Qi Refining Ninth Layer

Shen Jingchuan watched from the sky as the figure fled further and further away, weighing his options several times.

If we don't intervene now and just let him go back, the Rebel Army will suffer countless more deaths and face far more difficulties in the future.

To capture the thief, capture the king; once the king is captured, the remaining 200,000-plus border troops will be subdued.

He gritted his teeth, decided to give up, and made his move.

Why should I always have to wait for you to make the first move before I can retaliate? This time, I'll strike first.

He looked down at Little Black and said, "Come on, take me to catch that person."

Little Black understood, folded its wings, and swooped down in the direction he pointed, as fast as lightning.

Upon reaching him, Shen Jingchuan summoned his flying sword, stepped onto the blade, reached out and grabbed the belt around the Marquis of Zhenbei's waist. With a gentle lift, he hoisted the man up and flipped him back onto Little Black's back.

Marquis Zhenbei was focused on escaping when suddenly everything went dark above him. Before he could react, he was already off his saddle and hanging in mid-air.

He was both shocked and furious, and reached for his sword.

Shen Jingchuan didn't even look at him, coldly saying, "Stay put. Believe me, you don't even need to lift a finger. If you dare to have even the slightest thought of resistance, I can crush you."

These words were incredibly domineering, yet the Marquis of Zhenbei believed them. His hand, gripping the sword, froze in mid-air, and he dared not move again.

But he stubbornly insisted, saying, "You... you are an immortal, how dare you interfere in mortal warfare? Aren't you afraid of the heavenly rules?"

Shen Jingchuan sneered and said, "Mortal warfare? The two cultivators you sent to attack the city in Yuxi Prefecture were captured by me."

"Why should I only be able to retaliate after you strike first? Why can't I strike first? If there are any cultivators in your army, just tell them to come at me, I'll take them."

Marquis Zhenbei opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

Little Black flew swiftly, overtaking the fleeing soldiers, landing ahead of everyone, then turned and hovered low in the air.

Shen Jingchuan stood up, grabbed the Marquis of Zhenbei's belt with one hand, lifted him into the air like a chick, and with all his might, roared down.

"Your commander has been captured by me!"

"Lay down your weapons and surrender immediately! Anyone who dares to run will face my ruthlessness!"

Then, he patted Little Black and instructed, "Scare them a little, but don't kill anyone."

Little Black understood, and pressed its horn down, causing a blinding bolt of lightning to strike the ground. The lightning exploded, and the withered grass on the ground burst into flames.

The fleeing soldiers were terrified when thunder roared in their ears and lightning flashed before their eyes. They all fell to their knees in terror.

"We are willing to surrender! Immortal Master, please spare our lives!"

One kneel down in front, and a whole swarm of them followed suit. Tens of thousands of routed soldiers, not one of them dared to run anymore.

Behind them, the Rebel Army cavalry caught up and saw this scene. They were stunned at first, then cheered in unison.

"The Black Horse Immortal Venerable is mighty! Long live the Immortal!"

The cavalrymen split up and went forward, collecting the weapons of the surrendered soldiers, and escorting them back in groups.

Shen Jingchuan let Little Black land on the ground, then loosened his grip, causing the Marquis of Zhenbei to stumble and fall.

Several cavalrymen rushed over and saluted. "Greetings, Young Master Shen."

Shen Jingchuan said, "Tie him up tightly and hand him over to your chief. He is the commander-in-chief of the border army."

The cavalrymen responded, stepped forward, bound him tightly, and mounted him on a horse.

Before they could speak again, Shen Jingchuan slung his Little Black over his shoulder, took off, and flew forward for a while. When he saw Hu Tieniu in the central army, he landed again.

Hu Tieniu stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said solemnly, "Thank you for your help, young master."

Shen Jingchuan waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. They broke the rules by sending cultivators first, so I took action."

"I've already had the Marquis of Zhenbei brought here to you. You decide what to do with him after that. I'm going to check on things elsewhere. You go about your business and don't worry about me."

Hu Tieniu was unwilling to let him go, saying, "Even if I'm busy, I have to eat. I've already ordered someone to start a fire and cook a meal. Eat something simple before you leave."

Shen Jingchuan smiled, waved his hand, and said, "No, I still need to go to my eldest and second brothers' places to see how things are going. If everything goes smoothly, I'll eat there."

"What good stuff could you possibly come up with in this mess? I'm not eating, I'm leaving now."

After saying that, he waved to Hu Tieniu, then climbed onto Little Black, spread his wings, and took off, flying towards the southwest.

He didn't know exactly where Lin Shan had fought his way to, but he had heard Zhou Tong say that his elder brother had spread out all the way to the west, so he searched for him as he went.

He wasn't worried that Lin Shan and his group would encounter a formidable enemy.

The imperial army sent to quell the rebellion was defeated, and the northern border troops, which were brought in at the risk of foreign invasion, were also defeated. At this point, the imperial court could no longer spare any extra troops.

The country is surrounded by neighboring countries on all sides, and large numbers of border troops are stationed there. The imperial court dares not touch those troops again, because if they were to be withdrawn, it would be no different from the fall of the country.

Little Black didn't fly fast, Shen Jingchuan kept his head down, looking around the whole way.

It's not yet the season for spring planting, and the fields are empty except for a few scattered farmers.

They didn't look like they'd been in a war, but the city walls they passed along the way were all uniformly covered with the flags of the Rebel Army.

He flew for nearly two hours, stopping and starting, before finally finding Lin Shan.

Lin Shan is currently stationed at the county government office in Pingxi County, which he has recently conquered.

Little Black landed straight into the courtyard of the county government office.

When the people in the courtyard saw the black horse descending from the sky, they all surrounded it and bowed. Some called it "Immortal Venerable," some called it "Young Master Shen," and some called it "Master Shen"—it was a chaotic mix of all sorts of names.

Shen Jingchuan waved his hand at each of them and asked, "Where is your Lord Lin?"

Several people hurriedly went to report, but Shen Jingchuan couldn't wait and strode straight towards the main hall.

Hearing the commotion in the courtyard, Lin Shan came out to greet them, and the two met face to face at the door.

Lin Shan was both surprised and delighted, and said, "Jingchuan, what brings you here?"

Shen Jingchuan smiled and said, "Big brother, I came to see you..."

On this day, Shen Jingchuan first helped to settle the battle situation on the northern front, and then went to Lin Shan and Lin Yue to check on the progress of the two routes. Seeing that everything was going smoothly, he was finally relieved.

He returned to Azure Cloud Stronghold, and when he passed through Yuxi Prefecture, he made a point of telling Zhou Tong something.

From now on, if anything happens, go to New Azure Cloud Stronghold to find him; he is in seclusion on the mountain cultivating.

Back in his own courtyard, he called Liu Zhong and Liu Hu to his side and instructed them, "Unless it's urgent, don't bother me. Don't bring me food."

"If anything happens, just shout from the yard, I can hear you."

After giving his instructions, he entered the Ring space and, together with the people inside, settled down to cultivate in seclusion, which lasted for two whole months.

He occasionally went out to the modern area to check his phone, but never heard a word from Meng Ke.

Under his guidance, Yang Siqi had already mastered the art of drawing in Qi and had now steadily entered the Qi Refining Second Layer.

Yang Xiao and Wang Lezhi also mentioned Meng Ke's recent situation to him. She was very depressed and only went to work and came home every day without any other activity.

Shen Jingchuan felt a pang of unease upon hearing this, but there was nothing he could do but refocus his attention on cultivation.

Day after day, his cultivation steadily improved, and on this day, as the time was right, he finally broke through to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer.