At the top of the city wall stairs, Cao Wan’er descended slowly, supported by Luna.
She walked with perfect elegance, every step smooth and unhurried, as if everything was under her control.
Luna smiled admiringly, "Empress Dowager, you really do see everything coming. You predicted that demon girl would show the Jade Seal to sway General Tong. If you’d arrived a moment later, who knows, maybe that guy would’ve wavered—and the consequences would be unimaginable."
"Good, at least you know that much. Why else would I keep all the elite troops inside? The ones exiled outside are just useless cannon fodder—doesn’t matter if they live or die. As long as these walls hold and all the elite soldiers are inside, there’s nothing to fear. Even if the enemy had wings and flew over, I’d break every last one and send them straight to hell!" Cao Wan’er said, her tone icy.
"She really is overestimating herself," Luna agreed.
"Is His Majesty safe inside the palace?"
"Yes, Empress Dowager. Just as you ordered, the palace is sealed up tight. The emperor’s security is guaranteed."
"Good." Cao Wan’er nodded in satisfaction. As long as Jude was safe, everything else could be handled.
"By the way, Empress Dowager, when do you plan to take Silver Consort's life?" Luna asked, a bit uneasy. The Crown Prince and Silver Consort had been getting closer lately—not a good sign. After all, they're real mother and son. If Silver Consort ever failed to keep the secret...
"Two more days. In two days, she’ll be heading straight to hell." Cao Wan’er totally understood Luna’s worry—she felt it herself. But judging by Silver Consort’s current recovery, her inner strength would hit a turning point in two days. That’s the best time to act; if she absorbs it then, her own power will skyrocket.
Luna nodded, but the shouts outside kept echoing. Suddenly, a thought struck her and she timidly asked, "Empress Dowager, what if... what if they really manage to get inside the city?"
"Get inside?" Cao Wan’er smirked, her voice full of sarcasm. "You think these walls are made of wet paper or something?"
"True, the Soaring Phoenix Realm’s walls are the toughest there are. For hundreds of years, every country that tried to take us down lost right here. No one’s ever broken through the gate."
"Good, at least you know that much. Why else would I keep all the elite troops inside? The ones exiled outside are just useless cannon fodder—doesn’t matter if they live or die. As long as these walls hold, plus the tens of millions of elite soldiers inside, there’s nothing to fear. Worst case, even if the enemy had wings and flew over, I’d break every last one and send them straight to hell!" Cao Wan’er said, her tone icy.
"But, Empress, I heard that White clan heir not only has a freakish memory, but can actually ride white cranes," Luna fretted. What if they really did fly in from the sky?!
"You think they’re all gonna fly in on white cranes?" Cao Wan’er sneered. "You do realize we have archers, right?"
"Of course, Empress," Luna replied quickly.
"Besides, I’ve planned for every outcome. Worst case, they break in—but once they’re inside, they’ll be trapped like turtles in a jar. Those seven men? I’ll make sure every last one dies miserably. And as for that White clan survivor—" Cao Wan’er’s lips curled into a cold smile, her eyes glinting with malice. "The White clan should’ve been wiped out ages ago. No point leaving that little monster alive. The moment they get in, the first one I send to hell will be the White heir!"
"Brilliant, Empress!" Luna chimed in, piling on the flattery.
"I’ve been setting this trap for ages. No way I’m letting them ruin it! Whether they break in or not, their fate’s already sealed—they’re all going to meet the King of the Underworld!" With that, Cao Wan’er burst into triumphant laughter, brimming with confidence.
"You’re a genius, Empress!" Luna said, laying it on thicker than peanut butter.
***** Scene Break *****
As soon as Ivy Shen’s rousing shout of "Fire the cannon!" rang out, the Chu Kingdom soldiers scrambled to clear a path.
The defenders on the city wall just stared, totally confused about what the enemy was even doing.
But before they could figure it out—BOOM! A deafening blast shook the earth.
Soldiers everywhere were so freaked out by the scene, they just collapsed to the ground, totally clueless. Some even thought the gods were angry.
"Fire the cannon!" Ivy Shen shouted again. In the next second, huge explosions thundered out one after another, the sound rolling like divine thunder.
