Title: Infinite Power Over The World
Original title: 权倾天下[重生]
Author: 叶默凉(Ye Moliang)
Translated by: ~PurpleLy~
WARNING: Descriptions of blood and gore ahead. Proceed at your own risk.
Murong Heng rode his horse and galloped swiftly towards Baiyangpo. Behind him, a group of soldiers followed in his wake. The scene portrayed that they’d been ambushed by the enemy and were fleeing non-stop in panic.
The enemy general was euphoric from all the killing. He swung his sword as he chased after Murong Heng, only too keen to leap to his side and kill him there and then. At that instance, the horse he was riding was going too fast. In a moment of carelessness, he faltered, his whole body instantly tumbled off the horse, and he barely missed being trampled to death by soldiers who rushed to catch up behind him.
Upon arriving at Baiyangpo, Murong Heng charged up like a shot. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the enemy soldiers trailing behind him. A sneer appeared on the corner of his lips, and then he spurred his horse into the forest.
This forest spans a vast area, but unlike the forest to the west, sunlight is able to seep through, so it isn’t gloomy. Moreover, there aren’t any poisonous gases filling the air, so it is suitable for people to enter. As such, the enemy general led his army in without hesitation to pursue him.
Seeing that they were successful in luring them into the forest, the men of the Iron Halberd Army withstood their inward excitement. In accordance with the countermeasures they’d been drilling in advance, they separated into several groups and dispersed in all directions.
Long before dispatching troops, Murong Heng had all the soldiers consume anti-poison pills, catch poisonous insects, and subsequently place them in the forest behind Baiyangpo. This species of poisonous insect had a naturally keen sense of smell and was especially sensitive to the odour contained in the pills. Therefore, as long as this smell was detected, they wouldn’t bite the body of the person who had consumed the medicine; otherwise, they would die.
Thus, after entering the forest, Murong Heng got off his horse. When he noticed that the enemy troops were almost about to enter, he brought out a delicate whistle from his lapels, put it to his lips, and blew on it forcefully.
The whistle produced a sharp sound. Soon after, everyone could only hear rustling sounds from all around. Upon looking down, they saw a myriad of tiny black insects, which at some point had burrowed upwards from beneath the ground. They bit anyone they saw, and their venom was intense. Once bitten, the spot of the bite erupted with a burning pain, and in a moment, the victim fell unconscious to the ground.
When the enemy general saw this, he realised that he had been tricked and rapidly led the army to withdraw from the forest. Earlier, he’d gotten carried away by the success and assumed that Murong Heng was truly fleeing. Although he had a flash of doubt, due to an inward impulse to outshine others, he led his troops to pursue him, leading to the current catastrophe.
Utterly regretting his decision, he directed the army to continue retreating. However, thousands of soldiers appeared behind them, cutting off their escape route. When they attempted to change direction, there were also troops on guard at that location. It turns out that they’d been unknowingly surrounded by the Iron Halberd Army!
On the one hand, they had to defend against poisonous insects, and on the other hand, they had to deal with the Iron Halberd Army. It was overwhelming. Just as they were preparing to get into formation to meet the enemy, the archers from last time suddenly appeared behind them, armed with bows and arrows, and began firing at them.
In no time at all, the enemy troops suffered heavy casualties. Some of the survivors were inadvertently bitten by poisonous insects. They collapsed to the ground, ceased breathing, and died. In less than two hours, the entire enemy army was wiped out.
Murong Heng had a cold smile on his lips as he stomped on the enemy general. This was the person who made him think that Ah Ci was injured and that he’d narrowly missed a major misfortune. If he didn’t slaughter him to vent his anger, it wouldn’t be sufficient to assuage the resentment in his heart.
Consequently, Murong Heng drew out a sword from the soldier next to him, held it against the neck of the man beneath his feet, and said coldly, “Didn’t expect this, huh? You’ve fallen into This Prince’s hands. Today is the day you die!” After speaking, he raised his hand and violently thrust the sword directly into the chest of the general under him. Blood sprayed out, staining the ground red.
