Chapter 236 The Mysterious Ninth Rank
At the foot of Dagushan Mountain.
Yan Liulang led a massive force of a thousand men.
County Magistrate Diao and his entourage had already gone to Songlin Ferry ahead of time to arrange official boats and Burning Sky Shark Oil.
"My lord, everyone has assembled."
Ouyang Rong nodded and prepared to mount his horse when he suddenly remembered something.
He turned and dragged the priestess, who looked like a lump of mud, to the front of the battle.
The young magistrate drew his long sword from his waist in front of the constables and militia who were about to depart.
The sword's edge was raised.
A hush fell over the front lines as everyone stood still, countless eyes fixed upon them.
It seems as if they are waiting for or anticipating some kind of sacrificial flag that they have vaguely guessed.
The sword's edge emitted a hazy moonlight, appearing rather faint in the sunlight.
But surprisingly, the sword did not reflect any sunlight, which was quite strange.
Ouyang Rong was unaware that the sword was crafted by an old swordsmith and was a tribute to a sword forged in the history of his sect.
He simply found the sword very useful, especially for beheading.
"Save me, please save me! Please, don't eat me, don't eat me... Ah!"
The Jade Cup Fairy's voice abruptly stopped.
There were continuous "thump" sounds of heavy objects falling to the ground.
Ouyang Rong instantly felt his face become slightly hot and wet.
He switched to holding the sword with one hand, pointing the blade directly towards Songlin Ferry, signaling to the crowd.
This large group of officials and common people, all silent and united, set off in a grand procession.
Ouyang Rong originally intended to hand over the Jade Cup Fairy to his junior sister, but today, after exposing the Liu family's despicable conspiracy, and realizing that the Jade Cup Fairy was an accomplice, he has offended not only his junior sister and him, but also all the people of Longcheng.
Looking at the moving army in front of him, Ouyang Rong took the handkerchief handed to him by Yan Liulang and wiped the blood off his face.
Yan Liulang bent down and moved the jade cup containing the corpse of the female immortal.
Ouyang Rong's expression suddenly froze, and he looked down at the handkerchief stained with blood.
"My lord, what's wrong?" Yan Liulang asked with concern upon seeing this. "Is there something wrong with your health?"
"No...it's nothing."
"Your Excellency, I can tell from your expression..."
Yan Liulang paused, then suddenly rubbed his eyes.
Why does it seem like there was a flash of purple light deep in Mingfu's eyes just now? Could it be that he was seeing things?
Yan Liulang looked curious and was about to speak when Ouyang Rong turned his head away from Yan Liulang and mounted his horse.
"Alright, let's go. The ship is almost here; don't let it wait for us."
"yes!"
Yan Liulang put it out of his mind, mounted his horse, and rode off to reorganize the troops.
Ouyang Rong, mounted on his horse, slowly trailed behind the ranks. He stared blankly at his palm, his eyes flashing with a purple light, and murmured:
"What kind of good fortune has been triggered? And why is it necessary to accumulate three thousand merits?"
Ouyang Rong looked inward at the trembling Blessing Bell and hesitated slightly.
Just then, the purple light in his eyes vanished instantly.
Without a trace.
Ouyang Rong was slightly taken aback. He looked down at his horse and then looked back at the foot of Dagushan Mountain, which he had left behind.
He suddenly turned his horse around and rode back a little.
A purple aura resurfaced in his eyes.
"As expected, it's related to the Jade Cup Fairy from before. It can't be triggered once you leave a certain range... I'll have to exchange for it and see what's going on."
Ouyang Rong murmured something and closed his purple eyes.
A moment later, he opened his eyes.
The purple tinge in his eyes vanished without a trace.
He looked around.
Nothing unusual.
The next instant.
Ouyang Rong shuddered and almost fell off his horse. The veins on the back of his hand, which was gripping the reins, bulged.
A young county magistrate's body twisted on horseback.
A mythical spirituality arises spontaneously.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth flows back into the body.
"It's so hot!"
