Chapter 2112: The Sage Emperor’s Bet!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“Your Majesty!”
“What are you up to?”
“Traitor! Release His Majesty!”
The Dragon Guards furiously roared, and the tension rose once more.
“Withdraw!” Seeing that the agitated Dragon Guards were about to charge, w.a.n.g Chong extended a hand and hastily called them back.
His expression had also turned grave. It was impossible to predict what someone of Li Xuantu’s personality might do next, and the consequences of a mistake were unimaginable.
“Your Highness, I know that you are not the sort of character who disregards the overarching situation. Your Highness, please, release His Majesty!” w.a.n.g Chong implored.
Behind him, the three divine embryos slowly drew closer, and within Divine Embryo 3, cold azure light began to slowly flow as it once more readied to use Ice-Sealed World.
The moment Li Xuantu was frozen, w.a.n.g Chong would use the energy left by the Sage Emperor to heavily injure Li Xuantu and take back Li Heng.
But Li Heng was in Li Xuantu’s grasp, and when facing a Grotto Heaven expert, not even w.a.n.g Chong was confident that he could smoothly take back Li Heng.
And no one could bear the consequences of failure.
On the other side, Li Xuantu appeared to not even hear w.a.n.g Chong.
He carefully examined Li Heng, his gaze piercing through Li Heng like a sword, penetrating into his organs.
“Brat, do you know that if I so much as thought it, even if you had an army of tens of thousands present, I could kill you as easily as a chicken!?” Li Xuantu coldly said.
Li Heng’s feet hung in the air, and all of his acupoints were sealed, rendering him motionless. But at this point, his expression was stern and fearless.
“I know!”
Li Heng stared back at Li Xuantu.
“We are the sovereign of a country. No matter what you’re planning, We will never yield to you.
“If you want to do it, hurry up and do it!
“The previous Emperor was kind and benevolent, as the whole realm knows. You wish for me to slander the previous Emperor, but We will never commit such a cowardly act! Moreover, the realm is not something that can be casually handed over. Even if We die, We will not abdicate to you, entrusting the people of the realm to such a ruthless man!”
Li Heng angrily glared at Li Xuantu.
If he hadn’t been so weak, he would have already begun to fight with Li Xuantu.
Just who did this b.a.s.t.a.r.d think he was?!
If he truly did something like this, how would he be any different from a pig or dog, and how would he have any right to be Emperor of the Great Tang?
Would this not mean that the previous Emperor was lacking in judgment?
It would be the greatest humiliation to the previous Emperor’s memory!
Seeing the furious Li Heng, Li Xuantu frowned, his sharp eyes looking into the depths of Li Heng’s eyes.
Li Heng stared back, not backing down in the slightest.
Finally, Li Xuantu’s expression changed.
“Haaah…”
Li Xuantu let out a deep sigh, an indescribable expression appearing on his aloof face, containing a little bit of everything, but particularly dejection, disappointment, and defeat.
“I did not think that this prince would lose again.
“Li Taiyi, you’ve won again!”
As he spoke, Li Xuantu relinquished his grip and released Li Heng. Whoos.h.!.+ With a surge of Stellar Energy, Li Xuantu cast Li Heng aside.
“！！！”
“!!!”
As Li Heng’s feet hit the ground, the seals on his acupoints were released. At this moment, even he was dumbstruck.
Li Xuantu and the previous Emperor had been rivals, and Li Xuantu had a cruel personality. Deep down, Li Heng had already prepared himself for death. He had never imagined that this man who had been speaking about seizing the throne and who had defeated all the Dragon Guards with a flick of his fingers would so easily let him go.
But he didn’t have time to ponder these things, and the Dragon Guards led by General Li soon flew up to his side.
“Your Majesty!”
Meanwhile, w.a.n.g Chong breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Li Heng released.
Although he had been pleading for mercy from Li Xuantu and claiming that Li Xuantu did not have killing intent, this was only what he felt. Only now did he finally relax.
But w.a.n.g Chong’s eyes soon twitched as he remembered Li Xuantu’s words just now.
‘Li Taiyi, you’ve won again!’ Li Xuantu had said these words with a complicated expression, and there was clearly a story behind it.
What was going on here?
Was there something else between Li Xuantu and the Sage Emperor that he didn’t know about?
The more w.a.n.g Chong thought about it, the more plausible he found it to be.
The Sage Emperor and Li Xuantu had been each other’s greatest opponents.
But the Sage Emperor had probably not regarded Li Xuantu as a pure enemy, or else he would not have allowed him to live until now.
Moreover, the Sage Emperor knew that he didn’t have long to live and that Li Heng couldn’t suppress Li Xuantu, so how could he not make arrangements regarding Li Xuantu?
