Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains
Chapter 934 - 934: 405. Two sides of valiant spirit, Hexi bows_2

The world was deathly silent; not even the wind stirred, and it seemed as if the air itself had ceased to flow. Who could have imagined that this place was once a dock capable of anchoring Tianshu-class warships?

"We have already surveyed it. Gujiang has dried up for two hundred and eighty miles, even the deepest parts, which are over a hundred meters deep, have evaporated. The water level in the middle reaches of Gujiang has dropped by more than twenty meters. These methods of Great Jin are simply beyond comprehension!"

"It's not surprising. Demons are the source of natural disasters, and controlling the weather is easy for them. In the past, they did not dare to cause these great calamities only because they feared the people from the major Holy Lands who hunt demons. Now, with the Holy Land backing them, they act recklessly without fear."

"Such methods don't pose much of a threat to martial artists. Even the lowest level of Martial Artists of the Body Opening Realm can escape or hide with minimal effort. It's mainly the ordinary people who suffer; natural disasters primarily destroy their living environment."

......

Hou Yuxiao stood by the dock with about a hundred experts from the Hou Clan, not participating in the discussions of the others behind him. He focused solely on the dried-up riverbank, waiting for the imminent arrival of the Great Jin army.

Suddenly, someone flew in from the south, passing directly through the crowd, bowing in front of Hou Yuxiao:

"Report to the Family Head, a seven-hundred-thousand-strong army of the Hedong Alliance has entered Zhaoyang Prefecture City as of yesterday. Second Uncle has already arrived at Tao City of Hexi with Jing Tianyu's allied forces."

Hou Yujie, Hou Yuduan, and several others from the Hou Clan, upon hearing this news, all trembled simultaneously and looked towards Hou Yuxiao involuntarily.

"As expected, just as Big Brother predicted, the Hedong Alliance's army is unwilling to join forces with us in Jianye Prefecture and has stationed itself in Zhaoyang Prefecture City. Is this to continue observing our movements?" Hou Yujie was the first to voice a question.

Before Hou Yuxiao could respond, Old Fifth shook his head lightly and said, "We didn't participate in the Yangzhou alliance meeting. The Alliance won't easily trust us. Our position remains uncertain as long as we in Hexi don't engage the Great Jin. Under such circumstances, merging armies without caution might result in ambushes, which would be a loss with no gain. The Hedong Alliance isn't foolish!"

Pausing briefly, he glanced at Hou Yuxiao and continued:

"Zhaoyang Prefecture City isn't far from Tao City, being only over four hundred miles from Xingnan Prefecture City — neither too near nor too far. Maintaining such a distance indeed facilitates observation. If we do engage the Great Jin, they can reinforce at any time. Conversely, they can also develop defenses promptly without quickly falling into a passive state. The Hedong Alliance is indeed very cautious..."

Upon hearing Hou Yuduan's explanation, everyone finally understood the intent of the allied army.

"They are targeting the Great Jin; caution is imperative. I left four hundred fifty thousand troops of Hexi in Jianye Prefecture. With even the slightest suspicion, they wouldn't rashly merge with us or even approach Jianye Prefecture. They wouldn't dare!"

Hou Yuxiao's eyes flickered with a faint light, his tone very certain.

Of course they're afraid. Great Jin moved southward with a claimed million-strong army, and even if inaccurate, the difference wouldn't be too substantial. Though the Hedong Alliance's seven hundred thousand elite from the Holy Land is strong, they are already at a disadvantage in terms of manpower, making them keen to secure Hexi's five hundred thousand troops.

But the issue is that they dare not confirm Hexi's stance, and the coincidental placement of four hundred fifty thousand troops in the middle of Hexi's Jianye Prefecture makes it even more ambiguous. They don't want to push Hexi towards Great Jin, fearing Hexi may have already aligned with them. Thus, regarding Jianye Prefecture, they would choose an extremely cautious approach, fearing to offend or engage, lest they push Hexi towards Great Jin.

Combining forces may also be seen as a Hexi ploy, and they'll only truly unite after Hexi clashes with Great Jin and presents the Certificate of Pledge.

