Chapter 475

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Chapter 475: Flashback, Backstory, Jumbled Timeline

Mid-January, heavy snow in the northern region.

The magical corner, there is a field.

Amongst the fields, every household has a warm stove.

Inside the courtyard house, the old people sit on the warm stove, roasting the warm fire. In front, the stove is simmering red date soup.

"In winter, three layers of wheat cover the bed, and the next year we sleep with steamed buns as pillows… What did I say? The heavy snow comes just in time."

"These years haven’t been very peaceful, but thankfully the weather has been good. The heavy snow comes at the right time."

"With enough food from the fields, many eggs of insects freeze to death. It also closes the roads, leaving those old turtles without their vanguard army to clear the way."

The old man squints his eyes and takes a sip of the hot soup. "It’s a little hot. Go outside and fetch some snow."

"Snow isn’t clean," the middle-aged man says. "If your stomach is not well, then don’t eat ice."

"Did I say I wanted to eat?" The old man rolls his eyes and waits for the snow to be brought in. He places the bowl on the snow and waits for it to cool down. "See?"

"I saw it."

"The heavy snow cooled down, giving a break to your excited minds… Just a Tiger Guard Captain died, like losing a grandson."

"He is personally chosen by Lord Qiongqi…"

"He is also personally chosen by me, without my approval, can he make decisions?" Yuan Tianjian coldly snorted, "The death of the Tiger Guard Captain is not important. His death should not add fuel to the fire, but should be a wake-up call for those ignorant military officials who only think about fighting and killing without caring about internal affairs. How many times have we seen the Ministry of Revenue carrying coffins and wreaths? Yet, they remain unresponsive."

"Ximen Liu died, died in Longyao City. You and I both know what this means… The Liu State is always a trouble, and Wang Ran’s strategy is ruthless, very well… Just a little too well and too cruel."

"Now the Qi State is already badly injured, and stubbornly trying to hold on is not wise. Anyway, I will not support them to carry out such a ruthless strategy to the end… As for the city of Bai Ze, if we can’t capture it within the next half month, let it go."

The middle-aged man suddenly stood up, shocked and angry, "Hasn’t the past five years been wasted?!"

"I want it." The old man reached out to test the temperature of the bowl.

The middle-aged man was stunned, he didn’t understand why the teacher would do this. Five years of planning, and nothing gained?

"Do you think this is just standing in place?" The old man squinted his eyes and asked with a smile.

"Hmm."

"Then, take another look around. Inside the Xiangliu family, there are conflicts and power struggles. Even Wang Ran dares not get involved in the fight for inheritance. I’m sure he is very worried now. He is too young and too impatient… The title of ‘poisonous scheme’ may sound useful, but even their own people are afraid of it!"

"In our Great Ming, there is a saying: ‘What is united will divide, what is divided will unite.’ No dynasty lasts forever. Looking at history, the one who survives till the end may not be the former ruler, but the one who can hold on till the end."

"Internal stability is the most important. It may seem like we’re standing in place, but in reality, we are reorganizing internally. I have stepped back to let the invisible hand carry out internal reformation. I also want those unruly warlords to know whom they are fighting for. They are already thinking about expanding their territories without achieving anything, full of ambition!"

The strategist took a breath and looked at the middle-aged man. "Being powerful is temporary. Even if you stay in one place, as long as your opponent retreats, you will still be the strongest. Being able to stay in one place requires wisdom. It is much harder to neither advance nor retreat compared to only advancing and not retreating."

The middle-aged man thought for a moment and asked, "Then… what about Ba Xia?"

Yuan Tianjian’s tone was calm. "Actually, what you want to ask is about Bi Fang, right?"

The middle-aged man’s thoughts were exposed, and he awkwardly clenched his fists.

Ba Xia was just a place filled with delicious food, but sooner or later it would be reaped. This was planned long ago, and even Lord Ba Xia himself knew it. He clearly wanted a larger territory, not just this small piece of land.

"Military matters go to the military, political affairs go to the government, and Jianghu matters go to Jianghu…" Yuan Tianjian paused. "I really want to leave her a way out, maybe even give her a few buildings in the capital of the Ming Country as a gift. At least it would be a token of remembrance. But if she doesn’t choose, we can only leave it to fate."

"The teacher is incredibly knowledgeable."

"Nonsense. Who can tolerate being cut by a dull sword until death?" Yuan Tianjian chuckled, half-jokingly. "Even the mud Bodhisattva has some anger."

"So what does ‘Jianghu matters’ refer to?" The middle-aged man was still very curious.

"Just a few deadly obstacles." The old man blew on the snowflakes in his palm. "The most difficult one is often one’s own obstacle. It wasn’t set up by me. Even if she passes this obstacle, there may be even more difficult ones ahead…"

"What could be more difficult?"

"We’ll talk about that after they pass Qingyang City." Yuan Tianjian lifted the bowl, which was no longer hot, and took a sip of the warm soup. He tasted it lightly and frowned. "It’s a bit sour… looks like they’ve decided to take the path to Hujia Grave, and they chose this route, of all places."

