Ceasefire
"And all of this stems from a travelogue that was discovered in Xuanzhou. The book not only mentions the transformation and fusion of humans and demons, but also the art of immortality." Xia Chan's words were exactly the same as Cang Jing's.
That travelogue was also mentioned by Cang Jingmo.
When Han Jiang and Cang Jingqi were entrusted by Gui Xu to go to Xuanzhou, Cang Jingmo met the two of them because of this travelogue.
Amai said, "Half of this travelogue is currently in the Demon Palace, and I don't know about the other half. The Second Prince seized it from the rebels during an encounter. His half doesn't contain any secrets to immortality, but it does mention a tomb in Xuanzhou."
"So, the part about immortality is still in the hands of the rebels?" Han Qi quickly steered the conversation back on track. "So, what that sorcerer promised the Third Prince was immortality?"
Xia Chan shook his head: "The Third Prince's cooperation with the sorcerer predates the discovery of this travelogue. The one who truly desires immortality is His Majesty. This is the content of their deal. I was behind the door at the time and overheard Liu Guai and His Majesty's conversation. Before I could tell Li Fang about this, Li Yuan locked me up."
“After the Third Prince was taken away by the rebels, I secretly infiltrated their ranks and met Liu Guai. So I suspected that this matter was related to the imperial court. Therefore, I sneaked into the palace and met Lord Xia Chan again in the prison cell,” Cang Jingjue continued.
At this point, we can basically understand everything that happened before.
He gained immortality and used the rebels to disrupt the human-demon republic, thereby weakening the demon race—killing two birds with one stone.
Although the news of the Second Prince's death is still unknown to the outside world, for the imperial court, the Second Prince's whereabouts are unknown, the previous Demon Lord has not yet emerged from seclusion, and the Third Prince is under control. At present, the Demon Clan's power is at its weakest.
"Whether it's the Vermilion Bird Pavilion or the Maple Fire Reflecting Frost Pavilion, they were only called the Three Great Immortals because of the people's recognition. In the beginning, only the Four Continents Sect was called an Immortal Sect." When Han Qi investigated the Four Continents Sect in his early years, he learned a lot about it. "Outstanding members of the Four Continents Sect were selected to enter the Vermilion Bird Pavilion to serve the imperial court; those who left the Four Continents Sect to establish their own sects mostly joined the Maple Fire Reflecting Frost Pavilion and became free martial artists."
Han Jiang thought to himself: So the other two are treating Sizhouzong as the original manufacturer and coming here to buy goods, right?
Amai said, "That's right, so the Vermilion Bird Pavilion must have a reason for doing anything. Because once it causes dissatisfaction, not only will the people be disappointed, but the Four Provinces Sect will also not support it."
Xia Chan: "This is why the court arranged for Lei Mo to enter the Four Provinces Sect ten years ago! His original name was Xiao Mo! He was His Majesty's man, and the Vermilion Bird Pavilion needed the support of the Four Provinces Sect. Before that, only a minority of people in the Vermilion Bird Pavilion knew magic. Even I, the deputy pavilion master, did not know magic. But everyone in the Four Provinces Sect cultivates. Without the Four Provinces Sect, the Vermilion Bird Pavilion and the court would not pose any threat to the powerful demon race."
Everyone present was shocked by Xia Chan's words. Ten years ago, Han Tian lost the sect leader's token, and the old sect leader had no choice but to pass the position to Lei Mo.
Since becoming sect leader, Lei Mo has consistently encouraged his disciples to join the Vermilion Bird Pavilion.
The number of disciples who have joined the Vermilion Bird Pavilion in the last decade is more than the total number of disciples in every previous year combined.
“In that case, let’s negotiate,” Hanqi said.
Along with Han Qi's voice, the system's voice also rang out in Han Jiang's mind.
[System repair complete, task progress verification in progress...]
Main Quest: Defeat the Demon Lord, 15% Completed
[Reward Mission: Fix the female lead's bug, 60% complete]
Han Jiang stared at the large characters on the screen in front of him: [Complete the reward task to receive one system assistance; please keep up the good work, new host.]
Wen Xu once said that the female lead has flaws.
It seems that Han Jiang, by some twist of fate, helped Han Qi recover to some extent. Judging from Han Qi's current behavior, he is indeed much more normal than before, and he no longer suddenly becomes mentally unstable, has an episode, or talks nonsense.
