Chapter 387 – Nobles and Generals—Is There Any Difference? The East Can't Believe It

“How did Mu Lin manage to fight an entire kingdom single-handedly?”

Some were utterly perplexed by how Mu Lin had accomplished all this, while others couldn’t understand why the Water Moon Sect, the Wei Family, and the Xun Family had come to the Southeast Region to seek out the Yan-Chu Families, asking them to mediate.

Of course, while some were puzzled, others had already speculated on the reasons.

“They had no choice but to seek mediation. After all, they accepted a task from the East Sea King. If they didn’t clarify things, Mu Lin might hold a grudge or suspect they were secretly working for the East Sea King.”

“If that happened, and Mu Lin continued his vendetta against them, they would be left in the dark.”

“But their foundations lie in the East Sea Kingdom, and some things can be done but not spoken aloud—no matter what, they couldn’t openly declare in the East Sea Kingdom that they didn’t want to be enemies with Mu Lin.”

“Unable to speak openly yet wanting to reconcile with Mu Lin, seeking mediation from the Yan-Chu Families was indeed the best approach.”

“…How pitiful!”

For one person to force several aristocratic families into such a state—the Southeast Region’s gentry once again felt the weight of Mu Lin’s intimidation.

…

At the same time, news of Mu Lin’s overwhelming display of power, along with the submission of the Water Moon Sect and the Wei Family, not only provided the gentry of the Southeast Region with some after-dinner conversation but also prompted them to make certain decisions.

—Few in this world offer help in times of need, but countless are willing to add flowers to the brocade.

When Mu Lin ventured to the East Sea Kingdom with an uncertain future, many aristocratic families simply watched from the sidelines.

Even the Yan-Chu Families, who were close to him, only secretly sent people to see if they could quietly rescue Mu Lin without drawing attention.

If they succeeded, that would be best; if not, they wouldn’t push further.

These families were unwilling to oppose the East Sea King for the sake of Mu Lin at that time.

But when Mu Lin gained the ability to threaten the East Sea King, everything changed.

It was like a certain slipper-wearing militia: when you’re weak, no one pays attention, but once you demonstrate your value in the struggle, ammunition, food, and even money come pouring in.

This was precisely Mu Lin’s situation now.

Regardless of how he managed it, Mu Lin had now demonstrated his value in the struggle, enough to make the East Sea King scramble.

In such circumstances, whether it was the Yan-Chu Families or the other gentry of the Southeast Region, none of them minded lending Mu Lin a hand to bolster his momentum.

Especially when someone was willing to take the lead.

Three forces took the initiative. The first was Prince Liang—after all, Ji Lingsha had ended up with Mu Lin. Earlier, he had been persuaded to try and rescue Mu Lin. Now that Mu Lin had proven his worth, he had no qualms about helping him further.

The second was the Jade Purity Sect—their reason for intervening was simple. They were well aware of the East Sea King’s covetous gaze toward the Southeast Region. As the de facto leaders of the region, they didn’t mind causing some trouble for the East Sea King.

The third was the Great Spirit Imperial Family. Their reason for stepping in was similar to that of the Jade Purity Sect.

They, too, had sensed the East Sea King’s burgeoning ambitions.

Previously, due to the great distance and more pressing matters demanding their attention, they couldn’t spare the effort to deal with the East Sea King.

But while they couldn’t focus all their energy on confronting him, they were more than capable of causing him some annoyance.

“Now that the Doomsday Calamity approaches, every member of the Human Race is a source of strength. We must cooperate for mutual benefit, not bully the weak. Most importantly, we must not use our hidden reserves to deal with the Human Race.”

“Those things are meant to deal with the Evil God…”

The Great Spirit Imperial Family intended to use the greater situation and overall circumstances to pressure the East Sea King, preventing him from employing extraordinary power against Mu Lin.

Hmm, aside from these forces, the Northern Aristocracy also sent some people over, ready to bolster Mu Lin’s momentum.

Their reason for helping Mu Lin was quite simple… Before heading to the East Sea Kingdom, Mu Lin had explicitly told them that after this battle, he would go to the Northern Wastelands to help them fight against the Demons and Monsters.

Initially, they hadn’t paid much attention to this matter.

These people didn’t believe that a single Mu Lin going north could make much of a difference.

