The loud and majestic singing voice that rang out from the four-star musician Xu Que's lips resounded all throughout the imperial city, purifying everything that came in its path.
Everyone was stunned!
After being charmed and spellbound by the Fire Emperor's rituals for all this time, the common folk began to see clearly at last.
Even the Empress herself was awestruck and stared at Xu Que in disbelief. It was only when she saw Xu Que's earnest and serious face that she finally realized—this bastard wasn't only good at silly tricks and stupid jokes, he also had a big heart as well! How else could he have sung such a sublime song that had moved the hearts of all who had listened?
The Fire Emperor, still hovering in mid-air, was gobsmacked as well. He watched in horror as his majestic divine powers began to dissipate and scatter into thin air. He began to burn all over with anxiety.
"No, no… Stop it!" yelled the Fire Emperor at Xu Que. "I command you to stop! I command you to shut up!"
None of his imperial commands made any effect, though, as they were being completely eclipsed by Xu Que's powerful and sonorous voice and crushed by the sound of justice that was reverberating through his song!
In truth, it was because of Xu Que's deep respect for this song that he had become so solemn and serious--the sanctity of this song that stood for liberty and freedom could not be violated! It represented the indomitable spirit of a great nation of people, it represented the inviolable holiness of the divine, and it represented relentless perseverance and determination!
Xu Que had now adapted it, all with a genuinely pure intention to save the people!
Well… that, and to act tough!
Still, Xu Que was nothing more than a four-star musician after all. It was impossible for a single song to change the world, and stupid to imagine that one song could dislodge the ideological beliefs held by the people that had been passed down from generation to generation—no, that would be asking too much.
But that didn't mean he couldn't do anything at all. Xu Que could easily put the people under his influence for a short period of time and awaken them from the stupor that they had been put under by the Fire Emperor's rituals!
"This is our final stand, let's unite and fight till the sun rises up again tomorrow!"
Xu Que become more and more fired up as he sang, and there were signs that it had produced some effects in the people. They no longer knelt on the ground, they no longer bowed their heads down. Instead, they had begun to stand up and direct eyes that were full of awe and respect onto Xu Que!
"No!" yelled the Emperor. "You little scum, I told you to shut the hell up!"
The Fire Emperor was now bristling with anger. He turned around abruptly and headed straight towards Xu Que. Although more than half of his body's divine powers that he had worked so hard to accumulate had now dissipated, he was still very strong and was not to be taken lightly.
Sharp murderous intent flowed out from his body!
"I'm going to kill you!"
At this point the Empress noticed him and sharply drew in a breath before quickly rushing towards Xu Que and standing between him and the wrathful Fire Emperor.
She then pointed her delicate finger to the sky and waved it gently, causing a ripple to appear.
Boom!
The empty space in front of Xu Que instantly turned to water and then quickly gathered to become a vast, vast sea complete with its own rogue waves!
Heavens above!
Xu Que's eyes opened as wide as saucers, flummoxed by the sight before him.
What fierce powers the Empress possesses! She can unleash such powerful force so easily with just a gentle wave of a finger… This is the epitome of acting tough! I must learn to do it as well!
Xu Que's eyes were then hit by a gust of hot air…
Bang!
As expected, even such a powerful force could hardly cause any effects on the mighty Fire Emperor. Even when the song had weakened his powers by more than half, he still remained a formidable force not to be underestimated.
The emperor unleashed his Flaming Dragon, and he crashed into the wall of water looking like a golden dragon diving into the sea. He vanished inside the body water, then suddenly exploded within it, dispersing all the water and making it vanish into thin air!
"Get out of the way, little girl," said the Fire Emperor to the Empress. "Watch me destroy him!"
Whooossshhhh!
Xu Que let out a scream then activated the system's automatic hosting functions and continued to perform the song. At the same time, he unsheathed a sharp sword and assumed the stance for God Killing Sword, ready to kill the dogged emperor.
Right at that moment, a few columns of icicles appeared in front of him, forming a protective barrier between him and the Fire Emperor. The Empress then appeared before him, calm as the surface of a still lake, and as graceful and dignified as ever.
