Chapter 152. Orthodox-Unorthodox War (1)
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Nameless King.”
The S-rank Constellation ‘Taoist of Transformation,’ Yang Jian, welcomed me with a broad smile.
But I immediately sucked in a breath.
Why is he so damn handsome?
Yang Jian looked to be in his early to mid-twenties.
He had strikingly refined features, with long black hair carrying a faint blue tint.
The long white robes he wore suited him perfectly.
Come to think of it, wasn’t he described as handsome in Investiture of the Gods too?
I had been shocked by Princess Longji’s beauty when I first met her.
Yang Jian was just as remarkable.
“You’ve come a long way. Please, this way.”
Yang Jian’s throne had a completely different atmosphere from any place I had visited before.
A small traditional Chinese house stood there, with an elegant garden spread out in front of it.
There was even a stream running through the garden.
I had no idea where the water came from or where it flowed to.
Did this cost even more than Arjuna’s movie theater screen?
Creating something like this in the Spirit Realm must have required an enormous amount of Origin Power.
That alone told me Yang Jian had reached a very high level even among S-rank Constellations.
“Please, sit here.”
A luxurious table and chairs had been prepared.
As I sat down, a fluffy dog suddenly appeared from somewhere.
“Woof! Woof!”
"...!"
It was my first time seeing an animal in the Spirit Realm, so I was genuinely surprised.
Don’t tell me... the Howling Celestial Hound?
The Howling Celestial Hound was a divine beast that accompanied Yang Jian.
In Journey to the West, when Erlang Zhenjun and the heavenly forces pursued Sun Wukong, it even played a decisive role by biting and subduing him.
“I’ll serve you some tea.”
That wasn’t the end of the surprises.
Yang Jian actually brought out hot tea.
I knew Lee Gyu somehow obtained alcohol and drank it, but apparently it was possible to boil water and steep tea leaves here too.
“It is an honor to finally meet you, Nameless King.”
“The honor is mine, Taoist of Transformation.”
“I have heard of the many feats you accomplished in Korea. They were truly remarkable.”
Yang Jian lifted his teacup.
“I’m embarrassed to admit that I wasn’t able to watch all of them live. I saw your earlier activities through Constellation Tube, but I had no choice but to be impressed.”
“My Contractors were excellent.”
“Haha. You shouldn’t say that.”
His voice was calm and gentle.
“I know it was all your design, Nameless King.”
“I’m not so sure about that.”
“The Hero of the Golden Bridle, Witch of the Eagle, Priest King, Hero of Nine Dragons, Shining Guardian... you brought down all those renowned Constellations.”
Yang Jian smiled.
“You are truly a revolutionary.”
"..."
“And starting with the King of Avengers, even exceptional Constellations such as the Pure-White Hero and Grand Preceptor of the Golden Whip think highly of you.”
“You even have Constellations like the Leader of the Expedition moving almost like your own limbs.”
“I wouldn’t say I control him like that...”
“Regardless, you are an extraordinary existence.”
Yang Jian was praising me for everything he possibly could.
“You have no idea how pleased I am that you entered China.”
“I see.”
“However... there is one thing that concerns me.”
“What is it?”
“China is vast.”
He paused.
“And extremely complicated.”
I already knew that.
It was one of the reasons I had personally descended into China.
“There will certainly be situations where handling things alone becomes too difficult.”
"..."
“Nameless King, I want to help you.”
“If you’re willing to help, I’d be grateful.”
I answered calmly.
“Many people are already helping me. If you lend your strength as well, it would certainly be useful.”
“Nameless King, I’m not talking about cooperation at that level.”
Yang Jian smiled.
“I’m suggesting that we work together as true allies.”
“I’m not sure exactly what you mean.”
“I originally belonged to an organization called the Mountain-Sea Alliance.”
“Yes. I’ve heard about it.”
“But I left several years ago.”
“Do you know why?”
“Why?”
“Because they lacked ambition.”
“Ambition?”
“The ambition to change the world.”
So he really had been dissatisfied with the Mountain-Sea Alliance.
“The Grand Preceptor of the Golden Whip, who currently leads the organization, follows a policy of avoiding interference in the human world whenever possible.”
“That does seem to be his stance.”
The Grand Preceptor of the Golden Whip.
Wen Zhong respected human autonomy.
He believed the human world should be shaped by humans, while Constellations should only offer a little guidance from the side.
Though very few Constellations interfere with the human world in the first place.
