Chapter 2246: Plea For Mercy

Normally, Elder Rong would be happy that there was still a soul left after death. After all, being able to still retain one's consciousness after death was far better than facing an endless void.

However, he couldn't bring himself to feel happy at all, and only felt a fear that came from his very soul. He felt as if he was facing his natural predator, and that his soul itself was being suppressed. It was as if just a single look or thought could obliterate his very existence forever. He instinctively wanted to flee, but he found that under Zu An’s gaze, he couldn't move at all.

With a wave of Zu An's hand, Elder Rong and the others’ souls were absorbed into the Netherworld Book of Life and Death. Once he had some free time, he intended to slowly interrogate these guys to find out what was really going on.

Yun Yuqing widened her eyes. These were powerful cultivators she had brought from the Demon race, and the strength they'd displayed here was even greater than what she expected of them. It was easy to see how strong they were just from the Source Locking formation they had prepared, that completely prevented those within from using any skills. Even so, all of that still hadn't been enough to make Ah Zu fight seriously.

Zu An didn’t stop. Step by step, he walked toward King Yi and the others. He didn’t walk quickly, and yet King Yi and the others felt as if it was extremely fast. As he got closer, they felt goosebumps cover their entire bodies.

“Fire the arrows, fire them!” Zhao Quan and Zhao Zhang screamed hoarsely with everything they had. They had held positions in the army for a long time, after all, and immediately used the last of their strength to save themselves.

The soldiers they commanded right now were all the elites of the court’s field army. Soon after, a group of their most loyal men obeyed and drew their bows. These bows all used arrows that had been specially processed with runes to be able to pierce through armor. They specialized in blasting through the body-protecting skills of cultivators.

However, Zu An didn’t even give them a single look. The incredibly sharp and powerful arrows were automatically destroyed, turning to ashes around him.

Zu An quickly arrived at King Yi’s side. King Yi’s mount was an incredible steed, but it couldn't endure the incoming pressure. Its legs trembled and it fell to the ground, its body trembling helplessly; it almost seemed to be kneeling in worship toward a supreme being.

King Yi was thrown right off. He wanted to stand up and draw his weapon to at least look a bit courageous; unfortunately, his legs were shaking so much that even though he tried several times, in the end, he fell to the ground. Even standing was too hard, let alone drawing his weapon.

As a glorious king and an elder of the royal family, he commanded a large number of powerful cultivators and deathsworn warriors. When they saw him fall, they instinctively wanted to help him, but they were all restrained by an incomparably vast power. They felt a trembling and desire to show worship that came from their very souls. It was as if the will of the world itself had descended upon them.

When they saw that, Zhao Quan and Zhao Zhang, who were a bit farther away, didn’t hesitate to run away at all. They used all their secret methods to flee. There was only a single thought in their heads, which was to get away - the farther away from this place, the better. They didn’t even need to go home; it would be best if they could leave the capital, and maybe even the human territory, and find some desolate place to live in anonymously. Maybe that way they could at least continue to live on.

If they had known that Zu An was this strong, they wouldn’t have dared to go against him even if they had ten times their courage, let alone think of getting revenge! They had heard stories about how Zu An destroyed the Meng clan, but they hadn’t felt too bothered by it. Only now that they were facing Zu An themselves did they truly understand how scary he was. This kind of suffocating pressure was even greater than that of the late emperor.

The two of them ran in opposite directions. They were both gambling on a fifty percent survival rate. The usual camaraderie and brotherhood they feigned had completely disappeared. They both only hoped that Zu An would chase after the other brother so that they themselves would have time to get away.

Zu An stood in place without any intention of chasing after them. Instead, he raised his hand, and the two of them felt a terrifying force pull them from behind. They did everything they could to struggle free, but they were immediately overwhelmed by that force.

“Huh? Why do I see my own back?”

The brothers were both shocked. They saw that their bodies were frantically running forward, while they themselves couldn't help but move backward.

“Is this the legendary separation of soul and body?”

As soon as they reacted, everything before their eyes turned black and they lost all awareness.

When he saw Zu An pull the two brothers’ life force straight out of their bodies, King Yi felt as if his scalp was about to explode. There was a warm sensation in his pants, and he frantically begged, “Don’t kill me, don’t kill me…”

Zu An looked at him indifferently, and gently tapped his forehead with a finger.

