Chapter 158: Border Army

When Cheng Luo saw Gu Xuan's face.

His first reaction, besides shock, was even more dread.

Only because, on the high platform of this drill ground, he was one who had truly gone to the capital and faced the Sage, and his several deputy generals were the same.

The Jin Wu Guard hidden within the Imperial Edict Delegation was the true Current Emperor!

However.

Cheng Luo's adaptability was also extremely swift.

In merely the span of a single breath of astonishment, he shouted sternly: "Audacious madman, you dare impersonate the King, seize him for me!"

Precisely because he knew it was the true Zhou King personally present, and also largely believed in the miracles of the Great Zhou Divine King Art, otherwise the Sima Clan could not have been destroyed so easily.

Therefore, Cheng Luo had to control Gu Xuan and the others in the fastest possible time.

Otherwise, once the twenty thousand plus border army elites below the platform and in the drill ground reacted, who exactly was the one giving orders would become hard to say.

After all, the Great Zhou Dynasty has stood for thousands of years, the majestic royal family's prestige among the low-ranking soldiers is still quite worth mentioning, and is not something the Sima Family and Cheng Luo himself could shake in less than ten years.

Following Cheng Luo's order, his several deputy generals on the high platform and hundreds of personal guards all hesitated slightly.

If this were placed on a usual battlefield, with these people reacting so sluggishly, perhaps at least half would have to be executed on the spot.

Because military orders are like mountains, the main general orders, subordinates hesitating is a major taboo!

But this moment was different, after all the one to be seized was the Current Emperor, anyone would have to weigh the matter.

However.

Cheng Luo was after all a veteran general, still possessing considerable prestige in the Northern Border Army, at least the three hundred plus personal guards he usually won over with deep favor were absolutely obedient to him.

Slow to speak, fast to act, in the end twenty burly and fierce personal guards still stepped forward, intending to seize the so-called "fake Zhou King".

However.

Just as these personal guards neared the Imperial Edict Delegation, about to commit an act of disloyalty.

"Awoo—"

All soldiers in the entire drill ground watched in amazement as, on the high platform, several majestic undulations appeared, like a giant True Dragon coiling, accompanied by a terrifying dragon's roar.

Gu Xuan stepped forward, receiving the scepter used for the edict from the eunuch.

This scepter was obviously specially made, cast from multiple metals, called a scepter but might as well be called a Golden Mace.

With Qi infused, Gu Xuan swept horizontally with a move that swept away a thousand armies, actually sweeping away more than ten personal guards like bears and tigers.

Each and every one had broken bones and severed tendons, swept flying to not far from Cheng Luo's feet, instantly wailing incessantly.

And obviously, Gu Xuan was also obviously mainly establishing authority, not killing too bloodily, to avoid causing even greater terror to the soldiers below.

Otherwise, not a single one of these twenty-odd personal guards would have survived, they might even have become fragments.

This?!

Such peerless martial power, like a miracle, shocked everyone until they stared with mouths agape!

There is no citizen of the human race of the Great Zhou Dynasty who does not know Emperor Gaozu's Great Zhou Divine King Art.

And this divine aura, this True Dragon phenomenon, is clearly the miraculous phenomenon described in the ancient legends of the Great Zhou Divine King Art cultivated to great completion.

In former years, Emperor Gaozu displayed this miracle more than once, slaying many peerless great enemies among the alien races, thereby pacifying a land, founding the Great Zhou Dynasty, and winning a peaceful land for the human race.

This moment.

Almost everyone began to feel that the news coming from the capital was not some false news, but very likely true.

Otherwise, how could the Current Emperor, from a puppet-like sovereign, in one morning overturn the tyrannical Sima minister clan?

Besides those wails, the entire drill ground was deathly silent.

Including Cheng Luo, all soldiers looked somewhat dumbfounded at that Jin Wu Guard clad in golden armor, who was the Emperor.

And Gu Xuan did not pause at all, holding the Golden Scepter symbolizing majesty, directly advanced.

And said.

Gu Xuan exterminated the entire Sima Clan just over a month ago, one can only say he roughly stabilized the capital's political situation, then without stopping rushed to the Northern Border Army, it must be said he took a risk.

Such an action was obviously beyond everyone's expectations, even extremely unreasonable.

If the slightest carelessness caused the capital's situation to reverse and great chaos to arise again, all of Gu Xuan's previous efforts would be wasted.

But everything has pros and cons.

If he did not personally come to the Northern Border Army soon, this place would inevitably become the independent kingdom of the Sima remnant Cheng Luo, and might even ally with the Jie Tribe, becoming a major northern trouble for the Great Zhou Dynasty!

By that time, wanting to resolve it again would require an extremely great and painful price.

In the process of this decision.

In the capital, naturally there were core court officials and Forbidden Army confidant generals who raised objections.

Their meaning was very clear: as a monarch, there is no need to personally brave danger, better to advance steadily, willing to pay more cost, than let Gu Xuan encounter any mishap.

