Martial Arrogance Dragon Soul-Chapter 464 - 432: Is the Country Everlasting?

Riding the bodhi eagle, he headed for Luochuan.

Along the way, the mountains and rivers remained as they were, but the land was now engulfed in the flames of war.

In the west, at Tong Pass, Li Hetai amassed a million-strong army and marched eastward into Luochuan. Wherever they passed, war blazed, and beacon fires filled the land.

Amidst this scarred earth, one could see everywhere the displaced common people.

"Heaven is like a sharp blade, and earth like a chopping board; these worldly common folks are like fish on the cutting block, subject to others’ whims."

"In prosperity, the people suffer. In decline, the people suffer."

"In this world, it is the common people who suffer the most."

Qin Qing couldn’t help but feel a profound sense of sorrow.

"If I had not been born into a Martial Arts family, or if I had not embarked on the path of Martial Arts myself, then I too would be just one of the myriad beings subjected to the whims of this world."

"So, only by cultivating the Martial Arts and strengthening oneself can one truly begin to take control of one’s destiny."

To place what is so-called hope upon any power, or to say, upon the royal authority of any dynasty, is nothing but a foolish and laughable act.

This, Qin Qing had deeply experienced.

The feud between him and the Great Qian Imperial Clan was enough evidence that Qin De, in order to make Qin Qing join his team and help him vie for the title of spring hunt leader, had acted with all apparent benevolence and righteousness, even going so far as to have a fallout with the brothers Lu Yu’an and Lu Yuming.

Then, Qin Qing truly believed that Qin De must be a man of great loyalty and righteousness. If he were to take the position of Crown Prince and later inherit the throne of Qian Country, he would surely be a king of his generation.

However, in reality, once the spring hunt had ended, Qin De revealed his true nature by casting aside those who had served their purpose.

Of course, this wasn’t to say that Qin Qing considered Qin De incapable of being a good emperor.

A good emperor could be a wise ruler, could be ruthless, could make the country prosper and the dynasty last a thousand autumns.

But he would definitely not be a benevolent ruler.

In fact, how many of the lowest commoners are truly considered by royal authority?

And how many monarchs truly care about the people’s hardships?

What they want is stability, for their reign to last forever.

Especially in a world where Martial Arts are revered, where Martial Artists are the backbone of society, and those who cannot cultivate are no more than mere weeds...

Therefore, royal power is even less trustable.

The only thing to trust is oneself.

Only by making oneself stronger does one have the right to survive in this world!

...

Qian Country, Luochuan.

This year, Great Qian was anything but peaceful.

Many people were displaced and homeless.

What were once thriving cities were now reduced to ruins.

And today’s Imperial City Luochuan no longer boasted the prosperity and bustle of days past.

On the vast streets inside the Imperial City, it was difficult to spot the figures of commoners. Most of those passing through were soldiers clad in the armor of the Great Qian Imperial City Guard, all obeying military orders, rushing back and forth.

The citizens within the Imperial City were all fearful, staying behind closed doors. With the current urgency of war, no one knew what might happen next.

Outside the Imperial City, the battle drums were intense, and the beacon fires raged on.

Inside the palace, the Imperial Garden.

There sat Emperor Qin Sheng of Great Qian.

In addition, there was the newly established Crown Prince, Qin De.

Qin Sheng sat in the main seat, with Qin De by his side.

Now that Qin De had secured his position as Crown Prince, his status was second only to one and above tens of thousands. Those who once competed with him for the position of Crown Prince, such as Qin Zheng and Qin Yuan, realized the trend had turned and now assumed a very low profile.

Qin De was a very resourceful Crown Prince. After confirming his position, he immediately exercised his skills, formed alliances, and curtailed the powers of Qin Zheng and others. He alienated strong figures around them and brought the geniuses under his command.

Qin Zheng and Qin Yuan were also aware of the current situation. To save their own lives, they had to give up resistance, turn to express loyalty to Qin De, and willingly bow their heads to serve him.

Therefore, Qin De had now secured an absolute ruling position among the many princes.

