Chapter 117: The Wind Rises and Clouds Surge (2)

Li Si could feel the restless agitation in the skin bag at her side; the Golden Snake inside seemed to have caught the scent of fresh blood and was impatient to break out of its cage to seek sweet, bloody sustenance. A shudder ran through her heart, and she said urgently, "Master, this method cannot be used this way. Before the seclusion, you used snake venom to suppress the toxicity. It has only been three days; how can you..."

"I know," Zi Hao interrupted her. "Use the medicine."

Unexpectedly, this time Li Si did not obey as she had in the past. After a moment of silence, she suddenly knelt on both knees, kowtowed, and said, "Master... Master, please forgive Li Si for being unable to comply!"

Zi Hao was quite surprised; his brows tightened slightly as he turned to look at her. Li Si raised her head, her voice trembling slightly, but the determination in it did not diminish in the slightest. "Master, the Golden Snake Poison has no cure. To use it so frequently is no different from cutting off your own path to survival. The Princess, with all her painstaking efforts, repeatedly exhorted you during the wedding and transferred the medicine with her own heart's blood time and time again. She... she would rather trade her life for yours to resolve the deadly poison in your body, but you are disregarding your own health like this. How... how can Li Si... answer to the Princess..."

Zi Hao's hand trembled violently, and a sudden storm surged in his eyes.

Li Si's complexion was frighteningly pale, and even her body was trembling slightly. Ten years as master and servant, serving day and night, she had never questioned her master's decisions. At this moment, she did not know where she found such great courage. Once the words were out, the strength in her whole body seemed to have been drained away, and she could not shift her gaze from his.

A complexion as pale as frost, a silence devoid of any sound, a silence so long it felt as if a thousand years had passed, until the very end where ten thousand calamities turned to ash.

Li Si knelt, unable to move, feeling as if she were about to be swallowed by that raging tide, her soul extinguished. But suddenly, Zi Hao shifted his gaze. In the instant he turned away, his low, suppressed words drifted away like smoke, "Trading life for life... besides this land, what else can I use to trade for her safety?"

A game of chess, black and white crisscrossing; a sword, cold as autumn frost.

The Chu Gong, in the midst of national mourning, ceased its strings and flutes and exhausted its songs and dances, yet it could not hide the magnificence of its heavy lamps. The towers and golden halls stood as before. On a night without stars or moon, an unusual atmosphere surged and flowed from this central hub of Great Chu, rolling through the night, swallowing the four directions.

Before the chessboard, a smile suddenly flashed in the handsome eyes of the Young Master Yuan. Though he only slightly raised his head, Xiao Luchen, standing nearby, felt as if a sharp sword had been drawn from its scabbard and could not help but shiver. Then he heard him laugh, "A good game. An extraordinary opponent never fails to have moves that do not disappoint."

"Does the Lord believe the news brought back by Shan Qi?" At this time, the generals were gathered in the hall, but the first to ask was Zhao Yu, who was serving at his side.

Huang Fei toyed with a chess piece with his fingertips, his gaze like ink, his calm, smiling tone like a blade of ice. "If you want to control the direction of the game, do not look at only one piece. Qie Lan is a smart woman; a smart person would never do the foolish thing of standing on two boats."

Zhao Yu glanced at Shan Qi, who was kneeling in the hall, and said, "Does the Lord mean that all of this is the arrangement of the Eastern Emperor?"

"A deep, calculated plan; a step that leaves nothing to chance." Huang Fei's eyes flickered. "Regardless of whether Chu Guo or Di Du wins or loses, the Nine Domains tribes all have a way to retreat, and the whole clan will be worry-free."

Xiao Luchen interjected, "Since that is the case, why does the Lord still accept the proposal of the Nine Domains tribes? What is the use of keeping someone who once betrayed the Lord's estate?"

Huang Fei laughed heartily, and as he waved his sleeve, the chess piece entered the game. He turned and said, "Luchen, a man should be broad-minded and tolerate what others cannot. Women are meant to be pampered; occasionally making small mistakes is of no consequence, so why be so calculating?"

With these uninhibited words and a wild posture, Xiao Luchen was stunned. Before he could reflect on it, Huang Fei raised his head to signal, "Qingqing and the others are back."

Sure enough, before the words had faded, Yi Qingqing, Zhan Xing, and the others returned to the palace to report. Zhao Yu immediately stepped forward and asked, "How is it? Did you find that slut Bai Shu'er?"

After Yi Qingqing and her husband paid their respects to Huang Fei, they said, "Just as the Lord expected, Bai Shu'er and Yan Ling have indeed joined up with Ye Xuanshang. The Madam is currently safe and sound, and she is also with them."

Huang Fei said indifferently, "And the people?"

Yi Qingqing reported the process roughly and finally said, "As soon as there is news, the Leap Horse Gang will immediately send word. We have also added more men to continue the pursuit, and we believe they cannot get past Feng Shui Du..."

"No need to pursue further," Huang Fei suddenly interrupted her. "Immediately send someone to notify Tai Zi Yu and have him mobilize troops to intercept and kill the Leap Horse Gang's merchant ships with all his might. Otherwise, if Ye Xuanshang is allowed to escape, he will bear the consequences himself."

Yi Qingqing and Zhan Xing were both surprised. "Lord, why do you say this? Where would the Leap Horse Gang get the courage to help Ye Xuanshang oppose the Lord?"

Huang Fei's face was like cold jade. "There is nothing absolute in this world. As for why I made this judgment, Feibai shall explain."

