Chapter 641: Plucking the Phoenix

On the wedding night, the room was filled with crimson.

Jin Ning, in her phoenix coronet and embroidered robes, had exquisite makeup that, under the candlelight, seemed to radiate a hazy glow.

She leaned gently into Yin Qi's embrace and said happily, "Yin Lang, I have finally married you. It feels like a dream."

"My lady, I feel the same."

Yin Qi held Jin Ning, his face also filled with happiness.

He was also self-hypnotizing.

To obtain the Power of Nine Yin was not merely a simple dual cultivation; both parties had to be of one heart and mind, only then could they truly merge like water and milk.

The two embraced tightly, feeling the warmth between them.

A long time passed.

Yin Qi lowered his head and whispered in Jin Ning's ear, "My lady, it is getting late. We should rest."

Jin Ning's cheeks instantly flushed red, and she gave a soft hum of assent.

…………

Last night, the wind was fierce and the rain heavy; the yellow flowers in the courtyard had all fallen.

……

For three days, Yin Qi and Jin Ning did not leave the bed, entangled to the extreme.

It was fortunate that both were Golden Immortals; otherwise, they truly could not have endured it.

When the time came, Yin Qi was awakened by the Immortal Spirit.

Looking at Jin Ning lying in his arms, her body hot and her eyes like silk, his heart could not help but heat up, so he gritted his teeth, turned over, and pressed down upon her...

Sure enough, two states, two different feelings.

……

Jin Ning had already recovered her memories.

Yin Qi had also unlocked the seal on her Primordial Spirit.

A complex look flashed in her eyes, and she said coldly, "Three days have passed; it is time to fulfill your promise."

Yin Qi nodded and took out the Map of Mountains and Rivers, handing it to her.

Jin Ning took the Map of Mountains and Rivers and turned to leave, but suddenly stopped, gritting her teeth, "You must keep this matter secret. You are not allowed to mention it to anyone. Otherwise, even to the ends of the earth, I will not let you go."

"Rest assured, this Daoist is not that shameless."

"Hmph, aren't you?"

Jin Ning snorted coldly.

If he weren't shameless, how could he have coerced her?

She did not wish to say more, turned, and walked into the void, not wanting to stay for even a moment longer.

After Jin Ning left, Yin Qi returned to the bed and sat cross-legged.

He looked within himself and found that his Primordial Spirit had condensed much further; his combat power had increased by at least twenty percent.

Compared to the eeriness of Demon Power and the slaughter of Asura Power, the Phoenix Power was filled with nobility.

"Dragon, Phoenix, Qilin, God, Witch, Demon, Asura, Human, Ghost—among these nine Yin powers, except for the God, the other eight are not without hope of being gathered."

Yin Qi pondered.

Originally, he had held no hope for obtaining the Power of Nine Yin.

Now it seemed it was not impossible to try.

There were too few female Innate Sacred beings, and they were all at the level of Quasi-Sages; he basically had no hope there.

But if he could obtain the eight Yin powers, his Primordial Spirit could also undergo an extremely high level of transformation.

Perhaps the Yellow Emperor had only gathered the eight Yin powers.

………

Time moved forward.

Three days ago, Shen Gongbao returned to Zhaoge and received a warm reception from Yin Qi, after which Yin Qi announced on the spot that he was appointing Shen Gongbao as the Left State Preceptor.

Having obtained the position of Left State Preceptor, Shen Gongbao was naturally overjoyed.

At the same time, both inside and outside Zhaoge were shocked; no one expected the Great King to suddenly appoint a Left State Preceptor.

Upon further inquiry, everyone was shocked.

Good heavens, he was actually a direct disciple of a Saint of the Exposition Sect, and he had resolved the crisis in Qingyang City, assisted the State Preceptor Yang Daoren in capturing Jin Ning, and killed the Fengyun Sect—no wonder he could be appointed as Left State Preceptor.

For a time, Shen Gongbao became a new favorite in Zhaoge.

Unlike the Right State Preceptor Yang Shen, Shen Gongbao was keen on socializing and was also skilled at it, so he almost never refused invitations from any side, and his accepted appointments were already scheduled two months out.

At the same time, the news of the Fengyun Sect's death in battle and the Qingzhou Army's crushing defeat spread rapidly across the world via the Yin Shang Express and Douyin.

Consequently, the world was in an uproar.

"Heavens, Jin Ning, a peak Golden Immortal, was actually captured. The Right State Preceptor is too strong."

