Chapter 28: The Military Seal

  Behind a magnificent golden palace, there is an inconspicuous flat house. Even such an unremarkable flat house, none of the ministers and generals of the Tianlong Kingdom dare to enter without the emperor's order, it can be seen that the person living here must be an ordinary person.

  At this moment, in this ordinary flat house, an old man with a white eyebrow and a strong aura on his body looked at Leng Xuetian with a surprised expression: "Leng Xuetian, are you telling the truth?"

  "Your Majesty, how could I dare to deceive you in such a great matter?" Cold Xiao Tian seemed to be extremely respectful of the old man in front of him. If someone had heard Cold Xiao Tian addressing this old man as "Your Majesty", they would probably have been shocked out of their wits - since when did Tian Long Kingdom have another "Your Majesty"?

  Liu Zhen heard Leng Xiao Tian's address to himself, and his face showed a hint of displeasure as he said: "Xiao Tian, how many times have I told you? Don't call me 'Your Majesty' again. The current 'Your Majesty' is named Liu Yan. You can either call me Liu Zhen or Old Undead, but the two words 'Your Majesty' are forbidden for you to use from now on."

  "Your Majesty is still Your Majesty, whether it's a day or a lifetime."

  Liu Zhen waved his hand, shook his head and sighed: "Do as you please, you old fellow. I really don't know whether to call you foolish or straightforward. If I say you're foolish, then your clever tactics on the battlefield are endless. But if I say you're not foolish, then sometimes what you say is foolish. I just can't see through you."

  "Your Majesty, no matter how I change, I am still the cold Xiao Tian you originally knew." Cold Xiao Tian said lightly while sipping his tea.

  "Haha, Xiao Tian! You've worked hard for decades, and sometimes I still think about the old days when you and Old Zhao were by my side. It's been decades since then, and Liu Yan is still young and inexperienced in handling state affairs. As for his two incompetent descendants, one is ruthless and the other is a wastrel... if we were to hand over the throne of Tianlong Kingdom to them, who knows how long it would last?" Liu Zhen sighed, his eyes nostalgic as he reminisced about the past.

  "Your Majesty is overthinking this. I think both princes are fine, they're just a bit young that's all. I'm sure with time, they'll become great leaders."

  Liu Zhen heard Leng Xiao Tian's words and revealed a self-mocking smile on his face, waving his hand: "Xiao Tian, you don't need to comfort me. How could my own descendants not know what kind of nature they have? Unfortunately, I, Liu Zhen, won't be around for much longer. If that day comes and I'm no longer here, Xiao Tian, can you do me a favor out of our friendship?"

  Leng Xiao Tian's expression changed upon hearing Liu Zhen's words, his smile disappearing as he turned serious and said: "Your Majesty has a sacred decree, this general will definitely exert all his strength to carry it out."

  Liu Zhen's face turned stern as he gazed at Leng Xiao Tian for a long time. He then reached into his embroidered robe and pulled out a dragon-shaped jade pendant, handing it to Leng Xiao Tian with deliberate slowness. "Xiao Tian, I believe you're familiar with this object," he said. "Liu Yan's temperament is too impulsive, and the military seal is currently in his hands, which makes me uneasy. Looking at the entire Tian Long Kingdom, there are only two people I trust: you, Xiao Tian, and that old Zhao fellow. As for who can wield power in the army, aside from you, Leng Xiao Tian, no one else can take on this task. Therefore, handing over the military seal to you makes me feel most at ease. However, I hope you'll agree to one thing."

  "Your Majesty, isn't this unwise?!" Cold Xiao Tian naturally knew what the military symbol in Liu Zhen's hand meant. The Tian Long Kingdom still had two major legions, the Dragon Legion and the Royal Legion. These two legions were several times more powerful than the fierce Tiger Legion and the Imperial City Border Defense Legion. The Royal Legion was the most powerful legion, with only 100,000 soldiers, but each soldier's cultivation was at least that of a primary great warrior. They were currently training in the extremely cold northern ice lands and could be said to be the Tian Long Kingdom's trump card army. This army had been trained by Cold Xiao Tian himself, and most of the high-ranking officials in the military were his trusted subordinates. What made this legion particularly special was that they only recognized the military symbol, not people. The funniest thing was that this Royal Legion had a rather special nickname - the Crazy Legion. It was said that when this legion went to war, each soldier became like a madman. Therefore, whenever other countries heard of this legion's number, they would get headaches. As for the Dragon Legion, it was controlled by the Qiao family and garrisoned in the southern fortress.

