Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

Forty-seven days after the great victory at Shuangfeng Plain, Pingyang County welcomed its first winter snow.

Snowflakes fell silently from the leaden sky, covering the eaves and courtyard of the Azure Dragon Society branch. Dongfang Weiwo sat cross-legged deep within the secret chamber, his spiritual energy swirling around him like a vortex, each breath drawing upon the ever-increasing tidal power of heaven and earth.

Before him lay the Enlightenment Chapter of the Heavenly Man's Treasure Book, his fingertips tracing the ancient seal script:

"Those who are 'heavenly beings' do not cultivate realms, but cultivate 'self.' I am heaven, and heaven is me."

A month ago, he broke through to the first level of the Grandmaster realm, his foundation becoming as solid as a thousand-year-old rock. Now, as he enters seclusion again, the feedback from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is far more intense than before—the tide of spiritual energy is getting stronger every moment, and the martial arts bottlenecks throughout the entire Tianxuan Continent are loosening, and he is no exception.

A flash of golden light appeared in the secret room and then disappeared.

Grandmaster Level Two.

After his breathing stabilized, Dongfang Weiwo opened his eyes, and a very faint golden line appeared and disappeared between his brows. That was the progress of the Heavenly Man Treasure Book's Mind Cultivation Chapter - the initial completion of the "Understanding Myself" realm. He had vaguely touched the threshold of "My Way is Self-Established".

"Faster than expected."

He got up, pushed open the door, and went out. In the courtyard, a figure in white was admiring the snow with his hands behind his back.

Baiyujing.

"Young Dragon Head has emerged from seclusion." The Second Dragon Head turned around, his expression as gentle as ever. "Congratulations on breaking through to the Second Heaven."

Dongfang Weiwo nodded: "Do the two dragon heads have something to say to me?"

"Guests have arrived in Pingyang County."

Bai Yujing pointed towards the front hall, "The commander of the Northern Garrison Command, surnamed Liu, has brought an imperial edict. He claims to be here to 'comfort' the western prefectures—but in my opinion, his true intentions are elsewhere."

Dongfang Weiwo's eyes flickered slightly. The Zhenfu Division, along with the Xuanjingtai and the Jinyiwei, were known as the three major supervisory agencies of the imperial court.

The Suspended Mirror Platform was in charge of intelligence, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was in charge of arrests, and the Garrison Command was in charge of military law and affairs—the three agencies checked and balanced each other, each reporting directly to the Emperor. Before the great victory at Frost Maple Plain, the Garrison Command had virtually no influence in the west. Now, why was it suddenly sending a commander to "pacify" them?

"We'll talk about it when we meet."

In the front hall, a middle-aged military officer in his forties sat upright, with four captains of the Zhenfu Division standing behind him. This man had a square face and a profound aura—a Grandmaster at the fifth level, he was already considered a top figure among the thousand-household commanders of the imperial court.

Upon seeing Dongfang Weiwo enter the hall, the middle-aged military officer rose and bowed, his posture upright yet neither servile nor arrogant: "Liu Zongyuan, the Commander of the Northern Garrison of the Garrison Command, has come to pay a visit to Young Dragon Head on imperial orders to pacify the western prefectures."

"Commander Liu, you're too kind." Dongfang Weiwo sat down, took the teacup but didn't drink, "What does the imperial edict say?"

Liu Zongyuan took out a roll of bright yellow silk and unfolded it: "His Majesty's edict: The west has been newly pacified, and the people should live in peace. The Garrison Command is ordered to inspect the military and civil affairs of the thirteen prefectures, and the garrison commanders of each prefecture and local forces must cooperate, etc."

"Cooperate." Dongfang Weiwo smiled. "What does the Zhenfu Division want to investigate?"

"Military affairs." Liu Zongyuan put down the imperial edict and looked directly eastward at Weiwo.

