Chapter 1208: The Night Before the Storm

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Ye Futian said, smiling, “Thanks, I appreciate that, Your Highness.”

Standing nearby, Xia Qingyuan took a glance at him before rapidly looking away.

“The situation of Dali is, King Tiandao has led his army to the border of our Emperor Xia’s Realm. They are ready to attack, and the Saint General has to confront them in person. This time, Emperor Li’s Realm seems to have prepared a scheme and is coordinating with the actions taken here. Dali Empire is determined to win this time. We must defend against them cautiously,” said Xia Rong. He suddenly changed his topic, his tone turning serious. The atmosphere suddenly shifted.

Xia Rong had a powerful enough aura to control the atmosphere around him.

“The princess prepared for it beforehand,” said Ye Futian.

“Yes,” Xia Rong said, nodding. “I think you all know what kind of figure the Dali Imperial Advisor is. In the Dali Empire, he is only second to their emperor and is very venerated. He has come to Crimson Dragon Realm in person, and I believe they have secretly arranged for other people to do the same. I have received word from Dali that Prince Regent probably has left his residence, too.”

Ye Futian frowned. Were things getting more serious?

Before long, he let Xia Qingyuan release the message as bait to lure Li Yao into assassinating him.

As long as Li Yao dared to go, Ye Futian would not let him return.

But Li Yao had sent Imperial Advisor to Crimson Dragon Realm, and the situation seemed to be expanding as a result. Now it was likely to become a conflict between two realms, going beyond Ye Futian’s expectations. The plans Ye Futian had arranged probably shouldn’t be applied to these circumstances.

The rulers of Dali seemed to have achieved an agreement. Getting Ye Futian may not be their only goal.

“Your Highness, how about entering the residence first and then talking?” suggested the Great Shaman. Everyone agreed. Only then did they head toward the Lord’s Residence.

Ye Futian knew with certainty that Li Yao had blocked Yu Sheng during the Battle of Crimson River because he’d wanted Di Hao to show their strength to him. Di Hao was the one who’d lost completely.

Next would be the battle between them.

One could say the battle would not only be about the grudge between those two, but between two entire realms.

Ye Futian also had to take into consideration Xiang Nan’s letter.

It would be a disaster if Xiang Nan meddled at a crucial moment.

He needed to be careful.

In the Lord’s Residence, Ye Futian went to Shen Tianzhan’s cultivation temple and met Shen Tianzhan.

“Sorry to disturb your cultivation, sir,” said Ye Futian. In the temple, Shen Tianzhan opened his eyes and saw Ye Futian bowing to him.

“What brings Lord Ye here today?” asked Shen Tianzhan. He already had a guess as to what Ye Futian was about to say.

“Let me be honest with you, sir. I’ve come to Crimson Dragon Realm because of the feud between me and Prince Li Yao of Emperor Li’s Realm. That feud might soon bring about a disturbance. That’s why I came here today to ask you for help,” said Ye Futian.

“Even though my cultivation has reached the Nirvana Plane, it is far beyond my ability to intervene in a disturbance between Renhuang Realms. Thousand Leaves City is a lesson for me. You easily obtained it,” Shen Tianzhan said, looking at him carefully.

“Sir, I think you can see that Emperor Xia’s Realm is planning to stand guard for the long term. If you are willing to take part in the battle, you will become one of us. Emperor Xia’s Realm can take your risk for you. Even if the situation here is not stable, you can always retreat to Emperor Xia’s Realm,” continued Ye Futian.

“You mean, have me work for Emperor Xia’s Realm?” Shen Tianzhan asked calmly.

“As I’ve said before, I will give the city back to you after the turbulence passes. If nothing happens here in Crimson Dragon Realm, there will be no need for you to go to Emperor Xia’s Realm. I was talking about the worst-case scenario. You don’t have to become an underling of Emperor Xia’s Realm,” explained Ye Futian. “And of course, I am just inviting you to support us, since Thousand Leaves City requires your strength to win. If you agree to this, you can put forward conditions. If you disagree, you can just forget what I’ve said.”

“Any condition?” asked Shen Tianzhan.

“Any condition I can reasonably fulfill, but I don’t believe you will push me beyond my limit,” said Ye Futian.

“Good.” Shen Tianzhan nodded.

Ye Futian paused for a second and looked at him expectantly.

“I promise I will join the battle,” said Shen Tianzhan. His resolution surprised Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked at Shen Tianzhan and asked, “Sir, what are your conditions?”

“I haven’t decided yet. I will say tell you once I make my decision,” said Shen Tianzhan.

Ye Futian was just a Doctrine Saint on the first level of Saint Plane. Even though he could take acquire some treasures or promise to fulfill some conditions using his status in Emperor Xia’s Realm, what use did Shen Tianzhan have of the Nirvana Plane?

Shen Tianzhan’s cultivation meant that he didn’t need to ask anything of Ye Futian yet, so he let Ye Futian owe him a favor. One day, he would find a chance to use it.

But of course, that could not happen if Ye Futian fell on his way of cultivation.

“Thank you very much, sir,” Ye Futian said with a deep bow.

“I’ll say this first… I will abandon this fight if it is to be a fatal battle or a losing one from the start,” said Shen Tianzhan.

