Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Chapter 238 The Six Immortals Lay a Bewildering Array of Thorns, and the Golden Hoop Subdues the Demonic Plants

Liu Qing swept his spear across the chest of the Demon King of the Eagle, instantly causing feathers to fall off, flesh to tear, and the chest to cave in.

The male eagle demon king was smashed and sent flying backward, spitting out demon blood like a waterfall, and the look in his eyes instantly became listless.

Liu Qing, seizing the opportunity, moved swiftly, riding the clouds to chase after the King of Eagles. He loosened his grip on the Panlong Eight-Tone Cone, ready to pierce the King of Eagles' head.

"No, sir, run!"

The Mother Eagle Demon King, having exerted all her strength, barely managed to block Liu Qing's Panlong Eight-Tone Cone. With a soft "plop," the Panlong Eight-Tone Cone pierced through her body, and she died instantly.

"Silly woman, you, you're so silly—"

"We are husband and wife, one in spirit. Today, calamity befalls us, so let us journey together!"

"Silly woman, just you wait—"

The male eagle demon king forcibly stopped in mid-air, pounced over, hugged the female eagle, chuckled, and then forcefully thrust his heart toward the tip of the Panlong Eight-Tone Cone.

Liu Qing admired the deep affection between the golden eagle demon king and his wife, but that was all he admired. It did not affect his subsequent actions of collecting their corpses, robbing them of their money, erasing their minds, and turning them into puppets.

Liu Qing's swift slaying of three Fifth Qi Realm demon kings ignited the morale of the Tang army, who erupted in cheers and shouts of "Long live the River God!"

Meanwhile, the Sui army camp opposite fell completely silent.

Wei Wentong caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye that all the Sui soldiers around him had lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at Liu Qing, and their faces were filled with fear.

Wei Wentong couldn't help but feel uneasy. The combat power that Liu Qing had displayed was truly terrifying. He had killed three of their demon kings in succession, and it seemed that he still had strength left.

Such a powerful performance not only suppressed the morale of his own side, but also seemed to have the potential to change the course of the battle single-handedly.

If Liu Qing continues to perform strongly, he will definitely be able to sweep away tens of thousands of soldiers on his own.

As a staunch supporter of the Sui Dynasty, Wei Wentong did not consider backing down in the face of Liu Qing's formidable performance. What he was thinking about now was how to kill Liu Qing.

The little mare under her, the demon queen Hong Niangzi, whispered, "General, why not ask the Six Immortals of Thorns to help trap Liu Qing? Once Liu Qing is trapped, how can the Tang army withstand us demon queens?"

"The Tang army relies on Liu Qing alone."

Reminded by the mare Red Lady, Wei Wentong immediately realized: "No wonder I dote on you so much, you really are a delightful person who can relieve my worries."

Then, Wei Wentong turned around and saw five strangely dressed old men and a charming woman. These six were the Six Immortals of Thorns that Hong Niangzi had mentioned.

The five strangely dressed old men, when they first joined the army, claimed that their origins were demon kings who had cultivated for thousands of years at the Wood Immortal Temple on Thorn Ridge. They were named Naked Ghost, Eighteen Strong-willed Elders, Lonely and Upright Elders, Soaring Master, and Cloud-Sweeping Elder.

The other alluring woman, who called herself Xingxian, was Wei Wentong's bedmate before the little mare Hongniangzi.

Wei Wentong simply got tired of playing with her and gave her the cold shoulder. After meeting Hong Niangzi, he completely forgot about her. Now, if Hong Niangzi hadn't mentioned her, Wei Wentong wouldn't have remembered her for a while.

Wei Wentong looked at Xingxian somewhat awkwardly: "Xing'er, could you lend me a hand and help me capture Liu Qing from the Tang army camp?"

Xingxian rolled her eyes: "The six of us siblings are not very good at fighting. Liu Qing is highly skilled. If we go up there, we will only be throwing our lives away."

