My Nascent Soul Ran Away Again

Chapter 170: Lu Xuan: A Righteous Backstab, Punk!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Lu Xuan invited He Youde to join forces with him to deal with the other two major families.

This secret letter was a gamble.

If He Youde chose to use this letter to expose Lu Xuan to the other two family heads, all of Lu Xuan’s previous arrangements and efforts would be nullified, leading to a complete loss.

However, Lu Xuan believed he wouldn’t lose this bet.

After all, taking advantage of the mutual destruction of the Gu and Bo families and reaping the benefits as the sole ruler of Qingxian City…

This temptation was simply too lethal for He Youde.

After much deliberation, He Youde finally agreed to Lu Xuan’s request to form an alliance.

However, having seen Lu Xuan calculate against Gu Yang and then Bo Kai, He Youde did not trust him completely.

Despite numerous previous surveillances, he suspected that Lu Xuan might have an army outside the city.

Therefore, He Youde took precautions.

Tonight, he sent out his trusted men to Qingxian City’s gate.

He Youde planned to eliminate all of Bo family’s city guards and replace them with his own men.

By controlling the city gates, even if the Magistrate really had troops stationed outside, they would be powerless against him.

At the Qingxian City gate.

A troop of men, fully armed, arrived at the back of the city tower.

“Who goes there?!”

The city gate officer demanded.

“Brothers from the Bo family.”

The leader from the He family replied, “Our master has joined forces with Master Bo to eradicate the traitors of the Gu family. The battle is urgent, and we need to support them immediately.”

“It’s He family’s men.”

The city gate officer nodded and called out, “Men!”

Instantly, many soldiers flooded the city gate tower. With a wave of his hand, the officer commanded:

“Fire arrows!”

A volley of arrows rained down from above, catching He family’s men off guard, and many were immediately turned into pincushions.

These men were from the Black Lotus Sect.

In the past few days, they had infiltrated the city, capturing the city gate early tonight and donning the armor of the Bo family men.

Qian Chong, disguised as a city defense officer, drew his sword and yelled, “Attack!”

An hour later.

In Qingxian City, at the central square.

Dawn had yet to break, and the city was still immersed in darkness, but the square was brightly lit.

He Youde’s guards had surrounded the area, holding torches. At the very center of the square, two figures knelt.

A sedan chair arrived at the scene.

He Youde stepped down from the sedan and looked at the two familiar faces in front of him, saying with a smile, “Two family heads, long time no see, eh?”

“Shameless!”

Bo Chang spat viciously.

When He Youde’s men broke into his residence, killed the guards left behind, and brought him here, Bo Chang and Gu Yang knew what had happened.

They thought they were outsmarting each other, but in reality, they were both sold out by the Magistrate.

“That word ‘shameless’ should not be used to describe me.”

The usually hot-tempered He Youde was in a jolly mood, “The real shameless one should be our dear Wu Bangde.”

“He Youde.”

Gu Yang raised his head and spat, “Wu is cunning and treacherous. By cooperating with him, you’re courting disaster! Our fate today will be yours tomorrow!”

“Do you think I am as foolish as you two?”

He Youde sneered, “The only entrance and exit of Qingxian City is under my control. As long as the city gate stands, no outsiders can enter.”

“Wu Bangde has neither soldiers nor people. How can he contend with me? If he’s wise, he’ll listen to me obediently.”

“If he dares to be reckless, replacing a Magistrate isn’t a big deal… I’ve done it more than once in the past.” “You’re too overconfident.

Gu Yang chuckled coldly.

At that moment, a commotion arose behind He Youde.

He frowned and turned around.

A troop of over fifteen hundred well-equipped soldiers was rapidly approaching.

Leading them was a middle-aged man in official robes, riding a magnificent horse, followed by a scholar with a fair complexion, a stout man, a lean man, and a middle-aged man in unusual attire.

“How could you be here?!”

