Chapter 142 Give Chidi an Explanation
The devil army’s high-ranking military officers had been killed, so Chidi came to the human realm. Di Qing waited in his temporary imperial abode at the news Chidi would come. Di Qing was in fidgets. Although it was Lin Xiaosa who gave the order to kill the devil army’s officers, Di Qing was the King of the Qi Kingdom, so he had to bear Chidi’s punishment. Now Di Qing was in great need of hands. If Lin Xiaosa just left him, what should Di Qing do? Chidi’s arrival added fuel to the arrogance in the devil army. Several top officers knelt for a long time to the Devil God. Di Qing was worried about the warfare, afraid that Chidi would recall the devil army in a rage. The Qi Kingdom was in deadly danger right now. Di Qing was not a fool. In order to appease Chidi’s wrath, Di Qing asked the Commander in Chief to come to the temporary residence palace immediately. However, Lin Xiaosa did not listen to him. With several military orders, Lin Xiaosa still could not leave the frontline. Then, Di Qing sent Leng Cang to the battlefront. With the order, Leng Cang hurried on all night along. When he arrived at the Di army’s barrack, a little soldier asked him in. Leng Ceng mentioned why he came there and handed in the Di Qing’s imperial edict. But the little soldier completely ignored that and put Leng Cang into the prison. Leng Cang was full of resentment, but did not dare to get angry. He had to stay in prison. The prison guard would bring the three meals of a day to him on time. Leng Cang’s anger was worn down day after day. On the eighth day, the prison door opened. The little soldier took Leng Cang to see the Commander in Chief. During the eight days, Leng Cang’s feeling changed from resentment to accommodating himself to circumstances. He finally understood what was called “A field commander must decide even against king’s orders.” In the commander’s camp, Lin Xiaosa studied the distribution map. The Martial General just threw a glance at Leng Cang when he came in. The Military Commander in Chief was superior. Even if the comer had taken the imperial edict, these martial generals did not take him seriously. Lin Xiaosa deployed the military forces till the night. In the commander’s camp, Leng Cang’s facial expression turned from dark to helpless. Obviously, he was redundant in the barrack. People there treated him scornfully. Leng Cang took the imperial edict from his chest to suppress Lin Xiaosa’s arrogance. But to his astonishment, Lin Xiaosa just threw it into the stove, and Di Qing’s imperial edict was burnt to ashes. Lin Xiaosa was too defiant! Leng Cang did not get angry but smiled, because he thought Lin Xiaosa did burn the imperial edict well. When Leng Cang came back to the palace, he decided to expose it to the Emperor, and then wanted to see how long Lin Xiaosa could remain rampant. Lin Xiaosa paid no attention to Leng Cang’s plot, but his major concern was that Yan army’s Commander in Chief was different this time. Lin Xiaosa launched several attacks, but was repressed all the time. He had thought that it was an easy job to capture the Jin City, but out of his expectation, the troop was attacked sneakily halfway. Consequently, the main military forces were bogged down. It would be harmful to the Di army. Although it was in November, the coldness in Jiangnan was totally different from that in the north. Dampness tortured the soldiers. Lin Xiaosa sent scouts into the Jin City and knew that Yan army’s Commander in Chief had been changed. But to his surprise, Xu Linghe took over that post. Lin Xiaosa did not believe it and asked the scouts to detect more carefully. News came that the Master of the Jin City was Xu Linghe. Lin Xiaosa felt his heart twisted. The brothers who had experienced life and death had to meet on the battleground finally. Leng Cang was detained and watched in the military camps. Lin Xiaosa arrested him in order to keep away from noise. However, Di Qing had been waiting for the news, but could not hear from the person whom he had sent out. Chidi was boiling with rage and wanted to kill Di Qing. He set a deadline for Di Qing: if Chidi could not see Lin Xiaosa within two days, he would scrap the treaty of alliance. It did scare Di Qing, and he came to the barrack himself. Leng Cang felt a relieve to see the Emperor and spoke of his grievances. Lin Xiaosa’s crimes mounted up to the sky. Di Qing burst into rage and smashed the table with his palm. Counting on the Master’s backing, Leng Cang felt more emboldened to fabricate exaggeratively that Lin Xiaosa plotted to seek rebellion. What a grave crime! Di Qing’s throne had been attained unreasonably, so he resented the word “rebellion”. Leng Cang’s words stirred up Di Qing’s killing desire. It seemed that the princess’ husband could be kept in the world. The thought rooted in Di Qing’s heart and sprouted gradually. Di Qing got frightened at Leng Cang’s words. On the other hand, Lin Xiaosa arrayed troops for consecutive sleepless nights, completely unaware of Leng Chang’s plot. When a little soldier came to report to him, Lin Xiaosa knew that Di Qing had reached the barrack. He knew that the Emperor would come to denounce him. But