Chapter 31: Fated Successor

Taiwei Palace was the grandest architecture in the imperial palace. It was open and spacious.

Various halls were interconnected.

The buildings were tall with edges of the roofs pointing skyward.

It was like a heavenly palace that reached into the clouds.

“Dear ambassador, the banquet has begun. You may take your seats.”

The young eunuch leading the Yuanmeng Empire’s ambassador envoy turned around, coincidentally catching the shocked looks on the barbarians’ faces. He could not help but chuckle internally, ‘They have yet to see the grandeur of the world after all. It’s understandable for them to be intimidated by the magnificence of this great country.’

The barbarians of the Yuanmeng Empire had been living in open tents for generations and would never see such amazing architecture.

However, the young eunuch from the Entourage Attendance Directorate heard a rugged voice coming from behind him soon after, “The imperial city sure is grand! It’s spacious with huge buildings. It’s fit for the Khan!”

The young eunuch’s smiling face immediately froze up.

That kind of disrespectful and insolent words was spoken by the fearsome burly man without a care.

‘Such insolence! These barbarians don’t have the slightest clue about etiquette!’

The eunuch screamed internally. However, he knew of his measly standing and dared not show the slightest hint of anger.

His reaction was picked up by Moro, whose disgust grew stronger upon noticing it.

‘The people of Zhou are weak like sheep, naturally destined to be devoured by hungry wolves,’ Moro thought to himself.

The Great Boundless Palace had an extraordinarily high status in the Yuanmeng Plains. The Imperial Preceptor Phags-pa was seen as the living Buddha among men.

He held greater respect from the people compared to Taichiud Khan who united the tribes.

The eight disciples under him were the Eight Divisions.

Each of them a Master or a Guru.

It was due to the existence of the Great Boundless Palace.

People from the tribes of the plains believed in the Eternal Heaven. All were devout followers of the Vajrayana.

The overlap of religion and the nation was beyond one’s imagination.

Moro was the combat powerhouse of the Great Boundless Palace. He would always invade the Middle Plain with his wolf riders to conquer parts of the Divine Continent, expanding their territory while robbing the Divine Continent’s wealth.

On this trip to Tianjing City, he wanted to personally witness what did the Zhou Kingdom, the leader of the four great nations, looked like.

From his experience along the way, it strengthened Moro’s view that the people of the Zhou Kingdom were weak and cowardly.

They would submit to the strong, born with a natural instinct to be ruled over.

Only the fearless men of the plains were worthy of owning such fertile lands.

“Be careful. There’s an expert.”

The Gandharva, who had a sensitive spiritual sense, frowned lightly as she said in a hushed tone.

She attracted everyone’s gaze like a magnet the moment she entered the Taiwei Palace and took her seat.

It was as though they had just witnessed a goddess and were intoxicated by the sight.

The ministers and generals were not to be blamed for their lack of control.

It was due to the Gandharva’s strength. Each of her motions carried the air of an immortal, seducing their souls and made it impossible for them to turn their gaze away.

“Expert?”

Moro looked over, following her gaze.

He saw an old monk wearing green and black monk robes.

He had a kind and gentle appearance.

“Peak of the seventh Mortal Stage, Titan Stage.”

Moro felt slightly unnerved.

In his eyes, that old monk seemed to be seated under a Bodhi tree while being guarded by a white tiger.

That old thinly body let out a golden glow as though a descended Arhat, giving off a mighty presence.

“He’s only one step away from reaching the Spiritual Transformation Stage!”

That person seemed to be warping reality and manifesting illusions to his senses.

Those were signs of someone close to breaking free from the limitations of the physical body and developing one’s spirit.

“We’re not his match,” the Gandharva stated calmly.

The Heavenly Dragon Temple’s fame as one of the Ten Great Sects was well-founded.

The depth of the old monk’s strength was unfathomable.

“Hehe, so what?”

Moro did not appear flustered. He used a voice transmission technique and said, “I’ve won seven matches consecutively in three days within Tianjing City and have humiliated the people of Zhou. I’ve accomplished my goal.

“Once we return, I’ll tell the Khan that we’ll only need three years before we can charge southward with our wolf riders!”

The Gandharva’s red lips opened slightly as she let out a soft chuckle and said, “Moro, don’t underestimate the martial arts experts in the Middle Plain. Putting the Ten Great Sects aside, just Marquis Zhao Kai and that mysterious Grand Commander Guardian…might be beyond our abilities to handle.

“You should know the Great Master fell under the Grand Commander’s hand, causing him to lose his vitality and die from the failure of his Qi.”

Moro did not seem to care and refuted, “Our master’s strength now is beyond the Great Master.”

“Furthermore, I’ve humiliated the people of Zhou so much but that Grand Commander did not show himself at all. He might have died a long time ago.

“Even if he managed to barely survive, he wouldn’t be a match for our master!”

In Moro’s view, the Innate Grandmaster was not a Human Immortal of the tenth Mortal Stage who could live a total of 500 years after perfecting one’s body and locking the Qi within oneself.

With his lifespan near the limit and dying away, how much of his strength would remain?

Even if that Grand Commander continued living on, he would only add to the lives taken by his own master.

Right when the Gandharva was trying to say something, the bell suddenly rang three times.

The sound was clear as it echoed throughout the Taiwei Palace.

She kept her mouth shut and looked toward the Emperor of Zhou walking out slowly.

Behind him were Marquis Zhao Kai and the princes.

