Chapter 60: General Qin and the Seventh Young Master
Qin Mu seemed to have anticipated this. With one hand, he grabbed the Gap Shrine Zen Staff, using his strength to swing the demon ape along with the staff, slamming it heavily onto the ground. With his other hand, his five fingers flicked out in rapid succession, producing six consecutive explosive sounds, shattering the curved blades formed by Fox Ling'er's primordial energy.
"Roar—"
The dragon elephant suddenly exerted force with all four legs. Taking advantage of Qin Mu's distraction while he fought the demon ape and Fox Ling'er, it lowered its head and charged at Qin Mu, sending him flying with a thunderous crash!
The moment the dragon elephant sent Qin Mu flying, its trunk suddenly lengthened, coiled around Qin Mu, who was still in midair, and pulled him back. The trunk swung, driving Qin Mu headfirst into the ground.
The dragon elephant pulled Qin Mu out of the earth, preparing to slam him again, when suddenly Qin Mu changed his leg techniques, kicked away the elephant's trunk, and delivered over a hundred consecutive kicks to the dragon elephant's face, sending the massive beast flying.
"Little one, down!"
The demon ape, its massive body entwined with a green dragon, slammed Qin Mu, who had just kicked away the dragon elephant, to the ground with one palm. The demon ape roared, lifting its thick, short leg to stomp viciously on Qin Mu!
The Cripple's Heaven-Stealing Leg Technique—Crushing Mount Sumeru!
Qin Mu, who had been smashed flat on the ground, immediately rolled over, stood on one leg, his body parallel to the ground, while his other leg met the demon ape's enormous foot.
The move he used was also Crushing Mount Sumeru, though his form was more casual and not standard, yet its power was equally astonishing!
The demon ape grunted, staggered back, then grabbed the dragon elephant's tail and swung the giant beast at Qin Mu. At the same time, Fox Ling'er's tail swayed, and the wind howled as a series of curved blades shot through the air, spinning wildly like wheels as they slashed toward Qin Mu!
Suddenly, a rustling sound came from afar. Qin Mu's heart stirred, and he quickly dodged the attacks from Fox Ling'er and the demon ape, following the sound with his gaze. He saw over a hundred men and women in armor leaping swiftly through the forest, heading upstream along the Yong River.
A few of them also noticed Qin Mu and immediately paused to look around. One man glanced at Qin Mu, the demon ape, and the white fox, and said in surprise, "Hunters?"
"Don't meddle—let's go quickly!"
Another person whispered, "The boat is almost here! We need to form an array on the river before it arrives!"
"Isn't that risky? If someone sees our tracks and spreads the word, it could be bad for us..."
"The Great Ruins are full of reclusive experts hiding away. Don't stir up trouble. Let's hurry—his boat is fast, and if we miss it, we'll regret it too late!"
Those few moved swiftly, their feet barely touching the ground as they vanished into the forest.
Qin Mu was puzzled and muttered softly, "These people don't seem to be from the Great Ruins. They're heading upstream, probably planning to ambush someone. That guy earlier seemed ready to kill us to silence us—not good people... Ling'er, big guy, look, honest and simple folks like us always get the short end of the stick, always at risk of being silenced."
The little white fox nodded repeatedly in agreement, while the demon ape curled its lip: "Believe? Ghost!"
Qin Mu was about to speak when suddenly the dragon elephant charged over and sent him flying with a headbutt. The demon ape was furious, pinning the dragon elephant to the ground and beating it thoroughly, roaring, "Rest, understand?"
The dragon elephant howled in agony. Qin Mu had wanted to punish it too, but seeing the demon ape beat the brute until its face was unrecognizable, he let it go.
This dragon elephant was a beast from the canyon next to the Suppressing Central Palace Gorge, ruling its own territory with immense brute force. The dragon elephant and the demon ape didn't get along, often fighting, with the dragon elephant frequently raiding the demon ape's prey. But ever since Qin Mu became the lord of the Suppressing Central Palace Gorge and taught the demon ape cultivation, the dragon elephant was no longer a match for it.
The demon ape often sought revenge, beating it a dozen times. Eventually, the dragon elephant couldn't take it anymore and surrendered, becoming the demon ape's mount, which was quite impressive.
But the dragon elephant was a bit dim, not as clever as the demon ape or the little fox.
Qin Mu's eyes flickered. Suddenly, he leaped up, vaulting onto the waterfall and reaching the ridge. On the other side of the ridge was the Yong River, bordering a cliff.
The river surged with ice, and there were still many ice floes on the surface. At this time of year, boats were usually absent from the river.
Just then, Qin Mu saw a multi-story ship sailing downstream, breaking through the ice as it moved quickly. Traveling upstream against the current while pushing through ice floes at such speed was somewhat unbelievable.
The demon ape, Fox Ling'er, and the dragon elephant also climbed up and sat beside him. The demon ape pulled up a pine tree, stripped off some pine needles, and offered them to the little fox.
Fox Ling'er quickly shook her head. The demon ape said, "Eat, strong!"
Fox Ling'er laughed. "I don't eat this."
