Chapter 110: Further Devising a New Concept

Chapter 110: Chapter 110: Further Devising a New Concept

’Given enough time, his plans might just be achievable.’

The Six Sects and Eight Gates were already decadent. They had long since lost their original understanding of mutual support and interdependence. Now, deep rifts divided the sects. A single Red Blood Mansion could throw the entire Eastern Domain into chaos, and each Sect was already fending for itself.

Even the millennia-old conventions of the Cultivation Realm were now nothing but empty words.

’Not to mention, once I reach the Divine Separation Realm, Jing’an and the other eight will also be at the Divine Separation Realm.’

’If I get the chance to break the third seal on the Juntian Mirror and obtain its rewards and Divine Techniques, I could take on any Sect in the Eastern Domain with just the eight of them, even without the forces they command.’

The Miaolian Celestial Stabilization Technique he practiced had a different progression from the conventional Realms. For the Miaolian Celestial Stabilization Technique, the Realm after Nascent Soul was Divine Separation.

The conventional progression of Realms placed the Soul Emergence Realm after the Nascent Soul Realm, followed by the Divine Separation Realm.

’So, all I need to do is break through from the Nascent Soul Realm.’

’At that point, the Six Sects and Eight Gates will be of no concern. And the kingdoms of the Eastern Domain? They’ll be nothing.’

’Unification is the tide of history.’

At these thoughts, Chu Fan’s heart swelled with soaring ambition.

"I have a new task for you," Chu Fan said to Jing’an.

"Please give your orders, My Lord. This subordinate would die ten thousand deaths for you."

"I don’t need you to die. Your task is this: while developing the Celestial Heart Hall, you are to fully support the Queen. Starting now, promote education throughout the Shuoyue Kingdom, train a sufficient number of reserve officials, and forge a powerful army—the more numerous, the better, at any cost. As for finances, you needn’t worry. I will find a way to provide you with aid. There are still two years and two months left of our three-year deadline. When the time comes, I will have the other seven shift their focus to the Shuoyue Kingdom as well. You will have even less to worry about regarding money then."

Jing’an was deeply shaken. He had a general idea of what Chu Fan was aiming for.

"Ten years. My plan is to make the Queen the Empress of the Eastern Domain in ten years," Chu Fan stated, his voice as sharp as hammered steel.

"M-My Lord..." Terrified, Jing’an dropped heavily to his knees.

He had guessed that Chu Fan wanted to unify the Eastern Domain. Though he couldn’t imagine how Chu Fan had come up with such a crazy idea, the thought of the Xiezhi made him feel it might not be entirely impossible.

He had assumed Chu Fan wanted to be the Emperor of this unified Eastern Domain himself. Who could have imagined he would propose making Jin Chuhong the Empress instead?

How could he not be utterly terrified?

’Could this be My Lord testing me?’

He was so frightened he could barely speak. "M-My Lord, my wife would never dare harbor such a presumptuous fantasy."

Chu Fan waved his hand and helped Jing’an to his feet. "It is still too early to speak of such things," he said. "But if that day ever comes, Queen Jin will be the first choice. As for me? You’re thinking too much. I have no interest in such matters. This idea came to me only because the Cultivation Realm, left unchecked, has become a scourge upon the world. The Eastern Domain is currently a mess of scattered sand, and the common people in many places are suffering terribly. But there is one other, most important reason: I want revenge."

"This subordinate obeys!"

Jing’an and Jin Chuhong left the residence, their hearts a mixture of apprehension, fear, doubt, and anticipation.

Yun Xi, who had been silent the entire time, now stared at Chu Fan in utter astonishment.

With outsiders present earlier, she had maintained an air of calm composure. She couldn’t allow her husband to lose face in front of others.

But now that it was just the two of them, they could speak freely.

She had never imagined Chu Fan could harbor such a bold, impractical plan.

The Eastern Domain had been a fragmented land for ten thousand years. Countless people had dreamt of unifying it, but who among them hadn’t ended up with their entire clan annihilated?

’Chu Fan’s talent may be nearly unprecedented, but he’s still only at the Nascent Soul Realm!’

’Whether it’s the Red Blood Mansion or the Six Sects and Eight Gates, doesn’t every one of them have a Mahayana Realm ancestor watching over them?’

"You think my plan is impractical, don’t you? A fool’s dream, even?" Chu Fan asked, looking at Yun Xi with a smile.

"Your intentions are good, but actually achieving it would be harder than climbing to the heavens," Yun Xi said bluntly.

With just the two of them, she wasn’t afraid of damaging his confidence. In her mind, there was no way Chu Fan could accomplish the plan he had just laid out.

It involved far too many factors; being strong wasn’t enough. Could one person, no matter how powerful, truly make an enemy of the entire world?

Could he stand against an order that had persisted for over ten thousand years?

Chu Fan wasn’t offended by her words, of course. He just smiled and said, "If I told you right now that I’m guaranteed to succeed, even I wouldn’t believe it. But you can’t let the fear of failure stop you from doing anything at all."

"Cultivators need rules to bind them, and so do the officials who govern the people, even the Sovereigns of kingdoms. I might not be able to make the entire Eastern Domain run according to the rules I envision in my lifetime, but we can start with the Shuoyue Kingdom and expand outward from there."

"The wider our reach, the more people will benefit. To be honest, I haven’t even figured out what those rules should be yet. But success depends on human effort, and we can pool our wisdom."

"I only said ten years to give them—and myself—a deadline, a goal to strive toward."

"Besides, my thoughts on this were prompted by the actions of the Red Blood Mansion. Whatever they want to accomplish, I must stop them. I can’t just stand by and watch them grow stronger. I haven’t forgotten the debt of vengeance I owe for my master and my brothers, not for a single moment!"

After hearing Chu Fan’s lengthy explanation, the look in Yun Xi’s eyes grew fervent.

_This_ was the man she loved so deeply.

’A person must choose what to stand for, and what to stand against.’

’With great power comes great responsibility.’ Yun Xi thought. ’Chu Fan’s plan might seem crazy, and others might think he’s overestimating himself, but after hearing his explanation, she realized it was this very sense of duty and responsibility that she loved about him.’

It was just that now, his sense of duty and responsibility was no longer directed at a single person, or a single Sect or family, but at all the people of this land.

’It’s just like me. When I see those Cultivators lording over the mortal world, even harming common people, don’t I also get angry enough to kill? Haven’t I, in fact, killed many of them for that very reason?’

’Her man had such a dream. As his wife, even knowing it was like a moth flying into a flame, shouldn’t she join him?’

Yun Xi walked to Chu Fan’s side, wrapped her arm tightly around his, and rested her head on his shoulder. "Whatever you want to do," she murmured, "I’ll be with you."

Chu Fan reached out and gently pinched her delicate nose. "Silly girl," he said. "I actually value my life a great deal; I’m not that reckless. Whatever I do in the future, it will be on the condition that the people I care about are safe. I would never gamble their lives for the sake of any dream."

"I’ll still be with you," she replied. "In any case, for the rest of our lives, I’m sticking with you. You couldn’t get rid of me even if you tried."