Chapter 711
Chapter 711
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 711
>Chapter Title: Crisis
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Chapter 711: Crisis
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> Later Shu, Night
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> While these people were discussing military secrets, Li Huowang and the veiled Bai Lingmiao stood silently in a corner like invisible spectators.
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> They listened to the arguments between the various factions, the compromises born of crisis, and their plans going forward.
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> With the dragon veins of Si Qi and Later Shu secured, it was clear this had invigorated everyone here, whether from the Celestial Supervision Division or the royals.
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> The atmosphere inside the command tent had noticeably improved.
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> Once the procedures were finalized, it was already deep into the night. With a gentle wave of Xuanyin’s hand, the entire command tent and some of the people scattered like drifting smoke and clouds.
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> “Now that Later Shu’s dragon vein is in hand, as long as the Later Shu emperor calls for surrender, the Later Shu soldier families will surely turn sides. The Dharma Cult forces will likely pull back to Si Qi, but we can’t follow their path.”
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> “Oh.” Li Huowang gave a simple response.
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> “Li Huowang, this doesn’t sound like you.” Xuanyin noticed that he was a bit different from his usual self.
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> Li Huowang ignored her words and cut straight to the point. “You’ve all been scheming away, but it’s all just mortal-level tinkering. You know better than I do how the Dharma Cult came to be. Don’t you have any plans for their source?”
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> Xuanyin understood what Li Huowang meant. “We’re flesh-and-blood mortals after all. As for what those Simings above White Jade Capital are doing now, we don’t even know, so how could we interfere?”
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> “That’s not right. The Supervising Heaven Division—doesn’t it claim to supervise the heavens? And don’t tell me you have no way. Back then, to prevent heavenly disasters, you tried to array the imperial palace to steal the God-Mountain Ghost’s attention. This trouble is even bigger now—surely you’re planning something on a grander scale?”
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> Li Huowang tilted his head slightly as he eyed the darkness within Xuanyin’s red Daoist robes.
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> “You must be working on something, right? You just have no intention of telling me.”
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> Though she showed no extra reaction, Li Huowang felt he had guessed correctly.
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> “Some things you can’t help with. Telling you would only lead to more needless worry without any benefit. Do what suits your station—I’m from the Celestial Supervision Division, so I have my duties, and you have yours.”
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> The left corner of Li Huowang’s mouth twitched in a self-mocking smile as he turned and walked off with Bai Lingmiao.
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> But after just a few steps, Xuanyin appeared before him again. “What are your plans next? Oh, right—and the White Lotus Saintess.”
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> “You won’t tell me, so why should I tell you? Our previous cooperation didn’t exactly add up to more than the sum of its parts, so let’s just each fight our own battles from here.”
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> With that, Li Huowang lifted his foot and strode forward, passing straight through Xuanyin’s body as he headed toward his quarters.
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> “Are you holding a grudge? I truly was tied up with the earth dragon incident—I didn’t choose not to save you.”
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> Li Huowang didn’t stop. He refused to be a pawn manipulated by others, even if their goals aligned for the moment.
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> After spending so much time together, Li Huowang had seen through Xuanyin. She was cunning and always exploiting those around her, no matter how affable she seemed.
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> “How’s the White Lotus Cult’s expansion in Later Shu going?” Li Huowang asked Bai Lingmiao.
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> Li Huowang truly hadn’t expected that the one force he could truly control would end up being the White Lotus Cult—the very one where he’d once massacred an entire village. What a twist of fate.
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> “It’s expanding quickly, especially after we rescued the dragon vein.”
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> Hearing this, Li Huowang wasn’t surprised at all. Plenty of people believed in the Dharma Cult, but even more were opportunists who followed the wind—whoever won, they’d side with.
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> “The White Lotus followers from Great Liang’s Qingqiu are coming over in droves to establish White Lotus halls and societies.”
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> “How many fighters can we squeeze out of them to kill the enemy? How strong are they?” If the Dharma Cult could do it, so could the White Lotus Cult.
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> “Senior Brother Li, it won’t work. It’s still too soon. We can rally them, sure, but these common folk would just be throwing their lives away.”
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> “It’ll take time to select the truly devout believers in the Eternal Mother Unborn and those with high aptitude to absorb into the White Lotus Cult proper.”
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> “But Senior Brother Li, if you need people to fight the Dharma Cult, I can summon the Seventy-Two Dharma Protectors.”
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> “What good are seventy-two people?” Li Huowang had gotten a taste of the White Lotus Cult followers’ strength. They were somewhat stronger than before, but still not up to much.
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> Bai Lingmiao opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, then said: “Senior Brother Li, as the White Lotus Saintess, I can feel that the Eternal Mother Unborn has grown even stronger.”
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> “Stronger again? Did she snatch another Simings heavenly dao?” Li Huowang tilted his head back and gazed at the sky. He really wanted to know what was happening in White Jade Capital right now.
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> “Have them come try, then. Best case, bring over all the White Lotus Cult’s top fighters. If the Dharma Cult wins, it’s bad for everyone.”
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> “Alright. So what are you planning next, Senior Brother Li?”
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> “What else? We’ve finally gained some advantage—naturally, we keep pushing it. I’ll follow along when they make their move.”
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> “If they run into some tough nuts to crack, I’ll handle those.”
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> Though he no longer trusted Xuanyin, they weren’t enemies for the time being.
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> Just as Li Huowang was about to say more, his expression twisted in pain as he clutched his arm. Soon, the blood soaked through his red Daoist robes.
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> “Senior Brother Li, what’s wrong!? Don’t move!” As her long, sharp-nailed fingers rapidly drummed on the surface, Bai Lingmiao chanted the familiar soldier family incantation.
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> “From primal chaos, xuan and huang divide. Heaven and earth part, yin and yang stand. Earth is yin, heaven yang; moon yin, sun yang; north yin, south yang. Yin is xuan, yang huang.”
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> As Bai Lingmiao drummed, various beast faces bulged under her bridal veil, bursting forth atop it and leaping down from her face.
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> Yet the veil on Bai Lingmiao’s face seemed endless—one stripped away, another appeared beneath.
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> All the immortals, veiled in red, eyed the agonizing Li Huowang warily.
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> Amid the drumbeats and chants, they circled Li Huowang ceaselessly, clearly full of fear.
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> But as the drumming grew more urgent and the chants harsher, one immortal was finally forced closer.
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> Just as its veil-topped snout lightly brushed Li Huowang’s red Daoist robes.
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> In the next instant, accompanied by a beastly shriek, the entire red veil tore into shreds. Like a contagion, the surrounding veiled figures shredded one after another. Soon, nothing remained but red cloth strips.
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> “I-it’s fine!” As the hunched Li Huowang raised his head, the skin on his face flipped open and shut like scales, moving with eerie lightness.
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> Each flip brought knife-like agony. Even battle-hardened Li Huowang nearly blacked out from the pain of the cracking flesh.
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> Li Huowang took a deep breath. “It’s nothing! Just a flare-up from last time after ascending the steps. You get used to it.”
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> (End of Chapter)