Once he’d stopped breathing, Murong Heng flung away the sword he’d been holding. His gaze scanned over the scattered bodies of the enemy soldiers all around him. Deep down, he felt very elated. He’d finally wiped out this army, with not a single one left!
Following that, Murong Heng ordered all his soldiers to collect the enemy’s weapons. These all now belong to them! He didn’t have to rack his brains, thinking about how to transport weapons. This is great; there are ready stocks!
Murong Heng was over the moon, having won the battle. However, some were happy, and others weren’t. When Murong Yu heard this news, he immediately overturned the dragon study desk and even killed a few beauties to vent his anger.
Once he was done relieving his temper, he immediately dispatched another general to lead his troops to face Murong Heng. He must be blocked outside the city gates. If he could be captured, he was to be killed straightaway!
In the meantime, Murong Heng was returning from a great victory. Upon his return to the barracks, he immediately held a banquet to celebrate the triumph of the battle with all the soldiers.
“We have yet to win the final victory in the war. I hope that all brothers will give it your all and seize the capital!” Murong Heng raised the wine bowl in his hand, threw his head back, and downed his drink. He poured another bowl, then turned to Shen Ci beside him and said softly, “Ah Ci, I toast you with this bowl of wine.”
If Shen Ci hadn’t given him this idea, they wouldn’t have eliminated all the enemy troops as quickly. With this thought, he downed the wine in the bowl with a few sips, feeling exceedingly refreshed on the inside.
He was also plied with a lot of alcohol by the brothers of the Iron Halberd Army. Although Murong Heng had a good capacity for alcohol, he was a little inebriated. He pulled Shen Ci to stand up, waved his hand to decline, and prepared to head back to the commander’s tent.
Seeing the concerned expression on Shen Ci’s face beside him, Murong Heng hatched a plan. He might as well pretend to be drunk, leaning his entire body on Shen Ci’s, transferring over half of his weight to him. When both of them returned to the commander’s tent, Murong Heng released an alcohol-filled breath. Upon noticing that Shen Ci seemed to be turning away to leave, he acted as if he’d grabbed his sleeve by accident and dragged Shen Ci down on top of himself.
“Ah!” Shen Ci toppled onto Murong Heng’s chest, and the smell of alcohol assailed his nostrils, which was somewhat unpleasant. He felt the cheek of the person under him and sensed that it was a little hot. Shen Ci got up from him and started to remove his clothes.
Murong Heng’s eyes widened, thinking that Shen Ci had made up his mind and wanted to do ‘that’ with him. He didn’t expect that Shen Ci would only take off his clothes, support him over to the bed to lie down properly, then fetch hot water and a clean towel to gently wipe his cheeks for him.
Murong Heng felt as if a warm current was gushing through his heart as he watched Shen Ci’s movements. He immediately reached out and flung the towel off his face. Then he flipped Shen Ci so that he was lying beneath his own body before lowering his head and kissing those soft lips.
“Mmm…” Shen Ci was abruptly kissed by him and couldn’t catch his breath. The residual wine in Murong Heng’s mouth was passed to him, and he froze for a moment. His body gradually softened as he lay motionless on the bed, allowing Murong Heng to continue kissing him, and he responded earnestly.
Drinking wine greatly bolstered Murong Heng’s courage. He kissed Shen Ci, who was lying under him, and planted countless intimate kisses on his face. Although he really wished to possess him immediately, the war wasn’t over yet. He wouldn’t act rashly and be overcome by lust.
As Shen Ci was being kissed, he gradually placed his arms around Murong Heng’s waist. Although he couldn’t see, he could sense that the way Murong Heng was gazing at him right now must be especially gentle. It was truly a blessing that he, Shen Ci, was able to meet such a beloved as Murong Heng in this life. However, he was worried about Murong Heng’s constitution after drinking and tenderly pushed him away after a while. He wanted to get up and serve Murong Heng a bowl of hangover soup.
