Chapter 205: Get beaten up and then surrender, or surrender directly

In He Lan Xuan's eyes, Huyan Lan was nothing but a traitor from the north and a low-class piece of trash.

If he were forced to surrender to Huyan Lan, he would rather be killed.

It was just like how Immortal Bi Chen Tianzun would never defect to Master Wanfeng; their cultivation bases were actually about the same, and at most, it would just be a loss—if he died, he died.

But Li Chen was different; both in terms of strength and status, Li Chen was already at the pinnacle of this world.

Because the gap in every aspect was too vast, it was not shameful for them to surrender to Li Chen.

This time, Li Chen not only came in person but also brought five Sage Realm experts with him.

It wasn't that He Lan Xuan was under pressure; he simply didn't want to fight.

Get beaten up and then surrender, or surrender directly.

Since he couldn't win anyway, he chose to avoid the beating.

This was the main reason why he knelt the moment he saw Li Chen, which actually left Li Chen feeling somewhat at a loss.

Because when Li Chen arrived, everyone had told him that He Lan Xuan was extremely spirited, possessed a natural pride, and had the bloodline of the Dragon Clan; such a person would certainly never bow his head.

So Li Chen hadn't even planned to persuade him to surrender, yet He Lan Xuan had pulled this stunt.

"Very good, very good." Li Chen could only say this.

In any case, if you don't make me waste extra effort, then you are a good person.

Those who understand the times are the wise, after all.

Under He Lan Xuan's enthusiastic guidance, the army of the May Tian Ce Dynasty stepped into the Giant Dragon Ridge without the need for any weapons.

Following He Lan Xuan's enthusiastic lead, Li Chen became the first Emperor of the May Tian Ce Dynasty to step into this legendary Giant Dragon Ridge.

Just as he ascended to the settlement of the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan, Li Chen saw a massive dragon skeleton standing between heaven and earth; even though it was from a distant age, it still could not conceal the vastness and majesty the dragon had possessed while alive.

Glancing over, Li Chen discovered that the buildings here were much larger than in other places, presumably built to accommodate the large physiques and living habits of the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan.

Snow was falling heavily, the cold wind was biting, and the cold here seemed even more intense than at Holy Shancheng.

He Lan Xuan acted just like Li Chen's little brother, enthusiastically introducing his tribe by Li Chen's side.

He had the high-level cadres of the tribe come to shake hands with Li Chen, while the children held flowers, scrambling to offer their blessings to Li Chen.

The elders even respectfully presented him with a dragon-patterned scarf symbolizing a noble status; at that moment, Li Chen felt as if he had become a distinguished guest on this land.

How did this look like two sides at war?

Li Chen was simply like a leader coming down to inspect a region, deeply loved by the local people.

Huyan Lan, standing to the side, watched in a daze; he perhaps had never imagined that this notoriously fierce Sun-Moon Dragon Clan would be so polite.

In the history of the north, even when Khan Tuoba Zhen came, He Lan Xuan might not have been this enthusiastic.

Especially when Huyan Lan had come, He Lan Xuan hadn't even looked at him straight, even clamoring to chop him into eight pieces as a sacrifice to his ancestors.

Seeing him act so cowardly before Li Chen made Huyan Lan feel a wave of disdain; this guy was truly a bully who feared the strong.

Soon, Li Chen arrived at a magnificent palace.

The palace was resplendent with gold and jade, the decorations luxurious yet elegant, especially those ancient furnishings that exuded an aura of antiquity.

He Lan Xuan even personally led Li Chen to sit in the supreme seat, and the banquet was already prepared.

Inside the palace, there was singing and dancing, and the atmosphere was entirely peaceful.

At first, Master Wanfeng and the others wondered if He Lan Xuan was playing a trick and poisoning them, planning to attack when they were off guard.

He Lan Xuan seemed to see through their worries and staked his own life on the guarantee that he was an upright person and could absolutely never do such a thing.

The reason he surrendered was out of respect for Li Chen's strength and character.

Then he came before Li Chen, knelt, and said: "Your Majesty, I know you are not the type of person with short-sighted vision and must have grand strategies. If you need it, I, He Lan Xuan, will definitely be your vanguard!"

The reason He Lan Xuan judged this way was because he had discovered Li Chen's strategic layout.

Li Chen was different from the emperors of the previous generations, whose goal was merely to drive the northern tribes back to the Great Snow Mountain and then retreat to defend.

But Li Chen had already begun building cities in the north and expanding the scale of the north, which proved that his strategic layout might be even larger.

In He Lan Xuan's view, Li Chen was definitely a grand ruler, at the very least much stronger than Tuoba Zhen.

