Longevity, starting from traveling and telling stories

Chapter 173: First Battle, Mingxiu Plank Road

The ministers were suddenly in an uproar and looked at Li Chunfeng in panic. This guy actually rebelled.

"Li Chunfeng, you are so brave!" the prince's uncle shouted.

The Empress' expression remained unchanged, her phoenix coronet and bridal robe not swaying at all. Instead, she glanced at Li Chunfeng indifferently, her tone tinged with sarcasm: "Prime Minister, what do you mean by this?"

Li Chunfeng smiled slightly, his tone tinged with pride. "Your Majesty, I have no choice but to act. With treacherous officials now roaming the court, I have no choice but to purge the emperor's side."

The Empress sneered, "Purge the court? Prime Minister, are you planning a rebellion?"

Li Chunfeng shook his head, his tone tinged with false regret. "Your Majesty, I dare not rebel. I am simply afraid that Your Majesty, being young, might be deceived by shameless and treacherous villains."

The Empress stared at Li Chunfeng with a glaring gaze, her tone icy as she asked, "The traitor the Prime Minister is referring to, could it be me?"

Li Chunfeng smiled faintly and said, "Your Majesty has misunderstood. The treacherous villain I was referring to was none other than Ye Beixuan. This individual's origins are unknown, and Your Majesty was deceived by his beauty...er! His lies! This treacherous villain must be eliminated."

Upon hearing this, the Empress suddenly laughed, her laughter tinged with mockery: "Prime Minister, you led troops to surround the palace today. This is truly deceiving the emperor and is as bad as rebellion."

Li Chunfeng, still acting like a loyal minister, said, "Since Your Majesty is stubborn and refuses to repent, I am willing to be the sinner and eliminate this disaster for the Great Zhou!"

After saying this, he raised his hand and waved, shouting, "Come here, please take His Majesty down and serve him well."

Upon hearing this, the soldiers immediately stepped forward and forced the guards around the empress to retreat.

Just now.

Suddenly, there was a deafening cry of killing outside the hall, followed by a commotion among the soldiers brought by the prime minister, who were finally dispersed.

The army led by Zhang Bei poured into the palace like a tide and surrounded Li Chunfeng's rebels in an instant.

Li Chunfeng's face changed drastically, and he exclaimed, "Zhang Bei? It's you!"

Zhang Bei sneered, holding a long sword, and strode into the hall, shouting loudly: "Li Chunfeng, you colluded with Beiliang and intended to rebel. Today is the day you die!"

Li Chunfeng was horrified when he saw this and quickly shouted, "Quick, stop them!"

However, his rebels had already been suppressed by Zhang Bei's army and were unable to resist at all.

Seeing this, Li Qingyun drew his sword, roared, and rushed towards Zhang Bei: "Don't hurt my father!"

Zhang Bei snorted coldly, swung his sword and rushed forward, and the two of them immediately engaged in a battle.

However, although Zhang Bei had good martial arts skills, he was far from being Li Qingyun's opponent. After just a few moves, he was repelled by Li Qingyun's sword. Then, with a cold flash of the sword, Li Qingyun was about to take Zhang Bei's life.

At this critical moment, a cold light shot out, the flying knife pierced Li Qingyun's wrist, and the long sword fell to the ground.

Seeing this, Zhang Bei seized the golden opportunity and instantly raised his knife to control Li Qingyun.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Li Chunfeng turned pale and pointed at the Empress with a trembling voice, "So you knew this a long time ago?"

The empress slowly stood up, her eyes cold and her tone stern, "Li Chunfeng, if you don't want others to know, then don't do it yourself. Today is just a trap I've laid for you."

Li Chunfeng collapsed to the ground, his eyes full of despair. The Li family was finished.

The Empress waved her hand and said calmly, "Come here, take Li Chunfeng and his son to the Heavenly Prison and await your punishment."

"The wedding continues."

The soldiers immediately stepped forward and took Li Chunfeng and Li Qingyun away.

Inside the hall, all the ministers knelt on the ground and shouted, "Long live His Majesty!"

At the same time, Ye Beixuan stood on the high wall of the imperial palace, looking at the scene inside the palace from afar, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, revealing a faint smile.

"It seems that everything is under her control." He whispered to himself.

It’s time to go to Station 18. Tian Hua alone is probably no match for Tuoba Hong.

The night was as dark as ink, and the moonlight sprinkled on the glazed tiles of the palace. Ye Beixuan stood on the high wall with a deep gaze.

