Chapter 87: Chapter 87 Departure from the Pass

“Ding ding ding!” “Ah——!”

Amidst the screams, Manager Qiao opened his eyes, put on his clothes expressionlessly, and stepped out of the carriage to look outside.

In the forest, he saw a disciple of the Sword Sect with a severed arm, supporting another same-sect member whose face was covered in blood. His brow bone had been split open by a sword, leaving him blind and with only one hand. They stumbled out of the woods, casting a look full of endless hatred.

Then the manager turned his gaze to the young man sitting on top of the carriage, who was wiping his treasure sword.

Tie Dan, “Mountain Goblin.”

Manager Qiao did not want to speak.

In any case, Tie Dan kept his promise and did not kill anyone.

He merely swung his sword before his opponents could attack, severing their hands and disabling them one by one.

Hmm, they had been traveling for seven more days and were almost out of the Mountain Realm. Two people had been chopped twice by Tie Dan, and even had their eyes blinded…

One had to say that the disciples of the Sword Sect were quite stubborn. These fools, even after losing a hand each, still insisted on solo duels, truly seeking fairness with him.

However, it couldn’t be said that they were insane. The people from Yuqing Dao mentioned before that a one-on-one sword duel killing disaster could seem to capture someone’s luck.

Perhaps in their eyes, after Tie Dan fought a deadly battle with their instructor and got worn out by a fight of attrition, he was already at his limit. Whoever could kill him might seize his luck, which was naturally worth a little risk.

Thinking this way wasn’t bad actually, although most of Tie Dan’s “serious injuries” were probably faked. But even an iron man could not endure ten days without sleep or rest, always on guard.

Now Tie Dan was indeed almost at his limit, his mind was groggy, his divine sense’s perception range had reduced by more than half. Actually, it was already within the range of their flying swords, and if by any chance he was caught off guard, failing to react, it would be very dangerous.

However, he still had magic treasures and the Gourd Spirit to help him covertly keep watch. At any sign of movement, the gourd in his chest would immediately vibrate to alert him, thus managing to hold on for now.

But he couldn’t wait any longer. Once out of the pass, he would strike first, and if necessary, use the Invisible Sword to kill all those same-sect members…

“Fellow Daoist Tie, Fellow Daoist Tie?”

“…Speak.”

Gulping at the sight of Tie Dan’s bloodshot eyes, Manager Qiao carefully handed over a set of clothes,

“Judging by the pace, we should reach Weize Pass around noon. There’s a large garrison from Genzhou stationed at that pass. Although our contacts have smoothed the way, we shouldn’t trouble them. Please change into casual clothes to avoid any incidents.”

“Alright.”

Seeing those Honzan disciples over there also changing their attire, donning bamboo hats and raincoats to cover their blood-stained green robes, Tie Dan disguised himself similarly and continued forward with the caravan.

However, before reaching Weize Pass, three single-armed Honzan disciples who were scouting ahead returned to the convoy first.

Tie Dan thought the others had finally caught on and intended to strike first. He was ready to first kill the two blind people at the back to avoid being attacked from both sides.

However, they didn’t make a move, just watched Tie Dan vigilantly, while the leader approached Manager Qiao.

“The path before Weize Pass is blocked by a large number of refugees.”

“Refugees? Escaping to Qianzhou through this desolate area?”

Manager Qiao was curious as well, so he had the convoy wait while he, with two helpers, and a Sword Sect disciple went ahead to see through the pass.

This delay cost some time, and by noon, they still hadn’t passed through. But Manager Qiao did gather some information.

“The Kan Country army has invaded Genzhou.”

“It was only a matter of time.”

After all, Tie Dan, who used to act as a lackey for the Gate Valve in Shuofang, was well aware of the northern affairs.

To secure the throne, a bloody struggle among the Twelve Countries was exactly what the public officials of the Three Constellations hoped to see.

In the times of Emperor Wu, the Great General swept through Yin Mountain, flattening the entire Northern Plain. From Yunzhong to High Watchtower, the vast ice plains south of Returning Ruins became the domain of the Kan Country.

All living beings on this land had to worship the Heavenly Emperor of the Central Plains in the south. Since then, the north had been at peace, and the world stable, for over a century now.

Of course, peace was not that easily maintained. Originally, there were few people from the Central Plains living in the north, and the majority were the conquered alien races of the north, along with various demons. The few who went to such bitterly cold places, aside from a few cultivators and merchants, were mainly criminals forcibly exiled from the Central Plains. Rebellions and demon tides were regular occurrences.

But with the Three Constellations preoccupied with power struggles, they had no interest in Northern affairs. Moreover, they relied on Kan Country as a barrier fence against the Demon Clan and as a prison to exile political adversaries and criminals. Therefore, they seldom interfered in its internal affairs, instead periodically allotting tributes and rewards to prevent an unexpected overthrow by the Demon Clan, which would lead to a two-front war, causing them to be beleaguered.

Though the Mystic Sect often attempted assassinations against the Demon Palace’s officials, they were few in number and couldn’t continuously hunt them down. Typically, apart from seeking Heavenly Materials and Treasures, not many ventured to the extreme north for activities.

In fact, even the Mystic Sect disciples occasionally traveling there wouldn’t hesitate to join Kan Country in fighting against the Demon Clan, suppressing alien races’ uprisings in solidarity as fellow members of the Human Clan from the Central Plains. Due to the sheer distance from the Heavenly Emperor, Kan Country secretly traded resources and cultivation techniques with the Mystic Sect, resulting in a rather decent relationship between the two.

