Left waiting for Leng Shi but instead receiving a copy of the "Linyang Daily Newspaper," Lin Qing was stunned before tossing the paper onto the table, frowning and saying, "Damn luck!"
Taking a light breath, Lin Qing turned to Shen Yu and asked, "General Shen, is Yun Yao really as formidable as the newspaper claims?"
"There should be so exaggeration, like sothing out of a swordplay novel—ghosts and gods startled with one strike surely doesn’t exist," Shen Yu said. "However, it’s true that Miao Buqi died by her hand."
Lin Qing nodded; he wanted nothing but a firm answer from him, and he also knew that there was a very high chance this matter was true.
As a general who led troops with a vast network of information, the sudden announcent from Qinglan Sword Sect about closing their mountain seed to verify that Qinglan Sword Saint was probably defeated by this Yun Yao.
Moreover.
Lin Qing knew that the Heavenly Demon, after awakening divine skills, was altered beyond recognition. Those bizarre and unpredictable divine skills were hard to defend against, so it was not odd for the Sword Saint to be defeated.
Yet, when Lin Qing thought about the opposition gaining another power on par with Qinglan Sword Saint, he felt a headache coming on. When carefully calculated, Leng Shi’s side had at least six Heavenly Demons!
The confidence brought by an army of three hundred thousand was suddenly replaced by a sense of helplessness. Why couldn’t they have more capable Heavenly Demons on their side?
Their first battle’s defeat dealt a significant blow to the troops’ morale.
Looking at Shen Yu again, Lin Qing asked, "General Shen, if Yun Yao attacks, are you confident in your divine skills to handle her?"
"With thirty thousand archers, I fear no one in a direct confrontation," Shen Yu said, but he quickly turned to Lin Qing, "Marshal, however, I am not skilled enough in personal combat, so I implore you to assign at least one Grandmaster to protect my safety and prevent Leng Shi from sending an assassin."
Lin Qing nodded, "Sect Leader Dou, you will be tasked with defending General Shen."
"Marshal, if Yun Yao attacks, I’m afraid I may not be able to protect General Shen by myself," the Grandmaster Dou Xiu looked at the marshal with reluctance, trying to decline.
Yun Yao’s combat strength was too terrifying; she had slain three Grandmasters in the initial battle. With such combat power, he felt incapable of contending with her.
Reaching the level of Grandmaster was not easy; he was here to gain resources for his sect and didn’t want to lose his life in the process.
Grandmasters were never really attached to the court in the first place.
Without his sect, he could still live freely, but without his life, everything would be lost.
Lin Qing then turned to another Grandmaster, Shi Ji.
Shi Ji remained silent.
Lin Qing sighed inwardly. When did an army of three hundred thousand beco so constrained in their ability to act?
"Do any of you have a good strategy to repel the enemy?" Trying to lift the spirits, Lin Qing looked around at everyone.
"Marshal, in my opinion, we should swiftly dispatch troops to Linyang to cut off Leng Shi’s escape route," one of the deputy generals stood up. "Leng Shi fled from Linyang City precisely because he feared being trapped there by our army of three hundred thousand. Given this, we should be thodical in our campaign, gradually eating away at Leng Shi’s territory, forcing him into a decisive battle with us. We hold the advantage—why should we engage in a struggle with Heavenly Demons?"
"With at least six Heavenly Demons by Leng Shi’s side, if he continues to stir chaos in Chongming Country, what should we do?" Lin Qing asked. War was like that, raising questions step by step, then discussing with everyone to derive the best solution.
"Leave it to the court," another deputy general stood up. He glanced at Shen Yu and said, "Both Pri Ministers are also Heavenly Demons; surely they won’t allow Leng Shi to continue growing unchecked..."
As more and more divine skills of the Alien Warriors were exposed, the belief in the Immortal God Wars had long faded; people were more inclined to believe that all Alien Warriors were Demon Heads.
"Report!"
The ssenger burst in and knelt on one knee, "Marshal, urgent news from the Capital City."
"Bring it forth," Lin Qing ordered.
The ssenger rose to his feet, hurried forward, and handed the letter to Lin Qing with both hands.
Lin Qing unfolded the letter and his expression changed dramatically, "Pri Minister Shi is dead?"
"The Pri Minister is dead, who did it?" The tent erupted in murmurs.
Shen Yu instinctively opened his personal panel.
Indeed.
Shi Pingchuan’s na had disappeared, and the tenth spot on the list was now taken by Earth Tease Star Xiang Li, under Duge’s command.
Lin Qing surveyed everyone and announced, "Pri Minister Shi, in collusion with the Fourth Prince, launched a coup last night, assaulting the residence of the Right Pri Minister and encircling the Imperial Palace with Jingji Camp forces, forcing His Majesty to abdicate. Right Pri Minister Pei Maer, using his divine skills, turned the Jingji Camp and, on his own, killed Shi Pingchuan, fought against six Grandmasters, killing three and injuring three, capturing Fourth Prince Gu Shiming in the Diligent Governance Hall; countless officials were killed or wounded..."
