Chapter 362: Absolute World Communication · The Battle of Practitioners (Part Two)

For three days, Min City, Heshui City, and Yuyou City had endured relentless assaults. When the time came to retreat, Zhao Xing didn't rest.

He ordered the Divine Might Army, Black Armored Army, Sea Suppressing Army, Tiger-Dragon Army, and Blazing Sun Army to each leave six groups of cultivators behind. These groups would take turns daily, outside the three cities, casting two types of spells: first, flying sand and stones, and second, cloud or mist spells. This was to intentionally create disturbances, making it seem as if an attack could resume at any moment.

Due to the prior three-day assault and Zhao Xing's previous use of tactics to lure enemies out, the generals defending Min City, Heshui City, and Yuyou City only wanted to hold their ground, with no thought of scouting outside. To avoid mistakes, they simply needed to defend the city. As long as they prevented the Great Zhou enemy army from getting supplies, it would be a great accomplishment!

So, when Commander Youyun arrived outside Min City, Heshui City, and Yuyou City with reinforcements, he found only Echo Conches stretching for several miles.

Inside, there were sounds of warhorses neighing and metal being forged. The echo formations buzzed incessantly, but a glance at the surrounding marching stoves showed they had been cold for a long time.

Commander Youyun expressionlessly crushed an Echo Conch, then looked at the generals defending Min City, Heshui City, and Yuyou City. "You claimed the enemy was attacking relentlessly, as if they wouldn't stop until the cities fell. I ask you three, where is the enemy?"

The chief generals of the three cities exchanged glances, at a loss for words.

Commander Youyun's face began to turn green. "Are your guts truly so small that you don't even have the courage to send someone out to check?! What use does the Royal Court have for you useless people?!"

The three chief generals dared not even breathe. Although they were regular army, their ranking was very low, far inferior to elites like the Nine Nether Army. Go out of the city? Risk their lives? They had strictly followed defense orders. How could they be blamed if the enemy left? Why didn't he blame himself for arriving too late? Of course, they couldn't voice such thoughts. They just kept repeating that the enemy was too cunning and apologizing to the commander.

Commander Youyun took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to chop these three bastards to death. Since he didn't know when the enemy left, he naturally couldn't get any information about their direction from these three useless men. So, Commander Youyun could only inquire through surrounding garrisons and dispatch scouts. But strangely, after three days of searching, he still couldn't figure out where Zhao Xing's force had gone.

It wasn't until the seventh day that he finally got some clues. "Commander, the Ten Suns Army Corps appeared at the northern border of Lanhe Prefecture and Cangzhou Prefecture, in the vicinity of Tage City and Xueying City."

Commander Youyun frowned. "What are they doing there? Of Tage and Xueying Cities, one isn't even a Witch City, and the other is just a ninth-rank small town. What's there worth plotting for them? Further northwest are two seventh-rank cities; they couldn't possibly pass through there. How would they link up with Dong Ze? This is completely looking for—wait, bring me the map."

Commander Youyun seemed to suddenly realize something, immediately snatching the map from his adjutant's hand. Then he saw the two crossings on the eastern half of the Tianshui River: Songshan Crossing and Yangshan Crossing.

A jolt went through Commander Youyun. "They haven't returned to the southern part of Pin Prefecture, have they?" Pin Prefecture was actually a large commandery, an important city within Lanhe Prefecture. Fengwu City, Tianshui City, and Xichang City were all in the southern part of Pin Prefecture.

"What are they plotting? They just escaped our encirclement, and now they've turned back. This is bad—Fengwu City is currently only guarded by Zang He's fifteen hundred men. Something big is about to happen! Songshan Crossing and Yangshan Crossing are to the southeast, while Fengwu City, Tianshui City, and Xichang City are southwest. But there are no strong garrisons within this encirclement. If I didn't expect him to go back, then probably no one else did either. Now that I've stopped here for so long, Zang He is in trouble!"

Commander Youyun's scalp tingled the moment he realized Zhao Xing's intention. He hadn't expected Zhao Xing to dare return to attack Fengwu City again. He wanted to send a message to Zang He in Fengwu City, but received no reply for several hours. "Quick, return to Fengwu City!" Commander Youyun roared.

***

Fengwu City, City Lord's Mansion.

The battle horn sounded, startling Zang He awake from his sleep. He pushed away the two fox-tribe beauties on him, not even bothering to dress, and opened the door. "Someone!"