Therefore, having reaped all the benefits of Emperor Wu’s Northern Expedition, Kan Country, in charge of guarding the north, saw its national strength rapidly increase.

This starkly contrasted with the neighboring Gen Kingdom in the south.

Geographically, the Gen Kingdom truly was a battleground on all sides. To the south, separated merely by the Gen River from the Kingdom’s Capital, the public officials of the Three Constellations made sure Gen Kingdom never enjoyed peace. They constantly incited infighting among the clans, vassals, and Gate Valve members from dawn till dusk.

To the north lay the Yin Mountain Range, with its thousand miles of icy plains. There were frequent border conflicts with the Kan Country, thanks to the court’s instigation, as well as alien race raids and direct confrontations with the demon tide assaults from the Returning Ruins and Demon Domain.

Things were worse to the west, beyond the Xuan Nu Mountain Range, with its treacherous eight passes, from where the Demon Sect might easily launch an attack from the mountain, Slaughter officials and lead rebellions, while the Gen Kingdom’s army could not breach these to counter-attack.

To the east, the endless sea occasionally unleashed Demon Dragon Sea Monsters, causing havoc, whipping up mighty storms, swallowing fields, flooding State Mansions, and engulfing the populace.

Assaulted from all fronts, north, south, east, and west without rest, the Gen Kingdom finally crumbled under pressure.

“I heard last winter, Marquis Zhongshan of Kan Country broke through Shuofang, beheading twenty thousand and capturing three hundred thousand civilians.

The Gen Kingdom dispatched an army for retribution but the Royal Army was wiped out at Liang City, the main leader of Gen Kingdom was stuffed into a sack by Marquis Zhongshan, hurled from an arrow tower to his death, then had his flesh peeled and eaten, and all thirteen thousand surrendered soldiers were massacred on the spot.

Now, the Kan Country army is advancing towards Ye Capital while the various Northern Fan heard and surrendered. Hearing of the marauding Wolf Soldiers of Kan Country, the populace of Gen Kingdom fled southward, many heading towards Qianzhou.”

“Marquis Zhongshan, that lunatic…”

Tie Dan had not only heard of Marquis Zhongshan’s notoriety, but he had also even fought against him in Shuofang Plain. Of course not face-to-face, but rather in small scout skirmishes within the larger army confrontations.

Just observing how the opponent trained troops, commanded armies, and the devastation left behind by his marching troops, it was clear what kind of person the commander was.

No, he probably wasn’t even a person.

It’s a pity that despite having many clever people, no one in the Demon Palace seemed to notice that fact about Marquis Zhongshan.

After all, the officials in the court had their eyes on the framework of the Twelve Countries, watching the big picture of the world.

Nowadays, Kan Country’s national power was growing stronger by the day, and its Master was quite capable. Plus, in the face of the Northern hardships, without Gate Valve interference, the public officials of the Three Constellations dared not act excessively towards Kan Country.

Thus, over these years, relying on unappreciated intellectuals, exiled desperate Party Members, and vassals eager to achieve, Kan Country gradually recovered the frontier territories once subdued by Emperor Wu’s Heavenly Army. It monopolized Northern trade, accumulating rich national reserves, and had gradually become a force to be reckoned with.

Therefore, as a necessary strategy of balance, a princely heir of Kan Country’s clan, this Marquis Zhongshan, who had once been held as a hostage in the Royal Capital, was targeted by the Three Constellations Court.

The court not only heavily cultivated him, refining him into a Divinity Transformation Realm Martial God but also appointed him with special decrees as the General of Cavalry, opened a mansion in tandem with three departments, and sent him back to guard the Northern Fan, appointing him as the Grand Commandant of Kan Country, claiming his role was to oversee the demons but in reality, to divide Kan Country’s military power.

Considering such an important piece, a bit lacking in personal virtue and intellect would seem trivial. In fact, they were eager for him to cause great upheaval, to break Kan Country apart.

Thus Marquis Zhongshan, this insane and inhuman piece, was thus born to fit into the world’s chessboard.

The calculation seemed precise, yet unfortunately, the court ministers, wielders of family power plotting behind the scenes without bloodshed, had little understanding of what those struggling with blade and spear in the Northern hardships really thought or desired.

They just doused themselves with fragrance, sipped tea, embraced concubines, pointing at mountains and rivers while critiquing the world, not even willing to slaughter a chicken by themselves. How could they possibly grasp the heat in living beings’ blood, or the coldness of the northern ice?

So now, where was their so-called balance?

Duke Kan, not receiving life-prolonging Immortal Pills, was on his deathbed. The nation’s elites viewed the feeble and incapable princely heir with disdain. The Wolf Soldiers, Tiger Generals, and Guardian Immortal Army simply pledged allegiance to the authentic General of Cavalry, who had reached the rank of Divinity Transformation General.

Moreover, the Northern aliens and demons had an inherent veneration for true, bloodthirsty warriors. Someone like Marquis Zhongshan, ruthless and without humanity, often leading them south for raids, evoked a sense of kinship among these races…

Thus, the Kan Plain Ice Ruins, a land cold and harsh to the point where it couldn’t accommodate a shred of tenderness or weakness, finally welcomed its true ruler.

In the Immortal Palace Three Constellations, the eunuchs and officials continued to squabble incessantly over the successor, about the Party Members, about Southern Expeditions, the Demon Sect, and various other chaotic matters.

Marquis Zhongshan, who was a nonentity to the Central Plains’ Capital and its court officials, had become infamous all over the icy territory, known to every Samurai holding a defensive knife at the frontier.

He had overturned the chessboard, leading his army into Gen Kingdom.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep