69novels Chapter 76 Tengri Khan, the Incarnation of God on Earth
Chapter 76 Tengri Khan, the Incarnation of God on Earth
Along the way, countless people from the grasslands were fortunate enough to witness Yang Kang's seemingly unstoppable special effects, and they immediately knelt down and cried out for the Eternal Heaven.
Those who chose to side with Yang Kang because of Möngke's family;
Those wavering tribes that reluctantly acknowledged Yang Kang's status as a member of the Golden Family after the successive defeats of Ögedei and Chagatai;
Those grassland tribes who were forced to kneel at knifepoint by Wanyan Chenheshang during a bloody sweep after their defeat.
In the end, he was conquered by Yang Kang's miracle and completely gave up his illusions.
A terrifying warrior who conquers the world with his strength and can single-handedly defeat an army of ten thousand.
An emperor who unified the Central Plains, the grasslands, the Western Regions, and the Southern Song Dynasty.
A righteous man of the steppe who killed the current Mongol Khan to avenge his father, and a prince consort of the Golden Family.
An emperor, as if a god had descended, stood right before them.
At this moment, who could deny that Yang Kang was the new ruler of the Golden Family and the absolute successor to Genghis Khan?
Those grassland warriors who had seen Yang Kang's true form would tear them to pieces for him.
Moreover, among all these people, the one who was most determined in this belief was Kublai Khan, who was only eleven years old at the time.
Before Yang Kang's carriage, the eleven-year-old Kublai Khan rode a tall horse that seemed disproportionate to his size, head held high and chest out, with a proud expression, guarding the carriage.
He was Tolui's son, Yang Kang's adopted son, and the youngest among Yang Kang's close troops at that moment.
He is the adopted son of the current deity, and a disciple personally taught by the current deity.
Kublai Khan had the right to be proud, and he had the confidence to be proud.
His pride stemmed not only from his status, but also from his loyalty.
At least Kublai Khan himself believed that he was so highly regarded by his god-like uncle, the Emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty, because of his fanatical loyalty.
Inside the carriage, Guo Jing lifted the curtain and looked at the smug look on Kublai Khan's face outside the window, and couldn't help but shake his head.
He lowered the curtain and returned to the center of the carriage.
The emperor's ceremonial carriages were naturally extremely luxurious and spacious.
It was more like a palace pulled by several horses, capable of accommodating a dozen or so people.
Of course, Yang Kang did not like such a luxurious display, which was one of the legacies left by the Jurchens.
"Your Majesty, just bring Möngke to the Kurultai."
"This Kublai Khan is nothing but a child who hasn't even grown his first hair yet. What are you doing bringing him along?"
Guo Jing said with a headache.
He didn't quite understand why Yang Kang was so fond of Kublai Khan, this Mongolian child.
"I told this kid back then that when I come to Mongolia again, I want him to guide me."
A ruler's word is his bond.
Yang Kang sat cross-legged on one knee and said with a smile.
The aura surrounding him at that moment made him look like a god, rather than an emperor.
Looking at Yang Kang's seemingly indifferent demeanor, Guo Jing couldn't help but feel a sense of helplessness.
After a long silence, he finally couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering him.
"Your Majesty, why do I never seem to see you harboring suspicion towards anyone?"
He paused.
"They had no defenses against Kublai Khan and the other children of the grasslands, and they had no defenses against me."
Guo Jing suddenly stopped speaking at this point.
"Are you trying to say why I wasn't wary of the Empress?"
Yang Kang said calmly.
On this trip, as always, he had the Empress oversee the country, leaving the main army within the territory, and only brought fifty imperial guards and thirty thousand troops to attend the Kurultai.
Guo Jing remained silent, but his expression gave him his answer.
He couldn't help but worry, after all, Empress Yang Miaozhen at this moment was unlike any other woman in history.
She was more like an emperor with the title of empress.
He held supreme military power, and his martial arts skills were unmatched in the world, second only to Yang Kang.
Based on Yang Kang's actions at this moment, the Empress could easily isolate the Yanshan defense line at any time if she so desired, join forces with the Mongols to surround and kill the Emperor on the grasslands, and ascend the throne as a woman.
Although everyone knew that Empress Yang Miaozhen would not do such a thing, nor did she have any reason to do so.
However, throughout history, what has made emperors suspicious has never been your intention to rebel, but your ability to rebel.
Without a doubt, if anyone in the world at that time had the ability to rebel, Empress Yang Miaozhen would definitely be the number one.
But the emperor not only had no secret suspicions about her, but he didn't even have the slightest suspicion of her.
"I never imagined you would think of my Great Qian Dynasty in this way."
Yang Kang suddenly laughed as he looked at Guo Jing.
"I simply do not wish for the peace and tranquility we have finally achieved to be destroyed in an instant."
Guo Jing spoke frankly.
Yang Kang never expected that Guo Jing would be so loyal and thoughtful towards him; perhaps this is what makes people like Guo Jing so precious.
A wise minister is one who, when truly doing something, doesn't think of himself.
Guo Jing didn't even realize that this question alone was enough to have most emperors throughout history behead him.
"Guo Jing, tell me, what makes the title of Emperor so revered? Is it the veneration of the people, or the mandate of Heaven?"
Yang Kang looked at Guo Jing with great interest and asked.
Guo Jing lowered his head and remained silent.
He longed to speak some high-sounding principles like most people from the Central Plains.
But his experience of growing up on the grasslands forced him to give a fundamental answer.
"Violence."
"The emperor's power derives from the loyalty of the army. Since ancient times, the emperor has been the one with the strongest and most powerful army!"
Guo Jing said solemnly.
"Yes, most of the emperor's power came from the loyalty of the army."
"It was not divine will, nor the people's hearts, but the violence of the army."
"But for the military's violence to be transformed into real power, it needs the support of the system and the entire bureaucracy."
Yang Kang's voice was calm and slow, as if he were telling a story that had nothing to do with him.
"When the First Emperor sat in the Xianyang Palace, he was the most revered deity among humankind."
"Qin Wuyang, a man who dared to cause trouble and kill, didn't even have the courage to speak the moment he saw him."
"When the First Emperor toured the world under the protection of his army, he was the most terrifying demon among men."
"With a single command, an area of a thousand miles can be transformed into a ghost realm."
"But when he took off his robes, left the army, left Xianyang Palace, and went on an incognito visit to Xianyang with a few guards, a group of thieves almost killed him."
Guo Jing's pupils contracted slightly.
"No matter how powerful the army is or how noble the emperor's status is, once those external things are gone, the emperor is no different from an ordinary person."
"Even the Qin Emperor and Emperor Wu of Han would tremble with fear and die when faced with swords and spears."
"Therefore, they could not allow anyone to touch this power; their subjects would not allow it, their sons would not allow it, and their wives would not allow it."
"At least before me, or after me, most emperors were like that."
"But Guo Jing, I don't need to do that."
Yang Kang's words suddenly became extremely calm.
"I am an invincible army all by myself. I don't need to be wary of anyone, including my wife."
"That's not because I'm magnanimous, nor because I love her that much."
"It's because I don't care!"
"No one, including her, is capable of taking my place."
"Even if the whole world rebels, I can still suppress it with a single hand."
"Remember this, Guo Jing."
"The absolute strong possess absolute freedom. Only an emperor like me has the right to choose whether to be a wise ruler or a tyrant."
"The reason I waited until Ögedei and Tolui were fighting amongst themselves before launching my campaign to seize the world was not because I couldn't do it before."
"But I hope to unify the world in the fastest, simplest way, with the fewest deaths."
"Just like the strategy you adopted to destroy the Song Dynasty, all my choices since Genghis Khan's death have been out of benevolence, not because I had no simpler way."
Yang Kang calmly gave an extremely proud answer.
He wasn't lying. Ever since returning from the Western Regions, acquiring the Great Shift of Heaven and Earth, and increasing his strength to an inhuman level of 20,000 jin, he had no more scruples.
All subsequent hesitation, patience, and waiting were merely attempts to seize the world at the most opportune moment in the least strenuous way.
