Chapter 1 Please Assemble

"Please summon Qian Shun, the head of the Yip's Workshop Yunzhou branch; Wang Xin, the director of the airship workshop; Chen Shisong, the director of the firearms workshop; Xie Bo, the captain of the airship squadron directly under the command; Dai Qiong, the deputy battalion commander of the special operations battalion; Zhe Luo, the captain of the guard; Wu Pingan, the captain of the adjutant team; Jin Ze, the deputy captain; Yang Dongping, the chief of the third division of the communications bureau, and any of their subordinates who they deem relevant to this major operation to the villa for consultation..." After a night of discussions with Dai Yun, this was the order that came from the villa. Both Dai Yun and Tan Weixin had an expression of disbelief on their faces, as if they had heard something incredibly strange.

When these people gradually arrived and saw a complete map of Xi Ling, a detailed sand table, and the secret guards directly under the Tan family that Tan Weixin had directly mobilized from the inner court in the villa's large conference room, six of the ten great enshrined ones of the Dai family summoned by Dai Yun with the authority of the clan leader, as well as several of Dai Yun's fellow disciples, Liu Yong and Liu Meng's many friends from the martial world... almost all the forces that could be mobilized began to prepare. Everyone then suddenly realized how seriously the villa had been preparing for revenge during the few days that the officials summoned by the villa had been rushing over.

Zhou Rui had been in Xi Ling for several days. He sent a message back via the Flying Eagle Transmission from the liaison station he had established within Xi Ling, indicating his intention to independently carry out a series of assassinations and sabotage. He also sent back another message, which was that when he was in contact with the Leiyin Demon Sect, preparing to obtain some local support from the Leiyin Demon Sect, he heard Lei Huang say that the Zong Demon Corps had also launched a full-scale attack against the Daoming Sect. This was the first time that the Leiyin Demon Sect had taken the initiative to act.

Since the Zong Demon Corps had previously revealed their combat power, although they had gathered and set off, the Eagle Hall also responded by launching operations, and a bloody storm seemed to be rising again within Xi Ling. The local officials everywhere were having a terrible headache. They had to find ways to transfer troops and supplies to the protracted offensive and defensive battle under the Great South Pass in the south. This transfer would not stop until the higher levels of Xi Ling felt that enough blood had been shed. The various places were now struggling to maintain local治安 (zhì ān, public order) and had no way to restrain the Daoming Sect and the Zong Demon Corps, which were fighting each other tit-for-tat.

However, after receiving the news, Dai Yun and Tan Weixin discussed it slightly and still conveyed the order, telling the Leiyin Demon Sect not to actively plan direct revenge operations, but instead to provide support for Yunzhou's grand plan. After three days of emergency contact in shifts, Lei Huang agreed. Although he didn't know what Yunzhou's plan was, Lei Huang would never refuse any request from Tan Weixin, who was both the Princess of Dongping and Yip's wife.

"The liaison envoy from Xi Ling will arrive in a few days, but we can start deploying the plan first." Every day that Yip Tao had not woken up, Dai Yun became more and more enraged. Now, fifteen days had passed, and Yip Tao's wounds were no longer a problem, but Yip Tao had not woken up. At this time, when Dai Yun suppressed her anger and spoke at the meeting, she was like the legendary Valkyrie.

"The plan is divided into two parts, and the longest time will likely exceed a month. Here, there are some very basic questions to be solved." Dai Yun's tone was heavy and serious. "First of all, for the airship squadron, with ground guidance, how far can they penetrate into Xi Ling at most? Where can they reach at most? I mean at any possible departure point, including Yunzhou, Zhenzhou, and any place within Dongping's inherent territory."

Xie Bo thought for a while and then stood up. They had recently conducted many such night raid exercises and were gradually developing a concept of this type of data. "If only the suddenness of the attack is required, and the concealment of the retreat is not considered, if the wind direction is suitable, they will be able to make a round trip of up to two hundred and fifty *li*. But this is under an economical load and it is impossible to fully load kerosene bombs and other things for attack. However... if enough airships are dispatched, any effect should be achieved. Our airship squadron currently has a total of eighty-five airships of various types. Among them, there are sixteen of the newest type, which are also the largest airships. I don't know where Governor Dai is preparing to attack, but as long as it is within a radius of two hundred and fifty *li*, there should be no problem."

"Very good. After the meeting today, you will immediately gather the entire airship group, take the route through Dongjiaji, and fly directly to Xuanshan Pass. I have already ordered the preparation of an airship mooring field there and prepared supplies for you." Dai Yun ordered.

"Yes, Ma'am." Xie Bo obeyed the order. His mind was calculating what targets were within two hundred and fifty *li* of the branch line from Xuanshan Pass. At the beginning, Xie Bo was still thinking about those important places in Xi Ling that were closer to Xuanshan Pass. But at this time, Dai Yun added, "You will be conducting a one-way flight, fully loaded. After the attack, a location nearby will be prepared for you. All airship crew members will evacuate, and all airships will be burned on the spot. The repatriation of the airship crew members will be jointly responsible by the Dongping Intelligence Bureau and other departments. Do you understand?"

