Chapter 110: 133, 134

Hanping Prefecture.

This is the third large-scale Ghost Tide.

North City.

On the freezing city wall in the twelfth lunar month, a harsh, teeth-grating screeching sound suddenly rang out. When a Guard on the wall leaned over to look, he saw a monster that was hard to describe. It was a strange object pieced together from various mixed furs and rusted metal. It had many legs and many arms. It resembled a human, a tiger, a rabbit, and a snake, but overall, it looked like a spider.

A fur spider! This strange object was crawling rapidly along the city wall. Every time it landed, the giant stones of the wall would crack and dent, and the stomping of its claws would propel the strange object upward by a zhang or so, bringing it to the top of the wall in mere moments.

And in the sky, there were even more fur spiders growing wings.

The city guards reacted immediately, roaring to bolster their courage while charging forward with long spears. Their role was not to kill the Ghost servants, but to act as a buffer.

To act as a buffer with their own flesh and blood.

In the fortress, a horn soon sounded, buzzing and melodious, carrying outward.

This was the agreed-upon signal for an enemy attack.

The Zhushan Temple disciples and Medicine Men who had been resting below the city wall hurried up the city stairs.

Nowadays, Song Cheng no longer needed a partner, but Zhushan Temple still maintained the combination of "one Soul cultivator plus one Medicine Man."

One such pair had just rushed onto the city wall when they encountered a fur spider.

The black-robed Soul cultivator quickly locked onto a fur spider, staring at it intently, then silently practiced the technique and performed a rapid visualization.

The image of a stunningly beautiful woman appeared in his mind.

That was Ling'er, who had been possessed by Su Huxian and had her appearance altered.

Ling'er had already replaced Madam Zhushan and become their "secondary visualization object."

Instantly, an aura of enchantment enveloped the fur spider.

And this aura coiled around the fur spider like strands of spider silk.

The Medicine Man hurried forward and swung his blade to hack.

The fur spider suddenly began to struggle frantically. The Soul cultivator, who was in the midst of visualization, felt his head heat up, followed by the veins on his forehead bulging, as if he had been laboring for a long time without a moment of rest.

However, the fur spider only struggled and was unable to escape.

Crack!!

The Form Realm Medicine Man brought his blade down, and a large gash immediately appeared on the fur spider's strange skin.

Inside, it was empty; there was nothing there. It really was just a layer of skin.

The Medicine Man's expression was cold as he swung his blade to continue hacking wildly. Like chopping wood, after several dull, heavy thuds of "thud, thud, thud," the gash in the strange fur spider grew larger and larger until it was finally split in two. After losing the support of the supernatural power, it lay limp on the city wall like a deflated ball.

There were dozens of such pairs currently on the city wall, rapidly fighting against the Ghost servants that had rushed up.

Dozens of pairs meant dozens of Form Realm Medicine Men and dozens of Soul cultivators, which was actually quite powerful.

Their participation made the situation on the city wall improve slightly.

But after only the time it takes to burn an incense stick, accidents began to occur.

Hua Wen, the Cai Zhai disciple who had sold Song Cheng Soul Strengthening Pills when he first entered the prefecture, was now also a Soul cultivator stationed on the city wall. After once again coordinating with a Medicine Man to kill a fur spider, he looked at the next fur spider falling from the sky.

Skillfully and numbly, he visualized the Youhu, locked onto the enemy, and cast an illusion.

The fur spider continued to struggle. But this time, the Medicine Man had only just swung his blade once when Hua Wen felt his head splitting with pain, unable to continue. He gritted his teeth and persisted, but he still felt the world spinning and fell backward. When he opened his eyes again, everything looked shaky and doubled, like a drunkard. Visualization required the consumption of spirit.

It would be one thing if the opponent were not strong.

But the fur spiders were all Form Realm Ghosts. By continuously using the visualization method to control such Ghosts, Hua Wen was finally completely exhausted.

The result of his spirit being depleted was that he lay on the city wall, unable to move a single finger.

On the other side, the Medicine Man began to fight frantically with the fur spider.

Without the control of the Soul cultivator, the Medicine Man was soon wounded, but he still managed to kill this fur spider while injured.

However, the fur spiders were endless; one was just destroyed, and two more rushed up.

The Medicine Man hurriedly held his blade horizontally, blocking in front of his partner.

Although Hua Wen could not move, he knew what the situation was. Looking at the heavy snow falling from the sky, he could not help but let out a bitter laugh. This autumn, General Zhao and the Big Hall Master had taken away twenty-three thousand elite troops, as well as many experts. Otherwise, even if it were extremely dangerous now, they could still have held the line.

Just as he was thinking this, shouting with a local accent suddenly came from not far away.

"Defend the city! Defend the city!"

Below the city wall, some strong commoners with farming skills rushed over holding weapons.

These were the Militia.

Over the years, Song Cheng had not only trained soldiers but also many Militia, and there were leaders among these Militia as well.

Once a military formation was established, even strong commoners at the Force Realm could block Form Realm Ghosts, but they could only block them. Casualties would continue to appear.

But immediately after, many remaining disciples of the Shanhe Martial Hall, White Camel Manor disciples, ordinary martial hall disciples, guards of small families, and experts from the more than ten counties under Hanping Prefecture also began to join the battlefield one after another.

In the An Mansion.

Song Cheng gathered his family members in one place.

Tong Niangzi and An Daxiaojie wanted to go out to command the battle, but Song Cheng did not agree.

Su Ningyu wanted to go out to defend the city, but Song Cheng told her to watch the house.

After doing this, he quickly glanced at the ancient mirror left by Madam Zhushan, confirmed the situation of the Ghost Tide invasion, and then sat cross-legged in meditation.

The Nine-Layer Nether Tower stood across the sky. He quickly arrived at the ninth layer and glanced at the "Youhu" in the ninth layer.

Normal people could only practice one Soul cultivation technique.

Whatever soul one cultivated, that was the soul one had, and it could not be hidden.

For example, Su Ningyu; her soul was already in the shape of a One-Tail Youhu, so how could she show herself with any other image? But Song Cheng was different; his soul had not turned into a "Youhu."

The "Youhu" was inside his Nether Tower.

At this moment, he had already made up his mind. Once his soul touched the "Youhu," he would leap out of the tower, and upon landing outside, it would transform into the shape of a Two-Tail Youhu.

In a moment, a breath of wind curled up, and the wind and snow arrived, attaching to the surface according to the outline of his soul.

A three-to-four-zhang-long wind-and-snow Youhu quickly manifested in the void.

A Two-Tail Youhu; this was like holding back a move. With a weaker Soul, the figure formed by absorbing wind, snow, and dust was naturally weaker. Two-Tail is the peak of Mysterious Grade Ding Quality, and the Manifestation it displays is two grades lower—it is Song Cheng's Xing Realm Peak, with a strength of: 240~480.

What kind of concept is this?

The strength of the previous number one expert of Hanping Prefecture, "Big Hall Master" Tie Zhenyi, was 160~292.

Therefore, this strength is still more than enough to deal with the current Ghost Tide, and will not lead to failure.

It is just that, compared to the nearly ten-zhang giant fox of Xuan Nu Niang Niang, Song Cheng's current three-to-four-zhang Two-Tail little fox is truly not much to look at. Within the physical body, power runs continuously, while the Two-Tail fox body flies rapidly outward.

Today is also the time for Song Cheng to reveal his strength.

Everyone will know that he has been admitted into the Su Family and has cultivated the Two-Tail Youhu Soul.

Although there is a little bit of shame, compared to the great shame of "Xuan Nu Niang Niang," Song Cheng can still accept it.

With Su Ningyu sitting in command, the An Family is completely impregnable.

