Chapter 1364: Profit and Sentiments

There was a black mist shrouding the ends of the river. The water flowing out from the mist was barely a trickle, seemingly about to break at any moment.

Qianye flew toward the source and saw several faint runes floating in the waters. Those were the insignia of the second-generation primogenitors. Some were still shining, while others had gone dim.

Qianye was filled with a strange feeling each time he saw an emblem. Those weren’t just the emblems of each clan, but they also contained a method of energy manipulation, a pathway of advancement.

The seals sat at varying distances from the source and were also of different sizes. Perhaps this difference was the source of the power gap between the second-generation primogenitors.

He also realized that the distance between them wasn’t constant. Some of them were growing farther away in the river-flow, while some were growing closer. There might just be a change in their ranking given enough time.

Qianye suddenly realized the ultimate question—was the legendary first drop of blood located at the source of the river? What did it look like?

Would he get the answers if he could fly to the very end and pass through the mist?

Growing more and more excited, Qianye sped up and flew toward the black mist. It was at this moment that he was shocked by a sense of grave danger!

He looked up to see the black mist surging, and out leaped a fierce beast. This creature looked strangely awkward—it was ugly and twisted without a single symmetrical part on its body. It almost seemed to have stemmed from the evil source of the primal chaos, destined to disgust all beholders.

It charged at Qianye the moment it appeared. Qianye was shocked because he had nothing at the moment, not even a body. How could he be a match? He evaded with all his might, but his speed was vastly inferior to the creature. Soon, the beast caught up to him and swallowed him into its gaping maws.

Qianye’s consciousness once again entered the darkness.

…

Imperial Capital, the Divination Pavilion.

A group of divination experts was walking out in a single line. Each and every one of them looked solemn and exhausted. There were cars waiting to pick them up.

After most of the people had dispersed, a lady with long hair and wide-sleeved robes emerged from the building. She wasn’t wearing a single piece of decorative jewelry, but her beautiful countenance was unparalleled. She was Empress Li.

An inner attendant arrived and bowed to her. “Your Majesty, His Majesty is waiting for you at the Misty Grass Garden.”

Somewhat surprised, Empress Li picked up a cloak and drew the hood over her head. “Very well,” she said as she boarded the car.

The “Misty Grass Garden” was called a garden, but it was actually one of the smaller palace halls in the palace. The Radiant Emperor used to live here when he was just one of the many princes.

Naturally, no one was allowed to live here after his ascension, and it had always been well-maintained. The Emperor would sometimes visit, but he forbade concubines and princes from setting foot inside.

Empress Li had never entered the place before, but she knew that there was a room there that had been precisely maintained for many years. It was in the exact same state as when the previous Empress was still alive. The passing of the previous Empress was a great taboo, hence no one dared to touch upon this topic. Even the most tactless Concubine Zhao could only pretend to be ignorant of this special location.

“Misty Grass Garden” was a rather cramped place. The entrance to the main hall stood right in front after passing through the gate and divider wall. There were no scenic decorations in the yard as every inch of soil was covered in lush Mist Grass that they almost seemed like wild grass.

The vegetation had been left alone on purpose and without so much as a trim. They were allowed to rely on their own power to take root and grow in the soil. The small white flowers at the top swayed in the wind, much like the lustrous stars in the night sky.

The entire Misty Grass Garden was quiet; even the inner attendant had stayed behind at the door.

Empress Li entered alone. As someone hailing from an old aristocratic family, she might not have had her own courtyard before, but she had also never lived in such a small building.

The Radiant Emperor was in the left side-hall, which was a study. There was an embroidery canopy under the window, with numerous needles and threads lying around. It was as though the lady of the house would enter any moment.

Empress Li found the embroidery station rather novel. As someone who had developed great talent since a young age, the arts she had learned were no different from a man’s. The feminine arts were never in her curriculum.

Half of this room was the lord’s study, while the other half was the lady’s embroidery room. The Empress couldn’t help but feel a bit absent-minded. This was probably what it was like for a commoner family.

