Chapter 312: Amidst the Myriad Armies, Beheading the Enemy General

"Do it!"

Yuwen Huaji let out a thunderous roar.

He thrust his sword into the ground beside him and launched a punch toward Yu Liancheng.

Yuwen Huaji and Yu Liancheng were separated by a distance of five or six zhang; even as the number two expert of the Yuwen Clan, his punch power would be significantly reduced across such a distance.

Yet, as soon as his voice fell, he appeared before Yu Liancheng as if he had shrunk the earth into an inch; with a "Boom—", his surging, overbearing palm force poured down toward Yu Liancheng.

As this palm struck, the area for several zhang around instantly became bone-chillingly cold. The nearby eunuchs and palace maids trembled, their teeth chattering.

The surrounding air seemed to be driven by this punch, squeezing toward Yu Liancheng from all directions, further increasing the momentum of the blow.

At this moment, Yuwen Huaji had pushed his lifelong cultivation to its peak.

And he was not trying to defeat Yu Liancheng, but to temporarily hold his opponent back.

The moment Yuwen Huaji made his move, Sima Dekan, Yuwen Shang, and a group of other experts also launched their attacks.

The target of Sima Dekan's attack was none other than Wanwan; he held his battle saber high toward the sky and slashed down fiercely, the blade light brilliant and dazzling, overflowing with murderous intent.

His strike carried the force of a thunderbolt, clearly showing he knew this woman's martial arts were formidable and required the utmost caution.

Wanwan smiled charmingly, exuding a myriad of allure, while her long sleeves fluttered like clouds.

"This matter has nothing to do with the Dugu Clan; I ask the Dugu Clan Master to stand by and watch. Afterward, the Yuwen Clan will surely show our gratitude."

Yuwen Shang let out a cold snort, his body shifting through the air to suddenly block the path before Dugu Clan Master Dugu Feng and the number two figure, Dugu Sheng. Ice Profound Energy erupted from his entire body, and a layer of frost formed beneath his feet, demonstrating his profound martial arts attainments.

Dugu Feng's face revealed hesitation; even with Dugu Sheng added, they might not be able to defeat Yuwen Shang.

And once he took action in this coup, it would mean a complete break with the Yuwen Clan, a fight to the death.

Whether this was worth it, Dugu Feng could not decide.

The other Yuwen Clan experts also launched their attacks, engaging their respective targets. They had not come to kill, but primarily to pin them down so these experts would have no time to stop Yuwen Zhiji.

Correct!

The most critical part of this plan was Yuwen Zhiji.

Clang—

Yuwen Zhiji let out a cold shout, the long sword in his palm unsheathed; a streak of sword light rose into the air, driving the airflow and revealing a bone-chilling intent as it suddenly stabbed toward Yang Guang.

Correct, the target of Yuwen Zhiji's attack was none other than Yang Guang.

As long as he could capture Yang Guang in one stroke, even if he could not "hold the Emperor to command the vassals," he could force Yu Liancheng and the others to be restrained, not daring to act rashly.

Yuwen Zhiji still attacked with all his might, stabbing out his peak sword strike. Under this strike, even a first-class martial arts expert might not be able to dodge, let alone Yang Guang, whose body had been hollowed out by wine and lust.

Reflected in the sword light, Yuwen Zhiji suddenly discovered that Yang Guang's expression was cold and incomparably calm, without the slightest ripple.

"Is he scared silly? Or just pretending to be calm?"

Yuwen Zhiji's eyes flickered, his wrist shook, and the sword light grew even more intense; his essence, energy, and spirit all merged into the sword tip, transforming into an incomparably sharp murderous intent.

"If you want to assassinate the Emperor, you are still far from it." Amidst these words, Yang Guang also moved; he casually picked up a silver chopstick and stabbed forward.

This stab gave a feeling of extreme strangeness—obscure and stiff—and the move was light and airy, without a single extraordinary aspect.

But this simple stab seemed to contain extremely profound martial arts principles, conforming to the laws of nature and the universe, elevated to a Sword Dao realm that Yuwen Zhiji could not comprehend.

Yuwen Zhiji's pupils dilated; he had never seen such a sword move, and it certainly should not be something this muddled monarch could execute.

Yet, this muddled monarch had executed it.

Ding!

The sword tip and the silver chopstick collided.

Yuwen Zhiji only felt a soft force transmitted over, guiding his long sword; suddenly, it was out of his control, the sword light swirled and swung toward himself.

