128: Chapter 128 Return

"So," Gao Feng looked at everyone one last time, his sincere eyes filled with anticipation and solemnity, "I came to the Imperial Capital not just for myself, but for Panshi Stockade behind me, and for those tens of thousands of northern border residents struggling bitterly under the iron hooves of the barbarians!"

"I need power, I need resources, and even more, I need like-minded companions!"

"You are all dragons and phoenixes among men, harboring great ambitions. Although the Imperial Capital is vast, it has become a dragon's den and a tiger's lair, with no place left for us to stand."

"I, Gao Feng, hereby formally invite you all in the name of the Master of Panshi Stockade!"

His voice became incredibly resonant at this moment, filled with boundless passion and lofty aspirations!

"Are you willing to return to the Northern Territory with me?"

"We will not fight for that illusory court power, and we will not be pawns to be manipulated by others!"

"In that vast and bitterly cold land, we will use our own hands to carve out a bright, clear heaven and earth that truly belongs to us!"

"We will ensure that the iron hooves of the barbarians can never again step even half a step into our Great Qian Dynasty!"

"We will ensure that the border residents of the Northern Territory can all live and work in peace, well-fed and warmly clothed!"

"On that forgotten land, we will build a paradise where no one is oppressed and no one bows their head to anyone!"

These words were spoken with resounding force and stirring passion, making everyone present feel their blood surging in their chests, unable to control themselves!

A strange flush appeared on Gong Qianxue's cold, pretty face. She looked at the man radiating boundless charm and nodded gently, "Count me in."

Xu Changqing gently waved his feather fan, his wise eyes flashing with unprecedented light. He looked at Gao Feng as if he were looking at a peerless monarch about to create a brand-new era. He slowly stood up and bowed deeply to Gao Feng, a gesture of absolute loyalty to one who truly understood him.

"My Lord has the world in his heart and cares for the common people. Though Changqing is untalented, I am willing to serve my Lord like a dog or horse, and plan for this eternal Foundation!"

Only Yue Changkong fell into a long silence after hearing Gao Feng's words. His eyes flashed with complex light; there was struggle, hesitation, but more than that, an indescribable longing.

He came from a military family, and the blood of defending the country flowed in his bones. The picture Gao Feng painted—of fighting the barbarians on the battlefield in the Northern Territory and protecting the local people—had a fatal attraction for him.

But he also had his own concerns.

"Brother Gao..." After a long while, he spoke with difficulty, "I admire your ambition very much. It's just... my father's unjust case has not yet been cleared, and I..."

Gao Feng patted him on the shoulder, interrupting him with an understanding smile on his face.

"I understand."

"Brother Yue, you don't have to make a decision immediately."

"Our journey to the Northern Territory will not happen overnight; you should first return home and settle your family affairs. Half a year later, if you are still willing, come to Linhuang County in the Northern Territory to find me."

"The gates of my Panshi Stockade will always be open for you!"

Gao Feng's words made the last trace of Yue Changkong's concerns vanish into thin air.

He nodded heavily, his eyes filled with gratitude.

"Thank you for your understanding, Brother Gao! Half a year later, Changkong will definitely arrive!"

Thus, on this small black-awning boat, the prototype of a team that would one day shake the entire Great Qian Dynasty was officially formed!

After seeing Yue Changkong off, Gao Feng looked at the brothers before him who had chosen to follow him. His heart was filled with pride, but he also knew deeply that the hidden danger of the three violent forces within his body was like a sword hanging over his head and must be resolved immediately.

He did not hesitate any longer and said solemnly to Xu Changqing and the others, "Everyone, I have left behind a huge hidden danger in my body due to forcibly activating a secret technique, and I need to go into seclusion immediately to recuperate. The journey to the Northern Territory is long and fraught with danger; I must be in my Peak state to ensure everyone's safety."

"Changqing, you are responsible for planning the route. We will buy a larger merchant ship and head north by water; this way, we can avoid attention and also secure an absolutely quiet environment for my seclusion."

"Big Fool, Wulu, Qianxue, during my seclusion, I will leave the safety of the ship to you."