Cao Wan’er, who had just finished coming down the stairs, was nearly knocked off her feet by the noise.
"What’s going on?"
"No idea," Luna stammered, panicking. What was that sound? Why was it so loud? Why was the ground shaking?!
"Ah! People—people are flying like popcorn at a fireworks show!" The soldiers on the city wall screamed in terror. They saw something land at the base of the wall, and in an instant, half the army outside was gone. When that thing flew past, people were hurled into the air, but what came down were just mangled arms and broken limbs. It was straight-up nightmare fuel.
"General! The gate—the gate’s been breached!" someone shouted from below.
"What?" Connor Tong was utterly stunned. No way—no way this could happen!
"Are the gods angry or something?" The soldiers on the wall were freaking out. They’d never imagined anything like this. Sure, they hadn’t been soldiers long, but everyone knew the Soaring Phoenix Realm’s walls were legendary for being indestructible. And now? There was a massive hole in the gate. That pitch-black thing had come flying so fast, nobody even saw what it was—and suddenly, the gate was wrecked and the ground was shaking.
Thank goodness they aimed at the gate—if they’d fired at the wall itself, wouldn’t the whole thing have come crashing down?
This scene didn’t just terrify the soldiers on and under the Soaring Phoenix walls—even the Chu Kingdom troops were left gaping in shock.
Once they snapped out of it, the shock turned into pure relief. Thank goodness they were with Chu—if that thing had come flying at them, they’d be toast!
The noise left Cao Wan’er stunned yet again; she hurried down as fast as she could, with Luna scrambling after her.
They saw that the supposedly indestructible gate now had a gigantic hole in it. Cao Wan’er was shaken—how was this possible? She’d only felt so confident because of that unbeatable gate, but now? How did they manage to blast it open?
"Empress!" Luna panicked. Oh no, there’s a hole in the gate! What now? They’re definitely about to charge in!
Cao Wan'er was just as shocked as everyone else, but she quickly regained her composure. "Quick, carry out the defense plan we set up before!" she ordered sharply.
With that, she abandoned all pretense of elegance—no more graceful walking. She swung herself onto a horse and raced toward the city center, determined to arrange everything inside before the enemy could ruin her schemes.
"Your Highness, we’re out of cannons!" a soldier hurried over to Ivy Shen on horseback to report.
"The number was perfect—just enough!" Ivy replied. In this era, making gunpowder was tough, and you needed a lot to make a real impact. They’d managed to scrape together enough for three or four shots, but that was plenty. Once the gate was down, the cannons weren’t needed anymore!
Her husbands’ jaws hit the floor. Their girl was definitely from another planet—who else could whip up a doomsday gadget like that?
The Chu soldiers were hyped to the moon. This was the most epic brawl they’d ever been in.
"Sister!"
"Ivy!"
"Young Mistress!"
"That woman—"
Lian Yinyin, Xu Ning, Lanny, Pinkie, and Ke Liang all stared in awe. What had they just witnessed? What was that thing, and how could it be so terrifyingly powerful? Before Ivy had her child, she spent every day tinkering with something, always gathering supplies. None of them ever knew what she was up to.
She’d also been training General Nee nonstop, making him practice aiming at all sorts of targets.
Even her seven husbands got jealous—so THAT’S why she was glued to General Nee! Not a secret romance, just target practice!
"General, General..." a soldier kept calling out to the stunned General Nee.
"Oh my god, hahaha, amazing, absolutely amazing!" He’d fired the cannon again and again at Ivy Shen’s orders. His mind was blank, just following her commands, unable to see or hear anything else. But once the barrage ended and he snapped out of it, he realized he’d just done something epic.
"Watch this!" General Nee handed a firestarter to the soldier, grabbed a sword from nearby, strapped it to his waist, then vaulted onto his horse and charged off toward Ethan Chu.
"Is everyone ready?" Ivy Shen called out loudly.
"Ready!" all the soldiers roared in unison, their voices echoing together.
"We're ready too," Xu Ning and Lian Yinyin added with a smile.
Seeing this, Ivy Shen flashed a confident smile. "Good—charge!" At her word, every soldier surged forward.