"Xing'er, you've misunderstood me. I meant for you to trap him, not to kill him!"

Upon hearing this, Xingxian suddenly understood. After discussing it with her five elder brothers, she nodded and said, "That's good. My brother and I agree to the general's request."

Wei Wentong was overjoyed: "If we can trap Liu Qing, after the battle, when I assess merits, you and your sister will be credited with a great achievement!"

Wei Wentong raised the bounty again, and the other demon kings in the formation couldn't help but feel envious. They thought, "If you had said it was just to trap the enemy, not to kill him, we could have done it too."

What a lucky break for that little vixen, Xingxian! She got such a great deal for free. Who can blame her for being so beautiful in human form and so open-minded?

Liu Qing possessed the ability to see and hear through plants and trees, and he had already heard all about Wei Wentong's arrangements.

Seeing the Six Immortals of Thorns appear, I stared at them for a while with a strange look in my eyes. Well, I've encountered another boss guarding the journey to the West.

Although the Six Immortals of Thorns also possess the cultivation of the Five Qi Realm, their combat strength is weak due to their physical form. Since I am about to move to the Wei River and my residence lacks greenery, I might as well use you to decorate it.

Although their combat strength is weak, they have a combined attack technique: they can work together to set up an illusion array.

It's not entirely accurate to call it an illusion array. In reality, it uses maple, pine, cypress, juniper, apricot, and bamboo trees to manipulate the flowers, grasses, and trees of the mountains and forests. It creates illusions with pollen and forms a maze with ancient tree vines, making people unable to escape and becoming so engrossed in it that they are unaware of their own existence.

Liu Qing possessed the ability to see and hear plants, making him their nemesis, so he naturally had no fear.

However, their schemes have trapped them, and they've even sent other demon kings to target Li Shimin's mortal Tang army, so we must be wary of them.

With a thought, Liu Qing summoned the Yin Jade Spirit Banner. In the next instant, a black dragon and a centipede at the Three Flowers Realm, along with Tiger Power Immortal, Sheep Power Immortal, Deer Power Immortal at the Five Qi Realm, the Demon King Long-Armed Ape, City God Yang Zhen, Yang Yong, Linggan King, Benboerba, Baboerben, several Sui Dynasty ancestral spirits, and the newly subdued White Egret Demon King and Golden Eagle couple—a total of more than twenty demon king puppets at the Three Flowers and Five Qi Realms—appeared with a whoosh, instantly filling the air with eerie ghostly energy and gusts of yin wind.

Liu Qing instructed the three Tiger Power Immortals to each lead eight or nine demon king puppets to guard Li Shimin's Tang army formation.

Since they were not in a city teeming with mortals, they were not worried about the human flood. Although the bloodthirsty aura in the Tang army's formation had the power to dispel evil spirits, Liu Qing, who was in charge of the Tang army's waterways and served as the Great Dragon God who controlled clouds and rain, enjoyed the Tang army's fortune and could protect the evil spirit puppets from being instinctively dispelled by the Tang army's bloodthirsty aura.

The same was true in the Sui army on the other side. Once a demon king joined them, they were all given a military position and became members of the army. Only by sharing the fortune could they live among them.

Liu Qing waved his hand and summoned more than twenty demon king puppets, which immediately terrified the Sui army.

Wei Wentong swallowed hard and asked the woman beneath him, "Didn't you say that the Tang army only relied on Liu Qing?"

"Why are there so many demon kings' Yin spirit puppets appearing now?"

The little mare, Red Lady, hesitated and said, "I'm not wrong. More than twenty demon king puppets were all summoned by Liu Qing. Doesn't that count as one person?"

Wei Wentong was speechless and gave the mare's rump a hard lash with his whip.

The six Xingxian members exchanged glances, a sense of foreboding creeping into their hearts. But having received their orders, they had no intention of abandoning their mission halfway.

