Chapter 11: The City Lord's Son's Struggle (Part 10)

Su Chen calmed down and thought to himself, "This kid is indeed my confidant. He even knows exactly what I've been thinking about rebelling for a long time."
"Alright, you should go back and get some rest."
Su Chen spoke calmly.
This delighted Su Yi; the general's lack of anger meant he approved of him.
The instant Su Yi turned around, he heard a clanging sound behind him.
The next moment, he lost consciousness.
Su Chen stared expressionlessly at his confidant's dismembered body, inwardly lamenting his own age; he was even worried about whether he could instantly defeat a mere sixth-level Spirit Pattern cultivator.
Su Chen didn't want to cause a scene, so he chose a sneak attack.
Su Yi was right; he had long wanted to rebel.
But he couldn't.
He had a wife and children, parents, teachers and friends in the Heavenly Wind Kingdom.
If he rebelled, everyone close to him would die.
With so many people, even if he surrendered to the Canglan Kingdom, he couldn't transport them all.
Let this life be like this; he'll settle accounts properly in the next!
Su Chen buried Su Yi; Su Yi knew him too well.
"I told you, kid, don't say what you shouldn't!"
Su Yi disappeared. Some people were curious, and Su Chen replied that he had let Su Yi go home.
After all, staying on an ordinary border offered no future.
Having received Su Chen's answer, no one asked further.
Three months passed, and bad news arrived.
The Xuan Yuan Army was completely annihilated.
This was a legion completely on par with the Xuan Jia Army.
Now, the Canglan Kingdom's army was advancing rapidly, approaching the border where Su Chen was located.
"What the hell is going on here?"
A million-strong army, gone in three months?
Su Chen suffered a stroke.
What a damn incompetent move.
What a terrible teammate.
The most crucial thing is the message from above: they're mobilizing reinforcements, hoping Su Chen can hold out for a month.
Hold out my ass!
There's only an old and frail Spirit Sea Realm cultivator; the strongest person besides him is Su Chen himself, a ninth-level Spirit Pattern cultivator.
That very night, Su Chen went into seclusion, preparing to break through to the Spirit Sea Realm.
The Spirit Communication Technique has a secret method that allows for a short-term breakthrough to the Spirit Sea Realm, but it doesn't guarantee a long lifespan.
Originally, given another twenty years, breaking through to the Spirit Sea Realm would have been a sure thing; there was no need for this extreme measure.
Now it doesn't matter; he's going to die anyway, so he might as well break through to the Spirit Sea Realm and kill a few more people.
Not long after Su Chen went into seclusion, an army from the Canglan Kingdom attacked the pass where Su Chen was located.
After holding out for ten days, the old Spirit Sea Realm city lord was beaten to death.
A sense of sorrow filled the crowd. Although that old scoundrel was embezzling their cultivation resources and was a notorious skinflint,
everyone wished him dead.
But not now!
"How much longer until General Jiang Chen breaks through to the Spirit Sea Realm?"
The city's defending general felt a chill run down his spine. The city's defensive formation had lost its core and couldn't hold out much longer.
However, just as the city was about to fall,
the previously dim formation suddenly activated, slaughtering thousands of Canglan Kingdom soldiers.
A majestic figure descended from the sky, lifting the almost extinguished core of the formation with one hand.
Su Chen had broken through to the Spirit Sea Realm at the crucial moment.
'I never thought I'd become a savior.'
Su Chen had never felt so wonderful.
It was like opening the door to another world.
A mere wave of his hand was enough to split mountains and cleave rivers.
The first wave of attacks from the Canglan Kingdom had finally been withstood.
The crowd, beaming with relief, chattered to Su Chen about the thrilling battle.
When they recounted how Zhou Bapi had fought so bravely, killing one enemy Spirit Sea General and severely wounding another, Su Chen couldn't help but feel a deep respect.
That old scoundrel truly died a heroic death, but sadly, not even a scrap of flesh remained. Su Chen and the others could only gather old belongings to build a simple cenotaph for him.
Su Chen had a very poor impression of Zhou Bapi; the two were actually at odds.
However, when Zhou Bapi learned that Su Chen was confident he could break through to the Spirit Sea Realm at the cost of his life, he gave Su Chen all his cultivation resources and instructed his soldiers that after his death, Su Chen would be the sole leader of the city.
Flawed in many ways, yet he did one flawless thing before he died.
Su Chen poured a jug of strong liquor at Zhou Bapi's grave, murmuring, "If I had broken through earlier, would you, Zhou Bapi, have survived?"
It wasn't that Su Chen was ultimately moved by Zhou Bapi's actions; at another time, Su Chen would have preferred Zhou Bapi dead.
But now, Zhou Bapi was dead, and he was the only Spirit Sea Realm cultivator left in the city.
It was obvious that the next army sent by the Canglan Kingdom would be even stronger.
Reinforcements would arrive in twenty days.
Su Chen thought of his wife, children, and parents.
And his grandchildren, grandsons, and granddaughters whom he had never met.
"I must hold out until twenty days!"
Ten days later, the Canglan Kingdom once again dispatched a large army to attack Su Chen's city.
This time, a vast, dark mass of troops, numbering at least fifty or sixty thousand, led by three Spirit Sea Realm generals.
Su Chen cursed inwardly, but had no choice but to encourage the people of the city.
Think of your wife, children, and parents.
The entire city is under siege.
For the past ten days, Su Chen has been spreading rumors throughout the city about the brutality of the Canglan Kingdom's soldiers, claiming that after capturing the city, they will massacre everyone inside, men, women, and children.
What if someone chooses to escape?
Su Chen had already told everyone that the city was surrounded by the Canglan army; leaving meant death.
Those who chose to leave seemed to live up to Su Chen's words; none returned.
They did indeed die, at Su Chen's hands.
The Canglan Kingdom's army wasn't as brutal as Su Chen had portrayed; at least there was a chance of survival... for example, if Su Chen opened the city gates and surrendered, everyone inside could live.
But Su Chen would not surrender.
His heart was cold. Watching the approaching Canglan army, he murmured to himself,
"Don't resent me. In this chaotic world, aren't we all just pawns?"
Three Spirit Sea Realm experts held off Su Chen, while the rest of the Canglan army clashed with the city's defenders and residents.
That day, the sky darkened, and countless corpses littered the ground.
The entire city was stained with blood, and the incessant rain washed away a river of stench-filled blood.
It ended with Su Chen unleashing his full power, killing one Spirit Sea Realm expert and severely injuring two others.
"Finally... we held them off!"
Watching the Canglan army retreat to less than half its original size, Su Chen managed a weak smile, then... collapsed unconscious.
He remained unconscious for five days.
Five days later, Su Chen awoke. Only five days remained until reinforcements arrived.
Though less than a tenth of the remaining men, they were still incredibly spirited.
The Canglan army hadn't attacked immediately; with only five days left, they could hold out until reinforcements arrived.
Late at night
The survivors gathered, dreaming of life after the war.
Su Chen looked at his scarred face in the mirror. In his memory, he had always been gentle, humble, refined, and exceptionally handsome.
Su Chen touched his face, wondering if Bai Lu would still recognize him now, or if she would find him repulsive.
Regardless, he wanted to live and go home to see her.