Chapter 1106 Undercurrents Rise, the Prince's Mansion Sharpens Its Edge

As time passed, the majesty of the Prince of Zhendong's Mansion, like an invisible net, enveloped every corner of the eastern territory.

However, not all living beings are willing to be bound by this net.

Led by the Wind Spirit Clan and the Eastern Family, the "Eastern Autonomous Alliance," which was quietly established, is like an undercurrent hidden beneath a net. It has begun to test the boundaries of the net in various ways, both overt and covert, accumulating the power to push back.

The atmosphere at the second secret meeting of the "Eastern Autonomous Alliance" was even more somber than the first.

Feng Yuanzi, the patriarch of the Fengling Clan, was surrounded by a faint swirling blue wind, and his voice, as elusive as the wind, carried a chilling aura.

"Gentlemen, the first round of registration deadline for the Prince's Mansion is approaching. According to reliable sources, more than 60% of the small and medium-sized forces have submitted documents that are at least superficially complete. The Prince's Mansion's tentacles are being further extended through these allies."

The representative of the Dongfang family was replaced by an old man dressed in a simple Confucian robe, with a white face and no beard, but with eyes as sharp as an eagle's.

Dongfang Xian, the Grand Elder of the Dongfang Family, possesses peak Immortal-grade strength.

He stroked his beard and sneered, "They're nothing but a bunch of opportunists, changing their tune with the wind. My Dongfang family has a history of 37,000 years, weathering countless storms. How could we bow down to a mere decree? The filing documents have been 'carefully prepared,' enough for the clerks of the Prince's mansion to study for a while."

His so-called "meticulous preparation" was naturally a mixture of truth and falsehood, with key data being greatly discounted.

The Azure Sword Immortal of the Ancient Sword Sect, holding his sword, said indifferently, "Our sect has only reported 30% of the disciples on the surface. We have not mentioned the Sword Pavilion, the Secret Treasury, the Ancestral Sword Tomb, and other vital locations. How can we allow outsiders to pry into the secrets of sword cultivation?"

Qian Wanguan of the Sihai Chamber of Commerce added with a smile: "As for the accounts of trade routes, they naturally need to be made beautiful, with everything that should be there. But the core sources of goods, the few hidden trade routes with the highest profits, and transactions with certain 'special clients' will not be leaked at all. Businessmen are particular about 'concealing their wealth'."

The star chart in front of the Star Pavilion Master, Xing Suanzi, rotated, and he slowly said, "I have disturbed the heavenly secrets and confused the coordinates of my pavilion's core star realm."

If the Prince's Mansion wants to investigate, all it will see is layers of mist. However… recent observations show that the Prince's Mansion's fortune is at its zenith, and there is a hidden aura of power. That Thunder Emperor probably won't be able to endure this indefinitely.”

A glint of green light flashed in Feng Yuanzi's eyes: "Whether we endure it or not is not important. What is important is that we must make him understand that strong unification comes at a high price, and we need to demonstrate 'unity' and 'strength'."

The first step is to address the 'Eastern Region Joint Defense Contribution Point' system that the Prince's Palace is about to implement.

To incentivize participation in defense, the Royal Palace established a contribution point system. Contributions could be earned by completing border patrols, reporting information about the evil race, or providing specific resources. These contributions could be exchanged for resources from the Royal Palace's treasury, cultivation techniques, or even cultivation guidance. This was originally a calculated move to win over smaller forces.

“We need to secretly contact our alliance members, their respective vassal forces, and some of the forces that are observing the situation,” Feng Xingyun said. “We will adopt a ‘passive cooperation’ approach to contribution point tasks.”

Patrol routes can 'just happen' to avoid sensitive areas or resource-rich areas, reported intelligence can be 'delayed' or 'distorted', and the resources provided can be substandard or insufficient in quantity.

