Atlas of Heaven and Man.

Chapter 1417 Old Grudges Entrusted to the Ritual Diagram

In stark contrast to the soaring momentum of the Da Shun side, the Anye Palace in Youdu was shrouded in gloom and despair.

In the Battle of Yaolan Pass, all the main generals who led the battle were killed. Since the relocation to Jiaorong, the entire court had never suffered such a devastating loss.

This undoubtedly shook the foundation of the dynasty, so on that day Youdu issued a call to arms to defend the emperor to the troops stationed in various places, but very few responded.

It wasn't that all the garrisons in various places were unwilling to be loyal subjects. In order to cooperate with Chen Chuan and others' offensive, the armies in various territories of Da Shun were strengthened and advanced into the territory of the former dynasty.

This move put immense pressure on the old imperial army stationed in various regions. Moreover, the Great Shun Dynasty was not bluffing this time, but launching a real offensive, which made all fronts precarious.

The various feudal lords dared not act rashly, for they could barely protect themselves, let alone spare troops to defend the king in Youdu.

Furthermore, the conservatives had been trying to persuade these lords to surrender. Although they did not agree, they were hesitant and thus not very enthusiastic about fighting.

It should be said that although the actions of the conservatives were something the progressives were unwilling to see, they objectively played a role in delaying and dividing the old imperial family.

Of course, there were some loyal ministers among them, but the vast majority were not very powerful. It could be said that the more loyal a minister was, the weaker his power was, because Youdu had long since tried to suppress and weaken him.

Currently, the most powerful local force in Dingchao is undoubtedly Prince Yi.

This man is the current Emperor Wenguang's uncle. He has two Xuanji warriors from Dongxuan Temple under his command, and he also has strong support from the Huining Temple of the Chan sect. As a result, Youdu not only dares not conscript him, but also worries that he will bring troops to the court under the pretext of serving the emperor.

At this moment, outside the gate of Anye Palace, several cabinet ministers came out of Qingyun Pavilion, and the ministers waiting outside surrounded them.

The cabinet ministers all shook their heads.

Grand Secretary Hong looked at everyone and said in a deep voice, "Disperse, His Majesty has his own plans."

Grand Secretary Shi also said, "Gentlemen, please return to your offices and perform your duties. As ministers, we should share the burdens of our ruler and not cause any further disturbances."

After they finished speaking, the five cabinet ministers left by carriage.

Helpless, the officials could only disperse. Although they did not receive any information from the Grand Secretaries, the fact that they all seemed calm and the current emperor was extremely shrewd made them feel somewhat at ease. The key was that there was nothing they could do, so they could only wait and see what would happen.

After Chen Chuan occupied the fortress, he arranged everything and then led Jiang Linghuai and Mu Xiaoren toward Panquan Mountain, where the northern path was located.

This time, besides trying to find Ming Chengzi, he also wanted to personally observe the passage in order to prepare for the upcoming military operations.

He had been thinking that he might not be able to see the other party this time, but when he arrived at the northern foot of Panquan Mountain, he saw a slender figure standing on a rock in the distance. It seemed that the person had been waiting for them there for a long time.

Chen Chuan ordered Jiang and Mu to wait above, while he himself floated down from the sky and landed on the large rock where the man was standing.

The Taoist priest bowed to him with a gesture of respect, saying, "The hermit of Wumen, Mingchengzi, greets Chen Xuanji."

Chen Chuan returned the greeting with clasped hands and said, "Greetings, High Rank Mingcheng. I have already seen the jade talisman you brought through Prince Chunxuan. High Rank Mingcheng is indeed very sincere."

When Ming Chengzi heard him say this, he looked slightly surprised. Although he had marked the route, he had not explained the details of it.

"Oh? So you're already aware of the strategic importance of this place?"

Chen Chuan nodded slightly.

"Okay, okay!"

Ming Chengzi not only did not feel that he had lost his bargaining chips, but also showed a happy expression.

The more this is the case, the more it demonstrates that the Shun Dynasty is well-prepared for this campaign, and the greater their chances of overthrowing the old dynasty.

Chen Chuan looked at him and said, “Your sect has flourished since the Feng and Qi dynasties and has continued for more than seven hundred years. But I heard from Prince Chunxuan that now your sect only has Gao Gong Mingcheng left?”

Ming Chengzi sighed deeply, then said with deep regret, "The defeat of our sect was not due to fate, but rather to human error. Internal strife broke out first, followed by external aggression. With two calamities befalling us, how could we not perish? Now, I am the only one left to bear the shame of this lineage."

At this point, his expression turned slightly apologetic.

"I apologize for my rudeness. I suppose Commander Chen wouldn't like to hear such old stories and idle talk, so I won't say any more."

When Jiang Linghuai heard this, he immediately felt bored, thinking to himself that he actually loved hearing this kind of thing.

Mu Xiaoren remained expressionless, but he had clearly tilted his head slightly earlier and was now slowly straightening up again.

Ming Chengzi then said solemnly, "Since you already know the location of this extraordinary path, then I will not embarrass myself by offering my own advice."

He shook his sleeves and took out a leather scroll.

"After the Dingchao dynasty captured this old capital, most of the secret rituals were handed over to my Fulong faction for arrangement, and I also participated in the process."

