"Dammit, I'll kill him for you!"
Huang Sihai roared, his knuckles popping with a loud crack. The prison guards nearby felt a chill run down their spines. To think that in Huang Sihai's eyes, the Junior Minister of Dahua Temple was just a chicken ready to be slaughtered at any moment!
"I've killed quite a few people these past couple of days—all martial artists from Qingsong Kingdom. That's why they threw me in here, to figure out how to deal with it," Fang Chen said with a smile. "I figured since we haven't seen each other in five years, I might as well come in and check on you."
He killed quite a few Qingsong martial artists?!
The inmates in the cell block exchanged uneasy, doubtful glances. Didn't rumors say that Fang Chen's cultivation had been crippled, and that even his eyes had been blinded in the Battle of the Three Boundary Mountains?
"Heir, your cultivation..."
Huang Sihai suddenly calmed down, staring at Fang Chen up and down repeatedly.
"It's recovered."
Fang Chen smiled and nodded.
"Hahaha!"
Huang Sihai was stunned for a moment, then threw his head back and roared with laughter, his face brimming with wild ecstasy. He knew he wouldn't be staying in this prison much longer!
"Military God Fang's cultivation has recovered?"
"No wonder, no wonder! I was wondering why those people from Dahua Temple looked so wrong these past two days!"
"The tides are turning..."
A wave of murmurs rippled through the cell block.
"I don't plan to get involved in the imperial court anymore. If you still want to follow me after you get out of here, I don't have a general's position for you anymore."
Fang Chen smiled.
"Heir, what's so great about some damn general's position? If you go out selling sesame seed cakes in the future, I'll knead the dough for you!"
Huang Sihai laughed loudly.
The onlookers stared at Huang Sihai, their expressions shifting constantly.
Such a powerhouse, comparable to a Qi Control expert, who wouldn't even give the chief prison warden a polite look, was now willing and eager to knead dough for Fang Chen.
They tried to imagine that scene, and their expressions grew even more peculiar.
"General Huang, these past few years I've provided you with good food and drink, never gave you a hard time, and never humiliated you. The least you can do is spare me a little face."
The prison warden who had left earlier had returned. He looked at Huang Sihai with a complex expression.
"Old He, it's not that I won't give you face. But you locked up my heir—you should have at least given me a heads-up, shouldn't you? If the heir hadn't explained it to me, you'd be the very first person whose skull I crushed when I walked out of here."
Huang Sihai looked at the warden and said earnestly.
The warden's expression flickered repeatedly. He never imagined that even after five years, Huang Sihai would still be fiercely loyal to Fang Chen.
"Since your heir has explained it to you, can you go back to your cell now?"
the warden said in a low voice.
"Give me what I asked for first, and then arrange a single cell for him. Then he'll go back."
Fang Chen smiled.
"Did you hear what my heir said?"
Huang Sihai looked at the warden.
The warden fell silent. After a few moments, he nodded slightly and looked at Fang Chen: "Your man is outside Dahua Temple?"
Fang Chen smiled and nodded.
"Wait a moment."
The warden turned and walked away.
Outside Dahua Temple, Xu Ge stood quietly carrying a bundle. He looked like he was daydreaming, but he was actually studying the layout of the entire Dahua Temple.
"If you gave me ten Qi-Bursting Martial Artists and fifty Qi Condensation Martial Artists, I reckon I could tear Dahua Temple apart front and back, and fight my way to the cell block in under half an hour."
"Wind-Cloud Sword Xu Ge!?"
An exclamation interrupted Xu Ge's musings.
The warden's face was plastered with disbelief. He never expected that Xu Ge, the Wind-Cloud Sword who had risen to fame in the Capital over the past few years, was also one of Fang Chen's men!
And what the fellow had just been muttering to himself was truly terrifying!
"This guy is thinking about attacking Dahua Temple?! Could this... could this be Military God Fang's intention?"