Meanwhile, within their respective spheres of influence, they secretly spread rumors questioning the true purpose of the Prince's Mansion's resource integration, portraying the contribution point system as a form of "disguised plunder" and "blood transfusion for Thunder Prison."

Dongfang Xian nodded: "This plan is excellent. It can protect our actual interests and undermine the prestige of the Prince's Mansion from within, thus delaying its integration process."

The Four Seas Chamber of Commerce, in particular, could leverage its influence in trade. For instance, it could appropriately increase the transaction costs of non-critical materials or delay supplies to factions that actively respond to the Prince's orders and accumulate significant contribution points.

Qian Wanguan's small eyes gleamed: "Understood, the wind will blow. Market fluctuations and supply and demand tensions are common occurrences. I will make my subordinates naturally show their closeness and distance."

"In addition," Feng Xingyun lowered his voice, the wind howling in the secret room.

"Contact with the 'West' has made initial progress. The other side has expressed 'understanding' of the 'autonomy demands' of the Eastern Territory and is willing to provide some 'trivial' assistance, such as... fragments of an ancient array that can interfere with the detection of specific spiritual power, as well as some insights on how to 'reasonably' conceal high-level combat power."

Of course, all of this requires absolute secrecy, and currently it is limited to the exchange of supplies and intelligence.

Mentioning "the west" made everyone's expressions tense again, but with interests at stake, they were even more determined to take the risk.

The Prince of Zhendong's Mansion was not entirely unaware of the undercurrents surrounding the so-called Eastern Autonomous Alliance's schemes.

After listening to Lei Dong's detailed report, Mo Yu merely sneered.

"Negative cooperation? Spreading rumors? Interfering with detection?" Mo Yu toyed with a command token crackling with lightning in his hand.

"A petty trick. They think they can stop the tide with this? Ridiculous."

He then issued a series of orders.

First, a feint was used to covertly advance another strategy. The Prince's Palace publicly commended several medium-sized forces that had actively registered and made outstanding contributions, awarding them generous material rewards and promoting their leaders to "guest ministers" within the Prince's Palace, allowing them to participate in some peripheral affairs. At the same time, resources and intelligence sharing with these forces were secretly increased, establishing them as "exemplary models" to attract more wavering individuals.

Second, to sow discord and intimidate, and to send a warning to others. Given that the "Eastern Autonomous Alliance" was not a monolithic entity, the Royal Palace, through clandestine channels, conveyed a vague message to members whose stance was less firm, or who had old grudges against the Wind Spirit Clan and the Eastern Family, that "past transgressions would not be punished, and those who performed well could still be given important positions." They also privately granted some of their reasonable resource requests, thus sowing the seeds of suspicion.

Third, strengthen surveillance and target specific areas for elimination. Mo Yu ordered Qing Yanjing to coordinate the development of a more concealed and difficult-to-interfere "Sky-Patrolling Thunder Eye" detection network, which would be deployed at key continental passages and resource star belts.

At the same time, elite "Thunder Punishment Army" squads were dispatched under the guise of "verifying border defenses" and "patrolling trade route security" to suddenly appear near the borders or important industries of some forces suspected of "passive cooperation" and conduct high-profile and standardized patrols to create a powerful deterrent.

Anyone found to be maliciously spreading rumors, regardless of their affiliation, will be publicly and severely punished on the grounds of "disrupting the defense of the eastern region and undermining morale," with swift and decisive measures.

Friction soon arose as the Prince of Zhendong's Mansion took action.

Outside a major metal mining planet called "Golden Continent," controlled by the Eastern Family, a Thunder Punishment Army squad, posing as a "patrol" unit of the Royal Palace, requested entry to the planet to verify whether the mining operations complied with the Royal Palace's newly promulgated "Wartime Resource Mining Safety Regulations."

The resident elder of the Dongfang family refused entry, citing "internal family affairs, no one may enter without the patriarch's written order." The two sides were locked in a tense standoff on the mainland.

