In less than half an hour of clashes between the Shu Prince's Mansion and the Wang Family,most of the Wang Family members had been killed,leaving the family head with red eyes from distress.
Clans are not mere sects;when disciples of a sect die,they can be recruited again.But when members of a clan die,it takes years to make up for the loss of these direct bloodlines.
When Liu Qianming's family was about to be annihilated,he chose to fight to the death with Su Xin.But here,in front of the head of the Wang Family,he chose compromise.
"Stop!My Wang Family is willing to agree to your attack on the Four Phase Sword Sect!Stop it!"
Wen Yu turned his head to glance at Su Xin.Now the decision still relied on Su Xin;he was only responsible for fighting and killing.
Su Xin coldly smiled,"Kill."
Wen Yu nodded.The pure Yang aura exploded,making him seem like a small sun.
His swordsmanship was fierce,his might unparalleled.In an instant,the martial arts arena in front of the Wang Family's gate was utterly devastated by him.The head of the Wang Family was instantly forced into a corner,seeing defeat looming.
Wen Yu,a eunuch,had followed Ji Yanshou's maternal tribe,a prominent general who conquered territories for the Great Zhou Dynasty,and his strength reached the peak of the Nascent Divinity Realm.
The head of the Wang Family,a Nascent Divinity Realm warrior who had put a lot of effort into sword forging,was naturally no match for him and was killed by Wen Yu after dozens of exchanges.
Wen Yu shook off the blood on his short sword and asked,"Master Su,what should we do now?"
Su Xin said,"The collapse of two second-rate forces should make certain people see our determination.Go tell the Tianyu Sword Pavilion and the Four Phase Sword Sect,ask them if they are willing to submit to the Shu Prince's Mansion."
As Su Xin had anticipated,after his two killings,both the Tianyu Sword Pavilion and the Four Phase Sword Sect were indeed intimidated.
They weren't afraid of Ji Yanshou because he wouldn't dare to act against them,but Su Xin was different.The destruction of the Dance Willow Sword Sect and the Wang Family had proved his determination.
These two sects wanted to seek assistance,but under normal circumstances,the sects friendly with them would intervene to mediate,putting pressure on the other party.
However,in the current situation,with the intimidating power of the Shu Prince's Mansion,if they approached,it would be pure suicide.What if the Shu Prince's Mansion turned against them?They couldn't give the Shu Prince's Mansion a reason for nothing.
Moreover,it was the greediness of their four sects that took advantage of the Shu Prince's Mansion but treated them as fools.It was strange that they weren't being troubled now.
Under such isolation,the two sects finally surrendered,agreeing to submit to the Shu Prince's Mansion,not as equal allies but as subordinates.
Inside the Shu Prince's Mansion,Ji Yanshou was hosting a banquet to entertain Su Xin.He raised his cup first to Su Xin and said,"It's thanks to Master Su's help that our Shu Prince's Mansion is thriving now.I was somewhat suspicious of Master Su before,that was my mistake.Let me punish myself with a double drink first."
Su Xin looked coldly at Ji Yanshou's attempt to curry favor and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly.
No matter how humble Ji Yanshou acted,it was useless.After dealing with the affairs of Bashu,he would leave.
However,Su Xin still drank the wine to save face and then said,"Your Highness,the matter is not over yet.Although these two forces have joined you,they have only done so under pressure.Do you think they will willingly die for you?"
Ji Yanshou put down his cup and asked,"What should I do then?"
Ji Yanshou naturally wouldn't naively believe that he could win over these two sects with his charm or the status of the Great Zhou royal family.But it didn't matter;Su Xin must have a way.
Su Xin took a sip of wine and said,"It's actually simple.On the one hand,force them to cut off all ties with the martial world of Bashu completely.On the other hand,continue to offer them benefits.Currently,only two second-rate forces have joined the Shu Prince's Mansion,which is not enough for the overall strength of the mansion.So,we need to continue to conquer forward,targeting those third-rate forces."
"While attacking these third-rate forces,the people of the Shu Prince's Mansion should not act.This will force the Tianyu Sword Pavilion and the Four Phase Sword Sect to take action,effectively isolating them from the martial world of Bashu.Additionally,the spoils taken from these third-rate forces should be mainly given to the members of these two sects,using benefits to suppress their resentment."
"This way,they won't have a place in the martial world of Bashu,even if they have other intentions,because the martial world of Bashu will not tolerate them anymore.As for the people from those third-rate sects,they are easier to deal with.Besides a few stubborn ones,the others can be recruited.Those worth cultivating can be turned into trusted aides.I don't need to teach you about this,right?"
Ji Yanshou and Wen Yu both nodded.Su Xin had laid out his plan clearly;they were not fools and knew what to do.
However,Ji Yanshou hesitated,"Then why don't we attack those second-rate forces?Among these second-rate forces,there are not only many innate warriors but also Nascent Divinity Realm warriors."
