https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-90-Sword-Dao-and-the-Secular-World/13450029/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-92-The-True-Dragon-Contention-Second-Update-/13450034/
Chapter 91: Granting of a Peerage (First Update)
Chapter 91: Granting of a Peerage (First Update)
The day after the Li Family banquet.
In the distant Yuzhou, the Imperial City.
In that luxurious palace, which draws countless gazes yet remains unreachable behind its towering walls, stands the Ancient Hall. A majestic dark golden dragon-scaled carpet stretches from the entrance to the steps of the Dragon Throne.
The Civil and Military Officials of Yuzhou lined up on either side.
From the First Rank ministers, such as the Grand Tutor, Grand Guardian, and Supreme General, to the Fourth Rank officials, like the Governors of various provinces and the Chief Librarian of the Imperial Academy, all stood with heads bowed and hands clasped.
Even the lowest-ranking among them could make the citizens of dozens of cities bow in submission with a mere stomp of their feet.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty."
"Yesterday, the Li Family of Qingzhou held a Family Feast, announcing to the world that another Divine Son has emerged from the Li Family!"
Someone respectfully reported.
The imposing figure seated on the deep and solemn Dragon Throne, though aged in appearance, remained upright in his posture. Dressed in a robe adorned with nine black dragons, his gaze was as piercing as a flame, surveying his ministers with a commanding presence.
Upon hearing this, a faint smile seemed to grace his face.
"Your Majesty, it is said that the Qilin Child is none other than Li Hao, whom you blessed and named fourteen years ago!"
"He is also the son of Marquis Xingwu, the Minister of Justice who recently came here to receive his appointment!"
"Your Majesty's wisdom is truly remarkable!"
The other ministers could not help but offer their congratulations and praise.
"Fourteen years ago, Your Majesty foresaw the extraordinary talent of this child, truly a General Star descended from the heavens, a great fortune for our Dayu!"
One person said, his face filled with excitement and joy.
"Fourteen years ago, Guardian Marquis quelled the century-long Demon Plague in Cangzhou, slaying Great Demons and Demon Kings. Unfortunately, he was caught in the Yudu-Class Mourning River, meeting his end in Cangzhou, leaving his heroic soul unrequited."
"Perhaps, this Li Hao is the reincarnation of Guardian Marquis and the General Star, a new blessing bestowed by the heavens upon our Dayu!"
Someone said with great passion.
Faced with the ministers' congratulations, the figure on the Dragon Throne seemed to be lost in thought, his mind drifting back to that tragic day over a decade ago.
The infant who received his Dragon Blood Jade has now grown into a young man, achieving such accomplishments?
A faint smile appeared on his face as his gaze seemed to drift beyond the palace, looking towards the distant Qingzhou.
"Your Majesty, this child possesses extraordinary talent, yet he has never revealed his name or reputation. I believe the Li Family should provide an explanation."
After the congratulations ended, someone suddenly stepped forward and said, "Deceiving Your Majesty should be punished!"
The crowd was taken aback, glancing sideways to see that it was the Marquis of the Helian Family from the Divine General Manor. They realized it was not surprising.
Among the five Divine General Manors, some had close ties, such as the Wang Family and the Li Family, who were bound by marriage.
But closeness also meant distance, and even mutual disdain, such as between the Li Family and the Helian Family.
Seeing that the Emperor had not spoken, another general stepped forward. He was a First Rank Chief Commander who had once fought alongside the Li Family. He respectfully said:
"Marquis, I believe that Marquis Xingwu and his wife, due to their many years of campaigning in Yanbei, left their young child alone in the courtyard without support. It is understandable that they wanted to keep their child's cultivation hidden to avoid being targeted or spied upon."
"Hmph!"
Helian Boya sneered, "Though the child is young, he is protected by many warriors within the Divine General Manor. Who could harm him? Are you questioning the loyalty of the Li Family's Ladies of the Court, suggesting they might harm the child?"
The Li Family's Madams, such as the First Lady He Jianlan, had been granted ranks and held high status, even if they lacked real power. They could enter the palace to see the Emperor at any time, and even if they committed a crime, the judicial authorities could not directly punish them.
"I believe that the Li Family, having fought demons for many years and slain countless demons, have earned the hatred of many. Their precautions are justified."
The Chief Commander continued to bow his head.
Helian Boya laughed derisively, "Are you saying that demons in Qingzhou would dare to invade? Are you belittling the Li Family?"
"Marquis, I think the Li Family's cautious actions are reasonable. Now that Li Hao has reached the Fifteen Li Realm and has the ability to protect himself, if he reaches the Grandmaster level in a few years, he will be free to travel the world without fear."
