Late at night, in the imperial study within the palace of Xuanqin Capital, Emperor Zhao Zheng was reviewing official memorials.
The memorial currently in his hands was quite unique. Its title was written horizontally at the top, rather than vertically on the left as was customary. The title read "A Discussion on the Productive Forces and Relations in the World of Cultivation." The format differed from traditional memorials.
The content was also written horizontally from left to right, rather than vertically from right to left, and the writing style was more colloquial.
The author clearly prioritized conveying their reasoning over literary elegance.
His vermillion brush was hovering over the end of the memorial, accidentally marking the characters that read "Gods serve man." His attention, however, was not on these words.
Instead, he was focused on several proposals listed below those words:
"If water-attribute cultivators were unified under state control, then the weather and climate within our borders would be under human control. Droughts and floods would vanish, every year would bring favorable weather, and the people would never suffer from famine again.
"If earth-attribute cultivators were unified under state control, then building bridges, paving roads, and constructing cities would become effortless tasks. The pace of national development would be unprecedented.
"If metal-attribute cultivators were unified under state control, then we could militarize the cultivators. With hundreds of thousands of professional cultivator soldiers, who would dare defy us? The sects would only be responsible for cultivation training, while the state apparatus would provide proper deployment of cultivator combat power.
"If fire-attribute cultivators were unified under state control, then we could produce our own magical artifacts and pills, no longer relying on others..."
"If wood-attribute cultivators were unified under state control, then the nation's vegetation could be controlled at will, and the people's illnesses could be cured..."
"..."
As Zhao Zheng read, his emotions surged. Gods serve man - what a grand vision for the empire!
Suddenly, a eunuch announced: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince's Junior Mentor has arrived."
He looked up to see a handsome young man in black robes enter from outside, who bowed and said, "Qin Ran pays respects to Your Majesty."
"No need for such formality, Minister Qin." He put down the memorial and looked at the young man with satisfaction, saying, "Calling you here so late was unavoidable. I have urgent news to share."
"It's no trouble," Qin Ran smiled, "Please tell me, Your Majesty."
Zhao Zheng replied: "News has come from Zhican Valley. They are gathering sect forces from the Land of Immortal Legacy to form a 'Hengduan Mountain Alliance' in opposition to Dao Sword Sect's tyranny in the Hengduan Mountains.
"As the alliance's initiator, Zhican Valley has committed almost all their pills, spirit stones, and magical treasures, mobilizing their entire sect with a fight-to-the-death attitude against Dao Sword Sect."
"They're fighting already? How did it happen so quickly?!" Qin Ran was shocked, his smile vanishing as he anxiously asked, "What about news from Dao Sword Sect?"
"Dao Sword Sect is naturally gathering their disciples..." Zhao Zheng said, "But according to my intelligence, they will primarily focus on defense, seemingly waiting for Boundless Sword Sect's stance."
"Defense?" Qin Ran furrowed his brow, lowering his head in deep thought.
"Is it a defensive counter-attack strategy? That would match my original body's fighting style. If this strategy was proposed by my original body, it seems he has already infiltrated Dao Sword Sect's upper ranks and gained some decision-making power.
"Considering Zhican Valley's previous underhanded, petty tactics of using pills and targeting sect descendants, this war might have been instigated by my original body. Could this be a war orchestrated by him?
"No, he's too cowardly, how would he dare to confront Zhican Valley head-on? Perhaps he's already fled. He previously set up an ultra-long-distance teleportation array, though I don't know how that turned out. Did he succeed or fail? Did he use the array or slip away through other means? Has he prepared new contingencies during this time? Should I bring him to Xuanqin? What about Poetry Sound and Chasing the Wind?
"That's not right either. Master treated him well. While Dao Sword Sect is questionable, he has deep emotional ties to Dan Peak. Though he's a cold-blooded killer who doesn't blink at taking lives, he's actually indecisive and deeply sentimental. He definitely couldn't abandon Chasing the Wind and Poetry Sound, and he must be attached to Dan Peak. Although he's always thinking about escaping, he still wants to help Master revitalize Dan Peak.
"He might have already decided to defend Dao Sword Sect to the death... Could he have made no preparations during this time..."
"Minister Qin? Minister Qin?!" Lost in his frantic thoughts, he suddenly heard Zhao Zheng calling out to him and looked up to see the emperor urgently trying to get his attention.
"What were you thinking about?" Zhao Zheng asked.
"Your Majesty..." he replied, "I was considering how to handle this situation."
"Tell me your thoughts," Zhao Zheng said.
Qin Ran straightened his posture, bowed to Zhao Zheng, and said solemnly: "Your Majesty, I believe this is an opportunity."
"Oh?" Zhao Zheng smiled, asking, "Do explain."
Qin Ran spoke clearly: "The sects in the Hengduan Mountains are led by three main powers: Dao Sword Sect, Zhican Valley, and Boundless Sword Sect. They maintained a stable tripod arrangement. Internally, they checked each other's power; externally, they presented a united front.
