Chapter 93: The Enchantment

Qian Ye had visited the core region of the Void Continent and understood its value. The forest alone, capable of producing original liquid, was worth starting a war over. However, no matter how he looked at it, he did not think that the continent’s value warranted an all-out war by the Empire.

Like many soldiers who had fought on the front lines, the more Qian Ye fought, the stronger he became, and the more he realized the strength of the Evernight Camp. Sometimes, Qian Ye even found himself asking subconsciously, could the Empire really win this war against Evernight?

The answer to this question was quite simple: they couldn’t win, at least not in the current situation.

If the Great Qin Empire were considered a single race, its strength would be roughly equivalent to that of the arachne and werewolves in the dark world. If the various races of the Evernight Council worked together, they would certainly be able to destroy the Empire. But for those in power, the balance of power and the urgency of different matters were never as simple as mere addition and subtraction.

The disputes among the seven chairs on the Holy Mountain of the Evernight Council had lasted for tens of thousands of years. By now, only three supreme beings and four major races remained, but their mutual enmity had only deepened, with no possibility of resolution. In comparison, the rise of the Empire was hardly a new grievance.

Over the past thousand years, the Evernight side had not lacked actions that used the Empire to weaken their opponents. The Empire, in turn, played along, also inciting discord among the various races of Evernight and even within their ranks, growing robustly in the cracks until today.

However, if the Great Qin were to mobilize the entire country for a war, it was uncertain whether the Evernight side could temporarily set aside their prejudices and unite against a common enemy. If that happened, the Empire might even lose its homeland.

Qian Ye’s first reaction might have been similar to most people’s: the Empire should continue with its usual strategy, keeping the scale of the war limited, especially since the main forces and private armies of the great families had just participated in the Battle of the Behemoth’s Sleep and needed time to rest and recover.

However, the perspectives of the high-ranking officials were obviously different from those of ordinary people. And in a situation where walls have ears, Qian Ye couldn’t discuss much with Song Zining.

Song Zining then said, “If you want to earn military merit, this is a good opportunity. I will do my best to secure a favorable position for you, but you need to prepare yourself. Strength still comes first in military competition.”

Qian Ye nodded, “Don’t worry.”

Song Zining smiled, “What do I have to worry about with you? By the way, guess who the other Heavenly King accompanying General Bai Qian is this time?”

Qian Ye truly didn’t know, but from the comparison of the brilliance of primordial force in his true vision, the strength of this strong figure was even greater than Zhang Baiqian. His curiosity piqued, he asked, “Who is it?”

Song Zining didn’t keep him in suspense, “Zhi Ji Wang.”

“Zhi Ji Wang!” Qian Ye was shocked. It was the Heavenly King recognized as the strongest in the Empire! No wonder the two Dark Dukes of Evernight were defeated so quickly.

In Qian Ye’s memory, Zhi Ji Wang had not directly participated in any war in recent years. His existence was more about restraining the top few powerhouses of Evernight. It was said that only Zhi Ji Wang could match Night Queen, one of the topmost powers on the Holy Mountain.

“You’ve heard a lot about this prince, but there’s one thing you definitely don’t know. Do you want to hear it?” Song Zining said mysteriously.

“What is it?” The Heavenly Kings were idols for all young warriors of the Empire, and Qian Ye was no exception, naturally very interested in any news about them.

“This…” Song Zining smiled, opening his folding fan and gently fanning himself, but he didn’t hurry to speak.

In the central command tent, Zhang Baiqian and Zhi Ji Wang were playing chess. It was Zhang Baiqian’s turn to move, but he held the white piece between his fingers, hovering in mid-air, seemingly in deep thought. Opposite him, Zhi Ji Wang’s long eyebrows trembled slightly. Zhang Baiqian had maintained this posture for almost a quarter of an hour, and even with Zhi Ji Wang’s temperament, he felt the time was too long, especially knowing Zhang Baiqian wasn’t actually thinking about the game.

As Qian Ye’s gaze grew sharper, threateningly raising his fist and cracking his knuckles, Song Zining finally gave up on the suspense, “Zhi Ji Wang has a great-granddaughter who will come of age by the end of the year. This is a golden opportunity. It’s said that the prince dotes on her, and if you can marry her, what kind of military merit can’t you get? At the very least, you can save yourself seventy or eighty years of hard work!”

Qian Ye was stunned, not expecting Song Zining’s theory of changing fate through marriage to even involve Zhi Ji Wang’s great-granddaughter.

In the central command tent, Zhang Baiqian’s expression turned peculiar, and without realizing it, he dropped his hand, “Pah,” placing the white piece in some unknown spot.

Zhi Ji Wang shook his head, laughing, “That little scoundrel is quite cunning. I’ve heard his Heavenly Derivation Force has the same flair as Xi Tang back then. He must have known I was listening. But to dare make up such a story, he has quite some nerve. Baiqian, your army is becoming increasingly full of hidden talents.”

This was the second time Zhi Ji Wang mentioned hidden talents, but Zhang Baiqian seemed to hear nothing different, calmly saying, “Song Zining may rely on the protection of Heavenly Derivation Force, but that other little guy seems to have sensed something. Just now, when my perception crossed the domain in that room, his blood energy fluctuated slightly.”

