novelapdf Chapter 1: A Start That Will Make History, This Life Has Been...
Chapter 1: A Start That Will Make History, This Life Has Been...
In 212 BC, on a late autumn day, inside the Xingyue Palace.
In the solemn and oppressive atmosphere, there were only faint breaths and the rustling sound of clothes rubbing against the blue bricks.
Zou Yun knelt on the steps, trembling.
More than 460 colleagues knelt beside him.
Around them, several squads of Qin palace guards, clad in heavy black armor and with bronze swords at their waists, were eyeing the group of criminals with predatory intent.
The cold glint of the crossbow bolts in the armored soldiers' hands proclaimed their military exploits in conquering six kingdoms, but also foreshadowed the fate of the people beneath their feet.
Zou Yun huddled at the back of the crowd, surrounded by pale-faced, immature faces.
He subconsciously shifted his position, and the sharp pain in his buttocks reminded him of his current harsh reality!
Zou Yun really couldn't understand how he had just had a small gathering with his friends, eating hot pot and singing songs, and suddenly found himself here.
And yet, inexplicably, I'm about to go down in history along with my 460-plus colleagues in such a tragic way!
"No, is that right?"
"I admit that everyone harbors, to some extent, a desire to be remembered in history, but surely not as a sorcerer who was burned and buried alive!"
"Where's the system? Help me!!!"
Just as Zou Yun was racking his brains, trying to find something similar to a cheat code.
Suddenly, a heart-wrenching roar exploded in his ears:
"Your Majesty, you've been wronged! Your Majesty, you've been wronged!!!"
Zou Yun shuddered and instinctively looked toward the source of the sound.
The guy struggling to get up was Feng Ji, the guy who loved to flatter and fawn in his past life's memories.
His shouts, just like his own cries of agony when he first transmigrated, instantly enraged the Qin warriors guarding the area.
A figure as black as an iron tower stepped forward at the sound and slammed his massive fist into Feng Ji's face.
"puff!"
The moment the iron fist met the cheek, it was like a thunderbolt striking a volcano, instantly exploding into a spectacular display.
Feng Ji spat out blood and broken teeth, crashing heavily to the ground. His eyes were vacant, and he continued to mumble incoherently:
"Your Majesty...I'm...wronged..."
"You brat, how laughable!"
Seeing the man's miserable state, the Taoist priests who had been bullied by him in the past couldn't help but cheer in their hearts.
Under the cold gaze of the armored soldiers, everyone glanced at Feng Ji before quickly lowering their heads, continuing to await their unknown fate.
However, Feng Ji's outburst wasn't without its benefits.
This sudden commotion finally alerted the towering figure who sat atop the steps, controlling the fate of everyone!
"Bring him up!"
A deep, steady, yet unassuming voice echoed clearly in everyone's ears.
"only!"
The armored soldier shuddered and instantly suppressed all his ferocity.
Without daring to delay in the slightest, the armored soldier placed his hands on his heart, bowed slightly, and paid a deep salute to His Majesty.
Only then did he pull Feng Ji, who was dazed and like a limp rag, up the steps.
The time has come!
Upon seeing Feng Ji's sorcerers along the way, a glint of shrewdness flashed in their eyes, and their expressions instantly became much more lively.
The sorcerers didn't believe that Feng Ji, that fool, could change the First Emperor's mind. But the Qin Emperor, who had remained silent all along, finally spoke, and this was the turning point they had been waiting for.
Soon, Feng Ji was dragged to the high platform, where he saw the emperor's true face for the first time.
Although he dared not look directly at His Majesty the Emperor, he couldn't help but steal a glance.
Ying Zheng had a fierce appearance, with high-set brow bones and narrow, sharp eyes like a hawk. Yet, at this moment, there was a strange sense of leisure in his eyes.
Ying Zheng flipped through the bamboo slips in his hand, a faint smile playing on his lips, seemingly in a good mood.
Looking at him, he didn't seem like someone who was in a fit of rage and wanted to kill all the alchemists and Confucian scholars. Instead, he seemed more like someone who was pleased after completing some plan.
Seeing his expression, a fawning smile appeared on Feng Ji's ashen face.
A hint of relief flashed in his eyes, and he opened his mouth slightly, as if he was about to cry out for justice and defend himself.
But before he could speak, a majestic voice came from ahead.
"You're saying I've wronged you?"
Ying Zheng didn't even look up, but casually put down the bamboo slips and then added a casual remark.
"Drag him out and chop him up!"
He wasn't given a chance to speak at all. He waved his hand, as if brushing away a speck of dust, signaling the armored soldiers beside him to drag him away.
The color drained from Feng Ji's face and turned deathly pale at a visible speed.
"only!"
Before Feng Ji could beg for mercy, the armored soldiers standing on both sides stepped forward, grabbed him from the left and right, and dragged him towards the outside of the palace wall.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, have mercy! Spare me! Spare me, Your Majesty—!!!"
Feng Ji's cries echoed through the empty palace walls, growing fainter and fainter as they faded into the distance...
Finally, the mournful screams outside the city walls abruptly ceased, and everything returned to deathly silence.
The more than four hundred sorcerers kneeling on the ground also shivered.
