We Agreed On Experiencing Life, So Why Did You Immortals Become Real?-Chapter 391: Qin Jingsu! Braver Than the Whole Army!

Inside the Qin imperial palace.

Qin Siyao came to the palace today and accompanied her mother for an entire morning, then went to see her father as well.

And just as Qin Siyao was walking with her father in the inner palace,

suddenly, the King of Qin seemed to sense something and looked toward the direction of the ancestral temple inside the palace.

“Father, what is it?” Qin Siyao asked. In her heart, the same bad feeling rose up as well.

Just like back then, with Second Brother—

“Go take a look!”

The King of Qin swept his hand.

In an instant, Qin Siyao followed her father into the ancestral temple.

And at the very front of the ancestral temple, among the royal life-lamps placed there, the one that symbolized the Crown Prince suddenly went out.

“Elder Brother...”

Qin Siyao whispered it out, her mind turning blank.

How could this be?

Elder Brother was with her husband—how could Elder Brother...

“Your Highness!”

At that moment, a maid’s startled cry came from the entrance of the ancestral temple.

Qin Siyao turned around and saw her mother’s body go limp as she fell toward the floor.

“Mother!”

Qin Siyao hurried forward and caught her.

“Jingsu... My child—why would it be like this? Why would Heaven take both my children away? Why... why...”

“Mother!” Seeing her mother faint in her arms, Qin Siyao cried out anxiously, tears breaking free. “Don’t scare your daughter, Mother...”

On the third day after the battle at Book Ridge ended,

Xiao Mo finally broke into the Jin imperial capital.

After entering the city, Xiao Mo still did not violate the people inside the capital in the slightest.

But the Jin royal family was not so fortunate.

Compared to the King of Chu, the King of Jin cherished his life more.

At the moment the capital was breached, the King of Jin fled under the escort of Jin’s iron cavalry.

But Xiao Mo could not leave behind such a great hidden danger.

Otherwise, Jin would always retain legitimacy, and the future would become extremely troublesome.

So Xiao Mo personally led the cavalry in pursuit, and with his own hands, he cut off the Jin ruler’s head.

Aside from the Jin ruler, any Crown Prince and all princes who were in the Jin capital were all killed by Xiao Mo.

Even though the Jin royal family was not completely wiped out—outside the capital there were still quite a few imperial relatives—Xiao Mo no longer cared.

Those feudal lords were not of one mind.

Even if they pushed out a new royal proxy, so what?

How many would acknowledge him?

And how could the other feudal lords accept it?

In the end, those feudal lords would only support different puppets for the sake of their own interests.

But on the very day Xiao Mo took the Jin imperial capital, just as he planned to lead the army to Rainbow Cloud City to reinforce Crown Prince Qin Jingsu, a battle report was delivered into Xiao Mo’s hands by flying-sword letter.

Looking at that battle report, Xiao Mo stood there in a daze, and for a long time, he did not return to himself.

“General, could it be something happened at Rainbow Cloud City?”

Seeing Xiao Mo like that, Li Dadan and the others were anxious as well.

Xiao Mo shook his head and handed the report to the deputy generals at his side.

“Crown Prince Qin Jingsu... died in battle.”

“What!” Li Jing could not believe it.

“General, what happened?” Zhao Guang said in disbelief. “Wasn’t Rainbow Cloud City holding smoothly? With the army His Highness brought, and Rainbow Cloud City’s grand array, even if they held on another month, it should have been fine!”

In Zhao Guang’s eyes, he had held Yanmen Pass back then for so long; Rainbow Cloud City’s City-Guarding Grand Array was no worse than Yanmen Pass.

Not to mention Rainbow Cloud City had ample provisions, and His Highness the Crown Prince was not some useless person—how could it be breached just like that?

“It was precisely Rainbow Cloud City’s grand array that had the problem.” Xiao Mo shook his head, steadying his mind. “After His Highness left Rainbow Cloud City, he worried the Jin feudal lords would affect us, so while fleeing, he delayed for time. In the end, His Highness failed to break out at Book Ridge... and sacrificed himself.”

“...”

Everyone fell silent, their eyes filled with grief and fury.

Even though Qin Jingsu was the Crown Prince, Qin Jingsu was extremely approachable, without the slightest airs.

And these days, everyone had gone to battle together, killing and surviving side by side—long ago, everyone had already treated Qin Jingsu as a brother.

“Li Jing, you will be the commanding general. Xiao Yang and Xiao Gui, you two will be deputy generals. Hold the Jin imperial capital firmly. Also, our wounded will be placed in the Jin imperial capital for the time being, and you will take care of them.

“Xu Yongsheng, you will serve here as the recruitment officer. Just like in Chu lands, Yan lands, and Wei Kingdom lands, only accept those of Jin lands who volunteer.

“If no one enlists, then so be it. Otherwise, once they reach the battlefield they will not only refuse to exert strength, they will also ruin our army discipline, and may even become fence-sitters.

