After the Sea God's Fate Matchmaking Assembly ended, Tianyuan Pavilion convened a meeting.
"Old Lin, please tell everyone about the situation," Zhu Ziyang, sitting at the head of the table, leaned back in his chair, his hands resting on the armrests, with his right hand tapping lightly, producing a crisp tapping sound. His face betrayed no emotion as he spoke.
"Okay!" Elder Lin nodded and then informed everyone about the requests from the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Star Luo Empire.
It turned out that ever since the Crown Prince Xu Tianran took control of the Sun Moon Empire's power six months ago, the empire had started preparing for war. Although they were doing it discreetly, such major undertakings could never be hidden for long, especially with the warlike nature of Xu Tianran. This was a shared understanding among the rulers of the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms. Once Xu Tianran ascended to the throne, or once he had consolidated the internal forces of the Sun Moon Empire, war was inevitable.
However, facing war, the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Star Luo Empire were not prepared. So, they came up with a desperate plan, a plan that was essentially poisoning themselves to delay the inevitable. Yes, they wanted to assassinate Xu Tianran. In Zhu Ziyang's view, this was a short-term solution because the assassination would only delay the war plans of the Sun Moon Empire. Once the Empire recovered from the loss of their Emperor and Crown Prince, the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms would only face an even more furious retaliation.
This was a terrible move, but it was the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms' last struggle!
The assassination of Xu Tianran would not damage the strength of the Sun Moon Empire in any meaningful way. Instead, it would push those who were previously opposed to the war into a more hostile stance, accelerating the Sun Moon Empire's preparation for war.
Currently, three major forces were involved in this so-called "decapitation plan"—the Star Luo Empire royal family, the Heavenly Soul Empire royal family, and the Body Sect. These were some of the top forces on the continent. However, to assassinate the crown prince of the strongest nation on the continent, they would need even greater forces to join them.
Shrek Academy.
So, the emperors of the two major empires had sent personal letters to Tianyuan Pavilion, inviting Shrek Academy to join the assassination plan. This meeting in Tianyuan Pavilion was called to discuss whether Shrek Academy should participate in this assassination plan.
"Everyone, please share your thoughts," Zhu Ziyang asked, looking at the various elders, all showing different expressions. While he had already made up his mind, he still wanted to respect the opinions of the elders.
"I don't think the Academy should get involved in this matter," Xian Lin'er was the first to speak. "This assassination plan is fundamentally in conflict with the Academy's Empress Plan. If the Academy participates in this, regardless of success, it will tarnish the Academy's image among the citizens of the Sun Moon Empire. This would be detrimental to the actions of Lexuan and Elder Song's faction!"
"I disagree with Lin'er's opinion," Yan Shaozhe immediately countered. "Because whether the Academy participates in the assassination or not, once the action starts, the Sun Moon Empire citizens will see the Academy as a participant. After all, our ties with the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms are too deep!"
"Shaozhe is right," Elder Zhuang added, "We cannot not participate. In the eyes of the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms, if such an important operation doesn't include Shrek Academy, they will be disappointed. Whether the operation succeeds or not, it will deal a huge blow to the Academy's reputation."
"Moreover," Elder Zhuang continued, "If we don't participate, it will undermine trust with the people of the Sun Moon Empire, and also cause the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms to question the Academy. This is a terrible move, but we have no choice but to take it!"
"Sigh…" Qian Duoduo sighed, "Our ties with the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms are too deep, which makes it difficult for us to gain the trust of the Sun Moon Empire people. Since it's hard to gain their trust, it doesn't matter how much we deepen their misunderstanding."
It was clear that Qian Duoduo agreed with joining the assassination plan.
"What about the Empress Plan?" Xian Lin'er asked, feeling unwilling. The Academy had invested so much in the Empress Plan, and abandoning it now seemed too regrettable. "Should we just give up? Lexuan has already taken control of the Soul Master Corps and the Southern Sea Fleet of the Sun Moon Empire. That's nearly a quarter of their army! Are we really going to abandon it now?"
