"At that moment, I wanted to snatch that concubine away. I nearly lost control of my body."

"In that moment of panic, I had no other choice. I could only give myself a harsh beating, using the pain to snap out of it."

Jiang Li's smile faded, his expression gradually turning serious. Previously, when he heard that Emperor Wei and the Dream River Emperor had fought over a concubine, Jiang Li hadn't thought much of it.

In his eyes, the two of them being emperors was simply a case of picking the best of a bad bunch, as their imperial families had no one truly capable of taking charge. Compared to Emperor Zhou, they were lacking in more than just one or two aspects. Calling them upright rulers would be high praise.

It wasn't entirely impossible for the two of them to stake their National Fate on a beautiful woman. But Zhang Konghu was different. To become a Human Emperor Palace Commander, regardless of his cultivation, his mental fortitude was definitely top-notch.

For a concubine to be so beautiful as to make a coarse man like Zhang Konghu lose control of himself, there was definitely something wrong here.

"I am aware of this matter. How many days are left until the agreed-upon date for the war between the two nations?"

Zhang Konghu's face was bitter.

"Originally, they agreed to decide the victor at the banks of the Earth Mother River in one month. But their arguments got more and more intense, and now they've agreed to start the war in twenty-five days."

After speaking, Zhang Konghu tilted his head slightly, as if hearing something.

"Oh, now the two have changed it again to a battle to the death in twenty days."

Jiang Li couldn't help but exclaim. Not only had the time been shortened, but now it had gone directly from deciding the victor to a battle to the death. Originally, he was thinking of having Zhang Konghu contact the former Human Emperor candidates and have them check if any of their relatives or friends had encountered a person in black.

But now, it seemed better to hand over the matter of the black-robed person to the other commanders, while he himself went to the Dream River Dynasty to check on the situation first. As for the system's mission, it would be postponed for now.

"I'm heading over right now."

Jiang Li left these words, immediately cutting off the connection with Zhang Konghu. On his way to the Dream River Dynasty, he contacted another commander, telling him to notify the former Human Emperor candidates. ...

At this time, the Dream River Dynasty's imperial palace was like a ruin, a mark of the battle between the Dream River Emperor and Emperor Wei. If Zhang Konghu hadn't intervened in time to save people, who knows how many would have been killed or injured. Amidst the ruins, only a single, gleaming golden house stood out, completely undamaged.

It was clear that the Dream River Emperor and Emperor Wei had deliberately avoided the Golden House during their fight. Zhang Konghu had driven away the guards of both emperors, leaving only himself near the Golden House.

Hearing the increasingly fierce arguments from within the Golden House, Zhang Konghu felt that before Jiang Li even arrived, these two could advance the day of war by another ten days. How could a war concerning the lives and deaths of millions be treated so frivolously! He gritted his teeth, determined to dissuade the two emperors.

He slapped himself twice, then steeled himself and barged into the Golden House.

"Listen to my advice, stop arguing! You are both lords of a nation, how can you let beauty delay the fate of your country... You should just hand this beauty over to me!" ...

Moving at his top speed, Jiang Li crossed half of the Nine Provinces in just half a day, traveling from the eastern Great Zhou Dynasty to the western Dream River Dynasty. Such speed was utterly terrifying! Before Jiang Li had even arrived at the capital of the Dream River Dynasty, he could hear a rumbling sound, like muffled thunder.

Looking from afar, three figures were flying in the sky above the capital, engaged in a fierce battle. It was Zhang Konghu fighting against the Dream River Emperor and Emperor Wei! Neither the Dream River Emperor nor Emperor Wei were talented in the path of Immortal Cultivation.

In terms of their true cultivation, they were probably only at the Nascent Soul Stage. However, with the blessing of their National Fate, the two of them together were enough to match Zhang Konghu, and even showed signs of surpassing him time and again. If not for Zhang Konghu's rich combat experience, he would have been defeated long ago.

And this was with Emperor Wei being too far from Great Wei, so the blessing of his National Fate had not reached its optimal effect! Zhang Konghu fought with exhilarating abandon, the Shaman Clan bloodline in him stimulated to its peak.

The tattoos of the Twelve Ancestral Shamans on his back were glowing faintly, and a simple, heavy aura emanated from him. The river of stars twinkled in the sky, and countless starlight sprinkled down upon the Dream River Emperor, making his every punch fall like a meteorite, causing Zhang Konghu to ache with pain.

Emperor Wei held the Imperial Jade Seal of the Realm. The eight seal characters "Having Received the Mandate from Heaven, May His Reign be Long and Prosperous" were imprinted in the air, like Heaven's Will itself descending, covering the sky and sun, summoning wind and rain.

"Beauty is only for the strong to possess!"

Zhang Konghu roared.

"Get lost, you uncouth brute!"

Emperor Wei bellowed.

"This is the Dream River Dynasty, you all must listen to me!"

The Dream River Emperor retorted, unwilling to show weakness.

"All of you, calm down."

Jiang Li instantly appeared above the three of them and, with a single slap, smacked the three irrational fellows into the ground. The tattoos of the Twelve Ancestral Shamans dimmed, the river of stars concealed itself within the sea of stars, and the eight characters of "Having Received the Mandate from Heaven..." were wiped clean.

The three of them spent a good while struggling before they could climb out of the man-shaped craters.

"Brother Jiang, that was a bit heavy-handed. You almost knocked my skeleton apart."

Zhang Konghu chuckled foolishly. Jiang Li's slap had knocked him back to his senses. Jiang Li scolded him mercilessly, "It's a good thing you still had some sense left to know that the fight couldn't affect others, so you flew up into the sky to battle.

If you had dared to fight in the capital, I would have slapped you all the way to the Underworld!" Zhang Konghu didn't dare say anything, he could only chuckle foolishly. Saying anything at this moment would be wrong.

He, Zhang Konghu, proclaimed himself to be the number one person below the Tribulation Transcendence Stage, and he even had the guts to challenge a mighty Tribulation Transcendence Stage expert. But facing Jiang Li, he wouldn't dare say something like 'let's have a match'. One slap had dimmed his most pride-and-joy Twelve Ancestral Shamans tattoos.

The next slap could literally knock him senseless.

"Human Emperor Jiang."

Seeing Jiang Li, the Dream River Emperor and Emperor Wei seemed to have forgotten the slap from just a moment ago and both bowed in salute. Jiang Li politely returned the gesture.

"Could you allow me to see that remarkable woman?"

"Human Emperor Jiang, please."

Since Jiang Li had a request, the Dream River Emperor naturally did not dare to refuse. The imperial palace was a stretch of ruins, making it difficult to even find a place to step, let alone a corridor or a small path. The four of them flew three zhang above the ground towards the Golden House.

Seeing the tragic state of his own palace, caused by his own hands, the Dream River Emperor couldn't help but lament, "Beauty has led me astray!"

"To obtain such a beauty, never mind destroying one palace, I would be willing to rebuild it ten times and destroy it ten times."

Emperor Wei shook his head, looking unconcerned.

"Tyrant!"

"Fatheaded ruler!"

The two state lords cursed at each other, looking like they were about to fight again. Only after Jiang Li coughed lightly did the two of them settle down. The Golden House was the most luxurious Jiang Li had ever seen.

Its exterior was built with Merit Gold Bricks, its interior paved with Supreme-grade Spirit Stones. Dozens of Spirit Treasures decorated the walls, a Golden Spring gushed forth, and an Azure Lotus had taken root. Jiang Li suspected that the Dream River Emperor had emptied the national treasury and used it all on this Golden House.

There was no greater example of how beauty could drive one to madness. A beauty in red lay quietly asleep on the Golden Bed. Her petite body was slightly curled up, her cherry lips parting and closing slightly, like a sleeping kitten, extremely adorable.

The woman's features were exquisite, a beauty that did not seem to belong to the mortal world. Her snow-white neck was slender and long, her figure's curves were captivating, and her pair of jade-like feet were delicate and exquisite, making one want to hold them in their hands and play with them.

The moment Jiang Li saw this person, even his usually unperturbed state of mind was shaken. He had seen this person before! To be precise, he had seen her portrait!

That portrait was drawn with ordinary paper and ink, yet it was classified as a Forbidden Item, precisely because it depicted this woman! A woman who was supposed to be dead!

(End of Chapter)