Indignation boiled over.
Whether they were civil officials or military generals, their eyes were red with fury at this moment.
First, Cheng Buxiu was humiliated by kneeling at the mountain gate; now, Zhao Zhongliu had been struck before the palace hall.
Even if it was Five Immortals Mountain, even if they were the legendary, overbearing Immortals.
Treating people with such contempt, acting so lawlessly.
Gaozu's face was ashen, his internal Qi surging as he stared fixedly at the Child.
If not for his concern for the citizens of the city, he would have already been unable to restrain himself from fighting to the death.
Facing the boiling rage of the crowd, the Child showed no fear at all.
He was the first disciple under Immortal Master Red Toad, carrying the Red Immortal Legacy.
Though he appeared to be a mere Child of seven or eight, his cultivation had long since reached Lamp Lighting Perfection.
Let alone the aging Li Clan High Ancestor.
Even if all the ants in this city swarmed him together.
In his eyes, it would only take a little effort; with a flip of his palm, he could suppress them all.
However.
The Child's eyelids drooped slightly as he recalled Immortal Master Red Toad's prohibition.
He had descended the mountain this time solely for the woman who possessed great Luck.
If he were to start a massacre in this imperial city, becoming tainted by the Karma and Karmic Obstruction of this dynasty, ruining his Dao Heart and damaging his cultivation, he would surely be punished upon his return.
Thinking of this, he curled his lips with a hint of boredom, and the killing intent in his eyes gradually receded.
"Forget it, forget it."
He sat cross-legged on the red cloud at will, resting his chin on one hand, looking utterly bored.
"Since the main person isn't here, I'll wait a while."
Having said that.
He let out a yawn, his gaze somewhat wandering.
His eyes carelessly swept over the faces below, filled with anger they dared not voice.
Suddenly.
His gaze paused.
"Oh... isn't this that..."
The Child straightened up and extended a finger, pointing from afar.
Where his fingertip pointed.
It was exactly Cheng Buxiu in the crowd.
"It's you, you old dog."
The Child smiled innocently, but the words he spoke were incredibly vicious.
"How is it that we've met again in this imperial city? Since we share this fate, meeting again is a blessing... Come, let me hear you bark a couple more times?"
Cheng Buxiu's body stiffened abruptly, and his already aged face turned as pale as paper.
The Child didn't care at all, swinging his legs as if teasing his own pet.
"Previously at the foot of the mountain, you barked so loudly; I haven't heard enough yet."
"If you bark to my satisfaction this time, perhaps I'll show some mercy and allow you to enter the mountain with that person, to guard the gate for me as a watchdog beast."
"This is a blessing earned over several lifetimes, better than wallowing in the Mortal World. Tell me..."
"Isn't that right?"
Boom!!!
As soon as he finished speaking.
The area before the main hall instantly erupted.
"Screw your grandmother!!!"
Countless generals' eyes turned blood-red, veins bulging on their temples.
Clang—
The sound of sabers being unsheathed rang out in unison.
Had they not been held back firmly by their slightly more rational colleagues, these men of blood and spirit would have already charged into the sky; even if they died, they would have bitten a chunk of flesh out of the opponent.
Cheng Buxiu's body trembled, his old face turning from white to red, then from red to blue-green; his hands were clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.
Humiliation.
But what... could he do?!
The Emperor slowly straightened his back, the rage in his heart no longer able to be suppressed.
Enough.
Truly enough.
As the Son of Heaven of the Great Tang, since his ascension, even when facing a sky full of demons or this increasingly weakened empire, he had never felt such humiliation.
But now... the opponent had not only humiliated his official at the mountain gate but had even pursued them to this imperial city, trampling the Great Tang's dignity into the mud before the entire court and then grinding it down further.
What was this supposed to be?
He looked up at the overbearing Child and suddenly whispered, "To hell with you..."
The Child's body paused, his eyebrows arching as if he couldn't believe his ears. "What did you say?"
"I said..."
The Emperor took a step forward, tore off the crooked crown from his head, and slammed it onto the ground.
His hair was disheveled, looking like a madman.
"To hell with your Five Immortals Mountain!!!"
"Cheng Buxiu is an Enshrined Expert of the Great Tang's Ministry of War, a pillar of my state! He is not a dog you raised! And certainly not a beast for your amusement!"
"You want him to guard the mountain gate for you? In your dreams!"
"Since you won't give us a way to live, then we won't live!"
"The Great Tang has stood for eight hundred years; there has never been a Son of Heaven who lived on his knees, only monarchs who died on their feet!"
"Today..."
"Even if I must risk the destruction of the Great Tang and see this vast land turned to scorched earth, I will let you know that the Great Tang... is not a place where you Immortal sects can act so insolently!!!"
Rumble—
As the Son of Heaven vented his rage.
Beneath Chang'an City, there seemed to be the mournful cry of a dragon.
Li Clan High Ancestor stood before the Emperor, listening to the roar behind him without the slightest hint of blame.
It was ironic... Chang'an City gathered the Dragon Qi of the world; if demons approached, they would be suppressed... yet it had no effect whatsoever on these self-proclaimed transcendent Immortals before them.
But these Immortals... were even more loathsome than demons.
However.
So what?
Gaozu's hands slowly rose, no longer holding back the pressure of the Lamp Lighting Realm, releasing it all.
One old and one young, one the Emperor and one the Ancestor.
Both were now possessed by a resolve to die, determined to clash with these Immortals.
Upon the red cloud.
The smile on the Child's face gradually faded.
"An ant trying to shake a tree—overestimating its own strength."
Having said that.
The Child raised his tender palm.
In his palm, red light gathered, with the faint whistling of wind and thunder.
Seeing the situation spiraling out of control instantly.
Wang Xuance, standing to the side, his expression changed drastically, inwardly lamenting his Luck.
Although he had joined Five Immortals Mountain, after all... this was Chang'an.
It was the place where he had once lived, where the ancestors of the Wang Clan were buried.
Furthermore, the Immortal Master had ordered that this descent was only to bring someone back, not to cause unnecessary trouble.
If things really reached an irredeemable state... Thinking of this.
Wang Xuance could no longer care about status and hurriedly stepped forward, blocking the Child's side.
"Senior Brother, wait!"
Wang Xuance bowed and said urgently, "Though this Great Tang Emperor has spoken insolently, he is, after all, that woman's elder brother."
"If we kill the entire imperial family now and create a blood feud... when that person returns, she might rather die than follow us up the mountain! If Master blames us then..."
Hearing the word 'Master'.
The red light poised in the Child's hand faltered slightly.
His brows furrowed, a flash of annoyance in his eyes as he cast a cold glance at the crowd.
"Hmph."
The Child gave a cold snort and slowly withdrew his palm.
"Consider these ants lucky to be alive."
"However..."
"The death penalty is spared, but punishment is inescapable. Letting this old dog bark a few more times surely won't ruin Master's great task, will it?"
Wang Xuance opened his mouth, wanting to advise further.
But seeing the Child's cold gaze sweep over, he could only swallow his words and sighed deeply in his heart.
He was just a Named Disciple... if he continued to interfere and earned the other's resentment, how could he survive on the Immortal mountain in the future... However.
Just as the situation was tense and on the verge of exploding.
On the western horizon.
A golden light suddenly appeared.
Boom!!!
The golden light was like a dragon, carrying the sound of rolling sonic booms as it swept toward Chang'an City at high speed.
The Emperor's expression tightened.
Lonely Moon?!
She chose this exact time to return?!
With the people from Five Immortals Mountain here, returning now—isn't that just walking into a trap?!