Longzang

Chapter 676 The Great Powers Are Actually Myself (Thanks to the Alliance Leader zzWhiteElephantSpore)

In the royal study, King Zhao is painting a landscape painting.

This was a masterpiece, ten feet long and three feet high, yet at this moment it only depicted a few mountain peaks. King Zhao painted with a stroke to the east and a stroke to the west, seemingly scribbling randomly, but the entire landscape resided in his heart.

Li Chengfeng stood beside him and recounted the entire course of the war in detail.

King Zhao did not interrupt him at all, and only after he finished speaking did he say, "Wei Yuan mobilized a total of 80,000 men?"

"Yes." Li Chengfeng replied without changing his expression or skipping a beat.

However, he didn't mention that, in terms of Body Forging cultivation, the truly elite force consisted of the three thousand vanguard soldiers wielding flying swords and spears, one thousand of the five thousand artillerymen, and the five thousand cavalrymen led by Wei Yuan himself, totaling nine thousand men. The remaining fifty thousand were pure laborers, merely at the Muscle Forging stage.

King Zhao finally looked up at him and said, "Fifty thousand against eighty thousand, it's normal to lose. Wei Yuan defeated the Rain Kingdom's army of millions with the weaker forces. How can that be compared to your petty skirmish? Now you know that there are many heroes in the world, and building a foundation is not so easy, right?"

Despite being nearly fifty, Li Chengfeng still appeared very obedient, saying, "Father's teachings are correct."

"Besides those two conditions, what else does Wei Yuan want?"

“I have dared to give my own spot to Wei Yuan, so that he can draw the ‘Phoenix Fire Immortal Palace Map’ once.”

"Did you draw anything?"

"I didn't see it clearly, but it must have been a handful of moss with mud on it."

King Zhao asked, "Where is the painting?"

Li Chengfeng then presented the immortal painting. King Zhao opened it, glanced at it, and then ordered it to be sent to the ancestral treasury for preservation, awaiting its next opening.

He then said, "Wild animals are probably not worth much. Even if he extracted the Imperial View Spirit Treasure, it would still be far inferior to a Azure Water Realm. You handled this matter very well with your quick thinking."

Li Chengfeng breathed a sigh of relief, instantly breaking out in a cold sweat.

King Zhao glanced at him and said, "What are you feeling guilty about?"

"I felt ashamed that outsiders had desecrated the sacred treasure passed down from our ancestors, and I was afraid you would blame me."

King Zhao snorted and said, "Who taught you all this nonsense? Stay away from those pedantic scholars! Humph, blasphemy? Over the past few hundred years, at least two hundred members of my Zhao clan have touched this treasure. How many of them have become useful and accomplished?"
Such unfilial descendants are the true blasphemers. You've actually done a good job using this treasure to protect the Azure Water Realm.”

Li Chengfeng never expected to receive praise. Overjoyed, he knew he had caught his father's eye. The only regret was that the Prince of Zhao possessed exceptional cultivation, even possessing the potential to ascend to the throne. He wouldn't need to consider the throne before he turned one hundred.

Thinking of this, Li Chengfeng made a firm resolution that he must never let his father know what Wei Yuan had taken.

At this moment, he was already recalling in his mind that when Wei Yuan drew it out, the phoenix fire rushed towards them, and most people probably didn't see what was drawn out, but some people's expressions were different.

Li Chengfeng made a note of the three people, intending to deal with them secretly as soon as he returned, so as not to leave any future troubles.

King Zhao then said, “My tens of thousands of Zhao soldiers cannot stay in foreign lands for too long, otherwise their morale will be low. Tens of thousands of loads of silk is not a big deal, you can take care of it in a moment. You can use those flying boats for a few more days.”

Li Chengfeng was overjoyed: "Thank you, Father!"

King Zhao asked, "Is there anything else you wish to say?"

“There is one more thing. I have already written down the shape, power, formation method, and usage procedures of the weapons used by Wei Yuan this time, and bound them into a book. They are all in here. I think that this kind of weapon called a cannon is a war god. We need to catch up quickly.”

A smile finally appeared on King Zhao's face. He said, "It's quite good that you could think of this. I was originally thinking that if you couldn't defend Bishui this time, I would put you in the position of Minister of Works for a few years after you returned, so that you could get to know the foundation of the country's operation."

"The realm still exists, so you will remain its ruler. The border region of Gefeng County is rich in minerals, and you will also be in charge of it. I will provide you with another 100,000 new troops and equipment. Train them well; it won't be long before we have another battle with Wei Yuan."

"Thank you, Father!"

……

Azure Sky.

Wei Yuan returned victorious and ordered a camp to be built next to the town of Zhike, where all the Zhao soldiers were housed. Wei Yuan only provided tents and building materials; the Zhao army was to build the camp themselves.

These Zhao soldiers were indeed elite troops. They built a camp in half a day. The layout was well-organized and all kinds of facilities were in place. Moreover, they only set up sentry posts and did not set up any defenses.

Wei Yuan nodded secretly, seeing that these Zhao soldiers were sensible, and no longer suspected anything.

In this battle, Zhao's elite army numbered 50,000. 10,000 were killed on the spot, 30,000 were wounded, and only 10,000 remained unscathed. Moreover, all 10,000 of them had their armor and weapons removed, leaving them completely defenseless against the heavily armored soldiers.

Wei Yuan then ordered someone to bring food over, and at the same time, a dozen beautiful female disciples from the medical clinic arrived with several hundred apprentices to treat the injured.

The fact that the meal included meat was one thing, but what truly astonished the Zhao soldiers was the sight of these beautiful doctors dressed in white. So this was the kind of treatment Qingming received even after being wounded; no wonder everyone fought to the death on the battlefield.

At this moment, Wei Yuan summoned the cultivators of Taichu Palace to retrieve the Phoenix Blood Longevity Moss for analysis. He had only used his Qi Observation Technique to get a general idea, concluding that it was a celestial object. A more detailed analysis by a specialist was needed.

Upon seeing the moss, Xu Henshui's face instantly turned green. She cautiously approached and gently sniffed it, then closed her eyes. Her delicate face flushed red, and she swayed as if drunk. Yu Zhizhuo's golden bird only dared to watch from afar; if it got any closer, it would let out a mournful cry. Fire overcomes metal, and the Divine Phoenix, being the queen of all birds, is a natural counter to the golden bird.

However, despite its instincts, the bird has become more sensitive and has a more accurate grasp of the properties of its prey.

All the cultivators in the Taichu Palace were completely focused. Even just sensing this immortal spiritual energy originating from a top-tier divine beast would greatly help them comprehend the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

Xu Henshui shook for a long time, then suddenly exclaimed, "I know! This is the main ingredient in that ancient prescription!"

Which ancient prescription?

"Kun Yuan Longevity Pill!"

Wei Yuan felt the name was familiar. After searching his memory, he recalled that there was indeed such an ancient formula, and he had comprehended its last true meaning, recording it in the mundane world. One of the three main ingredients looked like this piece of moss.

In ancient prescriptions, moss represents longevity, while phoenix blood moss leans towards immortality. Both share the same fundamental meaning, differing only slightly in subtle ways. However, both can indeed be used as primary ingredients in elixirs.

Wei Yuan had assumed the ancient prescription contained only extinct medicinal herbs, so he hadn't paid much attention. Unexpectedly, he'd managed to obtain a main ingredient today. Speaking of which, the Phoenix Fire Immortal Palace must also be an ancient place, long since destroyed; only in such a place could one possibly find extinct items.

Having determined the purpose of the Phoenix Blood Longevity Moss, it was time for Consort Yuan to return to the capital of Jin.

The next day was the day Consort Yuan was to depart for the capital, so Wei Yuan visited her in her room a day in advance.

"Can't we stay?" Wei Yuan tried to make a final effort.

Consort Yuan sighed, "After all, it was the King's decree. Putting everything else aside, if I don't go back, you will immediately rebel. Now is not the time."

Wei Yuan nodded, then realized something was wrong—why was he nodding?

Consort Yuan covered her mouth and chuckled, saying, "You don't need to worry too much about me. Before I came, I was doing just the same thing, wasn't I? The Crown Prince does have some tricks up his sleeve, but I'm not someone to be trifled with. Even when his mother was still alive, she couldn't beat me. Now that he's all alone, I still have the ability to protect myself."

"What if he uses force..." Wei Yuan was still worried.

Consort Yuan rolled her eyes at her, "Do you think everyone is like you?"

Wei Yuan felt somewhat aggrieved. When had he ever used force?

Consort Yuan laughed and said, "Alright, let's not talk about these unpleasant things. The stronger you are outside, the less trouble I will have in the palace. I heard you defeated Li Chengfeng. Tell me about it in detail?"

Wei Yuan recounted the entire battle without reservation.

After listening quietly, Consort Yuan asked, "In your opinion, what is the combat strength of Li Chengfeng's new army?"

Wei Yuan said, "Twenty thousand Refining Spirits and thirty thousand Jade Bones, well-trained and with strict military discipline, are comparable to the Nine Armies of the Great Tang. Apart from the Dragon Soaring and Dragon Guard armies, our Qingming army can only be compared to them with about ten thousand men, so the total number is about the same."

Li Chengfeng was defeated because he was completely ignorant of artillery tactics. He engaged in direct combat in open terrain, deploying a dense formation, and was thus routed by a single artillery barrage. If both sides had only used bows, crossbows, and swords, I would have needed at least 200,000 men to encircle and attack from all sides to guarantee victory.

Consort Yuan said, "As you said, this army can defeat Yue Jinshan's Northern Frontier Cavalry in a head-on confrontation, one-on-one. The new army trained by the Prince of Ying is also considered elite, but I'm afraid they will still be defeated even in a four-on-one situation."

Wei Yuan was taken aback: "Li Chengfeng is that strong?"

"If he weren't strong, would the King of Zhao have given him 100,000 elite troops and the Biyue Boundary Stone?"

Upon careful consideration, Wei Yuan realized that Li Chengfeng's troops, if placed on the battlefield, could easily defeat three to four hundred thousand ordinary soldiers. And he himself had routed the enemy with minimal losses. Thinking about it this way…

Wei Yuan was somewhat surprised: "So I'm pretty strong too?"

Consort Yuan rolled her eyes at him and said, "What do you think, Military Governor! If you weren't so powerful, would I have come to your territory to avoid trouble?"

Wei Yuan suddenly slapped his thigh and said, "I'm already this strong, why should I still be bullied?"

"Who bullied you?"

Wei Yuan then said that when he brought Consort Yuan back to Qingming, he had sent other people to capture the remaining assassins.

As a result, they were intercepted on the road by an army. The general of that army was extremely arrogant. He produced a handwritten edict from the Left Prime Minister, which also had the joint signatures of the Right Prime Minister and several Grand Secretaries. With this, he forcibly took away all the assassins.

At the time, Wei Yuan was not careful enough; he hadn't brought his clothes with him, so he sent the Qingming Army instead of the Mietian Gang, and had no choice but to hand over the assassin. Otherwise, Wei Yuan felt he was close to starting a rebellion.

Now that he had realized his true strength, Wei Yuan finally understood why he was being bullied when he was already so powerful. Shouldn't he be the one bullying others?
Wei Yuan asked himself, "Now that I have power, will I bully others?"

He can.

Wei Yuan never lies to himself.

So Wei Yuan said to Consort Yuan, "Let's not rush to set off tomorrow. I need to make some arrangements."

(End of this chapter)