On the other side, Shangguan Lingxiu had already led her men to sail back to the east.
She had known that the journey would be fraught with danger and that life and death would be hanging by a thread. Now that she had managed to retreat unscathed without losing any of her men, she should have been overjoyed. However, there was only a faint trace of melancholy on Shangguan Lingxiu's beautiful and spirited face.
Although she had managed to prevent any casualties this time, she had not accomplished anything. It could even be said that she had not done anything at all!
This was completely different from their original intentions. They could not even be mentioned in the same breath.
After a long and arduous journey to come here, she had only knelt before Ancestor Wudi's memorial tablet and kowtowed a few times. That was all.
Although she had helped Supreme Cloud at the crucial moment later, Shangguan Lingxiu knew very well that what she had done was only the icing on the cake.
In spite of this, Shangguan Lingxiu knew very well that her intervention would only be the icing on the cake. Even without her controlling the city gate, Supreme Cloud could break it open and escape on his own!
He did not even need to pass through the city gate; he could have flown away directly from the sky. If that was the case, they would still be suspected of being Supreme Cloud's burden!
Then, what was the point of her coming here?
She sat alone at the bow of the three-story ship, hugging her knees, lost in thought and speechless for a long time.
He wondered where Supreme Cloud was right now. Was he out of danger? What would be the outcome of the meeting with the Empire of Ziyou's higher-ups?
Would the Empire of Ziyou's people vent their anger on Ancestor Wudi's ancestral hall because of this loss?
Would they destroy the remains like what they had said earlier?
Where would the Shangguan Family of Generals' future be?
How far could they go in the future?
What would the future hold for her nephews at home?
Would their young shoulders be able to carry the Shangguan Family of Generals' banner?
Now that the world was on the brink of chaos, the days of war were upon us. Would the Shangguan Family of Generals be able to stand tall in this chaotic world?
Was she, Shangguan Lingxiu, the only adult of the current generation of the Shangguan Family of Generals, shouldering the banner of the Shangguan Family of Generals, yet she had done nothing?
If there was no Shangguan Family of Generals in Yutang's battlefield amidst the chaos, how could the Shangguan Family of Generals still be called a family of generals? The soul of a soldier?
Shangguan Lingxiu could not help but sigh softly after a long while, unable to contain her thoughts, she could not help but sigh softly.
"The Shangguan Family of Generals."
Regarding this matter, his subordinates had sent over a few pieces of intelligence, all of which had just been sent over via messenger eagle.
Shangguan Lingxiu had only opened the first letter when her expression changed. Four empires had attacked Yutang!
Yutang was surrounded by the flames of war and was in a precarious situation. It was no longer a sign of chaos, but a war was imminent!
The content of the second letter was that Supreme Cloud had fought in Zilong City and forced Ziyou's emperor to submit in front of the city. A torrential flood had suppressed Zilong City and boosted Yutang's morale.
The third piece of information – Ziyou has retreated! The threat of the Empire of Yutang's west had been resolved!
After reading the first three reports, Shangguan Lingxiu heaved a soft sigh of relief. The situation was not at its worst yet. At least, the war from Ziyou had stopped. Yutang had Supreme Cloud, so this war was not too pessimistic!
However, the fourth piece of news that followed made Shangguan Lingxiu worried again – the Empire of Dongxuan's Han Sanhe had led a million-strong army to wage a bloody battle against Fu Baoguo at the Fortress of Resilience! The eastern border was in a state of emergency!
Other than that, Marshal Tie Zheng had also started a war with the enemy in the northern border. The war was in a stalemate.
The southern border was about to engage in battle as well. The war was unavoidable!
It was obvious that many of the messages had been sent on the same day.
There was even a message sent in the morning that had a new change in the afternoon, prompting another message to be sent out. The situation was changing rapidly as the messages came flying like snowflakes.
High up in the sky, there were still a few messenger birds flying around in search of their target's location.
"The chaos of the world is unavoidable!"
For the first time, Shangguan Lingxiu's usually spirited face was filled with genuine worry.
My country that has been plagued by disasters … When will there be peace and peace in the world?
"What are you sighing about?" A gentle voice came from behind her.
Shangguan Lingxiu stood up as if she had been electrocuted. Why did the voice sound so familiar?
Who was it?
Turning to look at the source of the voice, she could only see a cloud drifting in the sky. There was a vague silhouette in the cloud; the face seemed to be familiar, but she could not make out the other person's face no matter how hard she tried.
The only thing she could feel was that this person was looking at her with a smile.
"Lord Supreme Wind? No … no, Lord Supreme Cloud? "Shangguan Lingxiu corrected herself quickly.
Until now, Shangguan Lingxiu still felt incredulous and incredulous.
Prior to this, Shangguan Lingxiu had always known that the surviving member of Yutang's Nine Supremes was Supreme Wind. Who would have thought that after a trip to the Empire of Ziyou, Supreme Wind would suddenly turn into Supreme Cloud!
The brainchild of the Nine Supremes!
And this special change had never been mentioned before in the country!
