Chapter 693: One After Another

Chapter 693: One After Another

“Truly, a son selling his father’s land feels no remorse.”

Flames blazed on all sides, rolling smoke darkening half of the night sky.

Amid the roar of explosions, the city of Guixi—within and without—was reduced to rubble, corpses strewn everywhere, cries of lamentation rising one after another.

The once-glorious gate of the Guixi Dao Palace had vanished into smoke and ashes. Pei Xingjian stood amid the shattered tiles, gazing around.

“If Zhang Xiji knew his lair had been taken so easily, would he regret giving Zhang Qingli that one chance?”

Among the scattered corpses, many wore bizarre expressions of death: no visible wounds on their bodies save for dust, yet faces still held a look of contented bliss.

Clearly, these were Dragon-Tiger Mountain Daoists from whom Zhang Qingli had extracted their faith, leaving nothing but hollow shells.

The technical method called “Yellow Millet Seal Script” was indeed immensely powerful, but its cost was staggering.

At the very least, Zhang Qingli’s desperate gamble had gravely wounded both Dragon-Tiger Mountain and the city of Guixi.

“This so-called Dragon-Tiger Daoist Kingdom seems to be done for.”

Pei Xingjian shook his head with a wry laugh, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked toward the outer palace.

Yet though his words now poured salt on the wound, mocking Zhang Xiji’s life work reduced to ruin, his mind was far from at ease.

After all, no word had come yet from Jinling. If Zhang Xiji managed to escape that ordeal, the new faction of the Daoist Order would still be formidable—perhaps even more troublesome.

Li Jun, a solitary Third-Sequence wanderer, had already mustered a force alone; there was no reason a Second-Sequence Heavenly Lord of the new faction could not do the same.

If Zhang Xiji were to be blood-drunk and abandon his Dragon-Tiger foundation, that too would be a great trouble.

And if he died in Jinling, the situation within the empire would shift from a standoff of five powers to a tetrad.

On one side—themselves and Li Jun; on the other—the Zhu family and Zhan Shun.

Who would ultimately prevail was still unknown.

More crucially, Pei Xingjian himself could not be sure how much longer the Confucian Order could hold.

The seed of disaster lay not in men’s deaths, but in the chaos of their hearts!

His teacher’s aim was no longer what it had been; inner disorder would eventually tear the Confucian Order apart.

If it still held together now, it was partly because the destruction of the Spring-Autumn Society had served as a warning; partly because the deeply ingrained vice of fence-sitting lived in the Confucian Order’s bones—every family waited for someone else to take the lead.

Even knowing that they themselves might not escape purging, they clung to a shred of hope: let others die first, prompting Zhang Fengyue to change his mind, so they might emerge as the lucky survivors.

Until then, they would be more docile and obedient than ever, doing whatever was asked without a single complaint.

“Man’s need makes him a Confucian—that character ‘need’ has been seen through by my teacher.”

Pei Xingjian could not help but smile bitterly in his heart.

Though he had stood unwaveringly by Zhang Fengyue’s side from the very start of the New Deal, even contributing all the forces he had secretly gathered over the years, now that matters had reached this stage, his feelings could not help but grow complicated. For from now on, perhaps, there would be no Confucian Order left in this world.

All the efforts of countless scholars, wave upon wave, over the thousand years since Emperor Yi established the Order—all would be lost.

Though the greatest infamy would fall upon his teacher, he himself would certainly not escape the charge of being an accomplice.

“What do I care about infamy? I never expected a good name after death anyway. But, my teacher, can what you have done truly make this twisted, misshapen world a better place?”

Pei Xingjian looked at the ravaged streets and raised his head to heaven, letting out a long, meaningful sigh.

“Or is it that not even you know what you can do, so you can only force down the most hopeful answer?”

“Answers are never anything but right or wrong—what has hope to do with it? So this is nothing more than a decrepit old man wanting to drag the whole world down with him.”

Pei Xingjian lowered his brows and turned an icy gaze toward the source of the voice.

A “corpse” lying by the roadside slowly rose from the ground, meticulously brushed the dust from its robes, and then bowed respectfully to Pei Xingjian.

Pei Xingjian’s tone was unruffled: “Possessing a corpse to return to life—you’re Zhan Shun?”

The newcomer shook his head: “I am Shi Qing.”

“So the Zhu family has already allied itself with Zhan Shun?”

Pei Xingjian sneered: “Shi Qing… I recall now—you are the one managing the Hongque on behalf of the Zhu family, aren’t you?”

“It seems nothing escapes Prime Minister Zhang’s eyes.”

Shi Qing’s tone was humble: “But since you knew of my existence long ago, why didn’t you kill me? Hongque should be the one you most wanted to eliminate.”

“I have seen plenty who do not fear death, but one who rushes to die like you is indeed rare. Shi Qing, do you really think that by hiding within the Yellow Millet, I have no way to deal with you?”

Cold menace seeped from Pei Xingjian’s words. Behind him, figures appeared one by one atop the wreckage of buildings.

