A Scroll of Infinite Glory

Chapter 221 Do Not Fly to the Sky, Seal the Fox in the Grass

The waterway where Guan Luoyang and his group were located was one of the tributaries of the Yellow River, but the water quality was not as turbid as that of the main Yellow River.

Looking down from the boat, the water is a clear blue-green expanse, with rippling green waves. Those with good eyesight can even see the aquatic plants in the shallow water through the waves.

A long-bearded man wielding a steel spear rode his horse into the water, and both he and his horse sank to the bottom. Wherever the horse's hooves went, bubbles were kicked up on the riverbed, turbid currents were stirred up, and large patches of aquatic plants were broken apart.

This magnificent horse, carrying people, galloped through the water with an impressive momentum, no less so than when it was speeding across the land.

The dragon hidden in the water was quite different from the common image of a deer with antlers, a bull's head, and a crocodile's mouth. Its mouth resembled the beak of an eagle, sharp and slightly curved. When it was slightly open, one could see that the sharp beak was filled with teeth as dense as nails.

The long-bearded man became one with his horse, thrusting his steel spear forward and colliding the spearhead with the sharp beak of the dragon.

A muffled roar came from the water, and the water surged like a pillar, rising four or five zhang into the air. The dragon's head emerged from the water amidst the spray.

The long-bearded man and his mount rolled backwards on the riverbed.

As he pulled on the reins, the horse neighed and stood up again, unharmed, though the surrounding mud and sand, along with the turbid current, temporarily obscured its figure.

However, this man was not alone. Just as the dragon's head emerged from the water, his brothers and followers shouted and threw out iron chains from the shallows by the water's edge.

Those iron chains were as thick as a human arm, and their dark iron sheen was interspersed with many crimson lines that looked like small characters. The front ends of the iron chains were cast in the shape of eagle claws.

Upon touching the dragon, the iron claws immediately retracted, gripping the dragon's scales tightly and even embedding themselves into its flesh.

"Walk!!"

Thirteen or fourteen tall, strong men turned their horses around and galloped wildly across the shallow water toward the shore. Iron chains were draped over their shoulders, wrapped around their waists, and also tied around the bellies of their horses.

As soon as they reached the shore, iron chains stretched taut behind them, as if trying to pull the dragon ashore as well.

The dragon let out a low roar, and with a jerk of its head, more than a dozen horses could not withstand the force and were pulled to a sudden stop, even being pulled backward.

The people on horseback seemed to have been prepared. They swayed back and forth to regain their balance, then flipped off their horses and pulled out five-foot-long iron bars from their packs, inserting them into the holes in the taut iron chains.

The iron rod pierced the ground, and instantly countless crimson seal characters on the rod lit up, as if flames flowed within the characters, spreading from the rod to the ground.

The land on the shore, which had long been eroded by the tides and was loose and crumbling, was covered by these blazing red lights. Suddenly, the surface of the land formed seal characters, the dark soil turned into gray-white rocks, and the gray-white rocks turned into a silvery white.

The ground within a radius of several dozen feet had been transformed into something resembling a cast iron structure.

The iron rods in everyone's hands became one with the steel ground, firmly wedging the chains. No matter how much the dragon roared and struggled, it could not break free.

The last rider in the group slowly rode up. The rider had thick eyebrows, eyes like copper bells, a short, slightly curled beard as rough as iron wire, and held a broad, thick sword in his hand.

He drew his sword from his horse and muttered incantations.

"River Dragon, River Dragon, combing the river and carrying away the sand, clearing away the turbid and promoting the clear; River Dragon, River Dragon, establishing the rules, all waters obey!"

The boat was sailing in the middle of the river, and the place where the people were fighting the dragon was at least thirty or forty feet away from the boat.

The miners on the ship were initially a little flustered, but as the huge waves stirred up by the dragon approached, they inexplicably subsided, and the ship became as stable as Mount Tai. The people on board were soon amazed by this novel scene and eagerly watched the brave warriors fight the dragon.

Upon hearing the incantation, Guan Luoyang laughed and said, "What kind of incantation is this? It's really simple and easy to understand, without any embellishment."