Of course.

There were also an extremely few one or two strategists similar to Zhang Liang and Chen Ping who privately agreed with Gu Xuan's decision, yet still worried for his safety.

These admonitions actually cannot be called absolutely right or wrong, just different choices.

And for Gu Xuan, he would not tolerate the nearly forty thousand elites of the Northern Border Army being pulled to the opposing side by Cheng Luo just like that.

When that time came, it would be very difficult for him to resolve the northern Jie Tribe that once burned, killed, raped, and plundered within the borders.

Therefore.

After weighing pros and cons, Gu Xuan ultimately still decided to reuse an old tactic, taking advantage before the situation fully solidified to rush here, to capture the thief first capture the king!

He temporarily entrusted court affairs, Forbidden Army and other matters to several steady veteran ministers and old generals, then brought dozens of core confidants and set out, heading for the northern borderlands.

And on this day after arriving, taking advantage of the Northern Border Army's oath-taking ceremony, acting under the gaze of ten thousand armies, was one of Gu Xuan's plans.

He wanted to let the many soldiers all see this scene, otherwise it would be hard to win over their military hearts.

……

On the high platform of the drill ground.

Gu Xuan's majestic figure was towering, like a golden deity, advancing with staff in hand amid the stunned silence of the multitude.

One step, two steps, three steps.

The distance between him and Cheng Luo, seated on the general's seat, was now less than thirty paces.

At this time, the several deputy generals beside Cheng Luo saw even more clearly — this was indeed the Current Emperor!

For they had once followed Cheng Luo into the capital to audience the sovereign, and in a flash, had raised their heads and caught a glimpse of the Zhou King on the imperial throne.

And Cheng Luo, shocked by the True Dragon undulation in midair and by Gu Xuan's divine-aura strike, ultimately came to his senses.

No matter what, he was after all a core dead soldier of the Sima Clan in former days, and a fierce character who had fought his way out of corpse mountains and blood seas.

He sprang to his feet, revealing a heroic frame like a bear or tiger, then drew the precious sword at his waist and let out a furious roar, signaling his personal guards to advance and together regicide.

Obviously.

Cheng Luo's heart was clear as a mirror — since the Zhou King had personally come, he would surely employ a decapitation tactic against him, just as against Grand General Sima Shang.

At such a moment, even though he already believed the Zhou King had cultivated the Great Zhou Divine King Art to perfection with heaven-shaking combat power, he was unwilling to surrender without a fight.

And as the main general of the Northern Border Army for many years, Cheng Luo was indeed no easy opponent.

The several deputy generals under his command, and even hundreds of personal guards, were all iron-core confidants who shared glory and ruin with him — they would not blink at climbing a mountain of swords or descending into a sea of fire; acting together against the Current Emperor, they still hesitated little.

"Kill!"

With a harsh shout, Cheng Luo was about to lead hundreds of iron-clad soldiers forward to surround and kill Gu Xuan.

But ultimately a white-bearded old general stepped forward, wanting to dissuade: "General Cheng, since this man claims to be the Zhou King His Majesty, why not first inquire with courtesy?"

Behind him, several young school captains followed, bowing with cupped hands together.

Obviously, even on this high platform, not everyone was of one mind with the Sima Clan and Cheng Luo — there were still those unwilling to commit such treason.

In Cheng Luo's eyes, fierce light flickered, and a furious expression surfaced on his face.

At this critical moment, changes occurred in an instant — any mishap could happen.

"Jiang Bu Shi, do you seek death? Kill him for me!"

He rebuked sharply, waved his right hand, and instantly several personal guards hurled short spears at the old general named Jiang Bu Shi.

Clang clang dang!

Obviously, Jiang Bu Shi and the others had long been in the army, and their martial prowess was naturally extraordinary — they swung their long swords and knocked down the incoming short spears.

This act naturally enraged Cheng Luo, who immediately ordered dozens of men to swarm forward and seize and kill.

However.

In just that brief moment of delay, Gu Xuan had already closed in.

He let out a great roar, swung the Golden Mace in a horizontal sweep, and wherever it reached, the dragon-shaped undulation above grew ever more intense and distinct, as if a true dragon had descended to the mortal world.

Bang bang bang!

One saw body after body on the entire high platform fly several meters high, then fall back down.

In merely a few breaths, a full hundred-plus personal guards were knocked flying, bones broken and tendons snapped, clearly heavily injured.

This?!

Such terrifying martial force — who could block it?

Seeing this scene, all officers and soldiers including Cheng Luo and Jiang Bu Shi were stunned dumb.

The ancients have a saying: thousand-man enemy, ten-thousand-man enemy — they had always thought this a metaphor; even when the High Ancestor His Majesty was so described, it was mostly likely a mythic exaggeration.

But at this moment, they truly witnessed that a single person can really possess such peerless martial force!

Beyond Cheng Luo's horrified expression, his heart also gave rise to all sorts of complex emotions.

At this time, he also experienced his lord Sima Shang's deep unwillingness and resentment.

