Chapter 475: Psychological Warfare

The atmosphere in the meeting room suddenly grew even heavier.

Sima Zhao also knitted his brows tightly.

As the commander-in-chief of the Sima Family's forces supporting Ma Huainan's Divine Kingdom this time, the pressure he was currently bearing was immense as well.

If this war ultimately failed, his abilities would likely be questioned by the Family Elders.

There was still a thousand years left until the end of his father's next term in office.

And during these thousand years, the performance of all candidates within the Family would be recorded, serving as an important evaluation basis for inheriting the core power of the Family in the future.

He absolutely did not want such an obvious stain to be left on his record.

"How is the contact with Lu Mingshi of the Lu Family going?"

Sima Zhao took a deep breath and shifted his gaze to his younger sister.

Hearing this, Sima Yurao immediately stood up.

"The other party has rejected contact with everyone from the Sima Family."

"The attitude is very resolute."

"Good." A trace of anger flashed through Sima Zhao's eyes.

"This Lu Mingshi is ruthless enough!"

But the next moment, he took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

In the past, if conflicts arose within the Five Great Families, they would basically each take a step back.

Even if it truly came to a point where they had to resolve the other party, in most cases, no one would be willing to step into the ring personally. Instead, they would choose to throw money at hiring people, finding some forces to handle such dirty work for them.

Yet this time, Lu Mingshi personally stepped up.

Now the entire federation knew that the powerful figure behind the invasion of Ma Huainan's Divine Kingdom was him.

Yet not only did he show no intention of hiding it at all, he couldn't even be bothered to acknowledge the Sima Family's peace overtures, directly locking all contact out.

That legendary mama's boy… never expected him to actually have such a tough side.

"Brother."

Sima Yurao hesitated for a moment and spoke,

"This Lu Mingshi has almost no interaction with the outside world on a daily basis, and he hasn't invested shares in any large companies either. Basically, we can't find any leverage to put pressure on him."

"How about… starting with his parents?"

Hearing this, Sima Zhao immediately shook his head.

"Both of this person's parents are Mid-tier Gods, and they are deeply rooted in the Lu Family. We can't touch them."

Sima Yurao hurriedly said,

"We don't actually need to touch them, just have them help pass along a message."

"Useless."

Sima Zhao rubbed his temples, a trace of helplessness appearing on his face.

"They have recently widely distributed invitations, preparing to host a three-hundred-and-thirty-third birthday banquet for their son Lu Mingshi."

"Moreover, the invitation has already been sent to me."

"What?" Sima Yurao's eyes widened instantly. "What kind of operation is this?"

The other gods of the Sima Family in the meeting room also successively revealed strange expressions.

A three-hundred-and-thirty-third birthday banquet?

Which normal god would specifically celebrate this age?

This was clearly just finding an excuse to collect monetary gifts! It was simply thick-skinned to the extreme.

Sima Zhao sighed.

"After knowing their son's Divine Kingdom foundation, they are acting all proud right now."

"The one who died is the Peerless Prodigy of our Sima Family; of course the Lu Family won't care."

Hearing this, Sima Jin immediately said angrily,

"Being so blatant is simply too shameless!"

"A Peerless Prodigy-class Human Race Genius has fallen, and this is a loss for the entire federation!"

"Alright." Sima Zhao waved his hand, interrupting everyone's discussion.

"The Five Great Families are both in cooperation and in competition."

"Even if we clearly know it was done by the other party, as long as there is no conclusive evidence, we can't do anything to him."

"After all, the federal supreme intelligent life only looks at evidence."

As Sima Zhao spoke, his gaze gradually grew calm.

"Whoever tied the bell must untie it."

"Yurao, you are currently at The Frontline. After returning to the real world in a moment, go find Sima Tianci."

"In the name of the Family, have him help make a trip."

Hearing this, a trace of hesitation appeared on Sima Yurao's face.

"This… Brother, I'm afraid he won't help wholeheartedly."

"It doesn't matter." Sima Zhao said indifferently.

"Have him pass along a message: If the other party is willing to turn hostility into friendship, our Sima Family is willing to fork out a thousand S-grade resource-type buildings as an apology."

"If they are unwilling, then we'll continue fighting."

"It's nothing more than both sides suffering mutually."

"And us…"

Sima Zhao's gaze swept across everyone present.

"We can still hold on for another month."

"I believe that Yang Fan is a smart person."

"Given the current state of the battle, if the Divine Kingdom keeps fighting for another thirty years, is it really worth it?"

As his voice fell, the previously somewhat calm meeting room instantly erupted into an uproar.

"Impossible!"

A Sima Family god stood up directly.

"Another month in the real world with this current fighting style, and my Divine Kingdom will definitely be beaten into bankruptcy!"

"That's right, I don't agree either!"

"If we continue fighting like this, I'd rather withdraw the troops right now!"

For a moment, all the gods cast their gazes towards Sima Zhao.

Although Sima Zhao was the son of the Clan Chief and the person in charge of this operation, both his strength and status were above theirs.

But this didn't mean they had to completely obey Sima Zhao's commands.

What the Divine Kingdom War consumed was their own foundation.

With such massive losses, let alone Sima Zhao, even if the Clan Chief personally spoke, they might not be willing to gamble their own divine kingdoms.

Seeing this scene, Sima Zhao's expression remained calm.

"Everyone, all losses from this war will be borne by me."

"Starting from the fifth day onwards, for every extra day we hold on, have your Intelligent Life compile all the losses of that day and forward them to me."

"I will directly transfer the corresponding Divinity Points into your divine kingdoms."

As soon as these words were said, the meeting room instantly quieted down.

The anger on everyone's faces turned into astonishment.

"Are these words true?"

"If Young Master says so, then we have no doubts anymore."

"Rest assured, Young Master, we will definitely do our utmost to complete the mission!"

"Young Master is magnanimous!"

"I will return to the divine kingdom to prepare right now!"

Within just a few breaths, the style inside the meeting room instantly underwent a 180-degree shift.

The gods who were filled with righteous indignation just moments ago now had smiles plastered all over their faces once again.

…

Soon, the rest of the Sima Family gods successively left the meeting room.

The originally lively hall gradually grew quiet.

In the end, only Sima Zhao and Sima Yurao remained.

Watching the backs of those people leaving, Sima Yurao still wore a trace of worry on her face.

"Brother, is this really worth it?"

"Didn't you see their expressions just now?"

"I even suspect that these guys will intentionally exaggerate their losses when the time comes."

Hearing this, Sima Zhao gave a scoff.

"Do you take your brother for a fool?"

"It's just psychological warfare."

"Five days later, if the other party is still persisting in combat, I will directly order them to withdraw the troops."

"Aside from the Family subsidies, don't even think about getting a single cent of extra resources."

"What I said just now is nothing more than fake news specifically released for Sima Tianci to hear."

"And then, through him, pass this news to Yang Fan."

"As long as the other party knows that we can still hold on for another month, they will naturally re-evaluate the cost of this war."