" The second prince asked for sir Long Tao's assist. The fate of our country lies in this matter. "
" Even if what you say is true, why should I believe that the second prince sent you. Even better, why should I believe that the second prince knows Long Tao by any chance?"
" The prince met sir Long when he came to visit the Chu capital with the princess. He instructed that the document would contain enough evidence fro sir Long to confirm his identity."
Di Tao dismissed the messenger. He opened the document and went through the contents. It had a detailed description of the whole meeting he had with the second prince along with every single word they had spoken.
" It seems I need to verify this proposal."
..................…..
The attack on the enemy troops began soon after the commander's meeting. The placement of the soldiers was similar to the one used before. The army marched into the mountains as night fell upon the skies.
" The route which we are following has the least number of hidden spots. I have allocated two groups of spies to verify the path."
" Through our analysis, we came to find that the Chu army has settled in these two regions."
Su Menqi verified the report. " We can't take chances in this case. We will follow either of these routes. Send another team to scout this path. We can't bear to alert the enemy."
If the enemy manages to scout them out and prepare for the attack, the effectiveness of this act will decrease. After the scout team was dispatched, Su Menqi instructed the commanders to set up small groups of skilled soldiers.
" They will be tasked with taking out the soldiers who will be guarding the enemy camps. It would help if you took care of them swiftly, without raising any alarm."
Long Tao had to admire Su Menqi's skill. She was quite proficient in warfare and troop management.
..................
The Crimson Lord world-
" The process seems to absorb your blood essence to heal your injuries." Long Tao was practising the new skill obtained from the Blood general.
" The rate of heal seems to increase with the number of times I use it. But the consumption increases as well." Long Tao needed a large amount fo beast blood essence to fulfil the demand of the skills he possesses.
" Did you manage to find any way to help me train the demonization art." LonG tao asked the Keeper.
" We did find a solution." The puppet spoke up.
..............
The puppet was busy in the creation of something according to the Keeper's instruction. Long Tao didn't get to see him often. Just what was it.
" Follow me". Three figures were teleported to a different location. It was an altar which had strange formations imbued in it. There were massive stone statues on the border of altars.
" This is the training place we created. The previous Crimson lords used it to train their body."
Long Tao looked around but couldn't make sense of the altar. " How does it work?"
" Rather than explaining, why don't you give it a first-hand try." The puppet signalled Long Tao to go up the altar.
As soon as Long Tao stepped into the altar, the formation seemed to have activated. A dome of energy covered the altar. The statues around the border began to show movements and proceed towards Long Tao.
Long Tao was surprised for some time, but he calmed his nerves. He took a fighting stance and prepared to confront the statues. What happened next shocked him.
Three statues attacked at the same time. The power within each sculpture was far from what Long Tao can defend against, and he had to confront three. His figure was crushed and his skeleton broken.
Long tao couldn't make sense of what just happened. Each of the statues was of Qi general level 8 at the very least. His figure laid helpless on the altar.
The formation started working once again, and Blood energy began to emerge from it. The energy directly integrated with Long Tao's body and helped in the healing process.
.............
" How did it feel?' The puppet asked enthusiastically.
" What sort of artefact is that thing?"
" It was the equipment which the crimson lords developed to help in the training of the body. The theory behind it was getting beaten to near death."
"When you practice a body refining art, although your body enhances quality, so does the art which uses the body to work. So the demonization art will increase in strength as you proceed further in body cultivation."
"So improving my body cultivation is not a solution to control the demonization art?"
" It isn't. What this altar does is increase the strength of your bones without enhancement in the body cultivation realm. Your bones will be broken and healed back. The process will continue until an unspecified period."
"Not only does it help you improve strength, but it will also help you control the demonization art. I theorize a development in your natural healing capabilities as well."
Long Tao found the theory to be logical enough. It was the same way as practising your muscle memory. You need to break and re-heal the bones.
...............….
" What does the letter say?" Su Menqi was interested in knowing the content of the secret letter to Long Tao.
" I can authenticate the letter's writer. The content is what makes me nervous. It says that the second prince is currently planning a rebellion to take over the throne."
"The eldest prince was responsible for the last king's situation. He wanted to take control of the power in Chu country. He poisoned the king and delegated himself to be the next in line."
" There seems to be a mysterious group supporting him from behind. The second prince was not supportive of this action and decided to oppose it."
" It resulted in him being branded with the title of a traitor to the throne. He is currently chased throughout the kingdom. He is trying his best to gain support to execute a coup successfully."
" Do you believe the contents?"
" I feel there is a chance for this to be a trap. But if it were true, it could be a golden opportunity for us to conquer the Chu country."
" I will be going to the Chu capital city." Di Tao said to Su Menqi.
" Should I follow you?"
" Your task is to defeat the Unrivalled general. I should be able to to take care fo this situation." Su Menqi nodded and retreated to her tent.
.................
Some days later-
The Chu country was in turmoil. The change in authority, along with war, pushed the citizens into unrest. Furthermore, the news from the battlefield stated that the Chu country lost two confrontations.
A figure arrived during nighttime. It was none other than Long Tao. He wanted to see what the second prince had planned for him.
