Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 569 Shift in Offense and Defense: Planning in the Rear Quarter
"Stop the offensive for a while and observe the situation." Master Kang pondered for a moment, and then he had a plan in mind. "The offensive at the front will not stop, and we will wait for orders. Send a message to Yangming Mountain, instructing Elder Ye to temporarily suspend the transfer of supplies and focus on strengthening the fortifications and preparing for battle."

As soon as he finished speaking, the people in charge of the surrounding families immediately understood.

After Kang Dabao finished speaking, the heads of the various families confirmed that he would not speak again. Then, carrying all sorts of defensive magic weapons, they entered the formation and urged their disciples to work with their lives on the line.

Only after everyone had left did Duan Anle ask in a low voice, with a hint of worry, "Master, if we just leave without a fight, what if the Duke's Mansion blames us?"

"Right now I only have one pot, how can I cook two dishes at the same time?" Headmaster Kang shook his head, and then said, "I can't really expect most of my disciples to die before I can be worthy of the grace of the Immortal Dynasty."

He knew that Duan Anle's concerns were not unfounded, but the situation had changed. If Huang Mijia returned alone, Kang Dabao might still be able to turn the tide.

But if they really led the elite troops of Yunze Witch Lord Palace to attack their own formation from the rear, how could their old and exhausted troops withstand the attack from both sides?
However, since Master Huang Mijia's team had ventured deep into Sizhou, they had completely trusted the gentleman's agreement between the Nascent Soul cultivators behind both sides and had not taken any precautions against Hongfen Temple and Qianfo Forest. Therefore, it would take several days for them to return.

At this time, there were no particularly strong opponents within Moyunze. If Sect Leader Kang were ambitious and prone to gambling, he might actually try to break through this thousand-year-old sect with his own forces.

Unfortunately, Kang Dabao was completely at odds with the word "adventure." After enduring another fierce attack from the enemy's elite forces, the disciples of the Yunze Witch Lord Hall who had been harassing the Chongming Alliance were in so much pain that they retreated several miles, complaining bitterly.

Several of the leading fake cultivators offered a long list of promises and reassurances, and then announced the good news that the Grand Hall Master was about to return, which barely managed to boost the morale of the disciples.

However, these alchemists later discovered that the Chongming Alliance's forces had already begun to slowly withdraw from Moyunze while they were boosting their morale.

When the Second Palace Master Xia Ming learned of this, the upper cultivator, upon hearing the news, felt that all his carefully laid plans were about to fall apart. His eyes flashed with anger, and he refused to comply, angrily saying, "Does he take my Mo Yunze as some kind of place? Someone who can come and go as they please?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he leaped into the air from his high seat, then took out a blank token from his waist, pried it open, and took out a black spirit pearl, which he placed on a round table-sized map of the Moyun Marsh next to his high seat.

"Boom"

Xia Mingshangxiu changed his hand gestures, and with a soft sound, the black spirit pearl turned into a thick smoke, which soon swallowed the entire map.

Meanwhile, the cultivators of the Chongming Alliance, who were steadily retreating, felt that the surrounding black miasma seemed to have become even denser than before, and showed no signs of stopping.

Even a True Lord of the Transformation Realm has difficulty controlling the human heart.

Although the previous advance led by the eight Liang families was somewhat disorganized, seeing the elite disciples of the Yunze Witch Lord Palace with their heads chopped off one by one, they still knew that they had the upper hand.

They were just hoping to get out of this quagmire and then they could finally get rewarded for their merits and receive their stipends.

But suddenly, the troops were to switch from offense to defense and retreat back to Xianzhou, which naturally made them uneasy. Favorable and unfavorable circumstances differ by only one word, but the behavior of these eight noble families was worlds apart.

Suddenly, shouts and cries rose and fell; pushing and shoving and the formation began to break apart. If it weren't for the fact that the disciples of the Zezhong Yunze Witch Lord Hall hadn't launched a full-scale counterattack, the scene might have already descended into chaos.

"Don't panic, don't panic,"

Kang Rongquan was extremely grateful for the tedious tasks that the sect leader had just assigned. If the latter had not forced him to lead the cultivators to plant spiritual plants and clear the way they had come, who knows how many lives this tense team would have lost in this stagnant water on their retreat.

