Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 556 Marching into Xianzhou
"Yes, Xianzhou."

Kuang Liuting nodded, then said, "After taking Xianzhou, let's see which other family besides those miscellaneous cultivators from the Yunze Witch Lord's Palace will make a move. The Demon Suppression Barrier is a national treasure established during the reign of the Great Ancestor. The only hidden danger should be the Zhaixing Tower, since only they know the inside story. The Demon Commander's appearance this time is definitely not due to this 'accident'."

Even though the Grand Master Kang had privately made some preparations for attacking Xianzhou.

Upon hearing Kuang Liuting's words, he immediately said in a flustered manner without thinking, "My lord, I'm afraid I'm not up to the task."

"Don't be so quick to refuse. It's not just your family that's going to do this." Kuang Liuting wasn't surprised. He simply waved his hand and then said, "Yang Yongcheng from Yezhou and Kuang Jinzhong from Dingzhou also need to take action. Even the various households in Shanbei Road need to go out and greet these neighbors."

"Kuang Jinzhong? Your Excellency, is it that the Kuang family has produced another high-ranking scholar?"

"No, his family just received Dingzhou. The head of the Kuang family changed his name out of gratitude for the emperor's favor."

Whether it was a misperception or not, Kang Dabao felt that Kuang Liuting's tone became a bit heavier when he got to this point. He heard the headmaster's face twitch slightly, and he sighed that the skill of "flattering superiors" was indeed profound, and he really had a lot to learn.

However, he quickly pulled himself out of this thought and said again, "My lord, in my humble opinion, since the Star-Picking Tower has not yet shown signs of decline, it is probably not wise to rashly launch an attack."

"Not at all. I haven't even offered my thanks to Senior Bai Canhong, the master of Zhaixing Tower, for driving away Zen Master Gelie from Xuanwei City back then. How could I possibly raise an army rashly?"

Kuang Liuting chuckled, then said, "If Shannan Road can be considered Bai Canhong's homeland and the foundation of Zhaixing Tower's business, then what do those small families in the northern part of Huangpi Road have to do with him, the leader of Shannan?"

Upon hearing this, Master Kang's expression turned serious, and he thought to himself, "Is this a test of the waters?"

Before Kang Dabao could react, Kuang Liuting on the opposite side spoke again:

"The other departments are facing three powerful forces, so they are all making feints. In addition, since it is only a small-scale attack, they don't need to worry about giving Zhaixinglou any ammunition."

"Your Ghost Sword Sect is the weakest, but with your abilities, sweeping through a small Xianzhou should be no problem. Of course, if you are capable of capturing and killing that monk Huang Mi, that would be even better, and I will be generous with my rewards."

The superior's tone was like a hook, subtly drawing Kang Da Bao's thoughts back with just a few words. However, Kuang Liuting wasn't in a hurry to hear Kang Da Bao's thoughts, and simply said to the latter in a calm voice:
"If you do a good job, the five prefectures of Pu, Ding, Yun, Ye, and Jing, along with the spiritual lands you occupied in Huangpi Road, will all be under the jurisdiction of the Marquis of Wuning's mansion."

Unexpectedly, this patient and persuasive approach did not move Kang Dabao at all.

This was because Sect Leader Kang was a clear-headed person. In his view, the fact that Chongming Sect had expanded to such a state in just under a hundred years was already like a snake swallowing an elephant.

Although Kang Dabao had harbored some intentions towards Ding and Xian prefectures because of the Hakka cultivators who had recently migrated from the capital region, a gradual approach was quite different from taking the fall for Kuang Liuting.

If given a choice, Sect Leader Kang would prefer that the eight cultivators go to Cold Crow Mountain to cultivate some spiritual land, since it wouldn't require his Chongming Sect to cause any casualties.

Seeing that Kang Dabao's complexion had not improved, Kuang Liuting thought for a while and a rare feeling of sympathy arose in his heart.

