Clear Proof

After striking through more than half the roster, only eighty people remained for this round of attempts at casting a Dao Foundation. When Wei Yuan arrived at the drill ground, several thousand people were already seated around its perimeter; nearly all the captives were present. Originally, only those with completed Body Casting or accomplished Bone Tempering had been permitted to attend as spectators. Yet once word spread, even those who had already cast their Dao Foundations hurried over. When they had cast their own foundations, it had been a path riddled with immense hardships; here in Qingming, however, achieving a Dao Foundation seemed as easy as turning over one's hand. No matter what, they had to come see for themselves. Among the ten captives on the field, several were widely acknowledged to be dull-witted and devoid of talent, people who could never possibly cast a Dao Foundation; no one understood why they had been chosen. If even these men could succeed, then there was hardly anyone left in the world who couldn't. Seeing that nearly all the surrendered troops had arrived, Wei Yuan changed his plan on the spur of the moment. Walking up before them, he said in a heavy voice, "As of today, I have not received a single ransom letter. In other words, you men are nothing but useless dregs, good-for-nothing trash that no one intends to redeem! If you were worth even a sliver of value, you wouldn't be sitting here right now." Some among the crowd looked bewildered, others ashamed, though a few had ferocious glints in their eyes. Wei Yuan took in their varied reactions before continuing, "In Qingming, however, your past does not matter. Whether you are mediocre or useless, you will have the chance to rise. Those ten were lucky enough to be chosen directly, while your luck hasn't been quite as good. But that doesn't matter; what you lack in luck can be made up with merit. Watch closely!" The hour had arrived. Wei Yuan activated Ephemeral Multitude twice to warm everyone up, and then the casting of Dao Foundations officially began. By now, the cultivators patrolling back and forth across the drill ground were well-versed in the procedures; Cui Yu, Wang Yu, and Xu Yi were all present within the field. During the two activations of Ephemeral Multitude, the kinds of Dao Foundations each person might form had already manifested faintly, so they had a clear picture in mind. As the casting began, surges of the origin qi of heaven and earth gradually emerged one after another. A few condensed their Dao Foundations with ease, but for the majority, it was an arduous struggle. From time to time, Cui Yu and the other two intervened, steering back on track anyone whose progress veered astray. Intervening like this severely compromised the ultimate quality of the Dao Foundation, but the people on the field had harbored virtually no hope of advancing in the first place—their potential quality had no room left to fall, so the three could act without hesitation. With careful supervision and the blessing of Jia Wood Life-Mystic power, over ten of the eighty-some candidates successfully cast their Dao Foundations. Among the ten captives, seven managed to condense one! Seeing so many succeed, an uproar broke out among the captives. Wei Yuan stepped before them once more and said, "In Qingming, what you receive is not merely poison, but miracles of the immortals. There is no need to fret. As long as you earn merit, a Dao Foundation shall be yours." A few days later, an opportunity for merit was arranged for the captives: a military redoubt to the south of the territory. Garrisoned by two thousand men, this redoubt served as the gateway to Quliu Town. Vice General Li Shuangchen, stationed there, was naturally a trusted confidant of Yuan Qingyan. The Heaven-Battling Gang mobilized once again. This time, both the former government troops and the Xu family private army disguised themselves as horse bandits and marched south in grand formation, surrounding the redoubt. As Yuan Qingyan's staunch confidant, Li Shuangchen possessed considerable backbone, resolving to die in battle rather than surrender. In the end, Wang Yu stepped forward for single combat. Under Wang Yu's Heavenly Eye divine ability, Li Shuangchen fought with hands and feet thoroughly bound, every intention seen through, until he steadily and without any suspense fell defeated and perished. With their commanding general dead, the redoubt's morale plummeted by more than half, yet many still resisted desperately. Although Western Jin suffered from a muddled and corrupt court, centuries of accumulated legacy meant that public grievance had not reached a boiling point, and the ranks still frequently produced men capable of putting up a fierce fight. Reining in his horse beneath the redoubt walls, Wei Yuan shouted, "Our Heaven-Battling Gang comes only for the national traitor Yuan Qingyan! Bystanders need not seek their own doom. Lay down your blades and spears, and we will take the grain and leave. I shall count to three; anyone who has not cast aside their weapons will receive no mercy!" His voice echoed over the entire redoubt, ringing loud and clear in everyone's ears. By now, the redoubt was surrounded on all sides by thousands, with over a hundred masked riders holding the perimeter. What was more, the enemy had casually sent forth a single rider who had slain Li Shuangchen in a fair duel. Many soldiers inside the redoubt wavered; after all, not everyone was willing to lay down their lives for Yuan Qingyan. Or, looked