281: The Marquis of Zhenbei's Sudden Change

The water mirror in the Hanyue Valley Underground Palace projected the full view of Black Wind Cliff. The miasma at the cliff's edge had been dispersed by Lin Pingzhi and his men using sulfur, revealing bare rock with black marks from poison erosion still lingering in the crevices.

Jun Xiaoyao traced his finger along the edge of the water mirror, and the image zoomed in with his movement. One could clearly see two flags planted on the cliff top—one embroidered with a spider web pattern, the mark of The Net; the other wrapped with a venomous snake, the very symbol of the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley.

"Young Lord, the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley has brought twenty Disciples. Li Mochou did not come; she was replaced by her Junior Sister, Mei Chaofeng."

Zhao Gao stood by the water mirror, holding newly organized intelligence. "Mei Chaofeng's 'Nine Yin Skeleton Claw' has reached the ninth stage. Her fingernails are quenched with 'Bone-Corroding Poison'; anything they touch rots instantly. She is even more troublesome than Li Mochou's poison needles."

In the water mirror, the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley was sitting on a stone bench at the edge of the cliff, fiddling with a long sword entwined with poisonous vines. The blade glowed with a dark green light, obviously quenched with deadly poison. Beside him, Mei Chaofeng wore black robes, her ten fingernails black and sharp, emitting ear-piercing laughter from time to time, startling the miasma below the cliff into rolling waves.

[Panel pops up with Mei Chaofeng's data: Name: Mei Chaofeng; From: the legend of the condor heroes world; Realm: Peak Grandmaster Realm; Martial Skills: 1. Nine Yin Skeleton Claw (Major Achievement) - The claw force is insidious; those struck will have their meridians severed. 2. Heart-Destroying Palm (Major Achievement) - The palm wind contains poison and can shatter the heart meridians. 3. Listening to Sound and Distinguishing Position (Perfection) - Although blind, she can judge the opponent's position based on sound. Loyalty: 0% (Hostile)]

"Where has West Gate Blows Snow arrived?" Jun Xiaoyao's gaze moved away from Mei Chaofeng and fell onto a small box in the corner of the water mirror—it showed the movements of West Gate Blows Snow. He was treading on a long sword, sweeping in from the direction of Qingzhou, his white clothes rustling in the wind, like an immortal who had descended from heaven.

[Panel updates West Gate Blows Snow's status: Current Position: Thirty miles from Black Wind Cliff; Internal Breath Status: Peak; Carried Items: Scabbard (Special, can block poison attacks); Prediction: Arrival in one stick of incense time.]

"Have Lin Pingzhi's Shadow Group retreat to below the cliff; do not intervene." Jun Xiaoyao tapped his fingertip on the water mirror, and the image switched to the dense forest below the cliff.

Lin Pingzhi was leading three assassins in checking the sulfur bags. Upon hearing the order, he immediately waved his hand, signaling everyone to hide in the bushes. "West Gate Blows Snow's sword does not like to be disturbed."

Zhao Gao acknowledged and noted it down, then handed over another scroll of intelligence: "There is news from Qiao Feng's side. The Marquis Zhenbei's logistics stronghold has been taken out. Thirteen imperial guards had their heart meridians shattered by his Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms; not a single one was left alive. The evidence in the brocade pouch was also 'dropped' outside the imperial guard camp. Now the camp is in chaos."

The water mirror immediately cut to the image of the imperial guard camp: several soldiers were discussing the brocade pouch on the ground, one of whom recognized the Marquis's seal on the wax seal.

Terrified, his face deathly pale, he scrambled toward the main camp. The commander's flag in the center of the camp swayed in the wind, and the words "Zhenbei" could be vaguely seen, but it carried a sense of precariousness.

[Panel pops up with Marquis Zhenbei's data: Name: Zhao Yan; From: Imperial Dynasty royalty; Realm: Grandmaster Realm Middle Stage; Faction: Controls three thousand Qingzhou imperial guards, secretly colludes with the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley and the remnants of the Golden Blade Alliance; Weakness: Greedy for money and lustful; the mansion stores a large amount of embezzled grain and armaments.]

"Is the Marshal of the Unruly being watched?" Jun Xiaoyao looked at the panicked imperial guards in the image, suddenly remembering that Marquis Zhenbei also had a private army hidden in an abandoned fortress outside the city. "Don't let him be cornered and run away with his private army."

"The Marshal of the Unruly has already led fifty of The Unruly to surround the fortress." Zhao Gao brought up another image. The Marshal of the Unruly was standing on a high tree outside the fortress, using a long-range telescope to observe the movements inside. "The private army commander is a hotheaded youth. He just sent someone out to negotiate, saying he would only open the gates if he saw Marquis Zhenbei."

