Chapter 35: The Joseon Dynasty (Part 11)

Su Chen felt a terrifying aura lock onto him, leaving him nowhere to retreat or escape!
This was a power capable of killing him!
"This must be the Spirit Martial Hall's trump card, the King-Slaying Arrow, a legendary trump card said to be able to kill a true Transcendent Realm King!"
Su Chen recalled the records about the Spirit Martial Hall. He had initially thought it was just a legend, but it seemed it wasn't.
The Spirit Martial Hall dared to divide the world into three kingdoms; it certainly possessed a trump card.
However... if the Spirit Martial Hall had a trump card, didn't the Li Clan also have one?
"Imperial Supreme Battle Armor!"
Golden energy filled the sky, manifesting an incomparably sacred golden battle armor, which draped over Su Chen's body.
This was the foundation of the Li Clan, crafted by that mythical ancestor, left within the Li Clan to protect its descendants.
It was precisely with this armor that the Li Clan's Great Ancestor was able to defeat the Heavenly Wind King.
Clad in the Imperial Armor, Su Chen had never felt such exhilaration. It felt as if a single punch could shatter the heavens and earth; he even harbored the illusion that he could slay a god.
The clash between the King-Slaying Arrow and the Imperial Armor caused tremors spanning thousands of miles.
A dazzling white light erupted.
Even a Spirit Soul Realm expert couldn't see what was happening.
However, this clash of trump cards ended in Su Chen's victory.
Su Chen's armor was shattered, his body bathed in blood, yet he smiled radiantly in the sunlight.
"In the end, I, the commander, have won this battle!"
The Great Wu Dynasty's trump card failed to kill Su Chen.
Knowing that all was lost, Song Wuque discarded his bow and arrow, choosing to surrender.
Even if some in the Spirit Martial Hall still wanted to resist, it was futile.
The Great Wu Dynasty collapsed.
Following the Heavenly Wind Dynasty, another dynasty perished at Su Chen's hands.
The Tianfeng Dynasty had the assistance of the Li Clan's patriarch, but... the Dawu Dynasty was truly destroyed by Su Chen through sheer strength.
Su Chen returned to court and was bestowed the title of Champion Marquis, becoming the Grand Marshal of the Tianyuan Dynasty.
With no further titles to bestow, it was likely that the elders of the Li Clan would soon choose to depose Li Jiangqun and install a younger king.
However... Li Jiangqun had led the Li Clan for many years and was now the ruler of a nation; how could he easily tolerate being deposed?
Even if that person was his own son!
Undercurrents surged within the court.
Su Chen was a guest at Li Ming's home.
Li Ming, though old, still stubbornly wanted to marry his great-granddaughter to Su Chen.
But Su Chen refused.
"Perhaps this old fellow is truly getting old,"
Peach blossoms fell, landing on their clothes.
Li Ming sighed deeply.
Over two hundred years ago, he too had been full of vigor and ambition, with companions walking alongside him.
Now, all those old friends were gone.
And his own days were numbered.
As Su Chen listened to Li Ming reminisce, he murmured to himself,
"Old Ming, rest assured, for the few bottles of third-grade pills you gave me back then, as long as I live, your lineage will continue to prosper. But I truly cannot agree to your wish to marry your great-granddaughter to me."
He didn't want his good brother to become an old patriarch.
In the corner, a beautiful woman played the guzheng, her face filled with sorrow.
Time flies.
Ten years passed in the blink of an eye.
The Tianyuan Dynasty swept across the four seas, once again achieving unification.
Su Chen's cultivation had reached the fifth level of the Spirit Soul Realm, but his cultivation speed was slowing down considerably.
For the past ten years, Su Chen had never given up studying the Imperial Supreme Scripture left behind by Li Shenhua.
However, he ultimately gained nothing.
This cultivation technique demanded extremely high levels of comprehension.
With Su Chen's aptitude in this life, even grasping the basics of the technique's name was his limit.
"Father, oh Father... please don't rebel against your son!"
Su Chen sighed softly.
His father had been making more and more underhanded moves lately.
In this world, the ruler of a nation was not only above all others, but also possessed the nation's destiny, which could accelerate cultivation.
Li Jiangqun did not want to abdicate early.
...
Inside the palace
Li Jiangqun summoned Li Yuanfa
"Yuanfa, do you wish to become the Crown Prince?"
Li Yuanfa stared wide-eyed at Li Jiangqun, an indescribable excitement welling up within him.
'Could it be... Father hasn't given up on me?'
Ever since his defeat in the battle against Song Wuque, everyone had doubted Li Yuanfa, believing him unworthy of the position.
Li Yuanfa had spent his days in his residence, depressed and melancholy.
Now, Li Jiangqun's attitude had given him renewed hope.
Li Jiangqun smiled kindly: "Of all my sons, Yuanfa, you are the one I love and have the highest hopes for. The position of Crown Prince should rightfully be passed to you."
Li Yuanfa exclaimed excitedly, "Father, is what you say true?...Is there really still hope for me to become Crown Prince?"
"Would those old fogies in the Li Group allow you to do this? They all support Brother Chen!"
Li Jiangqun's gaze turned cold: "As the ruler of a nation, how dare those old fogies try to influence my thoughts? How can the foundation of a nation be so easily dismissed by a few words from others?"
Li Yuanfa nodded in agreement, then said resentfully, "Father, as the ruler of a nation, your words should be law. Those old fogies in the Li Group wanting to control the succession to the throne is going too far!"
"But...how can Father make me the Crown Prince?"
Li Yuanfa was puzzled. Although he also hated the Elder Council, he couldn't deny that its power was terrifying.
Not only was he powerless against it, but even his own father, Li Jiangqun, was merely a puppet on strings.
A smile spread across Li Jiangqun's face, a smile that sent chills down Li Yuanfa's spine.
"If you're my only heir, do they have a choice?"
Li Yuanfa froze.
He had never felt his father so unfamiliar; his eyes gleamed with madness and desire.
But that momentary coldness was quickly replaced by a burning desire for power.
If he eliminated Su Chen... wouldn't the crown prince position be his?
Li Yuanfa's gaze grew increasingly fervent. With Li Jiangqun's support,
there was a high probability of eliminating Su Chen!
After Li Yuanfa left, Li Jiangqun watched his son's departing figure with indifferent eyes.
Even a tiger doesn't eat its cubs.
But he, Li Jiangqun, was not a tiger; he was a king, a king who had fought his way up from countless heirs to the Li Group!
Wasn't he also arrogant and ambitious? Even if someone wanted to use Li Jiangqun as a stepping stone, even if that person was his own child, Li Jiangqun would not hesitate to eliminate that obstacle!
With Li Jiangqun's support, Li Yuanfa made a comeback and quickly gained power in the imperial court.
Some forces, unwilling to see the Tianyuan Dynasty produce an unparalleled ruler, also began to interfere in the affairs of Tianyuan.
The capital city of Tiandu dimmed somewhat.
Su Chen smiled disdainfully: "It's nothing but a death throes!"