Longzang

Chapter 529 Cooperation Direction
"What? That magical treasure has been stolen?" Prince Jin put down the memorial in his hand in astonishment, his face full of disbelief.

Liu Quangong, who was standing nearby, said, "That's the latest news."

"What's the truth?"

Liu Quangong lowered his head and said, "As to be honest, I'm afraid no one knows the truth."

The Prince of Jin was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed and said, "I haven't even had time to draft the decree ordering him to present the treasure, and this celestial treasure has already been lost. It really was lost at the right time."

"Isn't this just right? If this imperial edict were issued, it might damage the dignity of the court."

The Prince of Jin laughed and said, "A celestial treasure of this caliber is something I can't obtain, let alone any immortal who would lower themselves to ask for it. Do you think Wei Yuan would obediently deliver it just because I issue an imperial edict? You don't believe it, and neither do I. And the person who wants me to draft this edict won't believe it either."

Liu Quangong lowered his head and remained silent.

The Prince of Jin suddenly said, "Go and bring in all the memorials that have been sent in."

Liu Quangong hesitated for a moment.

"Go!"

Liu Quangong left in a hurry and returned in a hurry, carrying more than a dozen memorials. Prince Jin read them one by one and said slowly, "Is that all?"

"That's all."

"Alright, you may leave. Men, prepare the carriage; I am going to Chunhua Palace."

A moment later, the Prince of Jin and Consort Yuan sat facing each other. He teased the little Prince of Chu in Consort Yuan's arms for a while, and then said, "Have you heard? Wei Yuan's magic treasure is lost."

"What kind of magical treasure? Is it very powerful?" Consort Yuan asked.

The Prince of Jin said, "It can reduce a person's lifespan by ten thousand years. Isn't that amazing? However, it's not too surprising that the celestial treasure was lost. What surprised me was that several memorials were also lost."

Consort Yuan finally shifted her gaze from Prince Chu to Prince Jin and asked, "What could those memorials possibly say?"

"If I'm not mistaken, he should be advising me to issue an imperial decree to Wei Yuan, ordering him to present this celestial treasure as tribute."

A glint flashed in Consort Yuan's eyes, and she said nonchalantly, "It seems things are not peaceful in the palace, and not in the court either."

……

Wei Yuan watched as boxes of breastplates were loaded onto trucks and then exchanged for boxes of immortal silver.

A dozen or so leaders from various chambers of commerce, powerful organizations, and large and small families gathered around him, exploring possible avenues for cooperation.

Wei Yuan was very patient, saying, "...I need silk, all kinds of different types of spirit silk, I'll take as much as you have. If you don't want immortal silver, you can use silk to exchange for other resources...And spirit wood, not necessarily high grade or age, thirty years old is enough, twenty years old is fine too...Refugees, this is the most important. If we can transport a total of ten thousand refugees here, then we will open up more trade..."

Suppressing bandits? That's impossible, mainly because we can't defeat them... It's best not to even think about it, you really can't win... But the bandits here are very reasonable. If you're really worried, you can hire a team to escort your caravan. In the Western Regions, the best men become bandits, the second-best become government soldiers...

"...It's alright if you don't want to hire bandits. In our Western Regions, bandits are all law-abiding. They'll only rob caravans of 20% at most. If you've been robbed once, the other bandits won't bother again..."

The group chatted for a while and were all quite satisfied, seeing endless business opportunities and prospects for cooperation.

The head of a small family, a beautiful woman in her early thirties, leaned towards Wei Yuan and said softly, "Lord Wei, you must take care of your safety! If something were to happen to someone like you, wouldn't all the girls in the world be heartbroken?"

The woman spoke with a trembling voice, her eyes alluring, her voice as sweet as boiled honey. If Wei Yuan hadn't been so famous, she probably would have posted it directly.

Wei Yuan smiled slightly and said, "Everyone, there's no need to worry. There aren't many Dharma Aspects in the world that can defeat me."

Everyone admired Wei Yuan's domineering presence, which gave them even more confidence in the deal. Finally, Wei Yuan added an impromptu activity, ordering his men to take the group of leaders and clan heads to the morgue where the corpses of the witch clan were stored.

Everyone was seeing a million corpses for the first time. Looking at the vast, neatly stacked mountain of corpses, they finally understood what level of battles Qingming had fought in the past.

Amidst the shock, one of the family heads suddenly asked, "Lord Wei, can we win this battle?"

Wei Yuan looked northwest, and with his eyesight, he could vaguely see the verdant greenery stretching to the horizon in that direction. The power of heaven and earth in the Witch Domain was like a towering mountain range, overlooking the azure sky.

Wei Yuan suddenly laughed and said, "Of course I can win! When have I ever lost?"

Although many people thought Wei Yuan was boasting, seeing his sunny smile inexplicably gave them confidence. Indeed, Wei Yuan had never suffered a defeat in leading troops into battle.

A patriarch called out, “Lord Wei, although my Lu family is small, we are willing to do our part to resist the foreign invaders! This time I have brought a thousand armored men, which I am willing to give to you free of charge! These men are all servants of my Lu family, loyal, reliable, and fearless.” Wei Yuan was immediately moved and said, “Patriarch, your kindness is timely, so I will accept it. I will reserve the best piece of land for the Lu family in Dongzhike Town and Yong’an City.”

Other caravans and families also donated people; those with soldiers sent soldiers, and those without soldiers sent refugees. Wei Yuan quickly gathered nearly ten thousand skilled soldiers and almost one hundred thousand refugees.

