After obtaining the two magical treasures, "Yuan E" and "Da Hou", Qi Baiyi left the residence using his lightness skill. Since he could walk on snow without leaving a trace, he was naturally not hindered by the heavy snow. After leaving the city wall of Longhe County, he met up with his men and discussed the matter of attacking Feiyu Village on Beima Mountain.
"I have already received two magical Law Artifact from the young master, so taking down that strange man who emits yellow smoke is a piece of cake. However, with such heavy snow in the past few days, the mountains are blocked by snow, making it difficult for us to send men to attack Flying Feather Stronghold in the near future."
"Perhaps we can outsmart them." Among those discussing the matter was a man named Liu Yu, whose elder brother, Liu Bai, died more than half a year ago in the battle against the demon at Four Peaks Mountain.
Liu Yu said in a deep voice, "We sent out that 'Soaring Leopard' Sha Wuhou with people from several other villages to infiltrate Feiyu Village in Beima Mountain. Yuan Chaolong didn't know his background and even made him a minor leader. All we need to do is find out the inside story of Feiyu Village, sneak into the village, and launch a surprise attack from the inside out. It shouldn't be too difficult."
"You mean using explosives?"
Qi Baiyi seemed to be touched by his words, and his tiger-like eyes lit up.
"Brother Liu, if you have any other good ideas, please share them quickly. Let's discuss them together; who knows, we might actually be able to get things done."
No good ideas?
Liu Yu gave a bitter smile.
"I do have a foolish idea, though: we can take advantage of the heavy snow blocking the mountains. Those bandits won't be able to come down either. At that time, no one will expect us to dare to brave the heavy snow. In fact, the heavy snow can become our natural cover, making it easier for us to sneak into Feiyu Village on Beima Mountain..."
"This?"
The people present looked at each other in bewilderment.
"Going into the mountains in this heavy snow?"
Qi Baiyi paused for a moment, then began to ponder.
"This won't do! With such heavy snow, neither men nor horses can move. Even if we brave the snow and manage to get in, what will we do about the supplies along the way for our hundred or so men?"
Some people immediately voiced their opposition.
"This might be a problem for others, but not necessarily for us," Liu Yu said calmly. "But for you, young master, it's probably not an impossible task. With your extraordinary skills, transporting supplies into the mountains shouldn't be difficult."
His tone was very confident, which made Qi Baiyi somewhat troubled.
"To trouble you, young master, with such a matter is perhaps a bit..."
"Brother Qi, I think the young master's words and actions don't mean he's against using supernatural arts to solve problems. Rather, he's against us relying on him for everything. As long as our proposed plan is feasible, practical, and effective, then given the young master's personality, he might very well agree."
Liu Yu's words made Qi Baiyi fall into thought again, and soon he nodded vigorously.
"In that case, I will go to your residence again to explain to you, young master."
Qi Baiyi stood up again, climbed out the window, and left. With a silent rustle of his clothes, his figure vanished swiftly, disappearing like a black dot in the distance, like a flying star.
The Feiyu Village on Beima Mountain is celebrating its great victory of the previous two days. The Juxian Hall has been transformed into a wine hall, filled with dozens of large tables.
As the food and drinks were served one after another, the usually solemn hall suddenly became a noisy hive.
After several rounds of drinks, the bandits were all flushed and their voices were burning, making the banquet even noisier!
One of the bandits, whose face was covered in pockmarks, raised a bowl of wine. "Let's first toast the chief. If it weren't for the chief's wisdom and prowess, how could we have won so easily?"
"Well said!"
Someone egged them on, and everyone toasted Yuan Chaolong, who was sitting in the armchair.
"Brothers, you're too kind. Let's drink first and talk later."
Yuan Chaolong, a burly man with a bald head and tattoos covering every inch of his skin, including a four-clawed blue dragon on his bald head, exuded a thuggish air. He raised his glass and downed the wine in one gulp, then said, "Not enough? Another one!"
"Dry!"
"Dry!"
The cheers and jeers echoed through the sky.
Yuan Chaolong had excellent taste in liquor. He took another big gulp of the strong liquor in his bowl, gave a look to his subordinate next to him, and the latter quickly leaned over.
