458: King Qi discusses the general trend, ranked second on the Heavenly Ranking

Northern Eighteen Provinces, Liang Province.

In an elegant and quiet mansion, a young man was fishing in a pond.

“Your Highness King Qi, a major event has occurred in the Imperial Capital. This is the latest intelligence!”

Jiang Lao handed over a golden scroll.

As King Qi read through it, Jiang Lao couldn't help but ask, “How did you know that King Yan and the others, taking advantage of the situation to cause trouble, were bound to fail, and that His Majesty not only protected Chu Jiang but also promoted him?”

King Qi said that a court struggle would erupt soon, and various forces would band together, contending from behind the Three Kings.

The Imperial Capital would become a vortex, so he left in advance.

As a result, everything was as he had predicted.

He truly was a Divine Being.

He predicted things like a god.

“King Yan is still too young, too impatient. If he had taken down Chu Jiang, let alone those people in the imperial court, he wouldn't even have passed the Demon Suppression Division’s hurdle!”

“A cornered dog will jump over a wall, but this wall is too high; it won’t have any effect!”

King Qi said indifferently.

Moreover, Chu Jiang’s backing was not just the Demon Suppression Division.

“However, King Jin’s order to go to war with Sun Moon Country was unexpected. If the Great Chu Dynasty truly fights, Sun Moon Country will basically find it very difficult to resist. But Great Chu is surrounded by enemies on all sides; once war breaks out in the east, other fronts might encircle Great Chu like a prairie fire, taking advantage of the chaos.”

“Sun Moon Country has also calculated this point, which is why they are so rampant and unbridled, demanding compensation from the Great Chu Dynasty.”

“King Jin’s action, if not handled well, could drag Great Chu into an abyss of eternal damnation. He was reckless!”

Jiang Lao said in a deep voice.

King Jin’s imperial decree was invigorating and satisfying.

But governing a country is never about looking at just one side.

“There’s no need to overestimate Sun Moon Country; it doesn’t have the foundation to challenge Great Chu. It’s merely exerting pressure.”

King Qi shook his head and continued:

“Everything is within my Imperial Father’s control; it won’t cause a huge stir.”

“My Imperial Father not only possesses world-shaking power, but his political schemes and cunning are also top-tier in this era. Every action he takes has profound meaning.”

Jiang Lao frowned and said, “Please enlighten Your Highness!”

King Qi smiled faintly and said, “Did you notice the content of the imperial decree? It demands that Sun Moon Country compensate fifty billion Spirit Stones and one thousand blood spirit stones.”

“Is there a problem with that? Sun Moon Country demanded Great Chu compensate thirty billion, but we are demanding fifty billion to show Great Chu’s stance of never bowing down.”

Jiang Lao responded.

“That’s right, that’s one reason, but even more crucial are the one thousand blood spirit stones. While fifty billion Spirit Stones are a lot, they are not an enormous sum in Great Chu’s national treasury. But one thousand blood spirit stones are different; these are things that can extend life and are priceless.”

“My Imperial Father is taking this opportunity to extort Sun Moon Country for blood spirit stones. I speculate that perhaps a certain Old Ancestor of the imperial family might be nearing the end of his life and needs a large amount of blood spirit stones to extend it.”

“Even if the Ninth Ancestor hadn't destroyed Black Stone Fortress, my Imperial Father would have created an incident to make Sun Moon Country compensate Great Chu with blood spirit stones.”

“At the very least, there’s still the card of the Three Prefectures. Sun Moon Country has smuggled millions, even tens of millions, of people in the Three Prefectures, which is an act of war in any country.”

“My Imperial Father can use this as a reason to pressure Sun Moon Country.”

King Qi spoke eloquently, holding his fishing rod, his gaze fixed on the fish in the pond, his expression indifferent.

An Old Ancestor is about to fall?

This was indeed a possibility. Great Chu’s Old Ancestors were mostly from two or three thousand years ago, preserved through immense cost.

Each one was a national treasure; it was impossible to let them fall easily.

Jiang Lao: “Could it be that His Majesty is nearing his end, and he needs to extend his life?”

King Qi remained silent.

He had always suspected that the Chu Emperor’s illness was faked, especially recently, this feeling had grown stronger.

