The Matter of Fighting in Rotation

---- Jade Toad cave abode

After diligently instructing Sect Leader Kang Da for over a month, Yuan Buwen left Little Ring Mountain without hesitation and returned to Jingnan Prefecture.

Although a delicate balance still exists between the Cloud Horn Prefecture Court and the Two Instruments Sect, they are not without conflict. Every ten days or so, three to six or seven Qi Refinement cultivators die. For the sake of his clan, Yuan Buwen cannot easily leave.

While the bigwigs at the top are hesitant to make a decision, those lowly figures facing the blade below are also rarely spared, still having to risk their lives and fight for survival.

However, in the past few days, Kang Dabao could tell from Yuan Buwen's usual conversations that the former seemed to have made up his mind to give up his family business and was willing to give up the entire fertile land of Jingnan Prefecture to Zhu Tong.

This is easy to understand, because even if the soil in a place of war and danger is fertile, it is difficult to grow good crops.

Even if it meant moving his entire family to the more remote Pu Prefecture to compete with the Stone Mountain Sect for food, the old man would do it willingly.

However, after this matter was brought up for a while, it got stuck with Zhu Tong, and nothing more was done about it.

After all, Stone Mountain Sect had to join earlier. Although this family had been quite close to the Han City Yue Household in the past and was not favored by the Capital Region Faction, they couldn't let the Jingnan Yuan Household, who joined later, take advantage of them. If that happened, the state court would look too bad.

However, it seems that after this, Yuan Buwen might be able to get a promise from Fei Nanying. Even if he can't go to Pu Prefecture to compete with the Stone Mountain Sect for food, he can go to Ding Prefecture, which was once monopolized by the Hongyi Sect.

After the Hongyi Sect's defeat in Ding Prefecture area became very lively.

With the various families close to the Two Instruments Sect either dead or scattered, the vast vacant lands left behind could not be ignored by the local government, and people gradually moved in to seize the fertile lands.

It is worth mentioning that the origin of the migration to Ding Prefecture this time is different from the previous ones.

This is because most of them migrated from other prefectures in Mountain North Circuit and Shannan Circuit, while the number of families coming from the capital region was not large, perhaps only accounting for about 50%.

Even if the Jingnan Yuan Household moved there, they would probably find it difficult to settle down for a while.

After all, the Supreme Elder of the Hongyi Sect, Jieyi Xie Yi, who was living in exile, would still occasionally utter passionate words such as: "Let's regroup and prepare for battle," and "Let's restore the sect."

However, as long as they work together with the surrounding families to protect themselves, the pressure of resisting the counterattack of the Hongyi Sect is not too great. It is much better than the current situation where the Jingnan Yuan Household is being pushed to the forefront by Zhu Tong and facing the blade.

Against this backdrop, although Yuan Buwen's impression of Sect Leader Kang Da was still far from good, he was still worthy of the phrase "giving his all" when teaching him.

Kang Dabao also benefited a lot during these days, and many of the things that were previously difficult to understand in his halberd technique are now clear to him.

This is the essence of the saying that the Dharma should not be passed on lightly. Many bottlenecks that trap low-level cultivators in their entire lives can be easily resolved by high-level cultivators with just a change of perspective.

The copy of "The Military Strategy Taught by the Halberd-Holding Gentleman of the Wood Palace" passed down in the Yuan Household family is hardly even a fragment; perhaps "fragment" would be a more accurate description.

In other words, if the Yuan Household had been willing to devote the effort they had spent on this halberd technique to other areas, they might have had a chance to rise to prominence simply by sticking to this dedication.

However, generation after generation of family heads were blinded by the high level of this halberd technique, thinking that they could comprehend its essence and soar to new heights. But the truth is that the Yuan Household has clung to the remnants of the past until today, and has only managed to acquire a few moves that can be considered decent, which is only a slight consolation.

The chance to soar to new heights seems to have vanished, but it can be said that not all the hard work has been in vain.

As a later arrival, Sect Leader Kang Da certainly benefited from the Yuan Household's situation.

Furthermore, he has the jade pendant to deduce the method, which saves the Yuan Household from the pain of having their tongues severed before they can fully master the "Brush-Casting Art" in order to practice this method.

