The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  "Someone, come and open up this cell!"

  ……

  Rumble! The heavy main door of the prison opened with a boom. A beam of sunlight shot in as Wang Chong walked out, his first ray of sunlight in over half a month.

  ______________

  1. Suiye was the seat of the Anxi Protectorate and is now located in present-day Kyrgyzstan. Jishi refers to Jishi Pass, located in Gansu.↩

  2. Fengjiayi is Geluofeng's son.

  Chapter 474: A Snowstorm of Letters!

  Chapter 474: A Snowstorm of Letters!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Outside the 'government office', it was complete chaos. Only after coming outside did Wang Chong realize what a mess the capital had become.

  The raucous and thriving capital had now become much quieter. There were fewer peddlers hawking their wares, and pedestrians were walking faster than usual. The topics of their conversations were no longer about buying and selling, but 'Xianyu Zhongtong', 'Annan Protectorate army', 'Ü-Tsang', 'Geluofeng', and other names that would have been impossible to hear several years ago!

  The atmosphere was one of anxiety and concern.

  It had been far too long since the Great Tang had suffered this sort of defeat. The loss of 180,000 elites was enough to affect the entire empire.

  At this moment, it wasn't just the common folk of the capital. Even the generals in the army, the ministers in the court, and the authorities on the border were watching this war.

  All of this gave Wang Chong a sense of déjà vu.

  "Young Master!"

  He heard a familiar voice. Old Eagle was standing in the street outside the office, a four-horse carriage beside him. It was clear that he had been waiting for a long time.

  But Wang Chong did not immediately board the carriage.

  "Carry out my three orders!"

  Wang Chong held up three fingers, his eyes looking forward with a most profound gaze, as if he was peering into the depths of space-time.

  "First, immediately dispatch the guards of the clan to all the tea houses and restaurants of the capital. Hire all experts at or above the True Martial realm. Whether noble or lowly, strong or weak, cheap or expensive, hire all of them!" Wang Chong said.

  Old Eagle froze for a second before replying, "Yes, Young Master!" Inwardly, he rejoiced.

  More than half a month of imprisonment had not worn away at Wang Chong's spirit. The youth before him was still that wise and composed young master in his memories.

  Moreover, every time he issued a string of orders, it meant that something big was about to happen. It was clear that his young master was about to begin an operation.

  "Young Master, does it have to do with the war in the southwest?" Old Eagle inquired.

  When the entire empire was still clueless about the war in the southwest, Wang Chong and Old Eagle already knew. When the empire was still discussing what to do, Wang Chong was already beginning preparations.

  Although Wang Chong had not stated why he was selling the spirit vein, Old Eagle could already guess.

  Wang Chong did not nod, but he also did not shake his head.

  Although his stance appeared ambiguous, Old Eagle, who had been serving at his side all this time and was very familiar with his thoughts, could already tell what he was thinking.

  The war in the southwest had stunned the empire and left everyone gripped by terrible worry.

  Xianyu Zhongtong's crushing defeat had dealt a gigantic blow to the Han, who had always firmly believed in the unstoppable might of the Great Tang.

  Although one person, much less a teenager, was limited in what they could do in a war, Old Eagle had always firmly believed that his young master would be able to do something.

  Perhaps others might not, but his young master definitely could.

  Such things had happened many times in the past.

  "Second, summon the four great sword-smithing clans, all the sword stores and shops, and all the swordmasters and inscription masters in the capital! Tell them that the Wang Clan wants to buy all the weapons they have and all their production for the next three months!"

  Old Eagle suddenly raised his head and looked at Wang Chong in shock. There were more than a thousand sword shops in the capital, and combined with the four great sword-smithing clans, buying their total production for three months would result in an astonishing sum.

  "Yes, Young Master!"

  Although he was flabbergasted, Old Eagle still immediately agreed.

  "Third, summon Zhao Jingdian, Wei Anfang, Xu Qiqin, and Huang Qian-er. Tell them to meet me tonight at the Wang Residence."