Even though this Young Miss fox immortal cannot have her Soul manifest and fly around for as long as Song Cheng, guarding one location is quite reliable; this is the limitation of the physical body. Even if you are stronger, and even if your speed is already much faster than an ordinary person, your role in a large-scale battlefield is ultimately limited.

But Soul Manifestation is different.

At this moment, she looks up at the wind-and-snow fox, unable to help but sigh at the profound foundation of her man.

"What kind of family could raise a monster capable of such long-term Manifestation?"

The Young Miss fox immortal murmurs to herself in her heart.

How long one can manifest depends on the recovery speed of the Soul, and the recovery speed of the Soul basically comes from a family's "Yin She."

In her view, someone like Song Cheng belongs to the type that can recover extremely quickly on their own.

Such a person can rely on the power of Manifestation and the speed of the Soul to dash around on a large battlefield.

But she cannot.

Even if someone visualizes her, and even if she uses Fox Dance, it would only be "indiscriminate charm of friend and foe," unless there happens to be a blind person there to strike after the enemies are charmed.

Therefore, the Young Miss fox immortal has no choice but to guard the home.

On the chaotic North City battlefield, Martial Artists of all paths and guards are fighting side by side, resisting the skin spiders that are nimbly scurrying through the wind and snow beneath the city walls.

As for the occasional few skin spiders that fly into the city, there are Zhushan Temple disciples to deal with them individually.

Heavy snow, black walls, fresh blood, mountains and rivers. The sounds of killing, shouting, strange noises, and screaming from thousands of buildings and households compose a magnificent scroll of dark tones.

"What is that?!"

Hua Wen, who was dragged to the back wall, looks at the firmament.

The wind-and-snow Two-Tail fox in the sky of crimson clouds and heavy snow squints to overlook the earth, then dives down like a cannonball, as if a hurricane is stirred up; the fox tail sweeps over with a rumble, blasting the nearest skin spider away.

Bang! In mid-air, the skin spider explodes.

The Two-Tail fox's paws step on the city wall again, its body rotates, and the speed of its twin claws is so fast that no shadow can be seen—Xuanwu Six Forms, Form One, Shadowless.

Even in the state of Manifestation, moves corresponding to one's realm can still be used.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh! Bang, bang, bang! Song Cheng's arrival is like a bomber joining a cold-weapon battlefield.

"It's the fox immortal, Lord Fox Immortal!" Someone gasps, revealing an excited expression; blood and sweat have long soaked their clothes, but at this moment, the scene of destruction makes them unable to help but feel a sense of security in their heart.

Hua Wen, however, sees the difference and murmurs at this moment: "Not the fox immortal... The fox immortal, Lord Fox Immortal, is skilled in Fox Dance. But the one before my eyes is indeed..."

He does not say the four words "Violent Fox Immortal" out loud, because he feels it is a bit disrespectful.

However, the fox immortal before his eyes gives people a feeling of being even stronger.

Suddenly, a thought occurs to him, and he remembers the rumors circulating a few days ago about the North Land Blade King being together with the fox immortal and then falling into a serious illness.

"Could it be... could it be that after Mr. Song came into contact with the fox immortal, he also possessed the power of the fox immortal? His serious illness was because he used that time to become a Two-Tail fox immortal?"

"But, how is this possible?"

"In such a short time, how could Mr. Song have become a Two-Tail fox immortal?"

Hua Wen finds it hard to imagine.

He is more inclined to believe that "this is someone from the fox immortal family" who has come to provide support.

But the thought that "the fox immortal is Mr. Song" cannot be shaken off no matter what.

If it were anyone else, it would be absolutely impossible.

However, Mr. Song is, in his heart—or rather, in anyone's heart—a mysterious and unfathomable existence.

Song Cheng does not care what others think.

Joining the Su Family was intended to appear in the world as a Su Family Walker.

Now, as he runs wildly on the path of "multi-tails," he decides to take this opportunity to announce the identity of "Su Family Walker" to the world.

Kill!

Swoosh~~ The fox shadows are numerous, killing into the ghost servants.

After a bout of slaughter, he changes course and heads toward the East City.

