Chapter 247

Inside the Danxia Palace, Grand Master Cheng Yueshiao was hunched over his desk, handling official business.

With the Nine-Star Great Tide approaching, various matters had piled up like a mountain, especially the mobilization and deployment of elite forces at the provincial level, all of which required his signature, leaving him extremely busy.

Suddenly, Grand Master Cheng Yueshiao's Star-Plucking Token vibrated once.

Cheng Yueshiao did not pay it any mind.

His Star-Plucking Token received a vast number of messages daily; when he was busy, he generally did not look at them unless they were of the utmost urgency.

The next instant, Grand Master Cheng Yueshiao's Star-Plucking Token suddenly vibrated rapidly three times in succession.

An urgent, top-priority star-light transmission.

This caused Cheng Yueshiao's expression to turn stern; at this moment, could it be that the Nine-Star Great Tide had already begun?

He projected his consciousness outward, yet he did not sense any fluctuations of the star tide between heaven and earth.

The moment his mind sank into the Star-Plucking Token, Cheng Yueshiao was somewhat surprised.

It was actually a transmission from the Star River Marshal's Mansion.

【Grand Master Cheng, one quarter of an hour from now, there will be a council meeting at the Star River Marshal's Mansion. Grand Marshal Wei will attend in person; please be sure to participate on time.】

The sender was the Left Military Advisor of the Star River Battlefield Marshal's Mansion.

Cheng Yueshiao frowned.

With the Nine-Star Great Tide imminent, why was the Star River Battlefield Marshal's Mansion calling an emergency meeting?

Could it be that some unforeseen event had occurred on the Star River Battlefield?

Every year when the star tide arrived, crises would emerge everywhere in the mortal world, but in reality, the Star River Battlefield still bore the greatest pressure of the star tide.

If an unforeseen event had occurred on the Star River Battlefield, then the pressure borne by the mortal world would rise exponentially.

In a single thought, even Grand Master Cheng Yueshiao felt a sense of trepidation.

It was not as if the Star River Battlefield had never experienced such events; twenty-seven years ago, also during the Nine-Star Great Tide, a major accident had occurred on the Star River Battlefield.

The Great Chu Marshal of the Star River Battlefield was assassinated, the Great Chen Marshal was severely wounded, and many important generals met with accidents, leading to major problems in the war situation on the Star River Battlefield.

That year, the mortal world ran red with blood.

In Great Chen alone, over a million commoners were killed or injured.

It could be called a tragedy.

Twenty-one years ago, ten days before the star tide erupted, a riot occurred at Star Lao He Guan, leading to the failure to deliver supplies to the front lines of the Star River Battlefield in time.

That year, the armies on all sides of the Star River Battlefield suffered heavy losses, especially Great Chen; two Seventh-Tier powerhouses were killed in battle, three were severely wounded, and there were as many as seven Sixth-Tier powerhouses.

Under such circumstances, the Spirit Chronicle Star Palace and Great Chen could only draw out elites to send to the Star River Battlefield.

But the consequence was that it led to a hollowed-out power structure within Great Chen.

It was exactly one year later that the two great star palaces besieged the Spirit Chronicle Star Palace, killing them until they locked the palace, and then the two great star palaces took up residence in Great Chen.

It is hard to say that these two events were not connected.

But since then, Great Chen had declined, its influence on the Star River Battlefield had grown weaker, and there were no spare Eighth-Tier powerhouses to go to the Star River Battlefield to verify this matter.

Since then, Grand Master Cheng Yueshiao had been extremely sensitive to unforeseen events on the Star River Battlefield.

If history were to repeat itself, should Great Chen continue to transport forces to the Star River Battlefield?

Cheng Yueshiao was worried, but he still entered the Star River Marshal's Mansion secret realm on time to attend the Star River Marshal's Mansion meeting.

As Cheng Yueshiao appeared within the Star River Marshal's Mansion secret realm, Tianyang Xingjun Tianyang, Tianyang Xingjun Cangming, Tianyang Xingjun Zhen'e, Emperor Dahong, and Emperor Dachu appeared one after another.

These were the main seats held by the mortal world in the Star River Marshal's Mansion meetings.

