Chapter 238 - 236: Diverting the Disaster

Chapter 238: Chapter 236: Diverting the Disaster

Outside Kaiping Prefecture.

Chen Yuan, leading Jiang Xibai and the others, sped all the way here, only to be met by a scene of utter desolation.

The once-bustling area outside the Prefecture City was now in ruins.

Previously, there were many Jianghu Forces outside Kaiping Prefecture, but they had all migrated inland, daring not to contend with the Hu Yan Tribe and the Ten Thousand Demon Sect.

Of course, some Jianghu Forces were unwilling to abandon their foundations and chose to fight the Hu Yan Tribe and the Ten Thousand Demon Sect head-on, but the result was always the utter destruction of their Sects.

But while some Jianghu Forces could flee or migrate, the local commoners had no way to do so.

Especially now, during the autumn harvest, there were many fields outside the city that still needed reaping.

When some commoners went out to harvest their grain, they would run into the Hu Yan Tribe’s cavalry and be mercilessly slaughtered.

Most of the Grassland People of the Hu Yan Tribe came from small, lower-class tribes. Back on the Grassland, they were bullied by the great nobles and struggled just to fill their bellies. Now that they had come to the dazzling world of the Central Plains, their arrogance and cruelty knew no bounds.

If they encountered women, they would snatch them away. If they encountered men, they would shoot them dead with an arrow, even using them for target practice.

But the local commoners still had to eat. With the Hu Yan Tribe’s invasion, trade routes had been cut off. If they didn’t harvest their grain, these poor people would truly starve to death.

Thus, even knowing the danger, the commoners could only wait for the Hu Yan Tribe to leave before coming out to harvest their grain.

However, if their luck was bad and they ran into them again, it would mean another round of slaughter.

So, the general situation during this time was that a grandfather would go to harvest grain and be killed by an arrow, so the father would go next.

When the father died, the wife would wipe her tears and go with her child, continuing until the entire family was dead.

When Chen Yuan and his men arrived outside Kaiping Prefecture, this was the very scene that greeted them.

A dozen or so cavalrymen from the Hu Yan Tribe were using commoners as targets for their bows and arrows, competing to see who could kill the most.

And the prize was nothing more than a single pearl.

"Kill!"

Chen Yuan spat out a single word.

Behind him, Jiang Xibai raised his long spear. The Po Jun Guard, like a roaring crimson dragon, shot forward, instantly crushing the dozen or so Hu Yan Tribe cavalrymen into a paste of mangled flesh!

The Hu Yan Tribe cavalry inside Kaiping Prefecture noticed the commotion and immediately charged out of the city with loud cries, surging toward Chen Yuan and his men.

Kaiping Prefecture was a Prefecture City, where the Hu Yan Tribe had stationed a full thousand elite soldiers and over two thousand regular troops.

These Grassland People were skilled in archery from horseback. Moreover, Nihachu had even given them Body Refining Techniques to practice, making their strength comparable to that of the White Tiger Guards.

But the Po Jun Guard were no ordinary White Tiger Guards. Once they began their charge, they were like an army-breaking dragon—utterly unstoppable!

Chen Yuan was not versed in military tactics, so he left the matter of how the Po Jun Guard should charge into formation to Jiang Xibai.

He himself locked his sights on a leading knight of the Hu Yan Tribe.

The man wore a suit of black armor and had an incredibly powerful build. He wielded a giant hammer ten feet long, and even the warhorse beneath him was extraordinary, easily twice the size of a normal one.

The aura he emanated was exceptionally fierce, comparable to a Condensing Truth Realm Late Stage expert.

The Hu Yan Tribe’s system was modeled after that of the old Golden Horde. Every Thousand Households formed a ’Meng’an,’ and the leader of a Meng’an was a Centurion.

This "Thousand Households" did not refer to a thousand men, but rather that the families of the soldiers under his command were also under his jurisdiction, making him both a military and administrative leader. As a result, the soldiers under a Centurion’s command followed his orders without question, and their loyalty was extremely high.

