Qin Mu was about to lead Khan Luan Di and a group of experts in pursuit of Qin Mu when he saw over two hundred towered boats with banners fluttering. The massive hulls blotted out the sky and sun, moving like over two hundred dark clouds that covered half the sky.
Below the towered boats, the first to charge out of the city gate were the exotic beast army. Giant exotic beasts, like small hills, marched at the front. On their backs stood archers. Behind them came the chariots and cavalry—chariots in front, cavalry behind. Further back were the infantry formations, divided into different branches based on their spirit attributes, stretching out in a vast array.
This lineup was shocking, but it left Khan Luan Di somewhat puzzled.
In the past, the State of Yankang always sent the exotic beast army first, with chariots and cavalry interspersed, while infantry charged under the beasts' cover. The towered boats were positioned in the center.
Although towered boats could float in the air, their range was limited, and they could easily be shot down, so they needed the center army's protection.
But now the towered boats were at the front.
Facing towered boats, one only needed to launch blade pearls from thirty li away to destroy them and bring them down. If the pill furnace could be destroyed, the furnace would explode, and the officers and soldiers on board would often perish in the blast.
—Qin Mu had indeed improved the towered boats' pill furnaces, greatly enhancing their firepower. But the explosions were now several times to ten times more terrifying than before. Ordinary cultivators could not survive such explosions.
Of course, this could not be blamed on Qin Mu. He had improved the furnaces to give the boats greater speed, but the boats' firepower had not kept up, preventing them from harnessing the improved furnaces' full power.
"Has the State Preceptor of Yankang gone mad?"
As Khan Luan Di thought this, Ban Gongcu's voice suddenly rang out: "Luan Di, shoot that Qin brat immediately!"
Khan Luan Di was stripped bare, his pants pulled down to his feet by the Cripple. The golden knife and quiver on his body had also been stolen by the Cripple, along with his magnificent raccoon fur cloak.
But he was, after all, the ruler of a nation, and his cultivation remained. Upon hearing the order, he immediately pulled up his pants, trying to fasten his belt, only to find it empty.
His gold-inlaid, jade-studded belt had also been taken by the Cripple.
"This Cripple's skills are too high! If he hadn't been trying to steal my clothes but to kill me, how could I have defended myself?"
A chill ran down Khan Luan Di's spine, cold sweat rolling down his back, drenching it.
He had overestimated the Cripple. Although the Cripple was nimble with his hands and feet, all his skills lay in stealing things and escaping. His movement technique was unpredictable, his methods mysterious, but in close combat, he relied entirely on his legs, with few offensive techniques in his hands.
The Cripple's physical cultivation was mediocre, and his moves lacked offensive power. If one truly attacked him, it would be difficult to last many rounds against him. His most terrifying aspect was his movement technique.
Although Khan Luan Di had no bow or arrows in hand, his cultivation remained. Suddenly, his qi erupted, and a divine-demonic figure slowly rose behind him—four-armed, bird-headed, surrounded by raging flames, radiating boundless light!
This divine-demonic figure was his primordial spirit, manifested as solid as reality. The four arms drew bows and nocked arrows, and instantly, raging flames filled the Duckbill area. Flames howled and gathered, forming a brilliantly bright arrow feather between the four great bows.
Hum.
A tremor rang out, and the arrow feather shot forth. The sky and earth became incredibly dry, with illusions of flames and yellow sand swirling. Where the arrow passed, fire dragons roared through the yellow sand desert, sand filled the sky, and flame tornadoes raged!
Khan Luan Di, bare-chested, raised his right hand, index and middle fingers pressed together, thumb over ring and little fingers, forming a sword seal and touching his brow.
Swish—
The fiery arrow was incredibly swift, heading straight for the Cripple and Qin Mu as they ran. Its speed was so great that one couldn't see the brilliant flame—only a black line left in one's eyes as the arrow flashed past!
Ban Gongcu's heart shook violently. Khan Luan Di was known as the Divine Archer of the Grasslands, and the power displayed in this arrow made even him tremble!
"If I hadn't obtained the Golden Book Scroll to take the next step toward becoming a deity, I would have to guard against this cheap father of mine... My Golden Book Scroll!"
Ban Gongcu's heart ached as if cut by a knife. The thought that Qin Mu had stolen his Golden Book Scroll felt like a knife plunging into his chest, twisting back and forth.
On the way to the border pass, he had secretly looked at the Golden Book Scroll, memorizing the circulation route diagrams within. But the diagrams were extremely complex—an error of a single hair's breadth could lead to a mistake of a thousand miles. One had to be absolutely flawless to repair the Divine Bridge.
He dared not be certain he could guarantee perfection.
The arrow of light caught up with Qin Mu and the Cripple. The Cripple suddenly threw away everything he had stolen, scattering it everywhere. He reached out, grabbed Qin Mu, and flickered like a ghost, dodging the arrow of light.
