I Can Control Resources

"..." Silence fell all around.

But soon, Clan King Blood Spray stood up.

"Alright. Since Lord Gao Neng wants to put on a show, we will cooperate with all our strength. If there’s anything you need, Lord Gao Neng, just give the word!"

"You don’t need to do anything special. Just do exactly what you did when you received me, all over again." A corner of Gao Neng’s mouth lifted into a smirk.

"Is it that simple?"

"It is that simple."

"Understood. I’ll go make the arrangements at once."

"..."

Blood Spray left.

Naturally, the other members of the Royal Race didn’t stay either.

They took their leave one by one.

Fang Tangtang and Xu Zilan didn’t immediately get out of the pool. Presumably, Xu Zilan had taken Fang Tangtang to explore the Blood Pool.

Just then, Gao Xiaomeng walked up to Gao Neng.

"You’re so thorough, Brother. Even though the Blood Race is under our control now, there are still over twenty other races on the Northern District Battlefield. We really can’t expose our hand yet."

"’Expose our hand?’" Gao Neng didn’t reply directly, instead pointing to himself. "Do me a favor. Turn me into the Fourth Prince, Xue Ruyu."

"You got it!" Gao Xiaomeng immediately got to work.

Soon, Gao Neng transformed from the Celestial Race’s Mu Feifei into the Blood Race’s Fourth Prince, Xue Ruyu. The entire process was like a magic trick.

Bloodthirst watched this all unfold, his brow deeply furrowed.

However, he didn’t ask any questions.

Gao Neng knew exactly what Bloodthirst was thinking. By having Gao Xiaomeng transform him right in front of Bloodthirst, he was sending a clear message.

We are different!

Only by being different...

...would Bloodthirst remain wary!

It was like facing an enemy. If they could see right through you at a glance, then even if you had them at your mercy, they might still be calculating the right moment to strike.

Conversely, as long as they couldn’t see through you, they would most likely continue to lie low and bide their time.

What Gao Neng was doing was simple.

He was keeping Gao Xiaomeng shrouded in mystery.

That way, Bloodthirst would continue to bide his time... and bide his time... and bide his time some more!

"Bloodthirst, there’s one more thing I need you to do." After his transformation was complete, Gao Neng turned to look at Bloodthirst, who was standing to the side.

"What is it?" Bloodthirst’s tone was indifferent.

After all, he was still one of the Strongest—and one of the three Strongest in the North District, no less. Even though he was being controlled, he still carried an air of arrogance.

"It’s about Blood Frenzy." Gao Neng pointed in the direction of the North District Fortress.

"Have him come back now?" Bloodthirst gave a slight nod.

"No. The City Lord of Ice City is dead, and Ice City is the major city closest to the North District Fortress. It’s a key military location no matter how you look at it. So," Gao Neng mused, "wouldn’t it be better if Blood Frenzy took this opportunity to occupy Ice City?"

"If Blood Frenzy doesn’t voluntarily retreat to the Blood Race’s territory, the other non-human Strongest won’t retreat either. If that drags on, both the Human Race and the non-humans could suffer casualties." Bloodthirst glanced at Gao Neng, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, merely offering a casual reminder.

"Mm, you’re right... So, if they just fall back to defend Ice City, that could probably avoid casualties, right?" Gao Neng nodded thoughtfully.

"You want Blood Frenzy to lead the non-human races and surrender to the Human Race in this battle?" Bloodthirst’s eyes narrowed.

"It’s just falling back to a defensive position."

"And after they fall back?"

"We stall... Our objective is Ice City, so we’ll just have them hold out there. They’ll stall until all the other Strongest have left."

"Fine, I’ll make the arrangements." Bloodthirst didn’t argue further. He turned to look at the bamboo house behind him. "Do I need to move out of here?"

"No need." Gao Neng smiled and shook his head.

’Maintaining the status quo for now is the best option.’

After all, just as Xu Zilan had said, without a replaceable ’root,’ the Blood Race had no chance of escaping their grasp.

"Mm." Bloodthirst entered the bamboo house and didn’t come out again.

Meanwhile, Gao Xiaomeng swayed over to Gao Neng’s side and brought her lips close to his ear.

𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

A wisp of warm breath tickled his skin.

"Did Mom tell you about the ’root’?"

"A little." Gao Neng didn’t move.

"Oh... then you should know how amazing I, the great Xiaomeng Queen... am, right?" Gao Xiaomeng gave Gao Neng a serious look, a glint flashing in the corner of her eye.

"I know." Gao Neng let her stay close.

"So, why aren’t you sucking up to me yet?" Gao Xiaomeng squirmed a little.

"Suck up to you, my ass."

"Hmph, men... you really only think about one thing!" Seemingly dissatisfied with Gao Neng’s indifference, Gao Xiaomeng let out a forceful huff and dove headfirst into the pool.

’Looks like she’s going to help Fang Tangtang evolve.’

’Since that’s the case...’

Gao Neng didn’t say anything more.

He needed to handle the matter of receiving Wu Dingxiang himself.

After all, this mission was too critical.

It would directly determine whether he could complete his epic hidden mission.

...

「Outside the Blood Race Royal City.」

Mu Feifei and Wu Dingxiang had arrived before the city walls.

That’s right.

Using her own intelligence-gathering methods, Mu Feifei had obtained a new piece of intel: the Blood Race’s Strongest, the Blood Marshal, had very likely been killed in action outside Ice City.

This naturally made her understand the High Mountain Race’s Clan King’s true motive for having them stay behind.

The so-called danger...

...was just a deliberate stalling tactic.

Mu Feifei was not an Angel who could be controlled by others, so she had decisively set out overnight and rushed to the Blood Race Royal City.

She wanted to see how the Blood Race royalty would react under these circumstances!

Were they...

...still worthy of an alliance?!

"Greetings, Ninth Princess. Greetings, Seventh Princess. Your Highnesses!" A Warrior from the Blood Shadow Army emerged from the city gate and bowed to Mu Feifei.

"Where is the Fourth Prince?" Mu Feifei’s brow furrowed slightly.

"To answer the Ninth Princess, His Highness the Fourth Prince broke through to the eighth order just two days ago and is currently stabilizing his cultivation... so... Ah, by the way, Your Highness, weren’t you supposed to be resting with the High Mountain Race for another two days?" As he spoke, the Blood Shadow Army Warrior deftly changed the subject.

"It seems the Fourth Prince didn’t know we would be arriving early..." Mu Feifei glanced at the Blood Race Royal City before her, and her gaze was soon drawn to the vibrant flowers decorating the city walls. "If he didn’t know we were coming, then why the flowers?"

"His Highness the Fourth Prince indeed did not know that the Ninth Princess and the Seventh Princess would be arriving tonight. However, he had already prepared all the decorations, including the flowers, in advance," the Blood Shadow Army Warrior continued.

"I see." Mu Feifei’s brow finally relaxed slightly.

"His Highness the Fourth Prince... is so thoughtful!" Upon hearing this, the Seventh Princess, Wu Dingxiang, also nodded slightly, her face breaking into a smile as gentle as a spring breeze.

"Your Highnesses, please enter the city. The Fourth Prince has already given the order for you to be housed in the Royal Hall. He will meet with you by tomorrow morning at the latest." The Blood Shadow Army Warrior stepped aside, gesturing for them to enter.

"Very well." In the end, Mu Feifei said no more.

The group entered the city without any trouble.

And all of this was witnessed by Gao Neng from a distance.

’Originally, my plan was to go out of the city as the Fourth Prince, Xue Ruyu, to personally welcome Mu Feifei and Wu Dingxiang, and then arrange a banquet. But at the last second, I changed my mind.’

’Because my only target is Wu Dingxiang...’

’Since that’s the case...’

’...why create unnecessary trouble?’

’That chick Mu Feifei is sharp!’

’If one or two wrong words cause a problem and affect the mission’s completion, it wouldn’t be worth it.’

’So, just to be safe...’

Gao Neng made a spur-of-the-moment decision to have the Blood Shadow Army get Mu Feifei and Wu Dingxiang into the Royal Hall first. ’Once they’re in the Royal Hall, they’re like canaries in a cage.’

’Want to fly?’

’I’ll break your wings!’