Jun Xiaoyao chuckled: "They won't be able to see him. Tell the Marshal of the Unruly to use fire arrows to light the fortress's granary and force them out."

On Black Wind Cliff, the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley was getting impatient. He used his poison sword to pick at a rock, which instantly corroded into powder. "Is West Gate Blows Snow afraid to come?" He shouted towards the direction of Qingzhou, his voice full of mockery. "If he's scared, he should come out and kowtow to admit his mistake, and I might spare his dog life!"

Mei Chaofeng followed with a sinister laugh: "Why does the Valley Master need to waste words with a sword-wielder who has a false reputation? In my opinion, just release the 'Thousand-Foot Gu' down there; no matter who he is, he will become food for the Gu insects!"

As soon as her voice fell, a cold voice came from the air: "My sword does not behead the nameless, but it does behead the mad."

Everyone looked up and saw West Gate Blows Snow stepping on his long sword, landing on the cliff top. His white clothes were immaculate, completely out of place with this Black Wind Cliff full of poison marks. He drew his long sword from its scabbard, and with a flash of sword light, he actually split a wisp of miasma at the edge of the cliff in two.

"West Gate Blows Snow!" The Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley stood up abruptly, his poison sword pointing directly at the opponent. "You dare to intrude on my Ten Thousand Poisons Valley's territory? Today I will make you taste the power of the 'Bone-Eroding Poison Sword'!"

West Gate Blows Snow did not speak, but the tip of his sword lifted slightly, pointing at the throat of the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley. This seemingly casual movement made the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley feel an inexplicable chill, as if he had already become prey under the sword.

"Arrogant!" Mei Chaofeng was the first to attack. Her ten fingers formed claws, grabbing toward West Gate Blows Snow's back with a piercing sound. The black energy on her fingernails was particularly eye-catching in the sunlight. "Let you taste the power of my old woman's Nine Yin Skeleton Claw!"

West Gate Blows Snow did not move his body, but with a slight turn of his wrist, his long sword wound behind him like a spirit snake, just enough to block Mei Chaofeng's claw wind. With a crisp "ding," the tips of her claws struck the sword body and were actually shaken until they were numb. Mei Chaofeng exclaimed and stumbled back, only to find that the blackness on her fingernails had faded a little—it was suppressed by the righteousness on the sword body.

"Your opponent is me." West Gate Blows Snow finally spoke, his gaze locked on the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley. "Draw your sword."

The Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley felt his scalp tingle from being watched by him. He roared and swept his poison sword, entwined with poisonous vines, across. Wherever the sword wind passed, the rocks were corroded into pits. West Gate Blows Snow did not dodge or evade; he thrust his long sword out to meet the poison sword, and the tip of his sword landed precisely on the spine of the poison sword—the place where the poison was shallowest.

"Clang!"

As the two swords intersected, the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley only felt a massive force come through. The web between his thumb and forefinger split instantly, and his poison sword almost slipped from his hand. He looked at West Gate Blows Snow in disbelief. The other party had obviously only used thirty percent of his strength, yet he had broken his poison sword technique that he had practiced for many years.

"Second move." West Gate Blows Snow's voice remained cold. He withdrew his long sword, and when he thrust it out again, the sword light had turned into a white rainbow, striking directly at the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley's glabella.

The Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley hurriedly blocked with his sword, but saw the opponent's sword suddenly change direction, bypassing the poison sword and slashing toward his wrist. He was so frightened that he shrank his hand, but his wrist was still swept by the sword wind. He immediately felt a sharp pain. Looking down, a bloodstain appeared on his wrist, and the blood bead turned black as soon as it seeped out—was the sword also quenched with something?

"This is 'Heart-Clearing Powder'," West Gate Blows Snow said lightly, "to dissolve your poison, and also to make you wake up a bit."

The Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley was both shocked and angry. He had never heard of anyone quenching sword powder to dissolve poison. Just as he was distracted, West Gate Blows Snow's third sword was already before his eyes. The sword light was like a Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens, too fast for anyone to see the trajectory.

"Puchi."

The blade pierced through the shoulder of the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley, pinning him to the rock behind him. The poison sword fell to the ground with a "clatter," breaking into two pieces. The poison liquid inside splashed on the ground, emitting bursts of white smoke.

"You lost." West Gate Blows Snow sheathed his sword, his gaze sweeping over the trembling Disciples of the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley. "Get out. Tell the people in your valley, if you dare to set foot in Qingzhou one more step, there will be no mercy."

