Chapter 530: Demon Arrival's Open Scheme
Jiang Huo's words
left the hundred-level, tier-four members in a contemplative silence.
First...
they had to admit that targeting this non-specialist was practically a pipe dream.
Even as hundred-level, tier-four powerhouses,
they had no way to lay a hand on the non-specialist.
It wasn't that the non-specialist was overwhelmingly strong,
but that he was now stationed within the secure Hundred Ghosts Fortress.
As a front-line stronghold, it's well-known that the fortress's legion commanders are always present—which implies?
It means that even the Demon Arrival Organization wouldn't dare make a move on the fortress.
Because the legion commanders themselves are tier-four powerhouses!
With the combined commanders of various nations' legions...
to say the least,
there are certainly at least thirty hundred-level, tier-four powerhouses.
In the outside world,
hundred-level, tier-four powerhouses are exceedingly rare. Most ordinary people or low-level Professionals might go their whole lives without ever meeting one.
But within the fortress camps on the front line, these powerhouses, while not exactly common, are definitely within reach.
The thirty tier-four powerhouses stationed at Hundred Ghosts Fortress are precisely why the Forbidden Land of Takamagahara has not yet made a move.
Because any major action would require neutralizing these thirty powerhouses first.
And since Ling Zhan currently resides within the fortress, how could the Demon Arrival Organization even think of killing him?
Seeing the silence among the group, Jiang Huo sighed deeply.
Who would have thought that the Demon Arrival Organization, a force that all nations feared, would one day be troubled over killing a mere sixty-level non-specialist?
"If covert schemes won't work, we could try a more open strategy."
At that moment,
the sly old Daoist Jin Yuchun chuckled as he made this suggestion.
"Hm?"
The group looked at him,
their gazes filled with curiosity.
"Master Jin, please go ahead and speak your mind. No need to keep us in suspense."
Jiang Huo asked seriously.
Regarding Jin Yuchun...
the entire Demon Arrival Organization held him in respect.
Outwardly, Jin Yuchun looked like a shabby, mischievous old man, as disheveled as a typical vagrant.
But in truth, Jin Yuchun held a high rank within the organization.
As the only tier-four Grand Heavenly Master within their ranks, many of their larger schemes had been orchestrated by him.
Moreover...
it's worth noting...
that Jin Yuchun's biggest regret was failing to foresee Ling Zhan's fate over a decade ago.
Ling Zhan's parents died over a decade ago in a violent outbreak of creatures within a secret realm.
That event, in fact, was orchestrated by Jin Yuchun.
His original target wasn't Ling Zhan's parents but the principal of the school where they worked.
During that time, he had cast a divination for himself.
It revealed that he had overlooked a "big fish" in that operation.
A fish that could, in the future, threaten his life.
Back then, he assumed the principal who managed to escape was that "big fish."
So, for the next decade, he tirelessly hunted that hidden principal.
For a tier-four Grand Heavenly Master, finding someone under the right circumstances was feasible.
Finally, six months ago, he located that principal and struck him down.
He had assumed that killing him would put an end to his future threat.
But after calculating again, he found the ominous sign of disaster remained.
With costly sacrifices, he eventually traced the source of this disastrous omen to one thing:
the child of that couple he'd ordered killed on the side.
That child turned out to be Ling Zhan—the very figure the Demon Arrival Organization now deemed an enemy to be eradicated.
Sometimes...
fate has a way of weaving an intricate web.
In Jin Yuchun's visions, he saw himself eventually being slain by this young man, Ling Zhan.
It was the most unbelievable prediction he'd ever made.
Also, the one he had the least confidence in.
How could a non-specialist, of all people, possibly kill him, a Grand Heavenly Master?
Even if that kid reached level 100, what of it?
Just because both opponents are level 100 doesn't guarantee a kill.
Not even the Demon Arrival Organization's leader would dare say they could definitively kill him, a Grand Heavenly Master.
Facing Jiang Huo's question,
Jin Yuchun chuckled and said,
"It's actually simple. Let's just issue an official challenge from the Demon Arrival Organization to the Kingdoms' armies."
"Haven't we been cultivating Saints and Saints Candidates within the organization?"
"Now's the time to test these experimental subjects' worth—to see if they truly deserve to be our successors."
His words struck a chord.
Jiang Huo's eyes lit up.
The other tier-four powerhouses also fell into thoughtful silence.
This plan...
seemed to have some merit!
While the Demon Arrival Organization was certainly reviled within Dragon Kingdom,
it didn't face the same rejection in some other countries.
For instance...
the Free Federation.
Even in some duchies, there hadn't been any clear refusal to associate with the organization.
The Free Federation's policies allowed it,
because it was home to strange groups like the "Demon Advocates."
As a fellow "Advocate for Ten Thousand Demons," the Demon Arrival Organization could survive there.
The Free Federation's slogan was "freedom for all!"
So even though people knew the Demon Arrival Organization was wicked, they still revered it, even treating it like a holy church.
Because of this,
the Demon Arrival Organization has managed to gain some international leverage.
With this situation in mind,
the Demon Arrival Organization could use international media to challenge the Kingdoms' armies.
Specifically, they could issue a challenge to Dragon Kingdom, as loudly as possible.
"I hear your nations' armies have some of the strongest recruits in history? You're calling it the 'Golden Era'? Very well! The Demon Arrival Organization would like to see for itself!"
"Let's see if your so-called strongest talents are a match for the Demon Arrival Organization's Saints and Saints Candidates!"
If this challenge goes public...
it'll be sensational!
If the Kingdoms' armies refuse, they'll be mocked for fearing to face even the Demon Arrival Organization.
But if they accept, that's even better.
Dragon Kingdom, without a doubt, would send Ling Zhan to the front lines.
By then...
the opportunity to kill Ling Zhan would be at hand!
And they wouldn't just be targeting Ling Zhan!
All of the Kingdoms' so-called talents would fall alongside him.
And the Kingdoms' armies would be powerless to stop their brightest stars from dying right before their eyes!