But now, with news of Mu Lin’s deeds spreading, they realized something wasn’t quite right.

“Defeating countless people in the East Sea Kingdom… Could he really influence the situation in the Northern Wastelands?”

After exchanging glances, the Northern Aristocracy ultimately decided—to rescue him.

“With Mu Lin’s strength, even if he can’t reverse the situation in the Northern Wastelands, he can still help alleviate some of the pressure on us. Therefore, Mu Lin is worth saving.”

“Agreed.”

“I also agree.”

“Then let’s go. After all, so many others are heading there too. Even if the East Sea King holds a grudge, it won’t be directed at us.”

Given that Mu Lin was definitely going north, helping him was equivalent to helping themselves. Thus, the Northern Aristocracy naturally had no issue sending some people to bolster his momentum.

It must be said that when your talent is sufficiently outstanding, you’ll find the world to be a beautiful place, and everyone around you exceedingly kind.

Now, having fully revealed his talent, Mu Lin was experiencing exactly this feeling.

…

Cultivators from the Southeast Region were preparing a joint force, planning to fly together to the East Sea Kingdom to bolster Mu Lin’s momentum and prevent the East Sea King from acting rashly.

All of this, the East Sea King was unaware of and had no mind to pay attention to.

The Yan-Chu Families and Prince Liang, far away in the Southeast Region, already knew about the Golden God Sect’s miserable state and the retreat of the Water Moon Sect and the Wei Family. The East Sea King, located in Skysea City, was even more aware of all this.

To be honest, the current predicament was something he had never anticipated.

When he first heard that Mu Lin intended to come to the East Sea Kingdom for revenge, he had regarded Mu Lin as a joke.

“Foolish, reckless. Thinking you alone can seek revenge? A pipe dream.”

No matter how he looked at it, he hadn’t believed Mu Lin had any chance of success back then. Because of this, he hadn’t even paid much attention to Mu Lin, leaving everything to Advisor Xun to handle.

Then, their first operation failed.

But at that time, the East Sea King still didn’t consider Mu Lin a threat. After enlisting the Golden God Sect, Water Moon Sect, and Wei Family—three major forces—he left dealing with Mu Lin to them.

“No matter how strong you are, can you handle three aristocratic families?!”

With three great families, plus the Xun Family, which had a grudge against Mu Lin—four families against one man—the East Sea King at the time felt completely secure.

In fact, he even felt that doing so was somewhat like bullying the weak.

“Don’t blame me. Blame your own bad luck… Some people are ones you can never afford to provoke.”

Then, as the East Sea King was thinking this, he received news that the Golden God Sect had nearly been wiped out, and even heard reports from the Water Moon Sect and the Wei Family, saying they could not find any trace of Mu Lin.

Only then did he realize with a start that things had taken a turn for the worse.

“How could things have escalated to this point?”

He was puzzled, and soon, something even more distressing happened again.

Realizing that Mu Lin had exceeded expectations, he immediately summoned his council of strategists, only to find that nearly half of his talented and capable strategists were missing at once.

Only some solitary rogue cultivators, the East Sea King’s relatives, and newly established families wholly dependent on him had come to this place.

Such a scene made the East Sea King’s expression darken like water.

“Where is Zishi?”

“Reporting to Your Highness, Lord Zishi said he made an error in his cultivation, suffered a qi deviation, and is currently recuperating.”

“What about Hu Shuo?”

“Lord Hu Shuo’s clansmen said he recently gained some inspiration and is preparing to advance his cultivation.”

“And Qiu Ying?”

After saying this, without waiting for his subordinate to answer, he sneered coldly.

“Tell me, what excuse did Qiu Ying come up with for himself!”

From the East Sea King’s demeanor, everyone could tell he was furious to the extreme. Because of this, the assembled strategists felt their scalps tingle, somewhat afraid to speak up.

However, as they remained silent, the East Sea King’s expression grew even darker. Seeing this, everyone realized that even if they didn’t want to answer, they had to.

Thus, after exchanging glances, one strategist stepped forward under everyone’s gaze, steeling himself.

“Reporting to Your Highness, Qiu Ying said he is ill and temporarily unable to offer counsel to you…”

“Hmph, ill? I think he believes I am ill, old, and without authority!”

Bang!

Furious to the extreme, the East Sea King smashed the table in front of him before he even finished speaking.

