75: Chapter 75 The Cry of the Loose Cultivator Camp, the Morale of the Army Returns

The Loose Cultivator camp was located in the low areas of Xuangui Island's Northern Ridge.

It was not far from Warehouse No. 3.

The moisture was heavy.

The black energy was also heavy.

The tents were pitched haphazardly, with old sails, tattered beast hides, and a few pieces of formation cloth mixed together, flapping loudly in the sea breeze.

When Lu Changyuan walked in, the crying stopped immediately.

Dozens of Loose Cultivators sat by the muddy water.

Some had dirty rags wrapped around their arms.

Some had already blackened Evil-warding Talismans pasted on their chests.

Others hid their medicine bowls behind their backs, as if afraid they would be snatched away.

Lu Hu frowned at the sight.

"Is this a garrison camp?"

No one answered.

An old man sat in the innermost part, cradling a youth.

The old man's hair was graying, and his fingertips were covered in calluses from drawing talismans.

The youth's face was dark and sallow, his lips were purplish, and three old talismans were pasted on his chest.

The talisman paper was already soaked through.

Only a thread of spiritual light remained.

Lu Changyuan looked to the side.

"Who is in charge of this camp?"

A logistics clerk wearing old armor of the Li family felt his legs go weak and knelt down.

"Replying to Deputy Envoy Lu, the Northern Ridge Loose Cultivator camp was originally allocated medicine by the third branch of the Zhao family."

"Where are the ledgers?"

"In... in the hands of Elder Zhao's trusted aides."

Lu Hu kicked over an empty medicine chest nearby.

Inside were only crushed grass and damp sand.

"You call this allocating medicine?"

The old man looked up.

His eyes were very cloudy, but they lacked the softness of begging for mercy.

"If my Lord is here to audit the books, please do so tomorrow morning."

"My grandson won't last until dawn."

Lu Changyuan squatted down and pressed the youth's wrist.

"Foul energy has entered his lungs."

"It's not a severe injury."

"But it has been dragged on for too long."

"If it drags on for another half-night, his lung meridians will rot."

He took out a packet of purification powder and another Evil-warding Talisman, handing them to the old man.

"Do you know how to use them?"

The old man froze.

"Yes."

"Save him first."

The old man's hand trembled slightly.

But he quickly steadied himself.

The powder was mixed into water, and with a spark from the talisman, wisps of grayish-white mist were forced out of the youth's mouth and nose.

The youth's chest heaved a few times, and he finally spat out a mouthful of black blood.

The suppressed breathing in the camp suddenly became heavy.

Lu Changyuan did not wait for them to thank him.

He stood up.

"Name."

Holding the youth, the old man said in a low voice, "Chen Mo."

"What is your trade?"

"Talisman master."

"What rank?"

Chen Mo was silent for a moment.

"Rank Two, Low Grade. I'm old, my hands are no longer steady."

Lu Changyuan glanced at the talisman calluses on his fingertips.

"An unsteady hand is still more useful than someone who cannot draw talismans at all."

He turned to look at the logistics clerk.

"How much purification powder is the Northern Ridge Loose Cultivator camp supposed to receive?"

The clerk's face was deathly pale.

"Daily... twenty packets daily."

"How much is actually distributed?"

"Five packets."

Low curses immediately erupted throughout the camp.

Lu Changyuan said, "Where is the discrepancy?"

The clerk's lips trembled.

"It was taken by the Zhao family's personal guards to the Central Army to exchange for talisman armor."

Lu Hu sneered.

"And where is the talisman armor?"

The clerk dared not answer.

Lu Changyuan looked at the cavalry behind him.

"Bring over the Storage Pouches of the Zhao family's trusted aides that we seized tonight."

Soon, over a dozen Storage Pouches were dragged to the center of the camp.

Lu Changyuan broke them open in public.

purification powder.

Evil-warding Talismans.

Wound medicine.

There were even Qi-replenishing Pills meant for the low-level Cultivators guarding the arrays.