Lin Lingsu tossed the empty bamboo tube behind her and threw it back into the cabin, saying, "This is also a kind of unorthodox magic. The River Dragon doesn't refer to a dragon, but rather to a tool for clearing river channels. It's shaped like a large iron rake. If there's a blockage or siltation in a river channel, you can use a boat to tow the River Dragon over it to loosen the mud and sand so that the silt and sand can be carried away by the flowing water."

"His magic probably borrowed the impression of the River Dragon in the minds of the people, which was that it regulated the river and guided the turbid flow, forming a kind of power of discipline and taming."

Guan Luoyang suddenly realized, "So they wanted to take this giant tortoise for themselves."

Hearing the commotion outside, Gongsun Sheng also came out of the cabin, handed a new bamboo tube to Lin Lingsu, and looked towards the shore.

"Huh?" He looked over and realized that there was someone he knew on the shore. "That looks like Commander Li Jun."

On the shore, after Li Jun finished chanting the incantation several times, he swung his longsword, and a mixture of gold and red smoke flew out from the sword. After reaching the top of the dragon's head, it suddenly unfolded into a fan shape.

As the sword pressed down, the fan-shaped cloud of smoke also pressed down hard on the dragon's head, seemingly trying to force the dragon back into the water, but the iron chains and rods on the land held the dragon firmly in place.

The dragon's body swayed, darting left and right, causing the iron chains to rattle and clang incessantly, and the entire steel-reinforced ground to tremble slightly.

The dozen or so men who were pressing down on the iron bar with their palms to secure the iron chain were also covered in sweat. They poured their demonic power into the iron bar continuously, not daring to relax in the slightest.

Unable to break free from the iron claws and chains, and unable to escape the suppression of the fan-shaped cloud of smoke, the dragon, in a frenzy, tried to rush towards the shore, but its tail was held down by something in the water, preventing it from reaching the shore.

The roar from the riverbank was deafening, and the sound waves created huge waves.

But when the dragon's roar reached the middle of the river, the miners only found it a bit noisy and didn't feel its power at all.

Whether on the shore or on the boat, only a few people could see that there were wisps of blue mist lingering around each boat, as thin as snow fog under the scorching sun, yet extremely pure, never fading or dissipating.

Before long, the dragon's roar clearly subsided, and the dragon seemed to have given up its resistance due to exhaustion, and was pressed down on the river surface by the fan-shaped cloud of smoke.

Its beak, wide enough to swallow an entire horse whole, opened wide as it floated on the water, its eyes dull and lifeless.

"The beast's scent left in the wind and water was so strong, how could its strength have been completely exhausted so quickly?"

Li Jun brandished his sword, and the fan-shaped cloud of smoke condensed back, reattaching to his precious sword. Completely baffled, he called out to the water, "Brother Li Ying, are you alright? Did you perhaps severely injure that beast in the water?"

Wow!!!

With a splash, Li Ying rode his horse ashore, planted his three-edged steel spear into the bank, squeezed out a handful of water from his beard, and laughed, "Li Jun, we rushed as fast as we could, but if we hadn't made it, the dragon beast would have already been subdued by that Taoist priest."

Li Jun was taken aback, glanced at the boat, and asked in confusion, "Why do you say that?"

Li Ying shook his head: "You'll know once you go into the water."

With a flick of his sword, Li Jun parted the water to create a small passage. He stepped down onto the riverbed and looked up.

The dragon's long body stretched from the bank to the center of the river, where its tail merged into a huge tortoise shell.

It turns out that this was a dragon transformed from an old tortoise, but the transformation was not complete, and it had not completely shed its shell.

For such a demon, its dragon body is not its strongest point; its tortoise shell is even more wondrous.

If the dragon had swung its tail during the fight, causing the tortoise shell to crash onto the shore, the steel-reinforced ground would have been shattered into pieces.

Li Jun felt a chill run down his spine, but as he got closer, he realized that neither the dragon nor the tortoise shell was actually frightening; what was frightening was the power suppressing the tortoise shell.

Looking up from here, you can see the bottoms of several boats floating in the middle of the river. One of the boats is radiating a magnificent and pure light blue primordial energy into the water. It is unassuming yet so heavy that the dragon cannot break free even slightly.

Behind the tortoise shell, there is an extremely long ravine on the riverbed. It is likely that when this dragon encountered the fleet several miles away, it was already suppressed by the people on the boats across the river and dragged all the way here.

"hiss!"

Li Jun's heart was in turmoil, his magic was slightly disordered, and he almost choked on a mouthful of water. He quickly retreated back to the shore.

Li Yingzheng instructed everyone to pull up the iron rods, dispelled the magic, and restored the steel-filled land on the shore to its original soil state. He then turned and asked, "How is it?"

Li Jun silently sheathed his sword, sighed, and then burst into laughter: "That Taoist priest is really cunning. If he had warned us earlier, we wouldn't have made a fool of ourselves here. How could we possibly go to his boat to mooch some wine now?"

Guan Luoyang's voice drifted over from afar: "Please forgive me, everyone. You entered the water too quickly, and I didn't have time to say anything. But the way you arranged your formations was quite ingenious, and I was mesmerized. I would like to offer you fine wine as compensation and invite you to a gathering."

Li Ying and Li Jun exchanged a glance and nodded to each other. They instructed the others to follow with their horses on the shore. The two men then took a deep breath, leaped from the shore, and jumped onto Guan Luoyang's boat.

Gongsun Sheng said, "So it's you two. Do you still remember this humble Taoist?"

Li Ying exclaimed in surprise, "Master Yiqing, it's been many years since we last met after the defeat of Western Xia, hasn't it? Weren't you summoned back to Bianliang to enjoy your retirement? What are you doing here?"

Li Jun's expression tightened, his left thumb subtly pressing down, ready to flick out the blade at any moment. His gaze swept towards Guan Luoyang: "Could this Taoist priest also be a Taoist official from Bianliang?"

Gongsun Sheng sensed something was amiss and quickly waved his hand, saying that he was now a wandering swordsman, and introduced himself to Guan Luoyang and the others.

"Didn't General Li Ying say he wanted to retire and return to his hometown? You were the head of a manor, with immense wealth. I imagine you're living a very comfortable life these days, aren't you?"

Gongsun Sheng tentatively asked, "And what about Commander Li Jun? I heard that you rose to the rank of naval commander under Marshal Han Shizhong, fighting the Liao army on the Song-Liao border river with great prestige. How did you end up here?"

The two men surnamed Li had somewhat subtle expressions on their faces. Guan Luoyang smiled and said, "Let's sit down in the cabin first and then talk."

Everyone returned to their cabins and took their seats.

Dai Zong was sleeping in a corner of the cabin when he heard the noise. He looked up and realized that he was also familiar with Li Ying and Li Jun.

When Gongsun Sheng spoke to the two Lis, he was still very scholarly, but the three of them quickly addressed each other as brothers upon meeting.

Guan Luoyang chatted with Gongsun Sheng for a few minutes and then learned that it was once again the work of the Mandate of Heaven Emperor.

When the emperor was preparing to fight against the Western Xia, he mobilized famous generals from all over the country, and some people who were not in a good position were all employed. Some were even directly invited from the common people. He gathered thirty or forty heroes who were familiar to Guan Luoyang and seemed to be able to show their faces on Liangshan.

They even specially arranged for Song Jiang and Lu Junyi to lead their troops.

But that was a war that destroyed the country. The battlefield was vast and cruel. Lu Junyi had the advantage of being highly skilled in martial arts, but he was not good at military strategy. Song Jiang had no other strengths besides his reputation for loyalty and righteousness. Letting them command many famous generals and mobilize troops only made things more complicated. Guan Sheng, Huyan Zhuo and others were extremely dissatisfied.

Soon, commanders Zhang Jie, Zhong Shidao, and Zhong Shizhong jointly submitted a memorial to the emperor, requesting that these people be separated and each perform their own duties.

After years of war, everyone experienced ups and downs. People like Song Jiang had long since disappeared from the battlefield. Those who survived until the day the army returned in triumph had the opportunity to build some friendships.

On the other hand, Dai Zong had little suspicion of Li Ying and Li Jun, and had even revealed Lin Lingsu's identity.

Li Jun frowned immediately, and Li Ying coughed lightly.

