For over two hundred years, the world had enjoyed relative peace. Minor disturbances were common, but major upheavals were rare. Even Yang Shen True Monarchs seldom appeared, each residing within their mountain gate blessed lands, cultivating in seclusion.

However, in recent years, the Dao God Palace had caused a great disturbance in the capital, followed by the Northern Barbarians invading the borders. They clashed with the Northern Liang King Wei Jinfeng's forces, resulting in a million-strong army engagement, a river of blood, and mountains of corpses.

Then came the Battle of Liangshan, where the former dynasty's royal family officially revealed themselves in the Jianghu, shattering the imperial court's plans. And now, the demon clans of the South have finally bared their fangs.

They dispatched several demon saints, intending to obliterate the Shu Mountain Immortal Sect.

It could be said that the world's situation had become increasingly chaotic in the past two years. Anyone with a modicum of intelligence could sense the undercurrents surging beneath the surface.

A chaotic era was dawning, and everyone sought to gain their share of the spoils in this gluttonous feast.

The Battle of Shu Mountain had further pushed the chaotic era, perhaps even to the brink of total disarray. A minor skirmish could potentially sway the entire course of the world.

News of the Battle of Shu Mountain spread throughout the Jianghu, becoming the talk of the town. Countless Jianghu heroes were either filled with righteous indignation, eager to exterminate the traitorous human who had appeared.

Or, they were secretly alarmed by the strength of the Southern Border demon clans, who had casually dispatched seven demon saint powerhouses, catching many by surprise.

It was now evident how terrifying the Southern Border demon clans had become after five hundred years of preparation.

Others were astonished by the strength of Shu Mountain, with its Immortal heritage, three True Monarchs, and its alliances with the Biyou Palace and the Dao God Palace. It could be said that they had amassed a terrifying power in this chaotic era.

The imperial court remained tight-lipped on the matter. Even with the Dao God Palace members, whom they had been pursuing, appearing openly on Shu Mountain, no one dared to ascend the mountain to demand their surrender, let alone threaten them.

Of course, the main reason was that the current governor-general of the three southern provinces was Marquis Wu'an Chen Yuan. He was now the most important court official in the entire South, second only to Prince Zhennan Nangong Lie.

If he didn't speak up, which official would dare to act on their own initiative?

If they forced Shu Mountain into rebellion, plunging the world into chaos, who could bear that responsibility?

No one dared!

Thus, the imperial court's prestige suffered another blow. After all, the wanted criminals had openly appeared, their whereabouts known, yet they didn't even dare to issue a denouncement. How could they claim to possess the strength to rule the Central Plains in the eyes of the people?

The Jianghu was abuzz, lively and unending. Besides discussing the demon clans' motives for invading the Central Plains, the most attention-grabbing topic was the strength of the Linmo True Monarch of the Dao God Palace.

According to detailed reports, Linmo True Monarch had first faced two opponents simultaneously during the battle, holding his own against both a human traitor and a demon saint from the Xuan Tian Divine Spider clan.

Later, he single-handedly killed a demon Grand Saint in a short time, and even severely injured another demon saint. The power he displayed far exceeded his appearance at Liangshan not long ago.

It was truly terrifying!

Some even felt that with such power, he might be able to enter the top ten of the Supreme Heaven Rankings, depending on how the Martial Emperor City ranked him.

In addition, the Heavenly Sword True Monarch's suppression of the demon saint from the Azure Heaven Demon Bull clan was also quite remarkable.

People felt a sense of dread towards the Dao God Palace's strength, finding the organization too mysterious. Each member was extraordinary, either deliberately concealing their true abilities,

Or had significantly increased their strength after the Battle of Liangshan.

Either way, it was alarming!

As for Shu Mountain Sect Leader Lingxu True Monarch's confrontation with the demon saint from the Crimson Nether Blood Tiger clan, the Sword Pavilion Sect Master's stalemate with a demon saint, and the Biyou Palace Sect Leader's killing of one demon saint and suppressing a human traitor, they received less attention.

The reason was that Chen Yuan had deliberately created propaganda in the Jianghu.

Currently, Chen Yuan's forces had spread to almost half of Shu Province, half of Nan Province, and parts of Qing and Xue Provinces. The propaganda machine was quite formidable.

His deliberate attempt to shift the focus to the human traitors was also part of his plan.

Why?

Because Chen Yuan had begun preparations for rebellion!

The Dao Lords of the Dao God Palace had expressed their support for him, and Su Ziyue, stationed at Tang Mountain, had been frantically training troops, expanding her army, and growing her power.

