Chapter 718: The Heavenly Emperor carries out an evil scheme, Yinglong aids Great Yu!

In short, some burdens will eventually fall on you…… How to handle it, you decide for yourself.

Yandi weakly waved his hand, "But no matter what, try to perform outstandingly."

This way, someday we will write your name on the Pangu candidate list; it will look decent enough, avoiding the reputation of being a factionalist.

Er…… uh…… ah? Yinglong was initially stunned, then greatly shocked, his eyes wide open, his voice rising in disbelief, "Pangu? Me?"

What merit and ability do I have!

Yinglong rubbed his little hands together.

Well, you're currently virtue-less and talent-less…… but you can train!" Yandi smiled, "Nobles and generals—are they born that way?"

The helmsman of the Heavenly Dao was once merely a system sprite; after breaking free of his bonds, could he contend for the Pangu throne?

You must believe in yourself…… With sufficient struggle and effort, in a few years you will become the Primordial Dragon God, celebrated for eternity, as the Dragon Responding to the Times! The Dragon Responding to Virtue!

In response to the moment when countless beings rise up! In response to the flourishing era of humanity and the five virtues!

Dragon Responding to the Times!

Dragon Responding to Virtue!

This is…… Yinglong!

Yandi gave him chicken soup.

Yinglong injected chicken blood.

Her spirit instantly rose, her fighting spirit soared, "Okay! I understand!"

Isn't it just effort and struggle!

You just watch!

I will certainly increase my self-improvement a hundredfold over today's hardship; someday, I will be gods slaying gods, demons slaying demons!

Yinglong's blood and qi surged, his battle desire instantly rose; it seemed that whoever blocked her path would be met with a slash.

Very good…… keep this mindset.

Yandi lightly laughed, "Go find some opponents to spar with."

The Human Emperor finished speaking, drew a document from the case files, glanced over it, then set it aside.

You should understand the matter of literary edicts.

Yandi tapped the table, his tone calm, "Recently, the Dongyi have been in turmoil."

As the central authority, the Fire Master bestowed grace upon many talents, allowing them to establish clans and found tribes.

The Dongyi, a force with complex background and many factions, bore the brunt of the impact; many heroes decided to go their separate ways.

But normally, they wouldn't go too far, inevitably experiencing great rises and falls, over and over.

Yandi spoke these shocking words, with reason and evidence, "After all, the leader of the Bird Master is not someone who burns easily."

Spanning both the heavenly and human realms, simultaneously holding partial authority over humanity and the Demon Race…… tsk, how could an ordinary talent contend with him?

Even though the Fire Master has bestowed grace, riding the great trend, standing together with countless ambitious clansmen, it appears unstoppable.

Whoever dares to openly stand in the way will be ground into historical dust.

But…… this does not prevent some people from raising the banner of great righteousness to oppose great righteousness.

Yandi's eyes were deep and mysterious, giving a sense of hiding countless secrets, making Yinglong dare not meet his gaze, involuntarily lowering his head.

This emperor once entered the netherworld, took charge of Fengdu, as the lord of ghosts and gods!

His body transformed into a dark sun, illuminating the nether world, giving countless souls a bit of warmth.

Moreover, using his body as a vessel, he accepted countless grudges and hatreds, bearing the infinite sins of humanity!

In such a situation, such a figure of great sacrifice and great burden…… who could imagine how much evil he has witnessed?

And once he "darkens"…… how terrifying would that be?!

Yinglong dared not speculate.

If it weren't for his connection with his own boss, encountering such a person…… Yinglong would certainly flee at the sight of him, retreat three leagues.

Can't afford to provoke!

Really can't afford to provoke!

After all, Chonghua himself is capable of setting rules.

Yandi continued speaking softly, "Within the human realm's chessboard, his Bird Master cannot match my Fire Master."

But step outside this board…… the Heavenly Court is his major trump card!

Who has gone independent from the Dongyi system?

Fine, the Bird Master will not obstruct…… respect the talents' choice!" Yandi imitated the Bird Master's high-ranking stance, speaking, then laughing, "Not only will he not obstruct, he will also help raise some funds, troops, and intelligence, doing utmost to save face."

What is called good gathering and good parting? What is called benevolence reaching its utmost and righteousness fulfilled? This is it!

Who has seen such a loyal old leader?