But then the Duke of Qin said again, "This time, I will order the Marquis of Gucheng to lead the Yingshan Army to garrison the south of the mountain. Firstly, to defend your territory, and secondly, to provide support if the war goes badly."

"Don't worry, it won't harm your family's fortune. You should know that I can grant you control of six provinces, an opportunity your in-laws would never have dreamed of."

If Kang Dabao didn't agree immediately after all that, he would likely lose the obedient impression that Kuang Liuting had of him.

Kuang Liuting's words were indeed correct. If he did not break his promise, then the preferential treatment of granting the Grand Master Kang the authority to govern six states would certainly not have been given to the Fei family.

At present, it is difficult to keep the major and minor affairs of the Duke of Qin's mansion a secret from outsiders. Even though the six states are not exactly prosperous, if they are handed over to the Fei family, outsiders can always discern some deeper meanings.

This is something that Kuang Liuting does not want to see now.

However, if the clean-blooded Sect Leader Kang and the impoverished Chongming Sect were to take charge of the six states, they would obviously have no such concerns.

After all, few people are unaware of the Emperor's habit of selecting and promoting scholars from humble backgrounds. Although even after so many years, it's not clear that he has selected any powerful forces that can compare with the thirty-three Nascent Soul sects.

However, although Sect Leader Kang agreed, now that they have formed their Golden Core and advanced to the rank of Superior Cultivator, if they don't know how to ask for some benefits at this time, they will truly become Kuang Liuting's most favored and unquestionably loyal subject.

“My lord, the Ghost Sword Sect may not be a threat, but the Yunze Witch Lord Palace has eleven palace masters in charge. Your humble servant…”

"Did Marquis Wu Ning put those heads back on after they were taken off? Otherwise, how could this miscellaneous sect have eleven superior cultivators?"

"Ahem," even though this deliberate attempt to deceive was exposed, Master Kang did not change his expression, only letting out a soft "hmm" in his heart:
"How did he know all this? Aren't the Fei family saying that this Duke has been neglecting his official duties lately and only focusing on his spiritual practice?"

However, Kang Dabao's reaction was indeed quick. After hearing him cough lightly, he said frankly, "Perhaps the Duke misunderstood. What I just said was that his family has eleven palace masters, not high-ranking cultivators."

Kuang Liuting didn't bother arguing with Headmaster Kang about these trivial matters. After all, having spent many years in Shannan Dao, he had shed much of the arrogance that came with his noble birth.

If he were still the same Nan'an Earl who had just arrived at the Cloud Corner, he would truly seem like a figure who had entered the ranks of immortals, and he would not have been able to tell that Kang Dabao's words were prepared before he was about to make an exorbitant demand.

But then Kuang Liuting picked up the incomplete jade slip again, lowered his head, and the soft scratching of the inscription began. After seemingly ignoring Headmaster Kang for a while, Kuang Liuting spoke calmly again:
"Just say what you want, don't hide anything. If it's something I can give you, I'll give you anything."

"My lord, what about the guards of the Duke's mansion?"

Kuang Liuting replied quickly, but without raising his head, he coldly said, "The Duke's guards? Should I accompany you to Xiaxian Prefecture?"

"A humble faux pas."

"Don't worry, I know your stingy mind. If I'm not mistaken, your only opponent this time will be the Ghost Sword Sect." Kuang Liuting paused here, and spoke again with a meaningful tone: "No matter how small Huangpi Road is, it is not a place that a small Yunze Witch Lord's Palace can cover up with one hand."

"This is a case of Huangpi revealing a loyal minister!" Kang Dabao's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this, and he understood many things. Then, he thought to himself:
"If that's the case, then this doesn't seem like such a difficult task. And if it's just the Ghost Sword Sect that needs to be allocated resources, are you perhaps using this to subsidize my family, Lord?"

After all, the amount of supplies that Headmaster Kang had collected from Kuang Liuting over the years was probably much higher than that of Xiao Huanshan, but the items he received from the government treasury were really not much.