The Immortal Sect Tai Xu Palace and the Immortal Sect Shu Mountain would support him, and the Biyou Palace was wavering.

He already had the power to overturn the table.

He had once wanted to bide his time further, increasing his cultivation to the peak of Yang Shen and perfecting his supernatural powers, so that he could fight Xiang Qianqiu. But time waited for no one.

Driven by several major battles, the world was on the verge of chaos, and Prince Zhennan Nangong Lie could open the gates and allow demon troops to enter at any time.

He had to act quickly to consolidate his forces!

Then, after the chaos began, he would quickly seize the advantage.

If the great war didn't come, he would personally start the chaotic era. As a precaution, Chen Yuan had made secret preparations. After he obtained the next opportunity, he would increase his strength to the peak of Refining Spirit and be able to fight a peerless True Monarch.

He would be qualified to establish his own power.

With several True Monarchs descending upon Nan Province, he would forcefully kill Nangong Lie, take control of his elite troops, and then raise the banner of rebellion, directly controlling Nan and Shu Provinces.

First, to defend against the demon clan's advance, and second, to swallow up other provinces.

This was currently the best option.

Because no one else would dare to make a move against Prince Zhennan. He wasn't confident that they could defend the human pass after taking action. In this chaotic era, he could only trust himself.

Instead of constantly keeping a portion of his attention on Nan Province, he might as well directly control Nan Province, confront the demon clan, gather ambitious Jianghu individuals, and increase his popularity.

Then, he would slowly plan to fight Jingtai in a true battle.

Although Chen Yuan was at Shu Mountain, he had issued many orders through the sound transmission talisman and the Heavenly Book. First, he ordered his hidden agents to infiltrate the Zhennan Army, recruiting centurions and commandants.

Second, he ordered the expansion of the army to continue at an accelerated pace, not afraid of spending money. Once he controlled the entire Shu Province, he would instantly gain immense wealth, enough to support even 300,000 iron cavalry.

Liang Province was bitterly cold, yet Wei Jinfeng could afford to support his army. Could he not do the same, sitting atop the fertile lands of Shu Province, plundering the Jianghu forces, and with the support of various factions?

Third, he ordered his hidden agents to quickly spread to Qing, Yun, and Yang Provinces, and other places.

Fourth, he secretly contacted Tao Qingyuan and Second Sister Zhang in the capital, using his previous connections to find a way to leave the capital, to avoid being implicated in the future.

As for the others, although there was some contact, it wasn't much and they weren't trustworthy.

After all, if this matter was exposed, it was very likely that Jingtai would strip him of his official position, causing unnecessary trouble. Of course, Chen Yuan, who now had strength, was no longer afraid of the dog emperor tens of thousands of miles away.

Chen Yuan was preparing, and the major powers of the world were also preparing. This had even become an open secret. According to the information Chen Yuan had gathered,

Liangshan had been rebuilt and was rapidly expanding its army, even secretly releasing news of the former dynasty's royal family, hoping that ambitious individuals would come and join them to create a great cause.

The Seven Kill Hall remained silent, seemingly having reached some kind of agreement with Liangshan. They had no intention of seizing the world and seemed quite calm, but Chen Huaiyi told him that

It was only an illusion. In fact, the Seven Kill Hall was secretly accumulating strength. The Seven Kill Hall Master had recently met with Xiang Qianqiu, and their plans were quite ambitious.

The Heavenly Demon Palace, which controlled the demonic realm of Xue Province, was also making quite a bit of noise. The Four Demon Venerables frequently appeared, and the Holy Son Wei Wuyai and the Holy Daughter were also openly beginning to talk with various demonic forces.

They seemed to want to gather the Jianghu demonic forces together, forming a powerful demonic alliance.

Even Chu Changfeng's Demon Prison Gate was being considered.

Prince Zhennan Nangong Lie of Nan Province had taken the lead over Chen Yuan, calling for the invitation of ambitious individuals to resist the demon clan together, causing a great shock and attracting many Jianghu heroes to join him.

It had also stirred up a considerable storm in Nan Province, with a large number of young and strong individuals eager to join the army to serve their country and defend their homes.

Based on this situation, Chen Yuan ordered the Shuxi Alliance to also begin gathering Jianghu rogue cultivator forces, allowing famous heroes to join the Shuxi Alliance. He also instructed Shu Mountain Sect Leader Lingxu True Monarch to use the name of Shu Mountain to summon sword cultivators from all over the world to come to Shu Mountain and join the Sword Dao Alliance.

