bayedsolid Chapter 368 - Veterans of Countless Wars
Chapter 368 - Veterans of Countless Wars
A stele?To use a stele to represent a person, there was only one explanation:
The person was dead.
Fan Li frowned.
He would gladly believe that the legendary Wu Zetian was deceased. However, he had distinctly heard her voice on the day the three Celestial Empires emerged from the Heavenly Gate. It was all very strange. In the world of cultivators, the most plausible explanation was that while the person was dead, their soul persisted.
“Powerful,” Qing Qiu suddenly spoke.
Fan Li looked at her, surprised.
Sensing his gaze, Qing Qiu repeated firmly, “I sense a divine soul, incredibly powerful. No one in the mortal realm possesses such strength.”
Fan Li drew a sharp breath. He trusted Qing Qiu’s judgment implicitly. So, even a mere fragment of Wu Zetian's soul was powerful enough to overshadow the entire mortal realm? He now seriously doubted whether Shi Jingtang or Li Yu could match her level. He hoped… they couldn't.
“You still do not kneel before His Imperial Majesty?” Shangguan Wan’er’s voice turned cold, laced with killing intent.
Kneel?
Fan Li responded with a cold laugh. He wasn’t skilled in formations, and he’d never heard of this “Four Exceptional Individuals Formation,” but he was almost certain he and Qing Qiu were meant to be sacrifices. Wu Zetian’s resurrection likely required their lives as the price. Understanding this, he abandoned all pretense.
“I am the Emperor of Great Jin. I do not kneel before the rulers of other nations,” Fan Li declared coldly. “My relative weakness is not a fault. To debase myself, however, would be a true disgrace.”
Shangguan Wan’er’s face darkened. Yet, she hesitated. Just as Fan Li had suspected, even after his open defiance, she dared not harm him. It seemed a living, unharmed Fan Li was crucial to this “Four Exceptional Individuals Formation.”
“Hmph. For your status as one of the four, I will overlook your insolence.” She glanced at Qing Qiu. Still injured, escape was impossible, even carrying Fan Li with her.
Shangguan Wan’er’s expression relaxed slightly. “Consider yourselves guests of Great Zhou. Once the four are assembled, you will have the opportunity to serve His Imperial Majesty.” Her tone was almost mocking, like a jailer taunting prisoners awaiting execution.
“And if you never find the remaining two?” Fan Li asked. “Am I to remain here indefinitely?” His words, though seemingly hopeful, were met with a sneer.
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“Do not worry, Emperor of Great Jin. You won't have to wait long. Did I ever say I had only found two of the four?”
“Bring her forward!”
Several Great Zhou generals escorted a tall woman wearing a silver mask, pushing her stumbling towards Fan Li.
“Allow me to introduce…” Shangguan Wan’er’s face beamed with pride. “As the saying goes, ‘Wine is a poison that courses through the veins, pleasurable upon entry, deadly in its depths.’”
“In all the world, perhaps only she is worthy of the title ‘Wine.’”
“Since my return to the mortal realm, encountering ‘Wine’ first was a stroke of luck.”
As Shangguan Wan’er finished speaking, the woman trembled, her fear and helplessness palpable. Even masked, her aura was one of vulnerability.
“You…” Fan Li couldn’t help but speak up, feeling a surge of sympathy for this stranger. He stopped himself abruptly, surprised by his own reaction. Was this woman truly a poison that coursed through the veins? He had never met her, yet he felt compelled to defend her.
“What were you about to say?” Shangguan Wan’er’s mocking tone suggested she had seen through him, ridiculing his wavering resolve.
“You say she is ‘Wine.’ Then why am I ‘Power’?” Fan Li quickly changed the subject. He understood why Qing Qiu was “Sex.” Her nine-tailed fox heritage, her innate allure, her breathtaking beauty – she certainly embodied the concept.
“Power represents destiny, the ultimate fate. As the Emperor of Great Jin, possessing the Mandate of Heaven, are you not worthy of the title ‘Power’?” Shangguan Wan’er replied calmly.
Fan Li was speechless. So that was it. Then Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan were also potential candidates for “Power.” He chuckled wryly. Of all the Emperors in the world, his cultivation was the weakest. She had chosen the easiest target. If he were in Shangguan Wan’er’s position, he would have done the same.
He knew time was running out. Once Shangguan Wan’er found “Wealth,” the four would be assembled, and Wu Zetian’s resurrection could begin.
“Confine these three together. And provide them with Soul Cleansing Wine daily,” Shangguan Wan’er commanded her generals.
Soul Cleansing Wine?
The name sounded ominous. Fan Li glanced at the masked woman. She had likely been consuming this wine for days. Her frail appearance, her unsteady gait, suggested her cultivation had been sealed. Was that the wine’s effect?
“Rest assured, the Soul Cleansing Wine merely seals your dantians temporarily. It does not permanently cripple your cultivation,” Shangguan Wan’er explained. “Otherwise, there would be no need for daily consumption.”
Fan Li shook his head. Women were perceptive, especially intelligent women like Shangguan Wan’er. She had seen through his suspicion instantly.
“Do not worry, Chancellor Shangguan. I will… gladly… consume this wine.” He feigned reluctance, maintaining the facade of a helpless captive.
Shangguan Wan’er as pleased by his apparent submission.
“I must now seek the final individual, ‘Wealth.’ Behave yourselves during your stay in Great Zhou. Do not attempt to leave your assigned quarters. Otherwise, in my absence, my soldiers who are unaccustomed to gentle treatment, might… accidentally… end your lives.”
With that thinly veiled threat, Shangguan Wan’er departed.
Several Great Zhou generals immediately surrounded Fan Li and the others.
“Please, come with us.”
The general leading them was in heavy armor and had his face obscured. Fan Li attempted to sense his cultivation, but the armor acted as a barrier, blocking his perception.
“Such effective armor?” He was surprised. He had initially found the Great Zhou armor ugly and cumbersome, questioning their sense of aesthetics. But now, he saw its practicality. The armor’s surface was covered in scratches, not from blades, but from claws and teeth.
What kind of enemies had the Great Zhou army faced?
But what truly astonished him was the general’s spear. It lacked decorative tassels, its shaft thick and sturdy, as if forged through countless trials, impervious to wear. Its tip, though sharp, was a dark, reddish-black, like a weapon steeped in the blood of countless enemies.
Fan Li finally understood.
“The Great Zhou army… are veterans of countless wars…”