Chapter 3021: No Retreat Left

Previously, the two vassal demon kings would meet remotely with He Lingchuan or ministers of Cangyan, backed by six hundred years of a powerful empire, giving them leverage even in negotiations. This time, however, Bekka is in turmoil, the vassal demon state itself is in dire straits, and both kings feel heavy-hearted.

After exchanging greetings and pleasantries, He Lingchuan asked: "Where is Nie Xiaolou?"

Nie Xiaolou will also appear at today's meeting, of course, participating remotely.

"He will show up, possibly a little later," Chi Yan Wang replied, "You know he's extremely busy now, in a dangerous situation." Nie Xiaolou is currently escorting the young Jiaolong southward, doing his utmost to evade the Heavenly Palace's pursuit, so he doesn't always have a secure environment to connect from.

Baoshu Wang got straight to the point:

"Emperor of the Nine Abysses, why have you stationed hundreds of thousands of troops on my border, what is your intention?"

"It's not that I don't want to greet you first, but I'm worried about leaking secrets beforehand." He Lingchuan also knew that massing troops at the border was impolite and easily caused misunderstandings, "May I ask, is Wu Huan still safe for now?"

Baoshu Wang's avatar nodded: "These past days, the demons have been raging like mad, surrounding and intercepting us, but fortunately we've set up many illusionary barriers along the way; we've had a few narrow escapes, but... the new ruler is unharmed."

Although the splitting of Bekka is not a good thing, upon hearing of the changes at Ascending Dragon Mountain, they were still both startled and delighted.

Once this layer of window paper was pierced, Bekka's resistance against the demons and the Heavenly Palace became open and aboveboard, no longer bound by moral constraints.

Even better, Nie Xiaolou brought the young ruler here to flee.

He Lingchuan added: "I've heard the Heavenly Palace claims that the State Preceptor of Qinggong abducted the young ruler and fled, and that whoever dares to harbor fugitives, the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu will mobilize all of Bekka to launch a punitive expedition."

This matter is also rather laughable: on one hand, the Heavenly Palace blames the Ascending Dragon Mountain upheaval on Cangyan's smokescreen, while on the other hand it accuses the Qinggong State Preceptor of abducting the young Jiaolong, as if Qinggong's State Preceptor and Cangyan had colluded together?

Well, well, it's not impossible.

Fushan Lie smirked: "They're welcome to come try."

After twenty years, Chi Yan has already become rich in resources and strong in military;

Baoshu State needs no further explanation—Bekka's vassal demon state with the deepest foundations, second to none.

"Although the four vassal demon states under the demons are not as strong as Baoshu and Chi Yan, on the battlefield they still have demon assistance, making them tough opponents, right?" The two kings remained silent.

On the front lines, clearly their troops surpass the enemy in combat standards, adaptability, and spiritual power intensity, but the enemy has demon assistance! Previously, having one or two demons appear on the battlefield was already remarkable, still being incarnations;

Now, in a key battle, dozens of demons—twenty or thirty—can appear at will, and it's still a full divine descent!

Although Baoshu State and Chi Yan State also have immortals and great demons, their scale is utterly incomparable.

Moreover, the soldiers of Baoshu State and Chi Yan State are also Bekka people, who have for years worshipped the Heavenly Gods, with many families bathed in divine grace. Suddenly one day, the state demands they turn their blades against their former faith; many soldiers cannot accept it, and even if they force themselves to swing the blade, they cannot do so cleanly and decisively, so their combat effectiveness naturally plummets.

Hesitation leads to defeat.

Baoshu Wang spoke in a muffled, resonant voice: "Emperor of the Nine Abysses, please state your purpose."

No matter how close Baoshu State's usual relations with Cangyan are, Baoshu Wang always remembers that Cangyan and its ruler are wolves in sheep's skin—appearing kind and harmless outwardly, but ferocious and deceitful within.

"Very well, then I'll speak plainly." He Lingchuan put away his smile, and the atmosphere here became heavy and solemn: "Even after the incident in the Qiongti Palace, the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu still wishes to employ appeasement toward you, but since the ancient demon emperor chose to publicly break with the demons on Ascending Dragon Mountain, he has left you no retreat. You face the demons with only two choices: either surrender and lay down your arms, or fight to the bitter end."

This sentence alone caused an uproar, silencing the entire gathering.

The key point is this: he made it clear this is "the demon emperor's choice."

Even if it means abandoning the six-hundred-year foundation left by ancestors and the ten-thousand-li realm, the demon emperor also wants to break with the demons.

Fully aware that his son will certainly encounter danger, fully aware that Bekka will surely split because of this, fully aware that his own ministers will certainly be threatened and hunted by the demons because of this, the demon emperor still wants to break with the demons.

He has already made his stance clear, and now asks whether Baoshu Wang and Chi Yan Wang will follow or not.

"Surrender to the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu, and you may resolve your immediate crisis, but once the turmoil subsides, your throne may not be secure." He Lingchuan did not deliberately exaggerate: "The Holy Sovereign of Lingxu wants Baoshu State and Chi Yan State because your states are rich in resources and strong in military, making you the sharpest weapons for invading this world. But weapons themselves need no thought, cannot resist, so you two—deeply experienced, beloved by the myriad people, yet always opposing us old rulers—must step down, so the demons can rest easy."

"Even so, Baoshu State and Chi Yan State cannot escape military peril and war danger, for Bekka will surely wage war against Cangyan and Mou State, and against all surrounding states and forces opposing the demons. By then, Baoshu State and Chi Yan State will also be the vanguard and main force, and not a single drop of blood that should be shed will be spared." The tree spirit possessing Baoshu Wang remained expressionless, while Chi Yan Wang coughed several times.

"If you choose to fight to the end, then you will retrace the old path of Yuan State. Baoshu State and Chi Yan State will suffer the full force of strangulation by the demons and their vassal demon states, but since you stand between the demons and all under heaven, Cangyan and Mou State will give their all to assist you! I can guarantee you that as long as you join the war alliance, you will certainly not end up like Yuan State, fighting alone and dying in isolation!"

Fushan Lie was slightly moved.

He and Baoshu Wang are both advanced in years, and both know the tragic, heroic end of Yuan State over two hundred years ago.

It was deeply tragic, yet also miserable, receiving no foreign aid even at the moment of national extinction. Truly, as the Nine Abysses said, trapped in prison, "fighting alone and dying in isolation." But this time is different. Everyone knows that beneath heaven, the most resolute force resisting the demons is the Cangyan Empire led by the Nine Abysses Emperor. And the Nine Abysses Emperor is the initiator and leader of the Anti-Demon Alliance, and Cangyan is now a mainstay of that alliance.

The Nine Abysses Emperor has now declared that as long as the two states demonstrate genuine perseverance and resolve in the war against the demons, Cangyan and Mou State will give their all to assist, absolutely refusing to abandon them to fight alone.

Unlike Lingshan, Cangyan has accumulated excellent reputation over these twenty-plus years, whether in governance or commerce, in relations with neighbors, basically achieving consistency between word and deed, keeping promises. With such a rich credit backing, and now with the Nine Abysses Emperor personally giving his word, this matter has a chance of success. But, their opponent is the demons!

How brutal this war will be, how much humanity can resist—no one has a clear idea in their heart.

Not to mention the two vassal demon states—whether Cangyan itself can persist to the end remains uncertain.