Conquering Myriad Worlds from the Mythical Three Kingdoms

"did not find?"

Zhang Xiu listened to his soldiers' report with some disbelief.

He sent everyone out and conducted a thorough search.

As a result, not only were the so-called remnants of the Mongol Yuan army not found, but even the escaped remnants of the Qing army were not found.

This immediately alerted Zhang Xiu, who immediately submitted a report requesting that experts come and help.

Either the enemy has already fled, or the enemy has used some method to deceive his soldiers.

It's unlikely that Shi Heng and his group lied.

After the report was sent, Luoyang took it very seriously.

After all, this matter concerns the relationship between the two empires. If these remnants of the Mongol Yuan army can be found, there is a lot that can be done.

But if it can't be found, it inevitably leads to many other thoughts.

Zhang Xiu welcomed the arrival of the group of experts, led by Zhao Yun.

"Junior brother!"

"Brother!"

Zhang Xiu stepped forward and warmly embraced Zhao Yun.

"I didn't expect you to come, and you even brought the white horse?" Zhang Xiu looked at the horizon but didn't see the white horse.

"The White Horse has stayed behind to patrol the northern frontier; only a few of us have come!" Zhao Yun shook his head, realizing that this reconnaissance mission against the White Horse wasn't very meaningful.

Originally, we planned to mobilize the Fifth Skylark, but considering the technology of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, we decided to send them instead.

"Then I'll leave you all to it. I'll prepare a banquet and await your good news!" Zhang Xiu bowed to the people behind Zhao Yun.

Zhao Yun and the others nodded and began a thorough search of the entire world for any possible auras.

Besides suspecting that the other party had hidden themselves in a special way, they also suspected that the other party had already left through some means of teleportation.

"Ok?"

Zhao Yun stopped in a village and sensed a very faint aura, which, though faint, was extremely discordant.

Showing no sign of anything amiss, Zhao Yun questioned the villagers briefly before leaving.

However, not long after they left, Zhao Yun immediately sent a telepathic message, ordering Zhang Xiu to bring his troops to surround the village.

For Zhao Yun, this disharmony, though subtle, was enough for him to pinpoint his location.

The source of the discordant atmosphere lies beneath the village.

Zhang Xiu unconditionally supported Zhao Yun's guess. Except for the soldiers guarding the prisoners, he brought all the soldiers over and surrounded the village.

"found it!"

After Zhao Yun closed his eyes and carefully sensed for a long time, he directly manifested a hundred-zhang-long Dharma form, inserting his hundred-zhang-long silver spear directly into the ground and blasting open a huge hole.

A huge underground space suddenly appeared before everyone.

Inside the underground space, there was a place that resembled a village, where two or three thousand people gathered.

Attracted by the loud roar, everyone came out to observe.

"So it turns out these Mongol barbarians colluded with the Qing court barbarians! No wonder we couldn't find them!"

Zhang Xiu looked at the soldiers, who were almost two different styles, and a ferocious look appeared on his face.

The clouds rose up and instantly tangled together, suppressing and dissipating Zhao Yun's hundred-zhang Dharma form. Zhao Yun landed on the ground and stared at the Mongol soldiers and Qing soldiers in the underground space.

"Charge! Kill them!"

The slight terrain issues posed no problem for Zhang Xiu, Zhao Yun, and the others; a road constructed of clouds extended directly into the underground space.

"Surrender now, and we'll spare your lives! Anyone who dares to resist will be killed without mercy!" Zhang Xiu roared.

Some Qing soldiers, terrified, dropped their weapons and lay prostrate on the ground.

On the other hand, the Mongol soldiers gripped their weapons tightly and stared intently at Zhang Xiu.

"Those who resist to the bitter end, kill!"

A ferocious look appeared on Zhang Xiu's face as he led his troops directly into the underground space.

They were already a group of defeated soldiers, and with the combined attack of Zhao Yun and others, they didn't even last half an hour before being wiped out by Zhao Yun and his men.

However, they learned from the surviving prisoners that the higher-ups had all fled, and the highest-ranking officer present was only a captain with internal energy cultivation, who was easily killed by the group of experts in the melee.

Everyone looked at each other, not expecting this outcome.

They knew that these soldiers were expendable pawns, intended to seize the opportunity to launch a rebellion while they were planting the Jade Lingzhi.

However, they didn't expect Zhao Yun to be so perceptive, pulling them out from underground.

"They've stockpiled so many survival supplies here; it seems they're planning a protracted war!" Zhao Yun frowned as he looked at the mountain of supplies.

When exactly did the other party begin planning this?

The villagers above didn't know this, a fact he had already confirmed through his secret technique. Unless an entire village was stronger than him, they were unlikely to lie to him.

This underground space could be explained as a coincidence or a creation from the past, but judging from the condition of these living supplies, they were things that the other party had recently stockpiled.