Packet after packet, bottle after bottle, rolled out of the Storage Pouches.

The Loose Cultivator camp fell completely silent.

So quiet that only the sea breeze could be heard.

Lu Changyuan looked at the logistics clerk.

"The list of those who handled them."

The clerk fell to his knees with a thud.

"Deputy Envoy Lu, spare my life! I was only keeping the books according to the Zhao family's orders."

"The list."

With trembling hands, the clerk took out a thin booklet from his vest.

Lu Changyuan flipped it open.

There weren't many names.

Six.

Two had already been locked in the array prison.

Four were still in the camp.

He handed the booklet to Lu Hu.

"Arrest them."

Half a quarter-hour later, four logistics Cultivators were dragged to the front of the Loose Cultivator camp.

One of them was still crying out his innocence.

"Deputy Envoy Lu, we were only taking a cut according to old precedent."

Lu Changyuan looked at him.

"Wartime purification supplies can also be cut?"

The man's face turned pale.

Lu Changyuan said, "For embezzling military supplies during wartime, execute two."

Lu Hu did not ask who to execute.

He picked the two with the largest amounts on the ledger.

The blade fell.

Blood splattered into the muddy water.

The other two collapsed to the ground.

Lu Changyuan said, "The remaining two will carry the contaminated crates of Warehouse No. 3 to atone for their crimes."

"If they survive for three days, they will be interrogated again."

This was even more chilling than executing them all.

Executing them all would be swift.

Leaving them to carry the contaminated crates was to let everyone see the price of their actions.

Lu Changyuan turned to look at the Loose Cultivator camp.

"From now on, the five categories of wartime supplies on Xuangui Island will be redistributed."

"purification powder, Evil-warding Talismans, Evil-Suppressing Sand, wound medicine, and array base consumables."

"First the front lines, then the Central Army."

"First array defense, then ship protection."

"Whoever is on duty at Warehouse No. 3, the Northern Ridge reef line, or the Outer Port will receive them first."

As he spoke, he took out the Xuanguai Island military tally.

The military tally lit up.

A rough roster of the five thousand garrison troops floated in mid-air.

Lu Changyuan did not divide them according to the Zhao family's old camps.

Instead, he reclassified them based on what they could do.

Array Masters, talisman masters, transport, array defense, ship protection, and reef patrol.

Beside each category, the supplies they were entitled to receive were marked.

It was not detailed.

But it was clear enough.

Looking at the roster, Chen Mo's eyes gradually turned red.

"My Lord, will they really be distributed according to this?"

Lu Changyuan said, "Tonight, we distribute to the Northern Ridge Loose Cultivator camp first."

"Tomorrow morning, we distribute to the Li family's ship guards."

"In the afternoon, we distribute to the Zhao family's old division."

"Within three days, everyone guarding the lines will have their supplies replenished according to the roster."

A Loose Cultivator couldn't help but ask, "Even the Zhao family's old division gets them?"

Lu Hu also looked at Lu Changyuan.

Lu Changyuan said, "Those who stood behind Commander Zhao Lingyue to embezzle will be executed."

"Those who stand on the defensive line will receive them."

"Now is not the time to divide Xuanguai Island by family."

He then had three wooden plaques brought over.

The first one read, "Tonight, Northern Ridge."

The second one read, "Tomorrow Morning, Outer Port."

The third one read, "Afternoon, East Shoal."

Under each wooden plaque, the number of people receiving medicine, the rotation times, and the evacuation locations for the wounded were listed.

The handwriting was not particularly beautiful.

But hung at the entrance of the camp, it was clearer than any promise.

Someone asked in a low voice, "What if the medicine runs out when it's our turn?"

Lu Changyuan looked at that person.

"Then we will deduct it from the Central Army first."

"If the Central Army is not enough, deduct it from Commander Zhao Lingyue's sealed Storage Pouches."

"If that is still not enough, deduct it from my personal military chest."

He paused.

"But if anyone dares to falsely claim, resell, or repeatedly claim on behalf of others, I will execute them just the same."

This mention of execution tightened the atmosphere that had just begun to ease up.

The Loose Cultivators needed medicine.

They also needed rules.

Without rules, the things distributed tonight would be snatched away by fiercer people tomorrow morning.

Chen Mo stared at the three wooden plaques for a long time, then handed his grandson to someone else and fished out an old talisman seal from his vest.

"My Lord, this old man is willing to act as the talisman receiver for the Northern Ridge camp."

"If anyone in this camp falsely claims, privately sells, or robs medicine, punish this old man first."

The faces of several Loose Cultivators nearby changed.

A one-armed man gritted his teeth and said, "I will watch the Outer Port."

Another person said, "I am familiar with the East Shoal, I will report the numbers."

Lu Changyuan looked at them.

"A talisman receiver is not a leader."

"They are the ones who bear responsibility."

"If the accounts are wrong, you will be questioned first."

The three of them lowered their heads simultaneously.

"We accept."

As these words fell, the wary looks in the camp finally softened a bit.

It was not fanaticism.

Nor was it blind loyalty.

It was just the first time someone had treated them as defenders of the line, rather than consumables that could be thrown into the ocean trench at will.

Lu Changyuan continued, "For those who die in battle, register them according to the transport line of the Zhenhai Military Warehouse first."

"Report the pensions to the Zhenhai Military Warehouse."

"The medicine costs and the first-seven-day memorial offerings, I will advance from my military chest first."

"If you are homeless, you can apply to be registered in Blue Moon Island's foreign registry after the war."

"But for now, no spreading rumors, no unauthorized departures, and no seizing civilian ships in my name."

"Survive this battle first, then we will talk about your destination."

Chen Mo supported his grandson and slowly knelt down.

"This old man, Chen Mo, is willing to redraw the Northern Ridge talisman line for my Lord."

As he knelt, over a dozen Loose Cultivators nearby also knelt down.

Those behind hesitated for a moment, then also lowered their heads.

Lu Changyuan did not make them chant slogans.

"Those who can draw talismans, follow Chen Mo."

"Those who can carry medicine, go outside Warehouse No. 3 to receive the crates."

"The severely wounded will stay to be treated."

"You may weep."

"But do not stop your hands."

These words were more practical than any mobilization speech.

The Loose Cultivator camp sprang into action.

Chen Mo handed his grandson to a woman, wiped the cloudy tears from the corners of his eyes, and picked up his old talisman brush.

His hand was indeed unsteady.

The first talisman was drawn crooked by half an inch.

Lu Changyuan did not rush him.

He only had three talisman lamps lit.

Chen Mo's hand became steady on the second one.

By the latter half of the night, thirty-seven new talismans had been added to the Northern Ridge talisman line.

Some talisman patterns were old.

Some talisman papers were worn.

But they connected to the edge of the Purple Thunder Exorcism Array, like patching a broken net with a layer of thick thread.

The weeping in the camp lessened.

The sound of footsteps increased.

Standing beside Lu Changyuan, Lu Hu said in a low voice, "Lord, the way they look at you has changed."

Lu Changyuan looked at the gray mist that had not yet fully dispersed outside Warehouse No. 3 in the distance.

"It's still not enough."

"Giving medicine once can only keep them alive tonight."

"Only when they know there will be medicine tomorrow night, and rotations the night after, will they truly obey orders."

Lu Hu nodded.

Just as he was about to speak, a layer of black mist rose over the sea.

The mist came very quickly.

It was as if someone had uncovered an ink pool beneath the sea.

On the Northern Ridge reef line, warning talismans lit up one after another.

Chen Mo had just finished drawing a talisman. When he looked up at the sea, his face turned pale.

Dense roars echoed from within the mist.

The claws of low-tier demonized sea beasts scraped against the reefs.

The sound was like a knife scraping bone.

Lu Changyuan gripped the military tally.

"The entire camp, to battle."

"Tonight, let them see that the medicine was not distributed in vain."