The Ambition to Vie for the Throne

Late at night, the stars glittered brilliantly.

Tang Rouyu accepted the tablet Shen Kou handed her, said, "Thanks," and began swiping across it with her slender fingers. Displayed on the screen was information on the distribution of the many forces throughout Middle-earth.

At present, the ruler of Middle-earth was not mortal humanity, but the commander of the Heavenly Court's celestial troops, dispatched by the Jade Emperor to govern all living beings in the mortal realm. He was an uncrowned king—the Jade Warlord. In the orthodox Journey to the West, however, the one who ruled the realm was Li Shimin. Yet the Jade Warlord, as a god existing in the mortal world, was not without restrictions. The Jade Temple was both the site of his throne and his prison. He could not leave Five Finger Mountain; otherwise, he would lose all his power (this novel's setting) and become even weaker than an ordinary mortal. Although the "celestial soldiers and generals" under his command could leave Five Finger Mountain, their strength would likewise be weakened—this was why, despite bearing the title of "celestial soldiers and generals," they were not particularly powerful. It was precisely for this reason that the Jade Warlord implemented brutal, oppressive policies, inflicting the harshest punishments upon rebels and exterminating nine generations of their families. Only this way could he consolidate his authority and keep everything under his control.

As everyone knew, the crueler a tyrannical regime was, the more easily it provoked resistance from the people and brought about chaotic times. Thus, Middle-earth did not lack forces opposed to the Jade Warlord. On the surface, he appeared to be the absolute king of Middle-earth. Yet in many places, prominent clans, martial factions, immortal sects and hidden abodes, even the lords of certain cities, had long since secretly divided