Chapter 114: Two Martial Dao Masters [Thank You to Silver Patron Liulang Guzhu Yizhi]

Yuncui Cave Mansion.

Liang Jingtang was enthusiastically wielding hoes with four male disciples, turning the soil.

The requirements for tilling spiritual fields were far higher than those for ordinary farmland—true meticulous cultivation.

The cultivation of spiritual herbs demanded even greater precision.

As soon as Liu Qiaolian and Ji Wenyue returned to Li City, Xia Daoming took these two female experts to Yuncui Cave Mansion.

After surveying and discussing, they decided to convert the two mu of land surrounding the spiritual spring into a medicinal herb garden, and the remaining twenty-two mu into spiritual rice paddies.

“Master, why are you working the fields yourself again?” Xia Daoming saw Liang Jingtang hoeing and felt a pang of guilt—he himself was enjoying the services of two beautiful women above while his master labored below.

“They work too roughly. I can’t stand to watch,” Liang Jingtang said.

Yu Chi Xiao and the others silently wiped sweat, none daring to speak up in protest.

They were terrified of being punished again!

“Leave it for now. Ma Tong is leading a thousand elite troops on a long-range raid—they’ll arrive in Li City within one or two hours,” Xia Daoming said gravely.

“What! Ma Tong dares to attack Li City with just a thousand elite troops!” Liang Jingtang and the others immediately dropped their hoes, faces alight with excitement and anticipation.

Watching his excited master and senior brothers, Xia Daoming was speechless.

But as long as they were happy, that was enough.

After all, he had finished eating the entire giant snake just yesterday, supplemented with other substances, completed the ninth-level meridian reinforcement, and surged effortlessly into the Tenth Rank realm.

Now, apart from the limited increase in his force projection range—only two zhang longer, reaching twelve zhang—his force had become immensely powerful, his speed terrifyingly swift, even frightening himself.

Even if the enemy secretly harbored cultivators, as long as they weren’t Qi Refining peak or higher—like Foundation Establishment elders—his surprise advantage, combined with his terrifying speed and explosive power, gave him confidence he could handle them easily.

As for the strength of Qi Refining peak or Foundation Establishment elders, even Ding Chushan had never seen one; Xia Daoming had only heard wild rumors from the lower rungs of the cultivation world, so he dared not overestimate himself—he knew he was merely a martial artist and could not ignore Qi Refining peak or Foundation Establishment elders.

Moreover, Foundation Establishment elders generally did not involve themselves in secular power struggles, and Qi Refining peak cultivators were mostly busy striving for Foundation Establishment—they rarely intervened personally in such affairs.

Besides, what kind of place was Li City? And what level of army was Ma Tong’s? How could such lofty figures possibly come here just to join his little expedition?

In truth, if Xia Daoming hadn’t discovered Yuncui Cave Mansion in Li City, he would have left soon anyway, seeking more promising opportunities elsewhere.

——

The news that Ma Tong was leading a thousand elite troops on a long-range raid and would soon arrive at Li City spread through the city.

Instantly, Li City plunged into unprecedented panic.

“Run! The rebels are coming!”

“The Butcher Ma is here! They’ll slaughter the whole city!”

“Zhu, where are you? Come home quickly!”

People shouted, some ran into the streets searching for children and relatives, others rushed home, grabbing whatever they could carry, hurrying toward the North City Gate, hoping to escape before the rebels arrived and flee northward.

Some fled toward the West City Gate.

Almost no one went to the East or South Gates.

The cries of women and children, shouts, and the rumble of cart wheels intertwined; the streets leading to the city gates were packed with fleeing civilians.

The elderly, weak, and sick who couldn’t escape in time stayed home, burning incense and praying for deliverance.

But when the common folk reached the city gates, they found them shut.

Before the gates and along the walls stood rows of soldiers, clad in leather armor, hands resting on sword hilts.

“Let us out! Please—”

“Let us out! We don’t want to die!” The crowd wailed as they saw the gates closed.

Just then, Ji Yuanzhen appeared atop the North City Tower.

“Grandfather Ji, have mercy! Let us go!”

“Grandfather Ji, open the gates! We can’t hold this city!”

Seeing Ji Yuanzhen on the tower, the crowd turned to him, shouting and pleading.

“Who says we can’t hold the city? If we truly couldn’t, our Ji family would flee too—would we stay here to die?” Ji Yuanzhen roared.

“Xu Zhiyuan is gone, the Lin family, Ding family, and Saber Gate are gone—what do we have to defend with?” someone cried.

“Xu Zhiyuan is gone, but I am still here! Liang Jingtang, the head of Tenglong Martial Hall, is still here! The Lin, Ding, and Saber Gate families are gone, but the Ji family, Tenglong Martial Hall, and all the martial masters remain!” Ji Yuanzhen bellowed.

“But we heard Ma the Butcher is a Martial Dao Master, one man against a thousand! With Xu Zhiyuan gone, who can—” Ji Yuanzhen had barely finished speaking when a roar erupted below.

“Roar!”

At that moment, a mighty tiger’s roar echoed.

Ji Yuanzhen stood tall, white hair flying, white robes fluttering, drawing his blade and pointing it skyward. The blade’s edge, bathed in sunset light, shot forth waves of sword light that coalesced into a ferocious white tiger in midair.

The tiger hovered in the air, radiating overwhelming slaughter and martial intent.

The soldiers guarding the gates and standing on the walls, along with Ji family disciples, saw this again and gazed at Ji Yuanzhen with fervent awe.

