Could This Be True?

The Zhao general guarding the pass could not endure the insult and brazenly led several thousand personal guards in a cross-border raid. But the Qingming Army unleashed ten thousand cannons at once, instantly blasting apart the Zhao troops' military aura. They captured him alive, humiliating him thoroughly. Then, one hundred thousand Qingming troops surged into Zhao territory and hauled back tens of thousands of border guards. Up in the sky, that general could bear it no longer, roaring like thunder, "This is intolerable! Brother Li, I will endure this no more!" Swinging his great halberd, he was about to strike, only to be held back with all his might by Prince Duan, who pleaded repeatedly, "Worthy Brother Wang, dignity! Think of your dignity!" "Things have come to this, so what dignity is there left?!" The general surnamed Wang strained repeatedly, yet could not break free of Prince Duan's grip. Prince Duan lowered his voice and said, "That woman's immortal treasure is vicious. Even if you won't think of yourself, you must at least consider the child next door to your house!" The general instantly recalled the Grand Pure Severing of Karma Treasure Light in Zhu Yuanjin's hands. His momentum deflated by a third. He put on a show of struggling a few more times, yet did not truly break free of Prince Duan's grip. With the retreat of the two Zhao Scenery Command experts, the grand battle drew to a close. Zhao's invading army of two hundred thousand, along with the fifty thousand border troops sent to receive them, was completely wiped out. Over ten thousand were killed, more than a hundred thousand wounded, and the rest taken prisoner. Within Qingming, physicians were abundant now, with over five hundred holding template Dao Foundations. Those with template Dao Foundations were all fully certified physicians, each accompanied by several assistants and disciples. With ample manpower, the wounded Zhao soldiers all received meticulous treatment. However, many of the physician assistants and disciples in the clinics were as lovely as flowers yet cold as ice. As they bustled back and forth, the Zhao grunts could hardly take their eyes off them. When they intended to select a thousand lightly wounded men to help clean the camp and maintain order, over thirty thousand signed up instead. With this, both grand battles in the north and south had ended. In the north, it had been a grueling, grinding quagmire of a war that left another two hundred thousand corpses of the Liao Clan before the front lines. In the south, however, the fighting had been conducted with breathtaking elegance—like an autumn prelude, effortlessly dismantling hundreds of thousands of enemy troops amid a melodious yet chilling strain. Between the wounded and the captives, Zhang Sheng held nearly two hundred thousand Zhao soldiers in her custody. Afterward, she went back into seclusion. Though Zhao dispatched three successive waves of envoys, she refused to grant an audience to any of them. By now, a walled city had been raised in the Bishui domain, and Li Chengfeng was leading hundreds of thousands of laborers working day and night to build city defenses. Although there were one hundred thousand elite troops within the walls, they could not grant him the slightest sense of security. A messenger sprinted over and reported, "Your Highness, Prince Duan, the Third Prince, and Mountain Pacifying Military Commissioner Li Zhi have all arrived." "I'll be right over." Dismissing the messenger, Li Chengfeng composed himself and headed toward the main hall. Passing by the storehouses, he made a point to glance inside; the mountain of supplies within gave him at least some measure of reassurance. When Li Chengfeng arrived, the seats in the main hall were already filled. His seat was at the head, alongside Prince Duan. Once Li Chengfeng settled into his seat, Prince Duan spoke: "This prince invited everyone here to discuss the matter of our captured soldiers. Qingming currently holds two hundred thousand of our men and refuses to let them go. You have all dealt with them before—can you tell me what Qingming's intentions are?" Ten days had already passed since the battle, yet Qingming neither released the captives nor discussed terms, leaving everyone at a loss as to what they were planning. The Zhao army had marched on Hanyang Pass, only to be intercepted and wiped out by Qingming, with tens of thousands of border troops lost on top of that. The main force of one hundred thousand hurrying behind had stalled the moment news arrived from the front, not daring to seek a confrontation. At present, the main Zhao forces were confronting the Western Jin border troops in the east, leaving no further forces to spare for the time being. They had no choice but to pursue peace talks. Li Chengfeng could not help feeling deeply moved. Who could have anticipated that after one Wei Yuan departed, another Zhang Sheng would appear? Wei Yuan waged war in a bold and sweeping style, often deploying unconventional