Chapter 263 - 261: Losing Both Men and Land
Lu Feiyu rose from the mangled corpse of his warhorse, his eyes fixed on Chen Yuan in horror.
He had previously looked down on these Martial Artists from the Jianghu, but with a single slash, Chen Yuan had shown him reality.
Sensing the Sword Qi approaching from behind, Chen Yuan spun around. He formed a seal with one hand, and in that instant, Buddhist Chanting boomed like a clap of thunder.
The Six Paths of Vajra Mantra of Master Padmasambhava erupted, directly shattering He Hongxiu’s Sword Qi.
Chen Yuan followed up with a backhanded slash. The Li Yan Blood Fiend surged violently as he pushed his Killing Saber Intent to its absolute limit.
He Hongxiu’s Cultivation Technique was actually rather mediocre—just an Earth Level Lower Grade Daoist Inner Power.
The only reason he could use the Yin Yang Dual Swords was because his swordsmanship was exquisite enough to forcefully convert ordinary True Qi into Yin Yang Power.
While his Yin Yang Dual Swords were considered a technique balanced in both offense and defense, they were nothing but mediocre before Chen Yuan.
Each time the surging Li Yan Blood Fiend on his Blood Sea Listening Tide descended, the immense power it carried shattered He Hongxiu’s Sword Momentum, forcing him back step by step.
Three slashes fell, each stronger than the last. They struck He Hongxiu so hard that he spat blood, his sword-wielding hands trembling uncontrollably, the webbing between his thumb and forefinger splitting open.
From behind, Lu Feiyu let out a furious roar and charged forward once more.
This time, Lu Feiyu directly burned his Qi Blood. The potent Blood Qi he had cultivated through countless Battle Array skirmishes instantly began to boil.
Black Water True Qi surged, coalescing on his Long Spear. As he thrust, it was like a black flood dragon rising from the land, lunging at Chen Yuan with overwhelming battle intent!
This thrust carried not only astonishing killing intent and battle spirit, but also a deep-seated hatred.
Brother Hong had looked after him in the army, saving his life on the battlefield several times.
Even the Black Water Profound Skill he practiced had been redeemed by Brother Hong with his own merits and given to him.
Back then, as a new recruit in the Vigorous Martial Army, he hadn’t accumulated enough merits and was completely unqualified to redeem a Cultivation Technique of that Level.
It was because Hong Yuanqing had given him the Black Water Profound Skill that he was able to rise through the ranks of the Vigorous Martial Army to his current position.
He had originally thought that after following Lord Wei to procure warhorses, he might be able to pass through Qing Province on his way back to the Southern Border. He had promised himself he would visit Brother Hong at the Hong Family Castle.
But who could have known that only today would he learn that Brother Hong had already died at the hands of this Chen Jiutian!
This thrust wasn’t just for the sake of the government’s conflict, nor for the warhorses—it was for revenge!
Sensing the killing intent behind him, Chen Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly.
’The Vigorous Martial Army is truly extraordinary,’ he thought. ’Even a random Deputy General possesses such cultivation and combat strength.’
In truth, he didn’t know that Lu Feiyu was no ordinary Deputy General. He was the elite of the elite within the Vigorous Martial Army, someone personally noted by Yuwen Tai and marked for special cultivation.
Forming a Seal Technique with his hands, the Power of Li Yan Blood Fiend around Chen Yuan soared to its peak. The blazing Blood Fiend coalesced behind him into the divine shadow of Gou Li.
As the seal fell, half the sky was dyed crimson by the blazing Blood Fiend.
Divine Shadow Splitting the Sky! The apparition suddenly exploded, and a torrent of bloody flames instantly engulfed Lu Feiyu.
In an instant, the black flood dragon was extinguished, and the black water evaporated.
Under this immense power, Lu Feiyu’s Long Spear was blasted into several pieces. He himself was sent flying like a broken ragdoll, vomiting mouthfuls of blood.
Behind them, Pei Zhan stared at Chen Yuan in disbelief.
’I can be certain now,’ he thought. ’Back at the stronghold, Chen Yuan was definitely holding back when he fought me. He didn’t use his full strength at all. That man from the Vigorous Martial Army had been overwhelming me, yet in Master Chen’s hands, he was utterly crushed.’
However, after a brief moment of shock, Pei Zhan immediately brought his saber down and lopped off Lu Feiyu’s head. He then pointed behind Chen Yuan and shouted, "Master Chen! That bastard is trying to escape!"
Chen Yuan turned to see that while Lu Feiyu had been attacking him, He Hongxiu had turned tail and fled with the remaining Nine Swords Alliance Martial Artists, completely abandoning Lu Feiyu and the other Vigorous Martial Army elites.
Seeing this, Chen Yuan let out a cold laugh.
’It seems the alliance between the Nine Swords Alliance and the Vigorous Martial Army isn’t so strong after all.’
Chen Yuan drew his bow and nocked an arrow, power gathering around him. The moment he released the string, a deafening CRACK echoed through the air.
He Hongxiu spun around to defend with all his might, but the arrow blasted him with a grunt of pain, knocking him directly off his horse.
Chen Yuan’s expression remained unchanged as he continued to draw his bow, firing one Mulan Continuous Jail-Piercing Arrow after another.
Each arrow possessed the mighty power to pierce the Ninefold Hell, and each one required He Hongxiu to exhaust nearly all his strength just to barely block it.
He couldn’t understand it. How could this Chen Jiutian continuously use a Secret Technique that was not only immensely powerful but also clearly consumed a terrifying amount of energy?
Even someone at the Half-Step Primordial Pill Realm shouldn’t have such a terrifyingly deep reserve of power to sustain this kind of consumption.
Moreover, He Hongxiu couldn’t even escape if he tried.
The Mulan Continuous Jail-Piercing Arrow was unbelievably fast, and it had locked onto him the instant it was loosed. He had no choice but to face it head-on.
After the third arrow, He Hongxiu could no longer hold on. He was completely pierced through by the shot and exploded into a pile of mangled flesh!
Behind them, Pei Zhan watched, dumbfounded.
Chen Yuan had used absolute, unreasonable power to utterly crush his opponent to death.
There was no technique, only pure power.
With such a stunning Arrow Skill Secret Method, anyone who was targeted would simply be blasted to death.
As Pei Zhan watched Chen Yuan walk over, he could no longer maintain his previous rebellious arrogance. Instead, he felt a little ashamed.
"My apologies, Master Chen. I was arrogant and didn’t retreat immediately."
Chen Yuan wasn’t angry. Pei Zhan’s disobedience had cost the lives of his own men from the Twelve Blade Halls.
Besides, he had never expected this unruly band of horse bandits to be obedient in the first place.
"You don’t need to apologize to me. You should apologize to your big boss, Duan Hengshan, and to your brothers from Yandang Mountain who died here because of your stubborn pride."
Chen Yuan gestured to the corpses on the ground around them.
Besides the heavy losses suffered by the Nine Swords Alliance and the Vigorous Martial Army, many of Yandang Mountain’s men had also died.
Pei Zhan turned his head. Seeing the brothers who had followed him for so many years die because of his arrogant stubbornness, his face flushed red and he slapped himself hard across the face several times.
"Don’t worry, Master Chen, there will absolutely not be a next time!"
Having disciplined him enough, Chen Yuan said no more on the matter. "If there is a next time, it will still be your brothers from the Yandang Mountain Twelve Blade Halls who suffer the losses. As a leader, you must think not only of your own life and death, but also of the men under your command.
After this, I believe the Nine Swords Alliance and the Vigorous Martial Army won’t dare to try and rescue these horse-trading groups anymore. We can gather our forces and prepare to attack the Nine Swords Alliance!"
Pei Zhan nodded and immediately began to gather the remaining Yandang Mountain Martial Artists to prepare for their next move.
「Over the next few days」
Chen Yuan’s forces clashed with the Nine Swords Alliance several more times. Since Zuo Tianyuan and Wei Chaoge had to remain to guard the Nine Swords Alliance headquarters and couldn’t move, it was usually Chen Yuan and his men who intercepted and killed the enemy’s reinforcement teams.
By the end, barely one in ten of the Nine Swords Alliance’s horse-trading groups survived, and even the Martial Artists sent out as reinforcements suffered devastating casualties.
When he received the results, Zuo Tianyuan’s expression was grim.
He had anticipated that the losses would be severe without a Primordial Pill Realm Martial Artist taking action, but he hadn’t expected them to be *this* severe.
They were supposed to be rescuing people, but it was as if they were serving themselves up on a platter, sacrificing so many men in the process.
It was only then, after reviewing all the reports, that Zuo Tianyuan realized that while he hadn’t underestimated Chen Jiutian, he had underestimated the Yandang Mountain Twelve Blade Halls!
This bandit force, which had previously only dared to hide within Yandang Mountain, seemed low-key, but their strength was immense—not even inferior to his Nine Swords Alliance.
Chen Jiutian and Feng Tianbao were only two people, after all. How many groups could they possibly support?
Most of the Nine Swords Alliance’s losses this time had been at the hands of the Twelve Blade Halls.
"Lord Wei, not only are the warhorses gone, but the men we sent out as reinforcements have also suffered heavy losses.
So long as the men are saved, the land can be retaken. But if the land is saved at the cost of the men, both will be lost.
And now, we have neither warhorses nor men!"
Zuo Tianyuan lifted his head and looked at Wei Chaoge, his face devoid of expression.
He had always been a man of deep cunning and naturally knew that blaming Wei Chaoge for his stubborn pride now would be futile. The men were already dead, and saying anything would only offend him.
But no matter how deep his cunning, he was heartbroken by such a massive loss. He simply couldn’t swallow his anger without saying a few words to Wei Chaoge!
Wei Chaoge, for his part, was also feeling some regret.
If he had known the enemy was so strong, he would have taken action himself earlier.
The Vigorous Martial Army had lost many elites as well, especially Lu Feiyu. He was Wei Chaoge’s most valued confidant, a man who, barring any accidents, would have reached the Primordial Pill Realm within five years. Yet now he too had died at the hands of that Chen Jiutian.
But there’s no medicine for regret in this world.
Hearing Zuo Tianyuan’s words now, even though Wei Chaoge felt regret, his expression immediately darkened.
"Alliance Leader Zuo, are you implying this is all my responsibility?
That these losses were caused because I, Wei Chaoge, didn’t listen to your command and take action?
But don’t you forget why my Vigorous Martial Army is here!
If we don’t get the warhorses, wouldn’t this whole trip have been for nothing, even if we hadn’t suffered a single loss?
It’s not just your Nine Swords Alliance that lost men—my Vigorous Martial Army lost men too!
Are you the only one who’s heartbroken? You think I’m not?!"
Zuo Tianyuan took a deep breath, but he couldn’t be bothered to argue with Wei Chaoge anymore.
’Sending a pig-headed fool like Wei Chaoge to You Province to handle this was Yuwen Tai’s biggest mistake!’
Just as Zuo Tianyuan was about to say something, a Martial Artist from the Nine Swords Alliance burst in frantically.
"Alliance Leader, it’s bad! People are surrounding Qifeng Mountain from all directions! The disciples guarding the mountain gate have all been killed! It won’t be long before they reach the summit!"
Zuo Tianyuan’s expression changed drastically.
’They’re here so soon!’