The shattering of the table did not vent the anger in the East Sea King’s heart. Standing up, his aura was terrifying, his expression icy as he said, “Hah, what do those Aristocratic Families think they’re doing? Do they look down on me so much, thinking I can’t deal with Mu Lin or hold them accountable?”

“Tell those hiding strategists: I give them the time it takes for one stick of incense to return. If they do not come back within the allotted time, they need not return at all. And as for the Water Moon Sect and the Wei Family—within the time it takes for one stick of incense, I want all information on Mu Lin…”

“Your Highness!”

The East Sea King knew very well that his strategists’ departure was due to fear that this confrontation would affect themselves and their families—the incident with the Golden God Sect had made them aware of Mu Lin’s vengeful nature, and they dared not easily offend him.

However, just as the Water Moon Sect had previously worried, if they did not offend Mu Lin, they would incur the East Sea King’s displeasure.

Born a prince and later honored as a king, the East Sea King had always been of noble lineage and considered himself of exalted status.

Such a person naturally possessed immense arrogance and pride, utterly unwilling to suffer even the slightest insult.

Yet Mu Lin’s current actions were no mere slight insult—he was blatantly slapping the East Sea King in the face, trampling his dignity into the mud.

Faced with such a Mu Lin, the East Sea King had grown to hate him to the extreme, and the Aristocratic Families unwilling to help him deal with Mu Lin were naturally also marked by his resentment.

However, what made him gnash his teeth in hatred was that while he harbored resentment toward the aristocratic families who defied the prince’s orders, he could do nothing about it.

That address of “Your Highness” was a reminder from one of his clan uncles.

Although after calling out to him, the East Sea King’s clan uncle did not say anything further, merely giving him a meaningful look, the East Sea King had already understood his uncle’s intention.

‘Not participating in the confrontation between the East Sea King’s Manor and Mu Lin is not the decision of a single aristocratic family, but rather the consensus of all aristocratic families within the East Sea Kingdom. They have reached an agreement, and we cannot defy it, nor can we punish those families—rashly imposing punishment would only cause others to unite in defiance.’

‘And defiance must never be allowed to occur, as it would greatly diminish the authority of the prince’s residence.’

‘Therefore, if something cannot be done, it is better not to speak of it. Treat the excuses of those aristocratic families as if they were nothing and simply ignore them.’

After deciphering the message in his clan uncle’s eyes, the East Sea King clenched his fists even tighter, and the fury in his heart burned more fiercely.

But in the end, he still suppressed the anger in his heart and no longer mentioned the matter of the “ill” strategists.

It must be said that when the Yan Family Patriarch tried to persuade Mu Lin, his words held some truth—even a prince, or the emperor of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty, cannot have everything go their way. Thus, taking a step back and exercising restraint is not a bad approach.

Of course, being so powerful that no one can restrain you is an even better approach.

Unfortunately, very few can achieve the latter, so most people rely on the former method to navigate the world.

…

“Speak up, how should we deal with Mu Lin?”

No longer paying attention to the cultivators from the defiant aristocratic families, the East Sea King turned to his own idle cultivators for advice.

However, what darkened his expression once more was that, in response to his inquiry, he was met with yet another prolonged silence.

Clearly, without the support of the aristocratic families, these strategists dared not defy the East Sea King’s orders and had no choice but to come.

But this did not mean they were not wary of Mu Lin. Therefore, for the sake of their own safety, most of those who came chose to remain silent, hoping someone else would take the lead.

This, in turn, made the East Sea King’s expression grow even more dangerous.

Fortunately, the worst did not happen. To the relief of many strategists, not everyone feared Mu Lin. Some were willing to gamble, believing the East Sea King would ultimately prevail, and now was their chance to step forward.

Thus, they stepped up and offered their strategies to the East Sea King.

“Your Highness, since the aristocratic families fear retaliation, we should mobilize idle experts…”

“We can issue a bounty, offering rare resources and powerful cultivation methods as rewards. There are many capable people in the world, and some are even willing to risk their lives. With a large-scale bounty, we can certainly cause Mu Lin significant trouble…”

“And then there is the Golden God Sect—they harbor extreme hatred toward Mu Lin. We can placate them…”

“We must not give up on the other aristocratic families either. Continue to contact them and propose that we can act covertly…”

“The military also needs to be reorganized. Currently, many military commanders are controlled by the descendants of aristocratic families. Now is an excellent opportunity… Since they dare not offend Mu Lin, we can take this chance to seize military power for ourselves.”