Mei Chaofeng wanted to sneak an attack, but was scared back by a look from West Gate Blows Snow—the Sword Intent in that look was more terrifying than any poison she had ever practiced. Clutching her arm, which had been swept by the sword wind, she took the Disciples to help up the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons Valley in a sorry state and fled Black Wind Cliff as if escaping.

Only West Gate Blows Snow remained on the cliff top. He looked towards the direction of Qingzhou, his white clothes fluttering in the wind, as if he had never made a move.

Meanwhile, the imperial guard camp exploded. The evidence of Marquis Zhenbei's collusion with the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley was delivered to the supervising official. It contained detailed records of how he used the Imperial Dynasty's grain to exchange for the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley's poison techniques, and even included records of abetting the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley to assassinate Qingzhou officials.

The supervising official, an old man with a goat beard, was trembling as he held the evidence. He slammed the table and roared at his personal soldiers: "Pass my order, seal the Marquis's mansion, arrest Marquis Zhenbei Zhao Yan, and throw him into the Heavenly Prison to await the Imperial Dynasty's disposal!"

The personal soldiers took the order and left. Just as they walked out of the camp gate, they saw the abandoned fortress in the distance catch fire, with thick smoke rolling. The Marshal of the Unruly was guarding outside the fortress with The Unruly. Seeing some private soldiers trying to rush out, he shot an arrow through the opponent's knee and said coldly: "Marquis Zhenbei has been captured. Do you still want to offer stubborn resistance?"

Looking at the soaring flames and hearing the news that the Marquis's mansion had been sealed, the private soldiers lost their will to fight and surrendered, throwing down their weapons one after another. The Marshal of the Unruly had them tied up, while he himself took a few of The Unruly and swept toward the direction of the Marquis's mansion—he wanted to personally confirm whether Marquis Zhenbei had really been captured.

Jun Xiaoyao, standing in front of the water mirror, watched all this. He tapped his fingertip on the panel and brought up the latest faction distribution map. The red light points representing the Imperial Dynasty imperial guards were shrinking, while the black light points of The Net had begun to infiltrate the edge of the imperial guard camp.

"Young Lord, Qiao Feng intercepted the fleeing Marquis Zhenbei outside the Marquis's mansion," Zhao Gao handed over a new image. Qiao Feng was using the Dragon Capturing Skill to pull Zhao Yan in front of him from a distance. Zhao Yan was so scared that he slumped on the ground and wet his pants. "He asked if he should..."

"Hand him over to the supervising official." Jun Xiaoyao interrupted him, his gaze falling on the sunset at Black Wind Cliff in the water mirror. "A living Marquis Zhenbei is more useful than a dead one. Let the Imperial Dynasty know whose territory Qingzhou is now."

Zhao Gao understood and immediately sent a message to Qiao Feng. In the water mirror, Qiao Feng grabbed Zhao Yan by the collar, threw him to the approaching imperial guards like a chick, and then turned and swept toward Black Wind Cliff—he still had to go and provide support for West Gate Blows Snow, in case the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley made a comeback.

The summoning array in the underground palace suddenly lit up. This time, the light carried a faint Buddhist light. A monk wearing a kasaya slowly walked out of the array, holding prayer beads, with a compassionate face. It was Xu Zhu, who had just been summoned.

[Summoning successful. Character: Xu Zhu; From: demi-gods and semi-devils world; Realm: Grandmaster Realm Middle Stage; Martial Skills: 1. Minor Formless Art (Perfection) - Can imitate martial arts of the world, internal breath is endless. 2. Tianshan Six Yang Palms (Perfection) - The palm force is gentle, can resolve fierce attacks, and can also heal injuries. 3. Life-Death Talisman (Major Achievement) - Uses cold internal breath to create talismans; those struck will beg for death but be unable to die. Loyalty: 95%.]

"This monk, Xu Zhu, greets the Young Lord." Xu Zhu put his palms together and bowed, the prayer beads turning between his fingers. "I heard there is suffering in Qingzhou, and I am willing to do my humble part."

Jun Xiaoyao looked at him, remembering that the Ten Thousand Poisons Valley's poison techniques had injured many of The Net's assassins, and said lightly: "There are people injured by poison at Black Wind Cliff; go and take a look."

Xu Zhu complied and left. The sound of the prayer beads turning echoed in the silent underground palace, intertwining with the sounds of sword humming and fire from the water mirror, as if playing a prelude to the change in Qingzhou.

[Panel prompt: The Net Prestige +1800, Beyond Heaven's sphere of influence expanded to the Qingzhou imperial guard camp. Unlock new mission: Take over Marquis Zhenbei's former troops. Reward: 3000 shi of grain, 100 pieces of military equipment.]