Chapter 250

Li Guanyi rode a warhorse at full gallop; the Gongsun family's horses, of course, carried exotic bloodlines and were no ordinary beasts. As they advanced, the location of the Chen army had been confirmed, and the Gongsun family had already delivered the intelligence to Li Guanyi.

"Hmm, a thousand soldiers, plus eight hundred logistics personnel—eighteen hundred in total."

"I don't know who leads them."

"When heading toward Zhongzhou, we split from Chen Dingye's main force, received covert orders, took another route, and came here to the Gongsun family—there's already a strong momentum to force the Gongsun clan to surrender their mechanical arts."

"It's only about a hundred li away."

Li Guanyi smiled and asked: "Yao Guang, how do you think they'll come?"

He answered himself: "I think they're certain that with a thousand troops, crushing the Gongsun family will be like a rolling boulder smashing everything ahead into dust—as if I've shown them the way."

"The commander leading this force seems to be a fierce general."

"If we fight head-on, there's danger—but as the art of war says, 【avoid the solid, strike the weak; use our strengths against their weaknesses】, and also, 【know yourself and know your enemy, and in a hundred battles you will never be in peril】. Right now, that Chen general knows himself but knows nothing of me—he has only half a chance of victory."

Li Guanyi and Yao Guang chatted casually as they rode away, while behind them, the silver-haired man stood with arms folded, walking slowly and steadily—each step seemed to span a stretch of space, matching the speed of the galloping exotic warhorse.

His sleeves fluttered, his gaze calm, exuding three parts composure and detachment.

Neither Li Guanyi's perception, the Fire Qilin's innate senses, nor the silver-haired girl noticed him trailing behind.

The silver-haired man muttered to himself: "... Only knows how to spout empty words, knows nothing of the world."

"A single man dares to intercept a thousand-man army? Is he relying on his Wu Gong, the Fire Qilin divine beast?" He could roughly judge Li Guanyi's current cultivation level, the aura of his divine weapon, and the presence of the Fire Qilin.

"Wu Gong is decent."

Combined, these factors mean he's not without strength against a thousand-man formation.

The Fire Qilin, as a divine beast, possesses exceptional power to break through battle formations.

Yet the silver-haired man still disliked it inwardly, his face covered in frost as he coldly murmured: "You went off on your own—but why bring her along? Your body is as hard as dragon and tiger, hers is not."

"I've never seen anyone charge into a battle formation carrying a frail, delicate girl who can't even hold a chicken."

The Chen army indeed advanced as Li Guanyi had guessed—slowly, steadily. At their head was a general who had fought in several battles: Fourth-Rank Xuanwu General Qi Junsong, who had some prior dealings with Li Guanyi.

More than a year ago, one month before the Great Sacrifice, Consort Xue wanted to meet the Young Lady; Li Guanyi escorted Xue Shuangtao to Jingcheng, where they encountered a group of noble brats blocking the road and provoking them—including Qi Junsong's son, who later was branded a confederate of Yue Qianfeng and thrown into prison.

Qi Junsong personally visited his son, hiding a dagger in the food box, urging him to commit suicide to preserve the family's honor. Now, after the Great Sacrifice, the truth came to light: Li Guanyi was the true confederate of Yue Qianfeng.

The civil officials cleared Qi Junsong's name, promoted military officers, and used the civil-military factions to pressure and isolate Xue Daoyong—but they never imagined that this tiger, even within the court, still roared and maneuvered freely; the civil and military houses together could not topple him.

Qi Junsong drank some water, clad in armor, his gaze calm as he stared into the distance.

The armored soldiers marched in formation; this thousand-man Chen army moved only through territory permitted by the Ying state, ostensibly heading to the Gongsun family to purchase mechanical crossbows, but in truth, they carried secret imperial orders to compel the Gongsun lineage to pledge loyalty.

The Ying Emperor Jiang Wanxiang had departed for Zhongzhou.

The First Divine General, for reasons unknown, had also left the Ying state.

Chen Dingye swiftly made his judgment: he would pursue two paths simultaneously, determined to seize the Gongsun family first; to Chen Dingye's eyes, this was a necessary move. To Qi Junsong's eyes, it was a gift of merit—

No matter how powerful the Gongsun family, they were merely a Jianghu faction.