“As for those Jin generals who surrendered to us, I will leave half of each of their forces to be incorporated into your armies. The rest, I will take with me!

“While I am campaigning, you will repair the Jin imperial capital’s capital grand array at the fastest speed and remain on standby at all times. Understood?”

Xiao Mo instructed.

“Yes, General!”

Everyone clasped their fists in salute and answered.

Early the next morning, Xiao Mo led the army out of the Jin imperial capital.

The Jin feudal-lord allied forces who had killed Qin Jingsu thought they were already steady, and they hurried to rush toward the Jin imperial capital as well.

But soon, when they heard the news that the Jin imperial capital had truly been breached, everyone looked at each other, and for a time did not know what they should do.

“This must be Xiao Mo deliberately spreading false news—it’s nothing but his scheme.” A Jin feudal lord said. “Everyone must not be affected by Xiao Mo!”

The others nodded, also feeling that the capital could not possibly be breached so easily.

They continued their attack on Jade Zither City.

But when Xiao Mo led the Snow-Treading Dragon Cavalry charging out of Jade Zither City, and hung the heads of the Jin ruler, the Crown Prince, and the rest of the royals atop the city walls, the feudal-lord allied forces instantly collapsed into chaos, and the army’s morale plunged.

After all, the Jin royal family was all dead—each of them began to doubt what they were fighting for.

And the hesitation brought by that doubt caused a brief disorder within the feudal-lord allied forces.

Seizing that chance, under Xiao Mo’s lead, the Snow-Treading Dragon Cavalry directly killed their way into the feudal-lord allied forces’ camp.

The Snow-Treading Dragon Cavalry split the feudal-lord allied camp in two.

Northern Wasteland infantry formed up in array formation, and blood qi surged to the heavens!

Those Jin generals who had surrendered to Xiao Mo had indeed, at the start, more or less harbored their own thoughts.

But when they saw Xiao Mo tearing forward with unstoppable momentum, as if entering an unguarded land, they understood—Jin’s fate was truly sealed.

By comparison, Qin had only lost a Crown Prince.

But Qin’s incomparably wise King of Qin was still there.

And now, Jin’s imperial capital had fallen, the feudal-lord allied forces were crushed, countless were slain.

Jin... was truly gone.

Moreover, those surrendered Jin generals also knew that Qin treated the generals of other states without discrimination, and everything was decided by military merit. So they fought all the more desperately on the battlefield, wanting to prove their value.

After routing the feudal-lord allied forces of Jin, Xiahou Nan and Xiao Shi also learned the news that Jin had been destroyed.

This was like giving the soldiers on the other two fronts a shot of strength!

In the four months that followed, as Xiao Mo fought one battle after another in Jin until the Jin feudal lords began to doubt their lives,

more and more Jin feudal lords surrendered to Xiao Mo.

And those feudal lords also sent over Qin Jingsu’s body.

As for the feudal lord who killed Qin Jingsu, he had already been ambushed and beheaded by other feudal lords and offered up as a token of surrender.

That day, Xiao Mo used that man’s head to make sacrifice to Qin Jingsu.

“Elder Brother—this great war, I’ll show you all of it!”

After paying respects to Qin Jingsu, Xiao Mo used a formation array to protect Qin Jingsu’s body from rotting, and the whole army carried the coffin as they marched!

Xiao Mo still appointed Li Jing as the commanding general, having him lead four hundred thousand Qin troops and two hundred thousand Jin troops that had been incorporated to go support Xiao Shi.

And Xiao Mo personally led five hundred thousand Qin soldiers and four hundred thousand Jin troops, stabbing straight into the belly of Qi.

After Qi and Zhao learned that Jin had been destroyed, they cursed Jin as worthless.

But after cursing, they also had to face one fact—the situation to come would become extremely unfavorable.

Qi’s commanding general, Gu Fei, had been advancing more and more smoothly, and it looked as though hezyn he would be able to swallow more than half of Chu lands into his territory.

But a letter arrived from ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) the capital. When Gu Fei learned that Xiao Mo had taken three Qi cities in a single month, nearly at a pace of one city every ten days, he could no longer sit still!

If this continued, even if he completely conquered Chu lands, his own home would be gone.

No matter how unwilling, Gu Fei could only withdraw.

After learning Gu Fei had withdrawn, before the letters in Xiao Mo’s army had even reached Xiahou Nan, Xiahou Nan immediately understood what had happened and was ready to lead the army to strike.

A deputy general opposed him, worried it might be Gu Fei’s scheme.

But Xiahou Nan did not care.

He overruled all objections and personally led the army to pursue Gu Fei.

In four months’ time,

Xiahou Nan arrived at one city after another and took one city after another, facing only simple resistance from Qi troops.

From this, it could be seen just how urgent their retreat had been.

Very quickly, Xiahou Nan retook the entirety of Chu lands.

