Scourge Messenger

Chapter 281 Slap
Despite knowing full well how capricious, capricious, and cruel Ying Le was, Ying Rushi was inexplicably moved.

That's how Ying Le is. When she's good to you, you're her most beloved toy. She'd give you everything in the world and even hold you tightly while sleeping. But when you're no longer fun... you're just a toy.

Ying Rushi lowered her head and stared intently at the Yaksha mask, her eyes revealing a pleading expression.

After ten years of Ying Le's rule, those who dared to oppose her had long been fed to the dogs, and those who remained silent were kicked out of the court. In the end, even those who didn't praise her enough were considered sinners. Ying Rushi traversed the court and the countryside, and everyone was Ying Le's henchman, only knowing how to blindly carry out Ying Le's orders; no one dared to have any compassion.

She wasn't trying to criticize the inherent flaws of bureaucrats. It was already difficult enough for everyone to live in Ying Le's court, and it was understandable that they had to hurt others in order to survive. Under the nightless sky, people always had to learn to be cruel.

Moreover, as a member of the imperial clan, Ying Ru Shi had no right to criticize them... If she weren't a member of the imperial clan, she might have died long ago in Ying Le's whim.

But traveling alone was too bitter and exhausting. With hundreds of thousands of people in the City of Nevernight and hundreds of millions in the entire Qi Kingdom, she couldn't find a single person she could trust. Under Ying Le's rule, the Qi Kingdom was utterly silent; conscience, such a luxury and a fragile thing, was something no one dared to display.

The only exception was the man before them. For the sake of ordinary people unrelated to him, he was willing to become an enemy of an entire nation and an expert at the Foundation Establishment stage. At this moment, among the countless Qi generals watching the battlefield, the vast majority despised his foolishness, arrogance, and kindness, even Ying Rushi thought so... But at the same time, everyone hoped to work with him.

Human nature always seeks justice, and even bad people don't want everyone around them to be bad.

Even if he enters the Qi court, he may not be able to change anything, but at least he won't die here, at least he still has hope of changing the future, at least many people will survive because of him, at least... I will no longer have to fight alone.

Please, just surrender.

"Why are you looking at me like that? I have no intention of becoming your savior," Yan Qing replied. "nor do I intend to become the savior of the Qi Kingdom."

Ying Rushi felt herself getting colder and colder, as if the rain was taking away the heat from her whole body.

"Actually, you had a chance to persuade me, but you are a terrible persuader. No matter how good the terms you offer, I will not agree."

"What?" Ying Ru Shi was already nearly depressed, and hearing this only made things worse. She had thought the other party was determined not to submit to Ying Le, but she never expected that the root of the other party's refusal would be herself... But how could it be me?

“You speak of justice, but you haven’t looked in the mirror and can’t see how painful your own expression is. You don’t even believe what you say, so how can I believe you? You’ve used yourself as an example to tell me a truth: how miserable it is for people with a conscience in Qi, to the point that they even want to drag others down with them.” Yan Qing said, “You are truly a vicious person, Prince Lanling.”

Ying Rushi's heart stirred, and she didn't listen to the subsequent attacks at all. She had suffered even more vicious cold looks and curses, and no longer cared about other people's accusations.

She was thinking about something. Even Huang Quan, whom she had only met twice, could see her pain. How could Ying Le, who was wise enough to reject advice and eloquent enough to cover up her mistakes, not see it? She knew very well that she couldn't hide it from her, but she just didn't want to think about it and preferred to live in the dream that Ying Le had woven for her.

She was acting, and Ying Le was acting too. They both knew they were acting, which is why she was so conflicted, because she didn't believe Ying Le's promises at all.

After killing the Golden-Clothed Divine Constable and repairing her Dao Foundation, would Ying Le then retreat to a secret realm to pursue the Great Dao? But since she could gather fortune by ruling the country and slaughtering the world, what reason would she have not to continue ruling the country after repairing her Dao Foundation? Could it be that after repairing her Dao Foundation, she would lose the means to slaughter the world and gather fortune?
How could that be? That's what you should think.

Whether her throne is in the secret realm or the City of Never Sleeps, it's the same; no one can resist the decree of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Unlike other Foundation Establishment cultivators who don't need the support of mortals, Ying Le's supernatural powers require mortals as fertile ground to blossom and bear fruit. She might give up the throne, but she would never give up her Hundred Protectors Guard.

Perhaps one day she will withdraw her gaze from the mortal world. Just like the Demon Messenger, who has killed too many people, can only advance further by hunting stronger prey. Even if Ying Le can gather fortune by slaughtering the world, after crossing a certain threshold, the death of more mortals will become negligible to her fortune.

But how many more people will die before reaching this critical point? There are thirty-eight families now, but will another war be launched to drag the Central Plains into the flames of war in the future? Ying Le launched one such war ten years ago, when her Hundred Guards were established... sacrificing hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians from the Three Kingdoms.

Perhaps Ying Le will change her mind, or perhaps she really will live in seclusion in the secret realm from now on, but in any case, one thing is certain—

After slaying the thirty-eight clans and gathering his fortune, and after killing the Golden-Clad Divine Constable, Ying Le will surely become even stronger.

Resisting her will become even more unattainable.

It seemed as if he could hear the mockery of the dead again.

"Since you've chosen this way of life, don't regret it; if you do regret it, don't continue to pay the price." A cold voice continued to sound from behind the Yaksha mask: "I regret that the only defeat I suffered after walking for six days and six nights was against you, a coward who uses justice to escape reality."

“Besides, you misjudged me from the very beginning,” Yan Qing said. “I wasn’t acting out of a sense of justice from the start. Like I said before, I was just acting on impulse. Destroying the Tombstone Military Town was for revenge, defeating the army was for revenge, and coming here is also for revenge!” “You can continue killing, or even kill more people because of me, but what does that have to do with me? Unlike you, I only seek to have my mind at peace. Who made me unhappy…”

"Whoever does it must die."

boom!
Ying Rushi had no time to react before she was thrown back, knocking down the warhorses behind her. She looked up and saw a scene beyond redemption: Yan Shiyi had drawn a long, bright orange-red sword, its blade inscribed with inscriptions on both sides. On the left was 'All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows,' and on the right, 'Like dew and lightning, thus should you perceive them.' Shards of the sword shattered around him, the Overturning Heaven's power unleashed to its fullest extent!

Bingzi pepper forest!

Yan Qing finally revealed his trump card, which he had kept hidden for six days and six nights. He had originally planned to bait Ying Le into making the first move, since the [Overturning Heaven] power could dispel all negative statuses and restore all health. As long as he wasn't instantly killed, [Overturning Heaven] could be used to strike back. However, after talking for so long, Ying Rushi's suppression remained flawless from beginning to end. Her hands were as cold and steady as if she had killed fish for decades. He couldn't find a way to break free from Ying Rushi, so he had no choice but to use the Bingzi Pepper Forest.

Whatever.

Yan Shiyi swung his sword ten paces away, unleashing a ten-zhang-long blade of light. He cleaved off the head of the white-maned steed pulling the imperial chariot, and even split the chariot, forged from refined iron from the secret realm, in two! The Bingzi Pepper Forest, with its 800 base attack power, was already the strongest weapon for those below the Foundation Establishment stage!
But before he could swing his sword, Ying Le had already jumped up, his wide, gold-trimmed dragon robe billowing in the wind, his long, fair legs appearing as if he were walking on the moon!

"Ying Le!" Yan Shiyi shouted loudly, raising his sword to strike again!

But he could never bring his knife down.

"The hearts of the people."

Ying Le pointed lightly at Yan Shiyi, his posture languid and his tone casual, but Yan Shiyi froze. He still held the Bingzi Pepper Forest high above his head, the upper section of the sword technique, an offensive stance that abandons all defense, pouring all his strength into this one strike, capable of cutting through mountains and seas, but even with the determination to die, he could not resist the power of the divine ability.

Ying Ru stared blankly at this scene, fear like a venomous snake piercing her heart and crawling up her back... She had witnessed Ying Le's supernatural powers, which were simply the embodiment of imperial power, a will to wantonly manipulate all things in the world!
"So, you're the yellow dog of the thieves' family." Ying Le landed in front of Yan Shiyi: "Bingzi Jiaolin, what a beautiful knife, give it to me."

Although Ying Le didn't look at Ying Ru Shi when she spoke, Ying Ru Shi felt a prickling sensation in her body, but she didn't care anymore. She looked down at the ground, the veins on her hand gripping the sword hilt bulging, and her pupils turning a faint red.

Seeing that Yan Shiyi did not respond to her order, Ying Le's eyes flashed with a strange light: "It can actually resist [the will of the masses]? Fine, then I'll take it myself."

However, the next second, not only the Bingzi Jiaolin, but also all the tokens on Yan Shiyi's body, including the Mountain Heart-Protecting Mirror, the Hand of Melting a Hundred Aspects, and the Ronin's Rain Boots, vanished. Ying Le's expression changed. Even though Yan Shiyi had just broken through the Hundred Guards and pulled out the Bingzi Jiaolin, it was not as shocking to Ying Le as him taking away the tokens at this moment.

Although her [Heart of the Masses] wasn't a control-based divine power, after ten years of cultivation and development, she had unlocked numerous effects from it. When used directly on a person, it was even comparable to a soul-shattering attack from a Foundation Establishment level cultivator! With the support of eight hundred bodyguards, even a Foundation Establishment messenger couldn't ignore the soul-erosion of [Heart of the Masses], let alone a mere mortal. If she hadn't held back, Yan Shiyi's soul would have already been obliterated!

With the body of a mortal, he refused to attain the supernatural power of Foundation Establishment!
Could it be that he also has a powerful backer who has reached the Foundation Establishment stage? Or is it a haul from a thief's family? But Ying Rushi has never reported either the former or the latter to me.

Did she recognize that the man was Huang Quan? Did Huang Quan recognize her? Were they acting?

Ying Le's mind raced. He reached out and grabbed Yan Shiyi by the throat, withdrawing ninety percent of his "mass sympathy" and temporarily restoring his mobility: "I'm giving you one last chance—"

Snapped!
The crisp sound of a slap echoed across the field.

Ying Rushi was stunned.

The Qi general who was watching from a distance was dumbfounded.

Everyone who witnessed this scene wished they could gouge their own eyes out.

Ying Le tilted her head, looking blank as if she hadn't realized what had happened. Her face, which was as white as mutton fat jade, was clearly red and swollen, like a flawless jade disc with a blemish.

Yan Shiyi was still being choked by her. The Yaksha mask concealed his expression, but everyone could see just how arrogant his smile was.

A dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator, the Emperor of Qi, and the Son of Heaven, was slapped in the face by a mortal in front of everyone!
Even a Foundation Establishment Messenger cannot completely defend against the bare-handed attacks of the Calamity Heir!

(End of this chapter)