The Bad Guys: Everyone, let’s revive the Tang Dynasty together!

Chapter 301 Closing the Net (Part )

After leaving Huagu, the first stop was naturally Luohua Cave. However, after the group passed by this place, they found that just as Du Gong said, the girls of Luohua Cave and Qianwu had disappeared.

Ji Ruxue and Chi Meng were a little worried, but Xiao Yan didn't care.

Luohua Cave has existed for hundreds of years. Southern Xinjiang is extremely vast, with countless mountains standing in it. It is impossible that Luohua Cave has no other place to settle.

After a careful search, everyone discovered that the storage warehouse had been burned down and the murals recording Li Chunfeng's past had been completely destroyed. It was obviously impossible that these were done by the people from the Ten Thousand Poison Cave.

Obviously, because of Xiao Yan's prior reminder, Qian Wu and his party had plenty of time to evacuate before arriving at the Ten Thousand Poison Cave. As for where they were going, perhaps because they were worried about being discovered by the Ten Thousand Poison Cave, Qian Wu did not leave any clues for Xiao Yan and his party.

Once the Luohua Cave was deserted, despite its beautiful scenery, it inevitably became desolate and empty.

This was something that could not be avoided. The hostility of the Ten Thousand Poison Cave was obvious. If the girls from Luohua Cave stayed and fought stubbornly, it would be a loss instead of gain. The ability of the Poison Lord from the Ten Thousand Poison Cave was already top-notch in Raojiang, not to mention the other village chiefs and others who were accompanying him.

The situation on the other side of Luohua Cave is mixed. Although Qianwu is quite powerful, the others are just so-so. They are more than capable of dealing with some small thieves. If the opponent is a powerful force, such as Xiao Yan and his group, they will need to resort to means such as drugging.

So overall, avoiding the sharp edge is the best option.

However, looking at the desolate scene of Luohua Cave, although they sighed, they did not have time to stay here for too long. They immediately returned along the direction they came from the Jijia Tomb without stopping along the way. They only bought some dry food from some villagers' homes for food replenishment. However, they arrived at Raozhong in the evening of the same day.

The name Raozhong sounds like a huge territory, but in fact it is just a big village with a market, inn, households, etc. Because southern Xinjiang is vast and sparsely populated, large areas are primitive forests with few human traces, so Raozhong has become a transit point. People traveling from the south to the north will replenish supplies or rest here.

Over time, Rao Zhong became the largest village in Raojiang except for the Wandu Cave. All forces have set foot here. Although there are not many indigenous people, it is densely populated, like a town in the Central Plains. There are no guards inside, and the guards and patrols are jointly formed by the villages with related interests. Their main function is to maintain order and ensure the normal operation of Rao Zhong.

Therefore, Raozhong is relatively tolerant, and people from all walks of life can thrive here. Some escort agencies responsible for escorting caravans are also set up here. Correspondingly, it has become a gathering place for some independent practitioners of witchcraft to make a living.

Last time, Xiao Yan and his group did not stay in Raozhong. One reason was that several of them had wanted warrants of varying numbers on them at that time, and the other was that they had sufficient supplies and a clear goal along the way, so there was no need to stay here.

But this time, Xiao Yan suggested staying in Rao for one night.

"I have just found it out."

As soon as he entered the room of the inn, You Chuan took off the layers of scarf wrapped around his head and spoke quickly: "The Poison Lord has ordered that the relocation meeting be held in ten days. He said that because of the need to resist the Central Plains, the Ten Thousand Poison Cave needs to train more Gu Masters. This relocation meeting will be held two months in advance, and people from all over Raojiang can participate. Even two days ago, many people have hurriedly left for the Ten Thousand Poison Cave."

"No wonder it feels like there are so many fewer people in Raozhong."

Chi Meng held his chin up, as if thinking, and introduced to Xiao Yan and the other two: "In previous years, the relocation meeting was held in March or April. The weather is best at this time, and all the poisonous insects have become energetic in the new year, just like snakes and nine-fragrant insects, which have all awakened. Some poisonous insects will only hatch from their eggs at this time."

But not everyone has the opportunity to participate in the promotion meeting. They must be the best of each village. On the day of the meeting, in addition to the basic sacrifices and performances, the most important thing is to select a group of excellent Gu Masters and wizards. These people will be awarded the Divine Tool Token by my father. From then on, these people can stay in the Ten Thousand Poison Cave to serve and bring glory to themselves and their families. In addition..."

