Are all the Ghost Temple in the Southern Wilderness under the same faction?
Chen Qing certainly didn't believe it. If that old dragon girl in the capital could run such a large business, then he would have been the one getting beaten up in the capital that day!
The Ghost Domain was a powerful force, and as a top-tier force with a huge early-game advantage in troop production and far greater late-game strength than the Heavenly Python Palace, why was it often quickly extinguished in the second version?
Why is the Ghost Domain Realm completely unaffected in the later stages of the game?
The reason is simple: the Ghost Domain is severely fragmented.
The path of Samsara and death is naturally a place that all major forces want to control. It is precisely because of this that all places can be unified except for the Ghost Domain. The Four Great Ghost Kings are each backed by top-tier forces. Xiang King Xiang of the old dragon girl in the capital, is an unorthodox figure. In the original story, Ghost King Xiang, with his exceptional talent, rose to prominence and defeated the other three kings, almost unifying the Central Plains. He is the most popular boss among players in the second version!
In many sections, many players even sided with King Xiang, attempting to salvage the last vestiges of the Ghost Domain's glory.
In this world, King Xiang's talent was clearly valued by the guild players, who sent a woman to replace the old dragon girl, seduce the king, and give birth to King Xiang.
Chen Qing Chen Qing King Xiang was still the same person he used to be, but he did know that in the current situation, within the Ghost Domain Realm, King Xiang was definitely being targeted. The Southern Wilderness was such a vast territory; it was already quite an achievement for the capital to be able to pave roads in the Wutu Kingdom, how could it possibly cover the entire Southern Wilderness so quickly?
Furthermore, if the initial investment was made in the Wutu Kingdom, wouldn't it have been the best option to let the Wutu Kingdom unify the Southern Wilderness? Building Ghost Temple in Southern Wilderness kingdoms before unification—aren't you worried about political disagreements?
Moreover, would the other forces in the Ghost Domain just stand by and watch King Xiang's lineage succeed so smoothly in the Southern Wilderness?
Chen Qing certainly wouldn't believe it. A more plausible explanation was that after the Wutu Kingdom set the precedent, other forces in the Ghost Domain Realm immediately lured the emperors of the other kingdoms in the Southern Wilderness, and then each set up their own Ghost Temple to accumulate military strength in the mortal realm for future plans.
This can be seen from the fact that the Southern Wilderness eventually sent troops to occupy the Central Plains. If the Ghost Temple in the Southern Wilderness were all arranged by that old dragon girl, then they should be under the control of the Xiao Household. Why would they need to fight the imperial army first?
Wouldn't it be better to directly occupy the southeast and threaten both Jiangnan and Heavenly Capital?
Only a split would force the Wutu Kingdom to join the coalition and occupy the Central Plains together, at least allowing the Turkic Kingdom to gain more control of the Central Plains' fortunes.
Therefore, Chen Qing judged that the Ghost Domain forces within the Southern Wilderness were definitely not a single entity; perhaps all four were involved.
He had inquired and learned that the Azi Kingdom was the last to join the game, but it was the fastest to build the Ghost Temple, which made Chen Qing suspicious.
As the designer, he naturally knew that Ghost Temple couldn't be built at will; they required the cooperation of both the Yin-Yang Road. Given the terrain and fortune of the Azi Kingdom, the construction speed should theoretically be the slowest, but that wasn't the case. In just three months, more than fifty Ghost Temple were built, and three thousand armored soldiers were blessed, catching up with the scale of other countries in the shortest time.
Perhaps in the eyes of other countries, the ruler of the Azi Kingdom was a warmonger who ignored the people's grievances, but Chen Qing knew that the Ghost King's forces on the Yin-Yang Road had used special methods to build the bridge so quickly in the Azi Kingdom, and they had to pay a certain price.
Why go to such lengths to expand so hastily, at such a cost?
It's almost obvious that the forces behind the Azi Kingdom were slow to make their moves!
The Four Great Ghost Kings are all enemies of each other. Since it has fallen behind, it will naturally choose to annex the forces of the other Ghost King if given the opportunity. To obstruct it? How could that be possible?
Knowing that the Ghost Domain forces behind the Azi Kingdom would agree to betray them, he sent Yuchi Feihu there, predicting that there was at least an 80% chance that Yuchi Feihu would persuade them.
