Chapter 434: Trouble in Saint Su City

As Lu Chao spoke, a terrifying, cold light glinted in his eyes.

The Azure Flame Domain was just a gift from Lady Yan to her son, yet it would bring a terrible disaster upon the entire region.

Gritting his teeth, Lu Chao continued his thoughts...

'The matter of me thwarting Yan Mu hasn't reached that Lady Yan's ears yet.'

'Neither Mo Jing nor the others from Yan Soul City want to anger the lady over this, so they've temporarily hidden the truth. They especially wouldn't dare report it before they've captured me.'

The last time, at Zhengyang Mountain in the Great Wu Empire, Mo Jing had said he would capture Lu Chao and hand him over to their lady to be tortured and killed.

But as of now, Lu Chao still hadn't been caught.

'As for Yan Mu, he wants to get his own back, so he hasn't told his mother either.'

That summarized the current situation with the Cyan Sword Great Empire and Yan Soul City...

This information was crucial for Lu Chao; he had to find a path to survival for the Azure Flame Domain within it.

As for the Biyin Bone Flute, Lu Chao truly didn't dare to hold out any hope.

'With Yan Mu as the commander, I can at least buy a lot of time.'

Lu Chao stuck to his original idea: use the good-for-nothing Yan Mu to continuously delay for more time.

'After stalling for time, I can let the Azure Flame Sect gradually gain power...'

'Perhaps later, I'll even have to enter the Cyan Sword Great Empire to find other solutions—to look for people and situations I can exploit.'

Lost in thought, Lu Chao arrived back in the sky above the Dragon Flame Camp.

He ordered the Flying Feather Black Eagle to descend, then lightly leaped down before a tattered tent and looked at Nan Zhuiming.

With a faint smile, Lu Chao said, "Nan Zhuiming, all four of the Yan Soul Guards are dead."

At this moment, Nan Zhuiming had yet to be taken down by Fan Changcun. He stood frozen in place, with the arrows of the Dragon Flame Warriors aimed at him.

When he heard Lu Chao's words, his legs gave out from under him.

Nan Zhuiming collapsed to the ground, his voice trembling, "I... I-I-I... I'll kill you."

With that, Nan Zhuiming suddenly surged forward in a mad rush, charging at Lu Chao. He wanted to take him hostage again.

But... BANG!

Lu Chao sent Nan Zhuiming sprawling with a single kick, then leaned down and said in a low voice, "Don't worry, you won't be dying just yet. By capturing you alive, I think the Nanye Dynasty will be easy to conquer."

As the Patriarch of the Saint Bone Nan Family, Nan Zhuiming's name and reputation were even more renowned than the Emperor of Nanye's.

He also controlled a significant portion of the Nanye Dynasty's military forces. If Lu Chao simply paraded him out, the Nanye soldiers would easily collapse into chaos. This was why Lu Chao didn't want Nan Zhuiming dead immediately.

As he spoke, Lu Chao suddenly struck out with his palm... SMACK!

The palm landed heavily on Nan Zhuiming's Heavenly Destiny Star Saint Bone, causing him to let out a bloodcurdling scream. "Lu Chao, you've crippled me! You actually shattered my Heavenly Destiny Bone... Let me die! Just let me die!"

With his Heavenly Destiny Bone shattered, Nan Zhuiming was now utterly useless—a cripple.

For Nan Zhuiming, who had just been dreaming of becoming the number one expert in the Azure Flame Domain, this was a fate worse than death. He wanted to die.

But Lu Chao simply gave a cold smile and ignored him.

At the same time, Fan Changcun stepped forward and ordered, "Tie Nan Zhuiming up! Don't give him any chance to kill himself."

A group of Dragon Flame Warriors rushed forward and trussed Nan Zhuiming up tightly.

At that same moment, countless Dragon Flame Warriors turned to look at Lu Chao.

For the Dragon Flame Warriors, they had only ever heard of Lu Chao by name but had never seen him in person. Now, they finally had.

Awe-filled gazes fell upon him. He had crippled Nan Zhuiming in a single move—his combat strength was just too immense.

The warriors' minds filled with the legends about Lu Chao...

He was the adopted son of Lu Dingtian from the Great Wu Empire, whose bones the man had nurtured. He had been murdered and miraculously resurrected, then became the mystery of the "real vs. fake Lu Chao" throughout the Hundred Countries. During the struggle for supremacy between the three academies, he had even reclaimed his two Heavenly Destiny Bones.

