Chapter 552: Assassination, Such a Childish Act

Miaoxin brought seventeen Arhats, followed by countless other high-ranking monks and Mages.

With the addition of this Extraordinary power, the advantage held by the Jade Dragon Court’s army began to steadily decline.

If nothing unexpected happened, they would be utterly defeated in half a month at most.

They had to thank the fact that these people from the Buddhist Family’s Daoist Lineage couldn’t use their Divine Techniques; otherwise, the army would have been annihilated on the very first day.

After practitioners from the Buddhist Family’s Daoist Lineage became active on the battlefield, people from other Daoist Lineages began appearing among the various other factions as well.

However, none could match the numbers found in the Xiliang Kingdom.

And with the aid of these Daoist Lineage practitioners, more and more factions began to declare themselves kings. Even those with only a tiny scrap of land insisted on taking the title of a rebel king.

This threw the Court into disarray.

Yet Qi Suian was leisurely studying the sequence of the Daoist Lineage. He had already officially named his own Daoist Lineage the “Imperial Daoist Lineage.”

He was certain that the Seventh Realm would be named something like Monarch or Emperor.

However, that wasn’t the outcome he wanted. He was aiming for Celestial Emperor.

The Son of Heaven, who receives his mandate from the heavens to enjoy a long and prosperous reign.

‘The “heavens,” of course, would refer to me. After all, the one using this Imperial Daoist Lineage isn’t me, but my survivor avatar.’

‘There’s no harm in letting my avatar be my “son” for a while.’

‘When the time comes, I’ll use this convenient son as a blade to stab the Daoist World in the back. I guarantee it’ll make it scream in agony.’

‘This must be some kind of dark sense of humor on my part.’

‘Perhaps when my avatar reaches the Seventh Realm and becomes the Celestial Emperor, the Daoist World will think he’s acknowledging *it* as his father.’

‘After all, the target isn’t specified. An adoptive father is still a father.’

It made Qi Suian want to equip his survivor avatar with a Fangtian Huaji.

‘You need a Fangtian Huaji to land a critical hit when stabbing your adoptive father. Any other weapon just doesn’t compare.’

“Great King, is this how you spend your days?” a high-ranking monk asked, unable to stop himself as he observed the idle Qi Suian.

The monk’s name was Miaoyu. He was Miaoxin’s junior-brother and a practitioner of the Fifth Realm who had attained the status of Arhat.

His duty was to protect Qi Suian, and Miaoxin had brought him back from the front lines for this very purpose.

Miaoxin could see that Qi Suian was the core of the entire Xiliang Kingdom. Should he be assassinated, the balance within Xiliang would instantly collapse.

Therefore, an Arhat was needed for his protection.

If Qi Suian hadn’t refused, Miaoxin would have requested a Bodhisattva to come directly.

Qi Suian, of course, didn’t mind. They were only protecting his avatar, after all. Any experiments or research he conducted were done within his true body.

“Then, Master Miaoyu, what do you believe my life should be like?” Qi Suian had his avatar ask in return.

“I have had audiences with several generations of the Jade Dragon Dynasty’s emperors. They were incredibly diligent, holding morning court, attending noon conferences, and reviewing memorials. They never slacked for a moment.”

“I have also met the leaders of other factions; they were always busy training troops, managing their lands, and so on, without a moment’s rest.”

“I have never seen a Great King as relaxed as you,” Miaoyu summarized.

Qi Suian nodded. “You’re right. That is how it normally is.”

“And that is the very reason I am different from them—and why I was able to rise so quickly.”

Miaoyu found this strange. ‘So he’s saying he built this entire foundation just by enjoying himself? That can’t be right. Is he trying to fool me?’

“They try to hold all the power in their own hands and fail to delegate according to people’s talents. That’s why they are both overworked and inefficient.”

“And in the end, they just run themselves into the ground.”

“As a ruler, the most important thing is to put the right person in the right position for the task at hand.”

“Then, you give them sufficient trust and support, and the job will naturally get done.” The principle Qi Suian described was simple, but putting it into practice was another matter entirely.

Miaoyu fell silent. ‘So that’s what he meant.’

‘No wonder Qi Suian is so idle. It’s because he’s delegated everything.’

“Master Miaoyu, how much talent would you say I possess?” Qi Suian asked again.

“It is unparalleled in all the world, of course.” This was no empty compliment from Miaoyu; he truly believed it.

“Wrong. I don’t possess a single shred of talent,” Qi Suian said with a grin. “Without the help of Xingdu Temple, I would just be an illiterate old farmer.”

“On the other hand, any one of the people in the Xiliang Kingdom is far more talented than I. The problem is, they can’t see the true source of their own success.”

“They think I’m playing some balancing act with them? No. I am simply letting them do what they do best.”

“When they stray from their own area of expertise and into someone else’s, they are naturally crushed.”

“That failure is what they perceive as me ‘balancing’ them.”

“In reality, I’ve done nothing at all, other than give them suitable posts.”

These few simple sentences left Miaoyu a bit dumbfounded. ‘It can’t possibly be that simple, can it?’

This was where Qi Suian’s cunning lay. The core concept was indeed simple, but the execution was anything but.

Even if Miaoyu were to spread these words and others tried to copy the method, they would be doomed to fail.

Qi Suian’s success was possible because the one executing the plan wasn’t just this avatar, but also his true self, aided by the big data processing of a smart-brain.

Otherwise, with the fickleness of the human heart and the elusive nature of luck, no one could possibly control all the variables.

“The Great King is truly one of a kind.” On further reflection, Miaoyu realized the situation in the Xiliang Kingdom was exactly as described.

