The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 428: All parties prepare and plot against each other

Tianshan Tonglao is very important to Murong Fu. Firstly, the power of Lingjiu Palace and the seventy-two island masters and thirty-six cave masters affiliated with it are of great help to his cause, whether it is business or restoring the country; secondly, she herself is a master of martial arts and is concerned about Wuyazi. No matter how you look at it, she is one of his own.

Therefore, Murong Fu arranged her very carefully. Not only did he protect Xiao A Zi closely throughout the journey, he also mobilized nearly half of Murong Trading Company's forces in Western Xia. They left Tianshan at night, but did not go far. They went more than 200 miles to the south and met up with a caravan selling cattle and horses, then turned south and headed east.

This caravan didn't deliberately avoid the Xixia capital, but instead stayed there for a day or two, completing all formalities according to regulations. Then, armed with the bribed warrant, they leisurely departed for the Song Dynasty, bowing where necessary and asserting where necessary. The escort consisted mostly of third-rate fighters, with a couple of second-rate experts. The Murong Trading Company's banner also served as a deterrent.

The Tianshan Child-Fairy is old and experienced, and Xiao A Zi is one of Murong Fu's close aides, who is quite perceptive in information. The leader of the caravan is also Murong Fu's absolute confidant, who has been trained by him and has good abilities. They can easily discover the extraordinary atmosphere in Xixia.

The Yipintang of Western Xia seemed to be taking action. Although the army had not moved, the masters were quite strange. On the way to the Song Dynasty, all kinds of strange people from the martial arts world came stealthily. Most of them had extraordinary skills, but it was obvious at a glance that they were not native people of Western Xia.

"Grandma, these people are here for you, right?" Little A Zi put away the Xuanming Furnace (Jiuyin Furnace), and the coldness on her body subsided little by little until it could no longer be felt. She quietly lifted the curtain of the car a little and pointed to two dark-skinned men standing under a big tree on the side of the road not far away.

The Tianshan Child-Fairy would practice the "Eternal Youth Kung Fu" at noon every day. With Xiao A Zi and others taking care of her, she had no shortage of supplies. Even the blood she supplied was mostly tiger and leopard blood, and at the very least, deer blood. As for the inferior blood of cows, horses, and humans, she naturally would not use it.

Tong Lao finished her training, her eyes flashing as she snorted, "A clown is not worth mentioning. Your young husband's internal strength is unrivaled in the martial arts world, and he has Grandma's guidance in the Tianshan Six Yang Palm and Tianshan Plum Blossom Hand. Even if there are a hundred or a thousand of these people, what can they do to him? As long as he doesn't seek death and put himself in a deadly situation, he will be fine even if he is surrounded. What's more, he has Grandma's Nine Heavens and Nine Divisions under his command. Even if he doesn't take action, he can easily deal with it."

Although the peripheral forces of Lingjiu Palace are strong, they may not be able to compare with the women of the Nine Heavens and Nine Tribes of the main force. In the original story, the Child-Grandma of the Sky disappeared, and most of the Nine Heavens and Nine Tribes dispersed to look for her, which led to the capture of Lingjiu Palace by many peripheral forces. Once they counterattacked, they immediately regained the advantage.

Now that Tong Lao has left, Linglingjiu Palace has been properly managed. With the military master Murong Fu at the helm, and the Nine Heavens and Nine Tribes within, and the Murong Trading Company outside, even the combined forces of the Seventy-two Island Masters and Thirty-six Cave Masters and the First-Class Hall of Xixia would be unable to take Linglingjiu Palace. If Li Qiushui were to attack personally, Murong Fu could stop her, at least making the fight evenly matched. Linglingjiu Palace, with its advantageous terrain, would ultimately prevail.

If that bitch doesn't take action, those jumping clowns will be useless even if there are twice as many of them. At this time, the role of top masters is extremely important, and those peripheral forces are only first-rate, and there is not a single super first-rate one, let alone top masters.

