Chapter 518

At nightfall, Ji Weiwei Yuan received a new piece of intelligence: the Xu family was secretly reinforcing Hanyang Pass, and had currently assembled an army of over three hundred thousand. Furthermore, the Xu family had dispatched more than ten small-scale units to leave Hanyang Pass and head west, with their destination unknown.

Ji Weiwei Yuan frowned slightly; the Xu family was truly like a lingering ghost. But now the war with the Shaman tribe was tense, and he couldn't attend to the Xu family's small movements. At this moment, with the two great national masters Xuanjizi and Canglong Shi staying in the Azure Void, they had high prestige and extensive social connections, so the Xu family probably wouldn't play any tricks at this time.

It was just that even if Xu Xu Wangu didn't have any overt movements, one had to be on guard. Any immortal had heaven-reaching means; if one really thought he wouldn't do anything, then one wouldn't even know how one died when the time came.

Although the Shaman tribe had retreated this time, their offensive posture had not diminished at all, and they continued to dig canals toward the Azure Void, already extending to a hundred miles away.

At this moment, the Azure Void Realm had clearly expanded in other directions, all exceeding five hundred miles, but it was severely compressed only in the northwest direction, leaving only four hundred miles. Now the entire Azure Void Realm was shaped like a crescent moon, with a gap on it.

The Shaman tribe's vanguard troops had already been deployed to the hundred-mile line and were fully spread out, starting to build defensive lines on the spot to intercept the Azure Void's scouts. The power of heaven and earth in the Shaman domain also flourished, blocking prying eyes, and now everything within three hundred miles could no longer be seen clearly.

Ji Weiwei Yuan, on one hand, was mobilizing troops to reinforce the defensive lines, and on the other hand, was hurrying to build fortresses.

Experience from the past three great battles showed that small fortresses equipped with cannons had very prominent defensive effects, and the Shaman tribe often had to pay three times the price to occupy a fortress. And after occupying it, they still had to continue paying the price. After all, the positions of the fortresses were fixed, and missiles could strike at the fastest speed, cleansing the Shaman tribe occupying the fortresses.

But there was another severe matter placed before Ji Weiwei Yuan: gunpowder was being used too quickly.

The previous three great battles had used up 1.5 million jin of gunpowder, and the usage amount was higher in each battle than the last. Now, there was less than a million jin of gunpowder left in the realm. According to this stock, a thousand or so missiles would use up all the remaining gunpowder.

This matter had been lingering in Ji Weiwei Yuan's heart for a long, long time, but there was no solution. The raw materials for gunpowder were only so many; except for spiritual wood which could be purchased in batches at a high price, the rest couldn't be bought even if one wanted to.

Originally, Ji Weiwei Yuan felt that the gunpowder stock was enough to fight four or five large-scale wars, but he didn't expect the Rain Country to attack with all its might. Now, more than a million Shaman tribe members had died in battle, yet there was no sign of them wanting to retreat at all; instead, they were constantly increasing their commitment.

There wasn't much stock left in the Grand Void Gate either, mainly because the things Ji Weiwei Yuan wanted were too niche, and the quantity needed was too large. The only thing the Grand Void Gate had a relatively large stock of was spiritual wood, and Ji Weiwei Yuan had asked for a million jin in one go, which had already emptied the Grand Void Gate's warehouse.

Sun Yu had specifically arranged for ten cultivators to test new gunpowder formulas, but how could this be finished in a short while?

By the time Ji Weiwei Yuan finished handling all kinds of military miscellaneous affairs, it was already late at night. He was flying from a camp toward the main peak when suddenly a low voice rang in his ear: "Realm Lord Wei, do you have time for a chat?"

Ji Weiwei Yuan felt a chill in his heart. This person could approach him in the Azure Void during wartime and could transmit sound to him without alerting the several Imperial View True Lords; he was definitely no ordinary person!

But being in his own realm, Ji Weiwei Yuan naturally wasn't afraid, so he followed the guidance of the voice and came to the edge of the realm. Here, mist swirled, and a figure hidden under a black robe stood on the top of a small hill, waiting for Ji Weiwei Yuan.

Although he was wrapped in a black robe, judging from the outline revealed outside, he didn't look much like a human. However, the texture of this black robe was special, and not a single bit of aura leaked out; Ji Weiwei Yuan's perception couldn't penetrate the black robe to see everything inside.

"Your Excellency is not of the human race, right?"

The mysterious black-robed person said in a low voice: "Shaman."

"What do you want with me?" Ji Weiwei Yuan asked directly.

It emitted a string of unintelligible gurgling sounds, then said: "Although I really want to eat you now, you are still very useful. There is a great lord who does not want to see you alive, but even less wants to see Grandmaster Hongye succeed. So, we will give you some help, and I hope you will not live up to the lord's kindness."

"What help?" Ji Weiwei Yuan asked.

"Tomorrow morning, the caravan of the Desolate Ancestor tribe will arrive, and they have brought two million jin of Thunder Sand. It seems you need this very much recently."

Ji Weiwei Yuan was startled, but on the surface, he remained calm and said: "I indeed need it very much."

The black-robed person emitted another string of gurgling sounds, seemingly unable to control himself.

It adjusted its voice several times before it became clear, saying: "The lord said that if you want to weaken the Hidden Shaman, you must enter the Hidden Cold Realm. The lord has already erased the remaining karma on your body related to the Hidden Cold Realm, and now you can go in again without alerting the Hidden Shamans. This is the location of several Hidden Shamans of the Rain Country in the Hidden Cold Realm."

It stretched out a thin, long finger from the black robe and tapped lightly. A strange map immediately appeared in front of him, which was headless and tailless, but there were three stars in the firmament.

