With the rear unstable, even if Meng Zhao could truly sit firmly in the position of lord of the Northern Lands, he still risked having his home base raided at any moment. Not to mention that if someone really used the Supreme Scepter and rallied the full strength of the Hundred Clans remnants, it would no longer be a sneak attack on his rear—it would be an open, head-on assault. Meng Zhao might not necessarily be able to withstand it.
Thus, Meng Zhao had one thought regarding the Supreme Scepter: either it would be in his hands, or no one would get it.
Moreover, the former took far greater priority than the latter.
With the Supreme Scepter in hand, Meng Zhao need not even use the strength of the Hundred Clans remnants to conquer the Divine Land. Simply avoiding being targeted by the Arctic Ice Plains would free up a great deal of immediately deployable combat power, an enormous benefit to the three northern provinces.
Liang Prefecture actually had many troops and capable generals, but a large portion of its strength was concentrated at Heaven Pass, guarding against the Hundred Clans remnants of the Arctic Ice Plains.
Zhao Rulíng was not surprised by Meng Zhao's request. Instead, he weighed the gains and losses for himself.
To him, returning to Imperial Capital City earlier or later made no difference.
As for Yu Changkong, leave aside whether he could return to Imperial Capital City while fleeing the Heavenly Demon Palace Lord's pursuit. Even if he did return, he would instead become powerful testimony that Zhao Rulíng's injuries were grave and that he had to remain in the Meng Family to recuperate, giving Zhao Rulíng room to maneuver.
Therefore, so long as this matter was handled discreetly enough, it would have little impact