Refining the Mountains and Rivers

"Your loyal subject, Zhou Chengtian, greets Your Majesty," Zhou Chengtian gave a big bow, falling on his knees.

Qin Yu hurriedly followed, even though he was unwilling to do so in his heart.

But in this world, there were many things that one had to do, even if one did not want to do them.

Before accumulating enough power, it was good to be less proud.

"Mm, get up." The Desolate King waved his hand, looking at Qin Yu.

The king's eyes flashed, showing a slight admiration.

Smart people were always easier to manipulate.

"Ning Qin, Lord Chengtian should have made it clear to you about that issue."

Qin Yu respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Very good. You just need to remember that as long as you are loyal to me and to the West Desolate, you will have a good future." As the Desolate King, saying something like that was equivalent to a promise.

If it were anyone else, they would have been extremely excited and grateful upon hearing these words.

However, Qin Yu felt stifled, and could only sneer internally.

He was not friends with the West Desolate. If he showed his true identity, they would know that he was the one who took the true inheritance from the Barbarian King's tomb.

And if the West Desolate learned that Qin Yu had gained the rights to open and close the Connecting Passage to the fragmented area…just this reason alone would be enough for them to not let him live.

Of course, he did not let his thoughts affect his emotions on the surface.

In the Desolate King's eyes, Qin Yu looked extremely respectful and grateful.

This made the king very pleased.

Hualala -

The bead curtain was lifted, and a lantern flew out and landed in front of Qin Yu.

This was the lantern that he brought out of the Barbarian King's tomb last time.

"Ning Qin, since you are able to use this lantern, I will give it to you temporarily. If you perform well enough in the future, it will be yours."

After a slight pause, the Desolate King's calm voice conveyed a strong will and confidence. "I will allow you to advance to the King realm!"

Lord Chengtian was shaken and could not help but show envy in his eyes.

Even he did not expect that His Majesty would offer something so amazing.

The King realm…

That was the realm that he longed for!

Qin Yu frowned secretly; the Desolate King was definitely up to something.

People of high ranks were often cautious about their reputation, moreover, Lord Chengtian was present too.

But this reward was simply too big. Was it really just to increase the Royal Family's power in the military?

Something was wrong!

There must be something else.

"Ning Qin, with a drop of your blood, the lantern will recognize you as its master and you will be able to use it temporarily."

Of course this was not an offer, but an order. Qin Yu was very clear that he had no room for objection.

He could not even show any hesitation, otherwise he would be suspected.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Gritting his teeth, a trace of excitement and apprehension appeared on his face as he flicked one of his fingers.

A drop of blood flew out and landed on the surface of the lantern, and in the next instant, it was absorbed.

Hum -

The lantern trembled slightly, and the flame within it started to dance. Qin Yu suddenly felt like he was connected to this lantern.

Immediately afterwards, he felt a great fear as if he was facing an endless pool of magma and was about to be swallowed by it.

His face was pale and his body was trembling. He looked frightened.

Behind the bead curtain, the Desolate King's voice sounded, "From now on, I hope that I can really trust you. I hope you will not let me down."

Lord Chengtian's pupils shrank slightly, as if he had thought of something. He looked alarmed.

When he looked at Qin Yu again, it was no longer with envy, but with pity and sympathy.

At this stage, Ning Qin was under the complete control of His Majesty. Even if he reached the King realm, he would still be under the control of the Royal Family.

He no longer had any freedom!

His Majesty had made such a cunning move!

It seemed that the Desolate King was preparing to use Ning Qin as the key to dealing with the barbarians. He would probably be the one to complete the plans to massacre the barbarians that was conceived years ago.

Therefore, Ning Qin was given such a generous reward.

The eunuch who was still bending forward appeared beside Qin Yu and said, "General Jinwu, let me escort you out."

"Thank you," Qin Yu bowed again before following the eunuch out of the hall.

Zhou Chengtian, who remained in the hall, bowed. "Your Majesty, do you have any orders for me?"

There must be a reason for asking him to stay behind.

The Desolate King smiled and said, "Lord Chengtian, I have always trusted you. Ning Qin has just joined the army and will need some help; I will leave you to oversee this matter."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After they finished discussing official matters, Zhou Chengtian bowed and left.

After the palace door behind him closed, he took a deep breath and released it slowly.

It turned out that His Majesty indeed knew what he was thinking of, and of course Zhou Chengtian did not want to hide it from the Desolate King either.

His Majesty was wise and clever; any attempt to deceive him would be foolish.

He told everything to His Majesty and shared his honest opinions too, so His Majesty nodded and let him continue with his plan.

This was enough.

If there were no accidents, Ning Qin was bound to gain huge achievements in the military.

Even though Zhou Chengtian was loyal to the Desolate King, outsiders did not know that his lineage and close relationship to the Desolate King could help him to stabilize his power as well.

……

Qin Yu never worked for anyone.