  "Yes, Young Master!" Old Eagle immediately replied.

  At this time, Old Eagle was completely without doubt. With these three orders, Wang Chong completely coincided with that extremely decisive youth in his mind.

  There were some people that couldn't be judged by their age, and these people would never allow their own circumstance to weaken their will. It was obvious that Wang Chong was this sort of person.

  "Have the ink and paper been prepared?" Wang Chong asked, apparently unaware of the change in Old Eagle's expression.

  "They're ready, Young Master, in the carriage," Old Eagle deferentially replied.

  Wang Chong nodded.

  "Your Highness, please!"

  Wang Chong turned around and extended his right palm to King Song, who had been standing behind him. King Song's carriage was parked nearby. Upon receiving Wang Chong's invitation, King Song appeared a little slow to catch on, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

  "Very well."

  Surprise quickly faded, and it took only a few moments for King Song to regain his composure. He nodded, raised the hem of his robe, and stepped onto the carriage.

  Wang Chong followed behind, letting down the curtain of the carriage window before stepping inside.

  "Let's go!"

  The carriage quickly took off. No one knew what Wang Chong and King Song were talking about within. A powerful energy had suddenly exploded from within, instantly severing even Old Eagle's perception.

  Old Eagle only knew that when King Song walked out of the carriage mid-journey, he had an extremely unpleasant expression!

  After King Song left, the carriage became quiet once more.

  "Half a month—there's only half a month left at most! Whether I can succeed will depend on this half a month!"

  In the carriage compartment, Wang Chong's eyes flashed as he quickly spread out a sheet of paper. Holding it down with a paperweight, he dipped the brush in his right hand in ink and began to write.

  His first letter was to his father Wang Yan and his older brother Wang Fu. Xianyu Zhongtong was a typical defensive general, and he was one of those sticklers who lacked flexibility. He was only good at defending a city.

  And his talents certainly did not lie in commanding 180,000 soldiers, much less against opponents like Huoshu Huicang, Dalun Ruozan, Geluofeng, or Duan Gequan.

  In his last life, Xianyu Zhongtong had lost precisely to these people. The death struggles of those 180,000 soldiers had only managed to preserve Xianyu Zhongtong's life.

  To save the remaining 80,000 soldiers and preserve the vitality of the Great Tang, Wang Chong could only rely on his father and brother.

  "To Father and Brother: From Wang Chong!"

  Wang Chong lowered his head, his mind raging as his brush flew across the paper, writing line after line of weighty words.

  No one other than Wang Chong knew the overall situation in the southwest. The lives of the 80,000 surviving soldiers depended entirely on the words in this letter.

  Flapflap!

  When the first letter was finished, a carrier pigeon took off into the sky, swiftly disappearing into the southwest.

  After writing the first letter, Wang Chong immediately began on the second, third, fourth…

  Some of these letters were bound for the southwest, others for the northeast. Some were going to
places within the city, others without… Eagles and carrier pigeons received Old Eagle's summons and flew down from the sky and onto the roof of the carriage. They then took the snowflake-like letters and took off.

  Not even the nearby Old Eagle knew what was in those letters.

  "Young Master…"

  Seeing Wang Chong's solemn and focused expression, Old Eagle gave a long sigh. Though his heart ached, he knew that it was wiser to not disturb him.

  Although Wang Chong was only a teenager, Old Eagle inexplicably felt that Wang Chong would have to bear the burden of this incident alone!

  Chapter 475: Agitating the Capital! (I)

  Chapter 475: Agitating the Capital! (I)

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  The capital was foreordained to be restless today.

  Flapflap!

  One carrier pigeon after another flew all over the city.

  In a mountain range ten-some li from the city, a slightly plump youth was currently in the middle of meditating. A vigorous Stellar Energy seeped out of his body, transforming into a thick, white beam of energy. It coiled around him like a python, making the young man exude an aura of incomparable valiance.

  "Mm?"

