Li Feng heard the envoy from the Yun Empire’s offer and only gave a faint smile. “The Great Qing Empire is my homeland. How could a mere position of Prime Minister sway me? Even if you offered me the imperial throne of the Yun Empire, I wouldn’t be the slightest bit tempted.”
Li Feng’s ambition was to reach the pinnacle of the martial path. He cared nothing for mundane power. If he could attain the cultivation level of Zhang Shouzheng, which kingdom would not bow before him?
Wumuhe’s face turned dark as he threatened, “Lord Li, you must think carefully. Our Yun Empire’s million iron cavalry are ready for battle. Zhang Shouzheng won’t survive this winter! When the Great Qing Empire falls, do you wish to be buried along with it?”
“Insolence! Guards, seize him!” The Emperor slapped the table and stood up, his face full of rage.
The civil and military officials were furious and shouted, “How dare you speak so wildly in the palace of the Great Qing Empire! Are you tired of living?”
The imperial guards outside the hall rushed in, weapons pointed at Wumuhe.
Wumuhe glanced around and sneered contemptuously. “You think you can take me down with this rabble?”
Suddenly, Wumuhe blew a sharp whistle.
The Dragon Elephant Beast, which had been docile moments before, instantly turned bloodthirsty. Its eyes went crimson, and it let out a deafening roar. Its thick legs smashed the iron cage and, like a mountain of flesh, it charged forward!
“Boom—”
The white marble floor of the Jinluan Hall cracked like a spiderweb. Civil and military officials panicked and scattered.
Swinging its long trunk, the Dragon Elephant Beast aimed its two sharp tusks directly at Li Feng, charging like an armored war chariot.
“Protect His Majesty!”
“Run!”
In the chaos, Li Feng remained perfectly still.
A golden light flickered in his eyes as the newly cultivated third layer of the [Heaven and Man Record] activated. True energy surged through his meridians like a mighty river, and within a hundred meters, the surrounding air boiled with spiritual energy.
As the Dragon Elephant Beast charged, Li Feng stomped the ground and advanced instead of retreating. He grasped the beast’s two sharp tusks with both hands, grappling head-on with the monstrous creature!
“Boom—”
The clash of immense forces sent a shockwave that overturned tables and chairs around them.
What shocked everyone was that Li Feng wasn’t thrown back. Instead, he matched the nearly 450,000-kilogram beast evenly. Neither could overpower the other!
“My heavens! He can withstand the Dragon Elephant Beast head-on!”
“This… this is godlike strength!”
“This is the power of a Martial Emperor Realm cultivator—truly extraordinary!”
The crowd was in awe. Xu Wenlong’s pupils trembled as he gasped.
Though he knew martial artists at certain realms could defy the natural order, he had never witnessed such a sight.
If someone like Li Feng led an army to battle, who could stand against him?
At that moment, Xu Wenlong was completely convinced and felt a deep sense of helplessness. All his years of studying were useless before such overwhelming power.
The Dragon Elephant Beast shook its massive head in rage, but Li Feng stood firm like a mountain.
The spiritual energy for several kilometers gathered into the [Heaven and Man] phantom behind him, channeling its force into Li Feng.
The [Heaven and Man Record] had reached its peak, allowing him to briefly achieve the state of “Unity of Heaven and Man,” borrowing the power of nature itself.
This was the terrifying power of a spiritual-grade cultivation method—not merely self-cultivation, but cultivation of the heavenly Dao!
“Kneel!”
With a thunderous shout, Li Feng exerted his full strength, slamming the Dragon Elephant Beast’s head toward the ground!
Boom!
The beast’s massive knees buckled, smashing a deep pit into the marble floor of the Jinluan Hall.
Dust and rubble flew; the scene was overwhelming.
“Ang!” The Dragon Elephant Beast howled in pain, its cry bursting the eardrums of many imperial guards.
Wumuhe, seeing the situation, revealed killing intent.
He quietly pulled a poisoned dagger from his sleeve and lunged at Li Feng’s back.
