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墨書 Inktalez
“Divine Envoy, do you have any other solutions?”
“Not at the moment, but ideas come from everyone. As long as we are anxious, the ministers will naturally come up with good plans.”
“Yes, Your Majesty, please do not worry. Our Hua Xing will not perish.”
In a state of anxiety, the rulers and ministers of the Huaxing Kingdom spent another ten days. When the morning court was held that day, Orderly reported that a large number of Starfall troops had appeared in both Starlight City and the north and south, with nearly ten Ten Thousand People combined.
After capturing their respective cities, Jin Rong and Liu Qiang left behind ten thousand soldiers from the Starfall Kingdom along with a deputy general, incorporating the captured soldiers from the Huaxing Kingdom into their own forces and bringing them to Starlight City. Thus, the combined forces numbered nearly ten Ten Thousand People.
Seeing this situation, Ye Liu Chuxing quickly asked Wu Ta: “Wu Marshal, do you have any solutions now?”
“Your Majesty, apart from fighting to the death, there is no other way. Currently, three cities of our Huaxing Kingdom have fallen into enemy hands. The army surrounding Starlight City has nearly two hundred thousand troops, while our total number of soldiers within Starlight City is less than one hundred thousand. After hearing that our Hua Xing has lost strength, both Xinghe and Starfall have retreated.”
“Is Hua Xing really going to perish at my hands?”
“Your Majesty, should we negotiate with the Starfall Kingdom?”
“It seems we have no choice. Where is the Left Chancellor?”
“I am here.”
“I command you to go negotiate with the Starfall Kingdom outside the city and see what they intend.”
“The old minister obeys.” The Old Chancellor turned to leave the hall, but shortly after, he returned again.
Yelü Chuxing asked anxiously, "What does the Old Chancellor mean by that?"
The Old Chancellor shook his head, "Your Majesty, when I reached the outskirts of the city to explain our intentions, the other party only said one thing: absolutely no negotiations." After hearing the Old Chancellor's words, Yelü Chuxing slumped down onto the dragon throne.
At this moment, Jiang Xingshi slowly walked to the center of the hall, "Your Majesty, I have something to say."
"Divine Envoy, feel free to speak."
"Your Majesty, why don't we surrender?"
"Divine Envoy, is this really our only way out?"
Jiang Xingshi nodded helplessly, "However, we won't surrender like this. Let me go out to meet Liu Guanfeng. As long as I can defeat him, the Starfall Kingdom will retreat. If by any chance I am defeated and die on the battlefield, I only hope that for the sake of the common people, Your Majesty will open the city and surrender. Because even if you do not surrender at that time, they will still break in, and all that will increase is innocent casualties."
"Divine Envoy, do you have any assurance of victory?"
"I do not have a guarantee of victory, but this is already our last chance in Hua Xing."
At this moment, Wu Ta also lowered his head helplessly. He knew he could not go into battle because he was no match for Liu Guanfeng; only the Divine Envoy could fight against him in Hua Xing.
"Grand Marshal, what do you think?"
Wu Ta struggled to lift his head and looked at Jiang Xingshi before turning back to Yelü Chuxing. "Your Majesty, the Divine Envoy is right; this is our last chance in Hua Xing. If Liu Guanfeng is defeated by the Divine Envoy, then there will be no one left in the Starfall Kingdom who can stand against him. If they do not retreat, they must be prepared to face assassination from the Divine Envoy; conversely, we must be ready as well. Moreover, if by any chance the Divine Envoy fails, there will be no one left in our city to resist the advance of the Starfall Kingdom.
In that case, we would not only ultimately lose but also drag down countless innocent civilians and our soldiers with us. Therefore, I agree with the Divine Envoy's plan."
"Divine Envoy, what are your chances of winning against Liu Guanfeng?" Yelü Chuxing voiced his final doubt.
Jiang Xingshi thought for a moment, "Fifty percent."
