World-Ending Demon Emperor-Chapter 2101 - 990: Painful Regret and Pride! Zhi Yan Returns!

"Guilty minister Gui Xingfu, pays respects to Your Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand of ten thousand years..." Gui Xingfu knelt down the moment he saw Lanling.

Lanling hurriedly stepped forward to support him and didn’t allow him to kneel.

"Father-in-law, there’s no need for this..." Lanling said.

After nearly ten years of separation, Gui Xingfu had indeed aged significantly.

Then the two fell into silence, for quite a while, until Lanling took the initiative to speak: "As for Gui Qinshao and the child, I only know they are safe. Beyond that, I know nothing, not even whether the child is a boy or a girl."

Gui Xingfu said, "I understand, because Your Majesty cannot have any compromise with the Dragon Temple."

Lanling said, "Brother Ling Ao’s actions deeply impressed and even shocked me..."

Instantly, Gui Xingfu’s tears were on the verge of falling again. Although he had his biological sons, more than one, his deepest affection was for Ling Ao.

Lanling asked, "Did he leave behind any children?"

"No." Gui Xingfu shook his head painfully and hoarsely, "The reason he ended up like this is entirely due to my responsibility, my greed."

These words weren’t wrong, but saying them now was meaningless.

Lanling sighed, "Who were the ones sacrificed in this event?"

Gui Xingfu said, "Tuli Yang knows the entire situation, Xiao Ao kept me in the dark from start to finish." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Lanling said, "Bring in Tuli Ming and his father, remember to give them adequate protection shields."

A moment later, Tuli Ming and his father walked in.

"Guilty minister Tuli Ming, pays respects to Your Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand of ten thousand years!"

"Minister Tuli Yang pays respects to Your Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand of ten thousand years."

Tuli Ming and his father knelt down and kowtowed.

Lanling asked, "Tuli Yang, who were the ones sacrificed?"

Tuli Yang, still kneeling, presented the list.

Jiang Xue, Zhi Ao, Fen Mo, along with fifty Samurai of the Dongli Kingdom.

Lanling stared blankly at each name on the list, his mind drifting far away.

Back on Earth, during each great upheaval, there were always such a group of people. They knew they would certainly die but still charged forward. They sacrificed themselves just to ignite a small light, illuminating the way ahead for countless humans. Truly like a firefly or a moth drawn to a flame.

"Their deaths indeed left a profound impact on me." Lanling said, "Tuli Yang, what was Jiang Xue’s plan?"

Tuli Yang said, "To have King Dongli Jiang Shang cede a piece of territory for Your Majesty to occupy, making it Your dominion. Eight hundred thousand square kilometers of the East Li Kingdom would be opened as a refuge for the Human Kingdom. The Human Refuge and the Dragon Temple would be delineated clearly and protected by the Demon Emperor. Anyone from the Human World could enter the refuge zone."

Lanling closed his eyes, the plan was indeed naive!

Lanling said, "This plan is naive. Dongli King ceding a landpiece to me to become my dominion is not a problem. But once he does so, the Dragon Temple will surely assault the Dongli Kingdom, and certainly condemn King Dongli Jiang Shang as guilty of anti-humanity, a major sin against Dragon faith."

"Yes!" Tuli Yang responded.

"If I forcibly land from the Dongli Kingdom, of course, it’s possible because Dongli Kingdom lacks the late-stage construction of the Sky-Piercing Dragon Tower, and won’t suppress my power much. But the Dragon Temple will carry out a devastating attack on the East Li Kingdom." Lanling said, "And I won’t be able to protect the citizens of the East Li Kingdom because once I land there, countless humans will die from the radiation of my Demon Emperor energy."

Lanling closed his eyes, contemplated for a while, then said, "This way, I’ll send someone to contact King Dongli Jiang Shang. If he declares the whole East Li Kingdom neutral in this war and is willing to designate it entirely as a refuge zone, I will acknowledge this neutral refuge zone, avoiding spreading the war fire into the refuge zone. All those willing to sever ties with the Dragon Temple can enter the refuge zone. As for those outside, I will view them as followers of the Dragon Temple and kill them mercilessly. Also, if the East Li Kingdom lacks the strength to sustain such a population, my Flame Demon Empire is willing to supply food; our granaries are piled up like mountains, more than enough to feed two to three hundred million people."

Tuli Yang knelt down and kowtowed, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your heavenly grace."

Gui Xingfu also knelt down and kowtowed, his heart stirred, for Ling Ao did not die in vain, his sacrifice had resulted in this great achievement that could potentially save tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of humans.

...

"Your Majesty, let me negotiate with King Dongli." Ancient witch Xixi proposed.

She had lost her body, Lanling created a special robe for her to contain her energy, preventing it from leaking. Initially, Lanling was willing to offer her a new body, but she declined, saying it was unnecessary, as her lover had passed, and a body would be useless; moreover, for her to take over someone else’s body would be a betrayal of love.

At this moment, Lanling realized that Xixi and Jiang Xue had such a connection.

"Alright!" Lanling said.

...

The Dongli King wept uncontrollably!

His daughter, his pride, his most beloved daughter had been pulverized, not even leaving behind a body, and he felt a heartache as if cut by knives.

The only thing left of Jiang Xue was just a letter.

Jiang Shang read it over and over, cried repeatedly.

And his wife, Jiang Xue’s mother, Ji Yingsha had already fainted entirely.

Jiang Shang was a stubborn, conservative person, yet he was also quite open. At that time, when Ashi Liren came to the East Li Kingdom seeking asylum with Zhi Ning and her son, the crown prince of Dongli refused, which left Jiang Shang very disappointed, directly removing his status as Crown Prince. Since then, Jiang Shang had never truly named a Crown Prince.