Demon Lord Tang Dynasty

"Whoosh~~~"

A long line soared into the air, tracing a beautiful parabola before slowly falling and crashing into the water.

"What a beautiful and pleasing way to toss and throw."

A loud shout came from the side.

"The World Honored One's move was effortless and skillful, almost reaching the level of the Dao. It was truly breathtaking and made us admire and submit to him."

On the shimmering lakeside, Gao Yi sat casually, holding an exquisite fishing rod in his hand.

Aside from a white-robed protector who was completely absorbed in his comedic performance, no one else accompanied him.

As the tribe halted its expansion, a series of internal problems were quickly brought under control, and things gradually calmed down.

Protector Bai may not be good at other things, but he's certainly skilled at bewitching ordinary people.

After all, the Maitreya sect was established by the other side from scratch.

The loyalty of those believers was so great that even Gao Yi had to admire it.

Moreover, with the Khan's golden sword and the identity of a savior, these newly joined tribes were not particularly resistant to him to begin with.

Therefore, the integration proceeded very smoothly.

Of course, this only refers to the first step.

If they want to become like the Maitreya sect of the past, with their members acting as if they were their own hands, fearless and ruthless, they still have a long way to go.

Especially the soldiers, who are not suitable to be deployed into battle in a short period of time.

Of course, this refers to elite troops engaging in head-on battles with the enemy.

If it's purely for cannon fodder, then of course it can be done at any time.

As things settled down, everything entered a period of stability.

It was on a whim that Gao Yi came here to fish.

As for Protector Bai, he would naturally not miss out on such a safe and loyal opportunity to serve Gao Yi.

"Your Majesty, that girl Bai Yue'er is going too far. Not only has she taken away all of my disciples, but she also repeatedly interferes in other affairs of the Divine Sect."

"A hen crowing at dawn—Your Majesty, you must be wary."

Protector Bai stayed by Gao Yi's side, not only flattering and fawning over him, but also constantly trying to sow discord between Bai Yue'er and Gao Yi.

"Yes, the left is superior to the right. The Dharma Protector is both her superior and her master. Yue'er really shouldn't be disrespectful to the Dharma Protector."

Gao Yi smiled casually.

Protector Bai is quite useful at times, so Gao Yi didn't mind appeasing him a little.

Moreover, Protector Bai is not greedy for money or lustful; he only loves power.

Moreover, his love for power is merely a facade.

Because they are not good at sophisticated political maneuvering, they only know some simple ways to win favor.

There's no effort required to appease the other party; a few words of praise and encouragement are enough.

Sure enough, as soon as Gao Yi finished speaking, the white protector's face flushed red, and he began to sway uncontrollably, as if he were drunk.

He didn't care about his master and father, after all, Bai Yue'er, that traitor, had long been erased from the Bai family's genealogy in his heart.

But the words "belonging to" completely hit Protector Bai's sore spot.

These are the words of the Buddha.

He was the Left Protector, above Bai Yue'er.

In other words, he was second only to the Buddha in the religion, and he was the most important subordinate to the Buddha.

"Hehe, hehehe."

The White Protector was completely lost in his self-indulgent emotions.

His lips curled up, and his eyes became clearer than the lake water in front of him.

Without the White Protector's interruption, the surroundings became quiet.

A gentle breeze stirred the floating fishing float, creating ripples on the lake's surface.

"Venerable One, are we truly going to stay here and never leave?"

After a long while, Protector Bai came to his senses and tentatively asked a question.

"What is your opinion, Dharma Protector?"

"No, I wouldn't dare. How could I possibly have any objections? It's just..." Protector Bai was startled and stammered for a long time before finally not daring to say anything.

"Does the Dharma protector perceive this place as dangerous?"

Gao Yi chuckled lightly; how could he not guess what the other party was thinking?

You don't even need to guess; whenever this guy shows that expression, it means he's scared.