But why is the main quest only 15% complete? Isn't Cang Jingqi with me all the time? Why is his affection level so low?
Cang Jingqi raised his hand and waved it in front of Han Jiang's eyes: "Why are you suddenly spacing out? What's wrong?"
"Nothing much." Han Jiang hid her light screen. Could it be that Cang Jingqi was lying to her? She thought that the two of them had long passed the initial stage of mutual distrust and acting. If they had just met Cang Jingqi, Han Jiang would definitely think that Cang Jingqi was lying to her, after all, his two-faced smile would only make Han Jiang's hair stand on end.
The most urgent task is to complete the important storylines and then finish the reward missions. I don't know what kind of help the system assistance refers to, but it's better than nothing.
The negotiation proposed by Hanqi is currently the best solution.
War is definitely out of the question; the breakdown of the human-demon republic will inevitably lead to the collapse of this world. In the original book, the human-demon republic is a central theme, and even if Han Jiang deviates from the original plot, it cannot break certain fundamental logics.
Then the only option is to negotiate and end the war.
Cang Jingjue stayed here to look after the child, while Xia Chan took the other four back to Jingzhou.
Han Jiang showed Xia Chan the Vermilion Bird Pavilion token with gold trim; it belonged to Pavilion Master Li Yuan.
The token found inside the rebel army was not enough to prove that Li Yuan had any connection with the rebels, so after the five arrived in Jingzhou City, they quickly went to the residence of the talisman master.
The news of the demons declaring war has spread throughout the city. The Third Prince has declared himself king in Anzhou and instigated a war between humans and demons. The First Prince, along with his guards, kidnapped important officials of the Vermilion Bird Pavilion and fled in fear of punishment.
The Four States Sect has sent two elders to Jingzhou City to discuss this matter. If necessary, the Four States Sect will provide support to fight against the Demon Clan.
The talisman artist did not believe the rumors and completed the repair of the talisman paper as agreed.
“Both of you are disciples of Han Tian, and I trust Han Tian’s judgment,” the talisman artist said. “However, the talisman paper is severely damaged, and I can only repair a portion of it.”
The crowd gathered around the talisman, holding their breath and listening intently to the message it conveyed.
"The number of humans and demons is already sufficient..."
"...His Majesty said that once preparations are complete, no one will be left alive..."
I barely heard a few words, but these two sentences were enough.
The conversation between Liu Guai and Li Yuan was clear and distinct, leaving no room for doubt.
Han Tian sent a message to Cang Jingqi, informing him that the imperial army had already entered the Demon Realm through a passage. He observed the movements and found that a portion of the elite troops were advancing towards the Demon Palace ahead of the main force, and were expected to arrive within half a day.
In the time it would have taken to send a message, that team would probably already be engaged in combat with Han Tian.
There is no time to waste; the war must be stopped as soon as possible.
As expected, the army was waiting for them outside the palace gates.
“Li Fang! This matter has nothing to do with the Demon Lord’s princes!” Xia Chan said to Li Fang, the team leader.
Li Fang shook his head helplessly: "What can we do if it doesn't matter? What in this world isn't decided by His Majesty?"
Xiao Yu was determined to fight against the demons, and even though Li Fang knew about the conspiracy, he could only follow orders.
"But you know that once the union of humans and demons is broken, the world will be in chaos! We cannot disregard the people!" Xia Chan continued to persuade.
"Your persuasion is useless," Li Fang said, his words carrying a hidden meaning. "Take down the demon rebels!"
Advising him is useless; the implication is that advising His Majesty would be more effective.
Han Jiang grabbed Han Qi's hand and lifted them up together: "We are disciples of the Four Continents Sect, escorting imperial officials to the main hall for a meeting!"
In Hanjiang's memory, Li Fang was a friendly and upright person.
"Disciples of the Four Continents Sect, escort Lord Xia Chan into the palace! Allow them to pass!" Li Fang announced loudly.
Han Qi hesitated and said, "Senior sister, you go. If I stay here, the two of them might not be able to handle it."
The procession parted to make way, and Han Jiang gripped Han Qi's hand tightly: "How can you, as the female lead, be absent from such an important occasion? Let's go! Junior sister, let's go save the world together!"
"good."
Han Jiang turned around and gave Cang Jingqi a look, then grabbed Han Qi and ran ahead without hesitation, with Xia Chan following behind.
The army quickly re-surrounded Cang Jingqi and his companion.