The Shuzhong Alliance was also under construction, and the Battle of Shu Mountain accelerated this process. Several major forces were discussing who should be the leader of the alliance.

There weren't many top forces in Qing Province, and Chen Yuan had destroyed two of them. However, there were still some top forces that wanted to secretly form an alliance, creating the Qing Province Alliance, seeking to gain an advantage when the world fell into chaos.

The top forces in Yang Province, the Goddess Palace in Yun Province, the Martial Emperor City in the East Sea, the Wudang Mountain in Liang Province, You Province, Bing Province, and even the entire Central Plains thirteen provinces, were all restless.

The Gu family and many forces with True Monarchs wanted to get a share of the pie.

Previously, they had been doing this in secret, but after the Battle of Shu Mountain shook the world, it only took a few days for things to become more open. The imperial court, however, remained silent.

Although there were minor disturbances, suppressing the Jianghu, on the whole, it still maintained an eerie calm.

The imperial court's gathering of forces towards Central Province and the surrounding areas was also suddenly accelerating.

Anyone with foresight knew that a world of chaos was inevitable. The most important thing now was how to gain an advantage in the chaos, and even covet the position of the Nine-Five Throne.

After Chen Yuan learned of these things, he told Jiang He one sentence.

Now, the world was like a gunpowder keg filled with explosives. Perhaps all it needed was a single spark to completely ignite the entire world, causing all sides to move.

......

......

Tangshan Prefectural City, atop a certain wine shop,

Xiang Qianqiu, having changed his appearance, stood with his hands behind his back, dressed in a cyan robe. His gaze was fixed on the direction of the Tangshan Patrol Division, his eyes containing many mysterious meanings.

He whispered to himself:

"Shu Mountain, Biyou Palace, Dao God Palace, not bad, their power is growing stronger and stronger, and their strength is increasing very quickly. As expected of the bloodline of my Xiang family. It seems that the pressure I gave you was indeed useful!"

He had recognized Chen Yuan at Liangshan and gave him some time to cultivate, wanting to encourage Chen Yuan to use every method to increase his strength in a short period of time.

Now, after the Battle of Shu Mountain, his strength had increased significantly, which did not disappoint him. However, it was still not enough, still lacking something. His power, however, was already very strong.

The strength of the Dao God Palace was obvious, and the strength of Shu Mountain was now fully revealed. With the addition of Biyou Palace, their strength had already exceeded the current Xiang family.

Although there was no concrete evidence, he had a feeling that with Chen Yuan's temperament, he had definitely drawn in Shu Mountain and Biyou Palace. At the very least, the relationship between them was very good.

With these two forces, it would be much easier for him to control Shu and Nan Provinces, and he was even doing better than him.

If the Great Chu still ruled the world, he would definitely make him the crown prince and pass the throne to him in the future. Unfortunately, the obstacles to unifying the world were too great.

Too great to imagine.

Only those who are truly invincible in the human realm can restore the former glory of the Great Chu.

With his foundation and power, if he wanted to, he could have condensed the Three Flowers on the Top and entered the Sixth Realm long ago. Otherwise, he would not have had the strength to forcefully kill the incarnation of the old thief Sima.

This was precisely the revelation of his foundation.

Unfortunately, even if he reached the Sixth Realm, he would still be very weak in the eyes of those people. Only by achieving sainthood through the body and entering the Martial God Realm could he possess the power to suppress everything.

Therefore, he had been suppressing himself, firstly, to avoid being noticed by those people, and secondly, to walk the path of the Martial God, not the path of the Immortal.

The lesson had already been learned. The Sixth Realm Immortals could not protect the Great Chu's territory. When the dynasty was overthrown, their Xiang family still had two Immortals, even though they had already declined.

Regardless of whether they were at their peak, they were still true Immortals.

However, in a single battle, they were killed on the spot, their Dao scattered throughout the heavens and earth.

From then on, he understood this principle. Immortals could not save the Xiang family, nor could they suppress the world. Only the second Taizu could revitalize the Great Chu.

From that moment on, he vowed to become a Martial God and sweep away everything.

Wife, son, family, friends, subordinates, confidants, everything could be abandoned, as long as he won, he would be the second Taizu Yu.

Since ancient times, history has been written by the victors. As long as he succeeded, all his past could be erased and he would become a figure admired by hundreds of millions of people.

Therefore, Xiang Qianqiu really didn't care about any infamy, even if he killed his wife and son...

