Longzang

Chapter 1134 Living a Hard Life
In the winter of the fifteenth year of Hongjing, Qingming divided his troops into three routes and launched a full-scale attack on Ganzhou. Several well-repaired and rebuilt fortresses in the south of Ganzhou were all captured in a single battle.

Immediately, the Qingming army advanced slowly, while several vanguard legions surged forward, directly attacking the second line of defense, encircling all three counties of the Lü family in Gannan, and blocking the retreat route of 200,000 elite southern legions.

Afterwards, Wei Ying abandoned the dangerous area and did not wait for his allies to come and surround him. He personally led the entire army in a charge, with 30,000 against 200,000. Then, he led 300 Dao Foundation cultivators as the vanguard and rushed straight to the enemy's central army. He even killed the late-stage Lu family general with his early-stage Dharma Aspect cultivation.

The Southern Army was thus defeated, with most surrendering and a few escaping into the wilderness and mountains.

In this battle, 150,000 enemy soldiers were captured, and Wei Ying made the greatest contribution.

The Lü family's southern army still has more than 100,000 men scattered throughout the three prefectures. Now that their retreat route has been cut off, most of them have surrendered. It is only a matter of time before the three prefectures of Gannan fall into Wei Yuan's hands.

At the border of Ningxia and Gansu, on a rocky mountain, an elderly woman sat calmly atop the peak. Behind her stood more than a dozen young people, who appeared to be her disciples or relatives.

The old woman said, "The Azure Flying Ships will pass by in a while. These ships are large but not sturdy, and quite fragile. Although the escorts are Dharma Aspects, their cultivation is mediocre and they are no match for me. I will take action and destroy the fleet. You should record this with your image-recording orbs as proof of your allegiance."

A sweet young girl mustered her courage and asked, "Why should we serve the Lü family? Qingming is clearly developing better and has the backing of Taichu Palace, making it more powerful than the Lü family."

The old woman clearly doted on the girl, and patiently said, "It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. The Taichu Palace is full of highly accomplished cultivators, and I am just an ordinary person among them. But the Lü family is different. They are currently at a disadvantage and will definitely be eager to find talented people. If we join them now, we can receive good treatment. I still have thirty years of lifespan left, and my cultivation will decline for another ten years. I can barely shield you from some storms. After that, it's up to you."

The young people were all moved and bowed in unison. But the girl was still worried and asked again, "What if Immortal Ancestor Lü is killed? Wei Yuan has killed immortals before."

The old woman said, "I have heard a secret that the immortals of the Thirteen Views will never be eliminated. Therefore, Immortal Ancestor Lü will surely be safe. As long as Immortal Ancestor is safe, the gains and losses on the battlefield are only temporary."

The girl was relieved, but the old woman suddenly said, "Hide well, the flying boat is coming!"

The disciples quickly hid inside the formation.

A black dot appeared on the distant horizon, slowly approaching. It was a fleet of airships consisting of several floating vessels, flying at a distance of only about a thousand feet, and at a slow speed, seemingly fully loaded with supplies. A Dharma Aspect cultivator stood at the bow of the lead airship, his demeanor dignified.

But in the old woman's eyes, she could tell at a glance that this Dharma image had an unstable aura and scattered light, and was a useless thing that looked good but was not.

As the airship approached, the old woman suddenly launched an attack, and with a wave of her hand, a streak of black light shot towards the first airship!
"You audacious old thief!" The Dharma Aspect cultivator on the lead flying ship was both shocked and furious. He unleashed a stream of light composed of countless flashing fragments, which struck the dark light fiercely!
However, the dark light was only slightly weakened, but it still struck the flying boat, splitting it in two!
The two Dharma Aspects clashed directly. The Azure Nether Dharma Aspect turned pale and coughed up blood. The old woman, on the other hand, had wildly flying hair and resembled a raging lion. Although her Dharma Aspect was not extraordinary, her late-stage cultivation was clearly evident, and she exuded awe-inspiring divine power.

The old woman was about to attack the other flying ships, intending to destroy them all in one fell swoop. As for the injured Azure Nether Dharma Image, the old woman had no intention of pursuing it.

