Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 479 Choosing Xiaoshan General to Break Through

"This time, quite a few disciples have been killed or wounded again,"

Zhou Yixiu, still manipulating the spirit fields on Wild Fox Mountain, held the battle report delivered by the Golden Feather Owl, which he had just obtained. His face was filled with sorrow. After sighing, he turned back to look at the moon ferns that were about to ripen all over the mountain and remained silent for a long time.

Zhou Xinran, who had specially taken leave to come over, took the memorial scroll from her father's hands, carefully read through it, then let out a long sigh and spoke up to comfort him:

"According to what our sect leader said, the Red Heart Sect of Fazhou, a prestigious sect with a thousand-year history of Golden Core cultivation, has simply disappeared. Even if our Chongming Sect loses some disciples, it is still much better than other sects."

Zhou Yixiu stopped talking, left Zhou Xinran behind, picked up the spirit hoe that had been with him for over a hundred years, and strode into the spirit field.

He had cultivated for nearly a hundred years, and apart from his mastery of the art of farming, he had nothing else to boast about. He could be considered the only one among the many elders of the Chongming Sect who had not been tainted by bloodshed.

Now Zhou Yixiu is getting old and won't live much longer. She could be enjoying her grandchildren, but she still can't let go of the crops she's tending.

According to his thinking, there should be a day of peace and prosperity in the future, and the Chongming Emperor should have more stability and prosperity then.

Ultimately, how many respectable families in this world accumulate their wealth solely through conquest? Zhou Yixiu, having lived an honest life, felt more at ease knowing that spiritual plants should grow bit by bit from their own spiritual fields.

The battle of Fazhou was quite large, and the Chongming Sect even sent several of its own farming masters, who were responsible for tending the sacred fields, to the battlefield.

At this time, the farmers in the middle of the spiritual field were mostly hired from outside. When they saw Zhou Yixiu arrive, they immediately stopped what they were doing, bowed, and showed their respect.

After all, apart from his fondness for strong liquor and beautiful women, this old cultivator had no other faults. Compared to the other elders in the Chongming Sect, he was indeed a very approachable person.

Perhaps because they were all from the same background as independent cultivators, Zhou Yixiu took good care of them. He was even willing to generously teach them superior farming skills as long as they worked honestly and sincerely sought instruction. Therefore, these people had no reason not to respect him.

In fact, not only did these farmers have a good impression of Zhou Yixiu, but even the more than four hundred families in Hanya Mountain had a very good opinion of this old cultivator.

It was indeed reasonable for Master Kang to place this old man in Wild Fox Mountain. With one being a scholar and the other a warrior, one strict and the other kind, the combination of kindness and authority was enough to win the respect of all the families, so that they could settle down and honestly contribute to the restoration of Chongming Sect.

Now that Yuan Jin has slaughtered countless people in Mugen Mountain and is now extremely powerful, it is likely that the more than 400 families in Hanya Mountain will not be unafraid and disrespectful in the future. However, when Zhou Yixiu is no longer in charge, it is something that Headmaster Kang should carefully consider when choosing someone to lead the Huairou region.

Zhou Yixiu nodded slightly in return. Afterwards, the old man didn't say much, but simply explained the matters that needed to be handled:

"Feng Ma, Gou Shengyi, you two will lead Team A to Huangshi Gorge today. There are 160 acres of Bone-Cold Flowers there that need pollination. Be careful, and make sure to calculate the time carefully when pollinating. Don't misjudge the wind direction."

The Chongming Sect's Beast Garden recently sent down a batch of low-grade first-tier gray geese, which were originally intended to be sent to Jiachou Military Stronghold for various families to rent. I, as the head of the Beast Garden, have sent them to Wild Fox Mountain. You can go and rent them later.

"Let me make this clear beforehand: if you perform the task perfectly, I, the elder, will not ask for the rent; but if you are half-hearted and do a sloppy job, then don't wait for me to say anything, go and hand over the rent to Chongming Xiaolou yourself."

"Yes!" The two cultivators whose names had been called immediately beamed with joy, marveling at Elder Zhou's truly benevolent character. Zhou Yixiu had no time to concern himself with their feelings; seeing them excitedly depart with a group of cultivator apprentices behind them, he turned back again:
"Batang and Maogesong, you two take Team B to the west slope to check out Chase Valley. The yellow heart grass there is overgrown. I've prepared a prescription; you two should follow the prescription to make a batch first and test its effectiveness. If it's not effective, report back immediately."

The entire batch of tea-colored wine has already been allocated to the brewing department of the Zongnei Baiyilou. Cai Keqing is waiting to have the wine made and delivered to Chongming Xiaolou. Afterwards, there's the grand feast after the victory, which also requires urgent supplies. Neither of these matters can be delayed; we mustn't let anything go wrong!

"Rest assured, Elder, we two would never dare to shirk our duty!"

Compared to the assignment given to Team A, the task assigned to Team B is indeed much more important. Of course, the Chongming Sect's reward and punishment system is always comprehensive, and entrusting important tasks to them is a sign of trust. They will surely not lose out, as they will be rewarded for their hard work.

After the two men received their orders, they left satisfied. Zhou Yixiu, without rest, continued:
"Fang Yi and Feng Yuanban, you two will lead Team C."

"Liu Gu and Yang Jiufeng, leading Team Ding."

Now, the Chongming Sect's spiritual fields are quite large. Zhou Yixiu only gave a brief explanation, which took quite some time. Finally, after reviewing all the matters on the spiritual scroll in his hand, he turned to the farmer, whose spiritual field had very little land left, and instructed him:
"Do your job well. Following the advice of this elder and the sect leader, once the army has returned in triumph, the sect will consider granting permission to take in innocent rogue cultivators with similar skills."

Upon hearing this, all the farmers became even more excited, and even the spirit hoes they held, which were originally very heavy, seemed to become lighter. The thick, hard-to-crack rock layers and the intricate root systems of weeds also seemed to become somewhat obedient and cute.

Before these teachers could rejoice for long, Zhou Yixiu's voice turned stern: "Don't just be secretly happy. This examination is quite difficult. If you think you can enter easily, you are making a big mistake."

In the Chongming Tower branch of Jiachou Military Camp, there are several copies of the Farming Master's Manual that I obtained from the sect for sale. If you are willing, you may buy one and read them together.

Those notes may be crude, but compared to you empty-headed people who only know how to hoe the ground, they contain genuine insights. Don't underestimate them.

Otherwise, if you miss this opportunity, you might remain a wandering cultivator until you die, and all your regrets will be in vain.

"Thank you, Elder!!"

Everyone present knew right from wrong. They understood that if it weren't for Zhou Yixiu's intervention, those important figures from the Chongming Sect wouldn't have shown such compassion by coming to their aid as insignificant rogue cultivators. Therefore, their gratitude was heartfelt and genuine.

After Zhou Yixiu finished speaking, he ignored the rogue cultivators and farmers in front of him.

Recruiting rogue cultivators with expertise in various arts into the sect is a major event that could change the sect's structure. In fact, the elders have not yet reached a consensus, but Zhou Yixiu felt that Headmaster Kang was not as insistent as before.

If we follow Zhou Yixiu's advice, recruiting these relatively honest cultivators into the sect is only the first step. Later, we can also recruit rogue cultivators into other areas such as alchemy, weapon crafting, talisman crafting, array crafting, puppet crafting, and even the crucial battle hall.

However, this matter still needs to be considered carefully. Given the pragmatic and down-to-earth nature of Master Kang, it may be difficult to make it happen.

After tending to her for less than half an hour, Zhou Yixiu saw Mo Ku coming in from outside.

Although this former outer disciple of Chongming Sect still dressed simply, he already had his own spiritual field. An old cultivator in Hujiaba, Hanya Mountain, used his connections to marry his daughter to Mo Ku as his principal wife.

The old man from the Hu family practically emptied his coffers to send a large dowry, and Mo Ku immediately went from being all alone to becoming the head of a small family.

He has no shortage of spiritual fields, servants, retainers, and guests, which is quite comfortable and would make many self-made people envious. He no longer needs to work hard like these rogue cultivators to earn a meager living.

"What brings you here today?!" Zhou Yixiu, engrossed in his activities, glanced at Mo Ku with some impatience. Mo Ku, however, smiled obsequiously, cupped his hands in greeting, and took the spirit hoe from Zhou Yixiu's hands. While helping him with the task, he said, "Elder Zhou, I heard that our Chongming Sect achieved a great victory in Fazhou, is that true?!" "Where did you get this news, you brat?!" Zhou Yixiu looked slightly suspicious, but seeing Mo Ku helping him with the task, he was happy to relax.

The old man leaned back quite naturally, stretching out his hands. Mo Ku chuckled and quite consciously took out a jug of strong liquor from his storage bag to offer it to him.