Opportunities to obtain supplies from the government treasury are indeed few and far between, so Headmaster Kang was naturally unwilling to let one slip by.

After a few breaths, Kang Dabao made up his mind and began to calculate again.
—March later, Xianzhou

Ice pellets, whipped by the biting wind, lashed across the faces of the cultivators. More than twenty figures in blue robes snaked through the knee-deep snow. Every three steps, the older cultivator at the front of the line would raise a talisman, its flickering crimson light barely tearing a sliver of vision before being swallowed up by the howling snow dragon.

The boy at the very end of the line bit his hair tie, the ice shards on his eyelashes pressing painfully against his eye sockets.

The bluish-purple-faced boy stared blankly at the heavy black iron sword on his senior brother's back. The red tassel at the end of the scabbard had long since frozen into a hard, coral-like lump, and was rubbing weakly against his shoulder blade with each step.

Suddenly, amidst the sticky sound of leather boots stepping into the snow cave, a sharp scraping sound of metal was suddenly mixed in—

It turned out that the graceful female cultivator, whose appearance was not clearly visible, had stumbled and kicked the rock beneath the ice due to insufficient spiritual power.

Her tender flesh was no match for Shi Feng's strength, and the female cultivator's trousers were immediately stained crimson.

The heavy snow mixed with the cold wind was sharper than a knife, and few of the low-level rogue cultivators had the energy to feel sorry for the female cultivator.

The old cultivator at the head of the group had a heart harder than ice and snow. He didn't even glance at the female cultivator lying on the ground. He simply lit another talisman and shouted, "Change formation, hold the jade."

The hoarse commands were quickly swallowed by the wind and snow, but the twenty-odd people did not delay. They changed their formation and each took out a warm jade from their pockets, which seemed to add a bit of life to the people in the formation.

At this moment, the old cultivator finally let out a long breath, casually picked up a pill, and haphazardly fed it to the female cultivator on the ground. He offered no words of comfort or encouragement, nor did he look at the layers of frost in her eyes. He simply said in a low voice:
“Madam Xu, the sect has ordered the five families of my Immortal Peach Valley to gather in Tang County within ten days to receive orders. But today is already the fifth day, and we have not even traveled halfway. The crime of being late is punishable by the extermination of the entire family and clan. We really cannot wait for you any longer. If you do not get up soon, you will truly perish here.”

The voice, though low, seemed to seep into the ears of every cultivator on the cold wind, causing their already trembling bodies to tremble even more. Afterwards, no one stopped, and even those who turned back were few.

The young man had some connection with the female Taoist priest. He only heard a footstep behind him, and he didn't even have the strength to sigh. He could only feel a lump in his throat and, like a walking corpse, follow the old cultivator who had caught up with the leader of the group, his hand holding a talisman, numbly moving forward.

Fortunately, it seemed that the heavens had grown tired of snowing, and the biting cold wind finally stopped as they traveled into the evening. The cultivators could finally breathe a sigh of relief, no longer needing to use most of their spiritual power to protect themselves.

Of course, no one showed any joy at this, since they had already lost two more companions on this journey.

The young man breathed a sigh of relief, but he could no longer remember that the girl next door he had once admired had just lost her life to the heavy snow. He then fell into a deep sleep next to his senior brother's heavy black iron sword.

He slept soundly, and the young man was gently awakened by his senior brother patting him with a sword sheath. When he woke up, he was blinded by the long-awaited sunlight.

"It's sunny!"

No wonder the young man was overjoyed. Just a short while after he uttered his exclamation, the team leader, Old Xiu, had already pulled out a dilapidated small flying boat from his storage bag.

"Finally, I don't have to rely on my two legs to travel anymore!"

The cultivators' morale soared immediately. That's more like it. If they continued on the same journey as before, even if they reached Tang County, probably not many of them would be willing to serve the cultivators.

