Starting from the Tiger Demon Yaksha, the demon immortality

Chapter 321-330 The curtain rises, troops enter the capital to defend the emperor.

"Guangyi, today we are crowning you. From now on, you will be a man who can stand on your own."

"Right now, since you haven't broken through the internal organs, you'll be a cook in my personal guard."

"Once you reach that level, I will make you the captain of my elder brother's personal guard. You are the only person my elder brother trusts the most, understand?"

"Brother, I understand!"

Inside the tent, the young man, who had changed his name to Li Guangyi, had his hair tied up in a turban, wore a light purple round-necked robe over a waist-length two-piece armor, and had wrist guards on his arms. He was dressed in military uniform and looked heroic.

Upon seeing this, Li Cunxiao couldn't help but feel a sense of pride, like a son growing up.

Looking back two years ago, my younger brother was a skinny child, but now, judging from his appearance alone, he is a man who is almost six feet tall.

I felt a sense of accomplishment, but also a bit of regret.

In chaotic times, one cannot escape strife. Keeping one's younger brother by one's side as a personal guard is relatively safe, but it is impossible to avoid all strife.

Just as an eagle must endure wind and rain to soar through the sky, Li Cunxiao had no intention of letting his younger brother be a hothouse flower.

"However, the path of demonic martial arts has too many obstacles in the early stages, which unnecessarily slows down the progress of martial arts training."

"If one day we have enough killing intent, we might as well start with blood and muscles and work out to improve this system."

"This will not only benefit Guangyi, but also allow him to develop his own team much faster in the future."

In the past few days, the Hedong army has been waiting for the follow-up troops and supplies. Li Cunxiao borrowed flying cavalry to sweep away the Huayin demons while also reorganizing his forces.

Of the two hundred Dao soldiers left to him by Yan Daotong, four were from the Yellow Court, more than twenty were from the Internal Organs, and the rest were all of perfect muscle and flesh.

Thus, they were divided into four teams, with fifty people in each team.

After returning from the banquet that night, Wei He and Ye Chengxiao unsurprisingly chose to follow him.

Both of them were quite talented. Lou Guandao had already reached the third stage of internal organs after a year of training.

Li Cunxiao simply let the two of them each lead a team, and temporarily transferred all the Huangting warriors to the remaining team, to be reassigned later when more soldiers were recruited.

As for the separate squad of personal guards, he specifically chose those who were relatively young and had a lower cultivation level.

Firstly, Li Cunxiao himself was strong in martial arts, and his personal guards were not very useful at the moment; loyalty was more important than combat strength.

Secondly, a lower cultivation level would make it easier for Li Guangyi to give orders. After all, his alchemy skills were what they were, and low-level pills were child's play for him.

If you're willing to invest, it's not difficult to accumulate a batch of internal organs and even the Yellow Court in a short period of time.

Finally, there's the earlier consideration of making it easier for those at lower levels to modify their martial arts training methods if they were to improve them someday.

As for clearing out the demons of Huayin, we still need to rely on these five hundred elite flying cavalrymen, all of whom are at the Yellow Court realm.

The combined power of five hundred people's true energy was even greater than that of blood energy.

In just three to five days, the progress was extremely fast. After another raid into the city today, there will be basically no hidden dangers in the city.

"This time, Zhu the traitor joined forces with Qida from beyond the Great Wall to advance, which inadvertently benefited Prince Jin. The leader of the Ming Cult and his two Dharma Kings were seriously injured."

"Those few days around New Year's Day should be relatively peaceful. But once the Prince of Jin enters the capital, he will surely take some action."

Ye Jingneng and Li Cunxiao, father-in-law and son-in-law, one riding a lion and the other a horse, communicated telepathically before entering the city.

"Of course. The dragon throne is very attractive. Prince Jin has asked me several times in the past few days to inquire about the power and influence of people in the capital."

"Judging from his ambition, he probably intends to first act as regent like Gao Pian, and then force the current emperor to abdicate and ascend the throne."

