Chapter 321 - 304: The Great Cang Emperor
The Imperial City of the Great Cang Dynasty, Celestial Capital.
The night was as black as ink, the stars hidden from view.
The majestic city walls, towering fifteen zhang high, were like a colossal black dragon prostrating itself upon the plains, silently guarding this pinnacle of worldly power.
A faint light flowed across the surface of the walls, forming a gigantic Dharma Net that covered the entire city.
It served for both protection and surveillance.
Qi Yun stood atop a barren hill ten li outside the city, gazing at the great city that lay prone in the darkness.
The armor of the guards patrolling the city walls reflected the scattered lights, resembling scales shifting on the great dragon’s back.
From within the city, the solemn sound of bells and drums announcing the hour faintly drifted on the silent night wind.
"A secular Imperial City, yet its Array is rather interesting."
Qi Yun murmured to himself. This Array was far inferior to the Grand Arrays of the top Sects in the Profound Yellow Realm.
But its strength lay in its immense scale, its connection to the Earth Vein Dragon Qi, and it even contained a trace of...
A unique power akin to a Dynasty’s National Fortune, which was especially effective at suppressing Divine Soul probes and Concealing Techniques.
But to a grandmaster of Arrays like him, it was still far too crude.
As if taking a leisurely stroll, Qi Yun walked to the foot of the walls. With each casual step, he landed perfectly in the blind spots of the Array’s nodes.
Just like that, he brazenly walked into the heavily guarded Imperial City.
The scene before him suddenly opened up.
Inside the city, streets crisscrossed, all paved with White Jade slabs and wide enough for ten horse-drawn carriages to travel abreast.
Buildings lined the streets in neat rows, with upturned eaves and interlocking brackets, exuding a magnificent aura. Even late at night, many pavilions remained brightly lit, showcasing the Imperial Capital’s prosperity and heritage.
Qi Yun did not linger. Following the layout of the Imperial City he had extracted from Zhao Yuanzhen’s memories, he moved swiftly through the shadows of buildings, the dark corners of eaves, and the blind spots of patrolling guards.
His path was completely unobstructed, leading him directly to the very heart of the Imperial City—the Imperial Palace.
The defenses of the Imperial Palace were on another level entirely.
Within the high walls, the light of the Array was noticeably more substantial. The patrolling guards had auras of at least the Out-of-Body Experience realm, and their leaders included experts of the Night Traveling and even Manifestation realms.
Hidden in the shadows were layer upon layer of Array traps and warning Restrictions.
But under Qi Yun’s Divine Soul, which was comparable to the Yin Spirit realm, all of this was utterly useless.
A moment later, he arrived at a palace just north of the Imperial Palace’s central axis. It was not the grandest of buildings, but it possessed a deep and dignified air—the Diligent Governance Hall.
The guards outside the hall were stationed in strict formation, with no fewer than twenty overt and hidden posts. Several obscure yet powerful Divine Soul fluctuations also patrolled the perimeter.
Qi Yun landed silently on the glazed tiles of the hall’s roof, as weightless as a feather.
He leaned down and gently tapped a finger on a tile. A thread of Divine Sense, so fine it was almost imperceptible, seeped through the building’s structure, instantly giving him a clear view of the scene inside.
The hall was brightly lit, yet there were only three Everlasting Lamps, casting a somewhat dim, yellow glow.
Behind a Dragon Desk of zitan wood sat a middle-aged man dressed in bright yellow everyday robes, without a crown.
The man was about forty, with eyebrows that swept to his temples, a high-bridged nose, and tightly pursed lips. His eyes were deep and calm as he contemplated a massive, impossibly complex star and fortune chart spread out on the desk.
There was no powerful Magical Power fluctuating around him.
But he possessed the graceful bearing of one long accustomed to being above others, of holding the world in his grasp.
Moreover, there was a strange sense that he was faintly connected to the National Fortune of the entire Imperial Palace, and even the Imperial City.
The current Emperor of the Great Cang Dynasty—Zhao Xuanji.
At this moment, the Emperor’s fingers were unconsciously tapping on a certain spot on the Star Map.
A crimson symbol was marked there, with small characters beside it that read, "Anomaly in Cloud Dream, star paths shifting, the sexagenary cycle approaches."
"Your Majesty has quite the elegant hobby, still observing the stars and divining fortunes so late at night."
