Eternal Life as False Emperor-Chapter 172 - 139: Spying on Celestial Longevity Mountain
"Subject to Your Majesty’s instructions!"
Without a second thought, Meng Guang directly knelt on the ground, showing utmost respect.
As Zheng Yi observed Meng Guang kneeling, he pondered for a few moments. Meng Guang remained there, head touching the ground, silent.
"Take the navy to Jinggzhou."
Zheng Yi said calmly, "Jinggzhou has many lakes and ponds. Lead your troops ashore at the Nulong River estuary, pass through Jiangzhou and Xuzhou, and enter Jinggzhou, eliminating the rebellion along the way."
"I can temporarily grant you the authority of Governor of the Two Rivers, oversee the naval forces of Jiangzhou and Jinggzhou, and suppress the rebellion locally."
Meng Guang said joyfully, "Yes! I shall obey the decree!"
Being the Governor of the Two Rivers, a first-grade official, is a truly powerful position.
"I will also give you a division of the New Army to command. I hope you won’t disappoint me."
Meng Guang kowtowed again, "My loyalty can be witnessed by the sun and moon."
"You may leave."
"Yes!"
Meng Guang cautiously retreated, Zheng Yi gestured, and Liu Cheng’en quickly approached.
"Your Majesty."
"Arrange some capable officers of the New Army for Meng Guang to assist him in managing the New Army, and also provide him with some firearms."
Liu Cheng’en quickly grasped Zheng Yi’s intention and responded promptly, "Yes, I shall obey the decree!"
"Your Majesty, it’s getting late today. Should I have the Imperial Household Department select the tokens of the consorts in the harem...?"
"No need."
Zheng Yi stood up and said, "Let’s go to Consort Yu’s place."
"Yes!"
Now that he has decided to have children, he naturally chose mothers with Spirit Roots.
Cui Xiabing, Yue Chan, Zhuang Yuheng, all three must be arranged.
Getting them pregnant as soon as possible also benefits the development of the Three Thousand Worlds.
Moreover, in just over two months, the Empress Lu Lin’er will give birth, and the first of the Three Thousand Worlds will be unlocked.
But what kind of world will the first world be?
Meng Guang had just left the Imperial Palace when Liu Cheng’en caught up with him.
"Lord Meng, wait, wait~"
"Oh? Eunuch Liu?"
Meng Guang quickly stopped and turned to ask, "May I ask why Eunuch Liu...?"
"By order of His Majesty, I am here to take Lord Meng to see the New Army."
"The New Army? Is there anything different?"
"Of course, it’s different."
Liu Cheng’en said, "Although they’re all called the New Army, the focus is certainly different."
"There is a Firearms Corps entirely equipped with flintlock guns, and there is a Cannon Camp equipped with a large number of Red Coat Cannons. I wonder which one Lord Meng would prefer?"
"Cannon Camp!"
Meng Guang immediately said, "To be honest with you, Eunuch, Red Coat Cannons are simply a weapon in naval battles. If I had two hundred more Red Coat Cannons back then, I could have blasted that pirate king of the East Sea to pieces!"
Liu Cheng’en glanced at him and said, "A mere pirate dares call himself king?"
"You can talk about this with me, but make sure not to mention it in front of His Majesty, understood?"
"I understand!"
Meng Guang immediately said, "When I return to the capital next time to report, I shall capture that pretentious pirate king!"
"Good, good~"
"Eunuch Liu, I have prepared a small feast at Huanghe Tower. Would you do me the honor?"
"I happen to have some things to discuss with you, lead the way."
"Please~!"
Meng Guang bent over in invitation, discreetly glanced towards the depths of the Imperial Palace.
A voluptuous, exceptionally beautiful, mature figure flashed through his mind.
Huanghe Tower.
As the newest favored person of His Majesty, hosting Eunuch Liu Cheng’en, many people were eager to curry favor.
Therefore, tonight Huanghe Tower was crowded, all here to congratulate Meng Guang.
For a moment, the banquet was lively, filled with flattery.
Moreover, at the banquet, Meng Guang and Liu Cheng’en settled the equipment for the New Army.
A division of the New Army, more than ten thousand people.
Among them, there was an enhanced artillery regiment, with three thousand artillery pieces and over six thousand troops.
The remaining three thousand troops were part of the regular Firearms Corps, equipped with a large number of firearms, thunderbolts, grenades, and even an "Air Force" regiment.
