"Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill Sima Zheng!"
Under the tall city wall, amidst the deafening shouts of killing, Sima Zheng stood up holding the long spear in his hand, but found that his body was heavy and his vision was blurred. He tried hard to look forward, but could only barely see countless people in the smoke and dust. The final figure, mixed with true energy, steel, and flags, was rushing towards him.
Sima Erlong was not a timid person, and he was clearly in a certain predicament at the moment, so he roared loudly, injected glowing Qi, danced the steel spear, advanced instead of retreating, and charged straight ahead into the smoke and dust.
How could the common people of that generation be Sima Erlong's opponent? When the swords and soldiers met, those figures just rolled to the ground like real smoke and dust. Sima Zheng was the only one who charged all the way. Although he was invincible, he also felt that his body became heavier and heavier.
Finally, as he fought his way along the city wall and dispersed countless sieges, he felt his body gradually become numb and his limbs gradually became weak. It was no longer possible to support him, and he finally sat down on the ground.
At this time, a gust of wind blew away countless smoke and dust around him. Sima Zheng, who was full of pain, looked around, but felt his heart sink again, because behind the smoke and dust, a group of soldiers and horses were in tight formation, moving slowly like a forest, heading towards him. Come from the side.
It's like a mantis stalking the cicada with the oriole behind.
Soon, Sima Zheng also saw clearly who was coming - in the middle of the team was a red flag with the word "deposed", and the image of the leader gradually became clear. It was the deposed dragon thief Bei who had had some friendship in the capital. Zhang San.
There were more people like Xiong Bonan, Li Shu and others around.
"Zhang Sanlang! Do you even want to take my life?" Sima Zheng struggled to get up and blurted out, but felt a little weird. Why did he ask this?
What kind of situation have you fallen into?
"Everyone in the world can take it, why can't I take it?" Zhang San urged the yellow gelding under his crotch to move forward boldly. "Besides, until now, don't you know that your basic talent for luck was stolen from Sanniang! You are nothing but an empty shell!"
Sima Zheng felt like he was struck by lightning when he heard this, but for some reason, he had no intention of refuting it.
"It's just an empty shell, but you also visualized the stomach. Isn't it an empty shell versus an empty shell?" Zhang San continued to laugh when he saw this. "Do you really think you can cultivate the Jiawei into a human being? People who visualize the dolls of Chonghe focus on cultivating for others, but if you visualize the Jiawei, you can only make wedding clothes for others... wedding clothes , wedding dress! Sima Erlang, sooner or later, your armor and stomach will be worn by others! Everyone is here to snatch your armor and stomach today! "
When Sima Zheng heard this, he shouted back as if he was out of control: "I'm just a Jiawei, who do you think you are? Are you qualified to collect debts for Sanniang? Aren't you also a villain who stole Sanniang's luck? ?Aren’t they also the puppets of Black Emperor and White Emperor?!”
Zhang Xing looked up to the sky and laughed: "So what? They see me as a puppet, and I see them as clay sculptures. If I take away your foundation today, I can become a transcendent and a saint. I will settle accounts with them in the future... In other words, There is a road ahead of me, and I can go on. No one can look down on me in the future, but you can only stop here... In this life, you are just a joke played by those things!"
Sima Zheng was stunned for a moment, and was about to blurt out something else, but suddenly his blood surged up, and he was furious on the spot: "Zhang San! Life and death have their own branches, and I can give back the luck and talent I stole from others, but I Is this half of my life just a cultivation practice? As a minister, as a descendant of others, and as a military and political leader of a place, I have no regrets. Even with these cultivations, I have never used them for evil. Do I have any meaning in these decades? Since the people around me have the final say, do you alone have the final say?!"
Hearing this, Zhang Xing suddenly became quiet, and then stared at him.
And Sima Zheng also gradually felt that the surroundings became quiet. Not only that, the surrounding scenes of soldiers and horses gradually became illusory, but his body was heavy and his breathing was rapid, which eventually turned into an unbearable sense of oppression.
The next moment, Sima Erlang woke up from his dream, sweating profusely, and turned over to sit up.
At this time, the window was already slightly bright, and Sima was stunned on the spot after looking away from the window where the strong south wind was blowing - in the attic where he was resting, opposite the bed, a relatively familiar person was sitting. Sitting on a chair, his face was pale and his figure was slumped, and then he looked at himself with a complicated expression.
This person turned out to be the emperor's uncle and great master Cao Lin.
"I had a dream." Sima Zheng actually did not ask about the other party's situation immediately. Instead, he talked about the strange dream demon just now. "Did the emperor's uncle do it?"
"I don't have that ability." Cao Lin slowly untied his robe and exposed his chest. There was no blood or dirt on it, but half of his ribs were deeply dented, as if they had been hit hard by some cylinder. generally. "Not before, not even now...are you a dream demon?"
