Not Empty Talk

The words seemed to carry hidden meanings, and Shang Shuqing appeared a bit worried that her brother might be at a disadvantage. Fearing he might agree too hastily, she quickly asked, "A small grievance? Could the Master please elaborate?"

Lan Ruoting nodded upon hearing this; he was also concerned about this matter.

Niu Youdao calmly replied, "It's not exactly a grievance. It's just that the resources the Prince can mobilize are limited. I might resort to unscrupulous methods to achieve my goals, and I hope the Prince can cooperate and not blame me at that time."

Shang Shuqing: "As the saying goes, all's fair in war. It's understandable for the Master to use certain methods, but if it's too cruel and inhumane, it might put my brother in..."

Niu Youdao raised his hand to interrupt, "County Princess, please rest assured. The Prince can also be at ease. I, Niu, guarantee here that I will never let the Prince bear the reputation of being cruel and inhumane, nor will I cause consequences that the Prince cannot bear. In short, I will not do anything harmful to the Prince. If I break this promise, the Prince can disavow any relationship with me."

With that said, the group felt slightly more at ease, but they still found it hard to believe. How could Feng Lingbo lend them troops?

Lan Ruoting, who was lost in thought, spoke up, "Master Dao, lingering in Guangyi Commandery for too long might not be appropriate. We don't know how the Imperial Court will react. Also, regarding the Song family, you killed Song Yanqing but are still in Guangyi Commandery, making your target too obvious. The Song family might take actions unfavorable to you."

"The Imperial Court is easy to handle. The sacrifice of those dozens of personal guards can be mourned by the Prince with great sorrow. By delaying departure for a few days, it would be understandable," Niu Youdao said without any guilt over the deaths of those guards. "As for the Song family, I intend to resolve this matter on my way. I have my own ways of dealing with it!"

Shang Chaozong nodded, "Let's do as Master Dao says. When will you depart, and what preparations do you need?"

Niu Youdao: "There's no time to delay. We'll depart tonight for the commandery city. Also, please have the Prince assign twenty sharp personal guards to accompany me, and I'll need some funds, ten thousand gold coins!"

"Ten thousand gold coins..." Shang Chaozong and Shang Shuqing showed troubled expressions. This was truly not a small sum; this amount could sustain their several hundred men for several years.

The siblings couldn't figure out why so much money was needed. Could it be to exchange for manpower? While ten thousand gold coins was a lot, it wouldn't be enough to acquire a force sufficient to establish a foothold in Cangwu County. Feng Lingbo wouldn't agree either; they weren't so poor as to lend troops for just ten thousand gold coins.

Lan Ruoting said with a wry smile, "To be honest, Master Dao, if we were in Cangwu County, we could probably scrape together ten thousand gold coins. But currently, we have less than a thousand gold coins in total. It's truly impossible to come up with ten thousand."

Niu Youdao waved his hand, "If you don't have it, then so be it. Money is a small matter. I'll find another way when we reach the commandery city. Just give me a hundred gold coins for travel expenses for now."

The group exchanged glances. Even for people of their background, ten thousand gold coins was not a small amount. They wondered how he planned to acquire ten thousand gold coins in the commandery city of Guangyi. Was he planning to rob someone with his skills, or perhaps steal? They hoped he wouldn't cause trouble in Guangyi Commandery and anger Feng Lingbo, as anyone who could produce such a sum in Guangyi Commandery would certainly not be an ordinary person.

It was true that they couldn't produce ten thousand gold coins. Lan Ruoting had even suspected that Niu Youdao might abscond with the money. Upon hearing about the hundred gold coins, his suspicion immediately diminished a hundredfold, and he realized he was judging a gentleman with a villain's heart. The other party's skills wouldn't require such effort for just a hundred gold coins.

Looking at Shang Chaozong's expression, Lan Ruoting nodded, "Master Dao, please wait a moment. I'll go and get it, and arrange for the accompanying personnel."

Niu Youdao immediately instructed, "Remember to avoid Qu Wu and his group. Don't let them find out. Give me some time to maneuver."

"Understood!" Lan Ruoting cupped his hands and quickly left to make the arrangements.

The Shang siblings were also extremely curious about how Niu Youdao planned to borrow troops. Shang Shuqing finally couldn't help but ask, "Master Dao, can't you tell us?"

Niu Youdao chuckled, "It's not clear yet. We'll adapt to the situation as it unfolds. We'll see then."

Shang Chaozong felt a bit worried about his unreliable demeanor, but having witnessed how Niu Youdao had accurately predicted his escape route earlier, he recognized Niu Youdao's extraordinary insight and already held him in high regard.

Yuan Gang, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up, "Master Dao, the two from the Shangqing Sect confessed that the Abbot, Yuan Fang, is a bear demon."

"Uh..." Niu Youdao turned back in surprise, "A demon? A demon?"

Shang Chaozong chimed in, "That's right. After the subordinates interrogated them, the real Abbot Yuan Fang had already passed away. The current Abbot Yuan Fang is a small bear that a monk from Nanshan Temple found and adopted from the mountains two hundred years ago. It has now gained some cultivation and transformed. This Nanshan Temple has no connection with the Shangqing Sect. It was only after Song Yanqing came here and fought with it that this bear demon was forced to submit."

Niu Youdao's eyes flickered. A demon? A bear demon? He became genuinely interested. Although he knew demons existed in this world, this was the first time he had encountered one. Since he had never seen one, he naturally wanted to. Yuan Gang's reminder clearly indicated he shared the same interest and wanted to see it as well. However, he had other important matters to attend to and no time to study monsters. He could only instruct, "Your Highness, please don't release this demon. I'll have a good chat with him later."