The so-called Air Force naturally referred to the hot air balloons equipped with thunderbolts, boasting strong combat power.
In addition, the division’s commander, regimental commander, and battalion commander were all elite soldiers from the New Army, descendants of loyal subjects.
After sending off the drunken, staggering Liu Cheng’en, Meng Guang washed away the smell of alcohol and returned to his residence in the Capital City.
"General!"
"General!"
In the room, three subordinates were already waiting for him.
"Elder Brother!"
"General!"
"Elder Brother!"
One wore a Daoist robe, about forty years old, with bright eyes, but sported two whiskers that made him look less like an Immortal and more lecherous.
Another stood eight feet tall, with leopard head and ringed eyes, black facial hair, bare-chested, muscular, resembling a human bull demon.
The third was a plump dwarf, barely five feet tall, looking like a "three-inch nail."
These three were the water bandit leaders Meng Guang subdued after breaking through Liang Xingshan!
Grandmaster Realm Martial Artists!
All three were Grandmaster Realm Martial Artists!
Daoist Feilong Tan Yunlong!
Thousand Man Slaughter Shentu Kui!
Earth Immortal Sunx Hui!
Tan Yunlong first spoke, "General, how did this trip to the capital go?"
Shentu Kui quickly followed, "Big Brother, did that old emperor give you a First-grade Official position?"
Sunx Hui jumped onto the table and said, "Of course, Big Brother now commands ten thousand troops. If he doesn’t, we’ll storm the Capital City, seize the emperor’s throne, and let Big Brother sit on it too, hahaha~"
"Indeed!"
Shentu Kui quickly added, "The emperor changes, this year it’s my family’s turn!"
Meng Guang’s mouth twitched. If he hadn’t rented out the entire restaurant, he would really want to slap these two brothers.
"Shut your mouths, you fools. This is the Capital City; stop thinking about fighting and killing!"
Seeing Meng Guang’s displeased expression, Tan Yunlong quickly asked, "General, what happened?"
"It’s nothing."
Meng Guang said, "His Majesty still trusts me greatly, giving me the position of Governor of the Two Rivers, to lead troops to Jinggzhou and suppress the rebellion."
"Governor of the Two Rivers?"
Shentu Kui scratched his head, "What kind of official is that?"
Tan Yunlong explained, "A first-grade official, a high-ranking governor!"
"First-grade!"
Shentu Kui’s eyes suddenly lit up, and he burst into laughter, "Hahaha, as expected of big brother, now a first-grade official. Big brother, quickly let old Kui be a second-grade official for a change!"
Lord Meng said, "Alright, my three brothers, big brother could not have reached today’s height without your contributions, and I, Meng Guang, will never treat you unfairly!"
Tan Yunlong said, "What are you talking about, big brother? We swore oaths and became sworn brothers. We’re all brothers, why distinguish?"
Lord Meng said, "Alright, my three brothers, tomorrow I’ll go take command of the new army, then we’ll set off for Jingzhou."
"New army?"
"What new army?"
"Is it the new army with the Red Coat Cannon?"
"Indeed."
Tan Yunlong’s eyes flashed suddenly, even Shentu Kui and Sun Hui had grim expressions.
Back then, Meng Guang breached their mountain gate with the Red Coat Cannon, which they mistook for a divine intervention or action of an immortal.
Little did they know, this Red Coat Cannon was merely a new weapon developed by the present-day Emperor.
"Let’s go now, let’s go now!"
Shentu Kui hastily said, "Old Kui wants to see what is so formidable about the Emperor’s Red Coat Cannon."
"The Red Coat Cannons on the ship are all old and broken, several are even malfunctioning, not fun to play with!"
Sun Hui said, "I think the hand grenades are more fun, best for fish blasting, hahaha~"
"All fun, all fun!"
"Big brother, let’s go!"
"Why the rush, it’s only the third hour of the night!"
Meng Guang, however, glanced at the sky and said, "Rest for a while, let’s go at the fifth hour of the night."
"The new army’s camp is at Celestial Longevity Mountain, it’s not near."
"Alright, big brother, whatever you say!"
As dawn broke, Meng Guang, with his personal guard, went to Celestial Longevity Mountain to take command of a new army.
Seeing the spirited soldiers of the new army, along with the brand new Red Coat Cannons, hand grenades, flintlock guns, and other firearms, Meng Guang and the others were full of excitement.
They played with them for a long time before reluctantly putting them down. Shentu Kui even fired a few shots himself, laughing heartily.