"Haha, well-deserved death, well-deserved! That traitor from the Fengyun Sect, he didn't want to be a good father-in-law of the state and insisted on rebelling; now he's dead."

"The pacification of Qingzhou is imminent; Eastern Lu won't be able to jump around for much longer."

"And Yuan Futong in the North Sea—as long as the Right State Preceptor takes a trip to the North Sea, pacification is just around the corner."

"With the State Preceptor presiding, my Yin Shang will surely last for a thousand autumns and ten thousand generations."

…………

The crushing defeat in Qingzhou shocked the world.

The reaction speed of the Eastern Yi Sacred Hall was extremely fast; as soon as they received the news that Jin Ning had been captured and the Fengyun Sect killed, the Mysterious Witch of the Wu Clan immediately ordered the Wu Clan within Eastern Lu to withdraw entirely to the Taiyuan Mountain Range.

They could no longer get involved in this rebellion.

Not only that, he also urgently ordered all tribes of the Eastern Yi to begin migrating immediately, because he feared the Yin Shang army would take the opportunity to pacify the Eastern Yi, so they had better hide first.

The east was already occupied by Yin Shang, so they could only migrate north.

……

The crushing defeat in Qingzhou and the withdrawal of the Eastern Yi were fatal blows to Eastern Lu.

Jiang Huanchu was both shocked and afraid.

Yin Shou felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

The various feudal lords also had pale faces and were trembling all over.

No one expected the situation to reverse like this.

Even Jin Ning, a peak Golden Immortal, had been captured alive, let alone them; furthermore, the Eastern Yi had withdrawn, and their own immortal-level experts numbered less than a hundred.

Jiang Huanchu forcibly suppressed the horror in his heart, his voice hoarse as he asked, "Do you have any suggestions?"

The various feudal lords looked at one another.

After a long time, one lord gritted his teeth and said, "Marquis, everyone, things have reached this point; we have no other choice but to surrender. If we surrender, we still have a path to survival, but if we continue to resist, I fear we will end up like the Fengyun Sect—dead and our clans exterminated."

Hearing this, the other lords nodded one after another.

In any case, they were not the primary culprits; they believed Di Qi would not kill them, and at most, their fiefs would be reduced.

Jiang Huanchu's face was ugly; how could he not know what everyone was thinking?

If they surrendered, they could survive.

But as the primary culprit, he would certainly have to die, and Eastern Lu would certainly be abolished.

However, the Jiang family clan could be preserved.

As for Yin Shou.

Given Di Qi's "reputation for virtue," perhaps he would not kill him.

But he would certainly be demoted to a commoner or be placed under lifelong house arrest in the Clan Affairs Office.

Although Jiang Huanchu had ambition, he was not an overlord who could drag his entire clan to the grave with him.

So, after intense weighing, he sighed and said, "Since that is the case, then let us surrender. Shou Wang, what is your opinion?"

Yin Shou had already calmed down.

He was a proud man and could not face losing to Yin Qi twice, so he gritted his teeth and said, "Marquis, you may surrender, but I cannot. I intend to take the people of the Shou Wang Mansion and go far away to the Eight Wilds. I believe that as long as I am given time, I will certainly be able to build a Celestial Dynasty no weaker than Yin Shang."

Jiang Huanchu frowned and sighed, saying: "Since you have made up your mind, I will not try to persuade you further. You may take fifty thousand of my five million elite troops from Donglu, and you may also take all the supplies in the treasury; consider this my fulfillment of our bond as father-in-law and son-in-law."

In any case, the army and the treasury were going to benefit Yin Shang, so it was better to favor Yin Shou.

Yin Shou's expression straightened, and he bowed respectfully, "Thank you, father-in-law."

……

Zhaoge.

The Imperial Palace.

Feng Yanran was tearful, kneeling once again outside the Zichen Hall, begging Yin Qi to preserve the bloodline of the Feng family.

This time, Yin Qi did not appear, letting Feng Yanran kneel outside.

He did not blame Feng Yanran; pleading for one's relatives was human nature.

If she had ignored it, he would have thought Feng Yanran cold-blooded instead.

But he could not agree, because state law was merciless.

According to Yin Shang law, the primary culprits of a rebellion were to have their nine clans exterminated; that he was only killing the Feng family and not implicating others was already an act of grace beyond the law—how could he agree to Feng Yanran's request to let the Feng family go?

If even the crime of rebellion could be pardoned, where would the majesty of the law lie? ===== CHAPTER 642 =====