Whoosh~~ Whoosh~~~ In mid-air, a skin spider sewn with wings sways and wobbles, crossing the An Mansion wall, and falls toward the inner courtyard amidst the terrified shouts of the crowd.

Two ferocious dead human eyeballs, sewn onto the skin in some unknown way, roll around, while the sharp claws beneath are sewn together from rusted blades and scraps of skin. Ying'er holds a blade, guarding the room.

Su Ningyu, meanwhile, is sitting calmly with her legs crossed on a rattan chair.

In the room, Song Cheng's wife and child also see the monster; Xiao An is so terrified that she closes her eyes tightly, while Chuchu and Xiao Lingxue, who came to take refuge, also remain motionless, their bodies tense.

Tong Niangzi and An Chenyu are doing fine; one is the Temple Master of Zhushan Temple, and the other is the President of the Ruyi Chamber of Commerce.

But besides the two of them, A Ting is actually also fine.

Her reaction is the strangest of everyone in the room.

She sees the winged skin spider outside through a crack in the window.

To outsiders, the winged skin spider is terrifying and eerie, but in her eyes, it displays sewing craftsmanship that leaves her in awe.

Her black-and-white eyes suddenly widen and begin to glow.

"Wah~~~"

A milky sound came from her little mouth, looking as if she had seen a "legendary golden item."

She tugged at An Chenyu's sleeve and said, "Mom, Mom, look, look!"

An Chenyu glanced outside, her pupils constricted, and with a "snap," she shut the window tight.

A Ting's little mouth puckered.

An Chenyu said, "That is a monster; that is not good."

A Ting's little mouth puckered even more.

And soon, the sound of objects falling to the ground came from outside the door.

Su Ningyu was covered in red gauze, with a long silk shawl draped around her body. She merely flicked the red gauze shawl wrapped around her arm, and that red gauze became like a blade of light suddenly raised from the earth, neatly splitting the winged skin spider in mid-air into two halves, her movements as effortless as swatting an ant to death.

Several days later, everything temporarily returned to calm.

The third wave of the Ghost Tide, the most surging and terrifying wave, had temporarily passed.

However, the Ghost Tide usually lasts for several months, and this was only just the beginning.

Song Cheng became busy again.

Xuan Nu Niang Niang had to go to Chenyang Prefecture to save the situation.

The North Land Blade King had to defend Hanping Prefecture.

Besides this, he still had to continue comprehending the "Five-Tail" cultivation technique.

When night fell, he still had to pay his "public grain" to his wives.

He suddenly became exceptionally busy.

News began to circulate in the city that "the Two-Tail fox immortal is Mr. Song," and those who had previously questioned whether Song Cheng might be finished or if his strength had regressed after his major illness also let out long sighs of relief.

In the courtyard of the An Mansion, and even on the surrounding streets, the Ghost servants killed by the fox immortal Young Miss were all cleaned up and disposed of in time; in short, they did not let A Ting see a single one.

Poor A Ting walked around the courtyard everywhere, but could not find a single one, and was unhappy every day.

Song Cheng saw this situation regarding his daughter.

After finishing, he said, "An Jie, our daughter has some kind of connection with the skin-ghosts. Why not bring the corpses of the skin-ghosts' Ghost servants for her to see? Perhaps this will be good for her."

Young Miss An's belly was still warm, and suddenly hearing Song Cheng talk about this, her expression shifted, and she said, "Does my husband favor Xiao An more?"

Song Cheng was stunned for a moment, but then he understood what Young Miss An meant and said, "This is different. Since A Ting has talent, she should be allowed to use it. Being locked in a cage, without the freedom of such peace, is worthless."

Young Miss An turned her body away, facing her buttocks toward him, and said angrily, "She is also your child; if you think it is good, then it is good."

Song Cheng said, "Let's try it first. With Xiao Yu'er watching, if there is danger, Xiao Yu'er can react in time."