stratagems. Though his accomplishments were illustrious, thinking carefully about them always left one feeling there was still a chance to overcome him in battle. In fact, not only Li Chengfeng, but most anyone who had watched Wei Yuan fight shared this sentiment: that in battles so straightforward, they would not fare much worse than Wei Yuan were they in his place. All they lacked was Qingming's pool of peerless warriors, or perhaps a better Jade Mountain. Zhang Sheng, however, was an entirely different story. A single battle had struck fear into the hearts of all of Zhao. There was simply no counter to her style of warfare. Facing her one-on-one in a pitched battle meant certain defeat. Directing an army of one hundred thousand as seamlessly as though they were a single person was truly unprecedented. Even Prince Duan, who had always fancied himself a renowned general under heaven, now never uttered a word about matching wits with Zhang Sheng on the field. Only Wang Yixin, General of Zhenyuan, refused to concede, howling day after day that he wanted a duel to the death with Zhang Sheng. Yet for a veteran general bred on the battlefield to bypass tactical combat and demand a single duel—and for a Scenery Command cultivator to challenge a Dao Foundation cultivator at that—anyone with eyes knew exactly why. With two hundred thousand Zhao soldiers now detained in Zhang Sheng's hands, everyone was at their wits' end, fully aware that this could not continue. Yet Zhang Sheng refused even to negotiate, leaving them entirely at a loss. As he was woolgathering, Prince Duan turned his head and asked, "Chengfeng, you have dealt with Qingming quite a bit. What are your thoughts?" Li Chengfeng hastily replied, "Since Royal Uncle asks, this nephew shall naturally speak without holding anything back. In my view, Qingming's intentions are exceedingly insidious: they want to subvert our Great Zhao's elite soldiers and keep them in Qingming." Prince Duan laughed heartily and said, "The treatment of our Great Zhao's elites may not be the very best among the Nine Kingdoms, but it certainly ranks among the top three. What methods could Qingming possibly have to turn them?" Li Chengfeng replied respectfully, "From what this nephew has observed, Qingming isn't doing anything extraordinary. It's nothing more than slightly better medical conditions, slightly better pills, and food slightly better than ours. In addition, rewards and punishments are clear, their military merit rewards are said to be exceedingly generous, and there is never any embezzlement or false claiming..." Prince Duan's face had already darkened to the color of a charred pot. Cutting Li Chengfeng off, he said, "Enough! I hear you have traveled into Qingming several times. Would you be willing to go once more?" A civil official objected, "Absolutely not! The Fourth Prince is of noble blood—how can he venture into barbarian lands and put himself in harm's way?" Prince Duan snorted. "With Zhang Sheng's stature, how could she stoop to treacherous assassination? Chengfeng, feel free to go. Bring back our Great Zhao's soldiers—that is of utmost importance. If the conditions they propose are not too difficult, you may agree to them on the spot." Li Chengfeng replied, "I will pack my things and depart immediately." Prince Duan turned toward Li Zhi and said, "Does Lord Li have anything to add?" Li Zhi's expression remained steady as he answered, "My domain is ten thousand li away from Qingming, and our contacts of late have been few. I truly dare not speak rashly." Prince Duan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Then... would Lord Li be willing to accompany Chengfeng on this trip?" Li Zhi felt a prickle of alarm, yet his composure did not waver. "If the Fourth Prince can go, why should I not?" Prince Duan broke into a smile. "Truly worthy of being Duke Huien's son! Excellent. You two shall depart shortly." Two hours later, Li Zhi and Li Chengfeng rode side by side, leading several hundred guards into Qingming. The moment they crossed into Qingming, a Dao Foundation warrior flew over and said, "My master is already waiting. Please follow me." "Your master is...?" Li Chengfeng asked. "Naturally it is Domain Lord Wei Yuan. When the Domain Lord is absent, the master is Zhang Sheng." Following the Dao Foundation warrior, the two flew past Zhike Town and deep into Qingming, finally arriving at the temporary camp where the Zhao soldiers were being held. The Dao Foundation warrior escorted them into a quiet courtyard, seated them in the main hall, said, "Master will arrive shortly," and then took his leave. After sitting in silence for a while, Li Chengfeng suddenly grew somewhat fidgety. He turned to Li Zhi and asked, "I hear this Zhang Sheng is also Wei Yuan's teacher. This battle has shown her martial genius to be virtually unrivaled in the world. But some say her beauty is also peerless under heaven. Could this be true?" Li Zhi was lost in thought, his mind wandering. Only after a pause did he slowly nod.