Chapter 468: Chapter 416: If it were in the past, I would definitely seize the dragon vein!

Translator: 549690339

As everyone was celebrating their victory, a group quietly departed under the leadership of several Spirit Realm experts from the Taoist School, beginning their exploration to determine the specific location of the rumored dragon vein.

Among them were specialists nurtured by the royal family to specifically detect dragon veins, as well as some unique individuals from the martial arts world, and Taoist high-experts proficient in elemental manipulation.

Once the location of the dragon vein was identified, they would figure out a way to redirect it into the Divine Continent for the Great Ming Empire’s use.

“It seems that the plans of the Divine Dynasty are indeed real.” Xue Wuheng, the leader of the Demonic Cult who everyone thought was in seclusion for healing, stood atop a mountain peak, watching the departing exploration team and muttered.

“Sometimes, there is indeed no need to doubt Pei Xuanjing’s words too much.” Standing alongside him was Zhao Baiyang, who had also left under the pretext of retreat and healing, he said with a gentle laugh.

He turned to Xue Wuheng, “I believe I truly understand Pei Xuanjing. He prefers open schemes and tends to promote plans with grand momentum, rather than using intrigue and deceit.”

Indeed, when Pei Xuanjing first proposed the idea of an earthly Divine Dynasty, Zhao Baiyang didn’t harbor much suspicion, and this was why.

“However, these open schemes are quite difficult to counter.” Xue Wuheng said solemnly.

It had to be said that, even though their factions were temporarily working together at the moment, everyone had their own little schemes in the back of their minds, each calculating their own benefits.

Even Pei Xuanjing understood this all too well. He knew that even if he could unite these people with benefits, it wouldn’t lead to genuine unity, as many of the factions had previously engaged in deadly battles with each other. The fact that they could sit at the same table and not sabotage each other was already quite lucky.

Just like on Shenxiao Mountain, even if forces agreed to cooperate, there were still various leanings between them.

The Taoist School that Pei Xuanjing represented was the strongest, aside from having significant connections to the Great Ming royal family, its relationship with the other factions was merely average.

Even though the Great Ming royal family was allied with the Taoist School, it had always had unclear connections with the Ji Fang Alliances. Without the need for investigations, it was clear that they must have reached many private agreements and pacts to secure their mutual interests.

The Demonic Cult and Mire Sect, forming the heterodox alliance, had their natural reasons for not aligning with the righteous path, making it only natural for them to gravitate towards each other, especially given the camaraderie Xue Wuheng and Zhao Baiyang had formed when they infiltrated Tiandu to assassinate the emperor.

It could be said that among the several alliances and powers in the Great Ming today, except for the Buddhism School who remained somewhat passive and noncompetitive, everyone had an ally they could count on.

However, one shouldn’t forget that the Buddhism School is a major power in its own right. Their branches are more united than the Taoist School and other forces, and with the merging of the North and South Zen Sects, the power of the Buddhism School was enormous, even without any alliances.

“Ah, the dragon vein! This is truly a good thing. If it were in the past, I would have done everything in my power to fight for it.” Zhao Baiyang murmured to himself.

It was not surprising that among these people, there were those from the profound Mire Sect. Therefore, he also understood that their objective was to locate the dragon vein to enhance the Qi Luck of the Great Ming Empire, preparing for the following plans of the earthly Divine Dynasty.

According to the Mire Sect’s ideology, if this news about the dragon vein had been received earlier, for his own purpose, he would have led his subordinates from the Sect to fight over it.

Unfortunately, now that the Heaven and Earth were rejuvenated, although the ideals of the Mire Sect hadn’t changed, the allure of longevity sat before his eyes, and his objectives shifted slightly.

The old Zhao Baiyang had always pursued further advancements in Martial Arts, but according to the information passed down within the Mire Sect, he knew that this was a limitation of Heaven and Earth, not something that could be changed by human efforts.

Therefore, he mainly concentrated on rebellion, hence his plan to infiltrate Tiandu and assassinate the emperor, an attempt to shatter this hateful world.

However, now, with a better choice available, especially after his breakthrough into the Spirit Realm, his mindset has changed. Now, he chased after longevity and sought greater power.

Having plotted for decades, uniting various forces, and undertaking many deeds, yet in the end, he achieved nothing. On the other hand, Pei Xuanjing not only gained enormous benefits but also literally altered the state of the world by his presence alone.

Why was that?

It was still because of strength. Ultimately, it all depended on strength in this world. If he had enough strength, comparable to or even surpassing Pei Xuanjing, he could then act according to his own thoughts, doing what he wanted and achieving his goals.

“Hehe, it seems that the Qi Luck of Great Ming is prospering!” Xue Wuheng said, smiling.

Unlike Zhao Baiyang, it didn’t matter to him who sat in that supreme seat. He only wanted to reorganize the Demonic Cult, bringing it to its former glory, and making himself even stronger.

The main reason he decided to take part in the assassination in Tiandu was due to Zhao Baiyang’s invitation. He wanted to form an alliance with him, making it easy to unify the Demonic Cult in the future.

Now that the Demonic Cult was once again united and he had once again reclaimed his title as the leader of the Demonic Cult, all that was left was to restore the glory of the Demonic Cult and make himself stronger.

Even if Pei Xuanjing’s the earthly Divine Dynasty plan didn’t benefit him, as long as it didn’t harm his interests, he wouldn’t obstruct it. After all, with the strength Pei Xuanjing currently possessed, it wasn’t something he could afford to provoke.

Of course, if this could bring benefits to him, he wouldn’t mind genuinely helping Pei Xuanjing accomplish this plan.

His current cooperation with Zhao Baiyang also served the same purpose, just to have an ally they could depend on mutually in this big world, so as to ensure they wouldn’t become the target of all.

This was Xue Wuheng’s plan. If Zhao Baiyang were to have some crazy idea, he would definitely abandon their alliance without hesitation.

“Rest assured, I’m not that crazy.” Zhao Baiyang shook his head, expressing his clear-headedness.

He was aware that although it seemed like the world was currently filled with multiple arising powers, in reality, this was Pei Xuanjing’s tolerance. With Pei Xuanjing’s strength, none of them could obstruct his goals if he truly didn’t care about the costs.

As a result, no matter what thoughts he harbored, he would still conceal them. He did not plan to incite Pei Xuanjing at this point in time.

“Good!” Xue Wuheng nodded, relieved.

He decided to bring up a different topic: “Next, when it comes to choosing territories, where are you planning to choose?”