At the end of September, early winter.
When the first snowflake fell from the sky and melted on the cobblestone streets of the Imperial Capital, people began to don their winter clothes.
On this very day, a shocking piece of news spread through the Imperial Capital: a national war was imminent! Yet, no one knew who the opponent would be.
People saw vassal kings from various regions holding tiger tallies, leading their armies to gather outside the city. Civil and military officials streamed into the palace from all directions.
Soon after, Jiang Canghai appeared, draped in a black cloak, holding the sword of the commander-in-chief. Arrayed in two rows beside him were battlefield generals and strategists.
“Though this expedition is dishonorable, for the sake of Great Jin, we will abandon the honor of a direct confrontation and instead launch a swift surprise attack on the Western Buddhist Kingdom, then head straight for the Northern Sejong Alliance.”
“This battle must not only be a resounding victory but also executed with lightning speed!”
“Before the snow falls heavily, before the year-end, we will deliver a thunderous winter shock to the world!”
With a grand gesture, Jiang Canghai unfurled the Map of Mountains and Rivers, which expanded with the wind into a majestic floating continent.
“March!”
A million troops surged onto the Map of Mountains and Rivers. The citizens of the Imperial Capital watched as the continent that blotted out the sky vanished into an alternate space in an instant.
Some sang songs of the great wind to bid farewell to the departing soldiers, their voices mingling with the sparse snowflakes, creating an atmosphere of desolate grandeur.
Snow fell, the wind howled.
The national war had begun anew!
Before the entire city could react, a thunderous roar erupted outside the Imperial Capital, causing the mountains to shake and the earth to tremble.
Confused citizens gathered at the city gates to watch. In a nation that revered martial prowess, many had some level of cultivation, allowing them to see a young man in a green robe, holding a three-foot sword, standing alone against two demonic figures.
The two demonic figures exuded a terrifying aura, far more dreadful than when the Empress fought Zhao Yuhuan.
One of the figures sneered coldly:
“Meng Qingzhou, you are too arrogant. Do you really think I am just some waste who relied on a long lifespan and countless treasures to reach my level?”
“I comprehended the Dao at the age of ten, leaping from the ninth grade to the first, directly reaching the Cloud Ascension Realm. In the following forty years, I advanced to the late stage of the Morning Glow Realm, undefeated across Sky State, until I met the Young Master and saw the true Dao.”
“And you, at the mere peak of the Moon Shine Realm, dare to stand alone against the two of us?”
Meng Qingzhou impatiently dug at his ear.
You villains, can’t you change your lines before making an entrance? Must you always give a self-introduction?
“Enough nonsense. Just the fact that you dared to propose to my wife is an unforgivable crime. Today, no one can save you. Prepare to die.”
As he finished speaking, Meng Qingzhou swung his sword horizontally, as if sweeping away snow from his doorstep. Quickly, a blurred, distorted light emerged from the sweep.
Within the light, scenes from past histories began to clear, showing figures who once shook the heavens and earth.
“Tricks and illusions. These figures, now mere skeletons in their graves, what can you do? Can you resurrect them?” Pu Lingzi was confident, waiting calmly to deliver a crushing defeat to Meng Qingzhou, showing the people of Great Jin the true invincible stance, and letting Empress Qin Liuli see the depth of the Ji family’s power in Sky State.
Meng Qingzhou suddenly laughed and said:
“You’re right, I can’t resurrect them. But, I can attempt to bring their former glory back to the world.”
With that, Meng Qingzhou brought his fingers together to form a sword and pointed at the colorful light: “Esteemed predecessors, I, Meng Qingzhou, awaken a sliver of your will hidden in the river of time. If any of you wish to regain your fame after death and let the world witness your glory once more, please come forth and fight.”
Emperor Grade Sword Sense of Time and Space—[Time and Space. Projection].
No matter how powerful one was in life, after death, their soul returns to the earth, their essence and spirit dispersing across the universe, merging into the river of time.
The function of [Time and Space. Projection] was to awaken these wills, recreating the scenes of their battles in the river of time, bringing them back to the world.
Whether they wished to fight or not was not up to Meng Qingzhou; he could not force them.
Buzz!
Suddenly.
Someone responded. A point of starlight slowly separated from the colorful light, and a majestic middle-aged man in a nine-dragon imperial robe slowly opened his eyes.
“I am the founding Emperor of Great Jin, era name—Taichu. I am the Taichu Emperor.”
“Descendant, I…”
The figure of the Taichu Emperor was blurry, not solid, like a shadow. He suddenly sensed something, turned around, and saw the Imperial Capital of Great Jin!
“Ah, this…”
The Taichu Emperor blinked, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes as his gaze penetrated everything.
He saw it, a scene of peace and prosperity, people living and working in peace.
He also saw Qin Fenghuo of the Big Column Kingdom in a cave, risking a slim chance to force a breakthrough.
He saw Prime Minister Jiang Canghai, only at the Mountain Moving Realm, leading a million troops, riding the Map of Mountains and Rivers, with a resolve to die, launching a surprise attack on the Western Buddhist Kingdom.
He even saw a silly dog in a Green Tiles Small House in Present Village, suddenly standing up, staring at him with wide eyes, as if struck by lightning, too stunned to move.
“Silly dog.” The Taichu Emperor chuckled.
Finally, he turned his gaze to Dongfang Liuli, surrounded by the imperial dragon aura.
“To think there is an Empress…”
Though it seemed long, only a few seconds had passed before the Taichu Emperor withdrew his gaze.
Surveying the Great Jin, he saw many events through subtle clues, sighed, and murmured to himself:
“Descendants of Great Jin, you have suffered.”
“To encounter such a prosperous era is both fortunate and unfortunate. I never expected that after ten thousand years of death, I would have the chance to fight for my descendants.”
The Taichu Emperor turned back to Meng Qingzhou and asked:
“Who are you?”
“I am Meng Qingzhou, once a minister of the Great Jin Dynasty, now a commoner,” Meng Qingzhou replied with neither humility nor arrogance, bowing slightly.
The Taichu Emperor stared intently at Meng Qingzhou, watching the dragon aura rising from his forehead…
A commoner?
Are you mocking me? What kind of ordinary person has dragon aura as thick as a bucket, almost rivaling the current Empress?
The Taichu Emperor’s gaze shifted again, looking towards Present Village, locking eyes with Dongfang Liuli.
Dongfang Liuli slightly shook her head, her eyes filled with embarrassment, worry, and a trace of reverence for the Old Ancestor.
“I see, young people play quite the game.” The Taichu Emperor suddenly understood and laughed.
……………………..
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