As Xu Qing and the Captain made their stand, a feeling of excitement spread. The hearts of the swordsages surged as they were reminded of the dramatic day of the Lieutenant Governor’s Coup.

Now as then, Xu Qing hovered in midair, visible to the eyes of everyone present. The only difference was that on this day, he was vastly more grand and majestic.

As the excitement built, the swordsages flew up into the air and gathered around Xu Qing, forming a growing crowd. As of this moment, all of Sea-Sealing County pulsed with a desire to do battle.

Although Master Seventh and Marquis Yao were superior to Xu Qing in terms of cultivation base, they were the type of lofty and distant people that ordinary cultivators wouldn’t even dare to approach.

But Xu Qing was different. Xu Qing was a fellow veteran. He had walked the line between life and death with them. They were familiar with them, and they backed his decisions and attitudes. That was why they treated him, not just with incredible respect, but also, with deep familiarity. Every single swordsage present rose up and took a place by Xu Qing’s side.

Looking around his fellow veterans, Xu Qing’s heart swelled. He would never forget what Plumdark told him back when he first got to Sea-Sealing County. Back then, he didn’t know much about the swordsages, and thus, didn’t care much about them one way or another. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to be a swordsage. Plumdark said that when he developed a bit of admiration for the organization and the people in it, and then turned that admiration into respect, he would figure things out. [1]

That admiration came as he began to understand the swordsages. And the respect came because of Palace Lord Kong Liangxiu of the Swordsage Palace.

A host of emotions rose up in Xu Qing, but he took a deep breath and suppressed them. Now wasn’t the time to sit around reminiscing. This crisis for Sea-Sealing County hadn’t yet been resolved.

The only people who had died were Patriarch Soaring Cloud and a few of the Sea-Sealing County traitors. They were people who had thought a lot of themselves, and believed that they could

call the wind and summon the rain

. They also thought of themselves as being important. But the reality was that to the high commander on his white elephant, they were little more than rustic country bumpkins. To him, a person from the Imperial Region who was used to lording it over everyone else, they weren’t important at all.

The only one he valued even slightly was Patriarch Soaring Cloud. But only a little bit. Therefore, the sudden development caused a serious expression to overtake his face. Xu Qing and the Captain were only in Spirit Trove, yet they had just cut down a Void Returning expert. Even in the Imperial Region, that was so rare as to be unheard-of.

As a result, he was thinking,

Only the superpowers in Revered Ancient can do things like that, and even then, it’s

as rare as phoenix feathers or qilin horns

.

The high commander looked at Xu Qing and the Captain through narrowed eyes. He had heard the name Xu Qing before, and knew its significance in Sea-Sealing County. He had to admit that a chosen cultivator like this really did deserve his reputation in the county.

He’s not far from reaching his potential. But as for this guy next to him, I’ve never heard of him before.

With such thoughts on his mind, he casually said, “You’re Xu Qing? Before coming here, I heard about you from Seventh Prince. He had good things to say. What’s more, your 30,000-meter light during the Grand Emperor’s assessment caused even His Majesty to heap praise on you.

“Because of that, I’m not going to hassle you over killing Soaring Cloud. You earned grade-one battle credit, a golden command medallion, a yellow robe, and the right to attend the Imperial University. Given that, you obviously know what honor means.

“Therefore, I’m putting you in charge of conscripting troops in Sea-Sealing County. I want you to lead your forces to the field of battle. Turn your crime into a service. Are you willing to do that?”

As the words left the high commander’s mouth, the over 10,000 warrior cultivators on the monitor lizards inched forward. Their slight movement instantly created a very perilous situation. Even the dome of heaven reacted, as the winds swirled to create a tempest. A somber and desolate aura built; one order, and these people would level everything in their path.

On the other side, killing intent intensified among the forces of Sea-Sealing County. The swordsages were drawing their swords; all they were doing now was waiting for orders from Xu Qing. The cultivators from the other two palaces, plus the elites from the sects, also waited somberly.

Xu Qing didn’t immediately respond to the high commander. He turned to look at the swordsages, and then all the other cultivators from Sea-Sealing County. Finally, he turned his attention to Master Seventh and Marquis Yao.

The praise in Master Seventh’s eyes grew stronger. He smiled. “You’ve grown up.”

That simple statement made clear how he felt. He would let Xu Qing make the decision.

Marquis Yao looked at Xu Qing, and he felt slightly dazed. All of a sudden, he realized that Xu Qing reminded him a lot of Kong Liangxiu. Smiling, he nodded. “You’ve already performed amazing services for the people of Sea-Sealing County. If your cultivation base was a bit higher, you could officially take over as the governor. Before, when you had yet to grow up, your Master and I were running things in Sea-Sealing County. But now... you can decide the future of the county.”

After those two spoke, everyone else, including the three palace lords, all the honor guards, and the experts from the other sects, all looked at Xu Qing, their gazes warm.

Xu Qing took a deep breath and bowed to Master Seventh and Marquis Yao. Then he took a moment to look over the crowd of Sea-Sealing County cultivators. The look in their eyes told him their attitude. Eyes glittering, he turned to the high commander on his white elephant.

“The emperor issued orders naming Sea-Sealing County as autonomous. Therefore, sire, please excuse our inability to comply with your demands!”

The spirits of Sea-Sealing County surged in response to his words. Xu Qing had given voice to the thoughts that everyone in the county had been forced to suppress instead of speak out loud. When Xu Qing spoke them, they echoed out like heavenly thunder.

The High Commander’s eyes shone with cold light. “Arrest Xu Qing and send him to the heavenly king to be dealt with. Any who interfere with the arrest will be considered traitors and can be executed on the spot.”

The warrior cultivators in blood-red armor surged with baleful energy. Staying in tight formation, they emitted mountain-toppling, sea-draining force as they faced off against the forces of Sea-Sealing County. From a distance, they collectively resembled a gigantic monitor lizard, howling a deafening howl toward Sea-Sealing County. The noise of it shattered the air and caused a tempest to spring into being. In the blink of an eye, the lands quaked, the clouds seethed, and the sun and moon faded.

However, the forces of Sea-Sealing County had been holding things in for too long. They also erupted with energy, which rose up into the air to create three spell formations, one for each of the three palaces. The energy from the Swordsage Palace created a formation that looked like a sword, so fearsome it could sever mountains, rivers, and all living beings. The Administration Palace and Justice Palace had their own impressive formations. A host of huge puppets also appeared, each of them piloted by a team of cultivators. Overhead, a massive net appeared, which was the manifestation of Sea-Sealing County’s taboo treasure. Many other sects also activated their taboo treasures to bolster it.

Humans in other regions didn’t have much experience with full-scale war. At the most, they had participated in small battles. But it had only been a few years since the cultivators of Sea-Sealing County had been part of a huge war. And the survivors were all elite veterans. They were very familiar with war.

As killing intent rose from both sides, Xu Qing looked up to the sky and bowed, hoping that Ninth Sib would do something. He got no response.

He sighed inside, but at the same time, knew that Ninth Sib wasn’t the type of person you could just summon to get help. Much of it would depend on how powerful an enemy was involved.

And thus, rumbling filled the battlefield. The High Commander’s subordinates in the golden armor flew out from their positions by the white elephant, their eyes gleaming coldly and their Void Returning cultivation bases surging. Master Seventh, Marquis Yao, and everyone else in the same level also flew forward.

The Void Returning experts started fighting fiercely.

The Sea-Sealing County traitors who had not been killed by Xu Qing’s previous attack with the ship could see the fighting breaking out, and it filled them with deep anxiety. However, they had already made their decision, so they cleared their minds and joined the fighting.

Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed, then he burst into motion, heading right toward the incoming group. The air around him shattered as he appeared in front of a Spirit Trove cultivator.

Xu Qing’s first-level god state was simply too fast. His shocked opponent couldn’t even back up before Xu Qing’s left fist descended. Before the fist could make contact, it transformed the surrounding magical and natural laws, which latched onto the Spirit Trove cultivator and turned his motion of retreat into the opposite.

In the blink of an eye, the Spirit Trove cultivator coughed up a mouthful of blood. His own natural laws were fighting back, but they couldn’t stop what was happening. He was pulled violently toward Xu Qing, and could do nothing but watch in despair as a black spear shot toward him. There was no way to evade or block the attack. The taboo spear stabbed through his neck, unleashing explosive power as it did. The cultivator’s body and secret trove both shattered. He had been destroyed in body and soul.

Without a pause, Xu Qing turned and killed another enemy.

The Captain was already in motion. He sent blue light to surround an enemy, and when that light faded, the enemy disappeared along with it. The Captain licked his lips, then lunged in another direction.

There were swordsages present who had been part of the original Secretariat Division. They had taken it upon themselves to act like Xu Qing’s personal guard, and were keeping pace with him and the Captain as they all unleashed slaughter.

The traitors were already suffering grievous casualties, and many unleashed bitter curses before they died.

“Seventh Prince must have known this would happen! We’ll be waiting for you in the Yellow Springs, Xu Qing!”

“When King Heaventide returns, he’ll put you all to death!”

Xu Qing was unmoved by their words. After slaughtering the traitors, he looked up at the fighting above.

The fighting had only been going on for a short time, but thanks to the taboo treasures and the elite skills of the Sea-Sealing County cultivators, it was clear that the Sea-Sealing side had a huge advantage.

The warriors in blood-red armor were on the defensive the entire time. It was the same with the fighting between the Void Returning experts.

When the high commander saw how things were playing out, his eyes glittered coldly. He now realized that he had underestimated Sea-Sealing County. That said, it wasn’t a big deal to him. As the high commander, he had come from the main battlefield to conscript troops, and he had never intended to rely on his own forces to establish authority. Rather, he was here on orders from King Heaventide. Therefore, he calmly raised his hand, revealing a golden jade pendant that emitted dazzling light.

1. Plumdark gave him advice about the swordsages in chapter 414. That advice was mentioned again in chapter 510. ?

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