Murong Heng understood that Ah Ci was concerned about his health, and a faint smile appeared in the corner of his eyes. He stopped pretending to be drunk, stood, and tidied himself up. After changing his clothes, he dragged Shen Ci to lie down on the bed with him.
In the dead of night, there were only the sounds of footsteps from soldiers patrolling outside the tent. Shen Ci lay on the bed, remembering Murong Heng’s kisses from earlier, and his heart beat a little faster.
Both of them have been together for so long, yet they haven’t done anything other than kiss. As a man, Shen Ci naturally understood Murong Heng’s desire. However, at the moment, the hatred is still unresolved. He was unable to let go of the resentment in his heart and accept these things.
Fortunately, Murong Heng was gentle, considerate, and meticulous in handling matters. He would never force him to do anything and is always mindful of him. If he didn’t have Murong Heng, leaving aside the matter of whether or not the extermination of his family could be avenged, he wasn’t even clear about what his future path would become.
Therefore, it was the most fortunate thing for him to have Murong Heng.
Murong Heng had been observing Shen Ci’s expression in the darkness, and he could more or less guess what he was thinking. With a light sigh, Murong Heng patted his back and said, “Ah Ci, go to sleep. I will always be by your side.”
Shen Ci didn’t say anything. He closed his eyes and nestled against Murong Heng’s broad and warm chest, feeling extremely at ease. It was as if he didn’t need to worry about anything. It was fine as long as he was around.
Murong Heng glanced down at Shen Ci’s sleeping visage, then tightened his arms and had a good night’s sleep.
****
The army continued to advance, and within half a month, they arrived outside the capital. As expected, many soldiers were stationed at the city gates in order to prevent Murong Heng’s Iron Halberd Army from entering the city.
Murong Heng eyed the generals standing atop the city walls. He’d come here with only a few trusted subordinates. His purpose today wasn’t to attack the city but to test Murong Yu’s disposition. Sitting high up on his horse, he raised his head to observe the generals on the city wall, and after a while he shouted, “Have Murong Yu come out to meet me!”
Needless to say, the generals paid him no attention. But when Murong Yu in the palace caught wind of the news, in an unprecedented move, he exited the palace and arrived atop the city walls. He regarded Murong Heng below with a sinister look, and he didn’t say a word.
“Murong Yu, I advise you to surrender as soon as possible; otherwise, my Iron Halberd Army will storm their way in and flat-out slaughter you!” Murong Heng didn’t mince words and spoke bluntly when he saw him come out.
“Are you jesting?” Murong Yu raised his head and let out a loud laugh upon hearing this. Telling him to surrender? He, Murong Yu, is this world’s emperor, and he, Murong Heng, is merely a traitorous rebel. Wasn’t it terribly clear who ought to surrender?
With those few words, Murong Heng understood that Murong Yu would rather die than surrender. There was no need to waste time on him, so he lifted the bow and arrow he was holding, aimed at Murong Yu, and let the arrow fly. The arrow pierced through the city wall, shot past Murong Yu’s ear, and pierced into the wall. The impressive archery skill shocked the soldiers beside Murong Yu. After firing the arrow, Murong Heng said in a low voice, “Murong Yu, this is my greeting gift for you. Next time, I won’t show mercy!”
As soon as he finished speaking, he brought the rest of his group to turn their horses around and withdrew from the city gate, leaving Murong Yu fuming with rage on the city walls. Upon returning to the barracks, Murong Heng had dinner and sat side by side with Shen Ci to chat on a high hillside. The two of them conversed, interspersed with sporadic silences.
Shen Ci rested his head on Murong Heng’s shoulder. The sound of burning torches made its way into his ears, but the breathing of the person beside him was even more pronounced. The two of them held hands. The atmosphere was peaceful and warm.
An hour later, Shen Ci dozed off on Murong Heng’s shoulder. Murong Heng inclined his head and gazed at him tenderly. He squeezed their clasped palms and pressed a devout kiss on the corner of Shen Ci’s lips.
Let the war end quickly. Ah Ci and he shall remain together like this for the rest of their lives, never to be separated again.