Chapter 97: The Wrath of the Martial Emperor (Request for Subscriptions)

At this time, the black-robed martial artists had already suffered heavy casualties, with more than ten left, all surrounded and struggling desperately to break free. They could not pierce the encirclement, one after another collapsing to the ground.

“Swish, swish, swish…”

Just as the black-robed master broke out of the medical hall, three sharp arrows flew toward him from the front, halting his escape. Wu Qingluan and the old eunuch then appeared simultaneously, launching fierce attacks.

“Roar…”

Moreover, the azure-clothed master caught up from behind, roaring as he hurled a powerful punch at the black-robed master. His strike lacked any elaborate technique, yet its force was immense, whistling through the air and crushing the enemy with overwhelming pressure.

“Kill…”

At the same time, Wu Qingluan and the old eunuch arrived. The former cried out softly and thrust her sword forward, while the old eunuch said nothing, his form flickering unpredictably to strike precisely at the black-robed master’s vital points.

“Ah…”

With the powerful members of the Gold Sword Alliance slain, the Eastern Palace guards and personal guards among the survivors surged forward, slaying the remaining black-robed warriors one by one in the open.

After the situation was brought under control, Li Daqi led the others quietly into the medical hall. Earlier, they had held back the black-robed forces for over ten breaths, and later helped slay numerous Gold Sword Alliance warriors and black-robed martial artists. Many were now wounded.

“Ah…”

“Ow…”

“Help…”

At this moment, throughout the main street and inside the medical hall, numerous Eastern Palace guards and the princess’s personal guards lay injured. Dozens had perished on the spot, while over a hundred more suffered wounds.

Some of the injured had relatively light injuries, but others had lost limbs, issuing wails of agony. Some rolled on the ground in pain, while others could not restrain themselves from banging their heads against the floor.

“Send the amputees in first. Give the others medicine to stop bleeding.” Fang Xian, seeing the situation under control, immediately appeared to issue orders to the guards and began tending to the wounded.

“Doctor Fang, my arm is severed. Will I be able to marry in the future?”

The first to be brought in was a young personal guard, around eighteen or nineteen. His right arm had been hacked off.

“Don’t worry. I will restore your arm to its former self,” Fang Xian comforted her, then began disinfecting the stump, sewing it back together, and using mysterious energy to reconnect the severed blood vessels.

“Keep your arm fixed like this for the time being. Don’t move it. After half a month, it should recover basically.”

Finally, Fang Xian reattached her arm, bandaged it securely, and gave her instructions.

“Thank you, Doctor Fang. Once my arm is healed, I will retire and serve you as a maid.”

The little girl said happily.

Afterward, Fang Xian helped several other amputees reconnect their limbs and assured them they would fully recover. Only after comforting them did he move on to treat the lightly wounded.

“Ah…”

Just as Fang Xian was busy, a mournful cry suddenly rang out from outside, growing weaker and weaker. It was the black-robed master, severely injured under the combined assault of the three attackers. His arm was severed by Wu Qingluan’s sword, his waist crushed by his seventh uncle’s fist, and his Baihui acupoint pierced by the old eunuch’s finger.

“Who is this person? Does anyone recognize him?” When the black-robed master’s mask was torn away, a gaunt face appeared. Since none of those present knew him, Wu Qingluan ordered his body and Wan Lif e’s corpse to be sent to the inner guards for verification.

“Thank you, Senior, for your help,” Wu Qingluan bowed to the azure-clothed master, but her seventh uncle merely glanced at her and returned to his small courtyard without a word. He disliked conversation; aside from Fang Xian, no one could approach him.

“Princess, are you all right?” At this moment, Wu Lanchang, clad in armor, hurried over to ask.

“I am fine. Where is the Crown Prince?”

Wu Qingluan nodded and asked. Earlier, she had arranged for Wu Lanchang to lead an elite team of personal guards and Eastern Palace guards to protect the Crown Prince.

“The Crown Prince is unharmed, only startled. He is quite safe now,” Wu Lanchang replied.

“What about the casualties among the personal guards and Eastern Palace guards?”

Wu Qingluan asked further.

“Twenty-eight sisters among the personal guards were killed in battle, with sixty or seventy wounded. Forty-five Eastern Palace guards perished, with thirty or forty injured. The master stallion is currently treating the severely wounded. Nearly all those with severed limbs have been reattached, and the doctor says they will all recover,” Wu Lanchang reported. She had personally witnessed Fang Xian’s skillful stitching of limbs, feeling both shock and deep admiration for him.

In this era, reattaching severed limbs was almost impossible. Yet under Fang Xian’s hands, it was merely a minor procedure. Fortunately, the martial artists’ physiques were strong, and the acupoint techniques controlled bleeding. Otherwise, some might have died from excessive blood loss.

“The master stallion is a divine doctor. Trust him. As long as there is even a breath left, they can all be saved,” Wu Qingluan said proudly. He was her chosen future husband.

“Princess, Qiu Qianqiu’s escape remains a hidden danger. Shall I arrange the guards to pursue him?” Wu Lanchang inquired.

