Capítulo 470: Siege on Yongtein (6)
"Your Highnesses came here after all," a casual voice spoke.
"This voice…" Xiuying was stunned.
"Prime Minister Pon-Wai!" Ming said hatefully.
On cue, a slender man stepped out from the crowds and presented himself. He wore a long silk robe woven with gold and fashioned with mesmerizing designs. His long hair was combed behind him, while a simple hat was fixed on his head. With his unremarkable features, no one would notice him in a crowd and yet… his appearance was enough to strike fear into the hearts of those on the Imperial Council. His ever-present smile and snaked eyes gave him a predatory look, as though he would swallow you whole. No one could tell what he was thinking and that terrified most people. But perhaps his most terrifying feature was his unbelievably intense aura. This was not the aura born from Perception Realm or Condensed Drop. It had nothing to do with physical prowess or the ability to win a fight. No, this was the aura of a king! A natural born emperor! His very presence was enough to invoke respect, reverence, and fear! Everyone had the urge to instinctively bow before him! In a different time and place, he might have been an exceptional ruler. Unfortunately, things turned out this way.
"It's been over a year since we last spoke. I apologize for my rude welcoming back to Yongtein."
"If you're really sorry, then you would stop this," Xiuying snapped.
The prime minister's smile widened. "Surely, Your Highness jests. I doubt this is enough to take down your Protectors." He then glanced at Cardinal Hui. "So, you betrayed us after all, Cardinal Hui Wai-Wing. Pity that the last of the Four Cardinals to survive would be a traitor."
"That's in the eye of the beholder, Prime Minister Pon-Wai. I have and always will serve the Imperial Family," the man returned. Then, using lightning-fast motions, he nocked three arrows, pulled his bowstring taut, and loosed them at the prime minister! He was so fast that his speed surpassed human recognition. Before anyone realized what had happened, his arrows had already reached his target! It was not enough though because the swarm of Perception Realms surrounding the prime minister reacted just as quickly. They stepped in to block the arrows, preventing any from reaching him, prompting the cardinal to click his tongue.
"I didn't think you were the type to resort to sneak attacks, Cardinal Hui Wai-Wing."
"Stand down, soldiers of Yongtein! You're pointing your blades at the Imperial Princesses!" Qiang shouted. However, it was useless. Not a single soldier budged, earning a derisive gaze from the prime minister.
"Tell me, Prime Minister Pon-Wai, what are you after?" Ming asked. "Is your goal to unite the three Great Nobility Families? Or is it to defeat the Li Family? To destroy the Alzar Kingdom? To become the new emperor? Or maybe even to conquer the world?" She hoped to gain some time to think, but she wanted to understand this too. What did this brilliant man, famed as the lynchpin of the empire, hope to achieve? What propelled him to commit such atrocities?
"I seek the same as Your Highness: the future."
"Your future or the Jian Family's future?" she snidely responded.
"The empire's future."
"A person who attacked the Li Family, divided the empire, and restarted the war has no right to say that."
"A matter of opinion. Your Highness yourself has allied with our greatest enemy, the Alzar Kingdom, to defeat the Imperial Council. It would be hypocritical to criticize me and not yourself."
"We're acting for the good of the empire. We couldn't be anymore different."
"I ordered the attack on the Li Family because their very existence threatens the balance of powers within the empire. Your Highness must understand this too. The Li Family has grown far too powerful, and if left unchecked, they would soon eclipse the empire itself. A threat like that cannot be allowed to exist."
"Yes, I know that the Li Family's ambitions have grown too large. They aim to usurp the Imperial Family and assume control through our right to rule," Ming replied. Her words stung her uncle, who was standing beside her. "However, that doesn't mean that attacking the Li Family and starting a civil war was right either. There were other options that you could have taken before resorting to violence."
"A futile exercise. The feud between the Four Great Nobility Families has run too deep and negotiations would only delay the inevitable. Or is Your Highness suggesting to systemically dismantle them using the Imperial Council's authority?"
"How can you be this narrowminded? Surely, a man such as yourself could have found a better way."
"Narrowminded, huh?" Prime Minister Pon-Wai answered with a heavy tone. "The Featherwind Sect presented us with a golden opportunity to eliminate the Li Family and suppress the Alzar Kingdom in one go. Had we succeeded in Liguang, history would have seen this war end. We would have secured the Xingyuu Empire's prosperity for generations to come… And yet, Your Highness continues to question us. Let me ask Your Highness this then, what lies at the end of your path? Does Your Highness really believe that the Alzar Kingdom has our best interests in mind? Compared to that uncertain future, the people would much rather prefer ours."
"My father, Emperor Lianghu, and my mother, Empress Mei, created that peaceful future until you and Minister Linshi destroyed it. It's the same here. The only obstacle to peace is your prejudice against the Alzar Kingdom and the Li Family. A peaceful resolution is possible," she asserted firmly.
"I'd be happy to debate this further in a different setting. Will Your Highness be surrendering then?"
"We'll have to politely decline your offer."
"How unfortunate. Men, capture the Imperial Princesses and Imperian Qiang. Kill everyone else!"
"Yes, Your Excellency!" the crowd of Perception Realms roared as their murderous energy stunned the kingdom's soldiers. They were practically a legendary army! Facing them meant certain death! However, Ming did not lose focus. She declined to surrender because she knew something that Prime Minister Pon-Wai did not, that this army of Perception Realms was not as unsurmountable as they looked! She recalled a conversation with the Featherwind Sect not long ago.
"So, how did they gain so many Perception Realms so quickly? Is there some kind of trick involved?" Elizabeth asked. If there was a way to produce a vast army of Perception Realms armed with Martial Energy in a short time, then they would quickly turn the tides in this war. Their battle in Yongtein would be as good as won!
Except Elder Argo shook his head. "There's nothing that convenient. Strength is cultivated steadily through years of diligent effort. It isn't something that can be gained through trickery."
"But we saw thousands of Perception Realms in Liguang," Xiuying added.
"They're nothing close to a true Rank 2 army," the bird snorted. "Certainly, what we gave to Prime Minister Pon-Wai was a shortcut to gain Perception Realm and grasp Martial Energy, but that comes at a steep cost."
"What cost?" Ming dreaded to ask.
"By forcing their latent potential to the surface, they lost the ability to advance any further. They won't be able to progress into Perception Realm Adept or beyond. In addition, this method was extremely dangerous and life-threatening and exacted a heavy price in World Energy, which means their lifespans are forfeit too. They won't have long to live… I would say a few years at most."
Ming gritted her teeth and restrained her bubbling anger, while Xiuying detonated. She was absolutely livid! In the Battle of Liguang, three divisions participated, and now, there were rumors of two more divisions training to become Perception Realms. Five divisions… That was twenty-five thousand people Elder Argo had killed! Had they died in battle, it was still unacceptable, but at the very least, they could understand it. Killing and dying on the battlefield was a matter of course. This though… This was different. They were no longer being treated as human beings, but weapons of war! To be used and discarded like garbage was utterly apprehensible! Xiuying almost charged at the bird until Qiang held her back.
"How could you do something so cruel?" Ming hissed.
"It wasn't our idea, but the prime minister's. He proposed this as a condition for their cooperation. Besides, we only told them the method. What they did with that knowledge is ultimately not our responsibility," Elder Argo casually responded.
"It won't be that easy to absolve yourselves of guilt."
"That's right!" Xiuying roared.
Elder Argo sighed. "This is a good thing for your side too."
"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked with a frown.
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder