knife

Chapter 298 Everyone has their own plans
In Luoyang, undercurrents were surging, but Li Dachui was comfortably lying on a soft couch. He reached out and grabbed a bunch of loquats, curled his tongue, bit off a loquat, spun it in his mouth, and with two soft pops, the black loquat seeds fell precisely into a bowl on the table, spun around a few times, and came to a steady stop inside.

When Fang Xiaomao has nothing to do, he usually cleans his tiger-wing knife.

After the Battle of Yingtianmen, the two of them broke away from Feng Congwen and settled comfortably in a stronghold of Zhiqiu Courtyard in Luoyang.

"Young master, if we leave without saying goodbye, will Feng Congwen look for us or suspect us?" Fang Xiaomao suddenly asked after wiping the knife for a while.

Li Dachui chuckled: "Little cat, do you think the Yuan brothers, Yuan Rong and Yuan Tong, are that important to Feng Congwen?"

"Probably, they are two experts at the eighth level of the Profound Origin Realm, after all!" Fang Xiaomao was somewhat unsure.

"Remember that expert who got crushed into mincemeat? He was also a Xuan Yuan Rank 8!" Li Dachui spat out another loquat seed with a puff, but this time it was aimed at Fang Xiaomao.

With a flash of the knife, the loquat seed was split in two, then into four, and fell into the bowl. However, a quarter of the seed spun around in the bowl before falling out.

Fang Xiaomao sighed, picked it up, and threw it into the bowl.

It's still just a tiny bit off.

The ninth rank was clearly visible, seemingly separated only by a thin layer of paper, within reach. But reaching out was like trying to scoop the moon from a well; with a splash, the water shattered, and the moon vanished.

“Little Cat, Feng Congwen won’t care about the two of us at all. Since we didn’t go back, he’ll probably think we’re dead. Dead people have no value to them. Or maybe he’ll mention it when he sees Linghu Ye in the future, just to try and get closer to Linghu Ye!” Li Dachui said calmly.

"How heartless and cold-blooded!" Fang Xiaomao sighed, but immediately perked up again: "Young Master, this time you killed two Innate Realm masters in one go, hehe, no one would believe it if you told them. Especially Kou Zhong, ha, if Master knew, he'd probably be drunk for three days and three nights!"

"All the conditions came together to give me the opportunity to do this once in my life. I will never have another chance like this in my lifetime!" Li Dachui laughed. "Speaking of which, it is thanks to my late mother's legacy. If she hadn't let Kou Zhong be hit by the Phoenix Fire, I wouldn't have been able to scheme against that cunning old fox!"

Li Dachui was still quite proud of himself when talking about these things.

Whether it was Yang Jian or Kou Zhong, they would both be huge obstacles on his path forward. It was truly fortunate that he was able to eliminate both of them in one fell swoop.

There was a soft knock on the door. Fang Xiaomao stood up and opened it.

A plump, well-fed face appeared before Fang Xiaomao.

"Boss Xiao is back?" Fang Xiaomao smiled and ushered the man into the house. "Have the fight broken out outside?"

Tai'an City has always had business dealings with Guannei, but in the past, Li Dachui focused on dealing with Beiyuan. In Guannei, he could only do so superficially. He set up a point in Luoyang and Chang'an to do business, while intelligence gathering was secondary.

The rapid development of the intelligence network within the Great Wall only began after Zhang Qingyun returned from outside the Great Wall and took charge of the entire intelligence construction within the Great Wall.

Xiao Le, as one of the earliest elderly people from Tai'an City to enter the pass from outside the pass, is the number one figure in Luoyang City.

Hearing the kitten's question, Xiao Le shook his head and said, "The situation in the city is very strange right now. Feng Congwen has occupied Yingtian Gate in the south of the city and controls important areas such as the Imperial Palace and the Mingtang, but he has not carried out any further military operations. Meanwhile, the Imperial Guards have retreated to the Taoguangyuan area in the north, occupying strategic locations and holding their ground. The east and west gates are in the hands of different local armies and private soldiers of powerful families. The four sides are in a standoff, and the situation looks extremely dangerous, ready to erupt at any moment, yet there has been no movement for a long time!"

Li Dachui sat up, crossed his legs on the couch, and thought for a moment before saying, "This peace shouldn't last long. Right now, Feng Congwen should be negotiating with the local army and powerful families. Once they reach an agreement, the three parties will join forces to launch an attack on the Imperial Guards at the North Gate."

“Feng Congwen doesn’t need to rush. He just needs to wait for He Zudao’s army to arrive, and then he can reap the rewards!” Fang Xiaomao was a little puzzled: “He Zudao probably doesn’t want to negotiate with these powerful families. In the past two years, his behavior has made it seem like he wants to slaughter all the powerful families.”

Li Dachui laughed: "That's why Feng Congwen had the basis to negotiate terms with them."

Xiao Le's eyes lit up, and he looked at Li Dachui: "Does the young master mean that Feng Congwen is very likely to turn against He Zudao?"

"Why not?" Li Dachui spread his hands. "If it were me, I would do the same! We would unite all the other forces in the city, first drive out the imperial guards who were loyal to the royal family, then close the city gates and defend the city. What if He Zudao comes? Attack the city? He Zudao probably doesn't have the time. What if he can't take it? Besides, Zhang Quanyi isn't that easy to defeat, is he? These imperial guards in Luoyang have been forced out of Luoyang and joined forces with Zhang Quanyi. He Zudao's days are numbered."

"Aren't Feng Congwen and He Zudao in cahoots?" Fang Xiaomao asked, puzzled.

“When their interests align, they naturally become allies!” Li Dachui said, “In the past, He Zudao wanted to kill Kou Zhong, and Feng Congwen also wanted to kill Kou Zhong. He Zudao wanted to make a fortune in Luoyang and then use that wealth to go south and reunite his old subordinates. As for Feng Congwen, he wanted to gather strength and then join forces with Linghu Ye to conquer the world.”

“If Luoyang falls, the foundation for their cooperation will be lost,” Xiao Le continued. “Moreover, because of you, young master, Feng Congwen took Luoyang easily, giving him more options. If he can protect Luoyang from He Zudao’s ravages, Linghu Ye will truly remember his great contribution.” “That’s exactly right!” Li Dachui nodded. “Now it’s up to He Zudao to respond.”

“He Zudao is still fighting Zhang Quanyi. Even if he defeats Zhang Quanyi, I’m afraid the situation in Luoyang is already decided!” Fang Xiaomao frowned.

“Let’s see. If there are any new developments, Ke Wuji will send someone into the city to let me know. I’ve already told him about this contact point!” Li Dachui said, “Manager Xiao, tell our men to keep a low profile during this time and not show themselves easily. You also need to make arrangements on your side.”

“If Feng Congwen controls Luoyang, it will be better. But if He Zudao comes, we really need to make arrangements. That guy kills, burns, and robs all the wealthy and powerful families. He also arbitrarily arrests young men and uses them as laborers. If he goes south, he can burn a place like Luoyang to the ground.” Xiao Le said with some worry.

"Just wait and see what happens!"

Ke Wuji sat on the street corner opposite the Tai'an fur shop, having already smoked three bowls of tobacco.

The pressure that person put on him was just too much.

The impact of someone who has mastered the Qi of Heaven and Earth on the disciples of the Divine Cult is so great that those who are not disciples of the Divine Cult cannot possibly comprehend it.

Everyone in the sect knew that those who could master the Phoenix Flame and Moonlit Weak Water techniques possessed extremely special physical constitutions.

They will basically all be able to enter the innate realm in the future.

The most outstanding among these people have the potential to enter the realm of the divine.

He Qingqiu proved this back then, and Jiang Qian, decades later, is proving it again.

At such a young age, Jiang Qian has already entered the Innate Realm. Perhaps in a few years, she will be able to become a Divine Traveler, just like He Qingqiu back then.

Thinking of Jiang Qian, Ke Wuji made up his mind instead. He stood up, tucked his pipe into his waistband, and strode toward the Tai'an Leather Shop.

Their differing understandings and reverence for the doctrines made their faction irreconcilably opposed to Jiang Qian's. Whenever the two factions met, they would almost always clash, and they never felt any remorse or hesitation in killing each other's people.

In their eyes, the other party was an evil person who ruined the great cause of their religion.

Jiang Qian is currently only at the Innate Realm, so there are still people on their side who can keep her in check. But if Jiang Qian were to enter the Divine Travel Realm, things would be terrible. After all, the Innate Realm experts on their side are already too old to advance any further.

The appearance of the Qiankun Qi gave Ke Wuji another hope.

The Qi of Heaven and Earth naturally has a restraining effect on Phoenix Fire and Moonlight Weak Water, since these two skills are derived from the Qi of Heaven and Earth. If practitioners of Phoenix Fire and Moonlight Weak Water may be able to enter the Divine Travel Realm, then a person who has mastered the Qi of Heaven and Earth will definitely be able to step into the Divine Travel Realm in the future.

What would it be like if this person agreed with the doctrines of this sect?

Moreover, that person had said that he had received a great favor from He Qingqiu, and if he didn't make good use of such a connection, he would be as stupid as a pig.

Although that person seemed to look down on He Zudao, it didn't matter. People change. Maybe He Zudao would change, maybe this person would change. At least for now, there was still a basis for cooperation.

Even Li Dachui from outside the pass is someone we can cooperate with in the future!

The Divine Cult has not paid attention to that place yet. Since Lin Yunqi and his group have already set their sights on it, it is only logical and reasonable for our faction to have a countermeasure.

"What would you like to buy, sir?" A young man approached. "Would you like to buy a leather armor? But right now, the price is much higher than usual, it's doubled!"

Ke Wuji shook his head and said, "I'm not buying leather armor, I'm here to see Xiao Le!"

The smile on the young man's face disappeared.

The shopkeeper's name is Xiao Le, a name unknown to outsiders.

(End of this chapter)