He Youde’s face changed instantly.

He was shocked not by the Magistrate’s presence, but by the elite army following him.

“How could I not be here?”

Lu Xuan stopped three Zhang away.

“You, you… You’ve even colluded with the Black Lotus Sect!”

He Youde exclaimed.

He noticed the man in unusual attire, wearing clothing characteristic of the Black Lotus Sect.

“Hev, hev, hev, what Black Lotus Sect, don’t falselv accuse us.”

Qian Chong, dressed in the attire of a Black Lotus emissary, expressed his discontent, “We’ve abandoned the darkness and now follow Wu Bangde, specifically to suppress you evil ones.”

An hour before, a thousand-strong army had arrived at the gates of Qingxian City.

Qian Chong happily opened the gates and then took the army to find Lu Xuan.

Upon meeting, he was captured by the Magistrate.

Lu Xuan announced a change of plans.

With food, soldiers, and a city at his disposal, why not go independent?

Why follow the Black Lotus Sect with such resources?

Qian Chong was stunned.

Lu Xuan didn’t put a knife to his throat this time but spread out a map, explaining, The Black Lotus Sect’s main activities were in the Central Plains, their main forces battling the Great Kang Dynasty.

Both the imperial court and the Black Lotus Sect couldn’t spare attention for a small city like Qingxian.

Located in the remote southwestern basin, Qingxian City had excellent water and fertile conditions, surrounded by mountains, making it easy to defend but hard to attack.

Using Qingxian City as a base to recruit soldiers and expand influence could establish a power equal to the Black Lotus Sect and the Great Kang dynasty.

Qian Chong thought for a long time, feeling there was some truth to this, and finally decided to pledge allegiance.

“Handing over Qingxian City to me is better than leaving it in your hands.” In the faint morning light, Lu Xuan raised his war sword, “It’s time to end this.”

With the sword’s fall, battle cries erupted.

In front of the well-rested and high-spirited militia, men from the three families fell like wheat. Until the last head was severed.

Dawn arrived.

Lu Xuan’s official robe became wrinkled, old, and gradually fell apart.

The surrounding environment lost its color, like an old photo album with yellowed, curling pages.

The rising sun faded away, the line between night and day blurring into one.

The world, like a water-damaged painting, became blurred and indistinct. In this disintegrating world, Lu Xuan reached out, holding Cheng Lingzhu’s hand.

Both had returned to their original forms.

The official robe transformed into a light pink mist.

The world collapsed, revealing a grand palace emerging from the void.

The mist turned into a giant stele standing at the gate of the palace.

Lu Xuan and Cheng Lingzhu approached the stele.

“…The Palace of the Demon Emperor.”

Lu Xuan read the inscription:

“This is the legacy site of the ancient Demon Emperor [Mie] .

Through the stele, they learned the truth about Qingxian City.

It wasn’t a fictional place but a historical fragment extracted from time by the supreme magic of the ancient Demon Emperor Mie.

This fragment was sealed here, and when Lu Xuan and Cheng Lingzhu entered, everything began to operate.

A divine rainbow descended, enveloping them and taking them into the palace.

Upon seeing their surroundings, Cheng Lingzhu was momentarily stunned.

This was… the Demon Emperor’s chamber.

The chamber was exquisitely decorated, built with immortal gold and divine materials.

They stepped on a carpet woven from exotic beast fur, with a half-human tall purple-gold incense burner near the wall.

At the deepest part of the chamber was a bed with layers of curtains, delicate and luxurious.

The entire chamber was enveloped by the laws of the Dao, untouched by the forces of time.

On one wall hung a painting.

The artist seemed inexperienced in the art of painting, the strokes somewhat immature.

The “subject” of the painting was a white fox.

“It is…”

Cheng Lingzhu thought of the little fox that had entered the yamen in Qingxian City.

“The ancient Demon Emperor, [Mie].” Lu Xuan spoke..