Chapter 410: Chapter 42 The Battle of Powers Begins
Taiping Sect, as one of the three dominant forces, was under constant surveillance.
A large-scale reshuffling of senior positions naturally attracted the attention of the two dynasties.
Mo Yang looked at the returned intelligence with a somewhat heavy heart.
The high-ranking officials were probably wondering about the actions of the Taiping Church, but as a king of the dynasty, he knew much more.
When only he and Xuan Yang were left in the council hall,
“Xuan Yang, can you still see the future?”
He once communicated with Xuan Yang, who had calculated future events and aided him many times; when asked this question, Xuan Yang had always responded confidently, but this time, Xuan Yang remained silent and did not speak.
Mo Yang wasn’t too surprised.
“In fact, I understand some things, that mysterious figure and the emergence of the Spirit World have long pushed us toward another direction, and in fact, even without these elements, I am still tormented.”
At this point, Xuan Yang finally spoke, “You’re talking about the Taiping Church, right?”
“Yes!”
In fact, according to his ideals, the Taiping Church was the most suitable place for him.
But having embarked on the path of dynasty, there was no turning back; he represented more than just his own interests.
“I have done many things, I can say I definitely did better than those forces before me, and I have no regrets about that, but I have also done quite a few things that those great powers did.”
Dominance always brought suffering to the common people, it was inevitable.
He could have consoled himself that everything would return to peace once unified, but the Taiping Church emerged.
Various facts proved that the methods of the Taiping Church were more suitable for the current populace.
“Xuan Yang, I…” Xuan Yang hesitated, not knowing how to start, as it was he who had led Mo Yang onto this path.
“No need to say more, every step I took was my own choice, I am very clear about my character, if I didn’t want to, I wouldn’t do it.”
Both fell silent again; they were both striving for their ideals, getting closer and yet, it seemed, also farther away.
After a long time, Mo Yang broke the silence, “But it seems these days are going to end!”
Xuan Yang looked up, and just as Mo Yang had guessed, he couldn’t calculate anything now.
“This might be my special perception as a king of a dynasty, whether a dynasty or empire, in my senses, they seem to be the wrong paths; my decreasing strength has also proved the instability of this path.”
Was a path of cultivation that led to inexplicable loss of strength truly the correct one?
Mo Yang had been contemplating this question for a while.
His strength had already decreased to the level of a Great Grandmaster, the dynasty could not provide him any enhancement, this answer was already very clear.
“The high-ranking officials of the Taiping Church who disappeared all went to Shuzhou, although there is no specific location, I understand they definitely went to one place—”
“Three Counties!” Xuan Yang also came to the conclusion.
This was not difficult to investigate.
Those people had once appeared in the Three Counties.
It was just unclear why their whereabouts were now so hard to track, disappearing just as they entered Jiangyuan City.
“Three Counties, that is my turning point, and also the current most special place, Xuan Yang, what do you think the Taiping Church members who suddenly joined went there for?”
Silence fell in the council hall once again.
Both could feel a storm coming.
The Qian Dynasty might not have as much information as the Ming Dynasty, but their understanding of the Three Counties was not meager.
“I wonder what that young man I met intends to do!”
The previously encountered mysterious figure was all too familiar…
Meanwhile, in the Ming Dynasty, Jiang Dao was more anxious.
“Has he really not returned?”
When his strength was declining, Jiang Dao had realized many things.
However, he always held a ray of hope until the Spirit World appeared and gradually displayed even greater strength; this hopeful mindset had then nearly vanished.
After the silent disappearance of a National Guardian Level figure sent by the first dynasty, he was even clearer that there were people behind the Spirit World, and once they emerged, the so-called three great forces would be a joke.
It seemed now that one of the three forces had a powerful background all along, they just hadn’t acted.
“…”
To retreat or to leave?
Jiang Dao knew a direct confrontation would lead nowhere.
But could his worries be overblown?
Whatever the speculation, activity within the two forces increased, just as Mo Yang said, they were kings, they represented more than their own interests.
They wanted to retreat, but others might not agree to withdraw.
Not everyone knew of the existence of a powerful being who could instantly change the situation, as there was no concrete proof.
“Retreat, King, even if it’s you, we would never agree, and the billion populace of the Qian Dynasty would not permit us just to retreat!”
“Yes, the enemy hasn’t appeared; how can we retreat just like this!”
“Taiping Church, a sect that only knows how to retreat into its shell, once they leave their territory, do they even have half their fighting strength? No matter how many come, many will remain!”
…
Mo Yang looked at his old brothers, who had all stood up, and knew that it was impossible for the Ming Dynasty to retreat; he could not abandon his old brothers either.
“I hope the Taiping Sect comes out with stronger measures this time!”
Only then could they realize the gap and reduce the bloodshed.
