Leading Troops to Breach the Stronghold

"Hmm?"

Zhang Jian looked startled.

It was his first time encountering animals with intelligence.

They must have been spirits.

He sensed them slightly. The aura around those two goshawks was strange, carrying a peculiar scent.

There was also a faint ripple.

A ripple of spiritual energy.

But it was very faint.

Yet it was utterly different from the few reclusive cultivators he had encountered.

Zhang Jian subconsciously committed that strange scent to memory.

Then he fell into hesitation.

He had entered Phoenix-Tail Mountain for more than just bandit suppression. He also carried a secret mission.

It was said that Phoenix-Tail Mountain might contain an ancient royal tomb, filled with a rather substantial collection of burial treasures. It might even hold the inheritance of a formidable external cultivation martial art. That was why Zhang Yi had sent him here.

This information had come from Gu Xiu'er.

The senior brother and sister had entered Fengxi County primarily because of this ancient tomb. They had even planned to borrow troops from Yang Qing to accomplish it.

They had simply never expected to become trapped in the Zhang family afterward.

In the end, they had no choice but to use this information to preserve themselves.

"Eldest Nephew, did you find something?"

Seeing Zhang Jian suddenly stop, Zhang Kui turned his gaze toward him. Though built like a burly brute, he was meticulous as a strand of hair.

After some thought, Zhang Jian said, "Fourth Uncle, something may have changed within Phoenix-Tail Mountain. I estimate that people beyond the worldly realm have already arrived there ahead of us!"

Zhang Kui's expression shifted at those words. Unable to stop himself from frowning, he asked doubtfully, "What virtues or abilities does Swarm of Bees possess that they could recruit people beyond the worldly realm? Besides, if their gang had such an expert, how could he possibly sit still? Given these bandits' nature, wouldn't they have long since swept through the other strongholds in the Twin Phoenix Mountain Range?"

Zhang Jian's eyes flickered. He too harbored doubts, but in order to verify his conjecture, he had Zhang Kui dispatch several sturdy men to investigate the mountain from afar without approaching the stronghold.

At the same time, he had the five hundred soldiers conceal themselves first, lest they be discovered by the reclusive cultivators in the mountains.

This was out of prudence.

Zhang Jian had no great desire to take risks.

After all, he had only just set foot in the cultivation world and had a splendid future ahead of him.

So long as he fulfilled his filial duties and safely lay low, his future would be boundless. A little gold and silver treasure was utterly unworthy of risking his precious life.

Yet Zhang Jian had his own considerations.

He guessed that this reclusive cultivator might have been drawn here by information released by the Upper Origin Sect, perhaps with the sole aim of making things difficult for the Zhang family.

A cultivator who coveted mundane wealth could not be too powerful, Zhang Jian estimated. If he were too powerful, those two little spirits likely would not have escaped either.

Before long, the sturdy men returned with news.

"The stronghold is still there, and people are still patrolling!"

This immediately lifted Zhang Jian's spirits. His guess had not been wrong.

That reclusive cultivator clearly still needed to use Swarm of Bees in Phoenix-Tail Mountain to locate the ancient tomb.

This also showed that the cultivator's cultivation was not particularly high.

Still, that was only normal. Through his previous clash with the Gu family, Zhang Jian had vaguely come to understand that there were probably not many immortals in this world who cultivated orthodox methods. Most had likely stumbled upon one or two volumes of unorthodox arts by chance and used them to establish themselves.

One only had to look at the Gu family's display.

After learning that the Zhang family might have extraordinary people among them, they had not continued the entanglement, even at the cost of some damage to their own face.

That suggested one thing: they might not have any extraordinary people beneath them at all. Even if they did, such people were probably trump cards kept hidden at the bottom of the chest and not lightly deployed.

Now that he had cultivated the Wind-Walking Technique and Thunder-Walking Formula from the Minor Wind-Thunder Technique, and had also made an initial entry into the Soul-Cleansing Spell, Zhang Jian had some confidence.

So long as he did not encounter someone who had truly cultivated magical power, even if he could not win, escaping would not be a problem.

He had put considerable effort into the Wind-Walking Technique lately...

Narrowing his eyes, Zhang Jian said directly, "Fourth Uncle, I'll go on ahead and open the stronghold gates. Bring the whole army up afterward. Even if there are one or two practitioners of unorthodox arts, I expect there will be no trouble!"

Though he said so, Zhang Jian felt some regret.

That archway honoring a family of accumulated virtue had been destroyed far too wastefully. Otherwise, they could have carried the archway here in a situation like this and seen which unorthodox practitioner dared to wander about recklessly!

Still, the guard force before them, formed from yamen constables, likewise carried the court's authority. Furthermore, Zhang Kui was the Fengxi County Commandant. Though only of the Subordinate Ninth Rank, he was still an official and possessed the aura of dragon and tiger, enough to cow unorthodox paths and deviant arts.

"Good. Our army will arrive immediately after!"

Zhang Kui's face was solemn. He lightly urged his horse forward, then ordered his personal guards to pass down the command and prepare to advance into Phoenix-Tail Mountain.

At the same time, they cleared away the obstacles.

Within Phoenix-Tail Mountain, Zhang Jian moved with incredible speed. Since he had made up his mind, he chose to trust the truth he had derived through deduction.

