Chapter 227: Just a Monster
A son of a wealthy family should not sit in the hall. If Lord Changping intended to mislead Xiang Yan, there was no need for him to come in person.

Changping Jun's expression was also somewhat bitter. He thought he had won the victory and had left Qin and came to Xiang Yan. At this time, he was basically a replacement in Meng Wu's army.

He totally didn't understand why he was completely unaware of such an important event as the fact that Po Tu San Lang followed Meng Tian on the march.

Changping Jun was still nominally the right prime minister of Qin. Although Ying Zheng's reluctance to give up power resulted in him and Wang Wan having little presence, the information he was able to obtain would definitely not be wrong.

"General Xiang, please believe me. I really don't know about this."

After hearing what Changping Jun said, Xiang Yan's expression suddenly became somewhat horrifying.

"Your Majesty, have you ever thought that the King of Qin may have discovered your secret dealings with me, and the reason he didn't expose the matter immediately was to catch the thief and get away with it."

Changping Jun's face suddenly darkened. He said in disbelief, "It's impossible. With Zhao Zheng's character, if he finds out that I'm collaborating with the enemy and betraying the country, he will definitely not let me stay, let alone set a trap for me."

"It is true that the King of Qin is arbitrary and dictatorial, but," Xiang Yan paused, "Gongsun Tongming is a sinister person. His favorite plan is to kill people and destroy their hearts."

Speaking of this, Xiang Yan suddenly thought of Xiang Liang, who was willing to trust his son.

But he also had to consider one thing, that is, Xiang Liang had been to the border of Chu State and had come into contact with the black jade Qilin.

Considering Gongsun Ce's habit of killing people and destroying their hearts, is Xiang Liang still Xiang Liang? Or, will Xiang Liang still obey him?
However, at this moment Xiang Yan had no time to think about it. He decisively ordered the Chu army to withdraw from the city through the secret passage.

However, it was too late, as the destructive power of Hato Saburo had put the tunnel in danger.

In chaos and panic, the Chu soldiers fled from the secret passages one after another.

However, what they did not expect was that on the other side of the city, the army led by Meng Wu was already ready for battle.

When the Chu soldiers rushed out of the secret passage, they were greeted by Meng Wu's fierce attack.

The Chu soldiers were caught off guard and suffered heavy losses.

He knew that his plan had failed completely and the losses were heavy.

At this time, Xiang Yan suppressed his doubts about Xiang Liang. He blew the whistle to summon Xiang Liang's special forces to come to the rescue.

In the fierce battle between the Chu army led by Xiang Yan and the Qin army, the Chu army gradually fell into a bitter battle.

The Qin army's cavalry surged in like a tide, and the Chu army's defense line was in danger.

At this critical moment, a figure led the army out from the darkness, like a tiger descending from the mountain, and rushed straight into the encirclement of the Qin army.

That was Xiang Liang, Xiang Yan's right-hand man and his most trusted son.

The troops led by Xiang Liang swept across the battlefield like a storm, and the Qin army was caught off guard by this sudden attack.

Under his leadership, the morale of the Chu army was greatly boosted and the Qin army's offensive was temporarily curbed.

Meng Wu and Xiang Liang inadvertently looked at each other from a distance and both sides immediately understood that the plan could be implemented.

So Xiang Liang led an elite force and broke into the encirclement of the Qin army.

It seemed that after a fierce fight, Xiang Liang found Xiang Yan and Changping Jun when Meng Wu let them go.

The three of them worked together, fought their way out, and successfully broke out.

After breaking through the siege, Xiang Liang was not in a hurry to leave the battlefield.

He took Xiang Yan and Changping Jun and circled in front of the Qin army formation to let the Qin army confirm that it was Changping Jun they saw.

This was part of Gongsun Ce's plan. Changping Jun had to die, but to the outside world, he was still alive.

In the first round of murder and destruction, Lord Changping died and lost the chance to become the King of Chu.

In the second round of killing people and destroying their hearts, Xiang Yan and Xiang Liang, father and son, killed each other.

If Xiang Yan could survive, it would be the third round of killing and destroying the heart, and Xiang Yan and King Fu Chu of Chu would become estranged.

The fourth round of killing people and destroying their hearts came true after Xiang Yan returned to the Xiang family.

