Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

”So you won’t let Fan Jinhua come out? Fine. Then I’ll attack the city.”

”I’ll break through in fifteen minutes... Kill!”

Following Lu Hanyan’s impatient command, the Great Wu Soldiers and Horses behind her surged toward the small Yangzhou City.

...

「Meanwhile, in Yinzhou City.」

Lu Chao, Fan Jinhua, and the two thousand surviving soldiers of the Azure Flame Sect arrived without issue.

However, they weren’t all allowed inside. Instead, Fan Jinhua and the other leaders were told to ascend the gatehouse first.

Grand General Guan Zanyi was waiting for them on the gatehouse.

When Lu Chao, Fan Jinhua, and the others set foot on the gatehouse, all eyes turned to them, and smirks appeared on every face.

The men on the gatehouse looked at them as if they were a pack of pathetic clowns.

Lu Chao, walking just behind Fan Jinhua, observed the crowd on the gatehouse in turn.

Most were dressed in the uniforms of Tiger Flame Kingdom generals.

There were also men from other Flame Countries present. After all, several major Flame Countries and a hundred smaller nations had allied to dispatch troops, so liaisons were needed to exchange intelligence. Since this front was led by the Tiger Flame Kingdom, its people were in charge.

At the head of the assembly sat an old man with white hair and a black beard.

This was the very man leading the counteroffensive against the Great Wu Empire: Tiger Flame Grand General Guan Zanyi.

Lu Chao recognized him; he even had an intelligence file on the man.

During the War of the Hundred Countries, Guan Zanyi had been lucky enough to escape from Lu Chao with his life.

After they had sized each other up for a few moments, Guan Zanyi rose and roared with laughter...

”Haha, Xiaofan, you’ve arrived.”

As he spoke, Guan Zanyi strode toward the group, stopping just two meters in front of Fan Jinhua.

His eyes swept lightly over Lu Chao and the others...

”You’ve all gone through a lot on this mission to assassinate Lu Hanyan.”

”I know you suffered heavy casualties. I will report to the Tiger Flame King and request better compensation for you all.”

Guan Zanyi got straight to the point.

He was implying that he would secure more favorable treatment for the descendants of the Azure Flame Sect.

With Lei Zhen having stolen the credit from Fan Jinhua, this was just for show, of course—a necessary pretense, especially while Fan Changcun was still alive.

Fan Jinhua, however, shook his head. ”There’s no need. The credit for this operation belongs entirely to General Lei. We were merely lucky to have survived.”

At this, the men on the gatehouse broke into sneers.

Fan Jinhua was being sarcastic, and everyone knew it.

Guan Zanyi, of course, understood the jab. He stepped forward and clapped Fan Jinhua on the shoulder. ”Xiaofan, some things are beyond my control. This was a decision made by the major Flame Countries. Don’t take it to heart.”

He was directly blaming the major Flame Countries for the stolen credit.

At the same time, his eyes held a warning: Fan Jinhua was not to make any more trouble, or the consequences would be dire.

At Guan Zanyi’s words, Fan Jinhua’s face began to flush red with anger.

He was losing his composure.

Seeing this, Lu Chao immediately stepped forward. ”If I may be so bold, Grand General Guan, what credit did General Lei and his son achieve, and what credit did we achieve? We need to be clear on the details, lest we get them mixed up.”

Guan Zanyi shot Lu Chao a cool glance, naturally assuming he was another descendant of the Azure Flame Sect.

A faint, threatening smirk touched his lips. ”You’re rather arrogant for a young man.”

Guan Zanyi assumed Lu Chao’s question was another sarcastic jab, a counterattack even, and so he issued a cold warning.

Lu Chao just smiled. ”I mean no offense. I genuinely wish to have things clarified.”

In response to Lu Chao’s calm reply, a hint of malice flickered in Guan Zanyi’s eyes. He hated young men who showed no fear of him.

