I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 407 Rely on yourself

[Hmm... So it was because Yin Lanci died that the Gu worms inside Second Junior Brother's body self-destructed, leaving him severely injured, which is why he suddenly vomited blood and collapsed.]

Chu Liuzheng sat cross-legged on the ground, fiddling with the system. He had been chased by the monster old man the whole time and hadn't had time to check on the situation in the military camp. Now he could take a good look and recover his stamina.

[Funny! The Tyrant is injured!]

Oh, no bones or tendons are injured, it's not serious.

[Tsk tsk, one arrow and he's dead. The tyrant's aim is pretty good. Yin Lanci is really dead this time.]

[Hahaha!! "Life-Sustaining Powder for Impotence," what a terrible name! Its side effect is impotence. If those ministers in the court knew about this, they could kill Doctor Feng with just a look.]

Chu Liuzheng laughed as he pulled down his clothes, only to find that everyone had followed the Shadow Chaser to find him, and he began to worry.

She did know how Zheng Qianqian avoided the traps and formations to reach the Thousand-Foot Cliff, but the problem was that she couldn't get the news out.

General Huang Qian has some knowledge of this, but can he do it?
Forget it, instead of waiting for reinforcements, we'll rely on ourselves.

Chu Liuzheng shut down the system, ignoring his rumbling stomach, and stood up, swaying slightly before regaining his balance.

She had been forced to draw the monsters' aggro for Zheng Qianqian and run around with Old Man Wei, which severely exhausted her. Now her legs were as weak as noodles, and she was sliding down.

The library was in the north, while Prince Rui was imprisoned in a courtyard in the south. Just thinking about the distance between the north and south made Chu Liuzheng's vision go black.

But we have to save him, no matter how far away he is. Given Prince Rui's current condition, he'll die if we don't help him soon. She was hoping to leave the palace by saving Prince Rui.

To avoid being discovered by others, she first dragged Zheng Qianqian and the monster old man into the library.

Both of them were completely exhausted. Chu Liuzheng's already limited strength was completely depleted. He sat on the ground for a long time before standing up, rubbing his stomach and sighing.

[I'm so hungry! It's all Yin Lanci's fault. If she hadn't been pretending, why did she have to steal my purse? If I still had it, I could have eaten a candy to replenish my energy.]

Chu Liuzheng leaned against the mountain wall and slowly walked down the stone steps. He relied on the tokens he had taken from Zheng Qianqian and Old Man Wei to deal with the patrols and guards. He walked for a while and rested for a while, and finally arrived at the courtyard where Prince Rui was imprisoned.

"Thunder rumbles before the Awakening of Insects arrives." The guard was a burly man, seven feet tall, with extremely large, dark eyes that let in no light. His voice was monotonous and flat.

Is this a code?

Chu Liuzheng quietly checked the system and replied, "Spring will surely return after the Great Cold."

The guard stared at her expressionlessly, his dark pupils sending chills down her spine, and the hairs on Chu Liuzheng's back stood on end.

Just when she thought the signal was wrong, the guard stepped aside, leaving a space about the width of a person, his dark eyes still fixed on her.

[Ugh, what kind of awful taste does Yin Lanci have? Why does he always create these inhuman, ghostly things? They're terrifying!]

Chu Liuzheng swallowed quietly, trying his best to keep his eyes straight as he brushed past the guard, catching a faint smell of rotting flesh.

She didn't dare to think about it too much and quickened her pace to walk inside.

Moonlight pierced through the clouds and mist, casting a hazy veil over the entire courtyard.

The courtyard was small, with stone lanterns at the four corners emitting a faint light that, along with the moonlight, could barely illuminate the scene within.

There wasn't much scenery to see, except for the stone table and chairs in the courtyard, and two crooked trees in the corner. A tattered swing hung from one of the trees, swaying back and forth in the night wind, adding a touch of eeriness to the quiet night.

