Chapter 541: Military Orders and Sects in the West Wind Army

Chapter 541: Chapter 502: Military Orders and Sects in the West Wind Army

The conflict unfolding on the Wind Mist Plain was called a war, but since both the Human and Demon Races were exercising restraint, the battles were actually scattered and small-scale—

After all, on a grand battlefield, any engagement involving fewer than ten thousand people was considered small-scale.

You couldn’t even call it a war. It was a minor conflict!

Now, with friction between the Human and Demon Races intensifying and the frontline situation growing critical, it simply meant that these minor conflicts were becoming more frequent.

But a great war had yet to break out.

Both sides were still holding back, waiting for that one moment when, perhaps, neither could endure it any longer… When that happened, what would follow?

Yu Wenxu suddenly asked the Centipede Leg Cultivator, “Which General Du are you talking about?”

Caught off guard by the change of topic, the Centipede Leg Cultivator paused for a moment before answering, “General Du… is Du Xingheng. Du Xingheng of the Ling Martial Sect.”

Du Xingheng!

The name was dazzling and renowned. For fifteen years, it had hung high on the Ten Thousand Spirits Celestial Pride List. Even though the recent, meteoric rise of two peerless Celestial Prides, Song Zhao and Lu Bell, had pushed her ranking down, she still held the sixth position!

For the vast majority of Cultivators, never mind sixth place—just appearing on the Celestial Pride List at all made one a top-tier genius worthy of admiration.

What more could be said for a Celestial Pride in the top ten?

A series of soft gasps rippled through the crowd.

Even a few of the severely injured, currently being treated by other Medical Cultivators, couldn’t help but turn their gazes toward the Centipede Leg Cultivator.

But Yu Wenxu’s expression suddenly darkened, and his voice turned stern. “Wu Yanjun, are you aware that once you enter Demon Suppression Pass, even a True Immortal Martial Saint must obey the Court’s military orders? In my West Wind Army, there are only soldiers of the West Wind Army. Origin and sect do not matter!

“What does it matter that this Wang you speak of is from the Celestial Net Sect? What does it matter that Du Xingheng is from the Ling Martial Sect?”

Wu Yanjun—

That was right. The Centipede Leg Cultivator’s name was Wu Yanjun.

Yu Wenxu’s voice was overbearing. Though Wu Yanjun was a mighty Divinity Transformation Cultivator, he couldn’t help but take an involuntary step back under the force of the general’s questioning.

Yu Wenxu took a step forward, closing the distance.

His voice wasn’t loud, yet it seemed to carry the roar of crashing waves, an overwhelming and soul-shaking force. “You keep bringing up that this Wang is from the Celestial Net Sect. What are you trying to imply? Can’t you sense his aura? He is no longer Human! He has turned into a Poisonous Insect!

“What do you want? Do you want me to retract the kill order? Are you suggesting I treat him differently just because he’s a disciple of the Celestial Net Sect? That I should show him mercy?”

As Yu Wenxu advanced, Wu Yanjun retreated.

Wu Yanjun had not actually said a single word explicitly pleading for Wang, but by mentioning the Celestial Net Sect and Upper Cloud Peak, he had most certainly been implying it.

Or perhaps he wasn’t begging for mercy.

By mentioning Wang was from Upper Cloud Peak and Du Xingheng was from the Ling Martial Sect, he was actually trying to tell Yu Wenxu that their team—the one that had been infested by the Poisonous Insects at the Nine Transformation Lotus Pool—was composed entirely of core disciples from various sects!

Du Xingheng was a True Disciple of the Ling Martial Sect, Wang was a True Disciple of the Celestial Net Sect, and he, Wu Yanjun, was likewise a True Disciple of the Langyue Sect, one of the One Hundred and Eight Upper Sects.

If they weren’t True Disciples of a Major Sect, how could ordinary figures possibly have joined Du Xingheng’s team?

If they weren’t True Disciples of a Major Sect, how could their team be composed exclusively of Divinity Transformation and Innate Third Transformation Cultivators?

Don’t be fooled by the sights in Demon Suppression City, where the Divinity Transformation Stage seems to be a dime a dozen. That wasn’t the reality.

Even in Demon Suppression City or at Demon Suppression Pass, not everyone was a Divinity Transformation or Innate Third Transformation Cultivator.

The vast majority of soldiers in the West Wind Army were at the Qi Cultivation Stage or the Innate Second Transformation.

Qi Cultivation and Innate Second Transformation were the mainstream among Cultivators; Divinity Transformation and Innate Third Transformation were not so easily achieved.

What Wu Yanjun wanted to argue was that even if a True Disciple of a Major Sect was corrupted by a vile poison and turned into a Poisonous Insect, they shouldn’t be executed casually by an outsider. Instead, they should be handed over to their sect to be dealt with!