And if his guess was incorrect, at most they would lose some prestige.
That seemed severe, but even if his strength declined, he was still the most powerful, and as long as his strength remained, nothing was a problem.
The situation in the Taiping Sect was similar, even more rampant.
“Ha ha ha, Wang, those from the Taiping Sect that we’ve beaten into hiding like turtles still dare to show up? Then they will know what cruelty means!”
“We should just be thankful we’re not attacking them, and they dare to make a move?”
Regardless, both dynasties were ready for battle.
And not long after, all the high-ranking members of the Taiping Sect had returned.
“You’ve come back, it must be the master’s orders, right?” Huangtian had guessed this might be the case.
“Yes!” As the representative for the negotiations, Liu Jian’an was well-practiced.
“What did the master instruct?” Huangtian knew, now was the time to pay the “price”. The master had long mentioned it.
He only hoped it was his own matter.
“Unify!”
Liu Jian’an, concise and to the point, conveyed Wang Sheng’s instructions.
Although he didn’t know why an otherworldly figure like Uncle Wang would be concerned with such matters, he would not question it.
“Unify, huh…” Huangtian hesitated, speaking honestly, “The Taiping Sect has emerged such, they wouldn’t be a match for two dynasties, undertaking unification now would only mean needless loss of lives.”
Like other forces, they were truly adept at defense.
It was one thing if he alone died, but he did not want the Taiping Sect’s followers to bear the consequences. If possible, he wanted to bear it alone, even knowing he could not bear it.
“Don’t worry!” Wang Lingwei smiled beside him, “Uncle Wang naturally won’t just let the Taiping Sect act alone, he has been prepared.”
Only people from Qingshan Village and Huangtian were here, so Wang Lingwei did not avoid using that address.
She glanced at Liu Jian’an, signalling him to take something out.
Without further delay, Liu Jian’an took out ten Jade Talismans from his bosom.
“Are these… the life-saving Jade Talismans?” Huangtian had seen such things before. When people from Qingshan Village came out, each had one. “But even with these, it’s not enough.”
These items could only exhibit the standard of a great Grandmaster at most. Useful, but not enough to conquer two countries.
“This is something Uncle Wang has newly crafted, not comparable to what we have in hand. Any of these Jade Talismans could suppress anyone in the world!”
People from Qingshan Village all nodded. Only those who had experienced it understood just how powerful these Jade Talismans were.
Perhaps fearing his own persuasive power was lacking, Liu Jian’an picked up a Jade Talisman and said, “Huangtian, you can feel this!”
Saying so, he tried activating one Jade Talisman, drawing out a part of its aura.
Huangtian’s entire body stiffened instantly, not daring to move.
He could sense that this was pure spiritual power, but such spiritual power was overwhelmingly strong. In front of it, he didn’t even dare to harbor thoughts of resistance.
“Is this the master’s strength?”
It had been a long while since he had directly felt the master’s strength, but each time he met, his respect would elevate.
After Liu Jian’an withdrew the aura of the Jade Talisman, Huangtian then looked at the other nine Jade Talismans.
With these items, unification was not difficult and they could take down two dynasties without bloodshed. This was the best result.
“I’ll go prepare right away!”
“Hold on, Uncle Wang has further instructions.” Liu Jian’an stopped him.
Huangtian paused, repeatedly apologized, then said, “What else has the master commanded?”
“It’s simple, how to use these Jade Talismans to win, Uncle Wang won’t care, but one thing must be done: the Taiping Army must be sent out, and it must be as conspicuous as possible, to diminish the influence of the two dynasties.”
Huangtian: “??”
He couldn’t understand the reason. With the presence of the Jade Talismans, deploying a few elites was the quickest method.
In a scenario where the result would not change, deploying the army was just a waste of time.
After all, in the presence of individual power, capturing the strongest would equate to winning.
“Don’t look at me, I’m not very clear on the reason either, but this is indeed Uncle Wang’s instruction. He emphasized that the focus is on removing the influence of the dynasties from the people’s hearts.”
Liu Jian’an spread his hands, indicating that he too was unclear, merely a messenger.
“I understand, since it’s the master’s command, naturally we comply.”
With the Jade Talismans, there likely wouldn’t be a battle, and the Taiping Army sent out would not be wasted in vain.
Soon, Huangtian went to prepare.
The Taiping Army, now numbering over 1.2 million, began to mobilize.
A month later, most preparations were complete, and the Taiping Army split into two and headed toward the two dynasties.
The news shocked the world.
Some top warriors from the two dynasties were even more angered.
A force that had been beaten into hiding was now simultaneously attacking two same-level dynasties—such arrogance, such disdain for them.
To arms, they must take to arms!
The final battle among the three major forces seemed about to begin!