He had just spoken these words when his expression abruptly changed. His figure flashed, golden light erupted around him, and in an instant, he transformed into a towering golden figure, shielding Qi Suian.

CLANG!

With the sound of striking metal, a black flying sword disintegrated against his chest.

“You wretched scoundrel! How dare you attempt to assassinate the King!” Miaoyu roared, the sound like a tiger’s bellow, creating visible ripples in the air.

And this was him holding back, using only the Fourth Realm Vajra Indestructible Divine Techniques.

But the roar revealed nothing.

Miaoyu’s eyes scanned the area. The attacker was from the Confucian Lineage and, like him, was of the Fifth Realm—an Advanced Scholar.

In that same instant, a middle-aged man materialized behind Qi Suian. He spat out a breath of literary qi, which formed a complex structure of written characters.

The structure was shaped like a sword, formed from characters representing concepts like “kill,” “death,” “swiftness,” “power,” and “pursuit.”

“What a fine Literary Sword!” Miaoyu reacted in a flash. He yanked Qi Suian behind him, his expression turning into a Vajra’s Furious Gaze as he threw a punch, shattering the approaching Literary Sword.

He, of course, recognized the attacker.

There were only a handful of practitioners in the Fifth and Sixth Realms of the various Daoist Lineages, so it wasn’t difficult to recognize them all.

“Miaoyu, it has been thirty years since we last met, hasn’t it?” The middle-aged man said, not with anger, but with a calm and composed demeanor.

“Indeed, it has, Ren An.” Miaoyu’s form began to swell slightly; he was preparing his Divine Technique, Dharma Image of Heaven and Earth.

“Since I have failed, I will not make another attempt,” Ren An stated calmly. “If you and I were to truly fight, you can forget about keeping this capital city of the Xiliang Kingdom intact.”

Neither of them had used more than a fraction of their true power in their brief exchange.

Not even one ten-thousandth of it. Otherwise, if they had truly unleashed the power of the Fifth Realm, the collateral damage would have been far greater.

“If you don’t mind my asking, Mr. Ren, for whom do you work?” Qi Suian spoke up.

Ren An just smiled, making no effort to hide the truth. “I was previously in the service of Prince Yu. As of now, however, I no longer plan to serve him.”

“If he possessed even a fraction of your talent for delegation, Sovereign, he wouldn’t have been so dazzled by my Daoist Lineage that he ordered me to assassinate you.”

“By making this attempt, I have fulfilled my obligation. I have nothing more to do with him.”

Most masters who employ Daoist Lineage practitioners to back their bid for the throne naturally want to break the unwritten rules to get ahead.

However, these practitioners should only be used as a trump card when all else fails.

Who plays their trump card right at the beginning of the game?

“It’s a shame I’ve heard the Sovereign doesn’t recruit from the Confucian or Daoist Lineages. Otherwise, I might be tempted to offer my allegiance,” Ren An said with a grin.

Qi Suian gave it a moment’s thought and recalled who Prince Yu was, but didn’t give it much weight. In his eyes, the man was no different from a clay dog or a pottery chicken—utterly worthless.

“I am indebted to the Buddhist Family’s Daoist Lineage, and I must honor my commitments.”

“Therefore, I must politely decline your offer, Mr. Ren.” Qi Suian’s words were ostensibly tactful, but they were a direct confirmation: ‘You’re right. I don’t need your kind.’

Ren An didn’t seem to mind. He had only been making a polite remark.

“In that case, I will not impose any longer.” Ren An cupped his hands in a salute. “Sovereign, if you wish to retaliate, please direct all of your efforts toward Prince Yu.”

With that said, Ren An’s form wavered, then dissolved into specks of black ink that scattered on the wind, vanishing without a trace.

“That Prince Yu… I fear his days are numbered,” Miaoyu said. He hadn’t tried to stop Ren An from leaving, as the cost would have been too high.

The man was determined to leave. To stop him, Miaoyu would have had to cause massive destruction.

It was better to let him go.

“Indeed. But this is a matter of give and take. He sent someone to kill me; I can’t simply do nothing in return,” Qi Suian said, clearly displeased.

Hearing this, Miaoyu opened his mouth as if to offer a word of caution.

But Qi Suian was quicker. “Rest assured, Master Miaoyu,” he said, cutting him off. “I won’t be as foolish as him and use practitioners from a Daoist Lineage.”

“I merely intend to teach him a lesson and issue a warning.”

“The struggle for the world should be fought openly and honorably. If he wants to resort to these underhanded tricks, well, the pack of ambitious wolves under my command are far more proficient at them than he is.”

“I simply disdain using such methods. It’s not that I lack them.”

“If I let this slide, others will rush to do the same in the future, and that would be a great annoyance to me.”

After Qi Suian’s explanation, Miaoyu found he had nothing to say in response.

It wasn’t Qi Suian’s fault, and his reasoning was sound. If this trend wasn’t curbed, such assassination attempts could indeed become a daily occurrence.

After all, everyone understood the principle of “to catch the rebels, first capture their king.”

Therefore, the matter had to be handled properly.

“What the Great King says is true. However, I fear Prince Yu has other Daoist Lineage practitioners by his side. This… will not be easy, will it?” Miaoyu asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

“Indeed. I have no intention of assassination or poison. It is merely a warning.”

“Whether he lives or dies is irrelevant. The main point is to put the fear in him.” Of course Qi Suian was aware of all this.

Unless he dispatched a Fifth Realm Daoist Lineage practitioner, the chances of success were slim.

But if they actually did manage to kill Prince Yu, well, that would be even more amusing.

‘Then again, why not give it a try?’ Qi Suian mused. He could certainly provide some… ‘trivial’ interference.