Chapter 136

That night, the light receded, and Xiangyang City was swallowed by darkness.

Inside a residence in the western part of the city,

The flames of countless torches flickered incessantly in the wind, and the courtyard was filled with a solemn, killing intent.

Warriors in armor formed three layers inside and out, nocking their bows with grim expressions, encircling the entire courtyard so tightly that not even a mosquito could escape.

They were merely waiting for General Meng Zongzheng, the Xiangyang garrison commander seated at the banquet, to give the order!

Meanwhile, below, the Divine Vigor Army commander Hu Zai xing, the Triumph Reporting Army commander Chen Xiang, and the other banquet attendees, seeing this sudden turn of events, either had faces ashen as iron or looked deathly pale.

"General Meng, what is the meaning of this?" Hu Zai xing snapped, his eyes flashing like lightning, his right hand gripping the wine bowl tightly, demanding an answer without changing his expression.

Yet in his heart he already cursed the trembling Shopkeeper Xu to death, for organizing a gathering only to have it utterly destroyed!

In his youth, dissatisfied with the court's lackluster northern campaigns and the killing of Marshal Yue, he impulsively joined the Manichaean sect together with Chen Xiang.

Back then the two were merely foot soldiers, but as they gradually rose to prominent positions over the past few years, wanting to leave the sect had become nearly impossible.

A month ago, when news arrived from Shandong that the Manichaean sect had risen in revolt against the Jin State, he longed to submit a memorial to the court requesting troops for a northern expedition.

But before he could send the memorial, the situation in the Jin State suddenly took a turn for the worse, to the point that even the Manichaean sect was on the verge of splitting apart.

Thus today's secret meeting was arranged, to discuss their options; if possible, he also hoped to use this opportunity to quit the sect.

"What do you mean? Hehehe~"

Just as Meng Zongzheng, with a troubled expression, prepared to speak, a sinister, chilling voice suddenly came from the second floor facing him, making one's flesh creep in the pitch‑black night.

Then the window slowly opened, revealing a man in fine robes, his face pale and clean‑shaven, a sinister figure.

He was a eunuch.

After casting a cold, gloomy gaze over the crowd in the courtyard, he shouted in a sharp voice: "By imperial decree, seize the Manichaean rebels, dead or alive! Meng Jiangjun, why haven't you moved yet!"

Hu Zai xing and Chen Xiang heard this, exchanged a glance, and their faces slightly changed color.

Meng Zongzheng, however, hesitated somewhat; these men were his comrades who had fought shoulder to shoulder in recent years, resisting the Jin invasions.

Moreover, the false charge still loomed before them; even if they truly deserved death, they should still be given due process, shouldn't they?

He then turned, raised his head, clasped his fists, and urged: "After all, this concerns a senior frontier commander; Your Excellency, perhaps you should first..."

But before he could finish, the eunuch's eyes shot over and locked onto him.

He barked: "What? Do you also intend to shelter the Manichaean rebels? You eat the emperor's stipend to relieve his worries! In my view, your loyalties, Meng Zongzheng, are askew!"

Immediately thereafter, without regard for Meng Zongzheng's dark‑faced expression, he turned to the armored archers in the courtyard and shouted sharply: "Let loose your arrows, all of you!"

Yet he underestimated the frontier troops; without a command from their commanding officer, they could not simply be ordered about by an outside eunuch.

Consequently, after his order had been issued for a while, the courtyard remained deathly silent.

No one heeded his command.

"Rebellion! Rebellion!" the eunuch screamed, pointing at the officers in the courtyard and cursing through clenched teeth, his face alternating between green‑red and purple‑white with rage.

Meng Zongzheng replied calmly: "The garrison of Xiangyang City are all defenders of home and country, heroes who resisted the Jin and earned great merit for the Great Song; how could they be slaughtered at whim?"

"Whether the brothers have rebelled or not is not for the imperial envoy to decide; even if they truly are guilty, they must be tried by the Ministry of Punishments and the Censorate, and only after the emperor's supreme judgment can they be executed."

"The imperial envoy has neither an imperial edict nor any evidence; to let me slaughter these frontier commanders on my own authority would be a grave crime I could not bear if the emperor later investigated."

After saying this, Meng Zongzheng felt utterly refreshed and exhilarated.

Since this eunuch acted arrogantly and gave him no face, he saw no need to continue speaking humbly like a dog.

Having to endure a bunch of civil officials riding on his head was already unbearable; how could he tolerate a eunuch tagging along to piss and shit?

However, it was precisely because the eunuch could not produce an imperial edict or solid evidence that he dared to speak so firmly.

One must know that death sentences are rare in our dynasty, and the criteria for imposing them are extremely strict; whether the guilt is real or fabricated, the required legal procedures cannot be omitted.