"Heh!" Zhu Ziyang listened to everyone's thoughts, and finally, he showed his own thoughts. "Of course, we can't give up the Empress Plan. Similarly, we cannot not assassinate Xu Tianran. From any angle, Xu Tianran is an obstacle we must eliminate."
"Without eliminating Xu Tianran, how can Lexuan ascend to the throne? Without assassinating Xu Tianran, how can the Sun Moon Empire justify launching a unification war? Without the unification war, how can Lexuan establish her authority? Without the unification war, how can the continent be unified? If the continent is not unified, how can the Academy carry out the Yun Tian Plan?"
Zhu Ziyang's eyes shone with an imposing light.
The elders looked at Zhu Ziyang's eyes, all their minds shaken. Elder Xuanzi spoke, "Ziyang, you mean we should join this action?"
"No!" Zhu Ziyang chuckled lightly. "We're not participating, we're leading! Shrek Academy has always been the rule maker and leader, how can we let others lead us? Elder Lin, reply to the two empires and tell them our decision. Let them know that this operation will be led by the Academy, and I believe they will be more than happy with that."
"Understood!" Elder Lin nodded, replying.
"Ziyang, let me go!" Elder Xuan volunteered, his face full of eagerness. "I'm ready to go!"
"No problem," Zhu Ziyang immediately smiled and agreed. "At that time, Elder Xuan, you will accompany us to Mingdu for the Soul Master Competition, while Big Senior Sister and Third Senior Brother go to support Lexuan and Elder Song, and inform them of our plans. Elder Lin, Elder Zhuang, Big Senior Brother, and Junior Sister, you will remain at the Academy!"
"Yes!" All the elders nodded in agreement, their faces filled with enthusiasm and anticipation. Everyone knew that after the Soul Master Competition, the situation on the continent would undergo earth-shattering changes, and Shrek Academy would be the one leading these changes!
After the meeting, Zhu Ziyang sat alone in the hall, lost in thought.
The situation within the Sun Moon Empire was now very clear. Crown Prince Xu Tianran controlled three-fifths of the empire's military and had the backing of both the Ming De Hall and the Holy Spirit Sect. It seemed that his ascension to the throne was already a done deal.
Aside from Xu Tianran, there was also a force within the Sun Moon Empire, led by the Third Prince Xu Tianci, but in reality, after Xu Tianran had placed him under house arrest, the real leader of this faction was Princess Xu Tianxuan, the daughter of the Moon Pulse, who had a very high influence in the southern provinces of the Sun Moon Empire. This was the basis for Zhu Ziyang's confidence in Lexuan becoming the Emperor of the Sun Moon Empire.
However, for Lexuan to ascend smoothly, there were still some obstacles.
First, although Xu Tianran had killed all of his brothers, he still had a sister with a claim to the throne. This Sun Pulse Princess was on the assassination list, and even if she couldn't be killed, she had to be made to disappear.
Next, the Sun Pulse still had significant prestige among the Sun Moon Empire's people. For Lexuan, as a Moon Pulse person, to ascend, she needed to diminish the Sun Pulse's influence. Fortunately, with the help of Cao Tian, this task would be much easier.
Finally, there were the neutral factions within the Sun Moon Empire, with the Ming De Hall being the most prominent. Although its leader, Jing Hongchen, was a staunch supporter of the Crown Prince, the real power in the Ming De Hall was Kong Deming, a Super Douluo. Interestingly, Kong Deming's title was Silver Moon, and his martial soul was the Moon! While he wasn't directly from the Moon Pulse, his mother was, meaning he could not remain neutral. Whether or not they could win his support would determine whether Lexuan could gain control of Ming De Hall, the core institution of soul tool technology on the continent.
For now, these obstacles were not things Shrek Academy or Lexuan had to face directly. The first step was to deal with Xu Tianran, and that would be the most difficult part. In Zhu Ziyang's view, if the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms tried to handle this on their own, they would never succeed.
They still needed Shrek Academy, or rather, he needed to take matters into his own hands!
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