In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

During the battle with Xiang Yu, Xiang An's body was severely damaged by the immense magical power, like a torn sack. And as mentioned before—

Now, no one can help him adjust or fix it.

Xiang An suffered numerous fractures, so many that he couldn't even count them all. The damage to his internal organs was even more alarming. Moreover, due to the overload of the artificial magic circuit, these injuries would be very slow to heal on their own without the help of magic. Even if they were to heal themselves, Xiang An's combat power would be almost completely locked up. It would be a pipe dream for him to unleash the same combat power he had when fighting Xiang Yu.

"Fourth Uncle, Little Fourth, do you regret leaving Western Chu with me...?" Xiang An turned his head to look at the two relatives who remained by his side, his voice tinged with an undeniable weakness.

Zijuan lowered her head again, opened her mouth, wanting to say something but... she couldn't say anything.

"Xiang An...we've all come out with you, so don't say things like that anymore." Xiang Lu sat forward a little, patted the back of Xiang An's hand, and had a comforting smile on his face.

"Will you lead me and Xiao Si to a future even better than that of Western Chu?"

“…Mmm!” Xiang An lay there, looking at Xiang Lu’s aged yet gentle expression, and for some reason, his eyes were already incredibly moist. He nodded heavily.

"I'm sorry, Fourth Uncle... I couldn't bring Third Brother along."

A grown man, lying in the carriage, wept uncontrollably in front of his family.

“That child has always been attached to his older brother. Compared to you, his older brother is indeed a better match for him. Don’t cry. When have I ever blamed you?” Xiang Lu sighed and patted Xiang An’s hand again. “Have you thought this through?”

"Your country."

Xiang An nodded and sat up with all his might.

"Once we conquer the Three Qi, that area will become our territory. As for the capital... let's make Linzi our capital now."

"What's the name of the country? Have you decided on a name yet?"

"Bei Chu." Xiang An stretched out a hand and patted Zi Juan's shoulder. "Let's call him Bei Chu."

"King of Northern Chu... Xiang An." Xiang Lu raised his head slightly, looking up with a slightly dazed expression, and slowly read the name.

The carriage, carrying the ruler of the state of Northern Chu and the fate of that state, slowly made its way towards Linzi.

......

The news of Xiang Yu and Xiang An's break and Xiang An's defection from Western Chu was not hidden. Due to the gathering of spies from various countries, it spread throughout the world in just a few days.

The rumor that Xiang Yu and Xiang An were both seriously wounded, but their bravery caused the battlefield to become a mess, also spread among the people along with this news.

Twenty miles east of the Dongjun City ferry crossing, the riverbanks there are ravaged, with several interconnected lakes now standing out.

However, compared to that, the reactions and actions of the various warlords are more noteworthy.

"Master Zifang, Lao Xiao, what do you think of this matter?" Liu Ji stood by the open paper window, looking at the sunset on the horizon, stroking his beard, and asked the two people sitting behind him.

"Your Majesty, first of all, it would be best to confirm the veracity of this matter." Xiao He sighed, turned to look at Liu Ji, and said.

"Everyone knows how close the brothers Xiang Yu and Xiang An were. Such a sudden parting of ways... I think there might be a trap."

Zhang Liang held the teacup and took a sip.

“I do believe… that this matter is true.” Zhang Liang did not look at Liu Ji, took a sip of the still warm tea, and continued, “Lord Xiao should also know that on the day we had not yet left Xianyang, the two brothers’ quarrel was so loud that it almost lifted the ceiling of Xianyang Palace.”

"...Even so, I still find it too abnormal, and the fact that such a major event occurred so suddenly—"

“No, it’s not abrupt at all.” Liu Ji interrupted Xiao He and turned away from the window.

"Zifang, Lao Xiao, do you know what this is?" Liu Ji rummaged in his pocket and pulled out something about the size of a thumb, handing it to the two of them.

“This is…” Xiao He looked at the black cone-shaped object, somewhat puzzled.

But Zhang Liang recognized him at a glance.