Moreover, Li Chen had been focused on recruitment all along the way; he indeed knew this, which was why he chose to surrender to Li Chen.

He Lan Xuan had cultivated to this level and certainly would not be content to remain holed up in this place.

Since he knew Li Chen's strategic layout, it was better to follow Li Chen early; perhaps he could obtain even greater glory.

Wasn't that Huyan Lan a small, unknown figure in the north who was now growing into a quasi-khan just because he had defected to Li Chen early?

To put it bluntly, He Lan Xuan's surrender this time was also a gamble, betting his own future and that of his tribesmen.

If Li Chen's goal was purely to stabilize the north for the sake of the May Tian Ce Dynasty's security, then his surrender this time would only be able to protect his tribesmen.

But if Li Chen's goal was larger, he would have a place to put his skills to use, and his abilities could be displayed.

Not knowing what others were thinking, Huyan Lan had a bad premonition.

Oh no, is someone competing with me for a job now?

In this day and age, is it this competitive even to be a dog for Li Chen!

Hearing He Lan Xuan say this, Li Chen looked at him with appreciation and laughed: "You are right. My purpose in coming here this time is not just to conquer this region, but to assemble the northern troops to march on the Great Snow Mountain together. Unifying the north is just a small strategic goal of mine. I hear there is a vast land north of the Great Snow Mountain, and my goal is to fight to the end of the continent!"

Having fought to this point, Li Chen naturally did not conceal his strategic goals.

He wanted his subordinates to know that his ambitions were not so small.

Just as He Lan Xuan had guessed, if he only wanted to keep the May Tian Ce Dynasty stable for a few decades or hundreds of years, he could have just killed his way through; there was no need to recruit experts from various tribes or persuade the armies of various tribes to surrender.

Once these words were spoken, the entire hall was shocked.

They seemed not to have expected that Li Chen's strategic layout would be so broad.

The generals of the May Tian Ce Dynasty were all eager to show their strength, because what they were going to attack next was a place that countless predecessors had not set foot in for thousands of years.

The surrendered generals were also very excited; as surrendered generals of the Northern Royal Court, they were all fierce and warlike, and it was indeed very unpleasant to just surrender and live on.

They also wanted military merit and wanted to fight on the battlefield.

Upon hearing that there were still many battles to be fought, this group immediately came forward to request orders, being only too eager.

"Your Majesty, give me 500,000 troops, and within 6 years, I will definitely be able to take down the Northern Tianluo Dynasty."

"Your Majesty, I only need 300,000 troops, and within 5 years, if I cannot take the Tianluo Dynasty, I will offer my head!"

"None of you are good enough; I only need 200,000 cavalry, and I will definitely be able to sweep the Tianluo Dynasty in 3 years."

"Is one Tianluo Dynasty worth all this? Your Majesty, give me 100,000 elite troops, and I can level it within 2 years!"

Watching these generals and surrendered generals becoming increasingly competitive, Li Chen didn't speak, just listened to them continue to brag.

Li Chen actually wanted to see who would brag to the end; if anyone dared to go alone, Li Chen would immediately send them.

Do you really think the northern Tianluo Dynasty is tofu that you can cut however you like?

However, this kind of strategic layout was not child's play; how could it be that simple?

Li Chen just didn't dampen their enthusiasm and indicated that there would definitely be battles for them to fight, but for the current stage, let's settle the Great Snow Mountain first.

If you want to fight, the Myriad Tribes will be left for you to fight later; there will be plenty of opportunities.

Li Chen hadn't said this point out loud at the current stage, nor had he mentioned it to anyone.

Things must be done slowly; if one cannot even unify the continent, how can one dominate the Myriad Tribes and ascend to the pinnacle of the Myriad Tribes?

Speaking of the Great Snow Mountain, He Lan Xuan had to stand out.

He and Tuoba Zhen already had a feud, and Tuoba Zhen had humiliated him in various ways to suppress him.

Now Tuoba Zhen had used the Disintegration Great Art twice, and his strength was not what it used to be.

He Lan Xuan's Sun-Moon Dragon Clan had not experienced war and was still in its prime, so he requested to fight to go to the Great Snow Mountain to capture Tuoba Zhen and offer him to Li Chen.

Originally, Huyan Lan was somewhat unwilling; this should have been his job.

But Li Chen waved his hand to signal him to stay calm.

It's not that I look down on you, Huyan Lan, but you really can't beat Tuoba Zhen; don't let it reach a point where you have to call me over to help, and I have to make another trip.

But He Lan Xuan was different; this guy's strength was very close to Tuoba Zhen's, and his tribe was also brave and good at fighting, capable of adapting to battles in the Great Snow Mountain.