Looking into Qi territory from afar, Xiahou Nan’s mood was incomparably smooth.

In this great war, he had been stifled for two years—finally, it was his turn to counterattack!

But Qi was wealthy and strong, its terrain vast, its soldiers well-trained, its famed generals and loyal ministers numerous, and the people also acknowledged the current King of Qi.

So once Gu Fei returned to Qi and Qi’s court calmed down, they began to fortify with care.

Xiahou Nan and Xiao Mo only took a total of eight border cities, and their pace of advance slowed.

However, during this period,

Li Jing led the army to successfully lift Xiao Shi’s siege, then merged forces with Xiao Shi and counterattacked Zhao.

Zhao had a total of fifteen prefectures, five of which were occupied by Qin troops.

Even though Xiao Shi was seriously wounded and could not go to the battlefield, directing the battle on the spot was still not much of a problem.

The two of them were confident that in the next year, they could swallow Zhao.

But just as everything proceeded smoothly, unexpectedly, Zhao’s ruler colluded with the Creek-Valley State and the Flowing-Flame State from the demon-race world.

Creek-Valley State and Flowing-Flame State dispatched demon-race armies to temporarily stabilize Zhao’s situation.

If it were only that, it would still be manageable.

Xiao Mo and Xiao Shi still had confidence that they could slowly take down Qi and Zhao—only a matter of time.

But at this moment, the Qin imperial capital sent a secret letter—

[My body is unwell. Now Jingsu has also passed away. The court must be stabilized and settled. All of you should slow the offensive for now, garrison the passes. You must return to the capital as quickly as possible.]

After receiving the secret letter from the imperial capital, Xiao Mo had Xiahou Nan lead the army to garrison Haiyan Pass in Qi, and Xiao Shi likewise had Zhao Guang and Li Jing garrison Smoke Pass and Xuzi Pass in Zhao, respectively.

All of these passes were places that were easy to defend and hard to attack.

So long as they did not lose them, Qin could resume the assault on Qi and the battered Zhao at any time.

And Xiao Mo and Xiao Shi both used “resting and recuperating” as their reason, leading their armies back to Qin, not letting others suspect anything.

Two months later, Xiao Mo and Xiao Shi each returned to the Qin imperial capital.

Not far from the Qin capital, Xiao Mo and Xiao Shi’s armies met.

Xiao Mo saw his father sitting in the carriage.

Xiao Mo knew his father had suffered extremely severe injuries.

Although he later heard his father’s condition had stabilized,

Xiao Mo also knew things could not be that simple.

Only because his father used a treasure to conceal it, Xiao Mo could not see what his father’s injuries truly looked like.

Two days later, the King of Qin personally led the civil and military officials to welcome the Xiao father and son outside the city.

Compared to the joyous appearance the King of Qin and the officials had when Xiao Mo and Xiao Shi returned in triumph in the past, at this moment everyone’s eyes carried sorrow.

This great war had been won, but no matter what, in this great war, Qin’s only Crown Prince—also the next ruler everyone was satisfied with—had passed away.

“This subject, Xiao Shi.”

“This subject, Xiao Mo.”

“Pays respects to Your Majesty!”

Xiao Shi and Xiao Mo dismounted and spoke to the King of Qin.

“The two beloved ministers may rise.”

The King of Qin helped Xiao Shi and Xiao Mo up.

The King of Qin also made it hard to read whether his complexion was good or bad. The feeling he gave was as if he had deliberately claimed illness only to summon Xiao Shi and Xiao Mo back to the capital, fearing the two of them might rebel.

But Xiao Mo knew the King of Qin would not be so “idle.”

And Xiao Mo felt that with his understanding of the King of Qin, no matter what happened, he would remain calm and would never reveal the slightest extra emotion before outsiders.

Yet what Xiao Mo did not expect was—

at this moment, as the King of Qin held Xiao Mo’s hand, it was actually trembling slightly.

Xiao Mo raised his head and saw the King of Qin’s eyes shaking.

His eye sockets were filled with bloodshot veins, looking as though he had not closed his eyes for a very, very long time.

“Frost King... my child, he... has he come back?” The King of Qin forced down his grief and slowly opened his mouth.

At this moment, where did he still resemble a ruler? He was only an ordinary father.

“The Crown Prince... has come back.”

Several soldiers carried the coffin over steadily, gently setting it down beside the King of Qin.

The coffin lid was opened. Qin Jingsu’s body lay quietly inside, a smile on his face.

The King of Qin crouched down and gently stroked his son’s face. The civil and military officials all lowered their heads.

“Frost King—my child, was he brave?” After a long time, the King of Qin asked in a trembling voice.

Hearing the King of Qin’s question, Xiao Mo clenched his fist tight, clasped his hands in salute, and his voice was heavy yet firm:

“I report to Your Majesty!

“Qin Jingsu!

“Braver than the whole army!”