He sighed softly, turned around and jumped off the high wall, his figure disappearing into the night like a ghost.

Station Eighteen is located on the border between Da Zhou and Bei Liang, with a dangerous terrain.

The elite cavalry led by the Northern Liang general Tuoba Hong has been stationed here for many days, watching the situation with eager eyes.

Although Tian Huazhi has good military talents, he is inevitably overwhelmed when facing a strong enemy like Tuoba Hong. What's more, Beiliang may receive help from the Demon Sect, and Tian Huazhi is even less capable. Ye Beixuan travels quickly all the way.

At dawn, we finally arrived at Station 18.

Inside the tent, Tian Huazhi saw Ye Beixuan coming, and his tense expression relaxed slightly. He quickly stepped forward and said with a fist clasped, "Master Ye!"

Ye Beixuan nodded slightly, glanced around, and asked in a deep voice: "What's the situation?"

Tian Huazhi looked solemn and whispered, "Tuoba Hong's cavalry has repeatedly feinted and tested my defenses, and I've been exhausted from defending."

Ye Beixuan's eyes turned cold, and he said calmly: "Defense? From now on, we will focus on attacking."

He strode towards the sand table, summoned his generals, and began to deploy the battle plan.

Inside the tent, Ye Beixuan and Tian Huazhi were discussing tactics on a sand table when a soldier suddenly rushed in, knelt on one knee, and reported with a fist clasped, "Report! Tuoba Hong's army is challenging us at the pass, and they're coming in full force!"

Tian Huazhi frowned and asked in a deep voice, "Who is challenging me?"

The soldier replied, "General, it was a general dressed in strange clothes, holding a long spear, and he looked very imposing."

As soon as he finished speaking, General Wu Lie slammed the table and stood up, angrily saying, "How dare a mere nobody dare to shout at the Great Zhou Pass! I am willing to lead the charge and kill him without a single piece of armor left!"

Upon hearing this, Tian Huazhi's expression became solemn, and he quickly advised, "General Wu, you must not be careless! Tuoba Hong is a cunning man. The person who challenged us this time is dressed strangely, so I'm afraid he's up to something."

General Wu Lie, however, didn't take it seriously. He waved his hand and said with a smile, "Don't worry, General. I'll be back soon with the head of that thief!"

Tian Huazhi looked at Wu Lie's heroic spirit and said with great joy, "Well, General Wu is indeed my capable general. Here is a cup of warm wine. Please drink it and kill the enemy."

"Thank you, General." After saying that, Wu Lie drank the warm wine in one gulp, picked up his sword, and walked out of the tent quickly.

Ye Beixuan nodded slightly, his eyes still fixed on the sand table, and said lightly: "Let's continue with the layout."

The two continued to study tactics.

But it didn't take long.

Another soldier rushed in in a panic, his voice trembling with fear, reporting: "Report! General Wu Lie... General Wu Lie... was killed by the enemy general in less than three rounds!"

"What?!" Tian Huazhi was horrified. He stood up suddenly and asked in disbelief, "General Wu Lie is such a skilled martial artist. How could he be killed in less than three rounds?"

The soldier replied in a trembling voice, "General, that enemy general... that enemy general used magic! He simply waved his hand, and General Wu fell from his horse and died!"

A cultivator? Upon hearing this, Ye Beixuan's eyes flashed with coldness, and he immediately reacted.

It seems that Tuoba Hong is indeed colluding with the Heavenly Demon Sect and has sent cultivators to assist. It would be difficult to deal with them alone.

Tian Huazhi's face was solemn, and he asked in a low voice: "Master Ye, what should we do now?"

Ye Beixuan pondered for a moment and quickly ordered: "Hurry and give this letter to His Majesty. Please inform Concubine Xiang that she will send people to support us." After he said that, he took out a letter from his arms and handed it to the soldier beside him.

The soldier took the letter and was about to leave when he hesitated and asked, "General, the enemy is still challenging us at the pass. How should we respond?"

Ye Beixuan's eyes were stern as he said calmly, "Hold still for now. The enemy situation is unclear. A rash attack will only lead to more casualties."

We don't know the enemy's situation this time. If we act rashly, we might end up in trouble. We should be cautious and wait for reinforcements to arrive before making any plans.

Tian Huazhi nodded in agreement, then asked, "Master Ye, how should we arrange this next?"

Ye Beixuan smiled slightly, a gleam in his eyes, and said slowly: "What's next? We openly repair the plank road, but secretly attack Chencang."