Look at the Dongyi Bird Master of others, then look at others…… who could not feel ashamed?

These days, being a leader can turn into an involution industry.

Yandi sighed, "But behind all this, who knows…… there may lurk a deadly calamity?"

Since they've gone independent, profit and loss are inevitably their own responsibility!

With the Heavenly Court existing, the Demon Race existing…… during the independent process, won't they get beaten up badly?

Beaten to the point of broken spirit, beaten to the point of vanished fighting spirit…… at that moment, the Bird Master throws out an olive branch, indicating——as the old employer, unwilling to see you in such despair, the Bird Master is forever your home; if your venture fails, return to keep working, but these years of new-old turnover, one generation of novices replacing the old, competition fierce, you can no longer achieve the old 9-5-5, only able to manage 9-9-6, even 0-0-7……

Yandi said it offhandedly, yet it made Yinglong feel a chill.

What is all this called?

——I broke your leg, then gave you a crutch…… this crutch is my benefit to you.

——If I don't break your leg, how could you get a free crutch? You ought to thank me!

——Because I'm here, you can at least still walk two steps, right?

「How can you be this ruthless? 」 Yinglong sucked in a cold breath.

「What is this? 」 Yandi chuckled helplessly, "Solo operators, when they meet an organized, disciplined oligarchic system that's already formed a fist, lack sufficient mature contingency measures and struggle to retain their unique advantage; they can't even see the true ruthlessness behind a mild façade, mistake enemies for allies, and don't even consider whether they deserve the imperial name."

「After a wave passes, big fish eat small fish, small fish eat shrimp…… As a small fish, aren't you just food for the big fish? 」

「Resources insufficient, strength insufficient, even firsthand intelligence is in others' hands; once the opponent consciously integrates resources and targets investments, any little stall will be overturned. 」

「Even with fighting spirit, ideals, and down‑to‑earth effort…… but you lost from the start, destined to do others' bidding. 」

「In the end, either you're swallowed whole, skin and bones, returning to work exactly as you did when you first went solo, using blood and sweat to fill the hole with principal and interest. 」

「Or, in the cruel storm of circumstances, you're forced to accept 'aid' and 'investment', losing controlling stake; though you still appear the clan's master, the core has already been swapped, becoming another's shape…… Even if you keep the title of king, you're merely a spokesperson. 」

「This is a difference in level, a disparity in scale…… This isn't even competition at the same tier! 」

Yandi let out a light sigh, showing some fatigue in his brows and eyes.

These days, he took over the work, sorted out the situation, noticed some subtle impropriety, immediately launched an investigation, and discovered someone was setting up a big game.

Some people are preparing to launch a dimensionality‑reduction strike!

Is that a conspiracy?

Not really.

It's more like an open, righteous overwhelming pressure!

In recent years, the main force of the Heavenly Court opposite has been adjusting; war preparations are subtle, with faint signs of heavy troops in the east…… Combined with some estimates and guesses, he has roughly figured out the underlying cause.

「This doesn't align with the big picture our Fire Sect is pushing…… so we must stop it. 」

After Yandi and Yinglong digested what he'd said, he continued, "Only we can stop it."

「The power represented by our Fire Sect's central authority is the only thing that can stand equal to the force behind the Bird Sect's leader. 」

「They're almost ready; it's time for a heavy strike. 」

「Our Fire Sect should also step up. 」

「No matter what, we must ensure that among the forces that have split off from the Eastern Barbarians System to operate alone, there is one that has become formidable and achieved glorious, conspicuous success. 」

「This will become a benchmark, proving the correctness of our Fire Sect's line, grasping the right to speak within humanity, guiding countless followers to walk this path…… It's a model! 」

「Otherwise, we'd better watch out…… one day a shit pot will be dumped on us. 」

Yandi shook his head, "If I were in the Bird Sect leader's position, after reaping huge gains and establishing an absolute monopoly, I'd still turn around and blame the Bird Sect's solo operators who went bankrupt, dumping the fault on our Fire Sect to attack and seize the high ground of discourse."

Yinglong heard this and was stunned.

Can there be such a shameless maneuver?

It's clearly malicious competition, ruining the startups of all latercomers, cutting off this path, causing the overall situation to deteriorate.

