Everyone was desperate for Tianming to leave, because they cared about him. Seeing the sincerity in their eyes, he smiled and said, "Donât do this. We arenât at that point yet. I have a way for all of us to live."
"What?"
"Since the sun emperor is sure that the Divine Sun Palace can't be used, Iâve decided to use the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb, which can accommodate up to fifty million people. Weâll squeeze in together, head to the Myriaddragon Mountains, and do our best to maintain the Aeonic Infinidragon Formation. Weâll still be forced to leave our homes, but thereâs really no other way. Azurecloud is too close to where they are. If we stay, weâll die."
Silence enveloped his listeners.
"The tomb is a little far away, but itâs on its way here. It may take a little time. During this time, weâll have to work on their thinking. Take everything that you can and leave them an empty city," Tianming said.
There was still no response.
"What is it? You don't want to leave?" Tianming asked Gujian Qingshuang.
He shook his head. "Leaving home is difficult, but itâs the only way we can look out for everyone. But.â¦"
"We just arenât sure if youâll be safe in the Myriaddragon Mountains. Youâre too important to us. Given how talented you are, the sun emperor will definitely kill you. The best thing for you to do is leave. The Myriad Solar Sects might be able to hold out until you return." Long Wanying added.
Shaking his head, Tianming held Long Wanying's hand and said earnestly, "Trust me, I can do it. I can't leave again. I wonât be able to forgive myself if I return only to see complete destruction."
"Are you sure?"
"I can do it. Trust me, Aunt Ying!" Tianming had to show confidence in himself. Although he hadnât planned on revealing himself so soon, the situation hadnât allowed for hesitation. His determination infected everyone.
"Okay!" Long Wanying nodded with tears streaming down her face.
"Iâll get to it then." Without wasting time, Gujian Qingshuang and Yun Tianque went to convince the others. Despite its speed, the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb would still take some time to get here. During this period of time, all they could do was wait.
"Li Tianming, what about the Azurecloud Divine Tree?" Jiang Qingliu asked, his voice hoarse.
Tianming stared at the blood dripping from the tree that seemed beyond cure.
"Weâve lived our entire lives from birth to now under the divine tree," Jiang Qingliu said with a lowered head, tears cleansing his cheeks. Leaving their home was the only way to survive, but it was also the place of their beliefs. Jiang Qingliu knew they had to leave or they would be used to threaten Tianming. However, it would be difficult for them to leave their mother tree in a place occupied by the celestial orderians.
Closing his eyes, Tianming listened for its voice in the wind. After a long time, he opened his eyes and said, "Itâs spoken to me."
"Who?"
"The divine tree"
"Whatâd it say?" Jiang Qingliu asked.
"It said that itâs reached the end and will die with this land. It wants me to give its children a chance to grow. One day, its bloodline will continue living on as new divine trees. As long as it has descendants, itâll never die."
"Really?" Tears sliding down his cheeks, Jiang Qingliu fell to his knees and kowtowed to the tree.
"One day, weâll return and rebuild this place into our home. Then, our children will live under the divine tree as before, enjoying the shade in the hot sun."
......
Other than mysterians, it was impossible for anyone to regenerate limbs. Li Xuanyang lay down, screaming and gasping for air. "Are they here yet? Whyâre we still wasting time!" Those around him lowered their heads, their faces pale, afraid to step forward. Li Xuanyang started sobbing again. This was worse than death. On top of losing his limbs, he had also been castrated. All he could do was angrily glare and scream. Could this be considered living?
More than two million celestial orderians surrounded Li Xuanyang, depressed and inconsolable. The scene was extremely solemn. They were next to the trunk of the Azurecloud Divine Tree with countless Yin Chens watching them.
"General, the Baiyang Army will be here soon. They were previously training in the fiery sea and were supposed to head south with us after we took down Azurecloud, but none of us saw this comingââ
"Get them to speed up! This time thereâll be five million of us. Weâll kill every last one of them!" Li Xuanyang sounded desperate. Many cast sidelong glances at the crazy man. "Whatâre you looking at? Are you mocking me inside? Who among you has never failed?!" Li Xuanyang appeared even more pitiful.
"General, please calm down. We all hate Li Tianming. Heâll die even more miserably."
"Fuck off!" Li Xuanyang shouted so loudly his voice broke. His shrill cry passed through layers of the blood-red tree, resounding throughout the crown of the tree. Countless drops of blood fell from the leaves onto their bodies like rain; Li Xuanyangâs entire face was soaked with blood.
"What kind of stupid tree is this! I wouldâve cut it down a long time ago if it werenât for its fruit that only grows once every ten thousand years! Whatâs the point of it? Itâs not like Iâll ever see its fruit in this life," Li Xuanyang continued yelling.
No one dared to respond. They were all discussing the addition of the Baiyang Army, which had yet to go to war. With three million from the Baiyang Army and two million from the Xuanyang Army, they would be five million strong. Defeating Li Tianming and the Azuresoul Palace shouldnât be a problem. The thought of revenge made their blood boil.
"Get them to hurry up!" Li Xuanyang roared.
"General, the Baiyang Army wonât listen to our commandâ"
"Scram!"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
In the face of a pathetic man who had lost all hope, most of them chose not to speak up. At that moment, a huge divine astralship appeared above Azuresoul Sword Mountain.
"That's the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb!" they exclaimed.
"I know! Li Tianming is going to use the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb to take away the people and treasures on Azuresoul Sword Mountain!"
"Is he handing Azurecloud over to us? Thatâs goodâwe completed our mission ahead of schedule!"
"You can't say that. Manpower is considered an important resource. Those people arenât dead, so we canât say that weâve won.â
Chaos erupted as the celestial orderians began speaking all at once, some relaxed, others filled with hatred and unwilling to let them escape like this.
"So we donât need support from the Baiyang Army? Should we head south once they join us?" someone proposed.
"No!!" When the others looked over, they realized it was Li Xuanyang who shouted.