Page 144

"Sir, everyone has arrived."

Looking at those warriors whose eyes were full of bloodshot veins, Chen Qing nodded, "You brothers have worked hard."

Everyone puffed out their chests, standing ramrod straight, their voices booming like a large bell, "It’s not hard work!"

Those words came from the heart; many of them used to dig for food in the fields or labored as dock workers struggling every day for two full meals and a little silver to provide for their wives and children. Life was mundane and uninteresting.

After this great disaster, everyone had experienced grim times and faced unprecedented fears, yet now they truly liked their lives deep down.

They were improving every day, feeling fresh hope each day; this life was very different from the numb existence they lived day after day in the past.

It was as if the childhood dreams of making a difference someday had returned.

And these days, the way countless commoners looked at them with reverence, as if seeing saviors, gave them an unprecedented sense of fulfillment. Although it was harder and more dangerous than before, it truly was more interesting than before; they could stand taller than ever.

"Chishui County now has two thousand residents," Chen Qing glanced at the record list, "More will come in the future.

In the days to come, tens of thousands here will need your protection.

This place is not like Lyuzhou, neither the living conditions nor the safety is comparable.

There are definitive dangers here, and you will need to start from scratch to grow the Tiger Guard Army and turn this into a safe county. "

"Now, I am giving you a choice. Those who do not wish to stay may leave with me tonight and return to Lyuzhou.

I will not think any less of you; after all, many of you have betrothed back in Lyuzhou.

If you go back, no one can blame you, and I certainly cannot.

Upon your return, your compensation will remain unchanged as before. "

Everyone glanced at each other, some tempted to leave, yet others were reluctant to give up what they’d achieved.

In the last few days, they had rescued the peasantry, defended the town, and trained the military and citizens.

The place that used to be like a ghost town was slowly filled with life due to their efforts, and to give up now felt like abandoning the fruits of their struggles.

"Sir... if we choose to stay?"

Chen Qing smiled; he didn’t object to such a direct inquiry into benefits.

Being someone from a science and engineering background, he didn’t like to beat around the bush.

He preferred laying out the conditions straightforwardly.

Many things hidden away in hearts could end up being detrimental in the long run.

"Those who stay, due to the greatly increased danger and the additional mental and physical toll, will naturally receive extra compensation!

" Chen Qing said earnestly, "First of all, your salaries here will be doubled for a few months.

Then, the blessings from the Combat God will also double.

You will progress faster than your comrades in Lyuzhou.

If you unfortunately fall in battle, we will immediately send someone to take your souls to the Lyuzhou Hell Ruler to enjoy the highest standard of afterlife services currently available.

As for the women you are betrothed to, we will also provide adequate compensation based on your wishes. "

"Most importantly, if you can build up the Tiger Guard Army in Chishui County, you will have the opportunity to lead an army on your own and become a general!"

The group’s faces flushed with excitement at the words. They had followed the Prefectural Governor here in hopes of distinguishing themselves. Who would want to remain a lowly soldier all their life after earning merits?

Chen Qing nodded in satisfaction. A second-level transmission could form a secondary divine being under the gods.

Xuu Hu was a Combat God, and the appearance of new second-level Combat Gods under him would, in turn, nourish his power.

If one had exceptionally outstanding talents, Chen Qing would also be willing to bestow new titles in the future since at that time, they would have amassed enough divine might, making such divine-bestowed titles purer than those granted by demons.

The same applied to Gatekeeper Soldiers.

At this stage, with outstanding talents and enough followers, one could replace Old Wolf and become the Gate Deity for a county under Lyuzhou’s banner.

Once grown enough, it was not impossible to leave Old Wolf’s oversight and become the new Provincial Government Office Gate Deity.

"Is the sir leaving tonight?"

Chen Qing nodded, "Yes, I shall return tonight..."

In fact, according to the original plan, he was meant to stay a few more days.

Relying solely on soldiers to manage things entirely, he was still somewhat uneasy.

The initial thought was to select a literate, well-natured person from the refugees to manage the order temporarily, but now there wasn’t time for that.

He needed to return to Lyuzhou early to see what had happened, and then he had to summon more warriors to Yangzhou City.

With over thirty counties in Yangzhou, even more second-level warriors were needed. To control the countryside outside of Yangzhou City thoroughly, he estimated that at least three hundred second-level warriors would be necessary. It was time to go back and speed things up.

And he was also very curious about what had happened in Lyuzhou.

When his clone disappeared, it didn’t activate any Forbidden Technique but chose to preserve maximum strength in place, waiting for him to absorb it, indicating the situation wasn’t that urgent at the time.

Moreover, aside from his clone, no other deities had problems. He could feel that the entire force of Lyuzhou was stable.

So, what exactly forced his clone to self-destruct?

With such doubts in mind, Chen Qing didn’t delay. That very night, he boarded a small boat and once again entered the Nine Heavens Mirror.

Of course, his first direction wasn’t towards Lyuzhou but to invoke the black lines on his arm, summoning a pitch-black zombie.

"Take me to your Family Head."

The zombie looked warily at the Ghost Doll next to Chen Qing. The Ghost Doll bared its teeth and grimaced at it, causing the zombie to frown and close its eyes, waiting for instructions inside its head. After an indeterminate amount of time, it finally opened its eyes, "Sir, please follow me."

