Chapter 1762: Nanming's Scheme
With one dead person and an "example," the people behind naturally knew how to choose.
Moreover, when people of the same plane knelt in the darkness, their dignity utterly lost, it became invisibly easier for those who followed to accept it.
Throughout the Eastern Divine Region, projections showed the upper realm kings, who once commanded countless beings like gods in the sky, kneeling one after another before Yun Che... kneeling before the darkness they had once looked down upon, opposed, and hated, like a group of condemned prisoners awaiting execution. They kowtowed, broke their teeth, were branded with the mark of darkness, and then had to be grateful.
The profound practitioners of the Eastern Domain went from shock, to daze, to numbness. What filled their hearts and souls—bitter irony or desolate sorrow—was hard to tell.
Survival of the fittest, the victor reigns supreme—this common truth had never been laid bare so nakedly and cruelly.
Yun Che watched them as they knelt and broke their teeth one by one before him, his expression cold and indifferent. From start to finish, no one saw even a hint of reluctance or pity in his eyes... nor did there seem to be any satisfaction.
The same group of people, but entirely different attitudes and faces.
Gratitude? Morality? Conscience? Shame? Dignity?
In this world with its brutal survival laws, they were all utter nonsense.
Only sufficiently powerful strength could truly define gratitude, define morality, define conscience, define shame, define dignity... define all the rules one desired!
---
In the distant Holy Universe Realm.
The Holy Universe Sect was lifeless and gloomy.
After that upheaval, the fact that Luo Changsheng was actually a "bastard" was almost known to everyone in the sect. Fortunately, the entire sect immediately sealed off the news, preventing it from spreading. Otherwise, this number one star realm of the Eastern Divine Region would have become the number one joke of the Eastern Divine Region.
The Grand Elder of the Holy Universe Sect entered, his expression heavy, and said, "Sect Master, we can no longer wait with Yun Che. Even if we lose all dignity, at least... we must preserve the foundation left by countless predecessors."
One after another, the four king realms had fallen. What did the Holy Universe Realm have to be aloof about?
Especially with such a huge change freshly stirred up.
Luo Shangchen, the Realm King of the Holy Universe Realm, slowly raised his head. In just a few days, he seemed to have aged thousands of years: "That bastard... have you found him?"
The Grand Elder of the Holy Universe Realm shook his head, saying nothing, unable to say anything.
After that day, Luo Changsheng had rushed out of the Holy Universe Realm and disappeared without a trace. Luo Guxie had injured a group of Holy Universe disciples and urgently pursued him, also vanishing without a trace.
The Holy Universe Realm had essentially lost two late-stage Divine Lords at once, and also lost a heir who had shone brilliantly. As for Luo Shangchen, the blow he suffered was far greater than that.
Retribution? He couldn't accept it, nor did he think he had been wrong back then. After all, it was just a lowly commoner from a lower star realm!
He slowly stood up, but before he could fully straighten his body, he staggered slightly.
"Let's go," he said, looking up at the sky with a sigh.
Yes, there was no other choice... just like back then at the border of the Chaos.
"Sect Master," the Grand Elder hesitated, but still spoke, "Allow me to ask: If we find Changsheng, how do you plan to... treat him?"
Luo Shangchen's face was expressionless: "Deprive him of his cultivation and lock him in the dungeon forever."
The Grand Elder was startled: "But..."
"Don't tell me you want a bastard like him to inherit the great cause of the Holy Universe Sect!" Luo Shangchen grew agitated, his aura terrifyingly chaotic. "If we keep him, he will definitely try to seize the throne in the future. In this generation, in terms of cultivation, no one can match him; in terms of reputation..."
He pointed a trembling finger at the Grand Elder: "Even you can't bear to harm him! Then who can compete with him when the time comes!"
"Please calm down, Sect Master. I never meant that," the Grand Elder quickly said. Looking at Luo Shangchen's appearance, he let out a heavy sigh in his heart.
Can't bear to? Who truly couldn't bear it...
The bloodline might be fake, but the father-son bond over these years was real.
Moreover, over the years, all his joy, pride, excitement, anger, anticipation...
Had been almost entirely because of Luo Changsheng.
---
Southern Divine Region, Nanming Divine Realm.
This was the most unsettling period for Nan Wansheng.