Su Xin sneered,"Your Highness,one must take one step at a time on the road and eat one bite at a time.We cannot touch those second-rate sects.Now that we have brought two second-rate forces under our control,the other second-rate forces in Bashu must surely be on alert.In this situation,even if we find a reason to deal with them,these people will definitely unite against us.There are over twenty second-rate forces in Bashu,with more than thirty Nascent Divinity Realm warriors combined.Such a formidable force,neither I nor Minister Wen can withstand it.If Your Highness desires Nascent Divinity Realm warriors,one option is to spare no resources to select and train one among your original confidants.The second option is to use generous rewards to attract talent.Even in Bashu,where independent cultivators are scarce,there are still several Nascent Divinity Realm cultivators.With the current power of our Shu Prince's Mansion,it is possible to recruit a few."
Hearing Su Xin's words,Ji Yanshou looked slightly embarrassed.He also knew he was too hasty.After all,even if his power expanded rapidly,it was impossible to have as many strong allies as the royal brothers in Shengjing City.
Su Xin did not intervene in the Shu Prince's Mansion's next plan but merely followed along.Dealing with these third-rate small forces was much simpler.Among these forces,there was at most one Nascent Divinity Realm cultivator.Faced with the strength of the Shu Prince's Mansion,they quickly surrendered,but their loyalty remained uncertain.
Su Xin knew there were hidden dangers in this,but he didn't bring it up.After all,Su Xin only needed to use the power of the Shu Prince's Mansion to accomplish his mission.He couldn't care less about what would happen next.The current power of the Shu Prince's Mansion was sufficient.
Moreover,if the Shu Prince's Mansion couldn't handle even such small matters,Ji Yanshou might as well forget about the throne and live as a wealthy man in obscurity.
As Su Xin had anticipated,those second-rate forces did indeed want to join forces to pressure the Shu Prince's Mansion.However,seeing that the people of the Shu Prince's Mansion did not provoke them,they backed off.After all,everyone had their own interests.With the Shu Prince's Mansion's current formidable strength,even if four or five families united,they might not be able to compete.
If that was the case,why bother to fight?After all,the Shu Prince's Mansion didn't pose a threat to them now.If they dared to act against them,the combined forces of the more than twenty second-rate sects in Bashu would definitely be a force to be reckoned with.
However,while these second-rate forces were not worried,Qiu Baichuan,the chief constable of Bashu,increasingly felt something was amiss.
Su Xin's arrival in Bashu was clearly instigated by the Iron Family to seize power.The most important thing was to retaliate against Liu Fengwu's sending Yin Ji to pick peaches in Jiangnan Dao.But now,Su Xin was helping Ji Yanshou's Shu Prince's Mansion expand its influence in Bashu.Although Qiu Baichuan didn't know what Su Xin's intentions were,seeing the growing strength of the Shu Prince's Mansion made him feel uneasy.
So,Qiu Baichuan decided he couldn't just stand by and watch.He needed to take the initiative into his own hands.
"Go find out which martial force the Shu Prince's Mansion plans to target next."
Since he couldn't understand Su Xin's intentions,Qiu Baichuan decided to take the initiative.After all,he couldn't let Su Xin have everything his way.
Two days later,in front of the gate of the Qingshan Sword Sect in Changshan Prefecture,the Shu Prince's Mansion only sent Su Xin and a hundred innate realm warriors to completely besiege this third-rate small force.
Dealing with these third-rate small forces didn't require all members to act.So Su Xin and Minister Wen split up,which sped up the process.Of course,they were accompanied by members of the martial sects willing to surrender.
The head of the Qingshan Sword Sect,upon learning that Su Xin had brought people here,showed a bitter smile.
They had heard about the recent actions of the Shu Prince's Mansion.These small forces like theirs couldn't resist at all.
So recently,these third-rate small forces had been preparing to seek help from the first-rate forces in Bashu,such as the Frost Moon Sword Pavilion,to intervene.
But unfortunately,the Qingshan Sword Sect was unlucky.Before they could send for help from the Frost Moon Sword Pavilion,they were greeted by Su Xin.
Su Xin smiled and said,"Is Zhao,the head of the Qingshan Sword Sect,here?I advise you to surrender.Stubborn resistance is truly meaningless."
During this time,Su Xin and Minister Wen had encountered several small sects that either had lost their minds or thought someone would come to their aid,stubbornly resisting.Their response to such sects was simple:kill!
After killing a few,the remaining ones naturally became more obedient.
The head of the Qingshan Sword Sect was not an idiot.His small Qingshan Sword Sect had no confidence to confront Su Xin directly.So he simply smiled bitterly and clasped his hands,saying,"Master Su,I'm willing to surrender."
However,at this moment,a voice came from afar,saying,"Wait!Su Xin,what do you mean by coming here to disturb the martial world of Bashu?Do you want to cause chaos in Bashu?After all,you have served as the chief constable before;how can you lack such a broader perspective?"
