The Almighty Dominance novel Chapter 673

The war room’s doors opened without ceremony. Li Qingxue stepped inside, white robes streaked with road dust, her breathing controlled but tight. She bowed once, sharp and precise.

“Young Sect Master. Urgent news from the Murim Alliance.”

Alex did not turn. “Speak.”

“They have declared Wudang an enemy of the righteous sects. Five days. Surrender the sect and its assets, or their combined forces march on our halls.”

The words landed like stones in still water. Alex’s eyes were calm, almost cold.

“Good. They finally moved.”

He shifted his attention to the man waiting on the far side of the map.

Zhuge Liang stood with his usual stillness, hands clasped behind his back, the faint lines at the corners of his eyes the only sign he had absorbed every word.

“Zhuge Liang. My orders.”

“Yes, Prime Minister.”

“First, the two provinces still clinging to the Yellow Turbans. Send our most reliable high-ranking officers—those whose loyalty is beyond question. They shall enter as the new governors. Preferably choose men born of that soil. Native blood always secures control more swiftly and cleanly.”

“Ten thousand drones will precede them. The machines will sweep through rebel strongholds, disable their fighters, and detain them in holding camps. We will keep bloodshed to a minimum wherever possible.”

“While that happens, Wudang’s elite will hunt their chieftains—take them alive if they yield, cut them down if they dare resist. Our governors need only march in and claim the land. The populace will hear but one story: when our officers arrived, the Yellow Turbans had already fled in panic, not one daring to raise a blade against us.”

Zhuge Liang inclined his head. “Understood. I have two men already loyal to us, both from those provinces. Good generals. They will follow orders without question.”

“Good,” Alex continued. “Second. The two provinces still propping up Yuan Shao. Send word immediately. They have one week to publicly pledge loyalty to Emperor Liu Xie and to me as Prime Minister. If they refuse, or if they delay, they and every member of their families will be declared traitors. No exceptions. No mercy. Make sure the message is clear and personal. They choose now—stand with Xia or burn with Yuan Shao.”

Zhuge Liang’s expression did not change, but his voice carried a note of measured weight. “A hard line, my lord. It will force their hands quickly.”

“That is the point.” Alex said. “Last order. Send this to every governor under our control.”

“Any trouble caused by Murim Alliance sects—fights between so-called orthodox and unorthodox factions, interference in local affairs, threats to our people—must be stopped at once. Capture the offenders. Jail them. It does not matter who started it. The Murim Alliance member will be the offenders, the one in mistake.”

Zhuge Liang was silent for a moment. “My lord, many clan and sect within the Murim Alliance still hold land and influence across Xia. If we press them this hard, some may choose open rebellion rather than submission.”

Alex met his eyes.

“Then they rebel,” he said quietly. “And we kill them. All of them if we must. They declared Wudang the enemy. Wudang is me. That makes me their enemy. Attacking my sect is attacking the Prime Minister of Xia. They do not get to draw that line and then pretend it stops at our gates. If they want war with Wudang, they have war with the throne. They have no safe place left in this empire.”

He leaned forward slightly, voice dropping lower, colder.

“Tell them the choice is simple. They can abandon the old Murim Alliance leadership, accept Wudang as the new head of the righteous sects, and keep their businesses and their lives. Or they can stand with the men who just tried to murder the Prime Minister in his own home and watch everything they built turn to ash. There is no middle ground anymore.”

Zhuge Liang bowed, deeper this time. “It will be done exactly as you command. The messages will go out within the hour. The governors will understand the cost of hesitation.”

Alex straightened.

Five days.

The Murim Alliance thought they were delivering an ultimatum.

They had just given him the opening he needed.

“Li Qingxue,” Alex called.

The woman turned to face him respectfully.

“Those bandits we captured after they attempted to plunder Qinshui City—the unorthodox cultivators. Do they remain within the Wudang training realm?”

“Yes, Young Sect Master,” Li Qingxue answered promptly. “They are still inside, training diligently and carrying out their assigned labors as per your command.”

“Good. Release them—all of them. Scatter them into every province under our control. Their orders are simple: stir up trouble for the Murim Alliance and anyone connected to them. If they can seize territory or businesses, especially by provoking clashes with orthodox Murim factions, our soldiers will swoop in to capture the Alliance members. Everything they fight over will become theirs. Make sure they understand this arrangement perfectly.”

Li Qingxue’s posture stiffened. She took one step closer, her hands clasped tight at her sides. “Young Sect Master… this will spill blood into the streets. Ordinary people will suffer when the fighting starts.”

Alex held her gaze without blinking. “The trouble will land first on the Murim Alliance. They believe their leaders speak for heaven itself. They have forgotten that the law of Xia flows through this room. Let them discover how long they last when the entire empire treats them as enemies.”

She bowed, slower than before, the reluctance visible in the set of her shoulders and the way her fingers tightened on the fabric of her robes. “As you command.”

That night the drones lifted from concealed pads outside Changyi and the forward strongholds. Their holds carried men and women who had lived outside every law—bandits who once raided caravans, unorthodox fighters who had survived purges, survivors given new purpose in the hidden realm.

The bandits roared with laughter. “Hahaha! I never imagined we’d get such a sweet order like this! We attack some homeowner, the soldiers swoop in, arrest the owner, and boom—we become the new masters of the place! This is genius!”

“Finally! It’s time for us to become the real owners!”

They dropped into provinces like silent rain, vanishing into alleys and back roads before first light.

***

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify