Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 333 Before the Crisis, Let People Imagine

Shuiyue Cave is not large, and there are not many members of the Tong clan.

Most importantly, given the current situation of frequent earthquakes, no one would be foolish enough to stay indoors.

Therefore, Tong Zhan quickly gathered his clansmen.

But he was completely confused about what to do next and had to ask Tong Bo for help: "Brother, what should we do now?"

Tong Bo said, "Let's go to the ancestral temple and pay respects to our ancestors!"

"Huh? Brother, when did you start believing in this stuff? Do you think our ancestors can manifest their power?"

"Time is of the essence, so I won't explain further. Just do as I say."

"it is good!"

Although they came from the Tong clan, a race that descended from ancient times and whose bloodline was a mixture of the blood of various gods and demons, the Tong clan did not have much ancestor worship.

Only the ignorant believe in gods and ghosts, while those who have a clear understanding of the world will naturally know its true composition.

It's one thing to worship ancestors in ancient times, since most clans that existed in ancient times had a powerful ancestor, whether a god, demon, or immortal. It's harmless to pay homage to them.

But after the end of the ancient era, the world changed drastically, gods and demons ceased to exist, and immortals disappeared. Worshiping ancestors again became purely a matter of tradition and remembrance.

Although the Tong family has an ancestral temple to worship their ancestors and a tradition of worshipping their ancestors three times a year, they have never believed that these ancestors, who have been dead for countless years, can truly help them.

Especially now, in this special period when Yin Zhong has clearly come knocking on our door, this is even more true.

However, out of trust in his elder brother, Tong Zhan immediately went to carry out Tong Bo's orders.

Under the current circumstances, many clansmen really had no other choice, so the newly appointed clansmen gave an order and everyone came to the ancestral temple to worship their ancestors.

Unexpectedly, just as the clansmen bowed and kowtowed three times, the earth suddenly stopped trembling, and the earth-shattering roar disappeared.

"This……"

"Is the earthquake over?"

"Could it be... the blessings of our ancestors?"

Everyone was extremely surprised, and many looked at Tong Zhan with unexpected expressions.

They thought that their clan leader had some top-secret information, which was why they were asked to come and worship their ancestors at this time.

Ironically, it was precisely after they worshipped their ancestors that the earthquakes ceased.

Little did they know, Tong Zhan himself was also incredibly surprised. After calming the many clansmen down and telling them to go back, he hurriedly went to Tong Bo and asked, "Brother, what's going on? Could it be that our ancestors were truly protecting us?"

Tong Bo said, "You could say that. You should know that the Tong clan possesses a supreme treasure, the Spirit Mirror."

"I know, but didn't the Spirit Mirror disappear a long time ago?"

"The Spirit Mirror possesses a spirit. Its inexplicable disappearance was its own decision. At this moment, it may exist in any corner of this world. But in any case, it is ultimately a treasure of the Tong family."

I asked you to lead the clansmen to worship our ancestors, but actually I wanted to try and see if we could bring the spirit mirror back in this way.

Tong Zhan then understood his elder brother's plan.

Upon hearing the booming of the barrier and sensing the tremors of the Water Moon Cave, Tong Bo guessed that Yin Zhong had likely recovered some of his strength.

Faced with this power that could shake the entire Water Moon Cave, Tong Bo was completely powerless.

This is a terrifying force that cannot be influenced by wisdom.

Even in this situation, he remained calm and thought things through, and then he thought of the Spirit Mirror.

Of course, he actually had no way of knowing whether the Spirit Mirror would actually appear.

It was just another gamble.

Upon hearing this, Tong Zhan exclaimed in delight, "Big brother, could it be that our worship just now really brought us a magic mirror?"

Tong Bo shook his head: "My silly brother, how could that be? We've been worshipping our ancestors three times a year for so many years, when have we ever obtained a magic mirror?"

"Then what's going on?"

"I'm afraid Yin Zhong's recovery of strength is not simple and cannot be sustained for long. If he stops now, it means that he will lose the strength he has recovered."

Tong Bo said, "Now that you are the clan leader, you need to learn to think of solutions. The reason I had you pay homage to the ancestor just now was because Yin Zhong's strength was truly astonishing. I only came up with this idea when I had no other choice. If there had been even the slightest other way, why would I have done this?"

"Understood, big brother..."

Tong Zhan said in a low voice.

Whether he simply couldn't understand the intricacies of the situation, or whether he wanted to listen to his elder brother's teachings more before parting ways with him, remains to be seen.

