Chapter 114: Those Who Follow Me Flourish, Those Who Defy Me Perish

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Within the Underworld Office, after Su Muhe finished reading the proclamation, all the generals and commanders were left stunned. Elder Song, likewise, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had made the wise choice back then; otherwise, he would probably have ended up dead beneath the blade.

Seeing this, Jiang Xiaofei smiled and said, “There is no need for everyone to be nervous. Those who follow me will prosper, while those who oppose me will perish. So long as you remain loyal, fulfill your duties, and act in the interests of the Underworld Office…”

“This king guarantees that you will all enjoy endless wealth and glory.”

“Many thanks, King Fei. We are willing to defend the Underworld Office to the death and repel every enemy who comes against us,” everyone replied, demonstrating their loyalty.

Jiang Xiaofei nodded in satisfaction. He then turned to Su Muhe and said, “Come with me to the Corpse King’s Estate.”

Su Muhe frowned slightly. “Lord Fei, do you mean to capture the traitor, the Corpse King?”

Jiang Xiaofei shook his head with a smile. “No. I intend to make him submit to me.”

“But the Corpse King already harbors rebellious ambitions. He is an expert of the Dao Extremity Realm, and he commands a hundred thousand elite soldiers. After years of painstaking preparation, how could he possibly surrender? I fear there will inevitably be a fierce battle. Should I not make preparations in advance?”

Jiang Xiaofei smiled. “There is no need. He is a sentimental man. After hearing you read the proclamation so loudly just now, he is probably already considering whether to surrender.”

At that moment, within the Corpse King’s Estate, the Corpse King sat on a stone bench in a secluded courtyard, gazing up at the gloomy sky with a troubled expression.

He had indeed coveted the position at the Underworld Office. He was ambitious and dreamed of conquering the netherworld and establishing a power of his own. Yet the appearance of that man had placed him in a difficult position.

Just then, Zhou Tong suddenly rushed in.

“Your Majesty, Elder Zhu and the others have failed. Elder Zhu and Elder Wang have already been executed on the spot. Only Elder Song remains, clinging shamefully to life.”

“This king already knows,” the Corpse King said indifferently.

Zhou Tong was stunned. “I only just found out myself. How did Your Majesty learn of it?”

The Corpse King spoke impatiently. “This king hears everything and can see for a hundred miles. Protector Su’s voice has just spread throughout the entire city. Do you take me for a deaf man?”

“I spoke out of turn. I deserve death,” Zhou Tong hurriedly admitted.

“Leave. Let this king have some peace.”

Zhou Tong hesitated before asking, “Your Majesty, now that Elder Zhu and the others have failed to seize power, what should we do? Should we make our move, or wait and see what happens?”

“Give me time to consider it.”

“Your Majesty, I know you are concerned about old ties, but the situation has changed. Even if we do nothing, Heavenly Ghost City will attempt to seize power. By then, we will be placed at a disadvantage. Can you really stand by and watch the plan you have spent years preparing collapse? Even if you are unwilling to give up, the brothers will not accept it either.”

The Corpse King grew even more irritated. “Damn you! Did you not hear what I said? I told you to leave. Get out of here!”

Zhou Tong paused, then said, “Your Majesty, I know you are angry, but there are some things I must say. Once an army is defeated, its morale collapses like a landslide. If you do not make a decision soon, you will never have another chance, and the brothers’ hearts will scatter.”

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The Corpse King had naturally considered this. He simply could not bring himself to act.

He could not harden his heart. If he were to turn against the man who had once saved his life, would he still be human? He would be worse than a beast. Though he was a demon, he possessed feelings of his own.

When he recalled what had happened all those years ago, every detail remained vivid. That man had shielded him from the pursuit of the eminent monks of Daluo Temple, risking his own life to save him. The debt of gratitude left the Corpse King with a turmoil of conflicting emotions.

To strike at his savior was something only a beast could do. He was no beast, nor was he a good man—but he would never do anything that violated his conscience.

Yet if he followed his heart, he would betray the brothers who had accompanied him through life-and-death struggles, and the plan he had painstakingly cultivated for years would come to nothing. This left him in an excruciating dilemma.

Just then, a voice came from outside.

“Your Majesty, Lord Fei and Protector Su have arrived. Shall I admit them?”

The Corpse King waved a hand at the guard who entered. “Refuse them. If that man asks, tell him this king is in secluded cultivation.”

