259: Collusion between insiders and outsiders

Chang Hanshan did not know Long Yuan's identity, but his interest in Long Yuan was growing. After hanging up the phone with Prince Zhao, he immediately called Yu Xun to inquire about Long Yuan's situation.

Yu Xun gave a summary of Long Yuan's public background but did not mention his identity or that the Yu Family intended to invest in him. This was a secret among the noble families, so he naturally would not easily reveal the details.

Chang Hanshan listened with increasing excitement, wishing he could immediately snatch Long Yuan from the Southern Division and bring him to the North Division. It was a pity that this Genius had appeared in the south, and having just emerged, he had already been snatched up by Yu Xun!

However, within the Jianxuan Envoy Department, the North Division held a status and authority half a level higher than the Southern Division. As the saying went, a higher rank could crush those below, and even half a level mattered. Chang Hanshan was already secretly plotting; in his view, as long as Long Yuan eventually came to Shuntian Prefecture and the North Division, he would certainly have ways to make Long Yuan a member of the North Division!

At that time, Yu Xun would just have to swallow his grievance...

In Chang Hanshan's eyes, the North Division was the orthodox branch of the Great Ming Empire. True talents, Geniuses, and Prodigies had to come to Shuntian Prefecture to have a place to put their skills to use. Hadn't he seen it?

Right now, it was the Northern Front Line that was bleeding and sweating to protect the safety of the entire Great Ming Empire. Meanwhile, since ancient times, the south had hardly ever experienced a real war against foreign enemies, aside from resisting exotic beasts.

Furthermore, in the plans of the Great Ming Empire, the south had always served as the rear area, responsible for supplying provisions and talent to the north and ensuring the normal operation of the treasury. As for the fighting and killing, that ultimately had to be realized by the north. After all, the Great Ming Empire's greatest threat came from the War Bear Country in the north. The tightening of the Northern Front Line in recent years was directly related to the persistent pressure from the War Bear Country...

Therefore, for a Genius like Long Yuan who emerged in the south, his future development path would generally lead to the north to shine and contribute, eventually growing into a backbone of the Great Ming Empire...

Chang Hanshan hid his little schemes and changed the subject: "Brother Yu, didn't you say that you discovered that the people from the Blood Wolf Hall possessed personal flight devices? These are great treasures. I heard Prince Zhao mention this kind of Profound Weapon last time. Why don't you send one or two to Prince Zhao and his team to study? Prince Zhao would definitely be pleased!"

"Prince Zhao has mentioned it? Very well, after they capture those fleeing Evil Cultists, I will definitely send the personal flight devices to the Tiangong Group..." Yu Xun agreed.

Chang Hanshan continued: "Recently, the heretical criminals in the north have become increasingly rampant. The North Division has dispatched a large number of personnel to maintain security for Justin's concert!"

"Oh? Is it the Shadow Moon Hall or the Ba Jue Hall?" Yu Xun asked quickly.

"Both! About a week ago, people from the Ba Jue Hall slaughtered a small village in the suburbs, killing nearly five hundred people. Three days ago, people from the Shadow Moon Hall tried to blend into the queue for concert tickets. Fortunately, we had installed beast-detecting mirrors in advance and discovered their beast Qi, so we didn't let them succeed!" Chang Hanshan said viciously.

"Detestable! These traitors deserve to be executed by everyone! However, why have the Three Great Heretical Cults been so active recently?" Yu Xun asked, puzzled.

"Brother Yu has hit the nail on the head! The current situation is indeed extremely complex. Both State Preceptor Tang and Marshal Xu have said that we must be very careful recently..."

"Careful of what?!" Yu Xun asked anxiously.

"The infiltration of several foreign powers, and their collusion with certain domestic forces! Several major heretical cults are also involved. Their goal is to disrupt the normal operation of the Great Ming Empire during the war on the Northern Front Line..." Chang Hanshan stopped there and did not elaborate further.

Yu Xun understood immediately. In fact, he had long suspected this. With the information Systems of the Southern Division and the North Division, it was possible to obtain some important information. Although their mission was mainly focused on domestic order, they had some communication with the military's information System. Just as Chang Hanshan mentioned, State Preceptor Tang and Marshal Xu were the two people primarily in charge of the military!

State Preceptor Tang's name was Tang Zhenyuan, a member of the super noble Tang Family. The Family had existed for over a thousand years since the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. The number of talents produced by a millennium-old Family was countless, and Tang Zhenyuan was naturally one of the outstanding ones among them.

Marshal Xu actually referred to Xu Yanran. She was one of the four great marshals of the military, stationed in the Zhenyuan City region in the central part of the Northern Front Line. It was also the most important war zone of the Great Ming Empire, guarding against the War Bear Country as well as other surrounding nations like the Chechen Kingdom, the Xiongnu Kingdom, the Tatar Kingdom, the Rouran Kingdom, and the Parthian Kingdom.

Since both State Preceptor Tang and Marshal Xu had mentioned this matter, it meant that the military must have intercepted some intelligence recently, thereby learning of the existence of this collusion between internal and external forces!

Yu Xun sighed: "These foreign powers are not only colluding with domestic forces but also providing cultists with advanced Profound Weapons like mechas and personal flight devices. It seems their plot is not small! The current situation of the Great Ming Empire is truly difficult to describe in a few words!"

"Indeed! However, your Southern Division's operation against the Blood Wolf Hall, which also seized mechas and personal flight devices, can be said to be a major blow to them! Of course, it may also incur their even more frantic retaliation, so you must not let your guard down! I will submit a memorial to the Emperor, hoping to accelerate the recruitment process for a new batch of Xuanwu Guard, so as to increase the strength of our North Division and Southern Division!" Chang Hanshan said.

"Has the Emperor approved it?" Yu Xun asked with great joy.

"Sigh, don't you know the current situation? If you want to wait for the Emperor's approval, you still need to be a little more patient!" Chang Hanshan sighed.

"That's true! However, the cloud cabin launched by Prince Zhao's Tiangong Group, as well as the Cloud Challenge Competition series, have provided a new channel for our Xuanwu Guard to recruit new personnel!" Yu Xun said.

"That makes sense! I am also paying attention to this matter. Now that cloud cabins have been popularized in all major bases, universities, and middle schools across the Great Ming Empire, the competition for the rankings is becoming increasingly intense. When the time comes, our Xuanwu Guard can certainly absorb some promising seedlings from among them for focused training and to strengthen our ranks!" Chang Hanshan said.

"Haha, I have already taken a liking to quite a few people..."

The two chatted for a good while before hanging up. Thinking of the cloud cabin and the Cloud Challenge Competition, Yu Xun couldn't help but feel a surge of energy. Previously, he had been worried about the dire situation, but now he decided to pay more attention to the Cloud Challenge Competition series and discover some promising seedlings from it, absorbing these people into the ranks early. Whether they went to the military or came to the Xuanwu Guard in the future, they would be able to provide a continuous stream of fresh blood for the Great Ming Empire.

"If only I could unearth a few more newcomers like Long Yuan... but how is that possible? At such a young age, he was able to subdue a Martial Commander-level mecha pilot, which is even more impressive than the Xuanwu Guard Captain-General. No matter how he did it, such an achievement is truly unprecedented and unrepeatable..." Yu Xun muttered to himself, his eyes shining. He hurriedly picked up the phone again to communicate with the Old Ancestor of the Yu Family...