novelapdf Chapter 333 Shocking Change
Chapter 333 Shocking Change
After True Lord Kuilin gave the order, all the cultivators began to get busy.
Those cultivators who were seriously injured returned to the city to heal, while those who were less seriously injured cleaned up the battlefield and continued to defend, preventing the demonic cultivators and the demon race from launching a counterattack.
Since the attack by the demonic cultivators and monsters was brief, there were no major overall losses. However, at the Golden Core level, due to the involvement of the Demon King, four people perished, all of whom were Golden Core cultivators from ordinary sects and families.
If the belongings and the body can be recovered, they will be returned to the family or sect. If they cannot be recovered, the six sects will provide some symbolic compensation.
Zhang Lingyu fought two battles, and his injuries weren't serious; he was just a little exhausted from overusing his magical power.
After Elder Xuanyou led the main force away, he and Song Siyu landed together in the area where the Jade Light Pavilion had gathered, awaiting further instructions.
Master Xuan Shui's face was also somewhat pale from excessive consumption of magical power. Watching the two land, he forced a smile: "Congratulations on your first victory!"
Three Golden Core demon cultivators perished in the Chu Kingdom this time, and Xue Yang was one of them.
This demonic cultivator is quite capable; he can fight on equal terms with a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator. It's truly remarkable that the two of them were able to join forces to eliminate him.
After hearing this, Zhang Lingyu and the other person nodded silently.
In fact, Song Siyu only played a supporting role in this battle of wits. Xue Yang's downfall was caused by Zhang Lingyu. The latter did not want to show his talent too early, so he had to take half the credit for himself.
As for the spoils of war, she didn't take any of them.
The demonic cultivators' sudden departure left Zhang Lingyu uneasy. She was eager to find out the reason through the intelligence system, but seeing that she couldn't leave immediately, she frowned and asked, "Senior, what exactly is the situation with the demonic cultivators?"
"If even the True Lord doesn't know, how could I possibly know? Right now, we can only wait for the intelligence to come back."
Master Xuanshui shook his head and gave a wry smile: "But judging from their calm and unhurried manner during the retreat, something big must have happened on our side."
"It seems we can only wait... So what should we do now?" Zhang Lingyu nodded and continued to ask.
Before the words were finished, a white-clad man holding a sword landed in the middle of the crowd.
They were so frightened that they immediately bowed.
"Greetings, True Lord/Master!"
Bai Yan Zhenjun's expression remained as calm as ever. Apart from a few bloodstains and some damage to his clothes, his aura was still at its peak, and he had not suffered much injury at all.
Just how high has his swordsmanship reached? He can fight the Demon Emperor on equal terms all by himself... and he's only broken through three years ago." Zhang Lingyu bowed his head, suppressing the shock in his heart.
He saw it clearly as the Blood Demon Emperor left; just like last time, the demon emperor was covered in countless sword wounds.
If they do not retreat, True Monarch Baiyan will definitely have the upper hand, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that he could kill them on the spot.
"Your name is Zhang... Lingyu, right? I saw you when we went to help Lingyue Mountain back then."
Zhang Lingyu suddenly looked up.
With a smile on his face, True Monarch Bai Yan cast an approving glance at him and continued, "I never imagined that a mere early Foundation Establishment cultivator from back then would have reached Core Formation today, and even killed a Golden Core cultivator in your first battle. Well done."
"And you also helped Siyu a lot at the Spirit Puppet Sect ruins."
"Thank you for your praise, True Lord. My cooperation with Fellow Daoist Song during the Spirit Puppet Sect was nothing. As for killing Xue Yangguang, I couldn't have done it alone. Fellow Daoist Song was a great help," Zhang Lingyu replied.
The man in white smiled without saying a word, as if he had seen everything but hadn't pointed it out.
The Xuan Shui Master and the others standing nearby were secretly surprised, not expecting that Zhang Lingyu and Song Siyu had known each other for so long...
When he saw the man looking at him, he hurriedly said, "True Lord, what do you think we should do next?"
