LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 103: Three Extremes
Ji Pingtian and his associates didn't return to the secret base arranged by Kong Fang until the early morning of the next day.
This was because they needed to ensure that they had truly shaken off their pursuers.
The base was a safe house specially prepared by Kong Fang, a local snake of Dayu Country. Although the environment was average, its security was beyond doubt, making it suitable for the members of the Rebirth Society to heal their wounds.
Inside the base, Zong Yan, who brought medical personnel and numerous healing medicines, saw Ji Pingtian, who was seriously injured and weak in breath.
As well as four Martial Saints who were loyal to the Rebirth Society.
"It's good that you've escaped, good that you've escaped,"
Zong Yan said, quickly summoning people to treat them.
However, Ji Pingtian couldn't care about that at the moment, as he urgently inquired, "Why did the Stellar Sanctum suddenly release us? What happened?"
Zong Yan and Kong Fang exchanged glances.
After a while, Zong Yan finally sighed and said, "You definitely won't believe what I'm about to say..."
As he spoke, his eyes seemed to still be tinged with the shock from the night before, "It was Alkaid."
"Him?"
Behind Ji Pingtian, the surviving few Martial Saints simultaneously looked up.
Ji Pingtian's expression changed immediately, and he said at once, "Alkaid!? He wouldn't have defected to the Red Star Imperial Family, would he!? Using defection to the Red Star Imperial Family as a bargaining chip in exchange for the Stellar Sanctum sparing us!? No, that must not be! If he really did so, wouldn't the sacrifices of so many of our Rebirth Society colleagues be in vain?"
Since he spoke too hastily, his wounds were affected, and he couldn't help but cough, even coughing up a bit of fresh blood.
"Not at all, not at all, President, don't worry, Alkaid has not defected to the Red Star Imperial Family,"
Zong Yan said, quickly adding, "No matter who defects to the Red Star Imperial Family, Alkaid... he absolutely wouldn't!"
He took a deep breath, "To save the President, as well as Director Ren and Director Han, Alkaid, on his own, broke into the Red Star Imperial Palace, directly kidnapped Emperor Jiang Shengtian of the Red Star, and used his life as a threat, which finally made Jiang Shengtian order your release..."
Upon hearing this, Ji Pingtian, along with the several Martial Saints, were stunned.
Then...
Their expressions turned somewhat odd.
After a while, Ji Pingtian said, "Are you saying that Alkaid, alone, broke through the defense of the Red Star Imperial Palace? That under the interception of Qi Renjie, Jiang Ruolong, and that Primordial Chaos Martial Saint Lei Thunder, he captured Jiang Shengtian?"
"Heh."
Kong Fang knew from the expressions of the few people that they simply did not believe this explanation.
He calmly said, "Don't view the truly exceptional geniuses of this world through your perspective. Their speed of growth is more rapid than you can imagine."
Seeing those photos sent by Alkaid last night, Kong Fang had completely shed any doubts about his assessment of Xia Wuyuan.
Alkaid...
Truly deserved the title of a once-in-a-century peerless talent!
Realizing this, his heart and attitude underwent a complete, 180-degree change.
If his previous allegiance to Alkaid was somewhat of a gamble, then at this moment, he had firmly resolved in his heart to devote all his energy to assist Alkaid, to free Dayu Country from the dominance of the Red Star Empire completely, and even...
To free all the beings of the world from the cyclic disasters that came every three hundred years for a short cycle, and every thousand years for a grand cycle.
To change the world, to make the world a better place.
He would exert all his effort to help Alkaid fulfill the oath he made when he was young and stepped into the Martial Arts World.
It was because of these changes in mindset that, hearing Ji Pingtian's words of disbelief, he spoke mockingly.
Ji Pingtian's associate Ren Ziliu furrowed his brows, about to say something, but Zong Yan, fearing they might cause discomfort, directly displayed a series of photos, "Take a look for yourselves, I think this is the best proof."
Ji Pingtian, Ren Ziliu, and others crowded forward to look at the photos laid out by Zong Yan.
Just one glance was enough to drastically narrow the eyes of these Martial Saints and Divine Intent Martial Saints of the Rebirth Society, who were very familiar with the high-level details of the Red Star.
"This... this is!? Emperor Jiang Shengtian of the Red Star!?"
"Jiang Shengtian... he's actually dead!? How... how is this possible!?"
"The Red Star Emperor is dead!? This is literally earth-shattering news, who did this!?"
In an instant, Ji Pingtian, including the two Rebirth Society Martial Saints, couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
"Not just Jiang Shengtian."
Zong Yan said gravely, "According to the information we received, another key member of the Red Star Imperial Family, Jiang Ruolong, the head of the intelligence department Qi Renjie, and that so-called True Dragon of the Jiang Family, the peerless genius Jiang Xuntian... all are dead!"
Hearing Zong Yan speak earnestly, and looking at the photo he had displayed...
Ji Pingtian and the several Martial Saints of the Rebirth Society opened their mouths, wanting to say something, but ultimately not a single word came out.
After a moment, Ji Pingtian's thoughts churned wildly, his figure trembled slightly, he stared at Zong Yan and said word by word, "This is... Alkaid!?"
"Yes!"
Zong Yan nodded emphatically, "It was done by Lord Alkaid."
"Hiss!"
Even after seeing the photo and bracing himself, Ji Pingtian still involuntarily took in a breath of cold air when he received this concrete news from Zong Yan.
"Truly him!?"
"How is that possible..."
Ren Ziliu's voice trembled as he let out an uncontrollable light moan.
Incredible!
It completely defies all expectations!
In their eyes, the Red Star Imperial Family and the Emperor of the Red Star Empire were so powerful that even if everyone in both the Middle East and East Continent united, they couldn't hope to defeat them, and yet they were beheaded on the spot by Alkaid alone?
Together with three other heavyweight figures of the Red Star, including the True Dragon of the Jiang Family, Jiang Xuntian, and the backbone, Jiang Ruolong, all were slain at the scene...
This...
"How on earth did he manage it?"
Ji Pingtian couldn't help but raise his head incredulously, "Just a few months ago when I fought him, his strength was on par with mine... How could..."
"Is there a possibility that the so-called strength being equal to yours was just your misconception? Or could it be that Alkaid showed mercy?"
Kong Fang laughed coldly without mercy, "Before he fought you, he alone had uprooted the Rebirth Society's strongholds in Dayu Country. Those demons in the strongholds were at their full power, each one of them possibly not weaker than a Divine Intent Martial Saint, right?"
Ji Pingtian opened his mouth wanting to retort, but he truly didn't know where to start.
"Moreover... it seems you have forgotten that Chairman Alkaid has cultivated for only a year and three months. He took slightly over a year to step from a complete beginner who knew nothing of the Martial Path into the realm of Divine Intent Martial Saint, which took you all a lifetime to achieve. And now two more months have passed...
It's not normal for his cultivation to progress further, reaching beyond Divine Intent to the level of Primordial Chaos Martial Saint?"
"Two months, from Divine Intent Martial Saint to Primordial Chaos Martial Saint, do you call that normal?"
"I've said it, do not measure a once-in-a-century peerless genius by the standards of mediocre nobodies like you! Two months to go from Divine Intent to Primordial Chaos, this, is quite normal!"
Kong Fang emphatically said, "Even if another two months pass and Alkaid claims he has achieved the Celestial level and stepped into the domain of high-rank cultivators, I would not doubt it in the slightest."
These not-so-polite words resolutely suppressed the arrogance of Ji Pingtian, Ren Ziliu, and others.
The ironclad truth was right before their eyes.
If it wasn't for Alkaid breaking into the Red Star Imperial Palace and taking the Emperor, Jiang Shengtian, hostage, how would he have ordered Stellar Sanctum to release their people?
And if Alkaid hadn't truly killed Jiang Shengtian...
How could Zong Yan have such a set of photos in his hands?
Photo editing?
No one would be that idle.
Having fully understood the situation, Ji Pingtian, Ren Ziliu, and several high-ranking members of the Rebirth Society exchanged glances, all seeing surprise and hope in each other's eyes.
Ji Pingtian was even more forthright, "Where is Chairman Alkaid now... Has he managed to escape?"
"As of last night at ten o'clock, he was nearly out of the Imperial Capital and into the suburbs..."
Zong Yan said, sneering, "The Red Star people say they will dig three feet into the ground to find Chairman Alkaid, but in reality, without that group of military powerhouses led by Jiang Bairren arriving, their pursuit was meaningless, for what would it amount to? Merely delivering themselves to death."
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"Still, we must be cautious, just in case they detect Alkaid's whereabouts and recklessly launch a nuclear strike, no matter how capable Alkaid is, he would likely face life and death."
Ji Pingtian said with a sober expression, "Those from the Red Star might not care about the collateral damage."
Listening to this, recalling the Red Star people's attitude of treating citizens of other countries as if they were ants, Zong Yan also nodded, "I will organize a task force right away to go and assist..."
But soon after he spoke, Lei Yun's voice came through his earpiece.
Immediately after, his face lit up with excitement, "We've reestablished contact with Chairman Alkaid. He has already left Red Star territory and, fearing missile attacks while airborne, he chose to take a train back. If all goes well, he should arrive in three days."
"Good! Good! Good! That's absolutely fantastic!"
Ji Pingtian clapped his hands hard in response.
Ren Ziliu and the others were also filled with joy.
Assassinating the Emperor of the Red Star Empire, Jiang Shengtian, and still managing to live and escape from the Red Star Empire – such an achievement, such a record, was truly the stuff of legends.
It would not only greatly demoralize the Red Star Empire and strike at their prestige but also rekindle hope in the countries of East Continent and Zhongzhou.
Once Alkaid returns, with just one call to arms...
The whole of Zhongzhou and East Continent might respond to his call and form an alliance even more influential than the Rebirth Society.
"President, you should concentrate on healing for now, and we will arrange to welcome Chairman Alkaid back as soon as possible,"
Zong Yan said.
Then, as if something occurred to him, he added, "The identity of the one who stormed the Red Star Imperial Palace should be kept secret between us. As long as the Red Star Empire cannot confirm the true identity of this mysterious powerhouse, they will not dare to act rashly. Likewise... we will have more time to prepare for the increasingly complex changes in the world's political landscape."
"I understand!"
Ji Pingtian nodded emphatically.
Oftentimes, the unknown and mysterious are more terrifying than an open and direct threat.
"We can't just sit here and do nothing; we can use this incident to our advantage, revive the Rebirth Society from its ashes, and at the very least... we need to rally all the forces that oppose the Red Star Empire.
Many of them may be fence-sitters, but even fence-sitters have their usefulness; at the very least, they can cheer from the sidelines, just learn from past lessons and keep them away from the core,"
he quickly said, "The newly established Rebirth Society will center around Chairman Alkaid. I believe that under Chairman Alkaid's leadership, our Rebirth Society, Dayu Country, and even the alliance in the Middle East will become the third major power in the world, truly possessing the qualifications to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Red Star."
Zong Yan, after listening, said thoughtfully, "Let Alkaid decide once he returns."
Ji Pingtian nodded his head.
But it was good to be prepared and start gathering the remaining forces of the Rebirth Society in advance.