"C-Commander," a panic-stricken bodyguard stumbled in.

"Who's blowing the horn? Where's the enemy?!" Zang He demanded.

"It's, it's the Ten Suns Army Corps! They've already broken into the city!"

"What? Impossible, absolutely impossible! They were near Min City, how could they be back?!" Zang He couldn't believe it. The Ten Suns Army Corps had barely managed to escape the first encirclement. They were just about to be trapped before Tianshui City, fighting with their backs to the river. How could they possibly be back?

Yesterday, he had just finished chatting with Hou Ying, complaining about not being included in the encirclement. He heard that Hou Ying and the Commander were encircling Zhao Xing near Min City. They chatted last night, and now, before dawn, they had actually attacked Fengwu City?

"Thirty thousand strong, at this distance, even a seventh-rank warship couldn't cross, let alone there are no warships in the forbidden zone?" Zang He was utterly perplexed, but the shouts of battle outside were real and approaching, so he began to tremble. "Follow me and fight our way out!"

"You probably won't get out." In the darkness, a flash of sword light illuminated Zang He's eyes.

"What, you—"

**Boom!**

Zang He immediately let out a low roar, throwing his bodyguard towards the sword light, while his own blood energy surged as he rushed towards the other side of the wall. The awkwardness of martial artists lay here: they couldn't burrow underground when fleeing, and before reaching the Earth Fiend Realm, they couldn't even fly.

"Trying to run?! I've been sleeping rough these past days, just waiting to feast on you, this big piece of fat meat. Where do you think you're going?!"

Long Xiao was now a seventh-rank cultivator, and Zang He was also seventh-rank, but these two, though of the same rank, were not on the same level. Long Xiao was Pinghai Province's top sword cultivator! Zang He's original cultivation had not even reached first-rank. That he didn't die after blocking one sword was due to Zang He's burst of power in the face of death, and also because Long Xiao had been fighting for a long time. But he definitely couldn't block a second sword.

**Pfft.**

Zang He's head flew off, and his body was dismembered in mid-air. The last thing he saw was the City Lord's Mansion burning in the night, lit by fire, and a young man in a Ministry of Agriculture uniform standing on a high platform looking at a token.

"Shouldn't have overexerted myself last night. Otherwise, how could I not even block two swords? Alas, women are trouble—" Zang He's consciousness completely extinguished, filled with endless regret.

***

"Hmm?" Zhao Xing suddenly felt a light glow on his body, followed by a warm current washing over him. "I'm at mid-seventh rank? I didn't even kill anyone when I entered the city, but this transferred 'power' kept coming to me. Random probability events have become certain events."

Yan Jiu's luck, in the entire Xuanhuang world, probably only Witch Moon God and the Martial Emperor could surpass him. Without relying on the 'luck dynasty' method, Yan Jiu was the limit for ordinary cultivators. Of course, Witch Moon God was special; he was slightly above him too. Such high-level luck meant that after entering the city, regardless of who made the kill, most of the benefit transferred to him. When Long Xiao killed Zang He, he naturally returned to mid-seventh rank.

"Earth Fiend Realm, I can burrow underground now. I finally feel the presence of the earth veins." Zhao Xing sighed with emotion. Before, at eighth and ninth rank, he couldn't burrow, as if there were no earth veins in the world. Now it was different.

"This feeling is like being in another layer, only I can perceive it. I can exert the power of the Earth Fiend Realm. Everyone else is in another layer. Within the entire city, only about twenty or thirty people are in the same layer as me." Zhao Xing thought to himself. He immediately left the city.

For upgrading from seventh to sixth rank, killing a seventh-rank cultivator had the greatest effect. If he killed eighth or ninth ranks, it would take tens of thousands to upgrade. As for the transfer of benefits from ordinary soldiers, it was best for the Ten Suns Army Corps members to receive them. With an increased number of cultivators, his Ten Suns Army Corps would have stronger mobility and higher combat effectiveness. Long Xiao and the others could even form battle formations.

Outside Fengwu City, Zhao Xing looked at the blood-stained token, which trembled continuously, then crushed it. This was a warning order, transmitted from an unknown source, but not responding to it was the correct move.

"Brother Zhao, you can come in now." Before dawn, the battle was completely over. Zhao Xing's forces successfully occupied Fengwu City.