The Radiant Emperor was standing before a certain painting. This ink painting and the words on it conveyed the joys of a new marriage, a work that couldn’t be considered a masterpiece by any measure.

Empress Li walked over and couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional when she saw the familiar style. Wasn’t this the work of the Imperial Teacher?

The Radiant Emperor said, “Marshal Lin came from a humble family. He joined the military academy at a young age, so his literary attainments are fairly mediocre.” At the mention of this, he laughed. “I remember when he was just the prince’s teacher, the first thing he said was that he was no match for Monarch Zhang in calligraphy.”

Empress Li revealed a faint smile on the surface but was distracted inside. She had never heard the Radiant Emperor mention Lin Xitang’s personal matters; something felt different today.

The Emperor turned around and said, “Thanks for putting in the effort. Is everything done over at the Divination Pavilion?”

Empress Li snapped back to reality and bowed formally, saying, “The sacrificial ceremony is over. However, I’m sorry to tell you that we didn’t gain anything apart from stirring up the threads of fate and confusing the other side. We still don’t know what the dark races are after in the new world.”

The Radiant Emperor nodded. “The Demon King is there in person, and it’s already a difficult endeavor to keep things from him. The younger generation’s battle has ended, it’s our turn now.”

Empress Li frowned. “Since Song Zining rose to power, the prophets of the Evernight side have been avoiding a direct confrontation. I was able to sense it even more clearly.”

She continued after a pause, “I have a feeling that the Evernight faction has kept their fate well camouflaged, much more so than any other point in time. In truth, the council has many other famous prophets. Judging from their lifespans, there should be more of them than the ones they have on the table.

The Radiant Emperor nodded. “That’s not strange, it’s an advantage afforded to them by their long lifespans.”

He sighed deeply, saying, “Back when the holy war was put on hold, Marshal Lin judged that the dark races would undergo a great internal change. It’s not strange for dormant dark race members to awaken.”

Empress Li seemed surprised. “Isn’t it because of the new world’s arrival?”

The Radiant Emperor said, “That’s not the only reason.”

Empress Li said after a momentary daze, “As expected, I’m too inferior compared to Marshal Lin. I still can’t see that.”

The Radiant Emperor said, “That wasn’t divination. He was still in the divination pavilion back then.”

Empress Li listened quietly. She had heard bits and pieces about that incident, but she didn’t dare touch on the topic since it would annoy the Emperor. Now that he had mentioned the case on his own, it was likely that he had more to say.

The Emperor walked over to the embroidery station and touched the half-completed embroidery. “I hated my father’s attitude toward the princes. He simply watched as they killed one another. I wasn’t a target during the peripheral courts’ rebellion, but who would bother to discern the target during a massacre? It was Marshal Lin who had taken me into hiding during the craziest days.”

Empress Li was shaken. She didn’t know whether she had enough composure to keep herself calm, but the Emperor didn’t turn to look at her, either.

“Later on, when my father chose me as his inheritor, some smart people told me that Marshal Lin had saved me deliberately because he had foreseen the events with his divination powers.” The Radiant Emperor laughed. “There was actually a divination expert among them.”

Empress Li naturally understood that such words were laughable. Divination wasn’t an omnipotent power; how could it see everything in detail?

There were instances where the diviner would make mistakes after barely touching on the mysteries of fate and missing the bigger picture. Why else would the divination war happen back then? Lin Xitang had to accumulate correct results for many years in order to shut up all the other divination sects.

Besides, the mysteries of heaven were never constant—just like the threads of the dark races’ fate. The future was only a possibility, and the present was only one of the countless possibilities. In the end, every living being wished to pry into the workings of fate, but why? Did they want to accept their fate? Or did they want to defy the heavens and change their destiny?

After changing fate, was the future that they had seen really still the future?

“What happened that night, I know all too clearly. I don’t need anyone to tell me the truth. They were all wrong to think that my father the Emperor had let me into the minor study in order to cultivate me. In truth, he had forgotten about me, and the concubine in charge of the princes had also neglected to assign me a teacher.”

