Xu Zheng was still advising, "Prime Minister, think twice. Once the array is activated, there is no turning back."

"I have no turning back now, it's the day of victors and losers," Lu Sheng's voice was icy cold. The initial confrontation with Chen Mo at the East Gate had only strengthened his resolve.

"Prime Minister, the Chen Army has already crossed Vermilion Bird Street." At this moment, a voice sounded, arriving before the speaker, it was Lu Sheng's housekeeper, facing his master's excited expression, he pondered, "However, this is just the Chen Army's vanguard squad, and they've conducted thorough searches of the houses on both sides. It won't be long before they discover our ambush."

"What?!"

Lu Sheng's expression changed dramatically, looking extremely unpleasant.

To lure the enemy deep, he hadn't informed Luonan's garrison.

The fall of the four city gates wasn't "helped" by him for the Chen Army, but genuinely taken down by them, and those soldiers who fled were indeed in retreat; Lu Sheng hadn't issued any order for them to retreat. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

And this was just to make the Chen Army let down their guard and pursue closely.

Additionally, the defense at Jushan Pass was Lu Sheng's way to show Chen Mo that he had run out of strategy.

Lu Sheng's expression flickered, and then he sighed.

He wasn't entirely unable to accept this.

After all, where in the world is there a perfect plan?

While he was musing, outside the study sounded the anxious, panicked voice of King Chong: "Lu Sheng, what exactly are you doing? The Chen Army has already broken into the city, all four gates are blocked. Now, even if we want to escape, we can't..."

King Chong walked in, soaking wet, leaving a trail of footprints behind him. His armor still dripping water, bloodstains of the Chen Army soldiers smeared on his face, too late to wipe off, and looked angrily at Lu Sheng.

King Chong's sudden arrival left Xu Zheng no time to hide, and now with no opportunity to escape, King Chong had already spotted him.

However, King Chong didn't pay attention to him at all at this moment.

Lu Sheng's housekeeper frowned.

Listening to King Chong's inquiry, Lu Sheng's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly said sinisterly, "Doesn't the Prince want to know what I've been hiding from you, today, I'll tell you."

"Activate the array!"

With that, the bookshelves and chairs in the study, and then the entire study, began to tremble suddenly.

King Chong hadn't reacted to what was happening when suddenly a "boom" rang in his ears as thunder rumbled in the sky, a flash of lightning streaked past the window of the study.

The instantaneous change from light to dark made King Chong squint momentarily, and in that instant, Lu Sheng's figure melted into the darkness, making hardly a sound, his large hand tightly gripping King Chong's throat and lifting him up.

In just a moment, King Chong began to turn red, innate spiritual power instinctively surging out to resist, and King Chong constantly struggling, "Lu Sheng, you... what are you doing... My Spiritual Qi..."

King Chong was plunged into great panic, at this moment he felt the innate spiritual Qi within him being drawn away bit by bit.

His breathing becoming increasingly difficult, he choked out, "What have you done to... me...?"

"What, doesn't the Prince know about the Grand Ancestor Emperor's Soul Devouring Array?"

The study's tremors intensified, and the innate spiritual Qi of the entire Prime Minister's Mansion converged towards the "array eye," with its influence expanding outwards from the mansion.

Yet the innate spiritual Qi in the vast world was too "mixed," not pure enough, a thousand strands cannot compare to a single strand within King Chong.

Moreover, King Chong cultivated Dragon Qi, exactly what the Soul Devouring Array required, easily absorbed by Lu Sheng without conversion.

Feeling the changes within, Lu Sheng's complexion turned rosy.

Upon hearing the words "Soul Devouring Array," King Chong turned pale.

As an imperial family member, King Chong naturally had heard of the Soul Devouring Array, but never witnessed it.

Because the Soul Devouring Array concerns the very essence of the imperial family.

The Soul Devouring Array was meant to absorb Earth Vein Dragon Qi and the innate spiritual Qi within a range as energy, feeding back to the array eye's cultivator, at the cost of rendering the activated land barren, crops unable to grow.

