Longzang

Chapter 1016 Friendly Cooperation
In April of the third year of the Hongjing era, a minor incident occurred in the Jin court. Sun Chaoen, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, encountered Cai Miao, the grand-niece of the Left Chancellor, after drinking. He was immediately captivated by her beauty and ordered his servants to disperse the guards on the other side and snatch Cai Miao back to his residence.

Cai Miao was renowned throughout Yingdu, attracting numerous suitors from noble families. The Left Prime Minister usually protected her meticulously, assigning a Dharma Avatar to guard her closely. However, under the onslaught of blows from Sun Chaoen's servants, the Dharma Avatar couldn't even unleash a single spell. The Dharma Avatar barely appeared before being struck several times on the head, instantly bleeding profusely and collapsing to the ground. Her once-famous Dharma body was now as fragile as paper.

For some reason, the news of the person Sun Chaoen seized after dinner didn't reach the Left Prime Minister's ears until the next morning.

The Left Chancellor was furious and immediately impeached Sun Chao'en at the court assembly. The evidence was conclusive, but in the end, the Prince of Jin only dismissed Sun Chao'en from his post and ordered him to go home to await further punishment, without mentioning Cai Miao at all.

Everyone in the court was discerning and knew that Prince Jin was deliberately making things difficult for the Left Chancellor. Every extra day Cai Miao stayed at the Sun residence, the Left Chancellor would lose face.

Although the Left Prime Minister was still in his position, all the officials knew that his downfall was only a matter of time, so they tacitly remained silent, letting Cai Miao be detained at the Sun residence. Sun Chaoen, having been dismissed, would undoubtedly vent his pent-up resentment on her that night.

However, things took an unexpected turn. That very night, Sun Chaoen took Cai Miao, packed their valuables, and fled in fear of punishment.

The Prince of Jin originally sent two Daoist masters to guard the Sun residence, but how could two Daoist masters, both guarding the front gate, prevent Sun Chaoen, who was himself a Dharma Master, from escaping?

The matter was somewhat strange, and the officials, though aware of the situation, remained silent. Only after two or three days, having confirmed that Sun Chaoen had fled far away, did they submit petitions demanding the execution of Sun Chaoen's entire clan. The Prince of Jin rejected the request for execution, instead sentencing him to immediate beheading and issuing a warrant for his arrest, ordering Sun Chaoen to return and face his death.

Half a month later, in the State of Ji.

The Minister of War of Ji State, having failed to quell the rebellion effectively, retired to his hometown and planned to sell his large mansion in the capital. A wealthy merchant surnamed Sun stepped in and bought it for a few hundred taels of silver, moving in with his wife.

This move immediately attracted the attention of the Embroidered Robe Bureau of the State of Ji. The Embroidered Robe Bureau's function was similar to that of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the early years of the Great Tang Dynasty. It was specifically responsible for gathering intelligence for the King of Ji and monitoring all officials. All the previous commanders were palace officials.

The wealthy merchant surnamed Sun had just moved into the former Minister of War's residence at noon when someone came to visit him that evening. The visitor was a handsome scholar, but Sun Chaoen, with his discerning eye and refined manners, immediately recognized him as an eunuch.

The scholar didn't mince words and said directly, "You are Mr. Sun Chao'en, right? You are a man of great talent. If Jin cannot employ you, then Ji can! The King invites you to the palace for an audience."

"Now?"

"It's now."

"it is good!"

……

On the western border of Qingming, Wei Yuan stood here. After a moment, he felt the temperature around him rise sharply, and the Great Wilderness Sun, with muscles as hard as iron, appeared before him.

Previously, during the Great Wilderness Days, he had been quite unrestrained and carefree in front of Wei Yuan, displaying a playful and carefree attitude. But this time, upon meeting him, he appeared extremely solemn, his muscles twitching constantly, muttering to himself, "This is really strange, why do I feel a sense of dread? Could it be that I can't beat you?"

"I am but a mere Dharma Aspect cultivator, how could you possibly be no match for me?"

Da Huang Ri approached Wei Yuan, sniffed suspiciously, and said, "No! It's clearly the scent of a formidable enemy! Back when I faced Hong Ye, I was about as afraid as I am now!"

Wei Yuan hadn't expected that the nose of the Great Wilderness Sun could be used in this way, and hurriedly said, "I brought the wine. This time it's a new product, please try it."

Upon hearing the word "wine," Da Huang Zhi Ri immediately cast aside his doubts, took the wine basin handed to him by Wei Yuan, drank it all in one gulp, and then suddenly spewed out two balls of flame from his nose, shouting, "Good wine! Powerful and potent!"

Wei Yuan smiled slightly. This batch of strong liquor was specially mixed with powdered stone from the Desolate Realm; a sip was like drinking lava, naturally potent enough that even a Great Desolate Day couldn't drink much of it. An ordinary Dharma Aspect Power Shaman would be knocked out after just one cup.

Wei Yuan said, "This is the Great Wilderness Divine Brew, there are a thousand barrels in total. The next grade is Wilderness Wine, there are a total of 500,000 barrels. Please have a taste as well."

Da Huang Zhi Ri drank it down in one gulp and immediately said, "If I hadn't drunk the previous one, this would be top-notch wine. It's a pity that after drinking the divine brew, this wine is bland and tasteless. But it even has the flavor of the Desolate Realm in it, how did you do that?"

"The Wilderness Wine has added seasonings, which are made from Wilderness Iron in a ratio of 1:10,000. So it can also be called Wilderness Flavor Wine."

