Chapter 156: Chapter 45: Cautious Preparations

Wang Ping didn’t press the issue with Zhong Tong, but he ignored the man’s suggestion nonetheless.

After a moment of silence, his gaze shifted back to the Mouse Demon, Xia Yan. He questioned him further for detailed intelligence on Crescent Mountain, then had Xia Yan and the demon army he’d brought wait on standby on the right wing of the Central Army’s encampment.

「Half an Hour later.」

Through the combined efforts of several hundred Qi Cultivators, a pontoon bridge was erected over the river. On the opposite bank, the Government Soldiers and Militia began constructing watchtowers and a camp. A Government Soldier with a Command Flag on his back entered the highlands where Wang Ping was stationed, carrying a military report. He presented a handwritten message from Zuo Xuan.

Yue Zong had advanced recklessly and been ambushed by a demon army of two thousand, costing the elite vanguard a third of its forces. Fortunately, Zuo Xuan had arrived in time to rescue them. They had now retreated twenty li and made camp at a defensible position with good terrain. Tucked behind the message was a written apology from Yue Zong.

Wang Ping was unconcerned by the Vanguard Army’s defeat. He offered a silent moment of mourning for the fallen soldiers that lasted two breaths, then put away Zuo Xuan’s message and Yue Zong’s apology. He looked to Zuo Liang and ordered, "Take five Foundation Establishment Cultivators and one hundred Qi Cultivators to reinforce the Vanguard Camp. And have your master and General Yue withdraw here."

"Yes!"

As Wang Ping watched Zuo Liang depart, his gaze fell upon Zhong Tong. "How long will it take for Hu Yi, the Mountain Monarch, to relay my orders to the others?"

"At least seven days, and another three days to assemble the troops. If..." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"I don’t want to hear ’if’."

Wang Ping cut him off. Then, he silently rose into the air and gazed out toward Crescent Mountain...

Crescent Mountain, true to its name, looked like a crescent moon lying upon the land when seen from high above. From the ground, however, it was a massive, curved mountain range that mostly enveloped a dense forest, leaving only a single exit less than two li wide. Beyond the forest rose more towering mountains riddled with a complex network of paths, while the range’s other side was nothing but sheer cliffs.

It was a natural fortress, easy to defend and difficult to assault. According to available intelligence, even before Crescent Mountain’s Mountain God was killed, tens of thousands of demons lived on the mountain. To prevent being absorbed by other demon clans, they had built a comprehensive system of internal defenses.

For Wang Ping, its defensive system was a problem he could solve with a mere handful of seeds. But if he were to attack, he had to be certain he could take it in one fell swoop. Otherwise, things would become very troublesome.

"Do you feel that?" Yu Lian asked.

Following Yu Lian’s train of thought, Wang Ping fixed his gaze on the center of Crescent Mountain. A city had been built up against the peak. Even from such a great distance, he could clearly perceive an unsettling, corrupting aura spreading through it.

Bizarrely, for the only city on Crescent Mountain, there wasn’t a single demon to be found inside!

"That rotten old man was right. We might need to speed things up!" Yu Lian reminded him.

"First, let’s test it..."

Wang Ping patted his storage bag and took out a Puppet Bird. He wrote a letter with his Spiritual Qi, placed it inside the bird’s abdomen, then imprinted it with a basic memory and set it free.

It would fly back to Jinhuai Prefecture within two days and inform the Daoist Scripture Hall of everything that had transpired since Wang Ping’s arrival. It was always wise to file a report beforehand; that way, if anything happened later, he would have an official account on record.

As the Puppet Bird flew into the distance, Wang Ping took out two Copper Coins and performed a divination...

After confirming there were no problems, he performed the hand seals for a Spell. A Soldier Talisman and a Sword Talisman formed simultaneously. As the Golden Armored Soldier manifested, it grasped the Longsword coalesced from the Sword Talisman and, guided by Wang Ping’s will, descended toward the city inside Crescent Mountain.

