Fratricide

Qimu did not answer him. Casting his gaze down across the battle formation below, his eyes took in the gleaming, frigid armor, and he already understood the Eastlanders' designs. A hollow void opened in his chest. Looking up at the surroundings, he had no idea how many people were concealed within the clouds and mist. 'The Li family ancestor is said to possess a cultivation at the eighth layer of Qi Refinement, skilled in sword arts and nurtured on pure heaven-and-earth spirit qi. If I try to flee now, I fear I won't get very far...' "Great King! Let me handle this Shamoli!" The few Qi Refinement retainers around him, ignorant of the grave danger, stepped forward and cupped their hands to volunteer. Only the veteran retainer left behind by his father Mu Jiaoman, Zhong Yudai, kept silent. His hands trembled as he stared fixedly at the troops below. Raising his head in sheer dread, he gazed at Qimu, his mouth working without producing a single word. "You... and you. Go up together and test him." Qimu took a deep look at Zhong Yudai, then calmly singled out two men. Watching the two retainers charge forward eagerly, he called the old retainer Zhong Yudai over and transmitted his voice with magic power: "Alas... Shaman-Priest, Shamoli has colluded with the Eastlanders. Most likely, they want me dead this time. Take a detachment of troops and head west. Escort my son and two daughters out of the city, find a town to let them live in peace, and preserve my bloodline. Do not let them contend for anything ever again..." Zhong Yudai's eyes turned bloodshot. With a heavy sigh, he descended. Seeing this, the two men by Qimu's side exchanged glances, sensing that something was amiss. They wanted to speak up and ask, but Qimu stared somberly at the sky with a darkened expression, leaving them with no way to broach the matter. Shamoli saw the two men riding the wind toward him—one at the second layer of Qi Refinement, the other at the third. By cultivation alone, both surpassed him, yet he felt not the slightest shred of fear. With triumph swelling in his chest, he raised his two massive hammers and slammed them down at one of them with a whoosh. The Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivator's beast bones and jades clattered against one another, chiming with every movement. Wearing an arrogant grin and laughing heartily, he thrust up a bone spear swirling with impure true essence to parry Shamoli's hammer. Purple true essence surged over Shamoli's body as thunder flickered, spreading from his hands onto the massive hammer. It crashed head-on into the bone spear with a deafening boom. Their true essence clashed violently, and at the point of contact, tiny arcs of lightning exploded outward. Taking the full brunt of this heavy blow, the smile vanished instantly from the Shanyue cultivator's face. He cried out in alarm and stumbled back, half of his body numbed. Fortunately, the other Qi Refinement cultivator, who possessed a higher cultivation, stepped forward wielding a staff and held off Shamoli's onslaught. Only then did he find a moment's respite to steady his breath. After trading several blows with Shamoli and witnessing the formidable power of his true essence, he urgently shouted: "Great King, this man's technique is bizarre! I fear the two of us alone won't be able to hold him off!" Seeing the true essence upon Shamoli, Qimu felt his suspicions confirmed even further. He waved his hand in silence. The remaining two men beside him rode the wind forward, joining the fray to press the attack together. Qimu remained motionless, musing inwardly: 'Shamoli must have obtained an orthodox method from the Eastlanders and become their running dog. For now, I can only stall for as long as possible, if only to buy my children some time.' With all four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators pressing forward at once, the pressure on Shamoli mounted drastically. Though he swung his massive hammers with fierce vigor, and any bone spears or bone blades that met them were blasted back, the four took turns engaging him. This granted them ample time to disperse the lightning's force, keeping the fight from becoming overly taxing for them. Shamoli fought with great bluster, but he had hardships he could not voice. His magic power was sparse; though tremendously potent, it lacked endurance, making a swift resolution essential. Seeing himself bogged down by the four, with the Li family taking their time to intervene, he had no choice but to grimace and yell, "Pat... Pat... Patriarch, save me!" No sooner had his voice fallen than a figure rose into the air from the Eastlander battle formation. Sword in hand and brimming with robust true essence, he charged into the fray. With a flick of his wrist, he knocked aside the bone magical artifacts of two men. Casting a cautious glance at Qimu, who had not yet made a move in the distance, he offered no introduction, silently wielding his sword to engage the enemies. It was none other than Chen Donghe. Holding off all four men single-handedly, Chen Donghe still appeared completely at ease. He said in a deep voice, "Brother Shamoli, go straight for Qimu. Leave this place to me." Chen Donghe was now at the second layer of Qi Refinement, cultivating