Chu Liuzheng had expected there to be many guards in the courtyard, but when he looked around, it was completely empty, with not a single person in sight.

It was completely different from what she had imagined.

[Strange, didn't the system say it was heavily guarded? Where are they?]

As she walked through the courtyard towards the main house, she absentmindedly browsed the system. As she scrolled, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Damn!"

Just now, Prince Rui was taken away by a group of guards! He was so close!!

Chu Liuzheng bit his lip in frustration and decisively turned to leave.
-
With the sound of horses' hooves, the group rode their horses and followed the Shadow-Chasing Insects all the way to the vicinity of Thousand-Foot Cliff.

"Your Majesty, Thousand-Foot Cliff lies ahead."

Xiao Jingfan looked up and saw that under the night sky, the straight, sword-like mountain peaks soared into the clouds, and the bright moonlight, like flowing water, reflected countless menacing tree shadows.

Chen Xing: "It seems Zheng Qianqian has kidnapped Sister Liu Zheng to Qianchi Cliff."

Feng Jing put the Shadow Chaser back into the box and asked, "What do we do now?"

The cliff is riddled with traps and formations; going up the mountain unprepared would be suicide.

Xiao Jingfan frowned in thought, when he heard the sound of horses' hooves approaching.

"Your Majesty, this humble subject pays his respects. Long live the Emperor!" Huang Qian dismounted and bowed to Xiao Jingfan with clasped hands.

The soldiers behind him saluted in unison, their armor clattering.

"No need for formalities." Xiao Jingfan also dismounted and asked, "Is there any unusual activity at Thousand-Foot Cliff?"

"No unusual activity at the moment." Huang Qian looked at the emperor. "I wonder what brings Your Majesty here so late at night?"

"Come and take a look." Xiao Jingfan glanced at the soldiers behind him and asked, "Have any unauthorized individuals entered the mountain today?"

"No," Huang Qian said. "I have ordered men to guard all the entrances to the mountain. If anyone tries to enter the mountain, the guards will report to me."

Thousand-Foot Cliff has a notorious reputation, and few people venture into the mountains on ordinary days. Now that the army is patrolling at the foot of the mountain, ordinary people are even less likely to risk their lives. As a result, Thousand-Foot Cliff has been very quiet lately, with no one coming down the mountain or going up.

Xiao Jingfan didn't have much hope to begin with. With Zheng Qianqian's abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for him to slip past the soldiers and into the mountains.

He then looked at the distant mountain peaks and asked, "How well have the mechanisms and formations on the mountain been broken?"

Upon hearing this question, Huang Qian immediately looked troubled.

Xiao Jingfan looked at him, his eyes darkening slightly: "Not even the slightest progress?"

“There has been some progress, but…” Huang Qian paused and sighed, “The casualties have been heavy. Of the fifty men we sent out, only one returned, and he is missing an arm. He is still unconscious and we don’t know if he will survive.”

Everyone gasped in shock; the formations and mechanisms on the Thousand-Foot Cliff were far more ruthless than they had imagined.

Xiao Jingfan's expression also turned ugly.

Huang Qian said, "Your Majesty, please move along. If you wish to go up the mountain, you must consider this carefully."

The group mounted their horses and followed him back to their temporary military camp.

Before they even reached the gate of the military camp, they heard the sound of horses' hooves from behind.

The group reined in their horses and looked in the direction of the sound.

The newcomer was riding a chestnut horse, dressed in black, and wearing a mask; he was a bodyguard.

As they got closer, they saw that there was another person on the horse, whose hands were tied behind his back and he was lying face down on the horse, kicking his legs and his face was flushed red.

“It’s a fortune teller.” Feng Jing recognized the fat old man with the white beard at a glance.

Xiao Dale stopped his horse and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Xiao Jingfan: "My lord, this man is the demigod who can predict the future. His surname is Gu, and he is known as the Half-Immortal Gu."

(End of this chapter)