"Yes." Sima was staring at the other person's chest, and it took him a long time to come back to his senses. "I don't know where my actions and words come from in the dream... It seems like someone is speaking for me and Zhang San."
"Did you dream about Zhang Xing?" Cao Lin loosened his robe and asked seriously.
"yes."
"What did he say in the dream?"
"Speaking of Bai Sanniang, speaking of Taoist Chonghe, speaking of Black Emperor, White Emperor..."
Cao Lin was slightly surprised, then slowly shook his head: "You are already a stable grandmaster, but with your level of cultivation, you still have such a dream, and I am so seriously injured, I came here without you noticing... I'm afraid. It’s really strange.”
"It seems like someone deliberately wanted to say something to me." Sima Zheng swallowed on the couch, as if he hadn't come back to his senses yet.
"I'm afraid it's not human." Cao Lin sighed. "This is Xuzhou City. There are people inside and outside the city. It is difficult for ordinary dragon gods to do this kind of thing. It is either the four emperors, the three radiances, or even the sky..."
"I understand the three radiances and the four emperors, but Tian?" Sima Zheng was slightly puzzled. "Isn't God the Lord? Why do you manipulate me like this?"
"God doesn't mess with you, but you can interact with God's will..." Cao Lin explained calmly. "In other words, it may be that your own hidden secret evolved in your dream."
Sima Zheng was stunned for a long time, and then asked: "If you say so, there may be some hidden secrets in the words in the dream?"
"That's right." Uncle Cao said with a bitter smile. "But it's still illusory, because until things happen, you don't know which sentence is the secret."
Sima Zheng nodded and suddenly stopped mentioning his nightmare. He just looked at Cao Lin on the couch: "Why are you here, uncle? Where did the injury come from?"
"Did you know that I marched into Hebei before?" Cao Lin asked slowly.
"Of course I know, but I just found out, and then the emperor's uncle came."
"When I marched into Hebei that day, I actually had two military plans. One was, of course, to defeat Zhang Xing head-on if he overestimated his capabilities; the other was to lure Bai Hengqiu to march westward, so after defeating Master Zhang, I kidnapped Li Determine, enter Hongshan, leave Shangdang, and enter Taiyuan. In this way, you can kill two birds with one stone, defeat the Bai and Zhang families at the same time, and breathe a sigh of relief for the Wei Dynasty." Cao Lin responded with a sigh. "Of course, it doesn't matter if I succeed with one fell swoop, and I even admit it halfway. But I didn't expect that Bai Hengqiu was superior and restrained me at every turn... In the end, he and Chong He blocked me in Hongshan. .”
"What kind of cultivation is Mr. Bai?" Sima Zheng narrowed his eyes.
"Grand Master... a serious Grand Master, he has not yet completed the construction of the pagoda. He must build a pagoda in the Western Capital." Cao Lin couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth slightly. "He is the only one who can control each other with me in Hongshan, Hebei, let alone Taoist Chonghe who may be the real number one on the Heavenly Ranking... That battle was so quick and easy that I already had the intention of fighting for my life. Although Chonghe was injured as a result, he was also fatally injured. Now, all he has to do is wait for the true energy to be exhausted and the gods and humans to decline."
Sima Zheng opened his mouth, and then exhaled: "But if this is the case, why did Zhong Cheng come to Xuzhou?"
"I originally wanted to go to Jiangdu." Cao Lin said with a bitter smile. "But I can't cross the Huai River."
Sima Zheng looked at the other party, obviously confused: "Is the injury to this extent? Then I will send a boat to send Zhong Cheng across the river."
Cao Lin slowly shook his head: "If I go to Jiangdu with this attitude, not only will I not be able to accomplish anything, but I will humiliate myself, bring humiliation to myself, or even intensify the situation."
Sima Zheng suddenly understood, and smiled bitterly again: "You can't keep this matter a secret for a few days, right? The war in Hebei has intensified in a few days, and everyone will know about it."
"It's only a day that I can hide it. Now, I just hope that there will be no trouble during my lifetime... Not to mention, instead of going to Jiangdu to cause trouble, I have now thought of a new idea, which may help me maintain my decency." Cao Lin said on the side. He said while reluctantly cheering up to look at the other person. "Sima Erlang, I no longer have any hope in Jiangdu. I just want you to lead the Xuzhou army back to the Eastern Capital."
Sima Zheng was stunned for a moment, and then he felt his heart beating wildly, even the majestic master couldn't calm down.
Because he has realized that this decision will directly affect his destiny for the rest of his life.
"Dongdu is among the world." Sima Zheng said slowly. "It is no longer appropriate for the Wei Dynasty. If we go to the Eastern Capital, we will definitely be besieged from all sides by the world!"
