Chapter 3086: The Choice of Ric

Time passed bit by bit in the anxious waiting of the people of Ric.

They also tried to contact the merchants in the Earth Turbid region to learn the situation, and the reply they received was:

Indeed, last night several meteors fell upon the territory of Earth Turbid, and the Earth Turbid army immediately mobilized, as if escorting something back to the palace city, with great momentum.

In the afternoon, Earth Turbid suddenly sent a notice to Ric, demanding that Ric open its gates and submit to the Heavenly God, lest it face the disaster of national annihilation!

At the same time, the Heavenly God also promised: if the Ric King leads his ministers out of the city to surrender, then the Ric King will still be able to sit firmly on his throne thereafter, without needing to change dynasties.

As long as you obey, you can continue to sit in that position; there is no need to change personnel.

This notice threw the Ric court into an uproar.

Thus, this precious time was again wasted in argument.

The proponents believed that, given the nation's strength and military power, it was fundamentally insufficient to resist the Heavenly Demon, and it would be better to surrender promptly to avoid the suffering of war for the people.

The opponents believed that the Heavenly Demon would not be so kind-hearted; this notice before them was merely a temporary expedient—once they opened the gates and let them in, they would reveal their ferocious fangs.

As usual, the Ric King wanted to ask for Xia Lie Jie's opinion, but he was not present in the hall.

The guards dispatched to the Xia residence returned to report:

The Xia family has already left!

With national crisis at hand, the Ric King's left and right arms have actually fled privately?

The Ric court erupted in an uproar.

At this moment, the Ric King had only one thought in his mind:

What should be done?

Xia Lie Jie has fled, indicating he does not optimistic about Ric's future. That is to say—

Just then, another guard rushed into the hall from outside, panting with anxiety:

"Your Majesty, Earth Turbid has invaded our borders, and the divine beast Xu Rui has been—been killed!"

This Xu Rui divine beast is not truly a divine beast, but rather a great demon bestowed by the monarch, specifically tasked with guarding the eastern border gate, precisely to resist the invasion of Earth Flood, and possesses great magic power.

Ric has always devotedly nurtured it, but who would have thought that the Heavenly God descended upon Earth Turbid last night, and today Ric's state-protecting great demon has been harmed by Earth Turbid!

Needless to say, it must be the Heavenly God who acted.

The guard kneeling on the ground continued: "Earth Turbid still remains beside the skull of the divine beast, leaving behind a notice."

Having said that, he presented it with both hands.

The imperial monarch received it, opened it, and saw that the words on it were even simpler and more brutal than last night's notice:

"Surrender by sunset. Otherwise, you will meet the same fate."

The Ric King slumped down with a thud, his mouth full of bitterness.

Yu Qing hurriedly comforted: "Your Majesty, do not worry. Look, although Earth Turbid has welcomed the Heavenly God to reside, its ruler still retains authority, and you, you are the same as well. The Heavenly God has already promised that Ric does not need to seek another master."

Is it truly, truly necessary to open the gates and surrender? Doing so also requires courage.

The Ric King's heart pounded violently, and after a long while he finally let out a long sigh:

"I hope it is so."

……

After the carriage carrying the Xia family left Ducheng, it raced all the way toward the southeast.

As evening approached, the old lady slowly awoke, finding herself in the jolting carriage.

Having come to this point, her anger was useless; she could only ask: "Where are we going?"

Xia Lie Jie told her: "Go forward another fifty li, past Tang Gang, and you will reach the border. I have already contacted friends in Shen State; once past the border, someone will naturally come to receive us."

Originally, Ric was very far from Shen, but after Shen annexed and absorbed Bal Ling, the distance between the two countries suddenly shortened. The border they are heading to was originally the territory of Bal Ling.

"Shen State?" the old lady exclaimed in alarm, "Shen State is clearly opposed to the Heavenly God; sending us there is not like sending sheep into the tiger's mouth? The Heavenly God will surely punish Shen State, and we cannot escape blame either."

Xia Lie Jie shook his head: "No. In this chaotic age, Shen State is actually safe, at least temporarily safe."

The old lady did not understand: "Why? Is Shen State not opposed to the Heavenly God? After the Heavenly God descends, it should first deal with it."

Xia Lie Jie said: "Shen State has long joined the War Alliance, and the ruler of Shen State is still the biological father of the Nine Abysses Great Emperor."

"And then?" the old lady pressed on, "That Heavenly God hates it even more."

"You do not understand." Xia Lie Jie shook his head, and seeing that he could not make the old lady understand, he simply said no more: "You just watch and see."

After traveling another few dozen li, Tang Gang arrived. This is the last stop before entering the mountains; beyond this mountain lies the border of Shen State. Upon reaching here, their escape can be considered ninety percent successful.

However, the carriage stopped as soon as it reached Tang Gang, because two fallen large trees blocked the road.

Upon seeing this, Xia Lie Jie silently thought: Not good.

The guard was about to step forward to lift the trees when suddenly two hundred or so people emerged from the roadside.

The burly men at the front all held gleaming knives and spears, but those in the rear dozens carried either wooden clubs or pitchforks. Judging by their attire, they were all wearing coarse cloth garments patched all over.

"Hey, stop!"

They stepped into the middle of the road, weapons pointed at the carriage.

"What do you want?" Xia Lie Jie's seven or eight guards surrounded the carriage on all sides, raising their vigilance.

Ric's public order was originally mediocre; last night's descent of the Heavenly Demon inevitably caused people's hearts to flutter. Xia Lie Jie anticipated that the escape route would not be peaceful, so the guards he brought were all loyal and steadfast, having served the Xia family for over ten years.

He poked his head out and asked: "You are not villagers from nearby, are you? Why are you not farming now, but have turned to banditry?"

The leader of the burly men asked strangely: "Do you know who we are?"

"Of course, you are from Tang Xia Village, just bordering the frontier; my merchant caravan has even hired you before to transport goods." Xia Lie Jie has a good memory, "You are truly bold to dare rob the official road."

He certainly knows that some mountain dwellers and mountain bandits are actually not much different—normally they farm, gather herbs, hunt, but when opportunity arises, they also engage in profitless trades, and moreover, the whole village does it together.

The bandits here number two or three hundred, and it appears not just one village, but the surrounding villages have all joined in.

The problem is, what opportunity do these fellows now see?

"What is there to fear?" the mountain bandit leader laughed, "The government troops themselves have fled, crossing the border to escape to Shen State. Now, obediently hand over your money. Otherwise, your corpses tonight will feed the wolves."

The villagers behind him said: "Feeding wolves is wasteful; better to..."

Before he finished speaking, Summer Ritual Jie's personal guard slapped his shield, and two fire wolves leapt out from within it. Each was as large as a lion, their entire bodies steaming with fierce flames.

They bared their teeth at the bandits, who instinctively stepped back.

This magical artifact was purchased at great expense by Summer Ritual Jie a year ago and given to his most loyal guard; today it finally sees use.

Just then, the old lady also poked her head out of the carriage, pointing at the bandits and scolding: "You harm heaven and reason; the Holy One will surely punish you."

The fire wolves' saliva dripped to the ground, hissing and scorching several small pits. If it splashed onto human skin...

The mountain folk leader glanced at the fire wolves, then at her, and let out a puzzled "eh":

"Are you also a follower of the Holy One? We all are. If so, you may keep the carriage. Pay a toll, and you may go."