All the evil beasts in the world, I feed on demons and monsters

Chapter 193 Dingjun Revolution
In the silence, someone suddenly stepped out!
"No surrender!"

"You are a mutinous army!"

Song Qing stood at the front of the group!
"Now that the prince has fallen, we are the ones who witnessed it with our own eyes! Traitors and rebels can never establish the rightful heir!"

His tone was firm and resounding, and a green Qilin enveloped his body!
Amidst the surging dragon-tiger aura, he stared intently at Ji Ran and said, "Now, we await—"

Pfft!

A bloody hole instantly appeared on Song Qing's forehead, from which blood gushed and gushed onto his face.

The azure Qilin howled and vanished, having served no purpose whatsoever!

boom!
As Song Qing's body fell, the Heavenly Demon Thorn flew towards him.

Ji Ran's gaze swept over Nie Shicheng and Dong Fuxiang.

He didn't know if Song Qing stood up out of loyalty, or out of some selfish motive or to show off. But it didn't matter; he didn't care whether Song Qing was a loyal minister or a treacherous official.

Anything that might stand in the way of change will be crushed!

"Ugh."

Dong Fuxiang slowly walked out and said, "Enough people have died already."

"But those who died were members of the Boxers."

Ji Ran looked at him and calmly asked, "From the Battle of Langshan to the Battle of Dagukou, did the imperial court send even one person?"

"We have already shed enough blood."

"Now, it's the imperial court's turn."

Dong Fuxiang, who had participated in the Battle of Langshan, understood Ji Ran's meaning. The old man sighed softly and said, "I cannot comment on your words. I am old, and I do not want my sons to die at the hands of their own people."

"Wuwei Rear Guard! Disarm your weapons!"

With the old man's deep roar, behind him, five or six thousand new soldiers looked at each other and, led by their officers, dropped their weapons one by one.

Snapped!
Wow!
Countless firearms were left on the ground!
Ji Ran looked at Nie Shicheng.

The other person remained silent, only looking at his dead colleague, his hands slowly gripping the gun case.

He was a patriotic general who went down in history, but the centuries of rule by the imperial court had made loyalty to the emperor as deeply rooted in his mind as patriotism!

He was the most hardline advocate of war in the imperial court, advocating war against the foreign powers and also against the Boxers!
Ji Ran didn't waste any words, he simply said: "Three breaths, the one with the gun dies."

"one."

"two."

"and many more!"

Suddenly, an old yet familiar voice came from behind Ji Ran.

Everyone who looked was horrified.

Under the sunlight, a skeleton covered in dangling pieces of flesh slowly emerged from behind Qin Pu.

Bones!?
Everyone stared in astonishment at the skeleton that could move.

Ji Ran's eyes flickered; he sensed a familiar aura—it was... Luo Rongguang! He had been awakened by Qin Pu's ability!

"My lords, I am Luo Rongguang."

"What!?"

Dong Fuxiang was taken aback, his expression changed drastically, and he said, "Why are you like this?"

"It's just a fight to the death."

Luo Rongguang clasped his hands in a fist and said, "The order I received when I came here was to lead 1,500 Green Standard Army soldiers stationed here to retreat."

"Wait for the right opportunity, join forces with the great powers, and exterminate the Boxers."

"impossible!"

Nie Shicheng's expression changed, and he said, "The imperial court will not compromise! The Prince and the Great Buddha have already declared war on the foreign powers!"

"But have you ever seen the imperial court send out a single soldier?"

Nie Shicheng's expression changed, but he remained silent.

"Every inch of our land is bought with blood, but this vast land is stained with the blood of every Boxer in Tianjin!"

"Since I came here, I have been unable to eat or sleep in peace."

"To be a soldier and not risk one's life for the country, yet watch the people fight to the death. I, Luo Rongguang, cannot bear this humiliation!"

"Now that I am about to die, I am only able to live on through this technique. I only wish to say a few words to you two gentlemen."

