Chapter 1856 - 182: Awakened with a Start, the Threat of Great Snow Mountain!

Ashina remained expressionless and coldly smiled: "What kind of person is that King Luoshui? My dealings with him were only to seek the livelihood of eight thousand Great Snow Dragon Horses. Do you want me to watch the pillars of the Royal Court be damaged here? As for incitement, I, Ashina, stand upright and sit properly. If there is indeed evidence, please bring it forward; I, Ashina, will absolutely not quibble!"

At this moment, a leader of the Golden Tribe who had been silent opened his mouth, his voice deep: "Since Princess Ashina says so, then let’s see who this person is."

As his words fell, he reached out and pulled, dragging a bloodied, tightly bound Northern Barbarian warrior from the shadows nearby.

The warrior’s beast-hide short garment was torn to shreds, his face covered in blood stains.

The leader pushed the warrior to the ground, saying coldly: "This person is named Tota, isn’t he a subordinate of Princess Ashina? Tonight, he ran around our camp inciting our soldiers to break through, and in his words, he constantly expressed fear of the Great Xia Luoshui King, saying things like ’The Royal Court won’t care for us,’ ’Staying here means only death.’ I caught him red-handed, but our soldiers were still bewildered by his words, thus rushing down the mountain irrationally, playing right into King Luoshui’s hands!"

Upon hearing this, the whole crowd became uproarious.

Everyone’s gaze turned towards Ashina, filled with shock, anger, and doubt.

Ashina’s eyes focused, then coldly smiled.

"Tota? I do know him, he is a centurion under my Royal Court’s command, responsible for the grass supply for the Great Snow Dragon Horses."

"But you say he is my man, inciting your soldiers to break through!"

"I want to ask, how can you prove he acted on my orders? Or how can you prove he wasn’t coerced into confession, deliberately framing me?"

As she continued, Ashina’s tone turned chillingly cold, suddenly becoming like a lofty monarch.

At that moment, everyone felt as if the temperature around them had dropped a few degrees instantly.

The leader of the Golden Tribe heard this, his face darkened, just about to speak.

But was interrupted by an unexpected voice.

"Princess!"

Following the voice, everyone looked and saw Tota, who was kneeling and tightly bound, suddenly raised his head.

His face was covered in blood, his eyes fiery red.

"Princess! I’ve wronged you!! They captured my wife and children, forcing me to frame you! They said if I admitted to being instructed by you to incite the tribe to break through, they would spare my family’s lives! I couldn’t help it! But I am still unwilling to betray the princess."

After speaking, he forcefully struck his forehead against the hard mountain stone ground, the stone cracked, and blood slid down his forehead.

"Please, Princess Ashina, save my wife and children in the prairie!"

After these words, Tota’s body suddenly trembled, then black blood oozed from his seven orifices, his whole body slumping forward heavily onto the ground, falling silent.

On the hilltop, there was a moment of dead silence.

"Good!!"

"Very good!!!"

Looking at the corpse on the ground, Ashina laughed in rage.

...

Meanwhile, Jiang Ning no longer cared about the situation with the Northern Barbarians.

To him, it was just something he did casually.

As long as the Northern Barbarian Royal Court could bring him enough resources for cultivation, helping him advance further, this trip would be very rewarding.

And with his strength elevated further, he had the confidence to venture to the Great Grassland.

To meet the Great Snow Mountain God.

As for everything else, he did not concern himself.

The internal conflicts and power shifts within the Northern Barbarians were merely a chess piece he laid down casually.

The final outcome depended on Ashina’s tactics and fate; he had no intention nor need to watch constantly.

With one step, he fell back onto the Celestial Palace City’s head.

The night wind swept by, carrying the smell of blood and scorched earth from the distant battlefield.

"Prince!" Prince Zhenbei Xu Zhen and Beicang King had already been waiting on the city head when they saw him return, immediately stepping forward to salute.

At this moment, both were in armor stained with traces of blood, evident battle marks from the recent purge.

Jiang Ning nodded slightly, "The battle is settled, the follow-up matters are entrusted to you two princes."

"Rest assured, Prince, I understand!" Prince Zhenbei Xu Zhen replied, his tone reflecting complete submission.

He hesitated for a moment, then asked: "As for the redemption from the Northern Barbarian Royal Court, and Princess Ashina....."

