I run a casino in the immortal realm.

Long Yuan took a deep breath and asked, "How many troops did the Western Rong army deploy this time? How many troops are currently garrisoned in Pengcheng?"

Hu Qi replied, "Your Highness, the Western Rong army is said to number 300,000, but according to the intelligence relayed by our scouts at great risk, the actual force brought by King Zuo Guli this time should be around 150,000. As for Pengcheng..."

Hu Qi paused, his tone becoming somewhat heavy: "Pengcheng, as a prefectural city, originally had an authorized force of 50,000 troops, but in recent years the imperial court's military pay has been delayed, and with the retirement of the old, weak, sick, and disabled, the actual garrison in the city is currently only 30,000."

"150,000 versus 30,000?"

Long Yuan frowned. "Pengcheng is the throat of Qizhou. Once Pengcheng is breached, the Western Rong army can use it as a springboard to spread throughout the entire Qizhou prefecture, and even threaten Gaozhou and Bingzhou."

"Hu Qi, I order you to immediately transfer troops from other prefectures and counties in Qizhou to reinforce Pengcheng!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Qi did not immediately accept the order. Instead, he looked troubled and knelt down on one knee with a thud: "Your Highness, please forgive this humble general for being unable to obey."

"You dare disobey orders?"

A murderous glint flashed in Long Yuan's eyes, and his hand was already on the hilt of the Imperial Sword.

"This humble general dares not!"

Hu Qi raised his head and said loudly, "Your Highness is wise. Qizhou has eight prefectures under its jurisdiction, and its defense line stretches for thousands of miles. Although the main force of the Western Rong army is attacking Pengcheng, who can guarantee that they have not sent troops to launch surprise attacks on other places?"

The orcish 'Wind Wolf Riders' are extremely fast. If I were to draw all the troops from other prefectures and counties, and the Western Rong army launched a feint attack, the entire Qizhou defense line would collapse instantly. At that point, even if I had ten heads, I couldn't bear the responsibility!"

The prefect of Qizhou, an elderly man with a goatee, who was sitting on the left, also stood up and cupped his hands, saying, "Your Highness, what Admiral Hu said is very true. Military strategy says that one should not act rashly. Although Pengcheng is in danger, the city is well-fortified and the formation is complete. With the 30,000 garrison relying on the city's defenses, they may not be unable to stop the Western Rong army."

If we rashly deploy troops, we will only expose our weaknesses and give the enemy an opportunity to exploit them.

Following suit, the governors of Gaozhou and Bingzhou also chimed in with their own words.

"Yes, Your Highness, Gaozhou and Bingzhou must also be on high alert to prevent the Western Rong army from taking a detour and launching a surprise attack. Our troops here must not be moved under any circumstances."

Long Yuan looked down at the several regional officials below, who were singing in unison, and his face turned ashen with anger.

He understood.

These people spoke eloquently and logically, but in reality, they meant the same thing: no soldiers, no food, and Pengcheng should solve its own problems.

Although Long Yuan was new to the area and possessed the imperial sword, he could not possibly kill all the governors and prefects of the three prefectures under such a reasonable military pretext.

If they really killed them, a mutiny would immediately break out in the Western Frontier.

Zheng Yifei, who had been sitting silently behind Long Yuan, watched this scene with a cold eye, his mind perfectly clear.

The officialdom in western Xinjiang is utterly corrupt.

The figure of "30,000 defenders" mentioned by Hu Qi is most likely exaggerated.

It's common for people in the western frontier to receive salaries without working; out of these 30,000 people, it would be considered good if 10,000 were actually capable of fighting.

Hu Qi refused to send reinforcements, partly to preserve his own strength, and partly perhaps at the behest of certain people in the court.

The Third Prince brought them to the Western Frontier just to use the orcs to kill people, didn't he?

Now that the Western Rong army has attacked, Hu Qi only needs to stand by and watch Pengcheng fall, Zheng Yifei die in battle, and Longyuan bear the responsibility for the lost territory, and the Third Prince will have achieved his goal.

"Okay, very good."

Long Yuan laughed in anger, loosened his grip on the sword, and glanced at everyone: "Since all of you think Pengcheng is impregnable, then I will not force you. Today's meeting ends here, all of you may leave."

"Hu Qi, you keep a close eye on the movements of the Western Rong army. If they lose even an inch of land, I will hold you accountable!"

"Your humble servant obeys."

Hu Qi lowered his head, concealing a hint of a cold smile in his eyes.

The officials filed out of the White Tiger Hall.

After the door closed, Long Yuan could no longer suppress his anger. He kicked over the table in front of him, shattering the tea set on the floor.

"A bunch of old foxes! They're outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant! They hold onto their military power and act independently!"

Long Yuan cursed, "They're clearly trying to make a fool of themselves on us, to watch Pengcheng fall!"

Zheng Yifei stood up, walked to Long Yuan's side, and said calmly, "Your Highness, calm down. We expected this situation before we came. If the officials in the Western Frontier were all obedient to us, the Third Prince wouldn't have gone to such lengths to bring us here."

Long Yuan took a few deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down, and turned to walk towards the study: "Yi Fei, come with me."

Inside the study, with the doors and windows tightly shut, Long Yuan activated the soundproofing array in the room.

He took out an antique jade box from his storage bag and solemnly placed it on the table.

"Yifei, this is what my elder brother asked me to bring to you."

Zheng Yifei's heart stirred, and he stepped forward to open the jade box.

Inside the jade box lay a yellowed ancient book. On the cover, five large characters were written in ancient seal script: "The Five Elements True Essence Technique".

"This is a low-grade Heaven-level cultivation technique."

Long Yuan's voice rang out in the study: "In order to find this cultivation technique, my elder brother personally went to the top floor of the Royal Library and flipped through tens of thousands of ancient books before finally finding it in a dusty corner."

This cultivation technique was left behind by a peerless master with five spiritual roots during the founding period of the Heavenly Dragon Dynasty.

Zheng Yifei's fingers trembled slightly as he gently stroked the cover of the ancient book.

"My elder brother said that it is extremely difficult for cultivators with five spiritual roots to break through, because the five elements must be absolutely balanced. This book, 'The True Essence of the Five Elements,' can not only solve the problem of conflict between the five elements, but also integrate the five spiritual powers into one and transform them into a high-level energy called 'True Essence.'"

Provided you have sufficient resources and decent comprehension, this cultivation technique can directly support your progress up to the Tribulation Transcending Realm.

Tribulation Transcending Realm!

Zheng Yifei's breath hitched. In the Eastern Divine Continent, the Integration Realm was already extremely rare, the Great Ascension Realm was a legendary existence, and as for the Tribulation Transcending Realm, it was an unparalleled realm that was only one step away from ascending to the Immortal Realm.

His biggest worry has always been the lack of subsequent cultivation techniques, which has kept his cultivation stuck at the early stage of the Void Refinement realm, unable to make any further progress.

Now, the Crown Prince has removed this biggest stumbling block.

"Your Highness, please thank His Highness the Crown Prince on my behalf."

Zheng Yifei did not refuse and put the cultivation technique into his storage ring. He knew very well what accepting this cultivation technique meant.

This is an extremely costly political investment.

By entrusting him with a skill of this caliber, the Crown Prince had essentially bound him to the Crown Prince's chariot.

From then on, Zheng Yifei and the Crown Prince's faction were truly bound together by fate, sharing both glory and ruin.

If the Crown Prince falls from power and the Third Prince ascends to the throne, even if he cultivates to the Great Ascension Realm, he will have no place to stand in the Heavenly Dragon Dynasty.