"Rest assured, My Lord!" everyone replied in unison, their expressions solemn.

That night, under Xu Changqing's arrangement, they used a large sum of money to purchase a large merchant ship with several independent cabins and recruited reliable boatmen.

Gao Feng locked himself in the bottom-most cabin, claiming to be recovering from injuries, but in reality, he had entered the spirit spring space.

Inside the spirit spring space, Spiritual Qi was dense, and it was full of vitality.

Looking at the mountain of rare Medicinal Pills he had obtained from the Liu Family treasury, as well as that five-hundred-year-old Blood Ginseng King—which made one's blood and Qi churn just by taking a whiff—Gao Feng took a deep breath and adjusted his state to the best it could be.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, he swallowed those Medicinal Pills, which would drive any Martial Artist crazy, into his stomach one by one, just like eating candy beans!

Boom!!!

The massive medicinal power exploded within his body like a dam bursting!

At the same time, he completely released the suppression of the three forces within his body!

Scarlet-gold Qi and blood! Blood-red medicinal power! Cold Evil Qi!

The three violent forces lost all restraint at this moment, like three peerless Vicious Beasts that had been imprisoned for ten thousand years, crazily colliding, biting, and devouring within his Meridians!

"Ah!!!"

A heart-wrenching, indescribable agony instantly spread throughout his entire body! His body felt as if it were about to be torn to pieces by these three forces! His consciousness also became blurred under this intense pain, as if it would completely collapse at any moment!

But, at this most critical juncture!

"Heaven and Earth as the furnace! The body as the tripod! Smelting the Myriad Dao! Returning to the One!"

The ancient scripture exploded deep within his Soul like the evening drum and morning bell!

Gao Feng's consciousness, which was on the verge of collapse, shuddered violently and instantly regained clarity!

"Merge... for me!!!"

He let out a roar that did not sound human and actively, crazily activated the Myriad Dao Unity Art!

He treated his own body as a supreme furnace, and those three violent forces as the most primitive Materials!

He would use his will as the forging hammer, and he would forcibly forge these three pieces of stubborn iron into a piece of peerless divine steel that nothing could destroy!

This process was undoubtedly painful and long. Under the ten-fold time dilation of the spirit spring space, the last trace of medicinal power was completely absorbed. When the three violent forces were finally transformed into a brand-new, harmonious, and vast dark-gold energy under the tyrannical smelting of the Myriad Dao Unity Art, Gao Feng's body also underwent its final transformation.

"Crack..." A crisp sound, like an eggshell breaking, rang out.

The thick layer of blood scabs covering him exploded, turning into dust that filled the sky!

A brand-new Gao Feng slowly stood up from within it.

His skin became as crystal clear as a newborn baby's, radiating a faint precious light.

His physique became more slender and well-proportioned, and every inch of his muscles seemed to contain terrifying power capable of splitting mountains and breaking rocks.

He slowly raised his right hand and squeezed it gently.

"Boom!"

The air around him was actually squeezed and exploded by this casual grip, emitting a dull sonic boom!

A massive power, many times stronger than before, harmonious, vast, and endless, circulated within his body like a rushing river.

"Is this... the Fifth-Rank Marrow Refining Realm?"

Gao Feng muttered to himself, feeling the unprecedented power within his body, and a confident arc curled at the corners of his mouth.

At this moment, if he were to encounter a Sixth-Rank Grandmaster like Wei An, even without using any trump cards, he would have the power to fight! And perhaps, even defeat him!

When Gao Feng walked out of the cabin with high spirits, Xu Changqing and the others waiting outside only felt a terrifying pressure, like a mountain or sea, rushing towards them, making them almost kneel on the spot!

They looked in shock at the man who seemed to have been reborn, with only endless awe remaining in their hearts.

"My Lord..." Xu Changqing spoke with difficulty.

"My injuries have healed, and my strength has improved slightly." Gao Feng smiled slightly, and that terrifying pressure instantly vanished without a trace, returning to his calm and composed appearance.