Chen Qing followed it, passing through several layers of mist. The surrounding river water gradually turned a deep blue. Clearly, after Mirror Folding, Chen Qing understood that he had actually arrived at a part of the West Sea.

The location was different from before, showing that the fellow was very cautious of other powers, always changing positions.

"Was your journey a success, sir?"

The shell opened, and it was still the same extraordinarily charismatic woman.

Different from Ali, this woman exuded an exceptional aura of nobility, so enchanting yet commanding such respect that while one marveled at her beauty, they dared not disrespect her.

This attitude could sometimes even stimulate the opposite sex more, which was no surprise why Weichi Feihong had become so besotted.

"It went fairly smoothly..." Chen Qing smiled and said, "Thank you for your assistance, senior."

The other party currently seemed to be sincere about cooperating because Yangzhou was a sealed region, and it was saturated with undead.

External forces would have to suffer losses if they wished to enter, so every time they cooperated with Chen Qing and his group to go in, she had to first sacrifice the familial minions within Yangzhou City before the array would allow passage.

Minions were not unlimited, and according to her, her situation wasn’t good. The number of minions she could develop was definitely less than the others; such a sacrifice posed a considerable risk.

"There’s no need to thank me, it’s just mutual benefit," the woman replied with a smile. "This time, I’ve shown my sincerity, so next time you will need to show yours, sir..."

"How should I show it?" Chen Qing asked with a smile.

"The Qushui and Siyun counties of Yangzhou City are areas where Old Ba’s minions lurk. The next time you come, sir, please help in clearing them as much as possible, so that I can have more minions enter. This will also ease our continued efforts in clearing Yangzhou, won’t it?"

"Agreed!" Chen Qing nodded without hesitation.

"And then there are the previous conditions," the woman stood up and said somberly. "My minions have seen that Wang Ye has used Flying Star to enter Nine Heavens Mirror Valley. How will you bring them to me?"

"It will take some time," Chen Qing said with a smile. "Shen Lao San is quite strong, and he is likely accompanied by other brothers. If I were to bring them over, could you handle them, senior?"

The woman nodded: "Indeed, it’s troublesome. Forget about Third Elder Shen, I don’t even know if the brothers with him have issues, and if Third Elder Shen had already been parasitically infected, suddenly sending him over might be more than I can handle in my current state."

"So I still need to do some investigation on your behalf, right?" Chen Qing said with a smile.

"Are you certain that Wang Ye can reach Lyuzhou using Flying Star?"

"I’ve tested it many times, there won’t be any issues," Chen Qing nodded and explained. "The Path of Yin and Yang in Lyuzhou is closed, and Wang Ye can bypass the array and directly reach Lyuzhou by traveling through the Path of Yin and Yang!"

"Path of Yin and Yang..." the woman said with an ambiguous smile. "Young man, don’t assume that place is all good and easy to come and go from. Do you even know what’s hidden in there?"

"I really don’t know that..." Chen Qing looked genuinely surprised. "Could you possibly reveal a little?"

The woman looked deeply at Chen Qing then said, "Once, when our ancestors were still unified, they too had designs on the Yin Yang Reincarnation. However, it’s as if the demons of Yin Yang Reincarnation were destined by the heavens themselves, and no one could seize control over them.

Some people even managed to control Yin and Yang. "

"Oh?" Chen Qing’s interest was piqued. "By controlling Yin and Yang, what do you mean?"

"Do you really not know?" the woman asked with a smile.

Chen Qing nodded honestly. "I truly do not know that."

"Within that Path of Yin and Yang, there are some old monsters, and these old monsters come from your Human Race!"

Chen Qing: "....."

"You must be joking, senior?" Chen Qing frowned. "How come I have never heard of this?"

What kind of joke was this?

When has the Human Race ever meddled with the Path of Yin and Yang? The secrets within, aren’t those supposed to emerge only in the third version...

"It seems you are not one of them..." the woman said, closing her eyes in disappointment. "Boy, there are many secrets in this world, and many things are far more terrifying than you can imagine. Don’t be too clever for your own good."

Chen Qing heard this without retort and gave his respects, "Thank you for the guidance, senior."

"Oh, there’s one more thing..."

"What is it?" Chen Qing was puzzled.

"Your Imperial Court has increased its troops," the woman observed the fog outside. "I can feel that the soldiers sealing off Jiangnan have doubled!"

"Doubled?" Chen Qing’s heart skipped a beat.

Wang Ye had previously said that this time, led by the Duke of Qin, three hundred thousand elite troops were sealing off Jiangnan.

This was almost all of the forces in the south; such an event involving demons would definitely not warrant the deployment of ordinary soldiers by the court, especially after the news of the undead spread.

The court should understand that ordinary soldiers would be a burden on the battlefield against the undead.

But where could an additional three hundred thousand elite troops come from?

The army in the north needed to guard the borders to prevent invasion from the Ancient Desolation Country, and the heavy troops in Yundu surely could not be withdrawn easily. Besides those under the Duke of Qin’s command, only the troops from Capital City remained.

Did the Emperor send the Imperial Army over?

What was he planning to do?