Chapter 301: The System Won't Let Lin Bai Rest

At Xuanmiao Temple, Patriarch Yuan Qing asked the "Eagle of Foresight" for a strategy: "Sir, the latest movements of the Justice Alliance have just been released. What is your take on this matter?"

Every step of the "Eagle of Foresight's" strategy had achieved miraculous results; Patriarch Yuan Qing had become extremely superstitious about him.

Meanwhile, the system knowledge from another world revealed by the Heavenly Descended had given many cultivators from the Seven Righteous Sects and the Demonic Five Sects much inspiration. Currently, the relationship between the two sides was in an intimate period, as thick as honey.

Of course, Patriarch Yuan Qing was still wary of the players, but that did not hinder him from using them to deal with Lin Bai.

"A normal reaction," the "Eagle of Foresight" said with composure. "Lin Bai has a strong personality and likes to take the initiative in everything. In just a few short days, the Justice Alliance's range of activity has been compressed within Taiyi Kingdom. Naturally, he feels uncomfortable and wants to bare his fangs at us; this is normal. If he had swallowed this insult in silence, we should have considered whether we had done something wrong!"

"Lin Bai even found an excuse to help the Taichu and Taihao Kingdoms lay the Magpie Bridge and capture Ancestor Chilian and Song Yaoqing. This has already revealed his essence: he is fierce of face but faint of heart, and does not want to start a war."

"After all, he once forcibly attacked the surrendering Beast Taming Studio under the name of rescuing Demon Beasts, which is enough to prove that he is not a reasonable person."

"As the saying goes, those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes. At that time, Lin Bai had nothing and was not afraid of any losses, so he naturally acted without scruples. Now that Lin Bai has interests to weigh and concerns to hold, he naturally dares not act recklessly anymore."

"According to the law theory Lin Bai mentioned, he should have already lost the Pure Heart required to cultivate the Heavenly Dao—treating all things as straw dogs—and is no longer suitable to continue cultivating the Heavenly Dao."

"Continue our strategy. One day, Lin Bai and his Justice Alliance will eventually end up like the Taiyi, Taichu, and other kingdoms: unwilling, yet forced to be controlled by us. To fight the entire world with one's own strength—how easy is that?"

"To be precise, it is fighting two worlds," Patriarch Yuan Qing laughed. "However, the Nine Ancestors of the Justice Sect are skilled in the Way of Fortune Telling and want to use the chaos of the Heavenly Descended to help Lin Bai become the Heavenly Dao. But Lin Bai has also made quite a few achievements in the Fazhe Zhidao. Even if he fails to cultivate the Heavenly Dao and achieves the Way of Love, I fear we will be unable to cope."

"Sect Leader, if the Way of Fortune Telling were truly effective, why would everyone still struggle? We might as well just accept our fate," the "Eagle of Foresight" said. "Lin Bai cultivates the Heavenly Dao, yet ends up going further and further down the path of the Way of Love; doesn't that prove that the so-called Heavenly Mandate is full of variables? If we can push him from the Heavenly Dao to the Way of Love, we can turn him from the Way of Love to the Way of Cooking, or some other path... Sect Leader, being a jack-of-all-trades is not as good as being a master of one. Cultivating all laws may seem powerful, but in the long run, it may not necessarily be a good thing."

"Sir is indeed a man of wisdom; this old Daoist admires you," Patriarch Yuan Qing said, clapping his hands in praise. "How should we respond to Lin Bai's departure this time?"

"Overcome hardness with softness," the "Eagle of Foresight" said. "Lin Bai has refined many Binding Immortal ropes; it is obvious he wants to use this opportunity to stir up trouble. Go along with him and don't give him the chance. If he presses too hard, at worst, we can temporarily allocate some supplies to appease him for the time being."

"As for Ancestor Chilian and Song Yaoqing, the continent is vast beyond measure; how easy is it to find two Great Vehicle Realm cultivators within it? I think the Poison Sect and the Blood Sect are not stupid enough to let Ancestor Chilian and the other wander right under Lin Bai's nose!"

"One thing subdues another," Patriarch Yuan Qing sighed as he looked at the "Eagle of Foresight." "Lin Bai relies on the Fazhe Zhidao and is like a hedgehog, leaving the Seven Righteous Sects with no way to start. Yet, upon meeting the Heavenly Descended, he is constrained and tied up. No wonder Lin Bai has always said the Heavenly Descended are the catastrophe of this age!"

Listening to Patriarch Yuan Qing's instigation, the "Eagle of Foresight" smiled dismissively and said, "Sect Leader, Lin Bai is leaving Taiyi Kingdom; the 100,000 Zhenbei Army certainly cannot accompany him. Now is a good opportunity to infiltrate Taiyi Kingdom."

"Lin Bai is young after all and acts too hastily. If he had played it steady and managed Taiyi Kingdom as his own territory, even if suppressed by us, he could have at least won a place for the Justice Sect in the world by relying on the power of laws. To strike rashly, not only putting himself in danger, but perhaps even leaving his base riddled with holes—that is truly unwise!"

Patriarch Yuan Qing's eyes lit up: "Does Sir have the confidence to take down Lin Bai?"

The "Eagle of Foresight" smiled and asked in return: "Does the Sect Leader have the confidence to deal with his Fazhe Zhidao?"

Patriarch Yuan Qing gave a sheepish smile and fell silent.

The "Eagle of Foresight" shook his head and said, "Sect Leader, you must not make the same short-sighted mistake as Lin Bai!"

Even if he had the chance to take down Lin Bai, he would not offer the idea.

Only while the Seven Righteous Sects and the Justice Alliance are deadlocked can the players profit from it. Once Lin Bai is dead, these sects would likely turn around and deal with the players.

Force can overcome ten techniques; the player faction's level is too low, and unlike Lin Bai, they do not have the help of unsolvable laws. Once targeted, if they want to find such a good growth opportunity again, there will not be a second Lin Bai in the world.

Furthermore.

Assuming this is truly a game world, Lin Bai's mission to lay the portals has not yet been completed, and the game officials will not let him die. Why bother doing such thankless work?

Currently, news from the Seven Righteous Sects and the Demonic Five Sects is being strongly blocked by several financial groups against the Beggar Sect. But if someone from the Seven Righteous Sects or the Demonic Five Sects really wants to plot against Lin Bai, he might even have to find someone to tip Lin Bai off!

Lin Bai was about to leave Taiyi Kingdom, clearly intending to stir up trouble. The Duke of Zhen hurried over to dissuade him: "Son-in-law, do not be impulsive. Within Taiyi Kingdom, with the help of the city-protecting array and the Zhenbei Army, even if the Seven Righteous Sects make things difficult for you, we remain in an invincible position. If you leave Taiyi Kingdom, you lose the geographical advantage. Without the Zhenbei Army following you, if they want to harm you, we will be beyond reach; even if we want to help, it will be too late."

Although the Justice Alliance's power was suppressed within Taiyi Kingdom, for Taiyi Kingdom, the situation was turning for the better.

With the help of the Magpie Bridge and the Heavenly Descended, and a few years of peaceful recuperation, Taiyi Kingdom's strength would surely rank among the best of all nations.

But everything now was built upon Lin Bai. Once something happened to him, Taiyi Kingdom would not only be knocked back to its original state, but its situation might even be worse than before.

One move affects the whole situation; the future of Taiyi Kingdom was tied to Lin Bai, so the Taiyi royal family naturally did not want anything to happen to him.

"Why not rest for a few years? Wouldn't it be better to expand outward once Taiyi Kingdom is strong and the Fazhe Zhidao has improved?" the Duke of Zhen said. "By then, Taiyi Kingdom can also lend you a hand."

"That's right, Master, why put yourself in danger?" Ye Song followed up to persuade him.

He had only just grasped some clues about the Fazhe Zhidao and naturally did not want to follow Lin Bai on expeditions.

He had joined the Justice Sect, and the Shengji Sect could no longer tolerate him. Ancestor Chilian and Song Yaoqing's flight was a fake; if Lin Bai were finished, he and Ye Lan would likely have to flee for real.

Moreover, Ye Song still hadn't figured out who Ziwei Dijun was.

These past few days.

He had frequently come into contact with the Great Vehicle Realm and Void Refinement Realm cultivators of various sects, but none of them looked like the reincarnation of Ziwei Dijun. He was very anxious about the matter of ascending to the Immortal World; besides clinging to Lin Bai's thick thigh, he had no way out.

Compared to the natives, the players of the Beggar Sect were very excited. If Shopkeeper Lin didn't stir up trouble again, they would soon have no way to survive under the suppression of the financial groups.

Lao Mi was still in an ambiguous relationship with Guo Yuan, but now with the Magpie Bridge and such a major event, as the Chief Beggar, he naturally could not watch the Beggar Sect decline. He moved from Qian City to Zhen City at the first opportunity: "Alliance Leader, the brothers of the Beggar Sect have been wronged. Ancestor Chilian and Song Yaoqing went on a killing spree in Qian City, forcing us not to log in for days. Who in the whole world doesn't know that the Beggar Sect is your protector sect? The Poison Sect and the Blood Sect have suppressed us for so long; they offer no compensation and won't hand over the culprits. It is clear they don't take the Alliance Leader seriously at all!"

"Xianxia First Paparazzi" said: "Ancestor Chilian snatched away our precious color printer and digital camera and has no intention of returning them. Our editorial department really cannot swallow this insult. At the very least, we must make them return the color printer. Our Reporter ID was also lost by them; that is a treasure bestowed upon us by the Alliance Leader."

"Huangye Lang" said: "The partners of 'Justice Weekly' and 'Heavenly Dao Review' have also been struck down, which is equivalent to losing our mouthpiece to the outside world. If we don't give them a hard knock, who in the world will look up to our Justice Alliance? Now, even the Fazhe Zhidao cannot be spread."

Recalling the disaster he suffered, Lao Mi said indignantly: "And that damn 'Yi Gao Ren Dan Da', he is also one of the culprits; we cannot let him go..."

The players were all filled with righteous indignation, wishing they could kill their way out immediately to raise the prestige of the Justice Alliance.

The Duke of Zhen's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and he kept winking at Xu Longyun, wanting her to dissuade Lin Bai.

Xu Longyun looked at her father and said: "Father, you don't need to persuade him anymore. If the Seven Righteous Sects and the Demonic Five Sects behave themselves and abide by the treaty we signed, the two sides will naturally stay out of each other's way."

"But their actions clearly show they don't take the Justice Alliance seriously. If this continues, it will likely be them who start the war. Last time, we simply didn't hurt them enough, which is why they have no scruples about constantly challenging our bottom line. Moreover, we are going out this time to lay the Magpie Bridge. The Magpie Bridge network is in Taiyi Kingdom and is ultimately just a small-scale affair. Only by connecting the world can the Justice Alliance truly grasp the right to speak."

"..." The Duke of Zhen frowned, "Once Lin Bai is in danger..."

"Father, since its establishment, the Justice Alliance has been precarious. Even now, it is only a false stability. When it is time to act, we must act," Xu Longyun interrupted him, speaking righteously. "If we don't establish our prestige now, one day, when they have thoroughly researched the laws, we will have no more chances."

"Xiaoyun, Taiyi Kingdom..." the Duke of Zhen said.

Xu Longyun sneered: "Has Taiyi Kingdom ever truly treated the Justice Alliance as an ally? For thousands of years, how many resources has Taiyi Kingdom accumulated? Yet the Justice Alliance relies on resources contributed by its members to refine Binding Immortal ropes. Taiyi Kingdom enjoys the convenience of the Magpie Bridge to the fullest; have they shown any intention of extending a helping hand? Are we to let the Justice Alliance reach out and ask Taiyi Kingdom for resources? Now that the compensation from the Seven Righteous Sects and the Demonic Five Sects has been delayed, the Justice Alliance must naturally strive for it itself and will not sit idly by and wait for death with Taiyi Kingdom..."