Returning to Fengwu City once again, Xia Jingxi sighed repeatedly. He hadn't expected to be able to return, and so easily. "Zang He, with only fifteen hundred men, simply couldn't defend such a large Fengwu City. Plus, the city had been breached before, full of vulnerabilities. Even if they wanted to repair it, they didn't have enough time or manpower. Many barbarian soldiers died in their sleep, completely unaware of what was happening." Xia Jing looked at the final battle report. "Of the fifteen hundred men, ninety percent were killed; only a few managed to escape. The cultivation levels of our own men are still being tallied, but I think we should be close to two thousand cultivators now," Xia Jing said. "We've regained a large amount of supplies. Heh heh, though this fellow had few men, he was guarding a logistics city. We're rich again now!"

Zhao Xing smiled. "That's why I said there was nothing to bring with us earlier. When neighbors hoard grain, I hoard guns. My neighbors are my granaries. As long as we maintain our fighting strength, these enemies are our provisions."

There was nothing remarkable about the outcome. With so few men defending this dilapidated city, anyone would achieve such results. He didn't pay much attention to the battle results but quickly called for Wang Ji.

"Here!" Wang Ji jumped down from the rooftop. "Great Minister of Agriculture, what are your orders?"

"Any news from the imperial court?"

Wang Ji replied: "I managed to contact a Mechanist from the Wuyao Army, but communication only lasted twenty breaths of time. We are too far apart. The Nine Nether God has begun a massive sweep. The Wuyao Army is at least three thousand li away from us. Immeasurable Compass cannot achieve such long-distance communication. However, during those twenty breaths, I relayed your message and provided some information on troop deployments. The Wuyao Army also sent back some news, giving us some key intelligence."

Zhao Xing asked: "What key intelligence?"

Wang Ji pointed at the map and said: "Including the various generals and factions under the Nine Nether God, their affiliated tribes, and the commanders' leadership styles. Additionally, several sect strongholds in Lanhe Prefecture and Cangzhou Prefecture can provide us with assistance, as long as we use the correct cipher. General Li has already given me this set of ciphers. Finally, he asked me to tell you that the imperial court is mobilizing a large army for rescue, and that I should report our location at all times."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xing was not pleased; instead, he frowned. "If the imperial court knows, then the Nine Nether God must also know about me now. Originally, we only had to face the encirclement and pursuit of thirty thousand Nine Nether Army and local garrisons. Now, we might have to face a forty thousand strong army. No wonder the enemy reinforcements were so fast when we attacked Min City earlier."

Before the second tactical shift, Zhao Xing had to spend almost half a month engaging in guerrilla warfare near Xueying and Tage, adopting mobile tactics of breaking the force into sixteen smaller groups to harass and confuse the enemy. "If nothing unexpected happens, multiple large armies are already encircling us now," Zhao Xing said, pointing at the map. "Wang Ji, you and Xia Jing go contact those surrendered sect members. You don't need them to do much, just tell us the intelligence and movements of the encircling armies. It's very simple for them to provide information on enemy forces passing through or about to pass through their territory."

The movement of large armies was hard to keep secret. What Zhao Xing wanted was timely information, and there were currently three main ways to transmit information. First was sending people to run personally, second was through carrier pigeons, and third was the Mechanist's Immeasurable Compass. The first two were slow and risky, but the third was very safe, though its disadvantage was obvious: short range. For example, Wang Ji had been specially restored to seventh rank, but his communication range would not exceed a thousand li. Beyond a thousand li, whether he could contact friendly forces depended on luck.

***

"Nine Nether God," Zhao Xing looked at the token, pondering in the night.

"You mean, with so many people encircling, Youyun not only failed to kill Zhao Xing's Ten Suns Army Corps, but also lost Zang He's life?" The Nine Nether God, cloaked in black, his face hidden in shadow, only revealed a pair of eyes flickering with eerie light. A powerful dark aura emanated from him, seemingly capable of devouring all light.

"Yes," the Mechanist reported, "Youyun said he is rushing to Fengwu City and is determined to capture Zhao Xing."

"Foolish!" The Nine Nether God was extremely annoyed. "Now that he's rushing back to reinforce, he'll be tricked again! Tell him that the encirclement operation will be personally commanded by me. He is not to act rashly."

