Chapter 19: More Danger Than Fortune

Boom!!

Zhong Lishuang delivered a fierce hammer strike, smashing the ground. The震荡的气劲 sent the surrounding barbarian warriors tumbling head over heels.

At that moment, Zi Ruoyan's furious shout rang out, echoing across the entire battlefield.

Zhong Lishuang quickly looked up and saw Zi Ruoyan trapped. Her expression changed drastically. "Your Majesty!!"

"Don't come over! Hold the frontier at all costs! Don't let the barbarians break through!" Zi Ruoyan's shout stopped Zhong Lishuang's charge.

Military orders were absolute!

Even though Zhong Lishuang was worried about Zi Ruoyan's safety, with Her Majesty's command, she could only grit her teeth and retreat.

Inside the Blood-Burning Spirit-Sealing Array, Zi Ruoyan's red lips parted slightly as she exhaled lightly. Frost materialized in the air before her.

"Accept your fate, Empress of Great Yan." Jia Xu gripped his bone staff, standing motionless.

Zi Ruoyan sat cross-legged in midair, her Frost Longsword resting on her knees. "I don't understand. Is it worth it?"

"Using this Blood-Burning Spirit-Sealing Array means you'll never have another chance to break through to a higher realm."

Jia Xu coughed twice and smiled. "Of course it's worth it!"

"With this payment, the Barbarian Kingdom will have the qualifications to continue northward and claim new territory."

"Ever since your father suddenly disappeared, I knew the waters of the Great Yan Dynasty run too deep."

"It's better for the Barbarian Kingdom to stay far away."

Zi Ruoyan remained silent, her cold gaze fixed on Jia Xu.

The possible retaliation from Blood Cloud Tower headquarters and the threat of Black Soul Hall's Poison Swamp Elder were indeed vexing.

Whoosh...

She exhaled another breath of cold air, lowering her body temperature and forcing herself to calm down.

Her emotions quickly settled. Being anxious and angry wouldn't solve anything.

The only thing she could do was find a way to escape as soon as possible and return to aid the Great Yan Dynasty.

To minimize the losses.

Jia Xu held his bone staff, watching Zi Ruoyan trapped by him, full of admiration.

"Truly worthy of being the renowned Empress of Great Yan. You haven't let your emotions control you or waste your spiritual qi. It seems you're conserving your strength, looking for an opportunity."

"But no matter what, my task of holding you here is complete. Those innocent people are to be pitied."

Jia Xu's gaze turned toward the Great Yan Dynasty as he sighed.

There was no choice—everything was for the Barbarian Kingdom!

Great Yan Dynasty, on Qingyan Mountain.

"The wild boar meat hunted here is so much more fragrant, and the water is sweet too. What a fine mountain." Xiao Tian wiped the grease from his mouth and burped.

Comfortable.

Beside him was an enormous skeleton, with a small mountain of wild boar meat—eighty percent of which had gone into Xiao Tian's stomach.

"Prince, you can really eat!" Zhong Ling stood nearby, staring at the skeleton with twitching lips.

Not just her—the Female Imperial Guards standing watch were also dumbstruck.

They couldn't understand how Xiao Tian's stomach could hold so much meat.

"Good digestion, can't help it." Xiao Tian picked his teeth with a thin blade of grass, answering casually.

In reality, it was because his body was too powerful, with digestion capabilities that defied heaven.

There was almost nothing Xiao Tian couldn't digest.

Even if he were poor enough to eat dirt, he could digest nutrients from it—that's how absurd it was.

Of course, being kept by the Empress, falling to the point of eating dirt would be difficult.

"Good mountain, good water—this Qingyan Mountain really is excellent. Could we lease it and raise livestock here? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"About this time, I should head back for an afternoon nap."

Xiao Tian stood up, supporting himself on his knees, and looked around. "Hmm, why are we missing someone? Where's your leader Liu Yan?"

"I asked her to go to Qingyan Town to bring back some Qingyan Wine for you to try, Prince." Zhong Ling explained softly. "Actually, I also hoped Sister Liu could take the opportunity to pay respects to her husband."

Xiao Tian was somewhat surprised. "Qingyan Town? The town her husband defended to the death is nearby?"

"Yes, I thought Sister Liu would definitely want to tell her husband the good news about Blood Cloud Tower's destruction." Zhong Ling said carefully, "Prince, please don't blame me for acting on my own."

"Worth mentioning, the wine from Qingyan Town is really delicious."

"Because it's brewed using the mountain spring from this Qingyan Mountain, it has a unique flavor."

Seeing Zhong Ling's cautious gaze, Xiao Tian sighed. "Can you be a bit more relaxed? You're making me seem scary, like a bad person."

"Hehe..." Zhong Ling laughed awkwardly. She couldn't help it—when Xiao Tian had unleashed his killing intent before, the psychological shadow it left on her hadn't dissipated yet.

"Qingyan Town..." Xiao Tian murmured softly. He was somewhat interested in this town.

He wasn't a fool. Xiao Tian felt this Qingyan Mountain's environment must be special.

Otherwise, why would the meat from prey on this mountain taste so much better?

Why would rice steamed with this mountain spring taste so much better than what was in the palace?

"One region's water and soil nurtures one region's people." Xiao Tian smiled. "Since the town's wine is good, the food surely won't disappoint either, right?"

"If it's really good, I could pay the people of Qingyan Town to help raise livestock. Paired with good wine, my palate will never suffer."

"Let's go, let's go! Lead the way. I want to conduct an on-site inspection of this Qingyan Town." Xiao Tian began directing Zhong Ling.

Zhong Ling glanced at the surrounding tents and prey. "What about these things? What if we go to town and Sister Liu just comes back, and we miss each other?"

"That's simple. You all stay here. If you don't see us and Liu Yan return in about half an hour, take everything back to the palace." Xiao Tian turned to address several Female Imperial Guards nearby.

The guards looked at each other. One of them cupped her fists. "Prince, our duty is to guard your safety, so..."

"Enough. All of you together can't beat this little girl, so it's unnecessary." Xiao Tian waved his hand, cutting off the guard's words. "Consider it a half-day off. Rest well—balance work and rest, right?"

With that, Xiao Tian didn't wait for the guards to recover and had already left with Zhong Ling leading the way.

After the two figures disappeared, the Female Imperial Guards looked at each other and shrugged helplessly.

"The Prince really is willful, especially obsessed with eating and sleeping."

"I wonder what exactly Her Majesty saw in him."

"The Young General is even stranger—she's actually competing with Her Majesty for... mmph..."

Before the guard could finish, her companions quickly covered her mouth to prevent her from continuing to speak recklessly.

"Watch your words, watch your words!"

Qingyan Town, at the town entrance.

A tombstone stood by the river at the town's entrance, with a statue erected beside it.

The entire town of Qingyan had collectively funded its construction to commemorate their savior.

But now, this statue was emanating light, having become a node in a formation array that enveloped the entire town of Qingyan.

"Pff!!" Liu Yan's figure was blasted from a distance, crashing into her husband's statue and sliding to the ground.

A mouthful of fresh blood stained the earth red.

"I've heard that the Empress of Great Yan's Imperial Guard are all battlefield veterans—experienced and powerful."

"Seeing you now, you're nothing special." A young man shrouded in black robes stood not far away, spiritual qi swirling around him, his tone mocking.

Behind him, an old man stood with his hands behind his back, his cold gaze fixed on the town enveloped by the formation array ahead.

"Black Soul Hall..." Liu Yan's fingers dug into the ground. Her heart had sunk to the bottom.

Qingyan Town faced more danger than fortune.