Outside of Time

Outside the imperial capital, the formation was filled with a strong smell of blood, which was the smell left by the killing on these soldiers.

It was extremely rich and settled on their armor, skin, flesh, and souls. It gathered together and spread in all directions, shocking the earth.

The color of the sky changed, the wind and clouds surged, and the sky was also colored by their aura at this moment, becoming dim, and streaks of lightning and thunder came out of thin air and pierced the sky.

For a moment, it overlapped with the bells of the imperial capital and echoed in everyone's hearts.

Among this returning army, the weakest cultivator is also a Nascent Soul cultivator, and each one of them is not an ordinary person. Each of them kills astonishingly. They have been guarding the Tianmen of the human race on the border of the human race all year round.

Their lives are different from those of most monks in the imperial capital. Too many monks there have not been back for a long time.

Therefore, years of fighting and indifference to death gave each of them a sense of numbness on their faces.

But the more this happens, the more alarming the murderous intention becomes, becoming an instinct that cannot be suppressed even when standing in front of the imperial capital.

It seems that... even the imperial power is not that important in their hearts. The only thing that can cause trouble for them is... the waving battle flag in front of the army.

There are two flags, one is golden and embroidered with the word "Guyue".

It was dark, as if painted with blood, and had the word "Zhen Yan" written on it.

The title of the first heavenly king of the human race is Zhenyan.

Under the banner of war, the fifth prince, wearing black armor, looked calmly, looking at the imperial capital in the distance. It had been seventeen years since he left here.

"Things change and people change."

As the fifth prince murmured softly, the imperial capital bell rang out for the ninth time, and then the east gate of the imperial capital slowly opened. Most of the officials from the Fifth Palace of Xiaxuan appeared and went out to greet the fifth prince. They bowed to the fifth prince in front of the door. bye.

"Welcome the fifth prince!"

The fourth prince, wearing a yellow robe with four claws, walked out in the middle.

Following the Emperor's decree, he welcomed his fifth brother back to the capital on behalf of the royal family. With a solemn expression on his face, he came thousands of feet away from the fifth prince's army and spoke loudly.

"In ancient times, Yue celebrated Ji and listened to the decree."

As soon as he said this, the fifth prince, who was sitting on the double-headed black dragon, looked away from the imperial capital and fell on the fourth prince. He swayed, left his mount, and knelt down on one knee.

The army behind him moved in unison and all knelt down to worship.

The fourth prince nodded slightly, raised his right hand and took out an imperial list.

"The emperor's fifth son, Qing Ji, has meritorious service in guarding the frontier, has a good martial arts style, is also the god of Si Xuan, is handsome, diligent in learning, and possesses outstanding talents. Serving the country and the army is very respectful; serving his parents, he is very filial; serving his brothers and sisters, he is very close; serving his children and nephews , very dignified; serving as a servant is very dignified. It is my father's style to be great."

"To celebrate the emperor's death, I will reward the emperor's five sons. They can appoint officials in the royal palace and guard tens of thousands of people. I'm so impressed."

The moment he finished reading, the fifth prince stood up, followed by the sergeant, who stood silently.

"Congratulations, fifth brother." The fourth prince's face was no longer solemn, but instead showed a warm smile.

"Father is waiting for you, why don't you go and thank the Emperor for his kindness?"

The fifth prince had no expression on his face and did not respond. He walked forward. When he passed by the fourth prince, he entered the east gate and stepped onto the Rainbow Bridge without even looking at him.

As for the sergeants behind him, they set up camp directly in the formation.

This scene made the fourth prince frown slightly, but soon the smile returned to his face, and he simply followed the fifth prince towards the palace with a smile.

All the guards on the Rainbow Bridge all bowed their heads slightly to show respect after seeing the fifth prince.

Under the Rainbow Bridge, a large number of people from the imperial capital have now gathered, looking at the fifth prince walking on the bridge one by one. I don't know who cheered first. Soon, the cheers were numerous and loud, spreading in all directions.

Those who saw it without knowing it would definitely think that the army was returning home in triumph, or that the prince was traveling. The public sentiment was very obvious.

The fifth prince paused, looked at the crowd, and after a few breaths of silence, bowed to the people before continuing.

After walking all the way to the Rainbow Bridge and standing in front of the palace gate, the fifth prince looked at the eleven huge incense sticks standing there, especially at the area in the middle where one incense stick was missing.

There was a hint of sadness in his expression.

"The death of Lao Qi was a surprise to all of us. At that time, he asked to use the Immortal Bell to prove himself, but..."

A gentle voice came from behind the fifth prince, with regret in his tone.

It was the fourth prince. He shook his head and walked over, standing side by side with the fifth prince.

The fifth prince was silent, looking away from the incense burning place where his brother disappeared, looking inside the gate, at the end of the square, and at the vast palace above the steps.

"Go in, my father and all the ministers, the Heavenly Lord, the Heavenly King, and the Territory Lord are all inside."

The fourth prince said softly.

"Stop your thoughts." The fifth prince said calmly.

This was the first time he spoke to the fourth prince after returning to the imperial capital.

"The death of Lao Qi is my business, and I don't need you to stir up trouble."

"As for arranging for the people under the bridge to cheer, it is even more childish."

"I am not a victor, and my father is in his prime, so he will not easily become jealous. Neither you nor anyone else, these little tricks are not worthy of his status."

After the fifth prince finished speaking, he raised his head and took long steps towards the palace.