Ji Yuanzhen had already demonstrated this technique to the defenders and Ji family disciples, which is why they could stand firm against the panicked civilians.

Otherwise, with their lives at stake, many of these soldiers—only recently recruited and trained—would have fled long before the civilians.

The once-boiling streets fell suddenly silent.

“Martial Dao Master! Grandfather Ji is a Martial Dao Master!”

“Martial Dao Master! Martial Dao Master!”

After a long moment, the crowd erupted in a thunderous, wave-like cheer.

Having just survived a disaster, the people of Li City craved peace above all.

Who, given even a sliver of hope, would willingly endure the perilous, harsh journey to the north?

Moreover, the rebels were already approaching—how many could possibly escape their pursuit in such a frantic flight?

Ji Yuanzhen’s sudden revelation of his Martial Dao Master realm instantly gave the despairing populace hope!

“Roar!”

Another tiger’s roar rang out.

The streets fell silent again.

Everyone looked up, filled with anticipation, toward Ji Yuanzhen.

“Li City does not have only me as a Martial Dao Master—Liang Jingtang, head of Tenglong Martial Hall, is now a Martial Dao Master too!” Ji Yuanzhen proclaimed loudly.

“What? Head Liang is also a Martial Dao Master? Li City has two Martial Dao Masters!”

“Li City is saved!”

“We are saved!”

“Elderly, weak, women, and children—go home! Young, strong men, stay and defend the city!”

“Young, strong men, stay and defend the city!”

Ji Yuanzhen’s words stirred up a storm.

The people’s hope and confidence were fully ignited!

Soon, elders and women led their children back home.

The same scene unfolded at the West Gate.

Liang Jingtang’s display was even more majestic and dazzling than Ji Yuanzhen’s.

He stood proudly atop the West Gate tower, silver beard flowing, thrusting his spear. Force erupted, howling winds surged, and in the air coalesced a dragon.

Its serpentine body was covered in gleaming scales, its underside ending in scaled avian claws, its massive head crowned with branching antler-like dragon horns.

A sense of majesty, dominance, antiquity, and primordial power radiated from the West Gate tower.

Below, on the streets, the civilians who had been screaming to flee fell instantly silent, then some knelt.

One by one, everyone knelt.

In this world, the dragon held an exalted, revered status, symbolizing supreme power and authority.

Liang Jingtang gazed down at the sea of bowed heads below, feeling as if he might float away.

Behind him, Yu Chi Xiao and Zhuo Xingji stood like door gods, their eyes drifting.

For they imagined: someday, they too would become Martial Dao Masters.

Then, like their master, pointing their spears—ahhh.

Just thinking of it made them feel they might soar into the sky.

——

Nightfall crept in quietly, the sky filled with stars.

Beneath the night, Li City’s towering walls and battlements lay like a great beast crouched silently on the plains at the foot of the wild mountains, waiting for its prey.

Suddenly, iron hooves shattered the silence beyond the walls—a thousand cavalry charged forward with terrifying momentum.

Hooves pounded the earth, kicking up swirling dust that, under the starlight, resembled monstrous claws reaching out.

The army halted before the East City Gate.

Ma Tong wore black armor, gripping a long-handled golden hammer. The hammer, as large as a winter melon, glimmered faintly under the stars—undoubtedly heavy beyond measure, capable of crushing anything with a single blow.

The twenty riders behind and beside Ma Tong, apart from the gray-robed elder who still wore simple cloth robes, were all clad in fish-scale iron armor, wearing fearsome iron helmets. Their warhorses, like their riders, were armored in scales, muscular, tall, and robust.

Each of these twenty riders possessed powerful, surging qi and martial energy—clearly Seventh and Eighth Rank Grand Martial Masters.

Among them, including the gray-robed elder, six were Eighth Rank Grand Martial Masters.

These were Ma Tong’s Nineteen Iron Blood Guards—his true trusted elite, painstakingly forged at great cost.

The gray-robed elder was a loyal servant of the Ma family who had raised him since childhood and now served as his steward and military strategist.

“Interesting. With such a commotion, Li City surely must have noticed by now—yet the gates are closed, no panicked civilians fleeing outside, and the city seems utterly still!” Ma Tong gazed curiously at the silent, darkened Li City.

“Something’s off. Could the Ji family now controlling Li City be preparing to defend the city and fight us?” The gray-robed elder frowned in deep thought.

“The entire family has only one Eighth Rank Grand Martial Master—what confidence do they have to fight us? Most likely, they think we’ll send envoys to negotiate surrender, so they’re preparing to capitulate.”

But they certainly never expected that this time, we don’t want their surrender—we want to sack the city, kill everyone and loot everything!” Ma Tong curled his lips into a sneer, cold and cruel.

“That’s possible,” said the gray-robed elder, nodding. After a moment’s thought, he added: “Since our sudden appearance hasn’t caused chaos in Li City and all the gates remain shut, why not use their own plan against them? Send envoys to urge surrender, tricking them into opening the gates for us. Li City’s walls are tall and sturdy; if we attack directly, we’ll inevitably suffer losses.”

“Jiejie, this is even better. They never imagined that surrendering would still lead to slaughter—the resentment of their spirits will be even greater.” No sooner had the gray-robed elder finished speaking than a chilling voice echoed from behind them, among the cavalry.

PS: This chapter is an extra update for the Silver Grand Alliance member Liulang Guzhu Yi. Whether I can add another update tomorrow depends on how smoothly I write today. That’s all for today.

(End of Chapter)