Yun Ya had said that the Heavenly Demon had only awakened recently, and its soul power was far from its peak. The war brought hatred, resentment, fear, and sorrow—these negative emotions would help her quickly restore her power. By that time…

Chen Dachang shuddered involuntarily.

Yu Haizhen’s gaze shifted slightly as she made a silent decision.

Six days later, Yun Ya received a rare visitor in Taoli County within Wei Kingdom’s borders.

He was temporarily staying in a wealthy merchant’s home. The servants only knew that various rare fruits had been delivered that day as if they were common goods.

In the main hall, Yun Ya handed over an August pear and smiled: “So State Preceptor Yu has sent you.”

Hu Tian rolled his eyes, focusing only on eating.

The August pear, also known as the “August Explosion,” looked somewhat like a banana but was plumper. The one Hu Tian was eating had fully ripened, its skin naturally splitting open to reveal the crystal-clear flesh inside. One bite filled the mouth with a soft, sweet fragrance.

After finishing an August pear, he wiped his hands and took out an object from his storage ring: “My master asked me to bring this to you. It’s a treasure the Queen always kept with her.”

An’an’s? Yun Ya’s heart suddenly ached as if pierced by a needle. He steadied himself and accepted it with both hands.

It was a perfectly square box without any decoration. “State Preceptor Yu believes me now?”

The monkey continued: “This was what Chen Dachang secretly had someone pass to my master before we left Water City pursuing the King of Yan. The Queen said before entering the dream that if anything happened to her, this item should be given to you.”

As for why it was first delivered to Yu Haizhen, clearly Chen Dachang still harbored doubts and wanted his wife to observe secretly along the way before making a decision.

Now, Yu Haizhen could confirm that their monarch was possessed.

Hu Tian saw clearly that at the moment the box opened, Yun Ya’s pupils contracted sharply, his hand tightened, and he nearly crushed the box.

“It’s this!”

In his voice was an irrepressible joy and even a very slight trembling.

Hu Tian, however, looked puzzled: “What is this?” He didn’t see anything special.

Yun Ya took a deep breath, his eyes radiating brilliance: “It’s the most important treasure in this world! With it, I have the capital to save An’an!”

Hu Tian was greatly surprised and also delighted. “How confident are you?” The Queen had treated him well with food and drink all these years; he wasn’t an ungrateful monkey.

Yun Ya was spirited, his previous dejection completely swept away: “At least sixty percent.”

“What do you plan to do?” He was familiar with the Wei State Preceptor’s character. Though proud and unrestrained, the man was full of clever strategies and always delivered on his promises. Sixty percent confidence wasn’t low—after all, the opponent was a Heavenly Demon.

Yun Ya lowered his head, glancing at his chest: “To catch a big fish, you must first prepare the bait it likes most.”

Hu Tian continued: “My master also asked me to tell you that the Queen intends to aid the Yan Kingdom. Additionally, several Luo Yue Kingdom spies were caught infiltrating Wusei, and the Queen has ordered a halt to the supply of grain and medicine to Luo Yue Kingdom.”

“Luo Yue Kingdom? At this time?” Yun Ya was quick-witted. After a moment’s thought, he gave a cold laugh: “What a poisonous scheme—diverting trouble westward?”

The Luo Yue Kingdom had just suffered a major disaster this year, with famine spreading. The grain they had been steadily importing from New Xia was suddenly cut off. With winter approaching, who knew how many people would starve to death? What could the Luo Yue Kingdom do?

As they say, hunger gives rise to thievery. People would do anything to survive. If they couldn’t buy grain openly, they could only steal or rob!

Unfortunately, all their neighbors were suffering brothers just like them, with no surplus in the landlords’ homes. The only truly prosperous options were New Xia to the east and the Wei Kingdom to the west.

New Xia was out of the question. With their sharpened weapons and fortified borders, even if a raid succeeded, the difficulty and cost would be too great.

But the Wei Kingdom was different. The war between Wei and Yan had been going on for so many years, and there had been several rounds of mobilization in the countryside. Now, most young men had been funneled into the army, leaving Wei Kingdom’s northeastern border much emptier.

Moreover, in recent years, the Yan Kingdom had invaded Wei, plowing through the southern and central regions, and devastating the landscape. However, the Wei Kingdom’s northeastern region had not suffered from the fires of war and still had some wealth among its people. If the Luo Yue Kingdom were to raid there, they could plunder quite a lot of supplies.

Yun Ya couldn’t help but admire Feng Miaojun. Hindered by the Wei-Xia agreement, the Queen of New Xia couldn’t directly send troops to attack, so she took a roundabout approach, instigating Luo Yue to harass the Wei Kingdom.

Luo Yue’s cavalry came and went like the wind, previously causing border troubles for the Wei Kingdom. A single Luo Yue Kingdom couldn’t stir up much of a storm. However, the Wei Kingdom now focused most of its energy on the southern battlefield. The span from south to north was simply too great, making it truly difficult to attend to both ends and fight two countries simultaneously.

New Xia’s move was bold, but it indeed hadn’t violated the agreement. Most troubling was that the Wei-Xia agreement would expire in a few years. If the Heavenly Demon wasn’t dealt with, it would become even more unscrupulous.

“By the way,” Hu Tian peeled a kiwi and began eating, “my master wants me to ask you about the progress of that matter?”

Don’t ask him which matter; he didn’t know either. He was just repeating Yu Haizhen’s original words.

“Soon,” Yun Ya’s gaze flickered. “You just said that New Xia intends to aid Yan?”

The little monkey made a couple of chirping sounds.

“Tell Yu Haizhen not to interfere.” He handed the last two snow lotus fruits to Hu Tian. “The Heavenly Demon has probably become suspicious of her. For safety’s sake, you shouldn’t come find me again.”

Hu Tian had a wild nature and often disappeared for three to five months at a time. Yu Haizhen never tried to stop him, and Feng Miaojun knew this as well. However, in this extraordinary period, with the Heavenly Demon being suspicious, using Hu Tian for communication could only work once.

Having finished the fruits, Hu Tian bid farewell to Yun Ya and returned to New Xia to find Yu Haizhen.

That autumn, the Wei army was hindered in the southern continent, no longer advancing like an unstoppable force.

The Yan army held the natural barrier of the Luo River, stopping the Wei army’s advance. This was a great river that traversed the central plains of Yan Kingdom, home to numerous aquatic species with great cultivation, all following the King of Yan’s orders to participate in the war.

The suffering the Yan army had previously experienced in the Xi Kingdom was now being repeated by the Wei people.

After two unsuccessful river crossings, the war’s progress had genuinely slowed down, officially entering a positional warfare phase.

Xiao Yan had long left the Wei capital, taking command at Hanjiang Pass, making it his rear headquarters.

Hanjiang Pass was located at the border between Xi territory and Yan territory, still several hundred miles from the front line, yet it was already the Wei King’s best option.

Upon receiving New Xia’s latest ultimatum, Xiao Yan’s handsome face darkened. Having finally waited for Yun Ya to return to the front, he threw the official document before the State Preceptor, furiously saying: “New Xia has started demanding repayment. What’s going on? Haven’t you pacified that woman well enough!”

The Queen of New Xia had not only “cut off supplies,” no longer providing materials to the Wei Kingdom, but had even turned around to demand payment for the debt the Wei Kingdom had accrued.