With concerns weighing on his heart, Wan Tiancheng grew even more absent-minded. He could only ponder what the great conspiracy his father spoke of was, what role his master played in it, what part Xiang Yang would have to play, and how he himself should handle it...
Still, he remembered Wan Dongliu's warning. Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, he nodded and replied,
"I understand, Father. But you've spoken in such a roundabout, half-veiled way that it makes one's heart uneasy. Why not speak plainly?"
Wan Dongliu sighed, shook his head, and said no more. He merely watched the pedestrians beyond the window, lost in thought.
What this great conspiracy was, he did not actually know either. But Shui Wuhen had clearly told him that for thousands of years, the demonic sects had never been accepted by the orthodox path or recognized by the dynasty, and had always lived under suppression.
This time, Emperor Shengwu of the Great Zhou Dynasty had conferred recognition upon the demonic sects. The message behind it was anything but simple. Even now, no one knew why Emperor Shengwu had done such a thing.
He had always trusted Shui Wuhen's words without question. Moreover, he had always felt that Shui Wuhen's attitude toward the demonic sects was exceedingly strange—half expectant, half resistant, like wanting to refuse while welcoming all the same, to the point of seeming somewhat possessed.
This time, Shui Wuhen had sent him and Wan Tiancheng to watch the battle in a small county town of Yanxi Commandery, and had also ordered them to bring Xiang Yang back to the Great River Alliance. It was clearly connected to the hesitation and conflict in Shui Wuhen's heart. Wan Dongliu was quite certain of his guess.
Not far from the Wan father and son, two others