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Chapter 226: The Great Tang Dynasty's Crown Prince
Chapter 226: The Great Tang Dynasty's Crown Prince
The eldest son of the elderly man, Ye Wei, who now oversaw most of the daily affairs of the Ye Clan in Jinzhou, stood silently by his side.
The outcome of the conflict between the Tang Imperial Family and the Blood River Sect, leaving both sides battered and bruised, was precisely what the Jinzhou Ye Clan had hoped for.
However, the specific process that led to this outcome was somewhat unexpected.
Moreover, from another perspective, the direct descendants of the Sui Dynasty's remnants had also suffered heavy losses, which was not what the Jinzhou Ye Clan wanted to see.
Of course, they had no intention of overthrowing the Tang and restoring the Sui Dynasty.
But this piece was supposed to have played a bigger role, and its current impact fell short of their expectations.
The White Lotus Sect must have gotten what they wanted.
Someone had outbid Wei Ancheng.
The White Lotus Sect must have valued this greatly, given the enormous price they were willing to pay. One could imagine that in the future, although they would gain the Blood River Sect as an enemy, their sect would likely welcome a crucial turning point.
The question now was, who had caused all this?
The battle at Mingshan Lake in the Southern Wilderness was a done deal, and there was no need to dwell on it, but what about the future?
Would there be more transactions and collaborations between the White Lotus Sect and this mysterious force?
"Let's not rush to call Ye Liang and the others back yet," the old man finally spoke after a long silence. "I trust that Ye Liang will be able to handle the situation with discretion."
"Yes, Father," Ye Wei acknowledged.
The old man then asked, "Has Suzhou made their move?"
"It has already begun," Ye Wei replied.
"It's a bit rushed, but it's not necessarily a bad thing," the old man commented.
Ye Wei tentatively asked, "Father, what about us?"
The old man shook his head. "We don't need to get involved. We only need to pay attention to the changes in the situation."
Ye Wei understood his father's intentions and replied, "Yes."
The old man rose from his seat and walked to the window, gazing out into the distance. After a while, he spoke again, "Has the Crown Prince left the capital?"
His train of thought seemed to jump around, as he constantly changed topics.
Ye Wei remained respectful and attentive, answering, "Yes, Father. The Crown Prince has left the capital, but he is still within the borders of Zhongzhou."
"Keep a close eye on him," the old man instructed.
"Yes, Father," Ye Wei replied.
After a brief pause, he continued, "Father, Brother Chengming has returned."
Lin Zhe, the current clan head of the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou, was also known as Chengming.
"Brother Hongzhen has left Jiangzhou and returned to Qingzhou," Ye Wei added.
Upon hearing this, the old man nodded slightly.
Ye Hun and Ye Hongzhen were high-ranking members of the Ye Clan in Qingzhou.
Previously, when Lin Zhe and Lin Feng of the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou had gone missing, Ye Hun was sent by the clan head of the Ye Clan in Qingzhou, Ye Yan, to assist the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou in stabilizing their situation.
Now that Lin Zhe had returned to Jiangzhou, Ye Hun no longer had a reason to stay.
The Ye Clan in Qingzhou might not have been pleased about Lin Zhe's safe return, but given their current priorities, they had more important plans and didn't want any unnecessary complications.
With Lin Zhe's return, the atmosphere between the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou and the Dragon and Tiger Mountain in Xinzhou became tense once again.
The two clans had been entangled with each other for over a thousand years, and their enmity had only grown over time. Naturally, the presence or absence of the Li Clan would not change this dynamic.
In terms of timing, the rivalry between the two clans predated the Li Clan's control of the Tian Shi Manor.
And in terms of geography, the proximity of their territories was the root cause of their ongoing feud.
It was only because the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou had suffered heavier losses in the previous battle at Poyang Marsh that they had not dared to initiate another conflict.
However, with the recent outbreak of war between the Tian Shi Manor and the Li Clan, the situation was different, especially now that Lin Zhe had returned, while there was still no news of Xu Yuanzhen.
"Although the opportunity is precious and may be fleeting, Jiangzhou must still proceed with caution," the old man sighed. "I wonder how much Lin Chengming's style will change after his previous ordeal."
Lin Zhe, the current clan head of the Lin Clan in Jiangzhou, had already made a name for himself when his older brother and previous clan head, Lin Qun, was still alive. Compared to the more decisive Lin Qun, Lin Zhe appeared to be more cautious.
However, according to the observations of the Ye Clan in Jinzhou, Lin Zhe was actually similar to Lin Qun.