By this time, the barrels used by Qingming to store the wine had been standardized, each weighing exactly one ton. They also provided the Huangzu tribe with a hundred free trucks, the cargo compartments specially designed for transporting the wine barrels. With these trucks, the Huangzu tribe could transport the strong liquor all the way to the heartland of the Wu tribe, hundreds of thousands of miles away. Wei Yuan then handed over several special jade contracts, densely covered with terms and conditions, saying, "Please take a look at the contents. If there are no problems, please sign them."

Da Huangzhi took it, glanced at it briefly, and signed his real name without looking at it closely.

When signing, one uses their finger instead of a pen, and the jade tablet possesses its own mystical power. With each stroke, blood seeps from the fingertip, which is then used as ink to sign the name. The jade tablet possesses an extremely high level of mystical power, which even the physical body of the Great Wilderness could not withstand.

After signing the agreement, he glared at Wei Yuan and said irritably, "You humans are so long-winded when it comes to getting things done. Just based on your status in the Wilderness Realm... oh, over there, why wouldn't I trust you?"

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "This is for the good of both of us. Adding a layer of constraint will allow us to cooperate for a long time."

Then, with a wave of his hand, Da Huangzhi sent more than ten young power witches flying over from the direction of the witch realm. They all looked at Wei Yuan with curiosity and awe.

The Great Wilderness said, "These are the most outstanding youngsters in the clan. They are hardworking and talented, but they are not very bright and don't know how to handle things as well as Tianyu. But they are all good at fighting and killing enemies!"

“Alright, I will send them to the Qingming Military Academy for secret training for about six months. After they finish their training, they will be able to use Qingming weapons and the corresponding troop training methods. Then they will come back to train the tribe warriors. In total, it will take about a year and a half to form an army.”

A fierce glint flashed in the eyes of the Great Wilderness Sun, and he said, "Fine! I'll wait another year and a half, and then I'll teach those Netherworld Witches a lesson!"

On the day of the Great Wilderness, the decree summoned two powerful shamans, each holding a scarlet stone. They said, "These are the pivot stones of the Red Sand Oasis Shamanic Array. Take them. The Ancestral Shamanic Grand Ceremony is in a month, which will be the perfect time for a surprise attack. I will have someone open the gate for you then."

"Alright." Wei Yuan then had Cui Yu take away the pivot stone.

On the day Wei Yuan was banished to the desolate realm, the Red Sand Oasis was reclaimed by the Thunder Swamp Tribe. All the Azure Nether cultivators on duty at the oasis were killed.

Later, the conflict between the Wilderness Flame Demon, the Molten Dragon, and the Nether Phoenix also spread to the outside world. On the day of the Great Wilderness, he led the Wilderness Ancestor Tribe to fight several battles with Thunder Swamp. Both sides had their victories and defeats. In the end, neither side could bear the losses, so they had to agree on a compromise that the Red Sand Oasis would be jointly managed by both sides.

With Wei Yuan's return and the authority he held in the Desolate Realm, Da Huang Zhi Ri, a senior Desolate Witch, naturally received the news and was aware of Wei Yuan's special identity. Therefore, the two sides quickly reached an agreement and began comprehensive cooperation. However, Da Huang Zhi Ri was somewhat puzzled by the "Azure Desolate Ancestor Friendship and Mutual Assistance Treaty" that Wei Yuan presented to him, not quite understanding what it was.

Isn't it just because they're afraid of going back on their word? When has Li Wu ever gone back on his promises?

Back in the day of the Great Wilderness, when I was young and carefree, I accidentally arranged to meet an ugly shaman. After sobering up, I regretted it deeply, but in the end, I still did the deed with tears in my eyes, didn't I? That's how principled the shaman is!

The treaty was not complicated. It mainly stipulated that the Huangzu tribe would cooperate with Qingming to take over the Red Sand Oasis. In return, Qingming would have the right to build various types of roads within the territory of the Huangzu tribe. Within a 50-mile radius on both sides of the roads, Qingming could freely build various military, warehouse, and industrial facilities.

Meanwhile, Qingming is responsible for helping the Huangzu tribe train a new generation of troops, primarily to avenge the Leize tribe, while also keeping an eye on other Youwu tribes. The new army will be provided with a full set of weapons and military supplies by Qingming, with the cost deducted from trade transactions.

In addition, Qingming will also construct several large-scale communication arrays within the Desolate Ancestor tribe to transmit military intelligence in real time. Naturally, such intricate work as array construction is something only humans can do; the shamans don't understand it.

The Red Sand Oasis boasts abundant water resources, with rivers flowing through it, and faces the scorching desert to the west. Rich in resources, with a complex terrain and climate, it also has numerous mineral veins, producing large quantities of saltpeter and sulfur, making it ideal for placing the Mirror Lake Boundary Stone.

At this time, the oasis was under the joint control of the Wild Ancestor and the Thunder Swamp, with each side having tens of thousands of troops stationed there. However, with the Wild Ancestor tribe acting as an inside agent, the Thunder Swamp garrison was like a fish in a barrel.

……

Ji State, Guantun County.

Zhang Sheng was adjusting the defense line when someone suddenly came to report that Li Zhi, the military governor of Zhenshan, was requesting an audience.

By this time, Guantun County had been transformed into a large fortress, and its defenses were no longer suitable for outsiders to observe. Therefore, Zhang Sheng ordered his men to take Li Zhi to a small hill outside the county town to wait.

Upon seeing Zhang Sheng, Li Zhi was momentarily dazed, but quickly regained his composure and bowed, saying, "Greetings, sir. I sensed the emergence of royal aura within the territory of Ji State, so I came here specifically to investigate."

　P.S.: Posted later
　　
　
(End of this chapter)