The eldest, naked ghost, said, "Brothers and sisters, all we need to do is trap him. We've only fought one battle according to military orders, not a life-or-death struggle, so there's nothing to worry about."

Xingxian nodded several times and said, "In that case, let's have a match."

The six immortals of Thorns each revealed their true forms, transforming into maple trees, pine trees, cypress trees, cypress trees, apricot trees, and bamboo.

As the demonic energy surged in, the main body instantly grew larger, soaring straight into the clouds. The main body took root in the soil, sprouting roots that then burrowed into the soil, transforming into small trees and bamboo groves that completely surrounded Liu Qing.

After that, the trees and bamboo groves, large and small, moved without wind, their leaves rustling. As the leaves rustled and swayed, wisps of mist were released, enveloping Liu Qing's head and surroundings in a thick fog.

In the mist, apricot blossoms bloomed, bamboo flowers bloomed, and other trees such as maple, pine, cypress, and pines also burst into bloom with numerous flowers.

One by one, the flowers burst open from their central stamens, releasing a dense cloud of pollen that spread into the mist and seeped into Liu Qing's body.

Under the influence of the laws of sight and hearing, Liu Qing was unafraid of these things.

Liu Qing chuckled, "Your skills are quite impressive. You're perfect for decorating my mansion!"

Having said that, he opened his mouth and swallowed, activating his perfected Elephant Swallowing talent, swallowing all the mist and pollen into the Power Cave Heaven.

Without waiting for the Six Immortals of Thorns to react, he waved his hand to open the gate of the Power Cave Heaven, which then enveloped the Six Immortals of Thorns.

The Six Immortals of Thorns finally realized what was happening and were about to unleash their Five Elements Qi to resist together when they heard Liu Qing coldly shout, "If you dare to resist, I won't be polite."

"Judging by the hardness of your bodies, my Panlong Eight-Tone Cone is far sharper!"

"If you do not surrender, you will surely suffer the same fate as the White Heron Demon King!"

Upon hearing this, the Six Immortals of Thorns were immediately alarmed.

They never had the will to fight to the death. Now that Liu Qing had easily broken their strongest combined attack, and with his ferocious threat, their already dwindling fighting spirit was completely extinguished.

"Sir, please stop! We are willing to surrender!"

Xingxian and the six naked ghosts hurriedly begged for mercy, offering no resistance and allowing Liu Qing to absorb their true forms into the Power Cave Heaven.

To prevent any accidents, Liu Qing used his divine power to cast the Golden Hoop spell, imprisoning the Six Thorn Immortals. He planned to plant them in his mansion after the war when he moved to the Wei River.

Liu Qing forcefully suppressed the Six Immortals of Thorns and subdued them, greatly boosting the morale of the Tang army. Li Shimin looked at Liu Qing's clone beside him, who nodded with a smile.

Li Shimin immediately ordered: "Beat the drums! Attack!"

The messenger waved the command flag, the drummers and strongmen in the army beat the war drums, and the Tang soldiers rose and shouted, forming ranks to press towards the Sui army.

The morale of the Sui army plummeted to its lowest point. Although the commander-in-chief, Wei Wentong, knew that things were going badly, he dared not order a retreat. At this time, the two armies were only a mile apart, and the Tang army had already begun its charge. If they retreated now, they would inevitably be pursued and attacked by the Tang army, resulting in a complete rout.

Wei Wentong spurred his horse forward, pointing his broadsword at the Tang army, and roared, "Soldiers, follow me to kill the enemy!"

"Whoever kills Liu Qing will be rewarded with the greatest merit by Li Shimin. Those who kill Tang generals who betrayed the Tang army, such as Li Xuanba, Luo Shixin, and Changsun Wuji, will also receive great merit!"

With the Sui army's morale plummeting, Wei Wentong had no choice but to raise the reward again and personally lead an attack in an attempt to revive the Sui army's spirits.

(End of this chapter)