He looked up at the distant north, his voice becoming incredibly steady and firm.

"Pass down the order, full speed ahead! We are... going home!"

In the following voyage, Gao Feng did not go into seclusion again. He began to use his powerful strength and ample funds to make final preparations for returning to the Northern Territory.

Every time he arrived at a prosperous town, he would generously take out the gold and silver he had looted from the Liu Family treasury to make crazy purchases.

Grain! Large quantities of grain!

Medicinal Materials! All kinds of rare medicinal Materials for healing, dispelling cold, and replenishing Qi and blood!

Ironware! Refined iron, cold iron, and red copper needed for forging weapons!

Cloth, salt...

All the most scarce and precious supplies in the barren land of the Northern Territory, he loaded them onto the ship like a tireless porter, while quietly stowing some into his space.

After changing routes several times, switching to land travel, and hiring dozens of huge mule carts, the merchant ship finally arrived in the hinterland of the Central Plains, the territory of Yunzhou, half a month later.

However, when Gao Feng and his party stepped onto this land, which theoretically should have been more prosperous than the Northern Territory, everyone was completely shocked by the scene before them.

This place was not the human world; it was Hell.

The official road had long been covered by weeds, dilapidated villages were nine-tenths empty, not a trace of green could be seen in the fields, and the air was filled with a foul stench of death and decay.

There were only skeletons, already gnawed to pieces by wild dogs, silently telling of despair in the cold wind. Occasionally, one could see a few emaciated refugees, like wandering ghosts, drifting along the roadside with numb eyes.

When they saw Gao Feng's "merchant caravan" with mule carts and guards, they could not even ignite a glimmer of greed in their eyes; there was only a deathly numbness left.

"My Lord..." For the first time, deep confusion appeared on Wulu's weathered face, "Is this the scene near the provincial capital? Why... does it feel even worse than those small tribes in our Southern Wilderness that are about to starve to death?"

Big Fool also put away his usual silly smile. He looked at the corpse of a child curled up on the side of the road who had long since lost his breath, and for the first time, anger and sorrow appeared in his simple eyes.

Gao Feng remained silent all the way, just quietly observing everything, keeping it all in his heart.

This rotten Dynasty was not just rotten at the roots; even its branches had completely decayed. This sight only further solidified a certain thought in his mind.

When they arrived at the important town of Yunzhou, "Yunzhong City," the scene before their eyes caused the chill in their hearts to reach its Peak.

The tall, sturdy city walls completely separated the inside of the city from the outside into two different worlds.

Above the walls were heavily guarded Government Soldiers in bright armor, while below the walls were tens of thousands of refugees, like ants, waiting bitterly for death amidst hunger and cold.

The city gates were tightly shut, and the drawbridge was raised high.

People inside the city watched the tragedy outside with indifference, as if they were watching a play that had nothing to do with them.

Gao Feng even saw with his own eyes a refugee, unable to bear the hunger, trying to approach the moat to drink water, only to be mercilessly shot dead on the spot by a cold arrow from the guards on the city wall.

The splashing blood stained the murky river water red, yet it failed to stir any ripples.

"Open the gate! Open the gate! I beg you, officials, give us a bite to eat!"

"My child is about to starve to death! I beg you!"

Countless refugees knelt below the city, their hoarse voices issuing desperate pleas, but the only response they received was the cold blades and heartless mockery from atop the city walls.

Right on this land filled with despair and death, a strange "hope" was quietly sprouting.

In the center of the refugee camp, a huge porridge stall had been set up at some unknown time.

A long queue had formed in front of it, and every person's face bore a kind of near-fanatical piety.

Several cultists dressed in white hemp clothes were distributing spoonfuls of steaming hot rice porridge—though it was so thin one could see their reflection in it—into the hands of the refugees.

Above the porridge stall hung an apricot-yellow flag, with eight large characters written in cinnabar: "Vacuum Hometown, Wusheng Holy Mother."

"Thank you, Holy Mother, for your blessing! Thank you, Holy Cult, for saving us from suffering!"