Someone has played a grand game, ensnaring both the Ming Dynasty and them.

Zhao Yun was unsure whether this was a scheme orchestrated by the Ming Dynasty or a deliberate plot by the Mongol Yuan Dynasty.

The Ming Dynasty isn't innocent; if Zhang Xiu loses this battle, he might never be able to get this world back.

Countless schemes flashed through Zhao Yun's mind in an instant. He dared not delay and immediately returned to Luoyang to report the intelligence to Zhuge Liang.

"Zilong, don't overthink it!" Zhuge Liang smiled as he looked at Zhao Yun, who was constantly speculating.

"Regardless of who did it, it can only be the Mongol Yuan dynasty now!"

Zhuge Liang's words made Zhao Yun raise his head in surprise.

"Neither we nor the Ming and Mongol Yuan dynasties will be friends forever, nor will we be enemies forever. Ultimately, our stance will depend on our interests."

"The only way for us to maintain restraint in this conflict is to shift all the blame onto the Mongol Yuan dynasty, and to keep Xinghan neutral between the two sides for the time being!"

Zhuge Liang smiled as he answered Zhao Yun's questions. Zhao Yun was a smart military general, but for civil officials, Zhao Yun's wisdom was a little unclear.

"I see, thank you for clearing up my confusion, Prime Minister!"

After Zhao Yun left, Zhuge Liang's smile faded, and he activated his mental talent to connect all the clues.

One can conclude that while the Mongol Yuan dynasty may have been behind it, the Ming dynasty certainly went along with it. The Qing dynasty's legacy was a substantial sum, worth taking a bite from for both the Ming and Mongol Yuan dynasties.

They have basically taken over the small worlds in the Central Plains that are connected to the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, but the more they conquer the world, the greater the possibility that the small worlds they come into contact with will be controlled by the Mongol Yuan.

The small worlds within the grotto-heavens also vary greatly; some are merely agricultural worlds, while others are suitable for cultivating crops like the Jade Lingzhi.

Many things from small worlds don't adapt well to the local environment when planted outside, so most of the time, small worlds are the best farming grounds.

This incident essentially declares that a portion of the Qing dynasty's remnants have sold these small worlds to the Mongol Yuan dynasty.

That's why the Mongol Yuan dynasty was able to lure the Ming dynasty into the game in this way.

This move by the Mongol Yuan dynasty was undoubtedly intended to provoke a conflict between the Ming dynasty and the Xinghan dynasty, while also testing the Xinghan dynasty's attitude.

If Xinghan tolerates this, then the Mongol Yuan will increase its infiltration into the Qing court's small world. After all, if Xinghan doesn't want war, it will definitely tolerate this kind of "sucking soup" behavior.

Therefore, we cannot tolerate this; we must strike hard to make our stance clear and maintain a balance, so that the Mongol Yuan side will be hesitant to act rashly and dare not continue to act recklessly.

Xinghan may not be able to defeat any of them now, but it can severely damage one of them by self-destructing, and then drag the other down with it.

The three parties maintain a fragile balance, and the longer this balance breaks down, the more advantageous it will be for Xinghan.

Xu Shu was in charge of the talks with the envoy; his literary and martial talents made him perfectly suited for any position.

"Prime Minister, the people of the Ming Dynasty are willing to exchange a group of Mongol prisoners for the Ming soldiers we have captured!"

"The Ming Dynasty has certainly made a good plan!" Upon hearing this, Zhuge Liang knew exactly what the Ming Dynasty was planning.

Undoubtedly, this is an intention to use them as a transit point, to stabilize them while using them as a communication channel.

This saved face for their side, resolved the issue of prisoners, and thus ended the conflict.

"This offer is excellent; we have no reason to refuse!"

Xu Shu spread his hands. The main reason he accepted was because this communication channel was a very valuable thing.

There's a lot of money to be made by transferring money from one hand to the other, and for Xinghan, it's something worthwhile to set up a special department to handle.

"Soldiers can be exchanged, but what are the conditions for officers?" Zhuge Liang posed another question.

Soldiers can be exchanged for equal numbers of soldiers, but officers and generals cannot be guaranteed a one-to-one exchange, so there will inevitably be a price setting.

"Using the essence of heaven and earth and crops as the basis for exchange, three hundred stones for internal energy to form a qi, one thousand stones for internal energy to leave the body, three thousand stones for breaking through the boundary, and ten thousand stones for commanding a large army."

"Commander of the large army..." Upon hearing this, Zhuge Liang immediately smiled and shook his head.

This is just an excuse; without a large enough army to command, an exchange is simply impossible.

Moreover, it is extremely rare for a large army commander to be captured.

"Pass on the Ming Dynasty's plan to the Mongol Yuan Dynasty!"