The Duke of Zhen was stunned and looked at Lin Bai sheepishly, speechless. He had thought about using Taiyi Kingdom's resources to subsidize Lin Bai, but the ministers in the court believed that taking the initiative to give resources to the Justice Alliance would lower their status for no reason, and they were afraid of raising another Seven Righteous Sects, so they delayed making a decision. He did not expect that they would end up provoking Lin Bai after all.

Looking at the tit-for-tat between father and daughter, Lin Bai had an inexplicable smile in his eyes.

After Xu Longyun took over the affairs of the Justice Alliance, his mind was entirely on laying the Magpie Bridge and Weapon Refinement; he hadn't thought much about resources at all.

However, since Xu Longyun had fallen out with her father over resources, the resource predicament of the Justice Alliance must have reached its limit. Otherwise, Xu Longyun wouldn't have agreed immediately upon hearing that he was going out to stir up trouble; having someone to help is truly easy.

Just at this moment.

In Lin Bai's mind, the Super Sect Leader System popped up a new task: 【The enemy's perfunctory attitude is a trampling on your dignity as a Sect Leader. Please reclaim what belongs to you, prove your strength to the world, and save the dignity of the Justice Sect Leader; Reward: 500 Merit】

Whoa!

Keeping up with current events!

As expected, these systems also cannot bear to see him settle down!

Thinking about it, it makes sense; he had only been stable for a few days, and the Righteous Seven Sects and the players had already suppressed his influence within the Taiyi Kingdom; if he continued to lay low, the empire of his media empire would also fall apart.

Furthermore.

The War God System's "Hundred Battles Hundred Victories" mission, and the missions from the Extreme Counter-Kill System and the Super Villain System were all in a stagnant state, and his strength had almost not improved at all...

It is indeed time to go out and propagate the Fazhe Zhidao.

"Xiaoyun, do not make things difficult for the Duke of the State." Lin Bai swept his gaze toward the Duke of the State and Xu Longyun, shaking his head, "The Taiyi Kingdom is our partner, not an enemy; they have no obligation to provide resources for us. Moreover, they still have the state affairs of a whole kingdom to busy themselves with, so it is normal that they cannot attend to the Justice Alliance. Our predicament was not caused by the Taiyi Kingdom; do not aim your spear at our own people, only to let outsiders watch a joke for nothing..."

The Duke of the State breathed a sigh of relief, glared at Xu Longyun, and said with a fawning smile, "My virtuous son-in-law is still the one who understands reason. But since we are partners, mutual assistance is only right. I shall return now to request instructions from His Majesty and allocate some urgently needed resources for the Alliance from the national treasury..."

"Does my father-in-law look down on this son-in-law?" Lin Bai looked at the Duke of the State with a smile and said, "Since the establishment of the Justice Alliance, when have we ever needed our own people to provide the resources we need?

I go out to help set up the Magpie Bridge, and I don't work for free; contracts have all been signed.

Besides, urging for war reparations through the Heavenly Descended indeed makes us appear insincere. Ancestor Yuan Qing also once requested that we help the Righteous Seven Sects set up the Magpie Bridge; since they cannot attend to it, it is just a matter of convenience for us to go and collect it ourselves."

"Is there truly no room for reconciliation?" the Duke of the State asked bitterly.

"The rules established by the Justice Alliance are to protect ourselves, while the rules established by the Righteous Seven Sects and the Demonic Five Sects are to restrict us, making those outside who yearn for the Alliance but cannot join it suffer unspeakably. These are all things that need to be discussed with them; the Righteous Seven Sects can restrict the Justice Alliance, but they cannot restrict others!" Lin Bai sighed softly, looked into the distance, and said wistfully, "Moreover, the cultivation of the Fazhe Zhidao has also stopped, which may be related to my loss of that pressure of being on the edge of life and death at every moment. I need to go and find that pressure again..."

Ye Song was shaken, lost in thought.

Xiao Yu, Cen Qing, Zuo Lan, and the others seemed to have realized something.

The players were already excited, chattering in the private chat channel about how to use this to break the consortium's blockade on the Beggar Sect...

(End of this chapter)