The final battleground

Inside the inn, Miao Youfang let out a sigh that was both satisfied and painful.

Since following Xu Qi'an, this nominal employer and actual master has been helping him collect herbs to strengthen his physical body.

He was also taught a unique method of using luck to aid in his advancement.

He soaked in medicinal baths every day, enduring the burning and corrosive pain, and silently circulated his qi. Finally, he crossed the threshold and advanced to the sixth rank of Copper Skin Iron Bones.

He stood up from the bathtub, looked around at himself, and saw a faint divine light shimmering on his bronze skin.

His strength and five senses have improved considerably, and his vital energy is much stronger, but what surprises the martial artist the most is his invulnerable physique.

There's a saying in the martial arts world: a sixth-rank county magistrate, a fifth-rank prefect, and a fourth-rank marquis.

Using official ranks to describe the grades of military officers, a sixth-rank officer could rule as a king in a county, and even the government dared not provoke him.

A fifth-rank official could swagger around and wield power within a prefecture.

The fourth rank refers to someone who, like a feudal lord, can dominate a region.

Of course, this statement only applies to those who dominate a region within the martial arts world, and does not involve the imperial court.

Miao Youfang looked down and saw what a peerless divine spear it was.

He exclaimed with delight:

"Good heavens, just as I expected."

"From now on, with spears flying everywhere, the girls will be crying for their parents! Brother Li, aren't you envious? You must be very envious."

Only a martial artist can defeat another martial artist.

Li Lingsu glanced at him and said indifferently:

Even the hardest embroidery needle is still just an embroidery needle.

"Oh, you think it hurts more if it's prickly."

Miao Youfang was furious, straightening his back. "Let's have a competition?"

Li Lingsu crossed her Erlang and sneered, "My things are only for beauties to see; I won't stoop to the level of an embroidery needle."

At this moment, Xu Qi'an pushed open the door, glanced at them, and said expressionlessly:

Pack your things and leave Jiangzhou City.

Xu Qi'an muttered to himself about the two clowns and turned to leave.

He wasn't in a good mood. He hadn't expected that Jiangzhou City, as the main city of a continent, would only have scattered dragon energy hosts.

Yuzhou.

The three prefectures of Xiang, Jing, and Yu are adjacent to the Yan Kingdom. Based on the principle of proximity, Nalan Tianlu first "plundered" the dragon energy hosts of the three prefectures.

His decision was undoubtedly correct. After a period of collection, they found eight dragon energy hosts in Xiangzhou and two dragon energy hosts in Yuzhou.

The tallest restaurant in the city, the private room of the highest tier.

Dongfang Wanrong, wearing a peach-colored low-cut dress that revealed her fair skin, sat sideways on a soft couch, drinking tea.

The door opened, and Dongfang Wanqing, who looked exactly like her sister but possessed a cool and aloof demeanor, stepped across the threshold. As she took the tea her sister offered, she said:

"I caught a spy; to be precise, he approached me."

Dongfang Wanrong raised a delicate eyebrow, and asked in surprise:

"A spy for the Great Feng Dynasty?"

Dongfang Wanqing shook her head. "He claims to be from the Heavenly Mystery Palace."

Tianji Palace. Dongfang Wanrong frowned slightly, feeling completely unfamiliar with the name.

Then, a gentle, aged voice echoed in her mind, "Let him in."

While relaying her teacher's orders, Dongfang Wanrong asked herself in her mind:

"Teacher, do you know about Tianji Palace?"

After a few seconds, Nalan Tianlu replied:

"An intelligence organization established by a second-rank Warlock, they are spread throughout the Central Plains and even the Nine Provinces. This organization played a significant role in the Battle of Shanhai Pass."

"Wei Yuan suffered greatly back then."

Dongfang Wanrong was increasingly puzzled. "A second-rank Warlock, yet he stands on the opposite side of the Great Feng?"

In her mind, Warlock could also be a synonym for the Bureau of Astronomy of Bureau of Astronomy, which was subordinate to the Great Feng Dynasty.