The thing in her arms felt heavy as she ran. Han Jiang paused, remembering the folding fan Cang Jingqi had given her earlier: "Aqi! Here!"
The folding fan unfolded, spun out of Han Jiang's hand, flew across the crowd, and was caught steadily by Cang Jingqi.
"Xiaoman, I believe you." Cang Jingqi gripped his folding fan tightly, back to back with Amai, protecting each other's backs.
Amai said, "Brother, let's see who can hit more!"
Cang Jingqi flicked his fan, knocking down a group of them: "I'll count these as ten!"
Xia Chan seemed to have discovered something extraordinary and asked Han Jiang, "You and the Demon Prince?"
"We'll talk about it later, let's go to the palace first!" Han Jiang was afraid of delaying important matters.
Most of the palace's resources were concentrated on dealing with Cang Jingqi. On the way to the main hall, the occasional guards encountered were easily dealt with by Han Qi.
The moment Han Jiang stepped into the hall, the first people to call out her name were Elders Chao Yu and Shu Yue.
After Remer's incident, many internal affairs of the Four Sects were left to Chicheng for decision-making. He couldn't leave, so this time he sent two other elders to represent the Four Sects.
"Hanjiang, Hanqi!" Shuyue said, "Why are you here?"
Whispers began to circulate inside the hall, all eyes turning towards Han Jiang.
But she wasn't afraid at all now. The female lead was standing right next to her, and she could take down anyone who dared to challenge her! Han Jiang ignored everyone else and went straight to Xiao Yu: "Your Majesty, we have something to say about this declaration of war."
"Your Majesty, you mustn't!" Xia Chan knelt down with a thud.
Han Jiang thought to herself, "You knelt down way too quickly." She silently handed the token and talisman to Han Qi, signaling him to speak.
It would be better to give the highlight moments to the female lead.
Hanqi and Xiachan took turns explaining the whole incident.
"Nonsense! You treacherous minister, you're spouting nonsense here!" Liu Guai said.
Han Qi: "Lord Liu, didn't you say that the demons had kidnapped important officials of the court? How come they've become treacherous officials as soon as they return?"
Han Jiang: "Yes! Lord Xia, your change in status is a bit too fast, isn't it? This morning you were still a high-ranking official!"
The two sisters took turns being born as the yin and yang.
"After a century of coexistence between humans and demons, declaring war on the demon race does indeed require careful consideration," Shu Yue chimed in.
The elders of the Four Continents Sect were all protective of their own, and they had great confidence in the character of their disciples.
“We are merely using this route to fight the rebels. When did we declare war on the entire Demon Clan?” Li Yuan asked.
Xiao Yu remained silent from the beginning; only Liu Guai and Li Yuan took turns refuting him.
Han Qi then revealed his token and communication talisman: "Fighting against the rebels? Why are you two attacking your own people?"
Li Yuan was in league with the rebels, and Liu Guai even revealed the existence of His Majesty, causing an uproar throughout the audience.
Chao Yu realized that things were not simple, and she and Shu Yue gradually moved to protect Han Qi on either side.
"Take them down!" Xiao Yu decisively abandoned the two men. "Liu Guai, how dare you impersonate my decree! Since the rebels can even infiltrate the Vermilion Bird Pavilion, they can't be allowed to live. They need to be eliminated as soon as possible!"
Having come this far, Han Jiang couldn't help but sigh that being an emperor required a certain amount of shamelessness.
"Your Majesty, have you forgotten something?" Han Jiang asked softly.
Perhaps sensing that Han Jiang was about to say something, Xiao Yu dismissed everyone else in the hall, leaving only a few guards and Han Jiang and the others.
Han Jiang knew that negotiations required mutual concessions, so he gave Xiao Yu face and waited for everyone to leave before continuing, "You think that the Vermilion Bird Pavilion controls the Third Prince, and the First Prince is outside the gate, so only the Second Prince is guarding the Demon Palace now, is that right? You want to take this opportunity to annihilate the three princes of the Demon Clan and destroy the Demon Lord's lifeline."
Han Jiang slowly approached Xiao Yu, until he reached the center of the main hall.
There was another matter that Han Jiang hadn't paid attention to at first. She was thinking about how to insist that the court had started the conflict first, until Cang Jingqi received Han Tian's letter this morning.
It turns out that Cang Jingqi and Han Tian had planned this all along. That makes sense, as someone who knew everything from beginning to end, Cang Jingqi must have had his own strategy.
What a cunning old fox.
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