Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

In contrast to Gu Zhao’s romantic drama back in Yangcheng, things in the Otherworld were decidedly mundane.

With the Ink Flood Dragon dead and all the Demons in Mo Lake wiped out, the Daluo Temple of Pingjiang Prefecture was not established in the Prefecture City. Instead, construction began on a peninsula chosen along the shores of Mo Lake.

In Lianshan Prefecture, the last of the Jiangzhou South Five Prefectures, the most wicked Demons and Ghosts abandoned their lairs as soon as they learned Daluo Palace had eliminated the Ink Flood Dragon, fleeing into the deep, ancient forests of the West.

Thus, Lianshan Prefecture was taken without a fight, which also brought the number of Thunder Seeds in Gu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness to seven.

"To the west of Jiangzhou is Shanzhou Province. As the name implies, the province is almost entirely made up of continuous mountain ranges. Still, there are plenty of valleys and plains within it, and mountain roads connect it to Jiangzhou and the northern provinces of Pingzhou and Lezhou. If not for them, the province might not even fall under the Court’s jurisdiction."

Taoist Jing Hong and Taoist Jing Fa arrived in Lianshan Prefecture and quickly gathered information on the local situation. Then, along with the dispatched Daluo Palace disciples, they hired laborers and began construction of a Daluo Temple at a site on the westernmost edge of Lianshan Prefecture, near the An Tai Mountain Range.

The An Tai Mountain Range, which bordered Shanzhou Province, ran from north to south, separating Shanzhou from Jiangzhou and Yuezhou from Yazhou. It extended all the way to the Southern Mountains. Strictly speaking, Wuya Ridge was also a branch of the An Tai Mountain Range.

But while the mountain range was named An Tai, meaning peace and stability, it was anything but. The mountains were filled with poisonous miasma, the Earth Vein Spiritual Qi was chaotic, and it could even block Divine Sense. It was home to many reclusive Great Demons, and even Demons and Ghosts who skirted around Yazhou and Yuezhou from the Southern Mountains to wreak havoc in the Central Plains.

That was why Taoist Jing Hong chose to build the Daluo Temple on the edge of the An Tai Mountain Range; if any Demon Ghosts were to enter the territory, he would be able to strike swiftly.

"’I doubt those Evil Ghosts who fled into the An Tai Mountain Range can lay low for long,’ Taoist Jing Hong said via voice transmission. ’If they dare to show their faces, I’ll make sure they never go back!’"

"’Senior Brother and I took a trip into the An Tai Mountain Range. Our Divine Sense was suppressed inside, and we ran into a pretty powerful Demon. It didn’t have much Evil Qi, but it had a nasty temper,’ Taoist Jing Fa continued via voice transmission. ’We didn’t dare search recklessly through the mountains, so we couldn’t find the Demons and Ghosts who had fled.’"

"’No rush,’ Gu Zhao said, shaking his head. ’Let’s finish building the Daluo Temple in Lianshan Prefecture first. Later, when we have more people and our Cultivation has improved, we’ll just sweep through the entire mountain range.’"

After settling matters in Pingjiang and Lianshan Prefectures, Gu Zhao went to receive Xu Yan of Chaoyang Island and Lu Yu of Silent God Mountain, who had come to pay a formal visit.

Previously, Gu Zhao had summoned all of Daluo Palace’s experts to deal with the Ink Flood Dragon. At that time, some Demons in the two prefectures of Yongzhou saw the experts leave and launched a surprise attack on a Daluo branch temple, but it was saved by Xu Yan and Lu Yu, who happened to be traveling through the area.

After Taoist Shen Hao and Taoist Yu Zhang returned, they each paid a formal visit to express their gratitude. Now, Xu Yan and Lu Yu were returning the courtesy. Since they were traveling through Jiangzhou, they made a special trip to Daluo Palace to pay their respects.

"’I must thank you both again for protecting my disciples,’ Gu Zhao said gratefully."

"’Not at all, not at all. It was a trivial matter,’ Lu Yu replied, his etiquette impeccable. He even treated Gu Zhao with the respect due to a half-teacher. ’Those Evil Ghosts were once human. To commit such evil is to forget their very roots.’"

Xu Yan glanced at Lu Yu, a flicker of confusion in his eyes, but he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he said with a grin, "Daoist Brother Shen Hao told me that if I came to Daluo Palace, I could ask the Palace Master for a cup of wine."

