Chapter 500: 474 Returning to the Mountain

The peaks of Xishan stood tall, one cliff after another, too steep to climb, impassable even for apes. Mountain after mountain stretched on, endless to the eye, a place rarely trodden by human feet.

On this afternoon, the sunlight was exceptionally brilliant, and a figure drifted down from the sky, as if descending from the sun itself.

The figure wore a pale green long robe, falling with the grace of a feather, light and elegant, landing on the ground without making a single sound.

It was a youth of sixteen or seventeen, with the appearance of gold and jade, like a person out of a painting. Upon landing, he let out a breath and said, "Finally back on the ground. It's more comfortable to step on solid earth; it feels grounded."

He looked up to confirm the direction of the sun, and just as he was about to leave, he suddenly showed surprise and said, "What a coincidence?"

The surrounding vegetation rustled, and seven or eight people charged out from both the front and back, all armored and wielding swords, filled with killing intent, surrounding him in an instant.

The leader in front, wearing the uniform of a Colonel, looked grave and shouted, "Who are you? What is your business here? Do you not know this is a restricted area?"

The youth asked in wonder, "Is this already a restricted area? That shouldn't be, right? It wasn't before, and it wasn't marked on the map..."

Hearing his authentic Yunzhou accent, the Colonel felt slightly more at ease, but still shouted, "Since it is a restricted area, how could we let you know? State your identity quickly, or you will be treated as a spy."

The youth replied solemnly, "Colonel, please do not take offense; this official truly did not know this place was a restricted area. I am Tang Zhao, an Instructor at the Jiandisi Xunying. Are you a comrade from the Xishan Battalion under the Yunzhou Dudu Mansion? I am returning from outside and am on my way to Zhongtian Prefecture to pay my respects to the Marquis."

The Colonel was stunned and said, "You are from the Jiandisi? Do you have proof?"

Tang Zhao took out his official credentials and Token and handed them over; these were the real deal, nothing to question.

The Colonel examined them carefully and relaxed further, saying, "Indeed, you are an Instructor of the Jiandisi. By rights, we are all comrades, and in normal times, I would let you pass. But these are extraordinary times; anyone passing through Xishan must have their background thoroughly checked and await approval before crossing the border. I do not have the authority to let you pass. Why don't you return to the camp with me to see the General? Once you explain clearly, there will naturally be no problem."

Although Tang Zhao was in a hurry, his main goal was to report to the Gaoyuan Marquis, not because he was summoned by the Marquis's military order, so it did not count as official business. He decided to comply with the local military order and nodded, saying, "Very well, please lead the way, Colonel, so I may see the General."

Seeing that he was easy to talk to, the Colonel felt completely relieved. The official ranks of the Jiandisi roughly corresponded to those in the army; one's rank indicated one's strength. This Instructor was of the sixth grade, meaning this official of the Jiandisi, who looked impossibly young, was a Sword Guest.

In the army, a Sword Guest would at least hold the rank of a Major, and some miscellaneous Generals were only at the level of Sword Guest. For instance, the General in their camp was actually a Deputy General, and only possessed the strength of a Sword Guest. The Colonel himself was not a Sword Guest; if Tang Zhao did not cooperate, let alone fighting, even if he just walked away, the Colonel had no Sword Guest support at hand—what could he do? Even if he went back to call for reinforcements and blocked him within Xishan, he would inevitably face charges for dereliction of duty.

Respect is mutual; since Tang Zhao was so cooperative, he naturally had to be polite, saying, "In that case, please follow me."

At this moment, the white fox on Tang Zhao's shoulder suddenly said, "Are you really quite an official? This official is also very respectful to you; it seems you have some status. I thought you were just bragging."

Tang Zhao smiled and said, "I am indeed an official. But it is a small one, to be sure."

Yes, Ling Baoyu... his Sword Image had followed him down.

Although Tang Zhao's guess was his own speculation, it was not without basis, especially since the Ruyi Sword was currently missing, leaving everyone at a loss and feeling anxious. Tang Zhao's theory was a relatively concrete direction; at least it pointed out a path for everyone, so they wouldn't be like headless flies.