"Furthermore, effective immediately, an Exchange Division will be established, under the Ministry of Revenue, specifically responsible for the exchange of prisoners."

Zhuge Liang calmly gave the instructions, wrote a note, stamped it with his official seal, and immediately a minor official went to carry out the order.

"Is Sima Yi's matter settled? When will he return to report for duty and receive his title?"

After Xu Shu finished his routine handover of official business, he poured himself a pot of tea and sat down in front of Zhuge Liang for a casual chat.

Zhuge Liang didn't even look up: "He has a real headache. The Central Plains have just been pacified, and not only are the northern barbarians eyeing him covetously, but Gan Ning has also conquered Liaodong at sea. He's currently extremely busy and overwhelmed."

"Tsk, Gan Xingba always does some unexpected things. Pang Shiyuan doesn't even try to stop him, just lets him run wild."

"Then you underestimate Pang Shiyuan. Liaodong has a shipbuilding industry. When Gan Xingba conquered Liaodong, he moved everything related to ships there. I reckon he's probably fighting for Japan now."

Zhuge Liang put down his pen, raised his head and looked at Xu Shu with great seriousness: "Pang Shiyuan and Sima Zhongda are no less talented than me, Yuanzhi, do not underestimate them!"

"If someone else said this, I definitely wouldn't believe it, but if you're the director, I definitely believe it!" Xu Shu's face remained calm.

Sima Yi and Pang Tong may have been a little more talented than him, but they could never surpass him in this lifetime.

Because he was a founding father of the Star Han Empire, unless the two of them could become prime ministers of the Star Han Empire like Zhuge Liang, there was absolutely no way they could surpass him.

He had already been granted the title of Duke of Xinghan and had served as both a general and a prime minister. There were very few people in Xinghan who could be ranked alongside him. Jia Xu was one, Guo Jia was one, Zhuge Liang was one, and everyone else had to rely on him from behind.

Moreover, in Xinghan, the feudal lords who were enfeoffed did not have a higher status than the dukes of Xinghan; in fact, they were more like a position between dukes and marquises.

After all, to reach the position of Duke, both ability and seniority are indispensable.

Seeing the look on Xu Shu's face, Zhuge Liang said nothing.

It's perfectly normal for someone with senior experience to be arrogant, and Xu Shu really did have that ability.

Seeing this, Zhuge Liang lowered his head and continued working on the documents, while naturally changing the subject: "Guess what Gan Xingba plans to do after conquering Japan?"

"Using the Divine Land as a foundation, transform the Four Seas into a Sky Ship?" Xu Shu calmly picked up his teacup and took a sip.

Zhuge Liang stopped what he was doing with some surprise and raised his head again.

"Looks like I guessed right!" Xu Shu said with a calm smile.

"That's right! He heard about Zhou Yu's use of self-circulation to make the fleet fly, so he set his sights on Shenxiang, asked me for a bunch of things to be taken from the damaged Tianzhou, and went to attack Dongying!" Zhuge Liang said slowly.

Gan Ning is truly resourceful, and with the technical support of Pang Shiyuan, who turns those ideas into reality, he has indeed found his way in the navy.

He knew he couldn't compete with Zhou Yu on the high seas, which made Gan Ning restless and unable to eat or sleep while sitting in his position as the Grand Admiral of the Xinghan Navy.

Entrusted with important responsibilities by Mu Yi, yet unable to become the strongest, this has always been a source of worry for Gan Ning.

When Gan Ning learned that Zhou Yu could fly, he had a flash of inspiration: since the ultimate mode of the navy is to fly, why not just fly up and become an aerial navy?

A sea of ​​clouds is also a sea.

Gan Ning wrote a letter to Mu Yi requesting to become the Air Force Commander and hand over the position of Navy Commander to someone else.

Mu Yi agreed, but didn't approve it. After all, Zhou Yu had other plans, and even if the position of naval governor was to be handed over, it would have to wait until another person was trained.

With Mu Yi's permission, Gan Ning naturally devoted himself to researching the Sky Ship, starting his development with the Divine Land as the driving force.

Sima Yi felt he was having a bit of bad luck.

Japan was originally his future possession, but Gan Ning has snatched it away, and he has nowhere to complain, so he can only endure it.

Fortunately, Gan Ning only wanted the divine land; he had no interest in the land of Japan.

Sima Yi could only turn a blind eye because Gan Ning had cleared the obstacles for him in advance.

After all, the ocean wasn't his main focus; he felt he could use this to gain more benefits.

The northern nomads were strangely strong, seemingly blessed by Heaven. Sima Yi had one hand suppressing the remnants of the previous dynasty within the country, yet he couldn't suppress these nomads with the other.

Therefore, Sima Yi felt he needed a little help. (End of Chapter)