Nightfall Mountain, Underworld.
Upon arriving at Nightfall Mountain, Lu Zheng noticed fluttering banners and sprawling encampments.
“Brother Lu!”
“Brother Xin!” Lu Zheng looked up at the mountain in surprise, “I just entered the underworld and saw plenty of patrolling yin soldiers. Nightfall Mountain must have far more than the original eight hundred troops now, right?”
Xin Zhanting laughed heartily, “After taking Nightfall Mountain, the court sent me three thousand more soldiers! Now, the City God Temple has five hundred, and the remaining three thousand five hundred are all stationed here!”
Lu Zheng nodded. His previous visits to Xin Zhanting were at the City God Temple, so he hadn’t realised Xin had developed Nightfall Mountain to this extent.
“With so many new troops, are other ghosts planning to attack Nightfall Mountain?”
“Of course!” Xin Zhanting’s face lit up with excitement, “Broken Blade Mountain and Chaos Corpse Pool. Small skirmishes every seven days, big battles every half month.”
Lu Zheng followed Xin Zhanting to the mountainside, looking in the direction he pointed…
“Nothing there?” Hu Zhou interjected.
“Not now, I’m just indicating the direction,” Xin Zhanting chuckled, “North is Broken Blade Mountain, east is Chaos Corpse Pool. One’s led by a former dynasty ghost general, the other by an unnamed giant corpse, both with centuries of cultivation. Thanks to Lady Shen’s incense support, I haven’t suffered a single loss, haha!”
“Come! Let’s drink!”
…
“Brother Lu, you brought your fiancée and disciple today. Is something up?”
Lu Zheng nodded, first having Hu Zhou pay respects to Xin Zhanting, since his “Tiger Roar Blade” originated from him.
Xin Zhanting waved it off, “I told you, you can pass it on freely. No need to thank me!”
But Hu Zhou insisted on bowing, and Lu Zheng explained his situation.
“So, I figured the City God Temple, with its unique space and many experts, would be perfect for him to practice his blade freely and master his demonic power quickly.”
“Small matter! The yin soldiers at the temple only train anyway. Sparring with your disciple will do them good too,” Xin Zhanting laughed, “I never imagined my ‘Tiger Roar Blade’ could reach such a level.”
“Neither did I,” Lu Zheng shrugged.
Hu Zhou watched his master and the City God General drink and chat, feeling a twinge of envy.
Just then, dark clouds loomed over the camp.
“Report!”
A messenger shouted from outside, “Ghost soldiers from Broken Blade Mountain are attacking!”
“Again?” Xin Zhanting’s eyes gleamed, “Right on time!”
“Brother Lu, care to watch from the front?”
“Is that convenient?”
“Perfectly convenient.”
“Should we team up and take out their leader?” Lu Zheng asked.
Xin Zhanting blinked, pondering, “No, it’s too far. The court’s power doesn’t reach deep into the underworld. Meddling too much could provoke resistance. Besides, truly powerful ghosts don’t covet the mortal world.”
Lu Zheng’s eyes flickered, and he nodded.
The Great Jing Dynasty’s elite forces were strong, but with vast territory and many foes, they only blocked the underworld’s lower and middle forces from invading the mortal world, avoiding excessive provocation.
After all, ghosts were rooted in the underworld, while the mortal world posed more immediate threats.
Of course, if the mortal world were unified and threat-free, the dynasty wouldn’t tolerate native underworld forces.
It’s a dynamic balance of powers.
Tch, even the immortal world has politics!
So, Xin Zhanting’s task was to hold Nightfall Mountain, forming a defensive line with the City God Temple’s yin-yang path, ensuring no underworld ghosts could invade the mortal world through Tonglin County.
As for Broken Blade Mountain’s ghosts, killing them would only spawn new ones. Better to keep them as a buffer against others.
Like Nightfall Mountain, which once shielded the temple from Broken Blade Mountain and Chaos Corpse Pool. The underworld’s power dynamics were far messier than the mortal world’s.
For instance, Broken Blade Mountain and Chaos Corpse Pool never attacked Nightfall Mountain simultaneously.
…
Lu Zheng, with Liu Qingyan, joined Xin Zhanting at the central command, watching the yin soldier vanguard, led by a lieutenant, clash with the enemy.
Hundreds of soldiers fought fiercely.
Well, soldier against soldier, general against general, lively but with few casualties.
“Of course, if hundreds died each battle, my troops wouldn’t have lasted,” Xin Zhanting said.
“Mas… Master…” Hu Zhou looked at Lu Zheng, eyes gleaming.
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow, glanced at the battlefield, and turned to Xin Zhanting, “Can he join?”
“Sure,” Xin Zhanting nodded, “Let’s see if they send a strong opponent.”
Lu Zheng nodded to Hu Zhou, who eagerly charged out with his blade.
“Roar!”
A tiger’s roar echoed, a shadow of a tiger formed from demonic energy and blood qi roaring forth, sending a ghost general flying.
“Half-demon!”
“Tiger demon!”
“Where’d this mortal come from?”
“Xin Zhanting, how shameless!”
“Tch, barely a decade of cultivation. I’ll take him!”
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
“Cough, not bad. Low cultivation, but he’s got some skill.”
Moments later, Hu Zhou repelled three ghosts but was bloodied by a fourth, fleeing back to the central command.
“Not bad,” Lu Zheng nodded, “You knew to retreat.”
Hu Zhou, “…”
Do I look stupid?
After a while, both sides sounded the retreat. Lu Zheng watched the enemy withdraw in orderly formation, vanishing into the underworld’s dark mist.
That’s it?
Back at Nightfall Mountain, Lu Zheng finalised Hu Zhou’s training arrangements at the City God Temple, then left with Liu Qingyan and Hu Zhou.
“Mas… Master?” Hu Zhou hesitated, looking at Lu Zheng.
“What’s up?”
“Well, training with yin soldiers isn’t as effective as real combat, right?” Hu Zhou said timidly.
“Hmm?” Lu Zheng’s eyes sharpened, “What’re you thinking? You want to join General Xin in the underworld’s battles?”
Hu Zhou swallowed, “Can I?”
“Absolutely… not!”
Lu Zheng flicked his forehead again, “With your level of cultivation, you want to dive into the underworld? Are you tired of living?”
“I…”
“You’re a living human, too conspicuous. Your blood and qi are tempting to century-old ghosts. A strong one could crush you with a single blow!”
“Oh…”
“When you can defeat a City God Temple lieutenant in ten moves, then you can come and go freely in the underworld.”
Hu Zhou wailed, “But the temple lieutenants have centuries of cultivation!”
“You know that, huh? They tread carefully in the underworld, and you’re getting excited over what?”
“Hehe, too bad. He won’t make it to that day, and neither will you…”