Twenty years ago, the Great Chen Emperor also had a seat here, but at that time, those who came to attend the meeting were Tianyang Xingjun Lingji and the Great Chen Emperor.

Worldly affairs change; Tianyang Xingjun Lingji's seat was already gone, and the Great Chen Emperor, because of his submission in that battle, also lost this seat, which was changed to be attended by the Great Chen Grand Master who had forced back the two great star lords in that bloody battle.

Later, this meeting seat had always been attended by the Great Chen Grand Master.

To this day, it had only been twenty-odd years.

"Wen Hu pays his respects to everyone."

Suddenly, a figure descended and bowed to the power-holders of the mortal world; it was the Sixth-Tier Star Domain Mountain Mist Domain Lord, Wen Hu, who had arrived.

Including Cheng Yueshiao, the various star lords and emperors also stood up simultaneously to return the salute.

A domain lord like Wen Hu, who had successfully suppressed a Sixth-Tier star domain, was extremely worthy of respect.

Compared to his near-death state over a month ago, Wen Hu was very spirited at this moment; clearly, the dire situation from before had already changed.

"Jin Tao pays his respects to everyone."

"Wei Yun pays his respects to everyone."

"Ji Siming pays his respects to everyone."

"Hu Cheng pays his respects to everyone."

"Meng Ke pays his respects to everyone."

Six Sixth-Tier domain lords; these were the only six Sixth-Tier star domains on the Star River Battlefield that had been successfully suppressed.

However, there were more than six Sixth-Tier star domains on the Star River Battlefield; these were just the six that had been successfully suppressed.

By comparison, there were more that had failed to be suppressed.

Subsequently, more than ten Fifth-Tier domain lords arrived, also paying their respects one by one, and the various power giants also stood up to return the salute.

These people were the existences who had truly made contributions to the mortal world.

The next instant, everyone's expression turned solemn.

Three beams of star light descended, one of which sat directly in the main seat; it was none other than the Grand Marshal of the Star River Marshal's Mansion, Wei Xu.

Accompanying him were the Left Sima and Left Military Advisor of the Star River Battlefield Marshal's Mansion.

One on the left and one on the right, they sat to the left of Grand Marshal Wei Xu.

Wei Xu was a middle-aged man with a square face and a short beard, looking refined and elegant, but his brows were like knife edges, extremely sharp.

However, even though Grand Marshal Wei Xu had arrived, the meeting still did not begin; they were still waiting for someone.

Just as they reached the final deadline for the meeting, suddenly, a beam of star light descended.

The star light descended to reveal a short, stout, black-faced old man.

When they saw this old man, everyone, including the Grand Marshal of the Star River Battlefield, stood up instantly to welcome him.

Cai Shu!

The only surviving Seventh-Tier star domain lord.

He was also the only domain lord on the star domain battlefield whose cultivation had broken through to the Eighth Tier.

The former Marshal of the Star River Battlefield Marshal's Mansion.

In everyone's eyes, there was a look of reverence.

Whether it was his Eighth-Tier strength or this spirit of sacrifice for the mortal world, this person was worthy of respect.

Only Cheng Yueshiao's eyes flashed with a sharp light as he looked at this Cai Shu, Elder Cai, with a different expression.

After everyone had finished their greetings.

Cheng Yueshiao spoke up alone, "Elder Cai, long time no see."

Cai Shu glanced sideways at Cheng Yueshiao, his expression shifting slightly, "The mortal world really is a good place; twenty years ago, a Fourth-Tier kid is now already Eighth-Tier, able to sit on equal footing with this old man."

After saying this, he sighed again, "Unfortunately, this old man's life is such that I can never go back."

Once this lament was uttered, it stirred up the thoughts of the various domain lords, who began to sigh one after another.

It directly interrupted Cheng Yueshiao's follow-up questions, making it impossible for him to ask even if he wanted to.

However, Cheng Yueshiao was not a person who gave up easily; after all the domain lords had finished sighing, Cheng Yueshiao spoke again, "Elder Cai, the last time I saw you was twelve years ago. This junior wanted to chat with you about the Star Lao He Guan riot twenty-one years ago, but never had the chance. Seeing you again today, your demeanor makes this junior admire you even more, but this junior still wants to know the details of the Star Lao He Guan riot twenty-one years ago. There are a few questions I would like you to answer.