This was the first time Yelü Chuxing felt powerless, and he sighed inwardly: If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have acted as I did. In the end, Yelü Chuxing made a final decision: "Well, since both Divine Envoys have decided this way, let's make one last effort. Everything depends on the Divine Envoy."
"Your Majesty need not worry; I will do my utmost."
That night, Jiang Xingshi personally wrote a letter to Liu Guanfeng. The next morning, Jiang Xingshi sent someone to deliver the letter to the Starfall Kingdom's camp.
Upon receiving the letter, Liu Guanfeng saw the words "Challenge Letter" written boldly on the envelope. He opened it and unfolded the letter inside, which read:
"I am Jiang Xingshi, Divine Envoy of Huaxing Kingdom. Our country has reached its final stage. To avoid unnecessary damage, I propose a challenge. The challenge will take place five days from now in front of Starlight City. If I am fortunate enough to win, you of Starfall Kingdom must relinquish the occupied cities and return to Starfall Kingdom. From then on, both nations shall treat each other equally and refrain from aggression.
If I am defeated, our king will voluntarily surrender the city. I can only humbly request that if I unfortunately perish at your hands, I hope you will spare our king.
If you of Starfall Kingdom do not agree to my terms, we will fight to the death, even if it means every last soldier; Huaxing Kingdom will never surrender.
As for whether this is acceptable, it depends on your thoughts. I await General Liu's reply in the city."
After reading the letter, Liu Guanfeng brought it to the Central Command Tent and placed it on the table in front of Sun Liang and his two brothers.
The three fell into deep thought after reading it. There were pros and cons to this situation; they could ignore the letter and start fighting immediately. However, if they truly engaged in battle, it would be difficult to guarantee that Jiang Xingshi would be killed. If either Jiang Xingshi or Wu Ta managed to escape, Sun Liang's life would be constantly threatened in the future.
Moreover, if the enemy vowed to resist to the death and they launched a strong attack, their losses would be significant—especially after several years of Sun Yong's reign during which the economy of Starfall Kingdom had been quite bleak. Although Sun Liang had seen some economic recovery during his few months in power, it still could not compare to that of larger nations.
After thinking for a while, Sun Liang turned his gaze toward Liu Guanfeng: "Liu Jianyan, what do you think?"
"I suggest we avoid confrontation. If it were up to me, I would accept their challenge; however, I cannot make a decision regarding their final condition without consulting others."
"Are you referring to the condition of sparing Yelü Chuxing?"
Liu Guanfeng nodded.
"I can agree to that condition on your behalf, if you achieve victory. I will grant Yelü Chuxing a commoner's status and allow him to enjoy the treatment of a prime minister for the rest of his life."
"I thank Your Majesty for your trust."
In truth, Sun Liang was well aware that if Liu Guanfeng truly lost, they would have to retreat.
However, Liu Guanlei and Liu Guanyu did not want their brother to take such risks, so they strongly opposed it. Yet, Liu Guanfeng had already made up his mind.
After receiving Sun Liang's promise, Liu Guanfeng said to him, "Your Majesty, since you have agreed, I will go reply to Jiang Xingshi now."
Sun Liang nodded. "Go ahead, and make sure to rest well these days to regain your strength."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I understand."
After speaking, Liu Guanfeng turned and left the tent. Once back in his own quarters, he wrote a reply to Jiang Xingshi. When the letter was finished, Liu Guanfeng called for Bao Rui. "Bao Rui, take this letter to Starlight City."
"Understood."
Bao Rui took the letter to Starlight City and reported his purpose upon arrival. There were already people stationed on the city walls to receive him. Upon hearing that it was a reply from Starfall Kingdom, they brought Bao Rui into the city.
Bao Rui personally handed the letter to Jiang Xingshi. After receiving it, Jiang Xingshi looked at Bao Rui and asked, "Does your master have any other matters?"
Bao Rui replied respectfully yet confidently, "My master told the Divine Envoy that in five days' time, the monarchs of both nations will sign an agreement for a contest on the battlefield."