Going to the Eastern Divine Region, he had actually lost two Ming Kings. To him and the Nanming Divine Realm, this was an unimaginable nightmare. Even now, he had not fully awakened from it.
Nan Feihong, the Northern Prison Ming King, arrived. Before he could speak, Nan Wansheng said in a deep voice, "What does the Dragon God Realm say?"
Nan Feihong replied, "The Dragon God Realm has been claiming that the Dragon God is in seclusion and will not appear in the near future. However, after the Zhou Tian incident, with the Moon God and Brahma Emperor also falling one after another, the Dragon God Realm cannot afford to ignore this. Even if the Dragon God is truly absent, they will surely take action soon."
"Additionally, I just received news: Zhou Xuzi has escaped the Eastern Divine Region and entered the Dragon God Realm, accompanied by six guardians."
Nan Wansheng pondered for a moment, then said, "The fall of the Southern Prison and Western Prison must not be leaked!"
"I understand." Nan Feihong nodded emphatically.
Nan Wansheng slowly closed his eyes, then suddenly said in a low voice, "Strange indeed. Given the attitude the Dragon God showed back then—though I don't know the reason—he clearly hated Yun Che to the core. Now that Yun Che is trampling through the Eastern Divine Region with the Northern Region, the Dragon God conveniently chooses to be 'in seclusion'?"
Thinking that he himself had received the news about the "Primordial Chaos Life-Death Seal" at a very delicate moment, his brows grew heavier and heavier.
"Could it be that the Dragon God has been... lured away?" he muttered slowly.
After all, that was the Dragon God, one of the one emperor and five gods of the Western Divine Region, the absolute ruler of the Dragon God Realm.
If invaded, the Dragon God Realm would naturally fight back with all its might. But to take the initiative... with such a major affair, if the Dragon God was absent, who would dare to act on their own?
If the Dragon God Realm did not move, how could anyone in the Western Divine Region make the first move?
"It should be a coincidence," said Nan Feihong. "Given the Dragon God's status, who in this world could 'lure' him?"
Nan Wansheng fell into deep thought.
In this world, the temptations he could not resist were few. "Eternal life" was undoubtedly one of them. That was why he had insisted on entering the Brahma Emperor Divine Realm to investigate, even knowing he was being used as a pawn.
And the Dragon God... as powerful as he was, what in this world could make him "disappear" for so long?
He could not think of anything.
This undoubtedly made the Northern Divine Region seem even more terrifying—not just in strength, but also in scheming.
Especially since he had witnessed with his own eyes the vast Brahma Emperor Divine Realm—a number one king realm of the Eastern Domain, on par with his Nanming Divine Realm—turn into hell in a single morning.
Anyone who saw that scene could not help but carve an extremely deep shadow of fear into their hearts, even if they were the number one Divine Emperor of the Southern Divine Region.
"Now I have to worry about one thing," Nan Wansheng said darkly. "The next step of the Northern Divine Region might very well be the Southern Divine Region."
"This..." Nan Feihong was startled and said, "I don't think so. The Eastern Divine Region was trampled by the Northern Divine Region mainly because they underestimated their enemy first and were caught by surprise. The same thing won't happen in our Southern Divine Region."
"Moreover, while conquering the Eastern Divine Region, they must have suffered heavy losses themselves. Even if they really want to attack our Southern Divine Region, they should at least rest for a long time. Besides, Yun Che has deep hatred for the Eastern Divine Region, but his interactions with our Southern Divine Region are very shallow..."
"Hah!" Nan Wansheng interrupted him with a cold laugh. "Have you forgotten? Back then, who was it that forced the Star God of Heavenly Slaughter to the brink of death?"
Nan Feihong's gaze sharpened.
"Yun Che now is a complete madman! A madman who only wants revenge!" Nan Wansheng said in a sinister voice. "Power, kingship, throne? He doesn't care about any of that. How could he weigh the gains and losses in a war between divine regions? Everything he does is blind, frenzied revenge!"
"And behind this madman, the Demon Empress is guiding and laying out plans! She will definitely lead Yun Che to conquer the Eastern Divine Region step by step, not just vent his hatred and kill everyone, so as to replenish their lost strength several times over."
"Add to that... the time when the Dragon God is absent is extremely precious to them. How could they waste it!"
With every word Nan Wansheng spoke, his heart grew heavier by one degree. "It's very likely that they won't stop after taking the Eastern Divine Region, nor will they rest... In fact, the time of their arrival might be sooner than I expect!"
