Pei San offered a faint smile. He didn't answer his daughter, instead sighing twice, “Teng Qingshan. Unexpectedly, even I, Pei San, was fooled by him. Interesting, most interesting.”
Pei Xuelian couldn't fathom what her father was truly thinking; perhaps only a select few in the entire world could grasp the workings of Pei San's mind.
The fifth day of the ninth month, early morning, in the newly constructed West Courtyard of the Teng Family Estate.
“Mother of the Phoenix, you still must depart.” Teng Qingshan watched as the Mother of the Phoenix and Xiao Qing conversed. Though he desperately wished the Mother of the Phoenix would stay, he knew he couldn't force her.
Suddenly, the Mother of the Phoenix turned toward Teng Qingshan and let out a series of calls.
“Hmm?” Teng Qingshan looked toward Li Jun.
“Qingshan, the Mother of the Phoenix says she will leave her child here. However, she absolutely does not wish for anything to happen to Xiao Qing. If anything does happen, do not blame her for being ruthless.” Li Jun’s expression shifted slightly upon hearing this, but Teng Qingshan wasn't the least bit angered. He sensed the Mother of the Phoenix’s deep concern for Xiao Qing, and merely smiled, nodding to her.
The Mother of the Phoenix glanced at Teng Qingshan and said no more.
“Yooo~~” Spreading her wings, she gently tapped the immortal phoenix, ‘Xiao Qing,’ before her wings gave a slight beat. Bathed in flames, she rose directly into the air from nowhere, rapidly flying north, vanishing at the horizon in the blink of an eye.
“She’s gone,” Zhuge Yuanhong, who had been silent nearby, murmured softly.
“Yes, gone,” Teng Qingshan nodded.
While the Mother of the Phoenix was present, it felt like having a stabilizing anchor—there was absolutely no need for worry. After all, she was an entity capable of instantly killing a 'Peak Void Realm' master. In Teng Qingshan’s estimation… this Mother of the Phoenix must have had exceptional innate talent, coupled with reaching the zenith of demonic beasts, 'Peak Void Realm,' and perhaps even receiving guidance from a supreme expert.
She could be considered the foremost existence among Void Realm demonic beasts. Such a being would likely cause headaches even for human Void Integration experts like Pei San or Qin Shiqi.
With the Mother of the Phoenix present, no one dared to cause trouble.
But once the Mother of the Phoenix departed...
“From now on, Xiao Qing and I will have to hold the line together,” Teng Qingshan thought to himself. “The vast Nine Provinces are teeming with powerhouses. The Heavenly God Palace, the Manichaean Temple, and the Yu Huang Gate are all watching covetously. No matter what, if I want to carve out a territory in the Nine Provinces, I must first conquer all of Yangzhou.” Although Teng Qingshan was confident, he wasn't arrogant.
The Manichaean Temple, the foremost sect. The mighty influence of the Ying Clan, possessing Void Integration experts, and the Heavenly God Palace, needless to say. The Yu Huang Gate was the most ancient sect; while Teng Qingshan didn't know their ultimate trump cards, he knew they must possess formidable hidden strengths, otherwise, how could the Yu Huang Gate have endured for so long?
One must eat a meal bite by bite, and walk a path step by step.
To carve out a territory and spread the lineage of his Inner Strength Martial Arts—that was still just the very beginning.
Deep within Teng Qingshan’s heart… Yangzhou alone was clearly not enough to satisfy him. However, his current strength was insufficient; he couldn't yet directly occupy the Great Steppe, Qingzhou, and Youzhou like Pei San.
From the day the Guiyuan Sect army departed, on the third of the ninth month, the attention of every sect across the Nine Provinces was fixed upon them.
The might of the Guiyuan Sect’s Dragon Ridge Army was enough to cause hearts to tremble.
They swept through everything in their path!
The time spent capturing cities and taking fortifications was minimal; most of the time was spent traveling and consolidating control over the occupied commanderies.
