Chapter 395: Charging the Pass

Blood flowed in the Forbidden City for a whole day, the steaming blood vapor floated into the sky, dyeing the setting sun into a piece of crimson, then falling from the sky, pulling out black-red shadows on the street.

In the two side halls outside the East Prosperity Gate, floor tiles were lifted one after another. Two groups of people with completely different clothing and temperament crawled out from the secret passage, gathered together outside the East Prosperity Gate under the leadership of two people with completely different appearances but identical expressions and temperaments.

One group carried swords and knives, had broad backs and thick waists, spoke vulgarly, their tiger-mouth calluses were ground out by raw iron, and the cracks on them were rooted in blood. One group wore purple official robes, were arrogant, talked loudly, their finger calluses were caused by brush handles, and the lines on their fingertips were stained with ink.

People who had never intersected, who had existed together like parallel lines for two hundred years in the Great Shuo, gathered together.

When approaching, the officials raised their heads one after another, reporting with disdain or arrogant kindness; while the Jianghu people were more direct, some spat with disdain, some were hostile, and some were disdainful.

Only by looking closely could one see that the pupils of these people were slightly dilated, bloodshot all over, and they were slightly staggering when walking, as if their consciousness was affected by some means, a bit drowsy.

Two Liu Jin clones converged.

"How many Jianghu?"

"Three hundred, officials?"

"Seventy-eight. It's just that Tang Lanzhou killed their courage, and they can't be used now."

"Know."

While speaking, a shrill sound of wind breaking came from near and far, reaching them in an instant. An Qisheng landed from mid-air and walked to Liu Jin's side, saying calmly.

"Li Miao has woken up."

Two Liu Jin's expressions changed slightly.

"Didn't make a move?"

An Qisheng shook his head.

"No, either the state is wrong, or it is bluffing, but I didn't gamble; this person's strangeness is rare in my life, Yingzhou has not had a person who can compare with him for dozens of generations in a thousand years, there are too many tricky places... I didn't succeed in possession, which means this person's 'nature' also has problems."

"So before restoring the perfect state and repairing the nature-gong realm, rashly fighting to the death with him will likely fall into the situation of last night."

Two Liu Jin were silent for a moment, recognizing An Qisheng's judgment.

Indeed, whether Li Miao was bluffing or inducing the enemy to go deep, it was a wise move to wait for An Qisheng to restore his perfect state before deciding the battle.

A miss is as good as a mile; An Qisheng who restored the perfect state compared to An Qisheng who fought Li Miao at Wanggong Factory was like clouds and mud. Even if he left the mental image and recovered his injuries, Li Miao was by no means an opponent.

As his mind raced, he heard An Qisheng ask.

"You, how many more?"

This was asking how many Liu Jins were left.

"Four."

The clone answered.

"Two here, one in the Divine Machine Battalion... one in the palace."

"You are going to die soon."

An Qisheng said.

"You didn't cultivate nature-gong, wanting to cut out the nature-seed is impossible, you can only cut yourself into pieces. The more clones die, the weaker you are. If two more die, you can't even keep your consciousness, if three more die, you only have ten breaths of life left."

The clone said calmly.

"It is enough to send you to Li Miao."

An Qisheng nodded and flew to the top of the East Prosperity Gate, standing still with his hands behind his back.

Two clones turned their heads to look at the crowd.

"In this way, everyone, it's time to set off."

"Go to—the Hall of Supreme Harmony."

Hall of Supreme Harmony, the head of the three halls.

Commonly known as the Golden Throne Hall.

———————— "It's snowing."

An Ziyang lay on the roof of a palace, reaching out to catch a snowflake drifting in front of him.

Today is the seventeenth of the tenth month, the solar term has passed Light Snow.

Snowflakes fell on a piece of scabbard, armor, mechanism, crossbow lying on the roof, slowly melting, and condensing into frost again.

The sunlight had almost disappeared, and the sky was only a piece of gray and white.

An Ziyang turned his head and asked.

"Where is it?"

An official answered softly.

"Passed the inner street of the East Prosperity Gate, it only takes about a cup of tea to get here."

"What about An Qisheng?"

"Escorting those officials and Jianghu people all the way in a high place in the palace, if he doesn't change his position, he should pass by from the opposite side."

The official pointed to the roof opposite.

An Ziyang nodded.

"Know, go and let the Wenhua Hall prepare to respond."

Immediately holding his breath, he looked at the distant gate.

Li Miao had explained everything.

The so-called "grain" is not that anyone can do it, nor can it be in any state, otherwise Zheng Anqi would not need to hold that Dharma ritual in Nanjing.

The stronger the blood and spirit, the better it is as "grain." And Jianghu people and officials are the group that best meets these two points in the Great Shuo; because An Qisheng's realm far exceeds Zheng Anqi's, the requirements for "grain" are higher, so he would spend so much effort to collude with these two waves of people.

But conversely, if before An Qisheng recovers, these two waves of people are killed... then An Qisheng will also lose.

As for why An Ziyang is sure that An Qisheng will pass here, it is because if people are in a sober and calm state, it is most difficult to become "grain," so some rituals are needed to mobilize their spirit, make it fluctuate, and unify it, so that An Qisheng can use it to supplement his realm. That Dharma ritual in Nanjing, and An Qisheng's insistence on taking these people to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, are the same reason.

Entering the palace from the East Prosperity Gate, walking to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, which symbolizes the highest power in the world, when the spirit of officials and Jianghu people is pushed to the peak, it is when An Qisheng makes a move.

On this road, there are four checkpoints: Xiehe Gate, Wenhua Hall, Imperial Road, and Fengtian Gate. How many people can survive these four checkpoints will determine the outcome of today.

Snow accumulated a thin layer on the ground, and the sound of boots stepping into the snow came from afar.

"Coming."

An Ziyang said softly.

Boom!!!!

The next instant, An Qisheng fell from the sky, smashing into a side hall! The Forbidden Army and Embroidered Uniform Guard lying on the roof didn't even have time to let out a scream before they turned into a piece of splashing and collapsing fragments with the side hall!

Yes, An Qisheng would not stand still and wait to be attacked; rather than passive defense, it is better to take the initiative to clear the road ahead!

Before the collapsed building fell to the ground, An Qisheng rushed out again, galloping all the way along the wide road, his protective Qi extending, like holding a blade a yard long, collapsing the buildings along the road together.

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom—

Collapsing all the way!

At the same time, the crowd led by Liu Jin also stepped into the Zuoshun Gate, appearing in An Ziyang's line of sight.

"Fire!!!!!"

The powerful Qi of the Wedding Dress Divine Art spread An Ziyang's roar.

Arrows, flying darts, poison needles, and bullets mixed with the drifting snowflakes, splashing from all directions toward the crowd, like a black and white rain.

The Jianghu people in the crowd raised their weapons to block.

At the same time, An Qisheng's gaze also locked onto An Ziyang.

The next instant, he rushed toward An Ziyang at high speed.