  Upon receiving the carrier pigeon, Wei Hao (Youngster Wei) opened the letter, an astonished look in his eyes.

  "Hahaha, Wang Chong, you bastard, you've finally come looking for me…!"

  Bang! Wei Hao drew back his fingers, crushing the letter in his hands, after which he began to excitedly laugh.

  Wang Chong hadn't written much in the letter, only one simple line: 'I want to borrow twenty guards!'

  They were childhood friends, so twenty guards was nothing at all. Even if the Wei Residence had strict rules, even if he risked his father's rebuke, Youngster Wei would definitely help Wang Chong out.

  What twenty? He would even be willing to find two hundred!

  Boom!

  The air vibrated with the clatter of metal. Under Youngster Wei's body, an obsidian-black Halo of Thorns spread out.

  It was followed by a second, a third, a fourth!

  In this short time, Youngster Wei had ascended from the Origin Energy realm to the True Martial realm, all the way to True Martial realm Tier 4. There were even signs that he was about to break into Tier 5.

  At this moment, Youngster Wei was brimming with boundless energy, his strength even surpassing Wang Chong.

  This was the power of the Mountain Ascension Art!

  Wang Chong had gifted Youngster Wei this technique. It was considered a top-notch technique, but also one that was extremely difficult and had very demanding requirements on one's body.

  It was especially difficult at the Origin Energy realm. But after breaking into the True Martial realm, one would become incredibly strong.

  Ever since Youngster Wei entered Kunwu Training Camp, Wang Chong rarely called him. Whether he was dealing with the Goguryeon assassins or dealing with An Yaluoshan, Wang Chong had never asked for his help precisely so that he could put all his focus on cultivation.

  Wang Chong's attitude toward his childhood friend was one of wholehearted support.

  All of the golden ginseng he had obtained from the Goguryeons was a hundred years old. Ever since Wang Chong had reached the True Martial realm, that ginseng had become useless to him, but Youngster Wei could use it, so Wang Chong had offered it with no limit.

  The Mountain Ascension Art was different from other techniques, so the Goguryeon ginseng was far more effective on him than on Wang Chong. In addition, practitioners of the Mountain Ascension Art found it much more difficult to break out of the Origin Energy realm and into the True Martial realm.

  But the Goguryeon ginseng would lighten the load and provide a large boost in power.

  At this point, Youngster Wei had consumed twenty to thirty times the amount of ginseng that Wang Chong had consumed. Moreover, even though Wang Chong had forbidden others from using the spirit vein, Youngster Wei could enter as he pleased.

  However, upon reaching the True Martial realm, the Mountain Ascension Art could no longer use the simple energy of the world. It required an energy one level higher, the essence energy of the mountains.

  This sort of energy was not like the energy of the world. In normal circumstances, outside of the unique Mountain Ascension Art, it was very difficult to cultivate this energy.

  Thus, upon reaching the True Martial realm, Youngster Wei left the spirit vein and headed deep into the mountains. The more primal and numerous the mountains, and the less traveled they were by people, the thicker the mountain essence energy would be.

  Youngster Wei had always been a martial arts maniac addicted to cultivation. He cultivated into the night, and from the night until the day. And given that, unlike Wang Chong, he was not bothered by other affairs, he was a perfect match for the Mountain Ascension Art!

  As a result, Youngster Wei's cultivation had surpassed Wang Chong's.

  There was no doubt that Youngster Wei had reached a level that would have been impossible to reach in his previous life.

  "Something must have happened for Wang Chong to borrow guards. I have to go and take a look!"

  Youngster Wei's eyes shone as he immediately stood up. With a swoosh, his body jumped forward like an ape, covering more than ten meters in a single bound.

  But after a few jumps, Youngster Wei suddenly became a fierce tiger or massive elephant, quickly vanishing among the mountains.

  ……

  At the same time, somewhere in the capital, there was a three-floor tea house. It had flying eaves and was built in an ancient style, giving off an aura of elegance and grandeur.

