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Something was wrong...very wrong!

He couldn’t pinpoint the specific reason, but the entire event was unfolding in a bizarre manner.

The Guard Commander, who was always calm and collected, had been the leader who opposed Princess Zi Yue’s merger back then.

He had undergone a similar experience himself, which reduced his persuasive power, and ultimately he had compromised under the majority’s opinion.

But he knew very well that, ever since he could remember, the Guard Commander had always been wary of Zi Yue.

On several occasions concerning how to deal with Zi Yue, he had chosen to prioritize assassination or imprisonment, but due to Zi Yue’s significant contributions and her royal status, it had eventually turned into mere surveillance without any abrupt actions.

But no matter what, it would be unthinkable to hand over half of the elite guard’s command to her so easily, wouldn’t it?

However, the Deputy General wouldn’t lie...

Zhang Xiaoyun was certain that this Deputy General was the son of the former Elder, a staunch legitimate member of the Guard Commander’s line who would never betray the Guard Commander and would definitely not lie.

So, where was the problem?

Zhang Xiaoyun felt an extreme anxiety, constantly feeling that if they didn’t act soon, something terrible would happen!

"Is it true that the Western Sea Army is heading towards the White Tiger Palace?"

"Yes..." The Deputy General treated Princess Zi Yue with great respect.

"Can you ask the High Priest to retreat immediately?" Zi Yue asked in a deep voice.

The Deputy General shook his head slightly, "The High Priest is in charge of military affairs; even the High Priest has no authority to order him back during a command..."

"Not having a unified leader, and yet our clan has survived for so long, is quite strange..." Zi Yue gave a cold chuckle.

This remark surprised the Deputy General slightly.

He had heard this before. A long time ago, a still somewhat naive Zi Yue had said the same thing, and publicly too, offending many faction Elders at that time.

However, the Guard Commander had secretly praised her, noting that this young lady was bound to achieve greatness for being able to say such a thing at her age.

He hadn’t expected that after so many years, Lady Zi Yue hadn’t changed.

The Deputy General gave a small bow, "Please make a decisive decision, Your Highness!"

He began to understand why the Guard Commander had delegated the command to her; such a promising member of the Imperial Clan, potentially the future leader of the Ancient Demon Clan, indeed needed to be tested in crucial times.

"Support the High Priest immediately!"

"Yes... Eh?"

The Deputy General blinked, startled, not expecting the support was for that impetuous, greedy High Priest!

"Your Highness... what is this?"

Beside her, Zhang Zhiyun frowned as well, "Your Highness, the situation at the Guard Commander’s end is obviously more dangerous..."

"No...the Guard Commander’s end is not dangerous.

" Zi Yue shook her head. "You know his abilities better than I do. The guard’s strength, combined with the Guard Commander’s, means that if he wants to break out, no mere numbers can stop them.

Moreover, the Guard Commander is not a fool like the Priest; he knows measures and when to advance or retreat. "

"That..." The Deputy General and Zhang Zhiyun glanced at each other, and it seemed... quite reasonable.

"There’s not much time left..." Zi Yue looked towards the Priest’s side: "Immediately gather your men, and support them at once!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Wait!" Zhang Xiaoyun immediately raised his voice to stop her!

"What do you want to say?" Zi Yue turned back, her eyebrows furrowed, her eyes still carrying a cold light, her majestic presence making Zhang Xiaoyun’s heart jolt, almost as if he was facing the High Priest.

"We can’t leave this place undefended!" Zhang Xiaoyun steadied his nerves and spoke coldly: "Don’t tell me you don’t know what’s here!"

"Of course I know..." Zi Yue said solemnly, "But if the three houses close in, just with our few people, can you defend this place or can I? Only by calling back the Four Holy Army can we deter all parties!"

Zhang Xiaoyun: "....."

It seemed quite logical, but... something still felt off...

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"High Priest..." On the other side, the anxiety of the Deputy General of the Four Holy Army was now clearly evident on his face.

The sixteen routes of the Four Holy Army had already begun to show significant casualties, yet the leader had still not considered retreating!

