The Three Kingdoms besieged Jing, but before the war officially began, an urgent military dispatch was sent to the capital. This was the very night he and Wu Zhoubai had discussed strategies.
The feeling of fighting until numb, of hands so weary they trembled, lingered. The ground was littered with corpses, and everywhere he looked was red.
Could it have all been just a dream?
What did this mean?
Were they trying to kill him again because he wasn't tired enough?
Xiao Shan rubbed his forehead, his mind in a haze.
"What are you thinking about?" Wu Zhoubai glared, his small eyes filled with dissatisfaction.
He hadn't slept well all night. He had finally devised a strategy that seemed most beneficial to them, yet there was no reaction.
"I'm thinking of seeing the Divine Maiden."
Xiao Shan vaguely suspected that this matter might be related to Ling Yao.
How could a dream be so real? He had clearly experienced it. Moreover, the jade pendant he always wore around his chest was gone.
Wu Zhoubai: "...... This is no time for romantic entanglements."
"Have Yuan Bufie investigate whether there is a canyon in the central forest sea between the Turks and the Uyghurs."
A canyon? It wasn't marked on the maps.
Wu Zhoubai looked at him, puzzled.
"If there is, that's where we strike. It's a place that can be attacked and defended, and it's also the weakest point of both countries' defenses."
Wu Zhoubai left the tent, half-believing, half-doubting.
Had the General also been bestowed divine power by the Divine Maiden?
Or had the Divine Maiden told him in a dream?
......
Ling Yao did not go to the Taiyi Hall. She went directly to the Imperial Study and, among a stack of letters, found the urgent eight-hundred-li dispatch.
"Trusting you was my greatest mistake."
Aside from this matter, Emperor Mingde had not hidden anything from her. But precisely this matter was fatal to her.
She took out the tiger tally from Yanzhou and began issuing decrees to mobilize and reinforce troops.
After writing, she summoned someone: "Go and call Duorui."
The guard bowed his head and replied: "Your Highness, Commander Duorui has been dispatched by His Majesty to the Western Suburbs Military Camp. Commander Lei Hua is currently on duty."
Ling Yao stared into his eyes: "Go to the Western Suburbs and call Duorui."
The guard took the order and left.
Ling Yao returned to the study and began writing letters.
The three kingdoms attacking Da Jing was also the last act of Ma Yibu, who had used the Soul Devouring Gu to turn the rulers of various countries into puppets.
She could not resolve the Soul Devouring Gu, but she still had to make preparations to avoid unnecessary sacrifices.
Letters were sent one by one to Bei Di, Hui He, and Tu Jue.
After finishing, she felt utterly exhausted.
Faster, faster, she feared she wouldn't be able to hold on.
She saw that her once creamy hands were no longer smooth, and her jet-black hair tips were tinged with silver.
Her mind was slowing down, her body no longer light, and she felt weak after a few steps.
Feng Li came to request an audience.
"Princess, please go to Taiyi Hall quickly. His Majesty, he is really not himself."
"Don't worry, it's not the Soul Devouring Gu. Let him rest more, and he'll be fine when he's rested enough."
Ling Yao had no time to attend to him. After meeting Duorui, she left the palace.
In Taiyi Hall, Emperor Mingde listened to the guard's report, his gaze darkening.
She had shown no concern for his illness, instead spending half the day in the Imperial Study.
Had she discovered that urgent letter?
But why had she entered the Imperial Study for no reason?
Ling Yao went to the stronghold of the Immortal King Sect.
Her children, children she had longed for for two lifetimes, was one of them the one she had lost in her previous life?
She held them, unwilling to let go.
Since giving birth to the children, she had been constantly busy, not spending enough time with them as they grew. In a moment of distraction, she would be seated.
"Princess?"
Yu Liu was very worried. The Princess's condition was not right. She looked overworked, her once rosy face completely devoid of luster.
Yu Shan wanted to take her pulse, but Ling Yao brushed her hand away.
"Yu Liu, Yu Shan, I must earnestly entrust you with something."
"Princess!"
Yu Liu and Yu Shan knelt down together, their hearts filled with apprehension.
What had happened? The Princess looked very serious.
"Take the brothers of the Immortal King Sect and safely escort Bei Yue and Bei Shang to Xiangshan Water Pavilion in Yingzhou. When the General returns, he will find you."
"Princess, what happened?"
Yu Liu and Yu Shan were greatly alarmed. Was someone going to attack the city?
Wouldn't that put the Princess in danger too?
"Just follow the orders. There's no need to send word to the General; he will know."
Ling Yao kissed her two children again. Bei Yue cried out "ah ah" and grabbed a strand of her hair.
Then, that strand of hair detached and fell.
"Ah, Princess!" Yu Liu cried out in surprise.
Ling Yao dared not linger any longer and turned to leave.
Yu Liu quickly pried Bei Yue's hand open and looked at the strand of hair in disbelief.
"Yu Shan, could the Young Lord be a strongman?"
Yu Shan took the strand of hair. It didn't seem like the Princess's hair; it lacked fragrance and was too coarse, more like that of an older woman.
But it had clearly been the Princess herself just now, not someone impersonating her.
What was going on?
After Ling Yao left, she went to the Great Shaman's residence.
The Great Shaman had not been well since being imprisoned by his unfilial disciple, and now he seemed to be nearing the end of his lifespan.
"Great Shaman, I am leaving. If Xiao Shan returns, tell him not to look for me. I'm going out for a walk, and I might return someday."
The Great Shaman's cloudy eyes examined Ling Yao.
Upon seeing her, he was greatly shocked.
"Princess, you, you are going to Nirvana? Did something happen? Something must have happened."
But the Great Shaman did not know that no one, except the Divine Maiden, knew the past.
Whether she could successfully achieve Nirvana was also unknown. She must have said that because she was afraid the General would search for her.
"Princess, how am I supposed to explain this to the late Emperor!"
"What is there to explain? I have fulfilled his wishes. The external threat is gone, the altar of gods has been destroyed, my connection with Jing's fate is severed. Two lifetimes of entanglement with the royal family is enough!"
From now on, she would never return.
The royal family was all heartless.
Ling Yao left and never reappeared.
In Taiyi Hall, Emperor Mingde could no longer feign illness. He went to the Imperial Study, questioned the guards on duty, and discovered the missing tiger tally, as well as the news of Duorui leading the Western Suburbs Army out of the city.
She had bypassed him and directly issued an order to relieve Xiao Shan.
"What does she mean by this? My life or death has nothing to do with her. Her heart is entirely with Xiao Shan, Xiao Shan, Xiao Shan!"
He admitted that he had intended to let Xiao Shan fight until the very end before sending troops. Whether he could survive depended entirely on his fate.
But it hadn't been implemented yet!
She had dispatched troops so eagerly, as if afraid he would suffer even the slightest harm.
Emperor Mingde flew into a great rage and smashed the Imperial Study to pieces.