Chapter 269: Premonition

Inside Dongchuan Prefecture City, a master advisor with a handlebar mustache hurried in and shouted to Zhang Yiqing, "My Lord, My Lord."

Zhang Yiqing sat beside his desk, calmly reading a book of sages. He was a Fourth-Rank Advanced Scholar of the Confucian school. His daily practice was to read and understand principles, reflect upon himself according to the teachings of the saints, and nurture the vast, righteous Qi within his chest.

A Confucian disciple must possess a calm spirit and depth of character; they must remain unmoved even if Taishan collapses before them, and not blink even if an elk springs up on their left. Therefore, although the Demon Race army was preparing to attack Dongchuan Prefecture City and Zhang Yiqing was anxious inside, his demeanor remained unhurried and composed.

He read when it was time to read, sipped tea when it was time to sip tea, and played the zither when it was time to play. The music, like high mountains and flowing water, could make one feel relaxed and happy, as if truly wandering among green hills and flowing streams.

Such actions by Zhang Yiqing also served to settle the hearts of the people. Seeing Zhang Yiqing's unhurried appearance, the people in the city felt less panicked.

After all, Lord Zhang Yiqing was a court official and a Fourth-Rank Advanced Scholar. If he was not afraid, what did a group of commoners like them have to fear? At worst, it was just death.

With Zhang Yiqing presiding, the commoners in Dongchuan Prefecture City remained relatively steady. Every day, they followed the schedule to build city defenses and craft defensive weapons, while soldiers organized the able-bodied to train in city defense methods.

Zhang Yiqing put down his book, the vast, righteous Qi in his chest stirred, and he said, "Calm your hearts. Panicking like this, what kind of decorum is that!"

Hearing Zhang Yiqing's words, the handlebar-mustached advisor felt as if he had been brushed by a spring breeze. His originally panicked mind instantly calmed, and even his rapid breathing slowed. He knew this was the power of the Confucian vast, righteous Qi; although it lacked direct combat strength, it could influence the minds of others. If one held power, it could even mobilize Dynasty Luck to unleash terrifying combat strength.

"My Lord, good news. The Demon Race army has left Qingze County and is heading toward Luolong County," the advisor said.

"What?" Zhang Yiqing was shocked, standing up abruptly. He even knocked over the teacup on the table, and the emerald-green tea spilled everywhere, soaking a large patch of his Confucian robe. From this, one could see the agitation in Zhang Yiqing's heart.

The Demon Race army had been stationed in Qingze County with their blades pointed directly at Dongchuan Prefecture City. Although Zhang Yiqing appeared unhurried on the surface, he was actually terrified every single day.

Zhang Yiqing knew that if the Demon Race army truly attacked the city, with Dongchuan Prefecture's current strength, it would be impossible to defend. The day the city fell would also be the day he, Zhang Yiqing, would sacrifice his life for righteousness.

Now that the Demon Race army had changed direction and gone to Luolong County, Dongchuan Prefecture would have at least five or six days of buffer time. Perhaps the war in Dongzhou would have a result by then, or maybe experts would come to support Dongchuan Prefecture.

Zhang Yiqing felt the sword hanging over his head had finally been removed. But then he thought, Dongchuan Prefecture was safe for now, but the pressure on Luolong County would surely multiply. He had been planning to recruit Meng Yifan; if Meng Yifan were surrounded and killed by the Demon Race army, then there would naturally be no need for recruitment.

"Send someone to call Shadow back. Postpone the recruitment. If Meng Yifan and his group can withstand the Demon Race army's attack, then we can talk about recruitment," Zhang Yiqing ordered.

Originally, Zhang Yiqing's plan was that if Meng Yifan agreed to be recruited, he would bring Meng Yifan and his elite core into Dongchuan Prefecture. Then, the two sides would combine their forces to advance, attack, retreat, and defend, and then engage the Demon Race army in battle.

Zhang Yiqing had also worried that Meng Yifan, being a Mountain Hunter by origin, would be unruly and refuse to obey the summons.

Now that the Demon Race was going to attack Meng Yifan, Zhang Yiqing felt it was truly excellent. It would be best if both sides fought until they were both heavily damaged; then Zhang Yiqing could sit back and reap the rewards, easily wiping out all the Demon Race within Dongchuan Prefecture, and conveniently exterminating the rebels in Luolong County as well.

By that time, whether or not to spare Meng Yifan's life would be entirely up to him, Zhang Yiqing. He had plenty of ways to make Meng Yifan obediently follow his orders.

The Demon Race army was carrying over ten thousand commoners, so they were not moving fast. At their speed, it would take at least five days to travel from Qingze County to Luolong County.

Inside Luolong County, on this day, everyone still did not know that the army of over a hundred thousand demons was rushing toward them. Everyone was doing as they usually did.

Yet for some reason, Meng Yifan felt a bit of panic in his heart, as if something bad was about to happen.

Ordinary people sometimes have inexplicable bad premonitions, and later, bad things truly happen. This is considered a kind of sixth sense.

Immortal Cultivators have powerful Divine Souls, and their sixth-sense abilities are enhanced; some can even foresee the future.

"A premonition?" Meng Yifan frowned. He was already a Level 4 Mid-stage Cultivator. Now that his mind was uneasy, he estimated that real danger was approaching.

"Hmph! Soldiers come, block them; water comes, earth covers it. No matter what the danger is, the most important thing is to quickly improve the strength of myself and my subordinates. As long as the strength is great, I can naturally deal with all enemies calmly." Meng Yifan suppressed the panic in his heart and accelerated the speed of using electricity on Meng Shuangdao and Zhang Butou and the others.

If all five of these non-humans could successfully advance to the Fourth Grade, then Meng Yifan would have six Fourth-Grade combatants under his command. Their strength would greatly increase, and as long as no Fifth-grade Cultivator arrived, Meng Yifan would be able to block them.

Using his Spiritual Power to carefully investigate, Meng Yifan muttered, "Meng Shuangdao's body is almost fully modified. One more day of electric shocks, and tomorrow I will let him undergo the Thunder Tribulation."

During this time, besides practicing, Meng Yifan was also touching high-voltage electricity to adapt to the Thunder Element Demon Power in advance. He had to prepare for advancing to the Fifth Grade.

Whether it was the AK47, rocket launchers, and other weapons, or subordinates like Meng Shuangdao and Lang Jiao, to Meng Yifan, these were all external objects. The most fundamental thing was his own strength. As long as he broke through to the Fifth-grade Cultivator realm, he would be the strongest in Dongchuan Prefecture and would fear no challenges.

The sun rose and set, and soon a day had passed.

The next day, the sun was bright, the sky was cloudless, and it was a rare, beautiful day.

Meng Yifan brought Meng Shuangdao to the Valley outside Luolong County, preparing to let Meng Shuangdao undergo the Thunder Tribulation there.

Lang Jiao, Meng Da, Meng Er, Liu Sheng, Shen Dahu, Kong Sanqiang, Meng Dayong, and other experts also came to watch. Whether they were Martial Artists, Immortal Cultivators, or the Demon Race, everyone had to undergo the Thunder Tribulation to advance to the Fifth Grade. Lang Jiao and the others were still far from undergoing the Thunder Tribulation, but watching others undergo it in advance would be very helpful for their own future tribulations.

Meng Shuangdao was a bit nervous. They, as Zombies, were not tolerated by the Heaven, and they had to undergo the Thunder Tribulation to advance to the Fourth Grade, with a success rate of less than one in ten. Even though his body had been modified by high-voltage electricity and a vibrant life force had been nurtured within him, he still had no confidence in whether he could survive the Thunder Tribulation.