269: Chapter 269 National Destiny

The freak threw back his head and let out a shrill howl, shaking loose another shower of earth and stones.

He suddenly leaped out of the coffin, grabbing Xu Chaoyang's shoulders and shaking him violently.

"I could have resurrected him!"

"Why didn't you send him to me in time!"

"Why!"

Xu Chaoyang's eyes turned red. "Send him to you to be resurrected, only to become like you? Can you even be considered alive right now?"

The freak glared at him, panting heavily, but let go of his shoulders after a moment.

"You're right, I truly can't be considered a living person anymore."

"Most of the time, my mind is becoming less and less clear, and I'm about to lose myself. Your mother wouldn't like this, and Songling probably wouldn't like it either."

"It must be Ye Qingcang, that damned incompetent ruler. It must be him. I'm going to grind his bones to ashes. I'm going to dig up all his ancestral graves and grind those bones to ashes too!"

Xu Chaoyang said in a low voice, "It will happen, and that day is not far off."

"Whether it's the Ye family or that Xie Jin, we will avenge every grievance."

"But you woke up a bit early this time. No matter how painful it is, you must return to the coffin to avoid being sensed by other Huagai Realm."

The freak shook his head repeatedly. "No! I didn't wake up on my own this time. It's the Divine Ruins. There's an anomaly within the Divine Ruins; someone might have entered."

Xu Chaoyang was greatly shocked. "That's impossible!"

"Nothing is impossible."

With a flick of the man in the coffin's blackened hand, a pendant appeared, its black crescent moon gemstone flickering with an eerie light.

"Back then, Nine People entered the Divine Ruins together. The other eight all died. Even I didn't expect to walk onto that altar alive."

"I certainly didn't expect that the divine artifact left behind by the Crystal Concubine would actually harbor the power of the Alien God and the Moon Mother."

"It was precisely this power that prevented my Soul from dissipating. Even though my body was tainted by the power of the Alien God, my Realm achieved a Breakthrough to Huagai Realm."

"I haven't mastered all the secrets of the Divine Ruins at all. Who's to say others haven't had even more miraculous encounters?"

"Something in the Divine Ruins must have been touched, which is why I felt it. Have you been to the Divine Ruins lately?"

Xu Chaoyang immediately shook his head. "No. I'm still trying to find ways to persuade and gather manpower."

"Then it's bad. It could be those Nanhe bastards, or even Blue Sea experts. how many people have you recruited now?"

"About ten from Song City, an estimated five Blasphemers, and we should be able to gather a similar number from Sang City and Yu City. Later, I plan to recruit some people from Feng City. The total will definitely be over thirty."

"Then you'd better hurry. Once the location of the Divine Ruins is leaked, it will attract a large number of Spirit Maps, and possibly even Huagai Realm."

"Three days. I'll strive to bring people there in three days! But Father, your current condition... can you fight a Huagai Realm?"

The man in the coffin gave a raspy laugh. "I certainly can't sustain a long battle against a strong opponent, so I can't stay in the coffin anymore. I need to find some food over the next few days."

"But you don't need to worry too much. The High Priests of the various sects are just watchdogs, Pseudo-Huagai forcibly elevated by the gods. Their Realm will quickly drop if their bodies leave their cities, so they don't dare come out easily."

"If their Souls leave their bodies, hehe... that's exactly what I want."

At this point, he stuck out a half-black, half-white tongue and licked his lips. "If I can really devour one or two, maybe I can hold on for a few more years."

Xu Chaoyang said solemnly, "I have made a comprehensive plan. After raising the troops, we will wipe out Feng City with the force of a thunderbolt and strive to kill the High Priest of Feng City."

"The problem lies in Huaidou."

"The Pope is unfathomable. And there's also University Scholar Zong Liangchen, who is an Ancient God Huagai. If he truly stands on the Pope's side when the time comes, I'm afraid..."

The freak snorted coldly, "University Scholar Zong Liangchen? Hmph! A cowardly piece of trash."

"The Parasitic God he comprehended is the weakest among the Ancient Gods. His actual combat power isn't much stronger than a Spirit Map Peak."

"He'd better do what he did before—scram far away with his tail between his legs."

"If he doesn't know his place, I'll kill him first before the final battle with the Pope!"

Xu Chaoyang pondered, "What if I can use the Divine Ruins to lure University Scholar Zong Liangchen out as well?"

The freak was overjoyed. "That would be even better!"

"His Soul is definitely stronger than those watchdogs. If I can devour him, I can certainly last until you are secure on the throne, and maybe even see you Breakthrough to Huagai Realm."

"However, Chaoyang, you need to consider marrying a few more women."

"Wei Mingzhu is a hen that can't lay eggs, and the power held by the Wei Family is too great. This is unfavorable for the new dynasty."

"When you become Emperor, a woman who hasn't produced a son is not fit to be Empress."

"I heard the Jiang Family only has a daughter in this generation; she should be a good choice."

Xu Chaoyang sighed, "The Jiang Family... probably won't agree. At a time like this, I don't want to cause unnecessary complications."