He would not do it now, and he would never do it in the future.

He only followed what his heart told him, and would only be himself.

As for the lantern that was brought from the imperial tomb, the Desolate King had done something to it. Others might be able to sense this as well, but they would not be able to identify what was wrong with it exactly.

But Qin Yu could.

Ever since his blood merged with the lantern, it was equivalent to carrying a landmine around with him at any time.

If the Desolate King wanted to, he could kill Qin Yu with a single thought.

Qin Yu had no doubts about this.

However, he was not scared.

Although he could not compete against the Desolate King's methods, he could solve them.

Qin Yu and that mysterious being from time-space were like 'grasshoppers tied to the same rope'. If he asked it, there was a high probability that it would be able to remove the hidden dangers in the lantern.

Even if that did not work, he still had the little blue lamp. It would probably be difficult for it to protect Qin Yu from the hidden dangers.

Of course, these things could not be done right now. He could only try after he left the capital city.

In the horse carriage, Qin Yu opened his eyes, his inner spirit surging.

No matter what it was, he took the risk to come to the West Desolate's capital city and managed to achieve his purpose in coming here. The result was even better than what he expected.

……

At Li Zhouyi's palace, Zhe'er was waiting for Qin Yu, who had already returned. She smiled to congratulate him.

Qin Yu said, "I still have to thank Miss Zhe'er for giving me that warning before."

Because of her letter, Qin Yu was able to see the situation clearly and understand the role of the Eldest Princess.

"It is only because General Ning Qin is powerful enough to get through to today." Zhe'er then brought out a gift and said, "Her Excellency, Ruler Zhou Chengshan, asked me to deliver a message. When General Ning Qin is free, please go to her cultivation quarters."

Qin Yu nodded, "Thank you for bringing the message to me, Lady Zhe'er. I will visit her soon."

Zhe'er did not stay for a long time. After saying a few more words to Qin Yu, she said goodbye and left.

……

At the Later Ye Family's house.

The Old Family Head tapped the table lightly with his finger, and everyone below him looked solemn. The atmosphere was tense and heavy.

His Majesty seemed to have made up his mind to intervene in military affairs.

And this undoubtedly was going to harm their interests.

The conflict between the Royal Family's will and the military's will was bound to cause turmoil. Additionally, they would need to be more cautious in their actions in the future.

"Marshal, Ning Qin has already left the Imperial Palace, do we need to do anything?" a general from the family asked.

The imperial military had a lot of power, but they still had to respect His Majesty's will.

At the very least, they could not do anything yet because His Majesty had not explicitly violated the interests of the military.

It was out of respect for the Royal Family, and also for the cunning Desolate King who sat on the throne.

From when he ascended to the throne to the present day, his superb methods and skills had been worthy of the utmost respect.

"No," the old marshal opened his eyes. This person, who was the first ranking officer in the military, had eyes that were bright and wise. "His Majesty's will does not need to be approved by us, nor does he want to see us be involved with Ning Qin in any way.

"So, we don't have to do anything."

He knew Ning Qin's 'foundations', and now he could vaguely guess His Majesty's true intentions.

Of course he would not try to do something that was likely to cause suspicion at this time.

Doing nothing would be the most correct move for the Ye Family right now.

……

"Your Highness, Her Excellency Ruler Zhou Chengshan invites you over to her palace." In the air, the fading silhouette of a woman said.

She had a nice voice.

The Eldest Princess was cold, "Liu Yun, do you think I should go?"

"Her Excellency has good intentions; it would not be good if Your Highness declines her invitation."

"Auntie does treat me rather sincerely…but Ning Qin is not someone that I like at all."

"Your Highness…"

The Eldest Princess smiled in self-mockery, "I'll go."

She shook her head and continued, "Actually, I was going to go ever since I received the news. Ning Qin was personally chosen by His Majesty. If I can forge a good relationship with him, it would be good for me too. So, it seems that people of royal blood are the biggest hypocrites."

Liu Yun said in a soft voice, "Why do you mock yourself, Your Highness? You were helpless in this matter too."

The Eldest Princess waved her hand and changed the topic, "Let's go and choose a gift for my aunt. She has always taken care of me, I should thank her."

……

"Zhou Chengshan." Lord Chengtian frowned slightly. He had wanted Hundred Saint to go and personally invite Qin Yu, but he did not think that someone else would have beaten him to it.

This woman was indeed clever.

However, since she also invited the Eldest Princess, it seemed that she was not very clever after all.

Her so-called kinship with the Eldest Princess was going to ruin whatever goodwill Ning Qin had towards her.

"Uncle?" Hundred Saint asked.

What were they going to do now that Qin Yu had been invited by Aunt Chengshan?

Lord Chengtian smiled and waved his hand nonchalantly, "Tomorrow, Ning Qin will go and collect his seal and armor. You can wait for him there."