"If we wanted to claim the Hengduan Mountains in the future, a direct confrontation would be difficult. We would have needed to find ways to destabilize the region anyway. Now they're doing it themselves.
"Your Majesty, it's easier to fish in troubled waters. This is our opportunity. Although it's earlier than we'd planned, before we could fully develop our strength, when does everything in the world go exactly according to plan? Should we wait until we're completely ready to act?"
"Then in your opinion..." Zhao Zheng continued smiling, "How should we proceed?"
"We should lurk in the shadows, closely monitor the war's developments, and strike when the time is right," Qin Ran said. "But we should prioritize aligning with Dao Sword Sect."
"Dao Sword Sect?" Zhao Zheng was puzzled. "Wouldn't it be better to help Zhican Valley? They're a pill-making sect, and gaining their goodwill would secure Xuanqin's future pill supply without having to develop our own. We could even consider making them the state religion."
"Your Majesty..." Qin Ran calmly explained, "I have three reasons."
"Speak."
A smile returned to Qin Ran's face as he listed his points:
"First, Zhican Valley consists of short-sighted individuals unworthy of Your Majesty's consideration. The current chaos in the Hengduan Mountains is their doing, and the region's eventual downfall will be their fault. From what I know, their previous tactics against Dao Sword Sect were petty and underhanded. Such a sect, with their narrow-mindedness, sees small gains but misses the bigger picture. Working with them would only lead to trouble.
"Second, helping those in need is better than adding flowers to brocade. Supporting Zhican Valley would be like the latter - they won't remember our kindness and it would expose our strength. But helping Dao Sword Sect would be aiding those in dire need. They would see us as their salvation, and after the Hengduan Mountains become part of Xuanqin's territory, Dao Sword Sect would be at our disposal.
"Third, my original body is still within Dao Sword Sect. That person is extremely calculating and ruthless, with countless hidden cards and contingencies. Although Zhican Valley appears powerful, I don't favor their chances. It will likely end in mutual destruction."
"Hahaha..." Zhao Zheng laughed heartily, "Have you ever seen someone criticize themselves like this?"
"I'm different from him..." Qin Ran shook his head in denial, "I am open-minded and righteous, thinking only of the realm's fate and the people's welfare. We parted ways long ago.
"If Your Majesty doubts my intentions, I have an alternative strategy. We could lurk in the shadows and aid both sides, helping whichever side is weaker. We could instigate multiple conflicts, drawing the entire Hengduan Mountains into the chaos. Fight until the region collapses and no cultivator remains."
Zhao Zheng pointed at Qin Ran and laughed, "Look at you! You claim to be righteous and upright, but is there anything righteous about these schemes?!"
"That's why it's the inferior strategy," Qin Ran replied. "We want the Hengduan Mountains' resources and cultivators, not a devastated wasteland."
Zhao Zheng nodded but didn't respond to Qin Ran about what strategy he would adopt. He simply said, "I have noted everything you said. You may leave now."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Qin Ran bowed respectfully and added, "Your Majesty should rest early and not overtax yourself."
Around the same time, outside the Hengduan Mountains, in Linxian City, at the "Yuan" Tea House, in a private room on the top floor by the window, an elegantly dressed young noble was drinking tea.
While sipping his tea, he watched the scene outside the window with amusement. On the streets of Linxian City at night, humans, immortals, demons, and ghosts mingled together, displaying all facets of life—truly a spectacle worth watching.
As he was watching, the teahouse manager suddenly pushed open the door, hurried to his side, and whispered, "Young Master, something major has happened."
"Something major?" Young Master Yang turned his head casually to look at the manager, unimpressed. "What major event could possibly occur in this small Linxian City?"
"Zhican Valley is gathering forces, preparing for a large-scale attack on the Dao Sword Sect," the manager said gravely. "The Hengduan Mountains will be thrown into chaos!"
Upon hearing this, Young Master Yang's eyes lit up, his excitement clearly visible.
"Zhican Valley is going to fight with the Dao Sword Sect?" he sought confirmation.
"Yes, Young Master."
"Zhican Valley..." his excited expression gradually turned sinister, "Alchemists?!"
He sat up straight, placed his hand on the table, and instructed the manager, "Gather all the forces we can muster in the Land of Immortal Legacy... With so many alchemists, such an entertaining event—I must personally participate in this game. We must completely destroy Zhican Valley, leaving nothing behind!"
"Young Master, we cannot kill the people," the manager reminded.
"Right, we can't kill them. Capture every single alchemist, make them all obediently refine pills for me," Young Master Yang laughed heartily. "A complete small-scale alchemy sect—this should count as quite an achievement."
The manager smiled sycophantically, "With this achievement, Young Master can return home."
Young Master Yang glanced at him but didn't respond to his comment.
He looked out the window again and suddenly pointed at a woman who was trying to trade her body for cultivation techniques, "Go give her a third-grade cultivation method."
He shook his head sympathetically, "She's truly too pitiful, and this young master cannot bear to see such scenes... After giving her the technique, drive her away, far away. I don't want to see her again."
"Yes, Young Master," the manager bowed and left.