Invasion Myth: Starting with the Schoolteacher

Chapter 729 Strategic Mistakes
Xu Xuan then returned to the academy, ready to make his move.

Baoan Hall left many spies in Dongting Lake, who are monitoring Junshan day and night.

These hidden stakes disguise themselves as fish, shrimp, and aquatic plants, lurking at the bottom of the shimmering lake. At the slightest disturbance, they will transmit messages through specific water veins to the contact points on the shore.

Turtle was adept at social maneuvering and had gained several trusted confidants during his undercover work.

Some were lesser demons oppressed by the Blood Vine Demon King, some were ambitious demons dissatisfied with the status quo, and some were even members of its own clan as cautious as the Blood Vine Demon King.

After the Dongting Demon Calamity, they also received several aquatic creatures who secretly surrendered, allowing their guerrilla group behind enemy lines to expand significantly.

It has now developed into a special department composed of dozens of demons. Recently, the Security Hall has been discussing what to name this department and what level of treatment to give it.

Department head Gui Daben was originally a direct subordinate of the Holy Father, and now he has to take on an even greater responsibility.

In Xu Xuan's words, every demon has its own strengths. Turtle is a natural-born operative behind enemy lines—it excels at infiltration, maneuvering, winning over, and turning others to defect.

Of course, upon hearing this assessment, the great demon turtle revealed a bleak smile.

It didn't want to either.

But life is hard for demons.

It was just a foreign tortoise that had been too fond of picking up that tattered brocade box back then.

As a result, one wrong step led to eternal regret, and by the time one looked back, a hundred years had passed.

Unfortunately, it fell into the hands of the Great Demon King of Baoan Hall. From then on, the cultivation world lost a peaceful old tortoise and gained a zero-zero tortoise that walks between life and death.

Nanshan.

As dusk settled, a mist began to rise from the mountains.

Ace Agent Turtle sneaked up to the back mountain and met up with the Great Demon King Xu Xuan under a crooked old pine tree.

The turtle and the human huddled together, whispering about plans that "would affect the children's physical and mental health."

However, it was precisely these schemes that led to the collapse of Dongting Lake before the second battle even began.

"Lord Yunzhong... Hah." Gui Da suddenly lowered his voice and sneered, his green bean eyes flashing with three parts ruthlessness and seven parts arrogance, "To oppose our Bao'an Hall is simply courting death!"

As it spoke, it raised its claws and made a "fully under control" gesture—its claws were still trembling, just like a turtle having a spasm.

Xu Xuan frowned as he looked at him: "You... don't seem like a good person."

and--

"Why are you lowering your voice so much?" The scholar looked around helplessly. "There isn't even a rabbit here except for us."

"Ahem..." Turtle cleared his throat awkwardly, his claws retracting sheepishly into his shell. "Well... I just got back from my undercover mission in Dongting Lake, and I'm still not out of character..."

Xu Xuan sighed. This old turtle has been behind enemy lines for so long, he probably really thinks he's the leader of some underground organization. He acts all high and mighty during the day on Dongting Lake, and then he keeps putting on an act back at Nanshan at night—his acting addiction is too strong.

Gui Da cleared his throat, took out a jade scroll that shimmered with water from his shell, and solemnly laid it on the bluestone.

The jade slip was densely covered with various codes and intelligence, and a few small turtles were thoughtfully drawn with cinnabar to mark the important points.

“Based on our layout in Dongting Lake—” Turtle Claw drew on the jade slip, “the four major water palaces and twelve aquatic tribes have already secretly submitted their pledges of allegiance.”

"Based on our..."

It turned out that this was under Xu Xuan's command and Gui Da's operation.

A large number of Dongting demons have already chosen to secretly surrender. The reason is simple: Yun Zhongjun perfectly concealed himself during this Dongting calamity and failed to protect his people.

Seven of the eight demon kings are dead, and more than half of the aquatic creatures that had transformed into human form have perished. "Turtle suddenly became serious, the patterns on its shell gleaming faintly," it said, "those who survived either lost their families or suffered damage to their cultivation foundations. You tell me—" its beady eyes gleamed, "who would still be willing to risk their life for such a master?"

"He who protects the people and rules will be unstoppable." Mencius said that if a ruler can truly protect the interests of the people and enable them to live and work in peace, he will gain unshakeable ruling authority. Conversely, if he ignores the well-being of the people, or even exploits and oppresses them, he will inevitably lose the hearts of the people and ultimately lead to the collapse of his regime.

Baoan Hall also chose this time to distribute a lot of interesting content.

From the Junshan Reef to the Lishui River Bend, from the depths of the Zijiang River to the tributaries of the Xiangjiang River, every waterway has become a breeding ground for rumors.

For example, when Yun Zhongjun saw that the enemy was powerful, he hid in the clouds and dared not show himself.

For example, Yun Zhongjun has already withdrawn from Junshan to an overseas island, preparing to accumulate strength for a counterattack.

For example, even though Yun Zhongjun had died, the Stone King of Lishui kept his death a secret and prepared to usurp the position of Shuijun.

Such rumors have a strong following among the eight major water systems of the blood-stained Dongting Lake.

Once upon a time, the Lord of the Clouds could silence the vast waves of Dongting Lake with a mere wisp of his power, and command eight hundred aquatic creatures to submit with a single decree. But now—

The auspicious clouds that had shrouded Junshan Mountain for millennia were dissipating, like a king stripped of his finery. The aquatic creatures looked up and suddenly realized that the so-called "celestial beings in the clouds" were nothing more than a shadowy figure who dared not show himself.

There was no thunderous wrath, no decree issued.

This deathly silence was more terrifying to the bewildered aquatic creatures than a direct admission of the rumor.

"So that means we've already... taken half of Dongting Lake?" Xu Xuan almost laughed as he looked at the intelligence report.

Of the eight demon king factions in total, four surrendered, while the remaining three remained hesitant.

If troops were to be sent to attack Taihu, wouldn't it be a scene of welcoming the king's army everywhere?

Gui Da smiled obsequiously and said, "It's all thanks to your excellent strategy, relentlessly pursuing the Stone King."

Faced with a flood of questions, this Dongting general, known for his military prowess, could only resort to wielding a stone hammer.

When it publicly smashed several gossiping clam spirits at the mouth of the Lishui River, the splashed pearls instantly became the perfect vehicle for rumors—

"Kill and silence!"

"The Stone King felt guilty."

"The Lord of the Clouds has indeed met with misfortune!"

The Stone King couldn't understand what was wrong with this world. He had only returned to the Li River to wait for the emperor to appear, but in just a few days, he had become the biggest villain in Dongting.

Despicable and shameless, treasonous, ambitious, colluding with foreign enemies, etc...

The new battlefield left it bewildered and unable to unite the remaining demon race.

As a result, the entire Dongting Lake area fell into a strange stalemate.

The aquatic creatures are waiting, waiting for that once supreme figure to emerge from the clouds and see the sun.

Baoan Hall is waiting, waiting for an opportunity to completely shatter the old order;
Xu Xuan was also waiting—hoping that He would come out soon so as not to affect his participation in the autumn examination.

The entire Baoan Hall was like a bowstring, its nerves taut.

However, in this atmosphere, time passed day by day, and Yun Zhongjun still did not appear.

This thwarted Xu Xuan's various plans.

In his mind, Yun Zhongjun should not be trapped in Yunmeng Marsh, especially after Qingjiao saw the other party's true form, which resembled a Bashe, in his memories.

They even felt that there must be a hidden connection between the two.

(End of this chapter)