The Battle Begins (Thanks to Brother Shaohua Tianjun for the 10,000-Point Tip)
The message came from the New Cloud Alliance; a single talisman contained only a few words, yet they were chilling.
Speaking of which, Sect Leader Kang Da has been keeping a low profile these past two years, and hasn't been to Double Brightness Trade Market Pingrong County for quite some time now.
Kang Dabao carefully put away the talisman, grabbed Little Qi in his hand, and then waved his hand. A small group of Lion Insect fluttered their wings and flew out of the stone chamber, gradually landing in the brand-new spirit insect pouch at his waist, following the direction of the Sect Leader Kang Da's finger.
With a flick of his wrist, he formed the Tai Chi seal, and a small beast-shaped cauldron on the shelf at the entrance of the Cloud Chamber emitted a fluorescent light, transforming into the size of a thumb ring, which he then slipped onto the left index finger of Sect Leader Kang Da.
This small cauldron was obtained by Kang Dabao from killing a disciple of the Three Incense Cult at the Spirit Stone mine in Tanggu County.
After that great battle, the small cauldron was slightly damaged on the outside. Sect Leader Kang Da felt sorry for it and handed it over to Yuan Jin to repair.
However, the beast-shaped cauldron was, after all, a top-grade magic Law Artifact. Yuan Jin, a barely qualified First-Tier Middle-Grade master, only dared to begin the repair work after studying it for half a year.
After the great work was completed, according to the top weapon master of the Chongming Sect, this beast-shaped cauldron should be no less than any top-grade defensive magic Law Artifact that can be found on the market.
Sect Leader Kang Da was naturally pleased to hear this, but what annoyed him was that the original owner had already refined this beast-shaped cauldron into a natal magic Law Artifact, and the Divine Sense imprint was very solid.
Even after Kang Dabao spent a considerable amount of time polishing it, the Law Artifact still couldn't unleash its full power in his hands.
To make up for this, the fourth Garrison Earth Azure Origin Shield, made by Yuan Jin, was also carried by Kang Dabao, who did not mind that it was just as bulky and durable as its predecessors.
Thinking of Yuan Jin, Sect Leader Kang Da narrowed his eyes, pushed open the cloud room door, and walked out of the courtyard.
It was evening class time, and Zhou Yixiu and Han Yundao were on duty in the scripture hall. The disciples recited their lessons aloud, and the scripture teachers were diligent and tireless.
Zhou Yixiu came from a declining Lineage with a missing lineage. He didn't stay at home for more than a few years before the elders fought fiercely over the division of the family property. Not wanting to engage in such fratricidal strife, he ventured out on his own.
Zhou Yixiu himself was actually only a novice when it came to Daoist scriptures. Although he and Han Yundao took turns on duty, the latter did most of the work.
Even Zhou Yixiu himself learned some scriptures he had never heard of before by following these younger generation members.
At this moment, Han Yundao held the Daoist book in his hand, revealing a heroic spirit between his brows. He looked at his fellow disciples with a composed and dignified demeanor, quite like a scholar standing on a high platform.
In the eyes of his fellow disciples, Han Yundao, the current senior disciple, was strict with himself and others. Nowadays, apart from when Martial Uncle Jiang was on duty, Senior Brother Han's morning and evening prayers were the most difficult for him.
According to the rules set by Sect Leader Kang Da, once a disciple of the Chongming Sect breaks through the Qi Refinement Fourth Layer and becomes a mid-stage cultivator, the daily morning and evening scripture lessons can be stopped. They only need to pass the scripture interpretation debate with the Transmission Elder every three months.
But in a small, quiet room behind the scripture room, there was a short, stocky cultivator in the Late Qi Refinement, sitting alone, chanting scriptures incessantly.
Sect Leader Kang Da merely glanced briefly past the window of the scripture room before walking to the door of the meditation room.
He formed a hand seal, the restriction on the door of the meditation room opened, the chanting stopped, and a somewhat reproachful voice came out.
