Chapter 1285 Hidden Secrets of the Phoenix Palace, Cold Blades and Shadows Stir Heroes’ Souls (Part 4)

Days later, the Bozhou Sub-Branch was brightly lit and decorated. The male disciples had married their beloved maidens, and the female disciples had received rich dowries.

Shi Feiyang stood atop the sub-branch, looking at this lively scene, a gleam of comfort flashing in his eyes like glazed glass. At this moment, the setting sun dyed the Bozhou battlefield in blood red, and the Heroic Sakura Association’s flags fluttered in the smoke, recounting the unyielding spirit of the Jianghu heroes.

Capital.

Inside the Wenhua Hall, a gilded incense burner in the shape of a beast head exhaled blue smoke, causing the candlelight to flicker unsteadily. The Emperor’s fingers struck heavily on the dragon desk.

The battle report delivered by the secret agents was marked all over with vermilion, creating a sight of devastation. The three inked words "Heroic Sakura Association" twisted in the blood-like glow.

The sound of a dull echo came from the rosewood table, startling the copper crane wind chimes under the eaves into a nervous clatter: "To have the Heroic Sakura Association clash with the Mu Royal Mansion? Shi Feiyang actually dares to meddle in the Southwest? Is Shi Feiyang not my Marquis Zhen Nan? Has he really disregarded wealth and nobility?"

The pearl curtain suddenly rustled lightly, as Zhou Yanru’s python robe brushed past the jade steps, the python pattern clouds glimmered with a cold light under the swaying candlefire.

As he bowed, his goatee almost touched the gold-inlaid jade belt, yet his voice was like a poisoned silver needle: "Your Majesty’s perceptiveness, this is indeed a heaven-sent opportunity. The Mu Family has held the Duke Qian title for generations, guarding Yunnan for over a hundred years. How can mere Jianghu rebels be allowed to infringe? I request an order for Mu Tianbo to lead thirty thousand iron cavalry southward, to ’quell the rebellion’ by destroying the Bozhou Sub-branch of the Heroic Sakura Association!" Before the voice had fallen, the ivory tally in his sleeve had already made a crisp sound, startling a night owl from its perch in the roof beams.

As the secret compartment of the Imperial Study was opened, the whirring of mechanism gears sounded lightly.

Xiang Yushan, the Commander-in-Chief of the Jinyi Guard, unfolded the secret letter with the swaying candlelight, his pupils constricted to pinpoints in the flickering flames.

His withered fingers stroked the embroidered Brocade Spring Saber dragon-patterned sheath, his nails scraping over the gilded chi-dragon pattern emitting a piercing sound: "Order Guo Dunyi to have the remnants of the Iron Saber Association assault the Heroic Sakura Association’s supplies. Also, send five hundred Blood Shadow Guard disguised as a horse gang, to infiltrate deep into Miaojiang——"

A sinister smile climbed up the wrinkles at the corner of his eyes, "No matter how venomous the Five Poison Sect’s gu worms are, they can’t stand against the Divine Strategy Camp’s thunderbolt guns!"

Three days later, an eight-hundred-mile urgent military report shot through the morning mist like an arrow.

Hooves shattered the crisp sound of the bluestone slabs, startling the dove flocks of the Imperial City to flight, as the courier drenched in sweat burst through the palace gates, the twelve vermilion fire tokens in his bosom radiating a chilling murderous intent in the morning light. In the direction of Bozhou, dark clouds roiled, faintly accompanied by the rumble of thunder, resembling an ominous omen before a storm.

At the Ming Army Camp in Bozhou, Guo Dunyi, the Bozhou General who had been severely injured by Shi Feiyang, caressed the newly obtained Tiger Talisman, looking at the iron cavalry readying outside the tent with a sneer: "Shi Feiyang, oh Shi Feiyang, even if you are unmatched in Martial Arts, can you withstand the volleys of cannons?" Behind him, the remnants of the Iron Saber Association were embedding the court-bestowed poisoned arrows into arrowheads, which emitted a strange blue glow.

Meanwhile, within the Mu Royal Mansion, Mu Tianbo was deep in thought over the Imperial Decree.

In the corner of the study, an elderly man with white hair caressed the map of Dian Nan slowly opened his mouth: "Prince, there’s something suspicious about this. Shi Feiyang has always acted meticulously, how could he rashly become our Mu Family’s enemy?" Before the words were finished, the cry of a hawk suddenly came from outside the window——it was a secret letter delivered by Xie Wen’s flying hawk.

When Mu Tianbo unfolded the plain silk, his gaze swept over the characters "willing to assist the Prince in defending the border", and his aged fingers trembled slightly. He turned to look at the ancestral treasure sword hanging, the peacock feather on the sword tassel swayed lightly in the breeze: "Someone! Prepare the horses! I will meet this Marquis Zhen Nan myself!"

Meanwhile, deep within the Forbidden City, the Emperor toying with the newly cast seal for suppressing rebellion suddenly heard the explosion of thunder outside the window.

As dark clouds pressed down on the city, he gazed at Bozhou’s position on the map muttering to himself: "Shi Feiyang... I want to see, just how big a wave can you Jianghu scoundrels make?" As the vermilion endorsements fell, a storm filled with power schemes and the glint of blades surged towards Bozhou.

As dusk inked Qingtian Mountain, Shi Feiyang stood among the broken walls, with the ice-blue True Qi of the Bright Jade Technique forming cobweb-like frost patterns on the green bricks. In the distance, the iron cavalry of the Mu Royal Mansion shattered the twilight, Guo Dunyi’s Firearms Camp’s bronze cannons glinted coldly in the setting sun, while the remnants of the Iron Saber Association lay hidden in the dense forest like lurking venomous snakes, watching this impending storm.

Xie Wen unfolded the carrier pigeon message from the secret spy, his fingers squeezed the paper making a rustling sound: "Grand Squad Leader, Mu Tianbo personally leads thirty thousand iron cavalry, Guo Dunyi’s Firearms Camp has laid red-clad cannons ten miles away." As the words fell, Liao Pei’s Long Arm Fist gauntlets heavily smashed against the bluestone railing, sparking: "Grand Squad Leader! When have we, the Heroic Sakura Association, ever feared mountain knives and seas of fire?"

Shi Feiyang’s black attire flapped in the fierce wind, he spoke in a heavy voice: "Brother Liao, this isn’t fear, but clarity. The Imperial Court’s current strategy is to let us three sides suffer mutual damage."

He pushed out with both palms, executing "Viewing the Ocean" from the Hundred Victories Saber Technique, palm wind sweeping across the sand table, toppling the small wooden figures representing the enemy troops, "Mu Tianbo has guarded Yunnan for decades, Guo Dunyi holds military power in Bozhou, both are cunning veterans, would they really turn on each other over a mere secret letter?"

Lan Xiaodie gently raised her jade-like hand, the Golden Silkworm Gu King flew out from the myriad gu jar, weaving a green light screen above everyone’s heads: "I’ve had the disciples of the Five Poison Sect lay ’Enchanting Miasma’ along both banks of the Chishui River, but this miasma can only disrupt the mind, it’s of limited use against seasoned generals of the battlefield."

Her beautiful eyes looked towards the north, "The Blood Shadow Guard’s firearms and Guo Dunyi’s red-clad cannons are the real deadly moves."

Shi Feiyang pondered for a long while, his gaze suddenly falling onto the branch of the Chishui River on the map—Cyan Cliff Stream. "Do you all know that every heavy rain here causes flash floods?" His fingertip lightly pointed on the map, the ice-blue True Qi congealed into the trajectory of water flow, "And three days from now, is precisely the period of heavy rain."