“No need for haste. At dawn, notify Wu Ji and have him deploy the martial guards to search outside the city. Also, send a message to the Intelligence Division, raising the bounty on Qiu Qianqiu and ordering them to capture and kill this thief without fail.

Being able to eliminate two realm masters today will surely deal a heavy blow to those people. In the future, they will not dare act recklessly again.”

She pondered for a moment. It would not be long before this incident spread among the higher echelons of the Wu Dynasty. Her status as a realm master would be known, and killing two realm masters tonight would make people tremble with fear.

“Furthermore, give the fallen sisters a grand burial. Send their pensions to their families, offering more than usual as condolences from the Crown Prince,” Wu Qingluan instructed.

Soon afterward, city defense soldiers appeared nearby. A captain approached the Crown Prince and princess to salute, only to be stopped by the personal guards’ leader: “You are late. Both the Crown Prince and princess are unharmed.”

“This one came late and asks for forgiveness. May I know what orders the Crown Prince and princess have?” the captain asked with utmost deference.

“The princess said to check why the city defense soldiers were not patrolling the northern street area tonight. Yet thieves struck the medical hall at the exact moment. If you call this coincidence, who would believe it?” the personal guards’ captain said coldly.

During the fierce battle, the city defense soldiers had not appeared, which was a grave problem. A thorough investigation was needed; some would inevitably escape punishment.

Soon, lights began to appear in many places throughout Wu Capital. The news of the medical hall attack spread first to the higher echelons of the Wu Dynasty, waking even Emperor Wu Qingdi.

“Which forces were the attackers? What is the current situation? Did Yunxiao and Qingluan sustain injuries?” Emperor Wu Qingdi sat up, still in his robes, and asked.

“The attackers came from three forces: the remnants of the Five Poisons Sect, the Gold Sword Alliance, and the mysterious black-robed group. Sect Master Qiu Qianqiu of the Five Poisons Sect was severely injured and lost an arm before escaping. Gold Sword Alliance Master Wan Lif e was killed, and the black-robed leader, a realm master, was also slain. The rest were all killed. Both the Crown Prince and princess are safe and sound,” Zhang Fangli answered.

“Three realm masters, yet two dead and one escaped? How did they manage that?”

Emperor Wu Qingdi asked in astonishment.

“Besides the palace eunuch, the princess is already a realm master. Beside the divine doctor, there is also a realm master. Before the three forces attacked, the princess and the divine doctor struck first, ambushing the Five Poisons Sect disciples and wiping out most of their strength before the other two groups could move.

Moreover, the princess had already hidden three thousand personal guards in the surrounding area of the northern street. Once the two forces launched their assault, she immediately encircled and annihilated them. When Qiu Qianqiu was seriously injured and fled, they immediately withdrew to aid their comrades, first killing Wan Lif e, then the black-robed master.

We also just received word that this afternoon the princess took the divine doctor to the martial guards camp outside the city to tame a wild stallion. On the return journey, they encountered an attack from the Five Poisons Sect, which must have alerted them. After returning to the city, they prepared defenses immediately,” Zhang Zhili actually knew all these details.

“So, did the city defense soldiers receive reinforcements?” Emperor Wu Qingdi finally asked.

“At the time of the incident, the city defense soldiers patrolling the northern street were withdrawn, and only a small squad returned after the battle ended,” Zhang Zhili replied.

“Investigate who ordered the city defense soldiers moved. They actually dared to reach into the city guards. Their courage is truly not ordinary,” Emperor Wu Qingdi snorted coldly.

Although the Imperial Guards, Imperial Forest Guards, and Martial Guards were the main forces defending Wu Capital, the city defense soldiers were merely garrison troops under Hua Yang Prefecture. Yet under the Emperor’s feet, if a force ignored orders or could be mobilized by anyone, how could Wu Qingdi not be enraged?

Meanwhile, Ninth Prince Wu Yuntian was also woken by a call. A black-robed man whispered in the darkness, “Your Highness, they failed.”

“Three realm masters and over a hundred elites suddenly attacked, yet they still failed. Could Father have arranged many experts?” Wu Yuntian asked in confusion.

“The Emperor only arranged for one realm master, the palace eunuch. But beside the doctor surnamed Fang there is a realm master, and the princess is a realm master as well,” the black-robed man said.

“What? My little aunt became a realm master? That’s impossible. You must have misunderstood. Father only recently recalled her command token. How could she be a realm master and still hand over her token?” Wu Yuntian asked in shock.

“Either the princess voluntarily surrendered her token, or she only recently broke through into the realm master level,” the black-robed man thought for a moment.

“Either way, it was three against three. Even though they failed, most of their forces could escape. There will still be opportunities later,” Wu Yuntian accepted the reality.

“Your Highness, Qiu Qianqiu was seriously injured and lost an arm while escaping. Wan Lif e and Hei San are dead. Not a single one of the others got away,” the black-robed man’s voice grew even lower.

“Useless, utter uselessness. Three realm masters, and Qiu Qianqiu is proficient in poison arts. How could they end up two dead and one escaping? What price did the other side pay?” Wu Yuntian was stunned for a long time before roaring.