An Open Conspiracy

The Godking sat high upon his throne, looking down coldly. “Yu Wei. How have I treated you?”

“The Godking’s kindness to Yu Wei is as heavy as a mountain.” Yu Wei knelt, her head bowed in reverence. These words came from the depths of her heart. In her past life, she had fallen into madness, a frenzied Asura. It was the Godking who had guided her back from the brink of demonic possession, restoring her sanity. If not for the Godking, she would have long ago been doomed beyond salvation.

Furthermore, the Godking had meticulously instructed each of them. Every single one of them revered the Godking to an extreme, willing to die for him.

Yu Wei had once been merely one of countless such individuals. From the moment she had formally acknowledged Patriarch Lu as her master, her status within the vast network of spies controlled by the Seamless Gate had skyrocketed. After all, the vast majority of sleepers never advanced beyond the Earth Immortal or Loose Immortal stage; fewer than one in ten thousand ever became Celestial Immortals, let alone forged ties with an existence as important as Patriarch Lu.

Now, Yu Wei not only had ties to Patriarch Lu and to Ji Ning, but she had also become the only chance for the Seamless Gate to turn the tide in this current ‘Realm War’!

“Now, the time has come for you to dedicate yourself,” the Godking said.

Yu Wei could not help but tremble. She then pressed her forehead to the ground and said respectfully, “Please give your command, Godking.” Every sleeper waited for their final order. Someone like the Evergreen Sword Immortal could still flee back to the Seamless Gate if exposed, but Yu Wei was merely a Celestial Immortal. She had no ability to escape. Moreover, to the Seamless Gate, once Yu Wei was exposed, her value as a Celestial Immortal would be greatly diminished.

“This time, the Divine Farmer, one of the Three Sovereigns of Humanity, has sent the Celestial Immortal Yunchen to the Eight Dragons Cloudcity…” the Godking began to narrate.

Yu Wei listened attentively.

In her heart, Ji Ning and her daughter were the most important people to her. But the Godking was also incredibly important. This was partly due to gratitude and partly because the Godking had long ago planted a ban on her soul, a mark that unconsciously influenced her heart, making her trust him even more. The gratitude she felt for his kindness would deepen, even to the point of being willing to die for him.

…

Within the Violetmist Pearl world.

Ji Ning, Yu Wei, and their daughter ‘Brightmoon’ lived together in great happiness.

“Kneel down.” Ji Ning’s voice carried a hint of anger.

“Oh.”

Their daughter Brightmoon obediently knelt, her little mouth pouting as if she was about to cry.

Ji Ning said angrily, “You need to learn consequence. Not everyone is an immortal cultivator! I, your mother, Uncle Mu, and Grandfather White all have high cultivation levels, so we don’t mind the flames you control. But many of the servants and attendants on Brightheart Island are merely mortals. When you play with your flames and tease them, it’s a life-or-death crisis for them! If I hadn’t noticed this time, your maidservant would have been burned to death.”

Brightmoon dared not make a sound.

Of her parents, Ji Ning was usually the gentle one, while Yu Wei was generally stricter. But this time, Ji Ning had truly lost his temper, completely frightening Brightmoon.

It was no wonder Ji Ning was so angry. Just two days prior, he had given his daughter two young maidservants of similar age, eleven or twelve years old. These two little maids naturally took great care of their young mistress. Brightmoon was having fun and had grown very fond of them. And so… she treated them the same way she did Uncle White and the others, using flames to tease them.

She had burned one of the maidservants terribly. Fortunately, Ji Ning had discovered it in time. He immediately cast a spell and bestowed a spirit-pill, fully restoring the girl.

“I told you to remember the power of an immortal cultivator, to understand the threat you pose to mortals. Did you forget?” Ji Ning raged.

“I… I…” Brightmoon stammered.

“You’re still going to cry?” Ji Ning said furiously. “You’re to kneel here today. Don’t get up until I say so.”