Ultimately, Lei Fajun's squad did not force their way in, but they recorded the incident in detail and warned that "if an accident is caused by safety issues and affects the supply of resources in the Eastern Region, the Royal Palace will hold them fully responsible," before leaving in a high-profile manner.

The news spread quickly, the Dongfang family lost face, and the Wangfu (Prince's Mansion) showed its increasingly aggressive stance.

On an important interstellar trade route of the Four Seas Chamber of Commerce, two caravans, one belonging to the Zhen Dong Prince's Mansion and the other to a force secretly "taken care of" by the Chamber of Commerce, applied almost simultaneously to use a crucial intercontinental teleportation array.

As a result, the Prince's caravan "just happened" to be delayed for several days due to "routine maintenance of the formation," causing a batch of highly time-sensitive medicinal herbs to wither and suffer considerable losses.

Qian Wanguan was secretly pleased with himself, but three days later, officials from the Wangfu Leigong Department, along with several spirit array masters, suddenly arrived on the continent where the teleportation array was located. Under the pretext of "ensuring smooth trade in the Eastern Region and checking the operation of the array," they conducted a comprehensive inspection.

Furthermore, several hidden dangers of "unreasonable design and long-term disrepair" were "unexpectedly" discovered, and the formation was ordered to be shut down on the spot for "mandatory upgrade and renovation", with the construction period undetermined.

This not only stunned the caravan that had been "taken care of," but also greatly affected the efficiency of the entire trade route, and also impacted other businesses of the Sihai Chamber of Commerce, resulting in losses far exceeding the gains from the previous petty tricks.

Qian Wanguan suffered a loss he couldn't speak of, only then realizing how swift, precise, and ruthless the Prince's Mansion's counterattack had been.

The Wind Spirit Clan attempted to use their advantage in manipulating wind and intelligence to spread rumors across multiple continents that "the royal palace is waging wars and will sooner or later increase taxes."

However, these rumors had only just begun to circulate when the Prince's Palace's "Sky-Patrolling Thunder Eyes," in conjunction with Thunder Prison's powerful intelligence analysis, quickly pinpointed several key sources of the rumors.

Mo Yu personally issued a royal decree announcing the capture of "several spies of the evil race who attempted to spread rumors and sow discord in the unity of our Eastern Region," and their public execution. At the same time, he announced a series of draft plans to safeguard people's livelihoods, promote commerce, and ensure that future taxes would "only decrease and not increase."

The Wind Spirit Clan's attempt to steal a chicken backfired, allowing the Royal Palace to gain popular support instead.

After several small-scale covert clashes, the "Eastern Autonomous Alliance" was not seriously injured, but it truly felt the difficulty and toughness of the Prince's Mansion.

Mo Yu's response was not simply brute force and suppression, but rather reasoned, measured, and measured. It combined political skill with military deterrence and, moreover, the righteous cause of resisting the evil race, making it quite a challenge for them.

"We can't keep doing these small-scale skirmishes." Feng Yuanzi's face was grim at the third secret meeting.

“Mo Yu is slowly boiling the frog, gradually shrinking our space and establishing his authority. We must take action to show our strength and determination, even if it means taking some risks.”

"What are your thoughts, Chief Feng?" Dongfang Xian asked.

"I've heard that Mo Yu seems to be secretly searching for some extreme Thunder Forbidden Land recently, and he's making quite a fuss about it." A sharp glint flashed in Feng Yuanzi's eyes.

"Whatever his intentions, this might be an opportunity. We can try to interfere, or at least figure out his purpose. Master of the Star Calculator Pavilion, can you deduce his possible target area?"

After a moment of contemplation, the Star Calculator slowly manipulated the star chart: "Thunderous Desolation... the eastern frontier... where malevolent energy and vitality coexist... its connection with the Thunder Emperor's destiny is deepening... the target is very likely deep within the 'Annihilation Star Thunder' forbidden zone!"

