War God Long Ao

"Brother Yin, please speak."

Long Ao was very curious. He didn’t know what Yin Baishun wanted to tell him, but seeing Yin Baishun’s grave expression, it was clear the matter was of great importance.

"Sect Leader Long, you’ve come here for no other reason than to deal with Piaomiao Palace."

Long Ao didn’t speak, which was a tacit admission.

In truth, any fool could guess that his purpose in coming to Piaomiao City was to deal with Piaomiao Palace.

"Ten years ago, Piaomiao Palace discovered a treasure. They’ve been guarding it for a full decade. Your luck is quite good. Three days from now, this treasure will mature. If you can obtain it, not only will it boost your strength, but it will also make Piaomiao Palace hurt badly."

"What treasure? Where is it?"

Long Ao’s interest was instantly piqued.

"On Feie Mountain, inside the Waterfall Cave."

After a moment of thought, Yin Baishun continued, "Sect Leader Long, you must be careful. There are two Saints guarding the Waterfall Cave on Feie Mountain."

Nodding, Long Ao stood up. As he was about to leave, he suddenly asked, "Brother Yin, I’d like to know, why are you helping me like this?"

"Long Batian."

Without asking further, Long Ao’s figure quickly vanished into the crowd.

Watching the departed youth, Yin Baishun suddenly smiled and said to himself, "Elder Long, you saved my whole family back then. Today, I’ve repaid that favor. From this day forward, I, Yin Baishun, will go into seclusion."

It turned out that Yin Baishun was helping Long Ao entirely because of Long Batian.

That was why as soon as Yin Baishun had uttered his ancestor’s name, Long Ao understood what was going on.

Long Ao knew perfectly well that Yin Baishun wasn’t helping him because of his own reputation; it was all because of his ancestor.

He didn’t dwell on the matter of Yin Baishun. After some thought, Long Ao decided to head to the Waterfall Cave on Feie Mountain. No matter what the treasure was, he couldn’t let Piaomiao Palace have it so easily.

Long Ao was very curious about what kind of treasure would be worth having two Saints from Piaomiao Palace personally stand guard over it.

Long Ao was well aware of what a Saint represented, so he could only imagine how precious the treasure in the Waterfall Cave must be.

Long Ao didn’t rush recklessly to Feie Mountain. After all, two Saints were stationed at the Waterfall Cave. ’If I’m discovered, is it even possible to snatch the treasure from the hands of two Saints?’

Long Ao spent a great deal of money to get information about Feie Mountain’s Waterfall Cave. It turned out that Feie Mountain was a Forbidden Land for Piaomiao Palace. Never mind ordinary disciples, even Piaomiao Palace’s Core Disciples were forbidden from going there.

The more Piaomiao Palace acted this way, the more certain Long Ao was that there was definitely a treasure in the Waterfall Cave on Feie Mountain.

「Three days.」

Originally, Long Ao had intended to assassinate Yin Baishun and the disciples of Piaomiao Palace upon entering Piaomiao City. But now, having decided to go to Feie Mountain, continuing with the assassinations would surely alert the enemy.

Thinking of this, Long Ao didn’t act rashly. Instead, he found an inn to rest well for two days and gather his strength. In three days, he would go to the Waterfall Cave on Feie Mountain.

「Ordinary Spirit Realm.」

The Dragon Sect’s full-scale retreat allowed Piaomiao Palace to effortlessly occupy Bazhou, leaving only the Celestial State. At this point, however, Piaomiao Palace also halted its advance, coming to a dead stop.

Unless absolutely necessary, Piaomiao Palace was unwilling to completely tear off all pretenses with the Dragon Sect. This wasn’t because Piaomiao Palace feared the Dragon Sect, but because they were wary of the other three of the Four Great Forces.

From the beginning, Piaomiao Palace had no idea of the Dragon Sect’s true strength. If it turned out to be more formidable than they imagined, things would become very troublesome.

