The elders and grandmasters all bristled at Yoshika’s audacity, and even Long Chunhua couldn’t hide her shock. Qin Yongliang gave away nothing that he didn’t want her to see, but his response was slow and measured—testing her intentions rather than immediately taking offense.
“Do you mean to imply, Empress Yoshika, that you intend to ask the Heavenly Empire of Qin to relinquish its claims upon the land?”
She shook her head.
“Not at all, Your Highness. It is my understanding, however, that the great sects are given broad freedoms to govern their lands according to their own laws, so long as they do not conflict with those of the empire at large. Perhaps only Jiaguo’s total surrender can end the war, but I ask that you give me the opportunity to make other offers.”
“You have every right to negotiate terms, but I must warn you that I will not entertain anything that insults the majesty of our empire, nor can I speak for the great sects not in attendance.”
“That’s fine. Frankly, I am only interested in treating with those who backed their words with action anyway. Were it not for my friendship with Yan Yue, I would question the Awakening Dragon’s right to even sit at this table—the loss of their previous grandmaster notwithstanding.”
Yan Ren and Yan Hao scowled openly at her, but Yoshika ignored them as she went on.
“Qian Shi, Sun Quan, your people marched against me unprovoked and without any opportunity to speak in defense of myself. No diplomatic overtures were ever made, aside from the suitors for Yue’s hand, and the honorable princesses delivering us the offer to join the empire as imperial consorts. Indeed, our sovereignty was never acknowledged until the moment that war was declared, and diplomacy was impossible.”
The twins gave her arch looks when she mentioned them, but she had the attention of both grandmasters, despite Sun Quan’s hostility.
“Now it is. Bought and paid for in the blood of our people. Let it not be in vain. We can use this opportunity to not only end the hostility between us, but to mend the rift and establish a mutually beneficial relationship.”
Sun Quan stood immediately, and though he did not bow, Yoshika gestured for him to speak. He forgot to wait for Qin Yongliang to do the same before snapping at her.
“We have heard such overtures before, from your kin! The great sects do not forget. I remember Seong Heiran and her promises, and I remember what became of those who trusted them.”
“I am not Seong Heiran. Nor am I Goryeo, or Yamato. I am the empress of Jiaguo, and it is in that capacity, and only that capacity that I address you now. I have people from Qin living within my borders, many of whom still swear allegiance to your God-Emperor. Do you know what I do with such people?”
The grandmaster hesitated, knowing that any answer he gave to the rhetorical question would be a reflection upon his own opinions. Instead, he simply waited for her to go on.
“I appoint them to my council! Pan Zixin leads a vocal faction of Qin loyalists, who are given the freedom to speak within my courts. I host a branch of the Spiritual Flowing Purewater sect within my borders, and the highest office in my capital—second only to my own—is held by Yan Yue. You may see all of this as an infringement upon your authority, but elders, I want to make it clear that friendship with Qin was always my goal.”
Qian Shi stood and bowed, and after how much she’d been pushing it, Yoshika made a point to wait for Qin Yongliang to give permission first. The formalities annoyed her, but she and Yue had spent a long time planning how to use them to their advantage.
“I hear your words, Empress, and recognize your deeds. If you have an offer to make, then make it. I can promise only that we will hear it, and consider it in good faith.”
Yoshika nodded in acknowledgement.
“Thank you, grandmaster. I believe that loyalty is best earned by merit rather than force. In truth, I care little for my title, but my people gave it to me and I endeavor to live up to their expectations. The main thrust of my proposal is simple—pacts of non-aggression and freedom of movement between Jiaguo and any territory willing to sign. I’m willing to offer significant incentives to encourage the leaders of each sect represented here to pioneer the program.
“To be clear, this is not an alliance, nor am I asking anybody to swear fealty to Jiaguo. I impose no laws upon your lands, save that any visitors from mine are not mistreated. Should anyone from Qin wish to settle in Jiaguo, they would be free to do so without renouncing their imperial citizenship. They would gain the full benefits accorded to any of my people, and retain the freedom to return home whenever they choose.”
She was met by a long silence until Sun Quan raised an eyebrow at her.
“You expect us to just allow—foreigners to cross our border freely? To allow you to invade our lands without consequence?”
Yoshika tried not to roll her eyes as the grandmaster swallowed the words ‘beastkin’ and ‘barbarian’ in favor of the more diplomatic ‘foreigner.’ It almost made her reconsider her plans, but understanding had to start somewhere.
“Do you think every citizen of Jiaguo is a member of the military? Or is the Heavenly Empire of Qin such a miserable place to live that you can’t imagine that anybody would move there without being ordered? Do you fear that your own people would flee the country in droves, never to return?”
Sun Quan glanced back nervously at Prince Qin Yongliang, whose face remained impassive.
“I would never dare make such insinuations, but the secret cultivation methods of the great sects—”
“My mother knows your ‘secret cultivation methods.’ She’d rather remain as a mortal. The only people denied by your secrecy are your own. Arcane arts are rooted in ancient imperial techniques, but why has Qin lost those arts in all but a few reclusive masters? Body cultivation is seen as a dead end, yet Yamato is able to awaken more immortal practitioners than any other nation.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
“Our techniques are the supreme arts of the true heavenly dao, bequeathed to us by His Imperial Majesty, the Holy God-Emperor of Qin. We need no others.”
Yoshika crossed her arms and glared at the stubborn grandmaster. It wasn’t necessarily him she was trying to convince, but his words would no doubt be reflected by many throughout the empire.
“The same God-Emperor who mandates that power should not be used to suppress the weak? Who says that those of means should provide for those without? Do you truly believe that it is his will that the only cultivation method his people practice be one that only those of great talent or born into means can practice? Qin Yongliang—is your father a hypocrite?”
The grandmasters visibly cringed at her accusation, but the prince himself remained composed as he met her eyes.
“You are well learned in the philosophy of our empire. However, the restricted nature of spiritual cultivation is not a matter of oppression. Indeed, those who demonstrate talent—regardless of their birth—are highly sought after by the sects. My father’s teachings instruct that true enlightenment can only be achieved by purity of soul. That it is a difficult path is of no consequence—we endeavor to uplift those who can walk it.”
“And the rest?”
“Commit themselves to the duty of earning the protection of their betters.”
She pursed her lips. That was as diplomatic an answer as she expected. Qin had enormous territory, and a population to match, but spiritual cultivators were deceptively rare. In terms of sheer numbers, they could match or exceed Jiaguo, and their sects were so ubiquitous that it was difficult to understand the actual state of their nation.
It was something that Yoshika had worked out over time, from learning about the history of her world and seeing so many different perspectives. Qin was a paper tiger, more fragile than even its own rulers knew.
Yoshika turned to Qin Zhao, her master and mentor—the very man who had helped her to walk the first steps on her own path of spiritual enlightenment, fraught with difficulties though it may have often been.
“Master Qin Zhao, may I ask a question about the history of Qin?”
He stood and bowed, waiting for his uncle to acknowledge the gesture before answering.
“I cannot divulge secrets of our empire, Your Majesty, but this humble scholar will otherwise answer to the best of his knowledge.”
“In the last hundred—no, thousand years, how many sons and daughters of Qin have risen to the level of xiantian?”
Qin Zhao paused for a moment, then glanced at the prince, who gave him a subtle nod.
“Only a small handful in the last millenia—fewer than a dozen. In the last century, to the best of my knowledge—just two.”
“Those two were not purely spiritual cultivators.”
It wasn’t a question, but Qin Zhao bowed in acknowledgement and answered for the benefit of the others.
“No. Yan Yue is, like you, a unified cultivator, while Zheng Long has progressed both martial and arcane arts to the peak of houtian.”
“And how many have died in the last century?”
This time, Qin Zhao’s grimace all but spoke for him.
“I’m afraid I cannot say—”
“Dozens, at least—just from the light skirmishes against Yamato’s border. One by my own hand in the war waged against me by Yan De and his ill-advised followers. Hundreds, if not thousands more at houtian—and those are only the ones I can personally confirm. I can’t account for infighting within the sects.”
“Such infighting is...uncommon.”
But brutal. Qin Zhao himself had told her of the history behind Qin’s most recent civil war. The very same that had led to the decline of proper healing arts in Qin and forced Lin Xiulan’s cult into obscurity under the Flowing Purewater’s wing—an act that had led to their censure and the unofficial withdrawal of their status as a great sect.
An upheaval like that didn’t come cheap, and the cost was always paid in blood. And that was without even considering the impact of good qi healing becoming all but a lost art over the last several centuries.
The fact was that behind generations of unmatched hegemony and a monopoly on some of the most powerful cultivators in the world, Qin was in decline. Like their sleeping emperor, the nation had stagnated under the rule of the great sects. That was why they fielded mostly mortals against Yamato and left Goryeo alone. Why their aggression had all but stopped after a century of Ienaga Yumi guarding the border as a genuine threat against enemy xiantians.
Perhaps, it was even why they were willing to entertain Yoshika’s peace talks.
Naturally, their pride would never allow them to admit it aloud, but she’d made her point. All that remained was to drive it home.
“There’s no need for us to suffer such waste! Let us live together, not as enemies, but friends. Jiaguo has already revived the grand academy, and I see no reason why the dream it represents should die. Perhaps ‘true enlightenment’ isn’t for everyone, but strength and knowledge can be.
“The truth is, I believe we need each other. War serves neither and harms both. Our world is dying, and if we continue to fight, it will be over who gets to rule over the ashes of whatever is left. The academy is trying to find a way to solve the crisis we face, but I need help. Scholars, experts, old monsters—if there is one thing Qin has that I cannot hope to compete with, it’s experience.”
Yoshika sighed. She could see that she had their attention, but that was never going to be enough. There was a rot in Qin that she could not fix with words alone—but neither could she afford to cut it out, despite what she had promised her master. For now, the best she could do was balm it.
“Of course, I am not asking you to agree to my proposals for nothing. I did promise incentives.”
She didn’t feel good about the greedy glint that flashed in the eyes of even staunch enemies like Yan Hao. Qin Yongliang, as calm as ever, simply folded his hands in front of him and raised an eyebrow.
“And what would you offer, Empress Yoshika, that even grandmasters of the great sects might covet?”
Yoshika smiled.
“Grandmasters? How about the Demon Lord Longyan, or Sovereign Shen Yu—your imperial guest? I would even dare suggest that perhaps the God-Emperor himself might be tempted.
“The Sovereign’s Tear is not the only thing I inherited from Chou’s tomb. I have a vault of divine artifacts. Hundreds, even thousands of them. I offer them as gifts to any who would agree to help me bring our people together—more if they also contribute meaningfully towards breaking the divine seal.”
Qin Yongliang blinked.
“That is...a bold claim, and a very generous—”
“I accept!”
Long Xiaofan’s interruption drew the entire room’s attention to herself. She met Yoshika’s eyes with an unapologetic glare, and the tiniest hint of a smile.
“I was born in the divine realm, and I know the kind of treasures you speak of. You said the offer extends to anyone, did you not? On behalf of my brother, the Dragon Lord, I accept your terms. The Draconic Empire and surrounding isles will commit itself to this cause. I understand that my great granddaughter Long Ruiling is already a guest of your city? I will appoint her as ambassador to Jiaguo.”
With that, the dragon emissary sat back with a satisfied nod as the grandmasters of Qin began to clamor over each other for Yoshika’s attention.
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