Chapter 478 - 430: Returning to Lingzhou (Part 2)

Chapter 478: Chapter 430: Returning to Lingzhou (Part 2)

Seeing that everyone had finally eaten and drunk their fill, Bai Yuan gave his last command.

They were to disperse on the spot.

Following their pre-arranged squads, they would break off into groups of fifty, disperse throughout Lingzhou, and act independently. Then, one month later, they would return to this city to regroup.

...

「The next day.」

When the people of the city awoke, they discovered that the County Magistrate’s Office was completely empty. The large army that had entered the city the day before had also vanished without a trace.

The city’s powerful families had vanished along with the army.

Many people rejoiced, cheering internally at the sweet taste of retribution. The local tyrants who had oppressed them for so long were suddenly gone.

Just as the crowd was speculating where the army had gone, Bai Yuan had already appeared over a hundred li away.

Li Huan walked beside Bai Yuan. "Don’t tell me you’re planning to charge straight into the Celestial Profound Sect. They have an ancestor who has broken through the Divinity Communication Barrier. I’m not going to join you in this madness."

Bai Yuan gave a faint smile. "Relax. I’m not that stupid."

"But we do need to pay a visit to the Celestial Profound Sect."

Li Huan: "..."

...

「Lingzhou City.」

Prefect Zeng Shun wore an ugly expression as he sat alone in the Zeng Mansion.

He was, one might say, in the most awkward position imaginable now that the Celestial Profound Sect was rebelling.

Although it was the Celestial Profound Sect’s backing that had secured him the position of Prefect of Lingzhou, he was, after all, still an official of the Court. With the sect now in open rebellion, he had been cast aside, reduced to a nobody that no one paid any attention to.

Zeng Shun took a deep breath.

’If the Celestial Profound Sect actually succeeds, that would be one thing. But if they fail... I’ll be beheaded for treason.’

"Damn it!"

Zeng Shun slammed his fist on the table, which instantly disintegrated into splinters.

He had learned of the Celestial Profound Sect’s rebellion at roughly the same time as the rest of the world. It was obvious he had lost the trust of their Ancestor. Even if the Celestial Profound Sect won, things wouldn’t end well for him.

Just as Zeng Shun’s thoughts were in turmoil, a voice suddenly spoke from behind him.

"Lord Zeng, we meet again."

"Who’s there!"

Zeng Shun whipped his head around.

He was a powerhouse at the peak of the Sensing realm, yet someone had entered the room without him noticing. The intruder’s power had to be immense.

The moment he turned, Zeng Shun’s expression twisted in horror.

A familiar face appeared before his eyes.

Bai Yuan!

Bai Yuan smiled faintly. "Lord Zeng, I’ve come to offer you a choice. If you defect to my side and help me gather intelligence on the Celestial Profound Sect, I can petition Your Majesty to spare your life."

Zeng Shun’s eyes narrowed slightly.

He never would have imagined that Bai Yuan would appear here.

’Defect to Bai Yuan?’

To be honest, Zeng Shun was tempted.

From his perspective, the Celestial Profound Sect’s chances of conquering the realm were minuscule. The Court, by comparison, was a much safer bet.

Besides, it was an opportunity to escape the Celestial Profound Sect’s control.

Bai Yuan didn’t press him, simply watching Zeng Shun in silence, awaiting the Prefect of Lingzhou’s answer.

In the next instant, Zeng Shun’s figure erupted into motion, hurtling toward a nearby window.

"Bai, do you really take me for a three-year-old?"

Zeng Shun’s angry curse followed.

But almost at the same instant his voice rang out, a pair of large hands seized him by the ankles.

Then, Zeng Shun felt an irresistible, terrifying force hoist his entire body into the air before viciously smashing him into the ground.

BOOM!

A horrifying crash echoed from within the Zeng Mansion.

Zeng Shun lost count of how many times he was slammed into the ground before he was reduced to a bloody pulp.

Bai Yuan gazed at the utterly dead Zeng Shun and dusted off his hands with satisfaction.

Truthfully, it mattered little to him whether Zeng Shun had defected or not.

From what he understood, Zeng Shun had long been marginalized. Any intelligence he might have gathered would have been worthless. He was more useful dead.

The next second, his figure vanished.

Not long after Bai Yuan left, a stooped old man appeared amidst the ruins of the Zeng Mansion. He glanced dispassionately at Zeng Shun’s mangled corpse.

"Such domineering power."

"Big Beard?"

One didn’t need to guess; the stooped old man was none other than the Celestial Profound Sect’s Divine Communication Ancestor, Linghu Yu.

He gazed westward in confusion.

"He’s gone?"

...

「A forest outside Lingzhou City.」

A palm-sized palace lay nestled in a crevice between some rocks.