At this thought, the warden felt his scalp go numb and his legs turn to jelly.
"Are you from Dahua Temple? The heir sent you?"
Xu Ge looked at the other man and frowned.
What's wrong with this guy? Why is he looking at me like he's seen a ghost? Are the people at Dahua Temple all this cowardly?
"...Yes."
The warden nodded slightly.
"Take it and give it to the heir."
Xu Ge handed the bundle to the warden.
"By doing this, I've already broken the rules, so I need to inspect this bundle."
the warden said.
"Look all you want."
Xu Ge nodded.
The warden opened it and took a look, only to find it actually contained wolf-hair brushes, cinnabar, and yellow talisman paper. He was momentarily baffled—what did Fang Chen want with these things inside the prison?
"Go hand the stuff over to my heir and don't try any funny business. If I find out you didn't give it to him, you'll have to watch your step every single day from now on."
Xu Ge said indifferently.
"You know I'm a Dahua Temple warden, yet you still dare to threaten me like this?"
The warden was somewhat annoyed.
"So what if you're a Dahua Temple warden? I'm a barefooted man, why should I fear someone wearing shoes?"
Xu Ge glared at him.
The warden said nothing more, turned around, and left.
Before long, he returned to the cell block and handed the items to Fang Chen.
"Old Huang, go back to your own side and stay put."
Fang Chen smiled.
"Heir, let me take you to your single cell first."
Huang Sihai grinned broadly.
Without another word, the warden immediately arranged a single cell for Fang Chen, after which Huang Sihai obediently returned to his own cell as requested.
"Military God Fang, attacking Dahua Temple is not a wise move. I hope you will reconsider."
The warden dropped those words with a complex expression and hurried away.
Attacking Dahua Temple?
Fang Chen was momentarily stunned, then dismissed the warden's nonsensical remark. He set out his tools, preparing to make a few more Purple Lightning Talismans.
And by the way, he would see if he could condense his second immortal vein today.
Advancing his cultivation would also boost the power of the talismans he crafted.
Chapter 22: Advancement, 2nd Layer of Qi Refining!
In the supreme tribunal of Dahua Temple, a group of high-ranking officials led by Junior Minister Li Huafeng gathered, passing around various documents.
The records in these documents detailed every single Qingsong martial artist who had died.
"Serves them right."
An old man suddenly sneered, a look of gratification in his eyes.
The others wore odd expressions. Li Huafeng looked at the old man and said coldly, "Serves them right? Do you realize how much trouble Fang Chen's little stunt will bring to our Daxia?
If Qingsong Kingdom decides to dispatch troops to attack us over this, how long do you think Daxia can hold out?"
"Lord Junior Minister,"
the old man chuckled, "For the past five years, cases involving Qingsong martial artists piling up in our Dahua Temple have numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands. The crimes they committed are countless. Now that Military God Fang has sorted them out for us, it can be considered a relief of Dahua Temple's burden. Isn't that a good thing?"
"As for Qingsong... that's not something we need to worry about. Military God Fang's actions must have a purpose. This old man has heard that his cultivation has recovered, which means our Daxia is no longer a pushover."
Many nodded secretly, feeling that made sense.
Li Huafeng's expression turned solemn: "Your perspective is understandable, but the reality is that even at his peak, Fang Chen was defeated at the Three Boundary Mountains. Daxia simply cannot compare to Qingsong. I called you here today to discuss how to deal with Fang Chen.
My recommendation is to sentence him to the Celestial Prison and dispatch him to Qingsong before long for them to handle as they see fit. That way, we can also appease the resentment in their hearts."
The crowd was slightly startled. Send Fang Chen to Qingsong? How could they do that?
Just then, someone hurried in and whispered, "Lords, a crowd has gathered outside Dahua Temple."
"Are they here demanding the release of Fang Chen?"
The old man asked hastily.
"No..."
