Cultivation Begins from Infancy - Chapter 382

Volume 3 - Chapter 95: A Nation in Turmoil - Part 1

“He thinks a single imperial edict can overturn right and wrong? It won’t be that easy!”

...

“Tell those Buddhists to steady their people and spread the truth. This is the perfect chance to undermine the imperial authority and sever the Jiang family’s ancestral legacy!”

The elder with a cane gritted his teeth as he spoke.

Spread the truth... The graceful woman with violet tattoos found those two words together somewhat peculiar.

Nevertheless, she swiftly agreed and departed alongside the youth in black robes.

However, just as they were about to retaliate, traces of top-tier demonic forces suddenly appeared across various provinces.

These demonic forces rallied their banners, commanding mountain spirits, river demons, and other such creatures to bypass border towns and infiltrate the provinces, targeting cities where Buddhist disciples gathered in large numbers.

“The Buddhist Lord is dead! Great Yu is collapsing!”

“Your Buddhist Lord was slain by our Demon Emperor! Surrender now!”

“Kill them! Slaughter them all!”

The demonic forces included remnants of the Dragon Gate, survivors of the Sacred Palace, and members of the Ancient Demon Hall. Among them was the Star-Moon Academy, which had long maintained neutrality within the demonic ranks. Unlike the reclusive Void Realm, Star-Moon Academy traditionally refrained from conflict and coexisted with the Great Yu Divine Dynasty without interference. Yet now, even they had descended from the mountains to wage war against Great Yu.

Among the invading demons, the leaders were all mighty demons of the Three Immortals Realm, holding a status second only to the demon kings and elders within the top-tier demonic forces.

These leaders raised their banners and launched a sweeping offensive, their momentum formidable and overwhelming.

As one city after another was ravaged and the demons advanced, the accusations made by the high-ranking Buddhists against the emperor—claiming he shielded and colluded with demons—were instantly rendered baseless.

An imperial edict alone could only convince the people of the empire, but the rampant demons before their eyes made many Buddhist disciples realize the horrifying truth: their Buddhist Lord had indeed been slain by demons!

After all, the demons were openly proclaiming it as they raised their flags!

They had no choice but to believe it.

...

In Youzhou, at the Xia family estate...

Confidential reports from various provinces and cities poured in. In the discussion hall, Xia Linglong, having received assurances from Grand Eunuch Chu, had already returned from the imperial palace.

At this moment, the chaos caused by demons across the land, coupled with their raised banners, seemed to signal an imminent full-scale assault on Great Yu, plunging the populace into fear and panic.

“So it truly was the Demon Emperor who acted?”

In the discussion hall, many Xia family members were astonished. They had originally thought the young general was the culprit, only to discover there was a hidden truth.

Among them, the elder generation, including Xia Yuanwu, exchanged glances filled with subtle shock. The Xia family had done much in service to the emperor, and their older sister-in-law was skilled at taming demons. While they had heard vague whispers of secrets, they could not confirm them or disclose anything.

But now, the unfolding events seemed to validate some of those whispers.

Xia Linglong appeared momentarily dazed. The reassurances Grand Eunuch Chu had given her earlier had eased her worries, but the current situation... Was this the emperor’s contingency plan for General Haotian?

She was lost in thought until the discussions below concluded, and someone asked how troops should be deployed to deal with the demons invading the Buddhist cities in Youzhou.

Xia Linglong snapped back to reality, her mind racing before she replied, “With demons causing chaos, we must guard against diversions elsewhere. Let the city guards in those areas hold out with the Buddhists for now. You all take troops to fortify other cities and prevent the demons from feigning an attack in one place while striking another.”

The room fell silent, and puzzled looks were exchanged among the Xia family members.

Not sending reinforcements to the besieged cities and instead shifting forces to unaffected areas? This decision seemed illogical—unlike Xia Linglong’s usual competence.

“This...”

Someone hesitated, raising doubts.

Before Xia Linglong could respond, Xia Yuanwu scowled and declared, “Didn’t you hear? Do as the head of the house instructed. Do you think you know more than she does?”

Seeing the elder generation backing the decision, the doubters immediately quieted down, understanding that there must be reasons beyond their knowledge.

After all, the intelligence they had access to was undoubtedly different from what the family head possessed.

As seasoned warriors, they were well aware that mastery of intelligence was key to gaining the upper hand in battle. Acting impulsively on partial information could disrupt higher-level strategies and ruin everything.

Countless war stories illustrated this, including using small, doomed units to lure the enemy into a counterattack, ultimately leading to decisive victories.

In war, sacrifice was inevitable—not only in charges and assaults but also in baiting, ambushing, and sacrificing ground to gain a greater advantage.

Thus, the saying: in the army, the first rule is obedience!

The discussion hall fell silent as the members departed to carry out the orders. Xia Linglong exchanged a glance with several uncles, reading the shared understanding in their eyes.

Without another word, she headed to the depths of the Xia family estate to visit the elderly woman residing in the farmyard.

“There are indeed spies among the demons loyal to the emperor,” the elderly woman, sitting on a rocking chair, revealed startling information to Xia Linglong with a calm demeanor.

She had played a role in this matter but had not violated the imperial decree. Even Xia Linglong, as the current head of the Xia family, had not been informed.

It wasn’t a matter of distrust toward Xia Linglong. Firstly, the emperor himself had directly entrusted her with this secret order, and she would not risk disobedience. Secondly, letting Xia Linglong know would bring no benefit to the Xia family, only harm.

When someone is aware of a matter but must feign ignorance, it becomes burdensome. Over time, decisions made during military deployments could inadvertently expose gaps.

Lastly, although she knew that there were demons under the emperor’s control, she was unaware of their specific identities, making disclosure meaningless.

Now that the emperor had voluntarily revealed traces of his plan, there was no longer a need to keep this from Xia Linglong.

Hearing the old woman’s revelation, Xia Linglong was momentarily stunned. Then, her beautiful face turned pale with shock and disbelief.

Could this really be true?

If word of this leaked, it would shatter the very worldview of countless people!

The emperor of humanity, colluding with demons? A generous interpretation might call it using demons as infiltrators, but the harsher truth was outright collaboration with the demonic forces.

The recent assaults, clearly orchestrated by the emperor, demonstrated his direct involvement.

Those demons attacking Buddhist cities were under the emperor’s secret command!

If not for her access to extensive intelligence that suggested something unusual, even Xia Linglong might have believed the Buddhist Lord had indeed been slain by demons, having nothing to do with General Haotian.

“Now, for the sake of that child, His Majesty has even deployed the seeds he buried a thousand years ago. Such immense favor…”

The old woman sighed softly as she rocked her chair, her eyes showing faint envy.

Under heaven, who else could receive such favor from the emperor?

Even his brothers and the other princes likely hadn’t been granted such indulgence.

Xia Linglong remained lost in thought, unable to respond.

The old woman glanced at her and said gently, “Are you finding this difficult to believe? When His Majesty summoned me to discuss this matter, I was as shocked as you are now. But soon, I came to admire His Majesty’s brilliance beyond words.”

Xia Linglong’s gaze sharpened as she focused on the old woman.

The old woman continued, “Can all demons in the world truly be eradicated? Of course not. If the Great Yu Divine Dynasty is like a sumptuous piece of meat, then there will always be flies circling it.”

“But if the meat is already surrounded by flies, would new ones join in?”

“No, they wouldn’t…”

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