Douluo Dalu: Seven Kills

Chapter 597: Passed the second level; passed the third and fourth levels (two in one)

"Ah--"

As if mocking, Chen Junting slowly raised his head and looked towards the gray northern sky. There, it seemed as if the thunder of the barbarian cavalry galloping could be heard, and the bloody sky of beacon fires could be seen. The aroma of wine in the maze, Jialing's soft words, and the flattery of the ministers...

All the illusory prosperity, all the whitewashed peaceful beauty, collapsed in the face of the real tragic scene of starving people everywhere, revealing the foundation of white bones!
Regret, anger, shame...all these emotions were like poisonous fire, burning wildly in his chest, almost tearing him apart!

"Go back to the palace!"

Chen Junting turned around abruptly, his voice was hoarse but full of determination. The hem of his dragon robe rustled in the cold wind of the north, and his back was as straight as a sword drawn from its sheath.

Soon, the atmosphere in the Purple Palace became as solemn as iron. The once luxurious furnishings now seemed to be covered with a layer of coldness.

Chen Junting sat on the dragon throne. Although his face was haggard and his eye sockets were sunken, his eyes were surprisingly bright, like burning cold flames. He was no longer the drunken and dreaming tyrant in the maze, but an old dragon who was completely enraged and eager to drink blood.

As for the deposed Crown Prince Chen Shuo, he stood at his right hand.

"deliver an imperial order!"

Chen Junting's voice was not loud, but it was clearly transmitted to every corner of the hall, carrying with it the unquestionable power of thunder.

"First: The criminal Li Ju deceived the emperor, disrupted the government, sold official positions, embezzled military funds, concealed military reports, and caused the loss of the northern border and the suffering of the people! His crime is unforgivable! He shall be executed by slow slicing! His three clans shall be exterminated! Any of his accomplices who are found guilty shall be executed immediately, regardless of their official positions! Their property shall be confiscated!"

The iron-blooded and cruel order was like ice falling to the ground, and the few old ministers left in the hall felt a chill running through their bones.

"Second: Jialing and other evil concubines bewitched the emperor, corrupted his government, and indulged in extravagance! Although they have been executed, their crimes cannot be forgiven! Their bodies must be exposed in the North Palace for three days for public display! The maze towers, wine pools, and meat gardens must all be destroyed! All treasures must be sealed up and used as military supplies!"

"Third: Crown Prince Chen Shuo is loyal and upright, and dares to make remonstrances. He cares about the country. Although his behavior is not good (referring to the mutiny), his feelings are pitiable, and his heart is as bright as the sun and the moon! You are ordered to restore him to the position of Crown Prince! Give him the seal of the regent, and let him manage the government on my behalf, comfort the people and maintain peace, and raise food, fodder and military equipment!"

"Fourth: I have a lack of moral integrity, I do not accept honest advice, and I indulge in pleasure, which has led to treacherous people taking power, neglecting military preparations, causing the barbarians to wreak havoc, and the people to flee! I have failed the heavens and I am ashamed of the people! I hereby issue a "Reproach Edict" to all prefectures and counties! I will personally lead the six armies to the northern border to fight against the barbarians. I will not return to Chang'an until I have avenged this shame!"

A series of decrees, every word is as sharp as a knife, every sentence is stained with blood!

Not a moment's hesitation, not a moment's delay.

Even though some ministers wanted to dissuade him, they did not dare to say too much under the emperor's gaze, which warned them that "anyone who dares to speak against him will be killed."

The entire empire's massive war machine, under the cold and efficient will of the awakened emperor Chen Junting, began to emit a crude but heart-pounding roar.

Three days! Just three days!
The city of Chang'an seemed to have experienced a baptism of violent storm.

Li Ju was taken to the execution ground. The once glorious "Regent" was now disheveled and limp. He was stripped of his official uniform and tied to the execution pillar with his upper body naked. The executioner was skilled, and the sharp blade was like a butterfly flying through flowers. The shrill, inhuman howls lasted for three hours, and finally turned into a bloody skeleton. Dozens of his followers were also beheaded at Caishikou for public display. Their heads rolled to the ground, and the dirty blood soaked the loess. The people of Chang'an watched from afar, frightened at first, and then burst into long-suppressed, earth-shaking cheers!

At this moment, all the pent-up resentment was relieved as these treacherous ministers were executed.

The maze tower, this extravagant den at the foot of Mount Li, was completely destroyed by the imperial army under the strict order of Chen Junting. The white jade pool that once flowed with fine wine was smashed to pieces by a giant hammer, the jade "Paradise Goddess Bathing Buddha" inlaid in the bottom was moved away, the fine iron branches that hung delicacies were knocked down, and the gorgeous gauze curtains were torn down.