At first, the Four Great Forces had withdrawn from Kyushu, and the Dragon Sect had become the sole hegemon. With Piaomiao Palace’s return, Kyushu was split in two, with each side holding half the country.

Piaomiao Palace forced the Dragon Sect into a constant retreat. The Kyushu People, who had been so confident in the Dragon Sect, were all astonished, not understanding what was wrong with the Dragon Sect and why it kept falling back instead of confronting Piaomiao Palace head-on.

Long Ao had always been the one to stage a comeback. His sudden choice to yield frustrated everyone. However, the majority still chose to believe in Long Ao, thinking that Piaomiao Palace was just having a moment of undeserved success. They believed that one day, Long Ao would make another comeback and deal a heavy blow to Piaomiao Palace.

With half the country at stake, Piaomiao Palace’s actions also spurred the Imperial City into motion. However, the Imperial City didn’t help Piaomiao Palace; instead, it assisted the Dragon Sect in dealing with Piaomiao Palace.

Piaomiao Palace never expected the Imperial City to suddenly jump into the fray, and with such a reckless, all-or-nothing fighting style. ’Are we supposed to fight to the death?’

Piaomiao Palace was not stupid. If they fought the Imperial City head-on and both sides suffered heavy losses, it would only benefit Netherworld Mansion, the Third Level Long Family, and the Dragon Sect. Piaomiao Palace would never do something so foolish.

For this very reason, Piaomiao Palace chose to back down, ceding four of the eight states of Bazhou. As a result, the two-way struggle for dominance in Kyushu became a three-way standoff, though the Imperial City and the Dragon Sect were nominally in an Alliance.

Seeing that the Imperial City and Piaomiao Palace had re-established themselves in Kyushu, Netherworld Mansion and the Third Level Long Family could no longer sit still.

The Four Great Forces were all aware that the Tomb of the Gods was in Kyushu. If the Imperial City and Piaomiao Palace were allowed to completely secure their footing, it would be much more difficult to move in later.

It was for this very reason that the Third Level Long Family and Netherworld Mansion immediately moved into Kyushu. From a complete withdrawal at the beginning to a full re-entry now, Kyushu was once again plunged into chaos.

The Four Great Forces vied for supremacy, warring with one another. The Imperial City and Piaomiao Palace had just managed to occupy four states each, and they weren’t about to give them up easily. Thus, the Four Great Forces began a chaotic war, while the Dragon Sect retreated to the Celestial State, quietly watching them fight.

The Four Great Forces had long-standing and significant grievances with each other, accumulated over many years. Coupled with the countless casualties from the last great war, all they had been missing was a spark.

This time, the Four Great Forces were thoroughly enraged. Even though they all knew it wasn’t the best time for war, they couldn’t help themselves, pouring in a steady stream of manpower and resources, wave after wave.

Gradually, news of the great war in Kyushu spread everywhere—everywhere except the Celestial State.

The Four Great Forces seemed to have a tacit understanding. No matter who it was, none of them stepped foot into the Celestial State. In a way, this was giving the Dragon Sect a great deal of face. As for the real reason, no one knew; perhaps only the Four Great Sects themselves knew the truth.

The Imperial City notified the Dragon Sect, requesting assistance. According to their agreement, the Imperial City and the Dragon Sect were in an Alliance, so the Dragon Sect should have helped. However, the Dragon Sect—Snake Emperor and Long Haoshi—unanimously refused. The reason was simple: this was a battle among the Four Great Forces, and it was not appropriate for the Dragon Sect to interfere.

The Imperial City gritted its teeth in anger but was powerless. After all, this was not the time to have a complete falling out with the Dragon Sect. If the Dragon Sect went crazy and turned on the Imperial City, the Imperial City would truly be in a tragic situation.

(PS: Congratulations to Hong Yan, the book’s first Elder! Xiaojiu is sincerely grateful and will remember this.)