Most Constellations simply watched.
Whether it was their own Contractors or someone else’s, the pattern was usually the same.
They might send messages telling Contractors to do this or that, but among the Constellations watching, fewer than ten percent ever said anything.
More than ninety percent simply lurked silently.
Most Constellations only bestowed Blessings when their own Contractors needed them, or threw sponsorship money at Contractors they wanted to cheer for.
Yang Jian and I, who directly issued instructions to Contractors in an attempt to influence the human world, were unusual cases.
“The Mountain-Sea Alliance possesses tremendous power, yet fails to use it properly.”
Yang Jian frowned slightly.
“It’s unfortunate.”
“So that’s why you left?”
“Yes.”
Yang Jian nodded.
“Afterward, I decided to seize control of the White Forest Alliance.”
“The White Forest Alliance Leader, Yang Weizheng, is contracted with Randeng Daoren... the S-rank Constellation ‘Immortal of the Lamp,’ who belongs to the Mountain-Sea Alliance.”
“But Randeng Daoren had effectively left him alone, so there was no real problem.”
"..."
“I formed an alliance with other like-minded Constellations and brought the White Forest Alliance’s key executives over to my side.”
“What about the Alliance Leader?”
“The Alliance Leader... has a great deal of pride, so I do not give him direct orders.”
Yang Jian smiled faintly.
“But his principles are simple, so moving him in the direction I want is not particularly difficult.”
“I see.”
“In any case.”
He cleared his throat and raised one hand.
“Nameless King, first take a look at the current balance of power in China.”
The instant he said that, a large screen appeared on the wall.
A huge map of China was displayed.
The north, controlled by Pandemonium, was colored red.
Across the south, dozens of white and black stars were scattered.
“The white stars are Orthodox Faction organizations.”
“The black stars are Unorthodox Faction organizations.”
Yang Jian pointed.
“The largest white star in Chongqing to the west is the White Forest Alliance headquarters.”
“And the largest black star in Shanghai to the east is the Black Dragon Society headquarters.”
“There’s also a fairly large white star in Shanghai.”
“Yes. That is the White Forest Alliance’s Shanghai Branch.”
The west seemed to contain more Orthodox forces, while the east had more Unorthodox forces.
But they weren’t cleanly divided.
Both sides were tangled together.
“Chaotic, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
“In this state, even if Pandemonium invades, they cannot unite their strength.”
It might have been easier if every faction had been concentrated on one side.
“That is why I made you that proposal.”
"..."
Yang Jian’s proposal.
He wanted Kang Yujin to move with the White Forest Alliance and attack the Black Dragon Society.
“As I told you several times through messages... Kang Yujin and the White Forest Alliance’s Shanghai Branch must strike the Black Dragon Society headquarters in Shanghai.”
"..."
“The Shanghai Branch alone lacks the strength.”
“But with Kang Yujin, it becomes possible.”
“All Kang Yujin needs to do is eliminate the Black Dragon Society’s key executives.”
On the screen, the black star marking the Black Dragon Society headquarters disappeared.
Then white stars across the country began moving and attacking the surrounding black stars.
“After that, the Orthodox forces across China will move simultaneously under the leadership of the White Forest Alliance headquarters.”
“If the Black Dragon Society headquarters falls, the smaller Unorthodox organizations will surrender quickly.”
One by one, the black stars turned white.
Eventually, all of southern China became covered in white.
“With that, the conflict between the Orthodox and Unorthodox Factions ends.”
“Chinese Contractor society will be unified under the Orthodox Faction.”
At first glance, it looked like a massive force capable of facing Pandemonium, which had painted the north red.
Yang Jian intended to unify southern China this way and confront Pandemonium.
“Are you really fine telling me your entire plan like this?”
“Are you going to leak it to the Black Dragon Society?”
Yang Jian asked with a smile.
“You won’t, will you?”
“You know there would be no real benefit for you in doing that.”
"..."
“You’ve already looked over China’s situation yourself.”
“You must understand that unless the conflict between the Orthodox and Unorthodox Factions is resolved, we cannot stand against Pandemonium.”
The conflict between the Orthodox and Unorthodox Factions.
The division splitting China’s Contractors in half.
That would undoubtedly become the greatest obstacle once war with Pandemonium began.
“Pandemonium’s forces in China are incomparably stronger than those that occupied northern Korea.”
“It would be difficult to simply send Kang Yujin’s group in and eliminate Asmodeus the way you did before.”
