While Lin Feng was stirring up a storm in the Infinite Wilderness Vast Land, the Divine Land was relatively peaceful.
The battle of Xuan Extermination and Shu Mountain, which had involved almost the entire human cultivation world, had come to an end. Everyone was digesting the aftermath of the events. At the same time, many people were concerned about Lin Feng's trip to the Infinite Wilderness Vast Land.
In the main hall of the imperial palace in the Great Qin Empire's capital, West-Hill City, a few people were sitting opposite each other in silence.
The person sitting on the high throne was naturally the Qin Emperor, Stonefeather. The people sitting in the center of the hall below him were the Great Qin royal family led by the Rosun Monarch Shi Zongmao and the Nanming Monarch Shi Zongtang.
However, no one, including the Qin Emperor, said anything at this moment. Everyone was in deep thought.
No matter if it was in terms of cultivation or status, at their current level, they all had sufficient judgement and decisiveness. However, at this moment, all of the Empire's experts, including Stonefeather, felt hesitant, which was a rare sight.
In the battle of Xuan Extermination, other than Lin Feng and Xuanmen Tianzong, the biggest beneficiary was the Great Qin Empire. They confronted the Great Zhou Empire at the border, restraining the Grand Imperial Palace and the Great Wheel of Heavens until Lin Feng returned to the Great Thousand World.
The Great Qin Empire played a key role. If they allowed the Grand Imperial Palace and the Great Wheel of Heavens to go to Kunlun Mountain, then Xuanmen Tianzong might not be able to hold on until Lin Feng returned.
Therefore, Lin Feng was not stingy with the rewards after the battle. He directly transferred the entire medium-sized world that the Great Zhou Empire had compensated to the Great Qin Empire.
However, the Great Qin Empire and the Great Zhou Empire were not on good terms. They could not sit back and watch as the Great Zhou Empire joined forces with others to break through the Xuan Gate and obtain treasures to increase their strength. Therefore, helping others was helping themselves. At the same time, they did not suffer any losses in the confrontation. From a certain perspective, obtaining the East Victorious World was like obtaining a resource-rich medium-sized world for nothing.
However, for the Great Qin Empire, these were just immediate benefits. Looking at the big picture, the gains were greater.
Originally, Great Zhou's rise had been incredibly domineering, and it had already faintly surpassed Great Qin.
However, from the battle of West-Hill City where Lin Feng used the Heaven Punishing Sword to help the Immortal Dragon City completely refine, to the battle of Ying Ocean where Great Zhou lost the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain and the Grand Imperial Palace was damaged, the Great Qin Dynasty's Immortal Dragon City became stronger because of Lin Feng's Instant's Radiance. The Great Qin Dynasty had completely turned the tables, and the situation between the two dynasties started to reverse.
In the Xuan Extermination Battle, the Great Zhou Empire once again hit a wall. Even though Lin Feng had gone to the Infinite Wasteland Continent, the Great Zhou Empire had no choice but to completely switch to a defensive stance. They were no longer as tough as before, and the Qin Dynasty's strategic stance had changed from defense to offense, beginning to suppress the Great Zhou Empire's space for development.
The ruler and ministers of Great Qin were naturally happy to see this happen.
However, not everyone was happy.
Looking at the changes in the past few years, the Great Zhou Empire had gone from prosperity to decline, and in the process of the Great Qin Empire's resurgence, Xuanmen Tianzong had held a crucial position. He had almost single-handedly directed the change in strength between the two dynasties in the Divine Land.
During this period of time, the strength of the Celestial Sect of Wonders had increased explosively step by step, advancing at a speed that left one dumbfounded. Even the Qin Emperor, Stone Feather, felt a little overwhelmed.
As such, the entire Great Qin Empire discovered a problem that made them feel awkward, which was how to define their relationship with Xuanmen Tianzong.
In the early days, whether it was the Great Zhou Empire or the Great Qin Empire, they both looked down on Xuanmen Tianzong. Roping him in was to increase the power of the two dynasties' confrontation.
It was just like how they did their best to fight for the Northern Militant Imperial Court and the Heaven Pool Sect in the north.
Because Xuanmen Tianzong and the Mount Shu Sword Sect were not on good terms and had displayed shocking potential, the Great Qin Empire had secretly supported Xuanmen Tianzong. However, the development gradually exceeded the Great Qin Empire's expectations.
Xuanmen Tianzong quickly grew into a powerful faction that could stand on equal footing with the Great Qin Empire, and the relationship between the two became equal allies. However, after the battle of Ying Hai and the battle of Xuan Exterminating, Xuanmen Tianzong once again displayed great growth in strength. As such, the ruler and ministers of Great Qin found that they had to look up to this former ally.
The same thing also happened successively to the Celeritas Sword Sect, Thunderbolt Sword Sect, Grand Wilderness Sword Sect, Purple Sky Path, Northern Militant Imperial Court, and other forces. The rapidly changing situation forced them to adjust their mentality as soon as possible and adapt to the new position.
Now, it was the Great Qin Empire's turn.
However, for Qin Emperor Stonefeather, this mentality was not so easy to change.
It was true that his thoughts were deep and his style was steady. He was not as flamboyant and sharp as Emperor Zhou Liang Pan. However, this did not change the fact that Stonefeather was an emperor like Liang Pan!
As an emperor, who would be willing to be under others?
After the ancient times, the years changed. Before the Great Qin Empire and the Great Zhou Empire, many dynasties rose and fell. How many emperors did not look forward to the ancient times when the human emperor ruled the world and tens of thousands of immortals followed him?
