Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

The message Lu Hanyan received was Wu Wei’s report, delivered by carrier pigeon.

Another Female Personal Guard snapped her head up, her killing intent erupting. Lu Yan was her sister, and together they had served Lady Hanyan.

Soon, a second carrier pigeon arrived...

This was Wu Wei’s second report, in which he praised Fan Jinhua to the skies.

Enraged, Lu Hanyan crushed the letter into powder.

”So Fan Jinhua really was the assassin...”

”He was hit by my Water Chant Palm, yet he’s still alive and kicking. And he dared to say my Water Chant Palm is garbage.”

”Good. Very good!”

”Lu You, we’re heading back to Yangzhou City. I’m going to skin Fan Jinhua alive myself.”

Lu You was the other Female Personal Guard. Soon, she and the elite troops were on their way back to Yangzhou City under Lu Hanyan’s command.

Only the regular troops were left behind...

Lu Hanyan had intended to use this encirclement mainly to train her regular soldiers. There was no need for the elites to get involved, so she had simply left an adjutant behind to command them.

...

Canyang Valley was not far from Yangzhou City.

Very little time had passed between Lu Hanyan’s departure from Yangzhou City and Nephew Tan’s arrival there to face his death.

Thus, it took only an hour for Lu Chao and his group to sneak into position nearby.

They had already let their warhorses go, a deliberate diversion to draw the attention of the pursuers from Yangzhou City. Now, dozens of them were hidden in the dense canopy of the trees, watching the besieging army in the distance.

Perched in a tree, Lu Chao spoke...

”Did all of you feel the ground shake just now?”

”Lu Hanyan’s elite troops have turned back toward Yangzhou City.”

”But we have to wait. We can’t make a move until after she reaches Yangzhou City.”

Lu Hanyan had only just turned back. They couldn’t act now; otherwise, a single carrier pigeon message would bring her charging back here.

Time trickled by...

The sounds of the assault on Canyang Valley could be heard up ahead.

Lu Chao spoke again. ”Your comrades are still holding on. They’re using Canyang Valley to make a last stand, fighting for their lives.”

Hearing this, Nephew Tan’s eyes grew red.

As part of the relief force, they had been near Canyang Valley. When the encirclement began, Nephew Tan had immediately charged toward Yangzhou City, so he didn’t know the details of what had happened since. But Lu Chao had just stated with such certainty...

...that his comrades would surely be using Canyang Valley as a fortress to hold off Lu Hanyan’s army.

And now, it seemed he was right.

Lu Chao had also said that Lu Hanyan would use this as a training exercise for her troops, and he had been proven right about that, too.

’How does he know everything?’

Of course he knew. Lu Chao understood Lu Hanyan perfectly.

Suddenly... RUSTLE RUSTLE RUSTLE!

The sound of footsteps approached from the direction of Canyang Valley, and the hair on Nephew Tan’s and the others’ bodies stood on end.

In the next instant, a woman’s tragic scream rang out. ”Kill me! Just kill me!”

”Gah hah hah...” A few wild, manic male voices laughed in response. ”We went to all the trouble of catching a live one. How could we kill you now? We’ll kill you after we’ve had our fun.”

The woman screamed again. ”Ahhh! Get your filthy hands off me!”

Up in the trees...

Nephew Tan trembled, his voice shaking. ”That’s Yu Xiaoping! She’s been captured! Those animals, they’re going to... We have to save her!”

He started to move as soon as the words left his mouth.

But Fan Jinhua, beside him, grabbed Nephew Tan and hissed, ”Control yourself. The time isn’t right.”

”But Uncle Fan, they’re going to violate Yu Xiaoping!” Nephew Tan’s eyes were bloodshot, his voice trembling.

Fan Jinhua ground his teeth, shaking his head with grim resolve. ”This is no time for sentimentality. I want to save her too... but if we do, the entire besieging army will descend on us.”