“Even after the rebellion, my father hadn’t settled on me as the successor, my talents were never enough to satisfy him. Because of my weak maternal family, I could hardly go against the other bigshots of the clan and would suffer all sorts of trouble when he was not around.” The Radiant Emperor stood up. “I sought this supreme seat on my own because I saw Lord Riverglance force Marshal Lin to kneel and apologize.”

Empress Li felt her hair stand on end.

The Radiant Emperor turned around at this point. His expression was amicable, and there was no great change in his countenance. He looked as though he was just telling a story instead of the palace’s secrets—things he had experienced in person.

He focused on Empress Li, saying, “Only when I took that position in the Lingyun Hall did I understand why my father had allowed the bloody incident to play out. Sentiments and profits never come together. Benefits can be measured, but are there shallow sentiments and deep sentiments?”

“To Wuyue, to you, and to all my other concubines and princes, I was never a good husband and father. Everything I hated about my father, I did the same as well. Fortunately, no one else after Wuyue really discussed feelings with me.”

Every noble lady had a family supporting her, and every concubine position came with a contract. The Radiant Emperor’s maternal family was of humble origins, so as a prince, he never had any women around him.

Empress Li heaved a sigh, knowing that the words to follow were the focus of today’s conversation.

“I know you have your aspirations. With your current attainments, you can easily become the head of the Divination Pavilion. I will inform the heavenly monarchs and grant you this position.”

“But no prince or princess under your name shall have the right to succeed the throne. Especially if you want the Li family to be promoted to major clan status in this generation, there shall be no Emperor surnamed Li. From today onward, as long as the Li surname remains head of the Divination Pavilion, we will not accept anyone else surnamed Li into the Imperial harem.”

Empress Li was extremely calm. She bowed deeply, saying, “Yes, Your Majesty, your subject obeys.”

The Radiant Emperor said slowly, “Come and listen to the defense layout of the heavenly monarchs. I’ll be joining them in battle as one of their peers.”

Empress Li looked up.

The Radiant Emperor smiled. “You look nice in this outfit. There’s no need to change into court apparel, let’s go now.”

All the inner attendants from the “Wave Hall” were standing outside, and at least ten meters away from the door.

The auxiliary hall to the right used to be a resting chamber, equipped with tall seats, soft cushions, reading desks, and a zither stand. It was the perfect place for heavenly monarchs to gather because there was no need to sit according to seniority, and everyone could find a comfortable spot.

The Pointer Monarch and Profundity Monarch were seated on opposite sides, one enjoying tea while the other played chess. They seemed rather leisurely. The Northridge Monarch was lying on the soft cushions and seemingly dozing off. His territory, the Western Continent, was the farthest from the heart of the Empire. He rarely came to the capital unless there was something important.

The door curtains moved gently as Fang Qingkong entered the room. He was clad in a civil officer’s attire, with a hint of coldness in his expression.

The man wasn’t shaken at all by the room full of heavenly monarchs. Without disturbing the powerhouses’ individual activity, he walked over to the Profundity Monarch and whispered some words.

The chess piece in the Profundity Monarch’s hand froze midway. He said in an odd tone, “The Martyr’s Palace? Shouldn’t you ask the Zhao clan about that? Last I heard, Qianye has a daughter on Fort Continent. Besides, Pointer is the one who built that airship. You should be asking him how to deal with it. What opinion can I have?”

The Pointer Monarch might be keen in sight and hearing, but he wasn’t going to listen in on a hushed conversation between the two. He turned around only when his name was mentioned, and seeing Fang Qingkong’s blank expression, he more or less realized what was going on.

The Pointer Monarch said, “Fang Qingkong, just speak in a straightforward manner. Don’t keep things half-hidden like Lin Xitang.” He then said to the Profundity Monarch, “I know a bit about this. Your great-grandson sent an unknown brat from one of the Zhang branch families, borrowing your name to negotiate a deal with Song Zining. He plans to split the profits from Fort Continent with him.”

The Profundity Monarch was surprised. “Which great-grandson?” He then asked, “And Song Zining believes him? I don’t think he’s that dumb, is he?”

