Chapter 795: Bright Luo River!
Cao Shuang had been in charge of government for several years and had his own group of followers, among whom were talented and wise people. Although Sima Yi had a high reputation, there were some who could see through his mind and some who did not obey him. Huan Fan fled to Cao Shuang to make plans for him, and he was one of them. Only then could a minister become powerful again, but he was not a king after all, and the decision-making power was ultimately in the hands of Cao Shuang.
Cao Shuang was as dumb as a pig, and he kept silent, always trying to find a foolproof plan. He did not have the courage to lead his army to fight Sima Yi, and sighed: "Sima Yi...
Alas, reckless use of force will be detrimental to the country. I am a loyal subject of the country. Can I be so eager for fame and fortune that I ignore the country?
If you surrender, you can still end up as a rich man."
Cao Shuang's words made Huan Fan and others feel hopeless. They lamented the extinction of their clan. But today, Sima Yi came to negotiate peace with them. They were overjoyed and immediately praised Cao Shuang, saying, "The general is truly a man of high character. Lord Zhongda is a role model for the world. We will keep our promise and let the general enjoy his old age as a marquis."
Huan Fan was in despair, and suddenly shouted: "General, even if you want to agree, you have to make Sima Yi swear the Luoshui oath, otherwise how can you believe it!"
Cao Shuang reacted now. Yes, people in the world put trust and loyalty first, but aren’t there enough acts of betrayal of alliances?
Sima Yi does have a good reputation, but what if something unexpected happens?
Only the thousand-year-old Luo River, the sacred place for all the Chinese people, is the most precious thing, and the thing that can convince people all over the world the most. Since ancient times, no one has ever violated the oath made by the Luo River. The goddess of Luo River, Ji Lingjun, is said to be beside the throne of Emperor Su Wang.
Cao Shuang immediately said to Chen Tai and others: "I would like to ask the generals to ask Sima Yi to swear the Luoshui oath in front of thousands of people to guarantee peace and prosperity for me and my colleagues. Only in this way can I trust him and the people of the world can trust him."
Chen Tai and the others looked at each other and nodded, saying, "General, what you said is correct. We are speaking for you. Lord Zhongda is sincere, but it is just an oath. With Lord Zhongda's status and reputation, he is also qualified to swear the oath of Luoshui. General, just wait a moment."
The Luoshui oath was not made casually. As the fortune of the Luoshui River grows stronger, most people in this world are not qualified to take the oath.
The last person who swore the Luo River Oath in front of the whole world was Yuan Shao, and the one before that was Emperor Guangwu of Han. According to legend, for people with weaker fate, swearing the Luo River Oath would result in a shortened lifespan at best, and sudden death at worst.
There is a rumor among the people that Yuan Shao died early because he made the Luo River oath, which shortened his lifespan, which made people all over the world more reverent towards the Luo River.
When Chen Tai and his companions returned to Chang'an City and informed Sima Yi that Cao Shuang was willing to surrender but required Sima Yi to swear the Luo River Oath, Sima Yi wanted to refuse almost instantly.
He is ready to break his oath!
How can you break your oath after swearing the Luoshui oath?
But he has already placed himself in too high a position. If he dares not make a vow just because of the possible loss of his lifespan, his image will collapse.
Sima Yi had to keep these words in his heart. He nodded heavily and said, "Please tell the general that I am willing to swear the Luoshui Oath in front of all the people."
It’s settled!
The Great Wei is stable!
Chen Tai, Jiang Ji and others burst into laughter, and a war that could have destroyed everything was averted.
Although Chang'an is far away from Luo River, it doesn't matter. Heaven is 333,300 miles away from the human world. We can still sense heaven through the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven. Luo River is only a few hundred miles away from Chang'an.
After just one day of preparation, Sima Yi swore in front of the people of Chang'an and the scholars of the entire Wei State, "Great and supreme God of Luo River, Sima Yi solemnly swears to you here that all the conflicts between Sima Yi and General Cao Shuang today are written off. As long as General Cao Shuang is willing to lay down his arms and surrender, I will definitely guarantee the general's wealth and safety in this life, so that the general can enjoy his old age in peace."
