(In the last chapter, I had Yu Ren say a few words and Snow sent me a message asking if it was a bug. I thought about it and admitted that it was, then made some changes. Then … I will be rather busy in the coming days. As for the specifics, I will explain it to you in a few days. If I have time, I will write. If not, then I can only apologize. I wish everyone happiness and good health.)
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The gates of the Imperial City were tightly shut. The Divine Generals, ministers, and princes in the capital had already arrived at the palace. Mao Qiuyu and Daoist Baishi had also hurried over from the Li Palace. As time passed, more and more information arrived from the snowy plains to the south. The news that could shake the entire continent and bring about countless upheavals gradually became more detailed, more vivid.
Three days ago, on the night of the coup of the Mausoleum of Books in the capital, a world-shaking event also occurred in Xuelao City. The Demon Commander suddenly raised the flag of rebellion and led the army in an assault on the Demon Palace. The Demon Lord was ambushed by the Demon Military Advisor Black Robe and a hidden expert of the Council of Elders. He was heavily injured and fell into the Nether Spring, with no chance of survival.
Demon Princess Nanke used the secret technique of exploding blood to forcefully break through the barrier of the Demon Palace. Transforming into a peacock, she flew southeast, borrowing the wind and snow to successfully escape. Seven Demon Generals loyal to the Demon Lord and tens of thousands of Demon cavalry were killed or executed in this rebellion. The streets of Xuelao City were covered in the color of blood, like a blue wave, striking fear into the hearts of all. Afterwards, Black Robe and the Demon Commander, upon the ascension of the Demon Lord's youngest son to the throne, issued several demon decrees, requiring all the tribes and armies of the Demon race to swear their loyalty. At the same time, they issued the order to kill Nanke.
What was going on here? The dukes of the Great Zhou in the hall looked at each other. Even though they had already verified the authenticity of this news through many different channels, they still found it hard to believe … the greatest enemy of the Human race in the last one thousand years, that devil that had once enveloped the north like a shadow, that not even Emperor Taizong had been able to kill … had actually died like this?
Yes, one thousand years ago, the Demon Lord lost to Zhou Dufu and was heavily injured. This year, in order to break the array of the Elder of Heavenly Secrets, he had also consumed a great deal of essence blood. Very few people knew that on the Demon Lord's return to Xuelao City, he had encountered the White Emperor. Presumably, that world-shaking battle had also aggravated his injuries, so how could he have died?
The most incomprehensible thing was, how could he have died in a rebellion?
In order to find a faction within the Demon race to overthrow the Demon Lord, it would definitely not be the Council of Elders, nor could it be those tribes that had already been killed to the core. It could only be the Demon Commander who controlled a considerable number of Demon armies and possessed abnormally terrifying strength, as well as the mysterious and unfathomable Black Robe who had secretly cultivated an unknown number of factions. Moreover, it had to be them working together.
The problem was that even storytellers with the most exaggerated imaginations did not dare to think in this direction.
The entire world knew that the Demon Military Advisor Black Robe and the Demon Commander were like fire and water. If not for the Demon Lord's personal suppression and mediation, the two sides would never have been able to coexist.
This couldn't be fake, because this situation had been maintained for hundreds of years. Then just who was it that could make Black Robe and the demons put aside their former enmity, take such a massive risk, place such great trust in each other, and work together to launch such a sinister and terrifying attack against the Demon Lord?
The crowd subconsciously turned their gazes to a certain place — it was an unremarkable corner of the great hall, very quiet and secluded. There were no eunuchs or maids standing there, only a row of beaded curtains. As the autumn wind blew, the beaded curtains silently swayed, and one could faintly make out the scene behind them. There were no seats behind the curtains, but a long corridor.
This long corridor led to a very ordinary room at the back of the hall.
Many years ago, those legendary ministers depicted in the portraits of the Lingyan Pavilion were used to drinking tea, playing chess, and cursing in that room, passing the boring time before the court session.