Not managing to invite Qin Yu was not a big problem. After all, he was the one that His Majesty had appointed to take care of him.

This meant that they were bound to have many more exchanges, and thus many opportunities to get closer to each other.

……

The maid led Qin Yu to the door of the main hall before bowing and leaving.

Qin Yu stepped into the hall, and immediately saw Zhou Chengshan on the main seat and the Eldest Princess sitting below her, at the left hand side.

He frowned but immediately put on a calm expression. He cupped his hands and said, "Greetings Your Excellency, Your Highness."

Zhou Chengshan smiled, "Ning Qin, we've been through hardships together, there's no need to be so polite."

She then extended her arm and said, "Have a seat."

Qin Yu thanked her and sat down.

This alone made Zhou Chengshan smile even wider.

Coughing lightly, she went straight to the point. "Ning Qin, I invited you here today because firstly, I wanted to congratulate you in person since you've been appointed as General Jinwu. Your future is going to be very bright. Secondly, there are some misunderstandings that I wish to be resolved."

Qin Yu glanced at the Eldest Princess, and her expression was cold and calm.

"Ning Qin, Ye Wangu's entry into the West Desolate was something that I decided. After his death, the Later Ye Family was unhappy, and I had to do something about it."

She raised the wine glass and said, "If you are willing to let go, drink this glass of wine. I will forget everything that happened and I promise to no longer treat you as my enemy."

Though her tone was calm, it was also cold and tough.

Zhou Chengshan frowned, her eyes showing a little helplessness. The Eldest Princess' temperament was still too strong.

The way she said those words did not sound like she was trying to reconcile.

"Ning Qin, the Eldest Princess' maternal side of the family has had a lot of huge achievements in the military. Even though it cannot be compared with the two Ye families, it still helped to build the foundations of the imperial military. If you are willing to let go of the past, I can assure you that there will be much assistance on your future journey in the military."

Qin Yu thought about it, and raised his wine glass. "I will do as Your Highness says, let's set aside our grudge!"

The Eldest Princess' eyes were suddenly full of brilliance. The coldness softened a little as she nodded and drank the glass of wine.

To be honest, Qin Yu indeed felt rather annoyed because of this matter.

He had to admit, however, that it was the incident with the Eldest Princess and the Later Ye Family that helped him to gain his current status.

His next step was to use the West Desolate to complete his setup, so that it would incite that clan to attack.

This would require support from the ruling class of the empire, so he would try not to make too many enemies.

Of course, if Qin Yu's identity was revealed next time and he were to go against the West Desolate…then what he said today naturally was not going to count.

"Good!" Zhou Chengshan laughed, "You are a man who is able to take whatever comes at you. Ning Qin, I have not judged you wrongly."

Now that the problem was resolved, the guests and the host enjoyed the banquet together.

When Qin Yu rose to leave, Zhou Chengshan escorted him out personally.

Watching him disappear into the corridor, the Eldest Princess said, "Thank you, aunt."

Zhou Chengshan waved her hand, "This is all that I'm able to do for you. What happens in the future still depends on you."

After a slight pause, she lowered her voice a bit, "I've told you before that regarding military matters, you must be able to take good care of them…even though Ning Qin was brought into the West Desolate by Li Zhouyi and they are now very close to each other, who is to say that things would not change with time?"

If it were up to her, Zhou Chengshan wished that the Eldest Princess would be the one to sit on that throne.

It was not just for her own interests, but also because of their kinship.

Eldest Princess nodded, "Thank you, aunt, for your reminders. I'll remember them."

Ning Qin…

Now, it seemed like he worked for His Majesty.

Regarding this, she was sure of it.

From this perspective, everyone was equally close to him. Li Zhouyi had the upper hand at most, but she still had a chance.

It was not going to be easy to get close to him, but she had her own advantages…for example, she had her status as the Eldest Princess, and…she was a woman.

……

Qin Yu was unaware that he had already become the target that others wanted to 'hunt'.

When he left Zhou Chengshan's quarters, he thought for a moment, and then went straight to the imperial military headquarters.

Since he had been appointed as General Jinwu, he needed to go and receive his own seal as soon as possible before he could take his office.

He did not want to stay in the capital city any longer.

He wanted to leave early; like a bird returning to the sky and a fish returning to the sea, he would regain his freedom.

Well, he almost forgot that there were other trifling matters to attend to before he left.

For example, the matter regarding Yun Qing and Yun Die.

The best option would be to keep them in the capital city to avoid trouble in the future.

However, Qin Yu had shown deep affection for Yun Qing last time. If he suddenly turned his head and abandoned them, it would arouse suspicion.

He decided to take them with him for now, and then find an opportunity in the future to send them away.

He had reached the imperial military's headquarters!

The horse carriage came to a halt, and just as he got out, he heard someone greeting him. "Brother Ning Qin, hahaha, we meet again!"

It was Hundred Saint.