Chapter 288 - 272: Emperor Taizong’s Command
"Are you saying that everything just now... was all an act put on by the Northwest True Monarchs?"
With the matter at the Valley of No Life concluded, the Great Masters departed one by one.
Qi Yun blended in with the scattered Escape Lights of the departing cultivators, quietly leaving the secluded valley that had become a land of strife.
But along the way, he heard the God of Wealth reveal a secret.
It turned out that the Nanyin Dynasty’s northern expedition, a great calamity that had afflicted the entire Northwest Cultivation Realm, had actually been orchestrated by the Northwest Four Sects... or rather, by the True Monarchs of the Four Sects!
’Why? After paying such a huge price and plotting for hundreds of years, it was all just to give an Imperial Soldier away?’
Qi Yun was filled with doubt, utterly unable to comprehend why.
Imperial Soldiers were such supreme treasures.
Even if one couldn’t be wielded for the moment, its material, its Dao Rhyme, and its symbolic meaning were enough to drive any power mad.
Heck, even just keeping it at home as a pretty decoration would be fine.
What sense did it make to go to such lengths just to push it into the enemy’s hands?
"Heh heh heh..." Cai Shen emitted a fluctuation of Spiritual Sense, tinged with world-weariness and a hint of self-mockery.
"Young friend, there is something you don’t know. This is the awkward predicament for us Imperial Soldiers to exist in the world.
We Imperial Soldiers were forged by Emperor Taizong, who poured the entire nation’s strength into our creation. He gathered the Dynasty’s National Fortune, the people’s Wish Power, and endless rare treasures. Forged with supreme power, our creation can truly be said to have seized the very Creation of Heaven and Earth and harnessed the mysteries of the sun and moon. Our might is unparalleled."
It paused, a hint of resignation coloring its thoughts:
"But such is the way of Heaven and Earth: for every gain, there must be a loss.
To exist in this world for so long, with such a massive form and high Status, we must continuously absorb corresponding Resources to maintain our very essence.
Just as mortal creatures need to eat and drink to live.
To maintain our undiminished spiritual nature and preserve our Dao Rhyme, we Imperial Soldiers must absorb Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. Otherwise, we fall into slumber."
A flash of insight suddenly struck Qi Yun; he felt he had grasped a key point.
Cai Shen continued, "About six hundred years ago, I awoke from a long slumber. My Spiritual Sense was just beginning to recover, and I was muddled and confused.
To keep that single spark of Spiritual Light from being extinguished, I could only follow my instincts, automatically absorbing the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi of the Northwest Domain just to sustain my own existence.
Though the process was slow, it was like a steady, unending stream. Over the years, it placed a significant burden on the Spiritual Mechanism Foundation of the Northwest Land."
"Later, those True Monarchs from the Northwest Four Sects found my place of slumber." Cai Shen’s tone took on a reminiscent quality.
"At first, they were naturally ecstatic. They thought they’d stumbled upon a heaven-sent opportunity and could use this Imperial Soldier to dominate the region.
However, when they attempted to refine and activate me, they triggered... an ironclad law that Emperor Taizong had engraved into the very depths of our origin."
Its Spiritual Sense fluctuation became solemn, as if quoting some supreme, inviolable Law:
"’By order of Emperor Taizong: None without an orthodox Great Tang Official Position shall wield the Imperial Soldiers.’
It is a fundamental Restriction set in place at the time of our forging, fused as one with our spiritual nature. Even I cannot defy it.
They possessed the mighty power of True Monarchs, but without Great Tang Official Titles, attempting to use me would be like playing with fire. The potential gains weren’t worth the catastrophic losses."
Qi Yun listened, captivated. This explained why the Northwest True Monarchs couldn’t use the Imperial Soldier even though they possessed it.
"And so, the situation became awkward." Cai Shen’s tone was filled with resignation.
"They couldn’t use me. But if they kept me, I would continuously and silently siphon off the Primordial Qi that belonged to this land.
It might be fine in the short term, but what about in several hundred, or even a thousand years?
This drain, however slow, would inevitably become a hidden threat, weakening the Sects’ foundations and obstructing the cultivation paths of their descendants."