"Senior Brother, why are you so late again today?" Yuan Jin was sitting cross-legged on the jade futon that Sect Leader Kang Da brought back from the battle at the Five Aspects Sect. This was the only magic futon in the Chongming Sect at present, a First-Tier Middle-Grade Law Artifact with the effect of gathering spiritual energy and purifying the mind.
Yuan Jin had a sorrowful expression on his face. In front of him were stacks of Daoist and Buddhist scriptures, covered with annotations written in tiny characters, which showed how much effort the person in the quiet room had put in during this time.
"How was today?" Sect Leader Kang Da asked first, without answering Yuan Jin's question.
"What do you mean by 'however'? Junior brother, I told you long ago that it's nothing. My mind is clear and my spirit is in perfect harmony every day. How could I possibly be in that state of Qi Deviation possession as you described?!" Yuan Jin gently put down the Daoist book in his hand, his face showing a helpless expression.
"If you ask me, let's rebuild it?" Sect Leader Kang Da suggested, his expression showing no sign of relief.
"Senior brother, don't you think about it? I'm almost forty. If I were to start over and abandon the 'White Ape Scripture' that I've studied for thirty years, what chance would I have of reaching the Foundation Establishment?" Yuan Jin shook his head without thinking.
"I truly witnessed you Qi Deviation! Demonic energy surged through your body, your spiritual energy was in disarray, it was truly a close call! Although I don't know why you escaped danger, what if it happens again!" Kang Dabao shouted sternly, still feeling lingering fear when he thought about that scene.
A year ago, Yuan Jin successfully broke through to become Late Qi Refinement cultivator, which should have been a cause for celebration.
That day, Sect Leader Kang Da and Yuan Jin drank until very late. In the end, to avoid the complaints of the Second Dong, the latter did not go back to his room and went to sleep next to Sect Leader Kang Da.
The next morning, after Kang Dabao woke up from his drunken stupor, he saw Yuan Jin sitting in the middle of the room cultivating, with dark energy swirling around his forehead and cheeks, and a menacing aura emanating from him. His cheek muscles were twitching incessantly.
This was clearly a sign of demonic possession. Sect Leader Kang Da was so panicked that he hesitated to act rashly. Just as he was about to send someone to invite the Daoist Black Shoes out of seclusion, he saw that Yuan Jin's breathing had calmed down and he had returned to normal.
The two then gave conflicting accounts. Yuan Jin said that Kang Dabao was drunk and still intoxicated; the latter said that the former was ignoring the problem and burying his head in the sand.
He summoned several fellow disciples and asked Yuan Jin to demonstrate his cultivation in front of everyone. Cultivation is a very private matter, but Yuan Jin could not refuse the Sect Leader Kang Da, so he had to ask Zhou Yixiu and others to be witnesses.
This time, Kang Dabao was dumbfounded. Yuan Jin was indeed completely normal. When he was cultivating, he was calm and composed, and his circulation of Qi was smooth without any stagnation.
He didn't even see the common bad habits of cultivators, such as grabbing and scrambling around, let alone any dangerous situations like being overcome by evil spirits.
Even so, Sect Leader Kang Da was still uneasy, so he imprisoned Yuan Jin again. The two ate, lived, and cultivated together for almost half a year, and there were no abnormalities.
Seeing this, Kang Dabao was also puzzled. He had cultivated the Delusion-Breaking Golden Eyes for many years and his skill was by no means shallow. Even ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators might not have eyesight as strong as his, so there was no way he could have made a mistake.
But strangely enough, during the six months that Yuan Jin and he cultivated together, everything was indeed peaceful and normal.
Sect Leader Kang Da was worried, so Yuan Jin didn't dare to argue with him and obediently followed his instructions. In the past six months, he not only stopped his cultivation but also temporarily put aside his weapon-refining business.
He devoted himself to copying and reciting scriptures in the quiet room behind the prayer hall in order to dispel the murderous and violent thoughts in his heart.
"Senior brother, the difficulties that those senior disciples of the sect encountered in cultivating the White Ape Scripture were not necessarily due to problems with the Cultivation Method itself. I, your junior brother, have studied it for thirty years, meticulously examining every word and sentence of the Cultivation Method text and commentaries a hundred times."