Firstly, to avoid making a fatal enemy, in case she caught the eye of Realm Lord Wei Yuan, even an immortal might not be able to protect her. Secondly, Dharma Aspect cultivators possess numerous methods and supernatural abilities, making them not so easy to kill. Therefore, the old woman planned to destroy the entire fleet of flying boats; that would be enough as a testament to her loyalty. Just as she was about to unleash the second beam of dark light, she suddenly shuddered, and saw a dense mass of Dharma Aspect cultivators fly out of the second floating airship, as if a hornet's nest had been violently disturbed!
Apart from one ordinary early-stage Dharma Avatar, the rest of the Dharma Avatars were all weak and unstable, just like the Dharma Avatar that the old woman had just injured. But the problem is, eleven Dharma Avatars flew out at once this time!
The injured Dharma Image also flew over. The twelve Dharma Images formed an array in the air. The leading normal Dharma Image formed a hand seal and chanted a spell. In the blink of an eye, a giant sword appeared in front of them!
The old woman screamed and turned to run, but the giant sword had already pierced through the air, circled her once, and cut her in half at the waist!

Then the giant sword flew into the sky and transformed into an eye. With a single glance, it broke through the concealment array and exposed the dozen or so young people hiding inside.

Twelve Dharma Aspect cultivators flew over and stood in mid-air, coldly looking at the group of young people below. The leading Dharma Aspect cultivator said coldly, "Attacking a military supply convoy during wartime is a capital offense! Accomplices and ringleaders are punished the same as the ringleaders and will be executed!"

The old woman, still clinging to life, cried out desperately, her eyes blazing with fury, "I'd rather die than let them go! It was all my doing; they have nothing to do with it!"

The leading Qingming cultivator sneered, "Qingming military law is like this, do you think it's child's play? You stupid and ignorant peasant cultivator, if we don't uproot your disciples and descendants, do you expect them to grow up and take revenge? Blame yourself for being blinded by greed and daring to plot against the Qingming fleet! Attack!"

Eleven Golden Core cultivators attacked simultaneously, instantly killing all the dozen or so young juniors. The leading cultivator beckoned them to form an array, then pointed a finger into the air, piercing the old woman's sea of ​​consciousness.

Suddenly, a thin cloud appeared in the sky, and a light drizzle began to fall. The auras of the twelve Dharma forms all began to slowly rise. Unfortunately, the drizzle stopped after a short while, leaving all the Dharma forms feeling unsatisfied.

The eleven Golden Core Dharma Aspects thanked the normal Dharma Aspect in the center, who smiled and said, "This is the usual practice in the army. We fight side by side, so naturally we cannot hold back."

Immediately, some Foundation Establishment cultivators collected the corpses, while several cultivators remained to guard the damaged flying boats and await further rescue. The remaining flying boats then continued their journey to the front lines.

This was merely a small episode on the vast front. Lü Changhe had been offering substantial rewards to recruit rogue cultivators to serve him, and quite a few were indeed tempted. The old woman was just one of them, and she had her eye on Qingming's floating airships.

She hadn't expected that a seemingly ordinary fleet would be escorted by twelve Dharma Aspects. Although eleven of them were Golden Core Dharma Aspects, the combined power of their attack after forming a formation was enough to severely injure her, a Dharma Aspect who had barely reached the late stage.

Meanwhile, amidst the bustling prosperity of the various realms, the Mountain and River Palace had been erected, displaying a complete map of Ganzhou. With a thought from Wei Yuan, nine of the ten prefectures controlled by the Lü family changed color. Only the ancestral land remained in the Lü family's hands.

This is Wei Yuan's plan: to seize all nine prefectures. At the final moment, many immortals will surely come to plead for mercy, and perhaps even some unexpected individuals will emerge.

Wei Yuan's bottom line was to seize all nine prefectures, leaving only the ancestral prefecture for the Lü family. And in the prefecture where the ancestral prefecture was located, there wouldn't be many commoners. The output of just one prefecture wouldn't even be enough for Lü Changhe's own cultivation; it wouldn't even be enough to sustain his immortal power, which would gradually decline. As for the other cultivators of the Lü family, they wouldn't have a single ounce of resources left.

Wei Yuan wanted to see how Lü Changhe would survive on the resources of a single prefecture.

The only way is to expand northward and reclaim the territory from the Liao people. If that fails, then Lu Changhe, a dignified immortal, will have to live a life of hardship.

(End of this chapter)