confronted with the powerful enemies, Lin Xiaosa could not care about so much. When Lin Xiaosa entered the Commander in Chief’s camp, Di Qing threw out a palm and overpowered him abruptly. All the martial generals were stunned, wondering what was wrong with the Emperor. As the enemies were pressing hard, how could he tie the Commander in Chief? Did he act like a fool? Lin Xiaosa’s vice-commanders could not bear to see the Commander in Chief suffer the unrighted wrong, and came up to plead for him. But it would be fine if they remained silent. Conversely, their plead irritated Di Qing. They were Di Qing’s subordinates but did not obey his order. Di Qing’s eyes darkened, and he gathered Spirit Power and gave another palm. The common people’s flesh could not bear it and were thrown out of the camp. The palm was so violent that two generals were killed. Lin Xiaosa did not expect the result. They were Lin Xiaosa’ brothers who he had gone through fire and water with and were bathed in bloody battles for the Qi Kingdom. But now they were killed by Di Qing. What a chill to the heart! The camp was full of bloody odor. Leng Cang knew that if he could not defeat Lin Xiaosa today, Lin Xiaosa could not spare him in the future. So Leng Cang told Di Qing that Lin Xiaosa dared to burn the imperial edict. Whosoever dared to show great disrespect to the Emperior’s Authority would be eradicated all of his/her families of nine generations. Di Qing heard it and scraped Lin Xiaosa’s military power on the spot. Leng Cang, a base person, was intoxicated by success, thinking that the military power was about to belong to him. At that time, he would become the Commander in Chief of the Qi Kingdom, a position only below a person but above all of the other people. Leng Cang was so ravished with joy that he wanted to drink three vats of wine and got good and drunk. But he did not know what Di Qing planned. In Di Qing’s mind, Lin Xiaosa had killed the devil army’s officers, so Di Qing had to give an explanation to Chidi. Therefore, Di Qing had no alternative but to wrong his brother-in-law. If Di Qing killed Lin Xiaosa, Di Li would certainly blame Di Qing. The common plot did not hurt the important essentials, but Xiaoli was Di Qing’s family member, he would not allow his younger sister to feel sad. The generals were indignant to see their Commander in Chief caught, but what could they do? Di Qing was the Emperor, so they had to submit to the imperial authority. Leng Cang did not get the Commander-in-Chief’s Seal, and realized that Di Qing did not take him seriously. Now, Leng Cang not only failed to claim the credit, but also started a feud with Lin Xiaosa. Lin Xiaosa kept calm and showed great scorn to the position as Commander in Chief. Di Qing’s ruthlessness alienated Lin Xiaosa from the post. Besides, the Master of the Jin City was Xu Linghe. Lin Xiaosa was unwilling to see brothers destroy each other. As a matter of fact, Lin Xiaosa had been forced to be the Commander in Chief in the beginning, and he did not like the political trickeries in the official circles. At the crucial moment, it was good to strip his military power. He felt carefree when he was relieved of official duties. As long as the family accompanied him, any place under the sun would be Lin Xiaosa’s home. Especially thinking about the home in the North Desert, Lin Xiaosa could not sit well. He took off the war suit and threw away the war saber, about to leave the camp. But he was blocked by the Spirit Power. Di Qing condensed his Spirit Power again. Lin Xiaosa flipped it with his spiritual fingers to break the spell. Then, the constraint faded away. Seeing Lin Xiaosa able to use illusion, Di Qing increased the Spirit Power considerably, and then the Spirit Power tied Lin Xiaosa tightly. Lin Xiaosa tried to get rid of it. Di Qing’s saber charged at Lin Xiaosa. The generals besides jumped forward but were knocked off by Di Qing. Next second, Lin Xiaosa’s pinkie fell on Di Qing’s hand. The nerves of the fingertips were linked with the heart. Lin Xiaosa’s eyes flamed with pains. The pinkie was put into a brocade box. Lin Xiaosa had killed the devil army’s top officers. It needed an explanation. And now, the pinkie cut from Lin Xiaosa could be a humble apology to Chidi.
“Ask the Military Doctor to come here.”
The little soldier took the order and went out of the Commander in Chief’s camp. Until then did Leng Cang realize that Di Qing did not think about replacing the Commander in Chief at all. It was all Leng Cang’s imagination. And he even offended Lin Xiaosa. How could Leng Cang get along in the future? Lin Xiaosa turned up his nose at Di Qing’s snobbish act, and unveiled the tabernacle to leave there.
“Xiaoli said it was safer to live in the palace, and let me give the letter to you. Just look at it.”
Lin Xiaosa stopped. Di Qing did seize Lin Xiaosa’s weak point and always calculated. When the military doctor staunched the blood for Lin Xiaosa, Di Qing picked up the war saber and put it on the table with the Commander-in-Chief’s Seal.
“If the Qi Kingdom is extinguished, I will take Xiaoli to see the former Emperor.”
“You dare!”
“That depends on how the Commander in Chief will do.”