"You wish to command the entire Lanhe Prefecture and Cangyue Prefecture. You need to find a central location, otherwise Mechanist communication cannot be relayed quickly in real-time. The only suitable place for command is Guiyang Commandery."

"I will personally go to Guiyang Commandery to command the combined forces," the Nine Nether God said coldly. He already knew that Great Zhou was rapidly gathering a large army, preparing to move from Ke God's territory into his. So, the Nine Nether God had to deal with Zhao Xing before Great Zhou could assemble sufficient strength. Great Zhou could act at any cost, and Witch Moon God had also said that to kill Zhao Xing, they could likewise act at any cost! As long as Zhao Xing could be annihilated, Great Zhou would have no reason to send reinforcements, and would prioritize the overall situation.

"Depart immediately!" The Nine Nether God's figure flickered and vanished from the spot.

***

Taking Fengwu City again gave the Ten Suns Army Corps a crucial ten days of breathing room, and also significantly replenished their military supplies and cultivation levels. However, twice returning to the Tianshui River only ensured the temporary survival of the Ten Suns Army Corps; the real crisis remained unresolved. Because at this moment, the Nine Nether God was extremely enraged by how Zhao Xing had toyed with his subordinates. So, he personally came to Guiyang Commandery—the center of the two prefectures—to conduct overall command.

He knew well that the Ten Suns Army Corps was unique, skilled in mobile warfare with constant repositioning. Having trained the longest, their military quality and organization were exceptionally high, and coupled with a good commander, they moved like mercury, slipping away from encirclements if one wasn't careful. Thus, the Nine Nether God divided his forty thousand strong army into seven routes, deciding to encircle Pin Prefecture again! At the same time, he issued orders to the seven allied armies to build strong defenses and fight in a straightforward manner. Adopting a fortress strategy, hundreds of thousands of troops would advance steadily, step by step, allowing no single army to push forward recklessly. They would gradually narrow the encirclement, step by step limiting the Ten Suns Army Corps' room for maneuver. This would prevent Zhao Xing from conducting mobile warfare, ultimately annihilating Zhao Xing and the Ten Suns Army Corps in the Pin Prefecture region.

***

"Damn it, all forty thousand are truly coming for me." After taking Fengwu City, Zhao Xing, through his connections with the Wuyao Army and coded messages, contacted some sect members throughout the two prefectures, getting information on the Nine Nether God's army movements from them. However, knowing was not very useful.

"The enemy's cordon is impenetrable; our army cannot break through. Being trapped is not an option; we must initiate a breakthrough battle." Inside the council hall, Zhao Xing discussed with his high-ranking generals. "Now, we have two choices. First is to attack the Nine Nether Army's direct line, Commander Youyun's Tianhe Upper City. Second is to attack Wan Yansong's Disha City, under the Blazing Light Royal Court."

Long Xiao immediately said: "One is a direct army, one is a collateral army. So it must be Wan Yansong, right? He must be weaker and easier to defeat."

"Exactly, I also think we should attack Wan Yansong. The Blazing Light Royal Court arrived in Lanhe Prefecture, unaccustomed to the local conditions. The climate here is humid, which they're not used to. Our chances of success are higher if we attack him."

Most of the senior officers expressed their opinions. Long Xiao, seeing so many agreeing with him, couldn't help but feel a little smug. "Looks like I, Old Long, am also a smart one!"

"I advocate attacking the Nine Nether Army's Commander Youyun." Just then, Zhao Xing spoke.

"Ah? Why?" Long Xiao was confused, and the other generals were also scratching their heads.

"First, Wan Yansong of Disha City is indeed not as strong as Youyun, but he's not that easy to defeat either," Zhao Xing said. "To his north are Hou Ying's thirty-six thousand men, and to his southeast are Wu Tingye's forty-eight thousand men. Both Hou and Wu are direct lineage of the Nine Nether Army. Upon receiving orders from their superiors, they will immediately rush to reinforce. Once a siege battle drags on, Hou and Wu will flank us, cutting off our retreat, and the situation will become dangerous. Second, even if we take it, we can't hold it. When all seven allied armies arrive, it will be meaningless. So what are we fighting for? Please consider carefully, we are not fighting just to fight. The gains and losses of a single city or area are not important. I have repeatedly emphasized this before: retaining land and losing people, both land and people are lost; retaining people and losing land, both land and people are gained! Our goal is to forge a new path!"