Once they thought of their Highness possibly being trapped in Wangliang Mountain, everyone was naturally stirred up, wishing they could immediately break into Wangliang Mountain to rescue their Highness. But fortunately, they still had their reason.

More than a hundred years ago, when the Wangliang invaded, their Highness the Sword Immortal held them off head-on, and they still suffered defeat in the battle. Although the Wangliang might not be as strong as they were back then, their own strength was far worse now. With only seven or eight people left, all of whom were in a weakened state and had not recovered their vitality, even if everyone was willing to risk their lives, they couldn't just throw their lives away blindly, right?

To reorganize and recover their original strength would take several years, and to go further, or even for another Sword Immortal capable of carrying the burden to appear, was not just a matter of time, but also a matter of luck. Given the current situation, one could say the hope was very slim.

Wasting a hundred years of lifespan was, for a Sword Hero, a waste of half a lifetime. Even those who were promising young talents back then had now been reduced to mediocre people.

Could it be that they could only sit by and watch, helpless to save their Highness from the hands of the Wangliang?

At this time, Tang Zhao reminded them that they could consider the advice Bai Ni gave on her deathbed: to seek the whereabouts of the New Dongjun.

Mentioning Dongjun, everyone had grievances. Although it was Bai Ni who had been deceived, she did have a part in the destruction of Baiyujing, and consequently, Dongjun had also left a bad impression on everyone, so they were somewhat repelled. However, the rescue of their Highness was a major matter, and under the persuasion of the steady ones like Tan Jianxia, the Sword Heroes decided to put aside their prejudices and seek help from Dongjun.

At this point, Tang Zhao proposed that the Jinwu Sword was in Yunzhou, and since it was a matter of great importance affecting the lives of the people in an entire province, it could not bypass the government and the Gaoyuan Marquis. Why not ask Baiyujing to send an envoy to contact the Gaoyuan Marquis? Firstly, it could help resolve the immediate crisis in Yunzhou and liberate the Jinwu Sword; secondly, by forming an alliance with Yunzhou, they could also borrow the strength of the Hou Mansion to attack Wangliang Mountain.

Tang Zhao even suggested that if they really needed external aid, they could try contacting the Imperial Court. No power in the Human World was stronger than the Imperial Court. Although the central government was currently falling apart and administrative orders were not being followed, the faction of the Imperial Preceptor still held power, and they had established the Tongming Hall specifically to deal with Wangliang Mountain; why not try to join forces with them?

This proposal, however, was met with opposition.

First was the concern regarding the identity of Baiyujing, because Baiyujing was actually a force returning from the Suiyu, a frontline force temporarily staying in the Human World; they and the Human World were two different worlds. The so-called "frontline belongs to the frontline, and the human world belongs to the human world." According to the current tacit rules, it was not appropriate for Baiyujing to get too involved in the Human World.

Hao Jianxia added, "What good can come from the current Imperial Court? Although the Eternal Night Court are bastards, the Imperial Court is no better; great villains and filth, which one of those are they missing? If we go to them, isn't that like asking a tiger for its skin? Even the Yunzhou government, it only looks decent on the outside; who knows what filth is hidden inside?"

Even the steady Tan Jianxia said, "Brother Tang, it is not that we don't trust the Imperial Court, but there are suspicious aspects to it. I heard that the Tongming Hall has been established for over a hundred years and has been fighting Wangliang Mountain, so why has Wangliang Mountain remained as stable as Mount Tai? Are they unable to defeat them, or do they not want to? Who knows if there is collusion? Let us not escape the tiger's den only to enter the wolf's lair."

What could Tang Zhao say? He could only say that Tan Jianxia was indeed the most insightful, truly discerning, and hit the nail on the head. When he was still a child and mentioned Wangliang Mountain to Si Liyu, Si Liyu had once said that Wangliang Mountain was vaguely linked to some powerful figures and hid many sinister human hearts, which coincided with Tan Jianxia's view.

