Longzang

Chapter 178 Taking office
At Hanyang Pass, Xu Zhongxing and Su Donghe stood on the city tower, watching a huge flying ship slowly fly overhead and enter the Shattered Domain.

Su Donghe suddenly exclaimed with emotion, "It's been three years, and this is still the first flying boat to go beyond the Great Wall."

Xu Zhongxing narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "It seems the imperial court is about to make a big move."

"We're not really going to have to fight them, are we?" Su Donghe asked.

Xu Zhongxing shook his head: "Don't you know His Majesty's temperament? The bigger the commotion, the less he actually wants to fight. If he really wants to fight, he will definitely send high-ranking officials to assassinate him first."

Su Donghe suddenly said, "Three years ago, we were driven back all the way to the interior by the Wu tribe. Now the imperial court has finally reopened the government. It's just a pity that we weren't the first to expand into the interior."

At this point, Su Donghe suddenly remembered Xu Zhongnian's family and immediately stopped talking.

Xu Zhongxing smiled helplessly and said, "We've worked together for three years, don't you know what kind of person I am? It's both a bad thing and a good thing that you're not from a prestigious family. Unlike me, I have to do many things I don't want to do, and I can't do many things I want to do."

Su Donghe asked in a deep voice, "I've never quite understood which is more important to you: the imperial court or your family?"

Xu Zhongxing said, “We may have different ideas, but in reality we are all the same. The imperial court and the powerful clans are not separate entities. The imperial court is manifested externally, like the human body, while the powerful clans are the pillars internally, like the skeleton.”

Su Donghe listened silently and said nothing more.

After the flying boat passed Hanyang Pass, its speed slowed down, and the captain clearly became nervous, constantly checking all the key parts of the boat.

Rows of armored soldiers, numbering over a thousand, sat cross-legged in the lower cabin. At that moment, a cultivator approached and shouted, "We are about to enter the Shattered Realm! Everyone, hold on tight to the ground to avoid injury!"

Each armored soldier had an iron ring on the ground next to him. At that moment, each person used the rope they carried to thread through the iron ring and fix themselves to the ground.

As the airship ventured deeper into the shattered realm, the ship began to rock violently. Dark clouds had gathered in the sky, with flashes of lightning visible within them.

Sweat beaded on the boat's forehead. He ordered the crew to activate the protective formation to its maximum, then went to the upper cabin and respectfully knocked on the door.

The cabin door opened silently by itself. Si Zhou dared not enter without permission and said at the door, "The Shattered Domain is dangerous. Our flying boat has attracted lightning from beyond the heavens. At the critical moment, we will probably have to ask you, sir, to take action and protect the flying boat. In addition, we are short-handed on board. If we want to activate the highest level formation, we will need twenty more Foundation Establishment cultivators."

The cabin was dimly lit and filled with mist. From deep within the mist came a cold voice: "Have General Zhang assign some officers to you. If you can't hold out for long, I will intervene myself."

The cabin door closed again, and the boatman, not daring to linger, hurried down to the lower deck to find the officer.

The leaden clouds in the sky grew denser and lower, and lightning flashed more and more frequently within them. Suddenly, a deafening thunderclap and a pale green bolt of lightning traversed the sky, striking the flying boat directly!

A bright protective shield appeared around the airship, keeping the lightning out. However, the lightning was extremely powerful, scattering countless sparks like a rain of stars, causing the shield to dim slightly.

The attack failed, and the lightning in the sky seemed to be enraged, with streaks of pale green lightning constantly falling, causing sparks to rain down on the airship's shield.

At this moment, someone let out a heavy snort, and then eight discs appeared around the flying boat. Each disc shot out a beam of golden light, which blasted into the clouds in the sky, instantly scattering the leaden clouds and revealing a huge hole thousands of feet in diameter.

But the leaden clouds in the sky surged wildly, filling the hole in the blink of an eye. Then, amidst continuous thunder, a thick, dark green lightning bolt, several meters thick, struck the flying boat!
The airship's protective shield only held out for a moment before being completely extinguished. Immediately afterwards, a raging fire broke out in the cabin, and pieces of the outer armor fell off.