Hearing Zhao Xing's words, everyone fell into thought.

"So if we attack the direct lineage Commander Youyun, is it possible that Wan Yansong's support won't be as timely?" Xia Jing asked.

"Precisely, Brother Xia has considered a lot." Zhao Xing smiled and nodded. "He worships Ke God, not the Nine Nether God. On the contrary, people from the Blazing Light Royal Court have always been at odds with the Holy Light Royal Court. One is cold and the other is fierce. This is determined by culture and belief. Even if he responds, it won't be quick, at least not with full effort. After all, he's a weaker force; his desire for self-preservation outweighs his desire for merit. His cautious character can also be inferred from battle reports over the past few years."

"But Hou Ying and Wu Tingye will still reinforce," Zhao Zheng mused. "They won't procrastinate."

"Well said." Zhao Xing nodded. "But the distance for Wu Tingye and Hou Ying to reinforce Youyun's Tianhe Upper City is much greater than to reinforce Wan Yansong's Disha City. What we need is that time difference. Therefore, we should attack the direct lineage Commander Youyun. If we can take Tianhe Upper City, that's certainly good. We can severely cripple the enemy's effective strength and gain favorable space for our next strategic maneuvers."

"What if we can't take it?" Chen Shijie asked.

"If we can't take it, we can cross the Tianshui River to the south nearby," Zhao Xing said. "This will create the illusion that our army, after suffering a defeat, is eager to cross the Canglan River to the southeast and link up with Dong Ze's army. This will draw all the enemies to the southeast of the Tianshui River, creating a favorable situation for our army's next mobility."

"Cross again?" Long Xiao was a bit confused. What exactly were they trying to do by running around like this?

***

On March 17th, the Ten Suns Army Corps began to move rapidly, leaving Fengwu City to attack Tianhe Upper City, defended by Commander Youyun. Due to Zhao Xing's immense reputation and the strict orders from the Nine Nether God, Youyun immediately treated him as a formidable enemy. While preparing for defense, he immediately sent out a request for reinforcements. Less than half a day into the attack, both the skirmishers and Wang Ji sent news that Hou Ying and Wu Tingye were both rushing to reinforce. Their vanguard forces, numbering two to three thousand, could arrive within a day.

"Stop the siege!" Zhao Xing did not hesitate, immediately issuing the order to cease the attack.

The siege stopped around 2 PM, but Zhao Xing waited until dusk before beginning the withdrawal. One reason was to organize the troops and formations, and the second was to confirm that Hou Ying and Wu Tingye's armies had indeed left their cities. "According to the original plan, cross the Tianshui River from Tianhe Lower City and Sanwan Shoal."

"Is there enough time?" Liao Rulong worried. "You waited until night to leave. Our river crossing speed won't be very fast, and we'll need to find some boats—"

Xia Jing and Zhao Xing exchanged glances and smiled. "As for boats, they're ready-made. Just rest assured. When we get there, you'll definitely have a boat; we won't make you swim across the river in the cold."

"Huh?" Liao Rulong immediately shut his mouth.

Xia Jing said: "As for waiting until night, first, it's to reorganize the army; second, it's to confirm Hou Ying and Wu Tingye have left their lairs; third, darkness facilitates tactical penetration."

"I see," Liao Rulong suddenly understood. Actually, he still didn't understand why they needed to cross the river, but he had Zhao Zheng beside him, so he wasn't worried. There were plenty of people in the Ten Suns Army Corps capable of thinking.

***

On March 19th, at the port of the former Tianhe Lower City.

The barbarian general with green skin saw Zhao Xing and his men appear before him as if descending from heaven, and his face turned green. "Y-You're here again."

"Oh, what a coincidence, you're still defending the city," Xia Jing laughed. This man had been defending Tianhe Lower City during the first crossing, but he had managed to escape back then. Who knows how he sweet-talked Commander Youyun into letting him defend this dilapidated city again.

This time, the defending general surrendered immediately. He couldn't help it; he only had five hundred men, even worse off than Zang He, and the city wasn't even fully repaired yet.

"Kill him?" Long Xiao asked.

"Ah, honorable divine ancestors, please don't kill me!" The general, who looked like a green toad, immediately plopped down on his knees. "I'm just a low-level captain. I have a three-hundred-year-old mother above me and a wife and children to feed below. I'm only here to defend because I can speak sixteen tribal languages and coordinate different tribal soldiers. I haven't killed anyone at all, boo hoo hoo—"

Everyone was speechless.