"Openly repairing the plank road, secretly attacking Chencang?" Tian Huazhi asked in a low voice, somewhat puzzled, "What does this mean?"

Ye Beixuan walked to the sand table, pointed to several key locations on the map, and began to narrate: "Back then, two people were fighting for supremacy. To confuse the other, one of them deliberately sent people to repair the plank road with great fanfare, pretending to attack from the plank road."

He paused and continued, "We can follow this strategy now. Tuoba Hong thought we were afraid to fight, so I will pretend to repair a road when the reinforcements arrive."

After hearing this, Tian Huazhi's eyes flashed with admiration, and he exclaimed: "Master Ye is indeed wise and resourceful. I admire him."

Ye Beixuan smiled calmly and continued, "However, the key to this plan lies in a deception. General Tian, you go there in person to supervise and create the illusion that I am here."

Tian Huazhi nodded and said, "Don't worry, Lord Ye. I will arrange for personnel to ensure that everything goes well."

Ye Beixuan nodded slightly, his gaze returning to the sand table, secretly calculating every next step in his mind.

Inside Tuoba Hong's tent.

The lights were bright and the atmosphere was lively. A soldier respectfully presented General Wu Lie's head on a tray. The blood had already coagulated, but the wide-open eyes were still filled with resentment and anger.

Tuoba Hong, who was sitting in the main seat, burst into laughter upon seeing this scene, his voice as loud as thunder: "Great! Great! Immortal Master Chen is truly amazing! This Wu Lie has killed many warriors from Northern Liang!"

Chen Huan stood aside, wearing a black robe, with a look of disdain on his face. He was just a mortal. I would kill him like butchering a dog.

Hearing Tuoba Hong's praise, he couldn't help but laugh out loud, with a hint of arrogance in his voice: "He's just a mere Wu Lie. Killing him is as easy as taking something out of a bag."

Tuoba Hong was even more delighted when he heard this. He waved his hand and said with great enthusiasm, "Come on! Set up a banquet! Today I want to have a drink with Master Chen to celebrate this successful start!"

Soon, the tent was filled with fine wine and delicious food. Tuoba Hong and Chen Huan sat opposite each other, drinking from their glasses. There were even singing girls. It seemed that this guy came to enjoy the war as well.

Everyone toasted Chen Huan and praised his great magical powers. Chen Huan accepted all the toasts and drank one cup after another, his face full of pride.

After three rounds of drinks, Chen Huan put down his glass, narrowed his eyes slightly, and spoke tentatively, "The other party is already scared out of their wits and is now staying indoors. I don't know the situation inside and dare not rush in. I'm afraid they have experts lying in ambush, otherwise they will definitely start a massacre."

Upon hearing this, Tuoba Hong frowned slightly, and after a moment's silence, he said, "Master Chen is absolutely right. They are hiding like turtles, probably waiting for reinforcements."

Chen Huan nodded, his tone filled with disdain: "It doesn't matter. No matter how they plan, it's just a desperate struggle. But how can we get them to come out and fight?"

Tuoba Hong thought for a moment, then suddenly a ruthless look flashed in his eyes, and he sneered, "Force them to fight."

After he finished speaking, he slammed the table and shouted, "Come here! Hang Wu Lie's head in the most conspicuous place in front of the pass."

Upon hearing this, the generals in the tent all smiled cruelly and responded in unison: "Yes!"

The generals in the tent were all a bit drunk at this point. Each of them picked a singing girl to take away, and Chen Huan even picked three. Soon, General Wu Lie's head was hung high on the flagpole in front of the pass, appearing particularly glaring in the moonlight.

The soldiers of Beiliang stood in front of the pass, laughing loudly at the army of Dazhou, their voices shaking the earth.

When the soldiers of the Great Zhou saw this scene, they all gritted their teeth, their eyes filled with anger and grief.

However, Tian Huazhi had already issued an order strictly prohibiting anyone from going into battle without authorization.

The soldiers could only hold their weapons tightly and endure the humiliation silently.

"When can I avenge General Wu?"

"Yeah! Could it be that this guy surnamed Ye is just a coward?"

"Hey! What can we do? We are just soldiers."

Inside the tent, Ye Beixuan stood in front of the map with a stern look in his eyes.

Tian Huazhi walked in with a gloomy face and whispered, "Master Ye, General Wu Lie's head is hanging in front of the pass, and the soldiers are very emotional."

Ye Beixuan nodded slightly, and said calmly, "No rush."