Nalan Tianlu sighed:

"The Battle of Shanhai Pass was essentially an outbreak of escalating conflicts between various forces on the continent of Kyushu. However, if it weren't for the two individuals who lobbied and fueled the flames, the Battle of Shanhai Pass might have been delayed for more than a decade."

"Of those two, one was the Heavenly Gu Elder, the leader of the Heavenly Gu Clan, and the other was this second-rank Warlock."

Did a second-rank Warlock and members of the Heavenly Gu Clan join forces to instigate the Battle of Shanhai Pass? Dongfang Wanrong was both surprised and bewildered when she first heard the inside story of the war:

Why did that second-rank Warlock act this way?

Nalan Tianlu slowly said, "Of course, it's to replace the Supervisor and be promoted to the first rank."

Dongfang Wanrong, who had replaced the supervisor, suddenly realized:

"No wonder you wanted to see the spy; that second-rank Warlock is an ally that can be won over."

Nalan Tianlu snorted:

"He's just a temporary ally. He's an extremely terrifying character. I was imprisoned in the Pagoda for twenty years, and when I was reborn, he had already turned the Great Feng into such a chaotic mess."

"The biggest beneficiaries of the Battle of Shanhai Pass, besides Buddhist School, were him and the Heavenly Gu Elder. Although the Great Feng won, it lost half of its national fortune. If that were all, it wouldn't have ended up in such a state."

"But that man plotted for twenty years, eliminating both the Prince of Zhenbei and Wei Yuan. The Prince of Zhenbei was one thing, but with Wei Yuan dead, everyone breathed a sigh of relief."

Nalan Tianlu suddenly fell silent, and Dongfang Wanrong then looked towards the door.

The door creaked open again, and Dongfang Wanqing led in a mysterious person wearing a cloak and hood.

"Greetings, Your Excellencies. I am 'Wind,' a secret agent from the Heavenly Mystery Palace, responsible for the territory of Yuzhou."

A deliberately hoarse male voice came from inside the hood. "Please allow me to introduce myself. Tianji Palace is..."

Dongfang Wanrong coldly interrupted, "Get to the point."

"Wind" the spy paused for two seconds, then chuckled, "It seems the Grand Palace Master already knows our background."

He reached into his robe, pulled out a letter, and presented it with both hands.

Dongfang Wanrong beckoned, and the envelope fell into her hand automatically. She unfolded it and began to read.

A dozen seconds later, she placed the letter on the table and smiled:

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

The "Wind" spy bowed and said:

"The Grand Palace Master is wise. The Young Master also said that if we encounter Xu Qi'an, we should avoid him and wait for an opportunity."

"Ah, dragon energy has a mutual attraction property. As we collect more and more dragon energy, the various parties will inevitably meet sooner or later. At that time, we will plot our great cause together."

He paused, then said:

"Next, I have some information to share with the two palace masters."

"Of the nine crucial dragon energies, Xu Qi'an has already obtained three, one each in Leizhou, Zhangzhou, Xiangzhou, and the chivalrous Miao Youfang in Qingzhou."

"There is no host for one of the nine dragon energies in Yongzhou."

"It is now known that there is one in Yuzhou, but not in Yunzhou. Of the Great Feng, only Jiangzhou, the three northeastern continents of Xiang, Jing, and Yu, Jianzhou, Chuzhou, and the capital region remain. The remaining five dragon energies are distributed among these six continents."

In the official administrative divisions of the Great Feng, the capital city was also a continent.

"Not in Xiangzhou!"

Dongfang Wanrong shook her head.

"Wind," the spies said, "Then there must be one, or even two, routes in Jing and Yu provinces, if they weren't intercepted beforehand by Sun Xuanji of the Bureau of Astronomy."

"I understand," Dongfang Wanrong said.

"Wind" the spy nodded and continued:

"After the two palace masters have finished traveling through the three northeastern states, the remaining states are Jiangzhou, Jianzhou, and Chuzhou. We and Xu Qi'an will likely clash in one of these three states."

