Xuanjian Xianzu

Chapter 1274 Pacification
His words resounded throughout the universe, causing each of the immortals suspended in the night to react differently. Liu Changdie's expression was complicated, Cheng Qian was lost in thought, Yu Xi's eyes dimmed, and even Chang Yun stopped smiling and remained silent, pressing his black umbrella.

Only then can one truly understand the vastness of the universe and the insignificance of one's own body…

Those who can cultivate to the Purple Mansion may have different temperaments and aspirations, but which one of them is not a genius? Before Cheng Qian left the mountain, he was the number one genius who was only seen once in a hundred years at Guoling Peak. Before Liu Changdie became a Daoist, he was a formation master who traveled the world and seized every opportunity. Even Yu Xi—now like a withered bone in a tomb—was once full of vigor and spirit when he was young. He was once patted on the shoulder by the Purple Mansion and praised as "You have obtained the fortune of Ruzhou for three hundred years!"
Who didn't step over millions of others to get here?

The battle between Gongsun Bei and Li Zhouwei was so intense that they were speechless and ashamed of their own inferiority. With such last words, neither Ke Chengqian nor Cui Jueyin could remain unmoved.
Isn't this also the sentiment of all the Purple Palaces?

'Only then did I realize... the vastness of the universe!'

Until his last words were spoken, Yin Juexi, being more straightforward, showed a change of heart, even taking a step forward and whispering:
"The King of Wei...this man..."

His voice, though soft, was clear against the night sky. Before he could speak, Gongsun Bei laughed and said:

"Fellow Daoist, there's no need to plead for me! If those two traitors, Jiang Toushou and Xiao Disa, can use my plan to quickly seize Xiangxiang, even if they can't pacify Luoxia, they can at least eliminate one or two supernatural beings—who knows, it might just be you, Fellow Daoist!"

Yin Jue's play was interrupted, but he felt his body sink as Yu Xi pulled him back. Although the old man didn't recognize him, there was a pleading look in his eyes as he said:
"The Gongsun family is poor and destitute, powerless and without influence..."

Yin Juexi then remained silent.

The man knelt on the ground, the bloodshot color in his eyes had faded, and they were now bright and piercing. The light above the sky flickered. The King of Wei said nothing more, but instead took off the royal axe from his waist, and the gleam on the long blade became even brighter.

Spectroscopy!
In an instant, brilliant light flashed across the sky for a moment, followed by a burst of intense blue-yellow light shooting into the sky!
The bluish-yellow light obscured the sun, stirring the cold night. Raindrops rolled down from the sky, but they were not as cool as autumn dew; instead, they were hot and vibrant, drawing away the moisture from the ground and causing dust to rise everywhere.

The divine power has fallen!
General Gongsun Bei of the Great Zhao Divine Suburbs died in battle before the Zan Gate.

'Boye...is in my possession!'

The King of Wei raised his long battle-axe, wiped away non-existent blood from the blade with a hint of regret, and finally spoke:
"Your wish will be granted."

As for Gongsun Bei's words, "urgently seize Xiangxiang," Li Zhouwei understood the general meaning after hearing those four words.

Is it possible to succeed? It's not impossible.

If Zhao could leave Zanmen a little earlier, before midnight, and take advantage of Li Zhouwei's hasty attack on Xiangxiang while he was in Liangchuan, they would still have the strength to fight. Every moment that is delayed will make the situation more and more unfavorable for the Zhao people!

"By the time I arrived in Ruzhou and subdued Yu Xi, Xiangxiang was already greatly stabilized. Moreover, when Gongsun Bei and his men came to Zanmen, we had already been lying in wait at Boye for quite some time!"

Li Zhouwei had investigated the matter thoroughly and could see it clearly. The situation had reached this point, and no matter how much Gongsun Bei tried to cause trouble, he could not escape Li Zhouwei's control.

'Moreover, Shi Xiu is unmoved by profit and refrains from action even in the face of danger. How could he possibly work with the likes of Jiang Toushou and Xiao Disa? When he arrived at the pass and saw that Luoyang was completely silent, he should have known that his death was imminent…'

In an instant, sand and stones flew, and the sky was filled with smoke and mist, obscuring the sun. Li Zhouwei put away his long axe and looked at the crowd behind him. Cui Jueyin took a step back and knelt down. In an instant, respectful voices arose.