Lin Lingsu's lips curled into a smile: "Has my reputation gotten worse since I was buried in the ground all these years? Come on, you two, tell me, besides those rubbish accusations that I bewitched Zhao Ji, do you have any other novel arguments?"

Li Ying laughed and said, "There are some rumors. Ever since the news of Master Yuanmiao's death spread, many monks have said that when he failed to learn Taoism, he came to their temple to become a monk and beg for food to survive. However, he was expelled because of his bad behavior. So, he later gained the emperor's favor and then belittled Buddhism."

Li Jun was so startled that he gave Li Yinglian a meaningful look.

Li Ying simply patted him on the shoulder, remaining calm and composed, showing no fear whatsoever towards the infamous scourge of the country in front of him.

Lin Lingsu chuckled twice: "Good! The thought that all those people think I'm dead and still waste their time worrying about me makes me happy."

Li Ying also laughed and said, "However, I once met a Confucian scholar named Zhao Ding. I heard that he wanted to write biographies of many famous people during the reign of Emperor Daojun. He was researching in various places, and among them was a record about Mr. Yuanmiao."

"In his writing, Mr. Yuanmiao was originally a pageboy of Grand Secretary Su when he was young. He had already aspired to the Dao and practiced meditation for many years. Later, although he flattered Cai Jing, calling him Immortal Master, and fawned on the emperor, calling him Dao Lord, he also gave the Dao Lord Emperor a lot of advice. A few years later, he even angrily denounced Cai Jing and the other six traitors, saying that they were all flying ghost kings. In this light, the words of the monks are naturally not credible."

Upon hearing this, Lin Lingsu's smile vanished. She silently gulped down several mouthfuls of mercury before saying, "The two of them no longer have the protection of the dynasty's fortune; instead, they show signs of being wanted by the authorities."

These words made Li Jun grip the sword hilt immediately, while Li Ying continued to smile, seemingly having already understood something.

After saying that, Lin Lingsu got up and went to the deck, clearly unwilling to talk any further.

Guan Luoyang knew that he was talking to him, so he took out a few bottles of wine from his personal space and distributed them to everyone, letting them take their seats.

Li Ying recognized that Guan Luoyang was in charge here and said, "Master Guan doesn't seem surprised by our identities?"

Guan Luoyang poured himself a cup and said, "You've already been singing ballads and cursing the emperor, so what's so strange about being wanted? Besides, I'll probably be wanted in a couple of days too. We're all in this together because we're kindred spirits."

Li Yingdao said, "I see that the people on the boat all look sickly and weak. They must be miners from some nearby mine. Since you are not a member of the imperial court, you must have killed the manager of some mine and rescued these people?"

Guan Luoyang gave him a deep look. This Liangshan hero, whom he only vaguely remembered, was surprisingly perceptive.

Li Ying's judgment was probably not something he had just thought of; rather, he had already guessed it when he first saw the people on the boat from the shore, which is why he sang that kind of ballad.

"These people are from the Cangshan mine. Brother Guan just killed Shi Wengong and Ren Sen yesterday."

Gongsun Sheng sighed, "When General Zhong Shidao was still alive, he praised Brother Li Ying many times. Many years have passed since we parted, but Brother Li Ying's eyes are still sharp as lightning, which I admire."

Li Ying chuckled self-deprecatingly and said, "Back then, the general and the others were clearly just calling me cunning."

Among the most powerful birds, the eagle is the most cunning. Do not soar into the sky; let the fox remain hidden in the grass.

A local tycoon, Li Ying, was selected to join the army. Within a year, he was recognized by the generals and appointed as the commander of the army's supplies and logistics.

Guan Luoyang said with great interest, "You were able to guess the miners' identities, and now you know we came from Cangshan, so you can probably guess where we're going next, right?"

"The Liangshan Marsh, stretching for eight hundred li, will be the Taoist priest's next target."

Li Ying took a sip of wine, then suddenly stood up and went to Guan Luoyang, bowing deeply to the ground.

"A great battle is about to take place at Liangshan Marsh. The waves and reeds stretching for eight hundred miles may be stained red. Those who have entered there have no chance of leaving, but the thousands of unfortunate people on this ship still have a chance."

"Li humbly requests the Taoist priest to find another place for these people."

(End of this chapter)