May I seek good fortune and avoid misfortune, and live a long and prosperous life.

In the thirty-fourth year of the Xiangqing reign, barbarians invaded the pass, the capital fell, and the Xiangqing Emperor committed suicide.

Emperor Xiangqing left a will stating, "Let the barbarians tear my body apart, but do not harm a single one of my people."

This news quickly spread throughout all the states of Chu, causing panic and grief among countless people.

The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every citizen; this is not just a saying, but something that is closely related to everyone.

Everyone realized that the State of Chu was truly in danger this time.

Some bandits in the southern states took advantage of this incident to launch another uprising, hoping to fish in troubled waters.

The Third Prince's side immediately took various measures to respond.

First, he declared his legitimacy in the name of the third son of Emperor Xiangqing. Then, relying on his great prestige from the recent suppression of the puppet Liang regime in the northwest, he immediately won over the southern states and sent troops to quell the small groups of bandits who had rebelled in various states.

Second, we will do our utmost to receive the martial artists and civilians who have fled from the north.

Third, we must digest and consolidate our existing territory to make full preparations for resisting the barbarians.

After the northern barbarians captured the capital of Chu, they massacred the resistance fighters in the capital and won over and promoted the surrender faction. Using the method of using Chu to control Chu, they organized a large-scale puppet army and a large number of northern warriors.

After resting in Kyoto for three months, the northern barbarians, with 100,000 elite cavalry and 300,000 puppet troops, attacked Luozhou, Qianzhou, Lingzhou and Kunzhou in the north.

The Third Prince also personally dispatched troops to support the northern states and ordered all states in the land to march north to defend the emperor.

……

Sunrise and sunset, half a year has passed.

Inside the Poison Dragon Pool cave.

Li Heng sat upright on the futon, his eyes suddenly snapping open, an imposing aura instantly emanating from him.

At this moment, he finally regained the peak of the Grandmaster realm!

"This cultivation session went very smoothly. Flaws that I hadn't noticed before have been corrected through this training. My current strength is about 10% higher than before I started cultivating again. The benefits are numerous!"

"Continue your training and strive to emerge from seclusion as soon as possible!"

Li Heng closed his eyes and began cultivating the second stage of the Dispersing Power Technique, dispersing his newly acquired realm back to the peak of the first rank.

This was the second time he had dissipated his internal energy. Li Heng discovered that the energy he had dissipated had not disappeared, but had instead dispersed into his bones and flesh, nourishing his body. He felt warm all over, and his foundation and the quality of his internal energy had improved significantly once again.

At this time, Li Heng was unaware of the situation outside, but even if he had known, he would have been unable to leave seclusion.

Before gaining absolute power, an individual's strength is limited; even if he were to leave the pass now, he might not be able to save the Chu Kingdom again.

Because the strength of the northern barbarians was far beyond that of the bandit regime of Chen Tianwang, which was severely lacking in foundation, and they had a constant stream of grandmasters and martial artists.

The northern barbarians' attack on the State of Chu was not a decision made on a whim, but rather the result of careful consideration.

However, if Wu Gui, the general guarding Yulong Pass, had not been bribed by the barbarians and opened the gates to welcome them into the pass, the capital would not have been able to be captured in such a short time.

If we can hold out until the Third Prince leads his troops north to provide support, the situation will be different.

……

For half a year, the Third Prince traveled between various northern states, persisting in resisting the northern barbarians.

Due to the immense prestige the Third Prince had accumulated from suppressing the bandits, most of the surviving officials of the Great Chu were willing to support him, and the Third Prince officially declared himself emperor.

Issued the edict of accession to the throne:

[By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The barbarians have breached the capital, and the late Emperor has died for his country. I, filled with grief, ascend the throne, and only through military force can I quell this! The monstrous beasts have torn the western borders to shreds; their stench has stained the imperial tombs, and I vow to cleanse them with my blood! Therefore, the reign title is changed to Jingwu...]

The country's name remained Chu (for easy distinction, it was divided into Old Chu and New Chu), and its reign title was Jingwu. He was known to the world as Emperor Jingwu.

Meanwhile, the leader of the northern barbarians also ascended the throne and declared himself emperor, establishing a state called Xing!

Currently, only the second and third princes of Emperor Xiangqing are still alive; the rest were all killed in the capital.

Therefore, a small number of people supported the second son of Emperor Xiangqing, but due to insufficient ability and prestige, the position collapsed not long after it was established, and the remaining supporters all surrendered to the third prince.