  Liu Zhen heard Leng Xuetian's words and felt a great sense of relief in his heart, but on his face, he revealed a smile and said: "Leng Kuangren, don't try to fool me with this. Do you think that in the Tianlong Kingdom, apart from you, who else can command the Crazy Army? Who made them your trained troops back then? So, it's only right that you take care of this mop-up task!"

  "Hmm, this... " Leng Xue Tian scratched his head, a rare look of embarrassment on his face: "Your Majesty, I only knew that they had to be brave on the battlefield, who would have thought that every single one of them remembered my words, it was a mistake, an absolute mistake."

  "Roar to the heavens, accept it! Currently your position, I have nothing more to reward you with. If you rise again, aside from rewarding you with the imperial throne, I truly can't think of anything else to reward you with." Liu Zhen said calmly.

  Leng Xiao Tian heard Liu Zhen's words and wiped the awkward expression off his face, hastily standing up. With one hand across his chest, he said: "Your Majesty's words have moved this general deeply; this general has no regrets towards the Heavenly Dragon Empire."

  Liu Zhen heard Leng Xiao Tian's solemn oath and a smile appeared on his face: "Fool, if I didn't believe you, how would I dare to hand over the military token to you? If you really had the heart to rebel, would Leng Xiao Tian have waited until today?"

  "Haha!" Leng Xue Tian naturally understood the meaning behind Liu's words. If he really had such intentions, back in the day when he was one of the four marshals of the Tian Long Kingdom, all it would take was a wave of his hand and the kingdom would immediately change hands. But he didn't choose to do so, and now even more impossible for him to do such a thing. So if there's anyone who understands him best in this world, aside from his arch-nemesis Grand Chancellor Zhao Guo Dong, it would be the founding emperor Liu Zhen himself.

  "Take it away!" Liu Zhen handed over the military token once again.

  "Thank you for your trust, I will definitely leave my last drop of blood for the Tianlong Kingdom." This time, Leng Xiao Tian did not refuse Liu Zhen's intention and carefully accepted the military symbol to thank him.

  Liu Zhen waved his hand casually, then said with a serious face: "Xiao Tian, you must promise me one thing. No matter what turmoil the Tianlong Kingdom may experience in the future, if the Liu family is really unable to continue sitting on the throne, you must help the Liu family preserve its last bloodline, okay?"

  Leng Xiao Tian heard Liu Zhen's request and asked solemnly: "Is this order issued by Your Majesty in your capacity as the ruler, or is it issued in some other capacity?"

  "Is there a difference?" Liu Zhen's face showed puzzlement as he asked.

  Leng Xiao Tian said seriously: "Of course there is."

  "Tell me about it." Liu Zhen's face showed a look of interest.

  "If Your Majesty is giving orders in your own name, then if something really goes wrong with the Tianlong Kingdom that day, Xiao Tian will fight to the last soldier for the country. As for what happens afterwards, Xiao Tian doesn't know. If Your Majesty is making a request in some other capacity, then Xiao Tian will forcibly make you leave the palace incognito when the situation becomes uncontrollable."

  Liu Zhen listened to Leng Xiao Tian's words, her face slightly changed color, and after a moment of contemplation, Liu Zhen's face broke into a smile as she pointed at Leng Xiao Tian and laughed: "Xiao Tian, it seems that the nickname 'Cold Freak' others have given you is indeed well-deserved! You really do think about things in a way that's different from everyone else. I've made up my mind, I'll ask you as an old friend, how about it?"

  "Hmm, I think I'll have to consider it. " Ling Xiao Tian's face broke into a smile as he sat back down, picked up the teacup on the stone table in front of him and took a light sip before saying: "I heard that Your Majesty has a jar of fine wine aged for fifty years hidden away here. I'm not worthy, but I'd like to taste it."

  Liu Zhen heard Leng Xiao Tian's words and a hint of a helpless smile appeared on his face: "You wine crazy, from the moment I met you, all my hidden good wines have gone into your belly. It seems that even the old defensive wine can't escape your mouth."

  "Heh heh." A smile spread across Leng Xue Tian's face.