"Recently, the forces in the vicinity have been making frequent moves, none of which seem to have any good intentions."

"Hmm." Gao Yi nodded. "Is it to the east or the south?"

"There are signs of troop movements in the east, and troops from Youzhou have also been stationed at Lulong Pass in the south."

The area where the Maitreya sect is now based is a region where various forces are intertwined.

Heading east, it was still Turkic territory, but unlike the southern and northern deserts, it was not directly ruled by the Turks.

This region had its own inhabitants: the Xi, the Khitan, and the Shiwei.

They occupy this area from south to north.

These are all independent countries, not Turkic peoples, but they are nominally subordinate to the Turks and are considered to be within the sphere of Turkic influence.

If you go east past three countries, that's the territory of Goguryeo.

To the south, beyond the Great Wall and the Lulong Pass, lies Youzhou, the territory of the Sui Dynasty.

Youzhou, Liaodong, Goguryeo.

To put it simply, even without a detailed explanation, it's clear that this is a giant powder keg.

"To the east, the Xi and Khitan tribes?"

Gao Yi shook his head and scoffed, "Don't bother with them."

At this time, the Khitan were far from the powerful nation that would later sweep across the northern border.

Nowadays, they are the weakest of the weak, caught in the middle between the Turks, Goguryeo, and the Sui Dynasty, and are the ones who suffer the most.

As for the Xi tribe, needless to say.

If Xue Liang hadn't lacked troops and needed to digest the new forces he had acquired, he would have already swallowed them all up.

"As for Youzhou..."

Gao Yi narrowed his eyes.

"World Honored One, Luo Yi, the current governor of Youzhou, is not someone to be trifled with," the White Protector whispered.

"Luo Yi, hehe."

Gao Yi shook his head and remained silent.

He had long known that this world was not entirely the same as the world of Twin Dragons of the Tang Dynasty.

Because of Yang Lin's appearance.

However, in reality, not many people and events from the Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties actually appeared.

Like Yang Lin, many of his deeds are actually closer to the historical figure of King Wei, Yang Shuang, except that his identity changed from Yang Jian's brother to Yang Jian's uncle.

Among the Nine Elders who helped establish the Sui Dynasty, their official positions and titles were mostly close to historical facts, unlike the fictional portrayal where they were all kings of different surnames.

After all, this is a real world, and for an empire, a king of a different surname doesn't just appear out of nowhere.

Overall, this world is essentially a fusion of the two protagonists from the Tang Dynasty, with some additional special characters. It's less like a fusion and more like a supplement to parts of the original story that weren't mentioned.

As for Luo Yi, he certainly couldn't be the Prince of Beiping.

He wasn't even the governor of Youzhou; he was merely the garrison commander of Zhuojun.

During the Kaihuang era, Yang Jian established the position of General Manager to oversee military affairs in the region.

With the four chief administrators of Bingzhou, Jingzhou, Yangzhou, and Yizhou as the most respected, and the chief administrators of other prefectures as their subordinates, a system was formed to protect the world.

Most of the four chief stewards were princes of the imperial family, including Yang Guang.

However, after Yang Guang ascended the throne, Yang Jian's few princes had all been dealt with, and the system of general stewards was also abolished by Yang Guang.

In the present day, apart from Yang Lin's title of Governor-General of Bingzhou, there are no other official governors in the Sui Dynasty.

Of course, although Luo Yi's official position was ordinary, his ability to command troops was not weak.

He was stationed in Zhuojun and was highly trusted by Yang Guang.

After all, Zhuojun is a very important place. Putting aside everything else, it was the place where Yang Guang set out to launch his three campaigns against Goguryeo.

As for whether Luo Yi had the unpredictable Eighteen Riders of Yanyun under his command, or whether he had a son named Luo Cheng.

Gao Yi is not sure yet, but one thing that Protector Bai said is correct.

Luo Yi is indeed not someone to be trifled with.