Gongsun Ce is still in seclusion, but he is very curious about what Xiang Yan’s expression would be when he sees the gift if he could survive and return to the Xiang family.

Xiang Yan had made great achievements in his life and was well-known. He was the most famous general of the Chu State and the hope of the Xiang family...

He was very proud of these titles and his status, so Gongsun Ce was ready to crush them directly.

Afterwards, Xiang Liang, Xiang Yan and Changping Jun rode their horses out of the encirclement until they were out of the reach of the Qin army. Xiang Liang decided to stop and rest.

The three men and the Chu army who were escorting them dismounted and set up camp.

In the center of the tent were naturally Changping Jun, Xiang Yan and Xiang Liang.

At this time, the three people were surrounding a camp pot, which was buried underground. The smoke from the burning firewood was discharged through the chimney.

At this time, Changping Jun was still alive, but Xiang Yan's eyes were fixed on Xiang Liang.

Suddenly, Xiang Liang drew the long sword from his waist, his eyes firm and cold.

He looked at Changping Jun, the comrade who had once fought alongside him but had now become the victim of his plan.

Xiang Liang took a deep breath, then decisively swung his sword and cut off Changping Jun's head.

Changping Jun's head rolled to the ground, and his blood dyed the surrounding land red.

Xiang Yan was so shocked by this scene that he was speechless. He couldn't believe his eyes, and he couldn't believe that it was his son Xiang Liang who did it.

However, the facts are clear: Changping Jun did die at the hands of Xiang Liang.

Xiang Liang did not give Xiang Yan much time to react. He continued to rush towards Xiang Yan, wanting to kill his father in one fell swoop and complete the achievement of a loving father and a filial son.

However, Xiang Yan was a famous general of the Chu State after all, and he reacted quickly.

He grasped Xiang Liang's sword with both hands, struggled hard, and snatched the sword from Xiang Liang's hands.

Then, he endured the pain in his heart and slashed Xiang Liang's throat with his sword.

Xiang Liang fell to the ground, blood gushing from his throat. He looked up at the sky, his eyes full of calmness.

Xiang Yan looked at the bodies of Xiang Liang and Changping Jun lying on the ground, feeling mixed emotions.

He knew that he was being plotted against. This war was a conspiracy from the beginning, a conspiracy against him and Changping Jun.

However, he failed to see through the conspiracy and instead found himself in deeper trouble.

Xiang Yan knew that he had been defeated, not only because he was defeated in marching and fighting by the two Qin generals Meng Wu and Meng Tian, ​​but also because he lost in strategy to Gongsun Ce, who had given him advice.

His heart was filled with regret and self-blame, but he also knew that he couldn't just fall down like this.

He must immediately return to the Xiang clan, and then lead the entire clan to leave the State of Chu, the farther the better.

Even if Xiang Yan brought the bodies of Xiang Liang and Changping Jun back to Yingdu, he would still be suspected by King Fu Chu of Chu.

Because no one would believe that Xiang Yan would kill his own son Xiang Liang.

Others would only think that Xiang Yan was determined to protect Changping Jun as king, so he ordered Xiang Liang to secretly protect Changping Jun, and the two corpses were just substitutes found by Xiang Yan.

As a result, Xiang Yan was caught in a dilemma.

He could neither explain the truth of the matter to King Fu Chu of Chu, nor could he support a king who would be one with him and his subjects.

Moreover, Xiang Yan believed in Gongsun Ce's strategy. If nothing unexpected happened, rumors were already flying throughout the territory of Chu.

"Great Chu rises, the King of Changping!"

"Fuchu has no virtue! Changping Jun should rise!"

"I can go wherever General Xiang Yan points to!"

Such remarks have spread throughout the territory of Chu State under the deliberate dissemination of Luowang killers.

After beheading Xiang Liang and Changping Jun, Xiang Yan quietly left the accompanying Chu army and hid all the way back to the Xiang clan's homeland.

Along the way, Xiang Yan heard a lot of rumors as expected. If the protagonist was not him, he would be happy to listen to them.

When they arrived at the Xiang clan's territory, his clansmen gathered around them to seek countermeasures.

"Patriarch, you have spoken, what should we do?"

"Yes, there are rumors flying around outside. I don't know how the king will deal with us."

Xiang Yan listened to a group of people speaking in turn, but there was an unconcealable confusion in their words.

Xiang Yan immediately made a decision and said, "We should relocate our entire family sooner rather than later. If we delay, we may not be able to leave.

Abandon the gold and silver that are difficult to carry, dismiss the servants, take a certain amount of food, count the number of people, and we will leave immediately. "

Xiang Yan’s thoughts were very thorough, but unfortunately, his daughter-in-law gave birth prematurely, which strictly speaking should be considered a miscarriage.

Although the other party's belly is not small, it cannot hide the fact that the fetus is not yet full term.

According to common sense, the other party would have a miscarriage at this time, but Xiang Liang's actions were indeed harmful.

Gongsun Ce's plan was to kill Xiang Yu before he was born, and the timing of his death would also be just right when Xiang Yan returned to the Xiang family.

An earlier plan was to let Xiang Yu be born, and after Xiang Yan had enjoyed family happiness, let Xiang Liang launch a surprise attack and kill the two, but plans could not keep up with changes.

The plan had to be changed, but Gongsun Ce did not expect that Xiang Liang would ask Meng Wu for the blood of the dragon blood warrior.

Previously, in order to better wipe out the Xiongnu's cattle, sheep and horses, Gongsun Ce provided Li Mu with some low-end versions of the No. 4 potion.

So Li Mu created a group of low-profile dragon blood warriors, and what Xiang Liang wanted was naturally the blood of these low-profile dragon blood warriors.

Judging from the thin dragon blood in their blood, even if Xiang Liang mixed his blood with Xiang Yu's mother's pregnancy-preserving medicine, it should only have a certain impact on Xiang Yu.

However, Xiang Yu's talent enabled him to not only absorb this thin dragon blood perfectly, but he could even instinctively purify this part of the dragon blood on his own.

This resulted in the continuous growth of Xiang Yu, who had just taken shape.

So, just when Xiang Yu's mother had a miscarriage, Xiang Yu slipped out by himself.

Xiang Yan looked at the monster curled up in front of him and his heart was shocked.

Xiang Yu was not an ordinary baby. He was a little taller than other babies, but this was not what made Xiang Yan most uneasy.

What's even more bizarre is that Xiang Yu's body is covered with a layer of fish-scale-like scales, which sparkle with a strange luster.

Xiang Yan widened his eyes. He couldn’t understand how a human could grow scales.

At this moment, Xiang Yu stretched his limbs, and a pair of huge wings suddenly spread out behind him.

The wings were two meters wide, and the feathers shone with a metallic luster, as if they could cut through the sky.

Xiang Yan looked at the wings in shock, and an inexplicable fear surged in his heart.

He had never seen such a strange sight, and he could not imagine that his grandson would have such a strange appearance. Xiang Yu's eyes also opened, and they were a pair of burning golden pupils.

Under the gaze of these eyes, Xiang Yan felt as if a huge mountain was pressing down on him, making it hard for him to breathe.

He tried to look away, but those eyes seemed to have a magical power that firmly attracted his gaze.

It took a long time for Xiang Yan to recover from his shock.

He looked at Xiang Yu in front of him, his heart filled with fear and confusion.

He couldn't believe that his grandson would be a monster, and he couldn't believe that this monster would come from his own family bloodline.

So, he drew the sharp blade at his waist without hesitation and slashed at Xiang Yu.

However, Xiang Yu seemed to sense the danger. He spread his wings and flew high into the sky, dodging Xiang Yan's sword.

Xiang Yan looked at Xiang Yu flying in the air, and his determination to get rid of him became even stronger.

He knew that if this monster remained in the world, it would bring endless disasters to the family.

Xiang Yu, who was flying in the air, felt hungry at this time.

He looked down at his tribesmen below, a gleam of greed in his eyes.

Then, he swooped down decisively and captured a member of his same tribe.

Xiang Yan saw this and hurriedly drew his sword to chase after him, but it was too late. Xiang Yu and his people had already disappeared into the sky.

Not long after, a skeleton suddenly fell from the sky. Xiang Yan looked up and saw that the skeleton was the tribesman that Xiang Yu had captured earlier.

He felt a surge of grief in his heart, but more of anger and determination.

He knew he couldn't sit idly by any longer and had to eradicate this monster once and for all.

So Xiang Yan stood on the high ground of the clan’s land, staring at Xiang Yu in mid-air.