If Stonefeather was really willing to be under others, then during the battle of Xiling City, he would not have joined forces with Lin Feng, Purple Sky Path, Northern Militant Imperial Court, and the Great Zhou Empire, which had always been his mortal enemy, to stand against Taixu Temple and abolish Taixu Temple's plan of using the world as a chess piece.
In this world, how many people were willing to be a chess piece? How many people did not want to be a chess player?
When people reached a certain height and faced those who stood at an even higher position, the first thing they would think of was not submission and fear, but surpassing and finding ways to win. Only when the gap was large enough would they show submission. However, this submission was not permanent. It was a temporary dormancy after recognizing reality. It was a necessary endurance to accumulate one's strength.
However, the Great Qin Empire was currently in a rather awkward position that was neither up nor down.
Stonefeather was very rational and had a good understanding of the Great Qin Empire's strength. He admitted that the current Xuanmen Tianzong was already firmly above the Great Qin Empire.
It could even be said that the current Xuanmen Tianzong's only opponent was the high and mighty Taixu Temple of the past. They were opponents on the same level.
Just like how no faction in the Divine Land could fight against Taixu Temple alone, now, other than Taixu Temple, no faction had the ability to fight against Xuanmen Tianzong alone.
However, it was because they saw it so clearly that Stonefeather and the Great Qin Empire felt conflicted.
In the silent hall, King Rosun Shi Zongmao was the first to break the silence. He said, "The Great Zhou Empire calls us Xuanmen Tianzong's subordinates, vassals, dogs, and followers behind our backs. They can call us whatever they want. What's important is how do we position ourselves, and how do we decide our future path?"
His words were crude and did not match his status and the current situation. However, no one present cared. Silently, they looked at Shi Zongmao and listened to him speak.
Shi Zongmao's expression was calm, and his tone was neither hurried nor impatient. "I originally thought that after Xuanmen Tianzong passed the Profound Destroying Tribulation, the situation would not change much. However, it seems that Xuanmen Tianzong's strength far exceeds our expectations.
"Although I don't want to admit it, if the current situation continues without any changes, then our Great Qin will truly become a vassal state of Xuanmen Tianzong, just like their own citizens in the Xuantian Realm.
"Our two countries are too close. These years, because we have worked together to resist Taixu Temple and Shu Mountain, Xuanmen Tianzong has recruited immigrants or opened their sect on our land. Our dynasty has mostly cooperated. The result is that with our help, this sect's influence in our dynasty has already surpassed Shu Mountain, and even surpassed Taixu Temple.
"We have fallen into a trap of our own making. If the gap between Xuanmen Tianzong and our dynasty continues to widen, one day their influence will even surpass the imperial family itself. At that time, it will be difficult for us not to become their vassal state.
"Even now, the number of young talents with potential in our dynasty who have entered Xuanmen Tianzong's sect is increasing year by year, but the number of people who are willing to serve our Great Qin is decreasing. If this continues, the consequences will be unimaginable."
Sitting opposite him, Nanming King Shi Zongtang said, "This is what we think, but from the perspective of Xuanmen Tianzong, they may not see our Great Qin that way. Immigration and accepting disciples are also mutually beneficial to us. No one has given special guidance to the people's choice. It is all their own will."
"Even Purple Sky Dao, Northern Militant Royal Court, Thunderbolt Sword Sect, and other forces, Xuanmen Tianzong has never taken the initiative to reach out."
Shi Zongmao nodded. "You are right. The master of Xuanmen Tianzong is indeed magnanimous, but first of all, there is still the Taixu Temple. No one knows if the master of Xuanmen Tianzong will still have the same attitude if Xuanmen Tianzong really surpasses the Taixu Temple in the future."
"Second, no one can guarantee the attitude of Xuanmen Tianzong's helmsman after the master of Xuanmen Tianzong. In the past, the Taixu Taoist gave up the throne of the Human Emperor three times, and the Taixu Temple was really detached from the world and only had its eyes on Infinite Wasteland. However, what happened after the Taixu Taoist went to the Sea of Death? What will happen now? "
Silently, Shi Zongtang said, "So what do you mean? Are we going to waste the good relationship between us and Xuanmen Tianzong and instead give birth to dirty thoughts? This is completely not worth it. "
"At the end of the day, Xuanmen Tianzong is now powerful and stronger than us. If we can't improve ourselves further, we can only be left behind. If we destroy our own foundation in this situation, the result will only be worse."
Shi Zongmao shook his head. "If one does not think about the future, there will be immediate worries. You are right about one thing. The key is that the Great Qin Empire needs to work hard to improve itself, or we will only be left behind. The reason why Xuanmen Tianzong is able to achieve what they have today is also because their strength has grown to this level."
"However, how can we improve the Great Qin Empire's strength? Resources are always limited, and so are opportunities. I don't agree with alienating or even becoming enemies with Xuanmen Tianzong. Instead, I'm saying that we should be better at seizing and creating opportunities. "
The expressions of everyone present, including Shi Zongtang, changed slightly. "You mean …"
Shi Zongmao nodded. "The next time the Ying Sea's Three Mountains reappear, the decisive battle with the Great Zhou Dynasty, the next war between the two worlds, and so on could all be opportunities."
"As well as … the official clash between Xuanmen Tianzong and Taixu Temple, which is highly likely to happen in the future!"
"If we can seize it, we will have a chance to truly rise up. If we can't, then we really have to consider completely adjusting the path we're going to take next."
Shi Zongmao finally said, "Thinking about it, the Great Zhou's Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu have the same plan. Perhaps … there are others as well."
For a moment, Shi Zongtang and the others did not say anything, all of them in deep thought.
Only the Qin Emperor, the true ruler of the Great Qin Dynasty who had been silent all this while, suddenly stood up. He said calmly, "Today's discussion ends here. Disperse."
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