As for scheming against oneself after agreeing?
The possibility is almost nonexistent.
After listening to Chen Qing's explanation, both Tian Heng and Ao Zhen looked at Chen Qing with surprise, especially Ao Zhen.
The Ghost Domain Realm has always been the most mysterious force, so why is Chen Qing so clear about the situation below?
"Does Your Majesty perhaps know who is behind the Azi Kingdom?" Ao Zhen suddenly asked, her curiosity piqued. She wanted to know just how many secrets this human knew.
"It's highly likely to be King Chujiang."
" King Chujiang?" Tian Heng looked at Chen Qing curiously. As a mortal, he knew nothing about the so-called Ghost Domain. Now that he had the opportunity to hear Chen Qing and Ao Zhen talk about these ancient forces, he was naturally curious.
"Of the Four Great Ghost Kings, King Chujiang and King Xiang harbored the deepest grudge." Chen Qing squinted. "That can't be wrong, can it?"
Ao Zhen was taken aback and nodded slightly. She had read the ancient history of the Dragon Palace and knew some ancient records. Back then, King Chujiang occupied the entire south, but he never expected to be defeated by a wild seed who rose from the border region!
Seeing Ao Zhen nod, Chen Qing felt a little relieved. It seemed that history hadn't changed much. But then again, if history didn't change, it would be the easiest for players to control.
In fact, he had guessed that history should not have changed, otherwise he wouldn't have seen King Chujiang next to Tomb of King Xiang when he went to Yin-Yang Road.
Standing guard over someone's grave all the time—if it's not out of vigilance, is it just because they've eaten too much?
" King Chujiang has always been wary of King Xiang, probably scheming in the capital and trying to prevent his rise to King Xiang. He never expected that the other would preach in the Southern Wilderness. The Southern Wilderness lacks the fortune of the Central Plains, making it very difficult to open a passage there. At least two kings would need to unite. In other words, King Xiang's forces have successfully formed Alliance with a certain Ghost King."
" King Chujiang is the least likely to ally with King Xiang, so he should be the one who is least informed. Considering the hasty construction of the Ghost Temple by the Azi Kingdom, it's like they just received the news and went to seize territory, but there's not much left to seize. King Chujiang is the most likely candidate."
"I see!" Ao Zhen nodded upon hearing this, "Your Majesty's analysis is indeed thorough."
Tian Heng listened with a mixture of understanding and confusion, but he kept these thoughts in mind. He had never dared to imagine it before, but now he knew that following Chen Qing, it wouldn't be long before he would be facing those legendary ancient figures!
"Go and prepare; we will attack the city tonight!"
"Should we attack the city tonight?" Tian Heng was taken aback, feeling a pang of heartache. There were still four days left. If they started attacking now, there would be three days left before the planned attack. If they started attacking continuously now, the losses would be even greater.
"We can't possibly wait until reinforcements are almost here before attacking the city, can we?" Chen Qing rolled his eyes at the other person. "If we don't put enough pressure on them, why would they go all in and choose to use Second Blessing just when reinforcements are about to arrive?"
Tian Heng sighed. He understood the principle: a merciful general cannot command an army, and some losses were inevitable.
--
Do you think Chen Qing can capture Tiannan Pass?
In the Ghost Temple of the Azi Kingdom, a short figure was discussing Chen Qing, who was thousands of miles away, with a short old man in the very center of the Azi Kingdom Ghost Temple.
If Chen Qing were here, he would definitely tremble, because the young man who spoke was none other than the lone wolf player who forced him and Heavenly Secrets to flee for their lives: Quefeng!
"Since he's come to cooperate, he must be capable," the short old man chuckled. "He's indeed no ordinary person. I knew he was extraordinary from the start, but I didn't expect him to be this powerful. He truly has a chance to shake those above."
Just as Chen Qing had predicted, the short old man was none other than the one Chen Qing feared most: King Chujiang!
"Is there any chance of shaking the top?" Quefeng narrowed her eyes slightly. "Really? Don't try to fool me."
"When have I ever lied to you?" King Chujiang rolled his eyes at the other man!
"If you hadn't fooled me back then, would I have been sealed away for so many years?"
"If it weren't for me back then, you would have been dead long ago!" King Chujiang stared coldly at his opponent. "Do you really think they can't kill players?"
There will be one more update, but it will probably be after midnight.