"Forget it, let him go," Zhao Xing said, seeing his pathetic state, too lazy to kill him. "Keep him around to send messages, let Youyun and the others know we've crossed the river."

"Ah, I won't say anything, honorable divine ancestors, just go. I'll pretend I didn't see anything," the toad-like general begged again.

Would Zhao Xing listen to his nonsense? However, his purpose was precisely to let them know they had crossed the river. Whether the toad-like general spoke or not didn't matter; it was better if he did.

"Unlike the previous two times, this time we will not advance covertly, but rather with great fanfare," Zhao Xing said in the middle of the river. "So after landing, we will attack any city we see and not avoid any people."

"Huh? Won't that make it easy for them to track us?" Liao Rulong was confused again.

"I want Youyun's reconnaissance flying boats to see us," Zhao Xing smiled. "Otherwise, how would the Nine Nether God mobilize a large army to cross the river and encircle us?"

"Chen Shijie."

"At your command." Chen Shijie immediately responded.

Zhao Xing shook his body, and a straw figure appeared nearby. "Transform!"

Supreme Technique, Illusionary Straw Figure. Now that Zhao Xing had reached seventh rank, his Illusionary Straw Figure could achieve a level of realism that was indistinguishable from the real thing.

"Gather a team from the Ministry of Agriculture. Whether they're skilled in Talisman Avatars or Straw Figure techniques, put them all into one group for me."

"Yes." Chen Shijie immediately departed.

"Wang Ji."

"Here."

"How are your modifications to the Sky-Rending Flying Boat I asked you to do?"

"The modifications are largely complete."

"Excellent." Zhao Xing smiled. "Release all Sky-Rending Flying Boats and send them into the air. Have all clones and avatars board the Sky-Rending Flying Boats. At the same time, contact the sect members in Guiyang Commandery, at the border of Lanhe Prefecture and Cangyue Prefecture. Select a few individuals to deliberately leak our news to the Nine Nether God in Guiyang Commandery. These must be desperate individuals, as they will certainly not survive after spreading false information. They must be mentally prepared," Zhao Xing said.

"Yes." Wang Ji immediately went to make arrangements.

"G-Great Minister of Agriculture," Zhao Zheng, who had been listening nearby, finally couldn't help but ask. "How do you know the Nine Nether God is in Guiyang Commandery?"

"Let your big brother Xia teach you such questions," Zhao Xing waved his hand. "I'll be busy now."

Watching Zhao Xing leave, Xia Jing helplessly explained: "The reason is simple. If the Nine Nether God wants to remotely control the entire army, he must ensure his Mechanist group can cover all troops. From the map, only Guiyang Commandery can fully cover forty thousand troops, relaying his orders in time and also keeping him informed of our every move in real-time. In any other location, his communication would be delayed, even by half an hour, which would be hard to endure."

"I see," Zhao Zheng suddenly understood.

***

After the third crossing of the Tianshui River, the Nine Nether God also learned of Zhao Xing's movements. He glanced at the map and couldn't help but smile. "Zhao Xing is running out of tricks. He actually crossed the Tianshui River again to attack the three Min cities, trying to repeat his old trick of crossing via Songshan Crossing? Little does he know that my seven armies have already blocked all exits. If he dares to go there again, it's tantamount to suicide."

"Divine Throne is wise," a robust, handsome middle-aged man with sharp eyebrows praised. "It seems that within seven days, Zhao Xing and his Ten Suns Army Corps will perish in the Min region. After this, Divine Throne can rest easy. Taking advantage of Great Zhou's panic and withdrawal, you can march north to strike fiercely at King Luo's Imperial Guards, or attack Dong Ze, or Li Hao, or King Beichen."

"Pity, I can't personally watch him die," a trace of indifference flickered in the Nine Nether God's eyes. He waved his large hand, as if severing Zhao Xing's head.

Just when everyone thought the main army was advancing towards the Min region, the true Ten Suns Army Corps had not gone to the Min region at all. Instead, using the Mist Concealment technique, they dispersed their army in the mountains, heading northeast, in the opposite direction, and quietly returned to the vicinity of the northeastern section of the Tianshui River.

