The path to literary success, and the primary means of cultivating literary talent, is through officialdom. Through officialdom, one can issue orders. In the Jiangdong region of *The Three Kingdoms: Myriad Realms*, Chapter 98, "Want to Play with the Holy Maiden of Cihang Jingzhai? Become evil first!", anti-piracy mode is enabled, so only half a chapter is available, and the content doesn't connect with the previous chapter. For the hidden parts, please search "Qi Shuwu" on Baidu, then search for *The Three Kingdoms: Myriad Realms* to view.
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Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Curtain Rises
In the blink of an eye, several days had passed. The entire city of Yangzhou had been in an uproar these past few days.
People from all over the country, from the Central Plains and beyond, monks, Taoists, members of powerful families, and commoners—almost everyone with a skill, ambition, or ability—came to this city.
Originally, Yangzhou was a city with a population of only four or five hundred thousand, but now its population has suddenly reached one million. Most of these people have been flooding in recently.
Fortunately, during the six months that Cai Yan had been in charge of Yangzhou, the city had been expanded considerably. Therefore, although the population had increased by several hundred thousand at once, it was still manageable if people squeezed in.
However, given the large number of martial arts practitioners, maintaining order required the deployment of troops. Indeed, the entire city of Yangzhou was now under military control.
Even the original residents of Yangzhou City were temporarily relocated to towns and villages near Yangzhou.
After all, martial arts practitioners, to put it nicely, are free and unrestrained; to put it bluntly, they are lawless and disobedient.
It's quite normal for them to fight each other over a single argument or a glance. Therefore, for the sake of their own lives, the people are quite cooperative.
Every street was garrisoned by well-organized armies clad in armor and armed with powerful bows and crossbows. Even the yamen runners who usually patrolled the streets had become soldiers. Outside the city, there were an army of 100,000.
when!
when!
when!
As the deep tolling of the bells faded, all the martial arts practitioners in Yangzhou fell silent. According to Yangzhou's customs, something must be about to be announced.
"Gentlemen, the Guangcheng Immortal Sect's selection of an emperor on behalf of Heaven is about to begin. Those with invitations, please proceed to the city center in order. Heroes without invitations but whose strength has reached the Innate Realm are also welcome to go there to observe. Each Innate Realm expert may bring one companion, but only one companion per person!"
As the news spread, many people took their invitations and headed to their destination.
By this time, the center of Yangzhou had undergone tremendous changes. Even the local residents who had lived in Yangzhou for decades were completely bewildered. Because their old houses were long gone!
Originally, this place was the residence of the prefect of the imperial court. But by this time, the prefect's residence and all the surrounding houses had disappeared.
What appeared before them was a towering building, dozens of feet high. Even more frustrating was that the distance between each floor was different. Most notably, the distance between the second and first floors was a full ten feet.
Moreover, there are no stairs in the middle, so the only way to get up from the first floor is by using light-footed skills. At a height of ten zhang, those who are not good at light-footed skills simply cannot get up there.
No wonder they say that those whose martial arts skills are below the Innate Realm are not allowed to watch. If you're not strong enough, you can't even get up there!
“My Taoist friends told me that this is the result of magic turning fossils into mud. The entire building was constructed by hundreds of Taoist priests from the Celestial Masters sect working together. Moreover, it only took them three days!” Wei Zheng said in disbelief.
At this moment, he was also dressed in a Taoist robe. In fact, his original profession was that of a Taoist priest. Therefore, he had always looked down upon magic and the like.
Therefore, when Wei Zheng heard some time ago that the Celestial Masters sect had received the inheritance from the upper realm and had begun to cultivate magic, he did not believe it.
But at this moment, looking at this bizarre building, tens of meters high and constructed entirely of stone, one has no choice but to believe it.
"If this kind of magic were used for road construction and bridge building, it would be an invaluable asset to the nation! Many places are impoverished because of a single road. It can be said that having this kind of magic would truly be a blessing for the country!" Wei Zheng said happily.
It's safe to say that if fossils were used on a large scale as mud, wouldn't it mean that national highways could be built all over the country?
It's important to understand that troops can move very quickly on national highways. After all, road conditions are a fundamental factor affecting marching speed.
At that time, no matter where a rebellion occurred, a large army could arrive in a very short time. This meant that the scope of the imperial court's rule could be expanded again. For a classical feudal minister like Wei Zheng, nothing was more important than this.
Upon hearing this, Li Yuanji, who was standing to the side, said indifferently, "Tch, it's just a national highway, what's so great about it?"
Upon hearing this, Wei Zheng fell silent. In his eyes, Li Yuanji was simply a blockhead! Therefore, he remained quiet. After all, if someone was a blockhead, their thought process would inevitably be quite different from that of ordinary people.
Seeing this, Li Jiancheng said somewhat embarrassedly, "Yuanji, don't underestimate this technique. Take the Sui Dynasty for example, why did Yang Guang fail in his three campaigns against Goguryeo?"
"Although there are many reasons for this, including those related to our aristocratic families, it is actually closely related to the fact that the road was too long and consumed too much food. Otherwise, even if we aristocratic families wanted to sabotage them in secret, we wouldn't have had the opportunity!"
Just as Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji entered the area, Li Shimin also came from another direction.
Over the past six months, Li Shimin had no idea how many assassination attempts or even open attacks he had survived. The number was simply too many to count. His relationship with his family had also deteriorated further.
Just like now, two representatives of the Li clan have come: one is him, and the other is his elder brother, Li Jiancheng.
"Your Majesty, these troops are all very elite. It is said that this army of 100,000 was only trained in the last six months. It can only be said that the military strategies of the Upper Realm are indeed extraordinary." Li Jing frowned as he looked at the troops patrolling the streets.
As a general, or more precisely, as a commander-in-chief, one's perspective is always different from that of ordinary people. Therefore, one can always discover things that ordinary people cannot see.
"King Qin, if those masters are willing, they can use this army of 100,000 to wipe us out in one fell swoop," Li Jing suddenly whispered.
From a military strategy perspective, Yangzhou City at this moment is a complete dead end! Lin Yang and his two companions have been managing this place for half a year. Given their methods, who knows how many backup plans they might have?
If things get out of hand, it could be extremely dangerous. A wise person avoids dangerous situations; it's always good to prepare in advance.
Upon hearing this, Li Shimin remained calm and said indifferently, "Pharmacist, do you think we have any other choice at this point?"
“Cihang Jingzhai, the Demonic Sect, Jingnian Zen Temple, Bi Xuan from beyond the Great Wall, Fu Cailin from Goguryeo, and the Heavenly Blade of the Song Clan have all come. Moreover, I would be unwilling to leave now.” Li Shimin said confidently, looking at the sword in his hand.
Although Li Shimin's condition has not been good in the past six months, he has already mastered the first six supreme techniques to perfection thanks to his innate and powerful dragon aura. His martial arts skills have also made rapid progress, reaching the level of a grandmaster.
Moreover, he had successfully forged an Emperor's Sword, the very one he now wielded. With his martial arts skills and the sword in his hand, where could he not go? Even if there were traps, could they possibly stop the sword in his hand?
Upon hearing this, Li Jing fell silent. It was clear that Li Shimin had made up his mind, and further reminders would be of no use.
However, Li Jing still had some concerns. Logically speaking, even if Lin Yang and his two companions mobilized a large army, they could at most intercept those below the Innate Realm. Encircling and annihilating Innate Realm experts was unrealistic. But something just felt off to Li Jing!
However, thinking of the power of those Celestial Realm experts, any initial worries vanished instantly. The three True Immortals possessed Breaking Army level combat strength, but these Celestial Realm experts also had it!