The newcomer wore a strange expression and whispered, "They are from Guhe, Longdu, and Yizhou. They claim Fang Chen slaughtered Qingsong martial artists and must be severely punished, otherwise outsiders like them will have no sense of safety in the Daxia Capital."
Guhe, Longdu, and Yizhou were also ninth-rank empires, but they had no military conflicts with Daxia and focused primarily on commerce. Countless citizens from these three empires resided year-round in the Daxia Capital.
"Nonsense, what does this have to do with them?"
The old man sneered.
"How does it not have to do with them?"
Li Huafeng glanced at the old man. "Director Zhao, don't forget the relations between Guhe, Longdu, Yizhou, and Qingsong. They carry out massive trade transactions with Qingsong every year, trading what they have for what they lack.
Fang Chen's actions have likely already angered them. If they start pressuring Daxia, how shall we conduct ourselves? Having Qingsong as an enemy is enough for Daxia; if we make enemies of these three states as well, I fear our national fortune will perish!"
The crowd's expressions grew increasingly solemn.
Indeed.
Li Huafeng's words were not wrong. Given Daxia's current predicament, nobody wanted to see those three states meddling in this affair. If they stepped in, then... without a satisfactory explanation, they would certainly not let the matter rest.
"Oh, the Temple Master has arrived."
"Temple Master."
Everyone stood up in succession. A middle-aged man in a python-embroidered robe slowly walked in, nodded slightly to the crowd, and took the main seat, speaking indifferently:
"Have you discussed this for half a day, and did you come up with a plan?"
"Temple Master, in my view, Fang Chen must be handed over to Qingsong."
Li Huafeng cupped his fists.
"Sigh, this matter is a headache."
The Temple Master rubbed his temples slightly and sighed. "Fang Chen holds an extraordinary status in Daxia. If his cultivation hadn't recovered, we could use him to buy several more years of unfallen national fortune for Daxia.
But now that his cultivation has recovered, have you ever considered that no matter what punishment we mete out to him, one point is crucial—he has to be willing to accept it."
The Temple Master looked at the crowd.
The crowd was slightly stunned, their expressions gradually turning peculiar. They hadn't thought of this angle.
Li Huafeng hesitated, saying, "Could it be... he would dare openly defy an order?"
"Do you think he dares or not?"
The Temple Master sneered. "Don't look at me as the Temple Master of Dahua Temple and a prince of the realm. If I were to curse him to his face a few times, do you think he'd slap my mouth or not?"
Silence descended upon the room.
"There you have it. Stop debating. Let's keep Dahua Temple out of this; let Fang Chen handle it himself."
The Temple Master stood up and said, "Anyway, the man has been dragged back here, and we've done our part. What happens next has nothing to do with us."
With that, he swaggered out of the room.
Seeing this, the others stood up and left one by one.
"Lord Junior Minister, I think you should stay out of this matter too, lest you drag trouble onto yourself."
Director Zhao smiled at Li Huafeng and strolled out lazily.
Li Huafeng's expression grew increasingly gloomy.
Outside, Yuan Zhuang hurried over upon seeing Director Zhao: "Sir, what did the higher-ups say?"
"You, you brat, bringing Military God Fang into Dahua Temple this time is enough for you to brag about for the rest of your life."
Director Zhao chuckled, "As for the rest, it's none of our business. Go call the other judicial investigators; I'm in a good mood today, I'll treat you all to some music by the Daxia River."
Yuan Zhuang was somewhat shocked.
Ever since Daxia's defeat five years ago, Director Zhao had never set foot in those pleasure quarters again. What sparked his interest today?
......
......
Inside the prison block, claps of thunder rang out from time to time. The inmates looked shocked, pressing against their cell doors trying to see what was happening.
Before long, however, they learned from the idle chatter of the prison guards that Fang Chen's cultivation had been restored. He had even mastered some ferocious martial art that produced thunderous illusions when deployed, reducing enemies directly to charcoal!