Li Cunxiao nodded upon hearing this, "It seems that the Prince of Jin still prefers to play it safe."

"If he were to ascend the throne directly, he would inevitably have to kill a lot of people and give others ammunition to use him, such as Zhu Quanzhong."

"The benefits of the capital city lie not only in its reputation and righteousness throughout the world, but also in the profits of its merchants."

"Confiscating property and demanding payment is the practice of bandits; the businesses of noble families are the goose that lays the golden eggs."

In order to eliminate the murderer, Li Cunxiao deliberately set up his camp one mile outside the city, just in case.

After exchanging a few words, they arrived at the city gate of Huayin.

The city has four gates, but now only one gate is open for entry and exit, while the remaining three gates are closed and guarded by flying cavalry.

Hundreds of thousands of residents died, and it took two days just to transport the bodies.

The remaining population lived scattered throughout the city, in a desolate and unsafe place.

Therefore, Li Cunxiao ordered that civilians reside in the south of the city, while all demons and monsters be driven to the north. This also made it easier to remove the corpses from the east, west, and north gates after each extermination.

To appease the city's residents, Li Cunxiao always entered the city through the south gate. The people were overjoyed to see him, and some even wanted to go outside the city to worship the large Buddha statue, but he ordered them to stop.

Today was no exception. After passing through the fairly bustling streets and displaying an approachable and benevolent image, we crossed the main street and the scene suddenly became deserted.

The walls were broken and in ruins, and there were traces of battle everywhere. The black bloodstains looked like children's graffiti, bizarre and twisted.

"How many demons are left in the city?"

"Reporting to the Thirteenth Prince, only about 120 remain, and they have already been driven to the North Ward according to the old rules."

"Okay, here's your reward."

Li Cunxiao casually flicked out a pill, and the soldier immediately beamed with joy, hurriedly leading the way.

After walking for a few more minutes, ahead was a fortified village. The stone gates around it were nearly ten meters high, and there was no one within a radius of ten zhang. There were several watchtowers ten zhang away, with crossbowmen on them to give warnings.

The towering gates effectively prevented any possibility of human or demon escaping; even if one or two managed to slip through, they would not escape being shot down by crossbow bolts.

It must be said that although Li Yisheng's personal guards were equally arrogant, their combat and execution capabilities were indeed remarkable.

"Open the door."

Li Cunxiao patted the blue lion beneath him, and the lion roared and stepped forward to pry open the massive stone door, which weighed ten thousand jin, with its claws.

This is also the safest door – it doesn't require a key; if you're not strong enough, you can't open it.

"Roar!"

As soon as the stone door was opened, the demons who smelled human scent went berserk and rushed out from every nook and cranny of the neighborhood.

"Formation."

Similar scenes have occurred many times before. The flying riders skillfully slammed their halberds into the ground, unleashing a massive surge of true energy that instantly converged under the guidance of the spirit of the Ten Directions Salvation Heavenly Venerable.

In the eyes of the flying riders, this Thirteen Protectors was quite different.

Unlike the other gentlemen who were imperious and domineering, this man personally carried out the killing of several demons, showing the same style as the Prince of Jin when he started from scratch.

Of course, the most crucial factor is that he is strong enough to keep things under control, and he is generous with his money, never stingy with pills for those who get things done.

Li Cunxiao didn't care what others thought. With a flick of his left hand, the jet-black longbow fell into his grasp, its silvery-white Qiankun symbols shimmering as if breathing.

With a flick of his right hand, the Celestial Venerable's five fingers clenched together, condensing the true energy of the flying riders into a crimson arrow, which was then nocked onto the bowstring.

"Born into tragedy is already unfortunate; may you rest in peace after death."

With a flick of the finger, the arrow, like a rainbow, shot straight into the sky, exploding and scattering like fireworks upon reaching its zenith—

Swoosh swoosh swoosh swoosh.