The leader of the generals in the hall was none other than Fang Feibai, who should have been in Qi Cheng at this time, and two of the four generals originally transferred to the border, Xi Chao and Yan Tian, had also returned to Chu Du in complete secrecy. Fang Feibai said in a deep voice, "The Countess may not know, but after the incident at Le Yao Gong, the Eastern Emperor mobilized the royal army to enter Chu, with an estimated force of forty to fifty thousand. According to our scouts who infiltrated Fuchuan, all the military supplies and provisions for this royal army come from Qi Cheng, and the person responsible for the preparations is none other than the young leader of the Leap Horse Gang, Yin Xiqing."

Yi Qingqing was quite shocked. "How is that possible? Does the Leap Horse Gang not know the consequences of doing this? Qi Cheng is a disaster-stricken area; where would they get the military provisions to supply tens of thousands of troops?"

Fang Feibai said, "The Leap Horse Gang must have made arrangements in advance. The military provisions transported out of Qi Cheng actually all came from Chu Du. Otherwise, even if they were as wealthy as a nation, it would be impossible to raise tens of thousands of provisions in such a short time. From this, it can be seen that they have long reached a consensus with Di Du. With such strategic means and such courage and spirit, Yin Xiyu can be called a heroine among women, daring to act." He pondered slightly, turned to the side, and said, "Lord, although the Leap Horse Gang sending away the Madam and Ye Xuanshang has a slight impact on our plan, given the current situation, there is no need for us to waste too much time here."

Huang Fei's expression remained unchanged. His fingertips traced along the gold-carved, jade-textured chessboard. With a light *tap*, a piece fell, moving the destiny of the game, the wind rising and clouds surging. "Continue."

A calm and decisive look appeared in Fang Feibai's eyes. He said simply, "To stop the boiling by scooping up the water is useless; the boiling will not stop."

Huang Fei casually removed two pieces from the board and threw them into the box. "Then, how will you remove the firewood from under the cauldron?"

Fang Feibai continued, "The Nine Domains, having lost Di Du, have no one who can block the blade of the Liefeng Cavalry. Looking at the world, Mu Guo and the Nine Domains tribes are not worth worrying about, but the Lord's old rival, Prince Xuan, his movements are of vital importance."

Huang Fei raised an eyebrow and looked out the window.

The Chong Lou and golden towers, the towering Chu Du, the magnificent sight of the city full of lights appeared before his eyes in an instant, a brilliance that shook the heart. He cast his gaze toward the northern sky, his smile sharp, more dazzling than the stars. "Ji Cang, he will definitely come. Otherwise, from now on, he will no longer be qualified to be my opponent. Three days is enough time for the Eastern Emperor to make all preparations, to let go and fight, a fair contest." With these confident and arrogant words, he suddenly raised his hand and turned around.

A dragon's roar, a flash of lightning; the Zhuri Sword left its sheath, its cold edge shining upon his brows and lashes.

"The most qualified opponent, the most valuable bet; this day, this battle, I have long looked forward to."

Fang Feibai was the first to sweep his battle robe, stroke his sword, and kneel in worship. The two generals behind him followed suit. "We kowtow and request the Lord's order. The four Divine Feather battalions of the Liefeng Cavalry have all returned. The two battalions on the east route are led by Xi Chao, the two battalions on the west route are led by Yan Tian, and I shall lead the thirty thousand ambush troops of the Divine Wing Battalion. Tomorrow, when we step into the borders of our Great Chu, it will be the last time the Red Flame Army opposes the Liefeng Cavalry!"

Zhao Yu stepped to the side, knelt, and reported, "The sixteen battalions of the Chu Du city defense navy, fifty thousand elite troops, three hundred assault boats, three hundred warships, and four hundred and twelve battle ships will attack the Xishan Daying at noon tomorrow. I guarantee that by the time of the sheep, the camp will be uprooted, the stronghold taken, and the Western Mountain controlled. Not a single person from the Marquis's rebel army will be left!"

Feng Yun stepped forward and knelt alongside Shan Qi to report, "The Liefeng Cavalry's central camp, Divine Phoenix Battalion, and Divine Flame Battalion are ready. Within the Royal City, besides the three right divisions of the Capital Army remaining on guard, the twenty thousand left-division imperial guards and the entire six divisions of the Capital Cavalry have completed their deployment at the Heaven-Connecting Terrace. With a total force of seventy-five thousand, we await the royal army's entry at any time."

"Shan Qi, in his state of atonement, requests to lead the Divine Phoenix Battalion to meet the enemy first. If I cannot bring back the Han Xi Princess, I am willing to accept military punishment!"

A net covering the sky, an invincible game. Following one crisp and decisive voice after another, Xiao Luchen, Yi Qingqing, Zhan Xing, Kuang Tian, and other Liefeng Cavalry generals knelt one after another. Two hundred thousand iron-blooded troops, swords pointed at the Nine Domains, troops pressing upon the world!

A peace talk that plotted away the land, ten thousand miles of beacon smoke pressing upon the Tian Que; two outcomes, a country-toppling calculation, nine layers of war flames illuminating the Divine Land.

Three extraordinary kings, a three-way battle for the heavens; whose home and country, whose world, whose blood, whose victory or defeat?

Night, raging waves, wind rushing, clouds moving.

Before the deep valley of Dafei Chuan, the battle-hardened elite of the Red Flame Army had already crossed the dangerous river chasm. A hundred miles from Jietiantai, the iron hooves of the royal army at Xi Ma Gu had already stepped onto the land of Chu Guo.

Is this the beginning of the unification of the four seas, or the source of chaos in the world? In the sky thick with war clouds, dawn is about to arrive...

(End of chapter)