"That man... he’s incredible..." Xiaohua tugged on Shen Xiaoyi’s sleeve, her face a mask of disbelief.
Shen Xiaoyi nodded and said softly, "A very impressive Fate Master."
"What was the result?" Fei Yan asked hurriedly.
Li Qingxian smiled faintly. "The opponent’s five Life Artifacts have all been destroyed. He’s likely unconscious by now."
Xiaohua added, "Even a Great Fate Master would be coughing up blood right now if five of their Life Artifacts were destroyed in a row."
Li Qingxian channeled his Magical Power and, with a series of flicks from his right hand, officially activated the Six Phases of Destiny Seeking.
The Stone Ox, Pisces, Eagle, Seven-Color Flower, Grasshopper, and Yellow Phoenix Butterfly all began to move.
The Stone Ox traveled through the earth, only its horns and back breaking the surface. In its wake, it left traces like a field freshly plowed, spreading through the stone and soil of the mountain.
The Pisces swam, sending out concentric ripples that propagated across any body of water, causing endless waves.
The Eagle flapped its wings, stirring up a gentle breeze.
The Seven-Color Flower hopped continuously. Every time it landed on a tree, that tree would bloom with an identical Seven-Color Flower.
The Grasshopper leaped about, laying eggs as it went. The eggs hatched into more grasshoppers, and soon a dense swarm formed, like a plague of locusts.
The Yellow Phoenix Butterfly fluttered its wings, scattering shimmering scales that drifted through the sky.
A powerful wave of Fate Skill Power covered the land in every direction, spreading throughout the mountain range.
As the various powers intertwined, more and more traces of Astrology appeared before Li Qingxian’s eyes.
Under the effect of the Fate Skill, these traces of Astrology wove together into Life Lines. The Life Lines tangled into a Life Net, which finally formed a series of images in Li Qingxian’s mind.
A place in the mountains, almost like a small town, with paths leading in all directions...
Several days ago, the assassin Liu Shida leaned against a Tang Feng Tree, brushing his shoulder against a trace of its sweet sap. He then passed by a black cherry tree, grabbing a handful to eat as he walked...
Three days ago, a man in black emerged from a dense thicket, secretly spying on the main Demon Sect force that had just passed by.
Yesterday, the Demon Sect’s main force passed a mountain peak, only two hundred meters from a hidden cave entrance...
Today, a Fourth-Grade Taoist, transformed into a sparrow, perched on a tree, watching Li Qingxian’s position from afar.
Li Qingxian’s heart skipped a beat. ’I’m lucky I’ve been so cautious, always sticking with the main group. If I had made even the slightest mistake, I’d already be dead.’
The traces of Astrology intertwined into Life Lines, and the Life Lines tangled into a net. A flood of images poured into Li Qingxian’s mind.
His Magical Power consumption grew larger and larger until his reserves could no longer keep up. Li Qingxian had no choice but to stop.
Li Qingxian sat cross-legged on the spot and began the Visualization Spirit Platform technique to recover his Magical Power.
"Protect Master Xiaoli!" Fei Yan shouted.
Several Middle-Grade experts immediately rushed over, forming a circle around Li Qingxian.
Shen Xiaoyi gazed at Li Qingxian, her expression complex.
After a long while, Li Qingxian stood up and shook his head. "My power is too low. I found nothing."
"Sigh..."
The crowd let out a quiet sigh.
Many faces showed their disappointment.
Fei Yan smiled reassuringly. "Having a Ninth Grade like you try to find the renowned Nether Mountain Sub-Branch was never a sure thing. We were just giving it a shot. But being able to shatter the Life Artifacts of a Nether Mountain Fate Master is a merit in itself. We’ll search a little longer. If we don’t find anything by tomorrow, we’ll give up searching the mountain. You’re exhausted today, so get some rest."
Shen Xiaoyi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and led Xiaohua away.
Seeing Li Qingxian’s dejected expression, Fei Yan, Jingg Guan, Hex Lei, and Han Anbo all went over to comfort him, escorting him to the outside of his tent.
Finally, Li Qingxian asked the others to leave, calling for only Fei Yan to stay.