Khan Luan Di raised an eyebrow, puzzled: "This old man's skills don't seem as high as I imagined..."
His finger, pressed against his brow, remained still. The arrow of light turned mid-air and shot toward the Cripple again. The Cripple's movement technique shifted repeatedly, his form almost teleporting, giving the impression that he had broken through the barriers of space.
The Cripple dared not block this arrow, but his movement technique was truly bizarre. Carrying Qin Mu, he was still so swift, stunning everyone, and even Khan Luan Di struggled to hit him.
The Cripple grew closer to the towered boats. The Duke of Wei soared into the air, gripping a duke's sword in his hand, and slashed at the arrow of light!
Boom—
A terrifying tremor erupted. The Duke of Wei was knocked high into the air, landing on a towered boat. He laughed: "Luan Di, you indeed have some skill!"
Khan Luan Di's strength was above his, and the arrow's momentum remained undiminished. Suddenly, the Champion General slapped his back, and a halberd shot skyward, transforming into a long dragon that extended its claws downward, seizing the arrow of light.
The Champion General grunted, his qi nearly exploding from the impact. His feet staggered back repeatedly, finally blocking the arrow. He was inwardly horrified.
If the Duke of Wei hadn't first clashed with the arrow, wearing down most of its power, he feared he couldn't have withstood this move.
"The Khan of the barbarian state lives up to his reputation—only a step weaker than the State Preceptor and His Majesty!"
The arrow of light dissipated. The Champion General reached out, and the long dragon flew back, transforming into a blood-red halberd in his hand. The dragon's claws became the halberd's side blade, humming with vibration.
In the Duckbill area, the other khans and shaman kings pulled up their pants, but none could find their belts.
Suddenly, the blaring of horns sounded from Helan Pass behind them. The armies of the various grassland tribes surged out like a tide. Grassland armies excelled in cavalry, and the first to advance were the sheep cavalry.
The sheep cavalry did not ride mountain goats. The exotic beasts beneath these barbarian cultivators were two-legged barbarian sheep—crossbreeds between grassland sheep and Great Ruins exotic beasts. They ate grass but were strong.
These barbarian sheep had only two legs and ran like flightless birds racing across the ground. They were also very tall, standing like a small building. Their strongest feature was their pair of horns, curved into spirals. When they charged, they lowered their heads and drove forward like plows, carving paths dozens of zhang long, scattering everything in their path.
In the air were the grassland flying cavalry, riding exotic beast eagle-d雕-wolves—carnivorous exotic beasts resembling giant wolves with wings. On their backs were the grassland's strongest archers and blade users. The archers fired arrows, and the blade users drove blade pearls.
The grassland armies were so swift and mobile that the State of Yankang's forces could never gain any advantage.
The armies of the various grassland tribes charged in, their momentum earth-shattering, far outnumbering the State of Yankang's forces.
Khan Luan Di and the others fastened their pants to their waists, tying tight knots.
Khan Luan Di laughed: "So what if petty thieves stole our treasures and clothes? We fight on the battlefield bare-chested—that's what makes true heroes and hot-blooded men! Gentlemen! We may have had our grudges in the past, fighting over land and livestock for our tribes. But no matter how vast the grasslands, they have an end. The State of Yankang, however, is rich and prosperous, full of women and land! Today on the battlefield, let us fight to our heart's content. Break through Qingmen Pass, and the State of Yankang will be our pasture!"
The many khans of the grasslands were filled with hot-blooded excitement. They stood together bare-chested, laughing heartily, their heroic spirit soaring to the clouds, sweeping away the white clouds in the sky, leaving the clear sky as if washed!
Their cultivation and strength were not weak. Many were experts at the Celestial Life-Death realm, and a few khans had cultivated to the Divine Bridge realm.
Each erupted with their qi, their primordial spirits manifesting. Various divine-demonic shadows appeared behind them, incredibly powerful, as they awaited their tribes' armies to arrive.
When the grassland armies charged in, each employed their own methods. Some sprinted at full speed, some flew into the air, heading toward the State of Yankang's fleet.
Ban Gongcu hesitated, not following. He summoned a shaman king and said in a low voice: "Escort me into the pass."
The shaman king agreed, while the other shaman kings charged directly toward the State of Yankang's fleet.
On the flagship of the towered boat fleet, the Sword Hall Master stood at the bow, his robes fluttering in the wind. Yu Yuan Chuyun stood beside him. The two generals watched the approaching grassland armies.
"General, the enemy has entered the one-hundred-sixty-li range!" the flag officer measuring distance stood high on the mast, gripping the rope tightly and shouting.
The Sword Hall Master's expression unchanged: "Continue forward. Call me at eighty li."
Yu Yuan Chuyun's face remained calm, but his brow twitched at the mention of eighty li. The flag officer waved his flag, ordering each boat to continue forward.