Every refugee who received rice porridge would kneel on the ground and kowtow desperately toward the huge tent shrouded in white gauze behind the porridge stall, their faces filled with the gratitude of someone who had survived a disaster.

"Wusheng Holy Cult?" Gao Feng's brows furrowed slightly. He keenly sensed that an unusual scent was hidden behind this.

He had Big Fool and Wulu stay behind to protect the caravan, while he himself took Xu Changqing and quietly blended into the refugees.

They soon discovered that the methods of this "Wusheng Holy Cult" were far from just distributing porridge.

Beside the porridge stall, there were several so-called "Holy Cult Physicians" who were using some of the most common herbs, combined with pretentious prayers and talisman water, to provide free medical treatment to the sick refugees.

For these refugees who couldn't even eat, let alone see a doctor, this was already a massive blessing.

Occasionally, a few who were less ill miraculously improved after drinking the talisman water, which immediately drew even more fanatical worship from the surrounding believers.

"The Holy Mother has manifested her spirit! The Holy Mother has manifested her spirit!"

"Wusheng Holy Mother, boundless in magical power! Vacuum Hometown, saving all living beings!"

Gao Feng watched coldly from the sidelines. He could clearly see that the so-called "talisman water" was merely clear water mixed with a few sedative herbs, and those "physicians" were just Jianghu charlatans who knew some superficial pharmacology.

As for the so-called "manifestation," it was complete nonsense.

Yet, it was precisely these crude methods that possessed unparalleled seductive power on this land of despair.

"Brother Gao, look." Xu Changqing's eyes flashed with a glint of wisdom as he lowered his voice and said, "This Holy Cult is not simple."

"Their porridge distribution, while seemingly a benevolent act, is actually for screening. Only those young and strong individuals who are still in decent health and have the strength to queue can receive porridge."

"Those who are truly on the verge of death, the old and weak, cannot squeeze to the front. Their goal is not to save people, but to... recruit usable individuals."

Gao Feng nodded; he naturally had also seen this point.

Just then, a wave of even more fanatical cheers suddenly erupted from the crowd.

Several white-robed cultists were seen escorting a woman wearing a gorgeous palace dress, her face covered with a white veil, and possessing a graceful figure, as she slowly walked out of that huge tent.

She must be the legendary Wusheng Holy Mother who could "revive the dead and regrow flesh and bones."

"Holy Mother! The Holy Mother has come out!"

"Merciful Holy Mother! We beg the Holy Mother for your blessing!"

All the believers were like madmen, kneeling on the ground, prostrating themselves, not daring to look directly at that figure.

The "Holy Mother" merely glanced around indifferently, then spoke slowly in an ethereal yet seductive voice: "Tonight, ten of the most devout believers will accompany me into the inner altar to bathe in the Holy Light and receive the supreme blessing of the Holy Mother."

"At that time, you will be freed from all suffering and return to the Vacuum Hometown ahead of time."

As her words fell, the crowd completely erupted! Countless people scrambled to shout about their own piety, hoping to become one of those ten "lucky ones."

However, Gao Feng keenly captured a detail: those "lucky ones" who were selected never came out again after being taken into that mysterious tent, as if they had evaporated from the world.

"Changqing," a cold Killing Intent flashed in Gao Feng's eyes, "Go immediately and contact the branch of the Heavenly Secret Tower in Yunzhong City. I want to know all the details about this 'Wusheng Holy Cult'."

"Yes, My Lord." Xu Changqing took the order and left.

As for Gao Feng, he took Big Fool and Wulu, changed into the most ragged refugee clothes, made himself look disheveled and dirty, and quietly blended into the fanatical believers.

He wanted to personally uncover the true face of this evil cult.

The night was as deep as water.

Gao Feng's figure, like a wisp of uncatchable blue smoke, silently merged into the darkness at the deepest part of the Holy Cult's camp.

With his current strength, combined with the breath-concealing technique of the Shadow Assassination Art, the guards of the entire camp were non-existent in his eyes.

He easily bypassed all the open and hidden sentries, arriving outside the huge white tent that was regarded as a "Holy Land" by countless fanatical believers.