They have no choice but to be cautious.

After all, one defeat would bring the flames of war immediately to the Five States of Hedong.

Though Hou Yujie understood, looking at the dried-up riverbed, he was still somewhat confused and couldn't help but ask: "Big Brother, I don't understand. You asked Old Fifth to find the River Lord of Tongtian, saying we are anti-Jin. Now looking at the Allied Army's reaction, it doesn't seem to have any effect.

Right now, we are here to welcome the Great Jin army marching south. If the Hedong Alliance finds out, it will only make things more complicated, won't it?

Are you trying to deceive Great Jin?

But even for deceiving Great Jin, this won't work!

You've placed all four hundred fifty thousand troops in Xingnan Prefecture; Great Jin isn't foolish. Their thoughts might be similar to the Hedong Alliance. As long as we don't take action to show our stance, they wouldn't merge troops with us either..."

The confusion in Hou Yujie's heart was immense and indescribable.

The most crucial question was what his Big Brother Hou Yuxiao was truly thinking.

Hou Yuxiao had already expressed his opposition to Great Jin, but now everything he did seemed to make the Hedong Alliance distrust them and make Great Jin feel the same.

This situation wasn't much different from Hexi's previous unstable position.

Are they still opposing Great Jin or not?

Hou Yujie didn't notice that when he mentioned Great Jin's thoughts being similar to the Hedong Alliance, Hou Yuduan's pupils contracted suddenly, as if realizing something, his body shook, and he swiftly looked up at Hou Yuxiao.

"Big Brother intends for both the Hedong Alliance and Great Jin to dare not approach Xingnan Prefecture?"

These thoughts weren't voiced by Hou Yuduan but rather a question to himself.

Soon, he confirmed his speculation and unexpectedly came up with a bold guess, immediately looking up at Hou Yuxiao, coincidentally catching his gaze midair.

So that's it!

Hou Yuduan confirmed his guess, his eyes instantly flashing with brightness.

"They've arrived!"

Suddenly, Hou Yuxiao's voice alerted everyone to follow his gaze to the riverbank.

A jet-black wave slowly approached from afar; being over ten miles away made it impossible to discern what it was from such a distance.

But Hou Yuxiao's earlier remark, "They've arrived," had already informed them, so they knew very well what it was.

It was the Great Jin army marching south!

The wave-like presence on the river wasn't water, but the imposing Great Jin army, marching steadily with their weapons drawn and cloaked in black battle armor, atop majestic war horses. They weren't moving at a gallop but maintaining a normal marching pace. Yet, their sheer number created a tidal visual impact.

The soldiers of the army didn't release any aura; they marched so ordinarily, yet the sky became dimmer by three or four shades. Despite no grand marching sounds on the still slightly muddy riverbed, the silent momentum was even more overwhelmingly oppressive.

Hou Yuxiao and the others' attention was captivated by the army. Even if they knew they weren't there to fight this army today, an inexplicable eeriness still lingered in their hearts.

The endless masses of the Great Jin soldiers seemed to fill the evaporated three hundred miles of Gujiang water. In no time, the entire riverbank was filled, and more troops kept pouring in, making it even more unsettling.

"From just visual estimation, there are probably three to four million already!"

"A million strong, could Great Jin really have brought millions?"

"I understand now why the Hedong Alliance is so cautious."

"Not being cautious is courting death."

"No wonder it's said that Great Jin has the power to sweep through the Six Harmonies, and this isn't even their full strength. They still have a significant number in Jizhou. This is likely at most a third, possibly even less..."

Whoosh......

Hou Yuxiao took a deep breath, calming his internal emotions, watching three figures slowly flying over the river, bowing together with the people behind him:

"Hou Yuxiao of Hexi, on behalf of the Hou Clan, has been awaiting the Great Jin King's Division here for a long time. Greetings to the Youye Emperor, Yunting King, Xikang King, and three esteemed lords!"

As he finished, the hundred or so people behind him also spoke in unison:

"Greetings to the Youye Emperor, Yunting King, Xikang King, and three esteemed lords!"