He gripped the sword tightly, ready to strike at any time.

At this time, Xiang Yu seemed to feel Xiang Yan's hostility. He swooped down again, ready to capture another tribesman.

Just when Xiang Yu was about to succeed, Xiang Yan suddenly took action.

He swung his sword and accurately hit the shoulder of Xiang Yu who was swooping down.

The long sword mercilessly cut off Xiang Yu's left arm, and the blood instantly dyed the sky red.

Xiang Yu roared in pain, then soared into the air again and disappeared into the sky.

Xiang Yan looked at the direction where Xiang Yu disappeared, his heart filled with complicated emotions.

He felt angry and sad, but also a little relieved.

He knew that although he had cut off Xiang Yu's left arm, he had not really eliminated him.

But this monster has been severely damaged and will not come to capture the tribe again in the short term.

Moreover, their Xiang clan is about to leave this place, and no matter what changes Xiang Yu makes in the future, it has nothing to do with him.

Xiang Yan felt that it was only suffering for the people of Chu State, as they had to endure the harassment from a monster like Xiang Yu.

Xiang Yan felt bad as she looked at her unconscious daughter-in-law and held her panicked eldest son.

However, all he could do was to leave the State of Chu as soon as possible to avoid being liquidated by King Fu Chu of Chu and to avoid being harassed by Xiang Yu.

What Xiang Yan didn't know was that Xiang Yu's left arm had grown again while he was flying high in the sky, and Xiang Yu's body was getting taller.

Xiang Yu, who was originally only slightly taller than a baby, was now about 1.6 meters tall.

If Xiang Yan had not intervened and allowed him to eat enough blood, his body would have grown again if he had enough energy.

However, Xiang Yan left a big shadow on Xiang Yu, so Xiang Yu did not choose to retaliate against Xiang Yan immediately. He took a deep breath and confirmed that he had left the impression of Xiang Yan's breath.

Finally, Xiang Yu flapped his wings and headed for the most prosperous place in Chu State - Yingdu, the capital of Chu State.

A day later, Xiang Yu came to the sky above Yingdu. He smelled the scent of people, the scent of many people, so he swooped down and accurately captured the defenders on the city wall.

In Xiang Yu's opinion, capturing the defenders was of moderate difficulty, but the defenders' bodies had strong qi and blood, which was enough for him to obtain more energy.

Therefore, Xiang Yu's first choice was to capture the defenders. The defenders were captured one after another by Xiang Yu. Within just a quarter of an hour, four very clean skeletons appeared on the city wall.

This made the guard who received the news shocked. He carefully examined the bones and found that they were very clean, as if they had been washed by something.

But the guard now saw traces of friction on the bones, which looked like scratches and teeth marks from wild animals.

The defending general immediately concluded that a large flying beast was hunting the defenders.

"All soldiers, listen up. From now on, no matter what you do, you must work in a team and not be alone. I will go to the palace immediately to report this matter.

The king will certainly send experts to deal with this situation, so you must hold on here and mobilize crossbows when necessary!"

"Yes!"

The garrison commander left in a hurry upon seeing this. He knew that unless he summoned a great master, he might not be able to deal with the beast.

There was still a harmonious scene in the Chu Palace. King Fu Chu of Chu looked at the beautiful girl with a slender waist in front of him and felt very satisfied.

At this time, the news of Xiang Yan's defeat had not yet been reported back to Yingdu. In Fu Chu's mind, no matter how bad Xiang Yan was, he could still temporarily stop the Qin army's offensive.

Therefore, he continued to play the music with peace of mind and let the dancers continue to dance.

The slender waist made Fu Chu satisfied, as this was the aesthetic standard passed down from his ancestors.

At this time, the palace servant reported that the city gate guard was asking for a meeting outside the palace gate, and the guard had something important to report.

"Report~ Report to the king, the guard is outside the palace gates and wants to see you. He has something important to report."

"Tsk." King Fuchu of Chu waved his hand in dissatisfaction, signaling the dancers and musicians to go down, "All of you go down, let that useless guard come in."

The dancers and musicians bowed and then left. Without the dancers and musicians, the Chu Palace regained a certain solemnity.

“Your Majesty, a large bird of prey suddenly attacked the defenders on the city wall. Four people have been killed, and their remains are nothing but bones.

