Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 386: 198. Screaming Gu Tianyun_2

At this point, he paused for a moment before asking softly, "Does that mean the other three people won't help?"

Bailu Academy and Leiyin Temple have motives to help Xuzhou, while Haoran Holy Sect behind Lian Ningxue, Great Yu Holy Dynasty behind Zhang Yuning, and Ziqing Holy Sect behind Moxuzi seem to have no such motivations, hence his question.

Ren Tianxing sneered and said, "That will depend on how things play out. Those three troublemakers didn't do anything good in Tongling. Zhang Yuning calls himself a sixth-grade Demon-Exterminating Master of the Monster Hunting Bureau, yet he didn't kill a single one of the many demons in Tongling; Haoran Holy Sect prides itself on wielding Haoran's Gang Qi, claiming to slash demons and banish evil as its own duty, yet Lian Ningxue simply watched from the sidelines in Tongling; as for Moxuzi, leading a group of disciples in the Dan Embracing Phase, it's clear they came out to roam and enjoy themselves."

"I dare not hope for help, I only wish they wouldn't cause trouble for the Holy Sect!"

Although Ren Tianxing possesses merely the cultivation of a heavenly Great Grandmaster, his words conveyed no ounce of respect for someone like Moxuzi, who has reached Full Completion of Yuandan, let alone the Holy Lands they each represent, about which he held deep objections.

"The news of Hexi's defeat only reached us at dawn by our scouts. The Prefectural City should not know by now. I wonder if these five are aware of the news?"

"Why not go up and see for ourselves? Right, the sixteen thousand strong army in the Prefectural City, you four must keep a close watch these few days. The Demon Sect's next move is still unclear, and we might have to head into battle at any moment. The troops under your command have been out of practice for too long; intensify their training!"

"What next move..."

Yue Changhai, upon hearing this remark, looked stunned and asked subconsciously before suddenly lifting his head, his face revealing a look of horror, "Are you saying the Demon Sect's army dares to cross the river and attack our Hedong Six Prefectures? How could that be possible?"

As the Commandant of Guangling Prefecture, Yue Changhai was essentially in charge of the entire defense of the prefecture. To be honest, he had expected Hexi's three prefectures' defeat within his predictions.

The only surprise had been how swiftly they were lost.

Xuzhou and Yongzhou were already divided by the Tongtian River, with Guangling Prefecture originally encompassing only six prefectures: Yuyang, Jinxing, Jiuchi, Zhaokang, Lingdong, and Longguan. Over four hundred years ago, because Lord Fengtian forcefully crossed the river to intervene in Yongzhou, they snatched Longxiang, Yangping, and Wanyang, thereby Guangling Prefecture came to govern nine prefectural cities.

The Tongtian River stretches over twenty li from east to west, and even high-level Gang Qi Realm experts couldn't cross it in one breath, let alone Warriors of the Tenth Level of Body Opening, and certainly not vast armies of hundreds of thousands. Even crossing by boat would take at least a day, making it a natural barrier that separates the Yong and Xu states.

With such a natural barrier, whether it was Yongzhou or Xuzhou, a crossing attempt by either side was bound to result in a loss, as the enemy would not foolishly wait for an army to cross over. Even if the crossing was successful, once on the enemy's turf, the locals had numerous ways to deal with the invaders.

Hence, with Xuzhou stirring up trouble and the Demon Sect tearing up the Jin Capital treaty, at most they'd just retake those three prefectures and not make any further moves.

For the Rakshasa Demon Religion to cross the river and attack Hedong Six Prefectures was so far-fetched a notion that not only Yue Changhai but probably nobody in the entire six prefectures would believe it.

"With the disturbance in Tongling, figures from the six major Holy Lands emerged one after another. Southern Medicine Master Buddha, Wuxin the Taoist Master, Demon Sect protector Huangfu Xing, Heaven-sealing Sword Honorific—four powerful beings appeared, proof enough that Ji Yanzhi's death involves much more than we imagine. Sword Leader Gu personally defending the three Hexi prefectures and losing them in just a month indicates the Demon Sect is truly making a move this time.

Under normal circumstances, the Demon Sect certainly wouldn't dare to cross the river and attack, but at this moment, each major Holy Land harbors its own schemes, making it hard to predict what might happen. It's always better to be prepared early than be sorry!"

This speech eased Yue Changhai's grave demeanor slightly. Although he thought Ren Tianxing might be overly anxious, as a subordinate, he still nodded in response, "Rest assured, sir, in addition to the sixteen thousand strong army in the Prefectural City, each of the other six prefectures has thirty thousand troops. Should the Demon Sect truly dare to cross the river and invade, we will ensure they regret it deeply!"

Ren Tianxing nodded. This was Guangling Prefecture's advantage. Being closest to Yongzhou, it naturally had a standing army far exceeding that of other prefectures, totaling over three hundred thousand. Based on the latest intelligence he received last night, the Demon Sect's current offensive against the three Hexi prefectures involved only about a hundred and seventy thousand troops, not accounting for loses in those battles. Given the current army strength of Guangling Prefecture, they had more than enough to defend themselves.

"I remember that Cheng Yuntai is the Sword Envoy of Longguan Prefecture. After today's matter is concluded, send a message to him to keep a constant watch over the Tongtian River day and night. The moment any abnormal movement of the Demon Sect's large army is detected, report immediately to the Prefectural City. If there's any negligence, he no longer needs to serve as the Copper Command Sword Envoy!"

"I shall obey,"

The one closest to the Tongtian River in Hedong Six Prefectures is Longguan Prefecture, merely less than twenty li away. Naturally, they would be the quickest to notice any activity on the Tongtian River. Upon Ren Tianxing's orders, Yue Changhai understood immediately and responded respectfully.

Though the two spoke in hushed tones, they didn't stop walking and quickly reached the door of a relatively large banquet hall at the top floor. People inside didn't bother to mask their voices with any special means, and a variety of discussions could be heard before even entering.

"They didn't attack Wanyang County but lured the other two prefectures into sending reinforcements, first annihilating their army before striking the Prefectural City. Such battle strategy is truly awe-inspiring. Zhan Taiqing, that enchantress from the Demon Path, could actually conceive such ingenious schemes!"