"What?" Everyone present was so surprised that they couldn't speak. The cost of eighty-five airships was as expensive as the sky. To carry out a one-way attack? For revenge, this was really a grand gesture. Then Xie Bo's mind crashed. He had always valued those flying behemoths very much. In shock, he forgot to calculate where Dai Yun and the others were planning to attack. Dai Yun then answered everyone's questions, "I want to level the Daoming Sect's headquarters."

"Ground guidance will be jointly responsible by the Third Division of the Communications Bureau, the Dongping Intelligence Bureau, and our other forces in Xi Ling. And our forces entering Xi Ling are naturally more than just these. Not only will we level the Daoming Sect's headquarters, but we will also, three days after the bombing, when it is most chaotic, use our various elite combat forces to encircle and kill as many of the Daoming Sect's forces as possible. Religious, popular, and combat power. At the same time, we will also use a force to directly attack the Daoming Sect's important hub in Taizhou, the Zhujun Hall... I believe that attacking these two places should let the Daoming Sect know that it was very foolish to let Snake Eyes out."

"I don't know how many people the Daoming Sect, the Eagle Hall, and Snake Eyes have in Yunzhou, and how much effort they have put in. Naturally, the people from the Dongping Intelligence Bureau will help me find out and help me pull these people out one by one. I am also not interested in knowing how many people in the Daoming Sect are related to this matter. I only know that this is not the first time. Once was the Eagle Hall, once was Snake Eyes. Yip Tao is my husband, the Governor of Yunzhou and the Northern Frontier, not for those fanatical believers to use for training. Whether it is a 教体 (jiào tǐ, teaching system), or a 社团 (shè tuán, organization), I don't know what the Daoming Sect is. I hope that with everyone's efforts, you can tell me. I don't need to know, I don't need to worry." Dai Yun said lightly.

Tan Weixin then added faintly, "In addition, the previously adopted lenient policy by Yunzhou and Zhenzhou towards ordinary Daoming Sect believers will be completely changed. Regardless of where they enter Yunzhou from, all Daoming Sect believers must register with the government and declare that they will not promote, spread, or discuss it in public places. Anyone who violates this will be punished as a spy. All industries related to the Daoming Sect, the industries of Daoming Sect believers, will be subject to restrictions on movement from today onwards. They can freely enter Yunzhou and Zhenzhou, but can only circulate within the jurisdiction of the Northern Frontier Governor's Office or flow to the inherent territory of Dongping. Anyone who privately hides or carries them, once found, will be confiscated immediately."

If what Dai Yun said was a blatant move against the Daoming Sect, then these two measures introduced by Tan Weixin were somewhat insidious. Now, there are quite a few Daoming Sect believers in Yunzhou and Zhenzhou, both openly and secretly. This measure of declaring their identity will make it impossible for most of them to live well, and they will be under the surveillance and vigilance of the people around them at all times. Just this alone is enough to force many Daoming Sect believers to abandon their faith. Since the number is not too large, there is no need to worry about these people gathering to cause trouble. Moreover, Yunzhou is really not afraid of Daoming Sect believers causing trouble. Think about the Daoming Sect's specially formed Guardian Army, whose combat power is not very good. If they didn't have that fanatical spirit, they would be a rabble, nothing to see.

Restricting the flow of money is an even more powerful means of control. Yunzhou and Zhenzhou contain unlimited business opportunities, and many people have seen this, including many believers engaged in business. Entering Yunzhou is easy, but it is difficult to get out. Many funds are constantly滞留在云州 (zhì liú zài Yúnzhōu,滞留 means "stagnant") in the internal circulation of Yunzhou and Zhenzhou. Although there are many opportunities and profits may not be difficult to obtain, the Daoming Sect will not be able to obtain half a cent from these cross-border traders who have always been the most enthusiastic donors. Can Yunzhou really track capital now? In fact, it is impossible to do it completely. At most, it can only track some larger merchants and business groups, but even so, such measures will reduce the Daoming Sect's annual donations by a considerable amount.

Whether it was Dai Yun or Tan Weixin, the things they said today, the things they were preparing to do, could be said to be a full-scale war against the Daoming Sect. As long as the attack on the Daoming Sect's headquarters, the Hunyuan Hall, and the Daoming Sect's northern stronghold, the Zhujun Hall, is successful, no matter what the situation is in the future, the Daoming Sect and Dongping and Yunzhou will be in an irreconcilable situation anyway. Making such a decision now obviously means that Tan Weixin, Dai Yun, and others have prepared for a more bloody situation when dealing with the Daoming Sect during the conquest of Xi Ling in the future.

The meeting on how to organize a rich revenge lasted for a whole day. Various strategies that sounded more reliable and mature were directly written into documents at the meeting and then issued for execution, and the action to bomb the Daoming Sect's headquarters, as well as related attack actions, became more and more abundant and complete with the discussions at the meeting.

"Let's set off. We will wait here for your good news." Tan Weixin ended this very special meeting with such a sentence.