At this moment, the Priest’s face was flushed red, and he was panting heavily, resembling a gambler who had bet everything: "Wait a little longer, just a little longer, it’s almost done, his stamina has already hit rock bottom!"

The Deputy General almost choked upon hearing this.

The Four Holy Army had already started to suffer casualties, clearly a sign of exhaustion and impeded sprints.

If they delayed any longer and the number of casualties grew too large, the basic military formation would not hold, and they would instantly be overwhelmed by the surrounding forces.

Such a huge risk, and still he wants to gamble?

But then, he felt a bit puzzled. In his memory, the High Priest wasn’t such a reckless person, was he? What was happening today?

Just as he was thinking about risking the punishment for insubordination to rebuke the other, suddenly a familiar aura came from behind. He abruptly turned around and his heart lifted.

Reinforcements!

So, the Guard Commander couldn’t stand by any longer, could he?

But... sending so many people this far to support, what if the main palace was attacked?

That place held the most precious things...

"What are you doing here?" The Priest saw the reinforcements, but unlike the Deputy General, he didn’t feel a surge of relief. Instead, he grew more irritable.

What did the Guard Commander mean? When had he requested reinforcements?

And didn’t he know what his duties were? How dare he send the guards here so rashly? Had he gone mad?

No... Suddenly, the Priest looked at the person leading the reinforcements and was puzzled. It wasn’t the Guard Commander, but actually... Princess Zi Yue?

How could it be?

Among the many Elders, wasn’t the Guard Commander the one who trusted Zi Yue the least? Why would he give her command of the guard army?

"Your Highness, what brings you here?"

Coming to his senses, the Deputy General had already stepped forward to greet her and asked.

"It’s because of you all!" Zi Yue stepped forward and said: "The battle is at a stalemate, the soldiers are hugely exhausted, if not now, when would you retreat?"

The Deputy General gave a bitter smile; he had wanted to retreat long ago, but the Priest was like a gambler with red eyes, no amount of persuasion made any difference.

"Your Highness..." Faced with the questioning, the Priest was momentarily dumbfounded. Now confronted aggressively by Zi Yue, the inexplicable fury that had risen in him had extinguished quite a bit, giving him a jolt.

What was he doing?

A slight fear suddenly rose in the Priest’s heart. What had just happened? How had he seemed completely irrational?

He was only slightly unwilling to give up, having decided to wait a little longer, but how had things escalated to this...

"High Priest!" Zi Yue stepped forward to salute: "Your command is really worrying."

Facing the questioning of this junior, the Priest, who had just calmed down, felt a surge of anger and coldly said: "Princess Zi Yue, do you have any instructions? I am the war Priest, appointed by all the Elders. I am in charge of military affairs, even if the High Priest were still alive, he wouldn’t be able to interfere! "

Everyone: "....."

Seeing everyone staring at him in astonishment, the Priest felt his anger rise again.

Pointing at the Sparrow Bees scattering chaotically in the Big Formation, he said: "That person is at the end of his strength, just need to hold on a bit longer, and he will collapse. Once he collapses, the entire Big Formation will collapse. My Four Holy Army will crush the Human Race army’s formation in an instant.

Right, since you’ve come to support, then hand over the guard army to me, it’s just right to apply more pressure! "

The group of guards widened their eyes, including that Deputy General. Had the Priest lost his mind?

He still showed no remorse in receiving help and even wanted to seize power?

Meanwhile, the Deputy General who had always been with the Priest found his old leader’s behavior odd, feeling something was not quite right.

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"Where are the people?"

Just as Zi Yue had already brought the army to support the Vermilion Bird Palace, another Deputy General who had been following the Guard Commander hurried back, only to see Zhang Xiaoyun and about a dozen of the remaining guards and was immediately dumbfounded.

"Didn’t the Guard Commander give the command to that woman?" Zhang Xiaoyun sinisterly said: "Why the surprise now?"

"What?" That Deputy General was taken aback: "Who said that?"

Zhang Xiaoyun: "....."