Yet they can still spout lies with a straight face, meanwhile luring people back to factory work while attacking our Fire Sect, claiming all faults lie in our misguided command and major strategic errors that caused this outcome…… Henceforth, they should obey the Bird Sect's will!

Learned, learned!

Yinglong gritted his teeth, wanting to say something but couldn't utter a word.

「Therefore, we must crush this plot and wage a hard fight here. 」 Yandi said slowly, "The leader's talent and the commander's ability must be top‑notch."

「As for the leader, Wenming…… this sir, I'm not too worried. 」

「Even the commander's ability, I actually don't need to worry about. 」

「But…… he can't see the light! 」

「We must rein in our strength, lest we frighten the little ones. 」

「So you must go there, stand on the stage, bring a troop, assist him, and oversee the big picture. 」

「Facing the blockades and encirclements the Demon Race will surely deploy, you must be able to break through again and again, link up with the fragmented small clans being trapped and slaughtered, rescue them, unite them into a formidable force, and never let anyone push you around lightly! 」

「I'll entrust the execution of this strategy to you. 」

Yandi picked up the document, tossed it casually, and it landed in Yinglong's hands.

Yinglong took it trembling, opened his eyes to look, his face as bitter as if he'd eaten coptis.

「Gulp, gulp」 as he swallowed saliva, Yinglong's expression was grim, deeply troubled, "Your Majesty…… entrusting this to me, isn't it a bit too hasty?"

She gestured, saying it's "a little bit" with her mouth, but the two fingers she used to demonstrate were straining apart, indicating it's actually "a hundred million little bits."

「It's indeed a bit rash…… if it weren't that the Cloud Sect lacks a legitimate reason, only our Fire Sect has righteous cause, I actually wouldn't consider you. 」

Yandi nodded, delivering Yinglong a heart‑piercing critical hit, "Of course, don't be too nervous."

「With Wenming, although they say to restrain power and not flaunt it—moving mountains with a hand, overturning seas with the other—any monsters, demons, or evil spirits along the way are crushed to dust with a finger; so strong they have no friends, a glance shows something's wrong. 」

「But…… if you're truly hopeless, he could also consider letting you command by proxy, recording the battle merits under your name and promoting you to a generation‑defining war god. 」

「But doing that still carries risk; it won't withstand a meticulous scrutiny by a determined person, perhaps leaving traces. 」

「However, I doubt you're that incompetent. 」

「Then Wenming could serve as a good teacher, directing you to grow through tempering. 」

Yandi said as such.

Yinglong's face fell…… a hard dragon's life lies ahead, it seems unavoidable!

「Alas! 」

「Who made the situation so special? 」

Yandi consoled Yinglong, "Really, Wenming's true identity is too extraordinary, making it hard for me to send anyone else."

"Only you, knowing his terror and able to reach an understanding through indirect ties, can achieve successful coordination and remain undefeated on campaign."

"What coordination…?" Yinglong's mouth twitched, "Don't plaster gold on my face…… I feel I'm at most a thug, a living seal……"

"In that exalted person's eyes, my little skill…… is just a useless mutt!"

However.

Although he had confirmed his own useless‑mutt nature.

But for some reason, Yinglong also set her mind at ease.

Although the enemy is strong, our teammates are strong too—they won't hold us back, and we might even carry…… In this duo match, she can still join.

Even…… it somewhat hurts one's self-esteem.

However, Yinglong the young lady gave it serious thought……

Back then, wasn't she also a hanger-on who clung to Fengxi's thigh and shouted "666" from the sidelines?

Now she has indeed risen; all the way she's been decisive in battle, her spirit is up, she's gained confidence, and even a bit of arrogance.

But one can still go back to the old trade……

Still can barely make a living!

"Then I'll go prepare……" Yinglong muttered, "I'll train my combat skills a bit and prepare some gifts of favor……"

She still kept her principle firmly in mind.

War isn't just about fighting and killing; there's also human relations and worldly wisdom!

"Then prepare well." Yandi said leisurely, then took out a thick stack of documents and handed them to Yinglong: "These are the personnel movements of the Heavenly Court's main forces over the years—which commanders have been subtly active toward the Eastern Yi direction."

"Go back and study well, seek to counter them."

"Oh." Yinglong received it.

She casually glanced; the first name on it was "Wuzhi Qi".

(End of chapter)