However, Mo Yunze, now activated by Xia Ming, is indeed becoming much more dangerous.

Before long, those vigorous spiritual plants, whose roots had already taken hold at the bottom of the swamp, were eroded by the black water and putrid fumes under Kang Rongquan's concerned gaze, turning into handfuls of rotten mud that melted into the swamp beneath his feet.

Seeing the silted land, which had been cleared by spiritual plants when he arrived, gradually being swallowed up by the surging black water, Kang Rongquan was extremely anxious.

However, he did not lose his composure. He led his disciples to scatter a large number of spiritual plant seeds and hurriedly urged the pure energy to gradually push away the thick miasma. Although the effect was minimal, it at least temporarily restored the light ahead.

But he was only a Foundation Establishment cultivator, how could he have the ability to turn the tide? The surrounding cultivators could only watch as the clean ground in front of them was slowly being eroded back by the thick miasma, how could they not be alarmed?

At this moment, the central army banner, which was at the rear, unfurled its spiritual patterns, and the dense miasma within several miles centered on it immediately faded away.

Along with the burst of spiritual energy, a calm male voice also came: "Don't panic, don't panic. Just now, you all cleared the way for me. This time, I will cover the rear."

It's impossible that none of the cultivators in the Chongming Alliance harbored resentment that Master Kang's words were merely a pretense to win people over.

But to be fair, after hearing these words, most of the disciples surnamed Liang who had previously turned away and gone through fierce battles did indeed become much more clear-headed.

Upon seeing that the Qingjue Guards, whom Chongming Sect had always valued highly and were reluctant to use, were still stationed under the banner and standing by the side of Sect Leader Kang, many cultivators who had felt timid because of the strange phenomenon of Mo Yunze calmed down.

Even though there were a few genuine cultivators who didn't believe in the superstition and thought their methods were superior, they still had their heads taken by Liu Ya, the elder of the Chongming Sect's Punishment Hall, along with a group of fake cultivators.

Afterwards, Liu Ya and several other fake cultivators braved the miasma to ascend to the sky. Upon seeing the cultivators who had resurfaced and were making a ruckus, they disregarded their cultivation levels and were immediately cut down to the ground by the Daoist magic and sword light that attacked from above.

The surge of hot blood should have chilled the hearts of the cultivators in the formation, but seeing that the banner behind them remained unmoved, the resentment quickly subsided.

The effects of Kang Rongquan's spiritual plants were quickly devoured and destroyed by the black miasma. Seeing that the road ahead was about to be bleak again, the Crimson Guards quickly spread out to the four corners of the formation.

The other cultivators could only watch as the Crimson Guards, under Jin Shilun's guidance, raised their Yang Fire Lanterns and quickly unleashed fiery talismans. The scorching flames connected along the lampshade array, barely managing to break open the almost solid black miasma and reveal light.

It was only through such hard work that the various factions, which had suddenly joined together without any training, were finally calmed down. However, Master Kang showed no surprise.

After all, retreating is inherently difficult. If morale is low, the team that Kang Dabao has painstakingly gathered to dare to attack may not fare much better than the scattered low-level demonic beast hordes in the Cold Crow Mountains.

At that time, amidst the chaos of the soldiers, even the most elite disciples of the Chongming Sect would find it difficult to survive.

After all, Xia Ming wasn't exactly mediocre. Even if he couldn't defeat Master Kang, it wouldn't be difficult for him to delay the latter for a while.

If there is no one capable of turning the tide, it would not be surprising if the elite troops of Chongming Sect selected by Kang Dabao were to be completely overthrown.

Seeing that the army behind him had retreated far away, even the usually composed Duan Anle showed a look of anxiety.

Before he could even ask Kang Dabao a question, the latter's powerful divine sense had already swept over the invading cultivators, and then the two fake core cultivators from the Yunze Witch Venerable Hall who were emitting golden light and hovering outside their own sect's formation instantly perished.

This time, Sect Leader Kang showed no mercy, not even sparing the Pill Master's storage bag, and immediately caused it to dissolve into smoke and disappear within the formation.

Upon seeing this, Xia Ming's expression changed slightly. Before he could give any orders, the Pill Masters who had been wandering outside the formation returned to the dense formation and landed with the ordinary disciples.