If we say that after swallowing the strange pill given to him by his junior sister last time, Ouyang Rong felt warm all over, as if there was a room inside his body with its windows and doors tightly closed, naturally warming up.
At that moment, he clearly felt that someone had forced a hot, red-hot coal into the tightly closed room.
Adding another furnace.
Meanwhile, not far from Ouyang Rong, in a newly dug pit in the woods.
The plump priestess and the corpse with its limbs twisted in a contorted position were rapidly shriveling and decaying at a visible speed.
It was as if some kind of life essence had been drained away.
Unfortunately, apart from the frightened flies, no one noticed this scene...
The painful time seemed endless, but in reality it was short.
A short while later, on horseback, Ouyang Rong's jaw loosened, he was panting heavily with sweat on his face, and looked around.
This time I opened my eyes.
What replaced her eyes was a light blue color.
"Nine... Ninth rank?"
Ouyang Rong lowered his head, stared wide-eyed at his palm, his expression somewhat incredulous.
Within sight.
A faint blue aura slowly flowed through the Shaoyang meridian of the hand.
My junior sister once said that.
Grade 9, with a pale blue spiritual aura.
"Then wouldn't that mean we could also observe qi without needing to rely on our junior sister's spiritual energy to transfer it..."
Muttering to himself, Ouyang Rong clenched his fist.
Take a deep breath.
With each breath, it seems to naturally follow some kind of breathing technique.
Without a teacher, he mastered the art of drawing spiritual energy from his dantian.
He followed the meridians where he had felt a warm sensation when Xie Lingjiang sent spiritual energy last time—the meridians through which spiritual energy circulated—and channeled the spiritual energy upwards to his ear and temple.
On the official road, Ouyang Rong sat upright on his horse, looking up westward towards the sky above Xiaogushan in the distance.
His face was blank.
Turning my head again, I looked south towards the sky in the direction of Yunmengze.
After a short rest, Ouyang Rong withdrew his gaze, silently spurred his horse, and continued heading towards Songlin Ferry.
He saw that clear blue sword aura above Little Lonely Mountain again.
It is an unusual phenomenon that the sword is being cleansed for the first time.
In addition, there was a thick, white mist rising above Yunmengze.
However, at this moment, Ouyang Rong saw that on the northeastern side of that vast expanse of white mist, the mist was swirling and chaotic...
"That's the direction of Di Gong Gate, which corresponds to the current flood. The water vapor is raging, which is definitely caused by the sword energy of the sword washing... We have to stop them."
Ouyang Rong's expression was serious, and in a short while, he caught up with Yan Liulang's main force.
At this moment, everyone was marching at full speed, and Ouyang Rong made an excuse, so no one cared about or paid attention to his recent falling behind.
However, Ouyang Rong, who was at the very front of the crowd with his back to everyone, still looked puzzled.
He closed his eyes without making a sound and glanced at his merit points.
"There are still over 16,000 left... The interval is too close. This blessing should be related to the deceased Jade Cup Fairy. But why is this sudden feedback of spiritual energy to me?"
"Is it true that as long as I kill a Qi cultivator with my own hands, the Merit Tower's Blessing Bell can absorb some of the cultivator's spiritual energy and feed it back to me? That's a bit too outrageous, isn't that just inducing and instigating?"
"Or is it because I have some kind of connection with the Jade Cup Fairy? She once used a special method to kill me, and the effect was mutual..."
"A priest who was killed by a sacrifice?"
"By the way, what kind of mythical lineage do I belong to now? Just before my junior sister left, she hinted that she had repaired my leaky body and would take me back to the academy next time to obtain a copy of the Confucian Qi cultivation technique.
"Now look what's happened, I've inexplicably reached the ninth rank... Did I take the wrong path?"
Ouyang Rong frowned and muttered to himself.
His expression was neither happy nor sad.
Regardless of the circumstances, Ouyang Rong temporarily composed himself and focused on rescuing Ashan.
With my junior sister not around, advancing to the ninth rank provides an extra layer of security.
Fifteen minutes later, Ouyang Rong and Yan Liulang led their team to Songlin Ferry Wharf in a hurry.
