Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Xiao Liunian stayed at the Qingyan Army camp for three days.

Over the next three days, Xiang Yuan meticulously presented Xiao Liunian with the current strength of the Qingyan Army from all aspects.

Xiao Liunian really wanted to interrupt Xiang Yuan's work report with the sentence, "I believe in General Xiang's strength, and I am very relieved to hand over the Qingyan Army to General Xiang."

However, as a superior, Xiao Liunian only uttered these words after listening to all the work reports, given Xiang Yuan's earnest and diligent attitude.

Ten days later, Xiao Liunian ordered the Qingyan Army to set off and begin the planned sea route.

The Lianhai route was once a well-known route in the southeastern coastal area, playing a vital role in transportation. It was once very prosperous and brought huge benefits to the Jinling Kingdom.

However, starting from the reign of the second emperor of the Jinling dynasty, bandits began to appear on the sea route, plundering merchant ships, but the government did not make a strong effort to suppress them.

Or rather, many of the bandits at the time had dealings with officials in the southeast, forming a community of shared interests.

As time went on, the pirates' power expanded rapidly and eventually spiraled out of control, with the pirates gradually occupying some important islands at sea.

Gradually, fewer and fewer merchant ships came and went at sea, and the pirates turned their attention to ordinary villages and cities along the southeast coast.

Robbery, murder, and plundering were frequent occurrences, and the situation was quite serious, but the imperial court did not take any major action to address this issue, or rather, it no longer wanted to.

It wasn't until Hu Xianren became the governor of Southeast Province that the fight against the bandits who came ashore gradually began, and the lives of ordinary people along the coast gradually became more stable.

After Xiao Liunian became emperor, when the situation in the capital was somewhat stable, he summoned Hu Xian to discuss the Lianhai shipping route.

Since then, Xiao Liunian has been preparing for the air route cleanup plan. Now, three years have passed, the time is right, and the plan can be implemented.

Xiang Yuan led 60% of the Qingyan Army to suppress the bandits, while the rest of the troops remained on the shore to deal with any emergencies.

As before, Xiao Liunian also went out to sea, but this time Xiao Liunian was accompanied by two 'generals' as bodyguards.

"Mumu, how long has it been since you last came back?" General Cat asked, his brows revealing a heroic air, what a majestic and imposing 'General'!

"Based on experience, it takes about three months, and we'll be back just in time for the Chinese New Year," Xiao Liunian recalled.

"It's been so long!" General Cat was already worried before even going into battle. Three months on the ship!

"It's not always at sea; it will stop and rest on some islands along the way." Xiao Liunian wanted to pat Cat General's head, but the jade crown on Cat General's head prevented him from doing so.

My first attempt to pet the cat's head today failed.

Indeed, as Xiao Liunian said, the Qingyan Army fought and stopped frequently during their anti-piracy operations at sea, often resting on islands.

Life at sea was quite interesting for General Cat. There were rumors that there was a fairy island in the sea, inhabited by immortals who were rarely seen by ordinary people.

"Mumu, is it really true?" General Cat asked.

"If you want to know, go find it," Xiao Liunian said.

"Mumu, you came here for the Immortal Island, didn't you?" Xiao Liunian rarely participated in combat matters along the way. Compared to the war in the Northern Border, Xiao Liunian's involvement this time was very low.

"Yes." Xiao Liunian came here this time specifically to find the Immortal Island.

"Are there really immortals?" General Cat asked. It's normal for all sorts of strange people and things to appear in this 'hodgepodge' universe created by 'connections'.

"Whether it exists or not, you'll know once you go and see for yourselves." Xiao Liunian, accompanied by two 'generals,' rowed a small boat away from the island where the Qingyan Army was temporarily stationed, setting off to search for the fairy island at sea.

After leaving the Qingyan Army's observation range, Xiao Liunian put away his small boat, and with a thought, he sailed away across the sea, leaving only a fleeting shadow behind.

After Xiao Liunian's cultivation reached level 20 of the Reincarnation Realm, he was able to teleport instantly. This was the first time Xiao Liunian had used this skill.

General Cat felt that his system's functions had become a little more useless.

