"Master!?"
Ye Liusu and the others expressed their confusion. A great battle was imminent. As their greatest pillar of support, how could he not take part?
"I've arranged a battle with Fu Qingjin on the fifth of the fifth month. Before that, I won't be taking part in any battles in order to conserve my strength. Similarly, Fu Qingjin will be the same. This battle is completely up to you. The spoils of war will obviously all belong to you! "
Only then did everyone understand the whole story. They were both delighted and worried. Their faces became unsettled.
Killing ten thousand enemies came with eight thousand casualties. Unlike ambushes and assassinations, fighting human cultivators in an open battle obviously came with extremely great risks. However, the benefits for every cultivator they killed were just as enticing.
With that, Li Qingshan abandoned the night roamers and directly returned to his dwelling. All he saw was Milliped sitting on the stone platform. Winter had clearly passed long ago, yet this bastard was still hibernating, sleeping happily all day.
Li Qingshan's tense mind eased up too. He smiled. "For someone like you, you won't feel anything even if you cultivate for another few centuries or millennia. It's no wonder you're so slow-witted." He patted Milliped's stiff head and thought, I'll definitely find a suitable daemon core for you this time.
Before long, Ye Liusu and Ye Liubo arrived together. Li Qingshan asked, "Are you done with the discussion?"
"Yeah. We're still focusing on attacking the spiritual stone mines. There's no benefit in slaughtering mortals and becoming enemies with the Great Xia empire."
"As long as you understand that." Li Qingshan smiled. He did not want to run into his subordinates on the battlefield either.
"Though, I'm afraid I won't be able to make them submit." A sliver of worry appeared on Ye Liusu's delicate face. Both in terms of strength and seniority, she paled in comparison. With him around, none of the matriarchs would dare to act up, but without him around, it was hard to say.
"That'll depend on your ability."
Li Qingshan did not mind. He did have some attachment to the night roamers, but it was just the two before him. It was just the two of them, or more accurately speaking, it was actually just Ye Liubo.
Although Ye Liusu was a good subordinate, her loyalty to him would never be higher than her loyalty to her ideals. Li Qingshan even suspected that she was the one who leaked the news to Fu Qingjin.
Among the night roamers, she was probably the one who interacted with cultivators the most. He was also so well-informed about the situation on the surface. However, without any substantial evidence or loss, he was too lazy to pursue the matter.
If Ye Liusu died, Li Qingshan would also regret and be sad, but he wouldn't be too sad. He would only lose a capable subordinate. However, Ye Liubo was different.
"If Liubo doesn't want to go, you can stay!" Li Qingshan's gaze fell on Ye Liubo, and his gaze became gentler.
Although Ye Liubo's strength and intelligence paled in comparison to her elder sister, her loyalty to him was unmatched. She had even risked her life for him in the past. He spoiled her very much too. Even if others would question him, he still wanted her to stay somewhere safe.
"Thank you, master, but I want to lend my sister a hand." Ye Liubo was extremely touched, but she hesitated. "Whatever.
But be careful. Take these talismans to protect yourself. They're not for you to use in battle, so don't use them carelessly. "Li Qingshan took out a few scarlet talismans and passed them to Ye Liubo.
"Master," Ye Liubo murmured and directly threw herself into Li Qingshan's arms.
"Liusu, take good care of her." Li Qingshan patted Ye Liubo's perky bottom.
"I will," Ye Liusu agreed. Towards this spoiling, she actually felt rather envious. Towards this spoiling, she even felt a hint of jealousy that she refused to admit.
Under the Spider Queen's orders, the cold, silent underground. Like surging magma, it gradually began to boil.
Under the lead of Blood Shadow and Dragonsnail, basically every single daemon joined the mobilisation for war, ready to unleash a massacre on the surface.
At the same time, in the Clear River prefecture.
Although the Moon Devil had come, the meeting had still been a complete success.
The first order they issued together was not directed at daemons, but at the clans and sects that had not even taken part in the meeting. A few Foundation Establishment cultivators had been trying to stay out of it the entire time.
"Military orders must be obeyed. Report to the prefectural city within a day, or your sects and clans will be destroyed. The world will not tolerate you!"
The war machine assembled from all the cultivators of the Clear River prefecture rumbled to life, ready for battle.
Liu Changqing returned to the prefectural government office. He washed up and changed his clothes, removing his usual scholarly robes and changing into the official robes that he rarely wore. He took out the seal bestowed by the imperial court.
In front of the government office was a large square. The disciples of mohism busied themselves, taking out various mechanisms and tools. They were currently constructing a tower as quickly as they could.
When Liu Changqing emerged from the government office, the tower had already reached several hundred meters tall, reaching into the sky. Raising his head, it seemed like it could collapse at any time.
He sucked in a deep breath and made his way towards the tower. He arrived at the very top of the tower step by step. The entire prefectural city was beneath his feet. A flock of birds flew past him.
Liu Changqing cast his gaze even further away. The Divine Talisman of Virtue in his body suddenly shone with resplendent light. He seemed like a burning torch as two streaks of light suddenly shone from his eyes.
The mountains and rivers vanished, reduced to a blurry haze. The Clear River prefecture beneath his feet vanished, turning into a smoke-like presence that rose straight up into the sky like a beacon of smoke.
