Firmament Sword

The Xu Family, once under attack from all sides, had become heroes of the entire Cangqiong Empire thanks to this sudden reversal of fortune.

In the face of Xu Ji’s legendary military exploits, all the previous plots against the Xu Family now seemed laughably weak and utterly insignificant.

For an Emperor, what could possibly be more exciting than expanding his territory?

Especially since the falling of the seven stars had cast a pall of misfortune over Cangqiong, and the Empire had been threatened by the two mighty empires of Great Yan and Da Han to the north and south, the situation had been dire.

Although both Great Yan and Da Han had now withdrawn their forces, nearly everyone in the Cangqiong Empire, from the highest official to the common citizen, was seething with a pent-up rage they couldn’t vent.

A mighty empire with a thousand-year legacy, treated like a fat lamb to be carved up and devoured... This had deeply wounded the proud hearts of the Cangqiong people.

Defeating the Yan Army and repelling the Da Han forces was not enough to fully vent the Cangqiong people’s rage.

Cangqiong needed a monumental victory to raise morale and rally the people...

At such a time, their Grand General of National Guardian... stepped forward!

With a single surprise attack, he had annihilated the northern Wu Kingdom and captured the King of Wu alive. I ask you... what could possibly do more to raise morale?

The Wu Kingdom was situated in the north, sharing borders with both Da Han and Cangqiong. Though its territory was merely one-tenth the size of the Cangqiong Empire, it was a nation overflowing with riches!

The Wu Kingdom was rich in natural resources, boasting innumerable rare and precious herbs, Spirit Beasts, and other exotic creatures!

Furthermore, the Wu Kingdom’s mineral deposits were exceptionally rich. Its reserves of gold, silver, copper, and iron were so vast they would make anyone green with envy...

The soil of the Wu Kingdom was fertile, producing crop yields double those of Cangqiong!

From ancient times, both Cangqiong and Da Han had, on more than one occasion, set their sights on the Wu Kingdom.

However, while the nation was small, its military might was by no means weak!

Combined with its unique geographical location and the barrier formed by the Northern Mountain Range, attacking the Wu Kingdom was incredibly difficult.

Historically, Cangqiong’s armies had launched several expeditions against the Wu Kingdom, and all had ended in failure.

The most recent attempt was over a hundred years ago. The commanding general at the time was Huangfu Jinghong, a man with the noble status of a Royal Family Prince. He led an army of one hundred thousand men, braving the bitter cold to cross the Northern Mountain Range and invade the Wu Kingdom.

Unexpectedly, however, word of the military operation was leaked. The Wu Army used the treacherous terrain of the Northern Mountain Range to lay an ambush, trapping Huangfu Jinghong’s hundred-thousand-strong army in a long, narrow valley.

Beset by bitter cold and starvation, more than half of Huangfu Jinghong’s army perished. When they finally attempted to force a breakout, they were completely annihilated by the Wu Army.

It was an incredibly brutal war. An army of one hundred thousand, utterly annihilated!

That Prince of the Royal Family, refusing to surrender, was killed on the battlefield. His head was severed and hung from the gate tower of the Wu Kingdom Capital City!

This incident became a great scar upon the heart of the Cangqiong Royal Family.

Even though a hundred years had passed, every successive Emperor remembered this hatred with bitterness.

There was another important reason why the Cangqiong Empire wanted to annihilate the Wu Kingdom: from ancient times, Wu had always been close to the Da Han Empire. In the Da Han Empire’s many historical attacks on Cangqiong, the hand of the Wu Kingdom was always involved.

They provided men and funds to support the Da Han Empire.

One could say the two nations were sworn, generational enemies.

Furthermore, the Wu Kingdom also served as a vital gateway between Da Han and Cangqiong. If Cangqiong conquered it, their armies could march straight into Da Han whenever they pleased!

Therefore, while the Da Han Empire also drooled over the Wu Kingdom’s wealth, after weighing all factors, they had chosen to remain its ally.

For Da Han knew full well that if they were to actually attack the Wu Kingdom, Cangqiong would not sit idly by; it would undoubtedly launch an assault on Da Han from the other side.

The consequences of such a move would be more than the Da Han Empire could bear.

Conversely, the Da Han Empire would never stand by and watch Cangqiong conquer the Wu Kingdom, because for Da Han, that would be nothing short of a cataclysmic disaster!

Thus, Xu Ji’s great victory in annihilating the Wu Kingdom was of immense significance to the entire Cangqiong Empire, both for the present and for the future.

This accomplishment was enough to have him crowned a king!

At this moment, looking back at the plots and schemes targeting the Xu Family within Cangqiong, they seemed not only pathetic and laughable, but if word were to spread, they would send a chill down people’s spines!

The Grand General of National Guardian was on the front lines, risking life and limb to expand the nation’s territory, while a bunch of scum at home were busy scheming against his family?

Thus, even if Emperor Huangfu Haoran had previously been wary of and displeased with the Xu Family’s power, now... all that displeasure vanished in an instant!

The dark clouds hanging over the Cangqiong Empire’s Military Merit Faction were shattered by this heavy blow from Grand General Xu Ji.

...

”I can’t believe it. He actually took the advice I gave Father!”

In the National Guardian General’s Mansion, brothers Xu Luo and Xu Su sat chatting in the living room, their eyes full of excitement.