Seeing Sima Yi swearing in front of thousands of people, the tension in Cao Shuang's heart finally relaxed. The torment he had experienced these days was unimaginable, and now there was finally a good result.
He took the emperor's hand and walked to Sima Yi, still somewhat unwillingly saying: "Mr. Zhongda, the emperor will hand it over to you. You must support the great Wei state."
Sima Yi's eyes flashed with madness, but he did not show it. He just calmly took Cao Fang's hand, then clenched it and said: "General, you must be obedient and enjoy your old age in the future. Don't make mistakes."
…
In the palace, all the ministers were present. Chen Tai questioned Sima Yi, "Why did the Prime Minister send someone to look after the Marquis of Yicheng? He even had to report everything he did every day. Is this a sign of abiding by the Luoshui oath?"
In fact, what these people are really worried about is that Sima Yi seems to want to force Cao Shuang to rebel. His current behavior does not seem like he wants to let Cao Shuang go. This is really too terrible, and it is something that no one can accept.
However, because of the existence of the Luoshui Oath, everyone felt that it would not be necessary. No matter how bold Sima Yi was, he would not dare to violate the Luoshui Oath, as that would result in divine punishment.
Little did people know that Sima Yi had also been struggling for a long time. What he was struggling about was not the so-called divine punishment. He did not believe in the punishment of the Luo River gods at all. For thousands of years, he had never heard of anyone being punished by the Luo River gods. What he was worried about was the Luo family. If it were not for the battle of the Luo family on the grassland, if it were not for the death of the head of the Luo family, which made him see the weakness of the Luo family, he would not have done this.
But now he is not particularly worried. The power of the Luo family has been greatly reduced. They can neither mobilize the various countries nor fight against the world. This is the dilemma of the Luo family now. Perhaps the Luo family still has some magical powers, but now the Luo family is facing powerful Hu people, and they can't even deal with them. How could they come to Wei to cause trouble for themselves?
Even if the Luo family came to cause trouble for him, such as killing Dong Zhuo or the Xianbei Chanyu as described in the legend, it would only be the death of one person. He was already old and death was the end of him. As long as the family could prosper, everything would be worth it.
Sima Yi had thought it through completely before launching the coup. He decided to launch the coup at the risk of his life because he saw that Sima Shi's sons were all very talented and that even if he died, these sons would be able to inherit his status and family business.
The Cao family was able to usurp the Han Dynasty, and the Murong family was able to usurp the Yan Dynasty. Why can't my Sima family become one of them? The Wei Dynasty is also due to the contribution of my Sima family. If I can establish a dynasty, fulfill the ultimate dream of my family, and turn my family into a country, then everything I have paid for will be worth it.
This is Sima Yi's mental journey. It only took a short time for him to survive from Cao Shuang and usurp Cao's throne. And now, in Sima Yi's view, he is only one step away from success, that is, to kill Cao Shuang and completely take control of the entire Wei Kingdom in the hands of the Sima family.
As long as Cao Shuang dies, there will no longer be any political force in the entire Wei Kingdom that can be compared with me. The military and political power of the Cao family will fall into my hands, and I can usurp the throne as long as I follow the steps.
Cao Shuang already felt a little regretful. As the person under custody, he could feel Sima Yi's malice towards him most deeply. This malice woke him up in the middle of the night every time. But every time he thought of the Luoshui Oath, he would feel at ease. Fortunately, the Luoshui Oath was protecting him, otherwise he would really collapse.
But he didn't know that at this moment in the palace, Sima Yi, in his capacity as regent, asked the empress dowager and the emperor to issue an edict, denouncing Cao Shuang for rebellion and demanding the execution of his entire family!
…
Ji Zhao has not fully woken up, but he has already planned the use of the Five Thunders artifact. After this artifact is activated, a bolt of lightning will appear, but that is for mortals to use.