It is not that this junior is being insensitive, but it is just too difficult to see you, Senior."

The Star Lao He Guan riot twenty-one years ago could be considered a public case; some questions remained unsolved to this day.

Cheng Yueshiao's persistent questioning naturally aroused the curiosity of many people present, especially those domain lords who hailed from Great Chen, who now looked at Cai Shu one after another.

Under everyone's gaze, Cai Shu sighed heavily, "I have already answered this question several times before, including to Marshal Wei. The Star Lao He Guan riot was an accident, and for this accident, this old man's responsibility is undeniable.

Because of this, this old man went alone to suppress the Great Desolate Domain that year, just to atone for my sins.

Living in the cracks for over ten years, with the help of the mortal world, I luckily succeeded in suppressing it, preventing the aliens of this Seventh-Tier star domain from coming out to wreak havoc on the mortal world; this is also the only thing this old man can do, hoping to alleviate the sins brought about by my dereliction of duty back then."

Hearing Cai Shu say this, the various domain lords felt a sense of sympathy.

A few hot-tempered domain lords even glared at Cheng Yueshiao.

The meaning was clear: you have already gone alone to suppress a star domain and abandoned everything in the mortal world, what else do you want?

Cheng Yueshiao, however, sneered inwardly; the more Cai Shu acted like this, the more he felt there was a problem, and the more he had to pursue the questioning.

Before, he had neither the ability nor the opportunity.

Now that he had the opportunity, even if he couldn't pursue the mastermind, he had to at least clarify the truth first.

However, before Cheng Yueshiao could speak, Cai Shu changed the subject and suddenly looked at Star River Grand Marshal Wei Xu, "Marshal Wei, I came to attend the meeting today to ask for your help. Any aliens in the Great Desolate Domain capable of breaking through to the Eighth Tier have been killed by me over the years using various methods.

However, with the Nine-Star Great Tide approaching, many Seventh-Tier late-stage and Seventh-Tier peak aliens who originally could not break through to the Eighth Tier now have the possibility of doing so.

I would like to ask the Marshal to send a few Seventh-Tier experts in to help; otherwise, there is a possibility that the Great Desolate Domain will lose control and the star gate will reopen."

Once these words were spoken, the expressions of the high-level officials present changed.

If a Seventh-Tier star domain that had already been suppressed were to lose control again, the harm it would bring would be enormous.

It would bring huge harm to both the mortal world and the Star River Battlefield.

It might even disrupt the existing pattern of the Star River Battlefield, causing the garrison on the Star River Battlefield to suffer heavy losses, and then trigger a chain reaction.

This problem had to be taken seriously.

"Elder Cai, rest assured; today's meeting is also to eliminate the crisis that the Nine-Star Great Tide might bring."

As Star River Grand Marshal Wei Xu spoke, he tapped the table lightly, and a clear sound that shook the soul rang out. Wei Xu said directly, "Today, I have convened the Star River meeting for only one agenda—to take the initiative and strike!"

Once Wei Xu spoke, the discourse power and everyone's attention at the meeting site fell upon Wei Xu, the Grand Marshal.

Cheng Yueshiao still wanted to question Cai Shu, but he could only give up for the time being.

"As everyone knows, every Nine-Star Great Tide is difficult to survive, and many times it has resulted in heavy losses.

Since I, Wei, took office as the Grand Marshal of the Star River Battlefield, I have experienced two Nine-Star Great Tides, each more serious than the last.

Now, the third one is about to arrive.

In order to reduce losses, I am thinking, why don't we take the initiative and strike before the Nine-Star Great Tide begins?

We will send out experts of different tiers in advance, organize them to kill their way into star domains of various tiers, and then carry out a large-scale sweep of alien powerhouses.

In this way, even if the star power fluctuations of the Nine-Star Great Tide allow those aliens whose cultivation is stuck in a bottleneck to break through, the aliens who have been killed will not be able to break through!

In this process, perhaps elites from all sides will die in battle.

But this is an unavoidable matter.

When the Nine-Star Great Tide arrives, even more will die in battle.

If we take the initiative and strike in advance, although there will be deaths in battle, we can significantly reduce casualties," Grand Marshal Wei Xu said.

