Yamafu Military Affairs

Chapter 678 Crane Yi
"I respectfully obey the Heavenly Laws and command the Thunder Soldiers. If any evil spirits or demons roam the lower realms, dwelling in caves and forests, spying on families and harming lives, wherever my divine power reaches, they will be swept away, bringing blessings to the living and purging demons!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Qin Wenxiu uttered a small sliver of light from her tongue, and a sharp, gleaming blade of light, no more than an inch long, burst forth from beneath her tongue, piercing through the misty fog and shooting into the moon's reflection in the river.

The next instant, the clamor of string and wind instruments and the chirping of birds reappeared, and the tumultuous mirage dissipated layer by layer. Qin Wen stared at the slightly dim moon in the river, at the bottom of which a huge black shadow, not much smaller than a painted boat, was slowly rising. The imperial nectar that the old man in the crane cloak had condensed earlier, except for a small portion given to the young man in brocade, was mostly suspended in the center of the moon's shadow, seemingly a tribute reserved specifically for this giant shadow.

goo~
The water monster, having taken a direct hit from the Demon-Slaying Sword, cried out in pain, creating a commotion and raising waves that rocked the pleasure boat violently. The old man in the crane cloak opened his eyes and shouted loudly, "Water Lord, please forgive me! This outsider Taoist priest is ignorant of the rules and acted rashly, disturbing you. Please restrain your divine power!"

At the same time, the black dragon jade talisman hanging at his waist emitted a faint glow, piercing through the bright moon in the water and illuminating the black giant shadow.

"It turned out to be a large clam. No wonder it could exhale mirages."

By the dim light, Qin Wen could see the giant shadow in its entirety. It was a huge clam shell, resembling a house. The clam shell was half-open, and the faint iridescent light it emitted illuminated a gap. Upon closer inspection, it was a sword mark, two zhang long and three chi wide, large enough for a person to pass through.

Qin Wen didn't think that the sword light he had just spat out could have such power. His Demon-Slaying Talisman Sword was a Taoist technique simulated using the Returning to True Qi, based on the Mysterious Maiden's aura on the [Eight Treasures Longevity Purple Cloud Robe]. Its power was limited and was only a slight warning to this Seven Palaces Demon, far from causing such serious injuries.

Moreover, judging from the calluses growing around the sword wound, it must be an old wound from years ago that has not healed for a long time. This allowed the Demon-Slaying Sword to pass through the gap and pierce the soft flesh protected by the hard shell, causing it to go berserk in pain and stir up waves.

Wow~
The surging waves crashed onto both sides of the embankment, causing countless mortals to kneel and kowtow, begging the Lord of the Huai River to calm his anger. For a time, there was loud crying and shouting, creating a great disturbance.

"quiet!"

Just then, several officials dressed in embroidered robes with blue dragon patterns, wearing fast boots with bull-like feet, and carrying various weapons emerged from various parts of the old and tribute halls. They leaped lightly to the top of the restaurant, and behind them, a green canopy appeared, which in the blink of an eye intertwined and stretched across the sky and earth, suppressing the raging waves of the Qinhuai River.

Perhaps sensing the commotion, the Lord of Huai River, who had been in pain, calmed down. After opening and closing the giant shell twice towards the painted boat, it swallowed the entire mass of imperial liquid and sank back into the Huai River, disappearing without a trace.

"Master, was that toad demon looking at me just now?"

Seeing the last movement of the Lord of Huai River, the young man in brocade robes who had woken up at some point touched his nose, seemingly a little nervous.

"Don't worry, it probably just sensed something and came up to check. It probably didn't notice anything else."

The old man in the crane cloak narrowed his eyes, placed his large, calloused hand on the boy's shoulder, and asserted.

Not far behind the two, Qin Wen glanced at the fallen screen and the gradually closing gray-black rain clouds in the sky, and looked thoughtfully at the ripples gradually disappearing in the middle of the river.

He had just clearly felt a human-like gaze from that giant clam spirit. Although the gaze was directed at the painted boat, it did not fall on the young man in brocade robes, but on himself, who was further behind!