After everyone had left, Bao Yun appeared beside Wei Yuan and said with emotion, "They really went all out. It seems that people's hearts are worth winning."

These families and caravans are all small to medium-sized forces; they can only muster a thousand people at most. It would probably take them several years of business to recoup what they donated to Qingming.

Wei Yuan understood that while a small part of these people wanted to build a good relationship with Qing Ming, the majority of their motivation stemmed from seeing the mountain of Wu Clan corpses and their desire to contribute to the fight against the Wu Clan.

Wei Yuan hadn't expected that these people who valued business and profit could also have such a selfless side. He sighed, "Whenever I feel a little disheartened, I always see something uplifting."

Wei Yuan took a deep breath and said, "There are still some minor troubles. Once those are dealt with, we can focus on dealing with the Witch Clan."

At the Bianning County Prefectural Governor's Office, Sun Chaoen was hosting a grand banquet to entertain the imperial envoy and his entourage.

Seated at the head of the table was a dignified-looking civil official, his expression solemn, his brows haughty, and his face devoid of any smile. He made no attempt to conceal his disdain when he looked at Sun Chaoen. He raised his wine cup and said, “It’s truly remarkable that such a small place as Baifeng Academy could produce a talent like Lord Sun. Lord Sun, you’ve worked so hard to reach your current position; you should be diligent and conscientious in serving the court. In your spare time, read more of the classics. What your Baifeng Academy teaches is probably only enough to make you a county magistrate.”

Sun Chaoen's smile remained unchanged as he repeatedly said, "Lord Zhu's admonition is correct. This humble official must study hard. I will go and read Lord Zhang's collection of works later."

The civil official snorted, put down his cup without drinking, and said, "I should be on my way too."

Afterwards, the imperial envoy set off, and Sun Chaoen escorted them all the way to the city gate. Seeing that the envoy had already walked several miles and was about to disappear at the end of the road, Sun Chaoen still stood there, unwilling to return to the city. His attitude was so respectful that it could not be more extreme.

Inside the delegation's convoy, the official sat upright in his carriage, seemingly lost in thought. The two accompanying civil officials sitting opposite him said, "Lord Sun is still standing at the city gate!"

Another person said, "This Lord Sun is also a scholar..."

The official suddenly opened his eyes and sneered, "What kind of scholar comes from a small academy I've never even heard of?"

The two attendants were taken aback, then quickly changed their tune and echoed him. Although much of the silver in their pockets was from Sun Chaoen's gifts, their master was arrogant and haughty, and they were already doing Sun Chaoen a favor by saying a few nice words.

At this moment, an old man sitting next to the official suddenly opened his eyes, his voice filled with murderous intent, and said coldly, "There's a murderous aura here. It seems that this Western Region is not yet peaceful!"

The official opened his eyes and said coldly, "There are actually Dharma Aspect cultivators robbing us? Heh, I'd like to see just how many Dharma Aspect cultivators the bandits in the Western Regions have."

The old man said, "It's been a long time since I've stretched my muscles and bones. Nephew, let's go and meet the master here!"

"As it should be."

The two slowly stepped out of the carriage and saw a group of masked knights blocking their way. Above the knights' heads stood twelve heavenly soldiers!
The two attendants who disembarked from the carriage were momentarily dazed. Were these the twelve Dharma forms?!

They immediately realized that this was not the twelve Dharma forms, but rather one person who had cultivated the twelve Heavenly Soldier Dharma forms. However, the pressure of the latter was no less than that of the twelve basic Dharma forms.

The old man and the official's expressions both turned serious. The old man bowed and said, "With your cultivation level, you are certainly not an unknown person. Why do you want to become a bandit?"

The knight laughed and said, "It is precisely because I am no nobody that I have become a bandit! Enough with the nonsense, are you imperial envoys from the capital?"

The official said sternly, "Since you know our origins, why do you still dare to rob us? Could it be that..."

The knight interrupted him abruptly, shouting, "Good that it's you! Attack!"

The official, enraged, laughed coldly and shouted, "With just you by yourself, I'm afraid..."

The knight interrupted him again: "Who said I was alone?"

In an instant, the surrounding world changed dramatically, with winds rising and clouds surging. Suddenly, a cluster of orchids bloomed in the air, their fragrance filling the air, a sight to behold! Then, a giant scorpion carrying a medicine cauldron and alchemy furnace rushed out from the orchids, leaving behind patches of scorched earth in its wake. A small golden bird circled and danced in the air, its golden feathers fluttering down with the celestial music as it flapped its wings.

Around them, another enormous immortal sword appeared, standing tall and imposing, each with a different aura, yet all exuding a murderous intent.

Amidst the clouds and mist, three mythical beasts from the mountains and seas appeared and disappeared, their enormous eyes half-open, as deep as the sea, exuding a primordial aura.

So many strange phenomena left the entire imperial envoy delegation and the thousand guards dumbfounded, as well as the people on the city walls of Bianning County!
As numerous Dharma images surged forward, the earth suddenly trembled violently. A hurricane soared upwards, throwing many soldiers into the sky. The imperial envoy's carriage was flung hundreds of feet away, landing and shattering into pieces.

Moments later, the wind stopped and the clouds dispersed, leaving the land in ruins. The imperial envoy, the guards, and the bandits had all vanished.

Sun Chaoen then turned around and leisurely returned to the city.

(End of this chapter)