A faint, strange fragrance, sweet yet mixed with a trace of blood, drifted out from the gaps in the tent.

Gao Feng's brows furrowed even deeper.

He did not enter through the main entrance, but instead shifted his body, silently sticking to the top of the tent like a gecko, carefully using a dagger to cut an extremely tiny slit, and then cast his gaze into the tent.

At just one glance, even with his heart that had long been as firm as a rock, his pupils could not help but shrink violently!

Inside the tent, it was not some sacred altar as he had imagined, but a huge blood pool built from countless ghastly white bones, filled with an aura of evil and blood.

Within the blood pool surged thick, dark red liquid, emitting a nauseating stench.

In the center of the blood pool, a huge, eerie, blood-colored demonic flower, like a blooming man-eating flower, was flashing with an uncanny light, one moment bright and the next dim.

Those ten "lucky ones" selected during the day were now stripped naked, hung upside down above the blood pool like livestock.

Their wrists and ankles had been sliced open by sharp bone blades, and their warm blood was continuously dripping into the blood pool below, becoming nourishment for that blood-colored demonic flower.

As the blood continued to be poured in, the demonic flower slowly began to bloom, and waves of visible pink blood mist permeated from the flower's stamen.

Beside the blood pool, a woman wearing a gorgeous palace dress with her face covered by a white veil sat cross-legged.

She spread her arms, greedily inhaling the blood mist emitted from the demonic flower.

As the blood mist poured in, the aura on her body was climbing crazily at a speed visible to the naked eye!

That aura was cold, evil, yet filled with immense power, having shockingly reached the terrifying Realm of a Half-Step Fifth-Rank!

She was the "Holy Mother" of the Wusheng Holy Cult!

How was this any sacred blessing? This was clearly a bloody sacrifice using the lives and Souls of countless innocent believers to nourish an evil technique!

A strong Killing Intent instantly erupted in Gao Feng's eyes!

This was no longer a simple evil cult, but a thorough devil's den!

Using the essence, blood, and Souls of living people to feed a demonic flower, and then enhancing one's strength by inhaling the blood mist emitted by the demonic flower—this kind of Cultivation Technique was a hundred times more vicious and a thousand times more evil than any secret technique of the Southern Wilderness barbarian tribes he had ever seen.

That so-called "Holy Mother," that high and mighty living Bodhisattva who received the prostration of ten thousand people, was, beneath her veil, a peerless demon that fed on despair and used life as nourishment!

Kill!

Must kill her!

This thought, like a prairie fire, instantly burned crazily in Gao Feng's heart!

With his current Fifth-Rank strength, combined with the dark golden power that had just been smelted into one, he had absolute confidence that he could kill this demon woman, who was still lingering at the Half-Step Fifth-Rank, on the spot within ten moves!

However, just as he was about to detonate his Qi and blood, break through the tent, and launch a thunderous strike, a cold rationality, like ten-thousand-year black ice, forcibly suppressed his boiling Killing Intent.

Cannot act, at least not now.

Gao Feng's gaze swept across the outside of the tent, over those tens of thousands of fanatical believers who were still immersed in false hope, prostrating themselves before this tent of death.

He knew clearly in his heart that if he rushed out now and killed this "Holy Mother," not only would he not be treated as a hero by these people, but he would instead immediately be regarded as a devil who blasphemed against the gods by these tens of thousands of crazy believers, falling into an endless siege.

Although he did not fear it, escaping from the siege of tens of thousands of people was by no means an easy task.

More importantly, his goal was not simple slaughter, but to completely destroy the Foundation of this evil cult, to rescue these deceived common people from this false belief, and to let them become a force he could rely on in this land of the Central Plains.

To save them, one cannot just kill their "god"; one must personally shatter the "idol" in their hearts!

A more daring and even more vicious plan, like a poisonous snake, quietly took shape in Gao Feng's heart.

He retracted all his Killing Intent and Qi, his figure like a weightless fallen leaf, silently sliding down from the top of the tent, and once again merged into the boundless darkness.