荔枝影院

Edited by: Michyrr

Ishbara Khagan and the First Prince had not interacted very much, but while Li Ying ruled, the Western Turkic Khaganate’s relationship with the Great Tang had reached its most amicable level.

More importantly, the Great Tang was simply too strong, so much so that the Western Turks, Eastern Turks, Goguryeo, and the Ü-Tsang Empire had all joined together in a sort of alliance. They had also become almost secret allies with the First Prince of the Great Tang.

Dalon Trinling had long ago said that the First Prince taking the throne of the Great Tang would be the best outcome for all the other countries.

But this was not what made Ishbara Khagan fearful and angry. What did, however, was the mention once more of that name: Wang Chong!

Li Ying’s coup could have failed because of anyone else, and none of them would have made him more furious than Wang Chong.

Ishbara Khagan would never forget Wang Chong’s brazen threat, that letter that had made him the laughingstock of all the other countries. And now, that man had once more ruined a good thing for the Western Turkic Khaganate.

In Ishbara Khagan’s heart, Wang Chong had already topped the list of the people he wanted to kill.

“To think that he would fail after all that...! This is a problem!”

Behind him, Wunu Shibi couldn’t help but turn grim upon hearing this news.

“The Great Tang’s fighting power is far greater than ours, and we had been relying on First Prince Li Ying and the Confucian Sect to suppress them. This was how we managed to halve the Great Tang’s armies, but now that Li Ying’s coup has failed, the militarists of the Great Tang wil once more have the upper hand!

“Even worse is that Wang Chong was one of the primary leaders of the Great Tang’s war faction. He played a major role in ending this coup and had already been reinstated as Qixi’s Protector-General. Now that he once more wields actual power, his prestige and power are certain to be even greater than before. We might not be able to suppress him any longer!”

Wunu Shibi’s eyes were brimming with concern.

Wunu Shibi feared no opponent, but that young King of the Great Tang was an exception.

He had closely studied this man’s past battles, and the intelligence and stratagems he had seen terrified him. Wunu Shibi had simulated these battles numerous times, and if he had been in Wang Chong’s position, even if all the infantry of the Great Tang had been exchanged for Western Turkic cavalry, he would still not have been able to reach that terrifying level.

More importantly, Wunu Shibi had sensed that this youth possessed an extremely sharp intuition. He was able to sense every danger ahead of time and prepare for it. This was a unique ability that Wunu Shibi could only sigh in wonder and alarm at.

Now that the Great Tang’s King of Foreign Lands had once more been granted military authority, given his past behavior, the ‘friendly’ relationship with the Western Turks would be instantly shattered, and he would begin expanding the army. This was undoubtedly the worst result for the Western Turks.

“Khagan, we might have to start preparing for war,” Wunu Shibi said as he cast his gaze toward Ishbara Khagan.

Ishbara Khagan instantly fell silent, as did the entire tent.

......

Whoosh!

At the same time, a hunting falcon swept through the air over the cloud-piercing Tibetan Plateau and vanished into the royal capital.

“Imperial Minister, we failed!”

Amidst the cloying incense of the palace, a general spoke, and the entire hall fell silent.

The faint silhouette of Dalon Trinling could be seen on the raised platform. A hand was placed on his forehead in silent thought.

All the Tibetan generals around him were solemn and silent. Li Ying had been defeated. This news had shaken the Great Tang and all its surrounding countries.

But what frightened Dalon Trinling and these Tibetan generals was the other piece of news.

Wang Chong had been reinstated as Qixi’s Protector-General!

Relying on his heroic efforts in pacifying the rebellion, Wang Chong had climbed back to the pinnacle of his power. This was an absolute nightmare for Ü-Tsang.

Amongst all the top-class commanders of the Great Tang, this was the one that the Tibetans least wanted to face. Not even the Great Tang’s previous War God, Wang Zhongsi, had dealt as much damage as this person to Ü-Tsang, nor was he as feared.

Wang Zhongsi had not turned the vast and fertile plains of the Ngari Royal Lineage into a barren wasteland, nor had he set up steel fortresses at the triangular gap and torn that area away from Tibetan hands. And Wang Zhongsi had certainly not utterly crushed Ü-Tsang’s feared enemy, the Arabian Empire, leaving one million corpses on the ground and making rivers of blood flow.

In this oppressive air, Yarlung Great General Namri Songtian couldn’t help but speak. “Imperial Minister, it seems that we’ll have to end our cooperation with the Confucians. It’s best if we start preparing for battle soon.”

Since ancient times, Wang Chong had been the only person who had been able to exert so much pressure on the Ü-Tsang Empire through merely his name.

