Chapter 620 - 100: The Main Show Begins

「Mountain Peak Dojo.」

In a pavilion at the edge of the gardens, Wang Ping sat alone, studying an unfinished Go game. The situation in Ningzhou Road hadn’t affected his state of mind in the slightest.

Yu Lian was uncharacteristically absent from his side. It seemed she had gone to the nearby river to catch fish and shrimp again.

「Half an hour later.」

Xia Wen Yi’s figure appeared outside the pavilion.

"Master."

He called out casually, but his tone was warm and familiar.

Wang Ping glanced up at his disciple before returning to the unfinished Go game. "I take it you’ve heard about the situation in Ningzhou Road?" he asked.

"I have, Master."

"I need a detailed file on this Daoist Li Miaolin. How long will it take you?"

As he spoke, Wang Ping placed a piece on the board and carefully considered the subsequent developments of the game.

Xia Wen Yi was silent for a few moments before giving a rough estimate. "Between half a month and a full month."

Wang Ping looked up at Xia Wen Yi, his expression turning serious. "As quickly as possible. If we let a Third Realm Taiyan Cultivator establish a foothold, it will be incredibly difficult to deal with him later."

Just as Xia Wen Yi was about to agree, Wang Ping produced a square piece of jade from his storage pouch. "I’ve carved a Monitoring Array into this. It can detect any Transfer Array within a ten-kilometer radius. Secretly dispatch some people to dismantle the Transfer Arrays Li Miaolin has set up in Ningzhou Road."

"Yes!"

Although Xia Wen Yi knew this would be a dangerous task, he agreed without the slightest hesitation.

Wang Ping said nothing more.

Half a month went by. The rebel army from True Yang Mountain had been successfully halted ten days ago, leading to a stalemate. They now faced the Lord of Ningzhou Road and his Demon Soldiers across a river to the northeast.

Pirate raids continued to plague the coastal areas of Nanlin Road, leaving the Court no time to build new warships while also draining the soldiers and supplies at various passes and fortified towns. In the end, the Court had to move its shipbuilding workshops to an inland river. It also built a training camp a hundred li west of Zhonghui County Town to centralize the training for the Government Soldiers gathered from every city.

Ten days ago, Wang Ping had sent an invitation to Li Miaolin in the name of the Daoist Palace Headquarters, inviting him to a gathering. The stated reason was to elect the next Presiding Master. Li Miaolin, however, declined, citing his busy schedule with matters in Ningzhou Road. He did, however, promise to visit and apologize in person after the rebel army was defeated.

The man truly seemed to abide by the rules and showed no open malice, yet his actions clearly stated his position. Coupled with the fact that he, like Wang Ping, was a Taiyan Three Realms Cultivator, there was no possibility of them ever becoming friends.

One day, after completing his daily cultivation as usual, Wang Ping was planning to build new puppets in his workshop when Lu Shan, Ying Qing, and the others arrived at his Dao Field to discuss the Dao and chat. Naturally, Wang Ping did not refuse them.

Over the past half-month, Lu Shan, Ying Qing, Yuan Zheng, Hou Jun, and the others had taken to gathering to discuss the Dao and chat whenever they were free. Sometimes, Wu Fu from the base of the mountain would join them, and their days passed rather pleasantly. During this period, Lu Shan had approached Wang Ping alone, asking for a specific assignment.

However, the situation was still unclear and it wasn’t the right time to take the initiative. Wang Ping told him to relax and enjoy the mountains around Qianmu Temple for a while.

As they chatted until noon, Wang Ping sensed a repeating pulse of energy from the ’Pocket World Mirror.’ Without trying to hide it from the others, he directly summoned the artifact.

It was a message from one of his puppets, which had been hidden within the Lishui Prefecture navy and had risen to the rank of Brigade Commander. After months of preparation, Lishui Prefecture had finally dispatched its main force. They claimed to have a thousand warships and three hundred thousand soldiers advancing on the ports of Changwen Prefecture. They would reach the southern waters of Changwen Prefecture in two days at most. Many small islands south of Changwen Prefecture had already been occupied and turned into staging points.

