Chapter 218: A Great War Approaches (2)

A ring-shaped palace sat at the mountain peak—the Headquarters of the Northern Wilderness Alliance. Thirteen towering stone pillars stood in a circle, a figure seated atop each one, their auras as deep and heavy as mountains.

"The Ganzhou Demonic Path is bloodthirsty by nature," Gu Daobian said, the first to speak. "They slaughtered our Grandmasters, seized our fortresses, and have pushed us too far. We share one breath connected by branches. We must build our defenses together and never let those Ganzhou scum approach Beiliang Mountain."

He paused.

"Before coming here, I paid a visit to Daoist Qing," he continued. "He despises evil. Hearing that those Demonic Path thieves have invaded once more, he reached an agreement with us and is willing to help eradicate these demonic scoundrels."

Saint Teacher Mo picked up the thread, his bright gaze sweeping over the crowd. "As a mighty sword cultivator of the Righteous Path, Daoist Qing could have easily stayed out of a war between our two sides. Yet, upon hearing of the Demonic Path evildoers, facing a moral duty, he did not yield to others and stepped forward. Such profound righteousness, this heart of the Righteous Path leading by example, frankly puts us to shame."

His tone deepened.

"This is a major matter for the Northern Plains. How can we let Daoist Qing shoulder it alone? Do you all have anything to say?"

The other eleven Holy Masters responded with affirming gazes. Since an outsider was willing to help to this extent, they, as the highly revered Holy Masters of the Northern Plains, had to shoulder the responsibility even more courageously. Otherwise, if word of this got out, it would undoubtedly invite gossip.

...

At the same moment, a million li away in Ganzhou, within the Dayong Imperial Capital, a hidden grotto-heaven lay deep beneath the earth veins.

"Reporting to the Great Elder, the murderer has still not been found." A disciple knelt on one knee, trembling in fear, cold sweat beading on his forehead. "But judging from the Blood Abyss Sect's encounter a few years ago, the one who besieged the Blood Abyss Sect back then and the murderer who killed the three Supreme Elders are likely the same person."

Atop the high platform in the grotto-heaven, a purple-robed figure glanced at him from the corner of his eye, a cold light flashing between his brows.

"Trash!" he snapped. "Do you think I'm a fool? Did I need you to tell me that?"

He clenched his palm. Magical power surged, instantly wrapping around the head of the man below. Terrified, the disciple repeatedly kowtowed, blood soaking the stone bricks as he madly begged for mercy, but it was useless. The next moment, his head burst apart.

The purple-robed figure didn't even look at the corpse. He slowly turned and faced the stone wall behind him.

The stone wall opened layer by layer, like several heavy doors receding in turn to reveal a grand hall. Inside, seven or eight faint black figures of various shapes could be seen, each seated upright on the cold stone benches lining both sides. Bone-chilling cold qi and bloody baleful power intertwined within the hall, making it as grim as a prison.

Footsteps sounded. A red-robed figure slowly walked over from the far end of the hall. With a hunched back, a long beard hanging to his chest, and a withered face, it was an old man.

The moment he stepped into the hall, he let out a sinister, bizarre sneer.

"Our Three Demonic Path Sects dominate a region and awe the world," the old man rasped. "When have we ever suffered such humiliation? Ambushed from the shadows, trapped by underhanded schemes, suffering such a crushing defeat—we have lost over ten Nascent Soul cultivators in total. If this debt in blood is not avenged, I swear I am no longer human."

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the hall.

"This time, we already have a clue. The one who made the move must be from the Northern Plains. From the Nascent Soul cultivator we recently captured at Bailing Mountain, we learned through the Soul-Snatching Secret Technique that a fathomless existence seems to have arrived in the Northern Plains, said to possess strength even above those thirteen Holy Masters."

His tone shifted, his smile growing even more sinister.

"But they amount to no more than that," he continued. "In the past, I might have held some apprehension and misgivings. Now, however, with that esteemed figure's help, the Northern Plains will sooner or later fall into our hands."

No one in the hall answered, but that long-dormant killing intent had already quietly taken shape in the dark.

Once the war order was given, the massive war machine of the Northern Plains slowly began to turn.

Over a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators were dispatched to garrison the southern border, rotating every ten years. Every five thousand li, a Middle Nascent Soul Stage cultivator was stationed in command, using a Token to communicate and forming a mutual defense network. Teleportation Arrays across all regions were reactivated; at the first sign of trouble, reinforcements would arrive in an instant. Follow-up baggage and supplies were escorted by low and mid-tier cultivators. For crucial resources, Nascent Soul cultivators personally accompanied the convoys to ensure absolutely nothing went wrong.