Shang Chaozong smiled, "Alright, I'll keep him for Master Dao!"

A moment later, Lan Ruoting arrived, presenting a money bag. The twenty accompanying personnel had also been arranged.

After further secret discussions, Shang Chaozong and the others left Nanshan Temple, deliberately creating a commotion to attract attention. This was not only to attract Qu Wu and his group but also to follow Niu Youdao's instructions and draw the attention of any Imperial Court informants who might be monitoring them. Everything was done to cover Niu Youdao's departure.

Meanwhile, Niu Youdao, accompanied by Yuan Gang and the twenty men, quietly descended the mountain under the cover of night.

Outside Nanshan Temple, several braziers blazed with fire. Shang Chaozong and the others were burning paper money, seemingly to mourn the fallen personal guards.

Halfway up the mountain, a personal guard arrived and whispered to Shang Chaozong, "Your Highness, the person has departed successfully."

"Mm!" Shang Chaozong nodded slightly, continuing to toss paper money into the fire. He then looked at Lan Ruoting beside him and said, "I don't know if what he said is true, or if it will succeed. We couldn't get a clear answer, and he never spoke plainly, which makes me feel uneasy."

Lan Ruoting hesitated, "This person's methods seem very seasoned, and his composure is unlike someone his age. It feels like he doesn't want anyone to figure him out. I don't understand why Mr. Dongguo would take someone like him as a disciple. However, the County Princess seems to trust him quite a bit."

Shang Shuqing: "Considering all aspects, if he had ulterior motives, he wouldn't have killed Song Yanqing. Brother, Master, at this point, we don't have many choices. It won't cost us much to let him try."

Shang Chaozong threw another handful of paper money into the fire. Watching the rising ashes, he sighed, "We can only wait and see!"

Within the city walls, amidst the dim lights, a figure walked from one end of the street to the other. He stopped outside a restaurant and looked up at the sign. It was Chen Guishuo.

A waiter enthusiastically approached, "Guest, how many people?"

Chen Guishuo ignored him, pushed him aside, and went straight to the counter, staring at the old shopkeeper behind it.

The old shopkeeper looked up and was momentarily stunned. He then gestured to the interfering waiter, who reluctantly retreated.

It was late, and the establishment was about to close. There was only one table of guests upstairs. The old shopkeeper glanced around and made a gesture to Chen Guishuo, leading him to a secluded private room in the back.

Once the door was closed, the old shopkeeper looked Chen Guishuo up and down, "Is there something you need?"

Actually, Chen Guishuo didn't know who this old shopkeeper was, nor did he even know his name. However, when he had passed through this place with Song Yanqing before, they had stopped here for supplies. He guessed that this restaurant might be a point or an informant arranged by the Song family. It wasn't unusual for a powerful family like the Song family to have such arrangements.

In reality, although he and Xu Yitian were disciples of the Shangqing Sect, they had gradually been absorbed by the Song family as informants. The Song family had promised them a bright future, so they weren't afraid even if the Shangqing Sect collapsed. For such a major event as Song Yanqing's death, he couldn't possibly not report it to the Song family.

"Something has happened," Chen Guishuo sighed, slumping into a chair.

The old shopkeeper frowned, "What happened?"

Chen Guishuo shook his head heavily, "My Senior Brother, Song Yanqing, is dead."

"Ah!" The old shopkeeper was greatly shocked and urgently asked, "What happened?"

"We went to Nanshan Temple..." Chen Guishuo recounted the entire incident in detail. After answering a series of questions from the old shopkeeper, he said, "Find a way to send this news back to the capital. I need to rush back to the Shangqing Sect to report it. Please arrange a horse for me, and ideally, provide me with an identity so I can switch mounts at the post stations along the way!"

The old shopkeeper quickly arranged all these matters, handling them with great efficiency.

After sending Chen Guishuo away, the old shopkeeper went to the wine shop's secret room, quickly wrote a secret report, and then grabbed a raptor with a dark body and golden wings from a nearby cage. He stuffed the secret letter into a small tube attached to the raptor's leg.

This bird is called 'Golden Wings.' Its flight speed and endurance are both extraordinary. Most remarkably, this bird can find its own eggs no matter where they are laid. Regardless of the distance, it can accurately discern the direction to find them. Therefore, once tamed, female 'Golden Wings' are used for sending messages and are very expensive. As for the males, they lack this ability and are only used for mating, holding little value.

After securing the letter, the old shopkeeper covered the 'Golden Wings' in his hand with a cloth. He hurried out of the secret room and into a darkened room. He opened the window, removed the cloth, and casually tossed the 'Golden Wings' out the window. The bird quickly flapped its wings and flew away, disappearing into the vast night...

The next morning, Shang Chaozong and his group emerged from Nanshan Temple and once again paid their respects at the graves of their fallen guards, their expressions sorrowful.

They were here to stall for a few days as Niu Youdao had suggested.

As the golden morning sun broke through the mountain forest, a personal guard arrived to report that Niu Youdao was arranging the accompanying guards at intervals along the route, intending to establish a temporary communication channel between Guangyi Commandery's city and Shang Chaozong's location to maintain smooth information flow.

The reasoning was simple: a single horse could not endure a long-distance gallop and would need to be replaced to maintain an efficient pace for message transmission. Niu Youdao had clearly planned for this in advance.

Upon hearing this, Lan Ruoting nodded slightly. "He's not just talking big; this person is indeed not simple!"