The advisors of the East Sea King were quite capable. In a short time, they proposed several strategies to deal with Mu Lin.

Some even believed that the Aristocratic Families’ lack of effort presented an excellent opportunity for them to fully seize military power.

Of course, among these individuals, there were also those who felt uneasy and suggested a plan to minimize losses.

“Your Highness, we do not have any life-or-death conflicts of interest with Mu Lin. Our hostility stems only from a momentary misunderstanding and some personal grievances. Therefore, it is possible for us to reach a reconciliation with Mu Lin. Of course, I am not suggesting handing over the Third Prince. As long as—”

Bang!

Before he could finish, the advisor was slapped flying by the East Sea King.

“You want me to bow my head! A king, bowing to a lowly commoner!”

His furious demeanor did not intimidate the advisors below… Indeed, the one who proposed such a plan was somewhat of a reckless youth.

At that moment, the advisor persisted with his suggestion.

“Your Highness, a small impatience can ruin great plans. You aspire to ascend the throne and rule all nineteen provinces of the realm. For the sake of personal grievances, causing heavy losses to the East Sea Kingdom will diminish your prestige and harm the greater situation of the realm…”

There was some truth to his words, but before he could finish, the East Sea King interrupted.

“Hmph! Bowing to Mu Lin is what would truly destroy my prestige!”

“Ascending the throne is not a banquet or a matter of having a good reputation. To sit in that position, I need to make people fear me, make them wary, make them tremble. Only then will others follow me!”

“Therefore, Mu Lin must die, and he has to die!”

“If he does not die, I will have no chance at all!”

At this point, his tone softened slightly, and he spoke with full confidence: “Besides, rest assured, Mu Lin is not that strong. Previously, I simply didn’t pay him any attention, which allowed him to cause some chaos.”

“When I strike with full force, I will surely kill him in the shortest time possible.”

“Long live Your Highness!”

The East Sea King’s confidence eased the minds of the many advisors present. Their anxious hearts relaxed slightly.

However, their relief did not last long before it was interrupted by a panicked servant.

“Your Highness, disaster has struck! That villain Mu Lin has attacked the East Sea King’s Manor!”

“The three Young Masters of the eldest prince’s household have all been brutally killed. The Seventh Prince, the Ninth Prince, and their attendants have all vanished outside. Moreover, hundreds of stewards and officials connected to our manor have died in a short time. Our mines and Spirit Fields have also been destroyed countless times by Mu Lin!”

“Your Highness, the East Sea Kingdom is in chaos!”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Such a report instantly plunged the atmosphere in the hall to its lowest point.

The group of advisors in the hall dared not utter a sound for a long time. Those who had earlier shown no fear of Mu Lin and saw it as an opportunity were now filled with extreme anxiety and dread.

The current situation was something they had not anticipated.

At the same time, they found it hard to believe.

“Directly attacking the Prince’s Residence… How dare Mu Lin do such a thing!”

Not only were the advisors incredulous, even the East Sea King had not expected Mu Lin to dare strike directly at his descendants.

It is not strange, nor is it foolish, for such thoughts to arise.

Rather, this is an ancient feudal society, where people in this world are born with a deep reverence for imperial authority.

The East Sea King had not been without his share of wrongdoings and misdeeds, but most of the time, the punishments for his mistakes were borne by his subordinates and others.

As for himself, not only did he escape punishment, but there were even great scholars who actively defended him.

Having long been immersed in such an environment, the East Sea King had always believed that even if his son had attempted to assassinate Mu Lin, that scoundrel Mu Lin would only dare to stir up some trouble within the borders of the East Sea Kingdom.

At most, at the very most, Mu Lin would only target his third son.

As for anyone else, he was convinced that Mu Lin would never dare to lay a hand on them—such an act would be a grave defiance of authority.

Unfortunately, that was his perspective. And now, Mu Lin made it clear to him:

“Your Highness, imperial authority, reverence?”

“Hah, I’m sorry, but I do not revere imperial authority. What I believe in is: ‘Are kings and nobles born to their thrones?'”

(End of Chapter)