"Sister Su..." Young Miss An thought of the closeness between Su Huxian and A Ting, sighed softly, but said no more. The next day, a piece of shredded skin from a completely annihilated "skin spider" was placed in front of A Ting.

A Ting looked at the shredded skin earnestly, very focused, not knowing what she was looking at.

Su Ningyu held her on her lap, sitting under the eaves, her two red gauze sleeves hanging down; if any Ghost servant fell from the sky, she would kill it with a single sleeve.

In the blink of an eye, it went from the beginning of the Ghost Tide to the third month.

On this day, Song Cheng finally looked forward to the long-awaited "Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit Scripture (Mysterious Grade Grade C) (Five-Tail) (Not Yet Initiated (0/64))".

He glanced at the panel.

The points were 1128.

He did not hesitate at all and added them all at once.

Immediately, the efforts of these three months finally paid off.

Many memories from the fragments of time surged through.

Xuan Nu Niang Niang grew a fifth tail.

And Song Cheng's points were left with only 168.

His strength changed from "1007~2014" to "1097~2104".

Because he was in the same realm, the improvement was not huge, but it was not small either.

With the blessing of the five tails, Song Cheng was even more handy when defending.

At the beginning of the fourth month, this third wave of the Ghost Tide, which had lasted for nearly four months, finally ended.

When the first ray of golden dawn pierced through the gray, eerie mist outside, many people wept bitterly.

It was too difficult... The Zhushan Temple medicine studio took out seeds cultivated with "Wood Crystal" and began a new round of sowing.

However, as the number of times the Wood Crystal was used increased, its emerald luster also began to dim, with a feeling that it was about to become waste stone.

This change was undoubtedly adding frost to snow for the people of Zhushan Temple.

The Ghost Tide lasted longer and longer; if there were no such magical seeds that could "ignore the seasons and harvest quickly," the scene of starving corpses everywhere could already be imagined.

Regarding this matter, Tong Niangzi sought out Song Cheng.

Song Cheng gathered the female family members to discuss it.

The former Hanping Prefecture meeting was convened by five people: "Song Cheng, Tong Jia, Zhao Hua, Tie Zhenyi, Ouyang Sha," but now it had become "Song Cheng, Tong Jia, An Chenyu, Su Ningyu."

Su Ningyu said, "The Wood Crystals of Zhushan Temple were all brought by my Su Family from the previous continent.

Now there are not many left.

However, Wood Crystals should also appear in the wild, right?"

"Are you sure?" Song Cheng asked.

Su Ningyu shook her head.

Tong Niangzi said, "Sister Su, we have long sent people to search, but there is only Void Iron in the wild, and even ash is hard to come by."

Su Ningyu said, "Then perhaps the time has not yet come... I remember that in the previous continent, Wood Crystals only began to appear after very, very terrifying evil Ghosts appeared. Besides Wood Crystals, there were also Fire Crystals, Earth Crystals, Gold Crystals, Water Crystals, Taiyin Smoke Pattern Jade, Sun Nine-Pattern Gold..."

The four of them looked at each other.

The air fell silent for a moment.

An Chenyu suddenly looked at Song Cheng and said, "Husband, didn't Huazi lead people south? The great Barbarian King also went south. If the south is pacified and there is a place to stay, we..."

She spoke slower and slower, observing Song Cheng's reaction at the same time; seeing he did not speak, she continued, "We might be able to relocate the entire Prefecture City to the south.

Only when the common people gather together will the Yang energy be sufficient.

Once we reach the Central Plains to recuperate, multiply, and grow strong, it would not be a bad idea to slowly expand back into this soil occupied by evil Ghosts."

An Daxiaojie's ambition had always been there.

Her husband was so formidable, and now that he had joined the Su Family, it was perfectly reasonable to head south under the pressure of the Ghost Tide.

And once they went south, her husband would unite with the army on Zhao Hua's side; by then, it would be like a fierce tiger turning into a monster, with his strength increasing several times over. Even if they couldn't swallow the Huangcheng in one bite, would they still fear being unable to occupy a corner of land and reach the heartland of a dynasty without a Ghost Tide?

