After fifteen years of cultivation, he finally reached the pinnacle of the first rank!

Chapter 412 Western Desert
"Why has the Great Xuan suddenly changed its stance and is now willing to form an alliance with my Great Li?"

In the court of Dali, many officials whispered among themselves upon hearing that the Great Xuan Empress had sent an envoy with a letter of state.

The envoy from Da Xuan stood bowing in the main hall, bowing his head to Emperor Yuanwu, who sat on the dragon throne, with an extremely humble expression.

They showed no disrespect or overstepping of bounds despite the immense kindness shown by Da Xuan to Da Li, which was like sending charcoal in snowy weather.

In the Golden Palace, Emperor Yuanwu looked down at the handwritten letter from Empress Da Xuan in his hand, his face expressionless.

The alliance between Da Xuan and Da Li had been communicated in advance by the Da Xuan Empress, but today the envoys were officially dispatched to sign the treaty between the two countries.

In the Empress's letter, she only mentioned the reason why Da Xuan took the initiative to form an alliance with Da Li in one sentence, stating that the eighth prince of Da Li had been kind to her and that she wished to form an eternal alliance with Da Li. She said nothing more.

Although the Great Xuan Empress did not explain the specific reasons, this one sentence alone allowed Emperor Yuanwu to verify the news that the secret agents of the Hidden Intelligence Bureau had previously sent back from Tai Xuan City.

Emperor Yuanwu's face remained expressionless. He handed the letter from the Great Xuan Kingdom and the Great Xuan Empress's personal letter to the chief eunuch beside him, then looked down at the Great Xuan envoy below and nodded slightly.

"Although the Great Xuan Emperor is a woman, she is kind-hearted and benevolent, which is a blessing to the people of the world. I do not wish to see the two countries fighting each other and suffering. From this day forward, I will form an alliance with the Great Xuan Dynasty and vow to advance and retreat together. The two countries will never invade each other."

For a woman to claim the throne was a huge act of defiance against the world. Emperor Yuanwu's words were undoubtedly a personal recognition of Zhao Muning's imperial status, a way of returning the favor.

Upon hearing this, the envoy from Da Xuan immediately bowed his head in agreement, and then quietly looked up at Emperor Yuanwu on the dragon throne above.

The emperor of Dali remained remarkably calm throughout. Given Dali's current internal and external troubles, the alliance and assistance from Daxuan was tantamount to saving Dali from dire straits, and was an immense favor.

However, Emperor Yuanwu's reaction to this matter seemed rather indifferent, and he didn't even mention a word of thanks to Da Xuan.

The envoy from Da Xuan was naturally somewhat displeased, but he did not show it on his face at all, and simply bowed his head in agreement.

Before he left Da Xuan for Da Li, he heard many rumors in Tai Xuan City, especially about the deeds of the eighth prince of Da Li.

Although the situation between Zhao Muning and Li Musheng was not made public, the story of Li Musheng devouring demonic energy and the cultivation of the three major demonic sect leaders to become an unparalleled demon, as well as his forced entry into the palace to release a group of imprisoned martial arts masters of the Great Xuan world, was widely circulated in the Great Xuan world.

With that prince of Dali present, and currently residing within the territory of Daxuan, the Daxuan court naturally cannot help but be wary of him.

"His Majesty the Emperor of our dynasty has said that he is willing to help Dali get out of its predicament as soon as possible, and if Dali ever needs Daxuan's help in the future, he will do his best to assist it."

The envoy from Da Xuan paused for a moment before speaking in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Yuanwu narrowed his eyes slightly, but his face remained expressionless. He simply nodded slightly and did not say anything more.

After signing the alliance treaty between the two countries, Emperor Yuanwu ordered officials of the Ministry of Rites to receive the envoys from Da Xuan, and then dismissed the court and left.

The news of the formal alliance between Da Xuan and Da Li spread throughout the Da Li court and beyond in a very short time.

The whole of Tai Xuan City knew about it, and within half a day, even the people on the streets and alleys were talking about it.

Just as the people of the capital, who had been shrouded in gloom for many days, were excited by the alliance between Da Xuan and Da Li, a secret edict from the palace quietly entered the Heavenly Prison.

Inside the dark and sunless dungeon, only the faint, dim yellow light flickered on the stone walls.

Li Zhi sat cross-legged on a dry straw mat in the prison cell. The true energy of heaven and earth around him flowed into his body like hidden streams of spiritual springs, and his aura visibly increased and grew stronger.

At the same time, a slight tremor ran through the darkness outside the cell, and then, Li Tianyi, the Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Household, dressed in a golden python robe, appeared silently outside the cell where Li Zhi was.