Only he himself probably knows the difference.

Outside the Water Moon Cave.

Yin Zhong let out a long breath.

It seemed he wanted to vent all the pent-up frustration he had accumulated from the Imperial Sword Manor, the Tong Clan, and even the organization over this period of time.

Despite his earlier eagerness, when his first punch, delivered with all his might, failed to break the barrier of the Water Moon Cave, he already realized that he probably couldn't break it.

He understood the Tong family's methods better than anyone else.

Such a massive barrier must possess a formidable ability to absorb the power of heaven and earth to regenerate.

The remaining effects of the Yellow Millet Pill were almost gone.

If he threw a punch with all his might, he could shatter the barrier completely.

Even if the cracks don't cover most of the barrier, even if they only create a crack about half the height of a person, it means there is a possibility of breaking the barrier.

However, although the entire barrier was trembling, it did not show the slightest sign of damage.

This means that the damage his punch caused to the barrier was actually limited.

Thus, the barrier's regenerative ability was enough to block all his subsequent attacks.

This barrier also represents the understanding of the Tong clan.

Heaven and earth are one, and the earth, wind, water, and fire cycle together.

Practitioners should not forcefully borrow power, but should follow the will of Heaven and skillfully achieve their goals in the process.

The barrier currently appears to be hiding a part of the world, but in reality, a mountain range has formed above the barrier, covered with lush forests, and has become part of the natural world.

The operation of various forces within the barrier is almost seamlessly integrated with the entire world.

Building such a barrier requires a lot of effort in the early design stage, but once the design is completed, it is virtually impossible to break.

Because what the attacker is facing is not just a single barrier, but an integration of the barrier and its surrounding environment.

Like a section of water flowing through a stream, supported by a source, it is interrupted but not extinguished.

Therefore, Yin Zhong's first punch was the only one he truly intended to break the barrier of the Water Moon Cave.

The countless punches that followed were actually an act of resignation after realizing that he could not break the barrier.

Even so, he was still resentful, which is why he kept attacking to vent his hatred.

To be fair, venting is indeed a good way to relieve stress.

After that chaotic fight, Yin Zhong's mood did indeed improve considerably. After taking a few more glances at the Water Moon Cave, he finally turned and left.

Having gone through so much, he had finally resigned himself to his fate, knowing that he had missed this opportunity and could no longer enter the Water Moon Cave.

Once you let go of a single thought, you'll suddenly feel the vastness of the world.

This venting made me feel even better.

On the way back, they were even chatting and laughing.

"If Second Uncle had attacked Imperial Sword Manor earlier, he would probably have already killed all those traitors by now."

Zhou Ming said with a smile.

Yin Zhong snorted coldly and said, "What difference does it make whether those ants are killed or not? In comparison, the Water Moon Cave is still more important."

He didn't care about the Imperial Sword Manor at all, not only because he had joined the organization and had it as a backer, but also because he knew the Imperial Sword Manor very well.

This understanding encompasses various aspects, including personnel, the military, commerce, and even the secret techniques passed down through generations of the Imperial Sword Manor.

Given equal strength, he was confident he could defeat Yin Hao in one move.

As long as the secret techniques of the Imperial Sword Manor remain unchanged, this suppression will continue.

But if it were changed... hehe, to put it arrogantly, there aren't many martial arts in this world that can surpass the set of Imperial Sword Manor's inherited secret techniques that he created.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that this set of inherited martial arts can be cultivated to the level of a grandmaster or above already surpasses 99% of the martial arts in the world.

Moreover, even at the Grandmaster level, the path of martial arts has not yet come to an end.

Even among martial arts techniques at the Grandmaster level, there are naturally differences in quality.

Some can only cultivate to the Grandmaster level, while others can give people a great advantage and room for improvement even at the Grandmaster level.

Thanks to the level of the Undying God and Demon and Yin Zhong's own knowledge, the martial arts inherited by the Imperial Sword Manor belong to the latter category.

Even if one cultivates to the Grandmaster level, it is still considered a very good awakening.

Unfortunately, no one from the Imperial Sword Manor has been able to reach that level over the years.

Even so, the level of this set of unique skills is there, and any cultivator can see it.

Who would willingly give up such a powerful technique?
Unless the Imperial Sword Manor can find martial arts of the Celestial level.

But there are probably only a handful of martial arts techniques of that level throughout history. How could a mere Imperial Sword Manor possibly obtain them?

As long as the traditions of the Imperial Sword Manor remain unchanged, Yin Zhong will be their nemesis.

