Chapter 791

This was because Fenghuo Liancheng did not want a second voice to appear among his subordinates, one that would threaten his position.

But this time, the stratagem Shi Lang offered was genuinely excellent, so in his great delight, he actually bestowed an unexpected reward.

"Thank you, Sect Leader."

Shi Lang was immensely excited as well—if he truly became Vice Sect Leader, he would likely be second only to Fenghuo Liancheng himself.

The other Twelve Sect Leaders were both puzzled and curious, wondering what exactly Shi Lang had said.

"Enough! Immediately follow the original plan and head to Wu Zhuang to wipe out the remnants of the Heaven and Earth Society."

Now that he had a stratagem, Fenghuo Liancheng would not wait. With a wave of his great saber, he immediately ordered the unorthodox army under his command to march northwest toward Wu Zhuang.

595 This is Fu Qingzhu! After him!

"Someone is stealing the corpses!"

Just as the Twelve Sect Leaders and Fenghuo Liancheng had finished their discussion and were preparing to dispatch the unorthodox army to attack Wu Zhuang—

a fierce shout rang out, and an old man of short stature was seen leaping up and ducking down through the crowd, seizing some of the heads that had been chopped off by the unorthodox men.

Some of these heads belonged to ordinary martial artists, but most were those of common civilians.

To exchange for bounties from Duogeduo and the Qing court, they had been severed by the Twelve Sect Leaders and hung high on the flagpoles of the city tower.

Hanging there, a string of heads looked utterly terrifying.

That old man leaped into the air with a single sword stroke, severing a rope.

Then he unfurled a bundle and packed the heads into it.

Then he flew off obliquely through the air, preparing to escape just like that.

"Fine skill! This old fellow is at least Grandmaster level—the bounty is at least one spiritual herb. It's mine!"

One of the Twelve Sect Leaders, Heijiu, was overjoyed. He lifted his three-pronged mace and prepared to pursue and kill the old man.

"It's mine!"

Even among the Twelve Sect Leaders, they all had to compete for merit.

Having finally spotted such a master, Hero Shan Zhi relied on his superior lightness skill.

Although his reaction was half a beat slower, he ended up arriving ahead of Heijiu.

He shook the chain in his hand, channeling true qi into it, and it lunged toward the old man's back like a venomous snake.

At this moment the old man had just reached midair, with nowhere to borrow any leverage.

Hero Shan Zhi's attack landed precisely at the point the old man had to pass through.

Just as the Twelve Sect Leaders all thought the old man would be wounded by Hero Shan Zhi, or at the very least thrown into disarray—

unexpectedly, the old man suddenly drew a precious sword from his bosom, sword light flashing, and stabbed and slashed backward in one fluid motion.

In a brief instant, he unleashed at least seven or eight moves.

Each move flowed seamlessly into the next, beating Hero Shan Zhi's chain back on itself.

"Wuji Qiankun! Wuji Sword! This is Fu Qingzhu! After him!"

After sending Hero Shan Zhi flying, the old man actually borrowed the impact force of Hero Shan Zhi's chain to fly out of the small city.

Fenghuo Liancheng's eyes were extremely sharp; he recognized the sword art at a glance and bellowed the order.

Being repelled by Fu Qingzhu in front of everyone was a loss of face Hero Shan Zhi could not bear.

Hearing Fenghuo Liancheng say this, he immediately used his lightness skill and pursued in the direction Fu Qingzhu had departed.

……

Three hundred li behind the small city, in Duogeduo's great military camp—

Duogeduo had just finished reading the Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers List, and his expression suddenly changed drastically.

"Your Highness, this is not good news at all…"

The speaker was Duogeduo's trusted confidant, Nalan Xiuji.

He was not only a fierce general under Duogeduo, having followed him on campaigns north and south—

he was also an avid reader, shrewd and resourceful, serving as Duogeduo's strategist.

"Mm! This prince knows!"

Duogeduo's expression was ugly as he nodded.