Just then, the last few official boats dispatched by Magistrate Diao slowly docked at the pier.
Everything is ready, so there's no need to wait.
The two sides acted swiftly and boarded the ship without wasting a moment.
The fleet of official ships slowly set off, taking advantage of the shortcut of the newly built Zheyi Canal waterway.
The army's advance was aimed directly at the ancient Yue sword shop on the west bank of Butterfly Creek!
...
Just as officials and civilians on the official boat sailing on Butterfly Creek in the distance were united in their efforts to distribute the Burning Heaven Shark Oil,
Inside a mansion deep within Luming Street in Longcheng County.
The one-sided battle has slowly come to an end.
Inside the courtyard, a beautiful figure in red stood in the center of the open space.
Xie Lingjiang lowered her head and sheathed her sword.
The ground around them was covered with a dense circle of fallen figures.
In a nearby elegant pavilion, Li Xian and his family, along with some maids and servants, emerged from the pavilion, still shaken, and walked around the corpses of the black-clad bandits lying on the ground outside.
"My dear niece, are you alright?"
Li Xian straightened his hat, stepped forward, and asked with concern.
Xie Lingjiang shook her head slightly, then glanced at the bandits on the ground again.
Li Xian, Wei Mei, and the others looked around at the ground with lingering fear.
The county government just issued an evacuation order, and Li Xian's family immediately packed their things and prepared to go to Dagushan for refuge.
Unexpectedly, a group of robbers suddenly broke in, seemingly to rob the place, searching for valuables everywhere, and at the same time taking control of Li Xian's family and holding them under house arrest in the pavilion.
"Fortunately, my dear niece arrived in time." Li Xian was filled with gratitude, tears streaming down his face.
Xie Lingjiang nodded without speaking, her brows slightly furrowed.
"This isn't a robber; it's obviously fake."
Li Guo'er, dressed in a purple ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), walked over, pointed with her jade-like finger to the scattered black-clad corpses on the ground, nodded, and said softly:
“Robbers who only rob and rape don’t have such good discipline. They don’t care whether we are of the Li clan or not. They will draw their swords and attack us as soon as they see us. They only need to leave the owner of the mansion alive, while the other female relatives are either imprisoned or assaulted.”
They speak bluntly and without any restraint.
Xie Lingjiang glanced at her again, "Then, Sister Li, what do you think is the purpose of the person behind this?"
Li Guo'er's handsome brows furrowed slightly:
"I don't know. I was going to wait and see what kind of show this was going to be, but then Sister Xie came."
You think she arrived too quickly?
Xie Lingjiang asked unhappily, "Aren't you afraid of being held captive by thugs?"
"Who wouldn't be afraid? But what's the use of being afraid? It's better to calm down and think of a way to deal with the person behind the scenes."
Xie Lingjiang couldn't help but glance at the young woman in the ruqun standing in front of her, who had a straight back: "Sister Li has always been carefree."
After a pause, her gaze sweeping over Li Guo'er's sleeves, Xie Lingjiang said to her, whose hands were tucked into her sleeves:
"Sheath it, lest you cut yourself."
"The sheath is long gone, what a hassle."
Li Guo'er lowered her eyes and replied.
Within her skirt sleeves, on the hilt of a sword, her tightly clenched hand loosened slightly.
Her gaze was fixed on the long sword at Xie Lingjiang's waist, and she said calmly with a beautiful face:
"A sword is inherently sharp, so why should it be sheathed? Every sword in this world should never be sheathed. Just like the Ding sword in history books, it has no sheath to hold it."
"Alright, Guo'er, what time is it? Why are you still spouting these fallacies and heresies with your sister Xie..."
Wei Mei scolded her eccentric daughter, then expressed her gratitude and comfort to Xie Lingjiang.
Xie Lingjiang shook her head: "It's alright."
However, she couldn't help but glance at Li Guo'er and sighed inwardly.
This younger sister who left home, don't be fooled by her current understated appearance.
