The empire appeared flawless. Provinces prospered, the court was obedient, foreign states deferred, and Zhou Chen's legacy was already becoming legend. Yet the chain pulsed uneasily, a subtle warning that all was not as perfect as it seemed. Jeng Minh, ever attentive, felt the shift before any human could perceive it.
Bai Ye entered the study, concern shadowing his features. "Reports are troubling. Minor disturbances, scattered uprisings in the frontier provinces, and rumors of a mysterious figure rallying outsiders. At first glance, they seem insignificant, but the pattern… it is unusual."
Jeng Minh leaned over the map, tracing the routes and incidents. "These are not random events. Someone—or something—is moving in a way designed to escape detection. The chain senses it too. This is a challenge not of armies or politics, but of subtlety."
He began to probe deeper, sending trusted agents under multiple disguises into the affected regions. Messages and trade routes were quietly monitored; the pulse of the chain guided him, revealing faint threads of ambition, loyalty, and fear in places he had thought secure.
Days passed, and a pattern emerged. A figure, unknown even to foreign intelligence, had begun consolidating support from discontented nobles, rogue generals, and mercenaries. They were acting not for conquest, but for influence—exactly the type that could unravel Zhou Chen's empire from within if left unchecked.
Bai Ye whispered, awed and worried. "It is like they are learning the same lessons you have, Jeng Minh. They think in threads and webs, not armies."
Jeng Minh's eyes narrowed. "Which means we cannot respond with force alone. We must outthink, outmaneuver, and anticipate. Every move must appear natural, every correction invisible."
He orchestrated a series of subtle countermoves: false information leaked to sow distrust among the insurgent supporters, incentives quietly offered to shift loyalties, and carefully timed interventions that made the new threat seem isolated and ineffective. The chain illuminated the precise moments to act, ensuring that the shadow opponent's network began to unravel before it fully formed.
Yet the chain also pulsed with unease. This was no ordinary faction, nor a simple rival lord. The ambition, strategy, and patience mirrored his own. Jeng Minh realized that this challenge would test not just Zhou Chen's empire, but his own mastery of strategy, foresight, and influence.
Bai Ye, watching him, asked cautiously, "Can the empire withstand this?"
Jeng Minh's lips curled into a faint, determined smile. "It will withstand it. But not because of armies or walls. Because influence, strategy, and subtlety… when wielded perfectly, are more powerful than any sword. This is the ultimate test—and we are ready."
As night fell over the capital, the lanterns flickered like distant stars. Somewhere beyond the borders, in the shadows of ambition and secrecy, the unseen threat moved, testing the empire's strength. And at the center of it all, Jeng Minh in Zhou Chen's body, guided by the chain, began weaving a counter-web—a trap invisible to all but him.
The game of absolute power had taken a new, dangerous turn.