166: Li Chengqian's goal

Under the personal supervision of Minister of War Li Ji, the plan to expand the army by three million was in full swing.

Countless young men, filled with fervent adoration for The New Emperor and beautiful aspirations for the future, laid down their hoes and picked up cold weapons.

Shu Mountain also dispatched five hundred elite Disciples, led by the Wine Sword Immortal, to be stationed in Tiance Manor.

They would serve as the first batch of instructors, teaching these Mortal armies the most basic methods of cultivation.

Li Chengqian's goal was very clear.

He wanted to create not just an ordinary Mortal army.

But an army of Cultivators, where everyone could cultivate, an army capable of contending with demons!

This was a plan that would drive anyone mad.

But now, in the Great Tang, no one dared to question it.

Because the one who proposed this plan was Li Chengqian.

The Kaiyuan Emperor, who, with a Mortal body, stood shoulder to shoulder with gods.

Everything was developing rapidly in the direction Li Chengqian had envisioned.

On this day, Li Chengqian was in the Imperial Study, handling the last of the documents concerning army reorganization.

Li Junxian, this new dignitary who now held the dual positions of Shence Army General and Bad People Commander, stood respectfully by his side, grinding ink for him.

“Reporting to Your Majesty, the framework for Tiance Manor has been largely completed,” Li Ji's memorial stated.

“The first batch of one million new recruits has completed their assembly. However, the number of instructors sent by Shu Mountain is still too small. One million people with only five hundred instructors is probably… a drop in the bucket.”

Li Chengqian looked at the memorial, his brow slightly furrowed.

He had also thought of this problem.

Although Shu Mountain was strong, its numbers were limited after all.

To train three million soldiers into Cultivators in a short period, relying solely on Shu Mountain was indeed not enough.

“Issue an imperial edict to National Master Qing Wei.”

Li Chengqian said in a deep voice, “Have him make ten thousand copies of Shu Mountain’s basic cultivation methods and send them to Tiance Manor.”

Li Junxian was greatly astonished upon hearing this!

“Your Majesty is brilliant!”

Just then, a Bad People agent walked quickly from outside the hall and knelt on one knee.

“Reporting to Your Majesty, Commander.”

“Speak,” Li Junxian said in a deep voice.

“A secret letter has arrived from the Bad People’s hidden contacts in various parts of Shu. The letter mentions a strange incident.”

“Oh?” Li Chengqian also became interested. “Tell me about it.”

“Yes.” The agent took out a sealed letter from his Pregnant, presented it.

“According to reports from our hidden contact in Yuzhou City, half a month ago, a mysterious red-haired man appeared at the Yongan Pawnshop in Yuzhou City.”

“This person called himself ‘Zhonglou’, and his strength was unfathomable. After his appearance, he forcibly implanted a fierce weapon called the ‘Demonic Sword’ into a shop assistant named Jing Tian at Yongan Pawnshop.”

“Afterward, the shop assistant named Jing Tian often acted crazily and strangely. The people of Yuzhou City all said that he was possessed by evil.”

“Zhonglou? Demonic Sword? Jing Tian?”

Listening to these familiar names, Li Chengqian’s ancient, unmoving eyes, for the first time, showed a truly intense ripple.

He suddenly stood up from the Dragon throne!

“What did you say?!”

A terrifying imperial pressure, uncontrollably, emanated from him!

The Bad People agent instantly turned pale, spat out blood, and fainted on the spot.

Even Li Junxian’s face turned white, and he staggered back several steps before barely stabilizing himself.

He looked at Li Chengqian in shock, not understanding why the contents of this letter would cause His Majesty to lose his composure so much.

Wasn't it just a rumor about a Jianghu sorcerer playing tricks?

Li Chengqian ignored them.

In his mind, at this moment, a monstrous wave was surging!

Chinese Paladin 3!

Jing Tian!

Zhonglou!

Demonic Sword!

Weren't these all characters and plot points from the game of his previous life?!

How could this... how could this appear in this world?!

Could it be... a preposterous, yet incredibly real thought, grew wildly in Li Chengqian's mind.

Could it be that this world was not just the historical Great Tang he knew?

But a high-martial world, a Fusion of countless myths and Xianxia legends?!

Then... what exactly was the “Heavenly Demon” that Daoist Qingwei spoke of?

Was it the Evil Sword Immortal from Chinese Paladin 3?

Or... a more terrifying, unknown existence?

Countless clues rapidly connected in Li Chengqian's mind.

He suddenly understood.

He understood why the Dao in this world would be so manifest.

He understood why there would be Shu Mountain, why there would be the Demon Lock Tower.

He also understood why he possessed such unreasonable, overbearing power.

Because the rules of this world, from the very beginning, were different from pure history!

“Interesting...”

“Truly interesting...”

After a long while, Li Chengqian slowly sat back on the Dragon throne.

The shock in his eyes gradually receded, replaced by an unprecedented excitement and Battle Intent!

Originally, he thought he was only facing a Heavenly Demon Emperor who had been sealed for ten thousand years and whose power was less than one-tenth of its original.

Now it seemed that the “waters” of this world were much deeper than he had imagined!

But so what?