Chi Meng patted her chest and said with a proud expression: "When they are granted the divine token, the best Gu Masters among them can also receive an ox-horn knife from me. These two items are personally delivered to them by me."

Hearing this, Ji Ruxue subconsciously glanced at the small knife with a horn handle hanging on You Chuan's waist. The sheath was also made of bone and looked very exquisite.

However, I have never seen You Chuan use it. It is obvious that he takes great care of it, and I cannot get a glimpse of the material of the blade. From this, it can be seen that You Chuan is naturally the winner of a certain level promotion conference.

Xiao Yan had to think more deeply. The awarding ceremony of the promotion conference seemed insignificant as King Gu arranged the Saint Maiden, but it was precisely such a trivial detail that could inadvertently cultivate a group of supporters for Chi Meng. The ox-horn knife was not only a symbol of honor, but also represented a relationship between giver and recipient.

The Saint Girl naturally had to inherit the status of the Gu King, but without a group of strong supporters, how could she secure the throne under the other thoughts of some old guys? The Gu King had obviously started to prevent this very early. If he had an accident, he could also ensure that Chi Meng was safe. You Chuan was obviously one of the examples.

Even the Gu King might not have expected that the Poison Guild would wipe out his entire group in one fell swoop.

Xiao Yan had a new understanding of this Gu King, whom he had never met before. It was said that this Gu King was kind, soft-hearted, and short-sighted, but he might not really be such a failure. His mistake was that he trusted his brother too much.

"According to what the master said..."

Xiao Yan propped up the table, on which was a rough sketch of Raojiang drawn by You Chuan. He pointed at the location of the 'Ten Thousand Poison Cave' on the picture and said, "Although the God of War can use dead bodies to raise humanoid monsters that are different from ordinary people, it is only when living people are used as Gu bodies that they become the real God of War. The stronger the original body is, the stronger the God of War raised will be."

From this point of view, the Poison Lord obviously wants to use the promotion meeting as a cover to make all the Gu Masters in Raojiang gather in the Ten Thousand Poison Cave. The promotion meeting is fake, and the real purpose is to train them into military gods. "

Xiao Yan stared at the map on the table and said, "If his plan comes true, there will be at least thousands of these military gods that are several times stronger than corpses. Add to that the corpse monsters he has secretly cultivated over the years, and the number will be too huge."

We are not afraid of ordinary soldiers, but according to the old man, once the God of War leaves the altar, they will be completely insensitive to pain. In addition, they have no other weaknesses except their heads. No matter how you attack, you can't kill them. And their speed is far different from that of ordinary people. Just think about it, a large army of thousands of masters who are equivalent to minor heavenly masters, who are not afraid of death, have no thoughts of their own, and just tear apart all enemies, how can we defeat them?"

You Chuan looked unhappy, but even if he regretted it, it was meaningless, so he could only ask, "What should we do?"

"Divide into three groups."

Xiao Yan propped himself on the table, looked at the people with serious expressions one by one, and said calmly: "Time waits for no one. What we are competing for with the Poison Lord and the people behind him is time. We have made preparations, and they naturally have arrangements, but the Poison Lord can never get around time. In order to make up for this shortcoming, he will definitely try every means to delay us."

"First, rescue the Gu King..."

Hearing this, Chi Meng's face tightened.

After entering Raozhong, in addition to inquiring about the news of the Ten Thousand Poison Cave, they naturally cared about the safety of the Gu King. As expected, the Ten Thousand Poison Cave had already released some clues, saying that the Witch King had found a way to cure the Gu King, and in a few days he would personally perform witchcraft to drive out the disease in the Gu King's body at the Temple of Heaven in the Ten Thousand Poison Cave.

It doesn't matter whether Poison King was there that day. What's important is that it must have been the only chance to rescue Gu King, and it was also the last chance. This is why Xiao Yan and his group had to go even though they knew the word "trap" was written on their faces.

"The matter of the Gu King is of utmost importance." Xiao Yan said, "But there must be many dangers there. Whether it is to test our strength or to catch us all in one fell swoop, the murderous intention of Du Gong there must be indispensable."

Chi Meng clenched her fists and was about to speak when she saw Xiao Yan looking at her: "So Chi Meng and Xue'er, you can't go."

He said without further explanation, "I and Corpse Ancestor will go on this trip. No matter what the situation is, we can fight our way out with the Gu King. At worst, we will have room to escape."

Chi Meng's eyes turned red, but she didn't refute, but just nodded heavily.

Hou Qing naturally had no objection and smiled and nodded. Ji Ruxue did not express her opinion and held the Tang sword in silence.

Xiao Yan then stared at You Chuan again: "The second place is the 32nd Village in the Northern Frontier and the Jiuli Village. You Chuan is the most familiar with it, so you still need to make a trip there. Corpse Ancestor has already made arrangements. You can take him and Chi Meng's tokens with you. However, we cannot estimate the exact time of the Poison Public Altar, so even if you are the latest, you only have ten days."

You Chuan clasped his fists and said, "It is my duty!"

"There is one more place. This is our backup plan." Xiao Yan finally looked at Ji Ruxue and Chi Meng. "To the Dead Creek Forest, Senior Xian Shen still needs you to go there in person. The three of us are in a hurry so we won't go there. When Corpse Ancestor and I rescue the Gu King, we will come to the Dead Creek Forest to meet you. If necessary, you can deploy one or two people in the Dead Creek Forest to support us."

Ji Ruxue nodded without saying anything.

Xiao Yan looked at Chi Meng, hesitated, and said, "Senior Xian Shen may have some connection with the Gu King. Chi Meng, you can have a good exchange with her. As for the Dan Clan, you still need to convince Senior Xian Shen to persuade them."

"Yes!!!" Chi Meng nodded heavily: "I will definitely try my best to convince her!!"

"That's the arrangement. There's no point in saying more. We'll be busy for a long time, and we may not be able to rest for a long time after tonight. If there's nothing else, everyone should get a good night's sleep."

Xiao Yan put away the map and handed You Chuan a letter, telling him that he could give the letter to Xiao Weng in Guishizi on his return. The better to do it sooner rather than later. Xiao Weng was a businessman, and as the saying goes, one doesn't release the eagle until he sees the rabbit. Xiao Weng would not make up his mind without seeing the final situation.

You Chuan said nothing. He was the hardest-working one among the group in the past ten days or so. Because he was worried that he would be too restless to sleep, he gave himself a poisonous insect and went to bed early.

Hou Qing was the one with the least sense of crisis among them, and he disappeared immediately. It was very likely that he went out for a stroll.

Chi Meng was worried, worried about her father and everyone else. She couldn't sleep and refused to use the Gu. She sat by the window, looking at the waning moon in the sky, not knowing what she was thinking.

Ji Ruxue looked at her, not knowing how to comfort her, so she had to leave the room quietly and find Xiao Yan next door.

Xiao Yan did not take a break either, as if he had expected Ji Ruxue to come. He opened a jar of wine that he had bought from the shopkeeper at some point in time, and took a sip without taking a cup. Then he looked at Ji Ruxue with a smile: "Want a sip?" Ji Ruxue walked forward silently, holding the jar of wine directly, and took a big sip of the wine. She choked twice, but just wiped the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, and then stared down at Xiao Yan's eyes, as if telling him: "This girl is not weak at all!"

Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh and asked softly, "Did you suffer along the way?"

Ji Ruxue's face easily turns red when she drinks. After taking such a big sip just now, her cheeks were already flushed.

When she heard this question, she suddenly got the courage from nowhere, and pinched Xiao Yan's chin, staring at him with hatred in her almond-shaped eyes: "Xiao Yan! In your eyes, have I always been that weak woman who can't even lift a finger to tie a chicken?!"

Xiao Yan was obviously stunned. He felt that he had never had such an idea before, but he immediately realized that although he thought that the hardships he had experienced along the way were nothing special, he never imposed his feelings on others, so he always felt a little guilty towards Ji Ruxue.

Originally, according to the original plan, I was going to bring her to the south to enjoy the mountains and rivers, and maybe I would make good use of the privileges of the Daliang Imperial Envoy to enjoy the customs of the Chu State. However, it was really not an easy journey.

But our Lady Ji really doesn't seem to care...

Okay, okay, I underestimated Miss Ji.

Xiao Yan smiled bitterly at first, but before he could explain, he felt a chill on his lips.

After a moment, Ji Ruxue raised her face, took back her hand that was around Xiao Yan's neck, then stood up and left, only looking back briefly at the door.

"Please, don't die."

As the door creaked shut, Xiao Yan wiped the smell of alcohol and fragrance from his lips and smiled.

Well, forget about what he had asked Ji Ruxue to do. Xiao Yan rubbed his face, walked to the window, and whistled with his fingers.

