Chapter 221 (3)

"Do you remember, Your Majesty, when you mentioned the Inhuman War from forty years ago to me after the court meeting?" "Hai Wuya, why are you bringing up this old story again?" Emperor Yonghe’s face looked a bit sad. The Inhuman War was a disgrace for Great Yan and a turning point when the country’s fortune declined. Such past events should not be repeatedly mentioned, especially during court meetings, in front of all the officials. "Your Majesty, if I were to say that there is a hidden truth behind the Inhuman War from forty years ago, that the hundred thousand soldiers from back then were not entirely wiped out, and have actually been holding on for forty years, still present today." After saying these words. The entire court fell into a silence. "Hai Wuya, what are you saying? The outcome of the Inhuman War from forty years ago has long been determined." Emperor Yonghe frowned. The news of the soldiers and civilians from the isolated city just emerging from the desert has only been limited to the area around Anxi Pass, and hasn’t reached the Imperial Capital yet. Therefore, Emperor Yonghe and the court officials are still unaware of this news. The other courtiers talked a lot: "Minister Hai, what are you talking about? It sounds like a fairy tale." "The place where the Inhuman War happened has turned into a Hundred-mile Desert. It’s barren and nothing can grow there. How can there still be soldiers holding their ground?" Hai Wuya said. That desert has become a forbidden zone for life. People who wander into it often get lost. It’s because Immortal Gate set up a maze inside the desert. "Minister Hai, don’t you want to listen to what you’re saying? It has been forty years, which is a whole generation. Are you suggesting that a hundred thousand soldiers have been trapped in the desert for forty years and still resisting?" Someone whispered. I heard that Minister Hai’s beloved son, Hai Siyuan, was involved in the Inhuman War… Maybe it’s because Minister Hai is desperate for his son, or maybe it’s because Minister Hai has been locked up in the heavenly prison for too long and his mind isn’t clear… Nobody believed Hai Wuya’s nonsense, even though he held a high position as a second-rank official and a bookkeeper. After all, Hai Wuya had been imprisoned in the heavenly prison twice, for a total of thirty years. Despite having a high rank, he didn’t have many acquaintances in the current court. He was like a lonely loyalist from the previous emperor’s era. Besides, this is too absurd. Even storytellers wouldn’t dare to make up such a story. "Your Majesty, I have two witnesses waiting outside the hall," Hai Wuya said calmly, but his hands were trembling slightly, revealing his fluctuating emotions. How could he not be excited to reunite with his beloved son, whom he thought was separated by life and death? Knowing that his beloved son had been trapped by the Immortal Gate in the Hundred-mile Desert for forty years, how could he not feel raging anger in his heart? Emperor Yonghe frowned. He knew that Hai Wuya was not a person who made things up, but this matter was just too absurd… "Then let your witnesses enter the hall," Emperor Yonghe spoke up. "Announce the entrance of the witnesses!" the eunuch shouted loudly, and the sound echoed in the Golden Hall. Captain Hai and Qiao Mu walked side by side, attracting the attention of the officials in the hall as they step by step entered the palace. S~eaʀᴄh the NôᴠelFirё.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Qiao Mu was still okay. The elder of Immortal Gate had fought with Earth Sword Immortal’s help… but when he saw the imperial palace, he felt excited. Hai Siyuan, on the other hand, was different. He was breathing quickly, his white beard trembling, and his footsteps a little stiff. It wasn’t fear, lack of knowledge, or fear of the emperor’s authority. It was the fluctuating emotions in his heart, unable to control himself for a moment. The imperial palace! This was the place he had fantasized about for forty years. Trapped in the solitary city in the desert for forty years, fighting with ten thousand soldiers and ending up with only three hundred old soldiers left… he had countless times fantasized about one day leaving the desert and being able to enter the imperial palace to meet the emperor, telling the tale of the forty years of bloodshed in the lonely city! However, when he finally left the city and heard about the current bleak situation in Jiu Province, his emotions and expectations unknowingly changed. Now, what I want to express is not about how I complain, how I recount the forty years of blood and tears of the lonely city and the remnants of the army, how I recount the heroic deeds of the former soldiers, and pass down the stories of the brothers in arms so they will not be forgotten by the world or underestimated by the historians. I just want to ask Emperor Yonghe… Do you still remember the hundred thousand soldiers who were trapped in the desert? I want to ask why the inhuman temples have spread everywhere in Jiu Province? After fighting for forty years as a lonely army, why did Great Yan kneel first?!! However, when it came to the point, Captain Hai ultimately restrained himself, but his nails silently dug into his palm, desperately suppressing his inner impulse. He was no longer the determined young man who enlisted in the army, but an old man nearing his seventies. "I am Hai Siyuan, a captain in the Great Yan Western Conquering Army. I bow before Your Majesty." "I am Qiao Shui, and I bow before Your Majesty." Qiao Mu also bowed, but didn’t kneel. "How dare you not kneel when you see Your Majesty?" A palace guard immediately reprimanded. "I am old and frail, and find it difficult to bend. I hope Your Majesty understands." Qiao Mu cleared his throat and said. This sentence isn’t too exaggerated. According to the customs of Great Yan, elderly people in their seventies or eighties can meet officials without bowing, which is considered as respecting the elderly. As for the person named Qiao Mu in front of us… he looks incredibly old. A hundred-year-old person can be called a centenarian, and he is already a whopping 210 years old this year. Even before he displayed any martial arts skills, he already looked like an elderly person nearing the end of their life. The courtiers couldn’t even distinguish how old this Qiao Mu in front of them was, they could only guess that he must be in his eighties