Chapter 355: Feihuang's Chess Game

Yu Yuanzhen immediately followed Dugu Bo's advice, secretly gathering his trusted aides and, keeping it hidden from Yu Luomian, began making arrangements throughout the clan grounds.

As for Dugu Bo, he openly bid farewell to the members of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family, as well as his granddaughter Dugu Yan and her fiancé Yu Tianheng, and left Lake Heart Island by boat.

Yet, after everyone turned to leave, he secretly returned.

At this moment, his cultivation had already reached the realm of a Level 95 Super Douluo; within the entire clan, aside from Yu Yuanzhen, no one could possibly discover him.

Nan Feihuang and Xun Yu were playing a game of chess inside the royal palace. "Wenruo, this must be the 131st game you and I have played in these two years. Look at my 'Three-Star' formation; I might actually have a hope of winning this one."

"Indeed. Of the previous 130 games, my Lord, you currently have 9 wins and 121 losses. Congratulations on your win count about to reach double digits; that is an auspicious sign," Xun Yu said with a smile.

It was hard to tell if he was praising or mocking; when playing chess, he actually showed no mercy to his own Lord, ruthlessly winning over a hundred games against Nan Feihuang.

That Nan Feihuang could refrain from smashing the chessboard showed just how refined his temperament cultivation was.

"This game is following the Spirit Hall's plan for this time. Although our intervention will cause them some trouble, their strength is astonishing, and they will still be able to complete most of it; we can only pick up the scraps," Feihuang said. "At this very moment, the mission on Old Poison's side should be nearly complete. On Sima Yi's side, it should be time to move as well."

"Yes. After Tang Hao, the Grandmaster should die too. But the difference is, he cannot die silently; it must be known to the world, and he must die in a way related to Qian Renxue. This Soul Hunting Operation is a good opportunity," Xun Yu said with a smile.

His subsequent plan was to have the Grandmaster die at the hands of Qian Renxue or the forces under her.

Thereby, inciting Bibi Dong's hatred.

In truth, Feihuang understood that no matter how much Bibi Dong hated Qian Renxue, she would not kill her. When the time came, her method of retaliating against Qian Renxue would only be to take it out on Nan Feihuang.

Once the Grandmaster was no longer a hindrance, Bibi Dong would inevitably move to kill Nan Feihuang head-on.

Yes, Nan Feihuang was preparing to step out; he would no longer continue to hide behind the scenes. After all, if he wanted to contend for the world, he could not hide forever.

But he wanted to turn the active into the passive, creating the impression that he was forced into being an enemy of the Spirit Hall.

This would be beneficial for many subsequent actions, allowing him to do many things openly and aboveboard while maintaining the posture of an aggrieved party. Qian Renxue would not be able to blame Nan Feihuang; instead, she would feel all the more heartache for him.

This was a move from Xun Yu's "Green Tea Man" manual.

Pretend to be bullied, looking pitiful.

Weak and helpless, the persona is established.

Keep one sentence in mind: "It is my fault, it is all my fault; Xue Jie, please do not blame your family."

"Xue Jie, even if I am your enemy, I was forced into it. I don't know why the Spirit Hall suddenly wants to kill me; I am only protecting myself. Please, do not hate me."

This was one of the moves from the "Green Tea Man" manual, maintaining a beautiful, weak, and miserable posture to arouse Qian Renxue's sympathy.

After all, in the beginning, even if Nan Feihuang stepped out, he would only be an enemy of the Pope Palace side, not yet reaching the point of offending the Offering Hall.

Xun Yu once used his former lord, Cao Mengde, holding the Emperor to command the vassals, as an example to teach Nan Feihuang a principle, or rather, the importance of four words.

These four words, in more high-minded terms, are "a just cause for war," or in common terms, "a legitimate reason." As long as one occupies a legitimate reason in whatever one does, then at least in terms of righteousness, one will always be in an invincible position.

