Chapter 374: Operation Sword Sweep

The Daoist elders were not merely discussing. Once they had finished their deliberations, they quickly contacted and proposed their plan to the Special Investigation Unit.

To call it a "proposal" was only half true. In reality, they were simply informing the investigation unit. After all, the government could hardly outright refuse so many great figures of their cultivation world jointly petitioning to destroy the Dark Faction and pressure the Light Faction.

The burden, however, fell on the investigation unit and the departments in charge of diplomacy. Overtime became inevitable, and sleepless nights could no longer be avoided.

Once the government gave its approval, the Daoist elders set about making arrangements with great urgency. As the Grand Celestial Master had put it, the primal qi abroad was too thin. Prolonged stay here would only waste precious years of cultivation. The sooner they were done, the sooner they could return home and cultivate in peace.

The around three hundred Daoist cultivators who had remained in the area quickly divided into three teams. The weakest among them were already at the late Golden Core Realm.

Except for Qing Yanzi, the three other Nascent Soul Realm experts each took charge of a route. The sect masters of Mount Mao and the Shu Sword Sect mainly led the group taking the eastern route, while the sect masters of the Longhu Mountains and Mount Hua led those going north. The Wudang Mountains and Mount Kongdong's sect masters took a team down the western route.

Meanwhile, Qing Yanzi gathered dozens of elite fighters from the Special Warfare Unit to form a support team. He would immediately send reinforcements to whichever side encountered heavy resistance.

The Daoist elders named the operation "Operation Sword Sweep." The name had many meanings, one of which was tied to Wang Sheng. The elders regarded it as a continuation of Wang Sheng's single-handed battle against the Dark Faction. It also meant that once drawn, a sword would not return to its sheath until every fiend and devil had been swept away.

Mu Wanxuan hesitated for a while between staying behind to take care of her junior brother and joining the battle against the Dark Faction.

Wang Sheng was not too gravely injured. The sword wound on his shoulder had come from the strange power of Galina's cursed longsword, but while he had been unconscious, several Daoist elders had worked together to drive out that trace of cursed energy. His Dao Body had since healed on its own.

Having recovered a little of his enchanted power as well, he no longer needed protection. The other four members of the "Sword-Smashing Squad" were about to arrive as well. With Xiaomiao at his side, Mu Wanxuan no longer had to worry about him lacking care.

After much deliberation, she finally decided to avenge her junior brother and the Hua Republic citizens whom the Dark Faction had murdered.

They were already waging a war that was beyond the secular world, yet would inevitably affect it.

The Daoists quickly assembled and divided into teams. The Celestial Master gave a few brief instructions and shouted a pep talk. After checking their pills, talismans, and artifacts, they all rose into the air and departed.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Watching the legions of cultivators set out in three directions, Wang Sheng thought of a phrase.

Strike from above.

His senior sister soon left with several female Daoists. Wang Sheng and his younger sister were the only ones who remained on the mountaintop.

"Did you see them, Xiaomiao?" Wang Sheng held Spiritless in a reverse grip. "They're the seniors of our cultivation world. Come, let's go down. The array here is about to wear out."

"Will you be alright? I'll carry you down on my back."

Wang Sheng smiled, reached out to grasp Wang Xiaomiao's elbow, and made Flying Haze stop under his feet. Carrying his sister, he flew toward the silent town at the foot of the mountain.

In midair, he gazed at the Aukuili Mountains and spread his newly restored spiritual perception. The mountains had sustained severe collapses. Under their surface were multiple marks of violent explosions.

Xiaomiao explained softly, "The Special Warfare Unit sent in a strike team and blew up the base. A few Daoists even quarreled over it."

"Quarreled over what?" Wang Sheng asked.

"In the explosion, they only transferred part of the research data. They also left behind the foreign scientists who had no cultivation, allowing them to die in the explosion," Xiaomiao whispered as they landed on the roof of a building, which had a clear view of the surroundings.