Ji Zhao handed this artifact to Ji Lingjun and asked her to use it in the heaven. The scope of its influence would be greatly increased, and it could be connected with the increasingly prosperous Luo River, becoming a true oath-keeping artifact. Even with Ji Zhao's current ability, he is at the bottom of the world, and the Five Thunders Method could add magic to the Luo River, making the Luo River Oath a truly sacred water that can fulfill an oath.
Now Ji Lingjun can connect with those who made the oath through Luoshui, but she does not have the ability to punish. However, the Five Thunders Righteousness gives her the ability to punish.
Ji Lingjun woke up in the peach blossoms. She was still wearing the black phoenix robe. After waking up, she saw that the ancestor had not returned. She felt a little disappointed, but more surprised. She was surprised at Sima Yi's audacity. "The moral bottom line of the world is getting lower and lower. Someone actually tried to break the oath of Luoshui. Is it because the loss of Luo family is too great, or because the ancestor has not appeared in the world for too long, so people have forgotten? Even if the Luo family is not in the Central Plains, even if the ancestor is not here, Luoshui is still in my hands. This is courting death!"
As the goddess of Luo River, even though she was sleeping when Sima Yi made the oath, she still felt the oath through the grand process of the oath. This oath had been included in the oath rules of Luo River. When Sima Yi sent out soldiers, the oath rules had already judged that Sima Yi violated the oath, but Ji Lingjun did not launch the punishment immediately. She wanted to wait until everyone knew that Sima Yi violated the oath, and then take action to shock the whole world.
The Luo River beside Luoyang was still flowing slowly. In a place where no one could see, countless auras were already bursting out of it. After pondering, Ji Lingjun chose to communicate with the high priest of the Luo family. Ji Zhao was not there. If she wanted to influence the world, she had to use the body of the direct descendant of the Luo family to display her divine power. The high priest was the most suitable person among them.
Luo's ancestral temple.
"My descendants, I am the god of Luo River. Sima Yi of Wei State violated the oath of Luo River. I will punish him with divine power. Are you willing to accept the divine visit?"
"Ancestors, please come!"
The result of God’s presence is death!
The use of the divine weapon will backfire on the high priest of the Luo family, but the high priest's face, eyes, and heart are full of excitement. Although the Emperor Su Wang has never seen him, the God of Luo River is still there, and my Luo family still has someone to rely on. Isn't this great news?
Ji Lingjun took out the Five Thunders Method in her hand, her face was solemn, the holy mark between her eyebrows began to shine, and the talisman in her hand slowly floated up, emitting crackling sounds of thunder and lightning mixed with blue, red, black and white. She slowly opened her arms, and all the energy connected by the Luoshui rules appeared in her perception, and the huge thunder and lightning flowed around her energy, as if identifying something.
"To intimidate all those in this world who dare not keep their oath in front of Luo Shui!"
…
On the top of the Chang'an city wall, rows of soldiers with cold faces escorted Cao Shuang's entire family and the families of Huan Fan's cronies to the execution ground. Even the elderly, children and babies were not spared and were all taken to the execution ground. The ruthlessness of their efforts to eradicate the roots shocked the people of Chang'an, and the nobles and aristocrats of Chang'an were even more shocked.
"Sima Yi! Sima Yi!
How dare you break Luoshui's oath?
Aren't you afraid of divine punishment from the Emperor Su Wang and the God of Luoshui? Throughout the ages, you, Sima Yi, are the first person to violate the oath of Luoshui. In the history books, your Sima family's page will be forever stained with an unchangeable ink color, and your name of rebellion will be passed down for thousands of years!"
Sima Yi's temperament had changed greatly. He was full of viciousness and cruelty, with an eagle-like look and a wolf-like look. It was quite uncomfortable to look at him. He was obviously wearing a spotless court robe, but it seemed to be permeated and soaked with endless red blood, which was stained red by the blood of thousands of people who were taken to the execution ground.
"The oath of Luoshui? Respect ghosts and gods and stay away from them. There are no gods in this world, and there are no unbreakable oaths. The only real thing is to fight to the death. If I don't kill Cao Shuang today, how can I know that Cao Shuang won't kill me tomorrow? For the Sima family, Cao Shuang must die. Only when he dies completely, can I believe that he will not kill me again."
