Dragon Canon

By the time the seventh cavalry squad broke through the enemy formation, a third of the combatants on both sides of the original clash had already fallen, while the rest had dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground in surrender. There was simply no winning against two hundred Dao Foundation stage cultivators[1].

Having cleared the central battlefield, the three hundred cavalrymen reformed their ranks and advanced toward the convoy. The Zhao general responsible for guarding the delegation had already ordered his troops to form up around the boat-carriage. He then shouted, “We are the Zhao delegation, tasked with escorting the Princess of Ning on her diplomatic mission to Western Jin. Who are you to dare raid a royal princess?”

The cavalryman at the center of the group replied calmly, “We are the greatest horse bandits of the western regions: the Fifty Bandits of Heaven Fighting.”

The Zhao general looked at the three hundred masked riders before him. Clearly, he had never heard of the Fifty Bandits of Heaven Fighting before. He softened his tone and said, “The princess is deeply beloved by His Majesty, and she is also the younger sister of the First Consort of Western Jin. If you withdraw now, I can pretend that nothing has happened. Otherwise, you’ll be angering the immortals of two states. The world may be vast, but there will be no place for you to hide.”

The cavalryman nodded and said, “That makes sense. So, to avoid harming the princess, will you dismount and surrender on your own, or must I force you to do so?”

An old man with half-lidded eyes suddenly appeared before Wei Yuan. He said slowly, “It’s good for a young man to be full of drive, but if it transforms into recklessness and arrogance, then it is not a good thing.”

Wei Yuan’s heart stirred, knowing that the true test had finally arrived. He asked, “Who are you?”

The old man chuckled and said, “Who I am is of no importance. You only need to know that the object is in my possession. If you want it, then come and take it with your own skill.”

The girl wielding a long saber wanted to charge then, but Wei Yuan caught her and pulled her back in time.

Wei Yuan leaped into the air and landed before the old man. He then offered him an apology.

Smiling, the old man waved his hand and said, “It’s nothing. Now, give me your all[2].”

Wei Yuan held his spear in hand. The spear he was holding had a dark silver shaft but no spearhead. Instead, it was fitted with a long, crescent-shaped blade that somewhat resembled a battleaxe, but also bore a resemblance to a square-sky halberd[3].

Wei Yuan fixed his gaze on the old man, then suddenly sidestepped a few zhang. The old man turned slightly, somewhat puzzled as to his movements but did not bother to ask why.

Wei Yuan stopped hesitating, and a ring of light suddenly burst forth before him. The next moment, a dazzling torrent of water shot out from within it and reached the old man in an instant!

The old man’s face twitched, and his long eyebrows flew in the air. An ancient scroll had appeared in his hand at some unknown moment, its pages flipping rapidly and sending countless words of profound teachings to block the water.

He was an Avatar after all. He had reacted with lightning speed but still remained composed, fully embodying the bearing of a high cultivator.

However, the sacred teachings and profound principles emerging from the scroll failed to impede the water’s flow in the slightest. The torrent instantly crashed into the scroll, sending the sage’s words scattering in every direction and instantly wearing away the ancient text by more than half[4]!

A sharp gleam flashed in the old man’s eyes, banishing all traces of drowsiness from his face. Three scrolls of scriptures appeared above his head, from which countless words of the sages flew out, forming a light screen that finally halted the torrent.

However, the old man immediately realized that his mystic energy was draining away at a breakneck speed, as if a floodgate had been opened. In the blink of an eye, half of his energy reserves were gone just like that! Only then did he realize that this brilliant torrent of water was unbelievably powerful, as if dozens of Dao Foundation-stage cultivators were attacking him at once!

His mystic energy was still plummeting, while his opponent’s water current continued to flow endlessly, showing no sign of stopping. Finally, the old man decided to cast aside his dignity and take evasive action.

He was just about to do so when suddenly, he realized that the Water Blades would strike the boat-carriage behind him if he moved out of the way! Only then did the old man realize why Wei Yuan had first shifted a few zhang to the side.

There was no other choice. He could only grit his teeth and hold on. Fortunately, just as his mystic energy was about to bottom out, the water current finally vanished.

It was at this moment Wei Yuan let out a loud roar and thrust his spear straight at the old man’s chest!

The old man mustered what little mystic energy he had left and conjured a scroll. Ultimately, it was able to block the thrust.

The spear thrust was fierce, relentless, and refused to be balked by anything, piercing straight to the ancient scroll!

The old man’s mystic power collapsed, leaving him defenseless in an instant. Fortunately, he could see that Wei Yuan was also on his last legs, and it would be difficult for him to squeeze out any more mystic energy. He was an Avatar, capable of regenerating mystic energy in the span of a single breath. One breath, and he would be able to rematerialize the ancient scroll to protect him once more.

But in that split-second opening, the strange spear in Wei Yuan’s hand suddenly erupted with a loud bang, firing countless iron pellets at the old man! The old man immediately felt excruciating pain in his primordial spirit, like his Avatar was being gnawed on by countless ants. Finally, he could no longer hold on and fell on his back.

Although Wei Yuan’s iron pellets weren’t particularly powerful, they were specially made to deal with Avatars. Specifically, they had been soaked in the Devilish Spirit-Eroding Incense.

With the old man down, the greatest threat to himself and his men were eliminated. Next, Wei Yuan turned his gaze toward Feng Lin and his two thousand soldiers.

Deputy General Feng, true to his reputation as a seasoned warrior of the battlefield, immediately threw his saber to the ground. His men were equally quick-witted, dropping all their weapons in unison and retreating in an organized fashion.

Finally, Wei Yuan turned his gaze to the Zhao general. The general’s expression was calm as he said, “No need for words. Worse comes to worst, I will simply face death!”

Wei Yuan made no attempt to argue with him. He simply pointed his spear toward the boat-carriage.

The general’s expression shifted several times before he finally gritted his teeth and said, “If you promise not to harm the princess, then I will surrender!”

“Rest assured, no one will lay a finger on her.”

The Zhao general let out a long sigh and threw his spear to the ground.

Turning to look at the old man lying motionless on the ground, Wei Yuan suddenly realized a very serious question: What exactly was this thing?

When the Xiang Marquis had sent word, he only said that he needed to retrieve an object. The old man, for his part, had indicated that the object was in his possession. Both men were clearly masters of speaking in half-truths, only telling him what he needed to do without actually revealing what the object was.

Luckily, there was an easy solution to this conundrum. Wei Yuan waved his hand and ordered, “Search him!”

The old man was fainting, but he still had a sliver of consciousness. When he heard this, he struggled to raise a finger and pointed at one person, his voice trembling with shock and anger, “Only she may search me! Otherwise... I’ll fight you to the death!”

Wei Yuan turned to see who he was pointing at and saw that it was Hsu Yi. He immediately understood.

The sages said that appetite and lust are only natural.

The sages truly do not deceive with their words.

In truth, Feng Tingyu was even more beautiful than Hsu Yi. Unfortunately, his Little Senior Sister was way too steeped in the ways of the Bright King Hall. It was fine when she remained silent and still, but her words betrayed her the moment she spoke, and her body betrayed her even more when she moved—anyone she struck automatically felt like a fly caught in the playful claws of a rampaging dragon.

Since the old man had made the request, Wei Yuan said to Hsu Yi, “Go ahead.”

The old man finally let out a sigh of relief and, after his tense mind relaxed, fainted completely. The Devilish Spirit-Eroding Incense was far too toxic; even though the old man was a renowned and powerful Avatar, he still couldn’t withstand it once his mystic energy was exhausted.

Hsu Yi wore a reluctant look as she asked, “What am I searching for?”

The question stumped Wei Yuan once again, but he had a solution: if he didn’t know what the object was, then he simply needed to take everything. It had to be in there somewhere, right?

So, Wei Yuan ordered, “Strip him naked and take everything.”

1. 200, because only 7 squads have unleashed their power so far. They didn’t yet know that all 300 are DF cultivators. ☜

2. He shouldn’t have done that. Yellow water incoming! ☜

3. Basically Lu Bu’s signature weapon. ☜

4. Hello word, meet feet. ☜