Martial Cultivator

As the Great Liang Emperor permitted the retirement of the Great General, the court officials became a chaotic mess. The square was filled with noise and the court officials no longer cared that it was still the grand court session. They were ready to offer their remonstrations, expressing their incomprehension and opposition to the Great General’s retirement.

Yao Dao, who was standing in front of Chen Chao, turned to look at him and asked softly, ”Commander Chen, what’s your opinion?”

This time, Yao Dao intentionally omitted the title ”deputy”, looking at Chen Chao with interest.

Chen Chao shook his head and whispered, ”For such an important court matter, His Majesty has already made his decision. We, as his subjects, should not casually offer our opinions.”

Although Chen Chao was not entirely sure how to navigate bureaucracy, he understood how to conduct himself as a person. He could not reveal his true thoughts to a colleague with whom he did not share a deep bond.

Yao Dao seemed to have anticipated this answer, so he simply smiled faintly and did not say much, turning away thereafter.

In front of the great hall, looking at this bunch of court officials who were being so unruly, Li Heng quickly raised his voice: ”Silence! This is the grand court session! With such loss of decorum, you all should remember that you’re court officials of our Great Liang Dynasty!”

As the chief eunuch and the most trusted person by His Majesty the Emperor, Li Heng’s words carried the Great Liang Emperor’s will to some extent. Thus, the uproar in the square subsided quickly.

Today’s grand court session still followed the basic procedure, albeit with some initial agitation. They understood that there was no difference between admonishing today or after the grand court session. Moreover, the Great General was still in the Divine Capital, so as long as he had not truly retired. It meant that there was still hope for change.

However, in the next moment, the court officials became nervous once again.

This was because Li Heng took out another decree.

This decree was even more straightforward: it stated that the Great General of the Northern Frontier had retired, but the Northern Frontier could not be without a Great General for even a single day. Therefore, the Lord Warden Commander was appointed as the new Great General of the Northern Frontier and was to depart immediately for the North.

Upon hearing this decree, the most shaken were not the court officials, but rather the military officials of the warden faction.

Song Lian stared wide-eyed at the Lord Warden Commander before him, utterly shocked.

The other military officials of the warden faction were similarly shocked.

Only Chen Chao did not show anything. In fact, after announcing the retirement of the Great General, he had been thinking about one thing all along, that was, after the Great General, who could guard the North? Who would be qualified in martial arts realm and experience to become the Northern Frontier Great General of this Great Liang Dynasty?

The Great General could grow old, he could also retire in old age, this was the imperial favor of the Great Liang Emperor. But after he left, what about the Northern Frontier? This was also a problem in front of the Great Liang Emperor.

On this issue, he must be extremely cautious because the safety of the Northern Frontier signified the safety of the Great Liang Dynasty to a large extent.

Looking at the entire Great Liang Dynasty, among the military officials, there was only one person who was suitable for this position.

It was the Lord Warden Commander.

As the Lord Warden Commander of the Great Liang Dynasty, he possessed prestige in the court not inferior to that of the Northern Frontier Great General, and in martial arts realm, he was even stronger than the Great General. This did not mean that his martial arts realm was truly higher than that of the Great General, but rather that the Great General was old while he was still in his prime.

Therefore, it was the best decision for the Lord Warden Commander to succeed as the new Northern Frontier Great General.

However, at this moment, another problem arose. If the Lord Warden Commander rushed to the Northern Frontier to become the new Northern Frontier Great General and guard the north for the Great Liang Dynasty, then who should succeed the Lord Warden Commander? Within the warden faction, was there truly a military official capable of taking over the position of the Lord Warden Commander and gaining the approval of the masses?

This was also a new problem.

After receiving the decree and expressing gratitude, the Lord Warden Commander returned to his original position. The Great General glanced at him and smiled, saying, ”I’m sorry for the trouble.”

He had guarded the Northern Frontier for decades and had deep feelings for it. While ordinary people might feel some aversion to the icy and snowy Northern Frontier, he had spent most of his life there and had actually fallen in love with the place and its Great Wall.

The Lord Warden Commander said calmly, ”Guarding the Great Liang’s borders has also been this official’s longstanding wish.”

The Great General smiled and lamented softly, ”It’s just that while you can succeed my position, who can succeed yours?”

The Lord Warden Commander shook his head, ”The Great Liang Dynasty can do without a Lord Warden Commander temporarily, but the Northern Frontier cannot be without a Great General for even a day.”

The Great General nodded. He was clearly very much in agreement with this.

Two military officials, one internal and one external, regardless of anything else, must prioritize the external at this moment.

While the two highest-ranking military officials of the Great Liang Dynasty were conversing, most of the court officials on the square also realized at this moment that the retirement of the Grand General at today’s grand court session was not a sudden decision, nor was it because the Great Liang Emperor permitted the retirement of the Grand General due to some inexplicable reasons.

The court officials who had previously harbored thoughts of stern remonstrance now withdrew their thoughts.

The grand court session continued smoothly.

After these two major events were resolved, the subsequent proceedings were actually no different from the usual. As time passed, the court officials with guilty consciences breathed a sigh of relief. They had been worried that during the grand court session, His Majesty the Emperor would take advantage of the collapse of the Xia Family to continue to deal severely with them, the court officials suspected of colluding with foreign cultivators. But in reality, this did not happen.

