Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 576 Blood Mountain and War

Yangmingshan
Even though the Fei family of Yingzhou has declined somewhat in recent years, when it comes to grand battle formations, they are still far superior to border tyrants like the Yunze Witch Lord Palace.

It's unclear what kind of concealment this team used, but when Fei Nanying and Fei Donggu, the two elders of the Fei family, led the Yingshan Army to surround them, Huang Mijia and the group of warrior monks who were covering the front lines only then realized what was happening.

There was no reasoning to speak of this time. The moment they clashed, Huang Mijia's proud Buddhist formation was shattered.

As each Buddhist practitioner's physical body vanished, so too did the spirit of Master Huang Mijia be completely extinguished.

The old monk had no time to be surprised or angry, and he was quite decisive. Even though he still had some injuries, Fei Donggu and Fei Nanying chased after him for half a day, but still couldn't stop him.

In the end, a small portion of the warrior monks were taken away by them and fled to Moyunze in Huozhou to lie low and lick their wounds.

At this juncture, it is clear that Yunze Witch Lord Palace is not the only one that needs to lick its wounds.

However, Kang Dabao had no time to spare at the moment. He earnestly placed the three hall masters, Yu Nian'en, Xia Ming, and Gou Shi'er, in front of Fei Nanying and said apologetically, "I must thank Boyue and Elder Zong for their timely assistance once again."

Fei Nanying's gaze lingered on the three cultivators before him for a long time, and his inner feelings were self-evident.

It should be known that among the eighteen Golden Core cultivators of the Fei family in existence, less than half could capture someone of the same level alive. Not to mention the three Pill Masters of the Yunze Witch Lord Hall, who are not simple characters either. In remote border states like Puzhou, it might be difficult to find even one like them every few hundred years.

His mere appearance was enough to inspire countless cultivators to write books and record his life story for centuries.
Fei Nan sighed, and when he turned to Sect Leader Kang again, his expression was no longer as relaxed as before. He then paused for a long time before speaking, trying his best to sound light:
"If you want to thank someone, thank Ancestor Tianqin. If it weren't for him guarding Yunjiao Prefecture every step of the way, how could Elder Donggu and I have brought our sons here to help you?"

The Grand Master Kang spoke with even greater respect, and with more humility than before: "I dare not forget the Ancestor's kindness."

"What a fine young man!" Fei Donggu exclaimed, his gaze fixed on Fei Nanying, though he was referring to Kang Dabao. He thought to himself:

"Nan Ying is truly a talent scout. Even in a remote corner like Yun Jiao Prefecture, he has the discerning eye to recognize talent. After Ancestor Ye Ling passes away, he will take over the family business, and with Kang Da Bao providing support from outside, perhaps we will not be at our wits' end?"

Fei Donggu suppressed his joy, but his smile remained warm as he softly spoke to Kang Dabao:
"You've done a great job, Da Bao. The Duke and the two elders must be very pleased. When the three southwestern regions are pacified in the future, you'll likely be ranked high on the merit list. The Emperor has always been fond of selecting scholars from humble backgrounds, so your future is limitless."

"Elder Zong, you flatter me. I am unworthy of such praise."

"What are you afraid of?" Fei Nanying sneered. "Elder Zong wrote a letter of introduction for you to Master Gu Rong, and you put it away very neatly, didn't you?"

Fei Nanying's tone was sarcastic, which made Fei Donggu smile for a moment. Kang Dabao was about to explain when he heard Fei Nanying's tone change and he said in a deep voice, "Alright, it's not time for a long talk yet."

When Master Kang heard this, his expression froze. He probed out with his divine sense, only to find a desolate scene.

The light curtain of the Xuanhuang Remnant Array resembled a shattered piece of glass, with cracks spreading from northwest to southeast like a fine spider web.

The base of the protective mountain array was corroded with honeycomb-like holes by voodoo poison. The array flagpole was broken in half, with half of the wooden pole stuck diagonally in the bloody soil, and the strips of cloth wrapped around it whipping the ground in the wind.

On the newly cleared training ground, a large area of ​​green jade stone slabs was trampled into pieces by the witch soldiers, revealing dark red blood mud underneath.

The broken spears piled up in the ravine were taller than a person, and the copper rust and blood scabs on the spear tips had hardened into a shell, which shone with an eerie purple light when the sunlight shone on them.

The roof of the clinic, made of animal hide, was gnawed open by locusts, leaving countless holes, like a tattered patch on the ground.

The stone mortar inside the hall was cracked in two, and the dregs of medicine mixed with bloodstains had hardened into a lump. The superior alchemy furnace, which was always polished to a shine, was lying on its side, and half of the unburnt thorny bush was buried in the ashes at the bottom of the furnace.

"It's at least twenty years of accumulated wealth." Kang Dabao had just mentally estimated the price when he heard Fei Nanying say again:
"You stay here with your disciples and rest for now. Elder Zong and I will take the young men to explore the Mo Yunze of the Yunze Witch Lord's Palace. We'll see if it's as dangerous as the rumors say. If we're too slow, Huang Mi, that turtle in a jar, might escape."

However, Master Kang showed extraordinary loyalty at this moment. As soon as he heard Fei Nanying's words, he immediately replied, "I will prepare my disciples and followers and come to help immediately."

Fei Nanying understood the former's veiled meaning, but with Fei Donggu present, he couldn't say it outright. So he said tactfully, "The Duke's Chief Clerk Zhu has already transferred the military supplies to your family. Ancestor Tianqin has given special instructions, so he won't let you down."

Fei Donggu, a shrewd and experienced man, easily understood the veiled meaning in the conversation between the father-in-law and son-in-law. He chuckled and said calmly, "I've heard that another batch of supplies from Taiyuan will be transported by Wanbao Trading Company. It will arrive soon, and the Duke will personally oversee its distribution."

At this point, Fei Donggu could see the strange light in Kang Da Sect Leader's eyes and thought to himself, "He really comes from a humble background, too shallow-minded, and lacks any real shrewdness."

However, despite his thoughts, the old cultivator spoke again with great kindness. He pointed out the three cultivators bound in front of him one by one before smiling and saying:
"The Yunze Witch Lord Palace has been domineering and rampant in Huangpi Road for hundreds of years, but this time it has fallen into the hands of your Chongming Sect. How could the Duke not show some leniency?"

Before Fei Donggu had even finished speaking, Fei Nanying turned to Fei Enwen, who had been standing by his side, and said:
"Quickly draft a battle report for me so that I can present this matter to the gentlemen of the Duke's mansion. It is true that Marquis Wuning is loyal to the country, but we cannot allow those who follow him to enjoy a life of ease while the pillars who shed blood are wronged in vain."

“Yes,” Fei Enwen has been trained by Fei Nanying over the years and his spiritual talent is no less than that of the Fei family’s direct descendants. He has already filled the vacancy left by the deceased former deputy general of Yingshan Army.

"Well, let the men rest for another half day, then we'll leave," Fei Donggu nodded with a smile, then looked at the Yangming Mountain that had changed so much before him, and asked the sect leader Kang in a low voice, "Do you intend to move the sect here?"

Kang Dabao honestly replied, "I'm thinking that since it's a third-tier spiritual vein, I do have some ideas."

“Forget it,” Fei Nanying spoke first, “We can’t stay here any longer.”

Seeing the doubt on Master Kang's face, and knowing that Kang Dabao was no longer the insignificant figure he once was, Fei Nanying then explained:
"Zhaixinglou's actions this time are quite significant, and Xianzhou is not a good place to establish a foothold. Even if Huangmi is defeated, Hongfen Temple and Qianfolin still have a very ambiguous relationship. I wonder what they will do in the future."

Kang Dabao had no doubts whatsoever after hearing this, and only asked again, "Will that kid still move back to Yunjiao Prefecture afterward?"

"No rush. I imagine that after this battle, there will be plenty of unclaimed third-tier spiritual veins throughout the three southwestern regions, which you can choose from."

————Ten days later
When Fei Nanying and Fei Donggu were about to leave, Sect Leader Kang was quite at ease and asked them to take the three hall masters of the Yunze Witch Lord Hall with them, so that Chongming Sect wouldn't have to spare manpower and worry about guarding them. He wasn't worried that the two would take credit for his work, after all, they came from noble families and would always have some pride to show when facing his juniors; however, even if he took a step back, if the two Fei really wanted to share some of the credit, it might not necessarily be a bad thing for Kang Dabao.

For two thousand years, the David Dynasty has had established rules for recognizing merits. Even if the merits attributed to the Grand Master Kang are only one-third of his original achievements, the final benefits may still exceed them by a considerable margin, so it is not considered a loss.

At this time, Ying Shanjun was struggling to advance in Moyunze. Even though Kang Dabao had told the two Fei family elders about the previous experience of the Chongming Alliance, it seemed that the results were still minimal.

It's unclear whether this is due to the change in the Yunze Witch Lord Palace's rules, or whether the Mo Yunze with Huang Mi in charge is a completely different place from the Mo Yunze without Huang Mi.

Since the Yingshan army is making bad progress, Master Kang's original plan to rest and recuperate will also fall through. After all, there's no reason to just sit back and watch the Yingshan army suffer heavy losses.

Under the instructions of Sect Leader Kang, the Chongming Sect's recuperation proceeded in an orderly manner.

Chongmingzong's recuperation proceeded methodically, like a carefully restored ancient painting slowly unfolding on Yangmingshan after the smoke of war had cleared.

Yang Xun, the deputy general of the Red Jade Guard, was still directing the young men from various families to clear the intricate battlefield, stepping on the still-wet blood and mud.

The jade pendant at his waist and his armor would occasionally clink together, each sound like a rhythm setting the tone for the tidying up.

Because of his military achievements and the generous nature of the Grand Master of the Kang Sect, Yang Xun calculated that even before the war was over, he had already accumulated most of the resources needed to form a false core. Therefore, he was full of energy when doing things.

