Chapter Seventy-Six: The Persuasion to Surrender

Previously, we left off with Xu Zhihui, pressed into a corner, having no choice but to step forward and call out, urging Xu Yaozu to surrender.

He scratched his head nervously, shuffled hesitantly toward the rebel camp, and called out in a trembling voice, “Father, please come out and see your son! It’s me, Xu Zhihui!”

His shout set the rebel camp ablaze with commotion.

Soldiers scrambled to the ramparts, peering outside. All they saw was a pale face, slanted eyes, and bushy brows—who else could it be but Xu Zhihui?

Furious, the soldiers unleashed a torrent of curses, and many quickly nocked arrows to their bows, firing at him. But the distance was too great; the arrows fell harmlessly before reaching him.

“Father, don’t risk your life for Murong Yan and Ye Feng. Ye Feng is a wolf in sheep’s clothing—he’s long since taken your disciple-sister captive. All of you are mere pawns in Ye Feng’s game! If you die, who will care for your wives and children at home? But it’s different for Ye Feng—he’ll have both glory and profit, and may end up ruling a territory, lording over all...”

“Xu, do you ever stop spewing filth? How can your mouth be so foul? Even I—a humble outcast—know the meaning of vengeance, of never making peace with my foes! How can you, with no sense of right or wrong, help tyrants do evil?!”

It was Xiao Ling who spoke, enraged at Xu Zhihui’s shameless attempt to persuade Xu Yaozu to surrender.

Without another word, Xiao Ling seized his bow and arrow, left hand drawing, right hand nocking, channeling inner power until the bow was fully taut.

He released.

With a sharp hiss, the arrow shot like lightning toward Xu Zhihui!

Xu Zhihui, in the midst of his fervent speech, suddenly heard the rush of wind. Looking up, he saw an arrow speeding toward him.

Panicked, Xu Zhihui ducked his head; the arrow whistled just overhead.

But he was a moment too slow—the plume atop his helmet was sliced clean off, tumbling to the ground.

Terrified, Xu Zhihui dropped flat, not daring to move an inch.

“Xiao Ling, my child, I have not treated you unkindly! How can you turn against our clan, betray Mengkeshou, and now stand in my way?!”

Tuo Liba had already seen that it was Xiao Ling who had fired, and now called out.

“You old monster! You tormented my mother, drove her from her home, and condemned me to a life of scorn from birth. There can never be peace between us!”

Xiao Ling’s eyes blazed red as he saw Tuo Liba. He was about to loose a second arrow at Xu Zhihui, but now he turned his aim on Tuo Liba instead.

Gritting his teeth, channeling every ounce of will, he drew the bowstring to its limit, fitted an arrow, and let fly.

The arrow sped like a bolt of lightning toward Tuo Liba.

At first, its force was tremendous, but as it neared its target, the power faded, and by the time it reached Tuo Liba, it was as feeble as a child’s toy bow.

Tuo Liba sneered, not bothering to dodge. When the arrow reached him, he simply caught it in his right hand.

Channeling his demonic power, he snapped the shaft in two with a crisp crack, letting both pieces drop to the ground.

“Xiao Ling, all your skills were taught by me! Do you truly think you can be a match for your own father?!”

Tuo Liba’s voice rang out, dripping with scorn.

“So what if you taught me? The paltry demonic power you gave me nearly killed me! If I hadn’t changed my ways and begun training in the Art of Severing Immortals, I’d still be suffering the poisons of your dark arts. One day, I’ll use my new skills to slay you, you old demon!”

Xiao Ling shouted back, preparing to shoot a third arrow.

Suddenly, a heartrending cry rang out.

“Zhihui, your father is here! Don’t be afraid—your father will rescue you from the hands of these demon soldiers!”

Xiao Ling paused, turning his head in confusion.

He stood there, dumbfounded.

It was Xu Yaozu who cried out, tears streaming down his face as he called, “Zhihui, your father misses you desperately! Why did you plot against Deputy Commander Ye? You’ve done wrong, but don’t run! Whatever fate awaits, I’ll face it with you. How did you end up in the hands of demon soldiers? It breaks my heart to see you like this!”

The onlookers were filled with questions, just as Xu Yaozu had voiced. Why had Xu Zhihui ended up here? And why did Xu Yaozu only now reveal himself?

It turned out that after Xu Zhihui fled, he hid throughout the Great Xia, for he had plotted against Ye Feng and was despised by the people. Guilt-ridden, he escaped Xia for the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons.

But at Luoyan Ridge, he was captured by Tuo Liba.

As for Xu Yaozu, he had only now appeared because, when Tuo Liba emerged to challenge the army, Murong Yan and Ye Feng had strictly ordered everyone to stay in camp. After all, in single combat, not even Ye Feng could best Tuo Liba—who would dare face him?

But the moment Xu Zhihui called out from beyond the camp, the bond between father and son could not be restrained, and the generals could not hold Xu Yaozu back—so he rushed to the front.

Hearing his father’s call, Xu Zhihui scrambled to his feet, waving his hand. “Father, I’m fine—don’t worry! Chancellor Tuo treats me with respect and kindness.”

Xu Yaozu nearly fainted from anger at these words, shouting, “My child, you already did wrong by poisoning Deputy Commander Ye—how could you, out of cowardice, surrender to demon soldiers as well? Don’t you realize this is treason of the worst kind? Even death won’t earn you a place in the ancestral tomb!”