"So," Qi Yun interjected, the understanding in his eyes growing clearer, "they got an idea. Rather than keep you...
...it would be better to... find a way to send you away?
For example, to the Nanyin Dynasty, which has been eyeing the Northwest covetously and is just as desperate to get its hands on an Imperial Soldier?"
"A teachable young man," Cai Shen’s Spiritual Sense conveyed with approval. "You can likely deduce the rest.
How to let me be discovered ’naturally’?
How to make the Nanyin Dynasty so convinced that they would come to claim me, no matter the cost?
How, in the process, to maximize the interests of the Northwest Four Sects? For instance, using the Nanyin to eliminate their own internal instabilities, all while depleting the strength of both the Nanyin and the Righteous Alliance Army.
How to sow discord between the Nanyin Dynasty and the Righteous Dao.
And even... how to stand on the moral high ground after the Imperial Soldier was ’stolen’.
This all required a grand, meticulously planned, and incredibly realistic performance.
For the sake of this performance, those True Monarchs plotted for several hundred years.
And now, the curtain has finally fallen."
’So that’s how it is... Turns out this Imperial Soldier wasn’t just useless to them; it was a hot potato.’ Qi Yun finally achieved a complete understanding, the clouds of doubt in his mind parting. But the revelation left him unsure whether to laugh or cry.
"Then isn’t this Imperial Soldier basically useless?"
"Who are you calling useless?!" Cai Shen’s Spiritual Sense spiked, radiating clear indignation:
"That’s your problem!
You’re the ones who are too unworthy to appreciate me! You don’t recognize a true treasure when you see one!
The might of us Imperial Soldiers, if we were in the Golden Tang Dynasty, in the hands of a General with Imperial Edict or an Imperial Envoy...
...is enough to secure the National Fortune, quell rebellions, and shape the destiny of the world!
To sweep across the world!
Emperor Taizong’s decree is the fundamental, ironclad law that maintains the Dynasty’s line of succession and ensures a Divine Artifact is not misused!
It is engraved upon our very spirits, something even we cannot defy.
How dare you toss around an insult like ’useless’?!"
The God of Wealth gave a huge, metaphysical eye-roll, its pride as one of the Golden Tang Dynasty Imperial Soldiers coming through loud and clear.
Atop the mountain ridge, astral winds howled through crevices in the rock, creating a low, mournful cry.
Qi Yun processed the earth-shattering secret Cai Shen had revealed, the turmoil in his heart gradually subsiding.
All that remained was a chilling respect for the profound cunning and long-term planning of the Northwest True Monarchs.
To orchestrate a great calamity that spanned two domains and was fraught with blood and fire, turning it into such a masterfully played game of chess... their foresight, patience, and ruthlessness were truly beyond the pale.
However, a thought flashed through his mind like lightning. He frowned slightly and asked again with his Divine Sense:
"Senior Cai Shen, if what you say is true—that an Imperial Soldier is effectively useless and even a liability for anyone without a Great Tang Official Position...
The Nanyin Dynasty proclaims itself the orthodox line, but it is not the Golden Tang Dynasty, after all.
If they spend a huge price to obtain an Imperial Soldier, only to find that they too cannot activate it, and even notice it continuously draining the Primordial Qi within Nanyin’s borders...
...at that point, wouldn’t they fly into a rage out of shame and try to toss this ’hot potato’ right back?"
This seemed to be the most unstable link in the entire scheme.
The Nanyin are not fools, and Celestial Master Chen of the Celestial Secret Sect is renowned for divining the secrets of the heavens.
They were bound to notice the Imperial Soldier’s strange condition sooner or later.
"Heh," Cai Shen’s Spiritual Sense pulsed with a near-cunning certainty. "A thoughtful point, young friend.
But, consider this.
First, without me actively revealing the secret, how long would it take them to figure it out on their own? How long to completely grasp the fundamentals of how we Imperial Soldiers maintain our spiritual nature, and just how strict Emperor Taizong’s official position Restriction is?
At the very least, decades. At most... it could well be several hundred years.