A furious shout rang out from the boat, and eight discs reappeared. This time, all the golden beams of light landed on the dark green lightning. The two sides wore each other down, fighting for more than ten breaths before the dark green lightning beams were exhausted, gradually thinning and eventually disappearing.

The man in the boat angrily said, "This damn world, you'll be the one sooner or later..." He stopped mid-sentence, his voice suddenly becoming hoarse.

Ningxi Prefecture, Anzhao County, Dingbian City.

Dingbian City is located in Anzhao County, one of the four counties of Ningxi. It is both the county seat and the prefectural capital. But at this moment, the prefectural city is still a blank wasteland, with only countless camps scattered on the ruins.

Inside a makeshift wooden hall, Chen Dao and Yue Jinshan were looking at a sand table in front of them, where a bright green dot stood out. The western side of the sand table was entirely dark green, representing the Wu tribe.

Yue Jinshan pointed to three locations along the western edge of the dark green border and said, "We should establish border towns in each of these three locations, with at least 10,000 border troops stationed in each, to block the Wu tribe's eastward advance. Behind these three towns, we should also establish a large camp, with at least 50,000 troops, preferably 100,000, to provide support as needed. Only in this way can we ensure the border is not lost. This large camp should be located in..."

Yue Jinshan's hand remained suspended in mid-air, hesitant to tap it.

Chen Dao smiled slightly, pointed at the sand table, and said, "The best place is right here. What's wrong, General Yue? Has he become rusty in military strategy lately, even less capable than a scholar like me?"

The place Chen Dao pointed to was 700 li away from each of the three border towns, a distance that could be reached by a large army in a day in an emergency. However, the problem was that this place was only 400 li away from the blue light.

Yue Jinshan frowned and remained silent.

Chen Dao then said, "General Yue, we will have to work together for a while longer. His Majesty is determined to get this place, and we can't keep avoiding the topic forever."

Yue Jinshan snorted and said, "To be honest, although I hate that old thief Xuan Yue, I still have some respect for this kid. Even when I was young and fearless, I might not have dared to set up a boundary stone here. I couldn't do it, and neither could you, Chen Dao. Now that he's done it, we're here to establish a prefecture and county. What kind of nonsense is this? How will the history books record this?"

Chen Dao said, "Nothing will be written in the history books."

Yue Jinshan was taken aback, not understanding what it meant.

Chen Dao said, "History books are also written by people, or more precisely, by us. As long as the Great Tang Dynasty is not destroyed and the Western Jin Dynasty still exists, history books will only record that you and I established our own governments and counties and recovered lost territories. As for who first erected the boundary stone, there will not be a single word about it."

Yue Jinshan was even more surprised: "Can you really do such a thing?" Chen Dao smiled and said: "How can this be called doing a thing? Even sages edited the Spring and Autumn Annals. We are just imitating the ancient sages. Besides, it's just that it wasn't written into the history books. Do you know how many powerful ministers and treacherous officials in history were actually loyal and righteous people? They were just portrayed as treacherous ministers for one reason or another, leaving a bad name for ten thousand years. Compared with those people, our little thing is insignificant."

Yue Jinshan frowned and said, "What reason could there be to accuse the loyal of being treacherous? Could it be that I have offended you historians?"

"They didn't just offend a few historians, but a whole group of people. And among those people were the historians themselves."

Chen Dao paused for a moment before saying, "Throughout history, even kings have feared historians. It's not surprising that a few powerful ministers, who acted recklessly, met such an end."

Yue Jinshan's eyes widened upon hearing this, and after a moment he said, "If I were the King of Men, I would have all of you historians beheaded!"

Chen Dao smiled and said, "There are millions of scholars in the world, can you kill them all?"

Yue Jinshan was speechless for a moment.

Seeing Yue Jinshan's increasingly grim expression, Chen Dao laughed and said, "Although you and I are considered high-ranking officials, which sounds impressive, we're stationed in this godforsaken place. The so-called prefecture city is just a wooden hut. So, the idea of ​​being remembered in history is still a long way off. Let's finish our current tasks first before worrying about that."