Xu Zhihui bristled at this, retorting, “Father, why do you always speak up for Ye Feng? He stole my disciple-sister—what happened to him was no more than he deserved! Heaven was unjust not to let him die from the poison! I joined the Demon Kingdom for revenge! Chancellor Tuo promised that if you, too, join us, we’ll fight Ye Feng together, and he’ll marry Murong Yan to me! You’ll be the greatest hero of the Demon Kingdom!”

Xu Yaozu, livid, spat back, “Pah! Filth like you, worthy of Yan’er? Dream on! It’s my shame, my failure, that I raised a son like you!”

His anger and grief mounting, he suddenly began slapping himself, the sharp sound echoing again and again as tears and snot poured down his face. “How can I face your real parents after this?!”

Seeing his father in such a state, Xu Zhihui’s heart softened and he lowered his head. But then something struck him—what real parents? Did that mean he wasn’t Xu Yaozu’s son?

He’d never heard this before!

He shouted, “Father, what do you mean by real parents? Aren’t you my real father? Why are you saying this now?”

Xu Yaozu quickly wiped away his tears, pointed at Xu Zhihui, and said, “My child, I meant to take this secret to my grave, but you’ve come to such a pass that I cannot keep silent. Twenty years ago, you were an orphan, wailing for food. I found you and raised you as my own. If you don’t believe me, look at yourself, then look at me—do we look anything alike?”

On hearing this, Xu Zhihui examined himself, then glanced at Xu Yaozu and finally understood.

An unnamable rage welled up in him. Pointing accusingly at Xu Yaozu, he cried, “No wonder! It’s always Yan’er this, Feng’er that—did you ever care about me at all?!”

Xu Yaozu sighed deeply and shook his head. “My child, search your conscience. From the day I took you in, I cherished you as if you were my own flesh and blood. When have you ever suffered want with me? Even when you did wrong, I couldn’t bear to strike you. When I was angry, I would only sigh and slap myself! But you kept making worse mistakes, until today—when you poisoned and betrayed your own country...”

As he spoke, there was a sudden metallic ring at his waist as he drew his sword.

“Come! Let me cut you down, and then take my own life, so that we may meet together in the afterlife!”

He made to rush out of the camp, but the generals held him back.

“You’ve lost your mind, old fool! Chancellor Tuo stands before us, and you dare rush out to kill me? Do you think you have more than one head?”

Xu Zhihui, shamed and fearful, was at a loss for words.

“Bah! You’re a traitor’s son, do you know where your real parents died?”

“Where did they die? Tell me! And what difference would it make if I knew?”

Xu Zhihui glared at Xu Yaozu, dismissing his question.

“Your parents died in a massacre when demon soldiers razed a village. It was tragic—over three hundred souls, all slaughtered! When I arrived, the ground was soaked in blood, the scene unbearable. Then, from a pile of straw, I heard a baby’s cry, and found you. Seeing you had no one left, I took you in. Who would’ve thought you’d turn out like this?”

Overcome with fury and grief, Xu Yaozu raised his sword to his own throat.

“No, General! Don’t!”

The generals rushed to restrain him. Li Yiqing leaped three feet high, snatched away the sword, and cried, “Uncle Xu, this scoundrel isn’t worth your life!”

Xu Yaozu broke down in sobs, wailing, “I have no face left! After so many years, I’ve had enough—better to die now and preserve what little dignity I have left!”

The crowd, livid, pointed at Xu Zhihui and cursed him: “Wretch! With such heartlessness and betrayal, how dare you pursue our Marshal? Even if there were no men left in the world, she’d never look at you!”

Another cursed, “I always knew you were no good—who’d have thought you’d betray your country? Not just General Xu—even I’m ashamed for you!”

Yet another cried, “Xu Zhihui, you’ll die a miserable death! You’ve driven General Xu to this—how can you live with yourself?!”

The abuse rained down until Xu Zhihui could no longer lift his head. Crestfallen, he turned and slunk back to Tuo Liba.

“Chancellor Tuo, I have failed in my mission and come to accept my punishment.”

Tuo Liba, having witnessed it all, saw that Xu Zhihui was no longer of any use. Without a word, he slapped Xu Zhihui hard across the face, drawing blood from the corner of his mouth.

“Useless dog! You can’t even accomplish this—what use do I have for you? Get out!”

Humiliated and dejected, Xu Zhihui slunk back to the ranks.

“Retreat!”

Seeing that he could gain no advantage, Tuo Liba swung his horse around and led his troops back to camp.

Once seated in the council hall, brooding with a dark face, Lang Muxi stepped forward and saluted, “Senior Brother, don’t trouble yourself further. Allow me to take action tonight. I will disguise myself, infiltrate the rebel camp, and assassinate Murong Yan and Ye Feng.”

Tuo Liba’s expression brightened. “If you can undertake this mission, that would be splendid! If you succeed, the rebel army will scatter without a fight, and the Great Sage Golden Ape will surely reward you handsomely. As your elder brother, I’ll also bask in your glory. Let me thank you in advance!”

He rose and bowed deeply.

Lang Muxi laughed heartily at the sky, and made ready to steal into the camp by night to assassinate Murong Yan and Ye Feng.