This was originally an asymmetric battle. As long as Lingjiu Palace did not make any mistakes, they would not lose.

What about the Lingjiu Palace? Will something go wrong?

When the Child-Fairy of Tianshan left, she did not take any of the maids and servants from the Vulture Palace with her. She even gave him her personal maids, Plum Sword, Orchid Sword, Bamboo Sword, and Chrysanthemum Sword.

The four girls, Plum, Orchid, Bamboo and Chrysanthemum, were handmaidens trained by the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan. They possessed extraordinary martial arts skills, but because they had always been by her side, they lacked much combat experience, let alone actual combat experience. The Child-Grandmother of Tianshan protected these girls so well that, despite their high martial arts skills, their combat effectiveness was actually inferior to that of the lower-class women who were constantly on the move.

Murong Fu knew that although he was confident of winning the next battle, it was a fight of life and death and could not afford to be careless, so he asked the women to investigate everyone by category and then make arrangements for them. For example, the four women of plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum would increase the training of fighting.

Murong Fu was confident he could protect these girls in their ivory towers, but he couldn't always keep them close by. He already had enough women around him. Even though Ling Meng and Ling Yue didn't care, he couldn't help but consider their feelings. Besides, he wouldn't be able to stay in this world for long, so it was the right thing to do to consider them in advance.

It was said to be a training in fighting, but in fact it was more of an exercise in courage. Murong Fu ordered the older women with rich experience in fighting to disguise themselves in various intimidating appearances and fight with them under various threats and intimidation. At the beginning, the four women were so scared that they forgot their martial arts and even hid behind Murong Fu, which made him laugh and cry.

It was just that at this time the woman opposite would remove her makeup to reveal her true face, and then she would comfort them carefully, and fight them in a normal sparring match, and then she would fight in disguise again. After repeating this over and over again, the four women of plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum gradually found the feeling of real fighting. Although the bladeless wooden swords could not break their soft armor, their moves were already quite smooth and practical, or in other words: fierce.

Murong Fu would not place this kind of battlefield rookie who had never seen blood on the front line. As the acting Palace Master of Lingjiu Palace who succeeded Tianshan Tonglao, he still needed the necessary pomp and ceremony, and how could he be without people serving him? The four girls, plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, were born to the same mother, and they were all beautiful and graceful, with the same height and figure, and there was no difference in appearance. It would definitely bring honor and weight to them to be brought out.

In addition to training the disciples of Lingjiu Palace, Murong Fu also never neglected his martial arts. He was also busy collecting intelligence, setting up battlefields, and deploying troops. Fortunately, the women of Lingjiu Palace revered Tianshan Tonglao as a god, and her orders were carried out meticulously, even if it meant that they had to obey Murong Fu.

Murong Fu's martial arts skills were supreme, unrivaled in the entire Lingjiu Palace except for the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan. He was also incredibly knowledgeable, possessing the culmination of four worlds. Two of these worlds contained scholars with prestigious academic titles, while the other two held an Imperial Tutor and a powerful prince who expanded the territories. His experience might not even rival that of the Three Elders of Xiaoyao, but he stayed in each world for short periods. While his realm was high, his internal strength always lagged behind by a tiny margin.

However, in this world, he has obtained the "Northern Sea Divine Art", which gives him a natural advantage in gathering spiritual energy and refining internal strength. He also has the "Free and Easy Wind Control" which can enhance himself infinitely and he can see his growth every day. This is definitely a novel experience for a top martial arts master. It is normal for them to remain at this level for ten years without any change.

In the Xixia Imperial Palace, the alluring Li Qiushui, veiled in gauze, gazed at the intelligence in her hands, her eyes sparkling as she muttered to herself, "My dear Senior Sister, have you truly regained your youth? The time has almost come, but..."

However, the chess pieces he had sent out in several waves of exploratory attacks had all been eaten. The traces of their bodies had led him to a completely different conclusion. The three Nine-Winged Taoists in the first wave were all top-tier, among the most formidable in the First-Rank Hall. Their deaths were within his expectations. Not to mention Senior Sister Tong Piaoyun, even the women of the Nine Heavens and Nine Divisions were no less capable than them.