How many people could a Jianghu faction have? Eighty or a hundred elite warriors would be extraordinary—before a thousand-man army, it was a joke. With heavy armor, long spears, and a solid formation, crushing Jianghu was effortless.

This chance to gain merit had never been meant for him.

The Zhou family and the Night Gallop cavalry had their eyes on this opportunity—but the plan came suddenly, and the Emperor seemed intent on promoting new generals to balance court power; thus, the opportunity slipped from the heads of young officers like Ye Buyi and Zhou Liu and landed squarely on Qi Junsong's.

Qi Junsong gripped his reins and muttered: "My son died because of Li Guanyi."

"I had already fallen from favor; only the Emperor's mercy gave me this chance."

"It's too rare—I cannot afford to fail."

The Gongsun family was close to the Ying state; Emperor Jiang Wanxiang was calm, not in a hurry to seize this force. But for Chen, Chen Dingye knew the family's knowledge and mechanical arts must be firmly controlled.

Normally, there was no opportunity—but now, both the First Divine General and Jiang Wanxiang were absent.

Chen Dingye did not hesitate; he seized the moment, personally traveled north, crossed the Ying border alone, and used his identity as Chen's Emperor to tie down generals like Crown Prince He Ruo Qinhu, Yuwen Lie, and Qin Yulong.

It was as if he intended to exploit Jiang Wanxiang's absence to do something.

Then, secretly, he dispatched a thousand troops to the Gongsun family.

Feigning repairs to a plank road while secretly advancing through a hidden path.

After more than a year away, the python dragon, once dulled by the Chancellor's schemes, regained its original decisiveness and style—this maneuver carried a touch of boldness.

Yet he still unconsciously held to a 【balance】 mindset, dispatching neither the young officers like Ye Buyi and Zhou Liu nor the seasoned generals like Lu Youxian.

Instead, he chose Qi Junsong, who had earned merit on the border.

Qi Junsong was the commander; Ye Buyi and Zhou Liu were merely logistics officers.

Qi Junsong was cautious—he followed his strategists' advice: the army did not advance entirely along the main road. Instead, he disguised the logistics troops as the main force, scattering banners in all directions, stretching the army out to appear as if a large force was still advancing steadily.

In secret, a thousand elite soldiers took mountain paths to circle around, planning to infiltrate the Gongsun family's territory from concealment, catching them off guard and applying immense pressure.

The ability to effortlessly command a thousand-man formation, split forces, use rear troops as decoys, and silence the main force with horses' mouths bound in silence—Qi Junsong might not be a famed general, but he was no fool.

He also completed the deception and flanking maneuvers as advised by his strategists.

Qi Junsong relaxed inwardly, lightly raised his whip, pointed toward the distant Gongsun family, and laughed: "The Gongsun family, masters of the Jianghu—hahaha! But Jianghu people, what do they know of strategy?"

"I deliberately leaked word that we were coming; they're surely gathering forces, waiting on the main road. When we strike from behind, they'll be caught completely unprepared."

"This plan will succeed."

The strategist also smiled: "It's all thanks to the General's divine might. I offer my congratulations in advance—when this mission succeeds, the Emperor will surely grant you greater rewards."

"But we must be cautious. If we take the mountain path and they uncover our scheme, all they need to do is station ambushes on the cliffs—we might lose this entire force here."

Qi Junsong dismissed it: "I know what you mean, strategist—but you speak of battlefield tactics between two armies. A mere Jianghu family—how many men can they have? How many ambushes can they set?"

"Armies have their methods; Jianghu has its rules."

"When we ride through Jianghu, we must swallow the world with our might."

"How can we let Li Guanyi steal all the glory?"

As Qi Junsong laughed loudly, a sound suddenly came from ahead.

Boom!!!!!!

The mountain path ahead roared, chunks of stone tumbling down to block the road; men and horses alike were startled, and then they saw banners fluttering endlessly on both cliffs ahead—crimson flags stretching in an unbroken line; just by the flags, it seemed a vast army lay ahead.

Qi Junsong's face froze, then, after one glance, turned drastically pale:

"Crimson banners?!!!"