To arbitrarily execute a court official without any evidence might be tolerated in private, but if brought into the open, not even the emperor could get away with it.

This is a matter of principle; no minister in the court would allow it.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Upon hearing Meng Zongzheng's words, the eunuch's eyes instantly turned icy, and a cold aura began to emanate from his entire body.

He cares nothing about guilt or innocence; he only knows whom his master orders him to bite, and he bites down hard.

But for now he dare not press too hard, lest he provoke the Xiangyang garrison into mutiny—for not only would the emperor not spare him, even his ancestors would not give him a good end.

Thus he spoke in a grim, icy tone: "Since General Meng harbors reservations and refuses to share the emperor's worries, today I will act myself! Let this lot of old fogeys know that there are heavens beyond heaven and people beyond people!"

As his words fell, everyone's faces changed dramatically.

The eunuch instantly turned into a phantom and shot toward Hu Zai xing in the field.

This scene was utterly beyond anyone's expectation; no one had imagined that the imperial envoy would be a master of martial arts!

As Hu Zai xing reacted, his hairs stood on end instantly; he felt a fierce qi pressure stinging his face, and instinctively he thrust his inner force, flung the wine bowl, and launched a Luohan fist to meet the attack.

This was the battlefield instinct honed over years; in a life‑or‑death moment there is no room for the slightest hesitation.

Likewise, seeing this, the Triumph Reporting Army commander Chen Xiang did not hesitate.

Now the two shared weal and woe; seeing that the eunuch's momentum was hard to withstand, Chen Xiang swiftly launched the Taizu Long Fist, stepping forward to share some of the pressure on Hu Zai xing.

"Bang!"

The palm wind struck, and the wine bowl shattered with a bang, offering no resistance whatsoever.

Thereafter the eunuch's fierce palm strike, carrying a chilling cold, continued onward and arrived in the blink of an eye!

A strike from a grandmaster‑level expert—how could a second‑rate martial artist hope to block it? Even if two second‑rate fighters joined forces, the outcome would be beyond doubt.

In that instant everything seemed to freeze, and everyone stared fixedly at the pale palm and the massive fist.

"Boom!"

Hu Zai xing's Luohan fist, invincible on the battlefield, barely touched the eunuch's palm when its qi burst forth with a muffled groan, and his whole body was blown backward in flight.

"Ignorant of life and death!"

"Pfft~" "Bang!"

The body that flew out landed, and the eunuch's face twisted into a snarl; with a sharp shout, he swung another palm, slapping Chen Xiang so hard that blood splattered, striking a nearby archer.

Quiet!

In the moment he raised his hand, the fierce general in the army turned out not to be a match at all!

Seeing such ruthless tactics, the entire courtyard fell silent.

At this moment, aside from the occasional "whoosh" from the torches, the fire‑lit area was shrouded in an eerie deathly silence.

Hmph~

The eunuch let out a cold snort, then slowly clapped his hands; when his icy gaze swept the surroundings, not a single person dared to meet his eyes, Meng Zongzheng included.

Hu Zaixing, lying on the ground, struggled to rise, his trembling right hand pressing his chest; enduring excruciating pain, he forced down the blood that had risen to his throat.

On the other side, Chen Xiang's face turned ashen, his chin drenched in blood; had it not been for the former Pao Ze intervening and catching him just now, he might have lost his life.

Seeing everyone in the courtyard intimidated, the eunuch gave a slight cold smile, looked at Meng Zongzheng, and said in a sinister tone:

"Hehehe~ It's been a while since I've acted, so I'm a bit rusty. I, personally, will execute the rebels. General Meng, any objections?"

He wasn't too concerned that the two survived the single strike, saying they were like grasshoppers before a hot oil pan, unable to jump for long.

But the old Lao Qiu Ba before him had just severely bruised his face.

As a rootless man, besides money, what he cares about most is face.

If he hadn't been wary of the court and his ancestors' wishes, he would have acted long ago.

But Meng Zongzheng merely lowered his gaze slightly, a twitch of facial muscles, and said nothing.

A true man doesn't swallow the present loss!

The eunuch, clad in a purple‑red brocade robe, let out a snort, his eyes darkened, and with an intimidating aura he slowly advanced toward the Hu Zaixing on the ground.

Because of this stinking Qiu Ba before him, he had already taken a lot of scoldings from his ancestors.

The Manichaeist sect rebelled in the north, originally unrelated to the Song, but the Jin State envoy ordered the court to cooperate in a thorough investigation of the Manichaeists and capture the rebels!

Shame is still shame, yet there is no way around it.

They are the suzerain nation; disobey and you get beaten! Moreover, the court is accustomed to it.