"As for the secret of the Forty-Two Chapter Scripture, this prince truly does not know.

But the exposure of this thing will clearly cause other forces—even the Qinglong Society—to send people here.

When that time comes, our plan to restore the Great Qing will be known to the Qinglong Society."

Speaking of the Qinglong Society, Duogeduo's tone was filled with resentment, but even more with helplessness.

To say nothing of the restored Great Qing—even the Great Qing at its peak could be destroyed by the Qinglong Society as easily as turning over a hand.

The reason Duogeduo was so eager to drive Fenghuo Liancheng and the other unorthodox masters to pursue and exterminate the Heaven and Earth Society was precisely to cut off the Qinglong Society's eyes and ears within the Great Qing.

Although the Great Qing's hope of resisting the Qinglong Society was slim, Duogeduo did not wish to give up.

"Then shall we urgently dispatch the army now and have Fenghuo Liancheng and the others all put to death?"

Since time was short, Nalan Xiuji proposed the immediate execution of Fenghuo Liancheng and the others.

"No rush, no rush!"

Duogeduo deliberated for a long time before shaking his head.

"According to intelligence reports, those truly connected to the Qinglong Society are in fact the Heaven and Earth Society's Northwest Branch.

This is the final moment—if we destroy Fenghuo Liancheng, then who will destroy the Heaven and Earth Society's Northwest Branch for us?"

"But…"

Nalan Xiuji was somewhat anxious; he had personally witnessed the overthrow of the Qing court back then.

His fear of the Qinglong Society was almost etched into his very bones.

"No need for 'but'! The Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers Ranking has just been announced. The forces outside wanting to come here still have some days yet."

Duogeduo cut off Nalan Xiuji and instructed,

"Go personally to Fenghuo Liancheng's place and urge him to act as soon as possible.

As long as Wu Zhuang is destroyed, this hundred-year spiritual medicine — this King can give another one if needed.

What use is spiritual medicine in the hands of the dead anyway?"

"Yes!"

Seeing Duogeduo so composed, Nalan Xiuji gradually set his mind at ease.

Hearing Duogeduo's order, he could not help but ask,

"Last time Shi Lang and Gua Ge Luo already saw us, yet Your Highness did not let us strike and kill them.

Now sending me to urge him on, I'm afraid Fenghuo Liancheng will have seen through our purpose."

"It's fine! Fenghuo Liancheng has no other choice!"

Duogeduo was supremely confident,

"Also, on the way, notify the border guards — intercept for seven more days, that's all.

After seven days, lift everything."

Since the Great Qing had finally drawn the attention of the world, blockading the border any longer had lost its meaning.

Duogeduo simply let it go.

These seven days were the final seven days of his scheme.

"Good!"

Nalan Xiuji calculated the time and felt that seven days was more than enough to sweep Wu Zhuang clean and then destroy Fenghuo Liancheng.

Only, thinking of the Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers Ranking, he asked again,

"Your Highness, then what about the Shenlong Sect's side?"

Actually, before this exposure, the various forces within Great Qing territory did not even know there was such a thing as the Shenlong Sect.

Now that the Shenlong Sect has been exposed, not only are there experts like Hong Antong and Long Er,

but more crucially, the two copies of the Forty-Two Chapter Scripture in Long Er's hands are already what the world desires most.

"No need to hide it from you either. This Forty-Two Chapter Scripture was made by Father Khan back in the day, hiding the clues to our Great Qing's dragon vein treasure.

It is divided into eight copies in total, originally meant to be handed to the eight Banner Lords.

But Huangtaiji, in order to enter the pass and win over the Central Plains people, gave some of the Forty-Two Chapter Scriptures to certain Central Plains people.

For example, Pingxi King Wu Sangui — the one in his hands is the Plain Blue Banner's Forty-Two Chapter Scripture.

Therefore, this so-called crucial secret should require gathering all eight copies of the Forty-Two Chapter Scripture."