Suddenly, Guan Zanyi leaned in and whispered in Fan Jinhua’s ear, ”Xiaofan, I’d love to see what tricks you think you can pull.”

He still believed Fan Jinhua was trying to retaliate for having his glory stolen.

Before Fan Jinhua could respond, Guan Zanyi spun around, stepped back before his seat of honor, and announced loudly...

”Though this isn’t the time for awarding merits, it is indeed necessary to state the facts of the achievements clearly.”

”Fan Jinhua and his men performed admirably in this operation.”

”Under the leadership of General Lei’s son, Junior General Lei Guangheng, they sacked Yangzhou City...”

”More importantly, under the command and coordination of General Lei Zhen, they flawlessly assassinated Lu Dingtian’s daughter, Lu Hanyan.”

His voice trailed off. Guan Zanyi looked toward Fan Jinhua, his gaze sharp and piercing from beneath his wrinkled eyelids.

He looked ready to put Fan Jinhua in his place.

He was about to tell Fan Jinhua that no amount of protest would matter; the great honor belonged to Lei Zhen and his son.

Fan Jinhua didn’t respond...

He knew he was too emotional to handle this, so he left everything to Lu Chao.

And Lu Chao, stepping up without hesitation, began to praise him effusively. ”General Lei Zhen is truly incredible! His conduct during this operation was nothing short of admirable. Without his leadership, we surely would not have survived.”

’This was exactly the plan he’d laid out for Tan An and the others: first, heap praises upon Lei Zhen and his son!’

At the same time...

The envoys from the other Flame Countries also rose to their feet, loudly congratulating Guan Zanyi and praising Lei Zhen and his son. Their tone was dripping with jealousy. ’Damn it all, of course the glory for assassinating Lu Hanyan had to go to the Tiger Flame Kingdom.’

There was nothing to be done. After all, of the core experts among the assassins, Fan Jinhua was the only one left alive.

Suddenly, Lu Chao asked in feigned surprise, ”Wait. Grand General Guan, what did you just say? Flawlessly assassinated Lu Hanyan?”

Hmm?

Guan Zanyi instantly grew wary. He stared directly at Lu Chao and asked with a cold smile, ”Is there a problem?”

’This brat. He’s finally starting his tricks.’

”Of course there’s a problem. Lu Hanyan isn’t dead,” Lu Chao announced.

The moment he spoke, every smile in the room—on the faces of the Tiger Flame generals and the foreign envoys alike—froze solid.

A moment later, Guan Zanyi snapped back to his senses and bellowed, ”What... what did you say?”

Lu Chao tilted his head, enunciating every word. ”I said, Lu Hanyan is not dead. Our assassination failed... I must have misunderstood, Grand General Guan. Didn’t General Lei already file his report?”

Lei Zhen had sent a messenger to Yinzhou City ahead of Lu Chao’s group.

The messenger’s job was to report the stolen glory to Guan Zanyi.

That was how Guan Zanyi had been able to so clearly delineate everyone’s supposed contributions just now.

Instantly, Guan Zanyi’s hand trembled. He glared at Fan Jinhua and demanded furiously, ”You... you didn’t succeed in the assassination?”

Fan Jinhua looked up. ”We did not. The assassination was a failure.”

BANG...

Hearing this, Guan Zanyi slammed his palm down on the stone table and raged, ”You failed the assassination? Why wasn’t this reported?!”

Just moments before...

He had been boasting to the envoys from the various Flame Countries, claiming the grand achievement of ”assassinating Lu Hanyan” for the Tiger Flame Kingdom.

And now Fan Jinhua was telling him it had all been a failure.

’He was the grand and dignified Grand General Guan! Did his reputation mean nothing?’

Watching Guan Zanyi, who was practically shaking with rage...

Cold smiles appeared on the faces of Lu Chao, Fan Jinhua, and Luo Wendeng. It was Lu Chao who spoke again. ”General Lei Zhen was the one commanding our assassination. Naturally, the reporting falls to him as well. We wouldn’t dare overstep our authority.”