Deployment
All eyes were fixed on the old man in brocade robes, wary of his every move. Unbeknownst to anyone, Yue Qianchou had unknowingly become the dominant figure here.
In fact, this was exactly his purpose. He could have acted much earlier, so that the Cultivation Alliance would not have paid such a high price. But he waited until the Cultivation Alliance was about to collapse, and even the incomparably brave Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan were showing signs of weakness, before he finally made his move.
While adding flowers to brocade is nice, nothing achieves the same purpose as providing charcoal in the snow. After the Cultivation Alliance paid the price of hundreds of lives, he turned the tide, and now he is in charge here, beyond the reach of Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan.
From this day forward, who in the Cultivation World can still call him Scum of the Cultivation World? He had long since grown tired of that label, and with Yan Bugui and the others arriving, he naturally had to take advantage of the situation.
How dare they call me Scum of the Cultivation World? Then I'll make you pay a bloody price to swallow that title back... He had this thought in mind from the moment he started watching from the shadows, and he only began to intervene when the situation was about to go beyond his expectations.
Although he agreed, the old man in brocade robes still hesitated cautiously, but ultimately gritted his teeth and pushed away Hundred Flower Fairy and Yan Zixia. Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan quickly flashed over to protect the mother and daughter.
The old man in brocade glanced at Yan Bugui, who was surrounded below, and shouted to Yue Qianchou, "Yue Qianchou, I have released him. It's time to keep your word."
"Your worries are unnecessary. I've said you can doubt anything, but you absolutely don't need to doubt my character. I'm a man of my word, I never compromise." Yue Qianchou waved his hand and said, "Release them!"
At a command, the men in black surrounding Yan Bugui quickly dispersed.
The old man in brocade immediately shouted, "Go!" and sprang into the air. Yan Bugui glanced at Hundred Flower Fairy and Yan Zixia with complicated emotions, not daring to linger, and also shot into the air to chase after them. The two broke through the restrictions above Hundred Flower Valley and quickly disappeared into the distance.
"Withdraw," Yue Qianchou nodded. The men in black on both sides immediately gave the order, and the men in black below quickly collected the Storage Bag of the dead foreign cultivators, then scattered into the air and disappeared back into the surrounding mountains, as if they had never existed.
Everyone was stunned. Could these people really be those Rogue Cultivators, not forgetting to take something with them even in retreat? They really had the style of those poor rogue Rogue Cultivator. But at least they still had some morality and didn't touch the belongings of the deceased disciples of various sects, otherwise it would have been really difficult to recover them.
It wasn't really a matter of morality; Yue Qianchou simply knew these second-rate disciples didn't have anything valuable on them, so why bother doing something so shameful and causing trouble? On the other hand, those guests who had come from afar probably had a lot of travel money on them, so he should take them back and check them.
The woman in Ziyi flashed back to Yue Qianchou's side. Yue Qianchou's gaze inadvertently met Yan Zixia's mournful eyes. He couldn't help but shake his head and smile bitterly, thinking to himself, "Miss, please don't blame me for being ruthless just now. The more ruthless I am, the safer you and your daughter will be. I hope you understand."
At this moment, the disheveled Bi Zicong and his three companions ran over and bowed, saying, "Thank you, sir, and Miss Ziyi, for saving our lives." Ziyi looked at the four ragged men, her delicate brows furrowed slightly, but she said nothing.
"No need to thank me, it's my pleasure," Yue Qianchou nodded and smiled. He had noticed the four people earlier as well. It seemed that the shopkeepers and employees of the Four Great Families' shops had almost all died in order to protect these four. Fortunately, they managed to save the lives of the four of them, otherwise, several people who should not have died would have died unjustly.
"I have to go first, you all chat." A flash of green light appeared from his sleeve, Yue Qianchou rode away on his sword. Hundred Charm Demoness didn't recognize the four at all, so what was there to chat about? Naturally, she followed them. Ziyi glanced at the four, finding nothing to talk about, and felt only disgust, so she also sprang away.
Everyone watched the three depart. Looking back outside the Hundred Flower Palace, corpses littered the ground, and the survivors from each faction began collecting the bodies of their fallen comrades...
The market in Hundred Flower Valley was deserted. When the three returned to Hundred Flower Inn, there was no one there; they had probably all gone to help out earlier. Yue Qianchou rubbed his stomach and said, "We didn't get anything to eat at first, and now there's nobody here. What bad luck."
"The kitchen should have the ingredients. You can go and rest first. I'll bring them up later," Hundred Charm Demoness said with a smile, gracefully walking into the back, indeed behaving like a servant.
Yue Qianchou didn't stand on ceremony and went straight upstairs. After entering the room, he sat down at the round table in the center, poured himself a cup of tea, and while drinking it, looked at the Ziyi who had followed him and asked, "Ask whatever you want to ask, don't keep it bottled up." The girl's doubts were written all over her face, and she didn't know how to hide them.
The Ziyi clasped her hands together, fidgeting for a moment before glancing nervously toward the door. She then turned back and asked, "Would you like me to massage your shoulders?"
"What?" Yue Qianchou was stunned, thinking he had misheard.
"Would you like me to massage your shoulders?" the Ziyi repeated. Yue Qianchou's expression twitched. He didn't know what had gotten into this woman, that she actually wanted to do such a thing. For her father's sake, he wouldn't dare let her do it! So he shook his head repeatedly and said, "No, no, just say what you want to say!"
The woman in Ziyi furrowed her brows slightly, seemingly a little unhappy that she wasn't allowed to pinch them. She bit her lip, sat down opposite Yue Qianchou, and asked, "Those Rogue Cultivator aren't the original Rogue Cultivator at all. Where did you find them? I didn't know about them."
Yue Qianchou replied without hesitation, "Of course I paid them! Who would help you for free if I didn't pay them?"
The man in Ziyi turned serious and said, "Their combined attack is incredibly powerful. If I were surrounded by them, I wouldn't have lasted long either if I hadn't escaped. Hiring so many must have cost a lot of money."
The sound of footsteps coming upstairs came from outside, Yue Qianchou gave a noncommittal "hmm." A moment later, Hundred Charm Demoness brought in a pile of food, almost filling the table. While the various factions outside were busy cleaning up the mess, the three of them were comfortably eating and drinking in the room.
Taking the opportunity of pouring wine for Yue Qianchou, Hundred Charm Demoness asked, "That old man in brocade robes just now held the lives of Guan Muxue and her daughter in his hands. It's understandable that you let him go. But you clearly had the chance to kill Yan Bugui, so why did you sacrifice him to exchange for the lives of the two women, letting him escape for nothing?"
Yue Qianchou picked his nose, thinking to himself, "The Yan family father and son are targeting the Cultivation Alliance, not me. My meddling has already made them very unhappy. If they really kill Yan Bugui, just wait and see! Yan Zhuixing will definitely lead a bunch of people to hunt me down. The entire Huaxia Cultivation World would need to form Cultivation Alliance to fight them. Am I crazy to want to make enemies with these powerful figures who killed my father? I'd be crazy."
"You guys keep fighting, I'll just cheer you on from the sidelines. Don't think I'm getting too involved." Yue Qianchou sip of wine and ate some food, then casually explained, "Some time ago, regarding the division of money, the former Palace Master of the Myriad Demon Palace, Senior Yan Wuchen, gave me face. How could I possibly kill his only son? Consider it repaying a favor to him!"
The Hundred Charm Demoness nodded slightly; she had heard about the money-sharing incident. However, she was somewhat suspicious. There was no other reason, but the little fox's sincerity only fueled her doubts...
On the shores of the East China Sea, heroes from Righteous and Demonic paths of the Cultivation Alliance have set up their defenses and stationed themselves along the coast, stretching for hundreds of miles.
This place was originally a fishing ground for generations of coastal residents. However, in order not to affect these ordinary people, Fu Xian Island, with its control over the secular imperial power, had long ago forced the secular court to relocate the local coastal residents.
Although it was done with good intentions, this relocation involved a large number of people, forcing hundreds of thousands of people along the coast to leave their homes. This caused widespread resentment and almost sparked a peasant uprising. In the end, it was only through the forceful suppression of the uprising by Weiguo General leading a large army that the situation was calmed down.
They were barely able to relocate, but the resettlement of hundreds of thousands of people became a problem. However, the dynasty was rife with corrupt officials, and the money allocated by the central government was embezzled at every level, so how much actually reached the people? With hundreds of thousands of people struggling to make a living, it was only a matter of time before something serious happened.
None of this concerns the Cultivation World, nor does anyone care. They've already clashed with foreign cultivators a few times, both sides suffering losses. Currently, both sides are actively adjusting, preparing for another round of competition.
However, at this moment, the Cultivation Alliance suddenly received news that Yan Bugui had secretly led dozens of Tribulation Transcendence stage experts to attack the Cultivation Alliance's headquarters, Hundred Flower Valley. Just when things were in danger, Yue Qianchou led more than 600 Rogue Cultivator to arrive in time and almost killed Yan Bugui and his group. Unfortunately, in order to rescue Hundred Flower Fairy and her daughter, they ultimately released Yan Bugui and an expert at the late Tribulation Transcendence stage.
Upon hearing this news, the various factions were somewhat incredulous. Could Yue Qianchou rogue Rogue Cultivator really have killed dozens of Tribulation Transcendence stage experts? So they all sent messages to their remaining personnel to inquire about the details.
The result was that the more than six hundred Rogue Cultivator led by Yue Qianchou were not ordinary Rogue Cultivator; they were all experts at the Tribulation Transcendence stage. The various sects were shocked upon hearing the news. More than six hundred Tribulation Transcendence stage experts? Only after confirming several times did they dare to believe it was true.
The various factions gathered again to discuss this matter. At this critical moment in the war, how could they leave so many experts unused in the rear? So the Daluo Sect proposed that, regardless of where those Rogue Cultivator came from, Yue Qianchou could leave fifty Rogue Cultivator to continue defending Hundred Flower Valley, while the remaining five hundred or so Rogue Cultivator would all be transferred to reinforce the various factions in preparation for war.
This proposal received unanimous support from all factions. Why? Everyone knew perfectly well. No one was comfortable with Yue Qianchou possessing such a powerful force, especially sects like the Daluo Sect, which had a grudge against him. It was best to sow discord as soon as possible. Of course, envy was also a real reason; each faction wanted a piece of the pie.
The message about the transfer was immediately relayed back. Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan exchanged glances after receiving the message. Anyone with a brain could see what it meant, let alone Yue Qianchou, who was not one to suffer losses. Dongfang Changao pondered and said, "Brother Qiu, you and Yue Qianchou have always addressed each other as brothers. I think it would be better if you were the one to say it."
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