The middle-aged man found it hard to believe. He had heard of Hujia Grave, a place where demonic and evil cultivators gathered. It was one of the most dangerous places in Ba State. A single mistake could cost one’s life. Why suddenly mention Hujia Grave?

He still wanted to ask, but he saw the old man wave his hand and start shooing people away, so the middle-aged man reluctantly got up and bowed to take his leave.

When only Yuan Tianjian was left in the room, the old man leisurely changed a bowl of soup.

"First, sharpen the sword."

"Then, cut the grass."

…

A little bridge, a house, a forge, an old tub, a pile of iron swords, a jug of strong liquor, and a hammer.

The forge fire was scorching hot. The swordsmith tirelessly swung the iron hammer to strike the sword embryo in his hand, his gaze gentle and passionate, as if gazing at a beloved flower.

The sound of pounding continued, the blade quenched in the fire, making a hissing sound.

A child with braided hair ran over, holding a letter in his hand. "Uncle Iron, here is your letter."

The girl with a talkative mouth almost threw the letter into the fire, but the blacksmith quickly pressed the bellows and the envelope flew out of the stove and into his hands. He put down his hammer, touched the girl’s hair, tore open the envelope, and glanced at it.

The stoic blacksmith finished reading the letter, his expression turning a bit resigned and heavy. He crumpled the envelope into a ball and threw it into the furnace. He walked into the house and retrieved a wooden box from the wardrobe. After opening it, he took out a heavy sword with a rough surface.

It is said that there was a person who was born and raised in the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom. He was nurtured and raised by monsters and had several foster parents, learning various skills from them. Although he had human blood, he never set foot in the human realm. The man was a natural martial arts prodigy. He learned several basic techniques but reached a profound and authentic level of mastery. He melted the relics and bones of his foster parents into a strong and enduring sword made of mysterious iron. He then embarked on a journey in the martial world, sweeping through numerous experts within just three years. His strength was widely recognized. However, not long after, he retired from the martial world, citing retirement as a way to enjoy wealth, and has since lived in seclusion. He is currently ranked ninth on the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom’s martial blacklist.

…

Overnight, the prestigious families and clans that had existed in Yanwei City for hundreds of years were exterminated.

Quietly and unnoticed, unknown to anyone.

Is it the extinction of human nature or the loss of morality?

A demonly figure emerged from the back lane. It slithered into the shadows, then suddenly soared into the air, flying towards the mountains and startling countless birds.

The ferocious black dragon’s claws scraped against the mountain wall, piercing through the air, as if it were chasing after some lost prey, filled with impotent rage.

…

In a body of water, two dock workers found a piece of white cloth floating on the surface. They used a net to scoop it up and discovered a human body.

Thinking it was a corpse, the two workers were terrified, but they realized that the beautiful woman was still breathing.

The two dock workers exchanged glances, and one said they should save her, while the other had malicious intentions. The latter knocked out the former and sold the unconscious woman to a local dealer.

The dealer was delighted, but instead of paying, he killed the greedy dock worker with a single blow, and kicked his body into the water to feed the fish.

After a series of twists and turns, when she woke up, she found her hands and feet bound by iron chains, imprisoned in a closed carriage with many other slaves.

The woman looked down at the iron chains on her hands and feet, and a fierce anger surged from the depths of her amber-colored eyes.

She shouldn’t have to endure such humiliation in this place. Waves of intense pain made her vision darken, and her boundless anger had no place to release.

She was angry, but also confused.

She realized she shouldn’t be treated like that, but she couldn’t explain why.

As she tried to remember, her head started to ache. It seemed like she had forgotten something, something very important that she must not lose.

And then she exploded. She broke the chains and the powerful force that surged out destroyed the prison and the vehicles.

She saw flames and heard voices shouting curses. Then she ran away, running and running.

After running a very long distance, she didn’t know how much time had passed. She collapsed, sitting down, and her chest wound started to bleed bright red. She felt her life slowly slipping away.

She lowered her head and looked at her blurred face reflected in the blood.

Then she heard a call, instinctively turned around, but no one was there.

She slowly calmed down, thinking it was just her imagination.

When she turned around again to face the front…

Suddenly!

The call is right in front, the snake shadows are rolling, and in the crimson-tinged pool, a half-smiling face reflects.

She cannot move.

In the center of the pool of blood, a pair of golden eyes are staring at her, with supreme dignity that almost makes her bow down, drenched in cold sweat and panting heavily.

She hears the voice again.

"You’re about to die, do you want to live?"

…

Yubing sits up, her back already drenched in cold sweat.

She pushes open the door and steps into the courtyard, wanting to feel the cool breeze and calm down, only to see a young man sitting in the courtyard.

He didn’t move a muscle, showing no sign of anger, as cold and rigid as a stone statue.

The snake girl approached slowly, making sure he had no reaction. She leaned her head against the puppet’s knee, feeling the cold temperature gradually soothing the warmth in her heart.

She murmured to herself, "It’s just a nightmare… Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid."

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