Cohabitation with Sword Spirit

Chapter 364 - 101: Unintentionally Dropped One Place in the Intelligence Rankings

Shen Yueying’s earnest expression made the atmosphere in the room extraordinarily awkward. Hearing Shen Qingming talk about playing chess with herself, displaying symptoms of schizophrenia, Li Wanqing, Li Chaolu, and others couldn’t suppress their twisted expressions.

This strange behavior naturally caught Shen Yueying’s attention, yet she seemed oblivious, simply staring intently into Wang Jiu’s eyes, waiting for his response.

Wang Jiu pondered for a moment and was just about to speak when Li Wanqing interrupted him.

"If you care so much for your niece, why don’t you act yourself? Being the Deputy City Lord and having Mountain-Overturning Realm cultivation, if you really wanted to take action, you’d have many more opportunities than us, wouldn’t you?"

"That’s not wrong..." Shen Yueying said with a bitter smile, "No wonder you would suspect, but if you stayed in Shen City a bit longer, you wouldn’t have this question... The Shen Family cannot defy the Patriarch. The family has always been governed with near-military discipline, heavily emphasizing orders being followed without question between superiors and subordinates. Especially at the Deputy City Lord level, absolute loyalty to the City Lord is demanded, not defiance, not even a thought. It’s not just a system rule but a constraint etched in the bloodline of the Shen Family."

This statement immediately piqued the interest of the Li Family. Li Wanqing asked, "Bloodline constraint? What happens if you have rebellious thoughts?"

Shen Yueying replied, "True Essence backlash, Divine Sense obscuration... like I am now."

Upon hearing this, Li Wanqing and others felt a sudden realization. No wonder when Shen Yueying entered the room, they sensed something wrong with her state. Although she still had an overwhelming strength advantage over a few junior Cultivators, compared to her actual realm, the pressure Shen Yueying exerted on them was too understated.

It turned out she was enduring the suffering of a True Essence backlash. With her high realm and strong True Essence, the pain from backlash was far more intense than that of lower-level cultivators.

Shen Yueying continued, "Privately seeking your help here is already the limit of what I can do. Any further, aside from my own ordeal, it’s sure to arouse my father’s vigilance, and at that time, it will be too late for everything."

Li Wanqing nodded, affirming this explanation, "No wonder at the birthday banquet, you didn’t respond to Qingming at all."

Shen Yueying gave a bitter smile, "At that time, we were so close to father, and when he fully released his Immortal Power, not a single rebellious thought could arise. It just felt that since he said so, it must naturally be right. It wasn’t until the banquet ended that I gradually regained clarity."

These words were creepy to hear, and Li Chaolu shook her head in disbelief, "Is it really that formidable? Such an absurd marriage, just because Shen Ruoshi said it, you can’t even think of questioning it? What if he wants you to die?"

Shen Yueying replied calmly, "The Shen Family would unhesitatingly die for the City Lord."

"That’s just too much..."

At this point, Wang Jiu spoke, "This is merely the foundation of the military."

To Li Chaolu and the others’ surprise, Wang Jiu appeared indifferent. If the current Shen Family was truly enforcing so-called military management, then a subject’s duty to die for the ruler is indeed just fundamental.

On the battlefield, when a leader decides to sacrifice some to preserve everyone, do those sacrificed willing to die? But if they don’t die, everyone will die together. And the battlefield situation changes rapidly, leaving no time for argument; once a leader makes a decision, what’s needed is unwavering execution of the order.

Even if the order is flawed.

During the late stages of the Jiuzhou Immortal Demon War, the Cultivator side had long internalized such an understanding from top to bottom. There were as many Cultivators as stars in the sky, advancing and self-destructing to delay the Demon Race on the leader’s word. It was only with this conviction that humanity managed to hold on until the Celestial Divine Sword emerged, gradually reclaiming lost ground and driving away the Demon Race.

Yet Li Chaolu still found it difficult to accept, "But... absolute power breeds absolute corruption. If you give a leader such great power, what if he really makes a wrong judgment?"

Wang Jiu replied, "Then there is only death, for the battlefield allows for no mistakes."

Li Chaolu knew Wang Jiu referred to the Immortal Demon War, where even a trace of error amidst desperation could spell the doom for all lives... However, for those born in a peaceful era, accepting the Shen Family’s values was truly challenging.

"Father used to... not be like this," Shen Yueying said. "If he had always been so domineering and reckless, even if his cultivation was the highest in Shen City, he wouldn’t have been able to become the City Lord. Normally, whether it’s a major or minor issue, or even a trivial matter that many people might overlook, he would think thoroughly before making decisions. In his youth, some family elders even complained about him being overly cautious... It was only after sister left that he became increasingly autocratic, and when the news of her death came, he hardly appeared in public anymore, leaving affairs completely to me and Shen Jinghai... Then, his temperament became even more extreme."