As dust billowed, the Golden Armored Soldier landed in the city and used the surrounding Wood Spirit Qi to instantly lock onto its target. The Longsword in its hand erupted with a palpable wave of energy, striking toward the palace built against the mountainside ahead.

The moment the Longsword touched the palace, a black curtain of light descended, completely enveloping it. The thrust felt like stabbing into a ball of cotton.

"It’s Nether Qi. As I thought, this is the Second Realm!"

As he spoke, Wang Ping performed another Spell with his hand seals. In the city below, both the Golden Armored Soldier and the Longsword dissipated into Wood Spirit Qi and vanished.

All was calm again.

’And yet, in all these vast mountains, not a single Fake Pill demon revealed itself in response to his actions.’

’A bunch of calculating cowards, all of them!’

Afterward, Wang Ping scanned the area. Confirming there were no other issues, he descended to the highlands of the encampment, found a spot, and sat down to meditate.

Soon, an hour passed.

In that hour, a fortified stockade took shape at a speed visible to the naked eye, completely occupying the highlands east of the shallows. Combined with the camps of the Government Army and the Militia, their forces now stretched for nearly ten li along both sides of the river.

Zuo Xuan and Yue Zong returned to Wang Ping’s side around this time. Wang Ping offered Yue Zong a few words of consolation before dispatching him to see to his military duties.

As for Zuo Xuan...

She carried the heavy stench of blood, likely having taken the opportunity during the previous battle to harvest the flesh and blood of numerous demons.

After relaying the Mouse Demon Xia Yan’s intelligence to Zuo Xuan, Wang Ping said, "Zhong Tong’s concerns were valid. I want you to take charge of the demon clans. I can’t wait ten days; I want an answer within five. Take Zhong Tong with you."

"Can I act at my own discretion?"

"You may."

Upon hearing this, Zuo Xuan held out her hand. "You should at least give me a written order. I’m worried I might not be able to restrain myself."

Wang Ping nodded. He produced a sheet of fine Xuan paper decorated with brocade from his storage bag, used his Spiritual Qi to inscribe an order upon it, and stamped it with his seal as Patrol Envoy.

Zuo Xuan accepted the written order with a satisfied look, just as Wang Ping added, "Take the Mouse Demon with you. You’ll need his intelligence."

"Yes!"

Zuo Xuan called out to a Spirit Cat dozing nearby, then strode quickly toward Zhong Tong’s tent.

Wang Ping glanced at Hu Qianqian, who was waiting at his side for orders. He grabbed a handful of flower seeds and scattered them. Instantly, the grass around him burst into bloom with flowers not of the current season. The blossoms spread toward the forest at incredible speed, their vines propagating and branching out into the surrounding areas.

Hu Qianqian’s fluffy ears twitched as she watched the flowers bloom. The impulse of her demon bloodline made her want to lie down and roll among the blossoms, but her cultivated humanity held her back.

Yu Lian had no such complicated thoughts. She happily darted into the patch of flowers, gobbled down several petals left and right, then poked her head out to look at Wang Ping. "You sent Zuo Xuan to deal with the demon clans. Aren’t you worried she actually *won’t* be able to restrain herself?"

"I’d be more worried if she were too timid."

Wang Ping replied nonchalantly. Ningzhou Road wasn’t his home base; if things got screwed up, it wasn’t his neck on the line.

’As for the great demons backing these clans?’

’Any clan with a truly powerful demon behind it, provided they weren’t complete fools, would have supported him from the start. Take Hu Yi and, later, Xia Yan for example. There had to be a great demon showing them the way. The ones who really loved to make trouble were always the ignorant ones. And it was them Wang Ping intended to suppress first.’

「Five days later.」

Wang Ping saw Zuo Xuan, who now reeked even more heavily of blood, and a crestfallen Zhong Tong.

Behind them, in addition to Hu Yi and Xia Yan, stood three new Mountain Monarchs: two Tiger Demons and one Pig Demon.

The five Mountain Monarchs had assembled a force of over five thousand demon soldiers, all of them armored and armed. Zhong Tong had been right—these demons weren’t just wealthy; they knew how to equip themselves for war.