The Wine Maniac, his eyes heavy with sleep, said, "Lady Changyao, they may be bees, but they're also prey. The right path is to make an example, so the rest think twice."
"And how do we make an example?"
An immortal boy, wearing a chest wrap, stood with his hands on his hips, staring intently out the window.
His primordial spirit was already roaming the city below, which was the Red Star Fort of Eternal Sun Prefecture. This group of theirs had already passed over many major powers. Below the Red Star Fort, a long spear floated in the air—it was the formation's core, and a great array had long since been established.
High in the sky outside the Red Star Fort, a Nascent Soul cultivator was performing a technique, silently drawing water from another region to the high mountains and slowly building it into a reservoir.
The immortal boy gritted his teeth.
"A bunch of cowardly turtles! They've all raised their formations. Even I can see that the moment we try to attack any of their formations, cultivators from the other powers will seize the chance to reinforce them. And that Nascent Soul cultivator, what nerve! I'm in a bad mood as it is, and he dares to show his face in front of us. I'm going to kill him!"
"Stop!"
Li Changyao shouted, stopping the immortal boy, her face a mask of frost.
"There's a formation on that mountain. The moment you appear, he'll be on alert, and at the same time..."
The Wine Maniac raised an eyebrow. "Below that mountain is a city, and the city is shaped like the mouth of a basin. That cultivator will open the reservoir. Just think, my lord immortal boy, how many people in this city will die?"¹
"Those scoundrels!"
The immortal boy was stunned. "Why would he drown all those people?"
The Wine Maniac said calmly, "Common people and great powers are closely intertwined. There's a saying among mortals that the land nurtures its people. But for cultivators, it's the other way around—the people of a place nurture the land.
When they plant crops or raise livestock, they are not just surviving—they are constantly drawing spiritual qi from heaven and earth. Their presence sustains the spiritual qi of a region, creating the conditions that allow Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures in the mountains to grow.
If the people die, the Eternal Sun Prefecture will become a barren wasteland. Our Azure Cloud Region only recovered in recent years because its population survived. This is what I've learned from experience."
Upon hearing this, the immortal boy and the commanders looked horrified.
"I'm afraid it's not just the Red Star Fort; the other major powers are probably all doing the same thing."
The Wine Maniac's face was full of admiration. "Their mouths are full of benevolence and righteousness, but their actions are utterly depraved. If my Thunderfire Demon Cave had talents like these back in the day, how could we have failed to prosper?"
No one paid any mind to the Wine Maniac's nostalgic sigh.
Li Changyao's expression was grave. "This is their threat, and it is also their final gamble. They aren't guarding against our Li family, but against Azure Cloud Region! If Azure Cloud's army of a million dares to enter the Eternal Sun Prefecture, the Red Star Fort will unleash its flood, and other places will create their own man-made natural disasters.
These disasters are their army, and they are their final resort."
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the family was now fighting fires on all fronts.
She clenched her fists, let out a long breath, and issued her first command.
"Immortal Boy, I'm giving you ten days. Take your subordinates and find every last person setting up these man-made disasters. At any cost, I want you to kill them all at the same instant, in the shortest time possible, and stop these disasters."
Seeing the immortal boy frown, Li Changyao said in a solemn voice, "I believe you can do it. Second Great-Grandaunt said that as long as you're serious, there's nothing you can't accomplish."
"Did the Physician really say that?"
The immortal boy's eyes went wide. He puffed out his small chest, squared his shoulders, and beat his chest confidently. "Leave it to me! I'll need two commanders to help. I don't have enough people on my own; I'm afraid we won't be able to handle it."
Li Changyao nodded slightly and looked towards the Wine Maniac and the other commanders.
"Senior Wine Maniac, and you three commanders. I'm giving you one month. I want you to capture everyone connected to these great powers. Let a few rumors slip, let them know that their relatives and friends have fallen into our hands. I want to see just how chaotic things will get on their side."
"What exactly counts as 'connected?'"
The Wine Maniac licked his lips, his sleepy eyes suddenly gleaming as a surge of energy coursed through him.
"Their clansmen, their close friends, their in-laws, and their subordinates!"
A cold light glinted in Li Changyao's eyes. She remembered the first time she and her brother had come to Eternal Sun Prefecture to take command of the Hall of Heavenly Principle. Her brother had walked out of a small, Li-surnamed clan in Eternal Sun Prefecture, leaving behind a river of blood. He had told her that he was about to do something vile.
But to her now, it was no longer vile. Because... she had gotten used to it!
She looked at the Shadow Nest and issued a command to the commanders, one after another.
"To all commanders and captains still on their way back to Eternal Sun Prefecture: I don't care where you are—all of you are to return immediately, and bring your subordinates with you!
I want the bodies of our enemies."
"For the next hundred years, all revenue generated by the Hall of Heavenly Principle in your respective territories will belong to you. It will be distributed among the members according to the number of enemies they kill.
Additionally, for every corpse of a Divinity Transformation cultivator returned, you can exchange it with me for one low-grade Dharma Treasure, a Rank 5 spirit object, a Rank 5 medicinal pill, or an Earth-rank cultivation manual or technique.
I can guarantee that it will be the one best suited for you.
For every corpse of a Nascent Soul cultivator, you will receive a middle- to supreme-grade spirit artifact, a Rank 6 spirit object or pill, or a Mystic-rank technique or manual.
For Golden Core, Foundation Establishment..."
"I permit you to use any means necessary!"
As Li Changyao's words faded, the eyes of the Shadow Division agents all across the Azure Dynasty burned with feverish intensity.
In that moment, they were driven to a frenzy. They would fight with their lives on the line!
The intelligence reports on the Shadow Nest vanished one by one. Now, they no longer needed any specific commands. Lured by these treasures, they would stop at nothing to achieve their goal.
Li Changyao walked slowly to the prow of the spirit ark.
The tentacles of the Shadow Division, extending from this single spirit ark, reached out across the entirety of Eternal Sun Prefecture.
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