It turned out that as early as Su Tong’s first visit to Xu Luo’s fief, Xu Luo had used intelligence from Tang Yong and Li Yu to suggest to his father that he could make a play for the northern Wu Kingdom while the Da Han Empire’s army was massed on the border!

At a time like that, almost everyone would assume the Cangqiong Empire was suffering from internal turmoil and external threats, caught in a pincer between the Great Yan and Da Han empires, and would have absolutely no energy to spare for anything else, let alone attack the Wu Kingdom!

At the time, it was just a suggestion from Xu Luo. He never imagined his father would actually act on it.

This also explained why when Xu Su got into trouble, their father, Xu Ji, had turned to his son Xu Luo for help, asking him to rescue his own brother.

At that moment, it was likely the crucial juncture for launching the surprise attack on the Wu Kingdom. Xu Ji couldn’t possibly have left his post!

This surprise attack on the Wu Kingdom had been a case where timing, terrain, and popular support were all on Cangqiong’s side.

No one could have possibly predicted that Da Han would retreat, let alone that they would be forced to do so by a major internal crisis that affected their military.

Da Han was too preoccupied with its own affairs to spare a thought for anything else, and it certainly never occurred to them that Cangqiong would have the energy and audacity to attack the Wu Kingdom at such a time.

Thus, thanks to the influence of numerous factors, the battle had actually ended in an unimaginable victory.

Xu Su’s face was also alight with excitement. He looked at Xu Luo and said, ”I never realized your scheme in the north was so ambitious. Did you plan this from the moment you went to your northern fief?”

Xu Luo shook his head and gave a wry smile. ”How could I be that brilliant? When I went to the northern fief, I just wanted to temporarily escape the chaos in the Imperial Capital. To be honest, back then, what I really wanted to do was uncover the truth of the Wansong Town massacre and shatter the false accusations that have been weighing on Dad’s name.”

With that, Xu Luo sighed. ”I made so many efforts and gathered a mountain of evidence, only to realize in the end that none of it could be used. Because Your Majesty would never allow Prime Minister Wei to fall at a time like this. He would definitely protect him.”

”That’s right. If Prime Minister Wei were to fall, the Civil Servant faction would be left without a leader. As the Emperor, he can’t allow one side to become overwhelmingly powerful,” Xu Su said.

”So I decided to just get away from it all and left the Imperial Capital. Later, after I arrived at my fief, my subordinates were furious that the Wu Kingdom was constantly funding Da Han. They told me they had discovered a hidden passage that cut directly through the Northern Mountain Range and into the Wu heartland.”

Xu Su looked at his younger brother in admiration. ”Your subordinates are really something else!”

”Many of them were elites from Father’s army. Though they’ve all been discharged, their abilities are still sharp.” Xu Luo smiled and added, ”That passage was actually opened up by the people of Wu themselves, specifically for smuggling...”

”Ah, so that’s how it was!” Xu Su said, the realization dawning on him.

”At the time, a few of my men suggested I post guards at the passage to plunder the goods being smuggled from the Wu Kingdom into Cangqiong. But I thought that was pointless. If you’re going to make a move... you might as well go big!”

Xu Luo said with a smile, ”So, I made the suggestion to Father.”

”So, this war was a miracle. It’s guaranteed to be remembered as a legendary chapter in history!” Xu Su said happily.

”Yes, and our family is safe now. No one will dare to cross us at a time like this. So, I want to go on a trip,” Xu Luo said.

”A trip? Where to?” Xu Su asked, looking at Xu Luo.

”I want to go bring Mother back.” A flash of pain crossed Xu Luo’s eyes. ”For my sake, Mother had no choice but to agree to her sect’s demand to serve as an Instructor for five years. I, her son, was powerless to do anything but watch it happen. I swore to myself back then that I would rise up as quickly as possible and go bring her home.”

His face resolute, Xu Luo said quietly, ”And I’ll kill anyone who dares to stop me.”

”We’ll go together!” Xu Su’s eyes flashed with a cold, grim light as he gritted his teeth. ”Back then, when Mother sought that medicine for you, it may have been top-grade, but it wasn’t anything particularly rare for her sect. Yet they made such an outrageous demand, forcing her to stay there for five years! No matter what, we have to bring Mother home this time!”

Xu Luo shook his head, looked at Xu Su, and said, ”You can’t go. You’re a military man; you aren’t as free as I am. Besides, Father is escorting the King of Wu on his return, and the journey might be dangerous. I think you should go and rendezvous with Father right away. I’ll be enough to take care of things with Mother.”

Xu Su thought for a moment, then nodded. ”You have a point. Father is returning to the Imperial Capital with heaven-piercing merits. I’m afraid a lot of people are going to be losing sleep over this. My only fear is that some, in defiance of the greater good, might do something utterly unforgivable.”

”Exactly,” Xu Luo said. ”So we should act separately. When I bring Mother back, our family can finally be reunited!”

Xu Su nodded emphatically and clapped his younger brother on the shoulder. ”Be careful over there. If Mother’s sect doesn’t have any malicious intent, don’t go too far.”

”Mhm,” Xu Luo acknowledged. ”Don’t worry. I know how to handle myself.”

As he spoke, Xu Luo suddenly gave a cold smile. ”But before I leave the Imperial Capital, I first need to visit certain people... and collect some interest.”