Eastern Mount Yue had stationed a force of about two thousand soldiers at Big Fish Creek on the border between the two territories, guarded by a single Qi Cultivator.
Under the reign of Mu Jiaoman, there had been over five thousand soldiers, but now, the numbers had long dwindled.
Compared to the national strength of Eastern Mount Yue and the power of the Li Family, this military force was pitifully small. Perhaps Qimu had not even planned to resist the westward advance of the Li Family, thinking it was sufficient enough to have a Qi Cultivator to send alerts and messages.
Xu Gongming, following orders from Li Yuanxiu, led the troops as the vanguard. He took a hundred soldiers to probe the enemy's strength. Unexpectedly, they were met by a Mount Yue commander with a face full of ingratiating smiles who walked up to their formation unprotected. He was shouting as he approached.
"Is the envoy arriving?! My lord has already conquered his fief and has come to welcome the princess!"
Xu Gongming was stunned, his stern face almost cracking a smile, not expecting the commander to mistake their arrival as part of a wedding delegation. The surrounding soldiers looked at each other in confusion.
Xu Gongming quickly said, "Please, come talk inside the formation!"
The commander, still foolishly smiling and clad in armor mimicking that of the Easterners, approached even closer.
Xu Gongming's corner of his mouth twitched, and he stepped forward suddenly. Without warning, he stabbed the man with his sword, shook the blood off his blade, and waved his hand.
The troops below immediately sprang into action, charging at the unprepared Mount Yue forces. Blood splattered everywhere as they disrupted the enemy's formation, instantly creating a scene of great chaos and bloodshed.
The two armies behind pressed forward, and Xu Gongming, with his second stage Embryonic Breathing Realm cultivation, struck down enemies with each punch, fighting his way to the front of the formation.
As Xu Gongming fought fiercely, a figure suddenly flew up from the large camp. His voice reverberated across the battlefield, amplified by his mana.
It was the Mount Yue Qi Cultivator.
"Which faction are you from? How dare you cause chaos here?!"
This Qi Cultivator who was unaware of the situation, initially assumed that it was a mutiny. Only when he noticed the well-crafted armor of the troops below did he exclaim and recoil in shock.
"Easterners..?!"
"Do not panic, someone will deal with him." Seeing some of his soldiers hesitating, Xu Gongming smiled coldly and looked up. Sure enough, a golden light, like a shooting star, streaked from the east.
The Mount Yue Qi Cultivator did not even have time to react before he exploded into a shower of blood and flesh, raining down organs and meat chunks onto Xu Gongming's armor.
"Unrefined qi cultivators are just like that..."
Having cultivated for seven or eight years and having seen many of the Li Family's cultivators, Xu Gongming knew about unrefined and pure qi and understood that the Qi Cultivator of Mount Yue was particularly weak.
His eyelid twitched, and though he spoke with a false facade of toughness, he felt a growing reverence for the family elder who was a great archer.
Even though he cultivates with unrefined qi, he's still comparable to ordinary Embryonic Breathing Realm cultivators. Yet, in front of that elder, he's less than a mortal... The elder is truly formidable! Whether it is due to his cultivation realm or the technique itself, the various qi gathering techniques of our family are indeed tempting...
Xu Gongming momentarily indulged in his thoughts, and by the time he snapped out of it, the Mount Yue army had completely collapsed, scattered around him like headless chickens. He tightened his grip on the long saber in his hand and ferociously pursued the remaining survivors.
In the sky above, a figure of a young man appeared. He was dressed in animal leather, yet wore a hair crown atop his head. A powerful voice echoed through the air.
"Qimu is inherently vicious, closely engaged in evil and perversion, harming the loyal and good, murdering siblings, and committing regicide. I am Shamoli, son of the former king! Today I raise arms to seize the throne, to bring justice back to our people... Lay down your weapons immediately! Those who surrender will not be killed."
"He's the lucky child..."
The soldiers of Mount Yue around Xu Gongming were already dropping their weapons and surrendering readily. Xu Gongming looked up at Shamoli, who stood proudly as he rode the winds, feeling a growing sense of deep envy.
