Chapter 1962: The Assistance of the Heavenly Palace

The Guo family’s envoy looked around and asked, "Only a dozen or so of us?"

"Far more than that," Qingyang said, standing up. She swept her hand over the sand table, and red dots immediately lit up across the map of Shanjin, concentrated mostly in the central and south-central parts of the Shanjin Plains. "The Celestial God's apostles delivered intelligence. My subordinates have compiled it, and it shows that Jiu You has deliberately bypassed certain forces and locations, totaling sixty-seven places so far."

"So many!" The envoys secretly breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Before, news of Emperor Jiu You had been overwhelming, making them believe they were facing a universal enemy. Now, they learned there were many others in the same situation.

"The intelligence gathering isn't complete, and it's not impossible that this number will significantly increase later. I call these places 'strong points' – locations where there are powerful enemies he couldn't conquer in the first wave of attacks."

"So you are not alone; there are at least sixty other partners in the same predicament as you!" She smiled faintly at everyone. "If these dozens of forces are willing to stab Jiu You in the back, do you think he truly has the capacity to contend with all of you during his large-scale training period? Besides, does wanting to train soldiers guarantee success? Have any of you seen a commander truly turn a rabble into elite troops within three to five months?"

Everyone considered her words. Indeed, which lord present hadn't trained troops? What did they look like before training, and what did they look like after?

The Guo family's envoy was the quickest to react. "He certainly can't deal with so many opponents simultaneously. But what if he intends to concentrate his forces and achieve a few major victories to intimidate Shanjin, and if he happens to choose us... Reverend Protector, how should we respond?"

As this question was posed, the other envoys echoed it in agreement.

Qingyang's face remained placid, but inwardly, she thought, "Here it comes." These forces were invited here, and their sole purpose was to ask this very question, wasn't it?

Outwardly respectful, inwardly calculating.

She knew even better that what they truly wanted was assistance from the Celestial God and the Celestial Palace!

The Celestial Palace Protector summoned them from such a long distance; surely, some methods, benefits, or practical help should be offered, right?

Otherwise, why would anyone exert themselves for the Celestial Palace?

In truth, everyone present believed that the deities favored Baitian most. Otherwise, why would the Celestial God have eliminated King Yao and Chen Chuihua back then? Wasn't it precisely to help Baitian rise to power?

Now, a Dragon God had suddenly emerged, threatening Baitian and the Celestial God's plans in Shanjin. How could the Celestial God tolerate this?

Thus, the Celestial Palace Protector's sudden summoning of all of them most likely meant she intended to use them as pawns.

That was fine; those who thrived in Shanjin didn't mind being used.

Being useful meant they still had value.

Those without value easily ended up dead in the Shanjin Plains.

However, everyone wanted to receive a commensurate return.

What Qingyang had just said was essentially a feasibility analysis for them, reassuring them that confronting Jiu You during his training period carried minimal risk and offered substantial rewards.

Now it was the Celestial Palace's turn to present its conditions and offer benefits.

These local potentates in Shanjin were not so devout towards the Celestial God, unless the deities were powerful enough and willing to protect them.

Ha, at a time like this, she would surely be generous. Qingyang sat upright and declared solemnly:

"Rest assured, the Celestial Palace will not let you face such significant risks alone. We have modified many powerful demons, calling them 'Demon Constructs.' Each one possesses the combat power of an entire army, and they are ferocious, fearless, unafraid of death, and born purely for war and slaughter. The best among them are no less formidable than the Golden Armored Divine Generals. You may take them and their trainers back to your territories and let them fight for you."

"Do you have these 'Demon Constructs' you speak of right now?"

"Of course." Qingyang turned and gave an instruction, then led everyone into the courtyard.

Soon, someone led a monster in.

The creature was about four feet tall, with smooth, greyish-brown skin. At first glance, no one could tell if it was an ape or a scorpion, because although it had five monkey-like limbs, its upper body also crawled along the ground, while its bud-like tail was held high.

The monster let out a public roar, revealing jagged fangs. A Green Guard brought out a small lamb, and the monster pounced, tearing it to shreds in just two seconds—an extremely bloody scene.

The Green Guard then released several swallows, all swift-bodied, fluttering and ready to fly out of the courtyard. Those with weaker eyesight couldn't even keep up with their speed.

The monster looked up, its tail rose, and its tip, opening like petals, suddenly shot out several bone needles with whistling sounds!

Immediately, several sharp cries echoed in mid-air, and the swallows fell to the ground one after another.

Seven swallows, seven bone needles—all hit their targets!

Each needle was the length of an index finger, its tip gleaming with a bluish light.

One swallow was pinned to a tree trunk, the bone needle embedded deeply, and the bark visibly darkened.

Fast, precise, ruthless, and highly venomous.

"If such Demon Constructs are deployed on the battlefield, especially with terrain cover, couldn't they easily eliminate a squad of soldiers?"

An envoy asked, "Are the Demon Constructs you're providing us all of this caliber?"

"This is the average standard. There are others far superior."

Below, someone whispered, "Oh dear, these monsters look like the handiwork of the Red Hut Master."

"Indeed, that disquieting feeling..."

Everyone felt a sense of awe and dread. The Celestial Palace truly operated without drawing attention; when did it manage to create so many monsters in the Shanjin Plains? As this place was too far from Bega, everyone knew these were most likely products indigenous to Shanjin. However, the more formidable the monsters manufactured by Bega, the more advantageous they would be for them.

This trip allowed them to gain several Demon Constructs for free, significantly enhancing their combat power—quite excellent. However—

"If it's just Demon Constructs, they probably won't be a match for Jiu You's army," the envoys said matter-of-factly. "He annihilated Luodian in less than a month."

Luodian's military strength was second only to the former Yao. Therefore, when news of Luodian's destruction spread, the forces in Shanjin were terrified.

"Jiu You's conquest of Luodian was merely a trick, using Three-Corpse Worms to confuse the soldiers' minds and catch Luodian off guard," Qingyang analyzed rationally. "If it had been a normal assault, the war would have lasted at least six months to a year, and the outcome would have been uncertain."

Emperor Jiu You could easily take Luodian primarily due to an information asymmetry. How could these native people of Shanjin have ever encountered Three-Corpse Worms?

However, against Baitian and Qingyang, the Three-Corpse Worms were already ineffective.

Without waiting for questions, she continued, "You don't need to worry. I have a method to neutralize the Three-Corpse Worms, rendering them ineffective on the battlefield. Luodian's tragedy will not be replayed upon you."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, repeatedly saying, "That's good," and some even flattered her:

"As expected of Reverend Protector, you can easily neutralize even Jiu You's methods of warfare."

But then someone, with a wide smile, immediately added, "Emperor Jiu You is surrounded by numerous masters, and he himself is said to be an unparalleled powerhouse. No one wants to engage them in direct combat, do you?"