  An elegant figure furrowed its brows, slender fingers gripping a five-inch-tall porcelain tea cup. It appeared like this figure had many worries on its mind.

  Flapflap! The flapping of wings could be heard.

  "Eh?"

  A hint of surprise flashed through Bai Siling's eyes as she subconsciously raised her head. She saw a white carrier pigeon drawing a curve through the sky as it flew over the arching eaves of the tea house and toward her.

  Bai Siling inadvertently extended an arm to receive the bird.

  "It's him…"

  As she opened the letter and saw that familiar, crooked handwriting, Bai Siling's originally furrowed inky brows slowly began to relax.

  The worries that had vexed her for many a day melted like ice as her lips curled into a faint smile, a flower blooming.

  "I just knew that cell couldn't hold you!"

  Bai Siling gave a confident smile and took a sip of tea from her cup. A sweet aroma was left on her lips, imbued with endless charm.

  Finally able to put down her worries, Bai Siling felt much more at ease. As for the contents of Wang Chong's letter, she didn't much care.

  Putting down the cup, Bai Siling, with a graceful stride, quickly took her leave of the tea house.

  ……

  "Haha, twenty True Martial realm experts… Wang Chong, you really can't stand to be quiet!"

  In the practice ground within the estate of the Xu Clan, a pigeon was perched on Xu Gan's shoulder. In one of his hands was a spear made of white poplar while in the other was Wang Chong's letter.

  "You just got out of prison and you already want to borrow soldiers. Are you starting another operation? The southwest?!"

  Xu Gan slightly raised his head, his wise and profound gaze seemingly peering into the depths of time-space.

  Xu Gan had always felt a deep admiration for his junior Wang Chong. He was deeply aware that he was no match for Wang Chong's thoughts and deeds, his courage and ambition.

  Xu Gan felt blessed to have met him during the training camp mission.

  The scions of the noble clans, especially those first in line, were all very proud and arrogant to each other, but Xu Gan had never once acted that way toward Wang Chong.

  If there was one person in the capital that deserved his sincere and thorough admiration, t
hat person could only be Wang Chong.

  Whoosh!

  With a flick of his wrist, the spear in his hand whistled forward like a mighty flood dragon, accurately landing in the weapon rack around sixty zhang away.

  "Let's go… Last time, it was Zhang Shougui and Beiting Vice Protector-General An Sishun. I wonder who it's with this time? Being him really isn't a waste of time!"

  After wiping the sweat off his neck with a towel, Xu Gan strode off.

  "Haha, just as expected of someone admired by me, Zhao Yatong! Nothing can hold you for long!"

  In the main hall of the Zhao Clan, Zhao Yatong finished reading the letter in her hand and left the Zhao Clan's mansion like a blazing cloud of fire.

  Chapter 476: Agitating the Capital! (II)

  Chapter 476: Agitating the Capital! (II)

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Flapflap!

  One carrier pigeon after another flew to various places in the capital. All of the great clans, noble houses, and rich merchant families that had been established in the capital for at least several decades received Wang Chong's letter, regardless of whether they even knew Wang Chong or the Wang Clan.

  "Father, what do you think the Wang Clan is up to?"

  In the remote Duke Liu Estate, Li Bing gripped the messily written letter in his hand, his brow deeply creased.

  "It would be fine if it were someone else, but we've had conflict him before, with Su Hanshan… Just what is he thinking?"

  The Duke Liu lineage had retreated from the Imperial Court long ago and could be said to possess no influence whatsoever, only enjoying the status of Duke. It couldn't even be compared to the likes of the Wang Clan.

  One could even say that there was nothing the Duke Liu lineage could do to help the Wang Clan, and besides, the two had once come into conflict over Su Hanshan.

  Although both sides ended up making peace, such a matter was not so easily put aside.

  The hall was quiet. Duke Liu was quiet, his brow even more tightly creased than Li Bing's.

  If the Li Clan and the Wang Clan were extremely close, then they would have to agree to Wang Chong's request no matter what it was.