"Are there any spiritual masters from the Witch God Cult nearby?"

He subtly suggested that without the strength of a transcendent being, one should not participate in battles at this level.

Dongfang Wanrong smiled and said, "No need to worry."

Yuzhou.

Xu Yuanshuang spread his arms, letting the carrier pigeon land on his forearm. He then pulled out a small piece of paper from the thin bamboo tube tied to the pigeon's claw.

After carefully reading it, a smile appeared on his handsome face. He turned around and said:

"The Azure Dragon Seven Constellations have captured the dragon energy host of Yuzhou, although it has been a long and winding road, and he almost escaped several times."

"But with their calculated strategy against an unsuspecting opponent, the assistance of secret agents from the Heavenly Mystery Palace, and the formidable power of the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations, they escaped unscathed."

It is one of the nine crucial dragon energies.

Liu Hongmian and the others breathed a sigh of relief. Ji Xuan smiled and said, "Next, it's time to contact the two Vajras."

In Qingzhou, which borders Yunzhou, Jingxin and Jingyuan walked thousands of miles and finally met up with the two Vajras, Dunan and Dufan, in a dilapidated temple in a certain county on the border of Qingzhou.

The Vajras wore cloaks and hoods to conceal their dark gold skin.

"Master! Uncle-Master!"

"My two senior uncles!"

Jingxin and Jingyuan joined their palms in a gesture of respect.

Jingxin recounted in detail what happened after she was kidnapped to the two Vajras:

"Xu Qi'an released us as promised."

At this point, even a Zen master like himself could no longer call that person a disciple of Buddha.

Anger lingered in my mind.

Three years.

Du Fan Jingang sighed, "Fortunately, the son of the Asura King has returned to his throne."

Even the Buddhist School cannot afford to lose a second-rank Arhat.

With a pure heart and pure karma, I am overjoyed.

The latter asked, "Master, Uncle-Master, what are you doing here?"

Du Nan Jingang slowly said, "An incarnation of the Bodhisattva Gara Tree is in Qianlong City, Yunzhou. He may issue orders soon. We two will wait here for the messenger."

Jingxin asked in confusion, "Why don't we go in?"

Du Fan, in a deep, resonant voice, said, "The supervisor is keeping an eye on Yunzhou."

Jingxin and Jingyuan stared at each other in shock.

Ten days later, in Jiangzhou City.

After wandering around Jiangzhou, Xu Qi'an returned to this main city.

He has captured all the dragon energy hosts in Jiangzhou, but still has not found the host of one of the nine dragon energies.

"If the dragon energy in Jiangzhou was originally the domain of a wandering swordsman, then he has already traveled elsewhere, just like Miao Youfang."

Xu Qi'an, leading the mare, walked with Miao Youfang and Li Lingsu toward the soup kitchen set up outside the city.

A long line formed there, with poor people and refugees dressed in simple clothes holding broken bowls and bamboo tubes, waiting for the porridge to be distributed.

The city's garrison maintained order roughly, often scolding, punching, and kicking the crowded poor.

Although the method was crude, it did stabilize the situation.

Those impoverished people suffering from hunger and cold, though their faces still bore traces of numbness and pain, had a glimmer of light in their eyes as they looked at the soup kitchen.

To be honest, Emperor Yongxing's disaster relief efforts greatly changed Xu Qi'an's opinion of him.

Great Feng has progressed to this point, local officials are mostly two-faced and disobedient. The dynasty has become so corrupt that it cannot be changed by the emperor alone, or even by the lord of the capital.

The difficulty in enforcing government orders has always been a major headache for dynasties.

According to Huaiqing, Emperor Yongxing adopted Xu Erlang's suggestion and dispatched all the censors from the capital to supervise the various prefectures, granting the governors the power to execute first and report later.

Each governor was also accompanied by a white-robed Warlock to supervise them.

It is well known that white-robed Warlock are famously proud and wealthy, which greatly reduces the possibility of collusion and embezzlement.