According to Yuan Buwen's speculation, this was because this method was not originally intended for ordinary people; the threshold was extremely high. Therefore, if ordinary people wanted to achieve something in this, they would have to endure great hardship.

However, Kang Dabao skipped this matter. His comprehension in this area was already quite good. Back then, he only found fragments of information about this method in Yuan Feng's Storage Bag, but he was able to deduce most of the essence of Yuan Household had passed down using the jade pendant.

However, due to a lack of people to organize and guide it, the battle of wits was chaotic, left to its own devices, and lacked a systematic approach.

However, now that Yuan Buwen has come to personally impart the method, he has clarified this matter for Sect Leader Kang Da.

With the help of this long-time Pill Master, Kang Dabao was rapid. In just over a month, the Sect Leader Kang Da had already reached the second level of the Dipper Swallowing Realm in this technique.

With a deeper understanding, Kang Dabao believed that in less than ten years, he could reach the Star Burning Realm, a level achieved by only Yuan Buwen of the Jingnan Yuan Household in the past hundred years.

The moves are easy to learn, but the artistic conception is difficult to achieve.

The so-called four halberd techniques— Greedy Wolf Devours the Moon, Seven Sha Lock the Dragon, Falling Star Burns the Sea, and Divine Wood Reaches Heaven— are all derived from the conception. As long as one cultivates the conception and is willing to put in hard work, these four halberd techniques are not difficult to perfect.

But Sect Leader Kang Da is pondering now is something else entirely.

He paused his cultivation for a while and spent ten days in the Jade Toad cave abode, reading through the Jade Slip in his hand without sleep. Then he closed his eyes and pondered for half a day.

The Jade Slip contained annotations from the successive heads of the Yuan Household family, including the Golden Core ancestor. Kang Dabao read them one by one and compared them with his own understanding, and found that most of them were erroneous.

"It is better to have no books than to believe everything in them." The current Sect Leader Kang Da is no longer the ignorant and foolish small-time merchant he once was. It is time for him to criticize the opinions of his predecessors.

However, this Jade Slip is not without its insightful and enlightening words. Most of these words are actually annotations by Yuan Buwen, the current head of the Yuan Household family.

This also shows just how incredibly talented this old cultivator was.

Unfortunately, due to various reasons, he still ruined his Dao Path to immortality and was unable to form the elixir.

Otherwise, given the current circumstances, Yuan Buwen should be able to lead the Jingnan Yuan Household to achieve even greater things.

After suppressing his sigh, Kang Dabao raised his right hand and flicked his finger. Three Kang Dabao pendants, shimmering with spiritual light, flew out of his Storage Bag and then hovered between his eyebrows, mouth, tongue, and heart eyes, descending in a straight line.

"Yuan Buwen once said that Nascent Soul would find it difficult to deduce a single word. Now, with the help of the jade pendant, can I deduce it?"

With a firm resolve, the three jade Sect Leader Kang Da suddenly trembled and emitted a brilliant spiritual light.

A mysterious and indescribable spiritual energy arose within the Jade Toad cave abode. Kang Dabao held his breath and murmured, "Green wood breeds murderous intent, the Big Dipper buries the dragon court, a broken halberd becomes a pen to write heavenly punishment."

Another month or so passed, and it can't be said that nothing was gained. However, if this method were to be deduced at this speed, it would probably take a hundred years.

This was certainly something that even the Yuan Household, who had devoted their hearts to this method, could only dream of. However, in Kang Dabao's eyes, it was hardly satisfactory. "Perhaps my cultivation level is too low? Oh well, I'll try again after I've formed my Golden Core."

As soon as Kang Dabao left the cave abode and returned to the sect, he saw Ye Zhengwen looking for him.

What is it?

"Sima Fei has sent a letter," Ye Zhengwen said, taking out a scroll of spiritual silk and unfolding it before Kang Dabao. "In short, it's just some advice on making good preparations and waiting for the right time."

Sect Leader Kang Da glanced at it briefly, showing no surprise, but then asked, "Where is the abbot protecting the temple now?"

"News came ten days ago that he was still Bo Prefecture Xianyu Household."

