Overnight, snow blanketed more than half of the Northern Lands.
Lu Sheng walked out of the secret chamber and was greeted by a sea of white. The cold morning wind blew, lifting the snow off the pine trees in the courtyard.
He heaved a long sigh of hot air. He could hear the faint cries of a child in the distance, as well as the crowing of a domestic dog and rooster.
A few Crimson Whale Sect guards stood by the door, their bodies covered in a thin layer of snow. They remained motionless.
"Thank you for your hard work," Lu Sheng was in a good mood as he looked at the guards admiringly.
"It's not hard at all to do our duty for Sect Master!!" they replied excitedly, as if on steroids.
Lu Sheng looked at the fervent reverence in their eyes. He had a rough idea of what kind of prestige he held among the Crimson Whale Sect disciples.
Now, Senior Apprentice Brother Hong Mingzi had completely faded from everyone's sight. Every day, he would go back and forth with his good friends between the pharmacy and his home, concentrating on some unknown research.
Deputy Sect Master Chen Ying had been injured previously and was still recuperating. The sect's upper echelons were only a few newly promoted External Affairs Emissaries and Internal Affairs Emissaries.
"Looks like I can use people's hearts …" Now that the Yin and Yang Extremes were in balance, Lu Sheng could clearly feel his state of mind becoming more and more stable, as if he was in control of the situation.
The Yin Crane Web in Yin Extreme Mode still had the ability to channel Qi. This strange ability, similar to the Dao Heart Devil Seed, had yet to produce any results. Once he discovered any benefits from Song Zhenguo, he would try his best to select death warriors from the sect and train them on a large scale.
"Where's Jade Lotus now?" Lu Sheng asked again. "Call Azure Dragon over as well."
"Your subordinate will inform him at once," a sect disciple bowed and retreated, then turned and dashed away.
Lu Sheng left the courtyard and strolled along the ship's railing towards the little garden on the upper deck.
By the time he reached the entrance of the little garden, Jade Lotus had already rushed over. When he saw Lu Sheng, he was a little stunned.
Others were not familiar with Lu Sheng, so they could not see any major changes in him. But he was different. He had always been in charge of Lu Sheng's various affairs. Coupled with his strong memory, he would never forget any details of Sect Master's appearance.
Therefore, when he saw Lu Sheng, he was a little hesitant.
"Gang Leader … what are you …?"
Lu Sheng smiled. "I've made some progress in martial arts, don't worry about it. Also, this isn't a wig. "He stretched out his hand and tugged at the hair on his head.
Jade Lotus nodded cautiously. He glanced curiously at Lu Sheng's long hair. Since Sect Master said it was real, then he would take it as such.
"May I know why Sect Leader has called me here?"
"Two things. Give me the maps of the locations of the precious herbs that I asked you to find." Lu Sheng raised a finger.
"That won't be a problem." Jade Lotus nodded.
"Secondly, I asked you to collect orphans. How many have you collected?" Lu Sheng asked seriously.
"Hmm … there are already more than a hundred. This world is difficult, and there are many orphans. As long as there is food, it is easy to gather a large group. We've also carefully selected more than a hundred of them. After all, we're running low on food. Feeding too many people is a burden to the sect, "Jade Lotus said in a low voice.
"Has the famine begun?" Lu Sheng's heart skipped a beat.
"Mm … Mountain-Edge City is still alright. In the other nearby cities, the price of food has skyrocketed. Because no one dared to farm the fields, many people are now selling their children just to have less mouths to feed …" Jade Lotus said helplessly. "Many of our Elders have tried to make porridge, but it's useless. It will only attract more starving people. If Sect Master wishes to nurture death warriors, I'm afraid you'll have to think twice before you act. Given the sect's current situation, the consumption of grain, oil, rice, flour, meat, and vegetables to nurture death warriors cannot be reduced. "
"I got it …" Lu Sheng's head hurt. As the boss of the Number One Sect in the Northern Lands, this was a problem that he had to consider. After all, there were so many people in Crimson Whale Sect who needed to eat.
"What about the fishing industry?" Lu Sheng thought about it and asked.
"The fishing industry is about to enter its closed season. It's freezing cold. Fishing boats can't get out of many places," Jade Lotus replied. "The fishermen have gone mad as well. There's not much to be found in the river," Jade Lotus said.
Lu Sheng thought for a moment, then asked, "In the pharmacy, we can sort out some fast-growing herbs. Choose herbs with large tubers like yam. That can help ward off the famine."
"Sect Master, you don't know this, but these things have long been eaten up by the starving people. Now, it's just mud and stones that nobody eats," Jade Lotus replied softly.
"Forget it. Bring me the things I want. Also, do something for me. I'm going out for a while, "Lu Sheng frowned helplessly.
…
Central Plains, Rong Xin Pass.
As the only checkpoint on the way to the Northern Lands, Rong Xin Pass was surrounded by tall walls. The city was densely populated, and tens of thousands of imperial soldiers were stationed here.
Sentry towers and fortresses were scattered around, forming an even larger network that blocked the way to the Northern Lands.
Ye Moling sat in the caravan like an ordinary minister counsellor, looking up at the tall, greyish-green city walls in the crowd.