At the execution ground, Cao Shuang was tied up and he was naturally the first one to be killed. At this moment, he looked up at the vast sky with eyes full of hatred and regret. If he could do it again, he would never give Sima Yi any chance. He would never be deceived by Sima Yi again. And the so-called oath of Luo River and the so-called God of Luo River were all false. If they were true, why was Sima Yi still at large, while he was dying here.
Countless complicated thoughts surged in his mind. As the most powerful man in the empire, he was now a prisoner. He didn't have the mentality to be indifferent to fame and fortune. He cursed everything madly, and then...
Huh?
What is that?
Everyone looked up. Endless dark clouds came from the east at an unheard-of speed, covering the sky almost instantly. This strange celestial phenomenon instantly attracted everyone's attention.
There is an ancient saying that when purple clouds come from the east for thirty thousand miles, a sage will appear.
There was no purple air at this moment, but then black clouds covered the city for 30,000 miles, and the sky and the earth were pitch black, as if night had fallen, the sun had set, and the stars and the moon were nowhere to be seen. Most importantly, there was not a trace of moisture in the air, nor was there any howling wind. If this was not a sign before rain, then what was this?
A question that crosses everyone's mind.
When the first lightning pierced the dark sky and made people's eyes seem blinded, the shocking thunder rumbled, and then there was overwhelming lightning. Between heaven and earth, one second was daytime, and the next second was night. The horrible thunderstorm was full of the smell of destruction, as if it was going to destroy everything in the world.
"What's this?"
An extremely ominous premonition surged in Sima Yi's heart. Cao Shuang stared stupidly at the extremely dazzling thunder. The whole city of Chang'an was looking at the endless thunderstorm in the sky. Not just Chang'an, but across the Weishui River, throughout the entire Guanzhong, across Xiaoguan, the Hexi Corridor with the melodious camel bells, across Yumenguan, the magnificent pearl-like Western Regions, from Guanzhong to the south, the mountains and rivers of Bashu are all in the dark, the land of Heluo, the Luoshui is surging, and there are many wonders. Bingzhou, Youzhou, Jizhou, Qingzhou, Yuzhou, Jiangdong, Jingchu, but wherever there are people, there is this scene. The sky is falling, the night is dark, thunder is roaring, and countless people have knelt on the ground, worshiping the gods and ancestors they believe in. This scene is like the end of the world, which is terrifying.
"Bah!"
A crow's cry was heard from the distant Heluo River, and an extremely huge divine bird flashed in the thunder and dark clouds. It was sometimes hidden in the dark clouds, and sometimes its feathers were stretched out. It was noble and dignified, with an awe-inspiring divine power. When the phoenix appeared, everyone immediately thought of the Luo family and the god of the Luo River, and then they crawled on the ground with more respect.
"Whoever violates the oath of Luoshui will be punished by the gods!"
The phoenix suddenly spoke in human language, which shocked everyone in the world and made them even more awed. The appearance of the legendary divine bird was already quite remarkable, and it even spoke elegant language directly, which was simply unbelievable to the extreme. Compared with this, the sword that turned into a rainbow was nothing compared to this.
Violating the Luoshui oath?
The Han and Yan states, which were extremely far away from the Wei state, did not know about what happened between Sima Yi and Cao Shuang, but just these few words were enough to shock the people of the world.
Firstly, it was quite unbelievable that someone would swear the Luo River Oath and then violate it.
The second is that violating the Luoshui oath will actually result in divine punishment!
In the land of Zhuxia, it has always been said that violating the Luoshui Oath will result in unimaginable divine punishment. However, because no one has ever violated the Luoshui Oath, many people just regard it as a legend. Not violating the Luoshui Oath is only because of social morality and the existence of the Luo family, which causes the entire ruling class to automatically abide by it.
Those smart people could immediately guess that the person who violated the Luoshui oath must have thought that it was just a legend, and that the Luo family had left the Central Plains, suffered huge losses, and could no longer exert their strength in the Central Plains, so they chose to violate the oath.