"Where is Master Moxiuluo... What, you didn't invite him over?"
"The sorcerer said that several of his 'spiritual bodies' were damaged by gunpowder during his previous spellcasting, and he is currently Fa Xiu. The sorcerer is also very grateful to you, Boss, for hosting a banquet for him, but unless he repairs those 'spiritual bodies,' he won't be able to find the time to come over."
"I see!"
Yuan Chaolong nodded, waved his hand, and ordered his subordinate to leave.
"That monk Moxiuluo is such an inconsiderate fellow. I invited him three times, but he never came to the banquet. I wonder what he's up to by secretly hoarding land..."
Chief Yuan did not have a good impression of this Master Moxiuluo. This man's origins were somewhat mysterious. He claimed to be from the Western Regions, but his appearance was not like those of the Western Regions' Mao tribe. He had blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin, and he was not like those dark-skinned Kunlun slaves. Instead, he looked like a genuine person from the Great You Kingdom.
This Master Moxiuluo was someone who volunteered to follow Yuan Chaolong up the mountain when he robbed him. This man was extremely powerful, and no one knew what kind of magic he had cultivated. A yellow bead in his sleeve could emit wisps of yellow smoke. As soon as his men got close, they would feel dizzy and unable to recognize the way, let alone get close to this man.
"Brother Yuan, my name is Mo Xiuluo. I've come to Feiyu Village on Beima Mountain to lend you a hand," said Master Mo Xiuluo, whose speech was extraordinary and who exuded an aura of profound mystery from the very beginning.
He told Yuan Chaolong that he was a traveling sorcerer who had a strange encounter in his childhood, in which a master taught him some Law Technique and passed on the Six Secret Teachings and the Three Strategies, as well as the art of saving the world and governing the people. After mastering these skills, he went down the mountain to travel around. He had long heard of the name " One Blade, Certain Death " and came here to seek refuge with him as his wise ruler.
"A wise ruler?"
Yuan Chaolong was also taken aback when he heard this.
"In this peaceful and tranquil world, with no wars raging, and with no royal aura in my Feiyu Village on Beima Mountain, where does the title of 'enlightened ruler' come from?"
Moxiuluo smiled without saying a word. After a moment, he said slowly, " Mingfeng Mountain has the Thirteen Hengyun Strongholds. If Brother Yuan has the courage and ambition, why not form alliances and swallow up the Thirteen Hengyun Strongholds first, and use this place as a boundary to plan something big?"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Chaolong's heart stirred; Moxiuluo's words struck a chord with him.
The Thirteen Hengyun Strongholds are called Thirteen Strongholds, but in reality they are large and small bandit forces. Among them, thirteen strongholds are the most famous, hence the name Thirteen Strongholds.
Yuan Chaolong also intended to integrate the various forces of Mingfeng Mountain, to control the area within a hundred miles of the mountain range, and to become a powerful local force, the overlord of the bandits.
When Moxiuluo saw his expression change, he leaned close and whispered a few words in his ear. Yuan Chaolong was overjoyed and invited the mysterious monk to take the seat of honor, treating him as an honored guest from then on.
"This Master Moxiuluo is extremely capable and his identity is far from simple. He is definitely not some nobody. I think his intention in instigating me to consolidate the forces in Mingfeng Mountain is not simple!"
Yuan Chaolong wasn't stupid, and he could see that too. However, he also knew that if he wanted to take over the Mingfeng Mountain area, he would have to rely on the sorcerer's abilities.
"However, I can't trust this person too much. I need to prepare a plan. What if Moxiuluo turns against me one day, or tries to seize my Flying Feather Stronghold's foundation? How can I just surrender? It seems I need to think of a way."
Meanwhile, as Yuan Chaolong secretly pondered Moxiuluo's true intentions, the strange man known as "Master Moxiuluo " was practicing magic on the altar set up atop Flying Feather Stronghold.
Moxiuluo was of medium height, with a small mustache on his lip. The night wind on the mountaintop was getting stronger, blowing his wide sleeves.
