Chapter 867: Assault from All Directions

"This, insane……a calamitous monster of the state!" Seeing the black mist drifting out from within Sui Du, seeing those soldiers stained by the black mist wailing miserably and struggling, Xiahou Wuming trembled with rage all over.

He, and his ancestors, who threw away their heads and shed hot blood, toiling tirelessly for countless years for the Sui Dynasty!

The great capital of the Sui Dynasty, which our ancestors built through hardship, clearing thorns and brambles, painstakingly established Sui Du!

Unexpectedly, it was Feng Rong, who knows where he summoned that monstrous calamity from, bringing disaster to the state to this degree.

Within Sui Du, those officials, those soldiers, those common folk…

Xiahou Wuming closed his eyes, two lines of blood-tinged tears slowly streaming down.

The essence of a nation, destroyed in an instant.

Speaking plainly, what is Sui Du? It is the capital of the Sui Dynasty, a gathering place of the world's elite. Even an ordinary minor clerk in Sui Du might have talent and learning not inferior to a county magistrate or even a prefect elsewhere.

In Sui Du, pick any scholar at random; his learning, placed in any academy outside Sui Du, would qualify him to be a teacher or a headmaster.

Even the most ordinary butcher in Sui Du possesses a skill far more exquisite than those elsewhere who slaughter leaving chaos and blood; as Xiahou Wuming knows, the butcher who regularly supplies meat to his Xiahou family has truly achieved the skill of Pao Ding dissecting an ox, slipping through the spaces with no thickness.

Even the night watchmen on the streets of Sui Du have mastered a superb skill in observing celestial phenomena.

Watchmen elsewhere might occasionally guess the time and strike randomly, but the watchmen of Sui Du mark their shifts with absolute precision, not a hair's breadth off.

Destroyed, completely destroyed.

Xiahou Wuming exhausted all means, merely thinking of desperately weakening Sui Du's defenses, desperately weakening its combat strength, to strike Feng Rong's resistance psychology as much as possible, ideally retaking Sui Du without bloodshed.

He never truly imagined that Feng Rong could be so insane, to this extent.

He, ruthlessly destroyed, the heart of the Sui Dynasty, the Sui Du that all Sui people looked toward.

"You are unworthy to be lord of the Sui Dynasty……so you, together with your monstrous empress dowager, shall perish along with Sui Du!" Xiahou Wuming waved his hand and shouted in a low voice: "Form the formation, blaze flames to burn the city!"

As previously stated, the Sui Dynasty's military formations, whose gathered killing intent and army souls are entirely fire-attribute birds and beasts.

At this moment, upon Xiahou Wuming's order, formations all around erupted with a roar, a towering sea of fire closing in from all sides, enveloping the entirety of Sui Du.

The thick black mist met the flames, instantly emitting a "hissing" sound; vast sheets of black smoke were incinerated, after which countless black shadows howled out from within Sui Du, rushing straight at the four-direction formations.

One after another, fire-attribute spiritual treasures, spiritual weapons, great dao divine weapons, and even third-, sixth-, and ninth-refined fire-attribute immortal arms were raised; the temperature around Sui Du soared, instantly reaching the point of melting metal.

Moreover, accomplished earth gods and heavenly gods hovered in the air, exerting their mana, continuously spewing out mouthfuls of cultivated Samadhi True Fire; even more powerful heavenly gods and heavenly kings drove various heavenly-earth spiritual flames to slay the foe.

"Destroy it……then we shall build a new Sui Du." Xiahou Wuming said calmly: "Ancestors once said, there is no eternal city under heaven, only eternal conviction."

"Back then, I did not understand. Now, I do."

"It is merely one Sui Du; destroy it, and it is destroyed……as long as we descendants of the Sui people remain, even if one Sui Du is gone, we can still rebuild ten, a hundred, a thousand Sui Du."

Xiahou Wuming's voice spread in all directions; countless soldiers heard his words.

Because of Feng Rong's atrocities, because of Sui Du's destruction, the countless soldiers whose morale had sunk were instantly invigorated, and the power of their formations suddenly surged by thirty percent.

"Great Sui!" a commander shouted, raising his arm.

"Mighty!" countless soldiers responded in kind.

Blade after blade of flying knives and swords howled forth, carrying terrifying heat, transforming into vast sheets of flowing fire that swept across Sui Du. Walls were shattered, buildings ignited, countless fleeing black shadows were cut to pieces by blade light and sword light, burned to ash by the flames.

"Great Sui!" Xiahou Wuming beat the drum and roared loudly.

"Mighty!" Not only the soldiers from all directions, but even Feng Yin seated on the throne, along with his many civil and military ministers beside him, all rose to their feet and shouted with raised arms.

A spirit flowed through the hearts of Feng Yin and the others; this spirit turned into a towering surge, surging within their bodies. They each became spirited, their mana erupting like a volcano, making each seem to blaze, emitting a blinding light impossible to gaze upon.

Wu Tie looked at these Sui Dynasty ministers around him, his expression subtly shifting.