"The Duke of Qin's mansion sent out proclamations to all sides. I saw the proclamation when I went to Pingrong County to deliver my orders this morning, so I hurriedly took the county's official carriage back to ask the elders about it."

"Oh, the news about the sect leader just reached me, and there's already a notice in Pingrong County this morning? Is the Qin State Duke's Mansion issuing notices so quickly these days?"

As Zhou Yixiu's suspicions subsided, she couldn't help but sigh at the increasingly tight control the Duke of Qin's mansion had over its various regions.

Although his cultivation level was not high, his experience over the past century was considerable, and he was able to discern many things from these small details.

"Elder?!" Mo Ku asked again, his face showing some eagerness. Zhou Yixiu replied indifferently, "Since you already know everything from Pingrong County, why bother asking me?"

“I’ve heard that there’s still a lot to be done in Fazhou, so…” Mo Ku hesitated, but Zhou Yixiu waved his hand to stop him: “Don’t even think about it. That’s Wu Lao Mountain. It’s not something we can even dream of.”

Apart from Santing Prefecture, which was reserved for the Hehuan Sect to station troops, the rest of the area will belong to Wulao Mountain after the pacification. At that time, not only will our Chongming Sect not be spared, but even the Fei family of Yingzhou will not be able to keep a single person or sword; they will still have to be returned to Yunjiao Prefecture.”

A hint of disappointment flashed across Mo Ku's face. He had almost found a buyer for Ma Duo Ridge, a low-grade first-level spiritual land, but Zhou Yixiu's rejection was so decisive.

However, he was reasonable after all. When he heard what Zhou Yixiu said about the great importance of the Fazhou region, he immediately gave up the idea of ​​relocating his clan.

"The Hehuan Sect, just hearing its name makes it seem like an extraordinary sect." Mo Ku sighed, then thought to himself, "My sect leader is good at bullying women, I wonder if he can do something about it in the future."

"Huh?" Mo Ku exclaimed softly again, looking at a beam of light in the sky and asking Zhou Yixiu in a questioning voice, "Elder, why has the Kui Xing Shuttle returned? Doesn't my family need to participate in the war in Santing Prefecture?!"

"It's not that easy. It was because the sect leader asked the Fei family patriarch for a favor, so that the injured disciples could come back in batches to recuperate."

Mo Ku could not have learned about the matters concerning Chongming Sect mentioned by Zhou Yixiu from the notices in Pingrong County. After hearing this, the latter's doubts were completely resolved, and a look of envy flashed in his eyes. Seeing that the flames of the Kui Xing Shuttle were gradually fading, he stopped focusing his gaze on it and buried himself in the spiritual field.

Zhou Yixiu downed the strong liquor in one gulp, then squinted at the patch of sky that had been grazed by the Kui Xing Shuttle, thinking to himself, "I wonder what the situation is like for my senior brother, the sect leader, right now?"

—Santing Prefecture, Xiaoshan

Yuan Jin led the various factions of the Chongming Alliance to stay in Fazhou and follow Chu Yanran to Qingping territory, while Headmaster Kang and Jiang Qing led the Qingjue Guard to Santing Prefecture to broaden their horizons.

It was really just a matter of seeing the world. In Kang Dabao's eyes, the Yingshan army was very cunning when they came into battle. They either went through the motions without putting in any real effort, or after a brief contact, when they saw the enemy's strong troops surrounding them, they would immediately consolidate their lines and wait for reinforcements from all sides.

Indeed, they did not resemble a strong army at all, and seemed far from the rumored force capable of fighting against Golden Core cultivators. Even Fei Tianqin, this old bird, had toned down his ferocity considerably. Apart from killing two Upper Cultivators in the initial battle, he seemed to be at a slight disadvantage in his battles with the young master of the Jin family in Ligu.

The news has slowly spread, and it is widely believed that the Rift Sky Sword Sect has a successor. After Jin Fengqing achieves the Nascent Soul stage, there may be another late-stage True Person like Song Yangzi, allowing the Rift Sky Sword Sect to continue to remain a first-class force within the territory of the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty.

It is said that after reading the battle report, Duke Kuang Liuting of Qin was quite curious about this rising star of the Rift Sky Sword Sect. If they were not on opposing sides, he would have summoned him long ago.

However, although Sect Leader Kang did not know why the Yingshan Army, which was rumored to be eager for battle, had lost much of its killing intent, he was happy to lead the sect's elite troops to reinforce the Nascent Soul battlefield.

