Military Disaster I

Snow Rainbow Pavilion - Earth Mother Hall.

There are seventy-seven tall and benevolent Statue of the Earth Mother, each with a unique posture and dressed in different garments, including skirts, long robes, cloaks and felt hats for warmth, and light gauze garments. Their styles also vary, ranging from magnificent to simple, solemn, noble, and impoverished.

Based on age, there are statues of the Earth Mother in each of the following stages: childhood, youth, old age, and death.

They stood in the entire temple, forming a vast forest of Statue.

Those who wish to worship must go to the center of the forest and pray and offer sacrifices at the altar.

At that moment, Heavenly Light streamed down from the crystal at the top of the temple, landing precisely on the altar.

Yue Dewen sat cross-legged in the back, looking at his Lao Dou kneeling on the Prayer Mat in front of him, feeling utterly bored.

This was his fourth visit, but unfortunately, his old friend hadn't completed the final ceremony yet.

The Earth Mother Hall and the Heavenly God Hall are the supreme foundation of the Great Ling. They are the most sacred places.

Therefore, even he cannot be disrespectful here.

We can only wait.

Just as he was waiting quietly.

The Lao Dou moved slightly.

He shifted his kneeling body to the left, changing his posture. His tightly closed eyes slowly opened.

"You've come so many times, is there something important you need to see me about?"

After completing the final hand seals for the ritual, the Lao Dou slowly turned his head and looked at Yue Dewen.

Lao Yue changed into a loose purple robe, and his original white hair had long since turned black. Apart from the slight signs of aging in his eyes and face, he was hardly a man in his nineties.

"There's something I need to do." Yue Dewen nodded, finally letting out a sigh of relief after waiting so long. "I'm in a bit of a tight spot lately, so I've come to borrow some people from you."

"Borrow someone?" The Lao Dou stood up and stretched his joints.

He always wore a full suit of black armor, covering his entire body, so that even his face was not visible.

"Has the situation gotten this bad? What about the people at the Sensing Gate?"

"I can't really command them. Those guys are fine when things are going well. But for those we can truly trust, we have to look to your side," Yue Dewen said in a deep voice.

"Alright." The Lao Dou reached into his pocket, took out a dark gold Token, and tossed it over.

"Take the token and go adjust it yourself. Except for the top ten Fierce General, the rest are fine."

Yue Dewen caught the Token with a snap and immediately beamed with joy.

"That's a true friend! You're the only one I can rely on!"

"Speaking of which, I'm also in a bit of trouble, and I might need your help," the Lao Dou said in a deep voice.

"What kind of help? Tell me!" Yue Dewen stood up and said casually.

"It's a small matter, just a bit troublesome and time-consuming." Lao Dou suddenly smiled strangely.

Yue Dewen frowned slightly, about to ask a question.

Suddenly, a soft sound came from his hand, and he quickly looked over.

The Token I had just received suddenly shattered and disappeared like a bubble, and with Token disappearance came a strong sense of dizziness.

Countless black mists appeared around us at some unknown time, spreading throughout the entire Earth Mother Temple.

Yue Dewen's expression hardened, and he looked up at his Lao Dou, only to see his Lao Dou's figure slowly dissipate and disappear like a bubble.

All around was An Ning, with only the Earth Mother Goddesses still standing.

Thick black mist slowly approached from between the Statue, enveloping him.

"It seems our cooperation has come to an end." Yue Dewen straightened his back, a hint of coldness and killing intent flashing in his eyes.

"Don't blame me, Lao Yue, something's wrong with you. You just don't realize it yourself. The goal we set at the beginning has started to deviate from."

The Lao Dou's voice drifted slowly through the black mist.

"So, for the sake of our decades-long friendship, let's take a break."

"Rest? If the Earth Mother herself came, I would admit defeat, but with just those two offspring on your body? You think you can make me rest?! I think you've been controlled and gone mad!"

Yue Dewen's expression turned somber, his right hand drooped down, and suddenly his fingertips were surrounded by specks of Silver Light.

Whoosh! Just then, two black lines suddenly shot out from the black mist and accurately entered his brow.

Yue Dewen did not stop them; instead, he allowed them to enter. Then he closed his eyes and stood motionless, like a statue.

*** Wushan Prefecture, Wish Woman Canyon.

Truckloads of medicinal herbs and grains were continuously transported into the canyon along the mountain roads, and then stored in the caves that had been cleared out.

Thick smoke billowed from the numerous newly excavated caves, as fires were being lit to bake the caves and remove moisture, preventing stored medicinal herbs and grains from becoming moldy.

High in the canyon, inside a platform cave carved out of the cliff face.

Zhang Rongfang looked at the trucks below with satisfaction, his expression much more relaxed than a few days ago.

"Now, all the grains and medicinal herbs that can be collected from various places have been transported here by us. This amount is more than enough to last for a year."

The crucial problem is that the Red Turban Thugs caused massive population loss; many farmers and medicinal Medicine Garden turned to violence. Without farming, recovery is impossible, and the situation a year from now may be dire.

Qing Su, who is behind him, is now in charge of statistics and management of all resources.

After consolidating the resources she had received, she also expressed her concerns about the future.

"Heaven and earth are ruthless, treating all things like straw dogs. Now that the Red Turban Thugs have caused a lot of civilian casualties, the amount of food needed is much less than before. Although it is cruel, with fewer people, the food reserves can last longer. After all, there are fewer mouths to feed."

