CHAPTER 169: CHAPTER 167: DANGER REAPPEARS_1

"Kill..."

One after another, the Sand Scorpion soldiers roared, moving past the unending storm. As soon as they saw a scene distinct from the vast desert, they felt a horrifying pressure pressing down on them.

A white Sword Qi traversed the nine heavens!

RUMBLE!

The earth shook, revealing a thousand-meter-deep canyon where the bodies of tens of thousands of Sand Scorpion soldiers would rest forever.

"Saint King..." Scorpion Shadow hovered in midair, evading the lethal blow. He looked in horror at the white-robed man in the sky, his very spirit trembling.

"Go back, or I’ll exterminate all of you!" Nie Feng coldly admonished, slowly withdrawing his aura, appearing as an ordinary man.

"I... I obey!" Scorpion Shadow, not daring to disobey, hastily nodded and retreated into the endless sandstorm. He collapsed onto the yellow sand, gasping for breath, his face filled with relief. He had narrowly escaped death once again.

If I were to die under a Saint King Martial Artist, I’d be utterly dead!

The terrifying Power of Laws contained within the attack of a Saint King could completely annihilate his soul, even killing his good corpse through the power of causality.

Even Saint Martial Artists could not genuinely avoid death!

Even Saint King powerhouses couldn’t do it either!

Only in the legendary Immortal Realm could one live as long as the heavens, achieving immortality. Even if the world were to be destroyed, the immortal body would endure forever.

Wasn’t he at the Supreme Saint Realm’s level? How did he become a Saint King powerhouse again? The strength of the human race is simply overwhelming! Scorpion Shadow couldn’t understand why, during the previous invasion of the Qin Empire, Nie Feng had only demonstrated his Supreme Saint Realm cultivation. If he had revealed his Saint King Realm cultivation earlier, I wouldn’t have launched a second attack. Now, tens of thousands of elite soldiers have been sacrificed! The heritage our tribe accumulated over hundreds of thousands of years is almost gone!

"Saint King, another Saint King... why does Heaven show so much favor to the Qin Empire? Why does it favor the human race so much?" Within the desert palace, the Sand Scorpion King roared continuously, his despondency and intense feeling of injustice generating an ominous pressure that changed the color of the sky. Thunder boomed, and arcs of electricity flashed, but no rain fell.

When Nie Feng made his move, the Sand Scorpion King sensed it and had split off a sliver of his divine soul to focus on the battlefield.

He wanted to intervene, but he didn’t dare.

It wasn’t out of fear for his life, but rather to prevent the eradication of his tribe. He knew well that he lacked battle experience from training underground. Despite his high cultivation realm, he couldn’t fully unleash the fighting power of a Saint King.

If they were to battle, he would likely be no match for Nie Feng.

Furthermore, his previous defeat by the Four Divine Beasts’ army had created a Heart Demon within him. If he couldn’t conquer this Heart Demon, his cultivation would stagnate forever.

The Way of Martial Arts is about battling the heavens, battling the earth, and battling people!

If one couldn’t even overcome one’s own Heart Demon, what accomplishments could one hope for?

"A clever beast indeed!" Nie Feng sneered coldly. If the Sand Scorpion King had intervened, Nie Feng was confident he could kill him, but doing so would expose his own cultivation level.

Thinking of that figure in the Temple of Light, his expression grew complicated.

"Qin Dynasty, I’ve saved you once. Don’t disappoint me!" Nie Feng glanced towards a distant hill where two black-robed figures stood. A smile touched his lips as his own figure grew faint and then vanished.

"B-brother, I think we’ve been discovered!" one of the black-robed men stammered in the dense forest. Nie Feng’s earlier glance had made him feel as if he were facing hell itself, the blood freezing in his veins.

"Non...nonsense, of c-course we were discovered!" The black-robed man next to him spoke irritably, "What are you standing around for? Hurry and report this to the Commander!"

The two concealed their auras and cautiously departed, sprinting towards the Imperial Capital.

...

Meanwhile, in the northwestern region of the Divine Court of Light, thirty-six legions swiftly mobilized. They boarded Spirit Boats and advanced towards the Qin Empire’s border, their fluttering banners stretching for hundreds of miles.

This maneuver frightened the smaller factions bordering the northwestern territory of the Divine Court of Light, causing them to tremble and hastily dispatch envoys with their finest gifts to the Divine Court of Light.

「Three days later,」

The thirty-six armies appeared outside Divine Gate, the essential pass to enter the Qin Empire. Because Nie Feng had departed with his army, only a few hundred-strong squads now defended Divine Gate.

"Prime Minister, shall we enter Divine Gate?" a burly man reported. He held a pair of axes that radiated an intense Evil Qi.

"Tell the guards on the city wall that we wish to borrow passage to the Qin Empire!" Wang Shou shook his head. Enter Divine Gate? What a joke! Everyone knew that Divine Gate was Nie Feng’s personal property and only answered to the Divine Emperor’s commands.

"Yes, sir!" The disgruntled general offered a fist-and-palm salute and went to negotiate entry.

A quarter of an hour later, an officer from the Divine Gate’s garrison emerged, exchanged a few words with Wang Shou, and then ordered his soldiers to open the city gates.

Wang Shou led the thirty-six legions towards the Qin Empire, eventually stationing them just outside Divine Gate, making no move to attack for the time being.

"Someone, deliver this letter to the Qin Empire!" Inside his tent, Wang Shou took up a large brush. With swift, elegant strokes, he penned a letter of over a thousand words, then selected a general to act as an envoy to the Qin Empire.

"As you command!" The general took the letter with both hands, selected a few subordinates, and headed for the Qin Empire.

Three days later, Wang Shou’s letter lay on Qin Wudao’s imperial desk. Its contents could be summarized into two main points: first, hand over the ’Four Divine Beasts Army Formation’; second, engage in another match with the Ninth Prince Minglong, and this time, not win.

"Your Majesty, the Hidden Guard reports that Wang Shou, leading thirty-six legions, is stationed on the Qin Dynasty’s border, only fifty kilometers from the nearest city!" Jia Xu reported, his expression somewhat grim.

Zhuge Liang, Wang Yangming, Yuan Tiangang, Li Si, and others sat in the hall, their faces solemn or their brows furrowed, all deeply worried.

"The Divine Court of Light intends to take advantage of our troubles. My esteemed ministers, share your strategies for repelling the enemy!" Qin Wudao sat ramrod straight, looking at his assembled officials, his voice grave as he posed the question.

"Your Majesty, I am willing to go to the East Border to halt Wang Shou’s advance!" Zhuge Liang rose, stepped forward, and saluted.

"Good!" Qin Wudao nodded approvingly, asking loudly, "How many troops does the Deputy Prime Minister need? Though, there aren’t many to spare; you know the southern war situation is tight!"

It was a vexing state of affairs; since he ascended the throne, the Qin Dynasty had been ceaselessly embroiled in war. In the west, there were the foreign tribes; in the south, the Qunxian Sect and the Sea Clan. Even in the east, the Divine Court of Light was relentlessly pressing forward. Only the north, with its minor factions, remained relatively tranquil.

"As long as Your Majesty grants me one special privilege—the authority to mobilize troops from the East Border!" Zhuge Liang stated calmly, gently waving his feather fan, an air of complete confidence about him that left the assembled ministers stunned.

Soldiers in the East Border? There were! But they were merely city guards, capable of maintaining order. As for actual battle, they would likely wet their pants in fright before a single blow was struck.

"Deputy Prime Minister, this matter concerns the very foundation of our nation. You must think carefully!" Qin Wudao’s countenance turned cold as he spoke in a somber voice.