Afterwards, Kang Dabao sent out two more golden rays to test the waters, but they were ultimately blocked by the holy Buddhist light guided by the disciples of the Yunze Witch Lord Palace. Knowing that there was no advantage to be gained, Kang Dabao was about to lead his army away when Xia Ming, who was leading the Yunze Witch Lord Palace army closer and closer, made his move.

The latter flicked the blank token at his waist, and as the token lit up, a fake alchemist led his disciples to play the shamanic flute, while the Buddhist disciples chanted high-pitched Buddhist chants.

Suddenly, the cultivators of Chongming Sect felt streams of water rushing towards them without any apparent reason. Those with better eyesight could see clearly that they were narrow, knife-like spirit fish with swastikas on their backs swooping down.

As Duan Anle waved his command flag, the well-trained Qingjue Guards shouted in unison, and the six-leaf blue lotus Dao seals on their white robes suddenly lit up, their spiritual energy converging into one.

A refreshing breeze suddenly arose in the area, seemingly washing away the lingering fishy smell.

With a shout from all the cultivators, disciples at each joint held array flags, and lotus leaves immediately unfurled, swirling and spinning intermittently.

The six-petaled azure lotus platform that suddenly appeared from the Chongming Formation did not frighten the low-level demons in the swamp. Even though they tried their best, they could not leave a trace on the lotus petal illusion, but they still rushed forward recklessly.

However, after the attack failed, the swastika seal on its back suddenly lit up, causing the flesh and blood of the narrow-bladed spirit fish to fly everywhere, while also creating a series of loud noises on the lotus petal phantom.

"Retreat slowly! Retreat slowly!!"

At this moment, Duan Anle saw that all the cultivators' temples were already damp with sweat, so he dared not be careless in the slightest and kept issuing commands while holding the battle flag.

The Qingjue Guard, however, proved to be quite capable. Despite consuming a great deal of resources from the Chongming Sect, they have now become a formidable fighting force.

Just look at how the Qingjue Guards managed to retreat slowly and orderly despite being surrounded by ten thousand fish summoned by Xia Ming;
Even though disciples around them were dying from exhaustion of spiritual energy, the Qingjue Guards did not complain and still followed the orders of the flag bearer meticulously.

These two points alone are enough to surpass many families with a well-established lineage.

However, Xia Ming's tricks obviously didn't stop there. There were also many narrow-bladed spirit fish with swastikas on their backs lining up to come. He flipped his wrist, made a hand seal, and muttered a few words. The spiritual soil under the feet of the Qingjue Guard became even softer and more rotten.

The rotten nails hidden within could easily tear through ordinary robes, causing many Qingjue Guards who stepped on or slipped to furrow their brows and feel intense pain.

At this moment, Xia Ming actually carried the Witch Ancestor Banner and faced the Azure Jade Six-Leaf Lotus Formation directly. He saw the Witch Ancestor's illusory image and the Azure Jade Lotus Leaves crashing around incessantly. Many disciples were caught off guard and their defenses were slightly lacking. As a result, they were shocked and their internal organs were shattered and they vomited blood from their seven orifices.

Even the sect leader Kang had not expected that Xia Ming, equipped with the Witch Ancestor Banner, would possess such power, almost enough to rival Master Huang Mijia in the presence of him.

Fortunately, once the Qingjue Guards regained their footing, even the most powerful illusory image of the Witch Ancestor was unable to break through their formation for a time.

Duan Anle continued to give orders, and Kang Changyan and Kang Changzhao, their faces solemn, stood under the banner, nervously watched over by Yuan Buwen. Seeing this, the disciples' already firm beliefs were further strengthened.

Seeing the burly figure holding a short halberd in mid-air, he regained some courage and then took up various spiritual weapons and magical artifacts to fight against the remnants of the Yunze Witch Lord's Palace who were charging towards him.

Xia Mingchu, who was holding the Witch Ancestor Banner, initially had the upper hand, but since the start of the battle, Sect Leader Kang had shown no signs of panic and remained so steady that he had not revealed the slightest flaw. This caused Xia Mingchu to become somewhat impatient and make some mistakes.

However, Kekang Dabao did not rush into things, but instead proceeded steadily and cautiously.