Jiang Xingshi nodded, "I understand. When I return, I will inform your master that the monarch of Huaxing Kingdom will definitely be present on that day."
"Then I shall take my leave."
"Someone, escort the envoy out of Starlight City."
After Bao Rui returned to the military camp of Starfall Kingdom, he recounted the events in the city to Liu Guanfeng. Liu Guanfeng nodded, "Remember, do not let anyone disturb me in the next few days, not even His Majesty."
"Rest assured, Third Brother." Bao Rui turned and left the tent, hanging a sign that read "Thank you, Guest" at Liu Guanfeng's tent entrance. At the same time, Bao Rui arranged for two of his closest guards to stand watch at Liu Guanfeng's tent door and repeatedly emphasized Liu Guanfeng's requests to them. After everything was arranged, Bao Rui finally left the tent.
Liu Guanfeng sat upright in his tent, crossed his legs, placed his palms facing upward, and slowly closed his eyes to begin meditative practice. Ever since Liu Guanfeng learned to use magic in Demon Tomb, he had become very proficient in manipulating the wood, earth, and fire elements; he just had not yet grasped the other two elements.
In the military camp today, there were armors, weapons, and various items everywhere; it could be said that the Metallic element here was quite abundant. Although the Metal Element here could not compare to that in the Mine, it was still much better than Usual.
As Liu Guanfeng closed his eyes, he could vaguely see golden elements moving around. He carefully experienced and slowly combined them, entering a wonderful state of being.
In Starlight City, although it was already nighttime, due to the importance of the matter, Jiang Xingshi still came to the palace. Accompanying Jiang Xingshi was Wu Ta, who served as both Divine Envoy and Grand Marshal.
Along the way, Jiang Xingshi recounted the contents of Liu Guanfeng's letter to Wu Ta. When they saw Yelü Chuxing, they handed him the letter.
After reading the letter, Yelü Chuxing said to Jiang Xingshi, "Divine Envoy, since they have already agreed, then the fate of our entire Huaxing Kingdom is now in your hands."
Jiang Xingshi nodded, "Your Majesty, there is one more request from them: for the decisive battle five days later, both monarchs need to sign an agreement. I hope you can be present on that day."
"You need not worry about this Divine Envoy; I will definitely attend. This concerns our final battle for Huaxing Kingdom."
"In that case, I will take my leave now. If there are no urgent matters, Your Majesty need not seek me out; I will naturally appear in five days. As for any arrangements for that day, please discuss them with Wu Ta."
"Alright, Divine Envoy, you should take more time to rest these days."
"Your Majesty, rest assured, I understand."
After bidding farewell to Wu Ta with a cupped fist gesture, Jiang Xingshi left the palace and returned to his Great Deity's Residence. Arriving at the door of the training room, he said to the guards, "No one is to disturb me during my cultivation. If anything happens, I will take your lives."
"Please rest assured, Divine Envoy. We will ensure that no one gets through," the two guards thought it strange that Jiang Xingshi was saying this today. Usually, although Jiang Xingshi had a bad temper, it was only when his own people made mistakes. Generally, he was quite amiable. However, since Divine Envoy had said so, they had to comply.
Jiang Xingshi entered the training room with his Golden Flower Dragon. Looking at his old companion, he asked, "Old friend, we have been together for over sixty years. This might be our last five days."
At this moment, the Golden Flower Dragon looked at Jiang Xingshi and said, "Old friend, you don't need to be too pessimistic."
"We both know how strong Liu Guanfeng is, especially the Mount under him which we cannot contend with."
The Golden Flower Dragon sighed and replied to Jiang Xingshi, "Old friend, if you can defeat him in five days, remember to visit me on Dragon Island when you have time."
Jiang Xingshi was taken aback. "Old friend, are you leaving me?"
The Golden Flower Dragon shook its head and said, "It's not that I want to leave you; it's that I have no choice but to leave."
"Why is that?"
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