22nd February, 16th year of the Great Emperor Era
Jinyang City
In a certain room, a middle-aged man was crafting something.
Shi Tian (Master Lei) had been busy for the past few days. He was trying to create an opportunity, and this time, he got one.
He was altering the content of Emperor's decree.
In a kingdom, tampering a decree is treason and punishable by death! However, Master Lei was not afraid. He wasn't a subject of this kingdom, nor did he acknowledge the king. He was capable enough to escape if such a situation arose. He was also not bothered about familial affections, since it wasn't his family who would suffer if he disappeared.
He tampered the decree for House Yin. Jin Long had already issued a decree for House Yin to prepare their finest Marine Warriors to attack the Shu Dynasty from the Eastern Sea.
However, what Shi Tian truly wanted was for House Yin to prepare their best warriors while also placing them under the command of the officers appointed by him. Although House Yin could take charge of launching the assault from the sea, once they entered the lands of the Shu Dynasty, they were required to obey the appointed commanders' orders.
The situation at this time can be understood as follows.
Golden Crow Kingdom possessed the greatest military strength in the entire Northern Continent.
Shu Dynasty had been recently defeated and had no military strength to spare. Most of its regions had been invaded and taken over by the Wu, Golden Crow, and Wei Dynasties. It was no more than a cluster of provinces now, standing on heavy defenses laid with many traps.
Wu Dynasty was at full strength, but it was under threat. Golden Crow Kingdom was extremely strong, and without Shu Dynasty blocking one side, many of Wu's territories were in danger of being occupied if Golden Crow forced its advance.
Wei Dynasty had just won a major war and established political cooperation with Wu Dynasty. They had manpower, but they didn't share a border with Golden Crow, and hence, they couldn't directly provide aid if a situation arose.
Master Lei's plans were quite straightforward. He wanted to boost the military power of Wu Dynasty while reducing that of Golden Crow.
What was the sneakiest way to achieve it?
Through House Yin.
House Yin resided in the northern part of Golden Crow, and they were mostly deployed to keep an eye on marine attacks.
Even though this was a cultivation world, its technological development wasn't inferior. Warriors were much smarter than mortals, and this world possessed more heritage than Earth, so why couldn't it have more technological advancement?
This advancement had been specifically restricted by higher-ranking Warriors because it caused considerable damage to health and longevity due to all kinds of pollution, especially radiation. Besides that, due to the existence of Spiritual Essence, they could develop equivalent technologies through array formations and forging.
Many such technologies had been developed. Unfortunately, most such means were monopolized by large sects and clans.
For example, most bigger sects had treasures that allowed travel from one place to another very quickly, similar to airplanes, but powered by spiritual stones.
Similarly, all dynasties and kingdoms in the Northern Continent had developed advanced ships with long-range attacking abilities, similar to marine missiles. In order to protect themselves from such threats, Golden Crow Kingdom, which shared the largest boundary with the oceans, deployed various Warriors.
During this chaotic period, Master Lei forged the decree for a special reason and instructed House Yin to secretly send most of their Warriors to a large ship that would appear three days later, ordering them to follow the commands of the one present there. It was a secret mission to attack Shu Dynasty! Since it was a royal decree, House Yin wouldn't refuse.
House Yin oversaw the northern sea. In this world, danger lurked everywhere. Warriors were treacherous and cunning; therefore, one had to remain cautious.
Not only were the oceans often the cause of disasters, there had also been countless occasions of marine ambushes and sudden onslaughts.
They were experts in Wind- and Water-type techniques. The oceans were like their back garden! They were also the ones who sent the fewest reports to the Emperor. As a result, if Lei wanted to mobilize an army without alerting Jin Long, then House Yin was the best choice!
Master Lei was incapable of manipulating the military under him without being watched by Jin Long, and if he tried to take a risk, it would expose him. The entire military under his command was under Jin Long's watch. Jin Long had reached Rank 7, and he possessed the ability to sense if something was wrong from even the slightest clue.
At the same time, Master Lei got to know about an interesting story regarding Jin Long's ascension!
Apparently, Jin Long's ascension to the throne happened because of Jin Huang's help. Back then, all the princes eyeing the throne were either eliminated by her or stripped of their nobility and turned into commoners.
But Lei understood something. How could one who had tasted nobility be satisfied with becoming a commoner? They had their own arrogance and abilities!
He refused to believe that, in this dog-eat-dog world, they would simply accept their fate. They were surely hiding somewhere while trying to build their own forces.
And this basic point — how could Jin Huang not think of it, especially after being part of the kingdom for so long?
Lei understood it very well.
Unfortunately, he wasn't aware of Jin Huang's methods to control this situation.
He had collected some evidence of Jin Huang's secret visits to Nanyu City; however, he couldn't pinpoint anything related to it.
Unfortunately, what he didn't know was that Jin Huang hid her traces well. Her visits were always directed toward the eastern side of Dongning City, Shanluo City.