It's true that the Yingshan Army dislikes fighting to the death, but if there are any fools who insist on charging in, the Fei family won't let them pass up the opportunity. Only a month after arriving in Xiaoshan, Sect Leader Kang, along with the Qingjue Guards, had already joined the Yingshan Army in killing one upper-level cultivator and six alchemists. As for those at the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages, who are considered worthless, they were countless.

Back when he was barely scraping by in Pingrong County, Kang Dabao had never imagined that the lives of these high-ranking cultivators would be so worthless. But as the empty spaces on his belt dwindled, his sense of urgency grew stronger.

This was because he knew that the southern and northern routes of the mountain had now become one of the vortex centers of the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty. This place, which seemed like a bottomless pit, would require countless more lives to fill. Not to mention that the Hehuan Sect and other Nascent Soul sects were gradually becoming dissatisfied with sending some worthless sects over as eyes and were beginning to slowly enter the fray.

If these Nascent Soul cultivators also disregard decorum and fight to the death like Wen Fengzi and Yueyin Zhenren, who knows what kind of calamity the southern and northern mountain paths will suffer. Just look at how Shen Lingfeng led the Imperial Guards south to Yunjiao Prefecture to pacify the barbarians back then, and you can get a glimpse of it.

At that time, although the mountain barbarian tribe was still very brave, they did not have a true master in charge. The two armies under the command of Golden Core cultivators were able to wreak havoc on the surrounding provinces for one or two hundred years, and they are still in a state of desolation. If the Nascent Soul battle had continued for ten or several decades, then...
When the nest is overturned, how can any egg remain intact?
Then the meager wealth that Sect Leader Kang painstakingly accumulated will likely vanish in the blink of an eye. As for that so-called hope of sect revival, it will also turn into nothing in the blink of an eye.

"The alchemy discussion seems to be imminent." Kang Dabao stopped his meditation posture in the military tent, frowned and sighed.

He didn't have much attachment to Yunjiao Prefecture and Pingrong County. If he could ask for a favor and take his entire clan to a peaceful place to cultivate themselves, abandoning the foundation he had just established wouldn't be out of the question.

However, he also knew that this matter was of great importance, and neither Kuang Liuting nor the Fei family would be willing to agree. Therefore, the only way was to form the Golden Core as soon as possible.

Even if the Duke of Qin's mansion still couldn't bear to part with its horse bone after the Golden Elixir was obtained, and still wouldn't allow the Chongming clan to relocate, it would still be much more respectable. Whether it was the Duke of Qin's mansion or the Fei family of Yingzhou, they would not be stingy in cultivating it.

There are many more secrets that the Duke of Qin's mansion will no longer hide. The appearance of a Golden Core cultivator is enough to earn the current Chongming Sect a place at the Duke of Qin's mansion.

Whether it's dominating a state like Wu Feng Shang Xiu or being granted land and titles like the Yang family of Ye Zhou, both situations would be far better than the current one. However, such things cannot be bestowed upon one by others out of kindness; one must first demonstrate one's value in any matter.

Kang Dabao pondered the alchemical treatises but to no avail. He sat alone in his military tent from dawn until daybreak the next day, but still gained nothing. So he put it aside for the time being and decided to make a decision later.

The next day, when the troops were mustered, the Qingjue Guard, as usual, followed closely behind the Yingshan Army. Even the latter had no hardship, so the Qingjue Guard had it even easier.

After the other armies had finished their fierce fighting, they heard Master Yueyin sound the gong from behind. The flag bearers then ordered each army to return to its camp according to the military command, and another day passed in this way.

Although it was said that they had been fighting fiercely for a whole day, Master Kang still had the energy to seek Fei Tianqin's advice on how to perfect the theory of alchemy.

It was rare for him to be so diligent and eager to learn, but Fei Tianqin was not in the military tent, so Kang Dabao had no choice but to return empty-handed.

Little did he know that deep within the heavily guarded spiritual realm of Fei Tianqin's military tent, a gaunt and emaciated Taoist priest was respectfully presenting a pill radiating spiritual light and brimming with blood energy. He bowed respectfully to Fei Tianqin, whose eyes gleamed with sharp light, and said, "This junior has not failed your trust, senior. I have expended countless spiritual materials and have finally completed this pill today."

The old bird impatiently summoned the pill to examine it, and then remained silent for a long time. After a long while, he finally spoke in a low voice: "In that case, Jin Fengqing will not live much longer. Pack your things and prepare to return to Yingzhou with me, your ancestor."

(End of this chapter)