This would result in the people having no food, and without food for an extended period, causing revolts and disturbing regional peace and order.

Subsequent emperors exploiting the Soul Devouring Array to increase cultivation would exacerbate these barren lands, affecting the dynasty's stability.

The Grand Ancestor Emperor foresaw this, thus partitioned the Soul Devouring Array.

The array map was entrusted to the Imperial Family.

The method to arrange and activate the array was given to the Astronomical Bureau.

Not until the nation's dire moments of foreign invasion, even the Emperor was not permitted to use the Soul Devouring Array.

Of course, since the founding of Great Song nearly four hundred years ago, it wasn't without some emperors attempting to exploit the Soul Devouring Array with their authority for cultivation, but never succeeded.

One reason is the difficulty in locating Dragon Vein lands.

Two, constructing the array necessitates extensive infrastructure, consuming vast wealth.

Three, ministers strongly opposed.

Such an unnecessary precedent of initiating the Soul Devouring Array can't be set; otherwise, future generations will imitate.

Four, the Imperial Family also resists.

Facing such opposition, they could only abandon it.

"What have you done to... King Zhao?" King Chong's words grew increasingly difficult, consciousness blurring.

King Zhao Chu and Yue, the current Ministry of Rites of the Imperial Family, custodian of the Soul Devouring Array map.

Although Luonan possessed the foundational array left by the Grand Ancestor Emperor, without the map restarting it was impossible.

King Zhao certainly wouldn't hand it over to Lu Sheng lightly.

However, what King Chong didn't know was, back when Emperor Song Zhongzong attempted to forcibly activate the Soul Devouring Array, thwarted by opposition, before abandoning it, the first step had already begun.

That being the Astronomical Bureau personnel had seen the Soul Devouring Array map, and certain individuals with ulterior motives had replicated it.

Rendering the Soul Devouring Array map no longer unique.

Otherwise, Xu Mu, who served as Military Advisor to Yang Minggui, couldn't have set the Soul Devouring Array in Xia Lin City, Qingzhou.

The Soul Devouring Array at Xia Lin was only a small one.

Enough to let a Middle-Grade Martial Artist break through to Upper Grade.

Whereas the Soul Devouring Array in Luonan City was truly gigantic.

"He'll soon accompany you. Now, let the Prince be the first to sacrifice the array." With that, Lu Sheng snapped King Chong's neck, tossing him carelessly to the ground.

Despite King Chong's death, the Soul Devouring Array continued drawing innate spiritual Qi from his body.

Xu Zheng on the side was long petrified.

He couldn't fathom Lu Sheng actually killed King Chong right before him.

No matter what, the man was a prince, and Lu Sheng merely a minister.

Lu Sheng ignored Xu Zheng and said to the housekeeper, "Wait no longer, act, do all you can to stall the Chen Army in the city, let me absorb more."

"Understood."

The housekeeper backed down.

...

In the dungeon of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Zhou Qin and a group of officials seeking to flee in the face of battle were imprisoned here. Their cultivation remained intact, and they hadn't suffered punishment, merely held in the dungeon, bound by special ropes restraining innate spiritual Qi.

Even so, after only a few days of confinement, Zhou Qin appeared weathered, disheveled.

In this moment, noises emerged outside the dungeon, and Housekeeper Le of the Prime Minister's Mansion presented himself before them.

Zhou Qin seemed to see hope, banging loudly against the cell door, "Housekeeper Le, Housekeeper Le, I've realized my mistakes, truly, beg for mercy from Chancellor Lu for me, let me off one last time, I won't dare again, please Housekeeper Le..."

Officials in adjacent cells, witnessing this, imitated Zhou Qin, filling the dungeon with tearful pleas.

Housekeeper Le's subsequent actions made their eyes light up.

For Housekeeper Le actually opened Zhou Qin's cell door and untied the ropes binding him.

Just as Zhou Qin was about to express his gratitude, Housekeeper Le suddenly struck with his palm, and Zhou Qin instinctively summoned his innate spiritual Qi to defend.