Chapter 54: The Hidden Gambit

"Haha, unexpected, right? I was also taken aback the first time I came here. Please, follow me." Ni Dapeng said, leading Zhang Xiao downward. The path was long, with the surrounding two meters shielded by spiritual energy, much like an underwater park. However, Zhang Xiao felt increasingly alarmed; as they descended deeper, the pressure of the ocean grew immense. To maintain a thousand-meter-long tunnel with spiritual energy alone—Zhang Xiao questioned if he even possessed such ability.

The group moved quickly, and before long, a crystal palace appeared before Zhang Xiao. It was breathtaking! The scene before him was the most beautiful he had ever witnessed. Beneath the azure ocean, countless fish swam about, surrounded by colorful coral reefs. The crystal palace appeared ethereal and elusive at that moment, a vivid spectacle that no movie special effect could ever replicate.

"Hahaha, welcome, Lord Guardian of the Nation, to my Hongmen!" A man dressed in embroidered crane robes strode forward. Upon seeing him, Ni Dapeng’s expression shifted, and he quickly bowed, saying, "Greetings, Sect Master." It turned out that the person before him was none other than the leader of the Hongmen.

What surprised Zhang Xiao even more was how the man knew his noble title. He knew that outside of a select few, his rank had never been made public. Zhang Xiao felt a surge of astonishment and simultaneously grew wary. However, noting the embroidered crane robes the sect master wore, Zhang Xiao couldn't help but feel a sense of oddity. Just then, the sect master bowed to him: "Your subordinate, Shangguan Tianheng, Governor of the Hongmen, greets the Right General of the Imperial Guard."

Zhang Xiao was completely stunned. He never imagined that the Hongmen sect master was a man of the imperial court. Even with Zhang Xiao’s sharp mind, he struggled to process this turn of events. Observing Zhang Xiao’s expression, Shangguan Tianheng understood that the revelation was hard to swallow, as it was top-secret information. Had it not been for Qin Shi Huang recently stating that the Lord Guardian of the Nation was his trusted confidant and need not be kept in the dark, he would never have dared to disclose it. Seeing Zhang Xiao’s bewilderment, Shangguan Tianheng laughed, "Haha, please, Lord Guardian, come into the main hall, and I shall explain everything in detail."

Realizing his lapse in etiquette, Zhang Xiao nodded and followed Shangguan Tianheng into the hall. Only after hearing the explanation did he understand: the Hongmen had been an underground force for Qin Shi Huang since the very founding of the nation. The Emperor had secretly funneled vast resources to the Hongmen to support its growth. Their shadow stretched across the Americas, Japan, Africa, Russia, and beyond. Those left stranded abroad after the Great Transformation, unable to join other guilds or professions, had all joined the Hongmen, becoming a crucial hidden chess piece in the hands of Qin Shi Huang.

Recalling what the Emperor had said to him during the military assembly, and connecting it to the scene before him, the target of Qin Shi Huang’s ambitions could not be clearer: the Nine Great Sects. Indeed, only by eradicating those sects could the Huaxia nation truly unify its command and embark on the path to becoming a formidable power. Thinking of this, Zhang Xiao felt his blood boil.

Just then, two other experts of the Nascent Soul stage returned from outside. They were surprised to see the Sect Master, but even more so upon learning Zhang Xiao’s identity. The title "Lord Guardian of the Nation" was certainly well-earned; they had heard rumors of Zhang Xiao’s strength, and seeing him in person naturally stirred their amazement.

After a moment, Shangguan Tianheng said with an apologetic smile, "Lord Guardian, I have one more matter to consult you on. I wonder where the one hundred thousand Huaxia people you rescued have been moved to? I mean no offense, but these people are of great importance, and I would like to ask you to entrust them to my care."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiao remembered the one hundred thousand people he had tossed into the Xuantian Grotto-Heaven. He smiled immediately, "Since that is the case, I will have them transferred to you another day." Zhang Xiao had considered that one hundred thousand was no small number, and he was not skilled in management. He couldn't keep them in his grotto-heaven forever; it would lead to complications eventually. It was better to hand them over to Shangguan Tianheng.

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Tianheng was visibly moved; those one hundred thousand souls were the future seeds of the Hongmen. After further discussion, Zhang Xiao departed from the Hongmen branch. As they left, Ziyan quietly transmitted a message: "Young Master, could we keep some of those people?"

Surprised, Zhang Xiao asked, "Yan'er, why keep them?"

"I think you should build your own faction, Young Master. After all, when Qin Shi Huang secretly instructed you at the assembly to reach the Body Integration stage within twenty years and establish your own sect, why not select some talented children from this group to be your disciples?"

Zhang Xiao felt tempted, but quickly dismissed the idea. Qin Shi Huang’s instruction to establish a sect wasn't merely about taking on disciples; there was surely another purpose. Furthermore, he had no heart for teaching children cultivation, and he lived a life where he might be ambushed at any moment. Leaving behind a disciple would only be leaving behind a burden of worry.

He dismissed Ziyan’s suggestion. Back at the Xuantian Grotto-Heaven, Zhang Xiao had Ziyan release the people trapped in the Big Dipper Shift Formation. Seeing Zhang Xiao, many were overwhelmed with emotion and rushed to kneel. Zhang Xiao dared not accept such a gesture—this entire affair was already tied to him, and if he accepted their worship, he might lose years of his life. He quickly used his spiritual energy to lift them up, but with one hundred thousand people, he couldn't lift them all at once. As soon as he lifted one, another would kneel. Left with no choice, he handed the pacification duties to Ziyan and hurried off to set up a teleportation array. With his understanding of spatial magic, creating a massive array was not difficult.

Once the array was connected to the one at the Hongmen branch, a massive portal lit up. Zhang Xiao smiled and returned to the crowd. Ziyan’s work had been effective; the people were sitting on the ground, discussing their future. Seeing that they were no longer agitated, Zhang Xiao walked up, intending to tell them to use the portal. Before he could speak, the crowd shouted in unison, "Thank you, Lord Guardian!"

The booming sound startled Zhang Xiao. People kept coming over to express their gratitude, though they were no longer frantic. As for the title "Lord Guardian," that was surely Ziyan’s doing. He was quite curious how she had managed to calm one hundred thousand people—a feat he knew he couldn't have accomplished himself.

"Ding! You have gained 800 Merits."

Checking his wrist, he saw his merit count had risen from 3,000 to 3,800. Though he didn't know the exact use of merits, more was always better. Ziyan walked over, smiling playfully, "Young Master, how was that? I did well, didn't I?"

Zhang Xiao nodded, "Not just well, it was perfect. What exactly did you tell them?"

Ziyan smirked, "Nothing much. I just told them a hero's story, and they listened quietly until you arrived."

A hero's story! Zhang Xiao chuckled, "Hahaha, let me guess, the male lead in the story was me." As he led the people toward the portal, he failed to notice Ziyan whispering to herself the moment he turned away: "It was a story of a hero and a beauty. The hero is you, as for the beauty..."