“Secluded cultivation in a courtyard? How amusing. If the Corpse King dares not see us, he need only say so. Why hide?”

A burst of laughter rang out. Jiang Xiaofei and Su Muhe then walked inside.

The Corpse King frowned. “What are you doing here?”

“Naturally, I have something to discuss with the Corpse King.”

“There is nothing for us to discuss.”

Jiang Xiaofei smiled, walked over, and sat directly on a stone bench nearby.

“But I have something to say to you. When we parted all those years ago, I thought I would never see you again. I never expected to encounter you here. Now that you wield such power and authority, I am truly happy for you.”

“Do not think that because you once saved this king, this king will not kill you.”

Jiang Xiaofei shook his head with a smile. “You will not. I shed blood for you back then. If you truly intended to strike, you would have done so long ago. But you did not. You still remember our old bond.”

“You…” The Corpse King wanted to refute him, but no words came.

Jiang Xiaofei threw his head back and laughed. “Enough. Let us not speak of that. I have come today to persuade you to surrender.”

The Corpse King remained silent, seemingly engaged in one final struggle within his heart.

Jiang Xiaofei smiled. “I can give you some time to consider it, but…”

At this, his gaze darkened.

“If you insist on becoming my enemy, then even if you are an expert of the Dao Extremity Realm and command a mighty army, this king will show you no mercy. I will kill you. But that is not the outcome I want.”

The Corpse King remained silent.

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“I have said everything that can be said. The choice is yours. I hope we will not meet on the battlefield. Farewell.”

With that, Jiang Xiaofei left with Su Muhe.

After they departed, Zhou Tong stepped forward. “Your Majesty, Lord Fei threatened you. Shall we eliminate him?”

The Corpse King shook his head. “Forget it. He is right. I should surrender.”

“But Your Majesty, our plan cannot fail! With our hundred thousand soldiers, we have more than enough strength to swallow the Underworld Office!”

“Did you not see that they came prepared?”

The Corpse King looked up at the gloomy sky once more and sighed softly.

“The situation is no longer within our control. Under his leadership, the Underworld Office will probably grow ever stronger.”

“But we cannot allow them to dominate the entire underworld. With your strength, Your Majesty, you are capable of battling ten thousand ghosts. You could slaughter every expert in the Underworld Office!”

The Corpse King shook his head. “It is not that simple. His strength has grown increasingly unfathomable to me. I fear it may already surpass my own.”

“What?”

Zhou Tong was greatly shocked. Although the Corpse King was publicly regarded as merely an expert of the Dao Extremity Realm, his true cultivation had already reached the pinnacle of that realm. If even the Corpse King was no match for him, then Jiang Xiaofei’s strength was truly terrifying.

Meanwhile, on the road back to the Underworld Office, Su Muhe looked at Jiang Xiaofei.

“Lord Fei, why did you not simply kill the Corpse King? With your strength, surely you are not afraid of him?”

Jiang Xiaofei smiled. “Why should I kill him? He may be wildly ambitious, but he has not lost his reason. If we can recruit an expert of the Dao Extremity Realm, he will be a tremendous asset to the Underworld Office.”

“That is true.” Su Muhe nodded. “By the way, Lord Fei, when did you meet the Corpse King? Why have I never heard you mention him?”

“Perhaps five years ago.”

Jiang Xiaofei smiled, but the words stirred memories of the past.

Back then, he had dared to do almost anything. Whether healing countless evil spirits or allying himself with wicked demons and heretics, he had done it all, constantly setting himself against the righteous sects. Yet, as the saying went, if one’s heart was not evil, then one’s roots were not truly rotten.

Even so, he had attracted the attention of the orthodox sects, which had hunted him everywhere. Fortunately, he had been quick enough to escape and conceal himself among the common people.

Looking back now, the whole affair seemed almost laughable.

The Corpse King was someone Jiang Xiaofei had casually rescued during one of those escapes. In truth, no eminent monk had ever been pursuing the Corpse King. The monks of Daluo Temple had been chasing Jiang Xiaofei himself. He had simply never expected that the pursuit would implicate the Corpse King, who had only just emerged from his seal at the time.

The Corpse King, however, had mistaken the situation for something else.

Naturally, this was a secret Jiang Xiaofei kept in his heart. He could never reveal it.

End of Chapter

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