Chapter 144 Disciplinary Action

Everyone looked toward the token in the black-armored general's hand, but before they could notice any clues, the Marquis of Wu'an suddenly stretched out his right hand and made a void-grabbing motion toward the jade tablet.

Although the Marquis of Wu'an was extremely fast, a few sharp-eyed generals still managed to catch a glimpse of the characters carved on the back of the token. One of them even read it aloud, exclaiming, "The King of Nine Mountains!"

Upon hearing this, some were overjoyed. They had been fretting over finding no reason to deal with this General Chen, and now he had delivered himself right to their doorstep. One of them shouted loudly, "Good! It turns out the King of Nine Mountains has been plotting a rebellion all along, and you are a spy sent by him!"

"Forging an imperial decree is a crime punishable by death. Kill him first!" a young general roared, drawing his saber and charging directly toward the black-armored general.

When the black-armored general had heard Wang Yuanfeng claim the token was fake, he hadn't paid it much mind, assuming he had inspected the token countless times and was already intimately familiar with its engravings.

However, after it was snatched away by the Marquis of Wu'an and the other generals all declared it to be the token of the King of Nine Mountains, General Chen realized he had been stitched up. Out in the open, they might not dare to do anything to him, but if things were dragged into the shadows, a single excuse was all it took to separate a man's head from his shoulders.

Just as he was about to prepare a rebuttal, before he even had the chance to open his mouth, the commander of the courier garrison—whose saber was already resting against the black-armored General Chen's neck—felt a surge of excitement and shouted at the top of his lungs, "General Chen has rebelled!"

Following the shout came the thud of a massive head dropping to the ground, immediately trailed by a fountain-like spray of blood gushing from the neck, splattering the entire tent.

Though somewhat startled, the onlookers felt a wave of secret gratification. Many had wanted to kill this general surnamed Chen for a long time, but under the dynasty's laws, there remained a spiritual restraint over everyone. No matter how displeased they were, no one dared to act so flagrantly. Yet at this moment, the deterrent power of the dynasty's authority had plummeted to rock bottom. Someone had taken the lead in rebelling to challenge this order, and the Great Liang Dynasty no longer possessed sufficient military might to suppress it.

Thus, the image of the Great Liang Dynasty was continuously fading in everyone's hearts. Someone like General Chen was standing right at the apex of the storm; the moment the dynasty's deterrent power faltered, he would be the first to die.

Everyone understood this logic. While inwardly thrilled, they still put on righteous and awe-inspiring facades. Taken aback by this sudden turn of events, the Marquis of Wu'an took the token in his hand, gave it a brief glance, and then clenched it in his fist. From the subtle movements of his hand, one could tell he was altering the token in some way.

Then, casting a glare at the gloating Wang Yuanfeng, the Marquis watched as the courier garrison commander sheathed his saber, stepped forward, and said, "Reporting to the Marshal: General Chen openly revolted, carrying a forged token of the King of Nine Mountains to stage a rebellion. This subordinate has already taken his head."

The Marquis of Wu'an sighed inwardly, marveling at how human hearts had come to this. He felt a deep sense of powerlessness regarding the current state of the Great Liang Dynasty.

Fortunately, the matter had been handled promptly. Glancing at the token in his hand, he said, "Very well, consider this a contribution on your part."

"Thank you, Marshal." The courier garrison commander offered his thanks while simultaneously letting out a breath of relief, though he still couldn't quite fathom what the Marquis intended.

The Marquis of Wu'an then swept his gaze across the assembled officers, noting their excitement mixed with occasional hesitation. He looked at Wang Yuanfeng once more, feeling utterly helpless. Although his authority shook the world, he was still merely human.

Twenty years ago, the Great Liang Dynasty had already been teetering on the brink of collapse. Back when he and the current emperor were still imperial princes, they had worked step by step to secure the throne for the emperor, pouring immense effort into turning the tide. He had never expected that good times wouldn't last; a mere decade later, things had reverted to their old state, arguably even worse than twenty years ago.