The Pointer Monarch stroked his beard and glanced meaningfully at Fang Qingkong.

After Lin Xitang’s departure, the duty of managing the highest level of intelligence reports fell upon Fang Qingkong. This divine champion wasn’t dumb, but coming over to mention this matter in front of the heavenly monarchs wasn’t a matter related to his intelligence.

Fang Qingkong stood there like a wooden statue, not saying a single word.

The Pointer Monarch shook his head with a smile. He realized that the man was forcing him and the Profundity Monarch to express their opinions, but he didn’t mind this bit of scheming. “Profundity, Zining came to seek my opinion a while ago. I told him not to hold back, do whatever makes him feel better.”

The Profundity Monarch didn’t seem surprised. He said with a nod, “That’s how it should be.”

The Pointer Monarch said, “I told him sacrificing a handful of people is nothing.”

The Profundity Monarch said, “Why stop me when you’ve already spoken? Those youngsters of mine probably think they’re so talented that the family won’t abandon them. If they think the contributions I gained in the new world aren’t enough for them to use, they’re free to try and get more. They can’t blame anyone if they go about it the wrong way and lose their lives, can they?”

At this point, the Profundity Monarch was furious. He turned to Fang Qingkong and said, “Which one is it?”

The Pointer Monarch said, “No rush. Since Zining asked me about it, he probably has a plan already. Just let him borrow your name for a bit.”

The Profundity Monarch was stunned for a brief moment. After realizing what the elder prince meant, he said, “Fine. That place is full of dark races, it’s not a bad thing to let him do a bit of suppression.”

At this moment, the Radiant Emperor and Empress Li walked in. The heavenly monarchs stood up to offer their salutations; the Northridge Monarch got up from the couch as well.

The group was already on alert, to begin with, so they got right to business. Fang Qingkong began explaining the recent situation.

The Evernight Council’s movements had been extremely odd. During the process of tallying contributions, they began capturing members of their aristocracy. And not just any noble; those were high-ranking nobles of the four major races.

This was a rare occurrence. The resolution might’ve come from the council, but their direct forces would only touch the smaller races under normal circumstances. The four major races would work things out on their own.

Ignoring what their crimes were, touching members of the nobility would always bring up the problem of military power. Yet the council had brought out some unnamed machines that had never appeared before on the battlefield.

Fang Qingkong had to look through the archives in the Imperial library to finally get some clues on a few of the equipment.

“Back when Marshal Lin heard about the ceasefire of the holy war, he said there would be great internal changes to the Evernight faction. The new world’s opening covered up these changes, and we were unable to monitor the exact situation.

“The Founding Emperor and the Martial Emperor had both pointed out that our race will face great peril when the four races are united, but that never truly happened despite the council’s presence. That gave our race the much-needed space to grow, but this state won’t go on indefinitely. Our race must keep a cautious eye on the power ratio between the four major dark races. Once the balance is broken, danger will soon follow.

“Back during the founding years of the Great Qin Empire, each of the four major dark races maintained four great dark monarchs in their fighting force. Two of them would actively participate in the race’s affairs and could be swapped out for the two dormant monarchs at a moment’s notice. The maximum number of great dark monarchs that could be kept awake was a top-secret of each race. We never learned the numbers, and it’s likely that the other races have not, either.

“But in the recent century where the dark races stopped directly attacking the Empire’s mainland, the four major races’ rotation of great monarchs evidently decreased in number.

“And within the past millennium, the vampires have managed to wipe out twenty-three percent of the werewolf race’s clan totems in the holy war. They have also reduced fifteen percent of the clans to half their original population. The size of their slave army wasn’t evidently affected, but we don’t have precise data on the quality of their slave army, either. Additionally, the werewolves have not produced a supreme in the last millennium.

“The vampires have been leveraging their success to challenge the authority of the demonkin race. According to historical records, the latter race’s large-scale war machines were much more advanced than the ones in use today. We’ve always attributed this to a decline in technology, owing to their falling population.