Perhaps, he had recovered long ago.

He was just unable to leave the Imperial Capital due to certain reasons.

King Qi: “Deploying heavy troops also has a second meaning: to test the loyalty of the eastern states. In recent centuries, regional separatism has become increasingly severe, and a small number of large states have already broken free from control. The Three Prefectures are an example.”

“Therefore, I personally believe this is a pre-planned operation, not a sudden incident, and it will not be swayed by anyone’s will, only by when my Imperial Father decides to act.”

Jiang Lao’s pupils constricted. If this were true, this Chu Emperor’s cunning would be astonishing, planning three steps ahead with every move.

King Qi also speculated.

This time, Great Chu and Sun Moon Country would not fight; it would ultimately end with Sun Moon Country bowing its head, secretly compensating Great Chu, and Great Chu offering a verbal apology through its envoy.

Great Chu would gain practical benefits, and Sun Moon Country would receive a verbal apology.

“Oh, it’s hooked again!”

King Qi rejoiced, lifting his fishing rod lightly, and a shimmering golden fish, sparkling, swam into his hand.

“Your Highness, it’s a goldfish!”

Jiang Lao also chuckled.

King Qi: “Tell the kitchen to heat the wok with oil and stew this goldfish slowly over a small fire!”

“Haha, after watching Your Highness fish so many times, today we’ll finally have a good meal!”

Jiang Lao chuckled.

As the two spoke, they disappeared from the pond, walking deeper into the mansion.

…

Heavenly Secrets Pavilion, Great Chu Headquarters, in a magnificent hall.

A dozen or so green-robed figures were discussing, revising a list.

“On this Celestial Ranking list, five people have fallen: the 22nd on the Celestial Ranking, Wu Ling King; the 49th, the First Holy Maiden of Earth Fiend Hall; the 52nd, the Pacification Envoy of Wu Prefecture; the 72nd, the Evil King; and the 89th, Ghost Scythe.”

All these people died by the hand of one person, which couldn't help but amaze everyone.

The leader of the Poison King Sect, Poison Dragon Venerable, was suspected to have died in the Three Prefectures.

However, after investigation and evidence collection, Poison Dragon Venerable did not die.

Only his Clone was destroyed.

The Poison King Sect had a total of five Celestial Ranking-level combatants, but only their leader made it onto the list.

In fact, within just one month, the Celestial Ranking-level combatants who died at Chu Jiang’s hands, including demons, already exceeded ten.

“We have communicated with the Demon Suppression Division, and Zu Cang is willing to step down to a secondary role, with Chu Jiang taking over the Demon Suppression Division’s spot.”

“Chu Jiang’s achievements include killing over ten Celestial Ranking-level combatants, killing Wu Ling King, who had Broken Through to the Rongtian Triple Layer, and then fighting the Eternal Mother to a standstill.”

“To be ranked second on the Celestial Ranking, does anyone have any objections?”

“None!”

The green-robed figures shook their heads.

They had initially planned to list Chu Jiang as number one on the Celestial Ranking, but after the Eternal Mother unleashed her Twelve Heavenly Grottoes, she did not continue to battle Chu Jiang. Coupled with the Eternal Mother’s endless trump cards, the outcome was hard to predict.

Therefore, they unanimously agreed to rank Chu Jiang as second.

But in everyone’s hearts, it was only a matter of time before Chu Jiang surpassed the Eternal Mother.

He was too young.

“The original Celestial Ranking members will automatically advance in rank.”

“The top four in the Celestial Ranking Reserve will automatically be promoted to the bottom ranks of the Celestial Ranking!”

The second on the Celestial Ranking was an extremely young child. If this news spread throughout the world, it would surely astound everyone.

“Lord of the Celestial Mystery Pavilion, the list has been revised. Please review it!”

The dozen or so green-robed figures looked at the six-zhang golden body in the main hall, like a god overlooking the human world.

This was the spiritual body of the Lord of the Celestial Mystery Pavilion; no one had ever seen his true body.

“Approved!”

After scanning the list, the Lord of the Celestial Mystery Pavilion let out a deep Daoist sound.

The latest Celestial Ranking, once revised, spread with astonishing speed, causing the Eight Great Families and the super-powers of both the orthodox and demonic paths to tremble in shock.