If not, he wouldn't have targeted Xu Yuanzhen during the crucial moment in the battle at Poyang Marsh.
"I believe Brother Chengming will be more prudent," Ye Wei said.
Just then, a message arrived from outside.
The old man calmly unfolded the paper and scanned its contents, his face betraying no emotion. After a moment, he handed the paper to his eldest son, Ye Wei. "This is a message from Ye Liang in the Southern Wilderness."
Ye Wei read the message and shook his head. "Even Yang Fei has fallen."
The latest news from the Southern Wilderness:
Yang Fei, the second young master of the direct descendants of the Sui Dynasty's remnants, had been killed by Xiao Xuting.
Together with the previously reported but unclear death of the first young master, Yang Tai, both of Yang Yuqi's accomplished sons had now perished.
"We still haven't confirmed who killed Yang Tai?" The old man was more intrigued by Yang Tai's death than Yang Fei's.
"We haven't received more accurate information yet," Ye Wei apologized. "The situation in the Southern Wilderness is still very chaotic."
......
Indeed, chaos reigned in the Southern Wilderness.
And someone's mind was even more chaotic.
The Holy Master of Jincheng Fort, "Ghost King" Zong Han, had already retreated from Yanshan Dong, the holy land of the Ghost Dao.
His Ghost Dao lineage had always attracted enmity, and they had previously collaborated with the Blood River Sect.
Even though the focus was currently on the Blood River Sect and Wei Ancheng, Jincheng Fort would still face retribution later on.
To look on the bright side, Jincheng Fort was no stranger to being a common enemy and the target of siege.
With the Blood River Sect attracting everyone's attention for now, they could make their arrangements more calmly.
The newly built holy land, which had been attacked by Wei Ancheng and left in ruins, was not worth clinging to.
Compared to that, the loss of Elder Gao Pu, who had reached the Eighth Heaven and had the loyalty of his followers, was more regrettable to Zong Han, the master of Jincheng Fort.
Gao Pu had lost his powerful evil souls and zombies, and his strength had been greatly diminished.
If this was the extent of his losses, Gao Pu's cultivation base would still be enough to protect him from threats by ordinary peak Third Heaven masters.
Zong Han could only temporarily put this matter aside and lead the remaining successors of Jincheng Fort into hiding for the time being.
Under the leadership of their Saint Master, Hu Hengyuan, the Yinshan Cave cultivators pursued the Jincheng Fort cultivators, but it was more of a symbolic gesture.
Hu Hengyuan's emotions were even more complex than Zong Han's.
To be frank, his previous estimation of this battle was that it would be a long stalemate with back-and-forth struggles, or even slightly leaning towards Blood River Sect's victory.
As long as Yang Yuqi and those gathered around him, Xiong Gang, Yuan Shanji, Gao Pu, and others, did not pull Wei Ancheng's legs from within, as the current top expert in Southern Wilderness, Wei Ancheng would always have the upper hand.
Moreover, Hu Hengyuan knew that Wei Ancheng still had the White Lotus Sect as a backup plan.
Some people within Yinshan Cave, such as Tian Linlong and others, had been colluding with Wei Ancheng, and Hu Hengyuan chose to turn a blind eye, having made preparations in advance.
However, what Hu Hengyuan did not expect was that even with Yang Yuqi and the others not hindering Wei Ancheng and even contributing in the battle, the Blood River Sect still lost.
The White Lotus Sect was indeed a backup plan, but it was someone else's backup plan.
Moreover, the tacit understanding between the Wheel of Reincarnation and Gebo Mountain, where they advanced and retreated together, exceeded the expectations of many, including Wei Ancheng and Hu Hengyuan.
Wei Ancheng seemed overbearing, emerging from seclusion with the intention to sweep through Southern Wilderness and unify the Witch Sect. However, there was a method to his choice of targets.
It seemed that he was pursuing Gao Pu and then kicking down the Jincheng Fort's mountain gate, but even without Gao Pu's intrusion into Daynan Mountain's Chaoyang Peak, Jincheng Fort would still have been Wei Ancheng's first target.
The reason was simple: Jincheng Fort, like the Blood River Sect, lacked allies. By subduing Jincheng Fort first, he could avoid stirring up resentment and unity among the rest of the Witch Sect.
The concept of "when one tooth falls, the rest feel the chill" was easy to understand, but when push came to shove, the speed of one's reaction could directly determine a different outcome.
