Chapter 30: I Am Not His Equal
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The Hall of Literary Virtue remained brightly lit throughout the night.
Emperor Yang Wu sat in a rocking chair, still swaying back and forth.
There were no servants in the room. He was alone.
Steam rose ceaselessly from the brazier.
Yang Wu lifted the cup of wine beside him and took a slow sip.
Just then, Han Zhong entered and swiftly shut the door behind him.
He hurried to Yang Wu and knelt, his expression grave.
“Your Majesty, Yang Zhan has defeated Luo Jianyi. He used only one move and left Luo Jianyi gravely wounded.”
Yang Wu remained calm and said nothing, continuing to savor the wine in his cup.
Han Zhong did not stop. He continued his report.
“Afterward, a band of martial artists from the rivers and lakes appeared. Yang Zhan never even had to act. His personal guards and the Eastern Palace Guards cut them all down!”
Yang Wu still said nothing. His aged face remained as unmoving as a still well, as though none of this had anything to do with him.
Han Zhong remained kneeling and continued.
“Just moments ago, a group of martial arts masters and qi refiners arrived without anyone detecting them. They attacked the Heavenly Prison using the Savage Kingdom’s strange poison, Tudu!”
At that instant, a change came over Yang Wu’s old eyes. Even the corners of his eyes twitched several times.
He stared coldly at Han Zhong. “They entered without anyone knowing?”
“Yes. The Nine-Rank Hall did not detect them in the slightest!”
“Are you certain it was Tudu?”
“Yes. Although our men were some distance away, they heard Yang Zhan’s cries. It was Tudu.”
Yang Wu drained the wine in his cup. The weariness of age seemed to vanish from his body, replaced by imposing authority.
He straightened his back and looked at Han Zhong.
Han Zhong seemed to feel the pressure. He lowered his head even further.
“What of the people inside?”
Han Zhong hastily replied, “Everyone else in the Heavenly Prison is unharmed, but Yang Zhan has been poisoned.”
Yang Wu looked at him, his voice indifferent. “I heard Tudu has no antidote?”
“Your Majesty, this servant is not entirely certain, but that is what I have heard.”
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Yang Wu’s expression grew increasingly icy.
The pressure bearing down on Han Zhong seemed to intensify, and sweat appeared on his forehead.
After swallowing, Han Zhong finally spoke again. “Your Majesty, there is also… there is also…”
“If there is more, then say it. Why are you stammering?”
Han Zhong hurriedly wiped the sweat from his brow and said in a rushed voice, “The Third Prince has taken control of the Northern Office Imperial Guards and the Wuce Army!”
The next moment, Han Zhong was nearly prostrate on the floor, as though a mountain had been placed upon him.
“The Northern Office Imperial Guards and the Wuce Army—how could the Third Prince control them without my military tally?”
Yang Wu’s voice was now somewhat cold.
“The commander of the Northern Office Imperial Guards was arrested, the deputy commander was killed, and the general of the Wuce Army was… executed. As for the others who resisted…”
At this point, Han Zhong could no longer continue.
It felt as though countless blades were pressed against his throat. The slightest mistake would leave him separated from his head.
Yang Wu closed his eyes.
“Go.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
As though granted a pardon, Han Zhong hurriedly left.
…
The Third Prince, Yang Jin, stood at a high vantage point, watching the commotion in the direction of the distant Heavenly Prison.
Suddenly, he asked, “Master Zhang, do you think Yang Zhan can withstand the people from the Savage Kingdom’s Snow Mountain Hall?”
“It will be difficult. Yang Zhan is truly too formidable. Luo Jianyi could not even withstand a single move.”
Yang Jin laughed. “I never expected those Savage Kingdom vermin to kill Yang Zhan. But what of Tudu?”
“That is difficult to say.”
Yang Jin frowned. “Tudu has no antidote. It is hailed as the greatest strange poison beneath heaven. And you still say it is difficult to say, even after he continued circulating his power and fighting a great battle?”