A cloud of dust engulfed the sky and earth. Li Zhouwei nodded slightly and said:

"Sorry to trouble you all."

"Ultimately, it will require the strength of the King of Wei to establish the dynasty!"

Chang Yun smiled slightly.

This guy always hides his true abilities, and he always drags out his duels with anyone. He was mediocre when he was under the command of the Great Zhao, but now that he's been brought up to deal with Jiang Toushou, the sixth Mahakasyapa of Dayang Mountain, who is not bad in magic and weaponry, he has actually managed to fight to a draw.

Although Xiao Disa watched from the sidelines as Gongsun Bei fell, Jiang Toushou was willing to help, but he was held back by Chang Yun and couldn't free up his hands—if it were Chen Yin, he probably wouldn't have been able to do so.

Li Zhouwei nodded to him, his gaze finally settling on the large formation beneath his feet.

The Zhu Zi Mansion fought a fierce battle in Boye, a truly earth-shattering affair. The Qiao Clan cowered within their great formation, not daring to move. Although the supernatural powers outside had subsided somewhat, the Qiao family members were in a state of utter chaos, with no one daring to venture out. This caused Chang Yun to frown deeply, and Li Zhouwei also remarked:

"This formation is the only defensible place in Boye, and it cannot be lost... I'm afraid we should still find Jia Zan and have him persuade them to surrender."

A man stepped forward, his demeanor refined and his expression calm. He spoke softly:

"Perhaps I can give it a try!"

It was Cui Jueyin.

He bowed and said:
"Boye is a fertile land beyond the Great Wall. In the past, our ancestors were enfeoffed at Hangu Pass and granted a fief in Boye. At that time, Boye encompassed Yinling, Xiangxiang and other places..."

Chang Yun suddenly realized what was happening and said:

"So this is the fiefdom of Shangyao!"

The ancestor he mentioned was none other than Cui Yan, the True Lord of Shangyao!
Chang Yun gave a thumbs-up, then turned to Li Zhouwei and said:
"I've heard that the 'Huaijiang Map' in the hands of the King of Wei is signed 'Cui Yan of Boye'."

Li Zhouwei nodded thoughtfully, then picked up the [Huaijiang Map] from his waist. Cui Jueyin raised an eyebrow and said:

"Exactly."

He said softly:

"The True Lord governs with benevolence and wins the hearts of the people with his generosity. The people of Boye are well-off and have received much kindness from him. I thought that a thousand years had passed and things had changed, but I never expected that when my subordinates conquered Xiangxiang, they were informed by the Wei family that the Qiao and Wei families once lived in Boye and received much kindness from the former country. The Qiao family's ancestor once held the third rank, which was personally promoted by the True Lord!"

Li Zhouwei nodded and said:
"You may try it."

Cui Jueyin then descended on the light, stopping in front of the formation, and said softly:
"Gentlemen, the Great Zhao has been defeated and has fled. I am Cui Jueyin, a descendant of the Cui clan of Guanzhong in the former Wei dynasty. I request that you all open your battle formation to welcome the king and avoid being killed!"

Upon hearing this, chaos erupted inside, and a timid voice stammered:

"But after Shangyao?"

To be honest, the Cui family of Chongzhou is quite distant from that Shangyao Zhenjun. This Zhenjun's direct descendants numbered in the Purple Mansion, but all of them died for their country when Wei fell, none of them surviving...

He could only say, with a complicated expression:

"Yes."

The Qiao clan members, having reached the Foundation Establishment stage, had no choice in the matter. After the great battle, whoever fell would be chosen. They only hoped it wouldn't be that monk who had been previously turned away; they hadn't considered that anyone from the Song Dynasty would protect them. In a moment of hesitation, they said:
"Please, sir, save us!"

Then the great formation was activated with a roar, and the inside was full of cracks, flashing with fierce purple-gold fire. The fire burned the entire area, leaving it full of cracks. Many precious spiritual objects and spiritual woods dimmed in the fire, and there were even charred corpses lying in the pavilions!

The moment the great formation was activated, the fire suddenly stopped, then leaped up and transformed into a streak of purple-gold light, attempting to escape.

Cui Jueyin glanced at it and said in a daze:

"【Guangshao Purple Gold Flame】?"