This is the foundation of a long-standing powerful dynasty—not divine abilities, not secret arts, not mighty armaments, not sharp weapons, but a recognition, a faith, a mark etched into the bones and fused into the soul-spirit: the "imprint of civilization."

To destroy a nation is simple.

To destroy a civilization is difficult.

The Sui Dynasty is no longer merely a state; it is a civilization named "Sui Dynasty," deeply fused into the bodies of its people.

From Feng Yin onward, to Xiahou Wuming, and then to those frenzied soldiers below, they are "Sui people," and indeed they are the "Sui Dynasty" itself.

Such a civilization, one with strong centripetal force, when it develops a covetous eye toward the Three Kingdoms continent and may at any moment reveal its fangs……is as perilous as a ferocious tiger sleeping beside one, extremely dangerous and must be dealt with.

"Feng Rong is going to flee." Wu Tie said coldly: "Grand Preceptor, Feng Rong is going to flee. If he escapes, from now on war and fire will continue endlessly, the world will never know peace. What other trump cards do you have? Don't hide them—bring them out now."

Xiahou Wuming let out a "ha-ha" manic laugh, then roared loudly: "Feng Rong, you traitor……you have brought calamity upon Sui Du, yet you still wish to flee? Who gave you the courage? Who gave you the confidence?"

Xiahou Wuming produced a jade talisman.

It is an antiquely mottled piece, evidently passed down for ages, having passed through countless hands.

Wu Tie could see the thick patina on the jade talisman's surface and feel its heavy aura of time.

The carving of this jade talisman is ancient and unrefined, not exquisite, yet it possesses an indescribably dignified and majestic air.

The person who carved this jade talisman is not an expert in talisman-making; to Wu Tie's eyes, its craftsmanship is merely ordinary, yet each line carries an upright and righteous aura, and the power hidden within the talisman is immensely tremendous.

"The ancestors were sagely wise." Xiahou Wuming let out a soft sigh, then waved his hand, hearing a clear "ding" as a glimmer of light flashed across the jade talisman's surface.

Toward the Hall of Primordial Origin, a great boom was heard; within Sui Du, the sole teleportation array that had not been destroyed—the one inside the Hall of Primordial Origin—exploded with a roar.

A column of fire shot skyward, slowly blooming in the high air into a crimson mushroom cloud.

Intense heat assailed, flames raged; unknown what lay beneath this teleportation array, the explosion of its hundred-zhang diameter unleashed terrifying power, blasting a pit tens of li wide amid the vast imperial city.

Heaven collapsed, earth split, sun and moon lost their light.

Near the Hall of Primordial Origin, the few remaining confidants of Feng Rong were blown to ashes.

Thirty-six mighty Primordial Origin Divine Generals stationed in the Hall of Primordial Origin; when the great array exploded, they could not dodge and were each drawn in.

Beneath the array lay something strange; the explosion's power was intensely inward, intensely compressed, restrained by a seal that prevented it from spreading outward unchecked.

Even so, it still overturned palaces spanning tens of li; one can see how devastating the force at the blast's core was!

The thirty-six Primordial Origin Divine Generals were blown apart—bones broken, tendons severed, their five viscera and six bowels gravely injured; their armor, robes, and countless protective secret treasures were shattered to fragments, the thirty-six left naked, their twisted bodies flung far away.

"Trash!"

Feng Rong shrieked hysterically, summoning the Primordial Origin Divine Bell; a massive bell shadow descended from the void, enveloping him and his close aides—Wa Qingluan, Qing Wu, Bai Su Xin, and others—beneath it.

The immense blast wave struck the Primordial Origin Divine Bell repeatedly, hearing the great bell roar "boom-boom"; waves of violet-gold light swept outward, scouring away the firelight, shockwaves, thick smoke, dust from the array's explosion, and the black mist within Sui Du, leaving nothing behind.

The flustered Feng Rong desperately activated the Qianyuan Divine Bell; the huge ancient bell tolled repeatedly, and its massive light waves, brimming with unstoppable miraculous power, swept all around.

All the black mist and black shadows within Sui Du were washed clean by the Qianyuan Divine Bell; Qing Wu's face twisted in anguish: 'Your Majesty, Your Majesty... withdraw your divine powers! We, we, hurry and find a retreat!'

Feng Rong stared blankly, looked around, then suddenly sneered: 'What retreat? What retreat? The Qianyuan Divine Bell is in my hand, the Heirloom Jade Seal is in my hand, the imperial clan elders... are all by my side...'

'Rebellious ministers and traitors are just rebellious ministers and traitors; do they dare to assassinate the sovereign?' Feng Rong, hands behind his back, watched the great crowd of figures slowly rising within the imperial city and roared loudly: 'Esteemed ancestors, please swiftly act, sweep away the rebel troops outside the city, and restore the court's order!'

Within Sui Du's imperial city, nearly two hundred hidden elders of the Feng clan rose into the air, each expressionless as they gazed upon the lifeless Sui Du, upon the imperial city whose center had been blasted into a great pit, and upon the besieging troops outside.

