Zhuge Liang's Journey to Dominate the World: Starting from Another World

As Kongming finished reciting the incantation, ripples suddenly appeared on the once calm river surface, as if something at the bottom of the river had been awakened.

Kongming stared intently at the water's surface. After about half a cup of tea's time, a jade talisman burst from the water and shot straight at Kongming.

Kongming reached out and caught the jade talisman, quickly putting it into his sleeve.

This jade talisman is the Jade Void Seal that Su Zhuo has been longing for. Given how much he values ​​it, how could Kongming let this treasure go?

Now that they were outside the Qinglan Sect's sphere of influence, he dared to use the pretext of fishing to retrieve them.

Kongming looked around and began to manipulate his fishing tools. Before long, he returned to the camp with several fresh fish.

The next morning, as dawn broke, the group hastily ate some dry rations and set off again for Yuliang County.

Yuliang was a small border county located in the far west of the Tang Dynasty, bordering the Yuan Dynasty, and a full 100,000 li away from Chang'an.

After months of travel, we're finally almost at the border.

Two days later, the procession suddenly stopped.

"Brother, why are we stopping here?" Li Muling rode to the front of the group, looking at Li Guangling and Ji Yizhi with a puzzled expression.

Ji Yizhi turned around, his gaze fixed on the distance with a deep look, and said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, you may not know this, but ahead lies Fengling Pass. The general here, Qu Qianchou, has always been outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant towards the Tang Dynasty, relying on his 200,000 elite troops. When the Prince of Zhongshan was alive, he tried several times to eliminate him with his troops, but he failed after the late emperor passed away. To get to Yuliang, we must pass through Fengling, and I'm afraid it won't be easy."

Upon hearing this, Li Muling couldn't help but feel a little worried.

“Now that the Demon Queen is in power, the court faces many internal and external challenges. Fengling Pass is backed by the Great Yuan Kingdom and supported by the cultivation forces behind it. The court dares not act rashly, or it might become another An Tingjing if pushed too far. This guy’s ambition has swelled to an extreme degree. Even declaring himself king might not satisfy him!” Li Guangling frowned.

"I'm afraid the Empress didn't have good intentions when she sent the young prince to Yuliang County!" Ji Yizhi sighed, a trace of worry flashing in his eyes.

Upon hearing this, Li Guangling nodded. Empress Wu had banished him to the borderlands in order to weaken the influence left by the Prince of Zhongshan, and even to ensure that he would die unexpectedly abroad, thus eliminating any future troubles.

"Why don't we go and consult Master Zhuge and see what good strategies he has!" After saying this, Li Muling spurred her horse and galloped off in the direction of Kongming without waiting for Li Guangling and Ji Yizhi's response.

"Ling'er seems to have extremely high expectations for our immortal master," Li Guangling said helplessly, watching Li Muling's departing figure.

Ji Yizhi smiled and shook his head, saying, "Although the princess is still young, she is exceptionally intelligent. She may have discovered some extraordinary qualities in Master Zhuge, which is why she did this."

Li Guangling sighed and said, "The situation in Fengling County is complicated and cannot be easily resolved by one person alone. At this point, we can only take it one step at a time."

Just as the two were talking, Li Muling turned back again.

“Brother, Mr. Ji, I just told Master Zhuge about the situation, and he said that this matter is not difficult to resolve.” Li Muling’s tone was excited, clearly showing that she had complete faith in Kongming’s words.

Li Guangling and Ji Yizhi exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.

Although Kongming was respectfully called the Immortal Master, it was only out of politeness, and he was still young. How could he handle such military affairs? Therefore, they were indeed surprised by Kongming's answer.

"Oh? What good plan could he possibly have?" Li Guangling said indifferently.

“Young Prince, why don’t we go and ask him for guidance? For the past few months, he has been quietly following behind the group, and he has never felt as high and mighty as other immortal masters!” Ji Yizhi said with a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

"That must be because his strength doesn't allow it!"

"Brother! You're not allowed to speak of Master Zhuge like that." Li Muling couldn't help but feel displeased when she heard Li Guangling questioning Kongming.

Over the course of their time together, Kongming had long surpassed the image of an ordinary immortal master in her mind. His calm and composed demeanor, as well as the profound look in his eyes that he often revealed, made her feel that he was no ordinary person.

Seeing this, Li Guangling smiled and said nothing more. He knew that Li Muling was a woman of her own mind, and since she valued Kongming so much, they would go and see the wisdom of this young immortal master.

The three rode their horses to the back of the group, where they saw Kongming gently waving his feather fan, closing his eyes to rest, as if everything around him was irrelevant.

Li Guangling dismounted, walked to Kongming's side, and said, "Master Zhuge, what brilliant strategies do you have? I hope you will not hesitate to enlighten me!"

Kongming slowly opened his eyes, a warm smile on his face, as if he had expected this question.

He stood up, looked at the mountains ahead, and said in a deep voice, "General Qu Qianchou of Fengling Pass has always been ambitious. This matter is not without its flaws. Send a messenger with eight words from me, and I will make the young prince a guest of honor in his presence!"

"There is no joking in the army! If Master Zhuge relies on just four words, wouldn't that be too childish?" Li Guangling frowned slightly, somewhat dissatisfied with Kongming's nonchalant attitude.

Kongming smiled slightly, unconcerned by Li Guangling's doubts. He gently waved his feather fan and said, "Why not give it a try?"

Li Guangling gave Kongming a deep look. Although he had doubts, seeing that Kongming was calm and composed, he summoned a soldier and ordered him to prepare writing materials.

Once everything was ready, Kongming picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, wrote eight large characters, sealed it, handed it to the messenger, and gave him a few instructions.

The messenger took the brief letter and, without the slightest hesitation, immediately mounted his horse and galloped towards Fengling Pass ahead.

Li Guangling never thought highly of Kongming from the beginning, believing him to be just a half-baked cultivator, but that he was far superior to Kongming when it came to military affairs.

He had reservations about Kongming's words; he wanted to see what magic those eight words possessed that could make him a guest of honor of Qu Qianchou.

Li Muling, on the other hand, was full of trust, firmly believing that Kongming would have a way to solve the current predicament.

"Master Zhuge, what eight characters did you write?" Li Muling couldn't help but ask after the messenger left.

Kongming smiled mysteriously, shook his head, and said, "I can't say now, or it might not work!"

Upon hearing this, Li Muling showed a hint of disappointment, but she did not press him. If he was unwilling to talk about it, there must be a reason.

The group sat on the ground, but Kongming had no intention of forcibly integrating into Li Guangling and Ji Yizhi's circle.

Half a day later, just as everyone was anxiously waiting, the sound of horses' hooves in the distance gradually became clearer.

The messenger dismounted, took out a letter, and strode towards Li Guangling.

Li Guangling raised an eyebrow. He stood up, took the letter from the messenger, opened it, and his expression changed immediately. He looked up at Kongming, his eyes filled with surprise.

"This humble general has prepared his bed and is eagerly awaiting Your Highness's arrival."

Ji Yizhi also joined in, muttering Qu Qianchou's reply.

An incredulous look appeared in his eyes as he looked up at Kongming, only to find him still calm, as if he had expected it all along.