Hiss!
Inside the tent, everyone sucked in a breath of cold air, stunned by the sudden turn of events.
For a good long while.
A deputy general said, "Marshal, with the incident in Capital City, I’m afraid we won’t be able to maintain our logistics. What should we do now?"
"How long can our army’s provisions last?" Lin Qing asked.
"Half a month," the official in charge of provisions replied.
"Jiang Yan, Zhang Ting," Lin Qing stood up and looked at the two deputy generals in the tent.
"Present," the two deputy generals quickly rose to their feet.
"Each of you take a hundred thousand troops and attack in two directions, seizing Linjiang and Jiangbei cities. After capturing the cities, combine your forces and take Linyang," Lin Qing ordered.
"Yes, following Marshal’s command," the two n bowed with fists clasped and accepted the orders.
"The rest of the generals, assu a defensive position and be ready for a tough battle," Lin Qing continued. "All scout units in the army, fully mobilize and closely monitor the latest movents of Leng Shi’s forces."
"Yes," everyone obeyed the command.
"Leader Dou, Sect Leader Shi, I’ll trouble you two to ensure General Shen’s safety," Lin Qing then said to the two grandmasters in the camp.
"Yes," the two sect leaders accepted the command.
"General Shen, organize thirty thousand archers for round-the-clock vigilant guard, to prevent Leng Shi from launching a surprise attack on the camp..."
...
One by one, the military commands were given in an orderly fashion.
The incident in Capital City made Lin Qing realize that this war, involving the Heavenly Demon, would be completely different from the previous ones, and he naturally chose a defensive stance.
Moreover.
A few days ago, Chu Country’s army of three hundred thousand had also set out towards Chongming Country, ready to breach the border at any ti. Chu Country had not been purged of the Heavenly Demon by Shi Pingchuan, so it was inevitable that there were Heavenly Demons within their ranks.
This ti, Chongming Country was truly in a state of turmoil.
...
"Shi Pingchuan is dead, what a useless piece of trash!" Duge scoffed disdainfully almost simultaneously as he received the intelligence, his tone teeming with mockery. In the beginning, he’d taken over the Pri Minister’s body, forcing so many alien warriors to flee far from their hos; to end up with such a farce, how shaful indeed.
Zhang Yizhi felt a wave of relief in his heart; fortunately, he had withdrawn in ti and not mixed in with Shi Pingchuan. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have escaped this ti either.
The combat strength displayed by Pei Maer was terrifying.
"I always saw Shi Pingchuan as a short-lived Pri Minister, thinking he would die at the hands of the Demon Star, but I never expected him to die by Pei Maer’s hand. The world is truly unpredictable," the State Preceptor lanted, then turned to Duge, saying, "Imperial Master, the internal chaos in Chongming Country is greatly to our advantage. Lin Qing will probably be hard-pressed to cope on both fronts; it seems destiny is on our side after all."
"Destiny has always been on our side," Duge smiled, lifting up the intelligence in his hand. "Pei Maer alone fought against six grandmasters and a third-ranked Shi Pingchuan and even erged victorious. His combat prowess is hardly inferior to Yun Yao. What do you think his key trait is? Strategy alone couldn’t give him such combat strength..."
Zhang Yizhi shook his head: "I can’t tell."
"Could it be chaos?" Duge connected all the events, and the keyword that was often associated with him ca to mind.
From the beginning, when Gu Shiming sought his help to disrupt Chongming Country, to later when Pei Maer defected to Emperor Chongming’s side, each of Pei Maer’s steps further plunged Chongming Country into chaos, and chaos was precisely the keyword for formidable combat power.
The key point was that if Pei Maer’s keyword truly was chaos, then all the alien warriors within Chongming Country were actually aiding him in enhancing that attribute.
This also explained why he had inexplicably surpassed Shi Pingchuan to beco the second in rank.
In the history of Qiyuan Star, chaos, as one of the most powerful keywords, was targeted by everyone once exposed, whether in simulation battles or on the Alien Battlefield.
After all.
This keyword beca more powerful later in the ga.
"It’s a very strong possibility," Gao Min looked at Duge, his brows slightly furrowed. "Brother Du, if Pei Maer’s keyword is indeed chaos, without the assistance of a calming keyword, I fear even I wouldn’t be able to take him down."
"Indeed!" Ge Zong echoed, "Chaos is too powerful; nobody can stay rational in the face of chaos."
"That old woman who restrained our skills died. Otherwise, her skills should be able to counter chaos," Xiang Li said.
"She was Pei Maer’s person to begin with. Do you still expect her to turn around and confront Pei Maer?" Ge Zong gave him a glance and said, "Perhaps, Pei Maer intentionally let her out to be killed."
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