Now, he was likely the true number one expert in the Azure Flame Domain.

Thanks to Lu Chao's arrival, the terrifying assassination attempt on Fan Changcun was defused with ease.

Soon, the Dragon Flame Warriors returned to their posts...

Lu Chao and Fan Changcun entered a new tent. The former relayed all the intelligence he had just obtained from the Yan Soul Guards to Fan Changcun, whose aged fists clenched tightly.

He merely muttered a single word in a low voice: "Gift!"

The Azure Flame Domain was nothing more than a gift for Yan Mu. Fan Changcun found this impossible to accept.

Endless indignation and suppression welled up in his heart.

He took a deep breath...

Lu Chao continued in a low voice, "Mo Jing has gone to deal with the people from Red Sword City. We have no way of knowing the exact outcome. Assuming Mo Jing returns successful and learns that Nan Zhuiming's assassination attempt also failed, he might personally come to kill us."

"What he wants is for Yan Mu to conquer the entire Azure Flame Domain perfectly. He can't possibly leave us alive."

"As long as we're alive, the assassination attempts won't stop..."

Listening to Lu Chao, the wrinkles on Fan Changcun's face deepened, his brow tightly furrowed.

"We have to conquer the Nanye Dynasty and the Great Wu Empire as quickly as possible. We must unite the entire Azure Flame Domain, then disappear into the shadows so Mo Jing has no opportunity to assassinate us."

"We have to make it so Mo Jing can't find us. Then he'll be caught in a dilemma—he can't attack, but he can't not attack either."

"If he attacks, he's afraid we'll beat the shit out of Yan Mu. If he doesn't attack, he's afraid Yan Mu will get angry."

And if they didn't attack, of course Yan Mu would be furious.

Yan Mu would constantly question Mo Jing: Why are you always delaying? What are you stalling for?

Yan Mu, still unaware that he's a good-for-nothing, would naturally be eager to conquer the Azure Flame Domain and show off his military leadership skills.

"If he can't delay any longer, Mo Jing will have no choice but to find us and negotiate in secret. He'll have to make promises and offer us benefits. That's when we'll have bargaining chips," Lu Chao continued analyzing in a low voice.

Fan Changcun added, "But our main goal is still to keep delaying and allow the Azure Flame Domain to grow stronger."

Lu Chao nodded heavily...

Lu Chao replied, "When the time comes, Marshal Fan, you will hide in the Forbidden Land of the Azure Flame Sect. You'll select all kinds of talented experts and comprehensively teach them the contents of the Azure Flame Treasure Manual. That will be the beginning of re-establishing the Azure Flame Sect."

Clenching his old fists again, Fan Changcun's entire body surged with fighting spirit, all traces of his aged frailty gone.

He would fight. He would re-establish the Azure Flame Sect. He would protect the Azure Flame Domain.

"For now, let's conquer the Nanye Dynasty as quickly as possible."

Lu Chao slowly rose to his feet. With Nan Zhuiming in their grasp, conquering the Nanye Dynasty would be a simple matter. Besides, they now possessed the Nine-Page Nine-Palace Array Map; their mastery of the Soldier Dao was terrifying.

Two hours later, the Dragon Flame Soldiers and Horses launched an all-out attack on the Nanye Dynasty.

...

「In a hidden courtyard within the Dragon Flame Royal Capital.」

Marquis Longyin arrived in a hurry. He knocked gently on the courtyard gate and said, "Young Madam Lu, something has happened in Saint Su City."

Indeed, this was the courtyard Marquis Longyin had arranged for Cheng Yunsu.

The gate opened, and Cheng Yunsu, dressed in fiery red, stepped out. She asked anxiously, "Marquis Longyin, what happened in Saint Su City?"

Marquis Longyin's expression was tinged with hesitation, but in the end, he still spoke in a low voice...

"The remaining members of the Saint Bone Zheng Family, along with Shen Ji, the Patriarch of the Saint Bone Shen Family, and a group of powerful, mysterious figures, stormed Saint Su City half a day ago, carrying the corpse of Zheng Liling."

"Zheng Zhuhe said..."

"...that Lu Chao killed Zheng Liling, and they're going to start by making an example of the Patriarch of the Saint Bone Su Family—your father."