If he went, Li Chen indeed wouldn't have to go in person.

Thinking of this, Li Chen agreed to let He Lan Xuan lead troops into the Great Snow Mountain and let him choose 70,000 warriors from the surrendered tribes to help him fight. This made He Lan Xuan overjoyed, and he guaranteed that he would definitely be able to complete the mission.

At this moment, Huyan Lan was somewhat unconvinced, but the next second, when he saw Li Chen's gaze, he instantly felt a chill down his spine and was terrified.

Because during this period, Huyan Lan had been winning one battle after another, and his prestige in the north was getting higher and higher.

To tell the truth, Huyan Lan was getting a bit carried away.

Li Chen giving him that look was to let him know that he was just a dog of Li Chen's; if a dog didn't listen, Li Chen had plenty of dogs around him who could replace him.

A dog must do what a dog should do; if the master gives you a bone, you eat it; if he doesn't give it to you, you cannot snatch it, understand?

What qualifications does a dog have to bargain with me?

If he couldn't even do this, Li Chen felt he wasn't qualified to be a northern quasi-khan.

Li Chen didn't like disobedient dogs.

Huyan Lan lowered his head in terror, a scene also witnessed by many generals.

Attacking the Great Snow Mountain wasn't a matter of a day or two; as for how to fight specifically, Li Chen let He Lan Xuan handle it himself.

!

Li Chen only stayed with the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan for one day; during this period, he granted He Lan Xuan a chance to spar with him, under the guise of giving him pointers.

Generally, when having such an opportunity, He Lan Xuan would certainly be grateful for the chance Li Chen gave him.

He also wanted to know what kind of person could beat Tuoba Zhen to death twice.

In the back mountain of the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan, there were many onlookers; besides the five Sage Realm experts, there were also many experts of the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan watching.

Li Chen stood with his hands behind his back, merging with heaven and earth in the cold wind.

After He Lan Xuan bowed, he erupted with a terrifying aura; the dragon blood in his body boiled, and his figure began to change, with dragon scales constantly covering his body, just like a true dragon appearing.

Immortal Bi Chen Tianzun, standing to the side, acted as a temporary commentator: He Lan Xuan's move was one of the six great divine forms of the north, the True Dragon Dharma Body!

Green light appeared on his body, and all his abilities were drastically enhanced.

Especially the True Dragon Body, which could greatly weaken the opponent's power and was like a divine weapon; it was simply both offensive and defensive, invincible!

This was the source of He Lan Xuan's arrogance; his bloodline was truly too powerful, and his talent was also extremely high.

He was hailed as a leader rarely seen in a thousand years for the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan.

But even so, He Lan Xuan looked like he was facing a formidable enemy, because the one standing before him was Li Chen.

Even though Li Chen was standing with his hands behind his back, no one felt he was being arrogant; he originally had this ability.

Everyone was guessing that Li Chen must be thinking about how to break He Lan Xuan's move.

But they were wrong to think so; Li Chen was just thinking about how to teach He Lan Xuan a lesson without hurting him.

He Lan Xuan was strong, but that was only relative to others.

Li Chen beat Tuoba Zhen easily, let alone Tuoba Zhen's defeated opponent.

Here it was icy and snowy, which was He Lan Xuan's home field; Li Chen indeed couldn't exert his full strength.

But the problem was, he didn't need to exert his full strength to beat He Lan Xuan.

This time was mainly for pointers, so Li Chen told He Lan Xuan to prepare and attack, and he would parry as he went.

The next second, He Lan Xuan lunged over, sweeping with his leg.

It was as if a giant green dragon was flicking its tail, cracking heaven and earth!

Seeing this move of his, the power of heaven and earth manifested, and the people around instinctively retreated a few steps.

But Li Chen just blocked with one hand, easily neutralizing the move, and said: "Not bad, just too focused on power, lacking intent."

The subtlety of a move lies in the clever use of force, which is the application of intent; presumably, He Lan Xuan's power was too strong, so he neglected this point.

Feeling that Li Chen had seen through him at a glance, He Lan Xuan was also greatly shocked.

He began to urge various True Dragon Dharma Body moves to attack, and that kind of roaring sound constantly erupted between heaven and earth.

In the eyes of the people around, it seemed as if a giant green dragon was attacking Li Chen, but all were easily neutralized by Li Chen.

The battle between the two also gave countless onlookers present inspiration.

After fighting for about ten moves, Li Chen told He Lan Xuan to pay attention, as he was going to make a move.

Li Chen was seen closing his eyes and pressing his palms together; when he opened his eyes again, circles of light appeared in his pupils.

Immortal radiance surged around his body, and divine power washed over!