Since the Great Zhou Divine King Art is so miraculous, why over thousands of years, besides the High Ancestor His Majesty, has no generation of Zhou King cultivated any achievement?

Yet precisely in this generation's sovereign, he silently cultivated to such a terrifying degree?!

Cheng Luo badly wanted to curse — he realized he would very likely follow the Sima Clan into oblivion; the so-called "establishing himself as king," "solely dominating the northern territory," would all turn into mere bubbles.

He also regretted — regretted his own excessive carelessness, not having transferred the Strong Crossbow Camp up to the high platform; otherwise they could have volley-fired at the Zhou King His Majesty.

However, to speak the other side — he also realized that even with the Strong Crossbow Camp present, it might not have changed much.

Because the Current Sovereign is simply too terrifying!

And Cheng Luo's regret did not last long.

In just a few breaths, Gu Xuan had slaughtered through all his personal guards and arrived directly before Cheng Luo's general's seat.

Moreover, the golden armor he wore was a supreme treasure among royal treasures — ordinary guards' strikes were like scratching an itch through boots, causing him no hindrance, let alone injury.

In this situation, Cheng Luo truly had no face to flee; he also knew that even escaping down the high platform under his guards' cover, he would not get far.

"You..."

Tall and powerfully built as he was, glaring fiercely, he was just about to raise his sword and furiously shout something.

However, the next moment, he was struck unconscious by a single mace blow from Gu Xuan, collapsing like a limp bear on the ground before Gu Xuan.

And even in this situation, two or three partial generals and dozens of personal guards still recklessly rushed up to besiege Gu Xuan, wanting to snatch Cheng Luo back.

From this one can see their ferocity — worthy of being existences chosen by Cheng Luo as confidants in the border army.

But their martial valor, against Gu Xuan's reluctant effort, was obviously still far from enough.

What is called a true thousand-man enemy, a Great Zhou Divine King Art perfected practitioner — at this moment, Gu Xuan displayed it to the fullest.

Clang clang dang!

Bang bang bang!

After dozens of consecutive thunderous sounds, all of Cheng Luo's diehard loyalists were knocked down, either dead or injured.

The remaining few, after staring dumbstruck, could no longer muster any thought of resistance — they knelt prostrate on the ground, shouting "Long live!" in unison.

On the high platform, such an intense scene left the Border Army soldiers on the drill ground below staring with wide eyes and gaping mouths.

A scheduled oath-taking ceremony, how did it turn into such a spectacular clash?!

The eyes of the many soldiers were all drawn to that majestic golden figure on the high platform, like magnets.

No other reason, everyone in the world has a heart that admires the strong.

And before that, Gu Xuan's light sigh was too stunning.

A single sentence — "Cheng Luo, We originally wanted to spare your life, it seems that cannot be done either" — contained endless majesty and confidence, resounding through the entire drill ground, like some divine sound, shocking everyone.

And afterwards, the Dragon Qi fluctuations he displayed, the peerless martial power of a single strike sweeping away Cheng Luo's personal guards, were all seen by the soldiers with their eyes and shook their hearts.

Too divine and awe-inspiring, too overbearing!

Perhaps, only the legendary Emperor Gaozu possessed such divine might!

This is the thought in the hearts of all soldiers who witnessed this scene at this moment.

……

After completely controlling Cheng Luo and the others, Gu Xuan ordered his confidants in the Imperial Edict Delegation to join forces with that veteran general Jiang Bu Shi to stabilize the situation on the high platform.

Then, he came to the edge of the high platform, facing all the Border Army soldiers below, and shouted loudly.

"Cheng Luo colluded with the Sima Clan, rebelling and causing trouble. We came today only to punish the ringleader, not to question the coerced followers. All who submit are meritorious and shall be rewarded!"

His voice was like thunder, grand and clear, and full of power and majesty, spreading to every corner of the entire drill ground.

This moment.

Gu Xuan almost reenacted that scene of pacifying the Sima Clan in the Capital City, like a golden deity, shaking tens of thousands of soldiers.

And the accompanying edict personnel, Jiang Bu Shi and the others also had good judgment, shouting "Long live!" at the top of their voices.

At first it was a few dozen people, then hundreds, and then all soldiers in the entire drill ground shouted "Long live!"

Under this trend, even though there were still quite a few of Cheng Luo's confidants in the army, they were already powerless.

Since even a main general as strong as Cheng Luo was captured by His Majesty the Zhou King while protected by hundreds of personal guards, what could these lackeys possibly do?

Any further small moves, and what awaits them is certainly a dead end.

And for Gu Xuan, to achieve this, he had practically utilized martial power, timing, royal prestige, and decisiveness to the utmost.

Otherwise, it would be absolutely impossible to have these twenty thousand plus Border Army soldiers turn to him so smoothly.

But he ultimately still succeeded, preliminarily bringing this Border Army under his control, and ultimately gaining the possibility of revenge against the Jie Tribe!

(Chapter End)