It turned out that the Qiao family's great formation had been in disrepair for many years and had no one to manage it. After being hit by the full force of the Mahayana, its external light was dim and unstable, but inside it was shaking violently, causing the spiritual fire in the formation to leak out and the flames to shoot into the sky!
This fire is located in the "Yang Fire" position, which implies change and ascent. Even ordinary Purple Mansion cultivators would find it difficult to control. If someone with a Purple Mansion cultivation were present, they could use ancestral treasures to subdue it. However, the people in the formation are only Foundation Establishment cultivators, so naturally they have no means to subdue it...

Outside, a fierce battle raged in the Purple Mansion; inside, the spiritual fire roared. Qiao Shi was on tenterhooks, watching the fire grow larger and larger, causing death and injury. Even if Cui Jueyin hadn't come to persuade her, Qiao Shi couldn't have held on any longer!

Now that the great formation is activated, Cui Jueyin naturally cannot let the fire escape. He raised his hand, made a hand seal, and cast a spell. The Xuan Ruler at his waist leaped up, blooming with mountain and river patterns like water ripples, and held the fire back.

The 'Eternal Brightness Step' immediately flickered and spread outwards, suppressing it with streaks of heavenly light and flames—the 'Eternal Brightness Step' has the ability to bind and subdue, and while it's hard to say whether the [Guangshao Purple Gold Flame] has a master, suppressing an unowned spiritual flame is naturally a piece of cake.

Faced with the chaotic state of the formation, Cui Jueyin could only wave his sleeve to extinguish the colorful light covering the ground, and whispered:
"Senior Liu!"

A silver light flashed as Li Zhouwei swung his halberd, finally turning to survey the crowd and speaking softly:
"Although the monks have retreated, Luoyang is not yet safe. Liangchuan and Ruzhou both need to be guarded... Since Yuanbian Zhenren and Qingfeng are in Boye, we still need a high-level cultivator—Fellow Daoist Changyun, this place is entrusted to you."

Liangchuan at least has a majestic mountain, while Boye has nothing but a dilapidated array. Li Zhouwei naturally assigned his strongest warrior, Chang Yun, to this location. He then looked at Yu Xi and said:

"Liangchuan still needs a real person to go there."

Yu Xi was not surprised. After all, he was a mid-stage Purple Mansion cultivator. Even if he had really given his all in this great battle, Li Zhouwei would never feel at ease arranging for him to stay in Ruzhou.

The old man said softly:

"I am determined to defend Liangchuan without fear, and I also ask the King of Wei to consider my earnest intentions and ensure that my Ruzhou is not lost."

Although he also yielded, his tone was noticeably more respectful than before. Li Zhouwei needed him greatly at this moment, so he returned the favor and said...

“I have witnessed the merits of Master Yu. When it is time to reward him, I request General Yang to report to the Emperor and establish a memorial for Master Yu to repay his loyalty.”

Yu Xi was filled with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow.

Being in the north, he was aware of the martial arts training and understood that this was a good opportunity to add a Purple Mansion to his family and to bridge the gap between the past and the future. However, this also meant that the Yu family was tied to the war machine of the Song Dynasty. If Luoyang were to return to Zhao in the future, things would not be so simple.

This wouldn't have been a problem. At worst, the clan would split into two branches, one in the north and one in the south. A group of clansmen went south to join them. The central government of the Great Zhao collapsed, and the Yu clan hadn't produced any outstanding figures for many years. He, as the only hope, couldn't even go into the mountains to cultivate. It wasn't like the Wei or Tao clans, which had been almost completely forgotten. In the past, he was indignant, but now it seems that it might not be a bad thing.

He hesitated for a moment, quickly weighed the pros and cons, bowed deeply, and said:
“I am deeply ashamed and disgraced by the King of Wei’s awe-inspiring power. I dare not claim credit for my actions. Now, I will defend Liangchuan and keep the Zhao people out of the mountains, so as not to cause the King of Wei any worry!”

Upon hearing this, Cheng Qian, who was standing nearby, was stunned. Li Zhouwei chuckled and said:

"Chengqian, you and Master Jingjiao go to Ruzhou."

Cheng Qian nodded in understanding, while Lin Chengsheng glanced at him thoughtfully before taking off on the wind. Yu Xi, whose heart had been hanging in suspense, finally relaxed slightly as he listened to the King of Wei speak:
"If you guard it well, you won't be busy for nothing. Just wait for things to be dealt with here, and I will go to Ruzhou myself."

