The Heavenly Wolf Army was the Mongol Yuan's most elite force. Any one of its soldiers could take on ten ordinary troops.
This was the foundation of the Mongol Yuan's confidence despite bordering multiple powerful dynasties.
Hearing this, everyone in the hall was stunned.
A hundred thousand soldiers could suppress a Land Immortal. This referred to well-trained armies.
But a million soldiers?
Even a peerless expert like Dugu Jian would have to retreat before such a force.
Now, Eight Scribes proposed deploying a million Heavenly Wolf soldiers against Wudang!
This showed just how seriously they regarded Ning Changge.
Some ministers cried out in alarm, kneeling as they pleaded:
"Great Khan, the Heavenly Wolf Army is the backbone of our Mongol Yuan! If anything goes wrong, it would spell disaster for our nation!"
One by one, ministers prostrated themselves, desperately trying to dissuade him.
But Genghis Khan was not one to be swayed easily.
He stood tall, his imposing presence silencing the hall. With a wave of his hand, all objections ceased. He declared:
"Mobilizing a million Heavenly Wolf soldiers is acceptable—even more if necessary. I have only one demand: bring me the secrets of the Immortal Dao!"
Eight Scribes knelt on one knee and promised:
"If Your Majesty entrusts this task to me, I will ensure that Wudang is destroyed with a million Heavenly Wolf soldiers and our Land Immortals!"
"However, this matter requires careful planning."
"Currently, Wudang is hosting many Daoist Realms. We should wait for them to disperse to minimize resistance. Additionally, we must negotiate with Emperor Zhu Houzhao; he may allow us to deploy up to a million troops but no more. Any larger force might make him uneasy…"
He laid out his considerations methodically, clearly having thought this through in advance.
Genghis Khan's eyes gleamed with determination.
"Good! I leave this matter entirely in your hands. The entire Mongol Yuan will cooperate fully! As for Zhu Houzhao, there's no need to worry. Though he appears righteous on the surface, he is petty at heart. He cannot tolerate Wudang. I will write to him myself."
Eight Scribes was overjoyed, his eyes burning with ambition:
"Thank you for your trust, Great Khan. Give me time—within a year, I will bring you the secrets of the Immortal Dao!"
The Mongol Yuan was brimming with ambition.
Ming Dynasty Imperial Capital
In the imperial study…
Emperor Zhu Houzhao sat in rare silence. On his desk lay detailed records of the Dao-Buddhist battle.
The chief eunuch knelt respectfully before him.
Zhu Houzhao's deep eyes betrayed his inner turmoil as he murmured:
"The Seven Heroes of Wudang, Sword Emperor Jiu, Spirit Monkey, Divine Condor, Zhang Sanfeng… and that unfathomable Little Immortal. Wudang's foundation is truly formidable…"
His tone was calm.
But cold sweat dripped down the chief eunuch's back.
He knew Zhu Houzhao well enough to recognize that this calm exterior masked growing apprehension toward Wudang. A martial sect possessing so many Land Immortals within Ming territory posed a significant threat if disloyalty arose.
Especially after Wudang's attitude during his last decree—Zhu Houzhao had been displeased.
"Your Majesty, please quell your anger. Wudang is merely a martial sect…"
"Who said I was angry?"
The chief eunuch froze under Zhu Houzhao's faint smile and quickly began slapping himself while apologizing profusely:
"It was my mistake! My mistake…"
Zhu Houzhao glanced at him before speaking indifferently:
"Last time you went to Wudang, did you truly see Sword Emperor Jiu return from death?"
"Absolutely! I swear on my life—it's true! However… it seems Wudang has no intention of sharing their Immortal Dao techniques. A martial sect refusing loyalty to its emperor is despicable! If they cooperated with us, Ming would become even stronger!"
The chief eunuch gnashed his teeth in frustration, his expression venomous.
"Your Majesty… perhaps we should mobilize an army to destroy Wudang…"
Zhu Houzhao suddenly erupted in anger:
"Silence!"
"Wudang is Ming's foremost Daoist sanctuary and part of my domain. How could I do such a thing? What would people think of me? Speak no more of this—or I'll have your head!"
The chief eunuch trembled as he kowtowed repeatedly:
"Yes! It was my mistake!"
Once again, he experienced firsthand what it meant to serve an unpredictable ruler. Though Zhu Houzhao clearly coveted Wudang's secrets…
Suddenly…
The chief eunuch noticed Zhu Houzhao staring intently at a map on the wall—his gaze fixed on the vast grasslands beyond Ming's borders. A realization struck him like lightning.
"If His Majesty cannot act directly… then perhaps he plans to use another's hand…"
"A borrowed blade!"
The thought sent shivers down his spine as he looked at Zhu Houzhao's back—a shadowy abyss that seemed bottomless.