Whale Falls and Becomes a God

Chapter 24: Dugu Clan
Jiangdu is bright and shining with lights.

Teams of soldiers patrolled the main streets, and even the common people noticed that something was wrong, making the atmosphere in Jiangdu, which should have been bustling and prosperous, solemn and depressing, with few passers-by.

The terrifying lineup of Xiao Ying and others enabled them to successfully leave Qiling Temple and lurk in the residential area near the Forbidden Palace where nobles and important officials gathered, and temporarily choose a desolate mansion to rest.

It is worth mentioning that along the way, Xiao Ying obtained more than 200 star souls, but the quality was not high, most of them were ordinary people, the lowest level blood stars!
"Rebellion deserves the death of all nine generations of the clan. How dare you falsely convey the emperor's will, impose a curfew, and mobilize the army!"

Dugu Feng, who had come along as one of the eleven attendants, had a frosty face and her chest heaving violently as she scolded him coldly. After a pause, she quickly added, "I've contacted my family. I'll have news or someone to guide me soon!"

"The clan really deserves to be exterminated!" Xiao Ying nodded in agreement.

Curfew and military operations are no small matter. Empress Xiao hadn't issued an order, and Emperor Yang Guang of Sui didn't know about it, and most likely didn't know about it either. This meant it was the work of the traitors, a serious crime punishable by extermination of the entire clan!

"It seems... the traitor will really take action tonight, so we need to hurry up!" Commander Le Han frowned and reminded.

"Unfortunately, I arrived a little too late and need to take risks!"

Xiao Ying frowned and said, then gestured to the priests.

Bringing orders and tokens from Empress Xiao, the four empresses, and the concubines, he once again slipped into the night and infiltrated various forces.

According to Xiao Ying's plan, he intended to go to Dugu Mansion first, and then gather the forces of his own camp to Dugu Mansion, so as to unite the forces and wait to deal a heavy blow to the rebel camp and even the Yuwen family.

The Dugu clan and the Yuwen clan were both considered one of the Four Great Clans, also known as the Four Great Aristocrats. Their foundations lay in the imperial court. The Dugu clan had many beautiful women, extensive connections, and implicit authority, but their ambitions were limited, their personal responsibilities were somewhat limited, and their actual power was slightly less. They were practically equal.

Regardless of whether it's an old feud or a conspiracy to intimidate, the primary target of the rebel forces is definitely the Forbidden Palace, and the secondary target is most likely the Dugu Mansion!

Unfortunately, there is a curfew now and there are large military patrols, which makes travel difficult. It will be a bit troublesome to gather our own forces!
Xiao Ying had no intention of giving up on the mobilization. He would use orders to pave the way and use force to put pressure on the enemy. If they really refused to let him go, he would go to war directly to disrupt the rebels' deployment and seize the initiative!

"The tribe has replied! The Lixie tribe elder will come personally to lead the way!"

While Xiao Ying was deep in thought, Dugu Feng's face lit up and she spoke.

Li Xie is the courtesy name of Dugu Tuo, a senior official of the Sui Dynasty and a famous general of two dynasties. He was the sixth son of Grand Tutor Dugu Xin, Duke of Zhao, and the half-brother of Empress Wenxian Dugu Qieluo. He later retired to practice Buddhism, but his influence remained.

The Dugu clan, one of the Four Great Clans, was naturally incredibly large. The late Emperor's Empress Wenxian, Dugu Jialuo, alone had seven brothers. Riding on the legacy of Empress Dugu, the clan's population exploded. Her contemporaries alone numbered dozens of direct descendants, and by Dugu Feng's generation, the number had surpassed a thousand. Adding in collateral branches, the clan's population now exceeded 100,000.

Of course, there are century-old dynasties, thousand-year-old families, and ten-thousand-year-old clans!

The Dugu clan members were not all in Jiangdu, but were spread all over the world. The original Jiangdu clan members, including those who followed the Sui emperor, were only about five or six thousand people. Together with servants, followers, and guards, there were tens of thousands of people. It would be difficult to destroy them without a hundred thousand elite troops!

This is the horror of wealthy and powerful families, and even aristocratic families!
……

Dugu Mansion is located in the district for nobles and important officials near the Forbidden Palace. It covers an area second only to the Forbidden Palace. It is surrounded by high walls and courtyards, with palaces, mountains, forests and lakes.

At this time, the vast Dugu Mansion was brightly lit and bustling with people, which was in stark contrast to the lonely and solemn atmosphere outside the mansion!