Gu Zhao raised an eyebrow. "Martial Uncle Shen Hao told me to prepare several jars for you. Are you sure you only want a few cups?"

Xu Yan couldn’t help but swallow, then said with a sheepish grin, "Several jars would be best. Yes, several jars would be best."

Gu Zhao called for The Golden Dog of Bond Huang Yuan and Earth Badger of Di He Feng to come in. "Take good care of Brother Xu and Brother Lu tonight. Whatever amount of wine they can drink tonight, give them ten times that to take with them tomorrow."

Xu Yan’s eyes lit up, while Lu Yu simply smiled without saying a word.

...

That night, the lights in the dining hall of Daluo Palace’s rear quarters stayed on all night.

Early the next morning, when Gu Zhao arrived for breakfast, he could smell a rich aroma of wine.

"Have they left?" Gu Zhao asked.

"They have," Liu Han replied.

"Lu Yu is going to Qianshan Prefecture to visit Elder Jing Feng, and Xu Yan said he’s planning to wander around Shanzhou Province," Chu Yurong added.

Niu Jinniu Liu Han and Void Sun Rat Chu Yurong had been their hosts the previous night, drinking with them until dawn. They had only just seen Xu Yan and Lu Yu off the mountain.

According to the two of them, their Storage Magical Treasures were now filled with sauce-aroma Maotai, strong-aroma Wuliangye, light-aroma Xinghua Cun, and phoenix-aroma Xifeng. On top of that, they each took a jar of Laobaigan!

"They can really drink!" Gu Zhao exclaimed, both impressed and curious. "Did they not use Magical Power to sober up?"

"’They didn’t!’ Huang Yuan shook his head. His breath reeked of alcohol, but his eyes were perfectly clear. ’One is a Great Demon and the other is a Ghost God. Their bodies are completely different from ours. It’s easy for them to get tipsy, but getting them truly drunk is another matter entirely.’"

He Feng nodded and let out a boozy hiccup, causing He Cailian and Bi Yingying to back away, waving the air in front of their faces. "It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a satisfying drink! The wine in our Daluo Palace warehouse is seriously potent!"

Gu Zhao thought for a moment. "Which do you guys think tastes better, Erguotou or Maotai?"

"Erguotou! It’s got a kick!" He Feng answered without hesitation.

Huang Yuan considered it. "I think Xinghua Cun tastes the best."

Gu Zhao nodded in understanding. ’I can save some money on my future procurements from the modern world,’ he thought. Just then, he received a voice transmission from Taoist Yan Ling. "A few disciples in Bai Shi Prefecture have been injured. The culprits are said to have come from the An Tai Mountain Range by way of Wuya Ridge."

Gu Zhao raised his eyebrows. "I didn’t expect them to move so fast. What’s their level of Dao Practice?"

"’Only about a thousand years of Dao Practice, but there are three of them,’ Taoist Yan Ling reported. ’I’m just filing a report with you, Sect Leader. Senior Brother Yan Song and Senior Brother Ming Yu are already on their way to help me.’"

"Good." Gu Zhao was relieved to hear that.

Taoist Yan Song and Taoist Ming Yu were both top-tier Elders in Daluo Palace. Against ordinary experts, it would be a complete steamroll.

"I’ll have Winged Fire Serpent and Wei Yueyan go as well. They’re more familiar with Wuya Ridge." After some thought, Gu Zhao summoned Ye Ruyan and Miaoyun Princess and informed them of the situation.

"A trivial matter," Ye Ruyan said with a charming laugh. "Just a few trespassing Demons. If they’re still in Wuya Ridge, I guarantee I can find them within three days."

Miaoyun Princess thought for a moment before asking, "You said those Demons and Ghosts also brought some of their disciples into the An Tai Mountain Range?"

"That’s right," Gu Zhao nodded.

"Then why don’t we drive them all the way back, pursue them into the An Tai Mountain Range, and wipe them out completely?" Miaoyun Princess asked.

"Hmm... can that be done?" Gu Zhao asked.

A rare smile touched Miaoyun Princess’s lips. "It can."

"Then I’ll leave it to you," Gu Zhao decided without hesitation.

Taoist Yan Song, Taoist Ming Yu, Ye Ruyan, and Miaoyun Princess—four experts, each with a thousand years of Dao Practice. They were more than enough to handle the Demons and Ghosts from Lianshan Prefecture who had fled into the An Tai Mountain Range!