If not heading south now, what were they waiting for?

This time, the Ghost Tide was mostly Form Realm Ghosts; this was no longer something mortals could resist. If not for her husband, she feared how many people in the city would die.

But what about next time?

Next time, would ordinary people be completely unable to resist?

Would there appear many Qi Realm Ghosts? Song Cheng hesitated for a moment and said, "Let's try using the Skull Double Fish Pendant to contact Huazi first."

Half a month later in Chenyang Prefecture, the faith in Xuan Nu Niang Niang spread.

The pretext was that the neighboring prefecture heard that the faith in Zhushan Temple here in Hanping Prefecture was also a Fox Immortal, similar in image to Xuan Nu Niang Niang, so they specifically sent people to inquire.

The envoy from the Jinxiu Tower came from afar and respectfully visited Zhushan Temple, only then mentioning Xuan Nu Your Ladyship.

Soon, many people in Hanping Prefecture knew about it.

Su Ningyu asked the envoy in astonishment, "Is Xuan Nu Niang Niang truly a Five-Tail?"

The envoy knew she might be a clansman of Xuan Nu Niang Niang, so he said, "Sometimes four tails, sometimes five, or even more. The Niang Niang has vast supernatural powers, her transformations are unpredictable, and she is difficult to fathom.

Xuan Nu Niang Niang saved our Prefecture City, and the common people in the city are filled with gratitude.

My Jinxiu Tower has even produced many Xuan Nu statues according to the Your Ladyship's image to distribute to the common people for worship.

As for the Xuan Nu Palace, it has also begun construction and is now nearing completion."

Four tails?

Five tails?

Or even more?

The One-Tail little fox heard this and clicked her tongue in secret, thinking to herself, 'Could it be an ancestor of my Su Family?'

Of course, it was absolutely impossible for her to think of Song Cheng.

For one, Song Cheng hadn't yet undergone the Reappearance Tribulation, nor had he seen the Third Tail technique, so how could he cultivate it?

For two, Song Cheng was a grown man, while Xuan Nu Niang Niang was a woman; how could he possibly be her?

For three, the Soul that Song Cheng manifested was a Two-Tail, not a Five-Tail.

However, the Fox Immortal Young Miss would definitely still mention this matter to Song Cheng.

And Song Cheng's reaction was indeed within her expectations.

"Xuan Nu Niang Niang?"

Song Cheng muttered in astonishment, "Four tails, five tails? It seems there is truly always a higher mountain..."

Su Ningyu said, "As the North Land Blade King, you must be well-informed. Do you not know anything about her at all?"

Song Cheng shook his head and said, "I don't know."

He could admit to being a "Su Family Walker," but he would die before admitting that "Xuan Nu Niang Niang is a female character he created."

Su Ningyu took out a Jade Casket, came before the An Family shrine, carefully took out a beautiful jade statue from the casket, then placed it on the shrine, lit three sticks of incense, and began to worship.

She muttered, "Xuan Nu Niang Niang usually cultivates in the Dream Tower and does not concern herself with worldly affairs; it was only upon seeing the suffering of the human world that she descended to spread her faith to Chenyang Prefecture."

She looked at the flawless, white jade statue of Xuan Nu.

Without a doubt, this jade statue was carved exceptionally well; it possessed both the majesty of a deity and the charm of Xuan Nu. Su Ningyu was mesmerized for a moment, and an inexplicable sense of worship arose in her heart.

She kept worshipping, which meant she kept contemplating Song Cheng, who was strange and hard to describe, and subsequently, she dragged him along to worship the jade statue together.

He glanced at the image of Xuan Nu.

Not to mention, it was quite beautiful.

Su Ningyu thought it over and felt this must be a major event, so she notified the head of the Su Family.

