Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

Duanmu Rong's tone carried a hint of urgency and helplessness as he added, "Furthermore, since a year ago, the sea monsters in the deep sea have been relentlessly attacking the islands of the East China Sea. The habitats of the Japanese and our Duanmu family have been severely damaged, resulting in heavy casualties. We can no longer stand in the East China Sea and have been forced to migrate to the land to find a new place to live. This is one of the reasons why we are so eager to take over the Great Qian Imperial City."

Upon hearing this, Su Qingshan slowly nodded, a look of understanding on his face. The Divine Judgment hadn't been established for long, and its influence was mainly concentrated within the Great Qian territory. They didn't care much about things outside of Great Qian, and knew very little about them. Moreover, the Western Chuan royal family had already perished more than forty years ago, and many ancient secrets were buried with their demise.

After a while, Su Qingshan sighed softly, his tone tinged with emotion, and slowly said, "No wonder the Tianwu Sect would marry its most outstanding woman to the Emperor, and no wonder they would risk their lives for the Xiao royal family in the Western Regions. Even the newly promoted Grandmaster had to come to the capital to help the Xiao royal family protect it. It turns out they had long foreseen the changes in the world and wanted to use the power of the Xiao royal family to gain an advantage in the future upheavals."

"Yes," Gu Ning replied softly, her expression also carrying a hint of emotion.

Duanmu Rong nodded in agreement, adding, "Chief Su is right. The Tianwu Sect must have foreseen that this world is about to undergo a major change. They have always maintained a good relationship with the Xiao royal family, sharing both glory and disgrace. Naturally, they hope that the Xiao royal family can maintain the stability of the capital and safeguard the Great Qian dynasty. In this way, they can leverage the power of the royal family to gain the greatest benefits and gain a foothold in the future upheavals."

Su Qingshan bowed slightly and said respectfully, "Patriarch Duanmu is a man of great learning and knowledge. I have a question for you. What exactly happened more than ten thousand years ago that caused the spiritual energy on this continent to become so scarce that no one has been able to break through to the level of Grandmaster or higher?"

"I don't know." The attendant beside Duanmu Rong shook his head slightly, a hint of helplessness on his face.

Duanmu Rong slowly shook his head, his tone tinged with regret, and said, "Our Duanmu family and the Japanese are also very curious about this matter. Over the years, we have been consulting ancient books in search of answers. But unfortunately, none of the records contain any detailed information about this matter, not even a single clue."

He paused, then continued, "The Xiao royal family probably doesn't know the truth either. After all, the Great Qian Empire hasn't been established for very long and doesn't have the foundation of ten thousand years, so it's impossible for them to have preserved such an ancient secret. Perhaps the Tianwu Sect has some clues, or even the barbarian tribes might know some inside information—they have lived on this continent for much longer than we have."

"At least, the barbarians have realized the signs of the changes in the world, which is the fundamental reason why they launched the war and invaded the Great Qian." Su Qingshan smiled slightly, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes, and slowly said, "The places controlled by the barbarians are all barren and infertile lands, lacking resources, powerful martial artists, and powerful sects. Once the world changes and spiritual energy recovers, if they cannot quickly seize fertile lands and abundant resources, they will be eliminated by other forces sooner or later."

"Yes!" Duanmu Rong nodded, deeply agreeing.

Duanmu Rong then added, "Moreover, it is quite obvious that the monsters in this area seem to have also noticed the changes in the world. In recent years, the monsters have become more and more active and aggressive, which is the best proof of this."

"In this way, more powerful forces will inevitably join this conflict in the future, and the situation will become more chaotic and dangerous," Su Qingshan said solemnly.

"That would be perfect!" Su Qingshan's lips curled into a sinister smile, a ruthless glint in his eyes. "The Xiao royal family doesn't even have a single Grandmaster-level expert now. Even with the strong support of the Tianwu Sect, they are ultimately at their limit. In this chaos, they only face certain death!"

At this moment, he finally understood why the Duanmu family had joined forces with the Situ family to launch a rebellion and destroy the Xiao royal family—they were not only seeking revenge, but also seizing the initiative to take over the Great Qian Imperial City before the world changed, laying the foundation for future development.

As for the fact that the barbarians did not reveal the secret of the celestial anomaly to the divine judgment, Su Qingshan was not surprised. After all, their relationship with the barbarians was merely one of mutual exploitation and exchange of benefits; there was no genuine trust between them. Naturally, the barbarians would not easily reveal such an important secret to them.

"Chief Su, we must be clear about one thing." Duanmu Rong's expression turned serious, and he said solemnly, "Whether it is the Japanese or the barbarians, they are not our kind, much less our allies. They are our enemies. We must never trust them easily, otherwise, we will get burned sooner or later."

"I've always been clear about this, and I've never truly trusted them," Su Qingshan said frankly, his tone calm yet brimming with rationality. "However, our power is still weak right now. Relying solely on the Divine Judgment and the Duanmu family, it won't be easy to destroy the Xiao royal family. Since they can be used by us and help us achieve our goals, we must make good use of them. It won't be too late to deal with them slowly after we've taken over the Great Qian Imperial City and established a firm foothold."

He paused, a hint of ruthlessness in his voice, and added, "Moreover, the Duanmu family has already lost a Grandmaster. We will settle this score with the Xiao royal family and the Tianwu Sect sooner or later!"

"Chief Su is right!" Duanmu Rong nodded, a ruthless glint in his eyes. "Before the barbarian and Northern Desert armies arrive in the capital, why don't we strike first and wipe out the Xiao royal family as soon as possible? Then we can find a way to eliminate that Grandmaster of the Japanese tribe and seize their resources and clues—killing two birds with one stone!"

"Although this is very difficult and extremely risky, it is not impossible." Su Qingshan slowly closed his eyes and fell into deep thought, rapidly calculating the plan to take action in his mind. His expression was solemn and firm—this was their best opportunity, and they absolutely could not miss it.