If we continue to allow this beast to slaughter, its next target will probably be the palace. Your Majesty, please mobilize the Grandmasters to hunt and kill this beast."

King Fu Chu of Chu didn't care when he heard that a bird of prey had injured someone, but when he heard that the remains of the deceased were clean, he became a little uneasy.

If it is not dealt with in time, it is unclear whether the raptor will continue to hurt people, and the defenders at the city gate will definitely mutiny.

"As you say."

After King Fu Chu of Chu agreed to send a master, he was a little troubled. He didn't know who should be sent to the city gate to help capture or kill the birds of prey.

"Then let me go."

At this time, Song Yu suddenly spoke up, which surprised King Fu Chu of Chu. Song Yu and the royal family of Chu did not get along well.

Even if King Fu Chu of Chu no longer had the protection of other grand masters at this time, Song Yu would only perform his duties in secret.

"As you say."

The moon was dark, the wind was strong, and the sky was covered with dark clouds. The walls of Yingdu looked particularly majestic and solemn under the night sky.

On the city walls, torches flickered and the defenders were on high alert to prevent any accidents.

In this silent night, a black shadow quietly passed across the sky, like a meteor streaking across the sky, heading straight for the top of the city.

The black shadow was none other than Xiang Yu. He had a nimble figure, wings as sharp as knives, and his whole body radiated the cold luster of dragon scales.

The reason he came here this time was simply to hunt. Although the arm that was cut off by Xiang Yan had recovered, it had consumed too much of his energy, so he was in urgent need of food.

However, just as he was about to swoop down and hunt down the defenders on the city wall, a sharp gaze penetrated the night and locked onto him.

The defenders on the city wall had already noticed something was wrong, and they quickly set up giant crossbows. This type of machine-expanded weapon used for city defense was extremely powerful, enough to penetrate thick city walls.

Although Xiang Yu possessed great strength, he knew nothing about weapons like the crossbow and could only rely on his intuition to feel the sense of crisis that was approaching.

Xiang Yu's heart trembled, he knew he had to be careful in dealing with the situation.

His body paused and he made an amazing turn in the air, trying to avoid the attack of the crossbow.

However, the sound of the mechanism on the bed crossbow had already sounded, and several giant crossbow arrows shot out from the air like arrows from a bow, heading straight for Xiang Yu.

Xiang Yu's wings shook violently, and his body moved flexibly in the air, with every dodge being just right.

With his amazing speed and reaction, he managed to dodge all the crossbow arrows at the critical moment.

When the defenders saw this, they all cried out in surprise. They had never seen such a powerful enemy.

However, just as Xiang Yu was about to destroy the crossbow, a figure suddenly appeared on the top of the city wall.

He was not tall, but had a powerful aura. He was none other than Song Yu, the great master of the Chu State.

Song Yu had amazing eyesight. Through the moonlight, he could see Xiang Yu's face clearly.

He was shocked because he found that although Xiang Yu was covered with dragon scales, his facial features were surprisingly similar to those of Xiang Yan, a famous general of the Chu State.

Song Yu immediately understood that Xiang Yu was not an ordinary beast, and he was likely to have some connection with Xiang Yan.

He took a deep breath and released the intention and aura of a grandmaster.

The two forces intertwined together to form a powerful pressure that directly enveloped Xiang Yu.

Xiang Yu suddenly felt a heavy pressure coming from all directions, and his body seemed to be pressed down by a mountain.

His wings could no longer maintain balance, his body paused, and then fell to the ground.

After a muffled sound, a huge deep pit appeared under the city wall, with dust flying and gravel splashing everywhere.

Seeing this, Song Yu immediately jumped down from the city wall and ran straight towards the deep pit.

He must confirm Xiang Yu's true identity and intentions as soon as possible.

When he came near the deep pit, he found only Xiang Yu's wings and half body in the pit, while his upper body was nowhere to be seen.

Song Yu was shocked. He carefully checked the situation in the pit and found that Xiang Yu had escaped by digging a hole.

He suddenly felt a sense of uneasiness, because he guessed that Xiang Yu possessed a strong recovery ability, otherwise he would not have been able to cut off his tail to survive so easily. Once he escaped, he would soon come back.

Moreover, the relationship between Xiang Yu and Xiang Yan made the matter even more complicated.

(End of this chapter)