Picking up the wine glass in his hand, Xiang Qianqiu poured the wine horizontally in front of him and smiled faintly:

"I'll give you some more pressure. This chaotic era will be started by you. Don't blame me. Success or failure, some people will inevitably die. The chaotic era is coming, and there is disaster in the human world. Go to the underworld and seek peace!"

"Hehehe..."

......

Central Province, Imperial City, Imperial Study.

Jingtai held a paintbrush and was painting a picture of mountains and rivers on the scroll on the desk. Although only half of the painting was completed, its magnificent momentum could be revealed.

This shows Jingtai's skill in painting.

Next to him was a secret memorial presented to him, a secret memorial about the Battle of Shu Mountain.

Although the imperial court's forces were shrinking towards the vicinity of Central Province, the hidden agents hidden in the various provinces of the world were increasing day by day. As soon as the Battle of Shu Mountain was reported, it was transmitted to the capital using a sound transmission talisman.

And Jingtai, of course, had already learned of this news.

But compared to his previous rage, he had now accepted the current situation calmly. Chaos in the Central Plains and the demon clan's advancement into the Central Plains were inevitable.

It would only make the situation more chaotic.

He had already secretly evacuated the three southern provinces. Even if it was completely chaotic, he didn't think there was anything wrong with it. At worst, he would regain the old mountains and rivers in the future.

However, the fact that Shu Mountain Immortal Sect, Biyou Immortal Sect, and Dao God Palace were very likely to have reached an alliance made him extremely concerned. Compared to the others,

This combined force was not weaker than the Xiang family in Xue Province.

In the future, it might bring a lot of trouble to the imperial court, but he had no choice now. He could only hope that the Xiang family, the Dao God Palace alliance, the Southern Border demon clan, and Nangong Lie would fight each other to the death, so that the imperial court could be the oriole.

Finishing the painting, Jingtai didn't stop.

Cao Zhengxian walked quickly into the Imperial Study. His original movement of opening his mouth was suppressed abruptly. He didn't dare to disturb the Emperor's painting.

He stood respectfully to the side.

But on his face, a hint of joy unconsciously appeared, as if he had received some good news.

After a moment, Jingtai changed his brush and finally added a round red sun to the mountains and rivers, shining on the entire land. Then, he picked up the brush again and wrote twelve words in the corner.

'The sun, the moon, the mountains, and the rivers are still here, the Great Jin Dynasty will last forever!'

He randomly threw the paintbrush aside and used the seal to dip it in the red mud and stamped it on it.

A smile appeared on the corner of Jingtai's mouth. He looked at the very satisfactory painting and nodded slightly. Then, he raised his head and looked at Cao Zhengxian and smiled:

"This painting is for you."

"Thank you for your Majesty's reward, this old servant will definitely display it in the residence and admire it every day."

Cao Zhengxian bowed quickly with a look of joy.

"Speak, what happened again?"

Jingtai stared at him and asked.

Cao Zhengxian's expression became serious and he said quickly:

"Reporting to Your Majesty, it's good news!"

"Oh?" Jingtai raised his eyebrows. With the current situation in the world, it seemed that there was no good news. He said faintly:

"Tell me about it."

"Yes."

Cao Zhengxian responded and said in a deep voice:

"After my old servant and the hidden agents under my command tried their best, we have finally determined where Wu Daozi is hiding. The news has been sent down, asking when to take action."

"Really?"

A hint of joy also flashed in Jingtai's eyes.

"This old servant would never dare to deceive Your Majesty."

"Where is he?"

"In a barren mountain in Shu Province. Although we didn't send anyone to confirm it because we were afraid of alerting the snake, the hidden agents below are 90% sure they can confirm it!"

A gleam flashed in Cao Zhengxian's eyes.

"Good, this is indeed good news." A smile also appeared on the corner of Jingtai's mouth.

"Should we send someone to capture him?"

"Wu Daozi is not that simple, we must not alert the snake. Go, invite the two Dukes and the granduncle to come. This time, we must ensure that nothing goes wrong!"

Jingtai said in a deep voice.

"Yes, this old servant obeys!"

"Also, now that Wu Daozi's whereabouts have been found, the matter of transferring the people can also be accelerated. We must complete everything within ten days."

"Yes." Although there was some unbearable feeling in Cao Zhengxian's eyes, he still agreed.

Seeming to see the change in him, Jingtai put his hands behind his back and said faintly:

"History is written by the victors. As long as the Great Jin Dynasty lasts forever, I... will always be a wise ruler. A few people are nothing. In a few hundred years, no one will remember."

"This old servant understands."

"Go..."

————

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