"General, the enemy has reached eighty li!" the flag officer called again.
Yu Yuan Chuyun drew the sword pearl into his hand, his brow raised. The Sword Hall Master continued: "Call me at forty li."
Yu Yuan Chuyun frowned slightly, glancing at the Sword Hall Master but saying nothing.
The flag officer's tense voice came: "The enemy has reached forty li!"
Yu Yuan Chuyun exhaled a turbid breath, his eyes gleaming like the radiant sun. The Sword Hall Master ordered: "Pass the word to all boats: preheat the True Essence Cannons. Fire at thirty li."
Yu Yuan Chuyun's palms were sweating. He clenched his teeth and hissed: "General Jian can truly endure! He dares to wait until thirty li. Thirty li is within the enemy's attack range..."
The flag officer immediately waved his flag to relay the order to each boat. The cannon platforms on each boat began drawing energy from the pill furnaces, ready to fire.
The Sword Hall Master watched the grassland armies surging like a tidal wave, led by experts at the Celestial Life-Death realm. He spoke unhurriedly: "The State Preceptor's order is to raze Helan Pass, not merely defeat the enemy. At one hundred sixty li, the enemy has a chance to flee, and their main force remains. At eighty li, sixty percent of the enemy can escape. At forty li, only thirty percent can escape, but their commanders can still flee. At thirty li, at most thirty percent of their commanders can escape!"
Yu Yuan Chuyun sighed in admiration: "General Jian is still General Jian. It was only by learning the sword from you that I achieved what I have today."
The two hundred and more towered boats suddenly turned sideways, emitting creaking sounds. The massive hulls seemed to transform into walls of bronze and iron, forming a barrier in the air. Cannon fire erupted in an instant, and thousands of beam-thick pillars of light appeared in the sky!
In the first exchange, the barbarian kings, khans, and shaman kings charging at the front were riddled with holes, falling from the sky!
Among them, many experts at the Life-Death and Divine Bridge realms were shocked. The Duke of Wei, the Grand Marshal, the Champion General, and others charged out, attacking them!
On the flagship, the Sword Hall Master personally waved his flag. The cannons turned downward, firing like beams of light that sliced through the ground forces rushing forward!
The Sword Hall Master waved his flag, dividing the two hundred and more towered boats into two fleets. One sailed in the upper sky, the other below, separated by only a hundred zhang. Yu Yuan Chuyun controlled the upper fleet, attacking the enemy's flying cavalry. The Sword Hall Master controlled the lower fleet, plowing through the ground. The fleet swept forward, cannons firing rapidly—wherever they passed, men and sheep were thrown into disarray!
On the other side, Qin Mu and the Cripple returned to Qingmen Pass. They saw the Village Chief and the State Preceptor of Yankang leisurely sitting on the city gate drinking tea, completely unconcerned with the battle.
"Jian Sansheng can endure. His swordplay achievements are extraordinary. The battlefield is like a sword, and he is already a master."
The State Preceptor poured tea for the Village Chief, who was still waiting for him to bring the cup to his lips. Suddenly, he remembered this was the State Preceptor, not the Herbalist. So he had to use his qi to lift the cup himself, take a sip, and say: "His swordplay has shadows of yours. Strangely, it also has shadows of mine."
The State Preceptor shook his head: "I never taught him."
The two turned their heads in unison toward Qin Mu, who had just stepped onto the city gate. If neither of them had taught the Sword Hall Master, then it could only be this Cult Master Qin.
Both immediately frowned. They saw the Cult Master Qin holding a golden, strange book in one hand and a pair of underpants in the other.
"Mu'er, I've thrown away the things I stole. You still haven't thrown yours. You're now the world's greatest thief!" The Cripple gave a thumbs-up in praise.
Qin Mu shook his head: "My skills are far inferior to yours, Grandpa Cripple."
"Throw them away, throw them away!"
The Cripple covered his nose: "What's so good about a barbarian's underpants? Hurry up and throw them away!"
Qin Mu tossed the underpants over the city wall, walked toward the two drinking tea, and casually threw the Golden Book Scroll onto the tea table. He sniffed the tea's fragrance and smiled: "I happen to have some good tea here. It was brought from Heaven by a young master called Xu Shenghua. I shamelessly asked for half a packet from him."
"Heaven?"
The State Preceptor and the Village Chief's hearts jumped. They looked away from the Golden Book. The Village Chief hurriedly asked: "You encountered a visitor from Heaven? He didn't attack you?"
"No."
Qin Mu was puzzled: "Xu Shenghua is a very pleasant person. We clashed once, but neither gained the upper hand. Village Chief, he's also a Tyrant Body! A Tyrant Body like me!"
The youth grew excited.
————Four thousand words in this chapter, arrived a few minutes late