It wasn't that he didn't dare commit acts deemed unfilial or treasonous by the Great Liang Dynasty, nor was he afraid of the moral shackles imposed by secular society. After all, anyone who had attained the realm of a human immortal had carved out their own Dao; no one cared about the opinions of others.

The ultimate reason was simply that he was unwilling to destroy with his own hands something he had painstakingly built. Therefore, over all these years, in the face of the imperial family's suppression against him and the army, he had always maintained a policy of strategic retreat. Glancing at the token in his hand, he sighed and instructed, "Take this token and General Chen's head, and make all haste to Shengjing."

Pausing for a moment, he added, "State simply that General Chen wielded this token to rally the troops."

The courier garrison commander froze for a moment. Delivering messages and relaying orders was his responsibility; he had originally expected the Marquis to pin the blame squarely on the King of Nine Mountains, but he hadn't expected the order to implicate only General Chen.

Seeing his confusion, the Marquis offered no explanation and commanded, "What are you waiting for? Go!"

A jolt ran through the courier garrison commander, and he quickly replied, "Understood!"

He stepped forward to receive the token from the Marquis of Wu'an, turned, and strode out of the tent.

Just as he took the token, Wang Yuanfeng swept his spiritual sense across the back of it. There, written in three neat seal-script characters, were the words "King of Nine Mountains." Furthermore, there wasn't the slightest trace of them having been newly engraved; it looked utterly seamless.

With a strange look, Wang Yuanfeng glanced at his expressionless father sitting before him. He remembered that when he had hastily used sword qi to write those three characters, his handwriting had been scruffy and far from so neat. Yet after passing through his father's hands, they had clearly been altered. A wave of warmth washed over Wang Yuanfeng's heart.

He was not the only one to notice this; several other generals had also detected the subtle change and cast probing glances back and forth between the Marquis of Wu'an and Wang Yuanfeng.

Watching the courier garrison commander depart, the Marquis of Wu'an finally spoke: "From now on, the entire army will prepare for a long-term encampment. Until the situation ahead becomes clear, make no rash moves. Secure our rear and actively prepare for battle."

With that, he waved his hand toward the officers below and said, "Dismissed!"

"Understood, Marshal!" the crowd shouted in unison, filing out in an orderly fashion.

Wang Yuanfeng intended to stay behind to ask General 付 (Fu) about the situation before reporting to his father, but he heard his father's voice transmitting directly: "Stay behind, I have something to ask you."

Wang Yuanfeng glanced around; no one else seemed to have heard anything, realizing his father had used a sound-condensation technique to communicate solely with him. Thus, he remained where he was.

Once everyone had cleared out, Wang Yuanfeng stepped forward and said, "Your son pays his respects to Father."

"Mmm." The Marquis of Wu'an nodded and asked, "Was the journey here smooth?"

Recalling how his trip had been devoid of a single peaceful day—even forcing him to sacrifice his Daoist cultivation, though he considered it a blessing in disguise to have obtained pure sword immortal arts—Wang Yuanfeng shook his head and replied, "Not at all. Demons and monsters ran rampant along the way; the moment one stepped out of Shengjing, there wasn't a single peaceful place."

The Marquis of Wu'an sighed. "You've had a hard time these past few days. I originally thought that having lived in pampered luxury for so many years, you wouldn't be able to adapt to this. But judging from the intelligence reports sent back, you've already established your own force in Tianzhu Mountain?"

"Yes, Father!" Wang Yuanfeng nodded, knowing full well his actions must have been discovered long ago, though certainly no one could guess the truth about the Star Gods.

The Marquis nodded. "I don't mind what you do; a great man should build achievements and establish his career, as long as you do no harm to the world."

"That I certainly won't!" Wang Yuanfeng shook his head, then continued, "Father possesses the advantages of favorable weather, advantageous terrain, and the unity of the people. Why not—"

"Say no more!" The Marquis of Wu'an sharply cut him off before he could finish.