Chapter 822 — Two Empresses Stand Side by Side

The writing on the walls of the building said that Her Majesty the Empress had descended into the mortal world to visit Guixu, the ancestral land, and had long delayed her return; the Heavenly Emperor ordered the Left Yulin Army to proceed to Guixu and escort the Empress back to the Heavenly Court.

After some days, the Left Yulin Army submitted a memorial to the Heavenly Emperor, saying that the Longbo Kingdom near Guixu had rebelled. The Longbo Kingdom was mighty, had seized Guixu, and had the Empress trapped; they begged His Majesty to send troops to quell the rebellion.

The Heavenly Emperor therefore ordered the Right Yulin Army to march against the rebels. Yet no sooner had the Right Yulin Army set out from the Heavenly Court than the Left Yulin Army submitted another memorial, saying that the Empress had been attacked and gravely wounded.

The Heavenly Emperor issued a supplementary edict, ordering the Right Yulin Army to investigate the case of the Empress's attack to the very bottom.

Wei Suifeng, being the Right General of the Yulin Army, led the Right Yulin Army in haste to Guixu, and joining forces with the Left Yulin Army, defeated the Longbo Kingdom, captured the Longbo King, and the Longbo Kingdom surrendered.

Her Majesty the Empress's wounds had likewise healed a great deal, and she meant to return to the Heavenly Court once she had recovered fully.

Yet that very night trouble arose once more: the dark currents of the great abyss of Guixu erupted, and there was neither sun nor sky, nor any star to be seen.

All manner of eerie things poured forth from the great abyss. Hearts trembled. The whole night passed in unease.

It was already dawn when the dark currents ceased. The soldiers found Her Majesty the Empress's corpse upon Mount Fanghu. In the detached palace, every maid was dead, and the Left General of the Yulin Army lay dead outside the palace as well.

Wei Suifeng took the Eight Dragon Kings of the Longbo Kingdom captive, encoffined the Empress, ordered the Eight Dragon Kings to stand guard over the Empress's coffin, and further ordered his officers and men to investigate what had happened that night and determine the cause of the Empress's death.

Some soldiers said they had seen two Empresses in the darkness of the night. Others said that a demon god had spewed from the great abyss of Guixu and assassinated the Empress.

Wei Suifeng's investigation yielded nothing. He thereupon had the Empress's coffin placed aboard the ship, and escorting the Longbo King, hastened toward the Heavenly Court.

They sailed upstream along the Heavenly River, and after several months arrived at Yuandu.

The Heavenly River floated above Yuandu. Suddenly the river was shrouded in heavy mist, and an officer reported that a woman was standing at the heart of the river working magic.

Here the writing on the wall broke off, leaving only one puzzling sentence: "I came from Guixu, and meeting this woman I returned to ancient times, to probe the mysteries of antiquity and seek out the riddles of history. Now I have met this woman again, and I think it is time I extinguished my lamp and went back."

"The Longbo Kingdom!"

Zulong Wang suddenly blurted out, "They say Longbo, the Jingping Imperial Preceptor, was the earliest of dragon kind! A kingdom formed of heaven-born, earth-nurtured divine dragons—a great dragon kingdom, they say, formed of the heavenly dragons born from the dragon vein of the ancient Heavenly Court! The dragon folk there stand three thousand zhang tall, with inexhaustible divine strength. And the Longbo King is the foremost divine dragon in all the world. I had thought it was only a rumor—never did I expect there truly was a Longbo Kingdom!"

A demigod beside him said, "That old dragon just now, the one who had merged with the building—could he be the Longbo King?"

Zulong Wang was stunned for a moment, then shook his head. "It should not be him. The Longbo King is said to be one of the most powerful beings in existence; how could he possibly have merged with this ship? It cannot be him."

Suddenly, not far off, a youth with his hands clasped behind his back spoke leisurely: "Longbo was captured and suppressed upon this ship, and afterwards the ship vanished from the Heavenly River. Perhaps that raving old dragon really is Longbo."

Zulong Wang's long dragon whiskers drifted. Displeased, he said, "And you are?"

The youth smiled. "I come from the Heavenly Court."

Zulong Wang frowned and sneered, "The Heavenly Court? There was a Heavenly Court in the Crimson Emperor era, and two or three in the Shanghuang era. The Heavenly Emperors have been changed one crop after another. Which Heavenly Court do you come from?"

The youth laughed heartily. "Zulong Wang, your ancestor Longbo styled himself 'Bo' to claim equality with ancient gods like Tubo, the Heavenly Duke, and the Earth Mother, and so founded the Longbo Kingdom. Yet in the end he was still captured by the Yulin Army of the Heavenly Court—how utterly shameful. Why must you keep gilding his face?"

Zulong Wang's expression darkened, and killing intent surged all around him.

The youth paid it no mind. Two god-men behind him suddenly stepped forward, one to each side, guarding him in their midst.

The youth waved a hand. "A demon dragon of the lower realm, ignorant of the height of heaven and the depth of earth—that is forgivable. No need to hold it against him. What interests me is that in this Right General's account of the Empress's attack, someone saw two Empresses."

He revealed a playful smile. "But the Empress in the Heavenly Court has always been there, and I have never heard that the Empress died. What is the reason for that? On this ship, the Empress's corpse kept within the coffin—is it truly the Empress? Or is something else concealed? And the Empress in the Heavenly Court..."

The two god-men beside him looked worried, and said in low voices, "Your Highness the Prince, there are many people here and ears everywhere. You must not speak of that existence in the palace."

The youth smiled. "True or false Empress—the matter is grave, and must be examined. The Empress died here, and yet there is still an Empress in the Heavenly Court. Truly bizarre. Since the Empress's coffin is right here upon this ship, we may as well go find it and open it to see the truth of the matter..."

He did not, however, continue—no doubt also worried about many people and loose tongues.

"The imperial family—every one of them is filthy," Feng Qiuyun sneered in a low voice.

The youth looked toward her and said leisurely, "The maidservant of Earth Mother Yuanjun, Feng Qiuyun? Which of Earth Mother's household, then, do you think is clean?"

Feng Qiuyun sneered and did not answer.

Crimson Bright Divine Son smiled. "This prince comes from a Heavenly Court beyond the realm? May I ask how you are called?"

"Hiding all the while in the Xuankong Realm, never daring to reveal yourself—Crimson Bright Divine Son?" The youth smiled. "I have heard that the Crimson Bright Divine Son inherits the fortune of the entire Crimson Bright era. Since you embody the fortune of the Crimson Bright era, why are you still so mediocre, so powerless and without achievement?"

Crimson Bright Divine Son, robed in purple, did not change expression at these words. He smiled. "There is no Crimson Bright Divine Son in this world. The reason I am called the Crimson Bright Divine Son is merely to give my people a little hope, so that they will not sink and perish in despair."

The youth was filled with solemn respect. "The Divine Son actually told the truth—your breadth of mind and spirit are indeed great, and you are worthy of the name Crimson Bright Divine Son. I am Prince Qiuming of the Heavenly Court. I greet the Crimson Bright Divine Son."

Crimson Bright Divine Son returned the greeting.

Lizheng frowned deeply, looking at the people within the building, and felt that all was not well.