“Imperial Minister, let me gather the soldiers so that they can prepare the defenses.”

“There’s no need!”

Dalon Trinling sighed as he finally spoke. His head tilted upward, and he looked toward the ceiling with a complicated expression on his face.

“I have a plan for how to proceed. We don’t need to worry about the Great Tang’s armies for the moment.

“I thought that Big Dipper City might have been able to delay him a little, but in the end, it was less than I expected. This man is undoubtedly a major problem for our Ü-Tsang!” Dalon Trinling said.

As Ü-Tsang’s Imperial Minister who was famed for his intellect, Dalon Trinling felt for the first time that he had encountered a true opponent. No matter what he did, he seemed entirely unable to manipulate and control this Great Tang youth.

“Come; deliver this letter for me to the Emperor of the Great Tang. In this period, it is not convenient for us to make them our enemies.”

Dalon Trinling took out a prepared letter from his sleeve. He had seemingly prepared for both Li Ying’s failure and his success.

“In addition, help me get ready. In the next few days, I plan to visit the Great Snow Mountain and request a meeting with the High Monk!”

“Yes!”

......

Past the Cong Mountains, past Samarkand and Khorasan, was the Arabian Empire.

“Damn it!”

In the imperial capital of Baghdad, in the imperial palace, the mighty Caliph of Arabia savagely scowled, his burly fingers instantly crushing the letter in his hand into powder.

“Those incompetent Confucians! My trust in them was wasted! In the end, they still allowed Wang Chong to attain military authority!”

Wang Chong!

Although the Caliph didn’t know the Tang language, he had at least learned how to read these two words. Every time he thought about how Qutaybah and one million elites had died to this young Tang commander, his heart ached.

His massive empire that had flourished and prospered under his rule had at one point been on the verge of falling, with the capital of Baghdad being threatened. This was an unprecedented humiliation that he would never forget.

“High Priest, I’ve waited for so long. Just when can I wash away this disgrace and annihilate that Great Tang of the east, flattening their world? Must we continue to promote their lowly language?”

The furious Caliph turned to the black-robed and mysterious High Priest, whose face was shrouded in black fog.

The Confucians were promoting the Tang language in Arabia every day. Its defeat in battle had caused Arabia’s prestige to plunge to its nadir, and numerous Confucians had rushed into Araba and established numerous schools. This had caused the number of people learning the Tang language in Arabia to greatly surpass the numbers in other countries.

This was something he had never expected when he first allowed the Confucians inside his borders.

Even if he wanted to ban this practice now, he could no longer do so. After all, this would essentially be a declaration of war, and Arabia had yet to finish its preparations.

All the servants and guards in the palace trembled in silence in fear of the Caliph’s rage, all of them backing away. But the High Priest stood there like a wooden pillar, not moving an inch. He gave off not even the smallest ripple of energy, making it seem like he didn’t even exist.

Just when the Caliph was reaching the limits of his patience, the High Priest’s black robe trembled, and a cold and emotionless voice came from within.

“It’s about time. Your Majesty, the storm you have awaited has finally descended!”

“Ah!”

The Caliph was startled, but before he could react...

Boom!

The Imperial Palace of Baghdad fiercely trembled as a massive storm of energy erupted from the southwest, so intense that its ripples could be felt across the entire empire, even in Baghdad.

“This is...”

Upon sensing that familiar energy, Caliph Mutasim III’s eyes widened in delight.

“Hierophant, you’ve finally emerged from seclusion!”

The mention of this Hierophant had Mutasim III’s expression turning extremely respectful, almost on the same level of respect he paid to the High Priest.

After a long period of silence, a voice with a magnetic allure, dignified and deep, traveled along the ripples of energy into the Imperial Palace.

“I already know of the situation in the east. In six days, I will emerge from seclusion, at which time I will fulfill Your Majesty’s desire!”

“Good! Wonderful! We will personally welcome the great Hierophant at that time!”

Mutasim III was trembling with excitement.

The Hierophant!

Any Arab knew what this title signified. It was the only person who, despite being a subject, could wield an influence above that of the sovereign, a truly supreme existence.

Before the Battle of Talas, Mutasim III would have loathed to see this person appear, as the title of Hierophant alone presented an enormous threat to his royal authority. But things were different now. As long as he could kill that Tang War God called Wang Chong and seize that country to his east, washing away his shame, he truly did not care about anything else.

Compared to the disgrace of being defeated by foreigners from the east, the threat the Hierophant posed to his authority was irrelevant!

“Pass on my order! In six days, all the Governors and Deputy Governors are to join Us in welcoming the Hierophant!”