Jingzhou, a remote area of the Liang Kingdom.
Deep inside a seemingly ordinary but extremely luxurious mansion, the air was thick with the smell of alcohol.
The once supreme ruler, Emperor Liang, sat slumped on a couch, his clothes disheveled.
He was holding a wine jug, taking sips here and there, his face so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.
"Brother! How long are you going to stay so dejected!" Prince Sui was dressed in a brocade robe, but he could not hide his haggard face.
He paced anxiously in front of Emperor Liang, his tone filled with exasperation: "Now the power in the capital has fallen into the wrong hands. The two old scoundrels, the General Who Protects the Nation and the Left Chancellor, are in control of the government. If we don't seize this opportunity to fight back, we will truly never have a chance to turn things around!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Liang merely let out a cold laugh, thick with the smell of alcohol: "Fight back? With what? With our few thousand defeated soldiers? Or are we counting on those aristocratic families who only know how to flee for their lives?"
He took a big gulp of wine, staring blankly at the gilded beams and pillars: "Don't forget, the Chen family army still lies between Jingzhou and the capital! If we make the slightest move, that brat Chen Liang will be the first to lead his army to pounce on us and kill us!"
The Prince of Sui was speechless, feeling a tightness in his chest.
He secretly regretted that he shouldn't have escaped with his incompetent elder brother!
If I had stayed in the capital, with my status as a member of the imperial family, I might have been able to get a share of the spoils in the chaos, and at least I wouldn't have let the Grand General and the Left Prime Minister gain power so easily!
But it's too late to say anything now.
Even when his elder brother was fleeing, he did not forget to be extremely wary of him.
Fearing that he would gain power in the capital, they dragged him down with them!
"Your Highness! Your Majesty!" Just as the two brothers were lost in their own thoughts, a travel-worn scout stumbled in, his voice trembling: "Extreme news has come from the capital and Qingzhou!"
Prince Sui's heart tightened: "Speak quickly! Did those two old scoundrels fight amongst themselves?"
Emperor Liang also raised his eyelids slightly, as if he was still somewhat concerned about the news from the capital.
The scout swallowed hard, his face filled with disbelief and horror: "No! It's the desolate mountain, the mountain goddess of the desolate mountain!"
He was panting heavily as he said, word by word, "It is said that some time ago, a god from the divine kingdom descended upon the desolate mountain, only to be crushed by the mountain goddess with a single hand!"
"Clang!"
The wine pot in Emperor Liang's hand fell to the ground with a thud, the precious jade pot shattered into pieces, and amber-colored wine mixed with mud splashed everywhere.
His swollen face instantly lost all color, his lips trembled, and he could barely speak clearly: "Wh-what? One hand, crushed the gods of the divine realm?"
A bone-chilling cold shot from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head.
Emperor Liang felt weak all over, and the overwhelming fear almost made him faint.
"Luckily I ran away early! Thank goodness I ran away early!" he muttered to himself, his voice trembling. "Otherwise, otherwise I probably would have been smashed into mincemeat by that mountain goddess!"
He had previously been resentful about escaping the capital, but now he felt only relief.
Going against someone who can crush gods with a flick of their wrist? He's not ready to die yet!
The Prince of Sui was also stunned; he couldn't imagine what kind of earth-shattering power that was.
"One hand, crushing a god?" He repeated with difficulty, his mouth dry. "How could such a terrifying being exist in this world?"
He looked at Emperor Liang, who was also pale-faced, and the resentment and ambition in his heart were instantly extinguished as if doused with a bucket of ice water.
The two looked at each other, and saw deep despair in each other's eyes.
The Mountain Goddess is so powerful, let alone their current small force.
Even the mighty Liang army at its peak would probably be nothing more than clay chickens and earthen dogs in front of that person!
What's the point of talking about taking back the capital? What's the point of having any pipe dreams?
Under such divine power, their mere mortal struggles are simply a joke!
“It’s over, it’s all over…” Prince Sui slumped to the ground, utterly dejected.
Meanwhile, far away in Yanzhou, inside the Chen family army's camp.
Chen Liang, the Prince of Chen, was playing chess with an old man with white hair and beard.
"Your Majesty," a guard rushed into the tent and knelt on one knee, "an urgent report has arrived from the desolate mountains of Qingzhou!"
Chen Liang, holding a black chess piece, paused upon hearing this, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Oh? What's going on in that barren mountain? Could it be that the mountain god has appeared again?"
The old man stroked his long beard, smiled slightly, and a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes.
The guards reported the information they had gathered in detail, especially the part about the Mountain Goddess crushing the gods of the divine kingdom with her bare hands, which they described vividly.
After hearing this, Chen Liang's expression changed from initial surprise to bursting into laughter as he tossed the chess piece back into the chess box.
"Great, excellent!" He stood up, walked to the map, lingered on the location of Qingzhou for a moment, and then turned his gaze towards the capital.
The old man beside him stroked his beard, a knowing glint in his eyes, and laughed, "Your Majesty, this is indeed a great thing!"
Chen Liang turned around and looked at the old man: "Why do you say that, sir? If the Mountain Goddess is so powerful, wouldn't that add another unpredictable variable?"
The old man shook his head and calmly analyzed, "Your Majesty is mistaken. It is precisely because this mountain goddess is so powerful that the Liang Kingdom is temporarily at peace."
"Think about it, with someone who can easily annihilate even gods sitting in Qingzhou, would the evil national advisor of Yan dare to easily interfere in the internal affairs of Liang? Would other petty villains dare to covet the Liang kingdom's territory?"
"Moreover, according to the information we have gathered over this period of time, the Mountain Goddess is not an unreasonable deity. However, she loves the people of Liang very much, and Liang has done a lot for them!"
"In this way, anyone who wants to consolidate their power by relying on external forces will probably have to think twice about the attitude of that mountain goddess."
The old man's eyes gleamed with excitement: "What does this mean for us? It means that when we attack the capital, we won't have to worry about those unpredictable evil tricks aiding the court!"
"We can openly and honorably storm the gates of the capital with the Chen family army! Those powerful families and officials in the court, faced with absolute power, can only choose to rely on the truly strong!"
Upon hearing this, Chen Liang's eyes lit up suddenly, and he realized what was going on!
"Sir, your insight is brilliant!" He slapped his thigh, his smile growing even brighter.
"That's right! This mountain goddess has essentially cleared away the external threats for us! In this way, the internal strife in Liang Kingdom is truly just a contest between us mortals!"
"And we have a natural advantage, because we have recruited countless extraordinary people!"
A surge of pride welled up within him.
"Pass down the order!" Chen Liang waved his hand sharply, "The entire army must intensify its drills, and accelerate the preparation of provisions and supplies!"
"Tell the soldiers that we are one step closer to the capital! Have those extraordinary individuals prepare themselves and get to training as soon as possible!"
The old man nodded with a smile, looking at the spirited Chen Liang with eyes full of expectation.
The appearance of this mountain goddess was indeed an unexpected and timely help for them!
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