Although Emperor Xiangqing was mediocre, he dared to commit suicide to avoid disgrace, which the people pitied and sympathized with. As a result, the hearts of the people of Chu were still with him. Therefore, when the third prince ascended the throne, he received a great response. A large number of soldiers, civilians and warriors from the south went north to support the new Chu.

The northern barbarians and Emperor Jingwu's forces engaged in fierce offensive and defensive battles in the Qianzhou area.

With the rich defensive experience gained from suppressing the bandits in the northwest, Emperor Jingwu's side was temporarily at a stalemate with the Xing Kingdom.

However, in terms of hard power, the Xing Kingdom is far superior to the newly enthroned Chu court, which has been gathering its remaining forces.

……

The third year of the Jingwu reign.

Emperor Jingwu resisted in Qianzhou for more than two years, but in the end, the entire territory of Qianzhou was conquered by the Xing Kingdom. Emperor Jingwu had no choice but to lead his civil and military officials and soldiers to Kunzhou to continue resisting the barbarians.

Enraged by their prolonged and unsuccessful siege of Qianzhou, the Xing Kingdom's emperor ordered a three-day massacre on the day of its fall. As a result, rivers of blood flowed and corpses littered the land, turning Qianzhou into a living hell.

Emperor Jingwu was deeply saddened by the Qianzhou massacre. He wept bitterly in the court that day and eventually fainted.

The people of Kunzhou put up white couplets and wore white clothes to mourn the murdered people of Qianzhou.

……

Poison Dragon Pool Cave.

At this point, Li Heng had already dissipated his power seven times in a row.

His foundation and inner strength have also been enhanced to 70% of their original level.

The current Li Heng feels he could easily defeat his former self.

Moreover, after dispersing his power more than three times, Li Heng discovered that the bottleneck to his path to the Grandmaster realm was completely gone. He could break through to the Grandmaster realm at any time if he wanted to!

However, since Li Heng possesses an immortal body, he must make full use of this heaven-defying advantage. As long as he can still improve at the Grandmaster level, Li Heng will resolutely not break through. Just like building a house, the more solid the foundation, the higher the house can be built! Only then will his later achievements be greater!

"Continue cultivating!" Li Heng then closed his eyes again.

……

The fourth year of the Jingwu reign.

The situation is deteriorating further.

Since conquering Kunzhou, the Xing Kingdom's offensive has become even more rapid, and they have boasted that they will destroy the new Chu dynasty within a year.

Kunzhou, Luozhou, and Lingzhou fell to the enemy within a year.

From then on, the entire northern territory fell into enemy hands.

Emperor Jingwu retreated to Ningcheng, the hub between the north and south, and continued to organize the army and people to resist the barbarians.

After unifying the north, the Xing Kingdom ordered the northern people to shave their heads and change their customs, completely abandoning the clothing and culture of the Chu Kingdom, with those who disobeyed to be killed without mercy.

Many former Chu citizens, unwilling to serve the rebels, jumped into the river and died for their country.

"The attire of my Chu state is the true orthodox; you barbarians are nothing but monkeys in human clothing!"

However, many survivors, clinging to life and afraid of death, disliked hanging themselves because they felt it was an unpleasant way to die, and they disliked jumping into the river because the water was too cold, so they sought refuge in the Kingdom of the Apes.

Emperor Jingwu was exhausted. That year, he often thought of the legendary master, the Marquis of Protectorate, the Night Emperor, every night!

"If the Protector-General were still alive, how could the nation have fallen to such a state!"

Protector of the Nation, Night Emperor!

It is not just a simple name, but also a spiritual pillar for the warriors and soldiers of the Chu Kingdom.

The low morale in the Chu Kingdom is largely due to the fact that the Night Emperor has been missing for several years.

There are many folk tales about the Night Emperor.

Some speculate that the Night Emperor died in recent years because he was seriously injured in a battle against the White-Haired Old Master of the Great Snow Mountain when he was suppressing bandits in the Northwest.

Some speculate that the Night Emperor died peacefully in his sleep, passing away after pacifying the bandits and returning to Yuncheng.

On the streets of Ningcheng, many people knelt on the ground, shouting, "Where are you, once a legendary grandmaster, a first-class protector of the nation, the Night Emperor? Look at the land of Chu now! It's filthy and wild beasts roam freely. This time, it's not just the fall of a country, but the fall of the world! Please save the world once more!"