Chapter 43 The Scattered Crowd "You really are... I've been looking for you for ages."...
The next day, Zhou Fuling and Ling Fu continued heading north, eager to reach Ningzhu Tower as quickly as possible.
After walking ten miles, the field path was completely silent.
The mountainside was once lush and verdant, but now the fields are barren and devoid of any vegetation.
The land was crimson red, as if scorched. Approaching closer, a stench of decay filled the air. Ling Fu reminded Zhou Fuling again:
"My benefactor, my benefactor, don't touch it."
Why not touch it?
“When I was young, my father took me to travel all over the world. This scorched earth is bad soil, tainted with evil spirits.”
Zhou Fuling squatted down.
Sure enough, the land was tinged with familiar demonic energy. However, this demonic energy was also intertwined with resentment, and was not normal.
Ling Fu said, "I've seen it before."
Zhou Fuling looked up: "You've seen him before?"
Ling Fu nodded.
“A year ago, I saw him at the garrison in Luoling, west of the second part. It was... it was when my aunt forced me to see Ning Bai that I caught a glimpse of him.”
Luoling, Zhou Fuling had heard of it, was the base of the second part.
"But I've actually seen this soil in another place."
"Heavenly Abyss".
Zhou Fuling frowned. She was certain that she seemed to have seen her before.
In her youth, she lived at the foot of Tianjue Gorge. A mountain hollow outside Tianjue Gorge was filled with this kind of soil. But after Zou and Kuang returned, the soil disappeared.
“Didn’t I want to be an official before? I even found a way with my father to track this soil. It’s a pity that I can’t use it now.” Ling Fu sighed.
The two continued north for another two miles.
The soil was barren and uncultivable. The villages and towns along the way were almost deserted; everyone had disappeared without a trace.
The next sign of human habitation was a tall city wall standing before Zhou Fuling and Ling Fu.
"There's no escaping this; we have to go."
Ling Fu whispered, "This is the Golden Pass built by Ning Tingyue and the people from the other three departments. Wasn't it true that spirit stones were extremely expensive in the four departments before, and some cultivators evaded taxes by mining wild spirit stones?"
"To prevent tax evasion, Ning Tingyue and the people from the other three departments jointly built this impregnable pass, which is guarded by all four departments. Each department is in charge of one side. It's very chaotic, but if you want to go to Ningzhu Tower, you have to go there."
Zhou Fuling nodded. She understood this as well.
However, after taking only a few steps forward, they saw a group of immortals scattering and fleeing. Their eyes were very similar to those of the mountain people that Zhou Fuling and Xu Qingning had seen in the cave earlier.
Something bad must have happened.
"No one is allowed to leave!"
A hundred paces away stood a female cultivator in blue robes, her hands clasped behind her back. She looked travel-worn, tall and slender, and was riding a horse.
A group of cultivators followed behind. Fireballs descended from the sky, surrounding the mortals and Zhou Fuling.
A boy of about fifteen or sixteen years old fell down next to Zhou Fuling.
"Help me, help me!"
But then she was taken away by the female cultivator's men.
"Shu Xiu, we've caught that runaway kid!"
Zhou Fuling held her breath and observed from behind the crowd.
The boy was hanging from a tree, and a brocade robe was visible beneath the cuffs and hem of his earth-colored linen clothes, making him appear to be a wealthy man from Yunning.
Beside them, two cultivators who appeared to be at the fifth or sixth rank were bound by the Immortal Binding Rope and kneeling on the ground, a man and a woman, who seemed to be the boy's parents.
"Commander, please spare my life! It's all gone, there's nothing left!"
"Technique"?
Zhou Fuling also knew people with the surname "Shu".
Shu Mingjian, who was on Ice Mirror Peak and always resented Xu Qingning for giving him authority and constantly tried to trip him up.
Zhou Fuling also remembered that he came from a family of artifact cultivators in the south.
Could this woman be related to Shu Mingjian?
Ling Fu suddenly grabbed Zhou Fuling's sleeve.
"You know her?"
“This is Shu Minglian,” Ling Fu said. “A fourth-rank captain of the Yun San Division of the Third Department, she comes from one of the Five Minor Military Commands. I’ve heard she’s extremely ruthless. Wealthy families who pass through her hands will suffer greatly! However, falling into her hands is actually quite quick…”
"Please, if you continue like this, you won't be able to survive! The spiritual source you want is our only possession!" The kneeling cultivator interrupted Ling Fu's voice.
Shu Minglian? Shu Mingjian?
It seems these two are indeed cousins. Zhou Fuling frowned.
Shu Minglian remained silent, gave a cold laugh, and then ordered someone to cut the spiritual veins of the boy hanging from the tree, causing blood to drip down.
The boy's father and mother screamed in agony, finally offering up a spiritual contract.
His eyes were filled with fear and resentment, but he dared not show it.
