King of Creation Chapter 1393 - 1378: Hornet’s Nest

"All Wind Patrol Envoys are to report to the Western Patrol Office of the Heavenly Patrol Department within seven days to await further orders. Failure to do so will result in military discipline!"

This was the military order Ye Zhen received from the Western Patrol Office. The wording was harsh, and although it seemed like an order given equally to all Wind Patrol Envoys, Ye Zhen knew full well that it was specifically aimed at him, the Second Route Wind Patrol Envoy.

Especially the time limit, it was almost calculated just for Ye Zhen.

The Western Patrol Office is located in Qingzhou State City, where there is an Ancient Teleportation Formation. However, Ye Zhen’s North Sea County, located in Lingzhou, does not have such a formation. To reach the Western Patrol Office in Qingzhou, Ye Zhen could only pass through the Ancient Teleportation Formations in Tongzhou or Haiyuan State.

Normally, it would take Ye Zhen five to six days to travel to either Tongzhou City or Haiyuan State City.

The seven-day limit practically leaves Ye Zhen no choice but to set out immediately upon receiving the order.

However, with a Commander-level Heavenly Spirit Ship in his possession, Ye Zhen was in no rush.

But Ye Zhen understood that this military order was indeed the continuation of Xio Qiangu’s killing move from the Western Patrol.

Once Ye Zhen reached the territory of the Western Patrol, it would be hard to say, as they could manipulate him as they pleased, presenting extreme danger.

However, ignoring this order was absolutely not an option.

If ignored, the Western Patrol would have countless valid reasons to deal with Ye Zhen, even deploying an army to handle him directly.

At that point, even if it escalated to Luoyi, Ye Zhen would still have to maintain his stance.

Nonetheless, Ye Zhen had already prepared for this.

When he accepted the position as the Second Route Wind Patrol Envoy, Ye Zhen had anticipated such possibilities and had long thought of various countermeasures.

Previously, he even gained the allegiance of Junior Director**** Jin from the Western Patrol Office’s Inner Affairs Bureau, gaining certain insights into the realities of the Western Patrol Office.

So, after receiving the military order, Ye Zhen was not overly anxious. He quickly followed his itinerary and only returned to the County City of North Sea after he had control over the Seventh Army’s Military Commander.

Regarding the Soldiers of North Sea County, Ye Zhen did not intend to make major changes for now. The strength of an army relies on three aspects: military armory, the strength of the soldiers, and training.

Ye Zhen merely ordered County Captain Tang Biao to intensify the training of soldiers, increasing the training intensity threefold from previously once every three days to once a day now.

Simultaneously, Governor Qiao Hong was instructed to allocate large supplies of military logistics to support the training.

As long as the training was improved, Ye Zhen planned to have the army unleash formidable power at crucial moments, a mere gesture away.

What troubled Ye Zhen the most, however, was North Sea County’s livelihood, particularly its population.

The Jade Book handed over by the Grand Sect Leader’s Mansion listed North Sea County with 3.9 million households and a population of 10.7 million.

However, from Governor Qiao Hong, the actual registered households were only over 3.17 million, with a population of over 8.407 million, just 80% of what the Jade Book indicated.

In a territory spanning 900,000 miles, a county with such numbers would, if situated around Luoyi, easily have over ten million people per county.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, without population, there could be no development. Ye Zhen’s North Sea County would only continue to deteriorate, something Ye Zhen was unwilling to witness.

The causes for North Sea County’s current state boil down to three main issues: the water threat, with Water Demons from the North Sea occasionally raiding the populace.

Secondly, the threats from the Demon Clan.

Due to its proximity to the Demon Clan Territory, bold Demons often raid for the population, since Human Clan slaves are immensely valuable in the Demon Clan, with some even perpetrating acts of cannibalism as Blood Food.

This left Changling County, the closest to the Demon Clan Territory in the far west, nearly deserted.

Although there were stationed troops, they couldn’t fend off the occasional two powerful Demons sneaking over, making it hard to guard against.

Meanwhile, the population of Le’an County, bordering North Sea County, was only half of North Sea County’s, concentrated in fortified areas with heavy defenses in the County City.

It was only due to the Great Zhou Dynasty’s strict migration control in border counties that the border people hadn’t fled.