Guo Jing was first taken aback, then fell silent.
He looked at the deity still shrouded in special effects before him, recalling the legendary emperor's terrifying performance on the battlefield and his various miraculous feats in the Innate Realm.
Guo Jing couldn't find any reason to refute it.
Is it good or bad for the world if a god becomes emperor? Guo Jing didn't know, and dared not think about it.
In September, a golden tent was erected on the ruins of Karakorum, and the Kurultai was held as scheduled.
Most of the tribes from the Mongolian steppe had arrived, except for the remnants of the Chagatai Khanate and the Juchi Khanate in the west, who had not sent anyone. But for Yang Kang, their recognition was enough.
The Westerners aren't on the Mongolian steppes after all; if they don't listen, we can fight them later.
Amidst the awe-inspiring gazes of all the grassland herders, Yang Kang became the new Khan of the grassland people.
The Kurultai was held in Karakorum as scheduled.
All the major tribes were present. Ninety percent of the tribes from the Tolui lineage were there, as were most of the former members of the Ögedei and Chagatai lineages.
Only the Western Chagatai Khanate and the Juchi Khanate did not send anyone.
Yang Kang didn't care. The Westerners weren't on the grasslands; they could fight them later.
Before the golden tent, Yang Kang sat upright at the highest point.
He had put his dragon robe back on, the imperial robe of the Qianlong Emperor embroidered with golden dragons.
But none of the Mongols with him felt out of place, because everyone present saw with their own eyes the faint golden light between his eyebrows and the white light constantly emanating from his body.
The shamans on the grasslands call it the mark of Tengri.
They believed that the Eternal Heaven touched Yang Kang's forehead with its finger, leaving an eternal mark there, proving that this person was the chosen one.
Yang Kang knew that it was just a byproduct of the Innate Realm, but he had no intention of correcting it.
On this grassland, myths are more effective than reason.
Amidst the awe-inspiring gazes of all the grassland herders, Yang Kang became the new Khan of the grassland people.
Based on his innate extraordinary phenomena, godlike terrifying power, and miraculous radiance, just like Genghis Khan, the Mongolian shamans bestowed upon him a unique title, the same one given to Genghis Khan.
Tengri Khan!
It means the Great Khan of Heaven, the incarnation of the gods on earth.
Mongke was the first to stand up and kneel on one knee.
He was the son of Tolui, a disciple personally taught by Yang Kang, and the core executor of Ögedei Khan's revenge for his father.
At this moment, Möngke was only eighteen years old, thin, with a gentle shadow of Tolui between his brows, but his eyes were much sharper than Tolui's.
"Genghis Khan was a great Khan as vast as the ocean. He brought the grasslands from division to unity and made the name of Mongolia known to the world."
"And the emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty was the Khan of Heaven, the incarnation of the gods on earth."
Möngke's voice was not loud, but the thousands of people outside the golden tent were as quiet as a night on the grassland, and every word was spoken clearly.
Sorghaghtani slowly rose to his feet, representing the Tolui family in supporting Yang Kang's ascension to the throne as Khan.
"My husband Tolui once said that there were only two people in this world who truly respected him: his father, the Khan, and his 'Anda' (sworn brother).
"Genghis Khan inscribed the name of the Mongols on the earth, and Tengri Khan..."
Her voice was calm yet firm.
"My husband, the Emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty, Tengri Khan, will nail the fate of the Mongols and the entire world together to the iron pillar of the Eternal Heaven."
Hua Zheng knelt down, raised Genghis Khan's helmet high above her head, and prostrated herself on the ground.
"Tengri Khan!"
Möngke and Sorghaghtani shouted in unison.
Then came all the tribes of the Tolui lineage, followed by the old tribes of the Ögedei and Chagatai lines.
Then it's everyone!
Amidst the cheers of everyone, Yang Kang slowly raised his head and looked up at the sky.
In a place unseen by anyone, above the clouds, within Yang Kang's double pupils.
A black dragon opened its maw and swallowed the weak, howling, and struggling wolf whole, bite by bite.