Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 223 King’s Landing
Shen Tang nestled softly in his arms, feeling both tender and content, and lazily didn't want to speak.

She was injured in the shoulder, and the bandage was applied by peeling her clothes off her shoulder, revealing a large expanse of her fair, white shoulder. After Lu Xingzhou finished bandaging her shoulder, his hand unconsciously moved and slipped inside her bodice.

Shen Tang hummed in agreement, gently twisted her body, and adjusted her posture to let him play with her.

He would also whisper sweetly, "Kiss me."

Lu Xingzhou then leaned down and kissed him.

If people knew that Shen Tang, who had just fought against a first-rank expert and destroyed a magical artifact with her bare hands, was actually this sweet and gentle in private, their eyes would probably pop out.

"Can I get it wet now?" Shen Tang asked groggily.

Lu Xingzhou asked, "What's wrong? Want to take a bath?"

"Yeah, he's beaten up like this, covered in blood, it wouldn't feel good for you to hug him."

Lu Xingzhou laughed and said, "I think you think I smell bad."

"No."

"I didn't think you weren't attractive. Where did you get that feeling from? It's from me."

"No, no~" Shen Tang turned her head and kissed his neck: "I'll prove it to you."

Lu Xingzhou flinched slightly: "Alright, alright, you can't get your shoulder wet for now, but I can. I'll go wash up first."

He felt embarrassed to let his wife kiss him because he was covered in sweat.

In the two rooms next door, Anuo was eating, while Ye Tinglan remained expressionless.

Regardless of whether she had finished what she was doing here, Ye Tinglan felt she couldn't stay any longer.

I didn't mean to overhear. But once you've reached this level of spiritual cultivation, unless you become withdrawn, you can naturally hear their undisguised conversations.

Is this any way for a human being to live?
In fact, Lu Xingzhou also felt that having a teacher by his side was not so easy. For example, normally he could go to the spirit pool to wash now, but now he had to fetch water to bring into the house.

While soaking in the bathtub, Shen Tang rested her chin on her hand on the edge of the tub, looking at his chest and abs with a grin.

Lu Xingzhou resisted the urge to pull her into the tub with him, and said helplessly, "Don't look at me like that, I don't know what to do with my hands and feet when you look at me like that."

"Put it on me."

"Then how am I supposed to wash it...?"

"I'll help you wash it, and I can give your chest muscles a good massage."

Ye Tinglan angrily shut herself away.

I misread it. You cannot correspond to the Qian hexagram; there is no such emperor.

Even the Holy Maiden of the Joyous Union might not burn as much as you.

Speaking of you, if Lu Xingzhou had any bad intentions and just whispered a few words in your ear, what kind of tyrant would you be?

"Sect Master," Shen Qi's voice came from outside the door, "Lei Chong has been beheaded."

Shen Tang was washing Lu Xingzhou in the room, but instead of answering Shen Qi directly, she continued to ask Lu Xingzhou, "What's the next step? If Prefect Zhang and Commander Wan are on our side, I think the Dongjiang Gang can be wiped out."

Lu Xingzhou said, "If I had to choose, I would destroy the Lingyun Sect."

"Why? Now we have a blood feud."

"Because Lingyun Sect is located in the mountains, it keeps a low profile. Dongjiang Gang is in a bustling city, and we are now the righteous path... oh, we've always been the righteous path, so taking action against us wouldn't sound good to the public. What I mean is, we don't need to destroy them ourselves..."

"Want to borrow a knife?"

"No, the Dongjiang Gang is a gang, and gangs are different from sects. We just need to keep putting pressure on them and creating fear, and their members will gradually leave on their own. When Shi Tielong can't take it anymore and decides to move elsewhere, then we can do it without anyone noticing..."

Just then, a disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect reported from outside: "Sect Master, several members of the Dongjiang Gang have come to surrender."

Not only Shen Tang and Shen Qi, but Ye Tinglan, who was listening over there, also fell silent.

This came at the perfect time, making Lu Xingzhou seem like a divine strategist whose words carried divine power.

Lu Xingzhou said, "Go, Sect Master, accept their surrender, and then arrange for them to spread fear and poach people... I can handle this myself."

The door creaked open, and Shen Tang hurriedly stepped out: "Where is he? Take me to see him."

disciple:"……"

When the door opened, was it Elder Lu taking a bath inside?
Sect Master, what are you doing...?

In reality, without Shen Tang's words, Lu Xingzhou could have showered much faster. After a refreshing shower, he went out and arrived at Ye Tinglan's door again: "How are you, sir?"

Ye Tinglan said irritably, "I told you I don't need to pay my respects."

"No, I've come to ask when you're leaving, sir."

"How many more days would you like to stay?"

"At least clean up the mess and wipe out the Lingyun Sect."

"If you ask me, I don't agree with destroying other people's families."

Lu Xingzhou said, "During the battle at Fenxiang Tower, we didn't kill many people; most of them were prisoners. In the early stages, the prisoners from Fenxiang Tower were mainly driven to grow herbs and refine pills. Later, the best of them were gradually selected and absorbed into the sect, serving as the alchemy hall of Tianxing Sword Sect. Lingyun Sect is probably similar."

"Are you trying to say that you are a righteous army?"

"It's because Tangtang's situation is complicated, and she desperately needs a good reputation. Whether the methods are ruthless or peaceful, this battle is inevitable. One cannot allow another to sleep soundly beside one's bed, especially one with whom one has already formed an enmity. Being soft-hearted will only harm oneself." "So why are you deliberately telling me all this? I'm just a guest."

