Longzang

Chapter 500 Karma is Hard to Eliminate
Inside the cultivation room, Zhang Sheng and Su Xuejing discussed profound mysteries. Both were at extremely high levels of cultivation, speaking rapidly and without wasting a single word. They quickly arrived at the topic of whether to cultivate the One Sword or the Myriad Swords. Each held their own opinion, and neither could convince the other.

This kind of situation is very common in philosophical debates. Generally speaking, if one cannot convince the other, they will usually have to have a physical contest to see who is more powerful. But since Zhang Sheng is currently undergoing a period of cultivation and cannot have a physical contest, the two can only continue arguing.

Wei Yuan realized that the more gentle the sword cultivators appeared on the surface, the more stubborn they were at heart. Su Xuejing, with her smiling face, refused to give up, debating every word with Zhang Sheng earnestly. As they debated, the two had strayed far from the topic, yet they were like two stubborn donkeys, neither willing to give up.

Wei Yuan and Shangguan Qianmo were getting drowsy listening to the game, so Wei Yuan took out a chessboard, and Shangguan Qianmo immediately perked up. The two of them started playing chess together.

Shangguan Qianmo was a guest, so she played white and made the first move. As soon as she placed her piece, Wei Yuan immediately placed a piece right next to her.

Shangguan Qianmo was furious and retaliated fiercely. The two fought for more than fifty moves, and Shangguan Qianmo's pieces were completely defeated, resulting in a loss in the opening.

Her temper flared up instantly, and she felt something rushing to the top of her head. She shouted, "I was careless just now, that doesn't count, let's try again!"

The two started a new game, and Wei Yuan immediately placed a piece on top of it. After about sixty moves, Shangguan Qianmo lost.

In the third game, Wei Yuan's first move was still a set...

The fourth round, pasting...

After what seemed like an eternity, Shangguan Qianmo finally lost his patience and yelled, "Get away from me!"

Wei Yuan did as she said, moving his body back a little further away from her.

Shangguan Qianmo was so angry that she almost couldn't breathe. She stared at Wei Yuan, wishing she could pounce on him and bite him.

Fortunately, she finally realized that the gap between their chess skills was too great, so she resigned and said, "Judging from your playing style, it's like you've scribbled ten games. Have you studied any chess manuals?"

Wei Yuan hadn't expected to have this moment of public display of skill, so he quickly sat up straight, feigning shyness, and said, "You mean that chess manual... actually, it was me who played it."

Shangguan Qianmo had originally intended to ask Wei Yuan for guidance on the Ten Games of Graffiti, but upon hearing that the game record was actually written by Wei Yuan, she suddenly found the art of chess utterly tasteless. Cultivating swordsmanship seemed far better. At least then, anyone who dared to approach her despite her displeasure could be slain with a single sword strike.

Seeing that Zhang Sheng and Su Xuejing were arguing endlessly, Wei Yuan summoned Feng Tingyu to accompany him, while he left the main peak and went to the southern part of Qingming to pick up the refugees.

In the southern part of Qingming, a special town called Zhike Town was built. It was originally intended as a stop for caravans from the southern Zhao Kingdom before they entered Qingming. Only caravans that had been inspected were allowed to pass.

At this time, the Nanfang Zhike Town was bustling with activity, with countless refugees gathering there and more arriving one after another.

More than 50,000 migrants were stranded in the town and were all moved to open spaces outside the town.

Wei Yuan set up ten soup kitchens in one go, providing each person with two meals a day, each consisting of a large bowl of thick soup and a steamed bun. The quality of this soup distribution was at least three or four times better than that of soup kitchens in other prefectures and counties, if not seven or eight times better. Therefore, once the refugees arrived in Qingming, none of them wanted to leave.

Next to the open space, there were seven or eight tables, and behind each table sat a scholar who was registering the refugees one by one.

Several loud-voiced Foundation Establishment cultivators channeled their Dao power, repeatedly shouting: "If you want to join Qingming, joining the army is the fastest way. The Jiedushi (military governor) has shown exceptional leniency, promising that as long as you participate in one battle, you will be granted the status of a soldier, and from then on, you will be one of us in Qingming! After the three battles, you will be a commoner! Families with members who have joined the army, as long as one Body Forging cultivator in their family, will be granted a spot for Foundation Establishment training."

"The people of Qingming receive daily rations!"

These words were repeated over and over, piquing the interest of countless refugees who surrounded the minor officials, bombarding them with questions. A long queue formed in front of the registration desk. Seeing that the line was far too long, several monks brought in new tables and chairs, preparing to add a dozen more.

The migrants who registered for military service were gathered at another location, and once five hundred people were gathered, they were taken away in a group. The gathering place was just a dozen or so feet away from the migrant camp, where several large pots were set up, filled with stewed meat.

When someone is brought over, the monks standing by the pot will give them a large steamed bun, break it open, and pour in a spoonful of stewed meat.

Not far away, the refugees could clearly see that the monk's spoon was filled with solid meat, with almost no soup. The soldiers ate with gusto, their mouths greasy and their eyes shining.

When Wei Yuan arrived, he saw Li Zhizheng personally in charge of the matter, directing the cultivators to receive, settle, and distribute the refugees, and everything was in good order.

Wei Yuan came to Li Zhi's side and asked, "Brother Li, what are you doing here? Your troops have suffered heavy casualties. Shouldn't you go and appease the troops?" Li Zhi replied, "The core members of these troops are all veterans of Southern Qi. I can leave the appeasement and relief to my subordinates. These refugees are all from Zhao, and many of them have migrated from my territory. It's not easy for me to cause trouble here."

As expected, many of the displaced people who had initially intended to stir up trouble settled down upon seeing Li Zhi, and many eagerly joined the army. Only a small number remained hesitant and observed. However, having arrived in Qingming, they could no longer leave.

Li Zhi said, "There are now 80,000 refugees who have arrived in Qingming. Only 30,000 came from Zhao. More will follow."

Most of the migrants came from Li Zhi's territory, as they were the fastest to organize. The migrants from the nomadic population, on the other hand, migrated much more slowly.

Apart from the Zhao state, the caravan that Wei Yuan sent to the Jin state had only recently set off, and the post stations along the way had not yet been established. It would take at least a month before the people were transported back from the Jin state.

But now, the battle has killed 200,000 civilians, and such a huge gap must be filled as soon as possible.

Wei Yuan asked, "What are the rules of Cui Shutong, the garrison commander of Yuyang?"

Li Zhi said, "I sent him some gifts, and he accepted them. So he neither encourages nor hinders us, letting us recruit on our own. Today, news came from Zhao that they have recruited more than 10,000 refugees and are sending them here."

"This recruitment method might be too slow; we need to think of another way."

"Then what do you think?"

Wei Yuan then said, "Since Brother Li was able to deliver the gifts to Uncle Cui, it means he approves of this matter. Why don't you ask Brother Li to make another trip and tell Uncle Cui that I want to buy refugees!"

Li Zhi didn't seem surprised; he simply asked, "How do I buy it?"

"Brother Li, what price would you accept?"

Li Zhi then said, "Five taels of silver per person, only men and women of good health, no elderly, one tael per child. We will cover our own transportation, food and lodging on the road. In that case, five taels for each person, and we will cover our own expenses on the road, which will probably be another five taels, for a total of ten taels per person."

"I'll use part of my armor as a shield?"

"That would be perfect, and we can even ask for a higher price." Li Zhi was well-versed in the military and political operations of the Zhao Kingdom. The armor produced by Qingming was always in short supply, and the Zhao Kingdom was in a period of expansion, with the army being expanded from top to bottom, and a major war against the mountain people was brewing. They could take on as much armor as they wanted.

Moreover, for every set of Azure Nether Breastplates that Cui Shutong acquired, he could resell to the army for thirty taels of silver. Even if he had to distribute some of it, he could still earn at least twenty taels. So even if the armor was priced higher, each additional set would bring him more profit.

Wei Yuan then said, "Alright, let's do it the way of exchanging one breastplate for five hundred refugees."

Li Zhi glanced at the sky and said, "There's no time to lose, I'll head to Zhao right now."

Wei Yuan stopped him, saying, "Brother Li, this matter will generate a lot of karma. After you finish talking and come back, don't get involved in the affairs of the refugees."

Li Zhi smiled slightly and said, "My Way of the Human King is best at dealing with karma, so there's no need to worry."

Having said that, he ordered someone to bring a flying boat and boarded it with one of Faxiang's subordinates, heading straight for the State of Zhao.

Watching the flying boat disappear into the horizon, Wei Yuan sighed inwardly. No matter how strong Li Zhi's path to becoming a ruler was, it was impossible for him to completely resolve all karma. Karma was the most difficult thing to deal with; throughout history, countless powerful figures had acted with trepidation, and none had dared to be negligent. Li Zhi's words were merely to reassure him.

Li Zhi brought these refugees to Qingming, where they would soon be sent to the battlefield. Many of them would not survive the first battle, so their karma would be very strong.

Although Wei Yuan possessed the Red Lotus Universal Salvation Mantra, everything has its advantages and disadvantages. Wei Yuan vaguely sensed that every time he used this mantra, he would take a step closer to becoming an Arhat, gain more karmic connection with Arhats, and inexplicably develop the thought of universally saving all sentient beings.

If he used this mantra a few more times, not to mention whether those guys from beyond the heavens would come after him, Wei Yuan suspected that he might have to become a monk and live a life of saving all living beings.

(End of this chapter)