Chapter 474: Wind Rustles, the Yi River is Cold

The main hall fell silent.

Here, both the County Governor's Aide and Marquis Yao, as well as the two palace masters of the Enforcement and Penalties Palaces, each knew some battle reports, but their knowledge was far less comprehensive than that of the Sword-Holding Palace. After all, the Sword-Holding Palace Master was temporarily acting as the County Governor, and during wartime, everything would be taken over by the Sword-Holding Palace, so the information here was naturally the most complete.

"Did you all hear?" the Sword-Holding Palace Master asked, his expression impassive, speaking slowly. "County Governor's Aide, it's not that I don't want to use better methods to compel those foreign races to send their powerful experts, but there's no time left."

The County Governor's Aide remained silent.

"Marquis Yao, why aren't seventy percent of the alliance's forces mobilized yet? To demand such vast quantities of resources—what audacity!" A chilling hint of lethal intent permeated the Sword-Holding Palace Master's voice. "And what about the over four hundred clans and factions that refused to send their powerful experts? At this critical juncture, once Feng Hai County descends into chaos, what will become of them? Marquis Yao, have you ever considered this? Now, the two major battlefields are already on the verge of collapse, and Feng Hai County has reached such a desperate state. When I, Kong, kill some foreign races, why do you need to nitpick and complain?"

The Sword-Holding Palace Master's tone was icy, and the entire hall grew cold.

"What if those foreign races unite and resist?" Marquis Yao frowned, his expression grim, as he looked at the Sword-Holding Palace Master.

"Kill," the Sword-Holding Palace Master uttered coolly.

"What if the dispatched experts defect and cause trouble on the battlefield? Can you kill them all?!"

"Xu Qing, inform the four deacons to continue with the exterminations. Let's see who dares to disobey." The Sword-Holding Palace Master spoke slowly, completely ignoring Marquis Yao.

Xu Qing nodded and noted it down.

"Kong Liangxiu, you are self-righteous and opinionated. With such actions, if Feng Hai County cannot be defended, those foreign races will then…" Marquis Yao stood up, staring intently at the Sword-Holding Palace Master.

The Sword-Holding Palace Master cast a cold glance at Marquis Yao. "If Feng Hai County is destroyed, why would I still care about these foreign races?"

Marquis Yao stared at the Sword-Holding Palace Master, flicked his sleeve, and turned to leave.

"Yao Tianyan, when will the foreign races of the alliance mobilize?" The Sword-Holding Palace Master's eyes narrowed slightly as he spoke calmly.

"One day!" Marquis Yao snorted from outside the hall.

The County Governor's Aide sighed, rose, bowed to the Sword-Holding Palace Master, and likewise departed. As for the other two palace masters, they each rose expressionlessly and left the main hall.

Soon, the entire hall fell silent, with only Xu Qing and the Palace Master remaining.

"Palace Master, I request to be excused." After waiting a while and receiving no further instructions from the Palace Master, Xu Qing bowed deeply and left the hall.

After everyone had left, the Palace Master remained silent for a long time. He then took out a jade slip, gently squeezed it, and looked up in the direction of Marquis Yao's residence, his brows slowly furrowing. "Is it him?"

At the same time, Marquis Yao, who had just left the Sword-Holding Palace, was consumed by rage. Upon returning to his official residence, in a secret chamber, the anger on his face vanished, replaced by a deep gloom as he muttered. "It shouldn't be Kong Liangxiu, so who exactly murdered the County Governor…?"

Time slowly passed, and ten days went by.

During these ten days, Xu Qing had no time for rest whatsoever. Battle reports from all directions piled up daily, especially as the armies on the two major northwestern battlefields arrived one after another, and fierce combat with the Saintlan clan began. Reports arrived every moment.

As for Marquis Yao, he indeed fulfilled his promise from that day; in just one day, he somehow communicated with and mobilized the allied foreign races. He himself, along with more than half of his clan members from Marquis Yao's residence, also went to the northern battlefield. Before leaving, he met with no one. However, Xu Qing saw the Palace Master walk out of the main hall and gaze into the distance where Marquis Yao had departed.

The actions of the four deacons, and even the arrival of two vice-palace masters, forcibly coerced and finally deterred all foreign races who had not participated in the war. This compelled their powerful experts to obey the Sword-Holding Palace's decree and be dispersed among the armies in various prefectures. Consequently, within Feng Hai County now, apart from the battlefields, there were no more Spirit Treasure Return-to-Void cultivators. This applied even to criminals.

The Sword-Holding Palace's apprehension campaign unfolded from top to bottom; the higher the cultivation level, the sooner they were apprehended. As for weaker criminals, many still managed to evade capture, but all the powerful ones had been killed. Therefore, the dispatched sword-holders soon began to return, and by the tenth day, all of them had returned to the County Capital.

At this point, the crisis on the battlefields had reached a critical juncture. The battle reports Xu Qing received revealed endless brutality; the casualty figures were alarming and increasing daily. By late night on the tenth day, he received simultaneous urgent calls for help from the western and northern fronts. Feng Hai County's forbidden artifact's region-wide blockade was on the verge of collapse and could not hold much longer. Once it broke, the Saintlan clan's army would surge into Feng Hai County like a flash flood.

Yet, human reinforcements had still not arrived. Xu Qing even learned through the battle reports that at this very moment, the Imperial Domain and other distant counties were facing similar situations; the Black Sky clan… had launched a massive offensive. Their various affiliated clans had also erupted, and for a time, the entire human domain was in peril.