Once everyone had gone, Li Qingxian and Fei Yan entered the tent, and Li Qingxian waved his hand, activating a Sound Insulation Talisman.
"Hm?" Fei Yan stared, surprised, at Li Qingxian, whose expression had suddenly returned to normal.
Li Qingxian smiled slightly. "Eunuch Fei, we need to make a plan."
Realization dawned on Fei Yan. "You were pretending you found nothing!"
"All’s fair in war," Li Qingxian said.
"What did you find?" Fei Yan asked.
Li Qingxian took out a brush and paper, sketching as he spoke. "They’ve dug out several large caverns under the mountain, connecting them with tunnels and setting up multiple secret exits. The largest and widest passage is a natural, underground Dark River. That Dark River leads directly to the Liuhua River on the west side of Changg Mountain, which is also their main route for entry and exit. Besides that channel, the other routes are very narrow and aren’t suitable for large-scale movement. This Dark River passage also has a few smaller entrances..."
After finishing, Li Qingxian said, "You are the commander. This decision is yours. Should we request reinforcements from the Imperial Court, or should we handle this ourselves?"
Hearing Li Qingxian mention "requesting reinforcements," Fei Yan frowned slightly.
"We’ll handle this ourselves! I’ll propose a plan, tell me what you think!" Fei Yan took the brush from Li Qingxian. "I’ll use your strategy from last time. We leak one entrance to the Ministry of Justice, let them discover it and launch an attack to draw the Nether Mountain Sub-Branch’s attention. Once the Demon Sect attacks them, we’ll enter the Dark River through one of the smaller entrances."
Fei Yan used the brush to smear away several of the drawn tunnels. "We’ll have Martial Cultivators take action, using Spirit Talismans to blast and destroy all passages except the one the Ministry of Justice is guarding. We’ll leave only the Dark River route. Then, we meet them in the Dark River. When paths are narrow, the brave will prevail!"
"What if they don’t flee toward the Dark River, but toward the Ministry of Justice and the Demon Sect?" Li Qingxian asked.
"We’ll position Martial Cultivators with Talismans in ambush beforehand. If they try to break out in the direction of the Ministry of Justice, we’ll use the Spirit Talismans to collapse the passage. The entrance we pick for the Demon Sect will be small anyway, so they can be dealt with easily," Fei Yan said.
Li Qingxian shook his head helplessly. "This situation is different from the Martial Arts Hall. We were in control then, but things here are complex. I still recommend we request a few Upper-Grade experts. They can directly shatter the mountain and collapse the ground. It would be decisive, safe, and secure."
"Ah, you’re still too young. You keep saying you’re doing this for the Emperor. Let me ask you, if two reports were placed before the Emperor right now—one saying our Internal Factory and the Patrol Bureau fearlessly charged into the Nether Mountain Sub-Branch’s den, fought a bloody battle with the rebels, took countless heads, captured numerous prisoners, and seized massive amounts of supplies; the other saying the Imperial Court dispatched a few Upper-Grade experts who simply smashed a mountain and buried the rebels alive. Which report do you think the Emperor would prefer to read?"
"Me? I’d definitely prefer the latter. It saves time and effort, and there are no casualties," Li Qingxian said frankly.
"Qingxian, once you’ve entered the Imperial Court, you have to play by its rules. If you and I call for Upper-Grade experts, do you have any idea how many people—from the Beichang Guard to the Beichang County Magistrate’s Office, from the Divine Capital Prefecture to the Night Guard, from the Patrol Bureau to the Internal Factory—will curse our names from now on?"
"Military merits?" A chill ran down Li Qingxian’s spine.
"Military merits!"
"But you can’t pay for military merits with human lives."
"If military merits aren’t paid for with other people’s lives, should they be paid for with yours? Qingxian, I’m only telling you this out of respect for Lord Yan and Lord Zhou. To anyone else, I wouldn’t say a single word." Fei Yan stared into Li Qingxian’s eyes.
Li Qingxian was stunned for a moment, then said slowly, "Military merits are important, but I believe that in the long run, human lives are more important."
"When your military merits are great enough, you can protect more lives."
"Or use more lives to gain more military merits?" Li Qingxian asked, his voice laced with helplessness.