“That’s why our higher-ups and research organizations have always believed that the vampires will be the ones to break the power balance, that they would attack the Empire again after annexing the werewolves. That’s because the number of people being kidnapped or traded via grey channels is not enough to satisfy their need for low-level members. This is a factor restricting them from producing large numbers of slave soldiers like the werewolves and arachne.

“Because high-ranking vampires look similar to our race, the number of human and vampire hybrids are quite high in the grey zones. They are also able to transform those of our race into their own. It has always been their side that has actively sought to penetrate the Empire. The agent who had been in touch with the Longevity Monarch during the void continent war was a great duke. He has gone missing now, and we can’t say for sure if he obeys the Lightless Monarch Medanzo or the Flaming Crown Habsburg.

“Since the opening of the new world, we’ve been making full preparations for an all-out war. If the Evernight side starts moving, that means the ancestors’ prophecy is about to arrive. The council’s movements prove that a powerful authority figure has appeared.

“But I’m not certain who the other side’s leader is. Is it the vampire race or is it the demonkin?”

After a period of silence, Empress Li said, “The Evernight side has camouflaged their fate very tightly. They’re not responding to provocations, either. Even if our side tries to penetrate and explore, they only seek to expel and never chase us down. The heart of the new world is still shrouded in black mist.”

The Pointer Monarch fell into a moment of thought. “Do we have a map indicating all the territory the Evernight Council has captured?”

Fang Qingkong shook his head. “The difficulty of gathering intelligence has greatly increased since the holy war ceasefire. We only managed to obtain some scattered information this time. There was one clear report because that one took place on the Western Continent."

“Western Continent, huh?” The Northridge Monarch frowned. “Does the Zhao clan know about it?”

Fang Qingkong said, “We’ve already notified them. There’s no news of the Empire’s main territory being invaded, but we should be cautious.”

The Pointer Monarch nodded. “Agreed.”

The Radiant Emperor and the other heavenly monarchs also expressed their agreement.

Fang Qingkong added, “Because the situation at hand is fairly close to an all-out war, I would like to confirm the tactical contraction plan while the heavenly monarchs are here.”

Tactical contraction referred to the pulling back of the war front under adverse conditions so that the core regions could be protected.

Fang Qingkong flipped through the documents, saying, “The Empire currently holds the least territory on the Western Continent. There are only three more aristocratic families in addition to the Zhao clan. Its development came at a later date, so our defenses are the weakest there.”

“The Transcendent Continent has been recovering at a snail’s pace following the beast horde’s rampage. This became more evident after the Fort Continent’s rise. Most aristocratic families have been diverting their resources over to that side.

“So, from the current fighting power distribution, Transcendent seems to be the best contraction point. The beast horde damaged the surface structures, but the continent-grade weapons can still be activated.”

The Profundity Monarch said, “I agree.” He then said to the Pointer Monarch, “One of us has to defend the contraction point, I’ll go this time.”

The Pointer Monarch agreed, and so did the Northridge Monarch.

The Radiant Emperor said, “Monarch Zhang is recuperating, so I’ll be the reserve.”

These words drew all eyes upon him. The Great Qin’s Emperors had always been outstanding in calligraphy, statecraft, and martial power, but very few of them had joined outside wars since the Empire stabilized its footing.

The Radiant Emperor said, “The wounds he sustained in the new world are difficult to treat. It’s best if he has time to heal and remove hidden injuries. Lord Riverglance and I came from the same line, so it won’t be a problem for him to control the Emperor Domain at the capital. Monarch Zhang will also remain at the capital and ensure the Great Qin’s foundations are not lost.”

The Pointer Monarch said, “Your Majesty, do you understand the implications of this decision?”

The Radiant Emperor said, “The Empress will take office as head of the divination institute. Her sons and daughters will not become heir. Henceforth, whoever is head of the divination institute, their clansmen will not be accepted into the Imperial harem.”

The room became silent.

Moments later, the Pointer Monarch said, “I approve, but the vote to relieve a heavenly monarch must be unanimous. We need to ask Greensun’s opinion.” The others nodded.

The Radiant Emperor said, “That’s a given. I will visit Monarch Zhang tomorrow.”

At this point, the meeting came to an end.