However, upon closer inspection, dozens of people in the crowd remained expressionless, seemingly having already made up their minds.
This allowed the group of sorcerers behind him to breathe a sigh of relief, preventing them from completely collapsing and wailing.
"It seems the Grand Masters have already devised a plan."
Like grasping at a straw, a faint glint appeared in the eyes of the Taoist priest beside Zou Yun as he murmured softly.
"Yes, the Grand Master must have a way."
"That's right, that's right..."
The Taoist priests around who heard this immediately began to quietly agree.
They dared not make too much noise, lest they attract the attention of those menacing armored soldiers.
So those sounds were very soft, so soft that they were almost inaudible, yet they were also very heavy, so heavy that they carried the weight of a person's entire being.
"Ha! Great Master..."
Only Zou Yun, who knew the outcome, gave a bitter smile and did not respond or agree.
He knew very well that if the Grand Master really had a solution, the burning of books and burying of scholars alive would not have been recorded in the history books of his previous life.
"Therefore, we must find a way to save ourselves!" Zou Yun thought to himself.
Soon, the armored soldiers who carried out the execution returned to report.
"Your Majesty, the sorcerer Feng Ji has been executed!"
The armored soldier bowed to the high platform, his black armor stained with a large patch of dark red blood, which was extremely conspicuous in the eyes of the crowd.
Those who had been groaning softly just moments before suddenly felt a chill run down their spines, and all of them lowered their heads, not daring to utter another sound.
A heavy sense of death weighed on everyone's hearts, suffocating them.
Just then, suddenly, an elderly figure stood up from the crowd and shouted loudly.
"Your Majesty, I will concoct the elixir of immortality!"
He was an elderly man with white hair, a youthful face, and kind eyes.
She exudes a serene and otherworldly aura, which makes people feel naturally close to her.
Based on his appearance alone, even someone seeing him for the first time would marvel in their heart, thinking that if there really were gods in this world, they would probably look like this.
The moment the old man stood up, a flame rekindled in everyone's eyes, hoping he could turn the tide.
Zou Yun, however, felt a buzzing in his mind and his heart sink to the bottom!
"Oh no, these are my lyrics!!!"
Zou Yun was filled with remorse. He had originally planned to step forward at the crucial moment and claim that he could refine elixirs.
Then, relying on his extensive knowledge accumulated from years of immersion in online novels, he fabricated a story on the spot to appease this emperor of all ages.
Finally, they would wait until the other party died, and then slip away in the chaos.
At that time, the world will be vast, and there will be nowhere that cannot be a place to stay.
But now things have gone wrong, and someone stole my lines. What should I do?
"You're so dense, get your brain working!"
Just as Zou Yun was desperately sorting through the fragments of information in his mind and anxiously thinking of ways to survive,
The white-haired old man had already begun his performance. He spoke eloquently and fluently, recounting how he would refine the elixir of immortality!
How to find immortals, how to obtain celestial treasures for His Majesty...
His voice was loud and infectious, and he described each step with great seriousness, quoting classics and classics, which captivated the audience.
It seems to have revealed some mysterious anecdote, pulling everyone back into the ancient, barbaric world where gods and humans lived together!
On the high platform, Ying Zheng listened to his story with great interest, leaning forward slightly, nodding in agreement from time to time, and even chuckling a few times.
Could it be?!
At this moment, everyone felt hopeful, thinking they could get through this ordeal.
Countless eyes looked expectantly at the white-haired old man, and even Zou Yun temporarily put aside his regrets, a glimmer of hope rising in his heart.
However, the old man's impassioned words still lingered in the hall.
"Guards, drag him out and execute him!"
The smile on Ying Zheng's face vanished instantly, replaced by an abyss-like coldness.
"Since you claim to possess magical powers, then prove it to me by surviving being beheaded!"
He stared at the other person expressionlessly, a hint of violence hidden deep in his eyes, his words more chilling than swords.
Without the slightest hesitation, the armored soldiers on both sides grabbed the white-haired old man and dragged him away the moment Ying Zheng gave the order.
Unexpectedly, the old man remained silent as the armored soldiers roughly dragged him away.
His face was calm, and he even raised his head slightly, his eyes revealing indifference, as if he truly had a lot of confidence.
This extraordinary composure caused a genuine look of surprise to flash in Ying Zheng's eyes for the first time, his hostility replaced by curiosity.
He couldn't help but secretly wonder, "Could this person truly possess extraordinary abilities?"
The Taoist priests who knew him well along the way were so excited by his calm demeanor that they trembled with excitement and cast hopeful glances at him.
It's as if it's saying, "You're quite the hidden talent, you've kept it well hidden. I never noticed you had this ability before."
Those alchemists who were unfamiliar with the old man secretly admired his demeanor.
"He is truly an immortal!!!"
Even Zou Yun couldn't help but let his imagination run wild, overturning his initial guess.
"Could this not be a simple historical world, but truly contain extraordinary immortals and gods?!"
For a moment, the atmosphere in the entire Danchi became eerie.
Everyone looked at the white-haired old man with awe, watching him being led away. They turned their heads to gaze outside the city wall, holding their breath and anticipating the final outcome.
Even the supreme emperor frequently cast his gaze toward the outside of the wall.