Chapter 6 — The Prophet Awakens: Shedding the Worthless Shell

Ước Liêm Phong's letter stirred the council of Bắcương elders for many days. Although the majority still sided with Tuyết Doanh, there were also whispers of skepticism that began to appear, especially from small clan chiefs who were already dissatisfied with the strict tax policy she applied to maintain military provisions during the years of drought.

One of them is Vũ Tông Bách, the patriarch of Diệp Phong Bộ - a small tribe located on the eastern edge of Bắcương, specializing in precious wood exploitation. Tông Bách had asked for tax reduction many times but was rejected by Tuyết Doanh because he believed that the treasury needed to be strengthened in unstable times.

Late at night, at a remote inn near the border, Tông Bách secretly met a strange man from Nam Xuyên.

"Patriarch Vu, the Earl, we are very sympathetic to Diệp Phong Bộ's difficult situation." The strange man - another strategist of Liêm Phong named Chu Bình - poured wine, his voice was sweet and light. "If you agree to cooperate, let a group of our 'bandits' pretend to be robbers to attack Diệp Phong Bộ's own wood warehouse, and then you openly lament about Northern Cuong's inability to protect the dependent tribes, the Earl will compensate five times the value of the 'robbed' wood, and reduce the trade tax by half if Diệp Phong Bu switches to trading with Nam Xuyên."

Tông Bách hesitated for a long time, but the accumulated greed and dissatisfaction overwhelmed his reason. "Okay. But make sure no one finds out the truth."

"Don't worry, we have thought it through carefully."

Three days later, a "bandit group" of twenty people suddenly raided Diệp Phong Bộ's wood warehouse in the middle of the night, burning nearly half of the stored wood, causing damage of hundreds of taels of silver. The news spread quickly, and just as the script had planned, Tông Bách publicly and loudly blamed him in front of the other clan leaders during an emergency meeting.

"Bắcương no longer has the strength to protect its dependent tribes!" He pounded the table, his voice filled with fake indignation. "We pay all taxes, but when there is an accident, where is the queen's army? Or is it because the queen is preoccupied with other things in the house and forgets her responsibility to protect us?"

The last sentence, a direct reference to Tuyết Doanh's marriage, made the whole hall stir.

Tuyết Doanh sat on the chair, cold eyes sweeping over Tông Bách. "Chief Vu, you were attacked three days away from the capital. The Northern Cuong army cannot be present in every corner at the same time. But I sent someone to investigate as soon as I received the news. If we find evidence that this attack is not as simple as it seems, I will not show mercy to anyone involved, including people in this council."

Her eyes stopped on Tông Bách's face for a second too long, causing him to shiver, even though he tried to remain calm.

***

After the meeting, Tô Bạch Vũ was ordered to secretly investigate the raid. After three days of following the trail, he discovered a suspicious detail: the footprints of the "robbers" at the scene were wearing the same type of shoes that were only produced in a separate craft workshop in Nam Xuyên.

"My lord, there is evidence that the bandits are not ordinary bandits. Their shoes are all Nam Xuyên products." Bạch Vũ reported, his voice full of indignation. "And the subordinates also discovered that Tông Bách secretly met a stranger at a border inn three days before the raid."

"Just as I predicted." Tuyết Doanh closed her eyes and gently rubbed her temples, which were sore from lack of sleep for many nights in a row. “But this circumstantial evidence is not enough to publicly incriminate a council chief, especially when he can deny that it was just a normal business meeting.”

"So what should we do? Just leave him alone?"

"It's not the time to act yet." She stood up, walked to the window and looked out at the starry night sky. "Ước Liêm Phong is playing a long game, step by step weakening the tribes' trust in me. If I react too hastily without solid evidence, he will immediately turn me into a dictator, oppressing people in the council just because of baseless suspicions. I need to be more patient than him." Bạch Vũ sighed, but still nodded to obey. Before leaving, he couldn't help but glance at the backyard, where Vọng Thần was singing a passionate song, completely separate from all the turmoil surrounding this family.

"Lord," he couldn't help himself, "have you ever thought, if only your husband... had some ability to help at this time?"

The unexpected question made Tuyết Doanh pause. She did not answer immediately, just silently looked in the direction of Bạch Vũ's eyes.

"Do you think I've never made a wish like that?" She finally spoke, her voice filled with deep fatigue. "But fate has arranged it like this, complaining is useless. At least, he is a good father to Tiểu Nguyệt."

Bạch Vũ bowed his head, not daring to say more, but in his heart he still couldn't help but remember the strange escape of the trading group, and the story of the "miracle" in Thạch Giản village. There was something wrong, something he couldn't explain yet, but the instincts of an experienced bodyguard told him that the lazy beggar was not as simple as he seemed.

***

That night, when everyone in Nguyệt Trạch was asleep, Vọng Thần quietly sat alone in the yard, looking up at the starry sky. He had just used a bit of his divine consciousness to "see" beyond the limits of the naked eye — an ability that consumed much less internal energy than other magics, but was still enough to make him feel exhausted after each use.

What he "saw" made his heart heavy. Vũ Tông Bách is not the only one bribed by Nam Xuyên — there are at least two other clan chiefs who are wavering, and Ước Liêm Phong is preparing a plan much bigger than the current petty sabotage.

"He's aiming for the Millennium Covenant." He thought to himself, clenching his fists. "He has found a loophole, and he will use it to publicly challenge Tuyết Doanh's legitimacy."

If that happens, Vọng Thần knows he will be faced with a choice he has been avoiding for more than twenty years — continue to hide himself to protect a false security, or reveal his true identity, accepting the risk of awakening the ghosts of the past, to protect what he truly cherishes.

He looked up at the crescent moon in the sky, remembering what his master had said before everything collapsed: "You cannot escape your destiny forever, Vọng Thần. One day, you will have to choose between continuing to be a shadow, or becoming the light you were born to be."

"Master..." he whispered into the quiet night, "I still don't have enough courage. But I promise, when the time comes, I won't hide anymore."

***

Memories of that fateful night came rushing back to his mind, as clear as if it had happened yesterday. At that time, he was only twelve years old, still the youngest disciple of Thiên Cơ Các, diligently memorizing every word of the Nine Heavens Prophecy every day under the strict teachings of his master.

That night, a fierce earthquake suddenly struck the headquarters in the middle of the night - he later learned that it was not a natural disaster, but a deliberate attack by an ancient hostile force that had repeatedly wanted to destroy Thien Co Pavilion out of fear of this organization's ability to read destiny. Master, in the moment of life and death, used all his remaining internal strength to open a secret escape route, pushing him into it before the group collapsed completely.

"Run away, Vọng Thần! Never reveal your identity until you are truly ready to face the burden of the Nine Heavens Thunder!" Those were the last words he heard from his master, before the screams and flames consumed everything he had ever known as home.

For more than twenty years after that, he wandered everywhere, carrying in his heart the obsession that if even a small mistake revealed his identity, the forces that had destroyed Thiên Cơ Các in the past would come, and this time, not only he would have to pay the price. He learned to put on a foolish, drunken, useless facade — a facade so perfect that he sometimes forgot the real person inside.

That force, according to what he knew after many years of silent investigation, had disintegrated and perished on that fateful night - the price they had to pay for an attack beyond their control. No one was chasing him anymore. But the fear that had been ingrained in the bones for more than twenty years did not easily disappear just because the real danger was no longer there.