"Insolence!"
Han Feng let out a roar of fury. His副将 (fùjiàng - deputy general) had fought alongside him in countless campaigns, achieving great merit. Han Feng had invested considerable effort in him, and now all that remained was a bloody pulp mixed with the mud outside the city.
"Hee-law!"
Yu Chi Gong spurred his horse, tossed his head, and turned to face Han Feng on the city wall.
"Clang!"
His twin whips met with a resounding crash.
"Hah!"
"Hah!"
"Hah!"
The fifty thousand soldiers behind him raised their golden halberds and spears, roaring at the heavens. Their cries shook the earth. Yu Chi Gong's face was wreathed in a smile, showing no regard for Han Feng. The eyes of the fifty thousand soldiers were filled with provocation.
"You..."
"All troops, receive my order! We ride out of the city to slay the enemy and avenge our deputy general!" Han Feng bellowed, unleashing a saber strike that sliced across the sky, causing the very city wall behind him to tremble and dust to fall.
"Woooosh~~"
A saber glow, like a celestial stream, instantly appeared before Yu Chi Gong's eyes.
"Hah!"
Yu Chi Gong's face flushed crimson. He instantly dismounted his horse and lunged towards the saber glow. For a moment, a blurry figure coalesced in the void. A burly man, with explosive muscles bared, dragged a colossal axe from the void and raised it high above his head, causing the very air to hum.
"Kill!"
Yu Chi Gong roared at the sky. The phantom behind him also shone with spiritual light. His twin whips moved in unison with the phantom's great axe, striking the incoming saber glow.
"Boom~~"
The immense impact exploded, sending rocks and debris flying from the ground below. A deep chasm, tens of zhang in depth, yawned open before the gate of Qizhou City.
"Rumble rumble~~"
Yu Chi Gong's figure was blasted hundreds of zhang away, crashing into the rear of the Han army. The fifty thousand Han soldiers immediately retreated at high speed.
Han Feng gazed triumphantly in Yu Chi Gong's direction. A mere insignificant figure in the Spirit Mansion realm dared to withstand his attack? He was courting death.
From the distant crater, a bloodied figure instantly mounted a warhorse and led the army, speeding towards the direction of Yunwu Mountain.
"Hmph!"
"Kill!"
Han Feng immediately mounted his steed. Behind him, a vast black mass of an army, gradually emerged from Qizhou City, following Han Feng in a mighty pursuit into the depths of Yunwu Mountain.
Elsewhere, Yu Chi Gong took several pills from his waist and swallowed them. The moment the pills entered his mouth, his turbulent aura instantly calmed. The wounds on his body rapidly formed scabs.
Having adjusted his condition, Yu Chi Gong looked back. Dust billowed behind him as warhorses galloped. At the forefront of the army, Han Feng's ferocious face stared at him fiercely.
A hint of a smile appeared at the corners of Yu Chi Gong's lips. He directed his army to quickly retreat towards the basin ambush point that he had previously agreed upon with Qin Qiong.
Han Feng's face grew increasingly grim. This was a profound humiliation. His deputy general had been slain by an enemy general right under the nose of a Transcendent expert. If this news reached Zuo Lengchan's ears, or if other generals found out, they would surely laugh their heads off.
Where would he hide his face? Where would he place his pride?
"Chase them to the death!" Han Feng roared madly, glaring ferociously at the disappearing figure in the jungle.
What Han army, what Qizhou, what ambushes!
He cared nothing for them. His eyes were bloodshot. At this moment, he had only one objective: to flay the black-faced brute alive. A mere ant in the Spirit Mansion realm could withstand his attack and not die. This was even more shameful than his deputy general's death.
Qin Qiong gazed at the flying dust in the distance, a smile playing on his lips. "Deputy General, consolidate the encirclement. I will burn this entire Qizhou army to death in this basin!"
"Your subordinate obeys!" The deputy general beside him bowed immediately.
...
Ministry of Revenue, Chang'an City, Han Dynasty.
"What an unfortunate coincidence, Miss. My Minister is currently away from the manor attending to official duties!" a Ministry of Revenue official said with a smile to Ling Xuan and the other two in front of him.
Ling Xuan and Li Shang, having traveled from Qingzhou, gazed upon the vast and magnificent landscapes of the Han Dynasty. For a moment, they forgot if they were still in the Shengyuan Dynasty. If it weren't for the concentration of Yuan energy in the void, they might truly have forgotten their location.
At this moment, a flame of hope ignited in Ling Xuan's heart. The Han Dynasty's territory was vast, with large tracts of land still under development. This presented a great business opportunity. Moreover, the Yuan energy here was more concentrated than in ordinary dynasties, far surpassing that of the Northern Darkness Dynasty.
She immediately decided to establish a business in the Han Dynasty. However, the economic trade of the Han Dynasty required registration and approval from the Ministry of Revenue. All organizational activities within the Han Dynasty's territory must receive recognition from the Han court.
"Then, when will the Minister return?" Ling Xuan asked anxiously. Before she came, someone had told her that the Minister of Revenue had been transferred to handle affairs in a local region and would not return for at least a month.
"I am not privy to that information. It depends on the decree of our King. Only then can my Minister return!" the Ministry of Revenue official said apologetically. Establishing a business should have been simple, but these three were not subjects of the Han Dynasty, which was beyond his authority. This required the personal approval of the Minister of Revenue.
"What are we to do, Miss?" Liang Er jumped up and down anxiously. They had a mission on this trip, one that concerned their future lives.
"Miss, if you are truly in a hurry, I can write you a letter of introduction. You can go to the Ministry of Personnel Minister, Lord Changsun Wuji, in the east of the city. Perhaps he can assist you!" the Ministry of Revenue official said softly.
"Then, thank you, sir." Ling Xuan's anxious expression eased slightly. Her captivating face made the Ministry of Revenue official's heart flutter.
"Splendid, splendid!" Liang Er said gleefully.
Li Shang remained expressionless. Ever since being defeated by Yang Hao's sword, he had been silent, contemplating the profound essence of Yang Hao's strike. He could not find the method. Although that sword strike lacked the power of the Sword Saint of the Shengyuan Dynasty, Yang Hao's understanding of the sword far surpassed that of the Sword Saint.
If not for the fact that Yang Hao was the King of the Han Dynasty and the ruler of a nation, he would probably have gone to seek a duel by now.
After a while, the Ministry of Revenue official returned with a letter and handed it to Liang Er. Looking at the retreating figures of the three, he couldn't help but shake his head, "They are so beautiful. If only I could marry such a beautiful woman in this life!"
"Dream on!"
"Slap!"
Behind him, a Jin Yi Wei (embroidered uniform guard) in a flying fish costume teased him. "Just fantasize. Get back to what you should be doing. You're on duty, receiving the court's salary. You're not here to look at beautiful women on the street. Be careful, or I'll have your house confiscated!"
Although these words were meant as a jest, the Ministry of Revenue official's face instantly changed. "Yes, yes, yes. I'm busy now, I'm busy now!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished from the street in the blink of an eye and quickly hurried towards the Ministry of Revenue behind him.
The Jin Yi Wei watched the retreating figure, resting his chin on his hand. "Beautiful, truly beautiful. Tsk tsk!"