or nineties. "These are trivial matters, no need to be formal." Emperor Yonghe on the dragon throne also became interested in what Hai Wuya had mentioned, he looked at the two elderly men in the palace and asked again: "Hai Siyuan, are you Minister Hai’s eldest son? Are you a surviving member of the Western Conquering Army?" Hai Siyuan’s chest kept rising and falling, and he trembled as he spoke: "Your Highness, the Western Conquering Army has not been completely defeated. We have held our ground for forty years, with our city still standing and our soldiers and civilians still here. Not one of our hundred thousand soldiers has begged for mercy from the inhuman, nor become their slaves. In these forty years, we have had fallen heroes, but no one who would bow down. We uphold the dignity of Jiu Province, and we don’t betray the grace of the Great Yan Emperor!" Emperor Yonghe trembled slightly all over. Although he couldn’t yet determine the truth in Captain Hai’s words, he already felt an indescribable aura from the man’s words. Fallen heroes, no slaves! After these words were said, there was a momentary silence in the Golden Palace Hall, and the gazes of the civil and military officials all fell upon Hai Siyuan. Hai Siyuan’s words made them feel somewhat uneasy… What does it mean to have fallen heroes and no slaves? The civil and military officials during the Inhuman War period are different from the present generation. People say that after the elite hundred thousand fell in the Inhuman War, a generation of literati and military strategists sacrificed themselves, and the Great Yan no longer had men of letters or backbone. In the time of Great Yan, the current generation of government officials and military commanders, who live high up in the Nine Immortal Gates, naturally don’t have many strong individuals among them. Hai Siyuan’ words vaguely hurt their feelings, making many court officials angry. "Minister Hai, where did you find this actor? His speech is quite decent." Hai Siyuan ignored them and just turned his head to look at Qiao Mu beside him. "Elder Lao, please present the Tiger Token of the Western Conquering Army from the past." Qiao Mu nodded and reached into the storage bag given to him by the old man of the arsenal, raising the Tiger Token high. This Tiger Token was originally held by the Martial Saint, who led the Western Conquering Army. When the Martial Saint left the desert alone, he left the Tiger Token to his deputy, Li Changge, and it later passed into the hands of the old man of the arsenal. The discussions in the court calmed down. The eunuch in front of the hall received the Tiger Token from Qiao Mu’s hand and presented it carefully to Emperor Yonghe and the court officials, instantly changing the atmosphere in the Golden Palace. "This tiger token is not a forgery." Emperor Yonghe’s mind buzzed, and his gaze towards Captain Hai was noticeably different. "The former Western Conquering Army, really defended the desert for forty years?" The other court officials and military generals were also filled with doubt. "Stranded in the desert for forty years, holding firm until now, without surrendering or bowing down?" "If this is true, it will surely be recorded in history!" "What kind of willpower and integrity is this? How can they manage to hold out for forty years, resisting until today?" Everyone knew how powerful inhuman was, especially these highly influential officials of the Great Yan Dynasty. So when the tiger token was confirmed as genuine, their attitude abruptly changed. Emperor Yonghe’s whole being was revitalized. It wasn’t that he was overly suspicious, but this matter was truly bizarre. In this world today, there are still such loyal soldiers of the Great Yan? "Please tell us in detail, how have you managed to survive until now, and why were you trapped in the Hundred-mile Desert?" Emperor Yonghe asked eagerly. Captain Hai glanced at Qiao Mu beside him and said. There used to be a 100,000-strong army, but now there are only three hundred old soldiers left. "If it weren’t for the help of Qiao family member Qiao Shuangsen and others who ventured into the desert, we would have been nothing but a pile of dirt by now." Hai Siyuan looked thoughtful. "For forty years, our remaining troops have been trapped and isolated in the desert, unaware of the rise and fall of the outside world, Great Yan." "Immortal Gate, a powerful sect in the desert, has set up a mysterious formation that traps souls. Both inside and outside the formation are completely cut off, making it difficult for ordinary people to enter or leave…" "Every ten days or so, inhuman beings use magic to attack our city. Over the past forty years, the defending army has become fewer and fewer… We only found out later," Hai Siyuan trembled as he spoke. "inhuman Great Dao Sect calls this place the ‘Hundred-mile Desert,’ which is a Sect Secret Realm controlled by the sect." "To the Great Dao Sect, this Hundred-mile Desert is just a place for disciples to train and practice magic." Great Dao Sect? Speaking of the Great Dao Sect, the atmosphere that had gradually heated up in the court suddenly turned cold. The officials’ faces slightly stiffened. Even Emperor Yonghe, who had a flushed face, had his smile freeze. The Inhuman War was already a thing of the past forty years ago. Praising someone like Captain Hai, an old veteran of the past, is easy and insignificant. But the Great Dao Sect still stands tall as a massive presence in Zhong Province! Now, forty years later, the Great Yan Imperial Court has reached a "reconciliation" with the Nine Immortal Gates. They consider the disciples of the Immortal Gate as honored guests, invest all their resources in setting up Taoist temples in the major cities of Jiu Province, and allow the people to worship gods and revere immortals. But now, on this court, Captain Hai is accusing the Great Dao Sect of treating the spirits of a hundred thousand soldiers in the Hundred-mile Desert as resources… "Do not speak without thinking…" The court official wiped his forehead and tried to smooth things over. "This matter concerns the reputation of Immortal Gate, it is of great importance… Hai Siyuan, even though you are Minister Hai’s son, you should understand the gravity of this matter…" Hai Siyuan looked at the court official in astonishment, not quite understanding what he meant. Was he implying… that he should keep these words to himself and not slander Great Dao Sect?