Xiao Ying and others were taken by Dugu Tuo, bypassing the patrol troops, the people and the spies of the powerful forces, entering the Dugu Mansion through the side door, and were placed in the central and rear area.

As soon as I entered the courtyard and walked into the main hall in the middle of the courtyard, I saw nearly a hundred people standing quietly to welcome me.

"Meet the special envoy! Due to the special circumstances, I cannot come to meet you from far away. Please forgive me!"

The Dugu clan leader, Dugu Sheng, who was over fifty years old but looked like an elegant young man, was the first to bow and greet everyone.

"Meet the special envoy!"

The others also greeted him solemnly. Nearly half of them were elderly, essentially the backbone of the Dugu clan, elders, stewards, Sui officials, representatives of factions, and so on. The weakest was at the peerless level. The five women present were all of extremely high status and powerful, quite special.

For example, the fourth grandmother of the Dugu clan, who is not here, was the fourth sister of Empress Wenxian Dugu Qieluo and the mother of Emperor Li Yuan of the Tang Dynasty. Two of her daughters married into the Yuwen clan, and a third married into the palace. The relationship between them was quite complicated and entangled.

The women of the Dugu family do have strong genes, and their appearance and temperament are extraordinary, and they are admired by the world.

The reason why they were so solemn and respectful to Xiao Ying was not only because of Xiao Ying's special status, but also because they represented Empress Xiao and all the empresses and concubines, and also because they represented the reinforcements of the Dugu family.

Whether in public or in private, Dugu will not and dare not slack off in the slightest.

"The situation is critical and time is running out! Greetings to the Valve Master and all the elders, no need to be polite!"

Xiao Ying didn't dare to act superior, so he humbly bowed in return and took the initiative to change the subject, saying, "Next, I'll have to trouble the Dugu family to guide and escort the various forces together, and closely monitor the Forbidden Palace and the entire city, keeping an eye out for any traitors. If you need any help, please let us know, and we'll be at your beck and call!"

This is the main reason why Xiao Ying came to Dugu Mansion first.

In addition, although the Dugu family is just a name, it is a powerful family with a long history. Dugu Sheng is the patriarch of the family and is respectfully called the head of the family.

"Young Master Xiao is truly extraordinary. The Dugu clan will always remember your help and will definitely repay you!"

At this time, everyone in the Dugu family had different expressions. Dugu Sheng had a strange look on his face, but he was quite happy and excited. He responded politely and secretly communicated with everyone in the Dugu family.

Meeting is better than being famous.

The aura and momentum of Xiao Ying and his group far exceeded what the Dugu family had learned from their intelligence. They were also secretly protected by Aunt Tianren Rong, which was a huge help to the powerful Dugu family, even more powerful than the Dugu family at this time.

Because when Xiao Ying and his party arrived, the Dugu clan received a message from a celestial being within the clan, informing them of the aura of Xiao Ying and his party and the existence of Aunt Rong. This was also the main reason why the Dugu clan welcomed them so grandly and respectfully.

At this time, the two celestial beings were meeting in secret and neither of them showed up.

After he finished speaking, Dugu Sheng gave a signal, and nearly a hundred Dugu clansmen quickly bowed and left, each doing their own thing, leaving only a dozen or so people behind.

"Aside from the Yuwen clan, the main ones are the Yuan, Liu, Pei, and Sima clans. Fortunately, Young Master Xiao came to our aid. Otherwise, our Dugu clan would have been unable to contend with their top-tier combat power..."

After some pleasantries, Dugu Sheng solemnly explained the key points of the current situation.

The Yuan family and the other four were top-tier aristocratic families second only to the four great clans, with immense power and influence. With at least two Celestial Beings and the Yuwen family, the Dugu family alone couldn't handle it.

"Master, you are too kind! We are here to deal with high-end combat forces. From what I think, once the war breaks out, we will spare no expense to kill the Tianren first. This will deter rebellion and ease the crisis! We need to discuss this..."

Xiao Ying humbly bowed in response, but then solemnly reminded him, "This is also what the Empress meant. The threat is too great!"

"Kill the Celestial Being first?!"

The leader of the Dugu clan was stunned and surprised, and even the members of the Dugu clan were shocked and exclaimed.

"This kid..."

Although Dugu Tianren and Aunt Rong did not show up, they knew everything. Aunt Rong could not help but smile bitterly and shook her head.

Is the Supreme Celestial Being so easy to kill?
Empress Xiao did not mean that. It was entirely Xiao Ying's own decision, but it was difficult to refute.

(End of this chapter)