The man stood before an altar, wearing a large yellow robe, his body enveloped in a yellow mist composed of metal and earth elements, and a pale yellow pearl hung from his right shoulder.
This bead is called the " Golden Clam Smoke Pearl," a precious pearl nurtured for many years by a strange spiritual clam in the deep sea. After being refined with the two elements of metal and earth, it became an extraordinary magical Law Artifact.
He silently chanted a spell, then pointed at several black banners fluttering in the wind. The banners were painted with intertwined male and female skulls in bone powder, their faces suddenly turning ferocious, and flame patterns swirling around them also appeared.
"Hey! Wake up!"
With a shout from the man in the yellow robe, Moxiuluo, the male and female skeletons actually stepped out from the banner. As the banner fluttered in the wind, the skeletons landed on the altar with a thud, as if a layer of oil had been poured on them. On the altar were several corpses, their bones bare, some human, some animal, all skeletons that Moxiuluo had refined over a long period of time.
The skeletons were suddenly engulfed by the green flames, immediately absorbing the surrounding fire. Then, the human and animal bones mingled together, transforming into a monster with a blue lion's head, a human body, and six arms.
Many years ago, Moxiuluo learned a Sibi Art from the Great Xiye Kingdom, which was very different from the Corpse-Controlling Technique of the Great You Cultivation Realm. The Sibi Art is also called the Corpse-Raising Incantation, which originated from a heretical sect called the Sibi Sect Outer Dao was affiliated with Buddhism.
The origin of this evil magic was a high-ranking monk who broke his vows. Before becoming a monk, he had a beloved daughter. Later, his daughter died of illness. The monk, having severed his familial ties, decided to use magic to revive his beloved daughter, which led to the birth of the Sibi Sect.
Later, the Sibi Sect flowed from the Great Xiye Kingdom into the Great You Kingdom. Over several decades, it harmed countless people before being wiped out by the Taiyi Daoist Prefecture and the Sanyuan Devil Palace.
The Sibi Sect has no orthodox methods for entering the path, but if someone cultivates the Sibi Art to an extremely high level, they can create terrifying undead evil beasts. Moreover, the Sibi Art is extremely easy to cultivate; even ignorant villagers can create several evil corpses by following the methods taught in the Sibi Art.
The Sibi Sect has spread throughout the Great You Dynasty for many years, posing a serious threat. Its doctrines are bizarre, and its spread of Shibi techniques has caused endless harm, making it hostile to the cultivation community of the Great You and subjecting it to attacks from all sides.
Moxiuluo dared to cultivate this Evil Method, defying the world's will. Putting aside everything else, just the fact that he was discovered by the " Ghost Bat " of the Great You Dynasty would likely lead to him being hunted down by several of the Nine Chief Envoys.
"Phew! It's done!"
Moxiuluo let out a long sigh, a great weight lifted from his heart.
"I lost several magical bodies a few days ago, which almost delayed my cultivation. However, it allowed me to break through and rebuild, so it can be considered a blessing in disguise. This Azure Lion Divine Dharma Body has been refined for a long time and is now taking shape. From here on out, it will only take a lot of time to hone it!"
Wearing a yellow robe, Moxiuluo was also overjoyed. The Sibi Art was easy to learn but difficult to master, and it was not a proper path to Sibi Art.
"With this Azure Lion Divine Dharma Body, my current strength makes swallowing up the Thirteen Hengyun Strongholds in Mingfeng Mountain a piece of cake..." Moxiuluo sneered, "That Yuan Chaolong is outwardly respectful and polite to me, but behind my back he's a double-dealer. Does he think I don't know what he's up to? I originally intended to support him, but since he's so incompetent, I'll find an opportunity to eliminate him and find someone else to take charge of the affairs of Mingfeng Mountain."
Suddenly, Moxiuluo stopped moving. He took out a piece of yellow jade pendant from his sleeve. The pendant was wrapped with a dragon and emitted a faint red light.
"What happened? Why are you contacting me at this time?"
Moxiuluo was completely bewildered. With a slight movement of his spiritual power, the yellow jade pendant trembled gently and emitted a cold, stern voice.
" Moxiuluo, let me ask you... why haven't you been contacting me regularly?"