The Northern Prison Ming King frowned. "Does the Northern Divine Region really think it can swallow our Southern Divine Region like it did the Eastern Divine Region?"
"Hmph, four years ago, did anyone believe that Yun Che could lead the Northern Divine Region and shatter the Eastern Divine Region into a tide of blood?" Nan Wansheng asked coldly.
The Northern Prison Ming King was rendered speechless.
"Yun Che is someone who absolutely cannot be judged by common sense. That was the main reason everyone tried their utmost to kill him back then. And the consequences of failing to kill him... we've basically seen them."
Nan Wansheng's hands were slowly clenching.
The Northern Prison Ming King thought for a moment and said, "Your concerns are not unreasonable, but I still believe that even if the Northern Divine Region has such ambitions, they won't act rashly against our Southern Divine Region in the short term. At the very least, the methods they used to defeat the Moon God Realm and the Brahma Emperor Divine Realm probably cannot be replicated; otherwise, they would have no reason not to use the same technique to destroy Zhou Tian and reduce their losses."
"If that's the case, why not take the initiative to probe them?" A strange light flashed in his eyes. "Over ten years have passed, and [Qianqiu]'s divine power fusion has gradually become near-perfect. His enfeoffment as Crown Prince is only a matter of time. Why not do it now?"
Nan Wansheng looked up: "You mean?"
"Next month, hold the Crown Prince Enfeoffment Ceremony, and use this as an excuse to invite all realms, especially Yun Che and the various king realms of the Western Divine Region led by the Dragon God Realm. Then, we can directly learn Yun Che's attitude toward the Southern Divine Region."
"If he shows a positive stance, it means at least in the short term, he has no intention of provoking our Southern Divine Region. Then we can wait for the Dragon God to return. When the Dragon God takes the lead in getting the Western Divine Region realms to act, the Northern Divine Region will surely collapse, and our Southern Divine Region won't lose a single hair."
"If he is arrogant or refuses to come." The Northern Prison Ming King's eyes flashed coldly. "Then we will have no choice but to take the initiative. And that ceremony will become our Southern Divine Region's grand assembly to discuss great affairs with the various realms of the Western Divine Region—a Demon-Suppressing Ceremony!"
Nan Wansheng paced slowly. After a few breaths, he said in a low voice, "Not next month, but ten days from now!"
The Northern Prison Ming King's heart shook violently.
Condensing the time so urgently showed just how deeply he feared Yun Che.
"Pass the order: immediately begin preparations for the Crown Prince Enfeoffment Ceremony. Send someone immediately at full speed to the Eastern Divine Region, first inviting Yun Che. Based on his attitude, we will then prepare what comes after."
The Northern Prison Ming King accepted the order and was about to leave when an aura approached at extreme speed.
This was the aura of a messenger. Without a major event, they would never be this hasty.
Nan Wansheng waved his arm, the barrier opened, and the messenger arrived in an instant, kneeling on the ground.
"No need for formalities. What is it?" Nan Wansheng asked in a deep voice. These past few days were the most sensitive period for his nerves.
"Master, news has just arrived: the Ten Thousand Changes Sea God and the Heavenly Abyss Sea God of the Ten Directions Canglan Realm... have both fallen."
Nan Wansheng and the Northern Prison Ming King were both startled.
"How did they die?" Nan Wansheng asked gravely. "Was it people from the Northern Divine Region?"
"No," the messenger said. "The two sea gods were assassinated. There were no traces of a fierce battle left behind."
"What!?"
The two, who had remained calm at the initial news of the two sea gods' fall, both changed expression dramatically upon hearing this.
Sea gods... assassinated!?
"Impossible," said the Northern Prison Ming King. With the abilities of sea gods, even dying was hard, let alone being assassinated without any trace.
"Assassinated by whom?" Nan Wansheng asked.
"No one knows," the messenger said. "When the Ten Thousand Changes Sea God died, the Ten Directions Canglan Realm originally blocked the news, but less than ten hours later, the Heavenly Abyss Sea God, who had gone out to investigate, also fell in the same manner. The Ten Directions Canglan Realm had no choice but to release the news and thoroughly investigate the matter."
Nan Wansheng and the Northern Prison Ming King exchanged a glance, their faces unable to hide their shock.