Chapter 107: Diverse Intentions and Choices (3200)

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Why had the Chen clan, a family that had always found it easy to kneel, easy to preserve its strength so that it might one day complete the great undertaking of slaying the dragons, chosen to brace itself against a mysterious organization whose leader was a hybrid monarch possessing Dragon King–level power? To answer that, one had to speak of the Candle Dragon Project.

The Candle Dragon Project took its name from a passage in the Classic of Mountains and Seas:

“Beyond the Northwestern Sea, north of the Red River, there is Mount Zhangwei. There dwells a god with a human face and a serpent’s body, red in hue. His eyes stand erect. When he closes them, darkness falls; when he opens them, light appears. He neither eats nor sleeps nor breathes, but summons the wind and rain. He is Candle Yin. He is Candle Dragon.”

In this world, every myth and legend could ultimately be traced back to the dragon race, and Candle Dragon was no exception.

Named after the legendary creator god with a human face and a serpent’s body, the Candle Dragon Project sought to create a hybrid monarch capable of wielding the power of a Dragon King through a human body. The Dragon King against whom the Chen clan measured itself was known as the Black King, Nidhogg.

As the largest and most powerful surviving hybrid family in this land, the Chen clan’s bloodline had endured for thousands of years. It had flourished, basked in glory, and suffered decline.

There had been times when they stood resplendent beneath the heavens, and times when they worked quietly and kept a low profile. Yet no matter the era, they had remained firmly rooted in this land, possessed as they were of powers far beyond those of ordinary men.

Thousands of years ago, there had been twenty hybrid families akin to them. Now, some had died out, some had vanished completely, and some had scattered to the winds. The Chen clan alone had preserved its lineage and cultivation system intact—and retained the ability to carry out the Candle Dragon Project.

But now, just as all the preliminary preparations for the project had been completed and everything was proceeding steadily, the Chen clan faced a challenge unlike any before.

A newly born organization actually wanted the Chen clan to choose between surrender and leaving this land?

They might well be another branch of the legendary White King’s descendants, and they might possess a hybrid monarch with Dragon King–level combat power as their leader—but did they really think the Chen clan was made of mud?

Very well. Compared with a hybrid monarch who seemed to possess Dragon King–level strength and no weaknesses whatsoever, the Chen clan was not far removed from mud after all.

Under ordinary circumstances, the Chen clan, skilled as it was at keeping secrets and preserving its own lives, could have endured it. After all, only by kneeling readily could one survive long enough to complete the great undertaking of slaying the dragons.

But not now.

The Dragon Kings were gradually awakening. The Candle Dragon Project was under way. Although its most crucial components could be carried away, certain other things—equally important, yet impossible to move—were rooted in this land.

If they withdrew in disgrace now, retreating to second place or even abandoning the East altogether, the Chen clan would, at best, lose all initiative. At worst, the ambitious Gattuso family might swallow them whole, leaving not even scraps behind.

They had to stand their ground. They had to make Heaven understand that they were a stone too hard to chew, that devouring them would come at a heavy price. Only then would there be room for negotiation. At the very least, even if they could no longer preserve the current balance in which the realm was divided equally, they had to carve out a territory and establish themselves as its sovereigns.

They did not need much land now. Preserving only the region surrounding the Chen clan’s headquarters would suffice. Once the Candle Dragon Project was complete, the question of territory could naturally be renegotiated.

But to achieve that goal, the strength of the Chen clan alone was nowhere near enough. Everyone had to be bound to the same chariot.

To be fair, that would not be easy.

No one wanted to fight a battle whose odds of victory were plainly zero, with a draw as the best possible outcome.

Moreover, Heaven was not a race of dragons locked in a fight to the death. They were fellow hybrids with whom communication was theoretically possible. And besides, even among dragons sworn to mutual annihilation, there had never been a shortage of those willing to defect.

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Yet Heaven had one enormous flaw, and it gave Chen Cang a measure of confidence that he might persuade those who disagreed with him.

The meeting had been going on for nearly two hours, and the participants had clearly divided into three factions: the hardliners, led by the Chen clan; the surrender faction, composed of a mixture of medium-sized and minor families; and the fence-sitters, who supported everything and nothing, offering no opinion or agreeing with both sides.

The three factions had spoken frankly and exchanged their views fully, deepening their mutual understanding. Though the discussions had occasionally grown unpleasant, each side had shown sufficient respect for the others’ positions.

“Ahem.”

“Ahem.”

“Ahem.”

Chen Cang, who had not spoken a word since the meeting began, coughed three times. The hall quickly fell silent. Years of accumulated prestige ensured that every faction wished to hear what he had to say. They all knew that once Chen Cang revealed his final move, they would have to make their decision.

“Everyone, before we make our final decision, I would like you all to consider carefully the way Heaven conducts itself.” Chen Cang looked with satisfaction upon the now-silent hall and slowly began. “This is a terrifying organization that never conceals itself. Every single battle they fight leaves a mark upon the world. Over the past four years, if we had not followed behind them to clean up the mess, if all the hybrids of East and West had not worked together, the existence of hybrids would have been exposed long ago.”

“You all know what that would mean. We are already in the twenty-first century, the age of information. The power of gunpowder and firearms has surpassed that of many Words.”

“For centuries, humanity has armed itself with the power of science. At last, science has reached a balance with alchemy and the art of Words.”

“The edifice of science continues to rise, and the age continues to advance. Relying on our bloodlines and on qualities beyond those of ordinary men, we have accumulated wealth, status, and influence throughout the construction of that edifice and the progress of the age. As of now, the overwhelming majority of important positions across the world—I mean more than ninety percent—are under our control.”

“It is precisely for that reason that we possess the ability to gather the vast majority of resources and devote them to the great cause of slaying the dragons. That is also the key reason we have the confidence and the ability to prevail in the final battle that is approaching.”

“But all of this is built upon one foundation: that the existence of hybrids and dragons remains hidden from the public.”

“Think about it. If Heaven were to control the entire East, then given their methods, within two years the existence of hybrids and dragons would be exposed to the world. What follows would be an endless series of problems. Those short-sighted fools, who know only how to cherish their own property while caring nothing for humanity’s fate, would plunge us into one crisis after another.”

“Those ignorant fools do not understand the meaning of the Sorrow of Blood! They do not understand prophecy, nor what an inevitable catastrophe is. In their eyes, the disasters brought about by dragons—disasters capable of destroying the world—exist only in legend. That unavoidable future is merely the future. But we—I mean every one of us—”

“We rely on the bonds between our bloodlines to occupy important positions and concentrate resources, preventing them from rising through the ranks. Small matters such as the hardship endured by those at the bottom become personal wounds to them. In fact, quite a few clever people have already guessed that another society exists. The reason they remain relatively obedient is that hybrids possess overwhelming military power.”

“For now, it appears that we need not take the field ourselves. Our influence, status, resources, and networks are enough to keep them in line—to make them dare not investigate too much or look too deeply, allowing them to remain blissfully blind.”

“But all of this rests upon our absolute military superiority. Once they learn that a world exists whose power surpasses ours, will they still remain obedient?”

“Once the news spreads, those foolish mortals may not immediately defect to the dragons, but they will use it as leverage to force us to break up our companies, tear down the ceiling on advancement, and improve the working conditions of those at the bottom. They will squander our funds meaninglessly on housing and medical care, dispersing once more the resources we worked so hard to concentrate. One by one, the powerful weapons truly capable of threatening the Dragon Kings will lose the resources required for maintenance and gradually fall into ruin!”

“By then, we will be plunged into one crisis after another, until we are defeated in battle, stripped of all the pride we possess as hybrids, and deprived of humanity’s future.”

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“Everyone, ordinary people are ignorant sheep, spending their entire lives toiling blindly for survival, while the dragon race is a pack of hungry wolves lurking among them, waiting for the chance to devour them. We are the protectors of the flock, and we are its shepherds. Over all these years, we have worked together to build an enclosure that protects the sheep. But now, that enclosure faces the possibility of destruction.”

“This is not a war to decide who will rule the East. It is a war to ensure that this enclosure is not destroyed.”

“Everyone, we cannot retreat like this. Even in the worst case, we must make Heaven feel the pain, and we must have them sign the Abrahamic Bloodline Pact, agreeing to keep everything concerning the dragons strictly confidential.”

“This is the decisive battle that will determine our fate, the fate of all hybrids, and the fate of humanity. For the sake of the greater cause of slaying the dragons, we must not retreat!”

After delivering the lengthy speech he had long prepared, Chen Cang gazed with satisfaction at the silent hall and the wavering faces within. He knew that his persuasion had taken effect. Just as he was preparing to add fuel to the fire and announce that the Western hybrids would soon be invited to join them, seven representatives of medium-sized and minor hybrid families suddenly rose to their feet and gathered together in one area.

Chen Cang recognized them. They had been the most steadfast leaders of the surrender faction during the earlier discussion.

Had they been persuaded as well? If so, the outcome of this meeting was already beyond doubt.

“The Chen family head’s argument is very convincing,” said Ye Shun, patriarch of the Ye clan, who stood at the forefront. “Everything he has described is meaningful, and the objective he has proposed is to some extent feasible.”

“But I am afraid that, as Patriarch Chen Cang himself said, the source of all the status we possess lies in absolute military power.”

“So the question is, why should we resist absolute power? If Heaven wishes to expose everything, why should we reject their decision?”

“Those who stand at the absolute pinnacle of strength always have their reasons. Their thoughts may be difficult even for us to understand, but following the strong is unquestionably meaningful and justified.”

“After all, the will of the strongest is what truly matters!”

As he spoke, the seven men brought their fingers together like blades and slashed apart the suits covering their outer layer, revealing Heaven’s regulation black military coats.

“It is four fifty in the afternoon, is it not?” Ye Shun raised his wrist and glanced at his watch. “Only ten minutes remain before the final ultimatum expires.”

“Everyone, make your choice. Will you stay here and answer the call of the Chen family head, fighting Heaven to the death alongside us?”

“Or will you follow the tide, consider the greater good, and join Heaven with us?”

Ye Shun spoke without the slightest fear. Slit pupils like a serpent’s appeared in his eyes, and their distinctive shape confirmed that he was indeed a member of Heaven.

“Choose. You have only one minute to deliberate, and only one chance to decide.”