High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

January of the seventh year of Guanghe.

The Ten Attendants, led by Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong, were deeply favored by Emperor Ling of Han, and the power of the eunuchs reached its zenith.

His father, brothers, and sons served as governors and prefects of prefectures and counties, levying exorbitant taxes and oppressing the people, causing widespread resentment.

At that time, Zhang Jiao had been preaching the "Way of Great Peace" for more than ten years, with hundreds of thousands of followers, divided into thirty-six factions led by their leaders, and his influence extended throughout the court and the country.

Julu, Jizhou.

Lingxiao Mountain, the Yellow Turban Army's stronghold.

It was already late at night, but the village was brightly lit.

A man paced back and forth outside the village. He was eight feet tall, slender and handsome, with deep eyes filled with worry, constantly looking into the village.

After a moment, he finally couldn't help himself and said to Zhou Cang, who was guarding the gate, "General Zhou, please inform my master again that Tang Ke has urgent military business to discuss."

Zhou Cang helplessly advised, "Strategist, it's not that I don't want to help you send the message, but I've been scolded three times in total. Please go back first. When the leader wants to see you, he will naturally summon you."

"There's no way to make a fool of yourself!"

Tang Ke stamped his feet in frustration. As a time traveler, he had painstakingly planned for so long, yet in the end, he couldn't change the course of history in the slightest?

"Silence, strategist!" Zhou Cang covered Tang Ke's mouth. He had always respected this brilliant young strategist and his eyes were full of sympathy.

A month ago, the relationship between the leader and the strategist was still very close. He once thought that this relationship between the ruler and his minister, who were both teachers and friends, would become a model for future generations. He never expected that in just one month, they would become like oil and water!

“Master, if you do not heed my good advice today, I fear that in the future your compassion will fail to save others and you will abandon them!”

Tang Ke finally couldn't hold back any longer and shouted into the village. His voice lingered for a long time before dissipating into the night sky.

There has been no response from within Dazhai.

Zhou Cang couldn't help but sigh: "Strategist, why are you doing this to yourself?"

"The Great Teacher has ordered that the Military Advisor be invited to the camp for an audience!"

"Please invite the strategist into the camp for an audience!"

"Let's meet inside the village!"

The sounds came from within the village in waves, one after another, with a terrifying force.

Zhou Cang's face lit up with joy, and he whispered, "Strategist, the leader is willing to see you! This time, you should soften your stance and not go against him again."

Tang Ke patted him on the shoulder and strode quickly into the main hall of the village.

The spacious hall was filled with people on both sides, all dressed in yellow robes, watching with solemn expressions as Tang Ke walked into the hall step by step.

Tang Ke walked to the middle and respectfully bowed to Zhang Jiao, who was seated at the head of the table: "Disciple greets Master."

“If the heart is impolite, there is no need for formalities.” Zhang Jiao looked somewhat tired, his thin body leaning against the side of the chair, a faint green light flashing in his eyes.

"Master, I just heard that you are preparing to raise an army soon. I acted hastily and it was truly out of the blue."

"It's alright. I summoned you here today only to ask you one question in front of all the generals: are you willing to raise an army with us?"

Tang Ke knelt down with a thud and loudly advised, "Master, please think it over. The fate of the Han Dynasty is not yet over. If we rashly raise an army, we will surely fail."

"Nonsense!" Zhang Jiao's face darkened with anger. "Liu Hong is now acting against the tide of history, selling official positions and titles, causing widespread suffering and displacement among the people. And you dare to say that his days are numbered? Are these millions of ordinary people just to be at his mercy?"

"Liu Hong certainly deserves to be punished; he was a ruler who brought about the downfall of his kingdom, but the Han Dynasty will not ultimately perish at his hands!"

Tang Ke took a deep breath and gestured with his hand.

"Six years, at most another six years of lying low. Liu Hong will surely die, and the world will surely be in chaos. At that time, Master can either rise up in rebellion or sit back and watch the success or failure. The world will be within easy reach. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Instead of getting angry, Zhang Jiao laughed: "Wait another six years, for this tyrannical and incompetent ruler to die of old age? Even if I'm willing to wait, ask the generals here if they're willing to wait?"