"Annihilation Star Lightning?" Everyone gasped in shock. That was a forbidden zone that even the Heavenly Sovereign dared not venture into easily.

"Furthermore," the Star Calculator continued, "from my observation, besides the Thunder Emperor, there is another faint but unimaginably explosive 'young dragon' aura rapidly condensing and rising at the core of the Prince's Mansion's fortune... Could it be related to that son of Mo Yu?"

These words caused a stir among the crowd. Could it be that Mo Yu went to such lengths for his son?

If that's the case, sabotaging or interfering with this matter would undoubtedly be a heavy blow to Mo Yu!

"Find a way to figure out their specific plans!" Feng Yuanzi said resolutely. "If necessary, we can use the channels of communication with the 'West' to obtain more information about the Thunder Forbidden Zone or the interference formation."

"We could even consider creating some 'accidents' at crucial moments, such as triggering the inherent dangers of that area, or disguising it as traces of harassment by extraterrestrial evil forces!"

This suggestion was even bolder and more dangerous, and a moment of silence fell over the sealed room.

But considering the Prince's increasingly aggressive stance and the potential opportunity to severely damage Mo Yu, greed and resentment ultimately overcame caution.

Almost simultaneously with the alliance's secret plot, inside the Thunder Emperor Palace, Mo Yu was discussing matters with Qing Yanjing, Lei Dong, and others.

"The petty tricks of the Wind Spirit Clan and the Eastern Family are nothing more than a minor ailment," Mo Yu said calmly. "Lei Dong, have you investigated their connections with the Maha Ancient Clan?"

"Reporting to the Prison Lord, we are seventy percent certain. They received encrypted inheritance jade slips and some supplies from the Maha Continent through an ancient underground auction house located on a neutral continent. The contents are being deciphered, but they are definitely related to concealment and detection interference," Lei Dong reported.

"A clown, as expected, couldn't resist going after Maha Tian." Mo Yu sneered, "Very well, once Chen'er awakens, we can settle accounts with him all at once."

He looked at Qing Yanjing: "Xiao Jing, how is the grand formation being set up?"

Qing Yanjing's face showed a hint of fatigue, but her eyes were bright: "The final array diagram of the 'Chaotic Thunder Source Awakening Array' has been completed. Sister Yafei has collected 90% of the required materials, and the most crucial ones have also been identified and are on their way."

"Hmm." Mo Yu nodded slightly, then noticed the increasingly powerful aura within Qing Yanjing's body, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Are you about to advance to the Saint-grade Grandmaster level?"

Qing Yanjing smiled gently and said, "I'm only half a step away. I have a feeling that I will be able to successfully advance to the Grandmaster of Spirit Array within two years."

"So, it seems that Lei Yu will soon have a Grandmaster of Saint-grade Spirit Arrays in charge? Xiao Jing, this is all thanks to you." Upon hearing this, a flicker of emotion flashed in Mo Yu's eyes. He then stepped forward, grasped Qing Yan Jing's jade hand, and said with delight.

It should be noted that the current prestige of the Zhen Dong Prince's Mansion is almost entirely due to Mo Yu's own prestige.

Even so, the major forces within the Eastern Region are still eager to make their move.

If the news of Qing Yanjing's advancement to Grandmaster of Spirit Arrays were to spread, it is likely that no one in the Zhen Dong Prince's Mansion would dare to harbor any dissatisfaction with its rule!

Mo Yu stood up, and a vast, star-like majesty spread out: "Pass down the order that all affairs of the Prince's Palace proceed as planned. The suppression of the alliance should not be relaxed, but there is no need to over-stimulate it either."

The primary task at present is to awaken Chen'er, Lei Dong, and send more people to monitor all possible unusual activities of the Alliance and the Maha Ancient Clan that may be related to the Annihilation Star Thunder Forbidden Zone.

At the same time, the three most elite units of the Thunder Punishment Army were secretly assembled and awaiting orders.

"Yes!" Everyone agreed in unison.