The pain from the fire made the snake cry out strangely. Its body swept around nonstop as it tried to put out the fire.
It collided with the other snake that was wildly shaking its head to get rid of the Flying Blood Ring. The other snake instantly caught on fire and burned.
The two snakesâ large bodies crazily swept around and emitted power that could topple the mountains and overturn the seas.
Shangguan LingRan held Zi Youâs hand tightly again. He pulled her to avoid the snakesâ crazy and indiscriminating sweeping and smashing.
After two quarters of an hour, the snakes gradually weakened. They were finally paralyzed and didnât struggle anymore. A burnt smell wafted in the air.
Shangguan LingRan and Zi You released sighs of relief. They were covered in sweat. These two strange snakes were really terrifying! Zi You and Shangguan LingRan had never seen such large and terrifying snakes in Blackwater Pool and in Mount Emei before.
After they passed the fourth level, they walked less than a quarter of an hour again before they saw sixteen men holding different parts of the mechanism.
The sixteen people obviously did not expect Zi You and Shangguan LingRan to pass the four levels so quickly. When they saw them here, they were scared into quickly assuming a formation. These sixteen peopleâs martial arts were the highest among their tribesmen, but they were apparently not on the same level as Zi You and Shangguan LingRan. They were soon killed.
Once they died, Black Wind Magic Array was naturally broken. An area of grass and trees appeared in front of Mu YingYi and the soldiers.
âThe Black Wind Magic Array is broken!â Mu YingYi and the soldiers shouted joyfully. Xiaojie and her Shifu only took three hours to break the Black Wind Magic Array.
Darong Ka and Guoji Weiza were anxious. Guoji Weiza was praying. Darong Ka was staring intently at his magical wheel. He didnât even dare to blink his rat eyes once.
He looked at the magical wheel turning slower and slower before finally stopping. He shouted, âItâs over! Run, Leader! They broke the Black Wind Magic Array.â
Guoji Weiza trembled in fear. He widened his eyes and howled, âRun......â
The Yuesong tribeâs fortress was instantly chaotic. It was not going overboard to describe the scene as chickens flying and dogs jumping.
But they soon discovered that no matter which direction they rushed in, there was a invisible wall in front of them that exuded bursts of heat and stopped them. Those who werenât afraid of death rushed forwards. They instantly became roasted pigs.
Soon, Darong Ka discovered that the situation wasnât quite right. He was anxious and used his magic. However, the magic which had saved him countless times before failed him this time. No matter how he casted spells, he couldnât rush out of the invisible fire net.
Just as his forehead was covered in sweat, he heard a voice as beautiful as a warbler flying out of a valley. The voice mocked, âDarong Ka, you should surrender now. Your spells wonât work.â
Darong Ka turned back. He instantly stared in amazement! The girl in front of him wore a black and red embroidered cloud brocade riding outfit. She wore small black shoes strung with flowers and red beads. Her black hair was woven into five braids. Multicolored strands of pearls were on top. She had a braided bun in the back. She was stunning, noble, elegant, and refined. She was 70% similar to that woman Dier. But this girlâs skin was clearly different from Dierâs. Her skin was white and smooth, like a freshly peeled egg. Her facial features were also softer.
âAre you Dierâs daughter?â Darong Ka looked at Zi You as if he was looking at an enemy who killed his father.
Zi You smiled lazily. She proudly said, âYes. I am my motherâs daughter. It seems that you were defeated by my mother. Thatâs why you took refuge with Taizi to wait for a chance to take revenge, right? But you didnât think that you would be defeated by Dierâs daughter, right? This is called good will always triumph over evil!â
âWhat evil? What good?â Darong Ka was unreconciled and exclaimed, âYou Han people have a saying. âThe winner is King. The loser is a bandit.â If you win, then youâre naturally good......â
He didnât finish speaking before he suddenly struck. He threw a poisonous gu at Zi You.
Zi You sneered in despise. She waved her hand. A purple flame immediately burned the gu into ash.
