Chapter 696: Black Bead, Formation
Knowing they could not contend with Feng Xiyan or Wu Ruizhan, the ministers and generals quickly knelt and begged for mercy.
"Great General Feng, Great General Wu, please spare our clans! This old subject is willing to surrender!"
Hearing this, the others exchanged terrified glances before following suit.
Kneeling toward Feng Xiyan, they said in unison, "This subject is willing to surrender to Great General Feng!"
Jin Yu watched coldly as his officials betrayed him. After a long silence, he suddenly chuckled.
Looking at Feng Xiyan, he asked, "Great General Feng, do you think Zhen sits on the dragon throne because Zhen is smarter than my imperial brothers?"
Feng Xiyan calmly looked at him but said nothing.
Jin Yu didn’t care whether he responded or not and slowly took something out of his sleeve pocket. "No. Zhen ascended the throne because Zhen had powerful backing, someone even you cannot defeat."
As soon as his words fell, he crushed the black bead in his palm.
Crack!
The instant it shattered, Bai Hanyun’s eyes widened. Grabbing Feng Xiyan’s arm, she said, "Feng Xiyan, that black bead—it’s the same as the one given to me by the Black Thunder Dragon!"
When he heard this, Feng Xiyan’s expression sank.
Before he could respond, the Yin Mirror’s voice rang out in his mind, "Master, I sense the same spiritual energy from that bead as the golden barrier."
Before anyone could react, the sky changed.
Crack—! Boom!
Thunderclouds gathered rapidly above them.
Looking up, Feng Xiyan clenched his jaw. "Looks like tonight’s battle won’t be as smooth as I expected."
As he stared at the sky, panic spread among the officials and their families. Grabbing their loved ones, they tried to flee.
But the Feng Army soldiers raised their swords, blocking every escape and forcing them back into the banquet area.
With no way out, they turned to Feng Xiyan, desperately begging for mercy.
"Great General Feng, please spare my family! I’m willing to serve you as a slave!" a young general cried, repeatedly knocking his forehead against the ground.
Behind him, a middle-aged minister pulled his wife and daughter forward and knelt. "Great General Feng, if you spare us, this subject is willing to offer my daughter as your concubine!"
Hearing this, Bai Hanyun sneered. "Feng Xiyan, you are quite popular."
Feng Xiyan shot the middle-aged minister a sharp glare and quickly said, "Keep your daughter! This general already has a fiancée!"
The minister froze, then hurriedly corrected himself. "Yes, yes, yes! This subject’s daughter is not worthy! Then... perhaps she can serve your fiancée instead?"
A nearby old general immediately snapped, "Do you think your dull daughter is fit to serve Great General Feng’s fiancée? Move aside! The only one worthy is my granddaughter!"
Watching them argue over a servant position, Bai Hanyun was speechless.
"..." Don’t you guys need to ask the ladies for their opinions first? Can’t you see their dark expressions? It almost drips ink!
While the crowd descended into chaos, not far from the imperial garden, Feng Wu and his team had already unearthed more than a hundred stone slabs engraved with the same mysterious symbols.
Just as Feng Wu placed another stone slab into his Qiankun Pouch, he noticed thick thunderclouds swirling above the imperial palace.
Sensing the heavy pressure emanating from them, his eyes flickered. "Speed up the digging."
Hearing the urgency in his usually calm voice, the shadow guards’ expressions hardened. Nodding at Feng Wu, they responded in unison, "Yes, Captain!"
With that, they immediately spread out and worked faster to dig out the remaining stone slabs.
Before they could retrieve another one, lightning suddenly struck toward the imperial palace.
Crack~! Boom!
The instant it hit the ground, the remaining buried stone slabs lit up.
Shing~!
A blinding light illuminated the surroundings, forcing Feng Wu and his subordinates to shield their eyes.
Raising his arm to block the bright light, Feng Wu looked toward the stone slabs. When he saw the mysterious symbols glowing, his eyes widened in realization.
"Brothers, follow me! The Master is in danger!"
Without hesitation, the shadow guards abandoned their tasks and rushed after him toward the imperial garden.
By the time they arrived, the symbols projected by the light had already formed a massive formation in the sky above the imperial palace.
Standing under the eye of the formation, Jin Yu looked at Feng Xiyan and said calmly, "Great General Feng, if you surrender now, Zhen will spare your life."
Feng Xiyan’s eyes darkened at his words, but Feng Xiyan ignored him.
Receiving no response, Jin Yu’s expression turned cold. "Refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit. Very well... since you are so stubborn, don’t blame Zhen for being ruthless."
As his words fell, the formation covering the entire imperial palace began to rotate.
Inside Feng Xiyan’s dantian, the Yin Mirror sensed the same energy as the golden barrier and urgently warned, "Master, it’s the same barrier as before. You must leave before the formation is complete!"
Feng Xiyan heard her, but he could not abandon his men.
Beside him, Bai Hanyun took out the talismans given to her by Gui Ying. Looking at them, she muttered urgently, "Think... What element can counter thunder?"
After a brief moment of thought, her eyes lit up. "That’s it! Earth can suppress lightning, and wind can guide it!"
Making her decision, Bai Hanyun took out a wind-element talisman and threw it toward the rotating formation.
"Go!"
The talisman tore apart in midair. In the next instant, a powerful gale erupted, forming a raging tornado.
Whoosh~!
At the sudden appearance of the tornado, the officials and their families screamed in terror and fled.
"Ah! What is happening?!"
"Wife, hold my hand. Quick!"
"Mother! Father! Don’t leave me!"
As chaos engulfed the imperial banquet once more, Bai Hanyun calmly activated an earth-element talisman.
The moment it took effect, the ground trembled violently.
Grooo~!
"The Earth Dragon is turning!" someone shouted in despair.
As panic spread at the thought of an earthquake, Jin Yu clenched his jaw. He narrowed his eyes toward Feng Xiyan.
’There is someone assisting him.’
Before he could discern the truth, pillars of earth surged upward from the ground.
Boom! Boom! Boom!