The two of them probably had one last meeting, perhaps even made a bet.
There was no other explanation for why someone of Li Xuantu’s personality would be so merciful to Li Heng!
Li Xuantu ignored w.a.n.g Chong, his unfocused eyes looking up toward the heavens.
A scene began to play in his mind.
Torches flickered in an underground prison.
Li Xuantu could still remember how shocked he had been to see that man come in with such a pale complexion.
He had never imagined that this mortal foe of his who seemed to be selected by the heavens, whose strength was on par with his, could ever possess such a weak and feeble side.
“Li Xuantu, We do not have much time to live. We know that you have never yielded to Us, so We will give you one last chance to defeat me…”
The man’s voice resounded through the prison, and for the first time, Li Xuantu felt a shock deep in his heart.
“Once We are gone, someone will inevitably come to find you. That day will be the day in which you are freed. Without Us to suppress you, no one in the Great Tang Empire will be your match.
“We know that you have always felt that you were just a sliver away from becoming the ultimate victor, just one move behind. We also know that you have always believed that you would be a better successor and ruler for the Great Tang.
“We will give you a chance, and We will not kill you. Once you are free, you can go and find my chosen successor. If you feel that you are stronger, that you are the more fitting ruler for the Great Tang, you can remove him from the throne and take his place. But if not, We want you to completely dispel this idea from your mind and take Our place as the guardian of the Great Tang!
“This will be our final bet, the one that will finally bring an end to the grudges between us!”
……
He had never imagined that he would still lose this final struggle!
Though the successor Li Taiyi had left behind was young and lacked Li Taiyi’s astounding talent and strength, not even meeting the standards for a descendant of Li Taiyi, he was truly an ideal Emperor for the Great Tang!
His reign would have a chance of being even more prosperous than his own!
He wanted the throne, but he was also a member of the Li Clan.
“Forget it!”
Li Xuantu sighed, waved his sleeve, and turned to leave.
At that moment, his figure appeared indescribably lonely.
“Brat!”
As he pa.s.sed by w.a.n.g Chong, Li Xuantu stopped and patted him on the shoulder.
“Li Taiyi was right about you!”
w.a.n.g Chong stared at Li Xuantu in surprise, but before he could react—
Bang!
The palm that Li Xuantu had placed on w.a.n.g Chong’s shoulder trembled as a stream of powerful law energy surged into w.a.n.g Chong’s body. At this moment, the incomplete Grotto Heaven law within his body was seemingly stimulated. Trembling, it began to mature and organize itself.
Moreover, w.a.n.g Chong’s Grotto Heaven law had come entirely from Firmament Supreme, forming its own system, but after receiving Li Xuantu’s energy, w.a.n.g Chong could sense that the fragmented Grotto Heaven law in his body had established a special connection with the world.
It was like a dried-up pond connected to a distant river by a channel, suddenly gaining a source of fresh water.
Even if w.a.n.g Chong did nothing, the Grotto Heaven law in his body would absorb energy from the world and slowly mature on its own.
“Senior!”
w.a.n.g Chong was shaken as he digested what had just happened. Li Xuantu had helped him get stronger and increased his understanding of Grotto Heaven laws.
Whoos.h.!.+
But before w.a.n.g Chong could finish speaking, Li Xuantu drew back his hand and shot into the air.
His voice drifted out from the distance.
“You called me ‘Your Highness’ a few times, so this is my little farewell gift!
“I leave the Great Tang to you! Don’t disappoint me! And don’t disappoint Li Taiyi!”
Li Xuantu was a tiny black dot in the sky by now.
w.a.n.g Chong was left flabbergasted by Li Xuantu’s words.
“Senior, where are you going?” w.a.n.g Chong shouted to Li Xuantu.
“I have my own place to go. This Great Tang is no longer suitable for me…”
Li Xuantu’s voice resounded in w.a.n.g Chong’s ear, and with this said, his aura completely disappeared from w.a.n.g Chong’s senses.
Staring into the distance, w.a.n.g Chong let out a melancholy sigh.
Li Xuantu was a formidable character of a generation, but alas, in this era, he was not the main character.
With these thoughts pa.s.sing through his mind, w.a.n.g Chong walked over to Li Heng.
The battle was over, but the storm had yet to be calmed. He still had many more things he needed to do.
……
With Li Xuantu’s departure and the mobilization of the Imperial Army, the capital was quickly pacified. Meanwhile, elsewhere…
Thwis.h.!.+
A dark-golden talisman elegantly flew through the depths of s.p.a.cetime, where no normal person could see.