Zi You smiled very dazzlingly. âSince you like giving people gu so much, Iâll let you experience the taste of a gu.â
Zi You waved her hand. Huoling, who had transformed into a human, went over to Darong Ka. She smiled as enchantingly as the sun. âSince you like playing with snakes, then this spirit will let you experience it.â
She reached out and pinched Darong Kaâs chin. A small colorful snake as thin as a noodle entered Darong Kaâs mouth. By the time he reacted, the small snake had entered his stomach already.
Darong Ka was scared out of his wits. He gave gus to people all the time, so of course he knew how powerful a gu was, especially that colorful and live snake gu that this beautiful girl had put into his mouth. Its toxicity and spirituality must be more powerful than an ordinary gu.
He hadnât finished thinking when he felt his stomach hurt. Darong Ka immediately howled, âSpare me, Mu Xiaojie. Spare me......â
Zi You looked contemptuously at him. She said lazily, âOkay. But you have to listen and make me happy. Otherwise......â
âI will...... cooperate......â In a short period of time, Darong Ka was already in so much pain that his internal organs must have shifted. Cold sweat poured out of his body.
Mu YingYi suddenly felt hatred! He immediately said to Zi You, âYou canât spare him, Youâer. We have to slice him to pieces for the fallen soldiers killed by him!â
Darong Ka was so anxious that he almost jumped up. Unfortunately, his stomach was in so much pain that he was on his last breath, so he couldnât jump up.
His lips trembled as he begged Zi You. âDonât...... Donât kill me. Itâs...... the Empress and Taiziâs plan. Itâs not...... Itâs not my fault.â
What a coward! Zi You waved her hand. âLock him up and bring him back to Dali.â
The trial of Darong Ka should be held in front of Nanzhao King Ge Luofeng and his officials, as well as the 30,000 soldiers.
Zi You wanted to let these people clearly see the Emperor, the Empress, and Taiziâs sinister intentions and hypocritical appearances.
âTaizi and the Empress made me do it. The Empress and Taizi wanted me to instigate some large tribes to rebel. The Emperor would certainly send Old General Mu and his son to pacify the rebellion. I served as a guide and led the Mu army in the Land of Death to kill them. Then I was supposed to support Guoji Weiza into the position of Nanjiang King. That way, the power of the Nanjiang army and the Mu army would completely fall into Taizi and the Empressâ hands.â
Darong Kaâs words aroused everyoneâs indignation.
When he heard this, Old General Mu was so angry that he trembled all over. Although he had thought that this whole thing might be a conspiracy, he still found it hard to accept now that he heard it from Darong Ka.
40,000 people! He couldnât understand how these people could ignore the life and death of 40,000 people for their own desires. Old General Mu couldnât help but become tearful and blame himself when he thought of the dead 4,000-plus soldiers!
If he had used his brain and discovered that this was a conspiracy, then those soldiers wouldnât have died. They wouldnât have died!
Mu YingYi angrily slapped a palm down on a table. The table shattered into pieces. âDoes the Emperor know about Taizi and the Empressâs plan?â
Darong Ka was scare into shivering. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva. âThe Emperor probably doesnât know about Taizi and the Empressâ conspiracy. But it is true that the Emperor wants to take away Old General Muâs military power.
âThat is because the Emperorâs beloved consort Wu Jieyu is fourth-rank Qingzhou prefectural magistrateâs adopted daughter. The Emperor wants to promote Wu Jieyu into a Fei, but her identity is too low. So the Emperor wants to give the Mu army to Wu Jieyuâs adopted father. That way, Wu Jieyu can become a Fei and the Emperor can firmly grasp the military power.