I've read through all the annotations and comments from my teachers, and most of them are invaluable, though they aren't without their flaws. Look at these, and these too—my junior brother has written commentaries on scriptures one after another, and they're all absolutely sound!
Senior brother, please believe me. I may not be able to reach the Foundation Establishment, but I can certainly cleanse the sect of the flaws and omissions in the interpretation of the * White Ape Scripture * within my lifetime. At that time, our Chongming Sect will have another reliable Foundation Establishment lineage!
Seeing Yuan Jin's cheerful and sincere demeanor, Sect Leader Kang Da's tightly furrowed brows remained, but his resolve was no longer as firm as it had been at the beginning.
He picked up the annotations and insights from the classics on the ground and began to read them. The handwriting was neat and the comments were insightful. Yuan Jin's understanding of the classics had indeed made great progress compared to six months ago.
The Sect Leader Kang Da closed his Daoist book and sighed softly, "Pack up, I have something to say today."
When Kang Dabao and Yuan Jin stepped into the council hall of the Chongming Sect, there were already quite a few people waiting inside.
Seeing that almost everyone had arrived, Sect Leader Kang Da gestured for Little Wu Meng, who had worked hard delivering the message, to go back and rest. The sect leader's token at his waist lit up, and the restrictions inside the hall automatically activated, blocking everyone outside.
"A message came from Alliance Leader Ye the New Cloud Alliance: three days ago, the Earl of Nan'an had a great battle with Elder Xie Yi of the Hongyi Sect in Ding Prefecture, and returned with a minor victory." The sentence was not long, Kang Dabao's pronunciation was very clear, but everyone still felt as if they had misheard.
I thought that the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an, as a member of the royal family and of noble birth, was already astonishing enough to defeat True-Grade Golden Core False Core at the Foundation Establishment. I never expected that he would actually win a battle against a genuine Golden Core cultivator at the Foundation Establishment.
"Alright, no need to overthink it. Earl of Nan'an and the Golden Core cultivator are both celestial beings; it's none of our business to worry about them."
The only message in Alliance Leader Ye's letter is that the world is about to descend into chaos again. As for our small family, we should just stay put and guard our home. Without further ado, listen to my advice and do the following things immediately without delay.
Elder Ye, Lingyan sent a message summoning all disciples who accepted missions at the Merit Points Hall to return to their sect immediately.
"I obey."
"Junior Brother Zhou, starting today, take Rongquan and Mo Ku and take stock of all the spiritual fields and Spirit Plant sect's manpower as you see fit."
"I only ask for one thing: if a formidable enemy truly comes to our door, then they shouldn't even think about taking away a single grain of our spiritual grain."
"Junior brother obeys."
"Junior Brother Chu, go back and tell Deng Baichuan that you will temporarily take over Yuan Jin's position as the head of the local militia. Integrate and train the market patrol troops well. Pick a few men from Xu Yingshi's recruitment to make an example of; chaos is imminent, and we cannot tolerate any dissent."
"I will obey the decree of my senior brother, the sect leader."
"Junior Brother Pei, Second, you two need to work harder these days. Even the disciples in the Alchemy Chamber and artifact-making rooms shouldn't take any days off. Stock up on raw materials for elixirs and magical Law Artifact as well. If a real war breaks out, prices will definitely rise, and you might not even be able to buy them."
"Junior brother obeys."
"Don't worry, senior brother."
"Third, you will take Wei Gu to inspect and repair each of the key formation nodes in the sect. These days, morning and evening scripture lessons will be suspended; you will stay in the scripture hall and teach the new disciples defensive techniques."
"Don't worry, senior brother, I'll definitely do it well."
"Besides."
Kang Dabao laid out a series of rules and regulations to his fellow disciples, and after thinking it over to make sure nothing was overlooked, he finally said, "Alright, everyone, do your jobs. Second,"
Yuan Jin, who had been suddenly called out by Sect Leader Kang Da, paused in his tracks and turned back, only to see Sect Leader Kang Da repeating what he had said before, "If I die this time, you will be the sect leader."
