Chapter 101: Long Live, Long Live, Long Live Forever
"Roar~~~" Su Family Patriarch's eyes were bloodshot as he roared and charged towards Zhong Shan.
Was this the last drop of bloodline in the mundane world? All focused on Zhong Shan before their eyes.
Brandishing his long sword, the Su Family Patriarch recklessly lunged forward, disregarding his life. Seeing this, Zhong Shan furrowed his brows, swiftly drew his sword without dying, and retreated violently. With a leap, he jumped onto the roof and fled into the distance.
Zhong Shan had to distance himself from the crowd because his most important person was still there and couldn't afford to be involved. Indeed, some crazed Su Family Patriarchs only recognized Zhong Shan, so when Zhong Shan retreated, they followed closely behind. The archers dared not shoot again, for fear of accidentally hitting Lord Zhong.
With a multitude of archers and Zhong Tian handling the last Primordial, Zhong Shan only had to face one Patriarch.
Running swiftly on the rooftops, Zhong Shan remained composed. When he reached the fourth level of Primordial, his speed surpassed that of a Bronze Corpse. Now, he was already at the fifth level.
Gradually, the entire face of the Su Family Patriarch turned purple.
"The arrows are poisoned," the Su Family Patriarch suddenly exclaimed.
Zhong Shan smiled faintly ahead, "Indeed, the faster you run, the faster the poison spreads."
"You scoundrel!" the Su Family Patriarch roared angrily. He swung his long sword fiercely towards Zhong Shan, unleashing a huge sword qi that was about to reach Zhong Shan in an instant.
Seeing the direction of the long sword, Zhong Shan began to dodge. By the time the sword qi appeared, Zhong Shan's body had almost deviated from its trajectory, and the sword qi passed by in an instant.
Seeing this scene, the Su Family Patriarch was extremely incredulous. How could he dodge the sword qi?
Zhong Shan, of course, didn't explain, only looked at the heavily injured and poisoned Su Family Patriarch.
Slowly, Zhong Shan had already circled around Xuan City with the Su Family Patriarch. The Patriarch's speed was also getting slower and slower.
"Spurt~~~" The Su Family Patriarch spat out a mouthful of black blood. His face was slightly blackened.
"Bang~~~"
Suddenly, from a courtyard to the west, more than thirty large arrows from the Eight Oxen Crossbows shot out with incredible speed and suddenness. With just a glare from the Su Family Patriarch, he was pinned to a thick wall in the distance.
Standing on a rooftop, Zhong Shan looked coldly at the Su Family Patriarch. There were more than a dozen such courtyards scattered throughout Xuan City, meticulously arranged by himself, waiting for this most dangerous moment.
Satisfied with a glance at the courtyard, Zhong Shan retraced his steps and quickly returned to the bank of the inner river.
The flames in the river were still burning, but all the Primordial experts had been cut down.
As Zhong Shan approached, the people inside Xuan City were filled with infinite admiration, even including Ying Lan and others who had participated in it. The ten Primordials, who had hidden in the army for fear of death, were all trapped by Zhong Shan's successive stratagems and fell into his deadly trap.
On the opposite bank, most of the soldiers trapped by the fire showed fear, resentment, and despair, each with a different expression.
Looking across the river, Zhong Shan solemnly said, "Those who surrender, today's events shall be forgiven."
After Zhong Shan finished speaking, the people on the opposite bank fell silent. The person who had previously shot the arrows quickly fell to the ground and worshipped, "Long live, long live, long live forever."
Such rebellious words, yet he actually shouted "long live" to Zhong Shan. But what could they do now? All ten Primordials were dead, and the emperor was dead too. Although they were not clear about the situation in the capital, they knew one thing: the Su Family's power was doomed.
"Long live, long live, long live forever."
More soldiers on the opposite bank began to shout.
Ying Lan, Zhong Tian, and Zhong Zheng also knelt down.
"Long live, long live, long live forever."
Like a chain reaction, the city's defenders, merchants, and citizens of Xuan City all quickly knelt down.
"Long live, long live, long live forever."
One wave after another, one round after another.
Chanting "long live," chanting "long live Zhong Shan."
More and more people on the opposite bank knelt down.
Long live, long live, long live forever!
On the opposite bank of the moat, soldiers began to kneel down one after another. In just a moment, more than half of them had knelt.
However, there were still some who didn't kneel, loyalists of the Great Kun Kingdom.
"General Lin Xiao has captured the capital city, and the Su Family, the royal family of the Great Kun Kingdom, has lost all its bloodline," a voice suddenly rang out from outside the moat, as if it crushed the last bit of resistance in all the soldiers.
Long live, long live, long live forever!
More and more people began to chant long live to Zhong Shan who stood there. Of course, on one hand, it was because of the situation, but on the other hand, it was also due to Zhong Shan's god-like means.
Burning the river? How could a mighty river suddenly burst into flames? Could water even catch fire? This must be the will of the heavens, surely the heavens were blessing Zhong Shan for such a phenomenon.
To not kneel at this moment would be defying the heavens.
At this moment, both the flames in the moat and the inner river gradually diminished. Zhong Shan knew that the oil inside had burned out. If Su Lianxian had known that the oil would only burn for a short period of time, he wouldn't have recklessly charged to his death. Victory was not yet certain, but Su Lianxian didn't know, and not knowing meant only defeat.
Similarly, the soldiers didn't know that after chanting long live, the flames in the river slowly extinguished. This must be the arrangement of the heavens; the wrath of the heavens had diminished.
