Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 471 Convergence
"You're too nervous. Why don't you get some sleep first?" The masked woman snorted, and with a flick of her jade hand in front of him, a series of hazy blue lights appeared.

Erzhu Rong was already on high alert. Seeing the opponent make a move, he was about to transform into a streak of blood and flee, but his eyelids suddenly felt heavy, his legs felt like lead, and he collapsed to the ground...

"My Lord..." Hou Jing subconsciously wanted to support the Lord, but he withdrew his hand halfway, letting Erzhu Rong fall to the ground.

"Why didn't you help him up?" the girl asked, amused.

"This gentleman didn't ask for help," Hou Jing said cautiously. "How dare I make such a decision on my own?"

"Hahaha, the people of the Northern Dynasties are indeed interesting." The girl laughed heartily.

The masked woman didn't even glance at him...

Just then, Hou Jing heard Erzhu Rong snoring loudly. In the pale moonlight, the Heavenly Slaughter God had a simple, honest smile on his face, his breathing was very even, and he was sleeping soundly.

Hou Jing felt a chill run down his spine. The Divine Lord had actually been hypnotized in one move, and he was completely powerless to fight back...

~~
Erzhu Rong dreamed that he had unified the world and become emperor. The scene of him ascending the throne and all nations paying tribute to him made him extremely excited.

It wasn't until he saw Chen Qingzhi walk into the hall that he was startled awake and shouted, "Protect the Emperor!"

However, he did not exit the dream. The world around him froze; the courtiers paying homage, Chen Qingzhi sneering, and even the gyrfalcon flying overhead were all motionless.

Only I can still move...

Erzhu Rong pounded his throbbing head. Realizing he was still within the veiled woman's domain, he said, "Your Excellency, please withdraw your supernatural powers. I surrender."

"You certainly know how to bend and stretch." Sure enough, the masked woman appeared on the higher golden platform behind him, her voice tinged with a hint of mockery.

“We Hu people believe in the principle of the strong being respected,” Erzhu Rong said without any shame. “If you are stronger than me, you are ‘honored’, which is only natural.”

"That's good, at least we won't suffer as much." The masked woman nodded slightly.

"May I ask what brings you here, Your Excellency? Is there anything I can do for you?" Erzhu Rong asked humbly, "If you have any instructions, I will do my utmost."

"Are you withdrawing your troops now?" the veiled woman asked.

"Yes." Erzhu Rong nodded.

"I see your main force is still intact, so why did you give up Luoyang so easily?" the masked woman asked again.

"I won't lie to the Ming people. I can't beat Chen Qingzhi, and the Tianlu Army can't beat the White Robe Army either." Erzhu Rong spread his hands and said, "We fought eleven battles in three days and suffered heavy losses... I lost three arms, and the army lost nearly 50,000 men. If it were an ordinary army, it would have completely collapsed long ago."

"The Heavenly Slaughter Army is not afraid of death, but we can't afford to waste it any longer, or I'll lose even my last remaining capital," Erzhu Rong sighed dejectedly.

“Good, you are very honest.” The masked woman said, “As a reward, I can lend you a hand.”

"Ah..." Erzhu Rong was so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth. This was the first time in his life that he had been rewarded for being honest.

Of course, he wasn't stupid; he knew the other party was just making up an excuse to attack.

"Does Your Excellency have a grudge against Chen Qingzhi?" Erzhu Rong asked tentatively.

“We have no grudges against each other.” The veiled woman frowned slightly and said, “Don’t try to find out anything. Just do as I say… I guarantee you will take Luoyang and eliminate the White Robe Army.”

"Why does Your Excellency want to deal with the White Robe Army?" Erzhu Rong finished speaking, then stroked his chin and laughed, "Sorry, that's just my problem; I have to understand everything before I do anything."

He had already keenly sensed that the other party must have some unspeakable difficulties, unable to directly attack Chen Qingzhi, and therefore had to cooperate with him. In that case, taking advantage of the situation to manipulate the other party, or at least reverse the disadvantageous position and make the cooperation more equitable, was the true nature of a ruthless leader.

"..." The veiled woman hadn't expected that Erzhu Rong, though respectful, would still be so arrogant. She took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Chen Qingzhi's existence is a threat to all the gods. So is his white-robed army. They must be eliminated to prevent future trouble." "Understood." Erzhu Rong nodded and then asked, "One last question, how should I address you? We're going to cooperate, so I should at least know your name, right?"

“You don’t need to know,” the masked woman said, shaking her head decisively.

"How do I know if you'll secretly attack me or discard me after I've served my purpose?" Erzhu Rong scoffed. "If I want to reason with you then, I won't know who to turn to."

"Do you realize you have to do this? If you don't agree, you'll stay here forever until you do." The masked woman then disappeared.

"Hey! Hey!" Erzhu Rong shouted twice, but no one responded.

He tried various methods to leave, but all to no avail.

So he stayed in this frozen world day after day, and soon he couldn't hold back any longer...

Although gods have long lifespans and are generally very patient, he still worried about his people and army at the foot of Wangwu Mountain. If he didn't return soon, those fools like Erzhu Shilong would definitely break up the group and leave.

Even if they hadn't split up and had brought the whole team back to Xiurong, he wouldn't have had time to waste here.

The Heavenly Slaughter Army only has three years of lifespan; we can't let it go to waste...

Five days later, he gave in and shouted to the sky, "I agree! Whoever you are, I'll do as you say!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of white light appeared before his eyes, and he found himself back at Tiantan Peak, with Hou Jing standing beside him.

"My Lord, you're awake." Hou Jing looked at him with concern and quickly helped him up.

As dawn broke and birds chirped, Erzhu Rong took a deep breath of the fresh air and asked in a low voice, "Where are they?"

"They left long ago," Hou Jing replied. "They said the Divine Lord would wake up soon."

He then laughed and said, "Thank goodness, they weren't lying."

"Hmm." Erzhu Rong nodded and then asked, "How long did I sleep?"

"Half the night," Hou Jing blinked and said, "How long do you think you slept, Divine Lord?"

"Only half a night?" Erzhu Rong was slightly surprised. He looked up at the military camp at the foot of Wangwu Mountain, where wisps of smoke were rising from the chimneys. The Tianlu Army was making breakfast.

Everything was the same as usual; I hadn't slept much.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, realizing that the goddess had truly manipulated him completely...

But Erzhu Rong was not discouraged at all. Instead, he was filled with fighting spirit. Sooner or later, he would definitely be able to get his revenge!

However, the most important thing right now is to deal with Chen Qingzhi and retake Luoyang.

He then asked, "Did that person tell me what I should do?"

"..." Hou Jing thought to himself, "So this isn't a negotiation or a conspiracy, but rather you've been forced to agree." On the surface, however, he quickly and respectfully replied, "Reporting to the Divine Lord, that person said you should just go ahead and do it."

"Understood." Erzhu Rong nodded and said in a deep voice, "Go back."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Hou Jing quickly replied and followed Erzhu Rong down Wangwu Mountain.

(End of this chapter)