However, because low-ranking Warlock are weak, to prevent the governor from succumbing to temptation and embezzling, and from killing to cover it up, the imperial court added another ironclad rule:

The Warlock died, and the governor executed him.

As for local governments, the imperial court encouraged neighboring counties to supervise and report on each other.

Once the allegations are verified, the whistleblower will be promoted one rank, while the accused will be dismissed or executed, depending on the severity of the offense.

There are many other policies to prevent officials from embezzling disaster relief supplies, such as the rule that "chopsticks float up and heads fall down" in porridge buckets.

As for how to deal with those who pretend to be refugees and fraudulently claim relief food, the shrewd Chief Minister Wang's solution was:

Seven parts rice, two parts bran, and one part sand.

These measures still cannot completely eliminate corruption, but they have a significant deterrent effect.

Looking at the soup kitchen, Li Lingsu smiled and said, "Although the effects of what the imperial court is doing are limited compared to the disasters in the Central Plains, at least it has given the people hope."

Miao Youfang, unusually, didn't argue and watched the scene with gentle eyes.

The group entered the city, intending to rest for the night before heading to Jianzhou.

at night.

Xu Qi'an moved the candle from the round table to the desk, spread out the Xuan paper provided in the inn, and picked up his brush to write:

"Xiang, Jing, Yu, Jian, Chu."

Mu Nanzhi walked over carrying the little white fox, peeked inside, and asked, "Where are all these places?"

"Don't you read the ' Great Feng: Geography ' every day?" Xu Qi'an retorted.

"I forgot about it as soon as I saw it, who would remember it?" Mu Nanzhi pouted.

"A female academic underachiever," Xu Qi'an thought to himself.

If this woman lived in his time, she would probably have had two paths:

1. Marry a tycoon with her extraordinary beauty and become a wealthy wife.

Second: Enter the entertainment industry and become the queen of bad movies who can never become famous.

Why couldn't he become famous? Because the reincarnation of the Flower Goddess was not the kind of person who could endure hardship.

Xu Qi'an didn't have any demands on her. Apart from being overly arrogant, she was kind at heart and reasonable in crucial moments, and wouldn't hold him back.

In Xu Qi'an's eyes, the most precious quality is that a woman is willing to wander the world with you.

"The remaining six dragon energies are basically located in these few places."

Xu Qi'an stroked his chin and analyzed for her, "But we can't determine whether the Witch God Cult, the Buddhist School, or the Hidden Dragon City have already reaped the benefits."

Mu Nanzhi nodded seriously, her face solemn, like a good student listening attentively in class.

"The worst-case scenario is if they obtain one of the nine dragon energies and immediately return to base."

She asked nervously, "What should we do?"

"There's no solution to this." Xu Qi'an shook his head. "My bottom line is to lose two crucial dragon energies, and then compensate by accumulating scattered dragon energy bit by bit."

Mu Nanzhi frowned immediately. "How can we possibly compete with them?"

Xu Qi'an laughed:

"No rush. I carry half the nation's destiny, so my chances of encountering dragon energy are much higher than theirs. If I haven't encountered it, of course they won't either. At most, they might encounter one or two."

"I have a premonition that one of the nine dragon energies will be hosted in Jianzhou."

Just then, sensing something, he took out the sound transmission conch.

"Exist"

As soon as Sun Xuanji's voice rang out, Xu Qi'an immediately answered:

"In the Laifu Inn in Jiangzhou City, on the third floor, on the east side, the third room."

A long silence fell over the other side.

Xu Qi'an waited patiently for an hour. Finally, a beam of light rose from below the bed and formed the image of a young man dressed in white, of average height and with ordinary features.

"Senior Brother Sun, what's the matter?"

As he spoke, he respectfully handed over paper and pen.

If we can take action, we'll never let Senior Brother Sun talk.

Sun Xuanji resignedly grasped the pen and wrote:

"Dragon Qi Intelligence Summary!"

He paused, then wrote, "I discovered something strange."

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