The freak laughed loudly. "They won't agree now, but that doesn't mean they won't agree in the future. Even if the Jiang Family's hidden strength is great, once I show my face and you reign over Dongyu, I don't believe that old man Jiang would dare not bow his head!"

"We'll see when the time comes."

Xu Chaoyang thought for a moment and added, "Father, a person has appeared in Song City. I suspect this person is a Reincarnation of the Saint. If he is, would his Soul be beneficial to you?"

The freak's single eye darted around. "Reincarnation of the Saint! Are you sure?"

Xu Chaoyang shook his head. "Not sure. Currently, all we know is that he inherited the mask of calamity."

"But from the moment this person appeared, I felt Jiang Yueyu's attitude was very strange, as if she was terrified others would notice him."

"After Jiang Yueyu's incident, the attitude of the four bishops of Song City also became very strange. It was as if, all of a sudden, they were all following this person's every command."

"If it weren't for this person causing such a stir, showing many divine anomalies, and making Mingzhu and the Wei Family suffer setbacks one after another, I wouldn't have made that connection."

"Based on various signs, I suspect he might not be just a Holy Messenger."

"If I were to give the most logical explanation, he could be the legendary Reincarnation of the Saint."

The freak's fish-like eyes suddenly lit up. "Some Saints were powerful enough to rival Ancient Gods, with Souls that could never be extinguished through ten thousand lifetimes!"

"If your judgment is correct, devouring him... perhaps I could rid myself of the Alien God and the erosion, so I wouldn't have to live in such pain!"

"Regardless of whether it's true or false, let me try to devour him!"

"Of course, he will definitely be yours when the time comes, but you must be patient."

At this point, Xu Chaoyang cautioned him again.

"Father, these few days are the most critical moment. Even if you don't want to return to the coffin, you must be extremely careful. You are the most critical link to our success or failure; you absolutely cannot be discovered beforehand."

The freak nodded in silence.

————

Huaidou, Imperial Palace.

After listening to Shadow's report, Ye Qingcang couldn't help but burst into a long laugh.

"Good, very good! You've done a splendid job!"

"This rebel Xu Chaoyang dares to dream of being Emperor? I'll first make sure that man named Xu has no descendants!"

"With this example, let's see who else dares to plot rebellion with him!"

"It seems the national fortune of my Dongyu will last for a long time yet."

At this time, Shadow advised, "Your Majesty should still be careful. Xu Chaoyang has used some unknown method to basically unify the Song City military, and both the Jiang and Zheng families have taken a permissive attitude."

"Once this fellow truly stakes everything on a single throw, it will still be very dangerous."

"To avoid any eventualities, the state should make preparations now."

Ye Qingcang smiled and waved his hand. "There won't even be a one-in-ten-thousand chance. Xu Chaoyang is a dead man."

Shadow frowned. "Does Your Majesty have some basis for saying that?"

Ye Qingcang took a letter from his robe and handed it to him. "Take a look at this."

Shadow took the letter and read a few lines, his face also filled with astonishment.

"Lord Baiyan is also colluding with Xu Chaoyang? And so many others... this couldn't be fake, could it?"

"How could this Tang Long, a mere student, know everything so clearly? Besides, he's a Holy Messenger; how could he be so loyal to the state?"

Ye Qingcang chuckled. "This was personally confirmed by Old Minister Qian; it's basically true and accurate."

"As for certain people under our noses, as long as we conduct a targeted investigation, it's easy to distinguish truth from falsehood."

"Previously, I didn't quite dare to believe that his heart truly favored the state. But now it seems I was being narrow-minded."

"In my grand Dongyu, heroes emerge in every generation, and there's never a lack of patriots. He is a Holy Messenger, yes, but who says a Holy Messenger can't be a patriot?"

"He said in the letter that the Integration of Church and State is the only system that can end the country's division and is an inevitable trend. I deeply agree and cannot help but feel some admiration."

"One who doesn't truly worry for the country with all their heart wouldn't think of this, nor could they say such words."

"When the nation faces peril, the appearance of such a loyal young hero is what we call national fortune."

"Therefore, I am convinced that a mere Xu Chaoyang cannot stir up much trouble. He might not even get past Tang Long!"

Shadow tapped the letter and nodded slightly. "For a young man to think so deeply is indeed remarkable."

"But Your Majesty, according to this information, we can easily sabotage most of Xu Chaoyang's plans."

"However, there's another point in the intelligence stating that a Huagai Realm is suspected to be by Xu Chaoyang's side. This is still a massive danger."

"Even if Tang Long has strategies, he is too young after all. He probably doesn't understand what kind of existence a Huagai Realm is. When he says he has a way to deal with it, I'm afraid we still shouldn't trust him blindly."

Ye Qingcang gave a heavy snort. "Yesterday, the Old Man invited me and the Grand Secretary to dinner; the meaning was already self-evident."

"Huagai Realm, Huagai Realm... I intend to make a move against these Huagai Realm, otherwise Dongyu will never truly prosper."

"Tang Long is indeed a bit young, but only young people have such sharp vigor."

"As for whether his method is feasible..."

"I'm going to Song City. I want to meet this Tang Long personally and hear his method."