"Our sect has always devised secret rituals for the imperial court, always retracting our own memories to gain the emperor's trust. For over seven hundred years, these rituals have never been leaked. Later, we heard that Emperor Guangwu had a falling out with our sect and used the pretext of regicide and rebellion to besiege our sect." He sneered, "This tyrant thought that by leveling our sect's gates and burning our scriptures, he could keep the secrets of our rituals forever. Little did he know that our sect had foreseen the change of dynasties and the shift in the succession, so we left a contingency plan specifically for myself."

If the sect remains intact, I will not harbor any dissenting thoughts; if the sect becomes an obstacle, I will revert to my old ways. I have now silently drawn up all the secret rituals established by my Fulong sect, both inside and outside the Youdu Anye Palace, and present them to you.”

As he spoke, he took a step back, held up the scroll with both hands, and bowed to hand it to Chen Chuan.

Chen Chuan reached out and took it, opened it and looked at it. He had quite a bit of knowledge about the secret instrument. Although many of the complex parts could not be understood at a glance, he could roughly understand some of them and was certain that this thing was not made up.

He closed the scroll, nodded, and said, "Then I must thank you, esteemed Mingcheng. This intelligence is indeed very useful to our army. After we capture Youdu, I will report your merits to the state truthfully."

Ming Chengzi shook his head and said, "I don't need any merit. As long as I destroy the old dynasty, kill Emperor Wenguang, and avenge the destruction of the sect, that will be enough."

Chen Chuan nodded slightly, then asked, "May I ask, Master Gao, this drawing was made more than a hundred years ago. Over the past century, has the layout been altered?"

Ming Chengzi straightened his chest and said, “Xuanji, you can rest assured. My secret rituals are interconnected, intricate and unpredictable. Unless you start from scratch, it is impossible to change even the slightest bit.”

Emperor Wenguang has only been on the throne for twenty years. How could he possibly have broken my secret method of supporting the dragon in such a short time?

He spoke with great pride, clearly having great confidence in his sect's secret rituals.

When Chen Chuan heard him mention Emperor Wen Guang, he asked, "How much does Gao Gong Mingcheng know about this former emperor?"

Ming Chengzi revealed a look of hatred and disgust. He said, "Emperor Wen Guang calls himself 'Qinghe Immortal.' He originally followed the Xuanji Martial Path and would never have been able to ascend to the throne. At most, he would have been sent out as a general."

He gained the support of the Chan Buddhist temple Dayuan Temple by claiming a shift from the old to the new, which allowed him to seize power. It was also because of this that he dared to overthrow my sect. He not only burned down my ancestral temple, Buqu Mountain, but also took away my sect's treasure, the "Moyun Lotus Root".

With this item, he studied it day and night, hoping to master the sect's secret method and break through to the next realm. Ha! But how easy is it to master? Besides the secret method, we also need the sect's secret rituals.”

At this point, he looked at Chen Chuan and said, "My sect is dead, its lineage is broken, and there is no possibility of its revival. If we can kill the old emperor, I am willing to give this item to Xuanji."

Chen Chuan said, "We can talk about these things later. I'd like to ask Gao Gong about something else. Gao Gong invited me here at the beginning. Did you foresee that the imperial family might flee north from here?"

"Exactly!"

When Mingchengzi mentioned this, he became quite excited.

"Throughout history, whenever there was no way to reverse the situation, the last resort was always to escape through this route, and Emperor Wenguang would be no exception!"

He pointed downwards, "I believe that as long as we set up an ambush here, we can capture these people in one fell swoop."

It is said that Emperor Guangwu would send people to investigate this place beforehand to ensure that the rear is secure.

If your side were to handle this matter directly, it might alert the enemy. I am willing to guard this route myself. As long as they pass through, I will certainly provide you with an explanation!

Chen Chuan glanced at him a few times and said, "Mingcheng, how will we contact each other then?"

Chengmingzi took out a paper crane. "I will send this to find you when the time comes. Please do not stop me."

Chen Chuan took it, "Then I'll leave this to Gao Gong."

It wasn't that he trusted the other party completely; it was mainly that he wasn't afraid of Ming Chengzi playing tricks.

After the battle plan was submitted, deployments were made at the crossroads of Haixi Road. Even if the old imperial family managed to sneak through there, they would be blocked. There was no need for a direct confrontation; just delaying them for half a day would be enough for their main force to arrive.

Upon hearing Chen Chuan's words, Ming Chengzi suddenly became solemn and bowed to him again, saying, "Please rest assured, I will certainly not fail this important trust."

Chen Chuan nodded and asked him about some internal matters of Youdu, mainly about the current important generals, the ancient gods who supported the old dynasty, and so on.

Ming Chengzi was indeed very knowledgeable about this, especially about the attitudes of the various deities towards the old dynasty, their closeness or distance.

After hearing this, Chen Chuan had a clearer understanding of the situation in Youdu, which was very helpful for the next battle plan. However, he did not ask about the secret map bloodline. He had just met this person today and could not fully trust each other. He could talk about it later.

After their conversation, he parted ways with Ming Chengzi, his body rising back into the sky. He then said to Jiang and Mu, who were waiting there, "Let's go."

After traveling some distance, Mu Xiaoren said, "Commander, this man has ulterior motives."

Chen Chuan hummed in agreement. He could sense that Ming Chengzi seemed to be hiding something, but he didn't intend to delve into it. As long as the ultimate goal was to deal with the old imperial family, it didn't matter if he was hiding something.

……

……

(End of this chapter)