Chapter 245: Converging Forces

~~~

General Murong congratulates them heartily when they return. Never once does he bother asking what happened to Captain Ko and the other raiders killed by Commander Qing. Such blatant favoritism should have bothered Lei Cheng, but his mind is elsewhere. No matter how much he tries to avoid it, he keeps thinking back to the battle with the monsters of the Death Fashioning Scripture.

“You seem shaken.”

Lei Cheng nearly falls from his saddle. He had been so deep in thought that he failed to notice when the one who murdered so many of his uncles started riding at his side.

It still doesn’t feel real.

Commander Qing Jin looks neither imposing nor fearsome. At best, the combination of dark hair and red eyes makes him look slightly ominous, but that’s all. No one would be able to guess he is the man who brought down the storied Lei Clan.

Commander Qing’s cultivation might be outstanding for his age, but there are many older cultivators in higher realms. He might have achieved the peak of lightning mastery, but so have several others. He might be of royal blood, but why does that matter? The purple sparks he manifests sometimes are nothing grand.

There is no reason why someone in the Heaven Realm should listen to him. There is no reason why his cousin, who has yet to rejoin the main force, should worship him. There is no reason why an Emperor like General Murong Bang should pay him any special attention.

And yet, they do.

No matter how much he wants to deny it, Lei Cheng can tell there is something unnatural about the person next to him. His every instinct screams at him that the young man who looks no older than him is somehow… more.

“Are you okay?” Commander Qing asks him, making Lei Cheng realize he has been staring without saying a word. “Are you still tired from the battle, perhaps?”

“I’m fine!” Lei Cheng snaps, perhaps a little more loudly than is prudent. Quite a few turn to look at the two. Lei Cheng flushes in embarrassment. “I’m fine,” he repeats in a much lower voice. “You already ascertained that for yourself.”

Qing Jin inspected every soldier after the battle to make sure they weren’t infected. He also healed their wounds. Lei Cheng caught some saying they felt better after the battle than before it. Preposterous nonsense, of course. There is no way anyone could feel fine after…

Flesh twisting… eyes falling out of sockets… so many teeth… so many mouths…

Lei Cheng shivers.

“It is normal to be bothered by it,” Commander Qing tells him, having the gall to be concerned for him after what he did to the Lei Clan. “Am I right to assume that was technically your first battle?”

“That was no battle!” Lei Cheng hisses. “A battle is a contest. A display of skill and superiority. That was…something else.”

Something unnatural. Something wrong. Lei Cheng cannot comprehend how the commander can travel with that ugly dog at his side as though it was normal.

“Certainly, it is not usual to see creatures like those,” Commander Qing says. “However, in other ways, what you saw was completely normal.”

Lei Cheng stares at him.

“How can something like that possibly be normal?”

“Two powers fought. The weaker one lost, and those caught in between died without knowing or understanding anything. What could be more normal than that?” Qing Jin asks him. “Certainly, the arts involved were more esoteric than usual, but make no mistake. What you saw today wasn’t anything special.”

“That’s not… That’s… When the Lei Clan fought…”

“The only opponents the Lei Clan has fought lately have been innocent villagers,” Liu Jin reminds him. Though the commander does not glare at him or use Qi in any way, Lei Cheng finds his tongue cannot move. “They were trampled over and sold. Shall I praise them for not immediately killing their victims but instead drawing out their suffering?”

Lei Cheng does not dare to answer. He stays silent and looks down. The images of the dead playing on his head again and again.

No matter what Commander Qing says, the actions of his clan cannot be compared to the atrocities he has seen today. There is no way. There is no reason why he should listen to the one who murdered so many of his clan.

And yet…

And yet…

For some reason, Lei Cheng feels shame.

~~~

The Storm Palace is full of nervous energy.

The nobles are dressed in fine clothes and adorned with expensive jewelry as usual. They talk and laugh as though it were just another day.

However, their laughs are a little too loud, and their smiles are a little too tight.

How could it be any other way? From the south, General Murong Bang. From the west, General Nie Dan. The reports come one after another. Their armies have suffered defeat upon defeat. Hardly uplifting news.

Usually, they would be able to take some comfort in having the shadow of the Storm Dragon to protect them. No matter what happened, not even an Emperor could touch them here. However, they have heard the rumors. No one dares to speak the Black Dragon’s name, but everyone can see the parallels. The last time someone of royal blood entered the Storm Palace with Murong Bang, dozens of noble bloodlines were extinguished.

