"If we can kill him, that would naturally be for the best, but if we can't, then what? And don't forget that there has still been no sound from the palace. Perhaps … the Empress is also hesitating."
Tianhai Chenwu gazed in the direction of the distant Dew Platform, exhaustion and disappointment appearing on his face. For the sake of the imperial throne, he had planned and prepared for ten-some years, but now it seemed that the road ahead was still shrouded in darkness. Perhaps it was very painful, but he had to begin considering other paths.
"Is Father not worried about the future?" Tianhai Shengxue asked.
In the last few years, the Tianhai clan had enjoyed limitless glory. Including the Chen Imperial clan, the Tang clan, the Qiushan clan, the Zhu clan, and the Luofeng clan, these thousand-year-old clans with deep reserves, had all been firmly suppressed. If one were to say that these clans and those officials who were loyal to the Imperial clan had no objections to the Tianhai clan, no one would believe it. If the Tianhai clan could not ascend to the imperial throne of the Great Zhou, when the time came, when the wall was down, everyone would give it a push. Who would show mercy?
"He is Aunt's son, and the blood of my Tianhai clan flows in his body. Even if he ascends to the throne in the future, does that mean that his mother's clan must be exterminated? No, whether it's Shang Xingzhou or the Pope behind him, he will feel apprehensive and uneasy. In the end, he will still have to rely on our strength. " Tianhai Chenwu gazed at the distant Dew Platform, his short beard lightly fluttering in the wind, giving off an extremely capable and unyielding feeling. "We are not Zhou Tong, who will be shouted at and beaten by everyone the moment he loses his family, so we need to be more dependable."
Tianhai Shengxue understood his father's meaning, but … if the rumors were true, if Chen Changsheng really was Crown Prince Zhaoming, then he would pose a threat to the Divine Empress. At a time like this, they had to consider the future ahead of time? He suddenly felt that the wind in the garden had grown cold, and then he remembered that it was already a bleak autumn.
The Tianhai clan's current status was naturally inextricably linked to the Divine Empress, but just as the Tang Old Master often said while fishing on the banks of the Wenshui, the Tianhai clan and the Tianhai Divine Empress had never been one and the same. The Tianhai clan grasped many hidden forces in society. Even if they lost the Divine Empress's care, no faction could uproot the clan in a single night.
A truly far-sighted and wise person would never place the future of a clan on a single person, even if that person was the most powerful person in the world. The Zhu Clan of Tianliang County had prospered because of Zhu Luo, but now it was about to wither because of the fall of this expert. This was a lesson, a warning to all the other clans.
Moreover, no matter how great a person was, there would always come a day when they would return to the sea of stars. Emperor Taizong was dead, Zhou Dufu was dead. Who could escape the two words of life and death?
Countless people poured into the night from the Tian Hai family's manor and the yamen controlled by the Tian Hai family, beginning to search for Chen Chang Sheng's whereabouts. This naturally alarmed many people, and those people immediately noticed the suspicious movements of the gloomy yamen in the alley of the Northern Military Department. Only then did they find out from the Orthodox Academy the source of all the commotion – Chen Chang Sheng had left the Orthodox Academy, going somewhere unknown.
A warning bell rang throughout the Li Palace, and the priests scattered into the night. The lights of the Bureau of Ecclesiastic Education were simultaneously lit, illuminating the plum blossoms in the corridor with a bewitching beauty. Two-hundred-some cavalry galloped out from the maple forest, their hooves thundering as they galloped towards the Orthodox Academy.
On the night of early autumn, the situation in the capital was abruptly tense and somber to the extreme. Yellow leaves drifted down from the sky.
… …
… …
How to die? This was the question. Ordinary people were not very willing to ponder this question, and every time they thought about it, they would subconsciously avoid it. Chen Chang Sheng's life was not ordinary, so he had pondered this question, and had pondered it many times. He had his own very clear answer, his own attitude.
To live a lively life, to die a lonely death. This was the answer that Zhexiu and Tang Thirty-Six had guessed, but it was not his answer. He might choose to live alone when he left this world, but in the period before that, he would not live alone, lowering his head to lick his wounds in silence. He did not leave to find his own grave, but to do a few things.
Zhexiu's words had reminded him that this world truly was brimming with malice towards him, but the people living in this world had already shown him a great deal of kindness. Before he left this world, he wanted to return that kindness, to respond to that malice. This was something that he had to accomplish.
On this quiet and beautiful autumn night, the streets and alleys of the capital were filled with the eyes of the various powers. The cavalry of the Imperial Court and the Orthodoxy galloped through the streets at high speeds. Countless people were searching for him and then attempting to kill him or protect him. However, at this moment, he had already avoided everyone's line of sight. Raising the Yellow Paper Umbrella, he noiselessly arrived at New North Bridge and then jumped into that dry well.
The space at the bottom of the well was still pitch-black and brimming with cold. His injuries had not completely recovered, so he fell deeper and deeper into the ground. His speed grew faster and faster, as if he wanted to become a stone that would perish together with the earth. However, when he was still several dozen zhang from the ground, a thick Qi appeared beneath him like a soft cotton cushion, greatly reducing the speed at which he fell.
This sort of situation had already occurred many times, so he did not panic. He adjusted his posture and waited for the Qi to dissipate before his two feet very steadily landed on the snow-covered ground.
