Your Majesty, We’re Counting on You to Ruin the Country! 52

Chapter 52: Protection

“Cough, cough…”

The night underground in the desert was even colder and more bone-chilling. Qin Zhaohuang’s fever had slightly subsided, but he was still shivering with cold. He was in a daze in Yu Qianshou’s arms, sometimes talking nonsense, sometimes sleeping soundly without any movement.

Yu Qianshou leaned against the sandy wall, holding Qin Zhaohuang in one arm and, with the other, with great difficulty, set up a grill and tried to start a fire with stones. The wooden sticks for the grill were picked up from the surroundings. Yu Qianshou had insisted on not starting a fire before for this very moment. He was not afraid of the cold, and he could hold Qin Zhaohuang to keep him warm, but he was afraid that the food would not be cooked without a fire, so he had specially saved the few wooden sticks that were underground.

With a sigh, Yu Qianshou sacrificed a snake. He hit its vital point, killed it, skinned it, and finally placed it on the rack to roast.

A short while later, the aroma of the snake meat made Qin Zhaohuang’s eyes flutter open in a daze.

Yu Qianshou tore off a piece of white, plump, and juicy snake meat and brought it to Qin Zhaohuang’s lips.

“Delicious…” After two days without food, the first taste of fresh meat made Qin Zhaohuang so satisfied he was almost bubbling with joy, and he also felt much more energetic.

After the two of them had finished the snake meat, after a long while, Qin Zhaohuang felt his body slowly warm up, and he also had some strength. Although he had regained consciousness, he had no desire to leave Yu Qianshou’s embrace. He pretended not to know and asked, “Has no one found us yet? Not a single sound from above?”

Yu Qianshou shook his head but let go of his embrace and moved to the side.

Qin Zhaohuang stared blankly at Yu Qianshou, who had drawn a clear line between them, and said with a slight anger, “Chen Shu!”

“I am not Chen Shu.”

“You are.” Qin Zhaohuang repeated, “You are!”

Looking at Qin Zhaohuang, who seemed to be throwing a tantrum, Yu Qianshou ignored him and closed his eyes, as if he were going to rest.

Qin Zhaohuang panted as he looked at Yu Qianshou.

The sound of the wind whistled around them, and occasionally an unknown insect would crawl by.

After a long while, Yu Qianshou heard Qin Zhaohuang’s muffled voice in his ear.

“Chen Shu, where have you been these past few years?”

Yu Qianshou played dumb, as if he hadn’t heard.

“After I left the Fengtian Temple, I asked His Majesty for leave and traveled the world looking for you, but I couldn’t find you. I looked for so, so many years… and still couldn’t find you…”

“Many, many years…”

Qin Zhaohuang looked at Yu Qianshou, who kept his eyes tightly closed, showing no reaction, and felt an inexplicable sense of grievance well up in his heart. For so many years, he had been alone in that dark and empty high tower. Many times, he had thought, maybe he should just end it all with one strike, so he wouldn’t have to suffer the pain of loneliness. But each time, he couldn’t bring himself to do it, relying only on the slight gentleness and the occasional smile that person had shown him. If he died, he would never have the chance to see the blue sky and that person again. There would be nothing. And now that he had finally found him, the person was pretending not to know him, as if all his years of persistence were just a joke.

“You didn’t even come to find me. Don’t you miss me…”

Qin Zhaohuang’s voice was tinged with a sob. Yu Qianshou finally couldn’t help but open his eyes, but he didn’t look at him, only saying, “I am really not Chen Shu. Chen Shu is already dead.”

He died when I entered the Poison Sect.

“Forget Chen Shu.”

A strong gust of wind swept towards Wen Ning’an. The patrol and Fu Che outside the tent saw the tent swaying slightly and were surprised. Fu Che shook his head, only praying to the heavens for mercy, that nothing else would happen.

There were not many extra furnishings or furniture in the military tents. Even the commander’s residence only had a simple bed and a table and chairs, so there wasn’t much damage, just the table and chairs were knocked over, a leg broken, and the tea set was shattered on the floor.

Feng Qi’s moves were ultimately somewhat restrained. He naturally couldn’t go on a killing spree like he had when facing thousands of enemy soldiers, and he was only using the hilt of his sword, not the sharp blade. And Wen Ning’an’s purpose was not to defeat Feng Qi, but to accompany him in releasing his energy, so he did not entangle him, just nimbly dodging and avoiding Feng Qi’s fierce attacks. The two of them cooperated very well.

Feng Qi’s sword, with a “Dragon Reaches the Heavens” move, struck the ground, but the wind and aftershock of the sword rushed upwards. Wen Ning’an felt as if a tornado had sprung up from under his feet, and his whole body was lifted upwards by the sword qi. He immediately stabilized himself so that his limbs were not restrained by this invisible wind and, using the force, leaped into the air, bringing his sword down on Feng Qi’s head. Feng Qi then, with a backhand, stabbed the hilt of his sword at Wen Ning’an’s wrist. Before Wen Ning’an could counter, he felt a sudden rush of wind behind him, but the target was not him, but Feng Qi.

From the corner of his eye, Feng Qi saw a figure with a sword appear behind Wen Ning’an. He immediately used all his strength and slapped Wen Ning’an’s sword, sending him flying. He then turned to face the person who had suddenly interrupted their spar. But after striking at that person with his sword, he was stunned. The person had white hair and an indifferent gaze—it was the Immortal Nanbai.

