Beginning

This is the moment he's been waiting for. Today has finally arrived. He's been hiding for so long, all to lure the other side here. Now it seems that the Chu Emperor's plan worked perfectly.

"Since you said you can't use your soul power, then tell me who you are and what your purpose is. You have to give me a clear answer, right?" Although Liu Yue was secretly delighted, he appeared calm and composed on the surface and said this with an air of nonchalance.

The two men who had been captured exchanged glances. One of them, who was slightly taller, spoke up, "The things that have happened recently were actually all our doing. With your intelligence, you should be able to guess it. We've come here to invite you to join us. Anyway, you've already betrayed the Great Chu Kingdom and are like a rat crossing the street. Why don't you come with us?"

The man spoke in a very arrogant tone, as if he were giving Liu Yue a great deal of face by inviting Liu Yue to join, rather than making an invitation.

"What are the benefits of joining you?" Liu Yue asked, stroking his chin.

The tall man looked arrogant and said, "There will naturally be benefits. This time, they will definitely lose. If you still stand on their side, you will only have one way out: death. So the benefit we can give you is to give you a way out. But before that, I need to know some things."

"What do you want to know?" Liu Yue asked.

Upon hearing this answer, a hint of smugness flashed in the tall man's eyes, but he quickly concealed it.

These people were all sent out to find out the location of Liu Yue and his group, and they had to find out why Liu Yue and his group had defected.

Everything else was alright. Through their observations over this period of time, they discovered that the Great Chu Kingdom was indeed pursuing them relentlessly. However, the reason for their defection remained unclear, so they had not returned to report back.

Actually, they also learned about Liu Yue and his group's defection through some indirect means, including some rumors, and they were afraid of being implicated.

But these are all rumors. If they were to actually take them back to report, given Ning Weiyue's temper, she would skin them alive.

So, after discussing it together, they decided to have the two of them come over, ask them directly for the reason, and then report back to Ning Weiyue based on the information they had gathered.

As for how Ning Weiyue analyzes and thinks after the report, that's not their concern.

They've asked around to find out everything they can. As for whether this news is true or false, no one can verify it. After all, you can't expect the other party to swear a solemn oath, and even if they did, there's always a chance it might be false.

So, they were only responsible for gathering information.

As for why they weren't afraid of facing two saints, it's quite simple.

Because that being had promised them that if they were victorious, they could all be resurrected.

If you can be resurrected, what's there to be afraid of?

Now, seeing these two people about to attain sainthood and reveal their reasons, they finally felt a sense of relief. Once they received a reply, they could return to report.

"Our defection is quite simple. Besides seeing that the current situation is not right, more importantly, we want to establish a true Great Yue Kingdom." After thinking for a moment, Liu Yue decided to proceed according to the established plan.

The overall direction must not change. As for minor changes, that depends on the specific circumstances, and so far nothing unexpected has happened.

Bai Zhong stood aside, serving as a background figure, completely unwilling to speak.

He is extremely adept at charging into battle and deploying troops.

But he's not really suited to playing these kinds of tricks and schemes. It's better for him to keep quiet and reduce the chance of revealing his weaknesses than to get involved in them.

The tall man said in a deep voice, "Why do you want to rebuild the Great Yue Kingdom? You should be doing very well now. After becoming a vassal of the Great Chu Kingdom, you won't have to worry about anything else."

Liu Yue gave him a strange look and asked, "Are you aware of what happened before?"

The tall man was speechless for a moment, then nodded.

After their resurrection, they still had some understanding of these things.

The present-day Great Yue Kingdom is a vassal state. Previously, it was one of the three major powers, but now it has inexplicably become a subordinate state.

Adding to what Liu Yue just said, the tall man seemed to have guessed something.

Not content with mediocrity!

The former three powers have now submitted to one of them. No one would feel happy about this, since they were all in the same position before, but now they have inexplicably been relegated to a lower level. This is the source of the imbalance.

If they hadn't appeared, this incident probably wouldn't have happened. But now that the Great Chu Kingdom is facing a great calamity, it seems reasonable for Liu Yue to take advantage of this time to escape with his men.

This way, we can not only escape this disaster, but also take this opportunity to see if there is any chance of a conflict between the two, where the fisherman benefits.

If this is indeed possible, he can use this opportunity to make a comeback.

Liu Yue laughed and said, "Now do you understand why we defected? If you don't even understand this, you're not even qualified to cooperate with me."

The tall man nodded and said, "I roughly understand."

Liu Yue asked, "Now that you understand, tell me what you plan to do? How should we cooperate? Since it's cooperation, we should all be open-minded and honest with each other."

"I've only learned about your situation so far. As for the specifics of how to cooperate, I can't make that decision yet. I'll ask my superiors when I get back," the tall man said.

Liu Yue raised his hand, said nothing, but made a gesture of invitation.

The tall man understood that Liu Yue didn't want to waste any more words and wanted him to go back quickly, inform his superiors, and make a decision before any further talks could be possible.

Without saying another word, he clasped his hands in a fist salute, and left with another companion.

After the tall man and his companion left, Bai Zhong, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke.

"Should we send someone to follow them? It might be easier if we can keep up with them and find their location."

Liu Yue shook his head and said, "There's no need to follow them. Since they dared to come, they must have a way to escape our pursuit. If they discover us, it will be bad, as it will expose some of our information and cause unnecessary suspicion."

Bai Zhong thought about it for a moment and agreed that it made sense, so he stopped worrying about it.

