The battle for the imperial city began without any formal declaration, as soon as the city guard arrived at the gates and found them tightly shut, they immediately formed their defense formation. The archers in the back unleashed a relentless rain of arrows that completely suppressed the palace guards on the city walls.
Although the defending forces quickly activated defensive spells on the city walls of the imperial city, since in the long history of the Western Chu Dynasty there had never been a precedent of the city guard rebelling and attacking the city, the strength of these spells was far inferior to those on the outer city walls and collapsed after being continuously bombarded by powerful magic weapons for five minutes.
Following that, the unrelenting barrage of arrows continued, leaving the palace guards on the palace walls in a panic, helpless despite their urgency.
Neither the imperial city nor these palace guards were prepared for war, and in history, there had never been an enemy that could threaten the innermost city within these walls.
The structure of the city walls and the equipment of the palace guards were inadequate to withstand a real military assault. The palace guards, equipped with crossbows, although individually stronger than regular soldiers, had not received battle formation training like a true army and lacked the coordination to engage in a large-scale archery confrontation.
Thud.
Huh?
The palace guards hiding behind the battlements on the city walls suddenly felt a tremor, accompanied by a continuous arrow storm mixed with muffled sounds.
Thunk!
The second sound was even louder than before. Several palace guards dragged out tables and chairs from inside as covers against the arrow rain and peeked out with horror in their eyes.
The city guard somehow procured a battering ram — though it looked crudely made, it was solidly built, and when dozens of strong soldiers carried it, each impact against the imperial city gates made the gates shake violently.
Like the palace walls, although the gates of the imperial city were magnificent, they could not compare in thickness and solidity to real wooden gates reinforced with iron. If they kept ramming them, there would likely be significant problems.
"Quick! Send a team to the gates to hold them back! Find some rocks, oil, or anything to throw down!"
An experienced member of the palace guards who had served in the army shouted loudly to remind them, just as the arrow rain above them ceased.
As they looked up, over a dozen ladders had crossed the moat and were propped up. Likewise hastily constructed from nearby houses, these ladders faced the palace walls, which were not as formidable as real city walls. However, without the necessary poles to counteract them, once these ladders were up against the imperial city, they wouldn't be easily pushed away.
...
"How long until the city falls?"
At the forefront of the array of archers from the city guard, Li Yu, the commander of the city guard in dark armor, watched quietly as his soldiers attacked the city, then heard a question from behind.
The vast area in front of the imperial city had been occupied by the city guard, and their cavalry roamed around the imperial city, sealing it off. The main force was concentrated on assaulting the main city tower, and in a short time, the palace gate was on the verge of collapse.
"It will be breached within half an hour."
Li Yu turned around and saluted, "It would have been quicker if His Highness Xiangji hadn't forbidden us from using heavy weaponry to destroy the gates."
"No need for that." A man in silver armor, agile in figure, appeared before Li Yu with a hearty smile, "All we need to take is this gate. I don't want to waste time repairing the palace walls afterward."
"The garrison has been completely entangled in the riots in the city district, the nobles won't dare to confront the city guard with their private soldiers to protect themselves... Just break through this gate, victory will be ours."
Xiang Liang's voice was decisive, filled with confidence.
The confidence to take action primarily stems from the control over the city guards in hand, the elite troops drawn from various border armies, the most rigorous training, and the finest military equipment. He did not believe that there was any force in the city capable of resisting the city guards.
There had been a long-standing conflict between him and his elder brother. He had a rough idea of the cards the other side might hold. The only thing he needed to worry about should be the elusive sorcerer, a powerful individual who had stepped onto the path of immortality. He was well aware of how formidable the sorcerer's power was.
So…
"I have been waiting for you for a long time, Lord Gui Lin."
A crisp bell-like sound suddenly reverberated in the space, cutting through the shouts of the soldiers attacking the city, spreading throughout the entire Wudingmen battlefield.
Xiang Liang untied a jade talisman from his belt, which had deep cracks appearing on it. Though his voice sounded slightly trembling and lacking some confidence, he finally felt reassured.
The Transparent Command, much like the Fire Thunder Pearl, was a disposable magical treasure, but on a much higher level. It could, on the level of causality, prevent an attack against its holder once. It was like a life-saving divine weapon akin to a renowned sword.
Hmm, a Star Jian product.
"Hmph, is there really something like this?"
Failing the ambush, after the space above Xiang Liang and Li Yu distorted, the figure of Gui Lin, shrouded in a black robe, appeared. He exerted force on the tip of his toes on an almost imperceptible thin thread. The cold gaze under the cloak moved away from Xiang Liang and landed on one of the guards who had arrived at Wudingmen alongside Xiang Liang.
There was no difference in his attire from the other guards of Xiang Liang, but when he removed his helmet, his flowing black hair immediately made him stand out from the rest.
Several flashes of sword light, the armor shredded into several pieces falling to the ground, revealing a white robe and a three-foot-long sword held in his hand.
"Chuyun… Sword Sect?"
Gui Lin hesitated for a moment. The gaze hidden under the cloak became extremely sharp, but behind the sharpness was a hint of hatred and a touch of fear.