Wei Ancheng's second target seemed to be the Gu Technique holy land, Yinshan Cave, but in reality, it was the divine dance lineage's holy land, Gebo Mountain.
On one hand, Hu Hengyuan himself admitted that he was more inclined to preserve Yinshan Cave and had no intention of fighting to the death with the Blood River Sect.
On the other hand, Gebo Mountain's mountain gate was the most solid, and deploying Sang Lu would be more advantageous than directly attacking the mountain.
One could say that Wei Ancheng's plan had almost succeeded, except that the Saint Master of the Wheel of Reincarnation, Feng Gui, returned sooner than expected.
In the battle at Mieran Lake, Sang Lu was severely injured, but Feng Gui was in good condition.
At this moment, Hu Hengyuan was more concerned about Feng Gui and the Wheel of Reincarnation's movements than ever before.
......
"It seems that Southern Wilderness will continue to be in chaos for a while." On the way back to the mountain, Lei Jun sighed upon hearing the news, but his tone sounded more like he was chatting about gossip.
Yuan Mobai said, "The Great Tang is also not peaceful."
Lei Jun turned to look at his master.
Yuan Mobai said, "I just received news that Tianlong Temple has been attacked by the heretical Great Emptiness Temple."
Lei Jun said, "In just a few short years, the Great Emptiness Temple is about to finish picking a fight with all four Buddhist holy lands."
First, they destroyed the mountain gate and ancestral hall of Putuo Temple.
Then, when the Vajra Temple was welcoming the new abbot back to the mountain, they were ambushed by the White Lotus Sect and the Great Emptiness Temple, suffering heavy losses.
Now, the Great Emptiness Temple had targeted the third Buddhist holy land, Tianlong Temple.
They truly lived up to their creed—that destruction was the norm in the world, and as long as life existed, so would conflict.
However, when they first attacked Putuo Temple, Putuo Temple was empty.
When they ambushed Vajra Temple, they had the White Lotus Sect with them.
Now, as they faced off against Tianlong Temple, it was a direct confrontation with no tricks.
"This is probably another attempt to test the Tang court," Yuan Mobai said.
The great battle in Southern Wilderness had caused losses to both Wei Ancheng and Yang Yuqi.
The Tang court had also been dragged into the mess.
Shangguan Peng died, Shangguan Yunbo was injured, and the Vandal-Suppressing Golden Lance was contaminated and needed to be cleansed and nurtured.
Xiao Xuetin and some of the Shangguan Clan's experts were still lingering in Southern Wilderness.
Although the Great Emptiness Temple was directly clashing with Tianlong Temple, Tianlong Temple currently lacked helpers as well.
"Perhaps the Chu Clan from Suzhou, or the Ye Clan from Qingzhou," Lei Jun guessed.
Yuan Mobai said, "Our sect must also remain vigilant."
"Disciple understands," Lei Jun replied.
Fortunately, there were no disturbances near Dragon and Tiger Mountain, and Lei Jun and his master returned to the Celestial Master's Mansion safely.
Somewhat unexpectedly, their senior brother Wang Guiyuan, who had left the mountain earlier, had not returned yet.
Lei Jun asked in surprise, "Was he kidnapped?"
His junior brother, Chu Kun, couldn't help but laugh, "Not that I know of. Some fellow disciples saw Senior Brother outside the mountain a while back, and he sent a message back, saying that he would be staying outside for a longer period."
Yuan Mobai smiled, "It's rare for him to be active after being in seclusion for so long. It's a good thing. As long as he pays attention to safety, let him be. I'm sure he knows his limits."
Wang Guiyuan was active after a long period of seclusion.
Yuan Mobai, on the other hand, had been traveling around and planned to seclude himself for cultivation after meeting with Celestial Master Tang Xiaotang and briefing him on the situation in Southern Wilderness.
"Little Shishu, you can focus on your cultivation," Celestial Master Tang waved his hand, "We'll handle the rest."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Mobai's smile faded slightly, "Is something happening on the mountain?"
Lei Jun also looked over.
Tang Xiaotang said nonchalantly, "It's not a big deal."
Compared to the Empress' previous visit, it was indeed not a big deal.
As for whether it was important...
The Crown Prince of the current Great Tang Dynasty, after obtaining special permission from the Empress, who was also his aunt, left the capital for the first time in his life.
At this moment, the Eastern Palace carriage had arrived at another major sacred site of the Daoist sect, the Pure Yang Palace.
The Crown Prince's itinerary included a planned visit to the Dragon and Tiger Mountain Celestial Master's Mansion.
(End of Chapter)
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