Chapter 854: Dust Settles (Second Update, requesting everything)

"My Lord, how are things on your end?"

Just as Zhao Yuanqing was feeling delighted that the Imperial Family had gained another Pseudo-King, he heard how Zhao Rui addressed Li Zhangsheng and was visibly stunned for a moment.

Zhao Yuanqing had never imagined that Zhao Rui would acknowledge Li Zhangsheng as his master; this was truly far beyond his expectations.

Both were Pseudo-Kings, and even if there was a massive gap in strength, their status on the surface could be considered equal. The key was that Zhao Rui was also a prince and a descendant of his, Zhao Yuanqing's, own bloodline by N generations; how could he acknowledge Li Zhangsheng as his master?

Zhao Yuanqing could not quite wrap his head around it, and his entire mind felt a bit chaotic.

"The Demon Commander Xida A'erhan has been slain by us!"

Li Zhangsheng naturally noticed the change in Zhao Yuanqing's expression, but he did not explain, nor did he hide anything, directly stating the fact that the Demon Commander had been slain by their joint efforts.

He believed that after this incident, even if Datou were taken by Zhao Yuanqing, Li Zhangsheng's prestige in the Dai Kingdom would be established and would soar to a very high level, making him a figure like a hero, which would make controlling the Dai Kingdom much easier in the future.

Upon hearing that the Demon Commander had been slain, Zhao Rui did not appear overly surprised. After all, he had seen Li Zhangsheng kill a Demon Commander single-handedly with his own eyes, and coupled with the words of Zhao Yuanqing and Ning Bizhen, a joint slaying of a Demon Commander did not make him feel surprised.

However, just because Zhao Rui was not surprised did not mean others were not shocked.

The middle-aged Pseudo-King standing beside Zhao Rui was stunned, and after coming to his senses, he immediately revealed an expression of wild joy.

This middle-aged Pseudo-King was named Han Li. He was originally a "Loose Cultivator" without power or influence, and only through various opportunities was he fortunate enough to become a Pseudo-King, eventually accepting the recruitment of the Dai Kingdom.

Like many of the Dai Kingdom's Stronger, Han Li also did not hold a positive view of the Dai Kingdom's future and had thoughts of leaving the Dai Kingdom, but Zhao Yuanqing kept a close eye on him, and he had never found an opportunity to leave.

Today, with Zhao Yuanqing entangled by the Demon Commander and numerous Great Demons, and the Hurricane Fortress on the verge of being breached at any moment, Han Li felt that the opportunity to run had arrived.

However, before he could put it into action, Li Zhangsheng and Ning Bizhen forcefully slew several Great Demons, forcing Han Li to suppress his thoughts of running.

Han Li still felt shocked; defeating a Demon Commander and slaying a Demon Commander were two completely different levels of difficulty, with the latter's difficulty coefficient far exceeding the former.

Over so many years, Zhao Yuanqing had also defeated Xida A'erhan many times, but he simply could not manage to slay him.

Seeing Han Li looking at him, Zhao Yuanqing smiled and said, "That's right, the Demon Commander Xida A'erhan has been slain by us!"

Under the control of his Mental Power, this sentence spread to the ears of every soldier in the Hurricane Fortress, as if whispering right beside them.

Due to the heavy losses, the morale of the surviving soldiers in the Hurricane Fortress was inevitably a bit low.

However, after Zhao Yuanqing announced that the Demon Commander Xida A'erhan had been slain by them, thunderous cheers immediately erupted in the fortress and did not cease for a long time.

In this way, the previously low morale was revitalized.

The soldiers knew very well that before a new Demon Commander appeared, the Hurricane Fortress would usher in a rare period of safety.

From a normal perspective, this period of safety would likely last for several years.

Of course, abnormal situations would occasionally occur, and it was possible for a new Demon Commander to appear within a few months, but that was a low-probability event.

While the soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield, Zhao Yuanqing led the four of them into a tall and magnificent castle.

This was the general command center of the Hurricane Fortress, the most majestic building in the Hurricane Fortress, and the final bastion of the Hurricane Fortress.

If the inner and outer walls were to fall in succession, this castle would become the final stronghold.

In the great hall of the castle, Zhao Yuanqing sat down according to host and guest, with Zhao Yuanqing in the main seat, Li Zhangsheng in the second seat, followed by Ning Bizhen, Han Li, and Zhao Rui.

Zhao Yuanqing made this arrangement mainly based on strength.

In the process of slaying the Demon Commander, Zhao Yuanqing was very clear about the strength of Li Zhangsheng and Ning Bizhen.

If it weren't for the fear of the Flame Demon's Burning Body Explosion, their Demon Pets could definitely have displayed a higher level of skill, and they would not have been so timid in the battle, keeping their distance to release long-range attacks and unable to exert their full potential.

Even so, Zhao Yuanqing believed that the two were definitely existences at the top of the Pseudo-King pyramid; otherwise, it would have been impossible to hold Xida A'erhan back.

Immediately after taking his seat, Zhao Yuanqing asked Zhao Rui, "Everyone, please rest here for a moment; I have something to ask Xiao Rui!"

"Yes, Great-Grandfather!"

Zhao Rui respectfully followed behind Zhao Yuanqing and went to a nearby room with him.

Regarding Zhao Yuanqing's actions, Li Zhangsheng had his own guesses, but he did not feel surprised.

Several Restrictions had already been activated in the room, and outsiders could not hear their conversation at all before breaking the Restrictions.

"Xiao Rui, I don't understand, why did you acknowledge him as your master?"

Clearly, Zhao Yuanqing was dissatisfied with Zhao Rui's act of acknowledging Li Zhangsheng as his master.

It was normal for Zhao Yuanqing to be dissatisfied; as a veteran King, seeing the most outstanding descendant among his direct lineage acknowledge a Pseudo-King as his master would naturally make him feel dissatisfied. The key was that this descendant was also a Pseudo-King himself; he felt this was losing face for him.

Zhao Rui had family background, resources, and status, yet he acknowledged a Pseudo-King of the same rank as his master; even if Li Zhangsheng was very strong, Zhao Yuanqing still felt it was inconceivable.

Zhao Rui bore the pressure and said, "Great-Grandfather, you do not know, I had already acknowledged my master before becoming a Pseudo-King. Later, my ability to enter the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm and become a Pseudo-King was all thanks to my Lord. Finally, my Lord once killed a Demon Commander single-handedly in the Bernama Fortress, and in the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm, he suppressed the descendant of the Profound Emperor, the 'Kun King' Yan Wanling, becoming the number one person in this Heavenly Dao Secret Realm! With such honor, how could he not be worthy of my allegiance?"

Yan Wanling's King title was the Kun King; this was a title passed down from the ancient era, and only those with excellent potential could obtain such a King title.

Upon learning that Li Zhangsheng had killed a Demon Commander single-handedly, Zhao Yuanqing was visibly startled. This completely refreshed his worldview; he had never imagined that a Pseudo-King could actually accomplish such a shocking feat.

As for Li Zhangsheng suppressing Yan Wanling to become the number one in the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm, although it was also shocking, it was undoubtedly much less impressive compared to killing a Demon Commander single-handedly.

"Looking at it this way, this has instead become your opportunity."

Zhao Yuanqing sighed, but he did not blame Zhao Rui for this, especially since he knew very well that his own lifespan was running out, and he had become much more open-minded.

"Xiao Rui, tell the truth to this old man, does he have any designs on our Dai Kingdom?"

Zhao Rui had just wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but Zhao Yuanqing suddenly asked this, making Zhao Rui's heart jump.

(End of chapter)