Chapter 334: Collapse
On the tenth day of the march of the Xiao Wang army!
As the army rested in a valley, inside a grand hall at the center, Xiao Wang examined the letters brought back by his scouts. Soldiers on either side waited expectantly.
After reading through, Xiao Wang took a deep breath and sighed, "Nalan Piaoxue, you've chosen the wrong path."
"Huh?" the generals murmured in confusion.
"Heh, Nalan Piaoxue should have pursued the path of accumulating Yin virtues, not the path of seeking fame and power. This path he's on... it's a dead end for him!" Xiao Wang shook his head and passed the letters to the generals.
After reviewing the contents, one of the generals, Xiao Yuanfeng, furrowed his brow and asked, "Father Marshal, are we still going to aid the Great Yu Dynasty?"
"We are going, but not to aid them this time. We are going to seize the cities of the Great Yu Dynasty!" Xiao Wang suddenly issued the command.
"Huh?" The generals hesitated briefly.
"Generals, obey!" Xiao Wang shouted.
"Yes!" The generals responded immediately—
The Heavenly City has fallen!
The courtiers of various dynasties fled in all directions, and Emperor Nalan went mad, ordering the massacre of all courtiers, intending for the Great Yu Dynasty to accompany him in death!
Numerous versions of events spread throughout the cities, but they all shared a common point: the Great Yu Dynasty had collapsed!
Even if the Heavenly City hadn't fallen, Emperor Nalan had abandoned it! Why else would he suddenly massacre his courtiers?
Don't believe it? Some officials from the Ministry of Revenue have already arrived in our cities. Go ask them yourselves.
The Great Yu Dynasty is finished, truly finished. The Emperor is the foundation of the Great Yu Dynasty, and the Heavenly City is its heart. If that has fallen, what else remains?
Great Yu is no more! Truly no more! Massacre the courtiers? Could you be next?
As for the so-called courtiers, although their actions were extremely secretive, for some reason, it seemed as if there were pairs of eyes watching them all the time, exposing their every move.
As the courtiers fled, Emperor Nalan's orders for executions reached every city. However, upon seeing the lists of those to be executed, the city lords did not rush to capture them. Instead, they fell silent.
Of course, some were ordered to pursue, but most pondered deeply. Since the chaos of hearts and minds, these city lords no longer prioritized imperial commands. Instead, they pondered the future!
The Heavenly City has truly collapsed, with only an Emperor still slaughtering his courtiers! Has the Great Yu Dynasty truly ended? If so, what are we still defending? Accompanying the Great Yu Dynasty in its demise?
And at this moment, in the mansions of every city lord, a letter suddenly arrived!
The city lords held the letters with suspicion and uncertainty but chose to meet with the envoys.
The envoys were all officials of the Great Luo Dynasty, skilled persuaders! They urged the city lords to surrender to the Great Luo Dynasty and promised them continued rule over their cities.
Continue ruling? And as lords under the Great Luo Dynasty?
In the past, these lords would have immediately seized such envoys and executed them in front of their mansions as a warning to others. But now, these lords hesitated. Once hearts and minds were in chaos, their resolve wavered.
Most city lords neither agreed nor opposed, simply observing. Only a few city lords had the envoys executed!
However, in the end, some city lords agreed. Among them were those who were not originally valiant and whose spirits had become fragile after repeated tribulations from the upheavals of the Four Heavens. Combined with threats and temptations.
In a blink of an eye, the Great Yu Dynasty was left with just over ninety cities. Eight of them immediately declared their allegiance to the Great Luo Dynasty.
A month later, this news spread far and wide. In the Heavenly City, the court of Nalan Piaoxue was furious, preparing to dispatch forces to crush these rebellions, when another piece of devastating news arrived.
Marshal Xiao Wang of the Great Light Dynasty had swiftly seized three cities from the Great Yu Dynasty with the Great Light's army! What could be worse than this? The Great Light Dynasty's betrayal seemed to declare to all that the Great Yu Dynasty had absolutely no hope left. Once a reliable ally, now they were tearing apart the cities of the Great Yu Dynasty!
With the Great Luo Dynasty surging like a flood from the outside and Emperor Nalan abandoning his duties to indulge in atrocities, the atmosphere in the Heavenly City was toxic and rotten. Meanwhile, the Great Light Dynasty eyed the cities of the Great Yu Dynasty, ready to strike.
Despite constant messages of reassurance from the Grand Marshal, the overall situation was clear. How could the Grand Marshal turn the tide when the Great Luo Dynasty's aggression was now so thorough? The Great Yu Dynasty's strength was weakened, and more importantly, its people's hearts were lost. Even with the Grand Marshal's strength, it was futile.
