From Cold Palace Princess to Celestial Empress Ch. 181
Lei Zhen’s expression turned grave as he looked at the peerlessly elegant young woman before him, his heart filled with trepidation.
He naturally knew that the Princess of Xia had already reached the second level of the Divine Sea Realm two years ago.
Two years had passed, and now she had at least reached the fifth level of the Divine Sea Realm.
Perhaps even the sixth level!
Back then, she had been able to withstand a strike from the Dragon-Tiger Sec Master with only the second level of the Divine Sea Realm.
Now, who could guarantee that she didn’t have the means to leap a major realm and slay a Spirit Seed Realm cultivator?
After all, geniuses could never be judged by common standards!
Not to mention, among the Xia entourage, there were no shortage of Spirit Seed Realm experts.
The current situation made Lei Zhen feel somewhat troubled.
Perhaps he would have to concede some benefits to make the Princess of Xia leave.
After all, his ambitions were grand, and he need not fuss over minor gains.
After a moment of contemplation, Lei Zhen spoke:
“Princess Xiao, as a guest from afar, I won’t let you return empty-handed. I am willing to cede one-third of the territory and population of the Fire Dragon Kingdom to the Xia Empire. What does Princess Xiao think of this?”
Hearing Lei Zhen’s words, the crowd erupted in uproar.
“What? Cede one-third to the Fire Dragon Kingdom? Has General Lei gone mad?”
“Exactly, one-third of the population! What does that even mean?”
“This is like losing the wife and the army!”
Xiao Minghuang slightly furrowed her brows, seemingly surprised by Lei Zhen’s offer.
Her purpose in aiding the Fire Dragon Kingdom this time was solely for the Innate Pure Yang Fire Dragon Tree. As for the population and land of the Fire Dragon Kingdom, they were of little use to her.
On the way, she had already instructed the Medicine King to negotiate with the Innate Fire Dragon Tree.
Moreover, if she truly wanted the territory and population of the Fire Dragon Kingdom, why would she split it three ways with these ragtag forces of the Nine-Nation Alliance?
Wouldn’t it be better to take it all?
Suddenly, she thought of the Fire Dragon Kingdom orphan in the palace.
Perhaps she could install a puppet in the Fire Dragon Kingdom, ruling it as a vassal state of Xia.
Thinking this, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Xiao Minghuang’s lips, and a glimmer of amusement flashed in her eyes as she said with a half-smile:
“One-third? That’s too little!”
Lei Zhen’s expression froze. It seemed he had underestimated the ambition of the Princess of Xia.
“How much does Princess Xiao want?”
Although he was the commander-in-chief of the Nine-Nation Alliance, the other eight nations were not his subordinates. He could temporarily suppress them, but he could not fully control them. If he conceded too much, the alliance would surely fall apart.
If he lost the million cultivators of the nine nations, it would be difficult to gather such a massive force again.
But if he acted too subserviently, it would also dishearten the Alliance, leading to its dissolution.
Thus, his inner bottom line was half.
However, something unexpected happened.
Xiao Minghuang took a step forward, and an awe-inspiring aura emanated from her. A golden crown of destiny materialized above her head, and countless starlight flickered around her, making her seem like an unattainable empress, overlooking the world.
“Naturally… I want it all!”
Her voice was not loud, but it struck everyone’s ears like a thunderclap, shaking the surroundings in an instant!
“Want it all?”
Lei Zhen’s pupils constricted, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated, and a surge of rage was about to burst forth!
This woman is too arrogant!
“Princess of Xia, don’t refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!” Lei Zhen, furious to the extreme, laughed sharply, and a powerful surge of spiritual energy erupted from his body, forming a massive palm print that condensed in the void, with strands of purple electric arcs entwined around it, which he then slammed out into the air.”
Before the palm print could get close, a rumbling thunderclap had already resounded throughout the entire camp.
The palm print contained destructive power.
Seeing this, the spiritual seed realm attendants were instantly shocked.
“Lei Zhen is a long-standing peak spiritual seed realm cultivator, just one step away from breaking through to the primordial embryo realm. The power of this palm strike is almost comparable to a primordial Nascent Soul realm attack. The Princess of Xia is surely doomed!”
“Not necessarily, don’t forget that two years ago, the Princess of Xia withstood a strike from the Dragon-Tiger Nascent Soul and survived. Two years have passed, and her strength must have improved.”
“Regardless, with Leader Lei leading us, we will surely defeat the people of Xia!”
Facing the thunderous palm print, Xiao Minghuang’s expression remained unchanged, showing no fear. She condensed a pure white longsword in her hand and casually swung it out horizontally.
The sword energy was like a rainbow!
As if the Milky Way was pouring down!
A flash of sword light, the sword energy transformed into a thousand sword shadows, like a meteor shower, slashing towards the thunderous palm print.
Boom!
The thunderous palm print and the thousand sword shadows collided, unleashing a terrifying force, stirring up a hurricane that made everyone’s cheeks sting.
“Pfft!”
Lei Zhen spat out a mouthful of blood, his face pale, and he quickly circulated his spiritual energy to stabilize his body.
Xiao Minghuang’s expression remained the same. With a tap of her toes, her figure ghostly traversed through the void, appearing in front of Lei Zhen in an instant, her sword pressed against his neck.
“Lei Zhen, tell me, how dare you unite nine countries to attack the Fire Dragon Country? Who instructed you to do this?”
Her tone was calm, but a glint of killing intent flashed in her eyes.
Lei Zhen, being held hostage, was greatly alarmed, but his face remained extremely calm.
“Haha, I don’t know what you’re talking about. The southern countries have always been in constant conflict. The nine countries united to attack the Fire Dragon Country, why would we need someone else’s instruction?”
“Princess of Xia, I am no match for you, I have lost to you. Whether to kill or to slice, it’s up to you!”
Seeing Lei Zhen’s tough demeanor, Xiao Minghuang smiled faintly, saying nothing.
From the moment she saw Lei Zhen, she knew this man harbored a huge conspiracy.
Because, on the system panel, there was a passage.
【Unite nine countries to attack the Fire Dragon Country, set up a blood demon sacrificial array within a hundred miles of the Fire Dragon Country’s capital, assist the Dragon-Tiger Sect Master in summoning the Southern Wasteland True Demon, sacrifice a million lives, and break through to the Nascent Soul realm.】
This passage represented a recent opportunity for Lei Zhen.
For him, it was a great opportunity.
But for the soldiers and civilians of the Fire Dragon Kingdom, for the soldiers of the nine-country alliance, it was the most bloody, shameless, and cruel massacre and betrayal!
Xiao Minghuang could not imagine that someone could be so despicable!
Fortunately, she discovered this in time and could stop it early.
“If I kill you, how can you help the Southern Wasteland True Demon cross over?”
Xiao Minghuang snorted coldly.
Hearing this, Lei Zhen’s heart was greatly shaken, his pupils filled with uncertainty and doubt.
He had never told anyone about his secret alliance with the Dragon-Tiger Sect and his role as an inside agent for the evil forces of the Southern Wastelands. How did the Princess of Xia know about it?
As soon as these words were spoken.
Everyone present was utterly shocked.
“Princess of Xia, do not slander Alliance Leader Lei! Although we are no match for Xia, we cannot allow you to defame him!”
“Princess of Xia, do not push us too far! If you continue to spout nonsense, even if it means mutual destruction, we will not let you have your way!”
The Spirit Seed cultivators of the Nine-Nation Alliance shouted loudly, eager to clear Lei Zhen’s name.
Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu
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