The twelfth of the ninth month, Xuyang Commandery City fell.
The twenty-eighth of the ninth month, Fengshan Commandery City fell.
The eleventh of the tenth month, Tiannan Commandery City fell.
...
The twenty-eighth of the tenth month, the northernmost Chu Commandery City was conquered.
The northern half of Yangzhou, including Jiangning Commandery, a total of six major commanderies, was completely brought under the control of the Guiyuan Sect in less than two months. This crushing offensive made the entire expanse of the Nine Provinces gasp in astonishment. Instantly, everywhere in the Nine Provinces, discussions about the Guiyuan Sect and the legendary figure 'Teng Qingshan' were ubiquitous.
The Guiyuan Sect rose in a single day, seizing half of Yangzhou’s territory.
And Teng Qingshan, after four years of disappearance, returned under the alias 'Jing Yi,' accomplishing numerous great deeds. It was only when Teng Qingshan’s true identity was exposed that the world understood... No wonder the former 'Jing Yi' sought trouble with Qinghu Island. Qinghu Island had once hunted Teng Qingshan across the land; how could Teng Qingshan not seek revenge?
And so, the retribution had arrived!
As storytellers in the streets, alleys, and various taverns spun countless tales fabricating Teng Qingshan’s experiences during his four-year absence, spitting wildly in their excitement, many young men and youths across the Nine Provinces who harbored dreams of heroism now had a single goal: Teng Qingshan!
A figure whose achievements eclipsed all previous ages!
Having nearly single-handedly overthrown the super-sect 'Qinghu Island.' In this passionate land of Nine Provinces, heroes emerged in droves, yet it was clear that in this era, all heroes were overshadowed by the radiance of Teng Qingshan. There was no other reason... Teng Qingshan's brilliance was too dazzling. A Void Realm expert at twenty-one—anyone who understood the true meaning of the 'Void Realm' could only be awestruck.
Late at night, in the gloomy study of Lucheng.
The Black-Clothed Blind Man and Tie Pan sat facing each other.
“In just two months.” The Blind Sword Saint’s voice was hoarse, his body trembling faintly. “In just two months, my Qinghu Island has lost half its territory! Tie Pan, what happened? How did the Guiyuan Sect gain the other five commanderies so easily? Didn't I instruct you to launch counter-attacks against their garrisoned armies from the shadows?”
“Grandmaster.”
Tie Pan’s eyes were bloodshot. “In Chu Commandery, in northern Yangzhou, the territory originally belonged to the Iron Robe Gate. My Qinghu Island slaughtered the Iron Robe Gate, so many in Chu Commandery held grudges against us. It would have taken decades to consolidate firm control over Chu Commandery. But the time was too short... attempting to foster covert resistance there was simply impossible.”
“Xuyang and Tiannan Commanderies were also only recently brought under control.”
“As for Fengshan and the other two commanderies, they were under Qinghu Island’s long-term control. But that is the north of Yangzhou... our grip there was weaker. Furthermore, the Guiyuan Sect left thirty thousand troops in each of those two commanderies! Coupled with those they recruited and assimilated locally... it’s incredibly difficult for the hidden elements we planted to stage a counter-attack!” Tie Pan’s veins bulged on his forehead. “Moreover, that bastard Zhuge Yuanhong implemented a ‘collective punishment’ system. If even one soldier among those they assimilated rebels, then the entire hundred-man squad he belongs to must face collective punishment! Either become hard laborers for life, or be executed outright.”
A lifetime of hard labor was often considered more terrifying than immediate execution.
“Collective punishment?” The Blind Sword Saint sucked in a sharp breath. “This Zhuge Yuanhong is utterly ruthless!”
One man rebels, and an entire hundred-man squad is executed!
This forces every member of the squad to constantly supervise one another, daring not to slacken in the slightest. Standard collective punishment systems are usually despised by the populace under the ruler’s command; they are only implemented during times of extreme turmoil.