"Fellow Daoist Kuilin has sent people to gather intelligence in various places. I believe news will come back soon. You should focus on healing your injuries first, as you may soon have to run around putting out fires." True Monarch Bai Yan cast his gaze into the distance and said calmly.
Everyone followed his gaze to the east, understanding his meaning.
The territory bordering the Zhao Kingdom and the Wanling Mountains is vast, and Tianliu City is merely the largest pass within it. Just like Lingyue Mountain, which Zhang Lingyu and his group once guarded, it was also subject to attacks from beast tides.
It is highly likely that one or more passes have been breached by the demon race and demonic cultivators, allowing them to advance unimpeded.
After all, the goal of the State of Chu was to destroy the State of Zhao, so there was no need for them to fight to the death at Tianliu City.
Upon receiving the order, everyone immediately headed into the city. Those Golden Core cultivators like Zhang Lingyu, who were not seriously injured, sat on the city wall to heal themselves in case of unforeseen circumstances.
Instead of immediately healing his injuries, he headed towards the family cultivators.
Zhang Xingyao and his men had already gathered their clansmen together, awaiting further instructions.
Seeing the man in blue fall from mid-air, she finally felt relieved and quickly went forward to greet him.
"Uncle, how is it?"
"Our family is alright; none of us at the Foundation Establishment stage have perished, eleven at the late Qi Refining stage, and twenty-four at the mid-stage..."
"Uncle, how is it?"
"Our family is alright; none of us at the Foundation Establishment stage have perished, eleven at the late Qi Refining stage, and twenty-four at the mid-stage..."
Zhang Xingyao said in a deep voice, "The vassal families below suffered the most casualties. Two Foundation Establishment cultivators died... and nearly half of the Qi Refining cultivators were also killed or wounded."
"That's good."
After so many years of development, the Zhang family has acquired top-quality magical artifacts and cultivation techniques. Other families are different; they have already exhausted too much of their resources in order to reach the Foundation Establishment stage, so what good things could they possibly have?
They couldn't possibly take things out of the treasury for their vassal families to use.
After briefly explaining the current situation, Zhang Lingyu instructed, "All seriously injured clansmen should retreat back to the city to heal. The rest, Uncle, will be led by you and stationed on the city wall."
"I see."
Zhang Xingyao nodded and immediately took the man away.
As for Zhang Lingyu, he flew to a secluded place, first silently swallowed a pill to restore his mana, and then opened the intelligence system.
It would have been better not to look at it, because once I did, my heart was immediately filled with turmoil.
[Level 6 Intelligence: Ge Qing, a Golden Core cultivator from Blood Dragon Stronghold in Yanxing County, Zhao State, has colluded with a demonic sect in Chu State, killed the Golden Core cultivator guarding Qinglin Mountain, and secretly opened the pass. If you encounter him, please proceed with caution.]
"No wonder they left; it wasn't that they broke through the formation, but rather that someone opened it for them!"
Compared to the two passes behind Tianliu City, the area behind Qinglin Mountain is flat and open. If we attack into the Zhao Kingdom from here, those families and sects will be easy prey.
As for Blood Dragon Stronghold...
They are also a local Golden Core force in Yanxing County, and because they are close to Qinglin Mountain, they have set up a garrison there.
Speaking of which, when Zhang Lingyu left the Jade Spirit Valley Secret Realm, if it weren't for the Small Teleportation Talisman, he would probably have been killed on the spot by the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Blood Dragon Stronghold.
Since this family was somewhat inclined towards the demonic path, it's not surprising that they would betray us at this critical juncture.
The key issue is the impact... it's just too huge.
He managed to keep his expression calm, trying not to let outsiders notice anything amiss.
At the same time, he took out a map from his storage bag.
The map above shows the locations of all the passes and sects in the entire Zhao state. It was given to him by his sect after he became a guest elder.
There's no other reason than that if Blood Dragon Stronghold could betray them, then there must be other forces colluding with the Chu Kingdom as well.
Perhaps every pass has one, and even right now, in Tianliu City, it's the same.
Zhang Lingyu's gaze deepened as he looked at one particular spot and murmured:
"Fragrant Valley..."
......
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