Bitter Realm: Have the Four Realms been united today?

Chapter 36 Destiny, Decision

Inside the study, Jing Yunfeng stood with his head bowed, reporting in detail all the conversations that had taken place during the escort of Xuanming.

He relayed Xuanming's words verbatim, but only briefly described what he said in his own reply, especially some "irrelevant" remarks.

After he finished speaking, Yue Tianji rose, his snow-white robes tracing a smooth arc in the candlelight, and walked straight out the door.

"You and Xuanming had a pleasant conversation?" He walked with ease, his voice carried on the wind.

Jing Yunfeng immediately followed closely behind, precisely maintaining a distance of half a step behind.

"Yes," he replied in a deep voice, not daring to overstep his bounds in the slightest.

Normally, he wouldn't dare get this close to Yue Tianji.

Currently, only the Soul Burial Emperor can stand in front of the Heavenly Secrets in the entire Martial World.

However, the Soul Burial Emperor paid no attention to these formalities and preferred to stand side by side with Yue Tianji.

Other generals would often remain one step behind.

Only Mu Yunzhishu, who also had the other identity of a disciple and often helped with government affairs, could maintain a distance of half a step behind, or even occasionally stand side by side with him.

He was merely a captain; he could never compare to the left and right vanguards or the four great generals of Huan Chen Bu Wu.

If Yue Tianji hadn't clearly had more questions to ask, he wouldn't have been qualified to talk to Yue Tianji like this while walking.

"Tell me your opinion of him." Yue Tianji's tone remained calm, as if he were asking a casual question.

After a moment's thought, Jing Yunfeng recounted all his observations along the way: "Young Master Xuanming is exceptionally intelligent, and even more remarkable is his humble nature."

"Among the people of his age whom I have seen, there are very few whose talent and learning can match his."

"Those with similar talent and learning are mostly arrogant and not nearly as composed as him."

"As for those whose character and talent are comparable, they are all older than him, but their potential is not as good."

"ha."

Upon hearing this, Yue Tianji smiled faintly, a rare hint of amusement in his voice.

Xuanming and Jing Yunfeng chatted happily throughout the journey, without any of the awkwardness and misunderstandings they had experienced when speaking with these people before.

It must be because the Soul Emperor and Ling Shuangjie and others were too powerful, causing the boy to instinctively feel awe.

And since he often acted as a teacher, it was inevitable that the child would feel nervous.

On the contrary, it was Jing Yunfeng who, knowing that Xuanming was valued by him, treated him as an equal, which made the child no longer have so many concerns.

Unexpectedly, despite his keen insight into human nature and ability to read the heavens, he lost to a taciturn guard in his conversation with the young man.

The subtle contrast made him feel both self-deprecating and amused.

Yue Tianji neither affirmed nor denied Jing Yunfeng's assessment, but simply waved his hand lightly.

Jing Yunfeng understood, and with a swift movement, he disappeared into the shadows under the corridor, his aura instantly blending into the night.

Yue Tianji stood alone under the corridor, looking up at the sky.

Above the night sky, the stars twinkle and shimmer, as if foreshadowing countless destinies already written.

He stood with his hands behind his back, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes, like a blade drawn from its sheath.

"History? Ha! Is human destiny determined by fate?"

"The history of the four regions should be written by the people of the four regions themselves!"

The next morning, in the side room, the same scene, the same food, the same daydreaming.

"We don't yet know what the divine artifacts of this world are, and they might not even be called divine artifacts here."

"I thought stealing the artifact would be difficult, but I really underestimated it."

Staying is certainly risky, but leaving isn't a good option either.

Judging from Mr. Yue's attitude yesterday, he can't leave now, even if he wanted to.

Xuanming never imagined that he would ever be troubled by being valued.

In fact, Xuanming is like a contradictory combination, as if two people with opposing personalities have been forcibly put together.

When faced with choices that each have their advantages and disadvantages, and when he needs to make a decision, he hesitates, is indecisive, wavers, is greedy, and even wants both, always fantasizing about having the best of both worlds.

But after making his choice, he seemed to become the other extreme, his mind resolute, no longer considering anything else, with only how to achieve his goal in mind.

"Master Yue accepted me as his disciple so that I might serve Huan Chen in his martial arts endeavors."

"Although I dislike war, the Shenyu region is in such a chaotic state that only war can bring peace."

"If the Soul Burial Emperor isn't a tyrant, then helping him isn't exactly aiding and abetting evil."

"The matter of the divine artifact is too sensitive; to be on the safe side, it's best not to investigate it now."

"Let's reveal our power slowly according to the previous plan, and heal the Soul Burial Emperor's injuries first."

"Since you've decided to stay, you need to give Mr. Yue an answer today."

"Given your personality, if you continue to avoid or refuse, you'll likely face consequences!"

A knock on the door soon interrupted Xuanming's thoughts. He got up and opened the door with his left hand, only to see Jing Yunfeng standing outside.

"Young master, the strategist has instructed me to take you to the study."

"Okay, Brother Jing, let's go!"

Xuanming had anticipated that Yue Tianji would ask him to go to the study, but he was quite surprised to see Jing Yunfeng again. He had thought that other soldiers would be the ones to take him this time.

"Brother Jing, what are the cultivation levels of the generals in the Huan Chen Bu Wu faction?"

Jing Yunfeng glanced at Xuanming and asked with some delight, "Does Young Master agree to the strategist's proposal?"

He also mentioned the generals yesterday, but Xuanming stopped him from continuing, saying that it was not appropriate to talk about these things with outsiders.

"Well, I'd like to know the temperaments of the generals, so as not to offend them."

"The Soul Emperor has four Radiant Generals and left and right vanguards, each with the authority to command an army."

Generals Bai Ru Piao Yu, Ling Shuang Jie, Du Miao, and Ren Jun Kuang are all renowned for their military achievements and exceptional cultivation, holding the rank of Radiant General.

"Below the four generals are the left vanguard Ghost Wanxiang and the right vanguard Dove Soul."

The two vanguards' cultivation levels are actually not much different from the four generals; it's just that they joined the Soul Emperor a little later and their battle achievements are not as good as the generals', which is why they are at a disadvantage.

"Although the generals have different temperaments, they are all generous and do not concern themselves with trivial matters. Since you are a disciple of the strategist, the generals will not deliberately make things difficult for you."

"I hope so!" Xuanming said with some worry.

He had already thoroughly offended Ling Shuangjie, one of the Four Great Generals, so he simply couldn't be optimistic.

"Besides these individuals, the strategist and the strategist also have the authority to command troops."

"It's just that the two of them are mostly advisors and rarely lead troops into battle on their own."

"The strategist must be the happiest person to have the young master taken as a disciple!"

Jing Yunfeng, seemingly lost in thought, looked at Xuanming with a mixture of envy and pity once again.

Upon hearing this, Xuanming recalled Yue Tianji's words yesterday when he proposed taking on disciples, and a bad feeling instantly filled his heart.

"Brother Jing, besides strategists and planners, does Huan Chen Bu Wu have any other civilian staff to assist him?"

"Yes, civilian personnel are those who handle paperwork, organize intelligence data, and resolve non-combat issues within their jurisdiction."