At that moment, the Hu Yan Tribe Centurion let out a deafening roar, and an overwhelmingly powerful black True Qi erupted from his body.

The unique warhorse beneath him also let out a long neigh and, with a sudden leap, jumped dozens of feet into the air. The Centurion brought his hammer down from mid-air, the whistling sound echoing between heaven and earth, his strike carrying the weight of a collapsing mountain.

Although most of the Hu Yan Tribe came from small Grassland tribes and lacked the established heritage of someone like Bo Gudun,

their survival under the oppression of the Hachal and Lin Khanate meant that every Centurion had a solid foundation of their own.

This Centurion’s Physical Cultivation, for example, was in no way inferior to that of a Martial Monk from the Vajra Prajna Temple.

The Blood Sea Listening Tide appeared in Chen Yuan’s hand as he stared expressionlessly at the Centurion.

Only at the instant the heavy hammer was about to land did Chen Yuan suddenly strike with his blade.

The Celestial Fire Power seethed violently as the Li Yan Blood Fiend erupted with a BOOM.

Boundless blood flames converged on the blade’s edge, transforming and blooming into a magnificent Karma Fire Red Lotus.

As Chen Yuan’s blade descended, the sky was dyed completely crimson by the blood flames.

As the Karma Fire Red Lotus bloomed, the Sword Aura streaked across the sky, followed by a soft SQUELCH.

The giant hammer in the hands of the imposing Centurion was sliced apart by the Blood Sea Listening Tide as if it were tofu. The man, his unique warhorse, and the hammer were all cleaved clean in two by Chen Yuan’s single strike!

However, not a single drop of blood flowed from the wounds, as the flesh had been scorched black by the searing Blood Flame Power, even emitting the faint, charred aroma of roasted meat.

Jiang Xibai was stunned, his eyes filled with utter shock.

’Brother Chen’s strength has grown to a terrifying degree since he returned from Qin Province.’

He was confident he could have killed this Hu Yan Tribe Centurion himself, but it would have taken a fierce battle.

’But Chen Yuan? He had minced both horse and rider with a single slash, as easily as slaughtering a chicken or a dog.’

In truth, if Chen Yuan had needed a second strike to kill this Centurion, it would have been a genuine disgrace.

After all, what kind of opponents had Chen Yuan faced during his trip to Qin Province?

He had faced the Saintess of the Red Lotus Sect, young prodigies like Zhang Zhilan, and Grandmaster experts like Zhu Xinwu and Ouyang Xun who had already condensed their Primordial Pills.

He had even exchanged a move with Kou Anzhi, the Palace Master Master of the Profound City Palace.

After fighting bloody battles against such people, a single strike was more than enough for a mere Centurion of the Hu Yan Tribe.

With their Centurion slain, the remaining Hu Yan Tribe cavalrymen were all struck with terror.

With Jiang Xibai’s Po Jun Guard leading the charge, their previously orderly formation was instantly shattered.

The White Tiger Guards Chen Yuan had brought up from the rear immediately rushed forward to finish off the stragglers and begin the reaping.

Chen Yuan’s previous order to them had been to kill every last member of the Hu Yan Tribe, leaving no one alive.

Those of a different race are bound to have different hearts.

Feng Wushang only wanted to defeat them and drive them out of Ning Province.

Chen Yuan, however, wanted to make them stay in Ning Province forever.

Just then, a soft sound came from behind Chen Yuan.

Without turning his head, Chen Yuan suddenly grabbed backward, the Li Yan Blood Fiend erupting in his palm.

A jet-black long sword was caught in Chen Yuan’s grasp. The attacker, a man in his early thirties dressed in black, had a look of absolute horror on his face.

In the next moment, the Li Yan Blood Fiend flared violently, surging along the black long sword toward its wielder.

The black-clothed man immediately abandoned his sword and retreated, but at the same time, the Blood Sea Listening Tide was already slashing toward him.

But just then, a powerful, surging Demonic Qi erupted from the black-clothed man’s body. He transformed into a black, demonic shadow and instantly fled over a hundred feet.

"The Demon Shadow Escape? Someone from the Ten Thousand Demon Sect?"

Chen Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly and said to Jiang Xibai, "You continue hunting down the Hu Yan Tribe. Afterward, garrison Kaiping Prefecture and look for opportunities to reinforce the other Prefecture Cities. I’m going after the man from the Ten Thousand Demon Sect."

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Yuan shot off in pursuit.

The Ten Thousand Demon Sect’s Demon Shadow Escape was extremely fast, but Chen Yuan’s power was profound. Combined with the Fish Dragon Transformation Secret Technique, he pursued with sheer explosive force, actually managing to close the distance between them.

The Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist’s strength wasn’t particularly high—only Condensing Truth Realm Middle Stage.

However, he was from the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, after all, and had numerous Secret Techniques at his disposal. His actual combat power was thus quite a bit stronger than that of the Hu Yan Tribe Centurion.

Several times he tried to turn and launch a surprise attack on Chen Yuan, but each attempt was easily foiled.

But Chen Yuan was in no hurry to kill him, simply tailing him from behind.

’The Ten Thousand Demon Sect sent quite a few people. Killing them one by one is too much trouble.’

’I’ll see if I can follow him and draw out more Martial Artists from the Ten Thousand Demon Sect.’

The Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist felt Chen Yuan sticking to him like a maggot on a rotting bone and cursed him inwardly.

But as he fled, he suddenly seemed to remember something and sped off in another direction.

He remembered that woman, Chu Hongshang, was supposed to be in that area.

Within the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, he was considered one of Xu Tianhong’s people, as his own master was a subordinate of Xu Baiwei.

Xu Tianhong and Chu Hongshang did not get along, so naturally, he stood on Xu Tianhong’s side.

’The man chasing me is incredibly powerful; I’m no match for him at all. In that case, I’ll just divert the disaster and lead him straight to Chu Hongshang to screw her over.’

The Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist weaved and dodged until he arrived at the base of a mountain cliff.

Chu Hongshang was sitting cross-legged there, cultivating.

She hadn’t paid Yin Kuang’s words any mind at all.

In her years with the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, Chu Hongshang had fought her way up past countless young Martial Artists; she was not lacking in combat experience.

This trip to Ning Province to temper the young disciples held little meaning for her. Her master simply wanted her to see the Jianghu for herself, so she wouldn’t always be cultivating behind closed doors within the Sect.

But the actions of the Hu Yan Tribe’s Grassland People disgusted her, reminding her of when the Chu Family was once helpless and at the mercy of others. For this reason, she was even more unwilling to help the Hu Yan Tribe kill people.

As for whether Elder Ning, who had organized the trial, would punish her for this upon her return to the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, Chu Hongshang wasn’t worried in the slightest.

Her master, Shi Xueyan, was temperamental and unpredictable. She was prone to fits of madness even when things were calm, let alone when there was trouble.

Although Elder Ning was a man of high status and power within the Sect, even he did not want to provoke her master.

Just then, the Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist also spotted Chu Hongshang, and his eyes instantly lit up.

"Junior Sister, save me! Hurry up and deal with this guy!"

The Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist pointed at Chu Hongshang and shot Chen Yuan a smug grin. "This Junior Sister of mine is a peerless prodigy of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect’s younger generation! Her strength is extraordinary. Killing you will be a piece of cake!"

He was praising Chu Hongshang so highly because he wanted Chen Yuan to treat her as the primary target, giving him a chance to escape.

However, Chen Yuan didn’t attack Chu Hongshang as the man had expected. Instead, a slight smile touched his lips.

And Chu Hongshang, looking back at Chen Yuan, also broke into a brilliant, radiant smile, leaving the Ten Thousand Demon Sect Martial Artist completely dumbfounded.

’What’s going on? That woman, Chu Hongshang, can actually smile?’

He had been in the Ten Thousand Demon Sect longer than Chu Hongshang, and in all the time he had known her, he had never once seen her smile!