A speck of light appeared on the ceiling of the cavern. It was a Night Pearl, and then countless Night Pearls began to light up one after the other, as if countless stars had descended into this world. A black silhouette the size of a mountain seemed to be moving slowly, but it was actually swiftly drifting over from the distance, looking down at him from above.
Under the silver light, the Black Dragon's eyes, which were even larger than a building, glowed with a cold light. They were brimming with a tyrannical mood, yet they also gave off a feeling of indifference.
This sort of meeting had already occurred many times, but this time was different. Neither Chen Changsheng nor the Black Dragon spoke. In the cold wind, they silently stared at each other, the atmosphere somewhat oppressive.
After an unknown amount of time, a dragon's roar brimming with anger reverberated through the underground cavern. The radiance of the Night Pearls that spilled down from the ceiling began to tremble, and the snow and frost on the ground danced in the air, lashing against Chen Changsheng's body. Like a whip, it left behind many deep and shallow scars.
Chen Changsheng could understand what she was feeling at the moment, so he silently endured.
The dragon's roar gradually faded, the wind and snow gradually ceased. The Black Dragon looked down at him, the indifference in its eyes gone, only brutality and anger remained, as well as a hint of … perplexity.
"You … you … you're going to die?"
After the dragon's roar faded, it was replaced by the voice of a young human girl. It could be heard that she was currently very flustered.
Chen Changsheng looked at the Black Dragon, feeling that for such a massive body and such a frightening level of cultivation, for its voice to be so clear and tender, the contrast was rather strong.
"Yes."
The Black Dragon was once again enraged, its tail, which was over ten li away, struck towards the wall, but before it could land, it was sent flying by the formation on the wall, causing innumerable amounts of snow and frost to scatter.
"But … but …"
The Black Dragon looked at Chen Changsheng, a hint of pain appearing in its eyes. Perhaps it was due to the backlash from the formation, or perhaps it was because it had seen the sorrowful scene of his future, but its voice trembled slightly.
"… you still haven't learned the Dragon language."
"I'm sorry." Chen Changsheng lowered his head, and after a while, he raised it up, looked at her and said: "In this lifetime, I might not be able to learn the Dragon language."
"Then … then … you're not allowed to die."
Chen Changsheng said nothing.
The Black Dragon sorrowfully said: "You haven't even done what you promised me, how can you die?"
"I'm sorry." Chen Changsheng apologized once more, saying: "I once promised you that I would find a way to rescue you from this place …"
"Yes, yes!" The Black Dragon's eyes suddenly brightened, and she hurriedly said: "You still haven't rescued me, how can you die? I won't allow you to die like this. "
"Don't worry, I've already thought of a way to rescue you."
Chen Changsheng looked at her and smiled, very happy and very sincere: "On the journey back from Mount Han, I had a lot of time to think, calculate for a very long time, and confirm that we still have to start with the Scroll of Time. In a little while, I will go to the stone wall and complete the array, ensuring that the power of the Scroll of Time can be maintained for a very long time. However, if we only rely on the array, we might need a very long time to use the power of time to remove the seal, so I recommend that you begin cultivating the Scroll of Time on your own. Perhaps it can speed up time."
He suddenly thought of something and said: "That's right, I met Wang Zhice in Mount Han, but I was in too much of a hurry at the time, so I forgot to ask him about these things."
Upon hearing that person's name, the Black Dragon, who was still immersed in the anger and sorrow of Chen Changsheng's impending death, couldn't help but stare blankly. She asked in surprise: "That swindler is still alive?"
Chen Changsheng replied: "Although he did not admit his identity, it should not be wrong."
The Black Dragon's voice turned cold, brimming with hatred: "It truly is the case that the wicked live for ten thousand years."
Chen Chang Sheng didn't know what to say. From the perspective of the Black Dragon, she was just an ignorant little girl of the dragon race. Although she had committed many sins after coming ashore from the Southern Sea, being imprisoned for several hundred years was enough to atone for her sins. Why was she imprisoned forever in this underground world that never saw the light of day? But from Wang Zhice's perspective, as the military advisor and half guardian of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he naturally had the responsibility to protect the common people of the Great Zhou.
"Chen Changsheng …" The Black Dragon's voice suddenly became calm.
"Mm?" He was somewhat confused.
The Black Dragon's voice resounded, cold and tinged with a faint sorrow.
"… You shouldn't have been a good person."
"… Why?"
"Because good people don't live long."
Chen Changsheng once again lowered his head, gazing at the frost beneath his feet. He thought back to the path of ice and rain that he had traversed in these past few years and fell silent for a very long time.
He had always believed that people like Wang Po were good people and that he definitely couldn't be considered one. He was only doing things that pleased his heart, because cultivation was to follow one's heart.
It was a pity that life and death were up to the heavens, but they were not willing to listen to one's own heart.
He raised his head to look at the Black Dragon, wanting to say a few words of explanation, but he suddenly discovered that the Black Dragon had disappeared!
Just like that, the mountain-like body of the dragon disappeared into thin air!
Chen Changsheng was abnormally shocked. He looked around, wanting to understand just what had happened.
Then, he saw that a girl had appeared in the snow.
The girl was dressed in black and sat in the snow. Her skirt was spread out and two thin chains extended from the back of her skirt, extending towards the stone wall ten-odd li away.
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