263: Emperor's Will

Ye Kong did not pursue them. The enemy's situation was unclear, and a proactive attack might lead to being ambushed by an unknown number of Deities.

Although he had obtained the Emperor's Nine Heavens Divine Lightning, fighting one against two was still too difficult.

Ye Kong flashed, arriving beside General Zhen Guo, then took General Zhen Guo and rushed into the Imperial City.

"Retreat! Everyone, fall back into the city!"

As he left, Ye Kong glanced in the direction where Dao Guang and the others were, a gesture that startled Dao Guang, fearing Ye Kong would attack again.

However, after just a glance, Ye Kong entered the Imperial City.

The soldiers of the Imperial City Army stood on the city walls, watching the Fishing Old Man and Dao Guang. Only after the Fishing Old Man had completely departed did they finally relax.

General Zhen Guo said to Ye Kong, "General Chen, we were able to temporarily repel the enemy this time thanks to your timely arrival."

General Zhen Guo bowed deeply to Ye Kong.

Ye Kong quickly helped General Zhen Guo up and said, "General, what are you saying? It is my duty, Ye Kong's, to serve the Human Race."

General Zhen Guo smiled and said to Ye Kong, "Good. You should quickly follow me into the palace to see the Emperor."

"The Emperor is gravely ill, I fear his days are numbered."

Ye Kong and General Zhen Guo quickened their pace towards the Imperial Palace.

Along the way, they saw many injured Imperial City soldiers being transported to hospitals within the Imperial City.

Furthermore, many citizens voluntarily came out to help the Imperial City Army transport the wounded, showing the harmonious relationship between the people and the army under the Emperor's rule in the Imperial City.

Under General Zhen Guo's lead, Ye Kong quickly entered the Imperial Palace. At this moment, the palace was filled with a solemn and murderous aura, and the guarding soldiers were all on high alert.

Upon entering the Emperor's sleeping quarters, a powerful Deity Qi suddenly surged out.

Ye Kong's heart stirred. Could it be the Emperor?

A Deity appeared out of thin air before General Zhen Guo and Ye Kong.

This Deity had a stern expression, an extremely handsome and cool appearance, with his hands clasped behind his back, looking extraordinarily heroic.

He nodded to General Zhen Guo, then looked at Ye Kong.

General Zhen Guo saluted this Deity and introduced Ye Kong to him.

"General Jiang Huang, this is General Who Suppresses Rebellion, Shura Ye Kong, who helped us resist the enemy."

Jiang Huang nodded and said to Ye Kong, "The Divine Lightning outside the city was caused by you, wasn't it? That pressure of the Great Dao is as powerful as the Emperor's Nine Heavens Divine Lightning. You are indeed someone recognized by the Emperor."

"You two should go in quickly. The Emperor might fall into a long sleep at any moment..."

General Jiang Huang was the commander of the Imperial City Palace's Imperial Forest Army, in the Deity Realm. He was five years older than Ye Kong but still very young, having received personal instruction from the Emperor, possessing extraordinary strength.

Ye Kong bowed and said, "Thank you, General Jiang Huang, for your affirmation. I will immediately go see the Emperor."

Entering the sleeping quarters, led by a sword-wielding attendant, they entered a small path and walked all the way to a secret chamber.

"Emperor?"

After Ye Kong entered, he felt the Emperor's Qi, but this Qi was extremely faint.

He saw the Emperor sitting cross-legged, with his eyes closed and a head of white hair flowing down.

"Emperor!"

Seeing the Emperor in this state, Ye Kong was very surprised.

Although he had noticed something amiss during his secret talk with the Emperor before leaving the Imperial City, he had not expected the Emperor's illness to be so severe.

Ye Kong slowly approached the Emperor.

The Emperor sensed Ye Kong's presence and, without opening his eyes, said directly, "Ye Kong, I didn't expect you to still come."