'Did it sense the special nature of this host?' Qin Wen's heart skipped a beat. His gaze fell on the young man in brocade robes. Recalling what the old man in the crane cloak had said earlier, he guessed that the young man, like himself, must have some kind of background. So he decided to hold back for the time being and observe the situation.

As expected, after the old man in the crane cloak calmed the boy down and waited for the waves to subside, he sat down next to Qin Wen and said with a kind smile, "Young lady, that sword technique you just used seems to be a secret technique passed down by the Mysterious Maiden. Could you also be a disciple of the Mysterious Female Venerable?"

Seeing that the old man had revealed his identity, Qin Wen did not hesitate and immediately bowed, saying, "I am Miao Xuan from Jing Le Palace of Wudang. Greetings, Master."

"So you are a true cultivator from Wudang. I am Wu Yu, and I am honored to be the Crane-Clad Envoy of the Ascending Truth Pagoda. I pay my respects to Master Miaoxuan."

After some pleasantries, Wu Daoren probed Qin Wen's purpose: "With such cultivation, Master Miaoxuan is probably not far from becoming an immortal. Why don't you stay in the mountains and manage the Taoist temple? Why have you come to the Imperial Palace in Jinling? Is there something important that you have to do?"

"You may not know this, but my late master went down the mountain to slay a demon a few days ago. He accidentally encountered a great evil spirit, but unfortunately, even with all his strength, he could not subdue it. He was also too badly injured to suppress the backlash from the demonic influence. After passing on all his Taoist cultivation to me, he passed away."

Qin Wen was somewhat somber as he slowly said, "I came to Jinling today because I heard my master mention that the Boundless Venerable has a secret method to suppress demonic influence. For the sake of my fellow disciples in the Pure Joy Palace, I want to try and see if I can obtain it to avert future calamities."

"I never imagined that someone as accomplished as Bixia Jun would be harmed by evil spirits. Mr. Miaoxuan, please accept my condolences."

After listening to Qin Wen's account, Wu Daoren saw the profound Taoist magic of the Mysterious Woman on his body and immediately believed him to be mostly convinced. He then asked, "Jing Le Palace is a branch of the Mysterious Woman lineage. Although it is far away in Xunyang, it has always had a close relationship with Su Xuan Temple in Southern Zhili. I wonder if you have paid a visit to it?"

"When I arrived in Jinling today, it was already late. I will stay at an inn outside the city and plan to take a bath and change clothes tomorrow before visiting my Uncle Master Zixu."

On his way to Jinling, Qin Wen had already prepared his answers to the questions posed by the Wuliang Taoist priests and created a near-perfect false identity.

Everything he said to Wu Daoren was true. Bixia Zhenren of Jingyue Palace on Wudang Mountain did indeed go down the mountain to exorcise a demon. However, the demon was not an evil spirit, but a snake demon that Qin Wu had transformed into. After a battle, Qin Huai figured out Bixia Zhenren's Taoist methods and then usurped the position, having Qin Wen steal the identity of Bixia Zhenren's top disciple and the senior sister of Jingyue Palace. Using the Xuan Nu aura contained in the [Eight Treasures Longevity Purple Cloud Robe], he played a trick of substituting a cat for the prince.

At the same time, through this test, Qin Huai also realized that the so-called Mysterious Female Venerable Might was actually a false god who used the name of "Mysterious Woman".

With all these factors combined, Qin Huai dared to take the enormous risk of sending Qin Wen into Jinling, a place teeming with danger, hoping to uncover some of the deeper secrets of the fruit.

Qin Wen now possesses the foundation of immeasurable flesh and blood, as well as the ever-changing Returning True Qi that can be used to simulate the secret techniques of the Mysterious Maiden. In addition, with the [Eight Treasures Longevity Purple Cloud Robe], the only magic robe personally taught by the Mysterious Maiden, he can be said to resemble the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden even more than the Mysterious Female Venerable. Unless the Boundless Venerable Sichen investigates, he is confident that it will be difficult for him to be exposed.

It's true that tall trees catch the wind, but in crucial moments, taking risky measures can yield results far beyond expectations.

(End of this chapter)