After catching the so-called Child of Destiny off guard, Li Chang’an returned to the Library Pavilion in Kyoto to resume his cultivation, no longer stirring up trouble.
It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in Lu Shang.
On the contrary, he was itching to dig up every good thing Lu Shang possessed and claim it all for himself.
But things had to be taken one step at a time.
After suffering such a major setback at the Martial Dao Tournament, Lu Shang likely wouldn’t show his face before Li Chang’an again for at least a year or two.
In fact, by Li Chang’an’s estimation, Lu Shang might not even remain in Great Zhou. It was possible he would head to another dynasty to lie low and build up his power.
Therefore, in addition to increasing his own power,
Li Chang’an realized he also needed to establish an intelligence-gathering organization. This network had to be massive, capable of covering the entire Jiuzhou Continent, so that he could obtain news related to Lu Shang at any time.
But a massive scale alone wouldn’t be enough.
The organization’s operations also had to be extremely covert.
Otherwise, it would always be at risk of being completely dismantled by other nations.
To be honest, accomplishing both of these things would be no easy feat. As far as Li Chang’an knew, no such organization existed among the Twelve Countries.
The Jiuzhou Continent itself was vast.
Furthermore, the twelve nations that ruled it were mutually hostile, each keeping the others in check. To establish an intelligence network under their watchful eyes was by no means something that could be accomplished overnight.
To Li Chang’an, however, the difficulty only made it more of a challenge.
Playing by the rules wasn’t his style.
He first spent two years advancing to the Martial God Realm.
Then, he went to find his father and said, "Imperial Father, you must have heard about what happened at the Martial Dao Tournament. I need some men to investigate Lu Shang’s whereabouts."
Emperor Wu of Zhou had done more than simply *hear* about the incident at the Martial Dao Tournament.
In its aftermath, he had mobilized vast amounts of manpower and resources for the pursuit and investigation.
Just as Li Chang’an had predicted, however, Lu Shang had laid low for a long time after his major setback. As a result, even though Emperor Wu of Zhou had spent the last two years practically turning Great Zhou upside down, he hadn’t found a single trace of the man.
Now, seeing that Li Chang’an seemed intent on investigating personally, Emperor Wu of Zhou frowned. "I have been keeping an eye on this matter. You need not concern yourself with it. Your most urgent task is to focus on your cultivation. When the Ancestor returns from his spiritual wandering, it would be the great fortune of our Great Zhou if he were to bestow an Immortal Skill upon you!"
The relationship between the Twelve Countries had never been harmonious.
It was as if the nations had reached some tacit understanding; every twenty years or so, neighboring countries would launch a border war, resulting in mountains of corpses and rivers of blood.
Yet, for some unknown reason, though the Twelve Countries fought war after war, and though commoners and Jianghu Martial Artists died in droves, all twelve nations continued to exist.
Not a single country was ever annexed by another, nor did any nation ever fall in defeat.
As a result, there were even some whispers and rumors circulating among the common folk.
It was just that such talk could not be discussed openly among the nations.
Seeing the unconcerned expression on Li Chang’an’s face,
Emperor Wu of Zhou paused before speaking again, his tone serious. "As long as you can cultivate an Immortal Skill and become an Immortal, that fellow Lu Shang will be nothing more than a buffoon in your presence. He’s not worth fearing, and you have no need to waste your time on him!"
"I would like to cultivate an Immortal Skill, but the Ancestor hasn’t returned yet, has he?"
Li Chang’an had long anticipated this reaction from Emperor Wu of Zhou and had already prepared his argument. "Imperial Father, you have never faced him yourself, so you don’t understand how uncanny his power is..."
"I need these men not only to deal with that fellow but also to gather intelligence on Great Yuan and the Qiangman. That way, if those two nations intend to start a war, we can at least be prepared!"
At these words, Emperor Wu of Zhou’s brow furrowed even more deeply.
After a moment of silence, he said, "I can give you a contingent of the Inner Guard, to be placed entirely at your disposal. However, you are absolutely forbidden from interfering in matters of war!"
"The Ancestor should return within a few years. You must prepare yourself. As long as your strength is sufficient to catch his eye, you might have a chance to receive an Immortal Skill, even if your cultivation hasn’t reached Martial God Great Perfection. You might even get the opportunity to cultivate in the legendary Immortal Palace!"
With that, Emperor Wu of Zhou waved his hand, dismissing Li Chang’an without giving him any chance to refuse.
Li Chang’an didn’t press the matter and left without another word.
Over the past two years, Li Chang’an had read countless books in the Library Pavilion. One thing he could never quite wrap his head around was the tacit understanding behind the constant, yet indecisive, wars between the Twelve Countries.
’According to normal logic...’
’On a continent with twelve nations locked in what seemed to be a generational blood feud, the weaker countries in more remote territories should have been annexed long ago after so many years of brutal warfare.’
Yet the wars between the nations had raged on for countless years.
The number of dead—both Martial Artists and commoners—had long since reached an incalculable figure.
And yet, amidst such high-intensity warfare, not a single nation had ever been destroyed.
’Of course, one could explain it by the fact that each country was backed by an Ancestor who was a Cultivator. This might prevent any nation from daring to have a complete falling out, thus maintaining the tacit understanding of fighting without aiming for annihilation.’
’But even among Cultivator Ancestors, there should logically be differences in power. I refuse to believe that the strength and background of every nation’s Ancestor are identical.’