"Let's go!" Shu Minglian urged them on, "Let the people behind us be smarter."
The boy was put down, but he said angrily, "Shu Minglian, you will die a horrible death!"
Shu Minglian scoffed.
"Spellcaster, wait!"
A sharp gust of wind whistled, a whip lashed out, and dark clouds swirled around it.
They forcibly hung the boy back on the tree.
"ah!"
A scream.
The person who made the move was extremely ruthless; he castrated the boy in an instant and went straight for the elixir.
Seeing this tragic scene, the boy's parents also screamed in agony, but they too were whipped and hung from the tree.
His neck was tightly bound, his face was flushed, and he struggled incessantly, but no one dared to intervene.
"Commander Shu, your actions are far too lenient."
A powerful voice rang out from inside the pass.
"With Sect Master Ning Chenghan and Young Master Ning Chaoxue's competition imminent, they urgently need to cultivate. Thoroughly interrogate these people to see if they are 'spies.' If so, take them to refine human pills. How could you release them without even interrogating them?"
Shu Minglian raised her head.
A man about half a person's height stood on the city wall. Although he was small in stature, he had a full beard and wore a black cloak. He looked majestic.
Shu Minglian hesitated for a moment, then bowed and said, "Minister Liu, perhaps we took too many people with us earlier. I was just worried that indiscriminate killing would cause internal strife and also bring about karmic consequences."
"Now, the Human Pill needed by Sect Master Ning Chenghan and Young Master Ning Chaoxue can be replaced by other pills. My search this time is to find a way."
"What do you know?!"
Liu Wuxing was small in stature, but his voice was deafening.
With a sudden, oppressive aura, he said to Shu Minglian, "If we fail in this competition, both our First and Third Divisions will face annihilation! The First Division has been supporting the Third Division for a long time; we are of one mind. Today, these people are here whether you want to stay or not!"
"You five minor military units, don't harm yourselves and others!"
"..." Shu Minglian's face turned pale, and she staggered backward before regaining her balance. However, as if she was worried about something, she held back her anger towards Liu Wuxing.
Liu Wuxing? The Five Minor Military Headquarters? Zhou Fuling had also learned about it.
Liu Wuxing was the assistant minister of the third Yunsan Division.
The third branch, Yun San, was originally composed of pirates, bandits, and small families and independent cultivators who were ostracized by the major branches in the coastal and island areas of Yun Ning Nan Zhou.
They were characterized by their fierce style and lax discipline, but were extremely skilled in naval warfare and guerrilla raids.
Later, during the reign of the third Yun Ning Sect leader, the leader used force and promises of benefits to incorporate them into his own forces, and named them "Yun San Tribe".
It means "to gather together a scattered crowd," and is also regarded as "a mob."
Currently, the largest force within the bandit alliance is centered around Liu Wuxing's family. They are ruthless and skilled at performing dirty work for Ning Chenghan and his associates. Liu Wuxing is a representative of this group, known for his tough and cruel style.
As for the Five Minor Armies, Zhou Fuling learned that this was another force within the Third Division.
This group consisted of five smaller, but unique, independent cultivation groups, which were formally incorporated during the tenth generation of sect leaders.
Shu Minglian comes from one of the families in these "Five Minor Military Departments". She is considered a new generation force in the third division. This force values the cultivation of extraordinary skills.
They were supposed to assist Liu Wuxing, but the circle Liu Wuxing belonged to line their own pockets and embezzled a large portion of the benefits while plundering for the first part. The "Five Minor Military Departments" could only get scraps and their strength was exploited, which led to conflict with Liu Wuxing.
But now it seems that the conflict is not just about the distribution of benefits.
Liu Wuxing sneered, "Commander Shu, take everyone here away! Unless... you don't want the Holy Blood Pill for Huo Xiu anymore, hmph."
"Huo Xiu has been suffering from a strange poison in the demon realm for a year now, and he is worried that his life is in danger. He even refused to become your partner. He is so affectionate, don't you feel sorry for him?"
"This poison can only be alleviated by ten sacred pills. The Sacred Blood Pill is a sacred medicine of Yun Ning, and this half of it was obtained by two saints from the first division of our dynasty."
Shu Minglian's expression changed drastically.
It was only then that Zhou Fuling noticed a male cultivator in a wheelchair sitting on the hill behind Shu Minglian. He was emaciated and looked at Shu Minglian with concern.
Shu Minglian gritted her teeth.
Clench both hands into fists.
"If Minglian assists in the first competition this time, I wonder if the Minister can immediately request the remaining seven Saint Pills... He can't wait any longer."
Liu Wuxing chuckled dryly: "Yes, yes, of course I will."
Shu Minglian twitched the corner of her mouth, a hint of gloom flashing in her eyes, clearly disbelieving but helpless.
"Captain!"
"Minglian!"
The monks and male cultivators nearby called out to her.
Shu Minglian made a gesture, and the five members of the military headquarters all showed regret, but then turned serious and surrounded Zhou Fuling and the others.
Ling Fu also gripped Zhou Fuling's arm tightly and whispered, "Let's see. The people of the Five Minor Armies have always only taken money and don't like to take the lives of the immortals, but we don't know if this Commander of Arts will find a way to let us escape today... She did this before, which angered Minister Liu."
But Liu Wuxing seemed to know this as well, and with a wave of his hand, the black-robed cultivator flew over like a crow in an instant.
"Wait!"
A distant male voice pierced through the clouds, and Ling Fu's expression suddenly changed drastically, her whole body trembling, far more so than before.
Zhou Fuling asked, "What are you doing?"
But then a spell talisman, imbued with the clear spiritual power of the Yun Ning Sect, bearing the two characters "Find the Tracks" written on it, shot straight toward her face.
Zhou Fuling shuddered.
What's going on?
Could it be that the people from the first movie found her?
No, that's not right, it's coming towards Lingfu!
Ling Fu's face turned as white as chalk. She pushed Zhou Fuling away and turned to run away.
“That person, that person and his sister are here. I, I can’t live anymore… You, you should leave.”
"who?"
“‘Master of both swordsmanship and strategy’… Ning Bai!”
Zhou Fuling's expression also changed drastically.
Even after Ling Fu fled a hundred feet away, the cursed talisman continued its relentless pursuit, darting towards her like a cat chasing a mouse.
Boom—
Ling Fu stepped onto a loose patch of ground, only to tumble down into it, cry out in pain, and then vanish without a trace.
It turned out that this Golden Pass was filled with traps to arrest tax evaders and forcibly seize spiritual energy, and Ling Fu had just stepped into one of them.
Upon entering, the array formed a vast net, striking towards Ling Fu.
Ling Fu's skills were not strong to begin with, and she was unable to escape. She was soon beaten to the point of being on the verge of death, and when she thought about what was about to happen, tears streamed down her face.
Unexpectedly, when she looked up, she saw a dark figure. Clenching her teeth, she couldn't believe it and weakly said, "You, how did you follow me here..."
It was Zhou Fuling who jumped down after Ling Fu. Her movements were unpredictable, and Ling Fu didn't know how she appeared.
Zhou Fuling pressed her hand against Ling Fu's pulse, which was very weak.
Ling Fu gave a bitter laugh: "You should leave now, I can't live anymore... I'm going to be tortured to death. Don't drag you down with me. You have a strange temper, but you're not bad to me."
Zhou Fuling remained silent.
Ling Fu: "Ning Bai's mother, Ning Chengshan, will most likely become the next sect leader. He will be the one after that."
Tears streamed down her blood-stained face. "I am doomed. I only wish that you would come to my desolate grave someday and lay flowers for me. Perhaps ten years from now, no one will remember me..."
Zhou Fuling sneered: "You're not dead yet, what are you saying?"
Ling Fu, however, fainted.
Outside, the sound of metal clashing could be heard. Ning Bai is the young master of the second division, so he must be fighting against the second division in the third division.
Zhou Fuling could hear one side retreating while the other advanced straight towards her side, all in the blink of an eye.
Zhou Fuling stared at Ling Fu's unconscious face and touched her cold hands.
She was unaware that she was making one of the most important decisions of her life, decisions that would later determine her success.
Zhou Fuling remained silent in the darkness.
—Master Miao: "I originally arranged for you to be Liang Bucheng's closed-door disciple. However, she was ambushed by the subordinates of the Second Division's Twin Masters... her meridians were severed... she will have to find another identity."
—Kuang Yunchu: "You must be extra careful of the people in the second part. They are very likely to be your biggest opponents in this competition."
Zhou Fuling slowly raised her eyes.
She moved.
In the blink of an eye.
She placed her hand on Ling Fu's shoulder and channeled a stream of spiritual energy into her. Ling Fu's body trembled, and her faint breathing became turbulent again.
Zhou Fuling pinched Ling Fu's face again, and in an instant, Ling Fu's face changed.
Zhou Fuling used the same trick on herself.
At first glance, Ling Fu appeared as a maidservant disguised as a peasant woman. Zhou Fuling raised her head; her face was like a lotus blossom, her eyes like peach blossoms, delicate and beautiful, so lovely that she seemed pitiful to behold—wasn't she exactly Ling Fu's appearance?
She changed into their clothes and added more wounds to her own body.
Just then, a talisman struck Zhou Fuling's back.
Its power was immense, and it carried malice.
Zhou Fuling fell down in a sorry state, lying on top of Ling Fu, and looked up in fear.
Her beautiful eyes, filled with fear, met a pair of handsome eyes.
Beside the trap stood a handsome young man, tall and imposing, with an extraordinary air about him, who gave a gentle smile:
"Ling Fu? You really are... I've been looking for you everywhere."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com