A flash of sword light brought up a spray of blood.

Yuwen Zhiji only felt a pain in his neck, and his vision rapidly changed from color to the simplest black and white; he vaguely saw a headless corpse holding a long sword, whose appearance was very familiar.

"So it was I who killed... myself..."

On the other side, Yu Liancheng flicked his finger, sending out a burst of energy that shattered Yuwen Huaji's palm momentum, forcing him to retreat continuously for four or five zhang before he finally neutralized the force.

"Your plan to assassinate the Emperor has failed." Yu Liancheng glanced at Yuwen Zhiji's corpse and let out a cold, mocking laugh.

Yuwen Huaji's brows were locked tight: "How is this possible? Since when did the muddled monarch have such brilliant martial arts?" The plan he had been so confident in had suddenly developed an unpredictable flaw.

"General Yuwen, I present you with a head." Suddenly, a charming, delicate laugh rang out, and immediately after, an object was thrown toward Yuwen Huaji.

Yuwen Huaji struck out with a backhand palm, releasing an incomparably cold Ice Profound Energy. The object immediately rolled onto the ground, its surface covered in a layer of ice shards.

Yuwen Huaji looked closely and was shocked; it was the head of Imperial Guard Commander Sima Dekan, his face still bearing an expression of infatuation.

Yang Guang acted against the natural order, and there was no telling how many people in the world wished to tear him into ten thousand pieces. But he had lived well until now, all thanks to Sima Dekan and a group of Sui Court experts, which showed how high this man's martial arts were.

Yet now, his head had been taken in just a few breaths; this woman's martial arts were far more terrifying than imagined.

"General Yuwen, I wonder if you are satisfied with this gift from Wanwan?" Wanwan's smile was like a flower, her entire being radiating a charm that could topple the masses.

Yuwen Huaji could not help but reveal a look of infatuation, then immediately bit his tongue to regain clarity and shouted sharply: "What a demonic woman!!"

Wanwan laughed delicately: "I am indeed a demonic woman; the General is truly clever."

Yu Liancheng stood with his hands behind his back and said: "Yuwen Huaji, you have already lost, a total defeat. Surrender obediently; perhaps this seat can leave you with an intact corpse."

Yuwen Huaji's expression was quite ugly, and he was hesitant.

Just at this moment, sounds of slaughter suddenly came from outside Taiji Hall, mixed with the cries and wails of palace maids and eunuchs, chaotic as if the sky were falling.

Yuwen Huaji laughed heartily, regaining his composure, and said coldly: "My Yuwen Clan's army has arrived; it is you who have lost. Even if we cannot capture this muddled monarch, it will at most take a little more effort."

He did not originally need to use a sword, but he had deliberately drawn it earlier, because "drawing the sword" represented the signal to act.

Now that the signal had been completely sent out, the Xiaoguo Army and the Yuwen Clan's private army would sweep through the Imperial Palace.

Even if the previous scheme failed, victory would ultimately tilt toward the Yuwen Clan.

Yu Liancheng lowered his sleeve and said indifferently: "Your Yuwen Clan only has you and Yuwen Shang left. Before the army enters Taiji Hall, if I take your and Yuwen Shang's heads and hang them high, will the rebel army collapse immediately?"

"You..." Yuwen Huaji's expression changed upon hearing this.

He was full of confidence in his Ice Profound Energy, but he also knew that the martial arts of the person before him were more than a notch above his own, not to mention the enchantress lurking nearby, watching like a tiger eyeing its prey.

"The Imperial Tutor is quite overbearing; Yuwen Shang is here to seek your instruction." Suddenly, a figure swooped down like a great bird, bringing with it a chilling, sinister wind, striking from above with a palm blast toward Yu Liancheng's chest.

Yu Liancheng stood with his hands behind his back, not even lifting his eyelids, allowing this palm to land solidly against his chest.

Bang!

An expression of disbelief instantly shot into Yuwen Shang's eyes; his palm strike against the opponent was like a clay ox entering the sea, all its force vanishing without a trace.

One must know that he had practiced his Ice Profound Energy for decades, and a casual palm strike could freeze a person's very internal organs. Yet now, striking with all his might, the opponent seemed completely unaffected.

"With just this bit of cold air, you want to freeze someone?" Yu Liancheng sneered, circulating his Ten Thousand Phenomena Returning Origin Art; the True Qi within his body shifted to become cold and sinister, and the ground instantly froze with a thick layer of frost. This surging, frigid energy poured out, spreading toward Yuwen Shang's palm.