Who is to say history won’t repeat itself?

It is a harrowing thought, and it makes them all the more eager to begin today’s session. They keep looking at the empty throne, but it is not the emperor they wait for. It is not him they long to see.

Right now, they yearn for the stalwart figure of General He Bin.

When they sense his Qi drawing near, all talk stops. The doors open, and everyone holds their breath as the true ruler of this land enters the throne room. Always so gallant. So regal. The aura of an Emperor Realm cultivator, which should fill them with fear, invigorates them and gives them strength.

General He Bin sits on the throne, and no one finds it strange.

“My dear friends, it warms my heart to see all of you in good health,” he says. “Sadly, the emperor is indisposed today. His heart grieves for the citizens of our kingdom, so I will hold court in his stead.”

No one objects. No one finds it strange. Why should they? The emperor’s cowardice and ineptitude are well-known. It is just like him to hide in his room while everything falls apart. A Heaven Realm cultivator should be made of sterner stuff, but he is living proof the quality of a man is not always tied to the quality of his cultivation. A heretical thought, to be sure, but how can they deny the blueness of the sky?

“My friends, I know you are worried,” General He Bin says. His hands are clasped together. The look on his face is grave. “I know you are worried for your people. While we are here, they are at the mercy of that beast Murong Bang. Even Nie Dan cannot be relied on to be kind, for he has joined hands with a monster. This must trouble you greatly.”

Everyone agrees with the general, somber faces all around. In reality, less than half a dozen of those present have spared a thought for their people over the past few days.

“I know you all have been paying close attention to news coming from the front lines. No doubt, you all have your informants. You must have heard several tales lately.”

The room falls silent. Some shuffle awkwardly. Everyone has heard the rumors already. Certainly, there is the matter of the lost prince traveling with Murong Bang, but there are other rumors.

Unsettling rumors.

“You should all know what I’m speaking of. Stories of grotesque, unnatural Spirit Beasts are on everyone’s lips. Great monsters that have no place in this world,” General He Bin says. “No doubt, loyal subjects such as yourselves consider them to be nothing more than baseless rumors. However, I am here to tell you there is a grain of truth to these rumors.”

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The gathered nobles look at each other in confusion. A lone brave duke steps forward and asks the question on everyone’s minds.

“General, what exactly do you mean?”

“A good question. Allow me to answer it with a more pertinent one. Do you believe we can win?”

“What?”

“Do you believe we can win?” General He Bin repeats. He looks not just at the duke but at all the nobles present. “Does anyone here believe I can defeat Murong Bang and Nie Dan at once? As much as it’d flatter me to hear otherwise, we all know it wouldn’t be true. For our country and subjects to survive, there is no other way forward but to join hands with the power of those Beyond the Dead Plains.”

“Those Beyond the Dead Plains,” one of the nobles present echoes, bringing her fingers to her lips. “Then those rumors…?”

“As I said, there is a grain of truth, but only that,” General He Bin says, smiling charmingly. “The tales of our soldiers killed by those creatures are just that. The creatures of the other side are not pretty to look at, but cultivation is not always beautiful to behold.”

“Wait,” another duke says. “If the rumors about the creatures are true, does that mean the rumors of a child of royal blood…?”

The duke trails off. He does not know why. General He Bin has done nothing but smile at him.

“Nothing but rumors, my friend,” General He Bin says. “I am sure this will all go better if you listen to the words of our ally. Once you do, all your doubts will be dispelled.”

~~~

In another part of the palace, Shi Qingxia shakes her head as she senses what is happening.

“People are idiots,” she says as she moves her piece over the go board. “The general couldn’t be more suspicious if he was actually trying, but they are almost eager to trust him.”

“Fear makes people believe what they want to believe, Sister Shi,” replies Ye Zheyu. His piece looks ridiculously small in his large hand. “We already know this.”

“That’s not the point!” she shouts. “It’s just… disappointing. Those are people decades our seniors. They should be wiser than this!”

Then again, has life ever taught her any different?

Shi Qingxia still remembers the awe she felt when she entered the Eternal Flame Clan. To be in the presence of the wise and esteemed Elders, each a cultivator with centuries of experience, was a privileged experience. Without a doubt, they, as well as the older members of the Feng Clan, were the pinnacle of what a cultivator should aspire to.

How foolish she had been. In a matter of years, Shi Qingxia was forced to realize the wise and powerful Emperors were as petty and childish as everyone else.