The once lively scene suddenly fell silent again. Yuan Jin glanced at his senior brother with some surprise, disbelief in his eyes, before slowly and hoarsely replying, "Junior brother, I obey."
"My senior brother still trusts me after all."
--Green Lotus Courtyard
"Miss, what did the master say in his letter?" Two years have passed, Nanny Sun's own injuries have mostly healed, but the dove-shaped staff that was damaged back then has not yet recovered. It is still being handled by the Second Tier weapon maker stationed in Xuanwei City by the Fei Household and has not been repaired.
At this moment, Fei Shuhe was sitting on a canopy bed with a design of fish playing among lotus flowers, her brows furrowed and her face filled with worry.
A little sparrow was perched on her shoulder. Although it was a cute and adorable bird, it was just an ordinary bird. Every now and then, it would utter a few auspicious words, but Fei Shuhe didn't usually find it noisy.
Now it was time to get down to business. Fei Shuhe handed Xiao Que to Ping'er to take away before explaining to Nanny Sun.
"Uncle said that this time, the Hongyi Sect in Ding Prefecture broke the rules previously set by the Master of the Star-Picking Pavilion and His Highness the Prince of the Prince of the South, and sent Golden Core cultivator to the scene. After the defeat and subsequent Xie Yi -cultivation, Uncle was still not satisfied."
The Prefectural Sima Office is to immediately dispatch troops to first recover the entire territory of Cloud Horn Prefecture, then reorganize the forces, train elite soldiers, and annihilate the Hongyi Sect in Ding Prefecture, leaving no face for the Two Instruments Sect.
Upon hearing this, Nanny Sun gasped in shock. Everyone knew that the Hongyi Sect and the Two Instruments Sect in Ding Prefecture had been colluding for thousands of years.
Sima Fei really followed Kuang Liuting's orders, since Cloud Horn Prefecture had already been largely devoured by the state court, losing Two Instruments Sect now wouldn't necessarily be a big deal.
However, Hongyi Sect currently only has one Golden Core cultivator alive, and there were some changes in recent years. The sect is in a period of transition, with only four or five people even at the False Core.
Since Xie Yi Shangxiu was defeated by Kuang Liuting, then Hongyi Sect might not be able to withstand the thunderous attack from Cloud Horn Prefecture Court.
The Hongyi Sect and the Two Instruments Sect actually share the same lineage and have always been on friendly terms. If the Hongyi Sect were to be wiped out by the state government, the Two Instruments Sect would certainly be furious.
Upon realizing this, Nanny Sun Fei Shuhe suddenly asked, "Did the master's letter mention that the son-in-law wanted it to be like this?"
According to Nanny Sun, although Kang Dabao has worked harder now and his skills can barely be considered outstanding among Qi Refinement cultivators.
However, if this great battle were to actually break out, even ordinary Foundation Establishment True Cultivator might not be able to protect themselves. If Sect Leader Kang Da were to get involved, the risks would be extremely high.
Nanny Sun didn't really care whether Sect Leader Kang Da was alive or dead, but regardless of whether Kang Dabao and Fei Shuhe were a couple in name only, if Kang Dabao really died, Fei Shuhe would inevitably be labeled a widow, which was something Nanny Sun absolutely didn't want.
"My uncle wrote in his letter that I should tell him that it's time to repay the Earl for his kindness and guidance, and not to disgrace the Earl. These days, we should organize our troops, prepare our weapons, and prepare for a good fight!"
(I really can't finish writing tonight. I'll owe Brother Shaohua Tianjun's reward and extra chapters to Lao Bai for now, and I'll also owe Brother Jian V's reward from the beginning of the month. If any of you with good memories can help me remember, if I don't pay back by the end of this month, then it's a nine-out-of-thirteen-out payment. The words in parentheses are still free, so don't worry.)
Thank you to reader 20210123223217708 for the Extended Net Moon.
Thanks to Wenchangta, Xiang Xiaoshuai, Book Friend 20180303131633143, Litaerfinai, Shaohua Tianjun, Niutou Xiaode, Book Friend 20180209133132003, Yun Cong Yuhe, Support Wuxia, and Lu Lai for their monthly tickets.
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