Chapter 440: Stalemate: The Arrival of Shaoying

A long sword came piercing through the air; the Grand Marshal tilted his head slightly, appearing indifferent, but in reality, he had not taken the matter to heart at all, even continuing to hold his Tea Cup to sip his tea.

That sword was Long Yuan, and the one who threw it was naturally Long Qi.

Long Qi saw at a glance that the old man on the seat was the one commanding the entire Demon Race army.

As the saying goes, to capture the bandits, first capture their king; as long as this old man was taken down, the rest would be nothing but a disorganized rabble.

The thought was correct, but how could everything be so simple?

At the time of the Shang collapse, the palace offices included the Grand Tutor, Grand Preceptor, Grand Guardian, Left and Right Prime Ministers, as well as the Minister of Education and Minister of Works. Later, the Creation Demon Lord changed the official system; to simplify court administration, he established the Seven Ministries as the highest governing bodies: the Minister of Education, Grand Marshal, Minister of Justice, Minister of Works, Sinnong, Shishi, and Minister of Rectification.

The seven departments were directly under the Demon Lord, each performing its own duties, with various ranks of officials beneath them; conversely, the Grand Preceptor and Grand Guardian, though retained, were mostly nominal positions with their actual power greatly diminished.

The so-called Grand Marshal, as the name implies, is in charge of military and political affairs, holds certain secret decision-making powers in the court, is deeply trusted by the Demon Lord, and is highly valued; since the creation of the world, those who have held the post of Marshal have always been military generals.

Therefore, facing the sudden arrival of the Daoist Sect, the Grand Marshal made his own decision, not waiting for the Demon Lord's order, and stood guard directly outside the palace gate.

If not for someone deeply trusted, how would one dare to mobilize troops without authorization?

And to be trusted, one naturally possesses the strength to be trusted.

"The youngsters of today are so rude; do you not know that when two armies fight, one must first announce their name? To draw blades without a word—what kind of logic is that?"

"Guests have arrived, and the old man keeps them outside the gate—what kind of rule is that?" Long Qi channeled his Spirit Power to retrieve Long Yuan, his tongue just as sharp.

The Grand Marshal only smiled and did not answer, instructing those to his left and right: "This tea has gone cold; go bring a pot of hot tea." He then stood up and tightened his wrist guards. "Bring me my Flood Dragon Whip; I will play with this brat first."

Hidden away, Adao thought this was bad, cursing Long Qi for being an idiot.

Of all people to provoke, he had to provoke that plague of an old man; he had never seen anyone so eager to seek death.

The Grand Marshal stroked his long beard, holding the Flood Dragon Whip, and walked out unhurriedly, his measured steps full of imposing power.

The Flood Dragon Whip in his hand was no ordinary object; it was said that long ago there were two, a male and a female, but later the female whip was severed by someone, leaving only the male whip.

Seeing this, Long Qi knew this person was not to be trifled with; his expression turned stern, and he became serious.

The two stared at each other, neither moving, completely unaffected by the shouts of the battlefield.

"Good composure," the Grand Marshal suddenly laughed. "Kid, you're a bit interesting."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the Grand Marshal was suddenly wrapped in purple lightning; in the blink of an eye, he was before Long Qi, and before Long Qi could react, the Flood Dragon Whip came crashing down.

Long Qi could not dodge and could only raise his sword to resist, but the opponent's strength was like a thousand jun, forcing him to his knees.

"What tyrannical strength," Long Qi took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Old man, you really haven't lost your touch; I underestimated you."

"Brat, you've got a big mouth." Hearing this, the Grand Marshal was not angry, but instead revealed a smile.

If they were not on a battlefield, the words between this old man and the youth would seem quite harmonious, just like a grandfather and grandson.

Long Qi exerted force from his waist and struggled to turn, finally offloading the Grand Marshal's force, and taking advantage of the moment the Flood Dragon Whip smashed into the ground, he rolled several times to create distance.