Xiao Tianci, the master of the Qingsong First-Class Hall, had died by this very move!
Upon learning this, their initial panic and fear gradually gave way to habit. Instead, those bursts of thunder brought them a strange sense of security.
"The stronger Military God Fang is, the stronger Daxia becomes! Heavens haven't abandoned us after all!"
"There will inevitably be a war between Daxia and Qingsong, and this battle will directly determine the national fortune of both countries. It will be even more tragic than the Battle of the Three Boundary Mountains. The stronger Military God Fang's cultivation is, the more stable Daxia's national fortune becomes!"
"Guards! Guards! When are you going to keep Military God Fang locked up? Hurry up and release him so he can suppress Qingsong for Daxia!"
Hearing this, the prison guards wore wry smiles. They wanted to, of course, but where would they find such authority?
In the single cell, Fang Chen quietly crafted Purple Lightning Talismans. Every stroke of his brush was vigorous and forceful. He felt his speed in crafting Purple Lightning Talismans steadily increasing.
The spiritual power within his body was growing stronger and denser, more than twice as potent as when he had condensed his immortal vein the other day!
Every time his spiritual power was exhausted, the upper limit of his recovery capacity increased.
"So cultivating immortality isn't that difficult after all..."
Fang Chen laid down his wolf-hair brush, quietly feeling the surging spiritual power within him, a faint smile on his lips. The spiritual power was sufficient; it was time to condense his second immortal vein.
With a thought, countless streams of spiritual power surged and rolled between heaven and earth, rushing into Fang Chen's body. Before long, a second crystal-clear immortal vein emerged.
Advancement, 2nd Layer of Qi Refining!
Chapter 23: Framing
The next day, Fang Chen gently laid down his brush.
He had discovered a problem.
The wolf-hair brush, cinnabar, and yellow talisman paper in his hands were all mundane items, incapable of containing more spiritual power. This meant that even though his cultivation had improved, the destructive power of the talismans he crafted remained unchanged.
"The power of a Purple Lightning Talisman should make cultivators at the 12th Layer of Qi Refining deeply wary, yet the talismans I craft fall far short of that momentum. It seems the problem lies in the instruments."
Fang Chen pondered internally.
Daxia possessed no traces of cultivators, but that didn't mean Daxia lacked spiritual materials. He needed better wolf-hair brushes, cinnabar, and yellow talisman paper.
"Perhaps I need to arrange for someone to gather these materials."
At this thought, Fang Chen began considering candidates. Among Daxia's covert guards, there were indeed quite a few who met these requirements.
They controlled several commercial firms; the only problem was that lacking spiritual power, they were unable to distinguish spiritual items.
Suddenly, a thought arose.
Fang Chen remembered bizarre events reported by his covert guards years ago. Although those occurrences were strange, they had nothing to do with the war effort, so Fang Chen hadn't paid them much heed.
Upon careful reflection now, those incidents might have involved the cultivation world.
"I'll have to take a trip there when I have some spare time."
Fang Chen thought to himself.
"Military God Fang."
Outside the door, the warden looked at Fang Chen with a complex expression.
"What did you all discuss and decide?"
Fang Chen smiled.
He had given them a day and a night; no matter how they dragged their feet, they should have reached a conclusion by now.
"The Temple Master has received news from the palace. He asks Military God Fang to enter the palace for an audience with the Emperor."
With that, the warden instructed a guard to unlock the cell door.
"Heir, you're coming back to pick me up later, right?"
Huang Sihai's voice rang out immediately.
"You've already stayed five years; you aren't in a rush for a day or two. Stay put and behave yourself."
Fang Chen smiled.
With that, led by the warden, Fang Chen stepped out of the prison block. Outside, Eunuch You was waiting anxiously, accompanied by You Longchang.
You Longchang looked dejected at the moment. Catching sight of Fang Chen, he opened his mouth as if wanting to say something, but stopped.