I never expected that the Luoshui Oath does not need to be maintained by the Luo family at all. This is truly sacred water that has the attention of the gods!
Unlike other places that were unaware of the matter, the Wei State, especially the Chang'an City, knew the reason most clearly. It was Sima Yi who violated the Luo River Oath that brought about the thunder that enveloped the entire land of China.
What did the phoenix transformed by Luoshen say just now?
Anyone who breaks the oath of Luoshui will be punished by God!
How will God punish him?
Cao Shuang never expected that things would take such a turn. He had just been slandering the Goddess of Luo River in his heart, saying that they were all fake. But the next moment, the Goddess of Luo River showed her power to prove that she really existed. Moreover, her power was so great that mortals were as small as ants in front of her.
"Great and supreme God of Luoshui, I am your most loyal believer, please save me from danger!"
Seeing that there was a chance of survival right before his eyes, Cao Shuang immediately started shouting loudly. Not only Cao Shuang, but the entire Chang'an city was filled with endless shouts.
I don’t know who shouted the first “Please kill Sima”, but then countless weeping scholars all shouted in unison, “Please kill Sima”.
Many people in the Sima family had already fainted from fright. Sima Yi looked up at the sky, his hands like the roots of an old tree tightly clasped the city wall, and looked up at the sky, his face full of fear and misery. Flashes of thunder shone on his face, full of despair - this was something Sima Yi had never expected.
Isn't the God of Luo River a legend? Just like the gods of countless mountains, rivers and streams.
Why do gods really exist in this world?
Why is there really an irreversible oath on Luo River in this world?
Ji Lingjun traveled through the human world, controlling the energy of the endless Luoshui oath and burning the life of the Luo clan's high priest. Of course, she didn't just want to kill Sima Yi. The energy of the Luoshui oath was not that simple. This energy would lock on to every member of the Sima clan, and except for a very small number of people, they would all die. The energy of the Luoshui oath was absolutely fair. This was the power of rules. The greater the benefit that Sima clan's violation of the oath would bring to the Sima clan, the greater the harm it would cause.
Those seemingly endless thunders were interlacing in the sky, and then, in the eyes of everyone, a bolt of thunder pierced the sky and fell straight onto the city wall. Sima Shi beside Sima Yi was turned into powder in the thunder, including almost all the personal guards beside Sima Shi. Sima Yi, on the other hand, did not die. This was intentional by Ji Lingjun. She wanted Sima Yi to watch the entire Sima family destroyed.
After the Five Thunders Righteous Method followed the Luo River's Qi to kill Sima Shi, it did not stop for a moment. Now it wanted to destroy Sima Zhao. It was still easy to kill him with a bolt of thunder, and Sima Zhao was also turned into powder. Now the people and scholars in Chang'an City had reacted. When a bolt of thunder fell to the ground, a member of the Sima family died. Then almost everyone watched as hundreds of bolts of thunder fell from the sky above the Sima family's mansion, and the entire Sima family's mansion was turned into powder in an instant, and everyone inside died.
Sima Yi could no longer accept this blow. He spat out a large mouthful of blood and was about to fall down and faint, but was awakened again by a ray of thunder. There were members of the Sima family supervising the execution on the execution ground, who were turned into powder by the thunder. Sima's lackeys and subordinates also died under the thunder.
At first there were cheers in Chang'an City, but with bursts of thunder, the people of the entire Chang'an City, and even the people of the world, knelt down like a tide, and kowtowed towards the direction of Luo River. They were extremely pious, and this piety even surpassed that of the Emperor Su Wang.
It has been said since ancient times that God's grace is like the sea and God's power is like a prison. The divine power displayed by Emperor Su Wang is really too little, and he is too kind to his people. At this moment, the Goddess of Luo River is extremely cold-blooded and ruthless. She kills people without saying a word. The punishment of exterminating three clans is nothing in front of the Goddess of Luo River. She even exterminated all the officials of Sima family. This kind of divine power makes everyone respect and fear her. No one despises the Goddess of Luo River anymore because she is a goddess.