“Clang—” The two swords collided violently, and the sound even made Wen Ning’an’s eardrums ring.

The Immortal Nanbai leaped to the side, holding the slightly red-glowing cold sword, and looked straight at Feng Qi. “This is the Cold Spring Sword. My master passed it to me when I won the martial arts tournament, and it has been passed down through the generations. I had originally wanted to give it to you when your martial arts reached their peak, but you no longer have this chance. I will use this Cold Spring to end it for you.”

“Master…!” Feng Qi was startled. Before he could react, he saw the Immortal Nanbai launch a rain of attacks at him without a word, each move aimed at a vital point, a chain of fatal strikes that left one breathless.

This was the true skill of a master who had once dominated the martial world! With age, it would only become more venomous and deadly. Wen Ning’an couldn’t even see their moves clearly, only flashes of light and shadow, and the harsh clanging sound was like someone beating a drum in his ear.

Wen Ning’an’s heart tightened. Why has the Immortal Nanbai suddenly developed a killing intent!

Feng Qi was in a bad state. His stamina was rapidly draining, and his inner energy was becoming more and more chaotic with his random moves and large movements, crushing and ravaging every part of his body, every bone.

“Master!” Feng Qi felt exhausted, his body aching and weak. He found an opening and wanted to explain, but he didn’t know what to say.

The Immortal Nanbai’s eyes were dark and unreadable, but the movements of his hands were extremely firm. A sword went straight for Feng Qi’s chest, and Feng Qi couldn’t block it.

Wen Ning’an’s eyes widened in rage.

“Huaitian—”

Feng Qi closed his eyes in resignation, but the expected pain did not come. He opened his eyes slightly and saw a shadow in front of him. Wen Ning’an was now standing in front of him, his back as firm as a rock.

Seeing Wen Ning’an fly before him like a flash of lightning, the Immortal Nanbai was startled. Unwilling to harm an innocent, he had no choice but to hastily withdraw his sword. Although he withdrew it in time, the sharp tip of the sword still pierced a few inches into Wen Ning’an’s chest. Fresh blood slowly flowed out, extremely conspicuous against his white robe.

“Yi-Yixin…” Feng Qi had already lost his strength at this moment. He knelt on the ground, panting heavily, his heart also bleeding.

And although Wen Ning’an was injured, the Immortal Nanbai could no longer make any move. His sword was pointed at Wen Ning’an’s chest, but the long sword in Wen Ning’an’s hand was also pressed against his chin. If he took another step forward, his neck would be cut by the blade.

The Immortal Nanbai said coldly, “General Wen, I do not wish to involve the innocent. Please step aside.”

“Involve the innocent?” Wen Ning’an looked at the sword he was pressing against the Immortal Nanbai and raised an eyebrow. “That also depends on whether the great hero Nanbai can ‘involve’ me. And even if I die, there is still this Left Army. And if even the Left Army cannot subdue you, there are still the thousands of soldiers of Fengzhou. If the great hero Nanbai dares to harm Huaitian in the slightest, I will dare to use all the forces of Fengzhou to kill the assassin.”

The Immortal Nanbai’s brow furrowed tightly. He was disappointed. “General Wen, please consider the bigger picture. Do not act on emotion. You love His Majesty deeply, but am I not also his master?”

“I am not acting on emotion. Huaitian is the Son of the Nine Dragons, the master of this Bei Miao! If His Majesty dies, can Bei Miao, the court, and the people be at peace? Furthermore, if word gets out that His Majesty was killed while being besieged by the enemy, morale will be greatly reduced. Wouldn’t that be giving Hong Xi and the King of Youzhou an advantage? With the bigger picture at stake, Huaitian cannot die.”

The Immortal Nanbai immediately replied, “I had His Majesty write a will long ago. This country will eventually have someone to take over. War is unavoidable, but don’t forget, war has always existed, not just when His Majesty dies. After a change of dynasty, everything will be as before. But if we let a person who has fallen into madness due to Annihilating Yang White Bone remain in this world, does General Wen know the consequences?”

Wen Ning’an was silent, his eyes turning sinister.

“Murong Ya killed seventy-five martial arts masters with his bare hands, and His Majesty’s current skill is countless times deeper than Murong’s. Can you guarantee that His Majesty will not follow in his footsteps, or even become worse? Who will stop him then?”

Wen Ning’an growled, “Huaitian is still conscious! Things have not reached the worst point yet. Why are you unwilling to give him a chance!”

The Immortal Nanbai shook his head. “That is because you do not understand this evil technique. The ignorant are fearless. His Majesty has already died once. He could have an episode in a year, or he could cause an irreversible massacre in the next moment. Is General Wen really willing to bet that he will have an episode in a year? Using the lives of the people of this world, and even your own, as a bargaining chip?”

Wen Ning’an did not move an inch, his hand tightly gripping the hilt of his sword, on guard. “I will not give up until the very last moment.”

“I have said all that needs to be said. At worst, we will all perish together, but I will not fail the people of this world.” A storm was also brewing in the Immortal Nanbai’s eyes. The two were in a stalemate, the air filled with a murderous and smoky atmosphere.

“Yixin, step aside…” Feng Qi finally squeezed out these words after catching his breath, feeling an unprecedented sense of powerlessness. He wanted so much to pull Wen Ning’an away at this moment, but he didn’t even have the strength to stand up.

Wen Ning’an, without looking back, said, “If we die, we die together.”