More and more cities pledged allegiance to the Great Luo Dynasty. Simultaneously, Xiao Wang continued his relentless advance, capturing ten cities during this period.
Within the boundaries of the Great Yu Dynasty, the twenty cities under Yi Yan's control remained steadfast, but only just over ten cities still held loyalty to the Great Yu Dynasty.
Just over ten cities?
In the Heavenly City, Emperor Nalan Piaoxue gazed at the cities that continued to betray him, initially filled with rage but now increasingly quiet and withdrawn. The palace became deserted, with strict orders not to disturb him. Anyone who dared to enter the palace where Nalan Piaoxue resided risked being instantly obliterated.
Nalan Piaoxue had sat like this for ten days.
On the tenth day, his eyes snapped open. His long hair floated without wind, drifting backward. In an instant, he vanished from the grand hall—
Da Yu City!
Twenty cities under Yi Yan's governance still resisted the Great Luo army, but with cities switching sides ahead and behind, how could they continue to resist?
Four months ago, Da Yu City had been a dam holding back the floodwaters of the Great Luo Dynasty. Today, that flood had found another route around the dam and was overwhelming them.
The dam was surrounded by water on all sides, on the verge of complete submersion.
In the Lord's Mansion, Yi Yan sat despondently, listening to report after report from all directions. Cities were defecting to the Great Luo Dynasty one after another, and the Great Light Dynasty was seizing cities in their path. Yi Yan sat there, wearing a bitter smile. A decayed tree cannot be carved!
Beside him, Iron Blood stood with a face full of anger and anxiety. The heavens had shattered; how could they ever repair this?
"Grand Marshal!" Iron Blood called out.
"Grand Marshal? What grand marshal? The Great Yu Dynasty is about to fall!" Yi Yan forced a bitter smile.
"Grand Marshal, it's thanks to you that Iron Blood is alive today. Without you, there would be no Iron Blood. With the Great Yu Dynasty falling, as long as you remain, I will ensure your safe passage to a secure place," Iron Blood solemnly declared.
"A secure place?" Yi Yan replied with a wry smile. "Yes, the world is vast, and there's no place where the Grand Marshal cannot find refuge. Iron Blood, I will continue to follow the Grand Marshal!"
Yi Yan sighed deeply as he looked at Iron Blood.
Indeed, even Iron Blood no longer had hope for the Great Yu Dynasty. Who else could convince those city lords?
"Report!"
A sudden announcement came from outside the grand hall.
"Which city has fallen now?" Yi Yan asked with a bitter smile.
A soldier entered and said, "Reporting to the Grand Marshal, someone outside the Lord's Mansion wishes to see you. They asked me to convey a message: 'The Covenant of Ten Years.'"
"The Covenant of Ten Years?" Yi Yan frowned, then took a deep breath. "Please."
"No! I will go myself," Yi Yan stood up.
Iron Blood looked at him with slight confusion but followed closely.
The Covenant of Ten Years? What other Covenant of Ten Years could this be? The Covenant of Zhongshan had been completed before ten years had passed. Who was coming now? Zhongshan?
Yi Yan descended from the floating island and quickly made his way, led by the soldier, to a waiting room.
Outside the waiting room, Yi Yan smiled bitterly, "Mr. Zhongshan, you've come quite early."
Stepping in, Yi Yan didn't see Zhongshan but another proud man in black robes.
Upon seeing Yi Yan, the man immediately bowed respectfully, "I am Zhong Zheng, son of Zhongshan. I greet Mr. Yi Yan!"
"Zhongshan's son? Zhong Zheng?" Yi Yan stared at Zhong Zheng, puzzled.
"Yes, according to my father's plan, we would need at least another three years to fully bring down the Great Yu Dynasty. Unfortunately, Emperor Nalan's actions greatly facilitated our Heavenly Collapse plan, allowing us to achieve this in such a short time," Zhong Zheng affirmed confidently.
"Oh? The Heavenly Collapse plan? Is it truly devised by Zhongshan?" Yi Yan fixed his gaze on Zhong Zheng.
"My father knew Mr. Yi Yan would be curious, so he sent me to provide detailed documentation of the Heavenly Collapse plan for your review," Zhong Zheng produced a jade scroll.
Yi Yan immediately took it and scanned its contents with his spiritual awareness. Beside him, Iron Blood stared wide-eyed. From their conversation, Iron Blood had pieced together something: Zhongshan, not Emperor Nalan, was responsible for the downfall of the Great Yu Dynasty?
(To be continued)