The cabin where she quietly slipped away to find peace lay within Shanluo City. Its borders stretched more vertically than most, running along the rising spine of the mountains, and it shared its edges with both Dongning and Nanyu.
Nanyu, in contrast, extended wide and horizontal, its lands spreading outward as it bordered Luyang and Dongning to the north. Only at the far northeast did it lightly brush against Shanluo — a narrow, almost incidental meeting of the two.
Jin Huang always slipped into Shanluo through Nanyu. The reason she chose to stay in Shanluo was because the princes who had been reduced to commoners were secretly building their forces in Qingyun Valley, east of Shanluo City.
Meanwhile, Prince Jin Bo, brother of Jin Han, who had escaped the fate of becoming a commoner back then, resided in Baihua Prefecture, north of Shanluo City.
Jin Bo harbored immense resentment toward Jin Huang and Jin Long. However, since he had never tried to harm them, Jin Huang spared him.
Jin Bo's brother, Jin Han, had been silently killed by Jin Huang. Although she hid her tracks well, how could Jin Bo not figure out something so obvious? All the princes had been eliminated by her, so it was highly likely that Jin Han had also been dealt with by her.
In the past years, Jin Bo had been secretly developing his forces and waiting for an opportunity. If one appeared, he would surely seize it.
Jin Huang's decision to choose the cabin as her resting place was also wise. In this way, she could secretly keep watch on both sides. The place where she stayed was quite close to both factions.
Lei wasn't aware that the place where Li Gang hid was the same as Jin Huang's residence. However, it didn't matter to him.
He could still use Jin Bo. And he refused to believe that Jin Bo wasn't aware of the whereabouts of the other princes.
As long as he could convince them, he could potentially create a rebel army internally. Without House Yin assisting Jin Long, as long as Lei had sufficient command, he would be able to create internal strife and win over Golden Crow Kingdom.
At the same time, on the outskirts of Nanyu City.
In a dilapidated house, a few Warriors guarded the place.
Inside, two Warriors sat facing each other.
Chen Wang looked at the person in front of him. Unlike low-ranking Warriors, he could sense the extent of the damage this person had sustained.
Li Gang calmly used Rank 5 Vitality Pills to heal himself. He deliberately didn't use higher-ranking Vitality Pills. It was a tacit understanding between him and Chen Wang.
He would heal just enough to survive so that Huang, who was parasitizing him, could also survive. But he must not heal enough to use the treasure within him that allowed him to possess immense battle strength. Chen Wang wouldn't allow that.
Chen Wang asked lightly, "Are you afraid?"
Li Gang looked at him as if looking at an idiot, then closed his eyes again.
Chen Wang felt awkward. 'Why did I just feel as if my intelligence was challenged?'
He spoke slowly. "You know what's going to happen to you, don't you? I am quite surprised. Why did you surrender yourself? Did you realize there was no way to escape?"
Li Gang opened his eyes again and asked back, "Do you think I am trapped?"
Chen Wang narrowed his eyes. "Can you still escape now?"
Li Gang smiled. "Why should I escape? Believe me, this game — I have already won!"
Chen Wang asked lightly, "What do you mean by that?"
Chen Wang felt Li Gang was trying to bluff him, but even if he succeeded, it wouldn't achieve anything. So what was the point of all this?
Li Gang said slowly, "Do you know what kind of people are easiest to control?"
Chen Wang replied lightly, "Those who have obvious weaknesses!"
Li Gang shook his head. The Rank 5 Vitality Pill had already been absorbed, so he stood up with his hands interlocked behind his back.
"People become easiest to manipulate when their emotions override judgment — whether through love, greed, fear, ego, loneliness, anger, or blind belief."
Chen Wang didn't deny it.
"These kinds of people are easiest to handle, but at the same time, the most dangerous too! If left unchecked, they can cause significant damage even to the strongest enemies."
Chen Wang scoffed. "Strength is paramount. If you are strong enough, would you fear those ants?"
Li Gang smiled faintly. "Even ants, when left with no choice, know how to bite and cause pain."
"If these ants were only blinded by their emotions, it would still be easier to handle the consequences. But what if they had nothing to lose?"
Li Gang's eyes deepened as he looked at Chen Wang. "If they have nothing to lose, they will do everything in their power, disregarding their dignity, disregarding their pain, disregarding everything just to get you!"
24th February, 16th year of the Great Emperor Era
Outside Baihua Prefecture
A young girl has fainted.
A guard informed Jin Bo, "Your Highness, she has fainted!"
Jin Bo narrowed his eyes. "Fainted?"
He thought inwardly, 'It has already been an entire day! She has been kneeling for an entire day, and even though her body gave up, she kept kneeling! Such talent cannot be discarded.'
He said lightly, "Go and bring her in."
A few hours later, the girl woke up.
Jin Bo asked lightly, "Are you alright?"
Looking at the extraordinary attire, the girl immediately tried to stand while speaking. "I greet Your Highness!"
Prince Jin Bo stopped her and helped her remain on the bed. He asked slowly, "What's your name?"
The girl answered, "Chu You."