Wang Sheng sat cross-legged and asked gravely, "What do you think of this matter?"

Wang Xiaomiao pursed her lips. "I think it was a fine blast."

Surprised, Wang Sheng looked at her with a trace of amusement. "What do you mean?"

This was a chance to truly understand his younger sister. He naturally had to probe further.

"You said that a cultivator who does evil is corrupt. How are the researchers who do evil any different? The Jialington Group had planned to evacuate them before the war, but they didn't make it in time because you attacked. When two armies clash, each fights for its own people. The technicians working for the Jialington Group were our enemies from the start. Why should we sympathize with them? Who has the right to pity them?"

With earnest concern, Wang Sheng replied, "Xiaomiao, that way of thinking is a little too extreme."

Xiaomiao rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I think the Special Warfare Unit's commanders weren't wrong to give that order. Those Daoists were too softhearted! Though we have a saying that goes, 'a commander is benevolent, a general is fierce,' it doesn't mean that the commander has to be loving and merciful. It just means the commander has to have a broader vision than his generals.

"In my opinion, benevolence is nothing more than a facade that the emperors of feudal dynasties used to dress up their absolute power. At most, it only deceived the uneducated commoners of the past. As a great man once said, we should press on with our remaining strength to chase down the defeated foe and never seek empty fame like Xiang Yu of the Chu Dynasty."

"You are twisting things out of context," Wang Sheng scolded sternly. "Where did you get all those lofty ideas? Stop reading those stories of the Three Kingdoms and focus on cultivation!"

"I wasn't reading the Three Kingdoms. I was studying military strategy!"

Wang Sheng was rendered speechless.

Xiaomiao grew more animated, brimming with spirit as she eagerly spoke of her plans for the future.

"From the start of my cultivation until now, I've thought it through. In the future, you can take the path of the lone warrior, while I take the path of the strategist. With one a scholar and the other a warrior, we will one day fight our way off Earth, break through the galaxy, and revive the glory of the Heavenly Court! I even came up with a name for our partnership: the Gourd Siblings! How's that? Hey—!"

Wang Sheng flicked her forehead with a finger. It was not too hard, yet it still made her yelp in pain. She grimaced and bared her teeth.

With the dignity of an elder brother, he instructed, "Focus on your cultivation!"

"Fiiiine."

"You're at the age when your self-awareness is developing even more. It's normal to have unrealistic ideas," he said earnestly. "Still, if you wish to become a strategist in the future, your cultivation will still be your foundation.

"Suppose one day you are truly given the chance to become a general or even a commander-in-chief. Without power, how can you make others follow you? How can you ensure your own survival in the chaos of battle?

"Your master once said that the cultivation world on Earth is only the continuation of the Heavenly Court's Daoist heritage. This place is like a greenhouse. The true cultivation environment out there is unimaginably harsh, filled with slaughter and conflict over treasures and fate. Instead of daydreaming about military stratagems, you should spend more time strengthening your Dao foundation and seeking your own path."

"Alright, alright," Xiaomiao meekly replied. Though a little sulky, she still obediently sat down cross-legged beside her brother and began cultivating.

Wang Sheng chuckled softly in his heart. He continued to slowly restore his strength while waiting for his squad to regroup.

Twenty minutes later, a camper van drove up from a distance. Shi Qianzhang stood on its roof, waving and shouting at Wang Sheng.

***

Upon reuniting with Wang Sheng, the four quickly asked about his injuries. When he learned that Wang Sheng was unharmed, Shi Qianzhang tilted his head back and sighed deeply. Tears brimmed in his eyes, and his face twisted in grief and indignation.

Huai Jing looked puzzled. "Why are you crying?"

Shi Qianzhang raised his head and roared, "Following Brother Sheng, I ran from the southern to the northern hemisphere. We've been wandering for so long, yet the greatest chance to show off slipped right past me! I feel wronged! Stifled!"