"I accept your undeserved praise." Long Qi panted heavily, but his tongue did not yield in the slightest.

Having forcibly taken the Grand Marshal's whip, he seemed to have injured his right arm; Long Qi's shoulder throbbed with pain, and when he tried to raise his sword, he found he couldn't lift it at all.

It seemed to be dislocated.

The Grand Marshal had no intention of letting up, pursuing Long Qi and smashing down with great force.

The pain in his shoulder forced Long Qi to retreat and dodge, but his powerless right arm made it difficult to control his balance, his movements appearing sluggish; coupled with the Grand Marshal's lightning-fast speed, he was caught up to in just a few steps.

Seeing the Flood Dragon Whip coming through the wind, in that split second, a long whisk wrapped around it, checking the whip's descent. "For your Excellency to haggle with a junior will inevitably lead to gossip. If you don't mind, how about sparring with this old man instead?"

It was Chiyanzi; the one wrapping around the Flood Dragon Whip was his horsetail whisk.

The Grand Marshal narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Chiyanzi; he saw at a glance that Chiyanzi was no ordinary person, and even if it was only a trace, that tiny bit of dread could not be hidden.

This person is of the Demon Race!

But since he is of the Demon Race, why is there not a shred of demonic aura on him? If one were not careful, one would be deceived by this aura.

"Kid, where do you come from?" the Grand Marshal asked in a deep voice.

"This humble one is untalented, merely a wandering traveler; not worth mentioning."

Chiyanzi did not loosen his grip in the slightest, even gaining the upper hand, actually pulling the Grand Marshal's Flood Dragon Whip away, allowing Long Qi to retreat.

"Old man, this old fellow was clearly my opponent; what is the meaning of you sticking your foot in?"

Long Qi, standing firm, seemed quite dissatisfied, causing Adao in the shadows to roll his eyes again.

Someone saved you; listen to the ungrateful words you're saying?

But before Adao could finish his internal monologue, he heard Long Qi say again: "But since you sincerely and earnestly requested it, then I, your young master, will reluctantly leave this opponent to you."

Please... add to... your collection_(!)

Now Adao narrowed his eyes as well—

Do you even have a face?

Subjected to the mockery, the Grand Marshal did not get angry but laughed, though this laughter hid murderous intent.

"Why don't you two come at me together? It would save me a lot of trouble."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Grand Marshal turned his body and struck a palm toward Chiyanzi.

The palm wind was powerful and unstoppable; Chiyanzi had no choice but to release the Flood Dragon Whip, flipping several times to put distance between himself and the Grand Marshal.

This palm looked simple, but the palm force was profound, and facing it made one inexplicably feel fear.

This person's cultivation cannot be underestimated; I fear he is not easy to deal with...

Chiyanzi frowned, gathering all his focus, staring intently at the Grand Marshal, not daring to relax for a second.

Long Qi was also not as relaxed as he appeared; although he spoke mocking words, the pain in his right shoulder reminded him of the terror of the person before him.

Even if the two joined forces, this old man would likely capture them easily; they had absolutely no chance of winning.

Long Qi reached back and gripped the Painting Scroll on his back, hesitated for a moment, and finally let go.

This Painting Scroll was his final trump card; how could he use it on this person? Besides, even if he used it, it might not be effective.

"What? Still not making a move? Then I shall not be polite."

As the Grand Marshal spoke, he raised the Flood Dragon Whip, and Long Qi and Chiyanzi both held their breath and waited.

But just at this moment, a white shadow suddenly appeared, and with a "clang-clang" sound, sparks flashed instantly; before anyone could clearly see the newcomer, that person did a somersault and leaped straight over.

"Such a grand event, why not count me in?"

A person in a gray hooded cloak, holding a pair of maces in their hands, turned around, and at that moment, Long Qi shouted:

"How is it you? Why are you here?"

It was actually Lu Ying.