"Just have someone keep an eye on it, but don’t interfere." Jiang Ning said, "If she can stabilize the situation and deliver the ransom in full, I will ensure she sits on the throne. If she can’t weather this storm, then she can’t blame anyone else. As for those eight thousand Great Snow Dragon Horses, until I have enough resources, they are the best bargaining chips."

"No matter who sits on the throne of the Royal Court, those eight thousand Great Snow Dragon Horses cannot become abandoned pieces!"

Hearing this, the two looked at Jiang Ning, both showing expressions of admiration.

"I need to retreat for half a day to recover. If nothing urgent arises, do not disturb." Jiang Ning added.

"Yes, Prince!" Prince Zhenbei and Beicang King responded in unison.

"If people from the prairie come, bring them to me!" Leaving these words, Jiang Ning’s figure flashed and disappeared from their sight.

He then arrived at a quiet courtyard within the Beicang Royal Mansion prepared for him.

Returning to the courtyard, he sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

His Heart Spirit scanned his body; although he had just unleashed the Forbidden Technique Divine Skill Heart Tribulation Fire, his physical condition was still at peak state.

Seeing this, he felt no worries.

With the Authority of the Blood and Flesh God within him, the Heart Tribulation Fire, which burns the body’s flesh for an explosive energy burst, could completely become his routine method.

As long as it was not excessively used long-term, it posed no impact to him.

Thoughts flashed through his mind as he carefully recalled today’s entire battle with King Zhuanlun.

Up till today, King Zhuanlun was the strongest opponent he had encountered.

The sense of oppression, although not as bad as the previous two Heavenly Soldiers,

But he felt that the power King Zhuanlun displayed today was not below those Heavenly Soldiers.

"The Eight-armed Celestial Dragon Dharma Aspect is indeed extraordinary."

"Those eight Divine Skill Magic Artifacts each have their unique usages, especially the combination of the Treasure Bottle and Dharma Conch almost trapped me!"

Recalling being trapped inside the Treasure Bottle during the day, he still felt some lingering fear in his heart.

If he hadn’t accumulated deep foundation, his strength extremely strong, beyond what it was in the past,

At a different time point, earlier by three to five months, he probably would have been trapped inside that Treasure Bottle.

Yet he knew, that Treasure Bottle was merely a Dharma Aspect manifestation.

If changed into a real Magic Artifact, the power of the Eight-armed Celestial Dragon Dharma Aspect would surely rise to a higher level.

"King Zhuanlun’s own strength has not exceeded the realm of second in the world; the Eight-armed Celestial Dragon Dharma Aspect is not his own ability but the power given to him by the Great Snow Mountain God."

Realizing this, his heart suddenly tightened.

"King Zhuanlun possesses such strength, the God would certainly be much stronger than King Zhuanlun!"

"Also, the Eight-armed Celestial Dragon Dharma Aspect, in King Zhuanlun, those eight Magic Artifacts may only be Dharma Aspect manifestations, but if that God were to transform into the Eight-armed Celestial Dragon Dharma Aspect, might he not wield actual Magic Artifacts!"

Thinking about this, his heart instantly turned cold.

Suddenly sensing something amiss.

What kind of existence is that Great Snow Mountain God?

A being that has lived through long ages, survived the great disasters of heaven and earth, and remains unextinguished? Would it be so simple on the surface?

Moreover, the Martial Saint has dominated for over eight hundred years, yet the Northern Barbarians still exist, and Great Xia still remains in a passive defensive status against them.

The more he contemplated, the more he felt bouts of fear within him.

During the day, he thought the God on the Great Snow Mountain posed no threat or didn’t malign his strength.

But now, calmly reflecting, he felt like he had awakened from a dream.

How could he have thought such thoughts during the day?

To feel this kind of existence wasn’t threatening, wasn’t malicious towards him?

It’s gambling, gambling on an extremely uncertain position, placing himself in danger.

The prairie, that’s the realm of the Great Snow Mountain.

If the God atop the Great Snow Mountain isn’t as he thought, but rather harbors malice.

Going there might truly lead to a point of no return.

"My earlier thoughts and notions seem to have been distorted!!"

He muttered to himself, looking north, his heart filled with chills.

He almost placed himself in a perilous situation!