King Yi opened his mouth several times. He had thought of countless ways to beg for mercy, but when the final moment approached, he noticed that he couldn't say anything and only felt endless fear.

Just then, several anxious voices called out.

“Have mercy!”

“Please don’t do it, regent!”

…

Jiang Luofu looked up and saw several old and gray-haired elders approach from different directions in the capital. She was surprised to see that they were the eight dukes!

Of course, there were only five left now: Imperial Tutor Zhuang He; Taibao Minister Yu Rui; Grand Officer King Yang, Zhao Song; Minister of Education Du Jian; and Grand General Cheng Yuan.

The eight dukes were the eight elders with the highest prestige and virtue across all of the human race. In the past, even Zhao Han had needed to treat them with additional respect. In the past, if any one of them had made an appearance in the capital, everyone would greet them with utmost respect.

And yet, now that the dukes were showing up at the same time, it didn’t seem to be all that special... After all, three of them - Imperial Tutor Zhao Chen, Minister of Works Meng Jing, and Minister of War Shi Miao - all seemed to have died at Zu An’s hand.

The ones that remained no longer displayed the usual pride they carried, and instead had humble and apologetic smiles. In Jiang Luofu’s eyes, those smiles even seemed to convey intent to curry favor.

The five dukes were also feeling extremely depressed. After all, they were all ancestor-level figures and didn’t have much longer left to live. They usually cultivated in their respective clans in seclusion. Unless it was a matter involving the very survival of their clan, they wouldn’t make an appearance. And yet they'd been forced to come out twice in a row, and it was because of the same person both times!

They had been cultivating in seclusion until they suddenly sensed that something different had happened in the world that left them greatly alarmed. WIth their cultivation realm, they naturally sensed the appearance of the will of the world and thought that their opportunity had come. But when they heard the reports from their clans, they learned that King Yi and the others had surrounded the Jiang clan, and that it just happened to coincide with Zu An’s return. The situation immediately became one of Zu An singlehandedly overwhelming King Yi’s magnificent army.

When they recalled what happened the last time Zu An had created a huge disturbance, they had begun to communicate with each other through divine will and subsequently decided to come and take a look. They planned to protect the empire and the dignity of the eight dukes. But the closer they got, the more shocked they became. The will of the world they'd sensed seemed to be from that very place. Thus, they had continued to search for it in shock, only to find that it came from Zu An himself.

They all exchanged looks and determined that what they'd sensed wasn’t wrong. They were overwhelmed with shock.

Zu An has resonated with the will of the world?

What kind of cultivation rank is this?!

After all, not even Zhao Han seemed to have reached this level.

As such, they naturally gave up on thoughts of maintaining the dignity of the eight dukes and instead put on friendly smiles on their faces. “It seems that the regent has returned.”

“Did you all hurry over just to plead for mercy on his behalf?” Zu An asked indifferently.

The five dukes looked a bit embarrassed. There were still so many people watching. But the events that had taken place in the Meng clan reminded them that Zu An wasn’t someone who listened to threats, and they realized that they had a much better chance speaking gently. If they threatened him to release King Yi, he definitely wouldn’t give them any face.

As such, they all tried to convince him with appeals to both emotion and reason.

“Zhao Huang, this brat deserves to be in his current condition for offending the regent.”

“Zhao Huang, did you lose your mind? You dare to even offend the regent?!”

“Have you spent all that time in the army and the capital for nothing? Are you plotting a rebellion?”

…

King Yi kneeled on the ground and almost cried when he heard their criticism.

I was waiting for you guys to uphold justice for me, so why are you guys immediately criticizing me without even trying to distinguish right and wrong?

Just then, the Grand Tutor Zhuang He said, “Even so, Zhao Huang is still a member of the royal family and still has a bit of prestige. Killing him might end up shaking up the confidence of this empire.”

Just a trifling Zhao Huang wasn’t that big of a deal for the eight dukes. However, they did care about the dignity of the royal family. After all, Zu An had just killed a prince in the capital, and then he had wiped out the entire Meng clan and even two of the eight dukes.

They had finally managed to calm down the situation caused by the last time. The death of the prince could still be explained, since it was a conflict on a smaller scale. But right now, there was a king and two members of the royal family, who had come with a massive army. If they were killed in this situation, the will of the people could waver and the world of warriors could become unstable!