Along the way, Zhang Jian found almost no hidden sentries. Then, amid a dark forest, he saw several corpses that had withered into mummies.

A strange spiritual aura that made him want to vomit still lingered upon them.

This further confirmed Zhang Jian's suspicions.

At Phoenix-Tail Stronghold, Zhang Jian sprang into the air. Several yellow talismans were stuck to his legs and feet. In a daze, it felt as though he could command a layer of invisible air, while his keen innate spiritual awareness gradually found a rhythm in the unseen flow of wind.

He had already brought the Wind-Walking Technique to the level of entering the hall.

It was merely that, lacking sufficient materials for practice, Zhang Jian could not break through this barrier in a short time.

Relying on the Wind-Walking Technique, he easily bypassed the stronghold's towering walls and casually knocked out the bandits keeping watch in the arrow embrasures.

After dealing with the fierce bandits on the outskirts, Zhang Jian did not act in haste.

His extraordinarily keen spiritual awareness had already vaguely detected a dense, icy spiritual aura circulating deep within the bandit stronghold. That aura was extremely intense.

But it did not resemble the orthodox immortal cultivators who had cultivated magical power as mentioned in the Nine Chapters of Paulownia Mountain Purity. This gave Zhang Jian somewhat more confidence.

Still, as a cautious man, he did not choose to charge in rashly. With a thought, he sealed his own spiritual aura and instead hid in the darkness.

Before long, however, cries of battle rose from beneath the battlements. Leading a force of men, Zhang Kui had already successfully charged to the front of the stronghold and opened its gates.

"Bad news, Big Brother! Government troops have charged up the mountain!"

When Third Chief Zhang Bao rushed into the rear mountain with his face covered in blood, the chief was leading a group of fierce bandits in digging earth and moving boulders, sweating like rain.

He was greatly startled by the news.

Beside them, the black-clad diviner seated upon a boulder opened his eyes. His expression was grim as he cursed, "A bunch of trash! You can't even hold a single stronghold!"

His dark face held barely restrained fury. The person who had told him the location of Prince Mian's Tomb had long mentioned that several other parties knew of the matter. The nearest was the Zhang family, a powerful clan of Fengxi County. He had deliberately kept these fierce bandits around precisely as an advance precaution.

He had not expected these rather renowned bandits to be so useless.

Seeing Song Heihu still standing there in a daze, he immediately barked, "Why aren't you hurrying to meet the enemy? Do you expect me to lift a hand?"

Song Heihu promptly called for several dozen bandits nearby to hastily seize their weapons and rush toward the stronghold gate. A layer of black qi rose around Zhang Kang as he quietly followed after them.

He had long received word that the Zhang family might also have extraordinary people. To be safe, he intended to hide in the shadows first, then give them a sudden strike when the moment was right.

At the same time, he subconsciously halted his steps and, out of habit, drew a tortoiseshell from his sleeve to divine a hexagram for himself.

The copper coins fell, scattering in every direction.

"A most inauspicious lot—a sign of great calamity!"

Zhang Kang's face sank at the sight.

A flicker of hesitation immediately passed through his eyes. Yet after a moment, the malice in his heart gained the upper hand, and he prepared to follow them first to see what was happening.

When he reached the stronghold gate, he saw volleys of arrows raining down from the arrow embrasures. After only one round, more than half of the fierce bandits, Song Heihu included, had fallen. If this continued, Song Heihu would soon become a commander without an army.

This made Zhang Kang frown.

These bandits could not die like this.

Facing such a properly organized army, even though he possessed unorthodox arts, he remained wary. These troops were not wandering mountain bandits; they themselves possessed the court's righteous authority. With an official at their head who carried the aura of dragon and tiger, they would not be easy to handle.

He still needed to make use of Song Heihu.

He also swept his gaze around the area. Seeing no reclusive cultivators enter the fray, a guess immediately formed in his heart.

This time, it was not the Zhang family—was it merely the Fengxi County yamen suppressing bandits?

Yet the earlier divination rose in his mind. A trace of wavering flashed through his eyes. Looking at Song Heihu and the others, he hesitated as his thoughts stirred.

But in the shadows, Zhang Jian had already locked onto the black-clad diviner first with his sharp spiritual awareness.

In his spiritual senses, the aura emanating from Zhang Kang's body was incomparably cold and sinister.

Though it was somewhat stronger than Zhang Jian's own spiritual aura, it was not stronger by much.

The advantage is mine!

Seeing Zhang Kang dawdling there, he immediately guessed what Zhang Kang was thinking.

He's scared and getting ready to slip away?

Zhang Jian's eyes lit up. He silently drew closer at once. In an instant, six Wind-Walking Talismans appeared in his hand and were pasted onto his body. His figure became a gust of clear wind, closing in on Zhang Kang almost instantly.

The moment Zhang Jian drew near, Zhang Kang immediately sensed something. He subconsciously looked toward the direction from which Zhang Jian approached.

What greeted this practitioner of unorthodox arts was Zhang Jian's long-planned, all-out sneak attack. Six yellow thunder talismans were activated with spiritual energy, and in an instant, bolts of crimson lightning shot from the talismans and enveloped the diviner.

Rumble, rumble, rumble!!

Six crimson bolts of lightning shuddered violently, their roar resounding throughout the forest.

Hesitation meant defeat; decisiveness meant giving yourself away!