"Because I don't want you to have a bad opinion of Tangtang... nor do I want you to have a bad opinion of me."

Ye Tinglan said expressionlessly, "I have no opinion about her, but I've always had a lot of opinions about you."

Lu Xingzhou protested, "Hey, I'm the one who's your disciple."

"I don't have a disciple as disrespectful as you."

"Both Ah Nuo and I are like this..."

Ye Tinglan was silent for a moment: "You do what you want, it's none of my business."

"it is good."

"However, I believe that with Daoist Jingxu seriously injured, the Lingyun Sect is currently completely vulnerable and doesn't need your planning. On the contrary, we might need you more to put pressure on the Dongjiang Gang, but that would be a longer-term operation. Do you intend to stay here for several more months?"

Lu Xingzhou thought for a moment and said, "Maybe so. This kind of battle can indeed be fought without me. But I can't rest easy letting Tangtang fight a battle to wipe out her entire family. I always want to help her."

"She is the leader of this region, and she needs to handle more things independently. Don't let her become lazy. In fact, she did a great job when you weren't around. The peaceful annexation of the Dan Ding Gang was not your doing."

Lu Xingzhou scratched his head: "That's true."

Ye Tinglan immediately urged, "So you can actually leave tonight."

She really didn't want to eavesdrop all night anymore.

Lu Xingzhou said with a forced smile, "Well, even if I try to offer as few suggestions as possible during the Lingyun Sect battle, I am still a combatant. How could I run away before a major sect war? Wouldn't your own sect slap a disciple like this to death?"

Ye Tinglan: "..."

"After this battle, ah~"

"What kind of tone is that? Are you trying to coax a child?"

Lu Xingzhou took half a step back.

Ye Tinglan grabbed a calligraphy brush from the table and threw it at him: "Get lost."

As it turns out, Lu Xingzhou's "combat strength" didn't really need to be utilized in this matter.

Lingyun Sect was already inferior to Dongjiang Gang. Its sect leader, Daoist Jingxu, was only a lower-level third-rank cultivator, and there were only two or three third-rank cultivators within the sect. Overall, its strength was far inferior to that of the current Tianxing Sword Sect. When Daoist Jingxu was severely injured by a single punch from a little girl and remained bedridden, his fighting power even weaker, the morale of Lingyun Sect had long since crumbled…

The smarter members have already started to flee, and the remaining ones believe that the Heavenly Sword Sect wouldn't dare to wage a war of annihilation so easily, and that they can still survive.

After all, the righteous path must act with integrity, unlike the demonic path where everyone is a lawless madman. When the Heavenly Sword Sect destroyed the Incense Pavilion, it was the Incense Pavilion that struck first, and then the Heavenly Sword Sect even accused the Incense Pavilion of "colluding with demons to rebel," which is why they dared to attack.

Lingyun Sect can't possibly be labeled that way; they're generally not a match for them.

However, Lingyun Sect found itself surrounded by a solemn white-clad figure that very night.

Shen Tang hovered in mid-air, her clothes fluttering, calmly watching the battle below.

Lingyun Sect is located in a remote mountain area, and no one knows what happened there. She doesn't even need an excuse to move; she can just fight it out.

Zhang Shaoyou and his men, having had no chance to fight during the day, were eager to make a name for themselves and fought with incredible effort. In contrast, the Lingyun Sect lacked a leader and had absolutely no morale; its members only wanted to run. With this disparity in strength, the battle was practically a massacre, even easier than the previous battle against the Fenxiang Tower.

Not to mention Lu Xingzhou, even Shen Tang himself didn't make a move.

"Shen Tang!" The angry voice of Elder Xuanhe Zhenren of Lingyun Sect, who had participated in the founding ceremony, echoed from the mountain peak: "You have no reason to start a war of annihilation and act against the tide of history. Do you no longer want to stand on the righteous path?!"

Shen Tang said calmly, "Shall we write you a reason?"

With the prefect, the Demon Suppression Division, and the garrison now fully integrated, the entire Dongjiang County—no, Xiazhou County—is now Shen Tang's domain.

Just like those powerful sects that dominate a region, everyone within a thousand miles follows the sect's lead.

Before Master Xuanhe could say anything more, Zhang Shaoyou swept his sword across his throat, silencing him completely.

"We surrender!" another senior elder shouted. "We surrendered voluntarily, offering the mountain to Sect Master Shen! We have long been disgusted by Jingxu Xuanhe's perverse actions. We killed them, we killed them!"

Lu Xingzhou sighed: "There are still more clever people in the world. Look, they've even come up with a reason for us."

The elder's words had a fatal impact on the battle; those who had initially wanted to resist all surrendered upon hearing them.

Resistance my ass.

Seeing the battle below cease almost instantly, Shen Tang said in a low voice, "When we came to provoke them during the founding ceremony, who knew things would turn out this way?"

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at her somewhat nostalgic gaze and smiled slightly: "Congratulations, Your Highness... on your ascension to Xia Prefecture."

Shen Tang said in a low voice, "Are you leaving?"

"Well... I was just on my way to the trials and stopped by home to visit someone. I didn't come back after finishing my studies..."

Shen Tang pursed her lips: "Aren't you going to help me clean up the mess left by the Dongjiang Gang before you leave..."

Lu Xingzhou reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair from her temple: "I am merely your advisor; you must learn to make decisions independently."

Shen Tang gritted her teeth: "If I were a dictatorial monarch, would you be a concubine?"

"Yes."

"Then come and serve me tonight!"

(End of this chapter)