Beiliang Mountain, right next to Bailing Mountain, along with two nearby mountain ranges, had been heavily garrisoned. Layers of formations were embedded into the mountains themselves. The moment the enemy forces attacked, the three positions could form a mutual defense, supporting one another.

Using his eagerness to eradicate demons as an excuse, Jiuyou informed Graceful and set out for Beiliang Mountain alone.

Graceful escorted him all the way to the border of the Headquarters. Several times she hesitated to speak, swallowing the words back down just as they reached her lips.

Jiuyou humored her with a few casual remarks. His attitude was warm, yet it always maintained a polite, measured distance.

Graceful watched him go, standing in place for a long time until her gaze gradually settled into resolve. She knew very well that she was still too weak. Only by becoming stronger would she have the right to stand beside him, and only then could she help those risking their lives on the front lines.

"Big Brother Qing You, wait for me. One day, I will have the right to stand by your side and fight bloody battles alongside you," she whispered, her tone firm and carrying a touch of stubbornness.

Turning back to her residence, she sent a message to inform Gu Daobian, then went into secluded cultivation.

As for Jiuyou, eradicating demons to defend the Righteous Path was naturally just a front.

A massive war was about to break out at Beiliang Mountain. War meant massive casualties; massive casualties meant an abundance of souls, and those souls were exactly what he wanted. If he killed Ganzhou's Nascent Soul cultivators, so be it. And as long as no one caught him in the act, a Northern Plains Nascent Soul cultivator dying on the battlefield was just a common casualty of war.

A journey of over 500,000 li took no more than a couple of hours for Jiuyou.

By the time he arrived at Beiliang Mountain, the entire fortress had entered a state of full alert. Layers of Protective Mountain Arrays had been activated, their spiritual light weaving together like a dense net. Patrols marched back and forth endlessly, their weapons undrawn but brimming with coiled strength.

Several patrol squads spotted Jiuyou from a distance. Seeing him dressed in Ganzhou-style clothing and fashioned as a spell cultivator, they immediately grew vigilant. Even though the disparity in their strength was vast, they still gripped their weapons tightly, refusing to take a single step back.

Jiuyou didn't say much; he flicked a spell seal from his fingertips. The spiritual light sank into Beiliang Mountain and vanished in a flash.

A moment later, two streaks of Escape Light flew out from deep within Beiliang Mountain and landed in front of Jiuyou, revealing two Middle Nascent Soul Stage cultivators. The moment they landed, they cupped their hands in a respectful salute to Jiuyou.

The surrounding patrol guards watched in a daze. To think that two Great Grandmasters were being so polite to this young man! They exchanged blank looks, completely unsure if they should lower their weapons or keep holding them up.

A few days passed.

The deployment of defenses at Beiliang Mountain was still underway.

Having received a signal from Jiuyou, Tan Chong, the fortress's main commander, dared not slack off. He immediately mobilized troops overnight, pushing the defense line outward by thirty li, and carved out several temporary fortifications along the mountain ridges, embedding spare array flags to guard against sneak attacks.

At the same time, a hundred Teleportation Arrays lit up one after another in the rear, continuously delivering spirit stones and pills hoarded for years straight to the front lines. Reinforcements from the major tribes of the Northern Plains also arrived in batches. Some took flying ships, while others used the Teleportation Arrays. In just a few short days, no less than twenty Nascent Soul cultivators had gathered at Beiliang Mountain. Even Gu Daobian came over and met with Jiuyou, while the number of low and mid-tier cultivators reached into the tens of thousands.

On the opposing side, the coalition forces of the Three Demonic Path Sects hadn't been idle either.

Evil Valley Heaven dispatched a Nascent Soul grand cultivator to command the central army. Using fiery baleful qi, he laid down a warning line that stretched for a hundred li, shrouding the entire battlefield in a dark red mist.

The Demon Fiend Sect sent out elite cultivators to patrol back and forth along the border line. If they discovered any isolated Northern Plains cultivators, they would quickly surround and kill them.

The Blood Abyss Sect, meanwhile, dispatched several Nascent Soul Stage cultivators to scatter across the rear fortresses, secretly setting up teleportation traps in an attempt to cut off the Northern Plains' supply lines.

Though nominally a coalition army, the Three Sects actually fought independently, each harboring their own ulterior motives. On the surface, however, they still presented a posture of committing to an all-out war.

The two sides were separated by only a little over a thousand li. Spiritual light crisscrossed, and killing intent lurked beneath the surface. They were like two storm clouds about to collide, separated only by a narrow, untouched gap.

Tan Chong sent people to patrol several times a day. Aside from reporting to Jiuyou and Gu Daobian, he continuously sent messages to coordinate with the Holy Masters in the rear, ensuring no mistakes were made at any step. He knew that this war would be fought sooner or later, but he didn't know exactly when that gap would be formally torn open.