Yu Xi nodded repeatedly and rode away on the wind. Only then did Li Zhouwei turn to the side, where Yin Juexi had already brought up Gongsun Bei's relics.

Both were affected by the same technique. Jiang Fuwang's spiritual armor shattered, while Gongsun Bei's helmet remained intact, only dull and lifeless. This was precisely because the man's armor was of inferior quality. Even when its master was seriously injured and died, the damage was minimal, unlike the Jiang family's armor, which allowed Jiang Fuwang, with only two supernatural powers, to escape.

The other weapon was the Blood Axe that the general had refined his entire life. The rest of the items were in disarray. The storage bag shattered during the clash of supernatural powers, and the items scattered in all directions with his fall. Yin Juexi had only picked up two spiritual resources, 'Shaoyang' and 'Xiqi', from the fields. The rest of the items were scattered, and it was unknown which minor cultivator would benefit from them.

'A cultivator at the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion realm, indeed, has fallen on hard times.'

He weighed the blood axe in his hand, realizing it was primarily composed of "Xi Qi" and "Shao Yang," and could only regretfully put it away, listening to Yin Jue's teasing laugh:
"As expected, they surrendered at the mere sight of us, and we conquered the city in just a few days! Congratulations, Your Majesty!"

Although the troops under Luoyang were not enough to withstand the counterattack of the Great Zhao, the overall situation was now somewhat stable. As long as they appeased the Tao family, stabilized their position, and waited for the Great Song reinforcements to arrive and defend the city, everything was going quite smoothly. Li Zhouwei was in high spirits, and as he rode the wind, he laughed and said:
"really?"

Even though the King of Wei was smiling, the moment those two words were uttered, Yin Juexi still felt an inexplicable pressure. The man lowered his head, followed closely, and whispered:
"When I was cultivating in the mountains, I heard the teachings of the Great Master. Although the old man did not know that Your Majesty would launch a surprise attack on Luoyang, he predicted that Your Majesty would come here one day, and all the cultivators would surely surrender at the mere sight of him..."

Li Zhouwei raised an eyebrow:
"How could the Great Master, who lives far away in the South China Sea, be so knowledgeable about the current situation in the Great Zhao?"

"A true master looks at the terrain, not the situation."

Yin Juexi's expression was solemn as he said:
"The Great Master said... Small hills are easy to move, but majestic mountains are hard to find. Luoxia does not have the magnificence of Tangdao or Dali, nor the ruggedness of Xiaoshi or Jingchuan. It is just a river valley. Moreover, because it lost its foundation after proving the Dao, it is controlled by those who are high up and has not been in the hands of the cultivators in Luoxia for many years."

"The lack of spiritual energy in the earth's veins, even weakening the Purple Mansion Grand Array, indicates that the cultivators of Luoxia lack a solid foundation. The Central Plains are often plagued by war, and the fertile plains are leaky everywhere. Today the enemy leaves, tomorrow the invaders come. Their rulers cannot hold out for long and will inevitably feel anxious and wronged, gradually surrendering their banners. With this kind of influence passed down through generations, their descendants will surely regard surrender as the first principle."

"Qiao and Wei were once Wei ministers, Yang and Ju were originally Liang generals, and Jia and Yu were also feudal lords. They all surrendered several times and returned to Zhao. Therefore, they were persuaded to surrender. [They were principled when they were on the mountain, but spineless when they were in the wilderness. They were arrogant and domineering, and when they were in a lowly position, they were persuaded to surrender.] This is the [surrender] of the 'Capital Guard'. It is confirmed by the supernatural power of the 'Southern River of Sorrow'. We cannot ignore the need to attack them."

Li Zhouwei smiled and glanced at him, a hint of amazement in his eyes, and said:

"The Yin family, a lineage of generals, has not been broken—look at this Yinling Mausoleum, is it high or low?"

Yin Jue said softly:

"It's probably not the geographical advantage that's the problem, but rather the lack of harmony among the people."

Li Zhouwei laughed heartily, a growing curiosity growing about the great master he had never met before. He glanced once more at the dark, gloomy world and said:
"Let's go, come with me to Yinling."