「Three days passed.」

The palace finally showed a sign of activity. The next second, a young man appeared out of thin air in the middle of the forest.

Bai Yuan bent down and picked up the Divine Palace Profound Soldier.

He had dared to come to Lingzhou City because he had an ace up his sleeve: the Divine Palace Profound Soldier.

The Divine Palace Profound Soldier had many wondrous uses, not just enhancing combat power. If he used a Nine Heavens Profound Soldier to slay the Celestial Profound Sect’s ancestor, he would probably be killed by the backlash. However, it was perfectly suited for evasion.

Not even a Divine Communication Powerhouse could detect the presence of the Profound Soldier.

Therefore, the Celestial Profound Sect’s ancestor had no hope of catching him off guard.

This trip had been quite fruitful. At the very least, he had killed the traitorous Prefect of Lingzhou, Zeng Shun. Though Zeng Shun’s power was mediocre, the fact that he was killed right under the Celestial Profound Sect’s nose was a powerful humiliation.

Bai Yuan glanced at Lingzhou City, then his figure flickered and disappeared.

A day later, he appeared in a small town.

This town, like the other cities in Lingzhou, had fallen to the rebels.

Bai Yuan entered a tavern and saw a dapper young gentleman drinking in a corner. He walked over. "How did your task go?"

The man drinking was none other than Li Huan.

Li Huan took a bite of pig’s head meat. "It’s done."

He looked at Bai Yuan. "So, what about Zeng Shun?"

Bai Yuan smiled faintly. "He’s dead."

Li Huan grinned. ’This brother of mine is truly something else.’ The Celestial Profound Sect’s Ancestor was right there in Lingzhou City. Bai Yuan had basically killed a Sensing Powerhouse right under the nose of a Divine Communication Ancestor. That wasn’t just a slap in the face to the Celestial Profound Sect; it was a full-blown assault on their dignity.

Bai Yuan sat down as well, helping himself to some meat and wine. "He’s very strong. I don’t think I’m his match."

Of course, Li Huan knew who Bai Yuan was talking about.

’A Mingxin Grandmaster against a Divinity Grandmaster... isn’t it perfectly normal to be outmatched?’

But from the way Bai Yuan said it, Li Huan could hear an eagerness, a desire to test his skills.

’This world is turning into something I can no longer comprehend.’

...

「Northern Lingzhou.」

Linghu Yang stared at the intelligence report from Lingzhou, his face as cold as ice.

Zeng Shun was dead.

While the death of a Martial Artist was a heavy loss, it wasn’t nearly enough to provoke such rage in him. The crucial point was that the killer was Bai Yuan.

Linghu Yang had a deep impression of that young man.

Given Bai Yuan’s current track record, even he would have to be careful when facing him.

He had long anticipated that Bai Yuan would come to Lingzhou.

After all, the Grand General of the North was Bai Yuan’s master; it would have been strange if Bai Yuan *hadn’t* come to help. But he had never imagined Bai Yuan would arrive in Lingzhou so quickly, let alone that he had already infiltrated Lingzhou City itself.

Linghu Yang felt a chill run down his spine.

Being stalked by such an expert would make anyone uneasy.

A master from the Zhengyang Sect at his side glanced at the report in Linghu Yang’s hand.

"Sect Master Linghu, that Bai Yuan certainly has some skill. We must proceed with caution."

Dong Wanjun alone was already putting immense pressure on them.

If Bai Yuan now started causing trouble in their rear, even they would be overwhelmed.

Not to mention the elite units that had suddenly appeared within Lingzhou’s borders, dedicated to raiding their supply lines. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that this was Bai Yuan’s handiwork.

This feeling—like an itch that you couldn’t scratch but wouldn’t kill you—was the most infuriating of all.

Just as everyone was pondering how to deal with Bai Yuan, Linghu Yang suddenly spoke. "I have a personal grudge against this Bai Yuan. Since he has come to Lingzhou, I shall go and pay him a visit myself."

Hearing this, everyone revealed looks of astonishment.

The grudge between Sect Master Linghu and the Shuofang Jiedu Envoy was known throughout the world.

If not for the shattering of destiny, the life-or-death battle between Linghu Yang and Bai Yuan might have already reached its conclusion.

Linghu Yang ignored the gazes of those around him.

He had practiced martial arts for a century; he considered himself second to no Mingxin Grandmaster.

Bai Yuan was undeniably a dazzling talent, but he didn’t believe he would be the one to lose.

Now that the Celestial Profound Sect had the Ancestor to hold the line, he no longer had to worry about the Court and could finally fight without reservation.

Did people really think he was afraid of that little brat?

Linghu Yang’s eyes grew colder still, the corner of his mouth twisting into a savage sneer. He couldn’t wait to crush Bai Yuan under his heel.