“Sure,” Ye Futian said and nodded. Of course, he would not waste a Nirvana Saint’s life in exchange for one condition.

His condition wasn’t worth it.

…

In Xiang City, the subordinate that Xiang Nan had sent to Thousand Leaves City had returned and reported on what had happened there and given the storage ring to Xiang Nan.

Xiang Nan’s mind entered the ring. He sneered when he saw the things inside.

“Ye Futian is the lord of a city. Isn’t he also an important person in Emperor Xia’s Realm? Why is he so stingy?” murmured Xiang Nan. The contents of the ring were abundant resources for a common cultivator of the Saint Plane.

But Xiang Nan already owned better things than these.

Was Ye Futian treating him like a beggar?

The conflict between Emperor Li’s Realm and Emperor Xia’s Realm was already so tense, and Xiang Nan had explained everything clearly in the letter. Why was Ye Futian still ignoring his existence?

Or did it mean that Ye Futian was certain that Xiang Nan didn’t dare to get involved in the conflict?

“You go to Dali Imperial City and tell Li Yao that I will be present on the battlefield when the day comes,” said Xiang Nan. There was a smile spreading across his face. Whether he joined the battle or not, he could at least be an audience and enjoy the show.

Still, he’d just sent the message to Li Yao that he would be present. He would not promise anything and leave the rest to Li Yao’s imagination.

“Aye,” the messenger answered, nodding. He soon left and headed toward Li City.

After the messenger left, Xiang Nan’s face turned expressionless. His goal in Crimson Dragon’s Realm had been to join the Battle of Crimson River and cultivate at the Regional Palace.

However, he’d failed and been humiliated. He couldn’t just let that go and leave in disgrace.

He wanted to gain something from them, no matter what it was, and enjoy the show.

When the shorebird and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits from it. The Dali Prince Li Yao had come to deliver him an opportunity in person. How could Xiang Nan let it slip by?

Soon, the messenger sent by Xiang Nan delivered the letter to Li City.

Li Yao didn’t show any sign of satisfaction when he received the message. After the messenger had departed, Li Yao frowned slightly. He was not pleased.

He understood what Xiang Nan meant. Xiang Nan hadn’t promised anything and would act according to the situation.

But he had explained his conditions to Xiang Nan.

Xiang Nan hadn’t accepted his invitation, yet he was ready to maximize his benefits from the conflict between them and Emperor Xia’s Realm without paying a price.

This son of Emperor Xia liked playing mind games.

However, even though Li Yao was not very pleased, he didn’t show it. At least he knew Xiang Nan would not go against them and would only be a threat to their opponents. Although Li Yao hadn’t achieved his goal, there might still be an unexpected outcome waiting for him. He didn’t rest all his hopes on Xiang Nan’s shoulders anyway.

He’d done what he needed to do.

Keeping this in mind, Li Yao got up and walked to another villa. He saw Yan Yuan and greeted him. “Mr. Yan Yuan.”

“What brings you here, sir?” asked Yan Yuan.

“I am here for the Imperial Advisor,” said Li Yao. As he said that, the Dali Imperial Advisor walked by. He looked toward Li Yao with brooding eyes and greeted him, “Your Highness.”

“The Imperial Advisor should have known that the Frist Prince, Xia Rong, of Emperor Xia’s Realm has reached Thousand Leaves City, correct?” asked Li Yao.

The relationship between the two sides was tense. They both had informers in each other’s cities, so public news like this was immediately reported to Li Yao when it was released.

“Yes,” the Imperial Advisor replied, nodding.

“Your Highness, people from Emperor Xia’s Realm didn’t leave Thousand Leaves City after hearing we were there, which means they have already prepared to fight. Although we have public knowledge of their strength, can you be certain that Emperor Xia’s Realm isn’t hiding other powers?” asked the Imperial Advisor. “And if we make a bold attempt to start the war, I am afraid that any blunder will harm your safety.”

“Other Dali people have come, too. Imperial Advisor, you can take action,” Li Yao said to the Imperial Advisor.

Imperial Advisor looked at Li Yao and was silent for a moment. Finally, he nodded and said, “I see. If you’re sure you don’t want to wait, I will get down to preparations.”

“Thank you, Imperial Advisor,” said Li Yao, nodding. He soon turned around and left. Although he was still being polite, he no longer respected the Imperial Advisor.

Seeing him leaving, the Imperial Advisor let out a sigh.

“Yan Yuan,” the Imperial Advisor called.

“Master, I am here,” answered Yan Yuan.

“You know that I am just an ordinary old man without much ambition. I just want to take responsibility as a father. No matter what happens in the future, please take care of Fei Xue for me,” said the Imperial Advisor.

Yan Yuan stared blankly at him. His face turned pale. He said, “No matter what the results of the battle will be, based on your strength, you will not be harmed.”

“Not everything is within our control,” continued the Imperial Advisor. “This is my task for you.”

Yan Yuan was silent for a second. “Yes, Master.”

He looked determined. No matter what his master had foreseen, he would try his best in the battle and not let his master go into danger.

A nation’s decline begins at the pinnacle of its power. He had served the Dali Dynasty for many years, and now the Dynasty had reached the apex of its martial power.

However, the atmosphere in Dali was not like had been before. It had changed!