Luo Rongguang's skeletal face was solemn, sunlight shining through his skull and gilding his body. "The Green Standard Army at Dagu Fort, 1,543 men, 1,504 dead. Six hours of fierce fighting, not a single one retreated an inch from the fort!"

"We will shed the blood of the court first. As for the affairs of these young men, we will leave them to you two gentlemen."

"It's just Lord Nie!"

"The country is in turmoil, and the nation's instruments are no longer fit!"

"The foreign invaders have temporarily retreated. Do you really want all these young men to die in this muddy river mouth for the sake of your own sense of loyalty?"

Luo Rongguang's voice suddenly rose!
"Are you risking your life now for the sake of your country and the world, or for the sake of your posthumous reputation, Lord Nie?!"

Nie Shicheng opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

He turned his head slightly, looking at the terror on the faces of tens of thousands of soldiers, and at the personal guards standing behind him, gripping their rifles tightly, their faces pale.

Everyone saw what Wang Zhan had just done.

A king cannot be defeated by sheer numbers.

Nie Shicheng sighed and took out his Mauser pistol from his waist.

Haw!

The Mauser rifle fell into a pile of mud.

"Discard your weapon!"

Nie Shicheng closed his eyes and remained silent, while behind him, there was the sound of guns hitting the ground.

slam-la-

Like a sudden downpour, it pattered on the shore, instantly covering the ground with guns.

Ji Ran stopped looking at the tens of thousands of troops, cupped his hands to Luo Rongguang, walked to Dong Fuxiang's side, and said, "Now, the new army needs your help to lead it, Lord Dong. I will let the strong members of the Yihe Society take over the important positions in the new army one by one, but the commander-in-chief needs you."

Dong Fuxiang, however, remained calm and said, "No need."

"I really don't want to get involved. I only ask that the Grand Duke, considering the favor of the plaque, allow me to retire to my hometown and live out my old age in peace."

"From now on, there will be no more emperors."

Ji Ran's seemingly irrelevant answer surprised Dong Fuxiang.

He slowly looked at Ji Ran and asked, "What do you mean?"

In the current situation, as the only king-level figure, Ji Ran is only one step away from the throne.

Regardless of whether the world will be in turmoil or whether he can maintain his position, he will ultimately succeed.

But such a person said those kinds of things.

"On this land, there should never be a single voice. The world should belong to the public, not to private interests!"

Dong Fuxiang was stunned, his eyes wide with shock.

What is...public?

Dong Fuxiang's pupils dilated in shock! He couldn't understand Ji Ran's thoughts on what "public" meant. But he understood "private"—it referred to the emperor's dynastic rule!
He opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

Ji Ran turned around and said to Zhu Yu, "Come here!"

"Altar Master!"

"Did you see these young people?"

Ji Ran glanced at Dong Fuxiang, pointed at Zhu Yu, and then pointed at the Big Knife Society in the crowd. Many of them were actually in their twenties or thirties.

"Many of them were students sent abroad by the country. Some of these young people were exceptionally talented, while others came from wealthy families. All because of their beliefs, they fought bravely in the Sino-Japanese War and the Bohai Sea, willing to die for their beliefs!"

"Do they believe in the imperial court? No. What they believe in is their own vision of a nation that truly belongs to all people, and the national dignity they attempt to establish through reform!"

Ji Ran patted Zhu Yu on the shoulder and said, "Follow Lord Dong and learn well. Distribute weapons to the Boxers first, then select about eight hundred people to come to the capital with me!"

"Yes!"

At this moment, Ji Ran bowed slightly to Dong Fuxiang and asked with a smile, "Master Dong, are you still able to eat?"

Dong Fuxiang nodded solemnly.

Immediately, he slowly clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to Ji Ran, and to the blood-soaked Boxer civilians.

A sliver of sunlight appeared, the sun blazing fiercely.

The wind blows across the silent warships of the Bohai Sea, brushes over the silent soldiers on the mudflats, and finally stirs up waves in people's hearts.

(End of this chapter)