Smack!

A yellow talisman was stuck to Shi Qianzhang's forehead, instantly making him freeze like a statue.

Having shown off the breakthrough that he had just achieved with the Immobilization Talisman, Liu Yunzhi faintly snorted as he withdrew his left hand. "Don't disturb Fei Yu's meditation."

Shi Qianzhang's eyes rolled wildly. From being teary-eyed, his tears now streamed freely down his cheeks.

Huai Jing quickly winked at Wang Sheng as a signal for him to look at Dale, who stood behind them.

At that moment, Dale looked a little melancholic, and her eyes were filled with hesitation. When she saw Wang Sheng glance her way, she smiled awkwardly. "I'm sorry. I already tried my best, but the Light Faction would not listen to me."

"Don't blame yourself," Wang Sheng replied calmly. "We still got our desired outcome. From here on out, though, the Light Faction will likely face some trouble."

Dale pressed her lips together. She looked as though she wanted to speak, but she chose to stay quiet instead.

"Where did the sect masters and elders go?" Liu Yunzhi asked.

"They just left," Wang Sheng answered.

He briefly told them about the Daoist sects' plans for Operation Sword Sweep. Naturally, he didn't mention in front of Dale how they intended to pressure the Light Faction.

Hit with a sudden realization, he asked, "What about the devilish swords?"

Xiaomiao raised her hand. "Daoist Master Qing Long destroyed them. There were actually four of them here! The last Blood-Dissolving Divine Sword is said to be on Sakura Island."

Wang Sheng nodded. The matter involving the devilish swords had at least been temporarily resolved. Since the one on Sakura Island was still being used to harvest the lives of hidden cultivators amid the nation's internal turmoil, they didn't have to destroy it immediately.

The best they could do now was wait until the cultivation world of Sakura Island regarded the sword as their last hope for growth. They would then cross the Eastern Sea and destroy it.

They would break their opponents both in body and soul.

The team chatted idly for a while. When Liu Yunzhi released the Immobilization Talisman on Shi Qianzhang, the two bantered and scuffled a little. Afterward, they all boarded the camper van and departed from the battlefield, which had already become renowned.

On this battlefield, Wang Sheng had fought the Dark Faction's four strongest members alone, and the Daoist sects had obliterated most of the Dark Faction's forces, eliminating the majority of external threats to the Hua Republic. The cultivation worlds outside the Hua Republic also began to decline here, losing the qualifications to contend with the true cultivation world.

When Wang Sheng entered the camper van, Spiritless slid back into its scabbard. His squad was ready to head home, and he still had to recover from his wounds. Fortunately, the Daoist masters would handle the aftermath.

Before long, Chi Ling sent him a video call, offering concern and praise. Afterward, she mentioned a detail.

—The Dami military secretly detonated the nuclear bomb. What is your opinion on this matter? Since you were directly involved, your view will be carefully considered.

Wang Sheng thought for a moment. "Let's... not start a war. It would only waste everyone's time for cultivation. I'll let you decide on how to handle it, Mistress."

—

Mm.

Peaceful development has always been our central policy, and that hasn't changed. There is little strategic significance in staying outside the qi meridians anyway.

—We've received intel from an unknown source that the cultivation world of Sakura Island will retaliate against Dami. A large number of ninjas will soon attempt to assassinate those involved in the Jialington Group's human experiments on Sakura.

Shi Qianzhang whispered, "Really?"

—I have things to attend to, so I'll be off. I'll make sure your return trip is safe and peaceful.

Whoosh.

Chi Ling's half-body projection vanished.

Inside the camper van, everyone looked at Shi Qianzhang with sympathy.

Shi Qianzhang blinked rapidly. "Why are you all looking at me?"

Wang Sheng reached into his pendant and took out a pouch of walnuts—the "supplement snack" that his senior sister had slipped him before leaving. "Here, have some. You can still be saved.