Su Mengzhen possessed a maid to arrive at the An Family's Xuan Nu Hall, looked at the Xuan Nu statue, and listened to Xiao Yu'er chattering about the deeds of Xuan Nu, then suddenly said silently, "She should be from a super-large faction... I never expected they actually existed."

Seeing Xiao Yu'er and Song Cheng looking puzzled.

The sister-in-law explained, "The so-called Dream Tower should be the Yin She."

After saying this, she shook her head with a smile and said, "Not the Yin She, but the Nether Hall in the world of the Xuan Realm. My Su Family is like a family living in a tiny room in a slum, while this Xuan Nu Niang Niang lives in a palace."

"Is she that powerful?" Xiao Yu'er became even more envious, then asked curiously, "Sister, are there such large factions in the world?"

The sister-in-law nodded solemnly and said, "They exist, and in our homeland, in the resistance against the end and the evil Ghosts, those existences are the main force. Their forms can even be as tall as mountains, capable of overturning seas and summoning clouds and rain.

And I once heard Grandfather say that our Su Family also once had a Six-Tail powerhouse. That powerhouse not only had a soul that was hard to extinguish, but even the body was hard to destroy. It's just a pity... compared to this Xuan Nu Niang Niang's faction, it should still be far, far inferior."

After saying this, she looked at Song Cheng and said, "Little Song, since that Xuan Nu can manifest to eradicate Ghost servants, perhaps she has some connection to you. Maybe... you are also someone from that Dream Tower."

Song Cheng was stunned for a moment, then said sternly, "That's impossible."

After thinking, he added, "Even if it were true, since they abandoned me and left me to wander the world as a blind man, then my home is only here, not in the Dream Tower. I will not investigate the past either."

The sister-in-law and Xiao Yu'er looked at each other and simultaneously began to work on Song Cheng's mindset.

They were also very curious about who this great ancestor, who seemed to have some connection to their Su Family, really was.

While persuading Song Cheng, the two cast their gazes toward the Xuan Nu jade statue on the shrine.

Even the sister-in-law revealed a look of longing.

The Su Family was in too much need of such an ancestor.

Song Cheng didn't hold out either, so he pretended to bow again and again to the Xuan Nu jade statue in front of the sister-in-law and Xiao Yu'er, muttering about his own life story, yet he received no response.

The three of them had no choice but to temporarily let the matter drop; in a blink, another two months passed.

It was the end of June, and the temperature was uncharacteristically high.

And the things that Song Cheng's family had worried about before were clearly being worried about in every Prefecture City as well.

Everyone had already discovered that the Ghost Tide was growing stronger, with every wave becoming more powerful, and they absolutely had no confidence in surviving the next wave.

Many factions and many commoners had turned into refugees, taking advantage of the bright, scorching sun to head south.

Moving south along with them was the faith in Xuan Nu Niang Niang of the North Land.

In Hanping Prefecture, many commoners and merchants also began to develop similar thoughts.

Even if there might be war in the Central Plains.

But no matter how great the chaos, at least it was still humans fighting humans; how could that compare to this North Land, where one was constantly being attacked by evil Ghosts?

Within the Ruyi Chamber of Commerce, many people cautiously relayed their opinions upward, and the commoners also went to the Prefect's government office to demand to leave the city.

And it was at this moment that Song Cheng finally made contact with Zhao Hua.

The hazy moonlight diffused into a circle, revealing the scene on the other side.

Zhao Hua was dressed in full military attire; even though his face was covered in the dust of travel, his eyes were bright, and his whole body was filled with the aura of slaughter.

Upon seeing Song Cheng on the other side, Zhao Hua smiled, cupped his hands, and said, "Big Brother, leaving without saying goodbye that day was truly Huazi's fault. If we meet in the hinterlands in the future, Huazi will punish himself with three cups."

Song Cheng smiled and said, "You left; I know."

Zhao Hua was stunned for a moment, then smiled and scratched his head.

Song Cheng asked, "How is the fighting going in the south?"