A low growl rose from ahead, flames surged, and the Fire Qilin stepped forward; a young boy, dressed in ordinary robes, held a battle halberd in his right hand and clutched a dark-golden faceplate in his left, pressing it firmly over his face—calm and composed.

Before a thousand troops, the Fire Qilin paced, its halberd resting on the ground.

Only one man!

His appearance here caused a stir in morale among this elite Chen force; especially the front-line Chen soldiers, who knew this general's exploits, now saw his unruffled demeanor—as if he had been waiting here all along—and their morale shattered.

The Southern Qilin · Li Guanyi!

Qi Junsong seethed inwardly; the young general reached out, gripped the faceplate, and removed it, revealing his face—a calm smile, each word deliberate, carrying three parts of grandeur:

"Li Guanyi has long awaited you."

"My lords, why are you so late?!"

Qi Junsong gritted his teeth: "You—you were supposed to have gone to Zhongzhou with the Qilin Army!!"

Li Guanyi smiled: "Chen Dingye knows to split his forces; how could Li Guanyi be weaker than him?"

"You are all here—I shall capture you and take you to Zhongzhou, then return you to Chen Dingye, to honor old ties." Li Guanyi raised his arm; behind him, fierce winds surged, and from both mountain walls, the sound of crossbows echoed.

Crimson banners stretched endlessly, as if a thousand troops lay in ambush; then the rocks on the mountainside trembled, as if about to roll down.

Qi Junsong knew the Qilin Army's ferocity; as a general, the moment his plan was exposed, his heart trembled. He had intended to approach the Gongsun family via a narrow path; now, seeing this, he shouted: "Retreat! Retreat!"

Li Guanyi's Fire Qilin charged into the formation.

The silver-haired girl controlling the banners formed a hand seal, casting a technique—not for combat, but to mimic battle cries and replay the voices of those famed generals from his memory: "Hahaha! Ling Pingyang is here! Lay down your weapons!!!"

"Fan Qing, awaiting your lord's command, has waited long!"

"Yuwen…"

The silver-haired girl unconsciously replayed the voice of that wooden-faced man who always brought her candy and honey—then abruptly cut it off; seeing no one noticed, she exhaled softly.

Then she reached out, gently patted her chest; her normally expressionless face softened slightly, as if relieved, and she glanced furtively left and right.

The silver-haired man far away instinctively pressed his hand to his chest.

"Ssshh—"

The legend of the martial world felt his heart melting.

Yet the young man rode back and forth, swinging his halberd; the military taboo—using mountain paths where cliffs were occupied—was ignored by Qi Junsong, who assumed the enemy was a martial clan, not a disciplined army; when he saw Li Guanyi appear, his heart trembled.

They never doubted Li Guanyi had no Qilin Army behind him.

Because they had never seen a hero bold enough to ride alone into battle.

Coupled with the waving banners, the roars, the rolling rocks tumbling down—it was all chaos; Li Guanyi charged into the ranks, tearing apart the thousand-man formation; the Chen soldiers heard comrades screaming, swinging swords and spears, yet saw no enemy.

Qi Junsong's fighting spirit waned, yet he still stood at Heavy Heaven Realm Level Five; he roared, forcibly gathering a group, intending to face Li Guanyi—only for the young general's Fire Qilin to charge in, their weapons crashing together.

Qi Junsong's face froze.

Li Guanyi's internal Qi was vast and terrifying—equal to his own!

But wait—wasn't the Qilin Army's commander supposed to be Level Two?!!

Level Five at sixteen?!

Qi Junsong refused to believe anyone could leap from Level Two to Level Five in such a short time; he concluded the earlier Level Two claim was a ruse—and he was the fool who had walked straight into the trap. Filled with grief and rage, he roared: "You have deceived the world!!"

Li Guanyi had no patience for him.

The Tiger Roar to Heaven Halberd swung violently; the tiger's roar exploded.

Behind him, the Bai Hu surged skyward; the silver-haired man, who had been watching Yao Guang, froze—then exclaimed: "Bai Hu Da Zong?!"

He suddenly realized.

Why was his troublesome, annoying, useless, utterly unlovable daughter so close to this brat? He remembered the connection between Bai Hu Da Zong and Guanxing Yao Guang; his expression darkened.

He himself had delivered his daughter to the Guanxing lineage's doorstep!

Who—who had introduced this emotionless daughter to this brat?

Who was the source of all evil?

It was himself.

The Fish-Whaler, who had always been the most carefree, intending to send his constrained daughter to safety, now felt a suffocating rage.

At this moment, Li Guanyi had struck twice; by the third strike, Qi Junsong's mount—a divine beast—could not withstand the terrifying force; though a mythical creature, its spine shattered under the overwhelming pressure, and it spat blood.

Li Guanyi realized, after learning a bit of the Longshengke's cultivation body.

He could directly remove his body's self-imposed limits.

No one could ever reach the true limits of their muscles and bones.

The body instinctively protected itself, preventing muscles from tearing or bones from snapping when one pushed beyond limits—but Li Guanyi discovered he could ignore this restriction, even surpass it.

Because when the Dragon Tendon and Tiger Marrow pushed beyond limits, internal injuries followed—but the Longshengke's cultivation body healed those injuries instantly.

The healed muscles became stronger, like those hardened through training, endlessly breaking through physical limits—theoretically, it was like an endless engine, without bounds.

Qi Junsong, a veteran Level Five powerhouse, was crushed by Li Guanyi, a newcomer to Level Five, in three brutal, rule-defying strikes—each blow heavier and more vicious than the last—shattering Qi Junsong's Hukou, scattering his internal Qi.

As he fell from his dead mount, trying to rise, he saw Li Guanyi's Fire Qilin open its mouth—golden-red flames ignited in its fangs.

Qi Junsong's falling trajectory aligned perfectly with the Fire Qilin's mouth.

The roar exploded.

The Fire Qilin flame—once capable of burning Hou Zhongyu to death even in his Golden Immortal state—struck Qi Junsong; he fell. All his subordinates remained; Li Guanyi raised his halberd and shouted: "Your commander has been defeated by me!"

"By Qilin Army regulations: those who surrender, lay down arms—no killing!"

The young general shouted three times.

Because the Qilin Army's reputation was excellent, the Chen elite, seeing their commander fallen, had no choice but to lay down their weapons; the sound of clattering arms echoed endlessly.

Li Guanyi ordered these soldiers to bind their own hands; when he finally linked all their ropes together, General Qi Junsong, his face charred and ash-covered, gritted his teeth: "You, you!!!"

"You're just one person!? Just one person!?"

The hatred, fury, and endless shame in his heart nearly took tangible form, gnawing at his soul—fivefold Heaven's veteran warlord, a thousand elite armored soldiers, arrayed in formation, facing the enemy with righteous might—Li Guanyi would have struggled to win.

A warlord with his formation intact, and a warlord whose formation is shattered.

The power they can unleash is utterly different.

This is precisely why Li Guanyi chose this method to deal with them.

Qi Junsong, unwilling to accept it, spat: "Cowardly and vile!"

The young general smiled: "Warfare is deception, General Qi. Long time no see—how have you been?" Qi Junsong's blood churned, threatening to rise in his throat—but then he saw the armored soldiers dropping their weapons, the young man having demanded they bind themselves in a peculiar manner.

Some now tried to rise and flee, but could not break free.

Li Guanyi said: "Don't worry—you won't break these bonds."

The boy's smile was bright, gentle, harmless: "This binding technique? I developed it under Master Lei Mengmeng's guidance—for 【Mr.】."

"I heard the Divine Beasts Manor uses this method to tie up old goats."

"No matter how cunning the fellow, he can't break free."

Qi Junsong slumped, curious about who 【Mr.】 was—unconsciously thinking 【Mr.】 must be terribly unlucky—then he realized another far more terrifying truth—

"You, alone, defeated and annihilated our thousand men?"

Even Qi Junsong, a man long steeped in court politics, whose warrior's pride had long been drowned in wine, now felt a soul-dead despair and utter shame, wishing he could die instantly.

One man broke a thousand troops.

How could such a person be our nation's enemy!

The silver-haired man watched from afar, forced to acknowledge it.

His expression softened unconsciously.

"Not mere boasting."

Li Guanyi replied: "Not one person—two."

Qi Junsong instinctively said: "What?"

