“Sure!” the black-robed man readily agreed. As for whether Ao Yuan would trick him, he didn’t care at all. If Ao Yuan dared to be so foolish, he had his own methods. Besides… Ao Yuan probably wouldn’t be that foolish, otherwise wouldn’t that prove his judgment was too poor?

then,

The black-robed man and Ao Yuan devised a series of plans, the purpose of which was naturally to take over the Dragon Guard Pass.

After that, the Dragon Guardian Pass enjoyed a few more days of peace. We will discuss the Dragon Guardian Pass later. However, during these days, something happened in the Ancestral Star Realm that is worth mentioning.

The incident took place in a city in the south of the Ming Dynasty.

In the brothel,

During times of heightened tension at the border, brothels, though outwardly closed and appearing desolate, possessed a unique charm within.

Despite the dancing girls, many young nobles and dignitaries continued to enjoy the dances, drinking and making merry, and even embracing the girls in their arms for some rather suggestive acts.

In this situation, their lives are completely different from those on the border. If you didn't know better, you would think they were living in two different worlds. They were living in peaceful times.

In the most prestigious private room of the brothel, the most elegantly dressed young master embraced two beautiful young women and said, "I just heard that the war at the border is urgent, and there will probably be a large-scale conscription. It will be difficult to escape this time. We need to prepare early, lest it be too late."

Upon hearing this, the young men sitting below him hurriedly spoke up.

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Chen!"

"It has to be said that Brother Chen is truly righteous. We must get back and make preparations immediately!"

“Indeed, but... we can’t rush it. It’s not easy to find some lowly commoners to take the blame now. If we make too much of a fuss, it will be troublesome.”

"We should be cautious. After all, things are different now than before. We don't know how long we can live, so let's enjoy each day as it comes. Even if we really perish, we won't have lost out, right?"

"That makes sense! That makes sense!"

"..."

Two days passed in a flash.

Even from a distance, one can easily see the poverty and dilapidation of the village in the remote village outside the city, a stark contrast to the first-class private room in the brothel.

Although it is barren, the village is not small and there are quite a few people, but most of them are elderly, and there are very few young people.

Not far from the village, several people dressed in military uniforms walked along the village road.

If you were in the brothel that day, you would have recognized them at a glance. These guys dressed in military uniforms were the same wealthy young men who had been in the first-class private room of the brothel a couple of days ago. Even though they had changed their clothes, their air of arrogance was hard to shake off, making them instantly recognizable.

As they were walking,

One of them asked, "Brother Chen, what exactly are we going to do here?!"

The leader, Chen Ang, replied, "Naturally, we're going to find someone to take the blame for us. Do you want to go to the battlefield? I've already inquired, and this village is the largest in the vicinity, and it's the only one with enough young men to take our place."

"But... Brother Chen, is it really okay for us to dress like this?!" another person asked.

Chen Ang did not answer directly, but instead told the group to find a place to rest for a while. Of course, resting was just a side thing; the main thing was to talk about his plan.

“We can’t just go like this. I have a plan. Listen to it. If you say it’s okay, we’ll do it right away. If you think there are any shortcomings, or if you have a better idea, then speak up,” Chen Ang said.

The others nodded, letting Chen Ang speak first, while they listened quietly.

Chen Ang slowly began, “First, we must transform into the appearance of an alien race and massacre the village!”

The moment those first words were uttered, everyone was taken aback, filled with suspicion and confusion.

Someone blurted out, "Why... do you have to manifest as an alien race? Is it necessary to massacre the entire village?!"

Chen Ang replied, "In the current situation, can money buy people? I'm afraid not. Coercion? The situation is so tense. Even though it seems that the empire's power is all outside, there are still people watching the slightest movement within the empire. So things must not be blown up. Once they are blown up, it will be a trouble that cannot be dealt with."

Since neither coercion nor bribery will work, there's only one option left: hatred and gratitude!

"Pretend that a village is being massacred by foreign tribes, then we can rescue those youths as soldiers. This way, they will harbor intense hatred for the foreign tribes and gratitude towards us for saving their lives. With a little guidance, we can then send them to the border to kill the foreign tribes for us. They will be even more grateful then. Wouldn't that be perfect?"

As the sound faded,

The rest of the group ⊙﹏⊙! ?

This...this idea is truly wicked and insidious! It's practically killing someone by destroying their spirit!

We agreed to be spoiled brats and good-for-nothings together, how come you... have changed?! What's with this sudden rise to power?!

Among these people, the Chen family is the most powerful, so they naturally follow their lead. But now it seems that they should respect not only the power of the Chen family, but also Chen Ang himself.

Having spent time together, they knew that Chen Ang was not as simple as he appeared and was definitely hiding something. This was perfectly normal. They also had their own secrets. They weren't stupid. Although they wanted to live the life of a playboy, how could they live a peaceful and stable life without some brains and methods? They weren't mindless playboys. If they were, they would have died countless times over.

But they really didn't expect that the one hiding the deepest secret was Chen Ang, who was completely undetectable in normal times.

Now, a sense of awe has crept over Chen Ang and his group. Chen Ang's plan is so insidious that it sends chills down one's spine.

After a brief silence, someone spoke up and asked, "This method... is indeed a good and safe one, but there is a huge risk involved. If we transform into a different race, it will be easy for the empire's powerful figures to detect us. What if they really treat us as aliens and kill us?"

This is indeed a problem. The presence of alien races within the Ancestral Star Realm is no small matter. It has alarmed the powerful figures of the Empire, and they are truly doomed.

"Of course, we won't go in our true forms, but with clones. And we must resolve this quickly, simulating only a faint trace of the alien race's aura, so as not to alert the Empire's powerful figures."

If we are truly alarmed, it will only be an avatar that finds a plausible excuse. With the strength of our respective families, can't they protect us? This is not a big deal, but... we might really have to go to the border then. This is the worst outcome, not an unacceptable one.

"Whether we fail or do nothing, we'll still end up at the border. But if we do something, at least there's hope that someone will take our place." Chen Ang's voice rang out slowly, his tone rising and falling.

As soon as he finished speaking, the others thought to themselves, "Chen Ang is right, this is something we can do!"

Let's do it!

(End of this chapter)

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