His Dao was the Dao of fighting the heavens!

The stronger the enemy, the stronger he would only become!

“Li Junxian.”

“Your... Your servant is here,” Li Junxian responded tremblingly.

“Issue an imperial edict.”

“Command the Bad People, at all costs, to ‘invite’ that shop assistant named Jing Tian from Yuzhou City to Chang'an!”

Li Chengqian's eyes gleamed with a terrifying light.

“I want to personally meet this future... savior!”

The afternoon sun lazily spilled onto the counter, making the abacus beads appear warm and lustrous.

Jing Tian was slumped behind the counter, holding a feather duster, casually sweeping dust while humming an off-key tune.

Ever since that red-haired monster named “Zhonglou” inexplicably appeared and then inexplicably vanished half a month ago, his life had become a mess.

It felt as if something that didn't belong to him had entered his body, often making his heart pound with fear, and at night, he was plagued by nightmares, always dreaming of himself wielding a fierce sword in a sea of corpses and blood.

“Sigh, what bad luck...” Jing Tian sighed with a troubled expression, deciding to take a nap.

“Hey! You lazy bum! Slacking off again!”

A crisp, bell-like, yet somewhat bossy, reprimand came from the doorway.

Without turning around, Jing Tian knew it was the spoiled and willful “Tang Family Fort's Young Miss” Tang Xuejian.

“Young Miss, I'm not slacking off; I'm recuperating,” Jing Tian replied lazily without lifting his head. “Besides, it's the middle of the afternoon, there's no business, what else is there to do but sleep?”

“You!” Tang Xuejian stood with her hands on her hips, fuming and about to retort, but the corner of her eye caught something unusual outside the pawnshop.

The usually bustling street had, at some point, become eerily silent.

All pedestrians and vendors, as if struck by a paralysis spell, looked in the same direction with horror, retreating to the sides of the street, not daring to even breathe loudly.

More than ten men, dressed in black, with standard long sabers at their waists and bronze masks on their faces, were walking towards Yongan Pawnshop with synchronized steps.

They lacked the hooliganism of ordinary constables and the Evil Qi of the army, but instead exuded a purer, colder... aura of death.

It was as if they were not living people, but soul reapers who had emerged from the depths of Hell.

The leader, unmasked, revealed a stern face, as if carved by a knife and axe, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

He merely glanced around, and the invisible pressure made all prying eyes retract as if electrocuted.

“Bad People...” A knowledgeable old man at the street corner trembled as he uttered these three words, then immediately clamped his hand over his mouth, fearing that those terrifying beings might hear him.

Tang Xuejian was also startled by the display; though she was pampered, she wasn't foolish and knew that these people were definitely not to be trifled with.

She instinctively took a step back and whispered to Jing Tian, “Hey, Jing Tian, are these people... looking for you?”

“Looking for me? Are you kidding?” Jing Tian finally lifted his head, sleepily looking outside. When he saw the group of black-clad men walk directly into the pawnshop, his drowsiness instantly vanished without a trace.

“I... I haven't broken any laws! At most, I just charged a bit more interest when pawning things...” Jing Tian's face turned pale with fright, his hands and feet unsure of where to go.

The Bad People commander at the front ignored their panic.

His gaze, like a sharp sword, swept over Jing Tian, then he nodded slightly, seemingly confirming his target.

He slowly took out a roll of bright yellow silk from his Pregnant.

“By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees.”

A cold and authoritative voice rang out in the small Yongan Pawnshop; every word seemed to carry immense weight, striking Jing Tian and Tang Xuejian's hearts.

Both of them were instantly stunned.

The Emperor?

An imperial edict?

They widened their eyes, like two startled quails, standing motionless on the spot.

The Bad People commander ignored their shock and continued to read the imperial edict from the Empire's heart in a tone devoid of any emotion: “Hereby, Jing Tian, a shop assistant of Yongan Pawnshop in Yuzhou, possesses extraordinary talent and is favored by Heaven. I am greatly pleased and wish to observe his abilities. Therefore, Jing Tian is hereby summoned to depart immediately and come to the capital for an audience, without delay! By imperial order!”

“...By imperial order.”

When the last word fell, the entire Yongan Pawnshop was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Jing Tian foolishly pointed at his nose, his face full of disbelief: “Me? Jing Tian? Possessing extraordinary talent? Favored by Heaven? Officer, are you... are you looking for the wrong person?”

He was just an ordinary shop assistant in Yuzhou City; his biggest dream was to make a small fortune and take over Yongan Pawnshop. How was any of that related to “favored by Heaven”?

This joke was too big!

“I am Tang Xuejian of Tang Family Fort!”

Tang Xuejian, who was beside him, finally reacted. She bravely stepped forward, trying to use her family background to control the situation, “Who exactly are you people? How dare you falsely transmit an imperial edict in broad daylight?!”

The Bad People commander gave her a cold glance, his eyes like he was looking at an ignorant child.

“Whether the imperial edict is genuine, your Tang Family Fort is not qualified to question.”

He closed the imperial edict and handed it to Jing Tian, his tone leaving no room for argument: “Jing Tian, accept the imperial edict.”

Jing Tian and Tang Xuejian were both shocked!