Kang Dabao asked in surprise, "I remember that before I went into seclusion, the news from Fearless Tower said that after the abbot of the temple visited Xiang Tianxing at Xiang Tianxing Star-Picking Pavilion, he went to the Bo Prefecture Xianyu Household to search for people. How come so much time has passed and he still hasn't made a move?!"

"Indeed, nothing has been moved."

"No wonder no one called me during my long seclusion this time. I was wondering why it was so quiet," Kang Dabao said, a hint of doubt flashing between his brows. He then asked, "What has the state court done?"

"No action has been taken yet, perhaps because the higher-ups haven't finalized the rules. The Xianyu Household has announced a mountain closure, prohibiting all visitors and disciples from entering or leaving."

There seems to be something fishy about this. The Xianyu Household, after all, the strongest force under the jurisdiction of the Star-Picking Pavilion besides Two Instruments Sect. Even the Cloud Water Sect of Tang Prefecture is slightly inferior to them. How could they be blocked at their mountain gate by a mere junior Buddhist cultivator?

The Sect Leader Kang Da found it strange. "If we don't take action soon, that abbot protecting the temple in Bo Prefecture might already be having a child with the Xianyu Clan."

The two discussed it for a while, but still couldn't figure it out. Just as they were about to leave, another person came to their door.

-----Meeting Room

"It has been quite some time since I last saw you, Chief Secretary. I was just about to pay you a visit when you unexpectedly took the time to come. I am deeply honored, but it is also my fault. How have you been, Chief Secretary?"

Since Buse for the Chief Clerk of the State Court 'Sima Office to the Chongming Sect, Kang Dabao, to show his respect, summoned his three junior brothers, Pei, Ye, and Zhou, who were stationed in the sect and held the titles of elders.

"Thank you for your concern, fellow Daoist. I'm very well. The Nanfeng here is very nourishing. I've gained so much weight since I came from the Central Prefecture all these years ago." Buse patted his large belly with a cheerful smile, looking just like a living Maitreya Buddha.

His words and actions were amusing, and everyone in the hall laughed. However, this casual conversation had only lasted a short while when Buse's expression turned serious, and he began to speak of the serious business of their trip:

"Funeng's selection of a concubine in Shannan Circuit has already been approved by Xiang Tianxing. After discussing the matter with Prefectural Governor Zhu, Sima Fei refused to allow him to cause trouble in the territory under the control of Cloud Horn Prefecture. The two sides argued for several rounds, and only now has some progress been made."

Kang Dabao then adopted a solemn expression and said in a deep voice, "It is not that I, a junior, am making trouble for myself, but rather that this matter involves my family. I humbly request that the Chief Secretary offer his guidance."

Even when Funeng was mentioned, Buse showed dissatisfaction on his face.

"It's quite simple. Sima is merciful. To reduce the stench and minimize the loss of life, Sima made a gentleman's pact with Master Ma Mangqin of Original Response Temple. The state court selected nine True Cultivators from its jurisdiction to hold a Dharma assembly in Xuanwei City."

"Then, all of you True Cultivator should engage in a battle of wits with that Funeng at that Dharma assembly. If he, the protector of the temple, is fortunate enough to win, he can take his consort with him and go to cultivate to Buddhahood; if he loses, then say no more and go back to the Great Snow Mountain to eat ice."

"A rotation of troops?" Sect Leader Kang Da asked with surprise and doubt, "Wouldn't this be a loss of face for the state court?"

Buse also shook his head. "Fellow Daoist, you don't know, it's not just us who can bargain. Originally, we were going to choose someone below the level of False Core to compete with the abbot of the temple, but afterwards Original Response Temple."

The letter stated that Funeng was not yet fifty years old, so even those over a hundred years old under the jurisdiction of the state government could not intervene. In such a rush, where could we find so many capable people?

After hearing this, Kang Dabao also felt that Buse said made sense. Originally, the only gate in Shannan Circuit that could somewhat curb the evil flames of Original Response Temple was Star-Picking Pavilion.

Now that his family is letting the matter slide, leaving only the Cloud Horn Prefecture Court to handle it, it is indeed difficult to find an outstanding person with similar qualifications to match Funeng.