As for the meat in the meat forest and the wine in the wine pool, they were all given to the soldiers. Countless rare treasures and gold and silver utensils were registered and transported to the national treasury and the military equipment bureau in carts.

The bodies of Jialing and those beautiful girls were wrapped in straw mats and hung on the city gate tower in the north of Chang'an City. They swayed stiffly in the cold wind, silently warning people of the consequences of their seduction and extravagance.

In addition, the "Edict of Confession of Sins" was sent to the whole country, and the decrees stamped with the imperial seal and the crown prince's seal also flew to all corners of the empire like wings - open the granaries to release grain! Provide relief to the victims! Recruit soldiers! Check the treasury! Strengthen the military equipment! Raise food and grass! Forge military equipment! Recruit civilians! Send troops to the north!
In a short time, most of the peasant uprisings were dissipated.

At this moment, the entire empire was forced onto the track of war in the midst of pain and chaos. The huge inertia made every step extremely difficult, but Chen Junting and the regent Crown Prince Chen Shuo showed unprecedented ruthless efficiency. Any shirking, procrastination, and corruption would face the most severe military punishment!
At dawn seven days later, outside Xuanwu Gate, north of Chang'an City.

The north wind was as sharp as a knife, sweeping up the remaining snow and dust on the ground, blowing countless fluttering flags. The imperial banners with dark golden dragons and the flags of the various guards were stretched straight in the cold wind. The army's armor was grim, and the swords and spears were like a forest, forming silent and murderous square formations, like a steel jungle, covering the vast plain outside the city. At this moment, the air was filled with the smell of rust, leather, and war horses, so heavy that it was suffocating.

The generals’ platform is towering!
Chen Junting was wearing a black armor and an old robe that was washed white and even had a few patches on it. It was the battle robe he wore when he attacked Luodu. His gray hair was tied tightly by a golden crown. The wrinkles on his face were like knife cuts. In his deep eye sockets, a kind of almost crazy fire burned. He stood on a high platform with his sword in hand, overlooking the torrent of steel below. The armor was cold and heavy, but it strangely fit his old body, awakening the youthful spirit that had been dormant in his blood for a long time.

Crown Prince Chen Shuo was also dressed in military uniform, standing beside him, his young face showing a solemnity and determination beyond his age. In his hand he held a bright yellow imperial edict.

Chen Junting slowly raised his hand, and the entire training ground suddenly fell silent, with only the whistling of the wind, but there was no trace of anger in his eyes.

The Lord should not raise an army in anger,
A general should not go into battle out of anger.

He knew this very well.

As for arrogance...

It no longer exists.

At this moment, Chen Junting's eyes were full of clarity.

His figure now seems to overlap with the prince's.

"Soldiers!"

His voice seemed to be sent far away, like thunder rolling across the earth, clearly reaching the ears of every soldier, with a desolate and tragic power, "I! Guilty!"

Two words: earth-shattering!

The eyes of all the soldiers in the army were instantly focused on the old and tall figure on the platform.

After all, issuing an edict is different from hearing it with your own ears.

"I was blinded by slander and obsessed with pleasure! I festered the disease and caused trouble, which led to the rampant evil of treacherous officials! Military preparations were neglected! The barbarians were rampant! The northern border fell! People were suffering! This is all my fault!" Chen Junting's voice was hoarse, and every word sounded like he was crying blood, confessing the deepest shame and regret of an emperor.

"I have issued the "Edict of Confession of Sins" and announced it to the world! My sins are witnessed by heaven and earth! However, the country is in danger and the people are hanging by a thread! This is not just my shame, this is the humiliation of the whole country of Daqian!"

Chen Junting suddenly drew out the sword from his waist, and the sword tip drew a sharp cold light in the dim morning light, pointing straight to the north!
"Today, I am wearing this broken body and old armor, and I am walking with you! I will not return to the court until the barbarians are defeated! With my blood, I will wash away my sins! With the blood of the barbarians, I will sacrifice to the soldiers and civilians who died in our northern border!" "Valiant old soldiers! Let's face the national crisis together!"

"The battle will not end until the blood is shed and the people die!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

The blood in the soldiers' chests was completely ignited! The suppressed anger, the pride of defending the country, and the complex emotions towards the king who had suddenly awakened and was willing to die to atone for his sins, finally turned into a roar like a tsunami! The sound waves were like a real frenzy, sweeping across the entire parade ground. At this moment, their anger seemed to shake the clouds in the sky and also shook the thick walls of Chang'an!
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"The battle will not end until the blood is shed and the people die!"