at from another angle, Yuan Qingyan had nothing about him worth dying for. "One, two..." Wei Yuan's calm, steady voice reverberated over the redoubt, and one after another, soldiers cast down their swords and spears. A colonel suddenly twisted his face into a ferocious snarl and bellowed, "You are surrendering to the enemy on the front lines! By military law, you must be executed!" He swung his broadsword, hacking down several soldiers who had cast away their weapons in rapid succession. Outside the redoubt, two riders waved their hands, loosing immortal swords. Rays of sword light whirled around the colonel several times, severing all four of his limbs. The army arrayed outside the redoubt finally surged forward, scaling the ramparts like a pack of wolves and slaughtering every resisting soldier in short order. The colonel was still groaning and cursing in agony when a boot suddenly came down on his head. An aloof, condescending voice sounded from above: "What kind of thing is Yuan Qingyan that he's worth risking your lives to follow?" The colonel spat and rasped, "Lord Yuan may have ten thousand faults, but he rose from common birth, fighting his way up from the bottom just like us! I respect men like that! And what about you bastards? Great immortal sects, noble clans... strip those away, and what are any of you worth?" The voice above said, "Not worth much, but crushing an ant like you is easy enough." The foot stomped down hard, splashing blood and brains across the ground. Below the redoubt, Wei Yuan frowned slightly, puzzled as to why Cui Yu had suddenly resorted to such brutal cruelty. If he wanted to kill the man, a swift decapitation would have sufficed; there was no need for this. Over the past few days, Cui Yu had felt off, seemingly more irritable and anxious. With all who resisted cut down, several masked riders drove the surrendered soldiers out of the redoubt to line up in an open field. Then, thousands of troops flooded into the stronghold, stripping away every useful item like a swarm of locusts. Afterward, a rider approached the surrendered soldiers and called out, "Step forward if you are willing to join the Heaven-Battling Gang! Join us, and your future will be bright, your path to immortality renewed! If you don't wish to join, that's fine too; just stay right where you are and don't move." Of the fifteen to sixteen hundred surviving soldiers, only a dozen stepped forward. These men clearly looked like punching bags who were constantly ostracized in the army. Before long, the redoubt was completely emptied, and the army began a slow northward march. Wei Yuan walked up before the surrendered soldiers and said, "You were sensible enough to read the situation, which is why you kept your lives today. When you return, remember to tell those around you: whoever follows Yuan Qingyan, we will send to the grave without mercy. Let us see just how many dogs' lives Lord Yuan can afford to buy." —— In Dingbian City of Ningxi Prefecture, Yuan Qingyan hurried into Chen Dao's study, bowed, and asked, "May I ask why Your Excellency the Governor summoned this official so urgently?" Chen Dao raised a brow and drawled, "I called Lord Yuan here to ask how your strategy to cut off their grain supplies is proceeding." Yuan Qingyan replied, "It has already taken effect. The bandits' grain will run out within days. Perhaps they are already reduced to trading their children to eat." Chen Dao set an official dispatch before Yuan Qingyan and said, "I hear a redoubt under Lord Yuan's jurisdiction was ambushed by horse bandits, suffering heavy losses. Why haven't I seen a memorial report?" Yuan Qingyan's expression did not waver as he said, "The losses are currently being inventoried, to be submitted once verified. In truth, the loss is not great—merely four hundred soldiers and several days of rations stored in the stronghold." Chen Dao narrowed his eyes slightly and said slowly, "'Merely four hundred soldiers'... Human life doesn't seem to be worth much in your eyes, Lord Yuan!" Yuan Qingyan replied indifferently, "They enlisted in the army; dying on the battlefield is their duty. So long as they die for a worthy cause, never mind four hundred—even four thousand or forty thousand would be justified. However, the horse bandits grow rampant, daring to openly assault a military redoubt and slay commanding officers; it is no different from outright rebellion. I have repeatedly submitted memorials requesting troops to suppress them, yet I wonder why Your Excellency keeps our forces still?" "Do you not have channels that reach directly to the imperial ear? Why not send them there? Why bother passing through my hands?" Chen Dao said with thinly veiled sarcasm. Yuan Qingyan frowned slightly and said, "Reporting up through each level of hierarchy is the proper course. Only if I discover disloyal conduct shall I find ways to report directly to the throne." The threat in those words was unmistakable. The corner of Chen Dao's eye twitched slightly, but he was a man of deep calculation. Suppressing his temper deep down, he said, "I merely wish to remind Lord Yuan that your grain-starvation scheme may run into unexpected changes." Yuan Qingyan replied with utter conviction, "It will not! The bandits were brazen enough to attack the redoubt, but afterward, they swept away every scrap of grain and, contrary to their usual practice, took no captives. This is clear proof that their grain has already run out!" "Let us hope so." Chen Dao had no wish to speak further, and lifted his teacup.