After an unknown amount of time, the thunderous sound that kept resounding slowly stopped, and the extremely cold voice that seemed like a thousand-year-old glacier sounded again, "Those who violate the oath of Luoshui will be punished like this."
In the gazes of everyone in Chang'an City, the last bolt of thunder struck Sima Yi heavily. He was exhausted and filled with despair. All his regrets, aspirations and ambitions turned into nothingness in this thunder that seemed to illuminate everything. His meanness, injustice, disloyalty and dishonesty will be remembered in history for all eternity.
The dark clouds and thunder dissipated, and the sky became blue again. All the scholars and common people in Chang'an City felt as if they were in another world. Was what happened just an illusion?
But those disappearing figures proved that this was really what happened. Cao Shuang regained his freedom, raised his hand and put it down again, and he didn't know what to say or do for a moment. He should seek revenge on Sima Yi, but Luoshen had cleaned up all the people who had connection with Sima family. The remaining people were all certified by Luoshen as having no relationship with him. He couldn't even find his enemy for a while.
…
In the City of Winter, High Priest Luo died with a smile on his face.
Ji Lingjun raised her fair and tender palm. Lightning flashed on her slender fingertips. She murmured, "Is it really like this?"
————
Sima Yi was a native of Henei. He had bee eyes and a jackal voice. Emperor Wu of Wei said that he had the gaze of an eagle and the back of a jackal. He was good at disguising himself since he was young and had a reputation for being honest and capable. Emperor Wu of Wei selected Sima Yi as the military advisor and chief academician, but Sima Yi was greedy for honor and wanted to refuse the offer. However, he refused the offer on the grounds that he was a Han official and refused. Emperor Wu of Wei was disdainful and summoned him again. Sima Yi was afraid and ended up serving Wei. He was laughed at for a while, and Sima Yi hated it deeply. He hated it and did not show his loyalty, so he became even better at disguising himself.
After Wei Wu died, Yi said that he had a pure heart, patrolled the four heavens, served justice, and raised the flag. His momentum respected the ancients, and his words were benevolent. All the Wei emperors were confused and regarded Yi as loyal. Yi had great ability. When he attacked Han, the Han prime minister was in trouble. When he attacked Chu, all the Chu officials retreated. He seized Bashu, suppressed the Qiang rebellion, and stabilized the government. He was first-rate. However, his heart was evil. He made many friends for Wen and showed favors widely. He secretly formed a clique for Wu and even secretly raised dead soldiers. His actions were quite treacherous and he was extremely flattering. However, the world regarded him as loyal, virtuous, trustworthy, benevolent, and righteous. He was the most upright and the most respected person in the literati circle. How absurd!
When Wei Ming died, Yi became the regent, upholding the virtue of Wen Xuan, and also thinking of King Wen and Huo Guang, whose power was awe-inspiring and brilliant. His power became more and more prosperous. When Gaopingling Rebellion broke out, people thought that Yi was a loser. Yi then used the ministers as his trust, and lied to Cao Shuang, swearing by pointing to the water, hoping to ensure peace. However, within a month, he tore up the agreement and broke the oath, and trampled on the Luo River. This has never been heard of before, and it is shocking for thousands of years.
The heavens, the earth, the countries, the people, the mountains, the rivers, and the stars were all shaken. The goddess of Luoshui, Lingjun of the Ji clan, appeared as a phoenix. Then there was thunder and lightning that appeared for thousands of miles. The entire Sima clan was wiped out. Such punishment had never been seen in books, history, classics, or words. This showed how Yi went against the trend!
Yi is ungrateful and treacherous, a great traitor and hypocrite, unprecedented in history. Yi is of little virtue, unkind, unrighteous, unfriendly, unloving, uncaring, devoid of the kingly way, and deceitful. He does not respect the sacred, and does not respect morality. He deserves to fall into the netherworld and never be reborn. He is truly a harm to the world and has prevented all things from coming into being! - "Characters of the Northern and Southern States·Sima Ni"
(End of this chapter)
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