Zhang Siyuan crouched on the roof of a half-collapsed study, muttering curses under his breath.

“Damn it! After waiting so long, all that shows up is a cowardly bastard. What a waste.”

“Greetings, Master Zhang.”

Shi Qing, now trapped like a cornered beast, still had the leisure to greet Zhang Siyuan; then he smiled at Pei Xingjian.

“If you were confident you could kill me, Lord Pei, I would already be a corpse, wouldn’t I? I must say, the Yellow Millet is truly a wonderful thing—especially when others cannot use it.”

Pei Xingjian’s cold gaze slowly softened: “Do not speak too soon. Since the Zhu family has chosen to step in, we will have many more occasions to meet.”

“You are mistaken again, Lord Pei. This entire empire belongs to the Heavenly House. Even you are merely guests. There is no stepping in or out, for the Heavenly House has always been present.”

Pei Xingjian snorted coldly: “After Longwu died, the old man should have torn you out root and branch! How dare a worm like you bluster here.”

Shi Qing’s face beamed with smiles: “You are right, I too am very curious. How could a man determined to remake heaven and earth still cling to a shred of gratitude toward the dead, committing such a foolish act of raising a tiger?”

“But…” Shi Qing’s tone suddenly shifted: “If he had not done so, he would no longer be the empire’s prime minister pleading for the people, but Zhang Fengyue, who would devour the people to become a god for his own selfish desires.”

“Are you finished? Then get lost. Clean your neck well, and wait for me to take your head.”

“Lord Pei, how fierce your murderous aura is. No wonder you have nurtured so many wolfish Archers and Charioteers of the Confucian Order. But we were only chatting just now—I have not yet delivered the business the Heavenly House commanded.”

The moment Shi Qing finished, the bodies lying on both sides rose one after another. Their heads tilted upward, their optic implants sparking, bionic eyes shooting beams of light that coalesced in the air into a huge image—a full zhang in both width and height.

Within that image was none other than Gao Sheng, clad in a scarlet robe, kneeling and prostrating himself in the imperial ancestral temple.

“In the thirteenth year of Jiaqi, Zhu Yiyan respectfully announces to the ancestors: I shall take the overbearing ambition of Patriarch Hong, shed a million rivers of blood, behead a million heads, exterminate the four villains, and establish my Great Ming’s ageless divine dynasty!”

Gao Sheng’s forehead was a pulp of blood and flesh. With a series of dull thuds, he beat his head until he died.

“This is what His Majesty ordered me to convey to you all: a warning, but also a mercy. If anyone is willing to rein in before the precipice, His Majesty will overlook the past and treat them with courtesy…”

Bang!

Shi Qing’s head burst into a spray of blood, and the mutilated corpse toppled backward.

“Master Zhang, His Majesty bade me tell you specially: he has always regarded you as an elder brother. Though Prime Minister Zhang has committed an unforgivable crime, he still hopes you will return from the wrong path…”

Another Dragon-Tiger Daoist corpse, dead from faith-stealing, rose and continued to broadcast Shi Qing’s voice. Bang!

A gunshot; the head burst; the body fell.

At once, a new host was taken over by Shi Qing.

The surrounding bombardment had ceased, making the gunfire all the more piercing—each report striking deep into the onlookers’ hearts.

Not until the street was drenched with severed limbs and blood did Pei Xingjian finally call a halt to Zhang Siyuan.

“Enough, Yizheng.”

"Like father, like son—both take delight in doing what they know is impossible."

As Shi Qing rose again, his voice carried joy, as if Zhang Siyuan's fury brought him great pleasure.

"You should indeed be angry, for these people all died because of your father."

Shi Qing laughed loudly, and the image projected in the air changed immediately.

The scene that appeared was unstable, shifting rapidly as if from the perspective of a pair of human eyes.

Pei Xingjian's brows suddenly furrowed, his fingers clenched tightly in tension.

The owner of the vision ascended high, looking down at a government office engulfed in flames.

"Zhu Pingxu, how dare your Zhu family be so insane?!"

An angry roar accompanied a figure shooting into the sky; immediately afterward, the projected image blurred, everything around distorted into colorful streaks by the speed.

When the image cleared, what appeared before everyone's eyes was a still-beating heart, and farther off, a broken body falling.

Splat!

Steel fingers closed, and flesh seeped through the gaps.

The view rose, sweeping over a city submerged in blood and fire.

"Kill them all, leave no one alive!"

Bang!

Zhang Siyuan could no longer suppress his raging fury, but this time his bullet lost its usual accuracy, merely shattering half of Shi Qing's body.

"I thought Li Bufeng would have countless experts hidden around him, but from the result, he was just a pawn. Zhang Shoufu's ruthlessness is truly beyond my reach."

A strong, sinewy hand gripped Shi Qing's throat and lifted him with a single arm.

The death of his close friend did not seem to affect Pei Xingjian's emotions; only the veins on his hands bulged and the furrows on his face deepened.

He stared into Shi Qing's mocking eyes: "Why slaughter the city?"