Xia Ming's Witch Ancestor Banner was first struck by golden light, then by halberd light, followed by a series of fist strikes, causing the spiritual light on this treasure, which inherited the hard work of several generations of Yunze Witch Venerable Hall, to greatly diminish.

Xia Ming grew increasingly alarmed as the battle progressed, and the Witch Ancestor Banner, under his control, gradually lost its original power.

Only when the sound of the witch flute in the Yunze Witch Lord's Palace gradually thinned out and the chanting of Buddhist prayers no longer sounded as vigorous as before, did the Second Palace Master instantly realize that he could not keep Kang Dabao at all.

"Damn it! Isn't this guy supposed to be a loyal dog of the Immortal Dynasty? How come he's already scared away by my Grand Palace Master after only getting the news?!"

He cursed inwardly, but he knew it was useless. Once the strategy of trapping the enemy inside failed, Kang Dabao's side, now prepared, was no match for Xia Ming, whose army was reduced to remnants.

Among cultivators who can live past three or four hundred years old, how many are mentally impaired? After Xia Ming's thoughts gradually cleared, the two groups tacitly separated again.

Kang Dabao has damaged the Witch Ancestor Banner quite a bit this time, and his Heluo Xuan Armor is also missing a small piece of armor, so he needs to find a skilled craftsman to repair it.

At this moment, he was somewhat relieved. If he did not leave now, and Xia Ming had lured him into leading a large army deep into enemy territory, then when Huang Mijia returned, it would be difficult for any of these soldiers to return unscathed.

Just as he was about to lead his people out of the Ink Cloud Marsh, Sect Leader Kang stopped, turned his head and probed the already somewhat blurred Yunze Witch Lord Palace group with his divine sense, feeling a pang of regret:
"If Xia Ming had reacted any slower and gotten closer to the outer room, my surprise attack, which was meant to lure him out, might have succeeded!"

He sighed, then pointed out two tokens, instructing Jin Shilun and Kang Rongquan to temporarily cease their high-level preparations. He then gathered his army and headed towards Xianzhou, where he joined forces with the Yunze Witch God Temple to prepare for battle and heal their wounds.

————Xiao Huanshan, Chongmingzong
Fei Shuhe had just returned from the Fei residence in Fenglin Prefecture when she was greeted by the weeping Yuan Xiyue.

The latter wept bitterly, and Fei Shuhe, the kind old woman, was quite puzzled, but still comforted her with great concern, and then learned the reason from her.

Fei Shuhe's smile gradually faded, and after exchanging a glance with Zhang Qingran beside her, she said softly, "If you really want Yan Ge'er and Zhao Ge'er to live such mediocre lives, then keep crying."

Upon hearing this sound, Yuan Xiyue's beautiful eyes widened in surprise, but she dared not refute it. Instead, she turned her wailing into sobbing, still appearing pitiful as ever.

But Fei Shuhe continued to reprimand: "Xi Ge'er is also going to Lianghe, and Yi Ge'er also fought in many bloody battles in his early years. Only the two young sons are not good enough. They can only sit at home and inherit the protection of their father and brothers?"

This was too much to bear, and Yuan Xiyue dared not respond, only stammering, "Sister, what are you saying, Xiyue?"

"Okay,"

Fei Shuhe, however, stopped listening to her and, after waving her hand to stop her, turned to Zhang Qingran and said:
"I have told Lingyi to cultivate diligently recently. I just received news from my aunt that my Wanqing has attained the Golden Elixir under the witness of Ancestor Ye Sui the day before yesterday. After her elixir transformation is complete, Lingyi can go to Yingzhou to study under a master."

Fei Shuhe couldn't hide the smile on her lips as she spoke, and the other two women also showed a hint of surprise, seemingly genuinely.

"Thank you, sister," Zhang Qingran said, her eyes reddening, bowing deeply.

Fei Shuhe, however, had no intention of taking credit and said calmly, "It was for my daughter's sake, why should I say thank you?"

After speaking, she turned to Yuan Xiyue, who was standing to the side, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating, and said, "Tell the two boys to work hard and go to Yingzhou as well. It will be less comfortable than at home, but it will be good to help them hone their skills. Not a single member of the Kang family can be left behind."

(End of this chapter)