"Spearhead to the left, shaft to the right, and anything broken into three or more pieces, just throw it away to be melted down!" Yang Xun's roar pierced through the morning mist and landed on a pile of broken spears that had just been dug up.

Two Red Guards beside him were struggling to move a broken halberd about ten feet long. The bloodstains on the halberd had turned black, but it was still clear that it was a standard weapon of the Yunze Witch Lord Palace.

"Is this thing a fake-grade spiritual weapon?" The short, armored soldier wiped the sweat from his brow, his fingertips brushing against the runes on the halberd. Suddenly, he felt a burn and pulled his hand back.
"Be careful, it's still carrying voodoo!"

The tall, armored soldier took out a detoxification talisman from his robes and rubbed it on the halberd for a moment until the black aura around the talisman dissipated.
"The alchemists from the upper sect said that all weapons with witchcraft must be cleansed three times with spirit stones, otherwise they will corrode the storage bags." The two of them worked together to lift the broken halberd into the spirit weapon wreckage. They saw that the jade table was already full of several similar broken spirit weapons, but Yang Xun was still not satisfied and kept urging them on.

Meanwhile, in front of the mountain-protecting array not far away, Wei Gu, who had just stood up and whose face was deathly pale, was carefully examining the array base in front of him, constantly estimating with a ruler.

The newly arrived spirit stones of various colors were piled up into a small mountain and arranged into a mysterious array according to the guidance of the array masters.

“This needs to be filled with mid-grade spirit stones,” Wei Gu said to the followers beside him, his fingertip pointing to the honeycomb-like holes eroded by voodoo. “They need to be fitted in perfectly, otherwise the spiritual power will escape through the gaps.”

An unfamiliar array master crouched down, carefully inserting a spirit stone into the hole, but in his nervousness, he knocked over a piece next to him. "What's the rush!" Wei Gu frowned, personally demonstrating how to wrap the spirit stone with spiritual power and embed it.
The master immediately blushed and nodded repeatedly.

Just then, the team that went out to search for the remaining enemy and deliver a message to the local tyrant sent a message via a spirit bird.

"Over a hundred deserters have been discovered in Huangmu Valley in the southeast, claiming to be from the Fengshi Fang family and the Yunggu Zhang family. Uncle Jin says they seem to have escaped from the battlefield the previous time!!!"

In such a great battle, it's perfectly normal for some mishaps to occur among the families from the capital who came to accompany Fei Shuhe in her dowry. It would be strange if they were all truly willing to die for Master Kang. Besides, the Chongming Sect cultivators had already killed quite a few on the battlefield beforehand, but they simply couldn't stop them all.

Inside the central hall, Kang Dabao was intently reviewing the supply and grain ledgers sent by Zhu, the registrar of the Duke's mansion. Upon hearing the news, his expression remained calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

Ye Zhengwen, who was standing to the side, naturally noticed that the man was angry. Just as he was about to try to comfort him, the ear-piercing sound of chains dragging on the ground suddenly came from outside. Jin Shilun led the Qingjue Guards to escort the escaped soldiers over.

This disciple of the sect leader had clearly selected the most outstanding among the deserters for questioning by Sect Leader Kang.

The latter glanced at the row of Foundation Establishment cultivators kneeling below the hall and saw that the Zhang family cultivator at the head had gray hair, his dark blue brocade robe was torn in several places, and he had half a half-eaten spirit rice cake in his arms, with crumbs falling down his clothes. He had clearly been driven to the brink of despair, and there was no trace of the dignity of a true cultivator left. He was truly in a sorry state!

Upon seeing Kang Dabao, his legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground, his knees thudding against the bluestone pavement: "Lord Wuning, spare my life! We were momentarily blinded by greed and confusion!"

He mumbled and rambled on for a while, finally emptying his mind of all the excuses he could think of, when the heads of the Yun Gu Zhang family and the Feng Shi Fang family finally arrived together.

Upon seeing the two figures in the hall, their expressions changed immediately, but before they could speak, Master Kang's gaze turned back to them.

The latter showed no anger, but simply said in a calm voice, "Please ask the two family heads to take him back and deal with it as they see fit."

"I will heed your teachings, Lord Marquis."

"Well, let's leave it at that. The two patriarchs need not worry about it. It's normal to lose one's composure a bit when first entering the battlefield."

"Thank you for your generosity, Your Excellency."

"It's good that the two heads of the family have come here to suffer with me without any complaints."

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Kang Dabao gave Jin Shilun a wink, signaling him to lead the two men out of the hall with the fleeing soldiers. Just as these men thought they had escaped, Jin Shilun suddenly felt a foul wind rushing past him, and the stench of blood assaulted his nostrils.

The screams reached Duan Anle's ears in the hall, causing him to change color slightly.

Seeing the actions of the two family heads who were slaughtering the routed soldiers, Kang Dabao simply nodded and said nothing more. Only when the sounds of the righteous soldiers training gradually replaced the screams and reached Kang Dabao's ears did he feel much more at ease.

"They do know what's good for them."

(End of this chapter)