The roar is like thunder and the murderous aura reaches the sky!
Chen Junting took a last look at the towering Chang'an City behind him, and at the prince beside him with a determined look. He swung the sword in his hand forward, his movements were clean and neat, with a determination to never return! He roared: "Army, move out!"

"Woo——"

The desolate and majestic sound of the horn tore through the sky, like the roar of a giant dragon. At this moment, the torrent of steel began to move slowly.

The heavy footsteps, the sound of horse hooves, and the rolling of wheels converged into a torrent that shook the earth, carrying the determination to wash away the shame and the tragic grandeur of burning the boats and sinking the bridges, rolling towards the war-torn north. The picture also came to an abrupt end!

……

"ended."

In the Forest of Life in the divine world.

The God of Jealousy glanced at the God of Wrath from the corner of his eye, "I didn't expect that the original sin of anger would disappear in such a short time."

"Don't just talk about me!"

As soon as these words came out, the God of Anger immediately pointed at the God of Pride, "Look, the original sin of pride disappeared without a sound."

"cut--"

The God of Pride wanted to refute, but he was truly powerless.

He just curled his lips and fell silent.

Seeing these two troublemakers speechless for a moment, the God of Destruction, who had been silent for a long time, turned his gaze to the only two people who did not take action, the God of Jealousy and the God of Gluttony.

As if he had sensed the Master's gaze,
"My Lord." ×2
"Ah."

After responding, the God of Destruction said, "Next, it's your original sins that are left. Do you want to come together? Or one by one? If the latter, who wants to go first?"

The God of Jealousy and the God of Gluttony looked at each other, and finally...

"I'll go first."

The God of Gluttony spoke first, and then seven divine rings lit up, and a dark yellow divine power sank into the underworld.

……

So he went to the lower world, and just after waking up after passing the second level at Chen Jun Pavilion, he felt dizzy again and passed out before he could say a word to Yi Lao and the others.

But before he fainted, he had another word in his mind: Damn it! Can't you give me a break and a breath? !

The third level was very different from the previous ones. Because in the first two levels, his soul turned into a human, but in the third level... for some unknown reason, Chen Junting turned into a glutton, a ferocious beast that would not stop eating and eventually starved itself to death.

For this level, the original sin of gluttony aroused the greed of the Taotie that Chen Junting had transformed into. If he didn't restrain himself, the consequences would be self-evident, and he would end up eating too much and die.

Anyway, facing the desire for gluttony, Chen Junting's Taotie still followed his hunger instinct at first. But when Taotie's belly grew bigger and bigger, his mind, which had not been occupied by the original sin of gluttony, instantly regained clarity.

So I passed this level easily.

After the third level was passed, the fourth level was seamless. Chen Junting was not given time to wake up, and the God of Jealousy in the God Realm directly put her to the test.

As for the content of the fourth level...

Chen Junting became a painter directly, and his task was to paint a big Buddha in a temple. In addition to him, there were two other painters, who were also his brothers.

But after the Buddha was painted, the Buddha spoke and revealed the fate of the three people. One had a good fate: by chance, he was appreciated by a noble and became a royal painter; one had an average fate: he continued to be a painter, and although he did not have a great future, he married and had children in the future and lived a stable life; one had a bad fate: a year later, both his parents died, and although he married, his wife had an affair with someone else, and the child born was not his biological child. He also starved to death and froze to death, which could be considered an untimely death.

But no one knows who these three kinds of destinies correspond to?

All of a sudden, suspicion and jealousy surged in their hearts. No matter who they were, they all became jealous of the one with a good fate, and even the one with an average fate.

Under the guidance of the original sin of jealousy, Chen Junting directly made up a lie, saying that there is a strange beast called "Like", and once we eat its meat, we can eliminate suspicion and jealousy.

So after that, the three of them took their own tools and headed to Honolulu, ready to hunt the "kind" and eat its meat.

However, where is the such thing as “class” in this world?
It's just the evil of human nature.

Originally, Chen Junting, who was affected by the original sin of jealousy, planned to lure the other two painters to Honolulu and kill them to ensure that he was the lucky one.

But in the end, when they set foot in Honolulu, the other two painters could not find the so-called "kind" and Chen Junting was about to take action, the clarity in his mind overwhelmed the original sin of jealousy.

After smiling, he said directly, "I think this rumor is false." Then he made an oath with the other two painters: if anyone is the lucky one, he should help the other two. In this way, we don't have to be jealous. After all, everyone has their own destiny, and there is no need to force it.

So, the fourth level is passed!
(End of this chapter)