his family's orthodox method, the River Unity Qi Formula. This art was as profound and vast as a mighty river, ideally suited for handling multi-opponent sieges. Even if he could not slay them quickly, holding the line and absorbing the brunt of their pressure was no trouble at all. Furthermore, having married into the Li family, he had inherited the Mystic Water Sword Art. Although he had yet to cultivate sword qi, when pitted against these impure qi cultivators, he completely dominated them, drawing bitter groans from all four. His pressure might not have been as explosive as Shamoli's had been, but it excelled in its relentless, unending continuity—clearly a far cry from Shamoli's fleeting, hollow vigor. "Donghe is quite fine. His talent is fairly good, he trains diligently, and his fundamentals are particularly solid," Li Tongya remarked with praise from high above. While Chen Donghe's swordsmanship could not be called extraordinary—nowhere near Yu Mujian's—it was more than decent enough for battle. Whatever opponents he faced, he could hold his own and buy time without suffering a hasty defeat. "Still, Jingtian has yet to bear an heir. Donghe spends most of his days in seclusion. Fortunately, Yuanyun is there to keep her company, or it would be rather lonely." Li Xuanfeng was concerned for his younger sister. Hearing this, Li Tongya shook his head and murmured, "Chen Donghe is already at Qi Refinement; it is naturally difficult for cultivators to produce offspring. And with Tian'er being a mortal, it is only harder still." While the two conversed, Shamoli had already answered with an affirmative and broken free from the four. Brandishing his hammers, he closed in and flew straight toward Qimu. Seeing Chen Donghe hold off everyone alone, Qimu let out a despondent sigh. Stepping into the air with his saber in hand, he watched Shamoli approach with a smug expression. Coldly, in a voice heavy with despair and fury, he said, "Shamoli... do you know what you are doing?!" "What am I doing?" Shamoli grinned savagely. His massive hammer roared downward clad in purple lightning, striking Qimu's incoming long saber and bursting into a spray of shattered purple light. He bellowed, "What right do you have to lecture me? You don't know that my path is the true salvation for the Shanyue!" "You... you... You have betrayed Father's wishes!" Shamoli exchanged several blows with him, each strike brimming with immense weight and power. He forced Qimu into a steady retreat, numbing Qimu's entire body and obstructing the flow of his true essence until Qimu was entirely outmatched. Hearing his brother's words, Shamoli's savage grin deepened as he retorted, "You still dare mention him? What gave Mu Jiaoman the right! Making you the ruler of the realm while leaving me to stretch out my neck for slaughter... As the eldest son, everything went your way! Have you ever known what it felt like for the rest of us?!" Having fought him for the space of an incense stick, Qimu had exhausted his true essence and lost all strength in his limbs. Taken aback by his words, he burst into wild laughter, shouting, "I understand now... Shamoli! So you care so deeply about Mu Jiaoman... Then hear this!" "No matter how glorious your future is, no matter how brilliantly you govern the Shanyue, you will forever remain a dog beneath the feet of the Eastlanders!" Qimu stepped back several paces and turned the saber against his own neck. The sharp blade slid across his skin, drawing a trail of blood. With his bristling beard and glaring eyes, Qimu sneered, "When Father and I watch from beneath the Yellow Springs, we shall laugh at your baseness, laugh at your incompetence, laugh at you acting as someone else's hound, laugh at your self-deception and unfilial wretchedness!" Trembling all over in shock and fury, Shamoli roared, "Shut up!" Yet Qimu only sneered. With pride, he drew the blade. His fine head detached instantly from his shoulders, wobbled atop the geysering neck, and plummeted like a bird. Shamoli, however, felt as though he had been struck across the face. Like a whipped cur, he drew the head into his grasp with magic. With just one glance, his gaze was scalded away. Utterly dispirited, he raised Qimu's head high and shouted, "Qimu is dead! Surrender and be spared!" The four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators looked at one another and hesitated, stopping their attacks. Below, the battle formations fell into chaos. Wails and screams swept toward them alongside the damp morning breeze. A faint dampness touched Shamoli's cheeks, though he took no notice. Looking down at the magnificent mountains and rivers veiled in the pale morning mist beneath his feet, he murmured, "How could my brother say such words... Was I supposed to go to my death willingly, or spend my entire life fleeing in exile? Why... by what right should that have been my fate..." Chen Donghe rode the wind closer. Seeing Shamoli standing in a daze, holding Qimu's head, he paused slightly. Shamoli stood there numbly, completely oblivious to Qimu's blood sprayed across his hair and face, while two trails of tears streamed down his cheeks. Chen Donghe let out a soft sigh and offered his congratulations: "Congratulations to Your Majesty!"