This boy must not be left alive—otherwise, he would become another Zhang Shouzheng!
“Watch out!” From behind the beaded curtain, Luo Qingxian cried out in alarm, crushing the beads in her hand out of fear.
But Li Feng, as if he had eyes on his back, swung his sword without turning.
“Zheng!”
The emperor-bestowed heaven-grade treasured sword flashed like a river of stars, slicing cleanly across Wumuhe’s neck.
“Pu—”
The Yun Empire envoy’s head flew high into the air, the look of disbelief still frozen on his face.
His headless body staggered a few steps before collapsing heavily.
Seeing its master killed, the Dragon Elephant Beast grew even more frenzied. It struggled up and swept its long trunk like a steel whip, smashing several golden dragon columns into pieces.
Fortunately, the hall was already empty of people; otherwise, many would have been crushed to death.
Li Feng leapt into the air, each step leaving golden ripples in the void.
He descended like a celestial being, vibrating the air, and hovered above the Dragon Elephant Beast, looking down at it.
“Beast, do you still refuse to submit?”
A massive golden character “Heaven” expanded, growing as large as a millstone, and slammed onto the Dragon Elephant Beast with the weight of a mountain.
“Ang!”
The beast let out a mournful cry as blood seeped from its orifices. Its knees buckled again with a crisp crack, and it collapsed to the ground.
But this time, it no longer resisted. It gently touched Li Feng’s boot with its trunk in a gesture of submission.
Li Feng pressed his hand against its forehead. A flash of golden light shot forth as he planted a spiritual imprint in the beast’s sea of consciousness, subduing it as his mount.
“From now on, you are my steed.”
The Dragon Elephant Beast obediently lowered its head, lifting Li Feng onto its back with its trunk.
Mounted on the beast, Li Feng strode out of the half-ruined Jinluan Hall.
His azure robe fluttered in the wind, resembling a god descending to the mortal realm—majestic and unmatched.
The entire court, civil and military alike, bowed in reverence. Even the Emperor cast aside his eunuch attendant, his face full of joy as he looked at Li Feng.
From Li Feng, he saw the same aura he once saw in Zhang Shouzheng—an invincible pillar of the empire!
“Excellent! Excellent! With such talent in our Great Qing Empire, how could we not prosper!”
Yet before his joy could last, urgent reports from the border arrived one after another.
The Yun Empire had deployed a million troops at the frontier, waiting for Zhang Shouzheng’s death before launching a full invasion.
What was even more worrying was the intelligence from spies within the Yun Empire—their National Preceptor had broken through to the Martial Venerable Realm. That was the real reason they dared to tear up the peace treaty.
“Lord Grandmaster, you were right. The sages’ books are for reading, but when it comes to governance, they are useless. I will go to the poorest, most desolate county in the empire to experience the hardships of the common people and seek the true way to govern!”
Inspired by Li Feng, Xu Wenlong resigned from his post at the Hanlin Academy and volunteered to become a magistrate in a remote, impoverished county.
“Farewell, my lord!”
Watching Xu Wenlong ride away, Li Feng nodded slightly.
Few scholars possessed such spirit. If all scholars were like Xu Wenlong, the Great Qing Empire would surely thrive.
After Li Feng gently refused Luo Qingxian’s affections, she too left the capital, coincidentally heading in the same direction as Xu Wenlong.
As the Great Qing Empire prepared for war, great changes were unfolding on Jiuyang Mountain.
The strange giant stone known as the [Jiuyang Divine Stone] cracked open, revealing a crimson fissure. Black mist seeped out and silently merged into the body of Jiang Ran, the top prodigy undergoing bone tempering before it.
Jiang Ran’s eyes snapped open, his pupils now a bizarre purple.
He smirked wickedly, flexing his newly possessed body.
“Three thousand years… finally, a crack in the seal. Now I just need the perfect vessel.”
He looked at his slender fingers, digesting the puppet’s memories, and sneered.
“The Saintess of the Celestial Jade Sect possesses the Lunar Yin Physique. Once I seize her, I will fully break free!”