"There will never be a bloody coup. Stop making up rumors!"
Zhao Chuxiao made a conclusion and ordered the two men to leave.
"..."
There was silence in the court for a moment.
The ministers looked at each other, not knowing how to make a report after such a situation had come to this.
It was not until the new Privy Councilor came forward that the meeting continued:
"Your Majesty, I recently learned of a piece of news about a cult in the south."
"Will the Dark Sky Sect advance north again?" Chu Xiao was a little surprised.
"It seems so, but it also doesn't seem so..." The Privy Council Manager began slowly, "There are rumors in the south that the so-called 'incarnation of the Mother of Heaven' in the cult will appear in the capital within a month. The cult is convinced that the leader of the cult, who is called the Goddess of Mercy, has organized an elite pilgrim army to march north. This army will not attack cities, but bypass them, ignore logistics, and go straight to the capital."
"How many people are there?"
"Maybe three thousand, maybe five thousand." The other party was not sure.
In addition, another blue-robed courtier also stepped forward and said:
"I heard that Princess Xi Heng has extensive connections with the Dark Heaven Sect, and there are rumors in the Jinshi City area that Princess Xi Heng is the saint of the sect. Your Majesty, please send troops to stop this evil cult's army."
"A bunch of nonsense."
But no matter what his ministers said, Zhao Chuxiao had no intention of listening seriously.
Today's court meeting was uneventful.
……
Outside the city of Yan'an, Xi Heng led 20,000 elite soldiers of the Ever-Victorious Army and headed south.
The army ate food sent by the court, dairy products and dried meat taken from Yan Mengren. Although they were not tired after the long journey, they were quite eager to fight.
Most of the soldiers thought that they were heading to the south to quell the rebellion. Having just defeated a powerful enemy, they were not afraid of the ordinary rebel troops in the south at all. They believed that the rebel troops were no match for them, so they were full of fighting spirit.
But some people speculated that the army returned to the south not to suppress the rebellion.
The road they took was the road back to the capital.
Her Royal Highness, who holds great prestige, leads her army back to the capital of a country - what she has to do is perhaps self-evident.
But those who guessed it were even more excited. They had seen the power of the gods in the Northern Frontier, so they naturally believed that Her Royal Highness the Princess was the most qualified person to sit on the throne.
If she doesn't become the emperor, who else can be it?
Ten days passed quickly during the march.
The army arrived at Hongcheng, slightly north of the capital.
Xi Heng displayed the official badge of the Grand Marshal in front of the city, and then led the troops into the city to rest.
During this period, she always felt that the city's government officials were extremely nervous and cautious when facing her, fearing that they would say or do something wrong.
I think that officials from various places who heard the news along the way have already had some guesses about what she will do next.
The capital city had probably also made preparations, either to welcome it or to fight back - more likely the latter.
By now, the city walls of the capital must be filled with all kinds of city defense equipment.
Tens of thousands of Beijing troops were guarding the city tightly, and the city gates were closed, making it difficult to capture.
Due to the long journey, the Ever-Victorious Army did not bring any engineering equipment. If the capital city was strictly defended, it would be difficult to attack.
However, since Xi Heng is here, it is not an ordinary situation.
A hundred filled spirit stones were more than enough for her to perform the Blood Sea Technique once more, displaying the form of the Dark Mother, shocking the capital's army, capturing the capital city, and reaching the imperial palace.
Some people might be accidentally run over on the way, but it doesn’t matter, Xi Heng has already said sorry in his heart.
She yawned casually, silently looked at the inventory, and glanced at the hundreds of spirit stones it contained.
This battle must be won and this city must be captured.
The throne will definitely be hers.
When she made up her mind to lead her troops south, the outcome was already determined - at least that's what she thought.
Xi Heng didn't intend to simply kill Zhao Chuxiao and inherit the throne. If he did that, he would have to deal with all kinds of affairs himself.
The daily fatigue of being an emperor before made her feel quite troublesome.
So, on the way back to Beijing, Xi Heng often thought about how he could both grasp the highest power and separate himself from the troubles brought by power as much as possible.
Now, I have come to a conclusion in my mind.
Going back to reality.
She led her troops to stay in Hongcheng, the city closest to the capital, for a few more days until the scouts sent to the south brought news about the Dark Sky Sect. Only then did she lead her troops out of the city to the relief-filled farewell of Hongcheng officials.
Xi Heng rode a red-maned horse, wearing a red general's armor with gold patterns, a blood-red cloak hanging behind him, his white hair casually tied into a high ponytail, his left hand fell on the hilt of the sword at his waist, and his eyes were as sharp as torches on his delicate face.
On one side, there were many flags with the word "Xi" written on them fluttering, and behind them were the overlapping footsteps and the rubbing sounds of armors of countless soldiers.
After leaving the northern border area where the roads were poor, and reaching the central part of Da Zhao, the official roads became increasingly open, and the marching efficiency also increased due to the flat and wide roads.
In just three days, we will arrive in the capital.
Standing at the fork in the official road in front of the capital, you can already see the tall city tower in the distance, and the nine city tower gates below where civilians are still queuing to enter.
The city gates were all open, and although there were indeed guards on top, there seemed to be not many of them, and their vigilance was just normal.
Xi Heng didn't expect that Zhao Chuxiao would ignore her arrival and open the city gate.
"What is this? Empty City Strategy?"
Then why is no one playing the piano on it?
However, no matter what Zhao Chuxiao is up to, he just has to follow the original plan.
After nodding slightly, Xi Heng raised his hand and ordered the soldiers to stop and rest where they were.
She no longer looked at the city wall, but only looked towards the long road leading to the south.
"According to the time, it should be almost time, right?"