"Actually, Supreme Wind and Supreme Cloud are both part of the Nine Supremes." Lord Supreme Cloud said, "I heard you sigh about the chaos in the world. What's the specific reason?"
Shangguan Lingxiu sighed faintly and said, "It looks like Lord Supreme Cloud is focused on Ziyou and knows very little about the current situation. Actually, I've only just received the intelligence as well. These …"
Just as she was about to hand them over, she suddenly remembered that the Nine Supremes' information network was much more timely than hers. There was a ninety-nine percent chance that Lord Supreme Cloud had already known about what she was seeing. Even if he did not know about it before, he would have received the intelligence as soon as the incident in Ziyou had already happened. At least, he should have known about it earlier than her. Thinking about it, she could not help but say, "I believe Lord Supreme Cloud has long known about this …"
Yun Yang replied, "Lady, you're referring to the invasion of the four empires …"
He sighed faintly and said, "I have indeed known about this a long time ago, but … I don't have any better ideas right now. Invading the four empires, we, the people of Yutang, can only fight to our deaths. That's all!"
Shangguan Lingxiu perked up and said, "Yes, only fight to our deaths!"
Yun Yang chuckled and said, "The war is still ongoing. Indeed, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate. However, I don't think you've achieved your goal in coming to Ziyou this time, have you?"
Shangguan Lingxiu heaved another deep sigh and said, "Loyalty and filial piety can't be fulfilled at the same time. Everything should be prioritized by the nation; family matters should naturally give way to this. Shangguan Lingxiu is a woman, but she knows that no egg can remain intact when the nest is overturned! "
Yun Yang smiled and said, "The Empire of Ziyou … in a sense, it has already been destroyed. Therefore, Senior Shangguan Wudi's wish all those years ago can be considered to have been fulfilled. "
"Hmm?" Shangguan Lingxiu's eyes shone brightly.
"Therefore, when I left this time, I brought back all of Senior Wudi's remains. How can the remains of Yutang's famed general be left in another country?" Supreme Cloud's voice was filled with reverence, "The remains of a loyal official should be laid to rest. General Wudi's long-cherished wish has been fulfilled as well. I'm sure Senior Shangguan Wudi would be comforted to know this in the afterlife. "
Looking at the bundle of remains and the memorial tablets in Supreme Cloud's hands, Shangguan Lingxiu felt an inexplicable surge in her heart. She felt a lump in her throat and actually cried tears of joy.
Three skeletons.
Three memorial tablets.
The memorial tablets of Ancestor Wudi, his wife, and his son – the remains of a family of three – had finally returned to the hands of the Shangguan Family of Generals!
Holding them in her hands, Shangguan Lingxiu felt as if she was carrying a thousand catties of weight.
Yun Yang watched as the remains and memorial tablets landed in Shangguan Lingxiu's hands. Suddenly, he felt an unusual ripple in his deific consciousness. When he focused his gaze, he was shocked.
His Spiritual Sense could see a small whirlwind slowly appearing in front of the memorial tablet on top of the skeleton bag. It was slowly spinning up with a loud whistling sound.
There was a clear sense of joy and relief coming from the small whirlwind, as if a long-cherished wish had suddenly been fulfilled.
In a trance, Yun Yang seemed to have seen a person clad in steel armor, holding a long spear, riding a black horse that was galloping across the land.
Although it was only a man and a horse, Yun Yang could clearly feel the domineering aura of invincibility on the battlefield, the domineering aura of being able to enter and exit an army of millions at will.
With a spear in hand, I am invincible on the battlefield!
The person galloped among the clouds and came before Yun Yang. He held his long spear in a cupped fist salute, his hawk-like eyes looking at Yun Yang's face with a sincere smile of gratitude.
Yun Yang's heart skipped a beat.
A sense of loyalty and lofty aspiration to fight on the battlefield for the country and the people suddenly filled his heart!
Without any reminder, he already knew who the person in front of him was.
His face involuntarily turned solemn, revealing a sense of respect. He raised his hand and returned a proper military salute. The middle-aged man smiled – it was a carefree smile.
Somehow, when he saw the smile, Yun Yang felt his extremely repressed emotions lighten up. He could not help smiling as well in response.
However, what Shangguan Lingxiu saw now was different from what Yun Yang had seen. She felt her mind go blank for a moment, as if three people had suddenly appeared before her eyes.
A middle-aged man with a tall and muscular build, his face square and stern, his eyes as sharp and spirited as a hawk's. Beside him was a petite girl with a gentle face.
Both of them stood in front of her as if they were real, looking at her with smiles on their faces that were filled with intimacy.
In front of them was a little boy who seemed to be only three or four years old, yet he seemed to be only two or three years old at the same time. His face was filled with innocence.
Such a harmonious family of three had appeared in front of her, smiling at her.
The comfort, the praise, and the feeling that blood was thicker than water allowed Shangguan Lingxiu to immediately know who the three people before her were.
"Ancestor Peerless?" Shangguan Lingxiu blurted out.
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