Chapter 547: Bulldozing! Surrender Without a Fight? The Plans of Prince Qing’s Mansion!

The Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review clad in a bright red official robe, Xu Tiannan, finalized the battle plan. It wasn’t much of a plan really; soon the four Yang Spirit experts, plus a young prodigy capable of killing two third realm cultivators would attack Liang County together.

Xu Tiannan had never experienced a battle this lavish in eight lifetimes.

There was no need for any schemes or strategies at all; they would just go straight for a full-on push. This decision perfectly suited Li Yanchu’s temperament.

Second realm cultivators might not influence a war, but third realm Yang Spirit experts were akin to nuclear weapons. With such overwhelming strength, there was no need for ordinary cultivators and soldiers to suffer unnecessary casualties. They just needed to capture Prince Qing and his heir, and the matter would be settled.

Thus, five streams of light shot from Qingfeng Ridge toward Liang County. Technically, Li Yanchu was only a second realm Yin Spirit expert, and shouldn’t be able to fly. Only third realm cultivators could master flight, as it was the mark of a Yang Spirit expert.

Yet Li Yanchu’s ability to fly did not surprise Xu Tiannan, Celestial Master Zhao, or the others. It was as if it were perfectly natural; to a being capable of killing two third realm cultivators, flying was no big deal.

This scene left the cultivators and ordinary soldiers at Qingfeng Ridge utterly astonished.

“Do you see that? Yang Spirit experts?!”

“Flying above the ground, Day-Wandering Telekinetic Command... Someone has really reached this legendary realm, and there are even five of them!”

“I thought Daoist Master Li was only a second realm Yin Spirit expert...” someone murmured.

The cultivators gathered, whispering.

After all, Yang Spirit experts were extremely rare. The third realm marked the dividing line between ordinary cultivators and the transcendent. Once one reached the third realm, lifespan increased naturally, and there was no need to rely on secret techniques to cheat fate.

Moreover, Yang Spirit experts were nearly indestructible; they were truly in a state of ultimate freedom.

Countless people exhausted their lives attempting to break through to the third realm, and yet failed. This was a widely recognized truth in the Kingdom of Qian’s cultivation world.

Yet here before them, five Yang Spirit experts were flying. How could they not be stunned?

When the last cultivator mentioned Li Yanchu being a Yin Spirit expert, everyone ignored him. Their looks toward him grew strange.

“Why are you all looking at me like that?” the cultivator asked, confused, noticing everyone’s gaze.

“Sigh... What did the war do to a cultivator like you?”

“To make one go dumb... unbelievable. How could Daoist Master Li be just a Yin Spirit expert?”

The cultivator fell speechless at their words.

***

At Liang County...

This heavily guarded military town had now completely opened its gates as Vice Minister Xu and the others descended from the sky. In fact, whether the gates were open or closed made no difference to them.

“The gates are wide open... did they just... surrender?” Vice Minister Xu’s brows furrowed slightly.

This military town was one of the major garrisons in Donglin Prefecture, heavily fortified. It was equipped with powerful firearms and inscribed with restraining formations, designed specifically to suppress cultivators. Cultivators skilled in stealth or controlling Yin Spirits would find it nearly impossible to breach this town. In other words, for cultivators, this garrison was extremely difficult to conquer.

Yet now, the gates of Liang County were wide open. All soldiers had abandoned resistance, stacking their weapons neatly in the city. They removed their armor and gathered in the town as ordinary people would.

Li Yanchu furrowed his brow and said, “They surrendered?”

Honestly, he was somewhat surprised. From Prince Qing’s Mansion’s prior assault on Qingfeng Ridge, it was clear they intended to fight to the death. They had even summoned Daoist Spiritual Master Jiugong, plus a third realm cultivator whose name he had never heard of.

Prince Qing’s forces were terrifyingly powerful, so much so that even he felt a trace of apprehension.

He had assumed this would be a protracted war. Even with third realm Yang Spirit experts involved, unpredictable events could occur. Yet now, most of their forces had gathered in Liang County and had surrendered! All soldiers had laid down their weapons and removed their armor; at this time, they stood in the town like ordinary civilians.

Vice Minister Xu approached a figure resembling a general to converse. Even the third realm Yang Spirit experts present felt a touch of surprise.

It was understandable if they’d hesitated during a fight. But they hadn’t even clashed yet; the weapons were already piled up, and they surrendered immediately.

Something felt off.

Li Yanchu’s eyes glimmered with Daoist light as he activated his Qi Sight and Spirit Eyes to observe the town.

In the training grounds, there was a dense aura of blood, malice, and restless spirits, which was evidence of many deaths. Yet the training grounds had been cleared; the blood on the ground had been cleaned up. The entire garrison had been meticulously tidied, leaving it spotless.

Li Yanchu frowned and turned his gaze to the surrendered Prince Qing’s soldiers. Normally, some of Prince Qing’s troops might be shapeshifting demons or cultivators feigning surrender. At the very least, they could act like terrorists, causing havoc without affecting the larger battle, but this was not detected.

Yet Li Yanchu’s Qi Sight revealed no such issues.

The other Yang Spirit experts also released their auras to observe the garrison, finding nothing unusual.

“Prince Qing’s Mansion surrendered just like that and handed over their troops?” Master Wuse spoke.

Third realm Yang Spirit experts had profound insight into cultivation. Young prodigies like him often experienced smooth cultivation, but mundane affairs such as war were not their strong suit; not everyone was a polymath.

Celestial Master Zhao and Master Baoshu remained silent.

“If this surrender is genuine, then Prince Qing and his heir are definitely not here,” Li Yanchu said.

Hearing this, Master Wuse turned to look at him. Normally, accepting a surrender would not involve everyone, especially the high-ranking figures.

Meanwhile, Vice Minister Xu, clad in a bright red official robe, returned with a grim expression.

“Damn it, Prince Qing and his heir have fled! There’s no trace of them!”

“There’s no need to fight this battle anymore, the entire Prince Qing’s army has surrendered,” Vice Minister Xu muttered angrily.

They’d mobilized such an enormous force, yet the other side surrendered without a single fight, leaving him with the feeling that his punch had landed on nothing but cotton.

Then, the three Yang Spirit experts turned to Li Yanchu.

“Daoist Master Li, what’s your take on this?” Master Wuse asked.

“From what I can see, these Prince Qing’s soldiers are harmless. They’ve handed us the swords, do we kill them or not?” Li Yanchu replied calmly.

Hearing this, Master Wuse fell silent. As a disciple of Shakyamuni, he would act for the greater good on the battlefield. But killing surrendered troops... This was considered inauspicious in normal warfare. Moreover, such decisions should fall to Vice Minister Xu.

“They’ve handed over their army, which means they’re moving completely underground. Meanwhile, we’re exposed in the open,” Li Yanchu said.

As his words sank in, everyone recognized the issue and furrowed their brows.