At this moment, in the main hall of the imperial palace, the Human Emperor was sitting upright, and the thirteen heavenly kings also arrived and sat under him. All the Tianhou in the imperial capital were also present.

Below, the Dazai and the officials of the Fifth Palace of Shanxuan were arranged in an orderly manner, each looking solemn.

Xu Qing was also in the main hall, sitting in his seat with an expressionless face and his eyes falling on the door.

He received the imperial edict last night. He came to the court meeting early today and knew in advance about the return of the seventh prince. Through Ning Yan, he also had a better understanding of the relationship between the fifth prince and the seventh prince.

"One breast sibling."

This kind of relationship, to a certain extent, surpasses all in the royal family. Even the love between parents is sometimes not as good as the love between compatriots.

"The fifth prince is a disciple of the First Heavenly King. He is the only living disciple of the First Heavenly King. He has followed the Heavenly King to guard the border all year round. To the human race, he is the most meritorious among all the princes."

"His combat prowess is second only to the eldest prince who has half of Yanyue's bloodline among the princes. He is equally brave and good at fighting..."

Some of this information came from Princess Anhai, and some came from Ning Yan. While Xu Qing was thinking about it, cheers came from the outside world. This sound came into the ears of everyone in the hall.

However, no one's expression changed at all, as if they had not heard anything.

"It seems that he also doesn't get along with the other princes."

Xu Qing's eyes were calm and he looked calmly.

Not long after, a figure caught his eye, and also caught the eyes of everyone in the hall.

The tall and straight figure, the handsome face, and the black armor make the person who comes forward look extraordinary and heroic, especially the fluctuations in his cultivation are even more obvious.

That is the meaning of the third level of Guixu.

Before walking, there were looming threads of rules and laws around him, affecting all directions and turning into the sound of wind and thunder. It was the fifth prince.

Under the attention of everyone, he walked past the ministers step by step and appeared in front of the steps. He knelt down to the Human Emperor who was sitting high up and spoke in a deep voice.

"Meet my father."

The Human Emperor nodded slightly.

"You have worked hard."

The fifth prince stood up, his eyes fell on all the heavenly kings, and then looked at Tianhou. He only glanced at Xu Qing without showing much fluctuation, and continued to bow to the Human Emperor.

"Father, over the past seventeen years, Yanyue Frontier has been generally stable."

"During this period, there were a total of ninety-seven small-scale battles. Yanyue's own clan did not show up. Those who caused trouble were their affiliated clans."

"Under the control of King Zhenyan, everything will be resolved."

"Looking at it as a whole, the Yanyue Xuantian clan is busy with large-scale hunting, and the thoughts of hunting for the surrounding groups are much less than before."

"As for the affiliated ethnic groups that invaded, they were mainly training and testing, and there was no serious problem."

"In terms of casualties, our clan has lost more than 379,000 people in the Yanyue Frontier for seventeen years. Here is the list."

The fifth prince said, took out a jade slip and gave it to his bodyguard, who handed it over to the Emperor.

"Compared with before, both the number of invasions and the number of sacrifices have been reduced by more than half. This is enough to show that the sun of dawn that my father has planned for many years has formed a certain degree of deterrence."

As soon as he said this, most of the officials around him had smiles on their faces.

"But... there is also bad news."

The fifth prince spoke in a deep voice.

"One of the disadvantages is that for some reason, the overall combat power of Yanyue's affiliated tribes has increased. It's not that one tribe has improved, but they are all getting stronger at an incredible speed."

"Looking at it in the long run will be very detrimental to our clan, and there are clues about this matter that need to be explored by the Special Division."

"The second disadvantage is that every time Yan Yue goes on a big hunt, he has to choose the subordinate tribe Tige. This may cause other subordinate tribes to start a war to gain attention in order to gain opportunities."

"When I return this time, I also ask my father to increase the number of troops. Among the three strongest tribes affiliated with Yanyue, the Esi tribe is suspected to be ready to make a move. I, the human race, want to pay attention to Yanyue."

"The third disadvantage is that the heterogeneity within Yanyue has increased threefold year-on-year in recent years. After King Zhenyan paid attention to it, he once said that it was suspected that... Yanyue was brewing a fourth god!"

As soon as the words came out, there was silence in the hall, and the ministers were all in a state of mind. In fact, the news about the border area was usually classified as top secret, and not many people knew it completely.

For most people, they only have a general understanding at best, and this is the first time they understand everything in such detail.

While the ministers were each thinking, the fifth prince finished his debriefing and bowed to the Human Emperor again.

According to normal procedures, he should have returned to his place in the hall at this moment, but after this bow, the fifth prince did not leave, but spoke softly.

"Father, Lao Qi did evil and was killed by the Emperor's Sword. Because he made a mistake, he deserves to be killed!"

"But, I am his brother!"

"If I remain silent, it would be a disgrace to my true nature. However, my human race pays attention to blood inheritance and attaches great importance to family ties, which is why we have formed a clan."

"Father, in your imperial edict, it is said that we are brothers and sisters. If I ignore family ties, there will be no family members. This is inconsistent with my ideals since childhood."

"So, Father, if I want to challenge Xu Yuzun to fight, no matter whether I win or lose, my original thoughts will be understood!"

After saying that, the fifth prince glanced and instantly fell on Xu Qing.

A cold and sharp light suddenly burst out in his eyes.

"Xu Yuzun, please!"