Despite this, some bolder border people still slipped into the deep mountains to live, avoiding water threats, Demon threats, and even soldier threats.

These accounts for the low actual registered population numbers.

Indeed, the third threat was the soldier threat, with the local county soldiers’ indiscipline often leading to oppression of the innocent, resulting in a loss of livelihood and a significant population decrease.

These things cannot be changed overnight, and it wasn’t Ye Zhen’s forte. He merely proposed a few directions and handed everything over to Governor Qiao Hong to handle, while strictly ordering Tang Biao to cooperate.

Considering the current challenging surroundings, Governor Qiao Hong’s ability to maintain a full treasury was a rare administrative talent.

Previously, good governance was obstructed and deliberately sabotaged by County Captain Tang Biao, making policies ineffective. Now, such factors no longer existed.

On the third day after receiving the order, Ye Zhen, accompanied only by Heavenly Patrol Divine General Fengg Jiumo and eight elite-level Heavenly Patrol Divine Hunters, headed straight to the Western Patrol Office in Qing State to receive orders.

This time, Ye Zhen’s route was straightforward, heading directly to Tongzhou, then transferring at Qing State’s Ancient Teleportation Formation. As for safety, with the Commander-level Heavenly Spirit Ship, Ye Zhen felt little concern.

This time, the Western Patrol Office had officially communicated with Ye Zhen. Since it was public business, covert assassination tactics were unlikely and impractical.

Now that Ye Zhen had taken office, if such clandestine methods were used again, the officials of the Western Patrol Office would have sleepless nights.

Under Ye Zhen, the Heavenly Patrol Divine General and ten elite-level Heavenly Patrol Divine Hunters were not easily outmatched.

By noon on the seventh day after receiving the order, Ye Zhen arrived at Qingzhou State City, where the Western Patrol Office was located.

Compared to North Sea County, Qingzhou was nearly a hundred times more prosperous, bustling with activity and vibrant with life.

However, upon reaching Qingzhou, the various tailing personnel that appeared before and behind him caused Ye Zhen to feel uneasy.

Qingzhou, as the stronghold of the Western Patrol Office, led Ye Zhen to surmise that they would be aware of his arrival as soon as he entered the city.

Half an hour later, Ye Zhen arrived at the seemingly mysterious and low-key Western Patrol Office and presented the military order he had received, officially reporting in.

The expected slight of being intentionally left waiting for half a day did not occur. Ye Zhen was quickly allowed to enter the office, although his accompanying personnel, including the Heavenly Patrol Divine General Fengg Jiumo, were not permitted inside.

Having already considered all possibilities, Ye Zhen directly stepped into the slightly eerie main hall of the Heavenly Patrol Department’s Western Patrol Office.

In the hall, the subordinates of the Western Patrol Office, including those from the affiliated Five Divisions and One Supervision, were already lined up on the sides, with Junior Director**** Jin present, though without any expression.

Sitting high in the main hall was the heart-close deputy of the Western Patrol Xio Qiangu, namely Chii Jingshan, watching Ye Zhen’s arrival with a calm, nonchalant demeanor, not even lifting an eyelid.

Ye Zhen was not in a hurry either, entering with composure, and then cupped his hands respectfully, "Subordinate Second Wind Patrol Envoy at your service, sir..."

"How dare you! Show great courtesy in the presence of Sir!"

Before Ye Zhen could finish, a guard at the main hall entrance bellowed in anger, kicking towards Ye Zhen’s knee.

Ye Zhen did not even look, his Divine Sense slightly moved, without dodging, allowing the guard’s kick to land on his knee.

Crack!

The sound of bones shattering echoed sharply, and the guard who attacked Ye Zhen from behind cried out in pain immediately.

This guard’s cultivation was only at the Divine Communication Realm Eighth Stage. When his foot struck Ye Zhen’s Black Dragon Tyrant Body, a slight counterattack from Ye Zhen’s spiritual power shattered that foot.

Ye Zhen’s Black Dragon Tyrant Body’s instinctive counterattack seemed to unleash a hornet’s nest, provoking a reaction from the dozen or so subordinates of the Western Patrol lined along both sides of the hall!