Yue Jinshan thought about it and agreed, so he looked at the sand table again, but no matter how he looked at it, he could still see that green dot, which became more and more glaring.

"Lord Yue, there seems to be something fishy about that appointment list," Chen Dao said, offering a subtle reminder.

"I haven't had time to look at the list of civil servants in detail yet. Is there a problem?"

Chen Dao pointed at the map and said, "Yuan Qingyan, the prefect of Ningxi County, is upright, has a fiery temper, and is tough. He never forms cliques or engages in private activities. The county seat will be located in Quliu Town."

Then he pointed to another spot on the map, this time directly at the edge of a bluish light: "Magistrate Niu Jinbao, serving in Yong'an County."

"Yong'an? Is there such a county?" Although Yue Jinshan did not pay attention to the appointment of civil officials, terrain and topography were the foundation of military operations, so he was very familiar with all the cities and counties in Ningxi. However, no previous local gazetteer records had ever mentioned a county called Yong'an.

Chen Dao said, "Originally, there was no Yong'an. Later, the border region recruited refugees, and the refugees gathered and formed Yong'an City. When the imperial court learned of this, it established a new county called Yong'an and appointed a county magistrate. The county magistrate, Niu Jinbao, used to be the Right Chancellor's personal bodyguard. It is said that he once saved the Right Chancellor's life. He was probably promoted because of this and was sent to be the county magistrate."

"What kind of temperament does Niu Jinbao have?" Yue Jinshan asked.

Chen Dao said meaningfully, "What good temperament can a guard have?"

Yue Jinshan pondered, "Where does the Right Chancellor put his savior..."

Chen Dao did not respond, but simply let Yue Jinshan figure it out himself.

Meanwhile, on the shattered lands, a caravan was slowly traveling westward. A head popped out of a carriage window and asked, "How much longer until we reach Yong'an?"

The officer on horseback beside the carriage replied, "Lord Niu, it should still be five hundred li. We need to find a place to camp and rest tonight."

"Didn't we see any villages or anything along the way?"

"I did see two villages, but they were both abandoned and there wasn't a single person inside."

"This place is truly ghostly; there's not a soul in sight for hundreds of miles! I've heard there are quite a few people in Yong'an. Once I get to my post, I'll have to relax properly!"

The officer said, "Sir Niu, this seems to be against the law."

The man glared and said, "What kind of law is this! I saved the life of the Right Chancellor, and the King saw it. What law can possibly apply to me?"

The officer dared not say more. The group continued forward, moving slowly across the lush green land.

Quliu Town.

The town was unusually quiet today, with the Xu family's several mansions all tightly shut. The courtyard walls appeared deserted, but in reality, many figures were hidden among the walls.

The once bustling commercial street was now eerily quiet, with all the shops belonging to the Xu family closed. Shops belonging to other factions had initially opened, but sensing something amiss, they gradually closed again. However, the shopkeepers and their employees were hiding behind their doors, peeking out to see what was happening.

At this moment, the ground began to tremble slightly, and in the blink of an eye, the tremors became quite obvious, and the bowls, plates, and teacups on the table were making a clattering noise.

The road into town was shrouded in fog, and something seemed to be approaching from within the thick mist. Finally, a giant black horse broke through the fog and appeared before the townspeople.

The rider, wearing a silver demon mask, brandished his spear and shouted, "The Battle Heaven Gang is here! Everyone stand still! Anyone who moves will die!"

However, many of the residents of Quliu Town were bloodthirsty criminals, and someone immediately spat and cursed, "What the hell! Playing tricks!"

The knight didn't say much. He simply pointed his spear at the man, who suddenly screamed as if he had been grabbed by an invisible hand. Right before everyone's eyes, the man was deformed and shrunk until he was crushed into a cylindrical mass of flesh!

That person was also a Dao Foundation cultivator, and he was a figure of some influence in the town. Yet he died so silently and mysteriously that the onlookers didn't even know how he died!

Behind the masked knight, one rider after another emerged from the mist, completely surrounding Quliu Town.

(End of this chapter)