Xuanqing Guard

The sky darkened. Shen Hao had someone move the small table into the study, and the dishes and wine from before were replaced with a new set: sour soup fish, spicy diced chicken, and freshly fried drinking beans.

Once the door was closed, Shen Hao and Nie Yun resumed eating, drinking, and chatting—it was still Nie Yun doing most of the talking, while Shen Hao listened carefully most of the time.

"The system under the Hejing Old Dynasty is different. The sects don’t really have a supreme commander in the strictest sense. Mountain of Ten Thousand Books and Mingshan Sect may be the only two Super Sects, but commanding all the sects is still a long way off. So, when issues arise, each sect mostly bands together with the others in its own Domain, then acts independently according to the broad direction of the available intelligence.

At present, there are six sects united with our Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute—three second-tier and three third-tier sects—all taking our lead.

I’m a Deacon in the Law Enforcement Hall. Ordinarily, things like this wouldn’t fall under my jurisdiction. But the Sect Leader’s recently been asking for strategic advice, probably as a test of some kind. Master himself is keeping silent, leaving me no way to dodge my responsibilities. Trouble is, handling this isn’t my strong suit, so I came to you for advice."

Having finished, Nie Yun hurriedly scooped himself a bowl of sour soup fish, worried it’d be all gone if he didn’t act fast.

Shen Hao smacked his lips but didn’t fight Nie Yun for the fish; he’d already eaten two bowls while Nie was talking. The fish had no fine bones, was tender and full of flavor, and with Li Erfu’s skill at cooking, it was difficult to stop eating once he’d started.

Now that Nie Yun was eating, Shen Hao poured himself a cup of wine.

"What’s your goal? Or rather, if fighting breaks out in the south, what is it that you’ll really be doing?"

"Isn’t it the same as for the soldiers? Only difference is that our opponents are those Barbarian cultivators. Battle formation, close combat—you fight a skirmish, we’ll fight ours; if we win, we can help our side’s military array defeat the enemy faster, and if we lose, it’ll drag the military array down as well. I didn’t take part in the last big battle with the Barbarians, but I heard our Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute alone lost more than eighty cultivators. An Elder nearly died too."

Damn... Shen Hao clicked his tongue inwardly. The Institute’s Elders were all Profound Sea Realm cultivators, and they’d nearly been killed in a single battle? The intensity was far higher than he’d imagined.

"For analysis, you always need intelligence as support. How do you get intel from the Barbarian side these days?"

"The Jingjiu Dynasty notifies us, and the rest we have to gather ourselves after reaching the southern front." Nie Yun, after a bowl of sour soup fish, suddenly found that the vividly red spicy diced chicken looked even more appealing.

"Only gather after you arrive? You never considered putting advance eyes and ears in the Barbarian Territory?" Shen Hao found it hard to believe. Even the Jingjiu Dynasty knew enough to let the Slave Trade Association rampage in Barbarian Territory and act as spies. Yet these sects just stumble around in the dark, not taking it seriously at all. What’s there to analyze then?

"So, you’re telling me you just close your eyes and barge into Barbarian Territory?"

"Barge in? That’s not a very nice way to put it, but... it’s more or less the reality." Nie Yun looked a bit embarrassed, but facts were facts.

Struggles among cultivators were common, but actual bloody fights weren’t, much less warfare on this scale. Just like Nie Yun had said before on Chang Baifeng, people in the sects were much more experienced in internal disputes than loose cultivators, but when it came to fights of life and death, they were still green—even more so with the big sects, who had even fewer chances. That’s why the big sects favored expeditions to perilous lands and ancient ruins, where aside from resources, the real prize was training core members through life-and-death tempering.

"Right now, the situation in the south is only beginning to shift; Chief Officer Zuo Yuliang of the Southern Army has only sent out three probing forces so far, barely holding back the Barbarian’s pincer attack. Neither our side nor the Barbarians are fully prepared yet. Why are you guys in such a hurry?" Shen Hao hadn’t realized before, but sect folks were actually quite invested in warfare. The outcome in the south wasn’t even settled, yet here they were, worrying about countermeasures.

Nie Yun answered in a way that left Shen Hao speechless: "It’s a rare opportunity!"

For the sects, experiencing such a major conflict really was a huge chance to temper their disciples. Not to mention warlike types like Nie Yun.

Being sought out for advice, Shen Hao couldn’t refuse, so after a moment’s thought, he said, "The current situation is still unclear. No one can say for sure whether there’ll even be a battle, or when it’ll start. So for now, your best bet is to wait and observe. At the same time, find someone well-versed in military strategy to help you make plans—so you’re not caught off guard when the time comes."

"Someone versed in military strategy?" Nie Yun mused for a while, then nodded. "You mean, analyze the Barbarian cultivators’ movements with military strategy, and respond with matching tactics?"

Smart as ever—he got it right away. But Shen Hao added, "Not only that—your sect’s operations can also take cues from the army. Fewer solo duels, more use of things like ’ambush,’ ’sudden attack,’ ’night raid,’ and the like, ways that can turn your strengths against the enemy’s weak spots for greater effect and fewer casualties for yourselves."

Few people were truly familiar with both army and sect methods, but if you looked, you’d find some. Shen Hao’s advice had Nie Yun grinning happily to himself—he’d come to the right person.

"Come on, cheers!" Nie Yun put down his chopsticks, clinked his cup to Shen Hao’s, and downed it in one go—his way of saying thanks.

After eating a bit more, the food on the little table was gone, so they just drank quietly, chatting all the while about cultivation. Compared to Shen Hao, Nie Yun’s experience was like a mountain you could only gaze up at—just a few words were enough to point out Shen Hao’s shortcomings in his cultivation habits.

For example, Shen Hao liked to do Qi Cultivation and use newly generated Qi to supplement his foundation at the same time, mostly to save time. But Nie Yun told him that patching up the foundation like that led to a shaky base; it might not show under normal circumstances, but once he tried to break through to a Great Realm, he could fail at the last step. The best way was to let the True Qi generated from Qi Cultivation circulate several times through the meridians, warming and adapting it, and only then use it to reinforce the foundation—much more effective.

This was the benefit of proper coaching.

The two of them even got excited enough to move out into the backyard and formally square off for a ’spar’—in truth, it was Nie Yun giving Shen Hao pointers.

By the time they returned to the study, it was already early 9 p.m. Sweat drenched Shen Hao’s face, while Nie Yun looked as fresh as ever, without any trace of exertion.

"You’re doing quite well for yourself lately. For a mere Hundred Households Officer, and still only Junior Fifth Grade, to have a Primordial Pill Realm expert secretly protecting you... It seems the Xuanqing Guard places a lot of value on you."

Sipping his tea, Nie Yun dropped this remark all of a sudden.

"What? Secret protection? Me?" Shen Hao was stunned, looking around uncertainly, then said, "Nie, you’d better explain what you mean."

"Oh? You didn’t know? When you and I were sparring in the backyard just now, there were three threads of Perception that swept over. One of them was less than twenty zhang away. When my Perception brushed against theirs, they immediately withdrew but never went far. Looks like they’re here to protect you."