"Keep on playing the music, young man!" she said. "Let me handle the rest!"
Xu Que raised an eyebrow at the Empress' command, realizing now that in order to kill the Fire Emperor, he had to destroy the remaining half of his divine power! Even though the song was playing loudly at the time, some of the people had not yet awakened and remained sacrificial lambs for the Emperor's ritual as their life force was being continually consumed right at that moment!
"All of you," shouted Xu Que at the people he had awakened. "Help your fellow countrymen and wake them up! The battle has not been won yet, we must all work very hard to achieve victory!"
"Yes!" replied a monk immediately. "I, Old Ma, will join the battle to kill the Fire Emperor and free the Fire Country!"
"I will join the battle as well!"
"Kill the Fire Emperor! Free the Fire Country!"
"Kill the Fire Emperor! Free the Fire Country!"
Soon, the energy of the small initial group of people began to spread, and more and more people stood up and joined the spirited shouts. Their cries rang in all directions, awakening more and more of the common folk from the clutches of the Fire Emperor's powers.
But still… they couldn't awaken everyone in the whole imperial city.
No, this isn't enough, thought Xu Que. I'm afraid I have to bring out the big guns now!
Xu Que's eyebrows furrowed so deeply that they almost joined together as he called up the system and entered the market on the interface. He quickly purchased a manuscript and made simple alterations on it.
He then flung the manuscript down towards the monk who had first stood up and shouted earlier.
"Old Ma, that's your name isn't it?" he shouted to the monk. "Good, from now on you'll be called Ma…rx, yes, from now on your name is Marx! And you, the one beside him! Your name will be Engels from now on. Both of you distribute the manuscript among the crowd of people now! And read it aloud while you're at it!"
"Huh?" The two monks were stunned for a moment. They then looked at each other and flipped open the manuscript, and were further perplexed by the text inside.
"The Declaration of… Independence?" they both read out in an uncertain tone.
"What? Wasn't it the Communist Manifesto?" said Xu Que. "Oh shit, I must've bought the wrong one. Ah, never mind, the Declaration of Independence will do! Go on, hurry up! Distribute it around and let everyone read it. If this doesn't destroy the son of a bitch emperor, I don't know what will!"
Meanwhile, the crowd was still bellowing out, "kill the Fire Emperor! Free the Fire Country!
At the same time, the Fire Emperor and the Empress were still engaged in a fierce battle, until suddenly the Fire Emperor couldn't hold his anger in any longer and shouted out: "you peasants! You're nothing but flesh and meat to me! I am your emperor! You must do as I command! If I commanded you to die, then die you must! How dare you defy me?"
"Don't listen to the old fart!" yelled Xu Que in reply. He then addressed the monk called Ma saying, "come on, Marx! Since you're the first one to read the manuscript, come on up and shout it out so everyone can hear you!"
The monk's face was full of emotions. The bold ideas of the Declaration of Independence had kindled a fire in his blood and they had completely shattered all his formerly held beliefs in the short amount of time that he had spent reading it.
Now that Xu Que, their leader, had called upon him to spread the noble words of the manuscript, he cared little of the fact that his name had only become Marx a few minutes ago and stepped up proudly to shout out the good words he had just read.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident," shouted 'Marx'. "That human beings are all equal, that they are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights, including the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness…"
"Alright, good job. Now, Engels, it's your turn!" said Xu Que, pointing to the man next to the monk named Ma.
The man then stepped up promptly and without any hesitation at all.
"We appeal," shouted the man with a booming voice, "to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions…"
As 'Engels' read on more people who had now received the manuscripts began to join in as well. Their voices got louder and louder, until finally when they reached the last sentence, the people's voices united into a loud and resonating single voice.
"We solemnly declare that we, the people of Fire Country, are now free and independent, and we are absolved from all allegiance and loyalty to the Emperor!"
Pooffff!
The moment the crowd uttered the last word, the Fire Emperor who was still fighting the Empress in the clouds suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.