Zhi Ji Wang stroked his beard, pondering, “So, it’s getting interesting. For that little guy to have such mastery of the Void Primordial Force at this level, his future achievements are boundless.”

As he spoke, Zhi Ji Wang suddenly seemed to understand something, smiling, “I inadvertently fell for that little trick of the Song family. Since they noticed earlier, I withdrew my perception. Now, I think they were just trying to fool us, and the real topic is yet to come.”

But even though he said this, Zhi Ji Wang didn’t release his perception again. With their status, being caught eavesdropping and having it discovered was a loss of face.

Zhang Baiqian’s attention returned to the chessboard, simply saying, “What can be so important about these children’s affairs?”

“It’s not like that. Who among us wasn’t once young? For example, when you were less than thirty, didn’t you accomplish many significant things?”

In the tent, Qian Ye’s tense expression relaxed, and his taut body eased.

Song Zining also appeared more relaxed, smiling, “I know who was listening to us, and it’s not a big deal. Alright, now we can talk about serious matters.”

With a serious look, he said, “Do you remember I told you someone was investigating your past?”

“Mm, and?” Qian Ye’s heart tightened slightly, but he wasn’t overly worried. He felt that the only thing he couldn’t reveal was his half-blood nature. As his strength grew, unless someone cut him open to see his blood core, it would be hard to catch him out.

Song Zining knew what Qian Ye was thinking and shook his head, “It’s not that simple. I created a complete set of identity documents for you and even used the Wei family’s resources, making everything seamless. But this time, the opponent went all out, actually sending people to investigate locally.”

Now, Qian Ye realized the seriousness of the situation. Fakes were fakes, and no matter how perfect the cover-up, digging like this, point by point, would eventually expose the truth. He began to think, who would be so interested in his identity? Logically, his relationship with the Zhao clan recently had many traces, why go for the difficult instead of the easy?

A shadow passed over Song Zining’s face, “I’ve already sent people over to see who is so curious, even daring to touch the Song and Wei families’ lines and continuing to dig.”

He had made Qian Ye’s background meticulously, using a distant branch of the Song family for his kin, and setting his birthplace in a small border town under the jurisdiction of the Far Eastern Province. In other words, anyone checking this information would inevitably alert both the Song and Wei families, but even with such precautions, the opponent still took the most conspicuous approach, verifying locally.

Qian Ye suddenly felt something off with Song Zining, though he couldn’t pinpoint what. He looked up at him, “And the people you sent…”

“They are seasoned professionals, no need to worry about their experience or loyalty. And I’ve ordered, if the opportunity arises, to eliminate the opposite party.” Song Zining made a cutting gesture.

Qian Ye frowned, “If the opponent already knew they would trigger you and the Wei family, and still dared to send people, don’t you think they are well-prepared? Maybe your people won’t be able to control the situation.”

Song Zining was slightly startled, “I hadn’t thought of that.”

He stood up, pacing back and forth in the tent, walking several rounds before saying, “If that’s the case, then the opponent is targeting not just you, but also me. I might need to go personally, and I may miss this war of national fortune.”

“This war is a great opportunity, for both of us. Is it necessary to give it up?” Qian Ye was unconvinced.

Song Zining had already shown his leadership talent and gained a powerful position in the central command staff. If he continued to excel, he was likely to make this temporary rank and position permanent. There were few in the entire Empire who could achieve such accomplishments at his age.

But Song Zining shook his head, “This opponent is not here with good intentions. I’ve investigated multiple times, and I couldn’t even find a direction. I’m very worried that during the war of national fortune, they might cause trouble in the rear, detrimental to both of us. I plan to go personally, and once I find their trail, I’ll eliminate them preemptively to prevent future problems.”

Qian Ye finally confirmed that Song Zining’s agitated reaction was odd and stood up, placing his hand on Song Zining’s shoulder to stop his hurried pacing.

Song Zining gave him a questioning look, and Qian Ye said slowly, “Zining, have you considered that the opponent wants to lure you there?”

Song Zining froze.

Qian Ye continued, “You said you couldn’t even find a direction. Did you use Heavenly Derivation Force?”

Song Zining understood what Qian Ye was getting at and nodded, his expression becoming solemn.

“If you go there and still can’t find anyone, but get some closely related leads, would you use them to continue divining?”

Song Zining’s expression changed, and realization dawned on him.

Qian Ye said, “I don’t understand the art of divination, but I remember you saying that recklessly calculating the fates of very powerful beings can lead to backlash. If those clues lead to a high-ranking figure, and they have a secret method to sense it, they wouldn’t hesitate. Then, those people wouldn’t need to do anything, and they would severely injure you.”

Song Zining let out a breath, tapping his forehead, “You’re right, this is indeed the most likely method I would choose. Yet, I didn’t think of this at all, which is very abnormal.”

“Zining, you’ve been overly agitated since the beginning.” Qian Ye thought of something, his face darkening, “Has the opponent already been interfering with you?”

“Most likely.” Once Song Zining realized his anomaly, he quickly recovered, rubbing his chin and smiling, “This is getting more and more interesting. Who is the opponent? To make such an intricate trap, they must hold me in high regard.”