Zhang Wuxiang frowned. “I have conducted a detailed study of Yang Zhan’s life. His existence is filled with miracles.”
“What miracles?”
“First, and greatest of all, he had no foundation and no backer, yet rose from an ordinary infantryman to the pinnacle of the Divine Martial Army.”
“Second, under Yang Zhan’s command, the Divine Martial Army fought several battles against the Savage Kingdom, repeatedly defeating superior numbers with inferior forces and the strong with the weak. Yang Zhan’s mastery of strategy was so remarkable that even Han Qian, the greatest military strategist of the age, held him in the highest esteem. Han Qian went so far as to declare that Yang Zhan was unmatched by anyone before or after him, that he had carried the art of war to an unprecedented height, and even recorded his methods in the military treatises he authored.”
Yang Jin frowned. “To earn such praise from Han Qian is indeed extraordinary, but is that really a miracle?”
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Zhang Wuxiang looked at Yang Jin. “Your Highness, the reason I call it a miracle is that Yang Zhan was illiterate in the past. He learned to read in the army and had never studied military treatises. The methods he employed cannot be found in any surviving military text, nor is there a single precedent for them!”
Yang Jin was stunned.
“That truly is a miracle!”
Zhang Wuxiang spoke with renewed solemnity. “Third, when Yang Zhan was still an infantryman, he could not even be considered a martial artist. Yet in little more than a decade, he reached the peak of the First Rank. Such speed of advancement is as though the gods and spirits themselves aided him!”
At this, Zhang Wuxiang looked toward Yang Jin. “According to the records, the fastest martial artist ever to reach the First Rank still required thirty years of cultivation. That was the former Marquis of Crowned Valor of our Great Xia Dynasty. Yang Zhan took less than half that time!”
Yang Jin drew a deep breath. “That is an even greater miracle!”
“There is more…”
Yang Jin’s expression froze. “More?”
Zhang Wuxiang gave a bitter smile. “Indeed. Fourth, when Yang Zhan fought the Savage Emperor, the Savage Emperor had already reached the Sacred Martial Realm. He was accompanied by four First-Rank experts and a qi refiner in the Profound Connection Realm. Yang Zhan fought them all alone and still withdrew without a wound!”
Yang Jin’s eyes widened instantly.
After a moment, he frowned. “Why did you not tell me this earlier? I had always thought that battle was a one-on-one duel between Yang Zhan and the Savage Emperor. Escaping unharmed would not have been all that remarkable. I never imagined…”
“I learned this only recently from Gedda, the priest of the Snow Mountain Hall.”
At this, even Zhang Wuxiang looked deeply troubled. “General, if even that failed to kill him, then he truly is…”
Yang Jin laughed. “That is precisely why taking control of the Northern Office Imperial Guards and the Wuce Army is the safeguard that will eliminate every possible accident!”
The worry on Zhang Wuxiang’s face deepened.
“Your Highness, this may become the greatest taboo in His Majesty’s eyes.”
Yang Jin laughed again. “He likes setting questions for others to answer. Then I shall set one for him as well. His eldest son is dead—does he have any other way to solve it?”
Zhang Wuxiang relaxed and nodded. “Naturally. With only Your Highness remaining, His Majesty will have no choice.”
“Exactly. Ensuring that my imperial father has no choice is the greatest safeguard of all.”
As he spoke, Yang Jin looked toward the Heavenly Prison. Yang Zhan had already slain dozens of men.
Even from a great distance, the flashes of his blade amid the howling wind and blinding snow shook Yang Jin to the core. His blood boiled involuntarily.
“To be born a man and gallop across the battlefield—only a general like Yang would make this seven-foot body’s journey through the world worthwhile. I cannot compare!”
As he spoke, admiration filled Yang Jin’s face, and his eyes burned with fierce battle intent.
“If I become emperor, I shall follow my imperial father’s example, personally lead the army on campaign, eradicate every threat in the north, and spread the majesty of Great Xia!”
Zhang Wuxiang could not help clasping his fists. “Your Highness’s grand ambition shall surely be fulfilled!”
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