Just as General Cat was lamenting his own worthlessness, Xiao Liunian stopped, and before Cat's eyes was an endless fog.

"Is this the Immortal Island?" General Cat stretched out his paw to probe into the mist, using the fog as a trap to confuse visitors, which indeed fits the setting of some fairy islands at sea.

"Let's go catch a fairy to play with." Xiao Liunian held down the cat general's outstretched paw.

He extended his right hand, gathering power in his fist, and threw a punch forward. The fog in front of him gradually dissipated, and the island hidden behind the fog slowly revealed its true face.

"Breaking through the fog with such force, so cool!" exclaimed General Cat.

"Amazing!" the waiter chimed in, the first thing he said all day.

Xiao Liunian stepped onto the small island, his clothes slightly damp.

"Your Majesty has come from afar, and I have failed to greet you properly." Someone was already waiting on the shore, and upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a young man who was blind.

With his white hair and youthful face, his posture as if he were about to ascend to immortality, and his all-knowing tone, he truly seemed like an 'immortal'.

"Senior, do you often feel pain in your joints?" Xiao Liunian said after bowing slightly. Living in such a humid place for a long time can easily cause rheumatism.

"Your Majesty, please!" The 'immortal' did not answer Xiao Liunian's question, but instead stepped aside to lead the way for Xiao Liunian, indicating that he should go to a pavilion for a chat.

Xiao Liunian walked familiarly towards a pavilion, where the tea on the table was boiling, indicating that the owner had anticipated a visit.

I hate this kind of pretentious, all-knowing attitude.

Xiao Liunian sat down, and the waiter jumped onto the chair to Xiao Liunian's left.

"Your Majesty, please!" The 'immortal' placed a cup of tea in front of Xiao Liunian, seemingly unaffected by his blindness.

Then the 'immortal' placed two cups of tea in front of Xiao Er and Thirteen.

"It tastes awful!" Meow! After taking a sip, Thirteen stuck out his tongue. This was the first time Tong Sheng had ever tasted such awful tea.

"Indeed!" The waiter also tasted it and found it unpleasant to drink. He wondered if the tea brewer's technique was flawed, or if the tea itself was of poor quality.

General Cat took out a box of tea from his spatial storage and pushed it in front of the 'immortal'. It seemed that he was not a real 'immortal', otherwise why would he be drinking this unpalatable tea instead of fine wine?

Xiao Liunian picked up the tea and smelled it. This was already Xiao Liunian's limit. Even though Xiao Liunian usually didn't have any special requirements for what she ate, it didn't mean that she could eat anything.

"I sense that His Majesty's state of mind has changed quite a bit this time," the 'Immortal' said.

“Things are always in a state of development and change, and people are no exception.” Xiao Liunian replied, matching the other person’s profound tone. She had also read a few books on philosophy.

“I have been waiting for your arrival,” the 'immortal' said.

"The senior often looked up at the sky, studying the stars to the extreme, and thus calculated a good divination based on the stars." Xiao Liunian raised his head and looked at the sky full of stars.

Time flies. When we set off, the sun was just rising over the sea, but now it is night, and darkness engulfs everything, except for the starry sky and the crescent moon.

"I am ready to cast a divination for His Majesty," the 'immortal' said.

Every time Xiao Liunian visited in the past, he would ask the 'immortal' to cast a divination, but every time the divination came back empty-handed, and he would have to let go of his obsession and follow the way of heaven.

"No need!" At first, it was a way to seek answers to questions when she was confused, then it was a pastime when she was bored, but now Xiao Liunian has no interest in these things at all.

The 'immortal' put away the divination tools he had just taken out. For a moment, his face showed surprise at Xiao Liunian's refusal, but he quickly put on an expression of complete understanding, without any emotion.

"Why does this feel so hypocritical?" Cat General transmitted his voice to Little General.

"A little," the waiter replied.

"Is the senior about to be born?" Xiao Liunian didn't know who the other person was or why they had memories of many lives like him.

Unlike himself, this person should have been born and raised on Tianji Star, but he remained indifferent to the repeated destruction of Tianji Star, simply looking up at the sky and accepting the so-called will of Heaven.

"The will of Heaven has been fulfilled; we should simply go with the flow," the 'immortal' replied, offering the same answer.

“I have read that the Great Dao is fifty, the Heavenly Evolution is forty-nine, and one is hidden away. I think this ‘one’ should be the opportunity left for the beings of Tianji.”

"I have also read the saying, 'The road ahead is long and arduous, but we must start anew.' We must always have the courage and determination to start over and fight against fate."

Xiao Liunian did not want to give up, and he would not give up even if he died and came back to life a thousand times.

"Your Majesty has always been the same Your Majesty. He has lived and died, killed and been merciful, been extremely rational and completely insane, but he has never given up." The 'Immortal' sighed, from a child who would die in his early years to now being able to live until the time when the heavens sent down a calamity to destroy the world.

On Tianji Star, only Xiao Liunian's fate is constantly struggling and changing, which in turn causes the fate trajectories of many others to change.

But what can be done? The will of Heaven cannot be defied.

"Even if His Majesty persists, what good is it? Hasn't His Majesty been failing all along?"

"I am a little curious: what exactly is Your Majesty so obsessed with?" What kind of obsession could have led Xiao Liunian to where he is now?

“Obsession? Or is it more like longing?” Xiao Liunian said.

"Senior, I would like to invite you to leave the island and go out into the world to see the sights." This was Xiao Liunian's true purpose in coming here.

"When Your Majesty came before, I said that the Heavenly Tribulation was already set, and we could only submit to the will of Heaven." The 'Immortal' would not be persuaded by a few words.

"If it's in accordance with the will of Heaven, then everything should remain unchanged, right? Why are so many things slowly changing?" Xiao Liunian asked.

"Just minor details," the 'immortal' said dismissively.

“There’s a saying that quantitative change leads to qualitative change,” Xiao Liunian retorted.

"His Majesty agrees with your reasoning, and I also believe in my own. That's all," the 'immortal' replied, a statement that Xiao Liunian had once made.

"Since that's the case, let's stop here with the discussion. I'm not good with words to begin with, and it's already quite an achievement that I've managed to cobble together these words to persuade you, senior." Xiao Liunian forcibly sent the two generals back into the space, and then stood up.

Previously, Xiao Liunian was a bit weaker and couldn't defeat this lifeless old man in front of him. This time, he wanted to try using force to take the old man off the island.

"Mumu, this person doesn't look like someone to mess with!" The cat in the space was a little worried.

"Get your teleportation skill ready. I'll run away as soon as I give the order." Xiao Liunian dragged his long staff on the ground with his right hand.

"Your Majesty need not do this. I will take my own life." As soon as the 'immortal' finished speaking, he was about to strike his own crown with a palm.

Xiao Liunian quickly used his stick to pry the 'immortal's' hand away, then put away the stick and left without saying another word.

"Mumu, shouldn't we bring him into our camp?" the cat general asked as he emerged from the space again.

"Different philosophies make cooperation impossible." Xiao Liunian dislikes forcing others to do things against their will, nor does he like being coerced by others.

It was daylight when we left and darkness when we returned, which was quite fitting.

Although Xiao Liunian said that everyone has their own ambitions, he still showed his skills in the subsequent naval battle, killing the pirates and making them flee in all directions.

"Is she angry?" General Cat asked the waiter, ignoring Xiao Liunian, though his tone was questioning.

"Displaced anger." The waiter roughly understood; to possess great power yet not fight back was simply a waste of resources!

Xiao Liunian couldn't say anything about it, after all, free choice is everyone's right, and no one can force them!

Xiao Liunian might have thought of forcibly taking the 'immortal' away so that he could experience the mortal world and gain some enlightenment, but it's difficult to stop someone from committing suicide once, let alone two or three times.

If that's the case, then it's not about finding an ally but an enemy, which isn't worth it.

In the time that followed, the Qingyan Army advanced with unstoppable momentum, killing and capturing the pirates along the Lianhai line. Overall, the anti-piracy campaign was a great success.

After the sea route was opened, Xiao Liunian returned to the capital and continued his regular life.