The Four Great Armies

Chen Lin sneered inwardly, musing to himself:

Hmph. This commotion was probably aimed at testing whether a powerful expert was guarding the Scripture Repository.

After all, the Imperial Lord had made inquiries from every angle and still couldn't get to the bottom of things, while those Nine Nether Sect vermin had sworn there was a powerful expert standing guard.

It seemed they had to "verify" it.

That was why, just as he was about to "die" a moment ago—

Ximen Qing had "happened" to appear at the very last moment.

—If an Ancestor really was stationed there, the assassin would have been doomed. If not... then all they'd lose was some "unimportant" old man guarding the repository.

Too bad he hadn't seen it through to the end. Not that he could really die, anyway.

He could command part of the Scripture Repository's grand array, but at the time, he'd been pretending to be asleep.

If Ximen Qing hadn't intervened—

...Sigh. He'd have had to expend more effort and keep up this clumsy performance.

Chen Lin narrowed his seemingly cloudy but actually sharp old eyes, discreetly glancing at Little Anzi out of the corner of his eye.

The little eunuch looked frightened, but Chen Lin could tell there wasn't a trace of the genuine terror he'd shown earlier in his eyes.

So he's a good actor, too.

"Hahahaha!"

Every last person in this Imperial Palace is a damn award-winning actor!

Chen Lin continued to act as though he were still shaken. With an "aiyo," he swayed and beckoned to Little Anzi. "Little Anzi! Come help this old man up! I was scared to death—truly scared to death!"

Little Anzi had indeed been badly startled. He hurried over and supported Chen Lin, his face etched with fear and his voice trembling. "Elder Lin, just now... that assassin..." Still shaken, he looked in disbelief toward the spot where Ximen Qing had struck.

Chen Lin deliberately bristled his beard and glared at Little Anzi, lowering his voice, though it still quavered with lingering fear. "I nearly bought it back there! Didn't you see? The assassin was right in front of me. His killing chill was almost on my face! If this palace official hadn't arrived in time..."

He paused, his expression touched with relief at having survived a calamity.

Little Anzi quickly chimed in, his voice full of relief. "That's right, Elder Lin. You're truly blessed and lucky to have escaped! That assassin... that assassin was terrifying!"

In the shadowy corner where the two were reenacting their brush with death, the eunuch who had been hiding there watched with dawning understanding.

He said nothing, merely giving a slight nod. Then his figure blurred, vanishing soundlessly like a ghost merging into the darkness.

Feeling that faint presence fade away completely, Chen Lin's lips curled almost imperceptibly. He murmured, "He's gone."

His voice was barely audible, yet Little Anzi, who had just helped him steady himself, immediately grew calm as well.

"I didn't expect the Nine Nether Sect to be so bold as to target you, Elder Lin," Little Anzi said, sounding rather surprised.

Chen Lin gave a soft laugh without denying it. Instead, he added meaningfully, "It wasn't just the Nine Nether Sect..."

His words hung in the air, trailing off with an unspoken implication.

Little Anzi immediately understood the weight behind them. It felt as though a mountain had suddenly settled on his back. He fell silent at once, daring neither to think further nor to speak.

Elsewhere, deep within the palace, moonlight spilled across the ground like liquid silver.

Ximen Qing had quietly appeared beside Imperial Lord Ling Cangqiong. The Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord, who had been in a sorry state earlier, was now standing below them. He was no longer bound with ropes; instead, he had straightened his clothes and arranged his face into an appropriately respectful expression.

"Your Majesty," Ximen Qing began, his voice steady and even. "Just as the assassin was about to succeed and kill Chen Lin, there were indeed no other experts nearby. I sensed no additional presence."

Ling Cangqiong's brows lifted almost imperceptibly.

The Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord below quickly added, "That's right, Your Majesty. I could clearly sense that Chen Lin was still asleep. He was no hidden expert. Had my strike landed, the target would have died without a doubt. He couldn't possibly have had the strength to activate some protective array around the repository."

"My strike would have killed him for certain. There was no chance he could have activated an array."

Ling Cangqiong wondered to himself: That's strange.

He had used his Spiritual Sense to investigate, but hadn't detected anything unusual at the Scripture Repository.

Besides, the eunuchs had only reported that Chen Lin entered the Scripture Repository every night. But as its elder, it was only natural for him to check on the place he was responsible for.

If no one had intervened and Chen Lin wasn't a hidden expert...

Could it be that he only acted when the Scripture Repository faced a truly grave, irreversible crisis?

Ling Cangqiong pondered for a moment, but ultimately shook his head and abandoned the thought.

If I can't figure it out, there's no need to keep dwelling on it. Since the other party is willing to protect the Scripture Repository, even if he isn't that Ancestor of the imperial family, he must at least be wholeheartedly loyal to the Imperial Dynasty.

There's no need to test him again.

"Have you found out who the Divine Son and Divine Maiden are?" Ling Cangqiong asked, fixing the Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord with a sharp gaze.

The Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord shook his head helplessly. "I've never had the standing to approach the Divine Son. Though the order came from him, the Yin Yang Envoys were the ones who passed it along. Someone of my status could only make contact with them."

"However," he continued, "we could make a move and capture the Yin Yang Envoys."

The Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord was clearly a spy Ling Cangqiong had planted in the Nine Nether Sect years ago.

Ling Cangqiong's eyes flashed with contemplation. Then he spoke in a low voice. "Issue the order. Have Li Nan, Great General of the Divine Guard Army, lead his troops to Dizhou immediately and reinforce the region, helping King Zhenyao repel the Demon Race from the Ten Thousand Mountains."

He paused, then added, "But send Li Nan a secret order: when the army reaches Dizhou's border, have them turn suddenly toward Mingzhou. They must catch the Nine Nether Sect Headquarters off guard and capture the Yin Yang Envoys along with this so-called 'Divine Son.' At that time, the Prefect of Dizhou must secretly cooperate and provide full support."

"If everything goes smoothly, we might just be able to take out several of the Nine Nether Sect's leaders in one fell swoop." Ling Cangqiong spoke with certainty, clearly confident in his plans.

The Thousand-Faced Illusion Lord seemed to remember something. His brows drew together as he warned, "The sect's headquarters should have a Venerable guarding it. We have to make sure this goes off without a hitch."

The Nine Nether Sect had three Venerables, each at the sixth layer of the Dharma Aspect Realm. Some even said they had reached the seventh.

Yet Ling Cangqiong's expression didn't change in the slightest. The corner of his mouth even lifted with confidence. "With the Divine Guard Army accompanying them, a mere Venerable is nothing to worry about."

He wasn't boasting.

The Great Yan Imperial Dynasty's renowned Four Great Armies each possessed terrifying might, enough to stand head-on against experts at the eighth or even ninth layer of the Dharma Aspect Realm.

The King Zhenbei Army, King Zhenyao Army, Divine Guard Army, and Nantian Army—these four elite armies formed the Imperial Dynasty's strongest bulwark.