Zhang Rongfang turned around and looked at Qing Su.

"What we need to do is to level a piece of land suitable for cultivation as soon as possible so that we can be self-sufficient."

"I understand," Qing Su nodded. "However, the nearby mountains are filled with Poison Mist fog and miasma, and there are many poisonous insects, so it is not suitable for planting. We can only look at it from a distance."

"These are your tasks. There's no rush; just get started," Zhang Rongfang nodded.

"Oh, come here." He beckoned to the other person.

Qing Su was startled for a moment, then realized something, gritted her teeth, and walked forward.

"Grown ups."

"Don't be afraid."

Zhang Rongfang gently reached out and touched her forehead.

With a flick of his finger, he made a small cut between the eyebrows, and then drops of blood seeped out and entered the body.

Zhang Rongfang would not give his own loyal followers just a drop of blood, but rather a complete blood transfusion.

Qing Su was already in her prime, and the change in her blood meant that she didn't experience much change.

I just feel like I have more energy now.

But she had seen what those Super Grade experts from the Human Immortal Temple were like, and now she understood what had happened.

A few minutes later, it was all over, and she quickly knelt down on one knee in Zhang Rongfang.

"Thank you, Your Excellency, for saving my life!"

As soon as she knelt down, a strong urge to suck up living blood surged into her heart, causing her lips to move unconsciously.

The feeling was like being thirsty and wanting to drink water—natural and incredibly intense.

"Don't be afraid. Just find some blood from a living creature to replenish your blood." Zhang Rongfang comforted him softly.

"Yes." Qing Su replied calmly. "Ding Yu has many; I'll just go there in a bit."

"Many? What do you mean?" Zhang Rongfang was taken aback. This kid wasn't going to make a mistake, was he? Keeping living people?

"Oh, he now spends his days herding cattle and raising chickens on the mountain. He also contracted a plantation, raises a lot of pigs, and even diverted some water from the stream in the canyon," Qing Su replied.

"This kid." Zhang Rongfang was speechless. "Fine, you can go now. Deal with it yourself and come back to see me."

"Yes." Qing Su quickly went down the stone steps.

Zhang Rongfang was the only one left on the platform.

He sighed softly, looked at the huge fairy character under his feet, tapped his toes, and suddenly like a big bird, he jumped out from the platform and fell down the canyon.

He named this platform Ascension Platform, which is about two hundred meters above the ground.

Zhang Rongfang unfolded his leather wingsuit, gently circled and glided, and landed steadily shortly afterward.

He retracted his wingsuit and flashed through the canyon, passing over a large stretch of rocky beach, until he arrived at a Dungeon that was half-built.

The Dungeon is mostly underground, with only one cave-like entrance on the surface.

There were guards on both sides of the entrance.

Upon seeing Zhang Rongfang, the two bowed silently and then allowed him to pass.

Zhang Rongfang remained silent, his figure gracefully entering the cave. He descended and soon arrived at a dark underground cave illuminated by torches.

This Dungeon was converted from a naturally formed cave.

At this moment, in a prison cell, a person was imprisoned deep inside by layers of iron bars.

On a stone chair outside the cell sat a Daoist priest, Hong Xian.

Hong Xian looked different from a few days ago, with a distinct, subtle aura emanating from him.

Under Dark Light Vision, this guy's physical condition also underwent new changes.

Blood and qi flow faster, the heart becomes stronger, and the breath becomes more sustained. This is a sign of a strengthened will and a transformation of essence, Essence, Qi, and Spirit; it seems one is about to break through to the Grandmaster level.

Zhang Rongfang made his own judgment.

"How is he?" he asked.

"Master." Daoist Hong Xian hurriedly stood up. "He's lost consciousness. As long as you don't get close enough to attack him, he's like a wooden puppet, completely motionless."

He looked at the Old Man Hu in the Dungeon.

That person was the Worship God Grandmaster had died once after being drained of blood by Zhang Rongfang.

Three days had passed since the fierce battle.

"It's been like this for three days, with no movement at all?" Zhang Rongfang asked.

"Exactly. It seems to have completely lost its human consciousness," Daoist Hong Xian replied.

He picked up a booklet and handed it to Zhang Rongfang. It contained a record of the Old Man Hu's movements over the past few days.

Zhang Rongfang checked the animal; there was no excretion, no movement, no speech, and it hadn't even changed its standing position. Its eyes didn't blink either.

He pondered for a moment, put down the booklet, and made up his mind.

As he approached the cell, he carefully examined the old man.

In the past, he would kill the Worship God with a single slap after sucking their blood, and those he killed at that time were usually fatal with a single blow. Their bodies were riddled with fatal flaws, making them no different from living people.

But he rarely thinks about why.

Why do these Worship God lose their ability to regenerate after being drained of blood? What exactly is the place of Human Blood in their bodies? Is it really just Human Blood that they consume, or something else? With a click, the cell door opened, and Zhang Rongfang entered alone. He approached the old man.

When the elderly man came within three meters, he clearly reacted.

Whoosh! He suddenly reached out and struck Zhang Rongfang with a palm.

This palm strike had a certain pattern, seemingly following a fixed martial arts move.

But Zhang Rongfang managed to evade it.