“Let’s go.” Ji Ning led Yu Wei away, leaving Brightmoon alone, kneeling miserably in the room.

A moment later.

A massive, snow-white hound walked by.

“Grandfather White!” Brightmoon called out immediately.

The snow-white hound glanced at her, then continued on his way.

A short while later, a green-robed woman walked past.

“Auntie Qing!” Brightmoon called out again.

The green-robed woman’s face fell into a helpless expression, and she too walked away.

…

“Was that too harsh?” Yu Wei asked, worried.

“If I don’t punish her this time, she’ll cause havoc in the future,” Ji Ning said angrily. He then looked at Yu Wei in surprise and chuckled, “Senior Apprentice-Sister, you’re usually stricter with her than I am. How is it that you’re getting soft-hearted today?”

“It’s just seeing the little one looking so pitiful…” Yu Wei shook her head.

Ji Ning said, “She’s faking it. She knows that when she acts pitiful, we relent. That’s what she’s doing right now. She needs to learn her lesson this time. Brightmoon has a great innate talent and is naturally intelligent, but she was just born not long ago. She’s like a blank slate. She doesn’t understand boundaries, and she has no concept of right or wrong. We have to teach her properly.”

“Yes, we must teach her well. It seems you are better at this than I am,” Yu Wei said.

“Senior Apprentice-Sister, you teach much better than I do,” Ji Ning said, shaking his head. “When it comes to raising a child, the mother is always more attentive.”

Yu Wei nodded gently but said nothing.

“What’s wrong?” Ji Ning felt something was amiss. A Dao-companion who had been with him for so long, he could naturally sense that something was off about Yu Wei today.

“Oh,” Yu Wei snapped out of her thoughts. She shook her head. “It’s nothing. I was just thinking about the Realm War. Now that our child is born, I’ll probably have to join the battle soon, right?”

Ji Ning was startled, then nodded gently. “That’s right. Celestial Immortals are all required to fight. You were exempt for a time due to your pregnancy, but I suppose you’ll have to go now. It’s no big deal, though. Even if you don’t go for now, it’s still a small matter unless the Daofather Emperor Xia himself says otherwise.”

“Better not make things difficult for Emperor Xia and the others,” Yu Wei said. “I’ll just leave a Primal clone here to accompany our daughter. I’ll head back to Eight Dragons Cloudcity and prepare to join the war.”

“Alright. You’ll be in my Northmyth Army,” Ji Ning said with a smile. “We’ll fight together.” Having Senior Apprentice-Sister Yu Wei in his Northmyth Army would allow Ji Ning to be more at ease.

Yu Wei nodded.

Inside the Eight Dragons Cloudcity.

Senior Apprentice-Sister Yu Wei had returned, back at her residence.

“Don’t worry. Both sides are in a stalemate right now. I heard the Seamless Gate has a new Daofather Puppet. And on our side, we should have gotten help from the Divine Farmer, too. They’re probably still planning… It isn’t time for the final battle yet,” Ji Ning said.

“This final battle will probably be the last great clash of this Realm War,” Yu Wei said emotionally.

“Mm. That’s why it’s so dangerous. When we form the Karmic Punishment Deities formation, you’ll stay right next to me,” Ji Ning said. “If anything unexpected happens, I can protect you.”

Yu Wei looked at Ji Ning. She could see the concern in his eyes.

This filled Yu Wei’s heart with complex emotions.

Warmth… and pain.

“Mm.” Yu Wei nodded gently.

…

“Ji Ning, come to my place.” The voice of Daofather Crimsonbright sounded in Ji Ning’s ears.

Ji Ning was startled.

“I’m going to go see the Daofather.” Ji Ning rose and said this to Yu Wei before quickly flying out. Yu Wei watched his departing back silently, as if she wanted to look at him a little while longer.

Within the great hall.

As soon as Ji Ning entered, he was stunned to see that the hall contained only Daofather Crimsonbright and the True Immortal Yunchen.

“I pay my respects to the Daofather and the True Immortal,” Ji Ning said.

“Sit.” Daofather Crimsonbright smiled, and True Immortal Yunchen also looked at Ji Ning with a smile.

Ji Ning sat down.

Daofather Crimsonbright said, “I’ve asked you here because I have a very important mission for you.”

“Oh?” Ji Ning immediately listened carefully.

“Yunchen was sent here this time by the Divine Farmer, the Sovereign of Humanity, and he has brought two treasures with him.” Daofather Crimsonbright waved his hand, and two jade bottles appeared in his palm. One was black, the other white. This immediately caught Ji Ning’s attention. Could these treasures within the two jade bottles change the course of this Realm War?

The enemy had gained a Daofather Puppet. Was this item even more powerful than that puppet?

“Within this black jade bottle is a type of immortal medicine the Divine Farmer has painstakingly developed,” Daofather Crimsonbright said, indicating the black bottle. “If you shatter this black jade bottle, the Divine Farmer’s medicine within will rapidly spread over ten thousand li. Every Immortal within that range, including Pure Yang True Immortals, will have their divine power completely suppressed, unable to mobilize it at all.”

“What?” Ji Ning exclaimed. “Even Pure Yang True Immortals would be affected? Without their divine power, they’d be little better than mortals!”

“Mm,” Daofather Crimsonbright nodded. “This immortal medicine was just developed. The Seamless Gate has never obtained it before, so of course, they haven’t had a chance to develop an antidote. However, this medicine has a drawback… it cannot distinguish friend from foe! Within ten thousand li, any Immortal, whether enemy or ally, will be affected.”

Ji Ning nodded. This was a common weakness of such poisons; the medicine had no intelligence and couldn’t tell friend from foe.

“And this white jade bottle contains the antidote,” Daofather Crimsonbright said, pointing to the white bottle. “When you return… pour out this antidote and mix it all into this gourd of wine.” Daofather Crimsonbright then produced a gourd. “Every Loose Immortal only needs a single drop of the medicated wine. A Celestial Immortal needs ten drops, and a Pure Yang True Immortal needs a hundred drops. Once the three thousand Celestial Immortals and three hundred thousand Loose Immortals under your command in the Northmyth Army have all drunk it… and when battle begins, I believe the Seamless Gate will definitely want to kill you. They will surely send a great army to besiege you. At that moment, you shatter this black jade bottle. Instantly, any Immortal within ten thousand li will fall. But your own people, having taken the antidote in advance, will be completely unaffected. All you will have to do is slaughter them without restraint.” Daofather Crimsonbright smiled.

Ji Ning was thrilled.

Brilliant.

After all, the vast majority of soldiers in the Seamless Gate’s army were Immortals. Their countless Heavenly God Puppets were all controlled by Celestial Immortals.

“It won’t work on Empyrean Gods?” Ji Ning asked.

“It has little effect on Empyrean God divine power,” Daofather Crimsonbright nodded.

“With the Seamless Gate’s intelligence network, they’ll probably know… that this item is in my hands before long,” Ji Ning said.

“This Divine Farmer medicine is very precious. The Sovereign of Humanity just concocted it, and the cost was not small. Although the quantity is scarce, in addition to what we have given you, we have also given it to one other person,” Daofather Crimsonbright said with a smile. “When the time comes, you and that other army will use it simultaneously. Even if the Seamless Gate knows about it, they will be helpless.”

“Your strength is great, and the Seamless Gate is extremely eager to kill you. If they come to besiege you, you use the Divine Farmer medicine. If they don’t, you will crush them one by one and sweep them away.” Daofather Crimsonbright said, “This is an open, aboveboard stratagem. They are powerless against it.”

Ji Ning’s eyes lit up as he listened.

Victory was assured.

“Do not disappoint me,” Daofather Crimsonbright said, looking at Ji Ning.

“Daofather, you can rest assured,” Ji Ning said, brimming with confidence.