There were no explosions, only the sounds of bodies falling one after another. Li Cunxiao fired three arrows in quick succession. After the three arrows, there were no more demons standing in the gate, but hundreds of holes, about the thickness of wood and a foot deep, appeared on the ground.

At this point, the more astute riders began to fawn over Li Yisheng, hoping to seize this last opportunity before returning to his side to obtain some pills as a reward.

But despite the flattery and the sight of the corpses scattered on the ground, Li Cunxiao was not particularly happy.

These demons, to put it bluntly, were all innocent civilians who were poisoned by the Ming Cult and turned into something neither human nor ghost.

The corpses on the ground included the elderly, children, women, and young adults.

There were young masters and ladies in fine clothes, as well as craftsmen and laborers in coarse clothes.

On the other hand, it is also because most of these people are ordinary people, and they are generally at the Qi, Blood, and Muscle level, so they bring less evil aura.

In just a few days, even after killing over a thousand demons, they had barely filled half of the vajra.

"Never mind, perfecting the external avatar should be enough."

Li Cunxiao composed himself, rewarded several cavalry captains with pills as usual, left the city, exchanged a few words with his father-in-law, and then led this group of elites back to the central command tent of the Hedong Army.

He was fully armored and clad in a robe, riding a blue lion, with elite cavalry following behind him; it would be difficult for him to keep a low profile.

"Oh my, the Thirteenth Prince is back from exorcising demons, how majestic!"

Hearing the commotion, Kang Junli, shirtless, leaned against the tent entrance, speaking in a strange and sarcastic tone.

"But now that Huayin City is stable and the Flying Cavalry has been handed back to our adoptive father, our Thirteenth Master will be a commander without troops again."

"It's unacceptable that the esteemed Thirteenth Protector has no capable subordinates."

Li Cunxiao curled his lip, too lazy to pay attention.

In the past few days, he has come to understand that both the "Old Man Party" and the "Third Man Party" have their own leading figures.

Under the command of Grand Protector Li Siyuan, the most outstanding was "Thunder God" Kang Junli.

Under the command of Li Cunxu, the Third Protector, was not Shi Jingsi in white robes, but Li Cunshen, who had accompanied him on his previous mission.

Shi Jingsi appears to be a member of the Third Prince's faction, but most of the time, he acts directly on the orders of the Prince of Jin.

In short, there's no need to argue with a dog. He also understands that the reason for all of this is his special status.

On the day Li Yisheng rushed to the rescue, Li Cunxiao and Zhu Yougui revealed their spiritual forms during their battle, which could not be hidden from anyone.

With his astonishing potential and being a prodigy in alchemy, he should have been a highly sought-after individual.

Unfortunately, Li Cunxu acted faster, spreading the news of his recruitment of Li Cunxiao and the gift of the golden seal far and wide.

As a result, Li Cunxiao was "voluntarily" made a member of the Third Master's Party.

Kang Junli, the number one loyal dog under the Grand Protector, naturally made sarcastic remarks every few days.

"What's the use of just talking? Twelfth Brother, why don't you actually fight him with swords and let us all laugh at him?"

Amidst laughter, a burly arm reached out, about to embrace Kang Junli, but was impatiently pushed away by the latter.

"Li Cunjin, I'll curse your mother. That kid cultivates two spiritual arts and possesses five or six divine weapons. You dare to go and try?"

The Fifth Bodyguard, Li Cunjin, was not angry upon hearing this. Instead, he smiled and reached into his crotch.
"I've only slept with ten women, my pockets are empty, where am I going to get any more sperm?"

"Damn it," Kang Junli was also amused, but after they both laughed, they fell silent.

There's nothing I can do.

He was born into a Taoist sect and his wife was a noblewoman from a noble family. He practiced martial arts that were divine skills and had one more spiritual form than others. He also had so many divine weapons that he could hang them all over his hands and feet.

Most of these adopted sons came from humble backgrounds. With such a remarkable person suddenly appearing by their side, who wouldn't be envious and jealous?