She deliberately stayed in Hongcheng in the north for a few more days just to wait for the person mentioned in the intelligence.
Those people are not combat forces, but they are of great use to her.
Time passed from morning to noon, and then they killed some cows for the soldiers to make soup and eat, and then waited until afternoon.
Just when Xi Heng wondered if he had calculated the day wrong, some black-robed figures finally appeared in the distance.
Slowly, the figures became more and more dense, their layered black robes swaying in the winter wind, their footsteps steady and firm, and in addition to the sound of footsteps, there were also many strange sounds of chanting.
There is no need to identify it at all. Any normal person can tell at a glance that this must be some kind of evil cult.
"Finally, I'm here. I thought the intelligence was wrong."
Xi Heng ordered the army to end their rest and rearrange themselves, while he swung the reins and moved closer to the black-robed formation in the distance.
The array at the far end appeared to be intact, with no casualties, and it seemed that they had not encountered any attacks or obstructions along the way - this was strange.
Seeing her coming, the person at the front of the Dark Sky Sect's pilgrims also came over to greet her.
The other party lifted the hood of the black robe embroidered with snake patterns, revealing a head of light golden hair and a fair and delicate face. It was the leader of the Dark Sky Sect, the Red Sky Goddess Chen Fenghuo.
"Long time no see." After approaching, Xi Heng dismounted.
"Nevertheless, I have heard from you quite often in the past few months."
The Goddess of Scarlet Sky smiled, which was rare for her: "You have made so many arrangements, and today we will finally see the results."
"No, today's event is just part of the arrangement."
The girl shook her head, reached her right hand behind her head, and pulled away the red tie that bound her hair.
"Your appearance has really changed a lot." Chen Fenghuo couldn't help but say when he saw the white hair.
Xi Heng interrupted:
"Let's talk about the past later. I am now the mortal incarnation of the Great Dark Sky Mother. You must help me spread this name. The Dark Sky Sect will also become the state religion of the Great Zhao today."
She nodded, and her peaceful temperament gradually returned to her original pious and serious appearance. She crossed her fingers in front of her chest and slowly clasped her hands.
"Your Majesty, Mother of Darkness." Chen Fenghuo spoke with his inner strength, and his voice spread a thousand meters away.
Thousands of Dark Sky Sect followers who had been watching for a long time in the back all made prayer gestures and spoke together.
"I am the incarnation of the Mother of Heaven. All of you mortals should kneel down and worship me." Xi Heng said indifferently.
The Goddess of Scarlet Sky took a deep breath, bent her knees slightly and landed on the ground. Her figure suddenly became shorter, and she prayed:
"The Supreme One of the Ten Directions and Three Worlds, the Most High in Heaven, the Most Holy of Saints."
Many believers of different identities and statuses in the back also spoke up and knelt down with the saint.
People lifted up their hoods, and Xi Heng saw many familiar figures among the believers in front of her. Most of them were people who had just joined the church and recognized her appearance.
It is because they know that she is the real founder of the Dark Sky Sect that these people have no resistance.
Xi Heng glanced over and raised his right hand.
He pinched his fingers together and waved the bloody lines on the back of his hand upwards.
"flutter."
As the brief voice fell, a thick blood-red mist suddenly appeared and surged up.
The blood surge technique immediately drew the image of an enormous goddess wearing a blood-stained robe in the clear sky and under the dome.
Although the appearance is blurry, no matter how you look at it, you can associate it with the statue of the Great Dark Sky Mother.
A huge blood shadow appeared for a few seconds and then slowly disappeared due to the strong wind.
But just the appearance is enough for the believers.
Thousands of believers thus realized that the Dark Sky Mother was watching this place.
And they will then obey the will of the true God and help God's children accomplish immortal feats.
“When the Heavenly Mother incarnates into the world, she will become the King of kings and Lord of lords.”
When Xi Heng said this, thousands of believers in the back immediately chanted the following verses in unison:
"All peoples praise, all peoples rise up! Washed by precious blood, eternal joy! End the evil world, and the world will be at peace!"
This scripture was recited several times in succession, until people became more and more excited and tears came to their eyes.
Xi Heng raised his right hand slightly, signaling everyone to stand up.
Following the action of the Goddess of Red Sky, the people who were still chanting various strange scriptures also stood up.
"Peace in the world begins now."
After the girl finished speaking, she turned around, mounted the red-maned horse, and pulled the reins back to the army formation.
Behind, the Goddess of Red Sky led her subordinates to follow.
The military formation has been deployed, and the Dark Sky Sect's pilgrim army is marching in harmony with the Great Zhao Army.
An army of more than 25,000 people approached the gate of the capital.
The horse galloped on the official road, making soft clattering sounds.
In the cold wind, the Beijing troops defending the city on the top of the city wall moved around, looking at the approaching military headquarters, and there was a lot of noise.
The approaching troops were clearly holding the flags of Great Zhao, but their posture looked like they were about to attack the city, which made the troops in the capital feel uneasy.
By the time the girl arrived at the city, most of the idlers had already dispersed.
On the tower, a deputy general of the Beijing army who had followed her to suppress bandits appeared and bowed, saying:
"Long live Your Highness."
Xi Heng said bluntly:
"I have been at the gates of the city for a long time. Why haven't the Beijing army closed the city gates and prepared to fight? Have you forgotten what I taught you?"
During the bandit suppression campaign, she used a lot of extreme words to preach in order to cultivate the fighting spirit of the weak Beijing troops.
Now it seems that preaching has little effect, and the Beijing army still has no intention of fighting as before.
"I do not wish to be an enemy of the princess, nor do I believe that Your Highness will start a civil war. In addition...yesterday His Majesty issued an order to avoid bloodshed between the two armies."