When Xu Qing handed this battle report to the Palace Master, the Palace Master clearly already knew its contents and was alone in the main hall, donning his battle armor. The battle armor was black, composed of hundreds of pieces, each radiating terrifying power. Seeing Xu Qing, his expression was as serious as ever, and he beckoned to him.

"Come, help me put on my armor."

Xu Qing walked over silently, picked up the armor, and as he helped the Palace Master put it on, the Palace Master stood there, gazing at the evening glow in the distance, and suddenly smiled. "The last time I put on armor, my eldest son was by my side. It's been many years."

Gazing at the Palace Master, who had visibly aged a great deal recently, Xu Qing recalled what Ghost Hand had once told him about the Palace Master's children dying in battle.

"My eldest son committed suicide. Back then, I arranged for him to infiltrate the Saintlan clan. After completing his mission, his identity was exposed, and to avoid influencing my decisions, he… took his own life," the Palace Master said calmly.

Xu Qing remained silent, picked up another piece of armor, and continued to help the Palace Master put it on.

"I also had a second son. He was too straightforward, valued loyalty and righteousness, yet was also a ladies' man—a contradiction—so he was easily plotted against and killed. But no one knows he left behind an offspring. My grandson… he's very, very good." The Palace Master smiled. Xu Qing had never seen the Palace Master smile before; this was the first time.

As for the grandson he spoke of, Xu Qing had already made a guess in his heart after learning the Palace Master's surname was Kong a few days prior.

However, this smile vanished from the Palace Master's face after Xu Qing helped him don the final piece of armor. His expression turned serious again, giving off an impression of rigidness and extreme strictness. He took the helmet offered by Xu Qing and spoke in a deep voice.

"Xu Qing, relay my orders to the Enforcement Palace and the Penalties Palace: request their two palace masters to proceed to the northern war zone. They must hold the line! As for me, I will lead one hundred thousand sword-holders to the western battlefield. I'll go see how much those old fellows of the Saintlan clan have advanced in their cultivation."

Xu Qing solemnly accepted the order. "Palace Master, when do we depart? I'll go make preparations."

"You won't go to the battlefield. I will arrange a substitute for you, to take your place for others to see." The Palace Master turned his head, his gaze deep, and looked at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing was startled. He looked at the Palace Master before him, whose immense murderous aura surged skyward. Faintly, it was as if countless ferocious beasts roared around him, and innumerable grim spirits emerged on his battle armor.

"I have other arrangements for you. You are to carry out a secret mission." The Palace Master's gaze fixed on Xu Qing's eyes, as if to scrutinize him more closely. "You will depart after the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, heading to Zhaoxia Prefecture. Go to the Sword-Holding Palace's secret location there and secretly investigate a matter for me!"

After speaking, the Palace Master raised his hand and handed a jade slip to Xu Qing. This jade slip was the very one he had been gently squeezing in his hand a few days prior, while alone in the main hall.

Xu Qing took the jade slip, his expression grave, and remained silent.

The Palace Master turned his head to look at the evening glow in the sky outside the main hall. After a long silence, he spoke slowly, his voice somewhat hoarse. "Half a month ago, under a sky just like this, the County Governor… fell. Xu Qing, if I die in battle this time, give this jade slip to the new County Governor appointed after the human reinforcements arrive. Inside this jade slip are the clues I've uncovered during this time regarding the sudden demise of the old County Governor…"

Xu Qing's heart jolted as he looked at the Palace Master.

The Palace Master still gazed at the evening sky outside, and his low voice calmly continued. "The old County Governor's death was full of strangeness. This matter is far from being a simple assassination by the Saintlan clan. The old County Governor was a half-step Nascent God cultivator; how could he have fallen silently, without any resistance? If I didn't know him so well, I would have thought he did it on purpose! But the old County Governor truly did fall. His death… has a major problem. But time is not on my side; I don't have time to continue the investigation. I don't know who the Human Emperor will send to Feng Hai County, but just give it to him. The reason I'm giving this to you is because I don't trust anyone else here. My grandson, furthermore, acts impulsively and isn't suitable for this task! Yao Tianyan, the County Governor's Aide, the Penalties Palace Master, and the Enforcement Palace Master—any of them could be the mastermind. The old County Governor's death and the collapse of the Penal Department must have been orchestrated by someone from within the County Capital, and in some people's eyes, I am even the biggest suspect! This mastermind is hidden too deeply. If they're not unearthed, Feng Hai County will be precarious… Xu Qing, I believe you are not one of them, not because of your background, but because of your immense brilliance."

The Palace Master spoke softly. Xu Qing's breathing quickened. The Palace Master's words caused great ripples in his heart.

"I will give you another token. This token will allow you to access any secret location of the Sword-Holding Palace in Feng Hai County without needing military merit, and it won't trigger any fluctuations in the secret location's formations. You can secretly infiltrate and investigate. Furthermore, this token also contains the authority to activate the County Capital's forbidden artifact for a single suppressive strike, to ensure your safety during the investigation."

The Palace Master took out a blue token, handed it to Xu Qing, then turned and walked towards the main hall's exit. As he reached the doorway, with his back to Xu Qing, he suddenly spoke in a low voice. "Xu Qing, do you remember the first thing I said when I saw you in the Penal Department a year ago?"

"I remember!" Xu Qing looked at the Palace Master.

"Recite it."

"As a sword-holder, each of us is a sharp sword for humanity, and we must always be prepared to die for the human race," Xu Qing stated loudly.

Hearing this, the Palace Master laughed heartily, donned his battle armor's helmet, and as he stepped out of the main hall, his voice echoed in Xu Qing's ears. "I, too, am a sword-holder!"