Thus, from the top down the whole country began to put on a show, probing and investigating the Manichaeist situation.

But this seemingly accidental investigation yielded results that shocked the court into a sudden outburst.

As a key border stronghold, Xiangyang City found that nearly half its troops were in the hands of the Manichaeists!

And this region was precisely the area he had been secretly monitoring.

Because of this, his tailbone felt as if it were about to be snapped by his ancestors!

Thinking of this, his expression grew even colder, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes as he raised his hand to gather palm force and strike Hu Zaixing again.

"Lord Angel, hold on!" Meng Zongzheng's eyes flickered as he suddenly spoke to halt.

"General Meng, are you really courting death?" the red‑clothed eunuch's eyes turned cold, his tone icy.

If this old Qiu Ba still doesn't know what's good for him, I wouldn't mind dealing with him together!

Meng Zongzheng, seeing this, said calmly, "If those few truly are Manichaeists, and Lord Angel kills them like this, wouldn't that ruin the court's grand plan?"

"The Manichaeist leadership is in internal turmoil within the Jin State, and now is a critical moment; if we can extract from these few their whereabouts, information, and identities,"

"Then we could follow the trail and capture them all in one net. Such a massive merit—why would Lord Angel abandon it? If you are willing, first detain them and later interrogate them."

The red‑clothed eunuch, after listening, slowly lowered his raised right palm, seeming somewhat moved, and involuntarily nodded.

Squinting slightly, he then let out a sinister laugh, "I also know General Meng intends to protect those two, but that really hits a chord with me."

"Hehehe~ As for how to make them speak, I won't trouble the general; I have my own methods. If we can uproot the Manichaeists then, the general will certainly earn credit."

Meng Zongzheng's expression flickered, his mind racing; he hadn't expected the eunuch to leave any opening.

Just as he was about to speak again, Lord Angel's icy gaze fixed on him, clearly indicating that any more words would prompt action.

Meng Zongzheng sighed inwardly, and could only put it off for now.

At that moment—

"Hm?"

The red‑clothed eunuch's pupils suddenly contracted.

He jerked his head up, looking at the ghost‑faced figure that had appeared on the opposite roof, his slender vermilion eyes filled with solemnity.

"General!"

At this point, the soldiers in the courtyard also spotted the blue silhouette on the roof; since the figure wore a mask, they couldn't tell friend from foe, and all turned to the commander Meng Zongzheng.

Meng Zongzheng fixed his gaze, pondered briefly, then clasped his fists and said, "May I ask who you are? I am the Xiangyang garrison commander Meng Zongzheng; if you have no business, please withdraw at once!"

There were already enough troubles tonight, and he didn't wish to get further involved; someone who could make the eunuch so solemn and on high alert could not be an ordinary person!

Thus, after the greeting, since the other party ignored him, he wisely said nothing more.

Seeing the eunuch beside him remain unresponsive for a long while, a thought struck him, and he turned to ask, "Lord Angel, where do you intend to send them tonight? Need my assistance?"

"In recent years Xiangyang has often seen war; the prison's execution devices are missing and long overdue for repair. If you wish, I could first escort those few to Fan City, how about that?"

"Lord Angel?"

"Lord Angel?"

The red‑clothed eunuch ignored him, simply staring at the roof, standing motionless as if facing a great enemy.

After a while, large beads of sweat slowly dripped from his forehead.

It's not that he didn't want to move, but he felt his body was tightly locked by the aura of the person on the roof, as if any rash move would be fatal.

A master! This is definitely a master! It's a terrifying feeling only one can experience from an ancestor!

Thinking of this, he forced a strained smile and said, "May I ask your esteemed name? Is there some misunderstanding? I, too, am acting under imperial orders outside the palace; if I've offended, please forgive me."

"My ancestors were first‑rank imperial tutors, royal offerings; your martial prowess is as profound as theirs, perhaps you even know them, right?"

Royal offering?

Is it the old eunuch?

Or......

His expression twitched slightly beneath the ghost-face human mask, but quickly concealed; when his gaze swept over the red-clothed eunuch, it was as if he were looking at a dead thing.

"Who is this Venerable One?" He glanced around below with indifferent eyes, his voice mysterious, he spoke softly:

"Outside Xiangyang City~"

"On Nine Palaces Mountain~"

"Sun Moon Divine Sect~"

"For Eternal Ages~"

Before anyone could react, he took out a token that resembled jade but wasn't jade from his bosom, held it up, looked at Hu Zai Xing and others in the courtyard, and said lightly:

"Nara Initial World Person, Su Lu Sect Gate Change. Shakyamuni Buddha's Palace, Yi Shu Divine Light Appears. Mani Dharma King, Last Light Envoy."

"Do you recognize this Venerable One?" (End of Chapter)