Now, Emperor Taizong's soul had long since returned to the sea of stars, and those legendary ministers had long since followed him. No one dared to be so relaxed in the Imperial Palace, nor would anyone deliberately be so magnanimous. The vast majority of people had even forgotten those stories that had occurred in that ordinary room.
There was one person who had not forgotten, because he was a person of that era.
He had not ascended to the Lingyan Pavilion because he did not have the fame of those legendary ministers, but in truth, in that era, he had been more important than the vast majority of the people in the Lingyan Pavilion. This was because before those legendary ministers died, before they were painted on paper by Daoist Wu, he had seen them with his own eyes. From another perspective, those legendary ministers had all been sent to the Lingyan Pavilion by him.
He was now in that ordinary room.
Perhaps he was reminiscing about those former comrades, or perhaps he was reporting something to Emperor Taizong.
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In the coup of the Mausoleum of Books, the Tianhai Divine Empress had once asked who would resolve the threat of the demons.
Shang Xingzhou had said that he could resolve it.
Han Qing believed that he could resolve it, so he had thrown the Frost God Spear and completed the Autumn Slaying.
Three days had passed. The Demon Lord truly had died, Xuelao City had fallen into chaos, and Shang Xingzhou had proved his words.
At this time, Han Qing was perhaps hurrying to Xuelao City. Would the once-Demonic Crown Prince watch as his younger brother ascended to the throne of the Demon Lord?
The important figures in the hall stared speechlessly at the silently swaying beaded curtains.
They could not see Shang Xingzhou's figure, but their eyes were still brimming with reverence.
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When there were clouds, the lights of the capital would dim a little, so the darkness of the night could not be too thick.
When there were no clouds, the stars in the sky would illuminate the world, but the darkness of the night still could not be too thick.
In short, in a bustling place like the capital, it was very difficult to see an extremely thick darkness of the night, much less a pitch-black darkness, unless a torrential downpour forced people to put out their own lights.
The starlight was scattered by the flying Red Geese and several extremely valuable Heaven Patrol Carriages. Chen Changsheng stood on the great banyan tree, inexplicably beginning to reminisce about that torrential downpour from three days ago.
Perhaps it was because three days ago, many things had not happened. At the time, he still had the chance to pretend that his life was peaceful and beautiful.
Just like three years ago, when he and Luoluo were in the Orthodox Academy.
Yet one year ago, Tang Thirty-Six had said to him on this great banyan tree that there was a problem with his teacher, that many people had problems, and that he needed to think carefully about these problems.
Chen Changsheng had thought about these problems, but he did not have the ability or the wisdom to resolve them.
Tang Thirty-Six had left, forcefully brought back to Wenshui by the Tang clan. It was unknown whether he would ever return.
Xu Yourong had left, forcefully escorted back to Holy Maiden Peak by the Tianhai Divine Empress's Mo Yu. It was unknown what sort of storm this city would stir when she returned to the capital.
Zhexiu had left, like a true lone wolf vanishing into the darkness and lights of the capital. However, he was definitely still in the capital, though it was unknown what he was preparing to do.
What truly made Chen Chang Sheng feel somewhat lonely, or perhaps sad, was: Zhou Tong was still alive.
He already knew the complete picture of the coup of the Mausoleum of Books.
That small courtyard with the crabapple trees had been destroyed, but Zhou Tong had managed it very well, and … he had even poisoned Xue Xingchuan to death.
The change in the situation in the capital began from the moment the Imperial Design lost its effectiveness. It could be said that Zhou Tong had played the most important role.
He had betrayed the Tianhai Divine Empress.
Chen Chang Sheng could accept this.
This was because Zhexiu was a wolf, while Zhou Tong was a dog. A wolf traveled a thousand li to eat meat, while a dog was a bastard.
However, Xu Shiji had also betrayed them.
Even the Tianhai clan had betrayed them.
This was hard for Chen Chang Sheng to accept.
It had nothing to do with one's stance or faction. It was just hard to accept.
This sort of world was truly too inexplicable.
It was truly impossible for him to like this sort of inexplicable world.
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