"Do you still need to ask? Pei Xingjian, don't you understand?"

Shi Qing smiled: "Zhang Fengyue is ruthless to you but indulgent to these ant-like commoners. He knows the empire's chronic ills are hard to cure, yet he only turns his blade against your own Confucian Sequence. What's the point of killing a few disobedient clans? It's just self-deception."

"But the Emperor is different; for a grave illness, one must be willing to use strong medicine! Shed tens of millions of blood, behead millions of heads, and the Great Ming Empire will be reborn from the flames!"

"Bullshit! Zhu Yiyan is a madman!"

Pei Xingjian's eyes churned with malevolence; of course, he knew what Zhu Yiyan intended.

It was nothing but using a great scourge to bathe the entire empire in blood, killing until the Sequence practitioners tremble and the commoners shiver, and when everyone is plunged into chaos and despair, the long-forgotten Zhu Ming royal family would step in with the imperial army to turn the tide, quelling all unrest with an iron hand, winning back the lost popular support.

Next would be to break down the Sequence barriers, destroy the population base, and rebuild an imperial army loyal to the royal family, thereby achieving the empire's revival.

And Pei Xingjian was so clear about this because it was the 'Great Confucian Sequence' that Liu Jinxun revered as a golden rule!

Only, the various Sequences within it were replaced with commoners, and the Confucian Sequence that stabilizes the world was replaced with his Zhu family's Strategist Sequence.

"Understand? Zhang Fengyue clearly has the answer in his heart, but he never dares to choose it. Even if he gave your Confucian Sequence the power to transcend mortals, you still can't free yourselves from the burden of reputation. That is the greatest weakness of your Confucian Sequence—hypocrisy!"

Shi Qing's voice was squeezed to an unnatural sharpness: "The path he dares not take, the Emperor dares to take. Thus the student surpasses the master! To be the Emperor's teacher, Zhang Fengyue has not lived in vain."

"Zhu Yiyan wants to use this to ascend the Strategist Sequence's second rank? He won't succeed!"

Chaos is the fertile ground that the Strategist Sequence dreams of. Zhu Yiyan desires far more than reviving this empire; he wants the power that none of the Zhu emperors before him have held, and the eternal dynasty of his dreams!

"The Legalist Sequence he shielded for years has rebelled, the clans he indulged have rebelled too. What cards does he have left? Now Li Bufeng is dead, and even Liu Jinxun has died before him to prove his loyalty, yet still could not change his decision. Now Zhang Fengyue has turned utterly cold-blooded; what does he have left?"

"He could have chosen otherwise, but he deliberately took a path that makes him an enemy of all the world. It is all his own doing; he can blame no one!"

Before the self-satisfied words ended, Pei Xingjian's hand suddenly loosened.

A figure appeared beside him, raised a hand to press against Shi Qing's face, and yanked his head along with his spine, slamming it to the ground.

This time Shi Qing did not reappear, and the image projected in the sky also dissipated.

The entire street fell into a deathly silence; the night wind carrying smoke pressed heavily on everyone.

"Yi Zheng..."

Pei Xingjian looked at the figure standing before him and spoke slowly.

"Uncle Pei, I need to go to the coast. I'll have to trouble you to handle the remaining cleanup on Longhu Mountain."

Pei Xingjian rebuked in a deep voice: "All of this must also be within Teacher's plan. Don't act rashly."

"One must be wild in youth. Though I am not young, it hasn't been many years since I learned I am Zhang Fengyue's son. Even if I act like a rebellious son who doesn't consider the greater good, no one will blame me, right?"

Pei Xingjian's lips moved, but before he could speak, Zhang Siyuan looked back at him.

"Uncle, my 'art of calculation' is poor—I can't weigh so many gains and losses. But now that one of my father's three most favored disciples in his life has died out there, I have to help the old man bring Uncle Li's body back; only then will Uncle Li's spirit not misunderstand my father."

Zhang Siyuan grinned: "And along the way, I need to tell those people: the answer my father gave, even if it's fucking wrong, they'd better hold their noses and say it's right!"

The man had already walked far away, but his words still echoed in Pei Xingjian's ears.

In the end, he did not stop Zhang Siyuan, because he did not know what words to use to make him stay.

This journey Zhang Siyuan had to undertake—this he understood, and Zhang Siyuan understood it too.

"Issue the order: within Jiangxi Province, all Daoist Sequence members registered at Longhu Mountain are to be killed, not one spared!"

"Yes!"

Lonely shadow on the long street, Pei Xingjian stood amidst flowing blood, his hunched back making him look even older, his gaze fixed blankly on the dark sky that did not know when it would turn bright.

"Baize, even if you cannot live standing, never die kneeling."

"Walk a little slower, and wait for your teacher."

Outside the city of Jinling, the old man bent down among the rubble to pick up a tattered cloak and gently covered Liu Jinxun with it, murmuring to himself.

Above him in the night sky, two figures, like meteors streaking across the heavens, collided violently like thunder and fire!