The pillar of smoke gradually shrank. Liu Changqing felt his soul rise up into the endless sky. Even more pillars of smoke rose up from the horizon, appearing in his field of vision. They were of different colours and sizes, but none of them were larger than the pillar of smoke in the Clear River prefecture.
Finally, Liu Changqing saw thousands of pillars of smoke. They formed a vague outline, which was the shape of the entire Clear River prefecture.
Every single pillar of smoke represented a city, village, or village where humans gathered.
The Aura Gazing technique was a technique that had existed since ancient times. Not only was it a technique for sensing and investigating, but it also had elements of prediction and divination. It could see through a person's luck, and it had almost become extinct.
However, what Liu Changqing used was not this Aura Gazing technique, or he would not have been able to see everything within fifteen hundred kilometers of the Clear River prefecture. Instead, he used the renowned Son of Heaven's Technique of Air Gazing.
The founding emperor established the Great Xia empire. As the son of heaven, he upheld humanity, as well as the responsibility of protecting his people. However, the nine provinces spanned several hundred thousand kilometers, so ruling them was easier said than done. As a result, he created the Son of Heaven's Technique of Air Gazing. As long as he could peer into the distance, he could see the situation of the nine provinces.
This "qi" was anger, as well as human vitality.
If the marquises were benevolent and righteous, peaceful, and prosperous, their "qi" would strengthen, and they would be qualified.
If their rule was unfavorable, leading to the decline of the people, their "qi" would decline as well. The son of heaven could summon the local marquises and punish them.
With Liu Changqing's identity, he obviously dared not refer to himself as the son of heaven. As a matter of fact, it did not even count as the Son of Heaven's Technique of Air Gazing. It could only be called the Son of Heaven's Technique of Air Gazing.
However, in the Clear River prefecture, only Liu Changqing, who had been appointed by the imperial court, could use this technique, and he could only observe the vicinity of the Clear River prefecture. However, it worked on the same principle as the Son of Heaven's Technique of Air.
There was no need for him to test the performance of the local district magistrates. He only needed to observe their qi once a year in the prefectural city, and he would be able to make a clear distinction between punishment and reward.
At this moment, as Liu Changqing gazed into the distance, he could not help but sigh inside. Basically, the "qi" everywhere was declining. Resentment surged within. There were even many places where the qi had directly ceased to exist, which meant that there were no longer any humans living there anymore.
If it were not for the war, the Marquis of Ruyi only needed to peer into the distance, and he would immediately be relieved of his position as prefect.
He dismissed his thoughts and focused on observing the movements of the entire Clear River prefecture. No matter which city the daemons attacked, he would be able to respond in time.
After who knew how long, a strand of smoke trembled in the south-east and began to weaken. With each sliver it weakened, countless lives perished. The smoke was filled with fear.
Liu Changqing had memorised the geography and culture of the Clear River prefecture a long time ago. He immediately said, "Daemons have invaded Great Gold pass!" Before he had even finished speaking, the strand of smoke in the north rapidly declined.
Before long, several dozen strands of smoke began to tremble, covering the entire prefecture.
There was a saying that the wrath of the Son of Heaven would lead to a thousand kilometers of scarlet land. The Spider Queen's orders were like a mountain, slaughtering a hundred cities.
Liu Changqing's heart sank. He reported a string of locations without stopping.
"Han Tieyi, Hwa Seung-zan, heed my orders. Go to Great Gold pass. Once you arrive, immediately report back with the news of the daemons. If you encounter the weak, kill them. If you encounter the strong, retreat. Do not linger in battle. "
Below the tower, Han Anjun issued a string of orders. Foundation Establishment cultivators took off into the air one by one, rushing off to various places. No matter how renowned they were, they could only be used as chess pieces right now.
The residents of the city all locked their doors and windows.
On the square, the Qi Practitioners circled around the outskirts a few times, watching this in shock. At a time like this, they did not even have the right to serve as chess pieces. However, as the flames of war spread, no one could remain uninvolved.
The situation seemed severe right now, but it was only at a probing stage. After understanding the direction of the daemons' attacks, they would deploy their forces further.
In the beginning, Han Anjun still gave a few instructions. Later on, he only gave names and locations.
"Li Qingshan, Jiuhe City." At the mention of Li Qingshan's name, Han Anjun paused slightly and looked deeply at him.
Without another word, Li Qingshan pulled out the Illusory Water Sword of Invisibility. Riding on the sword, he turned invisible.
It had finally begun.
…
At dusk, on the wasteland dyed red by the setting sun, a lone antelope was gnawing on the grass at the foot of a small hill.
Perhaps it was the transition between spring and summer, and the delicious grass made it forget its vigilance. It completely did not notice that in the grass not far away, a pair of orange-yellow eyes were staring at it. Under the approaching night sky, the eyes glowed faintly with green light.
The cheetah crouched even lower and approached silently. As if sensing something, the antelope raised its head. However, it was already too late. The cheetah's agile figure pounced out of the grass like lightning, pouncing on the antelope. Its fangs pierced into the antelope's throat, suffocating it.
The cheetah was about to enjoy the delicacy in its hands.
However, there was a loud rumble, and the earth trembled slightly. Then, there was another sound. It was approaching. The cheetah sensed danger, but it could not bear to let go of its prey.
The setting sun on the horizon dyed the hill into a glowing curve. Suddenly, a huge black shadow crossed the hill and covered the sunset. Like a mountain, it crushed the cheetah into pieces.
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