The Human Emperor
chapter-1607

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

But Li Junxian believed that everything was not over yet. Hulugan and Ashide were not dead yet and the capital was only so big. With his strength, he could get to the execution ground in time, and they could still be saved.

“Wang Chong!”

Li Junxian’s eyes seethed with fire and worry. Time was short, so Li Junxian opened his mouth and whistled.

The Confucian Sect’s supreme sacred sword erupted with boundless energy, causing Li Junxian to streak into the distance like a comet.

He was getting closer and closer!

……

On the stage, Cheng Sanyuan looked down on the furious crowd. “Everyone! I presume that everyone knows of the border incident. We have now captured the two ringleaders!”

“Kill them! Kill these brutes!”

The crowd became even more furious.

Many people rushed toward the stage, and if not for the surrounding guards, they would have gotten onto it.

Cheng Sanyuan made a gesture calling for the crowd to quiet down.

“…Half a month ago, these two beasts massacred an entire village in the north of four-hundred-some people for the sake of a little food, not even letting the elders and children go. Such conduct truly chills one’s blood. They believed that if they hid in their camp, protected by thousands of soldiers, they would be able to rest easy, but this time, let us tell all the people in the world that no matter who you are, where you are, or how many soldiers you have behind you, this is what will happen to you if you dare to lay a hand on the common folk of the Great Tang! Because this place is the Great Tang!” Cheng Sanyuan declared to the people down below, his words ringing with force and resolve.

Bang!

The crowd exploded with cheers that reached to the heavens.

“Great Tang!”

“Great Tang!”

“Great Tang!”

The cheers came again and again like massive waves.

As Cheng Sanyuan looked down from the stage, he also felt rather excited. To capture these two Hu, almost eighty percent of Wang Chong’s forces had been mobilized, either directly or indirectly.

Some of these men had even sacrificed their lives for this operation, but it had all been worth it.

All of them had planned night and day and stressed over every detail for the sake of one goal: to have all the countries of the world know that the Great Tang could not be lightly humiliated.

When needed, soldiers would serve as the firmest shield for the people.

No one could massacre the people and not pay the price. More importantly, before taking action, the other countries would have to carefully weigh the pros and cons of enraging the Great Tang.

Four hundred had defeated twelve thousand and extracted the two ringleaders from countless soldiers, meaning that the Great Tang had the ability to defeat even more of such armies.

To have one’s enemies endure greater pain and pay a greater price…

This was the duty and pride of a soldier!

This was why he and countless others were willing to follow the King of Foreign Lands and give their lives for him. Only this man could unite the empire and give it the form it was meant to have!

“Have them kneel!”

With a gesture from Cheng Sanyuan, Hulugan and Ashide were forced to their knees, yet Ashide tried to keep his back straight in resistance.

But the guard kicked the back of his knee and swiftly brought him down.

“Release me! I said before, you have no right to capture me! I’m a vanguard general of the Western Turks! The Great Tang has no authority to judge me!” Ashide harshly said.

Unlike the fearful and shrinking Hulugan, Ashide had maintained the fierce pride of a soldier, but Cheng Sanyuan paid no attention to him this time.

“Bring out Miss Duan!”

A few moments later, a woman wearing white mourning robes was escorted onto the stage. Upon seeing this woman, the raucous crowd instantly fell quiet.

It’s her!

All of them recognized this sorrowful woman.

In this period of time, almost everyone in the capital had come to know this woman. Anyone who heard with their own ears her tragic plight would feel sympathy for her and anger toward the foreigners.

At the same time, they also felt deep admiration for her firm and unbending resolve to avenge her village.

The woman’s eyes were streaked with blood. It appeared like it had been many days since she had last closed them.

The moment the woman appeared, she spotted the kneeling Hulugan and Ashide, and her eyes exploded with hatred.

“You beast!”

That widowed Miss Duan, a bitter and forlorn look on her face, struck out with her palm and slapped Hulugan’s face.

This slap had been done with all her strength, even leaving a bruise on Hulugan’s face. Miss Duan’s palm was also shaking from the strength of the blow, and it became swollen as blood surged into it.