"So what?" Cao Lin suddenly laughed. "It will only be more difficult for you in Xuzhou..."
Sima Zheng opened his mouth but said nothing.
"I don't know what the specific situation is in Jiangdu, but if I lose, there will definitely be a big chaos. This is why I went to Jiangdu before. And if there is a big chaos, it will definitely be a rebellion by the Forbidden Army. At this time, whoever is the leader of the Forbidden Army will come to cause chaos. , It has nothing to do with whether this person is willing, whether he wants it, or what his ability is." Cao Lin said with a smile. "And the reason why your fathers became the leaders of the Forbidden Army is, firstly, because they are trash and the slowest to cause chaos; secondly, it is because you are in Xuzhou and are known as loyal ministers all over the world... These days, you have received countless His personal papers and old letters, including seeing many messengers with his own eyes, right? They all talk about how Cao Che’s fellow was doing bad things in Jiangdu, and they told you to make plans in advance, right?”
"Yes." Sima Zheng did not lie.
"They are waiting for you to respond. Once you respond, rivers of blood will flow from Jiangdu." Cao Lin continued to laugh. "And now, when my defeat is spread, even if you don't agree, they will do whatever they want... If you are still in Xuzhou by then, what can you do?"
"I...I will lead troops to Jiangdu to rescue him!" Sima Zheng blurted out, as if he had already had an idea.
"It's too late." Cao Lin said with a bitter smile. "And believe it or not, once you cross the Huaihe River, your troops will lose control... They all want to go back to Dongdu, not to Jiangdu, and the Forbidden Army is connected with each other and has its own transportation. It is difficult to determine the prestige of you alone. They’ve been in business for generations.”
"Then let's cross the river together now and welcome the saint back to the Eastern Capital?"
"That is self-destruction... He will definitely not obey, and the imperial army will immediately break into chaos after hearing the news. I have no deterrent effect. Your age, seniority and cultivation are not enough to suppress the entire army, and you will even be coerced by them... Sima Erlang, he doesn't want to go back, and would rather die than go back. The Imperial Army wants to go back, and they want to go back even if they risk their lives. This is a deadlock! Even I couldn't do it before, let alone you and me now?" Cao Lin sighed. "Don't think too much, go to Dongdu! Go along the Huai River. The Du Po Formation is exhausted upstream. You can easily defeat it in one battle. You can also take Wang Daiji with you, and then go north along the Ru River to Yingchuan and return to the east. Do not go to the Eastern Territory. Zhang Xing is now at a disadvantage in Hebei. If you break the Eastern Territory, the Deposed Dragon Gang will be dispersed, and Bai Hengqiu will have no one to control him."
Sima Zheng sat still and said nothing.
"Cao Che, I'm sorry for everyone in the world, but for some people, I'm good enough." Cao Lin continued. "Sima Erlang, there are some things I don't want to say, because it is inevitable to speak out through dialectics, and most things in this world cannot stand up to dialectics. But even if they cannot stand up to dialectics, things will still be the same, and they will always have some meaning... ...Sima Erlang, you make your own decision, since I am no longer able to do anything anymore, so I will just suffer in Xuzhou and wait for my fate."
Sima Zheng was in a state of confusion.
From childhood to adulthood, my grandfather’s teachings, the praise of people around me, the Cao family’s favor, the family’s honor, the support of my subordinates, the success of my practice, and of course the grief and anger of my grandfather before his death, the antics of his father and uncles, the great Wei Dynasty The chaos, Zhang San’s ridicule.
It is inevitable to avoid the strange messages from the dream demon just now and the current chaotic situation.
Cao Lin, the great master, could not even cross a river. The Wei Dynasty had lost its last pillar. Now it seemed that he wanted to make this new pillar by himself... but it was not the pillar of the entire Wei Dynasty, but just the eastern part of the Wei Dynasty. The backbone of the city.
"Sooner or later, your armor and stomach will be worn by someone else!"
Sooner or later, Dongdu City will fall into the hands of others!
But does that make no sense?
Since everyone is bound to die, can we act unscrupulously and ignore the principles of nature and humanity?
"I'm going to Dongdu." Sima Zheng only thought about it for a moment on the couch, without even arranging his clothes before he gave the answer. "But not for Cao Wei, nor for any reason, just because it is right to go to the east... There are still millions of innocent people in the east capital, but they are unarmed and need to be defended, and there is food and fodder in the east to feed people, so I went It will also make the people of Xuzhou more relaxed, not to mention that everyone in Xuzhou’s army wants to return to the Eastern Capital... Only return to the Eastern Capital to stabilize one side, and ignore the rest."
Cao Lin felt relieved, but there was blood seeping out of his chest.
The south wind outside the window suddenly stopped.