On the evening of March 22nd, the army, over thirty thousand strong, silently crossed the Tianshui River from Longyou Shoal and other crossings. As this was not their first time doing this, everyone was extremely proficient. They broke into smaller units and threaded through the gaps of the forty thousand strong army. It was only March 25th, and the Nine Nether God's forty thousand strong army had largely arrived south of the Tianshui River, ready to capture Zhao Xing and the Ten Suns Army Corps in one fell swoop. They were completely unaware that Zhao Xing and the Ten Suns Army Corps had already reached north of the Tianshui River. What remained in the Min region was just a heap of seemingly valuable equipment and a small group of living people; the rest were 'dummies'.

***

April 1st.

The Nine Nether God began his routine inquiry about the encirclement of Zhao Xing and the Ten Suns Army Corps. Normally, the replies he received were that Zhao Xing had been spotted and was being pursued. But today, it seemed different.

"Hou Ying's unit found Zhao Xing, Youyun also found Zhao Xing, Wan Yansong also found Zhao Xing—" The Nine Nether God smiled faintly. "This Zhao Xing couldn't resist and is starting to use straw figure clones to confuse me. However, his straw figures are too crude."

"Divine Throne is wise. Below fifth rank, he cannot unleash the true power of the straw figure technique," a robust and handsome man nearby smiled. "As for the fifth-rank Heaven-Earth Protection, it's very difficult for Zhao Xing to obtain. The time is too short; in just a few months, he can't possibly gather so many instances of its effect. Unless in every major battle, eighty to ninety percent of the effects land on him alone, but how could that be possible?" The Nine Nether God nodded. Indeed, it was highly unlikely. He was just a Great Minister of Agriculture; how could he possess such powerful luck?

***

Guiyang Commandery, a secluded sect mountain gate.

Here stood a well-known Ministry of Agriculture sect, the Guiyuan Sect. It was once part of the Kunyuan Academy, but later, like the Xuantian Academy, it suffered a schism.

At this moment, the Sect Master of Guiyuan Sect, Guiyuan Divine Venerable, was waiting for something at the mountain gate. Suddenly, a young man emerged from underground, appearing before him.

"Great Minister of Agriculture indeed possesses great courage, a mere early sixth-rank daring to meet me, a fifth-rank," Guiyuan Divine Venerable said with a hearty laugh. "Aren't you afraid that my allegiance is feigned?"

"I trust you," Zhao Xing said earnestly. "I am willing to pay for this trust and bear any consequences."

Guiyuan Divine Venerable's eyes were moved; he nodded slightly, said no more, then beckoned behind him, and immediately a group of people emerged from behind the mountain gate. Zhao Xing's pupils contracted. There were actually two fifth-ranks and fifty-seven sixth-ranks among them! Such a display was no less impressive than the scale when the Mist Walkers defected back then!

"Today you have seen the Saint of Agriculture. Have your wishes been fulfilled?" Guiyuan Divine Venerable asked.

"To cross the Tianhe River four times is truly a divine person. Even death would bring no regrets!" A group of elderly elders stroked their beards and laughed.

"To hear the Dao in the morning, and to die content in the evening," Guiyuanzi said. "We are willing to contribute our meager strength to the Great Minister of Agriculture's path to ascension, only asking that the Great Minister of Agriculture lead our sect's juniors to return to Great Zhou."

"You all—" Zhao Xing seemed to understand something. He bowed deeply to everyone. When he looked up again, the entire mountain gate was left with only a group of young people. Guiyuan Divine Venerable, along with a group of elders, committed suicide. All their authority transferred into Zhao Xing's body. The juniors within the mountain gate, protected by the barrier, received no harm whatsoever.

At this moment, Zhao Xing ascended directly to the peak of the fifth-rank realm!

"Don't worry, I will definitely lead them to ascend together." Zhao Xing waved his hand, taking all the Guiyuan Sect members from behind the mountain gate.

It was also on April 1st that Zhao Xing and the Ten Suns Army Corps appeared within Guiyang Commandery. The army stood before the virtually undefended Guiyang City, directly aiming for the Nine Nether God!

By evening, when the Nine Nether God inquired about where Zhao Xing and his army had fled in the Min region, his subordinate tremblingly replied: "Divine Throne, Zhao, Zhao Xing, his army has reached Guiyang City."

"You, what did you say?!" The Nine Nether God was stunned.