After a while, the sound of flapping wings was heard in the sky, and a Saker Falcon landed on his arm, tilted its head, and its eyes were bright in the darkness.

Xiao Yan tied a letter to its foot and fed it a large piece of meat before letting it fly away.

Watching Hai Dongqing disappear into the skyline in the blink of an eye, Xiao Yan couldn't help but mutter to himself: "Speaking of which, Feng Xiang's letter should have arrived soon..."

------

Nanping State, Panyu.

There were flags everywhere at the foot of the city, and outside the city there was a camp for several miles, with large flags with the word "Chu" fluttering in the wind.

Most of the moat of Panyu City had been filled up, and more than a dozen large pits had been dug to burn the corpses. There were few torches on the city walls, as if the number of defenders was very small.

In the camp, King Ma Yin of Chu was very proud.

He is already fifty-eight years old this year, his beard is already gray, and his body is thin. As it is winter, although it is not very cold around the South China Sea, he still wears a thick fur coat and does not wear a military uniform in the camp, just like an ordinary rich man.

But tonight, he still stood on the watchtower in the fierce cold wind, shielding his forehead as he looked at Panyu City, the capital of Nanping State.

"Liu Yin, this villain, has been fighting with me in Lingnan for nearly ten years. He has always been against me and is a great threat to my Great Chu. I never thought that I, at the age of nearly sixty, would still see the day when his army was defeated and the city was broken."

Ma Yin looked around, stroked his beard and laughed.

Several generals and counselors also echoed and laughed. They simply believed that Liu Yin would not be able to hold on for more than a few days. When they captured this guy for the king, they would make sure he submitted to the king.

The king and his ministers were chatting and laughing in this cold night, which was a wonderful story. Several historians of the Great Chu were writing furiously below, and they were enjoying it very much.

The sound of horse hooves galloped into the camp. The rider was covered in dust, his lips were chapped, and there were several recognition flags on his back. Before he could stop his horse, he rolled off the horse, held out a file, and after seeing Ma Yin's face in a daze, he gasped and spoke hoarsely.

"Your Majesty... Zhu Jin of Huainan has plundered Yuezhou, leaving the Dongting Lake navy empty. He, he... has already approached Changsha Prefecture! Your Majesty, please ask Your Majesty to return to his army!"

This piece of news was like a bolt from the blue, striking the emperor and his ministers so suddenly and unexpectedly.

……

Inside Panyu city, inside the royal palace, Gong Yangzuo walked out of the pavilion and stretched out his arm, causing the Saker Falcon to land on his arm.

"Your Excellency is well prepared!"

He read the letter and his face was filled with joy. Then he sneered and tore up the letter paper, then turned around and looked at the bad guys.

"Keep an eye on Liu Yin. If the Chu army withdraws, don't let him go out without permission. You have other important uses for Nanping's troops. Remember, don't let old You Yi know."

"Order!"

------

Fengxiang, Huanyinfang.

There was a knock on the door outside the empress's boudoir.

"Speak." The empress spoke without even raising her head.

A whisper came from outside the door: "In Raojiang, a letter from Ji Ruxue arrived in Fengxiang. It might be a letter from Master Xiao to you, but I am incompetent and it has been intercepted by King Qi..."

The Empress paused holding the brush, and then said calmly: "Try to find out the contents of the letter."

"Yes……"

---

Inside the palace, Li Maozhen sat behind the desk in the study and looked expressionlessly at the words "Personally written by Qi Wang Li Maozhen" on the envelope. He knew it was the letter written by the so-called Xiao Yan to the empress, so he smiled disdainfully and opened it casually.

Fanyintian stood respectfully below, staring at the ground, not knowing what to think.

Suddenly, Li Maozhen's almond-shaped eyes narrowed suddenly.

On the letter paper.

"I have come a thousand miles to visit you, just to see you, but you are no longer living in one of the Twelve Caves, which is a real pity for me."

I think you have returned to Fengxiang. I have thirty-six men in Fengxiang. I hope you can properly settle them. If you treat me well, I will be grateful. If I have been negligent, I will ask you for advice when we meet in the future. However, when we meet, I will not be the only one in Fengxiang City. "

Brother, please don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Li Maozhen clenched the letter tightly, his eyes full of murderous intent, and his fingers were shaking when he read to the end.

There are only four words at the end of the signature.

"Yanzhou, Li Jiu."

(End of this chapter)