My strength increases by one percent every day; I can destroy stars with my bare hands.

"Get up quickly."

Li Xuancang helped Du Xiong up, and then called the Ouyang brothers over.

"Greetings, Your Excellency."

The two men bowed respectfully to Li Xuancang.

Li Xuancang said with a serious expression, "I have a very important treasure to deliver to the Du family in the capital. You two must escort it personally and it must not be lost."

The heart of a great demon in the Profound Realm is priceless; even a Profound Realm cultivator would be tempted by it.

Du Xiong was only at the Blood Condensation Realm, so Li Xuancang was not comfortable entrusting the items to him and had Ouyang De and another person escort them.

Both of them were already at the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm and had cultivated a combined attack technique. As long as the Profound Realm expert did not intervene, the two of them would be in almost no danger.

"Yes, ma'am."

The two immediately accepted the order.

Li Xuancang handed the box containing the heart of Lord Lieshan to Ouyang De and instructed, "Be extra careful and deliver it to the capital as quickly as possible."

Ouyang De and his companion nodded solemnly, and the three of them quickly rode away on their fiery steeds.

In a quiet courtyard in the imperial city, several members of prominent families were gathered together.

"Du Tianhao is seriously injured and beyond medical help. Once he breathes his last, the Du family will be doomed and become easy prey."

An elderly man in fine clothes, exuding an aura of authority, spoke first.

Du Tianhao is the pillar of the Du family. Once he dies, everyone will have no more worries and can dismantle and devour the Du family.

"We are sworn enemies with the Du family, and we must seize this opportunity to wipe them out."

Everyone had been fighting the Du family for most of their lives, and they had finally gotten this opportunity.

The two sides have been fighting for so many years, and their grudges are irreconcilable. They will fight to the death, and no one will show mercy.

We will take advantage of your misfortune and kick you when you're down, and we will never give the Du family a chance to turn things around.

They possess a treasure that could heal Du Tianhao, but they refuse to use it, determined to kill him.

"The Du family has already sent people to Ganquan County, presumably to seek Li Xuancang's help. We must be on guard."

At this moment, Prince Ning, dressed in a python robe and exuding an air of nobility, spoke.

Upon hearing this, everyone frowned.

"Li Xuancang has a good relationship with the Du family and even controls Ganquan County. Perhaps he really can find a treasure to cure Du Tianhao."

Everyone knew that Li Xuancang had been promoted by the Du family, and they would never sit idly by.

Merchants from all over the world have come to Ganquan County, so there is a real chance to find a treasure to cure Du Tianhao.

"Since that's the case, let's go all the way and send men to guard outside the capital. If anyone from the Du family returns, kill them without mercy and eliminate any future troubles."

The first to speak, an elderly man in fine clothes, exuded a murderous aura, filled with icy killing intent.

"What Lord Cao says is quite right."

"That's exactly right."

"That makes sense."

"..."

Everyone's eyes lit up, and they agreed with the old man's suggestion.

The group acted swiftly, dispatching many powerful individuals to guard outside the imperial city, ready to ambush and kill the Du family members as soon as they were spotted returning.

The atmosphere at the Du family ancestral home was heavy, even somewhat oppressive.

"Tianhao can only hold on for three more months at most. Hopefully, Li Zhenshou can find a treasure to heal him."

Now that things have come to this, the Du family has no other options but to place their hopes on Li Xuancang.

"Master, Prince Ning and his men are eyeing us covetously; we must be on guard!"

An elder spoke in a deep voice.

"We should prepare for the worst. I think we should discuss with Commander Li about publicly announcing his marriage to Ruomei to deter Prince Ning and his faction."

Du Tianhao's chances of recovery are slim. If he is truly beyond saving, the Du family will face the crisis of extermination.

Only by making it public that Li Xuancang and Du Ruomei have already agreed to a marriage can we make Prince Ning and his group wary and not dare to act rashly.

A mere Tongxuan Realm cultivator is enough to instill fear in all factions, let alone Li Xuancang, who is so powerful that he can fight three enemies at once and still defeat them. No one dares to ignore his deterrent power.

"There's no time to lose. Immediately send someone to explain to Garrison Commander Li, and the family should announce the marriage alliance to the world right away."

The journey from the capital to Ganquan County would take several months, and Du Tianhao might not be able to hold out until then.

The Du family had no choice but to make the decision on their own and make the matter public.

Du Tianfeng understood Li Xuancang and knew that he would not blame the family for this matter.

While sending people to Ganquan County to explain to Li Xuancang, they also prepared to announce the matter to the world.

As the Du family continued to spread the word, the news quickly reached the capital and then spread to other parts of the Great Yan Dynasty.

The news that Li Xuancang and Du Ruomei, the eldest daughter of the Du family, were engaged was like a stone thrown into a deep pool, causing quite a stir.

The first to receive the news were some factions in the capital city that made a living by selling information.

They sensed something unusual about the matter and compiled the information into a book in just half an hour, which they then sold at a high price.

When the news reached the palace, Emperor Zhu Chongming was in his study discussing matters with several close ministers.

The eunuch whispered a few words in the emperor's ear, and the emperor's vermilion pen trembled slightly, leaving a long red mark on the memorial.

He didn't speak, but simply waved for the eunuch to leave.

His gaze lingered on the crooked red mark for a long time.

The personal eunuchs present exchanged glances, all seeing the same solemnity in each other's eyes.

When the news reached the Ministry of War, it was the day when the heads of various ministries were meeting.

The Vice Minister of War suddenly stood up, his sleeve flipping over a teacup, and the scalding tea soaked half of the map, but he was completely unaware.

"The Du family has some impressive methods!"

He slammed his fist on the table, his face turning pale and then flushed.

Just a few days ago, he was discussing with others how to suppress the Du family's influence in the military. Now that this news has come out, all plans have to be put on hold.

They understood better than anyone what it meant to be a garrison commander of the Tongxuan Realm who held the power of life and death over a prefecture.

When the news reached the military camp outside the city, several generals who were preparing to take action against the Du family's influence in the army simultaneously held back their troops.

One of the general's personal guards reported that everything was ready and they were just waiting for the order.

The general stood before the sand table, silent for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, before finally uttering in a hoarse voice, "Wait a little longer."

As military commanders, they were even more aware of the significance of Li Xuan's two major victories against the grassland people.

Even if Du Tianhao couldn't hold on any longer, the Du family wouldn't dare to easily attack the Du family because of their marriage alliance with Li Xuancang.

The news spread like a plague, from the capital to all the states of the Great Yan, from the imperial court to the martial arts world, from the mansions of noble families to the teahouses on the streets.

Everyone is talking about it, speculating about the deeper meaning behind this marriage.

The most violent earthquake occurred in the mansions of the Du family's mortal enemies.

The Huangfu family residence is located in the west of the city.

Huangfu Qi, the head of the Huangfu family, was admiring the plum blossoms in the back garden when the steward stumbled in, knelt down with a thud, and turned ashen-faced.

"Master, something terrible has happened! The Du family... the Du family has formed a marriage alliance with the garrison commander of Ganquan County."

With a "crack," the plum blossom branch broke in Huangfuqi's hand.

He stood there, frozen in place.