"Has something major happened?" Yuan Zheng was the first to ask.

"The Seventh Prince of Lishui Prefecture’s navy couldn’t hold back any longer. They’re finally making their move!" Wang Ping’s expression was calm, his eyes showing more anticipation than concern.

"Should we make our move?" Hou Jun asked, looking impatient. Of everyone present, he was the most eager for a fight.

"There’s no need to be so hasty. Let the Chu Kingdom Court handle them first. We can just watch the show for now. It won’t be too late to strike when an opportunity to decide the battle in one fell swoop presents itself." Wang Ping put away the ’Pocket World Mirror.’

Despite what he’d said, he still took out a Communication Jade Slip. Using his Wood Spirit Qi, he imprinted his arrangements onto it and activated it. The message was for Xia Wen Yi. He instructed him to have Leng Kezhen and Qingjiang secretly command the Court’s grand army in the fight against Lishui Prefecture’s navy.

He ordered Leng Kezhen and Qingjiang to wear down the enemy’s forces as much as possible. This would allow them to quickly uncover their opponent’s trump cards and force the mastermind behind the scenes to reveal themselves.

Finally, after a moment’s thought, he used a Communication Token to send messages to Dongcan and Ruan Chunzi, telling them to return to Qianmu Temple as soon as possible. After all, this conflict would ultimately be decided by a battle between the Third Realm Cultivators of both sides.

「A month passed.」

The weather in the south remained damp and cold, but the conflict was heating up. The Seventh Prince of Lishui Prefecture and the Chu Country had thrown hundreds of thousands of soldiers into a nearly thousand-kilometer-long battlefront along the Nanlin Road coast. With clashes between Qi Cultivators and Entering Cultivators from both sides, casualties had already surpassed one hundred thousand in just one month.

The baleful aura of death also gave rise to many Evil Cultivators. The leadership on both sides tacitly permitted their Cultivators to set up Sacrificial Arrays on their respective fronts, harvesting the spiritual essence of the battlefield dead to enhance their own cultivation.

When Xia Wen Yi reported this, everyone except for a displeased Yuan Zheng Taoist wore expressions that showed they were unfazed by the news.

"Can our logistics keep up with the consumption on the front lines?" This was Wang Ping’s only concern.

"Yes. We have the paddy fields of Sanhe Prefecture. Martial Uncle Guangxuan has been stockpiling grain for years. I’ve already communicated with him. The provisions stored in Sanhe Prefecture can supply an army of three hundred thousand for two years of continuous battle!"

"And the morale of the troops?" Wang Ping asked.

"Elder Leng established a strict, merit-based promotion system within the Chu Country’s army. Many of the lower-ranking soldiers have earned promotions over the past month of fighting. Although our casualties are close to forty thousand, there haven’t been any serious signs of desertion or war-weariness."

Lu Shan, who was very experienced in military matters, couldn’t help but comment, "Lishui Prefecture initiated this war; their methods surely aren’t limited to this. Fellow Daoist, you should still be cautious."

Wang Ping nodded in agreement. "With our current strength, we’re not strong enough to launch a counteroffensive against Lishui Prefecture, so we can only wait for them to make the next move. Furthermore, I have already sent disciples from our sect to persuade the Third Prince on his islands. I believe we will have a reply soon."

「Ten days later.」

Wang Ping did not receive a reply from the Third Prince. Instead, a disciple arrived from the distant True Yang Mountain, carrying a personal letter from Qiuwang, the Sect Leader of the Single Saber Sect.

The letter was written in a secret internal code. It said that several major sects on True Yang Mountain were colluding, apparently preparing to move against the Single Saber Sect. However, Qiuwang suspected that the Single Saber Sect was not their true target. He believed someone was trying to use the forces of True Yang Mountain to deal with Qianmu Temple!