Kang Dabao didn't respond for a moment, but Zhou Yixiu, who was sitting in the corner, spoke first.

This old farmer, after all, didn't have many more years to live, so his boldness had grown along with his age in recent years. Even with such Buse distinguished guest as Bu Se at the door, he dared to mutter a few words:

"Why worry about everything? Why not just ask those high-ranking officials in the state court to Funeng? That would be much more efficient."

The voice couldn't be kept secret. Just as Kang Dabao turned his head to look, Pei Yi shouted sharply, "Junior Brother Zhou!"

Zhou Yixiu didn't seem afraid, but she felt a pang of heartache seeing Pei Yi's face turn deathly pale after he let out a stern shout.

Zhou Yixiu bowed deeply to the leader as an apology. Bu Se, being a Buse and forgiving person, was not angry upon seeing this, but instead explained on behalf of the people in the hall:

"The Snowland Esoteric Buddhism only submitted for a short time when the Great Ancestor was still alive. Otherwise, they generally did not concern themselves with worldly affairs, but lived peacefully in the Snow Mountain Circuit, practicing Buddhism and spreading the Dharma."

Buse's words were quite clear, and Sect Leader Kang Da could tell that Fei Nanying and the others were worried that they might offend the important figures of Original Response Temple too much, forcing them to join the "Exterminate the Guards" faction.

After all, although this great temple in the snowy region has not completely colluded with the "Extinction Guard" faction, there have been many ambiguous rumors between the two sides in recent years. As for the core families in the "Protect the Righteousness" camp, their relationship with this Original Response Temple is not harmonious.

The thin veil between the two sides has not yet been broken. Although the relationship between the Immortal Dynasty and Original Response Temple is far from harmonious, there is still a chance for them to make amends.

Until the Immortal Dynasty can offer enough incentives to entice such powerful clansmen to serve the imperial family, "maintaining the status quo" might be an acceptable outcome for both sides.

Although such a major event concerning the fate of the world would not be affected or swayed by the cultivation of a mere child Funeng, how could these high-ranking officials of the state court, who were used to a life of ease, dare to take such a risk?

After thinking it through, Kang Dabao stopped talking about other things and continued along the Buse's previous conversation, "According to what the Chief Secretary said, it shouldn't be long before Xuanwei City is filled with talented people."

"That is naturally something that Sima Fei and Prefectural Governor Zhu would be happy to see." Buse chuckled again. Although he was Original Buddha Sect of Central Prefecture and still had close ties with Yue Household, he also had good relationships with his fellow townsmen in the state court. He was a rare and shrewd person in Cloud Horn Prefecture Court.

"So, Chief Secretary, you came here because Boyue summoned me?"

"And then there's Fellow Daoist Jiang esteemed clan," Buse's smile became more genuine at this point, "Among the surrounding prefectures, there are few like Fellow Daoist Kang who have produced two outstanding individuals from the same family; perhaps only the direct line of the Ye Prefecture Yang Household can compare."

"In that case, wouldn't our two families occupy five seats?"

"No, that's not it. We've prepared thirty people in total, and Elder Tianqin of the Fei Household needs to review them one by one before the final nine can be selected."

"I see," Kang Dabao said, no longer asking questions. He turned and called over Pei Yi and the others, intending to give them a few brief instructions before setting off with Buse. However, the Chief Secretary of the Sima Office said, "Fellow Daoist Kang, according to Sima's instructions before his departure, in addition to you and your brothers, the Yuan Clan must also accompany you."

Sect Leader Kang Da's expression changed slightly, but he did not object. He simply agreed, "That's the way to do it. Staying here is not only dangerous, but it might also implicate the sect."

Hearing Kang Dabao's understanding and sensible manner, he smiled Buse displeasure, "No wonder Sima Chang often told us in the government office that among his descendants, only Fellow Daoist Kang is the most substantial and cultured."

After their Buse words, the two exchanged a glance, both smiling faintly, and remained silent.

(It's been years since I've worked online. This afternoon, the equipment broke down, and I spent half the day helping to move packages. I worked up a sweat and didn't take care of myself, and ended up catching a cold. Everyone, please take care of yourselves.)