Li Tianyi had a gaunt face and snow-white hair. He calmly looked at Li Zhi, who was sitting cross-legged in the cell, then narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly said:

"Seventh Prince, His Majesty has sent me with an imperial decree."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhi slowly opened his eyes, and his martial arts aura quickly receded.

Then, he looked up at Li Tianyi outside the cell, but his expression was extremely calm, as if he was not surprised at all by the arrival of this Grand Eunuch.

"Which of the three major sects does Father want me to deal with?"

Li Zhi suddenly spoke, his gaze fixed on the eunuch in python robes before him, his voice calm as he took the initiative to ask.

Li Tianyi also looked at Li Zhi, nodded slightly, and said:
"Your Highness is deeply indebted to the Emperor, and His Majesty has always kept you in his heart. As for the current situation of Dali, Your Highness must have heard about it."

As he spoke, Li Tianyi raised his hand and grabbed forward, and the iron prison door in front of him instantly collapsed, turning into strands of iron filings that fell down.

At the same time, Li Tianyi's voice slowly rang in Li Zhi's ear:

"His Majesty has said that as long as Your Highness can defeat any one of the three major sects of the martial arts world and help Dali overcome this crisis, His Majesty will not only restore Your Highness's status, but also confer upon Your Highness the title of King."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhi, still sitting cross-legged on the straw mat in the prison cell, frowned slightly. He stared at the chief eunuch before him for a while and asked:

"Is the situation of the Great Li truly at a critical juncture of life and death?"

However, Li Tianyi shook his head and said:

"Today, the Great Xuan and our dynasty have formed an alliance, and the situation has improved. Furthermore, the Great Chu had previously proposed a marriage alliance, and Princess Huarong has already agreed to it. She will depart for the Great Chu today..."

Upon hearing this, a look of surprise clearly appeared in Li Zhi's eyes.

Since the last attack, the Da Li Heavenly Prison has tightened its guard on him, and Li Zhi has been focusing on cultivating martial arts in the prison, almost cutting off all contact with the outside world. Therefore, he is unaware of the recent events in Tai Xuan City.

Li Tianyi naturally noticed the seventh prince's confusion, so he briefly explained the situation, saying:
"The Great Li can barely cope with the border wars in the short term, so His Majesty intends to act swiftly and decisively, planning to eliminate the three major sects of the martial arts world within three months to resolve this internal threat, and he is willing to pay any price for it!"

Li Zhi's expression shifted rapidly, clearly not expecting that such a drastic change would occur in the internal and external situation of the Great Li Dynasty after only a few months of secluded cultivation.

In particular, Da Xuan's change in attitude greatly surprised him.

Li Zhi stared at Li Tianyi and asked him why Da Xuan and Da Li had formed an alliance, but the Grand Eunuch Li Tianyi just shook his head and remained silent.

Although Li Tianyi had heard some rumors that the inside story was related to the Eighth Prince, only Emperor Yuanwu knew the real reason.

If Emperor Yuanwu hadn't spoken, no one else would have dared to speculate or discuss it. "From this moment on, Your Highness may leave the Heavenly Prison, and His Majesty will not impose any restrictions on Your Highness. This period is three months."

As Li Tianyi spoke, he bowed slightly in greeting, then took out a bright yellow silk imperial edict from his sleeve and handed it to Li Zhi, saying:

"A king's word is his bond; this is His Majesty's promise to Your Highness."

Li Zhi stared at the imperial edict handed to him without speaking. He knew too little information to truly fathom his father's intentions.

Having spent so many years with Emperor Yuanwu, Li Zhi naturally had some understanding of his father. Every decision and every move the emperor made was meaningful and purposeful.

Although Li Zhi was certain that his father, the emperor, would release him from the prison, the current situation was different from before, and there must be something else going on behind the scenes.

Li Tianyi looked at the silent Li Zhi, not saying a word from beginning to end, just quietly waiting for the other party's decision.

Finally, Li Zhi slowly stood up from the straw mat, his face expressionless, and then reached out to take the imperial edict from Li Tianyi's hand.

"Please convey my greetings to my father, and I will certainly do my best in this matter."

Li Zhi spoke softly, without opening the imperial edict, but instead tucked it into his sleeve.

Li Tianyi gave Li Zhi a deep look. The Seventh Prince in front of him was exceptionally talented, with outstanding literary and martial skills among all the princes, and was highly valued by Emperor Yuanwu.

If it weren't for the case of the real and fake princes, and if it weren't for the existence of that eighth prince who was like a monster and had wandered among the common people, the position of crown prince of Dali might have been his.

Li Tianyi felt a little emotional, but he didn't show it on his face. He respectfully agreed, bowed, and left.

Li Zhi watched as Li Tianyi's figure quietly disappeared into the darkness of the dungeon.

He stood there, his mind racing. After a moment of silence, a glint of light gradually appeared in his eyes, his gaze seemingly piercing through the dark, long dungeon before him:

"Whatever my father's purpose may be, there are many more things I can do after leaving this prison."

……

Li Musheng and his group left the capital Taixuan City and headed west. After about half a month, they arrived at the western border of Daxuan. From there, the only thing to the west was the boundless desert and Gobi.

The city of Baidi, which Li Musheng was heading to, was located in this vast, boundless desert, where no one lived for hundreds of miles.

A bright sun hung high in the sky as Cao Gaoshan drove his carriage across the vast Gobi Desert. As far as the eye could see, sand dunes rose and fell like the backs of giant beasts, and the air was filled with the faint, scorching smell of the sun baking the sand.

The big black cat had never seen a desert or Gobi before. When it first arrived at the western border of Da Xuan, it was filled with joy and curiosity about everything in front of it.

But after only half a day, the big black cat grew tired of the desolate, monotonous, and lifeless barren land. It lay lazily beside Li Musheng, showing no interest in anything outside the window.

More importantly, the desert was extremely hot and dry during the day, but it was incredibly cool around Li Musheng. The big black cat just wanted to stay with its head against Li Musheng and didn't want to go anywhere else.

Li Musheng glanced at the large black cat lying like a corpse, and casually pushed the huge cat's head aside.

During this time, they traveled day and night, but the cat not only did not lose weight, but instead grew fatter and fatter.

"How much longer until we reach Baidi City?"

Li Musheng asked a question, his gaze sweeping through the car window towards the endless Gobi Desert. The big black cat, quite astutely, rolled over and continued sleeping.

Upon hearing this, Cao Gaoshan, who was driving the carriage, took out a map from his pocket, examined it carefully for a moment, and replied:
“Your Highness, in theory, after we leave the border of Da Xuan, it should take us another seven or eight days to reach Baidi City.”

At this point, Cao Gaoshan looked around, then frowned and said:
"However, this desert is sparsely populated. Although there are dirt roads built by merchants in the past, this area is often ravaged by sandstorms. If you are not familiar with this area, it is very easy to get lost."

As an experienced coachman, Cao Gaoshan's sense of direction was naturally far superior to Li Musheng's. However, even he couldn't guarantee that he could reach Baidi City smoothly and without any obstacles in this desert and Gobi.

Hearing this, Li Musheng raised his eyebrows slightly, but as someone who had no sense of direction, he couldn't be too demanding of Cao Gaoshan.

At this moment, Cang Yinyue, inside the carriage, looked thoughtful and said:

"If I remember correctly, according to the map, there is a small town about seventy miles further along this road. We might be able to find an experienced local to guide us. If we are lucky, we might even run into a caravan heading to Baidi City."

Cang Yinyue looked at the map and saw that although the area in front of her was sparsely populated, there were still some oasis villages and towns in the desert.

However, the Western Desert does not belong to the territory of any of the five kingdoms. The towns in the desert are a mixed bag, full of filth and evil, and are not lacking in vicious and desperate criminals. Ordinary people do not dare to enter easily.

Of course, they are not ordinary people and are not included in this list.

"That's exactly what I was thinking. If we had someone familiar with this area to guide us, we wouldn't get lost in the desert."

Cao Gaoshan nodded slightly, turned around and looked back at the carriage behind him, waiting for Li Musheng's approval.

"You can figure it out."

Li Musheng waved his hand, not caring much about the matter.

His destination was Baidi City. He had gained a lot in Taixuan City, which satisfied him greatly, and he naturally had high expectations for Baidi City.

After all, Baidi City is not only the stronghold of the Hidden Killing Pavilion, but also related to the legendary ancient ferocious beast, the White Tiger, which is of great benefit to Li Musheng's pursuit of martial arts transcendence.

Upon hearing this, Cao Gaoshan agreed and continued driving the carriage forward.

As the sun was setting, the carriage had just passed through a rocky ravine when the clear sound of camel bells drifted in from afar.

Cao Gaoshan squinted slightly and looked ahead. Deeper into the valley, he could vaguely see a cluster of earthen walls and wooden buildings, which was the town they were heading to.

On the dirt road leading to the town, a dozen or so camels roamed around, and a faint, almost imperceptible smell of blood permeated the air.

(End of this chapter)