Immortal Fuyun and Zhuanshui Pingqiu were undoubtedly quite resentful of Ju Hua. To put it bluntly, a large part of the reason they had ended up in this predicament was because of him!
If Ju Hua hadn't hidden his strength at the start, they wouldn't have fled in the middle of battle. If Ju Hua hadn't suddenly erupted after they escaped, they wouldn't have become deserters. If Ju Hua hadn't relentlessly pursued the matter, they wouldn't have ended up in their current predicament.
Of course, although Immortal Fuyun and Zhuanshui Pingqiu had countless grievances against Ju Hua, they didn't dare show any of them now. Ju Hua not only had the moral high ground, he was also the commander of the Zhuanshui Clan. What left the two of them most helpless was that a Void-Return Fiendgod had personally verified Ju Hua's strength.
They didn't have the slightest chance of fighting Ju Hua. Their lives and deaths were now entirely at his whim!
"Do you two have anything else to say?" Ju Hua asked calmly.
"Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, I have something to say, but please dismiss everyone else first!" Immortal Fuyun said.
"No need. Just say what you have to say!" Ju Hua replied flatly.
Ju Hua rejected him without hesitation. A conflicted look crossed Fuyun's face, but after gritting his teeth, he took a gleaming immortal sword and a token engraved with the Zhuanshui Clan's insignia out of his Storage Magic Treasure.
"Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, I came across this immortal sword by chance, but I haven't yet found a suitable owner for it. As a sword immortal, you can surely make this sword shine!" Immortal Fuyun then pointed at the token and continued,
"I imagine you're familiar with this item, too, Fellow Daoist Ju Hua. You've only just become a Loose Immortal, so I'm sure you need a large number of Zhuanshui Clan contribution points to improve yourself."
Before Immortal Fuyun could finish, Ju Hua suddenly said, "Fuyun, you attempted to bribe the commander. That adds to your crime. I don't think the punishment of having your soul obliterated is enough for you. First, you should be made to taste the torments of hell!"
The smile on Immortal Fuyun's face froze. Holding up the immortal sword and token, he was left at a loss for words, utterly embarrassed.
Ju Hua ignored Fuyun's awkwardness and turned his gaze to Zhuanshui Pingqiu.
"And you?" Ju Hua asked.
"I was wrong this time. I'm willing to accept any punishment!" Zhuanshui Pingqiu's voice sounded slightly odd, though it was difficult to notice unless one listened closely.
"At least you're clever!" Ju Hua sneered, then continued, "With a great battle looming, I can give you a chance to make amends. If you swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao that you'll serve as the vanguard of the army throughout the coming campaign against Autumn Mountain Great Marsh, I'll let you off this time—for now."
Hearing Ju Hua's demand, the sliver of joy that had just risen in Zhuanshui Pingqiu's heart instantly vanished.
Serving as the army's vanguard the whole time might not sound like much, but their target this time was Autumn Mountain Great Marsh!
Autumn Mountain Great Marsh was full of dangers. As the vanguard during the march, he could fall into a deadly trap at any moment! If it were only for a short time, perhaps he might survive with a bit of luck. But for the long haul, he was as good as dead!
Most importantly, if he swore an oath to the Heavenly Dao, he'd have no chance to fake it. Heaven could not be deceived. He might fool other people, but he couldn't fool the Heavenly Dao!
Of course, though Zhuanshui Pingqiu felt a chill in his heart, he had no intention of refusing Ju Hua's demand. Even if he truly died in this campaign, that would still be countless times better than having both his body and soul destroyed. At least he'd still have a chance to be reborn!
Seeing that Zhuanshui Pingqiu had escaped calamity so easily, Fuyun hurriedly said, "Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, I'm willing to swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao as well!"
"Fine!"
Ju Hua nodded calmly.
After Zhuanshui Pingqiu and Immortal Fuyun swore their oaths to the Heavenly Dao, one after the other, Ju Hua sent them away.
In truth, Ju Hua didn't care what happened to those two!
After all, Ju Hua already possessed the strength of a million-year Loose Immortal. He had no doubt that he would advance further in the future. Reaching the level of Immortal Jiuhua, or even surpassing him, was only a matter of time—and perhaps not much time at all!
Ju Hua had forced Zhuanshui Pingqiu and the other man to swear those oaths purely for the sake of the Zhuanshui Clan's army.
With two top-tier Loose Immortals serving as vanguard, the Zhuanshui Clan army's chances of staying safe should improve by a level once they entered the depths of Autumn Mountain Great Marsh!
As commander of the Zhuanshui Clan army, Ju Hua ought to look out for it. Though he wasn't interested in being commander, now that he had taken the position, he would do his best!
After sending Zhuanshui Pingqiu and Immortal Fuyun away, Ju Hua gave it little more thought. He closed his eyes and began recalling the battle from not long ago.
Although Ju Hua hadn't gone all out in that battle or used the Dao of the Sword after fusing with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, he had used the full extent of his insights into the pure Dao of the Sword!
The battle had been brief, but it had been a fight to the death, and Ju Hua had still gained a great deal from it.
Ju Hua turned his fingers into a sword and practiced move after move in the air for a long while. Then he stopped.
"My rate of enlightenment seems to have sped up again. I can basically confirm now that those points of light really are connected to my extraordinary talent." Ju Hua pondered silently for a moment, then shook his head and stopped thinking about it.
For three days straight, Ju Hua stayed in his tent, cultivating while calmly waiting for a battle that could break out at any moment.
However, Immortal Jiuhua hadn't shown himself again since leaving last time, and the Zhuanshui Clan army hadn't received any orders to fight. It was as if the outside world really were calm and peaceful!
But although Ju Hua was inside the military camp, the Zhuanshui Clan had Loose Immortals dedicated to gathering intelligence, and they constantly relayed news from outside to him. Ju Hua knew very well that the outside world wasn't peaceful at all. On the contrary, it was quite lively!
Aside from the Yinglong Army, theirs was likely the first army to arrive at Autumn Mountain Great Marsh. Not long after the Zhuanshui Clan arrived, the armies of other great clans, including the Heishen Clan, Baiji Clan, Shaoyan Clan, and Tiannong Clan, arrived one after another.
However, according to the intelligence gathered by the Zhuanshui Clan, some of these great clans' armies were completely intact. They seemed not to have been attacked by the fiends at all—or the fiends' attacks hadn't caused them much damage. Others had suffered heavy losses, and it was obvious at a glance that they'd been badly mauled!
Clearly, the fiends in Autumn Mountain Great Marsh hadn't set an ambush only at Qianfeng Valley. The Zhuanshui Clan weren't the only ones who'd drawn the short straw!