The young man rode the Fire Qilin forward a few steps; atop the cliff to one side, the silver-haired girl pulled the so-called "standard"—in truth, crimson cloth provided by the Gongsun Clan—now tied to trees on the cliffside.

The silver-haired girl reached out, grasped the crimson silk, and leapt from the cliff.

The crimson silk unfurled, swaying in the wind like twilight clouds; her robes fluttered as if a celestial immortal had strayed into the deep clouds and fallen among them. The Fire Qilin shook its head, leapt into the air, and trod upon empty space as if walking on flames.

The young general reached out, and the silver-haired girl landed steadily in his arms.

The Fire Qilin's forelegs touched nothing, and lotuses of flame bloomed beneath them before it landed firmly. The crimson silk drifted down from the sky; strands of the girl's silver hair fell. The young general smiled faintly: "Two people."

Qi Junsong was speechless.

The silver-haired man stared at this scene, his right hand pressing against the cliffside.

The cliffside collapsed and vanished without sound.

Li Guanyi paid no heed—he turned the Fire Qilin into a long-haired cat, which curled atop his shoulder. He gently stroked its head and said to Yao Guang: "Now we can report to Madam."

"I'd say it went rather well, wouldn't you?"

Li Guanyi had earlier confirmed the terrain, instantly deduced Qi Junsong's strategy, and, using the Qi-Observing Art passed down by Master Siming, detected a faint trace of martial hex-energy—so subtle it would be missed unless scrutinized.

Thus he had full confidence to drag these routed troops along this path toward the Gongsun Clan. Meanwhile, Gongsun Wuyue had gathered thirty master craftsmen; though she was head of the Gongsun Clan, her plan to hand over these top-tier artisans at once still drew opposition.

Gongsun Feixue said: "Grandma, he's been gone over an hour."

"The snacks are getting cold."

An old man with a white beard, upon learning the clan head's plan, dared not oppose Gongsun Wuyue—who had held the Gongsun Clan for sixty years—so he packed his bags while puffing his cheeks and glaring: "Isn't he just blowing wind?"

"What cold snacks? Impossible! Kid's got no beard yet and talks big—this Li Guanyi, this Fire Qilin Army… all thanks to ancestral glory and the Taiping Army's legacy! A boy's bravado—hardly fits the name."

At that moment, Gongsun Feixue suddenly paled and rushed in: "Grandma, Elder—something's wrong!"

Gongsun Wuyue remained calm: "What's wrong?"

Gongsun Feixue said: "Li Guanyi's back—he came in through the side gate!"

Gongsun Wuyue said: "That's perfect—what's wrong?" Gongsun Feixue's beautiful face flushed crimson; normally quick-witted and eloquent, the young mistress of Piaomiao Pavilion now found herself speechless.

The scene she had just witnessed flashed before her eyes—her heart pounded violently.

The door opened. The young man rode in on horseback, helped the silver-haired girl down, then dismounted and said:

"I have not failed you."

The Gongsun Clan's side gate swung wide open. Li Guanyi tugged the rope in his hand; the Fire Qilin loitered behind, preventing escape. A vast crowd stood there, stretching from the side gate's steps down the slope.

A sea of people.

Gongsun Wuyue, Gongsun Feixue, and all the elders and masters froze, expressions hardening.

Li Guanyi said: "I miscalculated the time."

"Kept you waiting."

"I feared these thousand armored soldiers might draw more reinforcements if they escaped, so I brought them all here—thousand armored troops, and Chen State's fourth-rank general, Qi Junsong—all present."

Li Guanyi tugged the rope; the Fire Qilin roared behind, forcing the thousand men forward—they had been disarmed, their arm meridians bound.

He deliberately miscalculated the time, making these elders wait longer.

Then he picked up the snacks and handed them to Yao Guang.

The Gongsun Clan's senior elder stared, stammering: "You… alone…?"

"Two people—my friend too."

The young general emphasized it, then bowed with a courteous hand gesture, his gaze calm and steady as he looked at the stunned, dazed elders and masters of the Gongsun Clan—his bearing utterly composed, unhurried, as he spoke:

"Ladies and gentlemen."

"Do you know Li Guanyi of Jiangnan?"

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