At this moment, Qin De, Qin Sheng, and others were seated in the Imperial Garden with leisurely expressions, seemingly not worried at all about the battle outside.

Outside the city, the war drums thundered, and three million troops eyed the city with a menacing gaze, ready to launch a final assault on the palace at any moment.

However, the flames of war seemed unable to spread into the palace.

The tender Spirit Fruits were still drool-worthy, and the intoxicating wine had already been poured into each delicate, gilded cup.

"Let’s all have a drink together!"

Qin De raised his cup, and everyone raised theirs in response.

After draining the cups, Qin De’s high spirits gradually revealed themselves. He stood up, looked at the horizon outside the city, and waved his hand, "After this battle, all the armies in the world will belong to the Qin Imperial Clan. Every inch of this land will also be under the control of our Royal Family!"

"Third brother, this time you used Zhao Tianyin as bait, drawing the snake out of its hole, and had them all meet at Luochuan. Then eliminate them in one fell swoop. This move is indeed ruthless!" Qin Sheng also smiled as he looked at Qin De.

After Qin De was crowned Crown Prince, the series of tactics he displayed also showed his capabilities to Qin Sheng.

The detention of Zhao Tianyin, leading to the three armies meeting at Luochuan, was also orchestrated by Qin De.

Moreover, capturing Qin Qing’s clan members from Tong Pass was also Qin De’s doing.

Besides seizing military power from Zhao Tianyin and others, what Qin De most wanted to do was to eliminate Qin Qing.

Because Qin Qing’s growth made Qin De feel threatened.

At the age of sixteen, he was the top disciple at the Great Qian Martial Institute, and even in the second year, with Divine Might Realm cultivation, he won the chief position in the spring hunt. He defeated geniuses like Lu Yuming and Lu Yu’an, who were rare talents seen once in a millennium.

This made Qin De acutely aware of the threat posed by Qin Qing.

Therefore, Qin De had to eliminate Qin Qing.

This time, by capturing all of Qin Qing’s clan members and bringing them to Luochuan, he aimed to force Qin Qing to show himself and then do away with him for good!

"Third brother... However, with the world’s three armies converged, totaling three million troops, even with a host of Nascent Soul Ancestors at our disposal, facing three million troops might still be troublesome, mightn’t it?" Qin Zheng said with some concern.

His concern wasn’t without reason.

The Qin Imperial Clan indeed had a large number of strong individuals, and in terms of the quantity of top-level fighters, they absolutely overwhelmed the converged armies.

But in battles on such a large scale, Nascent Soul Ancestors could only change a certain aspect of the situation. Sometimes they couldn’t directly turn the tide, and when a million troops launched their Battle Array, the force of their attack was not inferior to that of a Nascent Soul Ancestor.

Of course, the actual situation was not that simple.

Large-scale combat is an extremely complicated process, and the situation can change at any moment.

However, Qin De’s face showed a confident smile, "Within three days, I will have absolute power over the world. Every soldier will obey the commands of our Qin Imperial Clan!"

Seeing Qin De’s confident demeanor, Qin Zheng and the others were pensive.

It seemed that Qin De had unknown tactics up his sleeve, but it was unclear what he would do to decide the fate of the world within three days.

"Right... about Qin Qing." At this point, Qin Zheng paused for a moment before looking at Qin De, "If he doesn’t show up this time, I’m afraid it might cause some trouble later on."

"Qin Qing..." Whispering the name, a sharp gleam flashed unintentionally in Qin De’s eyes, "Indeed, this child is a potential hidden danger, but... I have my ways to deal with him.

What if he is a genius? In a short time, he cannot possibly grow to a level that would make our Qin Imperial Clan fear him."

At that moment, Qin Sheng, sitting in the main seat, laughed and said, "That’s right! Don’t you think, our Qin Imperial Clan only has the chips you see on the surface. Two thousand years ago, the Lu Clan and our Qin family fought to establish this realm together; in the end, the Lu Clan willingly withdrew for a reason. Even if Qin Qing does grow up, if he dares return to Luochuan, he’ll surely never leave again!"