Another official stepped forward, smiling as he said, "Moreover, this time Marquis Xingwu has just returned and announced his return to the world. He has no intention of deceiving His Majesty. It's just a minor matter. Why should you, Lord, be so particular about it?"
"If it's a minor matter, it shouldn't be concealed", Helian Boya insisted.
The others secretly shook their heads, finding the lord's current challenge unreasonable, but they were used to it.
Over the years, the Li Family's ennoblements, except for the sorrowful event fourteen years ago when the Li Family's True Dragon perished, which saddened the entire realm, the Helian Family had not dared to speak out. However, most of the time, they would always interject a few words.
This included Marquis Xingwu's triumphant return from Yanbei, where he quelled the demon chaos and repelled the Holy Palace, earning great merit. Even then, this Helian Family lord had argued about the prolonged duration of the war and the significant depletion of supplies for half the duration of the session.
During the years of the Yanbei campaign, many officials and warriors close to the Helian Family had criticized the war from the rear, some even proposing unrealistic impeachments of Marquis Xingwu and Marshal.
But everyone knew that only the Helian Family could make such criticisms. If anyone else did, they would have been labeled as traitors and executed long ago.
The Helian Family had countless merits to their name. You could say their relationship with the Li Family was extremely poor, and it was common knowledge, but you could not call them traitors.
After all, the Helian Family had shed no small amount of blood beyond the Frontier, enough to dye several cities red.
"This Lord Boya is being too hasty. At this moment, with Marquis Xingwu's great accomplishments, even if he were to cause trouble, he wouldn't be punished, let alone for such a minor matter..."
Many officials thought to themselves.
At this point, Emperor Yu raised his hand to calm the debate, smiling as he said:
"Minister Liu is right. It's just a minor matter, not worth mentioning. This time, Marquis Xingwu has fought and achieved great deeds, sacrificing his small family for the Border Pass. His loyalty is as clear as the sun and the moon. Let's discuss the matter of Cangyu City instead."
Seeing Emperor Yu set the tone, Helian Boya glanced at the official, let out a cold snort, and said no more. He turned to look at the dragon pillar in the hall, expressing his dissatisfaction, as if to say, "You all can chat, I won't participate."
The others knew that if the Helian Family chose not to participate, it was for the best, as their involvement would only lead to criticism. They didn't pay him much attention and began to discuss the matter.
"Cangyu City was almost destroyed. Yue Shuhong has taken responsibility, been imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, and written a clear Letter of Self-Accusation. Thanks to the Li Family's Young Master, the city of Cangyu was saved. Truly, heroes emerge from the young!"
"By the number of demons slain, he should be granted the First-Class Viscount Rank."
"For protecting the city and its many citizens, I believe additional rewards should be given..."
The officials began to debate the matter.
...
...
In a forest outside Feijiang City in Jingzhou.
Several dozen thick trees were rapidly squeezed and toppled, like weeds pushed to the sides, as a dozen-meter-long White-eyed Tiger darted through the forest. On each side of its body, four large eyes glowed with a fierce, demonic red light.
But at this moment, several of those eyes were injured, the eyelids closed, and blood flowed incessantly.
Suddenly, the tiger turned its head.
A golden light streaked through the sky, and a figure covered in radiant golden light, with a Buddhist Halo behind it, descended into the forest.
This divine soul, with the appearance of a young boy, had a calm face, devoid of any killing intent, but his attacks were brutally fierce.
"Roar!!"
The tiger roared, bellowing, "Li Family, I will never let you off, even in death!!"
"Then die!"
The young divine soul slapped his palm down, and a fierce divine power pressed down on the tiger.
A demon shadow emerged from behind the tiger, but before it could charge a few dozen feet, it was suppressed by the golden hand of the Buddha-like figure.
"Children, avenge me! The one who killed me is the Li Family of Qingzhou—"
The roar echoed through the forest.
But it was quickly cut short. The demon soul dissipated, and the giant tiger's body, unable to stop, rolled forward, crashing through several trees before coming to a halt. Most of its eyes were now closed, and it was silent.
Amber eyes reflected the figure of a young boy approaching from the forest behind. As the boy drew near and stopped, sand from his feet splashed onto the tiger's eyes.
The boy glanced at the tiger, then fiercely stomped on its head several times, shattering it before he stopped.
"Killing this Great Demon should earn me a First-Class Merit..."
The boy muttered to himself.
He was Li Qianfeng, who had descended from the mountain to enter the world.