However, the Li Family had no interest in this explanation.

"How he went from being a good father and a good City Lord to becoming a deviant... we don’t care about such matters. I just want to know, now that things have developed to this point, what are you planning to do?" Li Wanqing said while gesturing to Wang Jiu to hold his tongue for now.

Given Wang Jiu’s temperament, it wouldn’t be surprising if, after hearing a few words that matched his interests, he’d agree to become someone’s enforcer without hesitation. But in this situation, the Shen Family had committed all possible wrongdoings and now wanted Wang Jiu to act on their behalf, for what reason?

Shen Yueying felt nothing but helplessness and shame in response to this hostility. She sighed softly and said, "The only method I can think of now is to eliminate Zhao Jincheng. After all, the immediate priority is to stop this absurd marriage. As for how to restore my father’s sanity, that would be something to deal with later."

"And to stop this marriage, the best way would be to solve the problem at its root—make father regain clarity—but that isn’t realistic. In Shen City, no one can influence his decisions. Not long ago, even the Holy Sect Envoy was forcibly suppressed by him. Such determination isn’t something ordinary people can sway. So we can only take the next best approach..." Shen Yueying’s voice gradually lowered, "A marriage requires the most basic element—both parties involved..."

Before she finished, Wang Jiu’s eyes lit up, and he sincerely praised, "Well said!"

Shen Yueying didn’t realize she had unwittingly outwitted her niece, and after being momentarily at a loss, she continued, "And if we can find a way to make Zhao Jincheng disappear, this marriage will naturally come to nothing. Given father’s taste, it’s likely impossible to find a replacement quickly. But as a member of the Shen Family, I’m unable to take action myself, which is why I’m seeking your help."

Li Wanqing asked, "Killing Zhao Jincheng... sounds simple, but he’s the eldest son of Golden Jade City, and this is in Shen City’s territory. Can it be done just like that?"

Shen Yueying said, "This absurd marriage is certainly mainly my father’s responsibility, but that pervert’s instigation played no small part! Without his enthusiastic support, things wouldn’t have reached this point!"

When mentioning Zhao Jincheng, Shen Yueying was practically gnashing her teeth: "As Deputy City Lord of Shen City for so many years, I’ve seen all sorts of things, but true perverts like Zhao Jincheng are rare. Qingming is so young, and yet he... Moreover, in the past few days, in my father’s chambers, they’ve been discussing utterly disgraceful things! The nerve of him! Such a person would be better off dead!"

"As for whether it’s possible to kill him, his cultivation is indeed not weak, but not so strong as to make him untouchable. At least if Mr. Wang Jiu can kill even me, surely it’s easier for him to kill Zhao Jincheng. As for the territorial issue of Shen City... I’m willing to abandon my position as Deputy City Lord and several years of cultivation to find an opportunity for you to act. As for his identity, that’s not to worry about. Here, Zhao Jincheng won’t truly die; he carries a Protective Talisman crafted by the City Lord of Golden Jade City, which can save his life at the brink of death and teleport him back to Golden Jade City. So there’s no need to worry about creating an irreconcilable enmity. And if the City Lord of Golden Jade City seeks an explanation afterward... naturally, it should be dealt with by the instigator, the City Lord of Shen City."

With this analysis from Shen Yueying, the situation seemed to become feasible.

And the only remaining question was this.

"When do we make our move?" Wang Jiu asked.

Receiving such a response, Shen Yueying grew spirited: "Time is of the essence; the sooner, the better. Father has set the wedding date for March 15th, and the time available to us is running out. As it stands, the most suitable time is three days from now. According to the traditions of the Shen Family, to marry a daughter of the Shen Family, one must go outside the city to the Chaos Battlefield to hunt a Chaos Demon Essence of similar cultivation..."

"Wait, what kind of strange rule is this!?" Li Chaolu was utterly shocked.

Seeing Li Chaolu’s surprise, Shen Yueying patiently explained, "It is indeed somewhat patriarchal; that’s why in recent years there’s been a proposal that girls marrying into the Shen Family should also go to the Chaos Battlefield..."

"I’m not talking about gender equality issues!" Li Chaolu fumed, "I mean... never mind, let’s not bother with such trivial matters now. In three days, Zhao Jincheng will go to the Chaos Battlefield to hunt demon essence, is that when you plan to act?"

Shen Yueying said, "Yes, Zhao Jincheng leaving Shen City is our only chance to act and save people. It’s challenging to escape father’s influence while within Shen City."

After speaking, the woman once again looked at Wang Jiu, awaiting his response.

The Celestial Divine Sword pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"The Chaos Battlefield... very well, let’s settle it like this."