"I don't want to!"

The unified roar ripped through the sky, deafening!

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Ever since you came to us, you've made us wait every single day."

Tang Ke looked helplessly at the impassioned generals and sighed, "This is fate! It is not something that human power can change."

"You, a mere mortal, dare to speak to me about destiny?"

Zhang Jiao suddenly stood up, and a ball of energy rapidly condensed in his left hand. A terrifying bolt of lightning descended first, striking Tang Ke's side.

Rocks flew everywhere, and the pebbles landed on my legs, stinging painfully.

"I am destiny itself!"

“Even if Master possesses unparalleled divine power, I’m afraid…” Tang Ke looked up at the nearly deranged Zhang Jiao, then swallowed back the words he was about to say, “This disciple simply does not wish to make a pointless sacrifice!”

"Alright, we have different paths, so you may leave now."

Zhang Jiao's words were resounding: "For the sake of the millions of suffering people, an uprising is imperative, and no one can stop it!"

Tang Ke was startled. Since joining the Way of Peace three years ago, Zhang Jiao had valued him highly.

Not only did he impart all his knowledge, but he also overcame all opposition and promoted his proposed "military-agriculture integration" system and the concept of equal land ownership.

He also relied on his almost precognitive abilities to help this rebel army avoid misfortune and grow from a sapling into a towering tree.

This should have been a beautiful story of a ruler and his minister, but today it is about to turn into nothing.

"Wait, Master, Tang Ke cannot leave!"

Before Tang could answer, one of the men stood up from his seat, his expression complicated.

"Now that the leader has finalized his plans, this uprising is no small matter; the lives and fortunes of millions of brothers are at stake. Since Tang Ke is unwilling to join us in this uprising, how can we let him leave so easily?"

These words immediately caused an uproar at the scene.

Rebellion is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!

“Ma Yuanyi, what do you mean by this? Ke’er is, after all, my apprentice.”

Ma Yuanyi sneered: "The leader treats him as a disciple, but he may not treat the leader as a master."

"You dare to sow discord between us, master and disciple, without any evidence?"

“Yuanyi has his own evidence.” Ma Yuanyi stared straight at Tang Ke and asked, word by word, “The Master has taught you his supreme techniques for three years, pouring his heart and soul into it. Have you learned even a single move?”

A chill rose from Tang Ke's feet and quickly spread throughout his body.

Zhang Jiao's magic can only be learned by believing, which is also the most effective way for him to verify whether his followers are devout.

As a modern person, I simply cannot believe in such an inhuman thing as conjuring lightning with bare hands.

He has kept a low profile for the past three years. After all, a strategist is not a front-line combatant. When he needs to show his skills, he can barely manage with a few simple magic tricks.

He had considered that this flaw would eventually become an arrow aimed at him, but he never imagined that the arrow would be shot from Ma Yuanyi's hands.

These were the brothers he had rescued from mountains of corpses and seas of blood time and again! Anyone could betray him, but Ma Yuanyi had no right to!

"Yes or no?"

Ma Yuanyi pressed on relentlessly.

Tang Ke looked at this guy who had fought alongside him countless times, yet stabbed him in the back at the crucial moment.

Sadness, anger, despair—a mix of emotions welled up inside me.

Shameless scoundrel!

Just when he was in despair, a voice rang in his mind.

"Congratulations, host. You have sensed the strategist's frustration. System initialization has been successful."

"Current martial arts level: Upper fifth rank. I have mastered horsemanship and basic spear techniques."

"Gained talent: Strategist. Each time a plan is offered to the lord and adopted, the system will automatically rate the plan based on the results and feedback, and raise or lower the martial arts realm based on the rating."

"Special Note: The higher the strategy rating, the lower the martial arts level will be. If you want to increase your martial arts strength, please try to offer strategies with lower ratings that will have a greater negative impact."