Was Zhong Shan protected by heaven and earth?
Long live, long live, long live forever!
At this moment, the soldiers who had been somewhat resistant finally compromised.
At the southern gate, everyone knelt down, chanting long live and worshipping Zhong Shan together.
At this moment, Zhong Shan finally took his first step forward.
"Rise, all of you. Officers, tally up your troops and casualties," Zhong Shan said in a deep voice.
"Yes," the soldiers on the opposite bank got up one by one and began to do as Zhong Shan instructed.
At this moment, Wei Taizhong, on the opposite bank of the moat, slowly approached, holding a whisk.
Zhong Shan slowly looked at the corpses of the Primordial experts.
When he saw Su Lianxian, a hint of admiration flashed in his eyes. Su Lianxian was indeed a hero of his time. It was a joy to have such a worthy opponent in life, but he had to die.
"Bury him properly," Zhong Shan pointed to Su Lianxian and said.
"Yes," some guards behind him immediately bowed.
"Wait a moment," a sudden voice interrupted.
Wei Taizhong suddenly walked up to Su Lianxian, looking at the fifteen arrows on his body, his eyes filled with malice, as if he harbored an extreme hatred towards him.
"Give me this corpse," Wei Taizhong said, hatred dripping from his words as he looked at the body.
"You scoundrel, who do you think you are?" Suddenly, Ying Lan exclaimed angrily. With Zhongshan having just established his authority, how could anyone dare to betray trust at this moment? Zhongshan's words now were like the decree of the heavens, unquestionable by anyone.
Hearing Ying Lan's words, Wei Taizhong's eyes turned cold, turning to glare at her with a hint of bloodthirsty malice in his eyes.
"Ying Lan, silence," Zhongshan suddenly commanded.
At Zhongshan's command, Wei Taizhong's previously cold eyes paused for a moment, a look of astonishment appearing on his face as he gazed at Ying Lan, who was glaring at him angrily. The malice in his eyes transformed into a hint of tenderness, a hint of kindness.
Ying Lan? She was Ying Lan?
"Ying Lan, do not contradict. He is Wei Taizhong, he is..." Zhongshan was about to reveal Wei Taizhong's identity when Wei Taizhong's expression changed, immediately interrupting, "Your Majesty, Taizhong has lost control. General Ying Lan is right, please forgive Taizhong."
Frowning at Wei Taizhong, Zhongshan nodded slightly, no longer mentioning Wei Taizhong's identity, and gently said, "Then let this corpse be buried properly by your people."
Glancing at Ying Lan, who was glaring at him angrily, Wei Taizhong showed no signs of anger, but immediately knelt down and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
Wei Taizhong understood Zhongshan's intentions. Since he was ordered to bury the corpse, as long as he found another corpse to bury properly, Su Lianxian's body would belong to him.
Meanwhile, Ying Lan continued to coldly observe Wei Taizhong, unaware of his true identity.
"Ying Lan," Zhongshan called out again.
"Yes, Your Majesty," Ying Lan immediately responded.
"Take command of the Southern Gate troops, and lead them to subdue the other three gate troops," Zhongshan ordered.
"Yes, Your Majesty," Ying Lan replied promptly.
"Wei Taizhong," Zhongshan called out.
"Here, Your Majesty," Wei Taizhong answered immediately.
"You will accompany General Ying Lan and ensure her safety at all times," Zhongshan commanded.
Upon hearing Zhongshan's words, Wei Taizhong hesitated for a moment before a smile crept onto his face. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
However, Ying Lan, seeing Wei Taizhong following along, felt no joy whatsoever. Even though he was a master of innate talent, Zhongshan's attitude towards this person seemed to surpass his care for her. Who was he? Just an old eunuch of the emperor, while she was the granddaughter of the Duke.
Ying Lan cast a cold glance at Wei Taizhong, but he seemed to be unperturbed, showing no signs of annoyance. With people carrying Su Lianxian's body, he followed Ying Lan to organize the troops.
"Zhong Zheng," Zhongshan called out again.
"Here, Your Majesty," Zhong Zheng immediately responded.
"You will oversee the entire city, assess the gains and losses, handle logistics, and fully cooperate with Ying Lan," Zhongshan said.
"Yes, Your Majesty," Zhong Zheng complied.
"Hmm," Zhongshan nodded, then walked back to the Zhong Mansion. Along the way, the people kneeled as they saw him, acknowledging Zhongshan's newly established position.
The heads of the eight prominent families of Xuan City couldn't help but sigh with emotion. They had anticipated Zhongshan's rise, but the arrival of this moment still filled everyone with awe.
In front of a small courtyard in the Zhong Mansion, Zhongshan turned to Zhong Tiandao behind him, "Tian'er, guard outside the courtyard, and do not let anyone disturb."
"Yes," Zhong Tiandao immediately responded.
Entering the inner courtyard, Zhongshan again spoke to a corner, "Dark Emperor, no one is allowed to disturb."
"Yes," came a voice from the corner.
Arriving at the inner chamber, Zhongshan carefully opened a secret compartment and descended underground. In a hidden chamber, he closed the door tightly, lit candles, illuminating the chamber brightly. In the center was a cushion, and in front of it was a small table.
Zhongshan slowly sat on the cushion and, from beneath the table, took out two objects very solemnly, placing them gently on the table.
The Nine Dragon Square Heaven Jade!
The Nine-Colored Dragon Silkworm!