”Then Lu Hanyan will get a report and turn right back around to slaughter every last one of us.”

”When that happens, every single one of us will die. No exceptions.”

As Fan Jinhua spoke, Nephew Tan ground his teeth so hard they audibly clicked.

He knew, of course, the grave consequences of a rescue attempt. But with Yu Xiaoping’s continuous screams ringing in his ears, how could he possibly bear it?

”Nephew Tan, if you want to save everyone, you have to be ruthless.” Fan Jinhua was clearly in agony himself, but this was a war of life and death, of blood and fire. A single misstep wouldn’t just mean his own death.

It would mean utter annihilation for them all.

Understanding, Nephew Tan and his men resigned themselves to the grim reality, lowering their heads in anguish.

Suddenly, Lu Chao’s voice cut quietly through the tension. ”I’ll save her.”

At those three words, everyone turned to stare at him. Fan Jinhua said, incredulous, ”Brother Lu Chao, you...”

Lu Chao just smiled, his expression serene...

”Master Fan, don’t worry.”

”There’s a strategy for not rescuing her, and there’s a strategy for rescuing her.”

”Besides, I believe in saving who we can. If we stand by and let a comrade be tormented like this, Brother Tan will live with the regret for the rest of his life.”

”Most importantly, I’m confident I can rescue her without jeopardizing our overall plan.”

Before Fan Jinhua could object, Lu Chao vanished from the branch in a blur of motion.

The others could only stare, slack-jawed, in the direction of Yu Xiaoping’s screams. In the blink of an eye, the raucous male voices fell silent.

And so did Yu Xiaoping’s.

Just a moment later, they saw Lu Chao reappear in the tree, holding a petite young woman.

It was, of course, Yu Xiaoping. When her eyes focused on the people in the tree, she froze.

”Uncle Fan... Tan An...”

Tan An was Nephew Tan’s real name. Lu Chao had already tossed Yu Xiaoping over to him.

Before they could exchange another word...

Lu Chao cut in, ”Quiet. The consequences Master Fan spoke of are about to happen.”

No sooner had he spoken—in the blink of an eye...

...a grim voice carried from the distance. ”Something’s wrong over there. It’s gone quiet. Let’s go check it out.”

The sound of cautious footsteps, laced with killing intent, rapidly approached from the direction of Canyang Valley.

Instantly, the color drained from the faces of Tan An and all the others.

This was the consequence: when the besieging soldiers could no longer hear Yu Xiaoping or their comrades, they immediately knew something was wrong and were now coming for them.

Everyone, including Fan Jinhua, turned to look at Lu Chao.

He had just said he could rescue her without jeopardizing the plan, that there was a strategy for this exact scenario...

So what was that strategy?

Lu Chao’s gaze swept across the group before he spoke in a low voice. ”Master Fan, in a moment, I need you to take Brother Tan’s men and sneak toward Canyang Valley. Wait for the predetermined time, then strike.”

”Xiao Su’er, Father-in-law, Miss Wu, and of course, you two, Brother Tan.”

”You will stay here and help me...”

As he spoke, Lu Chao suddenly leaped from the tree again.

”Those of us who stay behind will act as decoys—the assassins’ allies. We’ll draw the attention of the besieging army.”

”Meaning, as long as you don’t show your face, Master Fan, the enemy will just assume we’re the backup for last night’s assassins.”

Fan Jinhua listened, his mind racing to process Lu Chao’s plan...

He quickly understood. As long as he, Fan Jinhua, stayed hidden, the soldiers wouldn’t send a report to Lu Hanyan.

They would just assume Lu Chao was another one of Nephew Tan and Yu Xiaoping’s group.

Suddenly, a realization struck Fan Jinhua, and he shuddered. ”But, Brother Lu Chao, you’ll be facing the main army!”

He finally understood. The ”strategy for rescuing her” meant Lu Chao intended to draw the fire of the entire army upon himself.