However, Tan Yunlong’s expression was solemn as he approached Meng Guang, "General, from the direction of Celestial Longevity Mountain, have you heard any sounds?"
Sun Hui also came close, whispering, "Big brother, I heard too, it sounds like... thunder?"
Meng Guang looked towards the direction of Celestial Longevity Mountain and hesitantly said, "The world is in chaos, all ten states are rebelling. Several border vassal kings ignited rebellion claiming the Emperor is ’disrespectful to ethics, infuriating the late Emperor; Celestial Thunder descends as a sign of unfilialness’.
"Could this be the real reason for the thunder at Celestial Longevity Mountain?"
"What thunder?"
Shentu Kui came over and said, "Clearly cannon fire, with such bright skies, where’s the thunder?"
"But this cannon fire sounds so strange, like it’s underground?"
"Underground?"
The four were intrigued, and Sun Hui rubbed his chin, "Strange, this place is where the mausoleums of the successive emperors of Great Yu lie, why would there be cannon fire underground?"
"Let me investigate!"
"Four!"
Meng Guang quickly pulled Sun Hui back, "This place is a royal restricted area, absolutely not!"
"Royal restricted area? Hehehe..."
Sun Hui sneered, "What royal restricted area, just a pile of tombs."
"Also, big brother, I know the Divine Movement Technique, even if discovered, who can stop me from escaping?"
"If so..."
Meng Guang was curious too and whispered, "Be careful."
"Understood~!"
After completing the procedures for taking over the new army, Meng Guang led the main force away from Celestial Longevity Mountain.
Meanwhile, Sun Hui discreetly slipped into the nearby woods amidst the distraction of the crowd and vanished without a trace.
The troops moved forward in a winding line, Meng Guang riding on a tall horse, brimming with pride, but still worried about Sun Hui.
"Second brother, do you think fourth brother will be in trouble?"
"Probably not, although fourth brother just advanced to the Grandmaster, possessing Abnormal Techniques means even if he encounters trouble, no one can stop him from leaving."
"Hopefully, sigh, I was too impatient. Celestial Longevity Mountain is a royal forbidden area, if..."
"Big brother!"
"Big brother!"
At that moment, they heard someone calling, and turning back, they saw Sun Hui swiftly approaching using his lightweight technique.
"Fourth brother? Why so soon?"
Shentu Kui laughed, "Fourth brother, did you discover the secret of Celestial Longevity Mountain?"
"Might it be that previous emperors have been practicing immortal cultivation?"
Only Meng Guang and Tan Yunlong had stern expressions. Both noticed the fear in Sun Hui’s eyes and the sweat on his cheeks.
"Fourth brother, what exactly happened?"
Meng Guang grabbed him and asked in a low voice.
"Innate! Innate!" Sun Hui said tremblingly, "Celestial Longevity Mountain is guarded by Innates!"
"What exactly happened?"
"I... I just approached the mausoleum area of successive emperors at Celestial Longevity Mountain, trying to find my way, and suddenly a hand was on my shoulder, I was scared half to death!"
Sun Hui said quickly, "Fortunately, I had the token you gave me, big brother. After confirming my identity, that Innate powerhouse only warned me for a while and let me go."
"If it weren’t for that token, I’d be done for!"
"Innate powerhouse?"
"Celestial Longevity Mountain actually has an Innate!"
"Besides Xu Mujun and Prince Xian, the Great Yu Palace has other Innates?"
Meng Guang said, "Fourth brother, tell me exactly about that Innate’s appearance, is it an elder eunuch?"
After thinking carefully, Sun Hui said, "A eunuch indeed, but not an elder, a fair-skinned eunuch around thirty!"
"About thirty?"
Meng Guang hesitated, "I heard from Liu Cheng’en that there’s an elder Chen eunuch in the palace who’s an Innate powerhouse. Didn’t expect there’s another one!"
"The Great Yu Imperial Family is indeed profound and unfathomable!"
"Xu Mujun, Prince Xian, Elder Eunuch Chen, and the young eunuch guarding Celestial Longevity Mountain!"
"Gasp... Four Innates!"
The four’s expressions were grim, especially Meng Guang.
Even Shentu Kui was the same.
He prided himself on his unmatched combat power and innate divine power, yet he couldn’t be a match against Innate powerhouses.
Meng Guang’s eyes were particularly peculiar.
"Innates, four Innates, plus the new army..."
"The ten-state rebellion, in the Emperor’s eyes, is just child’s play..."