"The 305th leader of Chuyun Sword Sect, Chang Lifu."
The middle-aged man disguised as a guard pointed his sword at Gui Lin from afar, saying coldly, "This trip is solely for the extermination of the remnants of Wu Mountain."
With these words, his wrist flicked, and the sword in his hand turned into a dazzling sword light that swallowed Gui Lin in one swift strike. Then, with a light step, another flying sword was summoned from under his feet and chased after Gui Lin directly.
"Chuyun Sword Sect… I must commend you for being able to mobilize him, Xiang Liang."
The battle between Gui Lin and Chang Lifu directly moved away from the battlefield in front of Wudingmen. The battles between the two often involved the interference of the laws, and anyone who intervened would be affected.
"So, your ace in the hole is rendered ineffective, Your Majesty."
Xiang Liang took two steps forward and saw his elder brother who had also appeared on the city wall with Gui Lin. Unable to suppress the smug smile on his lips, he said, "Even when seeking help, you need to choose the right person."
"Indeed, if it weren't for someone from Wu Mountain, you wouldn't have been able to mobilize the Chuyun Sword Sect." Xiang Ji sighed regretfully after looking in the direction where the two had disappeared.
The Chuyun Sword Sect was a Daoist sect located in the northern part of the Divine Land, renowned along with the Southern Lingxiao Sword Sect as a prestigious sect. It had had numerous conflicts with the "heretical" sect Wu Mountain. The reasons for the conflicts were a matter of dispute, but according to Chuyun's perspective, the methods of sorcery encompassed a variety of practices, including the use of poison, corpses, and curses, to some extent, they were considered heretical. Chuyun decided to take action only after discovering their rituals involving the sacrifice of ordinary people.
As for Wu Mountain's perspective… it was no longer important. After the battle, almost all the sorcerers from Wu Mountain were killed by the Chuyun Sword Sect. It was precisely because of this that, upon learning from Xiang Liang about the existence of a sorcerer at the level of an Earthly Immortal, he readily joined this power struggle.
Xiang Ji's reaction seemed a bit too indifferent, and Xiang Liang suddenly felt a subtle sense of unease: "Do you plan to keep standing there? Be careful of being hit by a stray arrow."
The moment Xiang Ji appeared on the city wall, he was heavily targeted by a large number of arrows, but he seemed to possess a protective magic treasure, with a transparent membrane softly deflecting the arrows, while more than ten highly skilled guards around him quickly destroyed two of the ladders closest to Xiang Ji, ensuring his safety for the time being.
"If I don't stand here, how can I reveal the truth to the public?"
Xiang Ji took out a spirit talisman from his sleeve and ignited it, causing a layer of white halo to rapidly expand, sweeping over the city defense troops surging towards the imperial city below, covering most of the city of Luojing.
"That is...a message-transmitting spirit talisman?"
"Prince Xiang Liang, secretly sent assassins to the Yongxing Hall, taking advantage of the chaos to attack the imperial city, tantamount to rebellion, hoping to jointly eliminate him."
A very short message, the "joint elimination" part was of course completely redundant. Given the current situation in Luojing City, Xiang Ji couldn't think of anyone who could possibly do this; all he needed to do was to get this message out and make everyone aware of it.
"Hmph, does baseless slander like this have any meaning?"
Although he said this aloud, Xiang Liang couldn't help but feel uneasy inside. According to the etiquette, he was not supposed to inherit the throne while Xiang Ji was still alive. Once this message was released, whether or not it could be substantiated, it would definitely damage his reputation.
Furthermore...
On the wall of the Wuding Gate, the Forbidden Army's counterattack became resolute. Originally, the personal strength of the Forbidden Army, which held the high ground plus the guards, was higher than that of the city defense soldiers. In the narrow terrain of the siege ladders, the signs of a breakthrough that had faintly emerged were suppressed once again.
Tsk, miscalculated. Originally, the Forbidden Army directly guarded the imperial city for the emperor, but now, after a single move by Xiang Ji, the front line was immediately unified, giving Xiang Ji a legitimate name as a protector.
But it didn't matter, there were only three thousand Forbidden Army troops anyway, and now the entire Luojing City was under the control of the city defense troops. How long could they hold out if they were trapped in the imperial city? One day or two days?
"Ride! Ride!"
The sound of urgent horseshoes came from the chaotic street behind, sounding like only one rider, probably a roaming messenger.
But the message he brought made Xiang Liang completely lose his smile.
"Prince Xiang Liang! General Li! City defense report, a large number of troops have been spotted gathering and heading towards Luojing from five miles outside the city!"
"How is that possible?! Foreign troops are strictly forbidden to be stationed near the capital, so where did these troops come from?!"
Xiang Liang was uncontrollably furious, while Li Yu beside him furrowed his brows.
"Could it be..."
"Special wartime regulations."
Xiang Ji said leisurely, "In times of urgent war, foreign troops can temporarily pass through the capital to reinforce the borders. The nomadic tribes in the northwest frontier have been quite active lately."
"You have brought your private army from your territory?!"
