Now with the Golden City taken away by Miao Fengxian, the Yao royal family was residing in Yinzi. Even though their residence was still protected by countless layers of formations, it was ultimately not as strong and secure as the Golden City.
At this point, for Yun Ya to deal with them, he no longer needed to gnaw at the tough turtle shell that was the Golden City.
Huyan Bei said in a deep voice: “Currently, the Yao Crown Prince is leading troops in the northwest, locked in battle with the Wei army. Even if he received the news and rushed back to Yinzi City, I’m afraid…” He paused, changing his approach. “Besides, if he abandoned the northwestern campaign to return, the morale there would waver, making them no match for the Wei army.”
Prime Minister Wang Yuan also expressed admiration: “Wei Kingdom’s strategy is exceptionally clever. First, they placed a diversionary force in the southwest to draw Yao’s firepower, then the Wei King personally led a large army to break through Miansha Ridge, dividing Yinzi City’s defenses and, most importantly, removing the Golden City. This is a two-fold ‘luring the tiger from the mountain’ strategy, concealing Wei’s ultimate calculation. Yao Kingdom is in peril!”
Feng Miaojun’s eyes flickered: “Is this yesterday’s intelligence?”
“It happened the night before last.”
It was now afternoon, and even with the fastest flying beasts, it still took considerable time to fly at full speed from Yinzi City.
Feng Miaojun rubbed her forehead again, looking somewhat dispirited: “Very well, I understand. I expect subsequent battle reports will be continuous. You may all go and rest.”
Since the Wei-Yao war reignited, she had been pondering how Wei could achieve a quick victory, but she hadn’t anticipated this approach. Under Yun Ya’s leadership, Wei Kingdom’s elite cultivators had almost entirely mobilized, infiltrating Yinzi City. The risks were obvious—if just one of them was recognized, Wei’s efforts would be wasted, and their high-level forces would be annihilated.
Thinking of this, Feng Miaojun suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Oh my, how could she have forgotten that Yun Ya had the Fangcun Bottle? Though not as capacious as the Golden City, which could hold over a hundred thousand people, it could still accommodate quite a few. Yun Ya only needed to disguise himself and infiltrate Yinzi City, choosing the perfect moment—when Miao Fengxian had taken his army away from the capital and was locked in a fierce battle with Xiao Yan’s forces hundreds of li away. Then he could release Wei’s cultivators, charge the temporary palace where the Yao King was staying, and strike directly at the heart!
Miao Fengxian’s use of the Golden City against the enemy was a stroke of genius the first time, catching the Wei army unprepared, but the second time… it had instead been countered by Wei.
This was called using one’s tactics against them.
Such schemes and plots looked quite familiar—undoubtedly Yun Ya’s handiwork.
Feng Miaojun’s premonition proved correct. Late that night, the latest battle report from the Yao capital was indeed delivered to her desk.
Scanning it, even with the Queen’s composure, the fingertips holding the report trembled slightly.
This report was much more detailed than the previous one, as the results of the Wei cultivators’ counterattack were now known:
Under the leadership of State Preceptor Yun Ya, the Wei forces had breached the palace formations and restrictions in just one night, capturing the Yao King and all members of the royal family!
During this process, the Yao capital had suffered almost no damage, as the surprise attack erupted within the palace. The powerful divine abilities of the cultivators did not damage buildings, streets, or crowds outside the palace.
The Yao royal palace was naturally protected by layers of formations and heavily guarded. However, this temporary palace was a royal garden. Though beautiful with its lush vegetation, it wasn’t built to resist enemies and couldn’t be compared to the Golden City’s defensive capabilities. Moreover, the formations and guards were hastily added, far less rigorous than those in the Golden City.
Feng Miaojun knew that infiltrating such a place wouldn’t be much effort for Yun Ya. Not to mention, last year when Wuser was still the auxiliary capital and hadn’t yet been established as the capital, the security forces were far less strict than now. Even then, Yun Ya could disguise himself as Chen Dachang and slip to her side. The hastily chosen Yao palace was far inferior to her royal palace and posed no challenge to someone a thousand times more cunning than a fox.
If she were Yun Ya, after entering, she would release her country’s cultivators from the Fangcun Bottle, then strike directly at the heart, charging to where the Yao King was staying. Just by capturing this old man, he would gain the initiative in subsequent moves.
This was exactly what Yun Ya had done.
The intelligence report also mentioned that the city garrison had surrounded the entire palace, but due to the weight of the hostages in Yun Ya’s hands, they dared not act rashly.
In other words, after capturing the Yao royal family members, Yun Ya did not leave but remained calm in the Yao capital.
With the trump card in his hands, he indeed didn’t need to rush to break through and escape. Staying in Yinzi City would facilitate negotiations with Yao Crown Prince Miao Fengxian. However, Feng Miaojun felt there were other reasons behind this.
Regardless, Wei’s orders had been delivered: Miao Fengxian must immediately surrender with his army, or the old Yao King would certainly die, and the Crown Princess and her son would certainly die!
Reading this, Feng Miaojun immediately felt as if sitting on pins and needles, and called out in a deep voice: “Everyone leave!”
The palace attendants in the study immediately filed out.
When no one remained, Feng Miaojun promptly removed her wide robes and changed into a set of tight-fitting clothes. The liquid metal monster White Board coiled around her ear, stammered: “Mistress, are you… are you going out in the middle of the night?”
She made an affirmative sound, then removed the jewels from her hair. “I need to make a long journey.”
White Board was clever and immediately understood, exclaiming: “You want to go to the Yao capital! Why?” The Queen had been secluded in the deep palace for two years, why would she suddenly leave tonight?
“Are you surprised?” She replaced her ornaments with a wooden hairpin, tying up her black hair.
“Yao Kingdom’s affairs have nothing to do with you.” To put it bluntly, the Mistress only needed to watch the show, why personally go on stage?
“How could they have nothing to do with me?” She put on thin-soled quick boots, which had long been stored in her storage ring. “Now that Yun Ya is holding the Yao royal family to force the Yao Crown Prince to surrender, what do you think Miao Fengxian’s reaction will be?”
“Miao Fengxian’s reaction?” White Board repeated, suddenly realizing this was a multiple-choice question for which it had no answer.
“If he surrenders his army as instructed, then Yun Ya will capture his entire lineage and Yao Kingdom will likely be destroyed,” Feng Miaojun analyzed objectively and calmly. “If he doesn’t surrender, the Wei people might kill his father and wife, but Miao Fengxian himself is the legitimate heir to the Yao Kingdom. He could be crowned king anywhere, then lead his army to counterattack Yun Ya, even trapping him like a turtle in a jar.” She exhaled. “At that point, the balance of power would be uncertain.”
White Board stared in amazement: “So many complexities.”
Feng Miaojun glanced at it through the mirror: “If you were Miao Fengxian, would you surrender or not?”
White Board replied honestly: “I don’t know.”
“I don’t know either,” Feng Miaojun’s expression was solemn. “That’s why I need to go in person.”
White Board opened its mouth.
It still didn’t understand—what did it matter to her whether Miao Fengxian surrendered or not? Thinking about it, there was probably only one reason: she was worried about Yun Ya. “If the master knew you were so concerned about his safety, he would surely be moved!”
Feng Miaojun’s movements paused briefly before she smiled bitterly: “I’ve moved myself.”
So moved she could almost cry.
If Miao Fengxian decided to abandon the hostages in Wei’s hands, then Yun Ya would be in danger.