It was precisely because Cao Cao understood this principle that he always kept the importance of the Emperor in mind. Every time he sent troops, he occupied the moral high ground in everything—that is what makes a hero.

"Among the Nine Great Elders of the Spirit Hall, Chrysanthemum and Ghost are the Title Douluo that the Spirit Hall openly presents to the world. This is known to all, so they definitely won't take action in this Soul Hunting Operation. The Spirit Hall also wants a good reputation; they will disguise themselves as people from an 'unknown force' to attack the two great sects. Naturally, they won't send out their own public faces. But the remaining seven should all be deployed to ensure nothing goes wrong. Furthermore, according to rumors, the Sacred Dragon Sect Master, Tuoba Xi, also broke through to Title Douluo not long ago, with the title 'Saint Dragon.' He should also be participating," Nan Feihuang speculated.

"A total of eight Title Douluo. The Seven Treasures and the Blue Lightning will each be assigned four. On the Seven Treasures side, it is Snake Spear Douluo, Citun Douluo, Lingyuan, and Demon Bear Douluo."

"Then on the Blue Lightning side, it must be Ghost Leopard Douluo, Sea Turtle Douluo, Saint Dragon Douluo, and that Ninth Elder. Among them, Ghost Leopard Douluo is the strongest at Level 95, Sea Turtle is Level 94, and the other two are Level 91."

"With the combined strength of Old Poison and Yu Yuanzhen, defeating them is not difficult. The key is how many can be left behind. Tuoba Xi must be spared; he will be useful to me later. It would be best if the lives of that Ninth Elder and the Sea Turtle could be left at the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family. As for Ghost Leopard, he is a person from the Offering Hall; it is better to spare his life for now. Old Poison surely understands this himself."

Nan Feihuang knew he could not stop the Soul Hunting Operation, so his ultimate goal was for both sides to suffer, at which point he could reap the benefits.

Regarding the lineups sent by both sides, it was easy for him to determine. After all, although the original work didn't write which ones the Spirit Hall sent to the Blue Lightning side, the four who went to the Seven Treasures were clear as day.

Using the process of elimination, one could deduce it.

Therefore, he had already taught Dugu Bo how to respond. It was just that after the Soul Hunting Operation, the Spirit Hall would inevitably add a plan targeting the Gu Lei Kingdom.

Nan Feihuang also had to prepare for battle.

As long as he used the Soul Hunting Operation and the upcoming battle to significantly weaken the Spirit Hall's power, the continent would usher in a long period of stability.

By then, Feihuang would have enough time to bring up Dian Wei and the others.

When it came to the power of the older generation, even if Nan Tianchen and Long Gong both broke through to Title Douluo, they were still far from being a match for the Spirit Hall. The true foundation of their Gu Lei Kingdom still lay in the younger generation.

Not long after Dugu Bo took action, Sima Yi also began to act. He once again visited Yuexuan in the name of Prince Xue Beng and passed a piece of intelligence to the Grandmaster.

After reading it, the Grandmaster was shocked. "What? My second uncle is actually colluding with the Spirit Hall, plotting to secretly harm my Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family?"

"Yes. This is news my Lord managed to uncover with great difficulty. I implore the Grandmaster to return to the family as soon as possible and pass this news to His Excellency Thunder, urging him to be strictly on guard," Sima Yi said solemnly.

"Damn it! I knew it, that man is a despicable wretch. Uncle treated him so well, yet he actually betrayed the family," Liu Erlong said, filled with anger.

Although Yu Luomian was her biological father, she had not a shred of affection for the man who had abandoned his wife and daughter back then.

It was also he who had broken her and the Grandmaster apart back then, forcibly taking her back to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family, where she suffered the cold stares of the clansmen. If not for the care and concern of her uncle, Yu Yuanzhen, she did not know if she could have survived.

Therefore, the importance of Yu Yuanzhen and Yu Xiaogang in her heart outweighed Yu Luomian a hundred times over.

If not for this so-called father, she would have long since flown away with the Grandmaster.

(End of chapter)