"Is that the horn of a ground wolf?"

“Exactly.” Liu Ji nodded. “Then do you know where I obtained this wolf horn?”

"this......"

"The King has sent men to the border region!?"

Zhang Liang suddenly stood up, startling Xiao He, who was still standing there bewildered.

“That’s right.” Liu Ji nodded, confirming Zhang Liang’s statement, and took back the wolf horn. “This was found by my men, who followed the road Xiang An took out of the Great Wall and went beyond the pass. This is the token that was brought back.”

"My spies discovered a full eight thousand alien corpses within a hundred miles of the Great Wall..." Liu Ji exhaled a breath of turbid air, looked at the earth wolf horn in his hand, and slowly said.

"Eight thousand!?" Zhang Liang's eyes widened, and he exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh? A foreign race? Huh—!?" Xiao He's eyes kept shifting between Zhang Liang and Liu Ji, his face full of confusion.

"So, Xiang An led his men out of the Great Wall..." Zhang Liang's expression shifted between light and dark, and his legs seemed to have lost all strength as he collapsed to the ground.

“He went beyond the Great Wall for the sake of the Central Plains.” Liu Ji sighed, put the wolf horn back into his chest, and looked outside. “Zifang, do you know, after confirming this fact… I actually felt a sense of… defeat.”

“…Ah, I think I understand.” Zhang Liang lowered his head, his face covered in cold sweat.

"You should know that although we are now sworn enemies, I met those brothers many years ago. I traveled the world as a chivalrous knight-errant. After Qin unified the Central Plains, I went to Xianyang to perform forced labor. On my way back from my service, I passed through Pangshan. It was there that I killed many strange creatures and rescued many people with them." Liu Ji stroked his beard, his eyes filled with calm reminiscence.

------------

Chapter 974 Han Xin's Mentality Crashes

"In a sense, they have been acting for the sake of the Central Plains from beginning to end, for the safety of the Central Plains." Liu Ji walked back from the window, sat in the head seat of the hall, and looked at the absent-minded Zhang Liang and the bewildered Xiao He, saying, "This is the answer I have come to after combining their style of doing things over the years."

"And why they parted ways... the answer is actually quite clear."

Even when striving towards the same goal, many different paths will inevitably emerge. And since the paths are all different...

Liu Ji didn't say the rest, but Zhang Liang and Xiao He already understood.

"Your Majesty, are you referring to... Xiang Yu's massacre of the city?" Xiao He looked up at Liu Ji with a thoughtful expression.

"Yes, Xiang An was more benevolent than we imagined, which is why he could not tolerate Xiang Yu's policy of massacring cities."

Liu Ji's voice was filled with sigh: "Thinking back on the past, he and his brother must have accumulated a lot of resentment."

"The Zhangshui massacre of 200,000 Qin soldiers, the repeated massacres of cities, and the choice to divide the world into fiefdoms when the world could have ended its strife..." Liu Ji rubbed his chin with his fingers. "Zifang, Lao Xiao, you both know how angry I was after being enfeoffed in Bashu, but I was also thinking about something else."

"The world was within Xiang Yu's grasp, and judging from his past actions, he certainly cared about the safety of the Central Plains. But why would he give up the position of the ruler of the world?"

"If he hadn't divided the land among himself, I, Liu Ji, probably wouldn't even have had the chance to rebel like I do now. General Han wouldn't have left Western Chu to come to my Han Dynasty and help me sweep across Qin. In other words, I am able to restrain him like this now thanks to Xiang Yu himself." As he spoke, Liu Ji couldn't help but laugh, a very impolite laugh.

"After figuring this out, I suddenly realized... I don't think I need to hate Xiang Yu so much."

"Moreover, now, Xiang Yu's greatest support, his younger brother Xiang An, a skilled general, has also been driven away by him..." Xiao He sighed and shook his head. "This man's actions are truly strange."

"Your Majesty, what about Xiang An? We..." Zhang Liang, who had been lost in thought, raised his head and looked at Liu Ji with a hint of reluctance in his voice, "How should we deal with this?"