But Xie Lingjiang felt that if she had arrived a moment later, no one could say for sure what her sister who had run away from home would have done with the hidden sword in her sleeve, even if it was presumptuous, she would never have sat idly by and waited for her death.
"You found Ouyang Lianghan?"
Li Guo'er suddenly asked.
Xie Lingjiang snapped out of her daze, glanced at Li Guo'er, and noticed that the expression on her small face seemed to show more curiosity and interest than concern.
“He is at Dagushan.” Xie Lingjiang nodded calmly.
At this moment, Li Xian interjected and asked:
"It's good that you're alright. By the way, my dear niece, how did you know we were in danger?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingjiang let out a slight sigh of relief:
"It was the eldest brother who was quick-witted. He analyzed that the Wei family and the Liu family might target you, and ordered me to come back immediately to protect you."
"this……"
Li Xian, Wei Mei, Li Dalang, and the others looked at each other, their expressions all showing emotion.
Li Guo'er also glanced sideways.
Li Xian, feeling guilty and moved, said:
“What about him? If the Liu family wants to deal with him, it’s all our fault for dragging you and your nephew Lianghan down with us.”
Xie Lingjiang paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "I'll move you to Dagushan first, then go find my senior brother to join me."
Everyone immediately agreed.
But then, the woman in red, clutching the jade pendant at her waist, hesitated, her beautiful face showing confusion.
"But there's one more thing. Have you seen Uncle Chen? My spirit ring can't sense him. Could he not be in Dragon City right now?"
Xie Lingjiang described to Li Xian's family the missing academy master.
Li Xian stared at him blankly.
"My dear niece, are you saying that this Uncle Chen has been secretly protecting us all along? But since you left, he has never shown himself again..."
Xie Lingjiang frowned, a sudden sense of foreboding rising in her heart.
But then, Li Guo'er suddenly pointed to a house across from Luming Street and said:
“When I celebrated my birthday before, the Wei family sent their sons and servants to deliver gifts together with my grandmother’s palace maids. The former lived right across the street.”
Actually, she was just waiting for the people living across the street to "come and visit".
Li Guo'er looked around at the corpses of the "bandits" and didn't say everything she wanted to say.
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingjiang immediately raised her head and looked over.
After standing still for a moment, he said, "You all need to stay hidden."
After saying this, she was dressed in red and rushed out of the Su residence like a whirlwind, sneaking into the deep mansion across the street.
Half an incense stick later.
At the gate, a figure in red appeared again, empty-handed.
Xie Lingjiang frowned and said to Li Guo'er, Li Xian, and the others who were waiting:
"There's no one inside."
The people were exhausted.
"Let's go back to Dagushan and find our senior brother."
Without further hesitation, Xie Lingjiang led Li Xian's family to evacuate quickly.
...
Butterfly West Bank, Ancient Yue Sword Shop.
Three official boats are moored at the ferry dock.
People came and went as they disembarked.
Liu Zian, Liu Zilin, and their group, along with the detained young county magistrate, entered the sword shop together.
Liu Zian turned his head and gave the instructions seriously:
"Martial law at the sword shop. Keep a close watch on everything. Report any unusual activity immediately!"
"Go and gather all the craftsmen here. Today, I will hold a public trial for Ouyang Lianghan! To avenge our elder brother!"
Liu Zilin and Liu Fu were shocked and immediately obeyed the order to retreat and set up defenses.
Watching their backs disappear into the distance, Liu Zian looked up at the sun, which was approaching noon, and then at the halfway point of Little Lonely Mountain:
“Ouyang Lianghan, Ouyang Lianghan, you’ve come back just in time, at the perfect moment.”
Liu Zian murmured, then smiled at Ouyang Lianghan, who was bound hand and foot behind him.
Soon after, the two arrived at an ancient, high platform on the riverbank.
Liu Zian grabbed the hem of his robe and climbed step by step onto the familiar Dragon-Slaying Platform.
His sickly face was flushed, but his eyes couldn't suppress his excitement.
Behind him, Ouyang Lianghan stood expressionless, calmly watching his excited back.
(End of this chapter)
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