âHowever, the Emperor does not know that Wu Jieyu and her adopted father are in Taizi and the Empressâ camp.â
The soldiers were in an uproar. Someone directly shouted, âTyrannical and fatuous ruler! Letâs not sacrifice ourselves for him.â
âThe fatuous ruler is shameless! The Empress and Taizi are unvirtuous! Kill them.â
âKill them! Kill them......â
Zi You waved and stopped their noise. âSoldiers, calm down first. Let Darong Ka finish. We canât wrongly accuse the Emperor. The Empress and Taizi, right? Why would they tell such a secret matter to a mere servant?â
Zi You then sneered at Darong Ka and mocked, âDarong Ka, donât think that you can escape death by pushing all the blame on the Emperor, the Empress, and Taizi. You have to have evidence to prove that you were just following orders. Otherwise, I will think that you wanted to take revenge on me and my grandfather. You said it too. My mother killed your father.â
âItâs not like that.â Darong Ka quickly explained, âMy father was angered to death because your mother killed the two spirit snakes that he raised. He wasnât killed at your motherâs hands. Itâs true that I hate your mother. I also want to take revenge. Thatâs why I went to the capital and willingly became Taiziâs advisor.
âHowever, if I didnât have Taizi and the Empressâ orders, how would I dare to attack Old General Mu? Itâs not just this time. I was ordered by the Empress to cause those heavy storms that time you were having military training on Mount Yunmeng.â
Darong Ka was afraid that Zi You wouldnât believe him. He gritted his teeth and continued, âI can obtain the Empressâ trust not because I know magic. But because I am...... I am the Empressâ lover.â
Zi You mocked and intimidated Darong Ka. And Darong Ka did indeed become scared and angry.
He groped around his neck for a long time and finally pulled out a womanâs undergarment. It was bright yellow with a red embroidered phoenix and peony and a gold chain.
Perhaps he thought that it was shameful for a man to wear a womanâs undergarment because Darong Kaâs bronzed face turned purple.
He was a bit embarrassed and a bit unreconciled as he said, âDonât look down on people. Iâm ugly, but I know a seduction technique. I know how to please women more than your Emperor. This undergarment is the love token that the Empress gave me and I gave her the Devil Ring.â
The soldiers were in an uproar once again. They scolded one after another.
âShameless......â
âSl*t. Wh*re. She should be paraded and put to death......â
Zi You waved her hand and ordered, âTake him away.â
Then she turned to her grandfather and asked in concern, âGrandfather, are you okay? Do you want to talk to the soldiers?â
Old General Mu nodded and stood up. He looked aggrieved and indignantly at the soldiers. âFellow soldiers, I, Mu Junyuan, have lived an honest life. I am loyal to Great Yan and the Emperor. My Mu familyâs army is also wholeheartedly loyal to the government. We are even willing to put our lives at risk.
âBut what did we get in return? Itâs murder. 4,325 soldiers! They didnât die in the hands of the enemy. But they were killed by our countryâs own Emperor, Empress, and Taizi.......â
Old General Mu tearfully hammered his chest. âMy heart hurts...... What should I tell their parents? How should I avenge them......?â
âRevenge! Revenge! Revenge!......â More than 30,000 soldiers stood up together. They were boiling with excitement. Their surging anger and hatred made their blood boil!
Mu YingYi knelt down in front of Old General Mu. He shouted sorrowfully, âFather, we canât be played by other people like monkeys. We are men in vain if we donât seek vengeance!â
âWe are men in vain if we donât see vengeance!â The soldiers shouted along with Mu YingYi.
It was the same for third-rank Wu Yonghui. He sobbed, âOld General Mu, if the incapable ruler and demoness Empress donât die, how can we...... face our brothers and sisters? My son...... is only twenty-three years old. His wife...... just gave birth. My son...... left just like that. Are our...... loved ones not human then?â
His sobs echoed. A manâs grief and heartbreak resonated more with people.
Sad cries sounded. At this moment, even the officials in Nanjiangâs Nanzhao government bowed their heads.
Zi You stood up and wiped her tears. She said firmly and strongly, âComrades, donât cry. We have to turn our grief into strength and seek revenge for our brothers and sisters who died in vain!â
âRevenge! Revenge! Revenge!â The orderly and angry cries shook Shangguan LingRan and Old General Muâs hearts.