“For the sake of a little food, you actually killed all the four-hundred-some people in our village! Give me back my father-in-law! Give me back all the people of my village!”

As the woman spoke, she lunged over and began to beat and gnaw at the two men.

The woman’s frenzy, her outpouring of hatred, and those looks from the crowd that wanted nothing more than to eat them alive, caused the two men to reveal expressions of deep fear.

As for Miss Duan, ever since she had discovered that massacre, she had spent every second of the following days looking forward to this moment.

Miss Duan vented her rage on the pair, and Cheng Sanyuan did nothing to stop her.

After using up all her strength, Miss Duan let out a plaintive wail as if her entire body was breaking down.

“Oh heavens!”

Miss Duan suddenly collapsed onto the stage, her body shaking as she wept.

“The heavens have eyes! King of Foreign Lands, please carry out justice for this woman! This woman is willing to be your bull and horse and will never forget this kindness!”

That voice caused tears to be shed in the crowd, and there was no one who did not feel pity and compassion. Even Cheng Sanyuan couldn’t help but sigh.

“Relax! His Highness will carry out justice for you!”

Cheng Sanyuan turned to the fearful Hulugan and grimacing Ashide, his body exuding a chilling killing intent.

“Executioner, stand ready! Prepare for the execution!”

Everyone’s hearts pulsed in excitement.

That massacre on the border which had caused such a great stir within the capital was finally about to reach its end.

“Milord!”

At this moment, the kneeling Miss Duan suddenly raised her head, a chill in her eyes.

“This lowly woman has another request. Milord, please, you must agree!”

……

“Young Master, we’re here! The execution ground is just up ahead!”

Li Junxian, after shooting like a lightning bolt through more than half the city, had finally reached the eastern end of the city.

This entire time, Li Junxian had been exerting all his strength, and when he saw the stage, he finally felt a sliver of hope.

“There’s still time!”

The crowd had not dispersed and were all expectantly looking in one direction. This meant that those two were still alive, and as long as they were still alive, he had a way to save them and neutralize this crisis.

Buzz!

But just when Li Junxian was brimming with hope, there was a cold flash of light from the stage—that of a saber being raised high into the air.

The sight of that saber raised high and about to descend caused Li Junxian to pale.

“Stop!”

The blood rushed to his head and he erupted with a heaven-shaking roar. Li Junxian transformed into a ray of light as he shot toward the stage.

As he flew forward, he flicked his finger, sending a chilling bolt of Sword Qi toward the saber.

Alas, despite the swiftness of his reaction, he was still too slow.

Plush! Plush! Saber met flesh, and then two heads flew into the air and thudded onto the stage.

Boom!

The moment the heads fell, the crowd exploded with heaven-shaking cheers.

At that moment, the buildings of the capital quivered and even the roof tiles of the buildings near the stage were loosened.

But while the crowd was ecstatic, Li Junxian was slowing down, his heart freezing as it sank like a stone.

Too late!

In the end, he had been just a step too slow!

Li Junxian had never imagined that even though he had used all his power and had already reached the place, he had still been too slow. Hulugan and Ashide had been killed right before his eyes.

“Wang Chong!”

After his initial shock, flames of indescribable rage began to build within Li Junxian’s heart.

Hulugan and Ashide were dead, and a conflict with the Western Turkic Khaganate was now inevitable.

He had done all he could to stop it and preserve the entire empire, hoping to preserve a peace that would last for generations for its people, but in the end, despite his best efforts, he could not overcome Wang Chong, could not get past the name of the King of Foreign Lands.

Li Junxian’s eyes reddened. He had never been like this before, never felt such intense killing intent.

As these thoughts flew through his mind, he heard a bang.

The Sword Qi he had sent out had not been able to strike the executioner’s saber. Instead, it had been blocked by a bolt of violet energy.

Li Junxian instantly turned his eyes toward where the bolt had come from, and in the middle of the dense crowd, he spotted a familiar figure.

Wang Chong!

Guarded by several black-armored soldiers, Wang Chong was wearing a golden crown and dressed in casual clothes. He was looking over the crowd at him, a calm expression on his face. It was like everything that had happened, including that last desperate attack, had all been predicted beforehand.