The Legend of Swing Sword and Execution of Demons

Late November, just before the winter solstice.

Compared to last year's long winter with clouds and fog but no snow, this year's winter has been much better.

In the northern part of Zhongzhou, snowflakes were already falling in the sky.

In the northwest and north-central regions, the Fifth Marquis completed the recovery of lost territories and brought back the original owners of the two lands to rebuild their homes.

Niu Kelian was tasked with rebuilding the military defense line in the northeast and guarding against the spying and invasion of the Goryeo and Japanese allied forces.

Since mid-October, the strategic focus of the entire Central Plains has shifted entirely to the three southern battlefields.

He entered and exited the gates of Youjing City at least three times a day to receive frontline military intelligence and imperial edicts concerning the southern battlefield.

The only exception was at the end of October.

At that time, there were even seven urgent reports from the front lines and ten emergency orders issued in a single day.

The Luzhou Navy, which was cooperating with the Suzhou Navy to intercept the enemy, was lured into an encirclement by the Japanese and Goryeo navies, suffered a crushing defeat, and was almost annihilated!
Taking advantage of the weakened coastal defenses of Luzhou, the Japanese forces broke through the waves and landed on the beach under cover of darkness, reaching the outskirts of Yanxia County in three days and three nights.

Fortunately, the prefect of Yanxia County reacted in time and did not repeat the mistakes of his predecessor. He defended the city and sent urgent messages for help and warnings to the surrounding areas.

After three days of holding out, reinforcements arrived from all directions, preventing the Japanese pirates from taking the opportunity to open up new land battlefields and start a prairie fire.

Although the Oirat forces were doomed, the Eastern Ying, in alliance with the Poisonous Zhu, launched a bloody battle against the Luo Yue and Zhongzhou forces. They also cooperated with the Goguryeo forces to inflict heavy losses on Zhongzhou once again. The single-line battle in Fujian and Zhejiang was a back-and-forth stalemate with the Zhongzhou army, but they showed no signs of defeat. Naturally, they were unwilling to give up and intensified their preparations for a new offensive.

The rampant spread of corpses that had infiltrated the southwestern inland region of Zhongzhou due to the plague was effectively controlled as some righteous heroes who had finished fighting the Oirat Mongols arrived to provide assistance.

Taking Yunze Realm as an example, nearly a thousand righteous warriors relied on their mobility to set up a flexible defense line in the northeast of Yunze Realm, patrolling day and night, and discovering traces of zombie soldiers and armies at any time, with three or four hundred people gathering at any time to carry out the cleanup.

The same flexible clearing and defense line also appeared in the Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yuegui regions.

Meanwhile, nearly half of the top experts in the Central Plains martial arts world have crossed the border and are approaching Ji Mucheng, the culprit behind the zombie horde.

The final curtain of this decapitation battle may fall on Mount Buding, on the banks of the Buding River in Poisonous India.

……

……

Undetermined River, Undetermined Mountain.

It is located 500 li southwest of Longjie Ferry.

It roughly belonged to the Central Plains region more than 500 years ago.

According to the ancient geography records of Zhongzhou, this place is located at the junction of tectonic plates, where earth dragons frequently rise and the earth shakes several times a year.

Over the course of a century, the Buding River has changed its course no less than ten times.

The river's flow, depth, and clarity are unpredictable, hence its name, "Unpredictable River."

The mountain range stretches for hundreds of miles, and its terrain changes frequently over the past three to five hundred years. Sometimes it forms winding valleys, sometimes it stands out as a solitary and precipitous peak, and sometimes it is recessed into a bowl-shaped basin. The name "unpredictable mountain" is truly fitting.

Unsuitable for land reclamation, unable to erect walls or buildings, and therefore difficult to govern, this area was removed from the Central Plains territory long before the Zhu family took control of the Central Plains.

The Poisonous Indians, on the other hand, saw any opportunity to profit and didn't hesitate to take advantage of it.

Since the rise of the Poisonous Mongols in their eastern expedition, Ji Mucheng has chosen this unpredictable land as his outpost base.

Firstly, the Buding Mountain Range has a large east-west span and a vast area, providing ample space to accommodate both material reserves and manpower.

As for the earth dragon turning over, it only has a greater impact and causes more harm to the living. As for a pile of corpses, as long as the head is still there, Himeki Cheng can turn decay into magic.

Given his composure and skills, building a simple hut in the mountains or living in a cave is nothing compared to his past experiences of sleeping in the open.

Secondly, Ji Mucheng believed that no matter how skilled the martial arts practitioners in Zhongzhou were, they could not predict the future and could not come to survey and collect information on the current state of the unpredictable terrain and landforms.

Even if a capable person comes here, they still have to feel their way across the river and climb the mountain in the dark.

With Ji Mucheng in charge of the home field, he could wait in comfort and, with his foresight, confront the ignorant. Naturally, he had no fear of any enemy!
Especially after suffering heavy losses in the battle of Yunni Swamp more than half a month ago, Ji Mucheng's arrangement at least helped him stabilize his rear and still had solid capital to engage in a new round of competition with the Jianghu of Zhongzhou, so that he would not be directly outmaneuvered!
……

……

At the time of the winter solstice in the Central Plains, the area around the Duzhu Buding Mountains is still bathed in mild and pleasant sunshine.

The pure white Han Gong Zhe Gui sword and the bright silver iron flower sword gleamed in the morning light.

Dressed in a smart outfit, Jiang Yichen and Leng Mei arrived at the Uncertain River north of Uncertain Mountain. They no longer needed to feel their way across the river or climb the mountain in the dark.

To hunt living people, they can use the darkness as cover to become night owls.

There is no need to travel at night to deal with the dead, or more precisely, corpses controlled by Gu worms.

According to the analysis of these corpse gu by Gu Fairy Ji Qianlin before her death, the corpse soldiers controlled by the corpse gu had long lost their five senses. The corpse soldiers were not afraid of pain or death, which also meant that the corpse soldiers could not hear or see.

The reason why the Corpse Soldiers can detect the whereabouts of living people and pursue them is mainly due to the Corpse Gu's sensitivity to unusual sounds and its parasitic instinct specifically targeting living people.

The undead warriors who may retain some of their consciousness, be able to hear and see, possess the ability to directly transmit information, and have doubled their combat power, exceeding the scope of what the Corpse Gu parasitism should be, were likely created by Ji Mucheng using forbidden secret techniques unknown to others.

Under the bright sun, as long as Jiang and Leng maintain a sufficient distance and keep their voices down, they can move freely even in front of a group of corpse soldiers.

Even if they encountered some guards, their abilities would not make it difficult for them to evade their notice.

However, if they come at night, the light is insufficient and their vision is limited, which is to use their own weaknesses to attack the enemy's strengths.

This mountain range is now Ji Mucheng's main base.

There were tens of thousands of corpse soldiers inside; whether it was one hundred thousand, two hundred thousand, or three hundred thousand was unknown.

Ji Mucheng dispatched ten undead warriors to participate in the battle of Cloud Mud Swamp, but only Youxian, Yulin, and Yu Shou Nu Pili, whose arm was severed by the combined efforts of three members of the Netherworld Sect, escaped.

Of the ten troublesome undead warriors that Ji Qianlin mentioned, Duo Mingze, Du Ziteng, Xiao Xiong, and the aforementioned three are still alive.

It remains to be seen whether, in the coming days, any newly deceased martial artists from Zhongzhou will be chosen by Ji Mucheng to bolster the already dwindling undead warrior group of sixteen.

Jiang and Leng also came here with the mission of investigating the details, but this was just a side matter.

As things stand, the Zhongzhou government can only focus on securing the rear; the task of penetrating deep into the enemy's lair to eliminate future troubles falls to these江湖人 (jianghu people).

The forty men at the very front will not receive any further support and will have to rely entirely on their quick thinking and adaptability.

Even if all forty people were top experts in the Central Plains martial arts world, let alone facing 300,000 corpse soldiers, facing 100,000 corpse soldiers would be a pipe dream, and facing 10,000 corpse soldiers head-on would probably cost many of their lives.

Protracted warfare and attrition warfare are the most stable tactics, but capturing the ringleader and eliminating the chief culprit will always be the first choice.

Jiang and Leng possessed espionage and escape abilities recognized by the entire Oirat people. No one else, including themselves, dared to expect that the two of them could reach Ji Mucheng's side as soon as they entered the mountains, kill him in one blow, and end the matter once and for all.

Their primary task was to stir up a hornet's nest and lure the snake out of its hole!

Once a beehive is disturbed, it becomes vulnerable.

Only after the snake is lured out of its hole can it be protected from being poisoned by its hidden attacks!
……

……

In less than an hour, Jiang Yichen and Leng Mei saw not only well-organized and ready-to-fight zombie armies, but also many tents made of corpses that had been preserved.

Only a few living people were seen here and there, either busy in twos and threes or standing guard and patrolling on alert.

Given the vastness of Mount Buding, even with Jiang and Leng's abilities, it would take them two or three days to secretly map out the general route within it.

However, with over ten thousand corpses in the mountains, even the most meticulously crafted map and route would be of little use.

Jiang Yichen and Leng Mei, adhering to the principle that if they were going to stir up a hornet's nest, they should strike where it hurts, did not rush to make a move.

The two finally found their way to the foothills of Mount Buding.

There is a hillside about thirty feet high, but the overall terrain is relatively flat and straight.

The tents used to store the corpses were filled to the brim.

From their vantage point, Jiang and Leng looked down and roughly counted over a thousand tents.

Judging from the way the Poisonous Zhu people piled up corpses, each tent could easily hold at least fifteen to twenty corpses.

Right under their noses were nearly 20,000 fresh soldiers!
This was the largest corpse storage site the two had seen since entering the mountains, and they couldn't help but have a plan to sabotage it.

Upon closer inspection, one can see that a square bronze mirror is placed outside every four or five tents.

It looks to be about the same size as a ripe watermelon.

The two were pondering the purpose of the bronze mirror when suddenly a flash of light appeared!
Hundreds of bronze mirrors suddenly reflected the image!
Each mirror contained a pair of eyes, fixed intently on Jiang Yichen and Leng Mei! (End of Chapter)