knife

Chapter 539 Origin
The warships were quietly moored in a backwater.

The ship's sailors were very familiar with the waterway; they knew exactly where to anchor and where the reefs were. Watching their skillful maneuvering, Li Dachui even felt that navigating at night wouldn't be a problem at all.

The ship was extremely quiet, and it was hard to believe that there were still hundreds of sailors operating it.

The ship is only so big, and I don't know how they managed to do that. Clearly, these sailors knew who was on board.

Such discipline amazed Li Dachui.

The two sat on either side of the bow of the boat, one on the left and one on the right.

Today is the 16th.

The moon is fullest on the 16th of the lunar month, so the silver moon in the sky is round and bright today.

The river water occasionally lapped against the hull of the boat, making a splashing sound. From the woods on the bank, the sounds of birds chirping and frogs croaking could be heard from time to time. A fragrant aroma wafted on the wind, coming from the large patches of honeysuckle blooming in the bushes on the bank.

They sailed on Danyang for two days before turning into another tributary.

Compared to the tranquility of the Danjiang River, this tributary has a much more rapid and turbulent current.

"Da Chu has always known that Cloud Mist Mountain is the headquarters of the Demonic Sect, so why hasn't it ever wiped it out?" Li Dachui asked curiously.

"It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't!" Jiang Qian pointed to the water's surface: "You know about the history of the Demonic Sect, right?"

"I know a little. It seems that Qingfeng, the founder of the Demonic Sect, wanted to use the Demonic Sect to take revenge on Li Qing, the founding emperor of the Qin Kingdom, right?" Li Dachui said.

"Pretty much!" Jiang Qian said, "Back then, the newly established Qin state was extremely powerful. Although the Xiong and Xiang clans were also strong in the south at that time, they had no intention of establishing their own independent territory. In fact, they were planning to submit to Qin. But later, Qingfeng's arrival completely changed everything. With Qingfeng's planning and help, the Xiong clan declared themselves kings and established the Great Chu. However, this time Qingfeng learned her lesson. In the process of helping the Xiong clan, she also established the Demonic Sect. It can be said that without Qingfeng, there would be no Great Chu."

"It seems that this founder of the Demonic Sect truly hates Li Qing! But with her martial arts cultivation, killing her shouldn't be too difficult, right? She's lost in thought!"

"Or perhaps Qingfeng is thinking that killing Li Qing with just one sword is too easy for him!" Jiang Qian laughed.

Li Dachui nodded: "If we could completely defeat the opponent and leave them with nothing again, that might be a more satisfying form of revenge. However, Qingfeng has clearly oversimplified things. The difficulty of overthrowing a country and killing an emperor are obviously not on the same level. Moreover, the Qin state at that time had just been founded, its power was growing rapidly, and it had a wealth of civil and military officials. It would be too difficult to destroy the Qin state at that time."

“Yes! In the end, Qingfeng only helped the Chu Kingdom stabilize the situation. There was no way he could launch a northern expedition!” Jiang Qian sighed. “Later, Li Qing died, and Qingfeng suddenly disappeared. After that, the Chu Kingdom court and the Demonic Sect fell out. Without Qingfeng, the Demonic Sect was already teetering on the brink of collapse due to internal power struggles. The Chu Kingdom court seized the opportunity and used a series of methods, including winning over, turning against, and assassinating, to severely damage the Demonic Sect's influence. It had no choice but to go underground. However, when Qingfeng was alive, the Demonic Sect's power was too great. Later, the Chu Kingdom tried everything, but it was unable to eradicate it.”

"So, the Xiong and Xiang families are ungrateful bastards!" Li Dachui laughed. "Not at all!" Jiang Qian shook her head. "In power struggles, there's never any room for sentimentality. Actually, the Demonic Sect's doctrines are fundamentally in conflict with the interests of those in power in Chu. When Qingfeng was around, the Xiong and Xiang families were afraid of his power and dared not take any action. Now that Qingfeng is gone, they naturally have nothing to worry about. If the Demonic Sect isn't suppressed, their positions won't be secure!"

"The Demonic Sect advocates equal distribution of wealth and social status, which is naturally not something the Xiong and Xiang families would do!" Li Dachui nodded and said, "It's either the East Wind prevailing over the West Wind, or the West Wind prevailing over the East Wind. Without its leader, the Demonic Sect is torn apart internally, and its failure is inevitable."

"Even so, the Demonic Sect's foundation is still intact!" Jiang Qian smiled and said, "Especially the Demonic Sect's headquarters. The Chu Kingdom attacked it several times and suffered heavy losses, but never considered attacking it again."

"Have the two families even fought each other with swords?"

"You think the Five Elements Banner of the Demonic Sect is a pushover?" Jiang Qian said, "Yunwu Mountain is surrounded by water and mountains. To attack its headquarters, you can only go by water. The Flood Banner has a strong navy, and the Giant Wood Banner has many traps. Although the Demonic Sect is in disarray, when you really want to attack its headquarters, they can unite to fight back. Some will confront you directly, some will instigate rebellions, and some will plot to assassinate Chu ministers. After this happened several times, Chu no longer had the intention to attack! They just keep a close watch on the place."

"I see!" Li Dachui suddenly realized.

“Without external pressure, the internal struggles have begun again,” Jiang Qian said. “The Demonic Sect’s power is getting weaker and weaker, and in the end, it is no match for the imperial court at all!”

"So that's why there's a plan for the Holy Maiden of the Demonic Cult to infiltrate the imperial court? Like He Qingqiu?"

A strange light flashed in Jiang Qian's eyes, "Isn't this also a kind of tactic?"

“That’s certainly a great idea!” Li Dachui smiled and said, “But your cousin is really amazing. She managed to subdue the unruly Demonic Sect. Three of the five banners of the Demonic Sect have now submitted to your cousin. The Demonic Sect, which has plagued the country for hundreds of years, has finally become an ally of the Chu Kingdom!”

“Only by uniting as one can we stand together against external threats!” Jiang Qian said, “In fact, after hundreds of years of evolution, the current Demonic Sect is very different from the Demonic Sect of the past. People like Wang Pu, who are high-ranking members of the Demonic Sect, have finally realized that it is simply impossible to equalize wealth and status now! Since it is impossible, it is natural to change.”

"If you can't defeat the enemy, join them!" Li Dachui said. "Is that the logic?"

"You could say that!" Jiang Qian nodded.

"But in this way, the Chu Kingdom under your cousin's leadership is still just a change in name only, unable to escape the cycle that a dynasty inevitably goes from prosperity to decline and gradually moves towards its demise after hundreds of years of development."

“That’s not necessarily true!” Jiang Qian shook her head and said, “At least in my opinion, there are ways to change all of this right now, or at least to greatly slow down the process!”

"Defeat the Qin state and unify the world?" Li Dachui asked.

Jiang Qian smiled and nodded: "In my opinion, this is feasible. If we can defeat Qin and unify the world, we can extend the life of Chu by at least three hundred years."

(End of this chapter)