Above the nine heavens, phantom images of sages appeared one after another!

And Li Chen himself stood between heaven and earth, carrying supreme majesty.

Surrounded by heaven and earth, with stars shining brightly, he was like a god-king descending from the nine heavens!

As Li Chen struck, the ten thousand sages behind him also struck, with countless hands covering down! Blocking the sky and the sun!

He Lan Xuan naturally erupted with his strongest defensive skill, the True Dragon Armor Body, to withstand it; for a time, green light shone upon the world!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As one sage hand after another slammed into the True Dragon Armor Body, bursts of roaring sounds erupted.

Just as He Lan Xuan was about to be unable to hold on, Li Chen stopped in time to avoid injuring him.

"Your Majesty is truly divine and invincible; I am ashamed of my inferiority."

If one were to say that He Lan Xuan's surrender earlier was just following the trend, now it was a true submission.

This was also the reason Li Chen made a move—to let He Lan Xuan know what it meant to be truly powerful.

Li Chen also knew that without having truly fought, or without having seen it with their own eyes, these Sage Realm experts would mostly have a fluke mentality, feeling that if they were serious, they might not be worse than others.

Moreover, when He Lan Xuan made a breakthrough, this kind of thinking would become even heavier.

So teaching him a lesson in time, letting him know Li Chen's strength and his own shortcomings, why not?

Immortal Bi Chen Tianzun and Immortal Biyou on the side, even though they hadn't fought Li Chen, saw this scene and knew how much they were worth.

They couldn't even beat Master Wanfeng, and Master Wanfeng didn't dare to fight Li Chen.

This move of Li Chen's indeed shocked them.

"Brother Wanfeng, was it this move that Tuoba Zhen was defeated by?" Immortal Bi Chen Tianzun asked in terror.

In his spare time, he had once heard Master Wanfeng mention it.

"That's right, that day His Majesty used this move, and all the various divine arts and secret techniques on Tuoba Zhen were all scattered by this move." Master Wanfeng nodded.

During this period, he was the storyteller by Li Chen's side, the May Tian Ce Dynasty's number one 'Li Chen Fan'.

He liked to tell others various legends about Li Chen, to make others shocked and feel that he was well-informed.

You must know, Li Chen had already begun to become a mythical figure in the May Tian Ce Dynasty.

Especially in many places he had been, stories passed down by word of mouth among the local people had begun to spread.

Being able to spar with Li Chen, He Lan Xuan gained a lot and kept enthusiastically inviting Li Chen to continue being a guest at the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan.

Li Chen indeed only stayed for one day before leading his troops to leave and return to Holy Shancheng.

As for the subsequent work, which was recruiting troops to attack the Great Snow Mountain, he let He Lan Xuan prepare it himself and then communicate with the officials of the May Tian Ce Dynasty; Li Chen certainly wouldn't manage such small matters in person.

When returning, Liu Hao whispered: "Your Majesty, are you so at ease with He Lan Xuan? Why don't we leave some troops nearby, just in case."

Liu Hao meant that he was worried He Lan Xuan would rebel, so he suggested leaving the army at the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan.

Then the old, weak, women, and children of the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan could be used as hostages.

He Lan Xuan certainly wouldn't dare to have any unusual thoughts unless he wanted his clan to be exterminated, and the wives and children of He Lan Xuan's generals were all in Li Chen's hands, so they would certainly be obedient.

Li Chen, however, laughed: "It's fine, don't suspect those you use, and don't use those you suspect."

While He Lan Xuan was betting on Li Chen, Li Chen was actually also betting on him.

For a person like He Lan Xuan, only if Li Chen stayed by his side at all times could he be suppressed.

Otherwise, one could use this method to make him feel that Li Chen trusted him very much.

Li Chen treated him like this, so he would naturally feel grateful and start to work for him.

If he really held his tribesmen hostage, he would indeed work for him, but a seed of resentment would also be left in his heart.

Once resentment exists, it is very difficult to erase.

Sooner or later it will erupt, and then the aftermath will be endless.

Li Chen had the ambition of a hero, so he just followed the method of Boss Cao.

Li Chen didn't say these things, but Liu Hao understood many principles.

Actually, what made He Lan Xuan most gratified was that he felt Li Chen was different from Tuoba Zhen; Tuoba Zhen would snatch the beautiful women in his tribe, but Li Chen wouldn't, and he felt Li Chen was like a great sage.

However, he thought too much; Li Chen purely felt that there were still many women in Holy Shancheng, and he couldn't use them all in a short time, so he didn't have the mind to look for any in the Sun-Moon Dragon Clan.

Returning this time, it was naturally to continue taking revenge for his aunt, Li Xueying!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 206 =====