"He has now betrayed Western Chu, so he's no longer our enemy... right?"

Zhang Liang was well-versed in Huang-Lao philosophy, and his level of expertise was quite high. Therefore, he understood the predicament that the Central Plains had been in for many years and was aware of many things that had happened.

Everything is recorded in the mind's compass.

The Central Plains Grand Array had developed loopholes due to wear and tear, and foreign tribes from beyond the borders were eyeing it covetously. However, all of this vanished more than a decade ago.

Just then, King Liu Ji of Han went out of the pass to investigate. It was Xiang An who led the army to kill the foreign tribes. And by reasoning over time, it can be almost certain that many more foreign tribes had been wiped out by the two brothers. If it weren't for the efforts of the two brothers outside the pass, the various warlords in the Central Plains would not have had time to fight each other to the death, but would have been almost devoured by the thousands of foreign tribes.

They probably did more than Liu Ji knew.

As a member of the demonic path, although he had entered the mortal world, Zhang Liang faced Xiang Yu and Xiang An, who had saved the Central Plains...

"Zifang, I know what you're thinking." Liu Ji's voice startled Zhang Liang awake.

"But I will not relinquish the final spoils just because the other party is a noble or great person." Liu Ji sat in his high position, his eyes serious and filled with intense ambition, like a ferocious beast from the primordial era, looking at Zhang Liang.

"On the contrary, it is precisely because of its greatness and sublimity that it is worth challenging."

"So I will never give up."

"Even if it's Yao, Shun, or Yu, even if it's the First Emperor, no matter who my opponent is, even if it's a god, demon, or monster, I will never relinquish the Central Plains that belong to the Han Dynasty!"

"So... help me achieve the great cause of the Ninth Emperor."

"I also promise you that if I am the one who ultimately wins, I... am willing to spare Xiang An's life."

“Your Majesty…” Zhang Liang stared blankly at Liu Ji, who had extended a hand to him, and a slight smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.

While Liu Ji and his ministers were enjoying a harmonious relationship, outside the city of Gaonu, in the military camp...

"Aaaaaaahh ...

!

"

Han Xin, in a fit of rage, smashed everything on the table to the ground, then angrily kicked the table over. He stood there with his fists clenched, his chest heaving violently, his mouth half-open, his expression as ferocious as if he wanted to devour someone.

Small Bookstore

Several generals and the messenger who reported the news were stunned. They stood there dumbfounded, at a loss, and dared not speak.

Han Xin took a few breaths to calm himself down. He suddenly turned his head, and all the generals in the tent who were discussing matters instinctively shrank their necks.

"...Everyone, get out first, get out." Han Xin tried his best to keep his tone from being too emotional.

After everyone had left the camp, Han Xin suddenly seemed to have lost all his strength and sat down on the ground, looking utterly hopeless.

He has only one thought in his mind right now.

No, Lord Xiang An, why are you thinking of leaving Western Chu now?

Why? What exactly is the reason?

Why the hell couldn't you have run away from that lunatic with a screw loose earlier?

Back in Xianyang, what a perfect opportunity it would have been if you had taken me with you, and together we had stabbed Xiang Yu in the kidneys.

And yet you just wouldn't run away, you just dragged it out, you stubbornly held on. Even after I ran away, you still dragged it out.

And now, after I've been running away for a long time and changed allegiances, you've suddenly remembered running away again. I heard the scene was quite big, and you almost died together with that lunatic.

"Lord Xiang An, why are you doing this to yourself..." Han Xin thought to himself, and a bitter smile involuntarily appeared on his face. He slapped himself on the face with a "smack".

He was really devastated.

If you wanted to run, you should have run earlier! Why did you have to start running after I did? This just makes me—

Han Xin sat up, looked at the tent he had made a mess of, sighed deeply, slapped himself twice, and then slowly began to tidy it up.

Compared to Liu Ji, Han Xin definitely cared more about Xiang An and recognized Xiang An's talent more.

However, Han Xin had no intention of switching allegiances again.