In the end, Baiyujing decided not to bother with the Imperial Court, but they could first make contact with the Gaoyuan Marquis. Whether it was searching for the Jinwu Sword or saving the common people, it was a great thing. As for whether to cooperate further, it would depend on the results of their mutual probing.

Because the project of reorganizing Baiyujing could not do without people, and everyone had not recovered their strength, they only sent the white fox, who was most familiar with the Human World, to go to Yunzhou with Tang Zhao. At this time, Tang Zhao held the dual identity of Baiyujing and Yunzhou, acting as a middleman between the two sides. It was fortunate that his strength had reached a certain level; otherwise, he would not have had the ability to be this middleman.

Following the Colonel to the Xishan camp, just as he entered, Tang Zhao sensed that the atmosphere was wrong. People were coming and going in the camp, and the atmosphere was solemn, with a hint of the tension of the Qianxian.

Tang Zhao's heart sank: What major event had happened? Could it be that the suppression of the turtle bandits was not going smoothly, to the point of triggering a major war?

But he was not a member of the military and did not want to be suspected of spying on military secrets here. In any case, once he left the mountain and contacted his own people in the Jiandisi, he would be able to figure it out, so he looked straight ahead and entered the camp.

After walking two steps, another small team came out of the camp. The leader was also a Colonel, who was startled when he saw Tang Zhao and said, "Caught another outsider? Are they all in the same group? Go on, the iron prison is over there."

The Colonel here explained, "This is a brother from the Jiandisi, here to pay a visit to the General."

That Colonel then realized, exchanged a salute with Tang Zhao, and said, "To see the General, I'm afraid you'll have to wait. The General just went out to deal with another outsider."

The Colonel here asked, "Why are there so many outsiders? Didn't we catch a woman in white yesterday? And today there's... could it be that we were negligent in the past, and Xishan has long been like a sieve? For the General to handle it personally, could it be another Sword Guest?"

The Colonel opposite was startled and looked at Tang Zhao, realizing that this young man was also a Sword Guest. He was secretly amazed and said, "It is said not to be, but the person claims to be a Disciple of the Yanyun Sword Sect. You know the character of those disciples from the big sects; they are very arrogant and do not submit to our jurisdiction, and this one has some skills, so the General went to handle it personally."

The Colonel here scoffed and said, "Yanyun Sword Sect, what a big background. Is that the big sect that spans the Yan, Yun, and You provinces? It sounds impressive, but this is Yunzhou; are we afraid of them?"

The Colonel opposite said, "What is there to fear? At most, we give them some face and don't take their life, but we still have to catch them and let their sect come to collect them. Don't worry about it; they aren't even a Sword Guest. Can a mere Mortal turn the world upside down?"

The two chatted for a moment and then left. The Colonel invited Tang Zhao to rest in the barracks.

Tang Zhao asked, "You caught a woman in white yesterday? Could it be a Sword Student?"

The Colonel said, "Yes, in the last few days, the superiors have issued strict orders to isolate the inside from the outside; no one is allowed to run in from outside the mountain, and no one is allowed to run out from inside the mountain. Yesterday we caught a woman on the mountainside. Why... ah, I remember now, she said she was from Heiyang and was a righteous person of the Imperial Court, and she knew someone from the Jiandisi. How do I remember her saying she knew Officer Xing? Could it be you?"

Tang Zhao was also a bit strange; why did Black Widow mention Xing Ji and not him?

He immediately understood: he had disguised himself to accompany Black Widow on this trip, clearly not wanting to expose his identity. Considering this, she would rather mention Xing Ji.

Of course, it was also because Xing Ji had greater strength, a higher official rank (at least before he was stripped of it), and wider connections. Mentioning Xing Ji carried more weight and made it easier to ask for favors.

Tang Zhao said, "She is indeed an old acquaintance of Officer Xing, and I have traveled with her before. She should not be a bad person. I wonder if you could let her come out with me?"

The Colonel pondered and said, "In normal times, if you asked, such a small matter would be nothing, but the situation is very tense now. I am of low status and have no say in this. How about this: you go to the barracks to rest first, and when the General comes, you can talk to him. As long as he agrees, we will send you and her out of the mountain together, how about that?"