In the meantime, they will simply assume that their own Cultivation is lacking, that their Sacrificial Refinement methods are flawed, or that they need to slowly nurture a bond with the Dynasty’s national fortune. It would be next to impossible for them to stumble upon a fundamental limitation like ’official position.’"
"Second," Cai Shen’s tone grew heavy with a trace of solemnity, "it’s easier to invite a god in than to send one away.
Once the body of the Imperial Soldier crosses the mountains and rivers to officially settle within Nanyin territory, the karmic link of its absorption of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi will be quietly tied to the mountains, rivers, and Earth Veins of the south.
After a while, this karmic link will take root like a vine, making it difficult to sever.
At that point, forget about whether Nanyin is willing to send it back. Even if they really wanted to, do you think... those True Monarchs of the Northwest would agree?"
"I see..." Qi Yun nodded slowly, the last trace of doubt in his heart dissipating.
This scheme didn’t just cover how to ’send it away’; it also anticipated the counter-move for when the other party ’might want to send it back.’
It took karma, terrain, and human nature all into account.
Each part was interlinked, a truly flawless plan.
As he silently pieced together the full picture of this chess game that spanned hundreds of years, Qi Yun couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.
To achieve their core objective of "sending away the Imperial Soldier," the Northwest True Monarchs had spent a vast amount of time plotting and planning, pushing things from the shadows, and even sacrificing parts of their territory and the forces under their command as bait.
Ultimately, they succeeded in dragging the Nanyin Dynasty and the various sects of the Southern Orthodox Dao into the fray, playing out their grand performance amid blood and fire.
The end result: they not only passed this "burden" and its potential future troubles onto the Nanyin...
...but they also used the opportunity to drive a wedge between the Nanyin Dynasty and the Righteous Sects.
This was a perfect example of killing two birds with one stone.
The methods of True Monarchs were truly as deep as an abyss, immeasurable.
’Still, it all worked out for me.’ Shaking off his reverie, Qi Yun performed an Introspection, his gaze falling upon the depths of Daluo Heaven.
Aside from the faint illusion of Dark Gold Spiritual Light that was Cai Shen, three other, completely distinct clusters of light floated silently, each exuding a mysterious Dao Rhyme as they bobbed gently.
One was a hazy, grayish-green, resembling the budding of all creation, the very start of causality. This was the Origin Mechanism.
Another shone with an inner brilliance, full and at its zenith, circulating endlessly. This was the Peak Essence.
The last was faint yet tenacious, flickering between the real and the illusory, seeming to conceal infinite possibilities. This was the Mysterious Hidden Treasure.
These three were none other than three of the Four Seasons, which he had managed to initially form after personally entering the fray, stirring the pot, and surviving the immense, karma-fueled slaughter at the Valley of No Life!
’This trip to the Valley of No Life was fraught with peril, and I was dragged into the True Monarchs’ game, but for me, the rewards have been immense.’ A slight smile touched the corners of Qi Yun’s lips, a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes.
The secrets from Cai Shen, the one and only warning from the Venerable, the coalescing of three of the Four Seasons—any one of these could be considered a massive stroke of fortune.
Risk and reward had always gone hand in hand.
This time, he had undoubtedly won his gamble.
Now, only the last of the Four Seasons was missing.
He was one step closer to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage!
The biting mountain wind whipped his Deep Blue Daoist Robe about, making it snap in the air.
Qi Yun stood on the barren ridge, gazing toward the southeast. That was the territory of Nanyin, the direction where the main body of the Imperial Soldier, the God of Wealth, had been taken.
A grand drama had seemingly reached its conclusion, but new seeds of karma had been planted. A greater storm, perhaps, was already brewing.
Qi Yun retracted his gaze and thought no more of it.
The most important thing now was to find a place to enter secluded cultivation and consolidate his gains.
And to seek the opportunity for the last of the Four Seasons.
With a flicker of his body, he transformed into an inconspicuous, grayish-green Escape Light and silently disappeared into the shadows of the even more desolate and deep mountains below, like a drop of water returning to the sea, leaving no trace behind.
...