"Military God Fang, this humble servant received orders to fetch you. Please accompany this servant."
Eunuch You did not dare to be negligent and spoke politely.
"Sorry to trouble you."
Fang Chen smiled.
The warden escorted them all the way out of Dahua Temple. Watching them recede into the distance, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Every day Fang Chen remained in the prison block had added another layer of crushing pressure to his shoulders.
"Military God Fang, do you think His Majesty will punish us?"
You Longchang trotted alongside Fang Chen, lowering his voice.
Eunuch You seemed to hear him, but pretended not to notice. Bringing You Longchang along this time was also at the Emperor's behest.
After all, when Fang Chen slaughtered the Qingsong martial artists, You Longchang had acted as an accomplice to some extent.
"We killed Qingsong martial artists, why would His Majesty punish us? You have nothing to worry about."
Fang Chen said indifferently.
You Longchang opened his mouth, wanting to retort that Fang Chen had been locked up in Dahua Temple for a full day and a night, so where did he get the confidence to say that? But he had no other choice now—who told him to let his hot blood take over that day, following Fang Chen and killing a bunch of Qingsong martial artists?
Before long, the group arrived outside the palace gates. You Longchang suddenly let out a soft exclamation: "Aren't those Marquis Li and the others?"
A crowd was kneeling before the palace gates—men, women, old, and young. Among them was an elderly woman with white hair and a trembling frame, kneeling right alongside them.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd spotted Fang Chen and immediately roared out: "The murderer Fang Chen is here!"
A murderer?
You Longchang immediately thought of Li Huang. After that day, Li Huang had indeed not been seen again. Could it be...
You Longchang's expression flickered wildly as he stared at Fang Chen in disbelief. This guy didn't actually kill Li Huang too, did he?
Li Huang's paternal aunt was one of the current Emperor's most favored concubines!
"Fang Chen! What deep hatred and grievance did my Li family have with you, that you would commit such a vicious act against my son and cut off the Li family's bloodline!"
Marquis Li abruptly stood up, fixing a murderous stare on Fang Chen, his eyes filled with monstrous venom.
"My son! Is he Fang Chen?"
The white-haired old woman stood up shakily, pointing a trembling finger at Fang Chen.
Marquis Li nodded slightly, his gaze still burning with endless hatred.
"You—why did you kill my grandson, why?! This old woman is going to beat you to death today, beat you to death!"
Brandishing a walking cane, the old woman rushed toward Fang Chen, raising the cane to strike him down.
Not only did Marquis Li and the others make no move to stop her, but a look of vindictive satisfaction flashed across their eyes.
Seeing this scene, Eunuch You felt at a loss. On one side was Marquis Li's mother, and on the other was Fang Chen. He had no idea how to act so as not to offend either party.
While he was hesitating, the cane was already about to strike the top of Fang Chen's head.
Fang Chen sighed softly, reached out, and gripped the cane, then said in a low voice:
"Old madam, Li Huang, alongside the Qingsong martial artists, treated Daxia commoners like pigs and dogs, using them as target practice. Even if I hadn't struck, His Majesty would have lopped off his head, and it might have implicated your entire Li family as well."
"You killed my grandson and you still want to slander him! My grandson would never do such a thing. This old woman is going to beat you to death!"
Heedless of Fang Chen's explanation, the old woman stubbornly tried to yank her cane back from Fang Chen's grip to resume hitting him.
At that moment, several figures on the palace watchtower were quietly observing the scene.
"Crown Prince, how do you think Fang Chen will resolve this matter? Slaughtering Qingsong martial artists was one thing, but killing Li Huang as well... I reckon Marquis Li and Noble Consort Fang won't let this rest."
Ye Qinghe said.
The Crown Prince looked indifferently at Fang Chen, then glanced at the old woman, and suddenly smiled:
"Resolve it?"