“But Grandmaster, rest assured,” Tie Pan’s voice was low. “Qinghu Island’s control over northern Yangzhou was weak. However, in southern Yangzhou, Qinghu Island’s control is ironclad. After more than a thousand years of management, many of Qinghu Island’s families have long since infiltrated regions like Wu’an Commandery and Nanxing Commandery.”
“Moreover, the Guiyuan Sect deployed a total of ninety thousand soldiers across five commanderies—thirty thousand in the two Fengshan-area commanderies, and ten thousand each in Tiannan and the other three. That means they have used ninety thousand troops just for garrisoning five commanderies!”
“How many troops does the single Jiangning Commandery even have?”
“Even if their Dragon Ridge Army is formidable enough to conquer a commandery city, what do they rely on to control the cities?” Tie Pan’s eyes flashed coldly. “In the southern seven commanderies, for every one person they send, we can swallow up one entire commandery! Unless he commands a million troops, the meager forces in Jiangning Commandery won't even be enough to hold off the seven southern commanderies combined.”
**
Having half their territory forcibly taken, Qinghu Island was naturally enraged and awaited the decisive battle with the Guiyuan Sect in the southern seven commanderies.
...
The first day of the eleventh month.
Snow fell like goose feathers, draping the entire Great Yan Mountain in a blanket of silver.
“Qingshan.”
Teng Qingshan, who was slowly executing a series of spear forms, abruptly stopped and turned when he heard the call. Li Jun, dressed in a snow-white leather coat, was walking toward him with a smile. Li Jun’s abdomen was now noticeably rounded.
“What did you buy on your trip to Yicheng?” Teng Qingshan set down his spear.
“Just some food and necessities,” Li Jun ran over and clasped Teng Qingshan’s hand. “Qingshan, when I was in Yicheng today, I heard many people in the teahouses discussing you. And many people from other commanderies are bringing their children to send to our Guiyuan Sect in Jiangning, wanting to join us.”
“Discussing me, sending their children to the Guiyuan Sect?” Teng Qingshan was momentarily surprised.
“The people of Yicheng are incredibly proud; they all say Qingshan is from Yicheng, praising you as unmatched under heaven,” Li Jun couldn’t help but giggle happily. Hearing others praise her husband naturally made her delighted.
Teng Qingshan couldn't help but smile too.
Historically, Yicheng had never produced any truly monumental figures. The existence of Teng Qingshan was clearly a source of immense pride for the people of Yicheng. Even thousands of years later, the people of Yicheng could still say... 'Teng Qingshan' was one of ours.
“Qingshan,” a figure approached from the distance—it was Zhuge Yuanhong.
“Xiao Jun, go inside and rest first,” Teng Qingshan instructed. Li Jun nodded obediently and went indoors.
Teng Qingshan walked toward his master. “Master.”
“Yes, Qingshan. The Dragon Ridge Army is currently rushing back from Chu Commandery at the fastest possible speed; they should arrive tomorrow afternoon,” Zhuge Yuanhong reported. “The hundred thousand troops I dispatched earlier have almost all been assigned across the five commanderies, busy integrating the forces of those five, purging rebels within, and firmly grasping control over them.”
Teng Qingshan nodded as he listened.
“Master, when do we attack the southern seven commanderies?” Teng Qingshan inquired.
In his heart, Teng Qingshan held no great regard for Qinghu Island.
The world one sees is determined by the height one stands upon.
In the past, Teng Qingshan was solely focused on dealing with Qinghu Island, viewing them as a colossal entity... But after experiencing several Void Realm battles, Qinghu Island now appeared to him as little more than a paper tiger. The truly threatening forces were the deeply concealed 'Manichaean Temple,' the perpetually mysterious 'Yu Huang Gate,' and the conventional 'Ying Clan,' as well as the most brazen 'Heavenly God Palace.'
His future opponents lay among these. Qinghu Island presented little challenge.
“Attack the southern seven commanderies?” Zhuge Yuanhong, however, shook his head.