The demon ape then offered the pine needles to the dragon elephant, saying, "Eat, strong!"
The dragon elephant shook its head. The demon ape pinned its head down and beat it again, roaring, "Eat!"
With tears in its eyes, the dragon elephant silently ate the pine needles. The demon ape was finally satisfied, sat down, and leisurely ate pine needles itself. Fox Ling'er couldn't help but say, "Big guy, you know? Dragon elephants aren't herbivores—they're carnivores. They take after dragons, not elephants."
The dragon elephant was moved to tears and nodded repeatedly.
The demon ape sneered. "Vegetables, strong! Me, vegetables, strong!"
The dragon elephant wept silently as it continued eating pine needles.
As the multi-story ship drew closer, Qin Mu immediately saw soldiers in armor everywhere on board. There were also canopies fluttering, and beneath one sat a young general, legs wide apart, looking imposing.
On the wide deck, several painters were painting, each with a bronze mirror standing over ten feet tall in front of them.
Nearby, a few soldiers dressed like herders kept opening iron cages, releasing golden eagles from the ship into the sky.
Qin Mu quietly activated his Divine Firmament Heavenly Eye and saw that the bronze mirrors displayed vivid images of green mountains and clear waters, constantly changing.
Suddenly, an eagle's cry rang out. Qin Mu looked up and saw a golden eagle flying directly above them.
He suddenly understood: "The images in the bronze mirrors are what these golden eagles see! What kind of spell is this, making the eagles' vision appear in the mirrors? Ah, I see—the painters are drawing a geographical map of the Yong River!"
By releasing the golden eagles to fly high and observe the geography around the Yong River, their vision was reflected in the mirrors, and the painters drew these mountains and rivers. This way, sailing from downstream to upstream, they could map the entire terrain of the Yong River.
"Who are these people? Why are they mapping the Yong River? What do they plan to do with this map?"
Qin Mu blinked, puzzled.
At that moment, a soldier on the ship quickly approached the canopy, knelt on one knee, and clasped his fists, saying, "General Qin, someone is spying from the shore!"
The young general under the canopy raised an eyebrow and turned his gaze toward Qin Mu. Qin Mu's heart leaped. When the general's eyes shifted over, it felt as if two extremely bright beams of light shone on him, turning everything white before his eyes and blinding him!
Fox Ling'er and the demon ape also cried out in alarm, quickly covering their eyes. Only the dragon elephant, busy eating pine needles, noticed nothing unusual.
"Just an ordinary villager by the river."
General Qin closed his eyes and feigned rest, saying, "He can't even withstand my gaze. No threat—ignore him."
"Yes, General!"
The soldier hesitated, then said, "General, seven months ago, by imperial decree, you raided the home of Minister of Rites Yan Zheng. Yan Zheng had a clean reputation in the court and often spoke for the minor sects. He himself came from the Huaqing Sword Sect and held a high position in the court. After you raided his home and threw him into the imperial prison, the emperor ordered his execution, and you oversaw it. I'm afraid this journey won't be peaceful. Yan Zheng's remaining followers might try to attack us along the way."
General Qin sneered. "The emperor ordered the raid, and the emperor ordered Yan Zheng's execution—what does that have to do with me? Yan Zheng was a fame-seeker who dared to submit a petition accusing the National Teacher of plotting rebellion, demanding the emperor execute him immediately. Outrageous! For a bit of reputation, he tried to sow discord between the emperor and the National Teacher's bond of ruler and minister, plotting treachery. He deserved to die—who else should be killed?"
He rubbed his temples and sighed. "The emperor ordered me to raid his home and oversee his execution because I am the National Teacher's disciple, promoted by him personally. Having me do this was meant to show the court that the emperor's favor toward the National Teacher remains strong, to discourage those treacherous ministers from harboring such thoughts! Unfortunately, some people can't read the political situation, can't grasp the emperor's intent, and bring about their own doom."
The soldier said, "But this time, some fame-seekers might ambush us..."
General Qin waved his hand dismissively. "I intend to lure out Yan Zheng's remaining followers and wipe out these rebels in one fell swoop!"
He stood up, walked to the bow, and looked at the surging river carrying ice floes downstream, at the cliffs and peaks on both sides, and said calmly, "The National Teacher ordered me to enter the Great Ruins and map the Yong River's geography for the sake of the nation's future, to incorporate the Great Ruins into our dynasty's territory. These rebels fail to appreciate the National Teacher's good intentions and still want to kill me, disrupting the stability of our Yankang Kingdom—aren't they deserving of death?"
Just then, a young master emerged from the cabin. He wasn't fat, but his face had a bit of baby fat, with a red dot on his forehead, holding a folding fan. He laughed, "And these people carry the titles of 'pure officials' and 'loyal ministers'—it's laughable! Such loyalists and purists should all die off!"
General Qin quickly turned to bow, saying, "Seventh Young Master."
The Seventh Young Master looked up at the mountains. The shadows of Qin Mu and the demon ape fell, just covering the moving ship.
"General Qin, I've heard that the natives of the Great Ruins are the abandoned people of the gods—is that true?" the Seventh Young Master asked.