A calm, indifferent young voice suddenly rang out directly within the Diligent Governance Hall.
Zhao Xuanji’s fingers, tapping on the Star Map, abruptly froze. His gaze, sharp as lightning, instantly swept toward the source of the voice.
In front of the Dragon Desk, in an area that should have been empty, a figure had appeared at some unknown time.
He wore a Deep Blue Daoist Robe, had an ordinary face, and stood with his hands behind his back. He calmly met the Emperor’s gaze, his eyes profound, showing neither joy nor sorrow.
"Who are you?!"
Zhao Xuanji growled, his voice low.
He didn’t shout for the guards. A being who could silently bypass the Imperial Palace’s heavy defenses and appear directly before him was clearly not someone the guards outside could handle.
At the same time, deep within his Purple Mansion, an incomparably tyrannical Power of the Divine Soul surged forth. A faint, golden, draconic phantom flickered into existence, resonating with some power within the hall and throughout the entire Imperial City.
"Someone... who can help you."
Qi Yun’s voice remained level.
He ignored Zhao Xuanji’s coiled vigilance and the invoked Dynasty’s National Fortune, his gaze sweeping over the Star Map on the Dragon Desk. The corner of his mouth curved slightly.
"It seems Your Majesty is quite concerned with the matters of the ’sexagenary cycle’ and ’Cloud Dream Marsh’."
At these words, Zhao Xuanji’s eyes narrowed slightly.
’Has the Jingzhe Plan been leaked?’
"Who exactly are you? What is your purpose?!" Zhao Xuanji’s voice was ice-cold. The faint golden dragon phantom around him grew clearer, letting out a low, indistinct draconic roar.
As the Emperor of a Dynasty, even though his most central secret had been exposed, Zhao Xuanji maintained his composure and restraint.
"Who I am is not important." Qi Yun took a small step forward.
But that single step seemed to land on the very beat of Zhao Xuanji’s heart, causing the momentum he had been building to falter slightly.
"What’s important is that I know about the ’Jingzhe Plan,’ I know what you want to do, and I also know... that with your current preparations, your chances of success are infinitesimal."
He paused, looking directly into Zhao Xuanji’s eyes, which were filled with shock and a chilling killing intent.
"But, I can help you."
"Help me?" Zhao Xuanji laughed, his anger so great it turned to mirth, but a flicker of profound scrutiny flashed in the depths of his eyes.
"You sneak around, trespass in the Forbidden Palace, and pry into top secrets, and now you think a flippant ’I can help you’ is enough to make me believe you?
Do you take the Great Cang Royal Family for a pushover that anyone can manipulate?"
"Believe it or not, that’s up to you."
Qi Yun’s tone was still indifferent, yet it carried an unquestionable certainty.
"I will make just three points."
"First, the sexagenary cycle you have calculated will occur on the night of ’Mars Lingering in Antares, the Greedy Wolf Star Shifting’ seventy-nine days from now.
But you have overlooked the concurrent ’Celestial Essence Palace Fall’.
The actual optimal window to act is less than three hours.
And it will be twelve hours earlier than you calculated."
Zhao Xuanji’s pupils contracted.
’He not only knows the plan, but he’s also completely aware of such core details of the calculations—details even I only have a vague sense of—and has even pointed out an oversight we never noticed?!’
"Second, the Heaven-Deceiving Array deep within the Cloud Dream Marsh is over seventy percent damaged..." Qi Yun continued, and with every sentence, the color of Zhao Xuanji’s face changed.
"But the activation method you currently possess has three errors. Forcing it open will mean a near-certain death, and it will alert Heaven’s Will prematurely."
"Third..."
Qi Yun looked at Zhao Xuanji, whose expression had already turned grave, and slowly delivered his final, and most impactful, statement:
"What your plan lacks most is not resources, manpower, or even intelligence.
It’s a being... powerful enough to directly hold back, or even briefly resist, a partial Manifestation of Heaven’s Will’s power.
Someone to buy you that most crucial window of time to execute your plan."
"And I," Qi Yun said, pointing to himself, his gaze calm yet sharp as a blade, "can be the one to fight Heaven’s Will for you."
The hall fell into a deathly silence.
Only the faint CRACKLE of the Everlasting Lamps’ wicks occasionally breaking the quiet.