He bent down to cut off the tiger's head and was about to leave when a small purple sparrow, the size of a palm but moving like a swift arrow, whistled through the air from above.
The boy was slightly taken aback, dropped the large tiger head, and caught the purple sparrow in his hand.
This was the small demon sparrow raised by his mother, highly skilled in flight. Though its own combat strength might not even reach the Zhou Tian Realm, even some Divine Wanderer Realm martial artists might not be able to catch it.
The Demon Race's cultivation realm progresses slowly, but they possess various mystical abilities, just as the human race can rapidly cultivate.
Zi Que opened its beak and spat out a strip of paper like an oiled scroll.
Li Qianfeng unfolded it and his slightly puzzled frown immediately changed.
Fifteen Li Realm?
Li Hao? Who is he?
Seventh Uncle's son?
Li Qianfeng's eyes showed shock. The key point was that the message said the other party was only... fourteen years old!
Four years younger than himself?
He had only entered the Fifteen Li Realm at seventeen, but the other had done so three years earlier!
Although before the Tianren Realm, those three years were not significant, it clearly showed a huge gap in their innate talents.
Moreover, if Li Qianfeng's memory served him right, such progress was even faster than Ninth Uncle's!
The message was instantly crushed to powder between his fingers.
Li Qianfeng's face was clouded with gloom. Originally, his target was only Li Wushuang, but since Li Wushuang was in the Divine Wanderer Realm, he didn't feel too much pressure.
On the contrary, he was more cautious about his aunt's son and daughter, his cousins.
And there was also Third Mother's only daughter, who had joined the military at fifteen and was now a female general.
Although they were older and had achieved much, the True Dragon valued innate talent. Among their peers, he had thought that entering the Fifteen Li Realm at seventeen made him the best!
But now... a Li Hao had suddenly appeared.
A minor character he had never paid attention to.
"Based on my own cultivation, it's impossible to progress this fast. Ninth Uncle only entered the Fifteen Li Realm at fifteen. Could it be that the elders have intervened?" Li Qianfeng frowned deeply.
He recalled that the other party hadn't apprenticed to a famous master and had stayed at the family mansion.
This meant he had the opportunity to interact with the elders of the Li Family.
But, weren't the elders of the Li Family not supposed to influence the younger generation before the True Dragon was confirmed? That would be unfair!
"Looks like I need to ask the Ancestor to verify this when we go to the Ancestral Hall. Should I inform my master about this matter?"
Li Qianfeng glanced into the distance, his dark eyes flashing with a momentary light, but ultimately, a streak of pride covered it:
"Forget it."
He picked up the tiger's head and hurried back to Feijiang City.
"Given my accomplishments, I'll return early to take a look."
……
Qingzhou, Divine General Manor.
The family feast had ended, and the Mountain and River Courtyard had returned to its usual tranquility, though it was still more lively than usual. From time to time, concubines and their children from various courtyards would come to present gifts and greet Li Hao, hoping to familiarize themselves with the future True Dragon of the Li Family.
Among these secondary lineage children, some were polite and well-mannered, some were nervous and reserved, and others had already learned to flatter and curry favor.
One by one, they all got to know Li Hao, which gave him a glimpse into the challenges faced by these secondary lineage children.
At least when he was forced by his parents to fawn over another young boy, he would feel awkward, but some of these children were already skilled at it.
This seemed to have nothing to do with maturity or experience; some children were more adept at it than adults, purely due to their personalities.
Li Hao, on the other hand, had a rather laid-back and easygoing nature, content to take things as they came.
Another early morning.
Li Hao was still sound asleep when he suddenly heard a knock on the door.
He opened his eyes, and his Divine Soul scanned the area, revealing Yu Xuan, his father's trusted general, standing outside.
He turned over and said, "Calling me to practice again?"
Yu Xuan, recalling the incident with the painting, smiled bitterly and said, "Young Master, the Marshal asks you to wash up and accompany him to meet the Ancestor. He also wants the Ancestor to decide on the True Dragon matter."
Li Hao raised an eyebrow, thought for a moment, and then sat up, calling Qingzhi to help him dress quickly.
Soon, after washing up, Li Hao pushed open the door and looked at the young man, saying coolly:
"Let's go."
Yu Xuan knew that Li Hao was still upset with him over the painting incident, but he didn't mind. He extended his hand and said, "Young Master, please."
They walked through the corridors and arrived at the main hall of the main courtyard.
Li Hao saw his father, who had already removed his armor and changed into a white robe. Unlike Fifth Uncle, who had a refined and elegant aura, his father's demeanor was more stern and imposing, likely due to years of warfare.
(End of Chapter)
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