As soon as Wei Xu's voice fell, Emperor Dachu asked, "Grand Marshal Wei, the matter of taking the initiative to strike has not been considered before, but the problem of the star gate is a big one. The cost of us opening and building star gates in the mortal world is quite high, and they cannot be built in a short time.

If this problem cannot be solved, wanting to take the initiative to strike is useless."

"This problem is also the fundamental reason why the strategy of taking the initiative to strike could not be implemented on a large scale before, but now, it has been solved," Wei Xu said.

"How was it solved?" Emperor Dachu asked.

"The Sumeru Palace's Art of Dou Zhuan Xing Yi (Star-Shifting) has made great breakthroughs in recent years, and the main star patterns have been deduced to above the Seventh Tier.

At that time, as long as we take a trace of the spatial coordinates, people from the Sumeru Palace can use the Great Star-Shifting Art to generate temporary star gates, and all parties can send people in to wage war.

The only drawback is that this temporary star gate can only last for seven days.

However, seven days is enough," Grand Marshal Wei Xu said.

Once these words were spoken, there were many who agreed.

Especially all parties in the mortal world, who all expressed their support.

But to what extent they would actually act, it was hard to say.

After all, the Star River Marshal's Mansion only had the power of suggestion and did not have much restrictive power over the various parties in the mortal world.

To be precise, the Star River Battlefield and the mortal world were in a relationship of mutual reliance, and there was no distinction between master and servant.

It was under these circumstances that Star River Grand Marshal Wei Xu added, "The dangers of the mortal world are shared together. But the strength of this initiative to strike varies from party to party.

In order to maximize the strategic effect of this initiative to strike.

I propose that this action of taking the initiative to strike the star domains be combined with the upcoming Battle of Building Tribute!

We will use the results of this initiative to strike the various star domains to determine the ranking of the Battle of Building Tribute and decide the share of material resources that each party in the mortal world will pay to the Star-Plucking Tower."

Once these words were spoken, it was like a thunderbolt from the blue, instantly causing the expressions of the leaders of all parties in the mortal world to change.

The previous initiative to strike was just a strategy.

How to execute it specifically would still depend on how each party arranged it.

Attacking and sweeping a Third-Tier star domain was a sweep, attacking and sweeping two was also a sweep, and attacking and sweeping a Fifth-Tier star domain was also a sweep.

The intensity of the sweep by each party would definitely be different.

The reason was also very simple.

When the Nine-Star Great Tide arrives, the star domain star gates that descend upon each party in the mortal world are random.

Perhaps the star domains that you, Great Chu, sweep are all descending upon Great Chen or Great Hong, or perhaps the barbarian regions.

And the star domains that happen to descend upon your Great Chu territory are ones that have not been swept.

But at this time, your Great Chu's main force has suffered heavy losses in the previous initiative to strike, and then Great Chu will be in tragedy.

This was also the problem with the strategy of taking the initiative to strike.

For the past few hundred years, it was not as if no one had thought of the strategy of taking the initiative to strike.

The main problem was that the certainty was too poor.

Great Chu paid huge casualties to sweep a few star domains, but in the end, they all fell within the territory of Great Hong or Great Chen, and the star domains that descended within our own territory were still ones that had not been swept.

Then we would have suffered a huge loss.

Such things had truly happened before.

Therefore, the initiative to strike before the star tide had always been all thunder and no rain.

However, combining it with the upcoming Battle of Building Tribute was a different matter.

Deciding the share of material resources to be paid to the Star-Plucking Tower was truly a huge amount of interest!

With interests at stake, it was completely different!

"Next, let us begin the vote on this proposal."

The next instant, following Grand Marshal Wei Xu's proposal, almost in an instant, all the domain lords participating in the meeting, whether they were Fifth-Tier domain lords, Sixth-Tier domain lords, or the only Seventh-Tier domain lord, Cai Shu, all had a beam of star light rise above their heads.

A beam of star light rising above the head represented agreement.

The next instant, the gazes of all the domain lords were focused on the power giants of the mortal world.

In an instant, it made the power giants of the mortal world feel unhappy.

It felt a bit like being forced!

(End of chapter)