What's there to be afraid of?

"Now that Second Uncle has joined the organization, he certainly doesn't need to care about Imperial Sword Manor anymore. It's just a pity that Second Uncle's plans at Imperial Sword Manor over the years have gone to waste."

"Yes, it's a pity..."

After all, it was a place he had lived in for hundreds of years. The thought that he might not be able to go there again made Yin Zhong feel a little melancholy.

Especially when he thought about the mercury pool he had painstakingly built.

I'm afraid it would have already been destroyed by the Imperial Sword Manor by now.

"Let's not talk about these things anymore."

Knowing that he was about to enter a new phase of his life, Yin Zhong suppressed his emotions for the time being and asked, "Besides Jian Yue, how many other experts in the organization are at least at the second level of Grandmaster?"

Zhou Ming shook his head and said, "I don't know about that. After all, I haven't been in the organization for long. So far, I've only seen two Martial Aspect Realm experts around Aizen."

"Both of you?"

"Yes, they are all masters of swordsmanship, and their strength is probably about the same."

"Is that swordsmanship master nearly as strong as Jian Yue?"

“That’s right. That person is called Demon Lord. Whether it’s Jian Yue or Demon Lord, they both have the strength to defeat Second Uncle.”

"snort!"

Yin Zhong was very unconvinced and snorted coldly: "That Jian Yue has the Ancestral Sword in his hand. It's fine if he is stronger than me because of the power of his weapon. But does the Demon Lord you mentioned also have such a divine weapon?"

Zhou Ming shook his head: "I have never seen him wield any powerful divine weapon, but the organization has far more divine swords than just that one ancestral sword."

"Oh?"

"As far as I know, the organization possesses two divine swords. One is the Chi You Sword, which was discovered along with the God of War. The other is a replica of the Xuanyuan Sword, found in the tomb of the Yellow Emperor. Although it is a replica, it was also a divine weapon jointly crafted by the ancient immortals and buried with the Yellow Emperor!"

"Chi You's sword? The sword buried with the Yellow Emperor?"

Yin Zhong was startled; the origins of these two swords seemed to be even more powerful than the Ancestral Sword.

The slight resentment in his heart was then suppressed.

"Who exactly is Aizen?"

"The organization's backing, that ancient clan, is divided into two factions: the conservatives and the emerging ones. The conservatives are led by the Four Emperors, while the emerging ones are centered around the Seven Sages, of whom Aizen is one."

"I see."

Yin Zhong interpreted this as a noble figure of high bloodline and holding great power.

He wouldn't underestimate such a person, but naturally he wouldn't take him too seriously either.

"Besides them, who else are there as experts?"

Zhou Ming shook his head: "I'm not entirely clear on that. The organization is divided into various departments, and there isn't much contact between them. Many people communicate through the Heavenly Secret Tablet and have never actually met in person."

The transportation of supplies and various government offices was handled entirely through teleportation portals, with virtually no personnel involved.

In fact, there is no answer to this question.

After all, the organization now actually consists of the same number of experts that Zhou Ming mentioned above.

People like Mu Daoren are considered experts, but why would Zhou Ming expose them?
Putting aside the information crisis caused by the exposure, it is rather strange that this huge organization only has a few grandmasters like Mu Daoren.

Moreover, Mu Daoren and his group only recently joined the organization.

I'd rather not say anything and let Yin Zhong fill in the blanks himself.

As expected, Yin Zhong conjured up a lot of shocking information in his mind, and his expression gradually became serious.

"A vast power, numerous top experts, countless talents, a tight structure, amazing abilities and creations—even members of the same organization don't know the identities of other members? With such terrifying secrecy, it's no wonder that so few people knew of this power's existence before!"
If I'm not mistaken, the exposure at Wudang Mountain last year was probably also under the control of this organization?

Zhou Ming nodded and said, "Second Uncle guessed correctly. That exposure was indeed intentional."

Yin Zhong laughed: "Having hidden for so many years, they suddenly exposed their identities in this era. It seems this organization has been secretly preparing everything. Is their target the entire Nine Provinces?"

Haha, it seems that joining the organization now is probably the last chance to get on board. My dear nephew, you truly are my lucky star!

Zhou Ming's lips curled slightly.

Sure enough, no amount of explanation can compare to what people make up themselves.

“Nephew, tell me again about the level of the research department.”

"Okay, the research department can be divided into master's, doctoral, and academician levels, from lowest to highest..."

(End of this chapter)