This was a unique map marking method of the Hidden Cold Realm, using those invisible hidden stars in the sky as a basis for positioning. Generally, with three stars, one could determine the position very accurately.

Ji Weiwei Yuan didn't recognize these three hidden stars, but he thought the distance shouldn't be far.

Ji Weiwei Yuan memorized the map and said: "Thank your lord for me. Then what do I need to do?"

"The lord said, as long as you smash that magic treasure onto Grandmaster Hongye, it will be considered repayment."

Ji Weiwei Yuan nodded.

The black-robed Shaman finally said: "If you have any other requirements, you can talk to the Desolate Ancestor tribe. They will support you appropriately during this period."

Having said that, the black-robed person suddenly had white smoke rising from his whole body, and he roared and trembled in pain, turning into a pool of clear water in the blink of an eye. Ji Weiwei Yuan stood for a while before leaving.

The current situation was becoming more and more bizarre; it seemed there was clearly someone on the Shaman tribe's side who didn't want Grandmaster Hongye to grow too powerful, so they started to intervene.

And Ji Weiwei Yuan had bought hundreds of thousands of jin of Thunder Sand from the Desolate Ancestor tribe last time, which couldn't be hidden from those with ulterior motives. As long as they tested it slightly, they would know that Thunder Sand was the raw material for the Azure Void's new gunpowder.

Regardless of whether what the black-robed Shaman said was true or false, he would know by seeing if the Desolate Ancestor tribe's caravan came tomorrow morning. As for the Hidden Cold Realm, Ji Weiwei Yuan also planned to put it back on the agenda.

Now the Azure Void could only be passively beaten and couldn't leave the realm to attack at all; the situation on the battlefield was truly too passive. If it was really as that lord of the Shaman tribe said, being able to counterattack in the Hidden Cold Realm would also be a way out.

Ji Weiwei Yuan was just about to leave when suddenly his mind stirred. The newly built Zhou Tian Star Array, under the blessing of the Peerless Dao Domain, had its efficacy doubled, allowing Ji Weiwei Yuan to notice a bit of abnormality.

Ji Weiwei Yuan turned his head and saw a black-robed mysterious person appear at the edge of the realm in the distance, falling into the mountain forest below.

Another black robe?

Ji Weiwei Yuan restrained his aura, blessed himself with concealment, and at the same time enhanced his own Qi luck, and with the cover of the Peerless Dao Domain, he flew toward the place where the black-robed mysterious person disappeared.

There were countless large rocks standing in the mountain valley, and a stream flowed from the bottom of the valley, merging into a small river outside the valley.

Between the mountain rocks, a vague figure stood in the shadow of a giant rock, appearing somewhat restless, subconsciously kicking stones.

Please... you... bookmark 6... 9... book... okay...!

The black-robed mysterious person landed among the giant rocks and came before that person, laughing in a low voice: "Didn't expect there to be a day when we would meet again."

That person was also wrapped in a cloak, unable to see any clothing or appearance, and spoke with the voice of an unremarkable middle-aged man: "Why are you still looking for me? I can't help you anymore."

"Who said you can't help? You are still quite useful. But if you dare to disappear quietly again next time, I won't be so polite."

That person said coldly: "This is the end of it, this is the last meeting. Don't appear in front of me again in the future."

The black-robed person emitted a strange and eerie laugh, suddenly reached out a bird-claw-like hand, grabbed that person's neck, and lifted him up!

His claws tightened more and more, and that person struggled desperately but couldn't break free at all, losing consciousness in the blink of an eye.

The black-robed person hummed, threw him on the ground, and shot a black Qi from his fingertips into his body. That person curled up in pain, trembling uncontrollably, but couldn't make a sound.

The black-robed person waited for a few breaths before withdrawing the black Qi, then said: "This is a small lesson for you. If you dare to disobey again, I will take you away directly. Your talent is not bad; taking you back for breeding wouldn't be bad either. From now on, your descendants will be offerings for generations, and they will be slaughtered when they grow up!"

This threat seemed to have worked; that person sat up slowly and said: "What do you want me to do?"

"One, I want samples and formulas of the gunpowder. Two, how was that magic treasure of Ji Weiwei Yuan's that can shorten lifespan created, and what are its characteristics?"

"I can give you samples of the gunpowder, but I can't touch the formula, and I don't know when I can get it. As for that treasure, not many people in the entire realm know about it; if he hadn't taken it out that day, I wouldn't have known this thing existed either. I can't do this, just kill me!"

The black-robed person's attitude softened a bit and said: "I'm not forcing you to do things you absolutely can't do, but you are so close to him, it's indeed very possible. If it really doesn't work, then use your body! I received news that that guy is very lustful and likes mating very much. If you go to mate with him more, you will naturally be able to know many secrets."

That person's body trembled slightly, seemingly extremely ashamed and angry, and said: "You'd better kill me!"

The black-robed person sneered and said: "If you don't want to, I'll take you back now, and then you will mate with many different things every day! Do you want this?"

That person was silent.

The black-robed person's voice softened a bit and said: "We have many treasures left behind by human powerhouses in the past. Among them are three Supreme Profound Creation Pills, which can greatly refine and improve the quality of the Dao foundation. With your aptitude, you will reach the peak of the Immortal Foundation after taking them. Don't you want them? After finishing this matter, I will give you one first."

"Do you keep your word?" That person stood up slowly.

"Of course, you still have great use. My expectations for you are very high, haha!"

The two separated and headed in different directions.

In the night sky, Ji Weiwei Yuan's figure emerged from the void, looking at the direction where that figure disappeared, lost in thought.

(End of chapter)