Even the Xia Family, whose entire clan had already been executed, was just casually mentioned during the grand court session and then passed over.

As for the charges, they remained unchanged. It was still colluding with foreign cultivators and attempting wrongdoing. As for any other charges, not a single one was added.

This represented the will of the Great Liang Dynasty, more precisely, it represented the will of the Great Liang Emperor.

However, many people noticed that after mentioning the crimes of the Xia Family, there were quite a few rewards bestowed by the decree of the Great Liang Emperor towards the Left Guard’s office, which had been catching spies in the past few days. Chen Chao, as the commander of the Left Guard at that time, naturally had the greatest merits. Therefore, he was bestowed with a jade belt by the Great Liang Emperor, along with a great sum of skygold currency.

Chen Chao had not expected such a turn of events. When his name was mentioned, he could only bite the bullet and step out of the ranks.

Compared to when he first entered the Divine Capital, he had risen significantly in status. His ceremonial attire did not seem burdensome at all, and as he walked forward, numerous officials cast sidelong glances at him.

Even though most court officials might not pay much attention to external affairs, they knew about this young commander who had gained immense fame in the Divine Capital. However, unlike most court officials, there were a few prominent figures at this moment who were thinking about the young man’s other identity; a rumor that had already been circulating wildly in private, but remained unconfirmed by anyone.

Chen Chao approached the jadestone steps in front of the great hall and knelt down slowly, raising his hands above his head.

Li Heng approached Chen Chao with the jade belt, slowly placing it in his hands before walking to the side.

Chen Chao lowered his head and spoke, ”This subject thanks Your Majesty for the reward.”

The Great Liang Emperor glanced at Chen Chao. At this moment, it was not the night in the academy; there was no mention of uncle and nephew between them, only of ruler and subject.

”Official Chen’s heroic bearing is quite reminiscent of Our’s back in the day.”

The Great Liang Emperor slowly spoke. However, this sentence was very thought-provoking.

What did it mean to resemble the emperor’s youth? If Chen Chao were just an ordinary youth with no connections to the imperial family, this statement would be merely a compliment, and no one would ponder further. However, the issue here was that Chen Chao’s identity was far from ordinary; he had intricate ties with the imperial family. What was the Great Liang Emperor implying when he made such a statement?

The court officials remained silent, and the emotions in the eyes of the two princes who were allowed to attend this grand court session were also different, yet equally complex.

Chen Chao kept his head lowered, seemingly lost in thought. After a moment, a voice broke the silence, ”Your Majesty is too kind.”

The Great Liang Emperor smiled and just waved his hand.

This was signaling to Chen Chao that he could rise.

Li Heng softly reminded, ”You can stand up now.”

Chen Chao was about to get up when suddenly, an inexplicable sound echoed abruptly!

Chen Chao turned his head to look, only to see a colorful cloud slowly drifting over in the distant sky. At the same time, a voice resonated like a bell, spreading throughout the entire imperial city.

”This penniless daoist from Mt. Tai Xuan’s Purple Cloud Grotto, Redsky, offers a humble gift to Your Majesty! To celebrate the Great Liang Northern Frontier’s victory, letting the human race walk with our heads held high!”

With this voice, a large bell emitting light suddenly flew out from the colorful cloud, arriving with a menacing momentum, as if it was crashing down onto the square.

Though it was claimed as a gift, when has a gift ever come in such a threatening manner?

Not to mention, where did the idea of sending a bell as a gift come from?

Gifting a bell? Or sending someone off with a funeral bell?

Looking as the bell approached in a threatening manner, many civil officials in the square turned pale with fear. However, the chief among them, the Premier, remained unfazed. Among the military officials, most were filled with anger as they watched the bell. As military officials, seeing such a disrespectful provocation, it was natural for them to feel and express outrage at such disrespect!

The Lord Warden Commander was expressionless, but even before he could act, the Great General had already made a move first. This old man with a head full of white hair took a step forward, and immediately a surge of blood vitality rose from his body. He took up a simple stance, waiting for the bell to arrive in front of him. When the bell approached, the Great General did not evade or dodge; instead, he threw a punch.

With a resounding bang, the sound of the bell likely echoed throughout half of the Divine Capital.

The civil officials in the square could not bear such a loud noise and covered their ears one after another. Still, many were left with bleeding ears from the shock.

Chen Chao was not far from the bell. When the Great General’s punch struck, he was hit head-on by the sound wave. However, with his hands holding the jade belt bestowed by the Great Liang Emperor, he could not cover his ears. He could only circulate the qi in his body to withstand the sound wave.

After the sound wave passed, his face flushed red, looking somewhat abnormal. But fortunately, he had managed to endure it.

As for the bell, it was knocked back by the Great General’s punch and disappeared into the colorful clouds.

However, the large bell quickly flew out from the clouds again. But this time, seated atop the bell was a middle-aged daoist wearing a purple daoist robe.

It was precisely Daoist Redsky

Looking at the old man standing in the square, Daoist Redsky praised, ”The might of Great General remains as formidable as it was in the past!”