Yuwen Shang retreated repeatedly, his arm trembling and covered in a thin layer of ice shavings; he hissed, "Good, the Imperial Tutor has good martial arts."

Yu Liancheng said indifferently, "Then, are you prepared to die?"

Yuwen Shang said coldly, "Who wins and who loses is not yet certain; isn't the Imperial Tutor speaking a bit too soon?"

Amidst his words, his hands danced wildly, the energy around his body surged, and his powerful Ice Profound Energy poured out from his body like a flood, continuous and wave after wave, whipping up gusts of biting cold wind.

Those ministers and officials, already like birds startled by the mere twang of a bow, let out cries of alarm, feeling as if the entire Taiji Hall had suddenly plummeted into the depths of winter; the cold wind was like a knife, as if it would freeze the very noses off their faces.

"A master like Yuwen Shang, who has been famous for so long, is certainly no empty name." Wanwan's exquisite face revealed a grave expression; facing Yuwen Shang at this moment, even she did not have the certainty of victory.

In an instant, ice cones as clear as crystal had condensed in the void, each one radiating an incomparably sinister chill, as if polished from the ten-thousand-year profound ice of the extreme north, any one of which possessed the power to freeze.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The next moment, the ice cones shot toward Yu Liancheng like a gale-driven rain.

These ice cones were condensed from Yuwen Shang's decades of internal strength—sinister, sharp, and hard—specifically designed to break through protective Qi and external hard-body cultivation.

The fact that his previous palm strike had failed to achieve results made the old veteran Yuwen Shang realize that his opponent possessed an incomparably powerful external martial art; without breaking this external art, he could not hurt his opponent at all.

Yu Liancheng's expression was calm as he backhanded the air.

The moment this palm was pushed out, the air instantly boiled, transforming into a rolling, surging giant wave. The incoming ice cones were swept into it, their speed instantly stalling, followed by a cracking sound as they shattered into shards of ice.

Yu Liancheng looked at his own near-perfect, flawless hands and said indifferently, "Clan Leader Yuwen, I will only strike once; once, and you will die."

Yuwen Shang felt instantly enveloped by a great, overwhelming fear, his hair standing on end.

He retreated without hesitation, flying backward.

The reason Yuwen Shang had attacked earlier was merely to cover for Yuwen Huaji. Because he usually lived in seclusion, only Yuwen Huaji could better command the army.

Now that Yuwen Huaji had retreated, he naturally had no need to throw his life away here.

This world-renowned clan leader naturally possessed excellent light-body skills; in the blink of an eye, he had reached the hall entrance, seeing the dawn of escape.

But he had encountered Yu Liancheng, and his death was a fated, inescapable disaster.

Suddenly, a black shadow loomed overhead, and at the same time, a large hand pressed onto Yuwen Shang's head. Before he could counterattack or beg for mercy, the wisps of cold air had already reached his crown and spread throughout his entire body; amidst "crackling" sounds, the sinister energy had frozen him into an ice sculpture.

With another "crack," Yuwen Shang's head was twisted off, yet no blood sprayed out; the wound had long since been frozen shut.

Yu Liancheng ignored the noise and panic in Taiji Hall and stepped out of the hall, intending to quell this chaos.

But the moment his feet touched the ground, a sky-filling rain of arrows shot toward him.

It was Yuwen Huaji, who had gathered countless rebel soldiers with white headbands in a short time, drawing bows and arrows, wishing to eliminate him as quickly as possible.

Yu Liancheng waved his hand casually, unleashing a sinister, swirling energy that shredded every arrow that posed a threat to him.

In reality, for Yu Liancheng, these arrows could not harm him in the slightest, not even piercing his skin. But if he were truly hit, it would appear disheveled and would not befit the demeanor of an "Imperial Tutor."

"This is Ice Profound Energy?" Yuwen Huaji's eyes widened; the surprise he felt today was more than he had felt in a whole year.

It was indeed Ice Profound Energy; he had absorbed it casually when Yuwen Shang struck him with a punch.

Yu Liancheng looked up at Yuwen Huaji and smiled, "In truth, I could have killed you earlier, but I wanted you to die in front of this crowd, which is why I let you leave. Moreover, I really want to taste the feeling of slaying an enemy general amidst ten thousand troops."

Yuwen Huaji's expression was cold to the extreme as he shouted sharply, "Arrogant! Fire!"

Another round of arrow rain shot down.