'Your Majesty, how has it come to this, Your Majesty?' an old man with hair white as snow, beard nearly reaching his feet, feeble and tottering, his aura withered to near extinction, trembled and shuffled three steps with each sway, walking toward Feng Rong.

'It is my fault, it is our fault…… Your ascension to the throne was abrupt and hasty; we ought to have investigated thoroughly.'

'But how many years has Sui Chao gone without internal turmoil?'

'We feel that we reclusive old fogeys, according to ancestral law, should not interfere in succession; thus we let you replace Feng Zhen and take the throne.'

'Later, when you wanted to unleash slaughter, we also felt that a new emperor securing his throne was appropriate; to purge the forces of Feng Shang was fine—after all, we couldn't keep him around to cause trouble day and night. So we acquiesced, even sending adept servitors to assist you.'

'But how did you let Sui Du be destroyed?'

The old man walked to the outside of the light bell formed by the Qianyuan Divine Bell, stared straight through the light and shadow at Feng Rong: 'Your Majesty, can you answer this old man—how did the perfectly fine Sui Du get destroyed?'

Feng Rong blinked desperately, unable to answer this question.

Indeed, how could the perfectly fine Sui Du be destroyed? It's utterly absurd—Sui Du, such a mighty city, the splendid legacy left by our ancestors; if Feng Rong had simply sat honestly on the throne, conscientiously fulfilled his divine imperial duties, instead of rushing to kill to gather enough 'sacrificial offerings'…

Who could destroy Sui Du?

As long as the Fire Inheritance Grand Formation remains intact, even if all the demons, monsters, and hostile nations of the four directions join forces, Sui Chao will stand as firm as Mount Tai!

So, who could destroy Sui Du?

Feng Rong!

Only Feng Rong!

Qing Wu's expression shifted; he whispered, 'Your Majesty, this old villain is insolent, daring to question Your Majesty—I request to behead him and exterminate his nine clans!'

Feng Rong swung around and slapped Qing Wu across the face.

'Exterminate the nine clans? You scoundrel, do you want me to cut myself down?'

Feng Rong looked at the trembling white‑haired old man, then at the nearly two hundred Feng clan elders floating in the air, and couldn't help but give a dry laugh: 'Ancestors, you, you, hear me…'

The white‑haired old man shook his head: 'Just now, when the black mist ran rampant, how did the clan members inside the city fare?'

Feng Rong tightly shut his mouth.

Wa Qinglan also dared not speak.

Qing Wu hid even further behind Wa Qinglan.

Bai Suzhen's face also turned ashen, and she cautiously stepped back a few paces.

Just now, when the black mist raged, who still had the heart to attend to the Feng clan relatives inside the city?

'You pay no heed to our Feng clan kin, not even to your own princes and grandsons, your empress and consorts—do you ignore them too?' the white‑haired old man shouted, his body shaking with hysterical rage.

Feng Rong blinked…

Yes, his own princes and grandsons, his empress and consorts… uh, just now he really hadn't thought of these people.

Compared to his 'immortality', these sons, grandsons, wives and concubines—mere trifles—were insignificant; as long as he sat on the throne, wasn't whatever he wanted simply his for the taking?

'What virtue, what ability do you have to continue as lord of Sui Chao?' the eldest Feng clan elders finally shouted in unison.

'Well said! Such a wolf‑hearted, dog‑gutted, talentless, virtue‑less fool—what virtue, what ability does he have to enjoy this splendid realm?' A piercing whistle came from the west; in an instant, a colossal giant vulture with a wingspan of tens of thousands of zhang flew to the vicinity of Sui Du.

That giant vulture's speed was astonishing; when it opened its mouth to whistle, its massive body was still tens of millions of li away, yet the moment the first syllable left its beak, it was already hovering above Sui Du.

'The realm takes its turn; tomorrow it will be mine.' Another piercing roar came from the west; a colossal roc with a wingspan of nearly a hundred thousand zhang, its body suffused with black qi, swooped in from the west.

'The Fire Inheritance Grand Formation has already collapsed; this Sui Chao ought to be our playground.' A hoarse, low, feeble voice, reeking of death intent, came from the south.

Vast expanses of gray Cold Qi enveloped a towering ten‑thousand‑zhang crystal skeleton, completely transparent, flashing continuously; each flash effortlessly crossed millions of li of void, shooting straight from the direction of the southern Netherworld straight at Sui Du.

Behind this crystal skeleton, eighteen skull‑ghost dragons wailed and dragged a floating palace, likewise tearing through the void to come straight at us.

On the roof of that floating palace, spanning a few li, three terrifying specters stood boldly, their aura as vast and fearsome as the crystal void, their mere presence etching fine cracks into the void.

To the north and east of Sui Chao, strange laughter likewise echoed.

Moreover, terrifyingly powerful aberrant masters, unleashing divine abilities, rushed from all directions.

From all sides, demons and monsters, the hostile nations that have plagued Sui Chao since its founding, joined forces to attack.

After all, the Fire Inheritance Grand Formation has been broken.