Chapter 444: Chapter 439: The Road with No End in Sight, Bad News
No matter how peerless your splendor, you must still bow before the river of time, eventually vanishing into its depths.
Yang Sheng was well aware of this. Countless experts throughout history had been forgotten over the long passage of time.
Take the former Great Yu Imperial Dynasty, for example. It had been largely forgotten by the common people. Even if some remnants still existed, they could only lie dormant as long as the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty had its Martial Saint Ancestor watching over it. They wouldn’t dare make any major moves; otherwise, the Great Zhou army would mobilize and turn everything to ash.
Yang Sheng had witnessed these things personally. He didn’t want to be forgotten by time, so he had to continuously break through in his Cultivation and endlessly increase his Lifespan.
It was a path with no visible end—a road that stretched on forever.
But this was not the case for the current Yang Chan. He methodically completed his Flood Dragon Demon Breath Method Cultivation, so the issue of Lifespan was not as pressing for him.
Every year, he was confident he could increase his Lifespan—the kind of thing people talked about when they said someone was "growing younger with age."
His Cultivation improved daily, and his progress was obvious. Naturally, he enjoyed these kinds of days.
After completing his Flood Dragon Demon Breath Method Cultivation, he used the Tai Chi Health Cultivation Skill to quickly return to his peak condition.
"Pharmacist Yang, Sect Leader Gu wants you to come to the Council Pavilion!"
The voice of Han Bingyu rang out from outside the Practice Institute.
Although Gu An was the acting Sect Leader, at this point, he was regarded as the true Sect Leader.
The word "acting" had long since been silently dropped.
The Former Sect Leader was now in the Merak Sacred Land, having become the Peak Master of Chiyu Peak. This made him truly the *Former* Sect Leader; he would not be coming back, nor could he replace Gu An.
Only when Gu An left the Cyan Yuan Sect for the Merak Sacred Land would the title "Sect Leader" disappear from his name.
"Alright, come in!"
Hearing this, a flicker of confusion passed through Yang Chan’s eyes.
He had just sent the refined Five Revolutions Nourishing Organ Pills to Gu An, and the two of them had spoken at length. He hadn’t expected to be summoned again, which struck him as strange.
He had shown a slight improvement this time, and Gu An had been very pleased to see it, as it meant he received a few more Elixirs.
Although they were all of standard quality, for Gu An, this was still quite good.
After all, the difficulty of successfully refining Superior Elixirs was much higher. Given Yang Chan’s current Pill Formation Success Rate, simply producing standard-quality pills was already an outstanding achievement. This left Gu An very satisfied; it was a pleasant surprise.
"Do you know why Sect Leader Gu has summoned me?"
Yang Chan asked as Han Bingyu walked in.
Only he could grant permission to enter his training grounds. Han Bingyu had always abided by this rule, never overstepping, despite the intimacy of their relationship.
"I’m not sure, but it might be related to the third military conscription."
"I happened to overhear that the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty seems to be planning a third military draft, but I don’t know the details."
Han Bingyu told Yang Chan everything she knew, admitting that it was only her own speculation.
News of a third conscription was surprising, and the fact that it was still unconfirmed made it feel all the more suspect.
A considerable number of people from the various major Sects had participated in the first two drafts. While not many were core members, the total was still significant. On top of that, countless able-bodied young men had been conscripted from every state.
Among ordinary families, the supply of able-bodied men was nearly exhausted.
To continue now seemed like an attempt to sever the very roots of these common families. It would be a devastating blow to their vitality, the kind from which it would be difficult to recover anytime soon.
A short recovery might take a few years; a longer one, at least a decade or more. If there were no men left at all, the recovery would take even longer—or they might have no future at all.
’A third military draft?’
Yang Chan’s brow furrowed upon hearing this. Although it wasn’t confirmed, Gu An summoning him now clearly meant there were rumors circulating.
’I just don’t get it at all.’
However, Han Bingyu didn’t know the full story. He could find out the details by going directly to Gu An.
"I’m going to the Council Pavilion. Wait for me in the study until I return."
Yang Chan didn’t tell Han Bingyu to leave. He planned to find out what was going on with Gu An and then decide what to do about Han Bingyu’s situation.
"Mm."
Han Bingyu nodded quickly. She also wanted to know what was going on.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that many strange things had been happening recently, things she couldn’t make sense of at all.
...
「Council Pavilion.」
"Disciple Yang Chan greets the Sect Leader."
Yang Chan arrived at the Council Pavilion to find Gu An sitting alone in the main seat.
He had expected more people to be present, thinking that an announcement would be made to a large group.
But now, it was just him and Gu An. This gave Yang Chan a bad feeling; it seemed this matter concerned him directly.
"Pharmacist Yang, you’ve arrived. Please, have a seat."
Upon hearing his words, Gu An set down the letter in his hands.
He had received quite a few letters, sent from various regions.
"I’ve called you here today because there is something I must tell you."
"The Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty has begun its third military draft. The official notice arrived the day before yesterday."
"The terms of this draft are extremely harsh. They demand that all major Sects send half of their Inner Masters, all of their Intermediate Pharmacists to provide support from the rear, half of their Direct Disciples, sixty percent of their Elite Disciples, and seventy percent of their Official Disciples!"
"These are mandatory requirements!"
"I contacted the other major Sects to oppose this arrangement. But just yesterday, the Great Zhou Martial Saint Ancestor paid a personal visit to Qingxuan Fanlou, the first to voice their opposition. He severely wounded their leader and then forcibly took an extra ten percent of their people, calling it ’a punishment for dissenters’!"
"He was making an example of them, a warning to the rest of us."
"The Grand Ancestor of Great Zhou is also personally visiting the neighboring states, forcing every major Sect to send the exact personnel he designates to support the border!"
Gu An’s voice was filled with helplessness as he spoke.
When a Martial Saint Ancestor takes action, they are essentially invincible. Even if the major Sects have Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmasters, they are no match for him.
Of course, the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s Martial Saint Ancestor did not demand that experts of that caliber participate in the border war. It seemed like a concession, but in reality, it was to prevent those masters from rising up in open rebellion.
Even with a Martial Saint Ancestor on their side, if all the Sects united against the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, the dynasty would be annihilated before it ever had to face the Jin Meng Empire.
The combined power of the Sects could destroy a nation. That was why the dynasty offered a semblance of choice, albeit one with heavy restrictions. Only the highest-ranking members had any chance of avoiding the draft; the lower-level members could only resign themselves to their fate.
"The Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s Martial Saint Ancestor will arrive in Qing State before long. The Cyan Yuan Sect is no match for him."
"I’ve sent a letter to the Merak Sacred Land, but I haven’t heard back. Therefore, you must prepare to travel to the borderlands."
"Many people are being sent to the border this time, but I have a bad feeling about the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s current state. Their actions are bizarre. After you reach the border, you’ll be providing support from the rear, so you won’t have to go to the front lines. If anything feels wrong, you are to flee immediately!"
"When the time comes, I can take you to the Merak Sacred Land and help you join it."
"Right now, however, there isn’t enough time for that. So you must be prepared."
Gu An had delivered bad news to Yang Chan—news that was unavoidable. If he could have, he naturally would not have wanted Yang Chan to go.
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