97: Father, surrender!

The smile on Li Chengqian's face was like a crack appearing on a glacier, unfathomably deep.

He no longer looked at his father, who was acting like a madman on the city wall.

His gaze slowly swept over every inch of silent ground beneath Xuanwu Gate, and over the beings hidden in the dark, lurking in the shadows.

Then, he raised his hand.

The Commander's Seal, representing the Great Tang Dynasty's most secret and terrifying power, shimmered with a cold, eerie light in his hand, catching the last sliver of blood-red afterglow.

"Bad People, heed my command."

His voice was not loud, yet it was like a sharp awl, instantly piercing the suffocating silence in front of Xuanwu Gate.

Time froze for an instant.

The wind stopped.

Everyone's breathing ceased.

Immediately after—

"Yes!"

A single word exploded simultaneously from all directions of Chang'an City, from every street, every eave, every dark corner!

That was not the shout of thousands of people; it was more like an ancient Vicious Beast that had been sleeping for three hundred years, now opening its blood-red eyes and letting out a roar that shook heaven and earth!

Boom!

The entire Xuanwu Gate, and even half of Chang'an City, trembled violently with this single affirmation!

On the city wall, the Five Surnames and Seven Clans Officials, who had still held onto a sliver of hope, instantly had all the color drained from their faces.

Li Taixu, the head of the Longxi Li Clan who had just been trembling like a sieve on the ground, now rolled his eyes and fainted from sheer terror.

The rest of the people were not much better.

The head of the Cui Clan gripped the battlement of the city wall tightly, his knuckles white from the effort, his teeth chattering, making a "clack-clack" sound.

The representative of the Wang Clan of Taiyuan slumped to the ground, covered in cold sweat, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

What did they see?

They saw black figures appearing out of thin air like ghosts beneath the city gate, at the end of the street, and on the rooftops on both sides.

They wore bamboo hats, their faces covered by masks resembling malevolent ghosts, clad in dark blue tight-fitting attire, and with standard curved sabers at their waists.

They were silent, evil spirits crawled out of Hell, nightmares bred from the shadows.

They were... the Bad People!

The sharpest and most secret blade in the hands of the Great Tang Dynasty's Son of Heaven!

This phantom army, whose name was heard but whose form was never seen, was rumored to be capable of anything, ascending to heaven and descending into the earth. They monitored all Officials, gathered military intelligence, and could even take the head of a general from a thousand miles away!

They were the Emperor's shadow, the Sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of all those with ill intentions!

But now, this sword, this phantom army that only obeyed the Emperor and the Commander of Bad Boys, was bowing down to the Crown Prince... obeying his command!

Fear is a contagious plague.

At this moment, all the Officials standing behind Li Shimin felt a bone-chilling coldness, a coldness that crept up their spines to the tops of their heads, almost freezing the blood in their veins.

It's over.

Everything is over!

Li Shimin stared blankly at the scene below the city.

That single "Yes!" was a heavy hammer that utterly shattered his last vestiges of pride and reason.

The madness and rage in his eyes faded, replaced by a deathly pallor.

It was the annihilation of all hope.

He recognized that Commander's Seal.

He had personally given it to Yuan Tiangang.

Throughout the land, seeing the Commander's Seal was like seeing the Commander of Bad Boys himself.

But Yuan Tiangang... shouldn't Yuan Tiangang be loyal to him?

"The Commander of Bad Boys's Seal..."

Li Shimin's voice was hoarse like a broken bellows, every word tinged with blood, "...why... is it in your hands!"

He was not questioning; he was wailing.

"You asked that once already!"

"Do I need to repeat it? You drove away the loyal Great Tang Dynastys National Preceptor, Yuan Tiangang!"

This was the lament of an emperor, the swan song of a father.

Li Chengqian slowly retracted the Commander's Seal into his sleeve. His movements remained composed, his valiant and dashing figure, illuminated by countless torches, looked like a deity.

He raised his head, looking once more at the tottering figure on the city wall, a cruel curve forming at the corner of his mouth.

"Imperial Father," his voice was not loud, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears, "At this point, are you still not going to surrender?"

He paused, his tone suddenly turning chillingly sharp, like someone judging an unpardonable prisoner.

"How long more... will you be rebellious!"

Boom!

The two words "rebellious" struck Li Shimin's head like a black lightning bolt!

He suddenly looked up, his bloodshot eyes glaring fixedly at Li Chengqian, his chest heaving violently, a trapped beast's guttural growl escaping his throat.

He, Li Shimin, was the General of Heavenly Strategies, the Prince of Qin, the Emperor of the Great Tang Dynasty!

His entire life had been spent quelling rebellion!

But today, he was being called a rebel by his own son, pointed at his nose!

What an utter humiliation!

What an immense humiliation this was!

"Pfft—"

A mouthful of fresh blood, no longer suppressible, gushed from Li Shimin's mouth, staining his Dragon robe.

"Li Chengqian!"

Li Shimin pointed at his son below the city, using all his remaining strength to let out a heart-wrenching roar.

"You have turned against the Heavenly Dao!"

This roar was filled with endless grief, indignation, and despair.

Heavenly Dao, Yuan Tiangang.

That was not just the name of a subject; it was a symbol of his, Li Shimin's, deepest trust and reliance in his past years.

Even he had betrayed him... who else in this world would not betray him?

Li Chengqian's gaze, like two ice-tempered sharp swords, slowly moved away from his father's pale, despairing face.

He did not say another word, merely turning his neck slightly, his dark black armor gleaming with a dull light under the torchlight.

His gaze, crossing the chasm between the city wall and the ground below, landed precisely on the group of aristocratic Officials on the city wall who had just been speaking so passionately and indignantly.

Leading them was the head of the Longxi Li Clan, Li Taixu.

The moment that cold gaze swept over him, Li Taixu felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, as if all his blood had frozen. He instinctively took a step back, his heel hitting the cold city brick with a soft "clunk."

This sound ignited the fuse of a powder keg.

"Whoosh—"

The Five Surnames and Seven Clans Officials behind him, as if struck by an invisible whip, uniformly took a large step back.

Just moments ago, they had stood tall, believing themselves to be loyal subjects and capable generals upholding the imperial court, vehemently accusing the Crown Prince of treason. But now, with the appearance of the Commander of Bad Boys's Seal, which symbolized the Emperor's most secret and terrifying power, and when the three thousand Bad People below the city responded with a thunderous roar, all their courage and confidence were instantly drained away.

The Emperor, who had been confident of victory, became a trapped beast in the blink of an eye.

And they, these "loyal subjects" who had staked everything on the Emperor, became fish on a chopping block.

They no longer dared to look up, no longer dared to meet the gaze of the demonic figure below the city. Each of them wished they could shrink their heads into their collars, wished they could turn into a brick on the city wall, unnoticed by anyone.

Their humble and cowering appearance formed a stark and ironic contrast to their previous arrogance.

Li Chengqian looked at the disgraceful behavior of this group, a sneer of extreme contempt twisting his lips.

"A bunch of spineless cowards!"

His voice was not loud, yet it carried a bone-chilling coldness, clearly reaching the ears of everyone on the city wall.

"Fair-weather friends!"

This angry curse made Li Taixu and the others tremble again, burying their heads even lower.