"In the Battle of Frostmaple Plains, the Azure Dragon Society fought against thirty-seven sects, and a very small number of local troops from the thirteen prefectures were conscripted to participate. The duty of the Garrison Command is to investigate—who commanded those troops and whether they violated any imperial military regulations."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Dongfang Weiwo lightly tapped the armrest with his fingers—he naturally knew about this. During the Battle of Frostmaple Plains, the garrison commanders of three border cities did indeed secretly send troops to support the Azure Dragon Society's flank. Those men were his father's former subordinates, whom he secretly mobilized through his connections with the Marquis of Weeping Blood.

However, there is no evidence publicly available.

"If Commander Liu wants to investigate, the Green Dragon Society will naturally not stop him."

Dongfang Weiwo said calmly, "However, the west has only just been pacified, and the people's hearts are still unsettled. If the Zhenfu Division's high-profile investigation of 'military affairs' causes panic in the region, it may not be His Majesty's true intention in 'pacifying' the region."

Liu Zongyuan's gaze sharpened slightly: "What does Young Dragon Head mean?"

"An investigation is permissible, but the officers of the Zhenfu Division cannot act alone. The Qinglong Society will send someone to accompany them, which will ensure the safety of your personnel."

Accompanying someone is tantamount to surveillance. Liu Zongyuan naturally understood the implied meaning, but Dongfang Weiwo's attitude was gentle and his words polite, leaving no room for criticism. He pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Alright."

After seeing Liu Zongyuan off, Bai Yujing emerged from the back of the hall: "Young Master, the Zhenfu Division's inspection of military affairs is just a pretext. What they really want to see is the Qinglong Society's military preparedness, supply lines, and troop deployment."

"I know." Dongfang Weiwo stood under the eaves watching the snow fall in the courtyard. "The Zhenfu Division is the Crown Prince's territory. Liu Zongyuan, the commander of the Northern Zhenfu Division, is one of the Crown Prince's men. His arrival at this time isn't because the Emperor wants to investigate, but because the Crown Prince wants to investigate."

"What are Young Master's plans?"

"Let him investigate." Dongfang Weiwo turned and walked into the snowstorm.

If the Crown Prince wants to see the Azure Dragon Society's trump card, then show him one—clean up all traces of troop deployment orders in the three border cities.

Then show him the weapons in the Azure Dragon Society's twenty armories, make him count the grain in the granaries, and make him estimate how many soldiers I can support.

Bai Yujing said thoughtfully, "Let him think we're very strong."

"Make him feel that we are so strong that he dares not act rashly." Dongfang Weiwo paused, "Also, send a return gift to the Crown Prince. Tell him—the Weeping Blood Marquis's Mansion and the Azure Dragon Society are interdependent."

Three days later, at the Eastern Palace of the Imperial City, Crown Prince Qin Linyuan received two items.

The first item was a secret report from Liu Zongyuan, detailing the Green Dragon Society's military and food reserves—the numbers were staggering. Qin Linyuan read it without changing his expression, simply putting the report into a box and locking it three times.

The second item was a letter that Dongfang Weiwo had entrusted to someone to deliver. The letter contained only one line:

"The North and the West, together guard the imperial gates. The Marquis's Mansion and the Azure Dragon Society, together protect the peace and tranquility of our land."

Qin Linyuan stared at this line of text for a long time.

"Smart," he said softly. "This is telling me that attacking the Azure Dragon Society is attacking the Blood-Weeping Marquis's Mansion, and attacking the Blood-Weeping Marquis's Mansion is attacking the million iron cavalry of the Northern Border."

Advisor A whispered, "Your Highness, what about our plan..."

"constant."

Qin Linyuan folded the letter and put it away.

"But we need to do it another way. We can't touch the Green Dragon Society, so we won't. But Third Brother's Embroidered Uniform Guard is becoming increasingly active in the west—have someone tell Liu Zongyuan that while investigating military affairs, he should also take the opportunity to check on the Embroidered Uniform Guard's forces in the west. Let the Green Dragon Society know that the Crown Prince's men have cleared the way for them."

Advisor A suddenly realized: "Your Highness means... to curry favor with the Azure Dragon Society?"

"Since an alliance can't be formed, let's be friends for now." Qin Linyuan smiled. "If we're friends for a long time, we'll eventually have a chance to become allies."