Zhao Hua immediately became excited: "Big Brother, I never imagined that the factions in the south would be so weak. They might be decent in terms of individual martial prowess, but under the charge of a great army, they are not worth mentioning."

Song Cheng said, "Have you encountered any scions of great families?"

Zhao Hua smiled awkwardly, then whispered, "Big Brother, I have entered into a marriage alliance with the Qi Family, who are behind the scenes in Donghai Zhou.

The path was provided by that kid Gao Xunle.

I drugged him, yet he still submits to me; now he and I are brothers-in-law.

Oh, Gao Xunle is from the Gao Family of Shenwu Town in the Six Towns. He doesn't get along with Xu Xianweng of Shuofang Town in the Six Towns, so he came to defect to me."

Afterward, it was Zhao Hua who kept on talking.

But Song Cheng could roughly make it out.

This kid Zhao Hua had already gained a firm foothold in Donghai Zhou and had gathered many factions from the Six Towns, while the majority of the people from the Six Towns were in the Fengzhou and Thunder Cloud Province areas; now, rolling like a snowball, they were getting bigger and bigger, showing signs of threatening the Imperial Capital.

The development of this situation was still somewhat unexpected to him.

He had always felt that he might be in a "newbie village," that the place he was in was very weak, and the further one went toward the Central Plains, the stronger those factions would be.

But looking at it now, the combat power of the people of the North Land, who had spent years resisting the wind and frost, the northern barbarians, and the evil Ghosts, was actually much stronger than that of the Central Plains.

This feeling was like "the poor people of the North Land, who were originally full of self-abasement, listened to the boasting every day about how prosperous and powerful the south was, but then one day they accidentally fought a battle—the poor people of the North Land were already prepared to kneel and apologize, begging for mercy, only to discover that the south was just a paper tiger. And then, they kept fighting and kept winning, unable to lose no matter what."

Song Cheng thought for a moment and said, "Huazi, I am now a walker for the Su Family. Since you are a son-in-law of the Qi Family, then ask them—if I want to move the commoners of Hanping Prefecture to Donghai Zhou, are they willing?"

"Willing, how could they not be willing?" Zhao Hua agreed readily.

Song Cheng looked at him and suddenly smiled: "But I am not coming over."

Zhao Hua:??? "Big Brother?"

"Since you have agreed, then tomorrow I will have Hanping Prefecture begin the migration."

"Big Brother, my army, everything I have, was taught to me by you. Are you doubting me, worried that if you come..." Zhao Hua said suddenly.

Song Cheng shook his head lightly and said, "You know, Big Brother doesn't like crowds."

Zhao Hua was silent for a long time; seeing the moonlight blurring and the double-fish pendant about to extinguish, he said, "I swear, if I have any disloyal intentions toward Big Brother, may I die a horrible death."

Song Cheng smiled: "Have you forgotten what I taught you?"

Zhao Hua said solemnly, "Only the oath to Big Brother is true."

The moonlight extinguished, and the connection was severed.

Song Cheng told the news to An Chenyu and Tong Niangzi, letting them pass down the news of the Prefecture City commoners' relocation.

And he himself looked at the panel:

On the panel, the points were 980.

And there were two choices.

One was the skill 【Five-Tail Fox Fire (Not Yet Initiated (0/64))】, and the other was the cultivation technique 【Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit Scripture (Mysterious Grade Grade C) (Six-Tail) (Not Yet Initiated (0/64))】.

To bring one to Completion required 960 points.

He thought for a moment and pushed the points forward.

Instantly, the Six-Tail method reached Completion.

Song Cheng's strength jumped, changing from "1097~2104" to "1217~2224".

In the An Family courtyard, A Ting held up a small bird that had just been sewn with both hands; the bird, which was supposed to only be able to wobble and walk, suddenly flapped its wings and flew upward.

The little girl shouted "yi-ya, yi-ya," looking up at the bird, while simultaneously looking down at the earth through the bird, unable to help but laugh happily, cupping her hands into a small flower shape and calling out: "Little bird, little bird~"

(End of this chapter)