They took their seats and the banquet began.

It started with some singing and dancing, followed by the Yuanmeng ambassador envoy sending their representative to negotiate with the members from the Ministry of Rites to sign the Alliance treaty.

The Gandharva sat in place without moving as she could not be bothered with those worldly affairs.

Instead, she blatantly stared at the majestic Emperor of Zhou.

She felt the emperor was like an old golden dragon seating on the throne, only giving off a strong exterior while his fortune wilted away.

Meanwhile, Marquis Zhao Kai behind the emperor was like a scorching sun, giving off a domineering aura.

The rest of the princes were not worth her attention.

They were mundane and were considered commoners.

From that, one could see that the Zhou Kingdom’s fortune was deteriorating.

“Eh…”

The Gandharva excelled in divination and strategy. Her gaze slightly refocused and landed upon the last kid at the end of the princes’ seats.

Moro seemed to have noticed it as well and shifted his gaze over too.

A hint of surprise appeared on his menacing face.

Two of the Eight Divisions from the Great Boundless Palace exchanged looks and tried to understand what each had to say.

“Innate Buddhist Disciple!”

“Reincarnated spiritual child!”

The Gandharva suppressed her urge.

When the alliance treaty signing was over and the banquet was at its end, she finally stood up and walked up to the front, saying, “Great Saint of Zhou, I’ve heard the Divine Continent is teeming with martial arts with as many varying arts as the stars in the sky, countless heroes like the pearls in the ocean.”

She had an elegant pose and a gentle voice.

The Gandharva’s beauty and figure immediately attracted the attention of many in the great hall.

They paid no heed to the contents of her speech and nodded along.

“Hmph!”

Marquis Zhao Kai frowned and flicked his finger on the desk, making a clear sound.

It was like a giant bell that awakened the charmed crowd.

“Lust leads to the destruction of the body!”

The righteous Imperial Tutor Wen was not charmed as well. He swept a stern look at the ministers in the hall and scoffed at them in a cold voice.

The ministers who lacked willpower and self-control immediately lowered their heads in embarrassment.

“Imperial tutor, it’s fine. There’s no need to reprimand them too much.”

The Emperor of Zhou waved. He had the Imperial Dragon Qi protecting him and was impervious to the effects of regular martial arts.

“The Saint once said that taste drives the mouth, lust drives the eyes, and sound drives the ears. They are but natural instincts.”

“Master Miaozhu did not do it intentionally. When one’s martial arts cultivation is deep, one’s spirit is manifested in each and every action. There’s no need to be surprised.”

The Gandharva bowed lightly and placed her hands together as she said, “Thank you for your magnanimity.

“When I departed from the Great Boundless Palace, my master told me that he longed for the culture of the Divine Continent and yearned to spar with the experts from the Middle Plain to learn.

“My Senior Brother Moro is uneducated in etiquette and said many contemptuous words. However, he’s only doing so to attract the martial arts experts into Tianjing City in order to fulfill my master’s wishes.”

Hearing the Gandharva’s unhurried explanation, the entire hall fell into silence, not understanding what she was trying to say.

“The Middle Plain has an old of ‘the disciple serves the need of the master’.

“Therefore, dear Saint of Zhou, I’m willing to trade five thousand warhorses from the Yuanmeng Plains for a chance for a martial arts sparring!”

Surprise, shock, and confusion!

The Gandharva’s words immediately stirred up a powerful reaction.

5,000 warhorses from the Yuanmeng Plains. That was a great gift.

At the Zhou Kingdom’s peak, they had 400,000 warhorses at the borders.

Along with the horses within Tianjing City’s army camp, ministerial horse, and messenger horses, it came to a total of approximately 900,000.

However, with the lack of warfare for a long time, the Horse Management had grown slack and by then, their numbers were almost halved.

Even when the Emperor of Zhou wished to revolutionize the kingdom, he could not come up with a good solution in a short time.

Nevertheless, the Gandharva claimed to use 5,000 Yuanmeng warhorses in exchange to spar with martial arts experts of the Zhou Kingdom.

That was as good as delivering them as a gift!

The deal was just too good!

“Who would you like to spar with? Marquis Zhao Kai?” The Emperor of Zhou asked with a smile.

“Marquis Zhao Kai has great strength and is renowned for several decades. He’s not someone we can hope to spar with.”

The Gandharva shook her head, then looked at the calm and collected head of Prajna Hall, Master Yuanhui.

“I’ve long heard of the Heavenly Dragon Temple’s deep understanding of Buddhism and martial arts. I would like to experience it today. Is that permissible?”

The Emperor of Zhou looked at Marquis Zhao Kai seated below him as though asking for advice.

The latter nodded slightly. Master Yuanhui’s cultivation stage was far beyond Moro and the Gandharva, Master Miaozhu.

“What does the Master think of this?”

The Emperor of Zhou looked over to the old skinny monk in his seat.

“Why not?”

Master Yuanhui’s hazy eyes moved slightly as he accepted it.

“Since it’s a duel, there should be an ante.”

The Gandharva voiced out once again.

“What would the Saint of Zhou use as an ante of equal value?”

The Emperor was caught slightly off guard but quickly recovered his wits. He chuckled in embarrassment and said, “Dear Master, do tell what has caught your eye.”

The Gandharva had a gentle smile like that of a springtime breeze. She pointed and said, “I feel that the Eleventh Prince of Zhou is fated to Buddhism and can be a successor of the Great Boundless Palace!”