Lin Xiaosa was shocked by Di Qing’s brazenness. How could Di Qing even not let go of his own younger sister? Lin Xiaosa felt pity for his wife, because she was totally unconscious of the fact that she was being used by her own elder brother. Di Qing stepped out of the Commander in Chief’s camp and headed to the West. It had been late when Di Qing returned to the temporary residence palace. Chidi was still there, waiting for him patiently. Di Qing flew into the main hall and threw the sandalwood box in front of Chidi. Chidi opened it and found a part of a finger.
“Your Excellency, does it satisfy you?”
Di Qing was unhappy in his heart. If he was stronger, he would not fear Chidi. If he owned the power of the Heavenly Book, what was Chidi?
“Two people’s lives are just equal to a finger?”
Chidi’s dissatisfaction would lead to serious consequences, which was too serious to afford. Di Qing sank to his knees. Looking at Di Qing’s humble nature, Chidi felt headache and regretted having helped him. Chidi even expected Di Qing to help him. What a wildest fantasy! Chidi raised his hands. Di Qing, such a worthless wretch! Well, let him out of sight and out of mind! He was more a failure than a success. Now, the integral Qi Kingdom was divided into two. And Di Qing was really a burden on Chidi. But if Chidi did not help him, the other alliances would follow it. Chidi did have no way to back down. But compared to Xiao Qi, Di Qing was more stupid and easier to be controlled. Chidi consoled himself. It was time to wipe out the traitor, so Chidi flew out of the temporary residence palace to the Mount Da Huang. Di Qing picked himself up slowly from the ground. Leng Cang came to help, but was knocked off. Di Qing thought if the guy had not killed Yan Shen’s son, the world would not be in chaos now.
Xiao Qi betrayed the Three leagues, which infuriated Chidi. At first, Xiao Qi had done everything to please Chidi in order to pay allegiance, but now he became Hongjun’s pawn. Xiao Qi was challenging the Authority of the Three Leagues. Nascent Soul always disapproved of Xiao Qi and now showed great hatred to him, because in Nascent Soul’s mind, Chidi was as holy as the deity. Whosoever dared to betray Grandmaster should be killed. Now Xiao Qi had new backer and freed himself from Chidi’s control. Chidi hated Xiao Qi having a stronger backing, and it was a terrible blow to Chidi’s self-esteem. What was worse, the devil army was driven out of the Teal Hill. Disasters had piled up on one another, and now the things went from bad to worse. Baize’s people were driven by the Teal Hill to a remoter place. Yu Xuanji got angry at the result, because she married Chidi for Baize. But now the marriage not only got her nowhere, but also made Baize occupied by the Teal Hill. So how could Yu Xuanji not get angry? Chidi tried to get away from Yu Xuanji to have peace for ears. He regretted having blindly heard the slanders to attack Kunlun, and the devil army suffered a lot with decreasing influence. If it went on like that, there would be no room for him in the three realms. Chidi was unwilling to see that happen, so he came to the Ninth-level Heaven to discuss with Emperor Jun about how to restore the momentum of the Three Leagues. Emperor Jun also lost a great number of soldiers and generals. But now, Zhu Jiuyin of the Immense Sea was not in the Three Leagues.
However, after the divine invitations had been sent some times, the Master of the Immense Sea did not show up. Emperor Jun was annoyed and decided to call on Zhu Jiuyin in person. In the battle with Kunlun, the Three Leagues had lost tens of thousands of veteran and brilliant soldiers, which made Emperor Jun grieved with the loss. Chidi came to the royal court for the first time. The greeting ceremony was grand and ostentatious. All the civil and military officials stood at the gate of the main hall, and Ying Yu stood at the front. Emperor Jun went with head high and chest out. Although the etiquette was grand, the Master of the Immense Sea did not appear. Emperor Jun was more displeased, since he had sent the divine invitations to Zhu Jiuyin several times, but Zhu Jiuyin did not replay them at all. And Emperor Jun had to bother himself to come to visit Zhu Jiuyin in person, but was disliked by the Master there. Ying Yu put on a smiling face, because he knew that the Master of the Ninth-level Heaven could not suffer any slights. Chidi was more disappointed. Their purpose was to discuss how to suppress Xiao Qi. But even the superficial civilities were so casual. Zhu Jiuyin shunned everybody, unwilling to dispatch troops. Chidi could not take the aggravation. Ying Yu filled the cup with the wine in an attempt to work off Emperor Jun’s anger. After drinking for several cups, Ying Yu told the truth that the Master seclude himself for healing his wounds. Last time, the Master was injured by Jiang Wuyou, and his wounds had been recovered. Chidi did not believe it but was helpless. One of the Three Leagues had been damaged, and the two swallowed defeats. At the same time, Zhu Jiuyin was in Jiuli and basked in the sun. Feng Xi set up the chess and wanted to play with his friend again. But Zhu Jiuyin took no interest. The Kunlun’s battle left a pain on his heart. As long as he gathered Spirit Power, his chest would ache terribly. Last time, he was injured by the woman and he was more like a good-for-nothing. Afraid that people with ill intents knew his plight, Zhu Jiuyin had no choice but to hide in Jiuli.