Zhao Xuanji stared intently at Qi Yun, his chest heaving slightly.
The other man’s words were like heavy hammers, striking his heart again and again.
Especially that last point—a "variable" who could directly hold back Heaven’s Will.
This was exactly the kind of help they had dreamed of but never dared to hope for!
But, there’s no such thing as a free lunch.
"The price." Zhao Xuanji finally spoke again, his voice much hoarser. The killing intent and vigilance had subsided, replaced by the solemn scrutiny and calm of a negotiator.
"For your ’help,’ what do you want?
The Dynasty Treasury?
Supreme authority?
Or... the National Fortune of my Great Cang?"
"I have no interest in your authority or National Fortune," Qi Yun said, shaking his head. "I want only two things."
"Name them."
"First, everything within the Cloud Dream Marsh will be mine to handle.
You are not to interfere, and you must provide me with all the information you have on the area."
Zhao Xuanji’s brow furrowed. "That Heaven-Deceiving Array cannot be activated by just one or two people. It was built with the full might of an entire Dynasty and requires..."
"That is my concern," Qi Yun interrupted. "I will not interfere with your plan to use it to weaken Heaven’s Will.
On the contrary, I will ensure it can be successfully activated at the critical moment.
But I have other uses for the thing itself."
Zhao Xuanji fell into thought. The condition was harsh, but acceptable when weighed against the success or failure of the entire plan. After all, as important as the Heaven-Deceiving Array was, it was only one part of the plan, and one they were not completely confident they could control.
"And the second?"
"Second..." Qi Yun’s gaze was profound. "After this is done, I want you to use all your power to help me find something.
It’s something you have no use for, and it can significantly weaken Heaven’s Will."
"What is it?" Zhao Xuanji asked, puzzled. The request was somewhat vague.
He rapidly weighed the pros and cons in his mind.
The man’s power was unfathomable. He could silently infiltrate the Imperial Palace and knew top secrets. His understanding of Heaven’s Will, as revealed in their conversation, far surpassed the accumulated knowledge of the Great Cang Royal Family’s generations.
If he could secure his help, especially that promise to "directly hold back Heaven’s Will."
It would undoubtedly increase the success rate of the "Jingzhe Plan" immensely!
It might even change the entire scope of the plan.
And what the other party demanded was mainly the Cloud Dream Marsh and help finding something.
Although these two things were precious.
Compared to fighting for a future of freedom and transcendence for all living beings, and securing an unshakable foundation for the Zhao Royal Family for ten thousand generations—they were completely negligible.
The risk was that this man’s origins were unknown and his motives might not be pure. It could be letting the wolf into the sheepfold, and he might even turn on them at the critical moment.
But... if everything he said was true.
Then their years of preparation would very likely end in utter ruin...
Zhao Xuanji slowly closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
When he opened them again, all hesitation, suspicion, and struggle had vanished from his eyes.
Only the decisiveness and coldness of an emperor remained.
"I... can agree to your terms," he said, word by word. "But I need to see your sincerity and ability."
"Simple."
Qi Yun seemed to have anticipated this.
"I can first help you revise the action plan for the Cloud Dream Marsh.
But in return, I want you to immediately open all the written records in the Royal Family’s secret archives for my inspection."
He paused before adding:
"Furthermore, before the plan is ultimately launched, I will need a place that is absolutely secure and free from the surveillance of Heaven’s Will to make some... preparations.
I assume you have such a place."
A glint appeared in Zhao Xuanji’s eyes. Finally, he slowly nodded.
"Agreed."
That single word was as heavy as a mountain.
A strange partnership, spanning worlds and involving a heaven-defying plan and a True Monarch’s legacy, was quietly forged in the Diligent Governance Hall, late at night.
A faint, yet deeply meaningful, smile finally touched Qi Yun’s lips.
’The plan is now on track.’
Zhao Xuanji looked at the inscrutably mysterious young Daoist before him, his heart a tumultuous sea of emotions.
He didn’t know if bringing in this "variable" was right or wrong.
But at least, the seemingly impenetrable iron curtain of "Heaven’s Will" now seemed... to have been pried open by a crack.
The night grew deeper.
The light within the Diligent Governance Hall stretched the shadows of the two figures, who had just forged their pact, long across the floor.
...