Tian Huazhi sighed and asked in a low voice: "Then how should we deal with it next?"

Ye Beixuan's eyes were deep, and he said slowly: "Wait."

Tian Huazhi nodded, a hint of determination flashed in his eyes: "Don't worry, Lord Ye, I will calm the soldiers down and will never let Tuoba Hong succeed."

Ye Beixuan smiled slightly, patted Tian Huazhi's shoulder, and said lightly: "With General Tian here, I am naturally relieved."

The night was deep, and the sound of the wind in front of the pass seemed to be mixed with the laughter of the Beiliang soldiers. However, there was a solemn and murderous atmosphere in the camp of the Great Zhou.

Ye Beixuan stood at the door of the tent, looking at the head hanging high in the distance, a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes.

Three days later, outside the Great Zhou military camp.

As the sun sets, its afterglow shines on the earth, casting a golden glow.

Outside the military camp, four monks walked slowly, their figures elongated in the setting sun.

One of the monks, holding a piece of dogtail grass in his mouth and a frivolous smile on his face, squinted his eyes as he looked at the military camp in front of him and said lazily, "This should be it? Junior brother, is this the place?"

Another monk beside him had a serious expression on his face. He clasped his hands together and whispered "Amitabha". He then nodded and said, "Brother Jie Gambling, according to the guidance of the Fragrant Concubine, this should be the place."

The monk holding a dogtail grass in his mouth—a gambler—curled his lips upon hearing this and muttered, "This place doesn't look anything special! There's no money to gamble."

Just as Jie Du finished speaking, a monk with a burly figure and a resolute face, Jie Du, frowned and said in a deep voice, "What's the point of gambling? It's more interesting to wait for me to play with poisons. There must be many highly poisonous things in this deep mountain. Let me collect some and use them."

Jie Du shrugged, smiled disapprovingly, but said nothing more.

The last monk had a handsome face but deep eyes. It was Jie Se.

He smiled slightly and said in a gentle tone: "My brothers, you are wrong. The most boring thing about this place is that it's all men."

"Besides, you're a flower thief."

The four men walked to the gate of the military camp. The soldiers guarding the gate became alert when they saw the four monks suddenly appear.

Jieyan raised his eyebrows and said lazily, "Amitabha, benefactor, my Buddhist name is Jieyan. These are my fellow apprentices who have quit gambling, drugs, and sex. I'd like to ask if there is a Mr. Ye here?"

When the soldier heard the name "Quit Smoking," he was stunned for a moment, then sneered, "You mean that coward? There is indeed one. Wait here for a moment, I'll go and report."

When Jie Du heard this, a hint of displeasure flashed in his eyes, but he did not lash out. He just muttered in a low voice: "This soldier ruffian, his words are really rude."

Jiedu glared at him and whispered, "Speak less and don't cause trouble. Have you forgotten what the master told you?"

"Follow us outside, but we must not neglect Mr. Ye."

Jie Du curled his lips and said nothing more.

At the same time, in the military camp, Ye Beixuan was sitting in the tent with a frown on his face, staring at the terrain map on the sand table, thinking about the next tactics.

Suddenly, a soldier hurried in, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and reported: "Master Ye, four monks came outside the military camp. One of them calls himself Jieyan and said he wants to see you."

Ye Beixuan heard this and wondered if it was that Flower Monk who brought people here. He raised his eyebrows and said, "Go and invite the four masters in!"

Seeing Ye Beixuan so excited, the soldier did not dare to delay and quickly ran out to pass on the order.

A moment later, the four monks were brought into Ye Beixuan's tent.

Jie Du still held the dogtail grass in his mouth, looking around with a cynical smile on his face.

The drug addict had a serious expression, put his hands together and bowed slightly.

Jie Se has a smile on his face and a gentle look in his eyes.

And Jieyan stood at the front, clasped his hands together, and said respectfully: "Amitabha, big brother, I am honored to meet you."

"Big brother?"

"Quit smoking, are you kidding me? You're actually claiming to be our big brother behind our backs?"

"Hey! You don't know how famous big brother is." Jieyan said lightly.

Ye Beixuan stepped forward, bowed, and said with some gratitude: "The four masters have come from afar. I am very grateful to you!"

"Come here, prepare a banquet."

At the banquet.

Ye Beixuan knew Monk Jie Yanhua very well, and it seemed that his three senior brothers were definitely not good people either.

At the banquet, both meat and vegetables were served, and there was plenty of wine.

After three rounds of drinks, Jie Du raised his eyebrows and said lazily, "Mr. Ye, I heard someone is challenging us at the gate?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Beixuan spoke calmly, "At present, we know that there is a cultivator on the other side, but we don't know how many there are. I am afraid that they may have more experts, so I have not made any rash moves."

Hearing this, Jiedu nodded and said in a deep voice, "Mr. Ye is absolutely right."

Jie Se smiled slightly and said gently, "Don't worry, Mr. Ye. Now that we are here, we will naturally help you defeat the enemy."

"My four brothers have formed a formation that can make the Four Elements Empty, and we can fight against those in the late Jindan stage."

Ye Beixuan felt relieved upon hearing this and quickly said, "Thank you, four masters, for your help."

Jieyan smiled slightly, a gleam in his eyes, and said slowly: "Mr. Ye."

Ye Beixuan's eyes lit up, and he quickly said, "Master, please speak!"

Jieyan nodded and was about to speak when he suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside the tent. Then a soldier ran in in a panic and reported in a trembling voice, "Master Ye, it's bad! The enemy... the enemy is challenging us at the pass again. This time... this time they've brought General Wu Lie's body with them, saying they want... want..."

Before the soldier could finish his words, Ye Beixuan's face had already turned gloomy.

A hint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes, and he said coldly: "What do you want?!"

Hearing this, Jie Du curled up the corners of his mouth into a sneer, and said lazily: "It seems that we have come at the right time."

Ye Beixuan took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in his heart, and said in a deep voice: "Okay! In that case, please ask the four masters to join me in the battle!"

Hearing this, Jie Du's eyes flashed with excitement. He casually spat out the dogtail grass in his mouth, clapped his hands, and said with a smile: "Three brothers, let's go! Let's go and take a look!"

The three people who quit drugs, quit sex, and quit smoking smiled at each other, then followed Ye Beixuan and strode out of the tent.

On the battlefield.

Seeing that the person who came was a harmless-looking young monk, Zhang Huan couldn't help but laugh and said, "Have you run out of people to use? You actually found a monk."

Jieyan's face was as calm as water, and he said in a calm tone: "Amitabha, I will come to save you from the afterlife."

After he said he would quit smoking, his whole body was suddenly filled with Buddha's light, shining brightly and dazzlingly.

Zhang Huan's face suddenly changed when he saw this, and he tried his best to resist.

However, each of Quitting Smoking's moves was extremely powerful, leaving Zhang Huan with no power to fight back and he could only dodge in a miserable manner.

"Ah!" Zhang Huan screamed, his heart terrified to the extreme. This monk was so powerful? He was also in the Foundation Establishment Stage, but he had no ability to resist at all.

At this critical moment, three flashes of light suddenly appeared.

"Hahahaha!" Three figures appeared in the flashing light, standing side by side with Zhang Huan.

It turned out to be four Zhang Huans. It turned out that they were quadruplets. There was ferocity and evil in their eyes.

"Four in one." Without saying a word, they merged together in an instant, and their momentum suddenly rose rapidly.

"Hmph! Let's see how you resist." The quadruplets snorted coldly after merging together and attacked Quit Smoking at the same time.

"Amitabha, you are the only one who can call for help, right? I can do that, too." Jieyan put his hands together, and suddenly three monks appeared behind him, each of them with a calm expression.

"The Four Great Formations of Emptiness." The four monks were seen emitting Buddha's light, and the two sides instantly started fighting, and soon the battle reached the sky.

The two sides fought hard and the battle was at a stalemate.

In terms of individual strength, the quadruplets are not strong, but once they become one, their power is far more than just one plus one.

Ye Beixuan was watching the battle below, feeling a lot of emotions in his heart, and secretly rejoiced: Fortunately I called for help. If I had acted rashly without knowing the situation, I might have capsized in the ditch.

Although the strength of these four brothers is average, they are so powerful once they unite. It seems that they deliberately fought alone in order to lure me into the trap.

Seeing that it was difficult to determine the winner, Ye Beixuan shouted loudly: "All troops, charge! Avenge General Wu."

The shouts of "Kill" were deafening, and both sides immediately started fighting. The soldiers of the Great Zhou had been holding back their anger for three days, and now they just wanted to vent it on the soldiers of the Northern Liang.

A smile appeared on Ye Beixuan's lips. As the saying goes, the first attack is strong, the second is weak, and the third is exhausted. Beiliang's morale is declining, while his side's morale is high. How could he fail?

(End of this chapter)