Ye Kong nodded and said, "The Imperial City is in crisis, concerning the future of the Human Race. How could I abandon it?"

"Emperor, what kind of illness is this, that it could be so severe?"

The Emperor released his Law of the Great Dao's suppression on the illness, and a strong, restless Qi surged out.

This... Ye Kong gasped. This Qi was clearly a Divine Meridian Eruption, the same illness as Ye Liting, except Ye Liting had a Frigid Divine Meridian Eruption, while the Emperor had a hot Divine Meridian Eruption.

Currently, in this world, there was no cure, and even the Emperor had no solution.

"Emperor, is there truly no cure for this Divine Meridian Eruption?"

The Emperor shook his head and said, "There is a Deity among the foreign races named God of Life, who controls the power of life and death, but I am already too weak to enter the Ten Thousand Race Battlefield to find him."

Although Ye Kong had previously managed to suppress Ye Liting's Divine Meridian Eruption with Spirit Medicine, the Divine Meridian Eruption was based on cultivation. The higher the cultivation Realm, the stronger the illness. Even if he had more Spirit Medicine, to suppress the Emperor's condition, it would probably require Spirit Medicine strengthened a billion times over.

He currently had neither Divine-Grade Spirit Medicine nor enough energy value to strengthen it a billion times.

There was truly nothing he could do now.

The Emperor sighed and said, "Ye Kong, since you have come, I will tell you the current truth about the Imperial City."

"According to the original plan, among the entire Imperial City, only General Jiang Huang has the strength to fight. He will lead the troops to evacuate the Imperial City after my death."

Ye Kong was stunned. From the Emperor's words, it seemed the Imperial City was to be abandoned.

The Emperor seemed to have perceived Ye Kong's thoughts and said, "It is not abandoning the Imperial City, but rather that the strengths of the two sides are not equal, so we can only temporarily retreat to preserve our vital forces."

"The reason I haven't abandoned the city immediately is because I need to stay here and kill the Deities who invade, paving the way for the future of the Human Race."

"For the other Venerable Realm generals in the Imperial City who have the potential to achieve Deity, I have already issued Divine-Grades and allowed them to leave this place."

"Therefore, apart from Jiang Huang and the Imperial City's army, facing numerous hostile Deities, it is not an exaggeration to say that the Imperial City is an empty city."

As the Emperor spoke, his eyes slowly opened, and a Divine-Grade appeared in his hand.

"This Divine-Grade was reserved for you. I originally intended for Jiang Huang to give it to you, but since you are here, I can give it to you now."

Ye Kong was very surprised and did not hesitate. This was probably the last time the Emperor would speak to him.

Ye Kong accepted the Divine-Grade given to him by the Emperor.

The orb glowed, absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, with Great Dao runes appearing within it, and the power of a Deity flowing.

Ye Kong put away the Divine-Grade and asked, "Why is this? Are there no reinforcements coming from the Ten Kingdoms of the Human Race?"

"With so many aristocratic families in the Human Race, why don't they send Deities to aid the Imperial City's defenses?" The Emperor slowly closed his eyes, a faint smile on his lips.

"General Chen, this world has always been like this: they help whoever wins."

Ye Kong was startled, then clenched his fists.

"Of course, there are also loyal and righteous individuals like General Ye, but I have already learned that they are blocked by heavy forces outside the Imperial City."

"I presume General Ye must have gone through some hardships to reach the Imperial City, right?"

Ye Kong nodded unwillingly.

To stop him from going north to the Imperial City, the enemy even dispatched Deities to take his life.

"Ye Kong, time is running out. I thank you for coming to rescue the Imperial City. Now, please withdraw from the Imperial City immediately."

"In the future, I also ask you to continue to serve the Human Race!"

Ye Kong looked at the white-haired Emperor, knowing that he had already prepared himself for death.

"Emperor, I, Ye Kong, will definitely reclaim the Imperial City from the enemy's hands in the future!"