  "Come in." Liu Zhen called out softly, although his voice was relatively low, but the overbearing tone in his words was indeed very sufficient.

  "Your Majesty, what are your orders." An old man walked in, looking at the way this old man walked and his appearance, if Leng Xiao was here now, he would definitely exclaim: "A master."

  Liu Zhen saw the arrival of the person and a faint smile appeared on his face: "Old Qi, trouble you to bring that jar of Hundred Flowers wine from the cellar behind, today you and Xiao Tian will accompany me to have a good drink, to dispel this long-standing boredom."

  "Yes, Your Majesty." The elderly man summoned by Qi Lao was named Qi Feng, with the cultivation of a high-ranking Sword Saint. He rarely showed his face and had been following Liu Zhen on his southern and northern campaigns, foiling countless assassination attempts big and small. Therefore, he was naturally not unfamiliar with Leng Xiao Tian, who also owed a debt of gratitude to Qi Feng's existence. As a result, during the southern and northern campaigns, his burden had been significantly reduced. He never paid attention to the Emperor's safety concerns, fully devoting himself to battle.

  Liu Zhen saw Leng Xiao Tian frowning and a faint smile appeared on his face: "Xiao Tian, are you worried about the war at the border?"

  "Ah, the border situation is more important. If the Beastmen Nation really has ambitions, then this expedition will probably be prolonged again, and the poor civilians will have to live in turmoil! " Leng Xiao Tian's attitude towards Liu Zhen was neither that of a master and servant, nor like friends, but his words revealed a tone of reverence. However, in general, Leng Xiao Tian and Liu Zhen were considered close friends who understood each other, and they had never hidden anything from each other.

  "Haha." Liu Zhen smiled and said: "Xiao Tian, with you in our country of Tian Long, it is truly a great blessing for us. As for the things you are worried about, you can completely put your mind at ease."

  "Relax?" Leng Xue Tian was stunned for a moment.

  "Don't you feel like two old friends are missing by my side?" Liu Zhen said with a faint smile.

  "Are two old friends missing?" Leng Xue Tian was stunned for a moment, and suddenly a possibility flashed through his mind, so he asked tentatively: "Your Majesty is referring to the two brothers, Tu Hai?"

  "Hehe." Liu Zhen smiled and said: "Just now I've already ordered those two to hurry to the extreme north."

  Leng Xiao Tian heard Liu Zhen's words and his face slightly changed color: "Your Majesty, are you thinking of letting the Imperial Army appear?"

  "What's impossible? Do you think I'm so incompetent that I don't know what's going on outside? Hmph!" Liu Zhen said, a thick murderous intent flashing in his eyes: "If we don't let the Beastman Country suffer a great loss this time, perhaps even the Southern Dynasty and Northern Countries will come to take a share of the spoils!"

  "Does Your Majesty mean to kill the chicken to scare the monkey?"

  Liu Zhen said with an overbearing tone: "What's wrong with that?"

  "Haha, this is for the best." Leng Xue's eyes flashed with a hint of excitement, and his worried heart finally put down. At this moment, what he most wanted to know was that once the Beastman team met their "old friends", he wondered what they would think, just thinking about it made him look forward to it.

  "Your Majesty, the wine has arrived." Zifeng had somehow entered at some point, and his left hand was still holding a sealed wine jar. The wine jar seemed to have aged somewhat from its appearance.

  Liu Zhen saw the sharp glint in Leng Xiao Tian's eyes and smiled at Qi Feng, saying: "Qi lao, open it! Otherwise this cold freak will get anxious."

  "Yes, Your Majesty." Qifeng's right hand lightly stroked the wine jar, and the sealed opening was cut open as if by a sharp blade. The cork was neatly sucked into Qifeng's hand, and immediately a strong, pure aroma of wine wafted out of the jar.

  "Good wine." Leng Xiao Tian's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he praised.

  "Zi Lao, you sit down too. It's been a long time since we've had a drink like this. Let's open up and talk about the old days when we were on campaign together!" Liu Zhen's face also showed a nostalgic expression.

  "Yes, Your Majesty." Zifeng responded and sat down at the round stone table, taking on the role of a wine server.

  If you think the number of words is too small, please collect it first. The quality of coffee is still very good. Hehe, comment votes are welcome. Currently, two updates are maintained every day, one at noon and one in the evening. If there's an explosion, the time will be uncertain.