But under Yu Wenxu’s barrage of questions, Wu Yanjun chewed on those words, turning them over and over in his mind, yet found himself unable to actually speak them.

He didn’t dare. He was afraid that if he said it, Yu Wenxu would just retort with another question: ‘Are you suggesting sect law trumps military orders?’

Or perhaps: ‘Are sect regulations superior to the laws of the Court?’

Wu Yanjun’s heart trembled. He was cowed.

As Yu Wenxu continued to advance, Wu Yanjun retreated step after step. Only after falling back nearly ten paces did he finally straighten his back and shout, “General Yu, when did I ever ask you to treat him differently? Brother Wang may be poisoned by a Gu, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s beyond saving!

“It wasn’t his wish to be poisoned! His tragic state today is because he was harmed by the Poisonous Insect! Brother Wang is a victim! General, haven’t enough souls already fallen to your blade? Why must you insist on sacrificing him to it today?

“Brother Wang might still be saved…”

This last sentence—”Brother Wang might still be saved”—Wu Yanjun shouted.

But before the words had even faded, Yu Wenxu’s figure suddenly blurred. He spun around and slashed with his blade.

The arc of his blade wasn’t flashy, but it possessed an unadorned, piercing sharpness.

It was a simplicity so profound it made one’s heart palpitate. So simple that as the blade descended, everyone felt as though the world itself had fallen silent.

Wu Yanjun’s shouts died abruptly, as if scattered into the distant annals of time.

Finally, the blade’s light fell, and Yu Wenxu sheathed his weapon.

SHING!

The snow-bright blade returned to its scabbard. Behind him, the figure of Brother Wang, bound by the Apricot Branch, was cleaved in two.

Two halves of an insect’s body fell to the ground, letting out a sharp screech—

That was right. Yu Wenxu’s blade had struck down Brother Wang, but the remains that fell to the ground were not those of a human. They were, completely and utterly, the remains of an insect!

As the saying goes, a centipede dies but never falls. The creature had been sliced in two by Yu Wenxu’s blade, yet even after hitting the ground, it wasn’t completely dead.

It still had enough strength to screech and twitch, and its cries incited the other Poisoned Cultivators bound by the Apricot Branch, making them even more agitated.

A Medical Cultivator in the crowd cried out in alarm, “This is bad! The sound of this Poisonous Insect will accelerate the transformation of the others! Kill it, quickly!”

Yu Wenxu immediately gripped the hilt of his blade, about to strike again.

But Song Ciwan, standing nearby, was faster. She raised a hand and tossed out a Fire Element Crystal Pearl, then activated her Blazing Flame Technique.

BOOM!

A plume of fire erupted simultaneously over both halves of the insect’s body. Amidst the flames, the creature’s screeching gradually grew faint.

“Aaaah…” The screeching finally faded to nothing.

Finally, the two insect halves were burned to charred ash.

Song Ciwan swept her sleeve, openly collecting the charred ash into her Heaven and Earth Scale.

The Heaven and Earth Scale displayed: [Corpse Ash. Ash of an Alien Gu corpse that has been contaminated by the Divine Power of the Ancient Divine Insect Race. Value: five taels and six maces. Can be sold.]

It was just as Yu Wenxu had said. Brother Wang was no longer human; he had been completely corrupted by the Poisonous Insect and had transformed into a complete Alien Gu.

With the Heaven and Earth Scale as proof, General Yu’s words were true!

Wu Yanjun had simply been luckier than Brother Wang. The degree of his own corruption was the mildest, and Song Ciwan had saved him right at the beginning.

A gust of wind swept across the field. Wu Yanjun was speechless.

Of course, he couldn’t see the Heaven and Earth Scale, much less the description it provided of Brother Wang’s ashes. And naturally, Song Ciwan had no intention of telling him any of this.

But as a Divinity Transformation Cultivator, Wu Yanjun was not entirely without perception when it came to the boundary between human and insect.

He had sensed it. At the moment of his death, Brother Wang could indeed no longer be called human.

Crestfallen, Wu Yanjun found his voice again, a broken mutter rolling in his throat, “No Sect Vengeance Mark… When Brother Wang died just now, there was no Sect Vengeance Mark… He was already dead long ago…”

His words sounded strange, but their meaning was clear.

True Disciples of Major Sects generally carried a sect imprint on their bodies. Though these imprints manifested differently depending on the sect, they were all collectively known as ‘Vengeance Marks.’

Killing a True Disciple of a Major Sect would cause the Vengeance Mark to latch onto the murderer.

Once branded by a Vengeance Mark, the killer could not hope to escape, not even to the ends of the earth!

But there was no Vengeance Mark from Brother Wang…

A cold sweat broke out all over Wu Yanjun’s body, soaking through his heavy robes. He staggered back another step.