Anyone with clear eyes could see that Shamoli was merely a puppet propped up by the Li Family, but who wouldn't envy him? He was granted the power of the Qi Cultivation Realm and gained a position of power. Even though he was constrained, he was still the sovereign of a nation, enjoying all the associated glory and wealth.
————
Li Xuanfeng stood with his bow and beside him was Li Tongya, who watched the Mount Yue Qi Cultivator explode like fireworks and nodded with a smile.
"Not bad... this arrow wouldn't just harm that unrefined Qi cultivator from Mount Yue; even a common early-stage Qi Cultivator would suffer greatly from it."
Li Xuanfeng lifted his bow and cupped his fist in response as spoke humbly.
"I have gained very much from my years of seclusion."
He turned his Golden Age Longbow in his hands, caressing the runes on it as a pale golden light illuminated from within. Li Xuanfeng explained, "The Golden Age Longbow is made from Golden Barrier Stone, which can contain my Astral Qi. I usually refine an arrow's intent within it, enhancing it with Astral Qi. Each refinement makes it more potent. I do not use it simply, reserving it only for critical moments. When I unleash this diligently refined arrow's intent, it is bound to deal a significant blow to the enemy."
"Oh?" Li Tongya raised an eyebrow. Although he failed to grasp the intricacies of what was described, it sounded quite sophisticated. He nodded slightly, and Li Xuanfeng, with the bow slung over his back, watched as Shamoli flew with the wind below.
After observing for a while, he transmitted his thoughts through his mana and let out a sigh as he said, "Even unrefined qi can possess such power... The Purple Thunder Secret Origin Technique truly should not be underestimated. If it were not for the side effects that inhibit reproduction and reduce lifespan, it would indeed be quite valuable."
"That is true," Li Tongya agreed as he looked at the troops moving like ants below and continued softly, "With such a large formation from our family, the clans on the lake are not blind... More than likely, a good thirty to fifty percent of cultivators have come to investigate the situation by now, hiding within the surrounding mists. Let Shamoli handle what he can; we should not intervene to avoid revealing our strengths and weaknesses."
"I understand," Li Xuanfeng nodded. Both men then concealed their presence, following closely behind the army formation. Chen Donghe and Li Xuanxuan stayed within the army, guarding and protecting the younger family members to prevent any mishaps with the talented cultivators of their household.
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The army marched on for an hour, conquering several towns. Qimu had redirected his troops and cultivators to attack villages in the west, so these towns had some slight defense—mostly by Embryonic Breathing Realm cultivators.
Shamoli revealed his identity as the royal heir and easily captured them, as the people of Mount Yue had no strong loyalty to their ruler and mostly surrendered without resistance.
After advancing for half a day, they finally saw flags fluttering in the distance. It was the current ruler of Eastern Mount Yue, Qimu, rushing over with his troops. Five or six Mount Yue cultivators stood in the air, dressed in animal leathers and adorned with jade. Their eyes were wide with anger.
Below, the armies faced off, and the air was thick with tension. Qimu's face bore a strong resemblance to Mu Jiaoman, but he looked even more sinister, with thinner eyebrows and more elaborate clothing.
His eyes gazed intently at Shamoli, his expression a mix of shock and anger as his hands trembled uncontrollably. He stuttered over his words as he spoke, overcome by anger.
"You... you... have some nerve! Where did these troops come from, trespassing on our land?!"
Qimu had rushed over, unaware that Shamoli's forces were actually the eastern army, thinking that they were just from another faction he had rallied. Seeing Shamoli's formidable aura of the unmistakable Qi Cultivation Realm, he was both shocked and frightened. He immediately sensed that something was amiss, and grew suspicious.
Hearing this, Shamoli cackled loudly. He then soared into the sky alone, coldly confronting the face across him that closely resembled his own. The pale purple lightning in his hand crackled continuously as he chuckled lowly.
"Brother... Shamoli has returned!"