed very nervous, but the civilians were a bit relaxed. He Lingchuan passed by the riverside, and as a gust of wind blew, he heard two women beating laundry talking with smiles: "... Died well."

"Yes, that was truly a natural-born evil ghost. My uncle was killed by his men. Hey, I didn't expect him to have that end too! Cut in half at the waist, oh my, oh my, I don't know which hero did it, it really is very satisfying. My husband even wanted to set up a memorial tablet for him!"

He Lingchuan approached, and the women fell silent, burying their heads in their laundry, but the expressions on their faces remained lively.

This atmosphere became more relaxed the further one went toward Xun City; in the taverns of the towns, people wore smiles, and although they dared not openly discuss Nangong Yan's death, their expressions were much more comfortable.

However, after arriving in Xun City, He Lingchuan found that the city gate checkpoints were becoming increasingly strict.

Reward notices were also posted on the city gates, accompanied by portraits.

As soon as Dong Rui saw the familiar red markings, he thought that He Lingchuan and he were wanted again; after all, Nangong Yan had died at their hands.

But he looked closely and saw that the portrait was actually a woman! "Eh?" He was greatly shocked. "Isn't that, isn't that... how did she become a wanted criminal?"

The announcement stated that this woman had conspired to harm royal relatives and had fled in fear of punishment. Eyewitnesses who provided clues could receive fifty taels of gold; if they personally escorted her to the authorities, they could receive five hundred taels of gold.

This reward amount was unusual, so a large crowd was squeezed in front of the notice to watch the excitement, buzzing everywhere with discussion.

The female fugitive in the portrait had a beautiful appearance, and in terms of painting skill, it was already quite good, yet it could not depict even one percent of her beauty.

Because this fugitive was actually Imperial Consort Mei! He Lingchuan also scratched his head.

When he and Dong Rui served as Mou envoys and entered the palace, Imperial Consort Mei was by the Bo King's side, appearing to be deeply favored.

Only a few days had passed; how did a dignified royal consort become a fugitive?

(End of chapter)