"Old Master, we have to pass through here and go through another city gate on the opposite side. Only then can we reach Fish North Road," Old Sun, who had made several trips to the Northern Lands, whispered to Ye Moling.
"In your opinion, how far do we have to go?" Ye Moling asked softly. While queuing up to enter the city, he carefully observed his surroundings.
"In reply to Old Master, we'll reach Mountain-Edge City in about five days. After all, Mountain-Edge is a big city close to our Central Plains. But I heard that there's a famine there recently. I'm afraid the security at this checkpoint will be even tighter. Our caravan might not have it easy, "Old Sun did not know his master's identity and could only worry about himself.
"It's alright … I have the documents from above. With just the few of us, passing through shouldn't be a problem." Looking at Rong Xin Pass, Ye Moling recalled the time when he had to flee from the Northern Lands pathetically.
At that time, as the Manor Lord of Mortal-Sweeping Manor, his subordinates had died in battle and he had fallen to the point of being surrounded and attacked.
Whenever he thought of the past, his eyes darkened and his heart burned with anger.
"Five more days … I wonder how things have changed over there after this trip back …?"
Old Sun smiled. "Old Master, you've returned in glory. When you return, you'll definitely be filled with riches and honor. Let those snobs who looked down on you see that you're living well now, very well! Isn't that what makes life interesting? "He could see it clearly.
Ye Moling's eyes narrowed into slits as he grinned.
"That's true. Let those who offended me know that I, Ye Moling, have returned."
"Old Master, do you still have enemies in the Northern Lands?" Old Sun asked carefully.
"Not too bad, not too bad. Just a few blind old friends," Ye Moling smiled. His smile was very similar to Xiao Hongye's. Both were very gentle, but there was a hidden dagger in his smile.
"That's good, that's good …" Old Sun felt that this Old Master was a little strange, but he could not put his finger on it.
Logically speaking, after returning in glory and honor, shouldn't he be in high spirits and high spirits?
Why was his Old Master Ye looking so strange?
Naturally, Ye Moling would not speak too much to mortals. He only lingered on the caravan for a while longer before returning to his own carriage to rest.
In the carriage sat a red-bearded burly man with his hair tied into many small braids. This burly man had a rough face and was gnawing on a pig's trotter in his hand.
"Big Brother, how is it? Does that old man have an ulterior motive for sending you here!? "
The old man he was referring to was none other than Duke Ashoka. Back when Mortal-Sweeping Manor was destroyed, only the two of them had escaped and fled to the Central Plains for their lives. Although they were taken in by Ashoka Manor, they were not treated well. They had contributed greatly, but still …
This man had always been Ye Moling's right-hand man, Red-Haired Ghost Zhou He. His cultivation base was at least at the pinnacle of Seven-Vein Level, and he had been the Deputy Manor Lord of Mortal-Sweeping Manor. He was the only person in Mortal-Sweeping Manor who still followed Ye Moling.
"I don't mean anything else. Ashoka Manor is also in a terrible mess right now. Duke Ashoka's time is up and he's getting more and more impatient. He no longer cares if we're serving him sincerely or not, "Ye Moling said indifferently.
"Then are we really going to investigate the Officiator's disappearance for him?" Red-Haired Ghost Zhou He said unhappily. "Big Brother, you're on the same level as him. Why can he order you around? Does he really think you're his subordinate, that he can order you around without any benefits? "
"Watch your words." Ye Moling narrowed his eyes. "Duke Ashoka is no ordinary person."
"Don't tell me he can break through his limits and enter a new level? He's already at his peak, alright? "Red-Haired Ghost said nonchalantly.
"How can it be so easy to break through … but even in his current state, I'm still not confident." Ye Moling's expression did not change. "You just need to know that some things are better left unsaid. Right now, he's almost driven crazy."
The burly man scoffed disdainfully.
"When I break through to the Black Snake realm, you and I will join hands and teach him a lesson!"
Ye Moling smiled, "Let's not talk about that for now. On this trip to the Northern Lands, we'll first establish contact with Scarlet District and understand the situation before deciding on our next course of action. We don't know if the effects of the Scarlet Dragon Tribulation still remain. If the situation permits, you can go and gather our subordinates again. Now that our statuses are different, those aristocratic families can no longer make a move against us. As long as we resolve the issue of the Officiator, we can seize this opportunity to obtain resources, and it will be a good opportunity for us to establish ourselves again. "
"Joining hands with Scarlet District, huh? I know, big brother! "Red-haired Ghost Zhou He tore off a large piece of meat from the pig's trotter.
"Shangyang Family, Zhen Family … Tsk tsk … Especially that Shangyang Jiuli girl. She's also at Mountain-Edge. I really want to eat her up and see how the Shangyang Family reacts," Ye Moling said with a smile.
Given his strength, if he stepped into the Northern Reaches, where the aristocratic clans had retreated and the lands were empty, there was basically no one who could stop him.
Wasn't this the best opportunity to rebuild Mortal-Sweeping Manor?
As long as he could do this job well, even Duke Ashoka would have nothing to say. When the time came, he could apply to suppress the Northern Lands and secure a corner. Obtaining resources would be a matter of course.
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