When the old man steered his boat, which was filled with villagers of varying cultivation levels and incomplete armor, to the training ground in Tang County, his joy was short-lived, but he soon sensed a heavy atmosphere in the air.

"Our county is adjacent to the prefectural capital. Surely the Chongming Sect couldn't have already advanced all the way here?! This...this has only been a month? When the order was issued last time, didn't they say that the Swordless Ancestor had already severely injured that woman-obsessed, immoral sect leader of the Chongming Sect? How come..."

"broken."

Thinking back on the hurried comings and goings of the cultivators in the city along the way, their expressions filled with fear; and seeing the soldiers in the training ground with no spirit and as if facing a great enemy, this old cultivator, even if he had not yet established his foundation, had lived for nearly a hundred years, how could he not know the current state of the battle between the two sides?

At this point, it was too late for regrets, so they could only wait for the pot-bellied Zhenxiu to come over with the roster and verify their names.

After a series of questions, the pot-bellied cultivator's face became even uglier: "You five families of Xianlin Valley have really audacious, arriving so recently and still short of places."

Old Xiu mustered his courage and explained, "The five families of Xianlin Valley dared not be perfunctory in the slightest. There were indeed thirty people before we set off, but the wind and snow on the road were too heavy, which is why five of them perished."

"Hmm, I see." The big-bellied cultivator's expression improved slightly, but he still did not forget to warn, "You must also make sure to prepare the share for the deceased. After the villains of Shannan Road have retreated, the sect will not forget to reward your loyalty."

After speaking, the big-bellied cultivator ignored the old cultivator's words of loyalty and urged the latter to go to the camp to collect armor, weapons, and drums.

However, upon receiving the money, the old cultivator was greatly alarmed. He grabbed the clerk's sleeve in a flustered manner and asked urgently, "Fellow Daoist, what happened? Why was the full amount paid this time?"

The clerk didn't respond, but pointed to a human skin hanging in the storeroom that bore a resemblance to the pot-bellied cultivator. This immediately silenced the latter, who walked out in silence.

After all, according to the clerk, in two days, the Belly-Bellied True Cultivator would be leading them to aid the Ghost Sword Sect. So, it seems this time, the odds are against them.
These past two days, Lao Xiu has had no interest in training, only worrying about the future. This time, it's clear that the Ghost Sword Sect's large ship is even more dilapidated than his own flying boat, a magical artifact that has served for three decades.

However, shortly before they were about to embark on their journey, news spread in the camp that Chongmingzong's forces had already captured Tangxian.

The insider's account was gruesome, and it was indeed true. Even the pot-bellied cultivator was carried back to the camp not long after. Everything else was fine, but his manhood, it was said, was torn off by a golden-haired old donkey.

With the person in charge still seriously injured, chaos naturally broke out in the camp. It was only after much difficulty that another Foundation Establishment cultivator with a large belly temporarily took over the affairs, but before they could even set out, they saw that the Chongming Sect's troops had already attacked.

"Team A, Team A, advance with sharp edges!"

"Teams C and D are instructed to split up and search for the enemy, and not to scatter!"

"Team B will lead the rest of the teams and follow me. Be ready to press forward with Team A at any time."

Old Xiu could see a man riding a donkey, even more handsome than a woman, shouting incessantly across from him. He could see that although the armor on the cultivator's body was mottled, it shone brighter than the fake ones Old Xiu had just brought from the camp under the scorching sun.

However, the morale of the cultivators in the camp melted away much faster than snowflakes.

The first to fall before the young man's eyes was his own senior brother. The latter, wielding the Xuan Tie Heavy Sword, was cleaved in two, the red tassel at the end of the scabbard turning even darker.

Before his tears could even spill, a new message had already spread like wildfire throughout the camp as the cultivators ran around and roamed.

"The Ghost Sword Sect's leader, Wu Jian Shang Xiu, was killed by Chongming Zong Kang's Grand Master, San Ji, and Xianzhou was completely destroyed!"

(End of this chapter)