Chapter 116: Reactions from All Sides (4)

"Who is it?"

At this moment, all the officers and soldiers looked toward the Marquis of Wu'an, their curiosity piqued. There were many who wished for the total annihilation of the Divine Wind Battalion, but never before had the Marquis appeared so grave.

"Something major is about to happen." This thought echoed in the minds of all the officers. Although they all harbored various suspicions, they hoped the Marquis would provide a definitive answer.

General Niu Ben of the left flank asked, "Marshal, what exactly is going on?"

"Yes, Marshal, what has happened?" the other generals seated in the hall echoed.

The Marquis of Wu'an let out a laugh. Instead of answering immediately, he looked at his men and asked, "Against whom have our recent operations been directed?"

"The Demon Dragon of Dongting Lake, of course. Who else?" General Niu replied without a second thought.

The Marquis nodded and continued, "And have you analyzed exactly which of our actions have harmed the interests of the Demon Dragon?"

Indeed, what were those actions? They had unified the forces surrounding Dongting Lake, forming a pincer movement that surely infringed upon the dragon's domain. A young general spoke up: "Reporting to the Marshal, while the Demon Dragon was consolidating its strength, our forces split into two wings. Taking advantage of the surrounding territories being leaderless, we seized them and established a strategic encirclement. It has proven effective; the Demon Dragon must now realize it is trapped within Dongting Lake. Its anger is only natural."

The other generals nodded in agreement. This logic held up—was that not the strategic objective all along? With that goal achieved, pacifying the Dongting region would mean half of the Southern Continent was secured.

The Marquis nodded at the young general but immediately asked, "Is there any other answer?"

Hearing this, the generals realized there was more to the situation. Some pondered, some whispered to one another, some remained stoic, while others looked excited. The Marquis was not an autocrat; he often discussed strategy with his officers. This served three purposes: to gather ideas and refine tactics, to test the generals' understanding of military art, and to mentor the younger officers, as the army relied on the veterans to guide the newcomers.

The Marquis scanned the faces of his officers, his gaze finally resting on a general clad in fish-scale armor. The general’s eyes were darting about, looking somewhat intrigued. His surname was Fu. Back when General Fu was not yet a general, the Marquis had sent him to instruct his fourth son, Wang Yuanfeng, in martial arts. To his surprise, not only had Fu failed to teach the boy, but Wang Yuanfeng had ended up teaching him instead.

Since returning, General Fu had not only improved his martial skills but his mind had become exceptionally active, producing a constant stream of novel tactics. Perhaps he truly knew something. The Marquis asked, "General Fu, why don't you analyze the matter of Dongting Lake?"

General Fu was currently contemplating things Wang Yuanfeng had told him: that human emperors could enfeoff gods, and when the divine path collided with national destiny, it would be crushed into submission; that one word from the Emperor could create or destroy a god; and that even masters of the Immortal Path would steer clear of those who represented great national destiny.

"Oh?" Hearing his name, General Fu responded, though his mind was still wandering, wondering if the Emperor had seen that specific imperial decree, which might explain the sudden shift in events.

As he mused, the room suddenly fell silent. He felt as if countless eyes were fixed upon him, their gazes heavy as lead. He looked up to find his companions staring at him. He glanced left and right; everyone was watching him, and the Marquis of Wu'an was glaring at him with a darkened face.

General Fu felt a wave of embarrassment, his face flushing red. Panicked, he stammered, "What? What is it?"

Everyone watched his bewildered state. Since he was young, most of those present were his seniors, and they looked at him with amused, teasing expressions.

Just as General Fu felt he could sink into the floor, a young junior officer tugged at his sleeve and whispered, "The Marshal is asking why the Demon Dragon has directed such lethal intent toward him."

General Fu gave the young officer a grateful look. Knowing the question made things much easier. He organized his thoughts, bowed to the officers present, and said, "I apologize for my distraction. I hope the Marshal and everyone here will forgive my rudeness."

"Heh, it is fine," the Marquis said with a smile. "As long as you can provide a sound analysis, I shall even allow you to lead a mission alone."

The Marquis’s expression then turned stern and his gaze sharp. "However, if you cannot analyze this, you can forfeit your rank as a lieutenant. The kitchen squad is missing a sous-chef, and that would be your best destination."

"Hahahaha!" A roar of laughter erupted in the hall, even from the most austere generals.

Every soldier knew exactly what the kitchen squad was—the men who did the cooking. While they were part of the Divine Wind Battalion, they were mostly men too fat to run, yet they held the rank of small-duty officers. It was a position usually reserved for soldiers doing menial labor. For a fourth-rank general to do such work was a true disgrace, and for General Fu, who loved combat above all else, being forbidden from the battlefield was worse than death.

General Fu’s face fell, and he looked at the Marquis with a bitter expression. But the Marquis ignored him, and Fu realized with a sinking heart that the Marshal was not joking.

Looking around, he said, "Reporting to the Marshal, based on my analysis, for the Demon Dragon to act this way, it must have been wounded at its very roots; otherwise, it would not harbor such resentment."

He continued, "A few days ago, when we encountered the Demon Dragon’s mischief on the way to Dongting Lake, did the Marshal not send out several urgent dispatches?"

Some were enlightened, while others remained confused. They had all known about the dispatches, assuming they were merely a matter of duty, but they did not understand the principle of how a single memorial could cause such fury in a demon.

Observing their expressions, General Fu explained, "The theory of destiny is ancient, yet it is invisible and intangible; only practitioners of the path can sense it. It is likely that the memorial has reached the Emperor, and he has made the decision to designate the Dongting Lake Dragon King as a demon. If there are no accidents, we should receive news in a few days."

Seeing that some generals were still puzzled, he added, "The Human Emperor can enfeoff gods; his words carry the weight of law, exerting the greatest pressure on the ghosts and gods of the mortal realm. Even masters of the Immortal Path must be cautious when walking among men. This act has essentially pulled the Demon Dragon from its altar, which is equivalent to severing its foundation. The dragon must have sensed this, which has turned us into mortal enemies."

Finally, General Fu chuckled and added, "It has lost its composure and its clarity of mind. In military strategy, this is a grave taboo. It is likely not far from its death."

The officers felt a chill in their hearts. They had not expected such a profound analysis from him. Though they remained half-skeptical about the concept of destiny, they knew that in warfare, once a commander loses emotional control and issues chaotic orders, they are not far from total annihilation. Such was the state of the Demon Dragon.

They all looked toward the Marquis of Wu'an, hoping for his confirmation.

The Marquis had not expected General Fu to have such a deep understanding of destiny—it seemed his fourth son, Wang Yuanfeng, had been speaking to him quite freely. He glanced at the puzzled officers and nodded.