But Senior Sister had always been overbearing. If anyone within a hundred miles of Piaomiao Peak was going to kill, she'd definitely do it herself. But there were many strange things about the deaths of these three people. The Nine-Winged Taoist's death was understandable; it could be explained by Senior Sister taking a nap and accidentally testing her skills, only to use two moves to finish him off. But what about the other two? They were covered in wounds. She initially didn't believe Senior Sister's actions, but a closer look revealed a strangeness to the injuries, something no ordinary warrior could have caused.

Li Qiushui has always been cautious and secretly on guard, fearing that her senior sister, Tong Piaoyun, the Child-Grandma of Tianshan, would use this opportunity to lure her to him. Ever since she had her senior sister Tong Piaoyun's cultivation was disrupted by her, her magical powers had never been perfected, causing her to look like a child. She did not want to be seen and was very resistant to traveling far, so she would rather lead her to Tianshan even if it meant killing someone.

I have a grudge against her, but because I am in the Xixia Palace and there are many people around me, my senior sister doesn't want to appear in front of others, so she didn't take the initiative to look for me. But if I go to her door, she will definitely not miss the opportunity. I am testing her, and she is also misleading me.

Afterwards, Li Qiushui sent two more groups of masters, but the results made her shocked and angry. Although the masters this time were not as good as the three Nine-Winged Taoists, they were also one of the few first-class masters in Xixia Yipintang. However, all of them had their hearts shattered by a single move and were sent to the capital of Xixia.

Li Qiushui knew at a glance that these people died under the Tianshan Six Yang Palm. This naked provocation made Li Qiushui even more suspicious. Her senior sister had reached the stage of rejuvenation, and even if there was a deviation, it would not be too big. Who gave her the courage to provoke her?

Or did I miscalculate the time, and my senior sister has already completed her rejuvenation and her cultivation has been restored long ago?

It's impossible. I can't have calculated it wrong. If I want to delay the time of rejuvenation, there may be a way, but it is impossible to advance it. There must be something strange about it!

The Tianshan Six Yang Palm was a top-notch martial art comparable to, or even slightly superior to, the Beggar Gang's Dragon Subduing Palm. How many people in the entire Lingjiu Palace could possibly learn it? Even if they did, it would take a supreme master to kill a top-tier expert from the Xixia Yipin Hall with a single palm strike. And there was only one supreme master in the entire Lingjiu Palace, and that was Senior Sister Tong Piaoyun.

Li Qiushui was very sure of this. Her care for those women was both good and bad. A thousand-mile horse could not be raised in a courtyard, and a top master could not be cultivated in the comfortable environment of Lingjiu Palace. Even if he was a top-notch master, it might not be possible to cultivate him. This was the biggest difference between herself and her senior sister.

Yipintang was built by her own hands, a bulwark against her senior sister, Lingjiu Palace. It had a number of top-tier experts. The loss of nearly ten top-tier experts in three attempts was a heartbreaking experience for even Li Qiushui, and the result only made her even more uneasy and hesitant to act rashly. Just then, news arrived from Yipintang that a number of suspicious-looking experts had infiltrated Xixia. After further investigation, she had a general understanding of the situation.

His attempts to test his senior sister failed. She failed to confuse him, but instead managed to confuse her subordinates. "That's good. They are numerous and powerful. If they can secretly guide and help from Yipintang, it won't be difficult to capture Lingjiu Palace. If my senior sister's martial arts skills are really not there..."

The night breeze blew gently. In a remote and desolate mountain area within the Western Xia territory, strange and bizarre figures appeared one after another. Boss Wu, his clothes soaked with sweat, held a broadsword in hand. "That little girl has been abducted. My whereabouts and appearance have been exposed. This is the only way to survive. If Grandma survives, then I will die. So..."