But the others' combat power is also truly formidable; at the Xuan Guan realm, they can support a formation of a thousand people and fight against the Red Crow Army, which outnumbers them several times over.

Li Siyuan repeatedly ordered that no one should provoke Li Cunxiao before entering the capital.

If Li Cunjin hadn't been in the tent behind him, Kang Junli might not have been able to utter those sarcastic remarks.

"I think you're just worrying for no reason. Even the boss isn't worried, so why are you?"

"Below the level of a grandmaster, all are ants. On the battlefield, swords have no eyes. Li Cunxiao is so arrogant, who knows when he might die."

"Don't forget, Zhu the bastard killed both of his sons by himself. When war breaks out, do you think he'll survive?"

Kang Junli was not happy to hear this. "He is an alchemist. Is your godfather willing to let him go to the battlefield?"

"Fuck you, Kang Junli!"

Li Cunjin grew impatient and grabbed him, dragging him into the tent.

"If this won't work and that won't work, what's the point of even thinking about it? Might as well sleep with a woman."

"Let me tell you, this beauty is a county magistrate, said to be a descendant of Emperor Taizong's brother. I've also captured her mother; it'll be perfect for us brothers."

"The taller the tree, the more the wind will blow against it. I have a great reputation now, but I don't have enough strength. I must establish myself as soon as possible."

Li Cunxiao returned to his tent, sat down cross-legged, and prepared to cultivate.

Upon returning to camp, Li Yisheng again mentioned that he should command two thousand flying cavalry in one capital. Li Cunxiao knew this was a test, and he still refused.

Finally, Li Yisheng relented and changed his mind, allocating two hundred new recruits to the battalion and letting him train them on his own.

After thinking it over, Li Cunxiao agreed.

His current squad consists of two hundred men, and adding another battalion would not affect his control. New recruits would also be more likely to exert influence.

Right now, he is mainly focused on cultivation and doesn't have much time to train his troops.

Once the Xuan Guan (mysterious gate) is perfected, breaking through to the Grandmaster level will take time, whether it depends on comprehension or the presence of malevolent energy.

In time, the hard work of Huayin County today will bear fruit.

In fact, right now he can use his identity as a true disciple of Louguan Dao to win over a group of local strongmen, which will make things easier for him in the future.

"Let's see if these five obstacle-breaking simulations can perfect the supernatural power of the external avatar."

With a single thought, golden light flowed from the Vajra Pestle, and countless profound teachings flowed into the heart.

Behind Li Cunxiao, the image of the Ten Directions Salvation Heavenly Venerable slowly emerged, but not a trace of true essence was revealed.

The spiritual image gradually solidified from transparent, and the sleeves revealed the true texture of the fabric.

The image of the Heavenly Venerable, wearing a crown with tassels, a blue robe, a red skirt, and a square collar, gradually resembles that of Li Cunxiao himself.

A moment later, both the spirit and the physical body opened their eyes, and lightning resembling a blue dragon lit up their pupils.
The Hedong army did not stay in Huayin for long.

On the eve of the Lunar New Year in the fifth year of Guanghua, with the arrival of the rear army from Hedong, several pieces of news stirred everyone's hearts:
After returning to the grasslands, Yelü Yi, the King of Qida Khan, declared himself King of Liao and soon led his army south, brazenly invading Youzhou.
Yang Huayuan, the military governor of Huainan Circuit, declared himself King of Wu and took advantage of the instability in the rear of Henan Circuit to launch an army northward.

Qian Miao, the military governor of Jiangnan East Circuit, rebuked Yang Huayuan for forging official seals and defying the imperial court. To prevent any unforeseen circumstances, he requested that Master Deng of Magu Mountain descend the mountain.

Zhu Quanzhong returned to Zhengzhou, where he strengthened his troops and issued a proclamation, claiming that the Prince of Jin had murdered the Grand Chancellor and was plotting a rebellion, and inviting all the military governors of the country to join him in attacking the Prince.

Li Yisheng's response was simple and direct—to set out for the capital!

(End of this chapter)