Anyway, Liu Yue was in charge of all the brain work, and all he needed to do was lead troops and fight battles; the rest was none of his business.

"Are we really going to capture them all alive this time?" Bai Zhong changed the subject and asked.

Liu Yue nodded and said, "According to His Majesty's wishes, capture them alive if possible. If it is impossible to capture them, then there is nothing we can do. In any case, under the premise of ensuring safety, try to capture them alive and bring them back."

Bai Zhong hummed in agreement.

Liu Yue said, "Don't worry about that. Let's wait patiently. Since they've come to us, there's definitely a possibility of cooperation, and the possibility is extremely high."

"We still need to be careful. I have a feeling the other party is cunning," Bai Zhong said.

After discussing it further, the two stopped talking and waited patiently.

On the other side, the tall man and his companions met up with the others and, without saying much, headed straight in one direction.

As they left, the surrounding space shifted, completely obscuring their figures. Even experts would be unable to discern their whereabouts.

They barely stopped and sped off in that direction.

It didn't take long for them to arrive at that mysterious sea area.

Within the sea, Ning Weiyue held a piece of paper in her hand, reading it carefully.

"In just a few more months, we would have worn them down to death and forced them to change tactics. Then it would have been our turn again. Unfortunately, these guys are about to come back to life."

Ning Weiyue turned her head and looked behind her. Among the countless, densely packed, twisted figures, some had become slightly clearer, a sign that they were about to be resurrected.

She was somewhat speechless. Her plan was flawless, leaving the other party with only the choice between being worn down or completely giving up. But now, in order to seize the credit, she had no choice but to take a risky approach.

"If you give me more time, this credit will be mine!" Ning Weiyue clenched her fists, her beautiful face revealing endless murderous intent.

The people around didn't dare to breathe, all looking down at their toes, without saying a word.

"Report!"

Just then, a loud shout came from the distant horizon.

Ning Weiyue regained her composure and looked in the direction of the sound, her narrow eyes slightly narrowed.

In her line of sight, the tall man and his companions hurriedly descended from the sky and landed in front of her.

"Speak!" Ning Weiyue said succinctly.

These people were all personally dispatched by her to gather information about the Great Yue Kingdom. Now that they have returned in such a hurry, they should have made some progress.

The tall man quickly told everything he knew, then stepped aside and remained silent.

He has fulfilled his responsibilities and completed his task. As for what decisions need to be made afterward, that is the person in front of him's business and has nothing to do with him.

After listening, Ning Weiyue fell into deep thought and remained silent for a long time.

In fact, no matter how much you inquire, this is all the information you can get. The other party's reasons are quite valid and seem to make no mistakes.

However, if you believe everything you hear, you might end up in a deep pit.

Anyone with a normal mind knows that you can't completely trust someone, but as the leader here, she was thinking about how to make use of this relationship.

This way, their situation won't be exposed, and they can perfectly make the other side work for them.

"Do you have any ideas?" Ning Weiyue asked.

One person's strength is ultimately limited. Since there are so many people, she thought it would be better for everyone to discuss it together.

Unexpectedly, after the question was asked, everyone present fell silent, their gazes wandering, and some even looked up at the sky as if they hadn't heard it.

Ning Weiyue's red lips twitched slightly.

This situation made her want to kill all the people in front of her, but their behavior was actually normal.

As the leader of this operation, I have the right to command them, but I also bear the corresponding responsibility. If a decision is wrong, I will be the one to take the blame. If these guys offer different suggestions, I will also be held jointly responsible.

It's actually quite simple: if you have the power to lead, you also have the responsibility to take the blame; you can't let others take the blame for you.

If the decision is wrong, then you'll have to take the blame.

Ning Weiyue had a headache. She rubbed her temples and sighed, "How about this? I'll think of a way first. One of you contact them and tell them that cooperation is possible, but they must show a cooperative attitude."

"We will send some people to join them, and then have them take these people and stand by for the time being. As for what to do next, I will inform them, and they don't need to ask any more questions."

"You can go. You've been there before and you know the way."

The tall man Ning Weiyue pointed at paused for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

But when the tall man agreed, he still hesitated slightly, unsure whether he should say something or not, and seemed to stammer.

Ning Weiyue said indifferently, "Are you trying to ask me what my plan is?"

The tall man quickly shook his head and said, "This subordinate wouldn't dare!"

He was indeed puzzled. Simply sending people over without implementing any strategy seemed rather strange.

Ning Weiyue said, "So you can only stand at this level and can't go any higher. Send people to go deep into their territory so that I can truly understand whether they are real or fake, and also stabilize them to show that we will cooperate. But the timing is not right yet. This is a win-win solution."

"I know you're all in a hurry because the next batch of people will be resurrected soon, but no matter how anxious you are, you have to stay calm."

At this point, Ning Weiyue slowly stood up.

She took two small steps, her armor clattering as she moved.

"If they really are defecting, then I will devise a good plan to speed things up."

"If they are fake, their defection can be used to turn the tables and launch a counterattack."

"Give me a little more time. Don't worry, the credit won't be stolen. Victory will definitely be ours. I will definitely come up with a way that satisfies both sides!"

Those present exchanged glances, nodded, and bowed their heads respectfully.

"We will leave everything to the general's command; we will simply charge into battle!"

Ning Weiyue waved her hand, no longer caring, and let them go about their business.

After these people left, she rubbed her forehead, looking rather worried.

"What are some good solutions in the short term?"