With the matter of Xu Wenwu dealt with, the problem regarding supplies shifted over to the front row once more.

So far, every single one of his allies had arrived in Qingming empty-handed, and none of them thought that a lack of supplies would constitute a problem at all. In their opinion, their one true need was a place to recover spirit qi. As Qingming was growing at a prodigious rate, this too wasn’t a problem. When its domain had grown to two or three hundred li in radius, there would be enough spirit qi to sustain everyone cultivating at the same time.

Forget mortals, even ordinary cultivators were almost useless in Zhang Sheng and Ji Liuli’s eyes. Their only real use was handling menial and dirty work. As for the war, the further they stayed away from the battlefield, the better.

His allies could afford to ignore all trivialities because they were great immortals, but Wei Yuan couldn’t. As the lord of the realm, he had no choice but to shoulder the burden and consider every angle carefully. Although he hadn’t voiced it, he strongly agreed with Xu Wenwu regarding the necessity of supplies. Now, his last hope rested solely on Cui Yu.

As a prominent figure among the younger generation of the Cui Clan, the young master had always enjoyed gathering friends and traveling in a large group. Thus, it was very likely that he would bring his rowdy friends along for this journey. This meant that he wouldn’t be traveling nearly as quickly as his allies, and he would inevitably bring supplies if only to keep his companions fed.

In truth, Cui Yu genuinely had these ne'er-do-wells’ best interests at heart. He took them all over the place to gain experience. If there were merits to be earned, then they would share it together. If there were dangers, then they would face them together. He did all this in hopes of preventing them from turning into true wastrels.

Wei Yuan had studied the map closely after slaying Xu Guanwen. It was how he discovered that both the flying ship route to Hanyang Pass, and the overland route to the former Ningxi Commandery were under the control of the Xu Clan. This meant that transporting supplies from the Palace of Absolute Beginning would probably not be easy. It was also why he paid so much attention to the supplies.

He wasn’t holding out much hope, however. He only wished that one of the powerful reinforcements he had requested would bring something, anything at all in their luggage. After all, he had a feeling that the Palace’s regular freight routes would soon come to a standstill.

That said, it felt like a waste to not pull off something spectacular while everyone was gathered, especially since they were all the cream of the crop of the Palace of Absolute Beginning.

Suddenly, Wei Yuan had an immature idea. He immediately let out a cough and said, “This is the record of my slaying of an Avatar and a Great Warlock. I would like you all to take a look and discuss the possibility of securing some Heaven Merits.”

Heaven Merits? Xiao Yu’s ears literally stood up when he heard this.

Zhang Sheng, Ji Liuli and Bao Yun all turned serious when they heard this. They began watching the recording Wei Yuan had inscribed using his primordial spirit seriously. A befuddled Xiao Yu was the only one still wondering how they went from their earlier discussion to Heavenly Merits all of a sudden.

No one said a word while the recording was playing. It wasn’t until it was over that they asked several key questions. Naturally, Wei Yuan explained how Immortal Lord Tinghai had remotely ripped Xu Guanwen’s Avatar with his bare hands, and how he used an ancient immortal’s warped thought to annihilate the Great Warlock’s sea of consciousness. He could not have slain either of them otherwise.

They also checked out the corpse, the gelatinous substance, and the white pupa the Great Warlock left behind.

Zhang Sheng asked, “What do you propose?”

Wei Yuan began, “This is the Shattered Realm, and there’s a grotto-heaven fragment just several hundred li away from here. The Shamans won’t be able to figure out this place or the karma that has convened in this place. Besides that, it hasn’t even been two days since I established Qingming. There is a chance the Shamans may think that my reinforcements are still on the way. Also, they are colluding with the Xu Clan. If an Avatar Trueman were to enter the Shattered Realm, I am almost certain that they would find out immediately. Thus, they probably believe that no Avatar is guarding this place.”

Wei Yuan then cast Xiao Yu a look and added, “Finally, the only reinforcement who arrived in time is a sword cultivator, and from the Shamans’ perspective, we just had our greatest weapons sealed away. That is why they probably believe that our domain is weaker than ever before.”

Xiao Yu harrumphed in disgruntlement. “You are no sword cultivator.”

Wei Yuan did not argue. After all, there was a chance he might earn an impromptu lesson on respecting his betters if he tried to. No one was more affected by the worldly modification than Zhang Sheng after all.

He continued, “Considering the Shamans’ abilities, it shouldn’t take them much effort to find out that their Great Warlock had really perished in the hands of an Immortal Lord, and a trump card like this is gone once it has been used. A Great Warlock might even be hiding in our vicinity right now and assessing if we possess more such trump cards.

“Barring any accidents, they’ll be making many probing moves. All we need to do is to show the Great Warlock that we really had no more trump cards up our sleeves, and they would likely make their move. In fact, there’s a good chance they would charge right past the boundary and attempt to uproot Qingming. After all, reinforcements from the Palace could arrive at any moment. If they wait too long, they won’t get another chance like this.”

Ji Liuli asked, “How do you plan to bait the enemy?”

Wei Yuan had already come up with a rough plan. “When the Shamans show up, Xiao Yu and I will lead the troops into battle and suffer a major defeat. Grievously injured, we will escape back to the domain and pretend we’re going to uproot the realm stone and make a run for it. There is no way the Great Warlock would allow us to do this, so they would try and intercept us. When he crosses into Qingming’s domain, that’s when everyone will act. With luck, we may be able to kill him then and there.”

Ji Liuli nodded. “The plan is simple but effective. There’s just a flaw or two that I need to address. Later, I will reset the fengshui array and bless this domain with a Wish Come True. Everyone in range will enjoy good fortune. Besides that, I need you to lend me some of your fortune so I can set up a fortune-fishing array. With all these preparations in place, the prey will fall into our trap for sure.”

Wei Yuan obeyed and gave her his last wisp of fortune. Ji Liuli immediately summoned a small pagoda to secure the fortune before leaving to carry out the arrangements. Of course, she had carried all the spirit objects necessary to set up the arrays.

Bao Yun also said, “I’m going to search around the area and hopefully locate the Great Warlock’s hiding spot. Assuming I succeed, I can use my treasure tree to influence them in secret and make them irascible and impulsive.”

Wei Yuan could not help but feel a chill when he heard this. Once again, he recognized the importance of reflecting on himself at least three times a day. Otherwise, an enemy like Bao Yun or Ji Liuli could easily lead him by the nose without him realizing.

After Bao Yun disappeared, Zhang Sheng also said, “I’m going to set up a sword array. If the Great Warlock shows up, he’s going to pay a painful price.”

The trio were gone, and Xiao Yu was the only one who had nothing to do. That was fine by him, however. Keeping silent and hugging his sword close to his chest, he followed Wei Yuan everywhere and paid close attention to his every word and action. It was so that he wouldn’t accidentally fall for this honest-looking but really devilish bastard’s tricks ever again.

Meanwhile, Yun Feifei had returned with her men. They had set up dozens of alarm traps along the paths where the Shamans must take if they wished to enter the domain. Xu Wan’er had also cut down over a hundred trees and were currently carrying them back one by one.

Wei Yuan selected thirty people—they were all full Body-tempering stage cultivators—and appointed two Dao Foundation stage cultivators as the squad leader and vice squad leader. Then, he reassigned their equipment and made sure that everyone had a full set, grabbing everything they needed from the hidden storerooms. Finally, he ordered them to catch some rest and prepare for the upcoming battle.

When the preparations were complete, Xiao Yu noticed that Wei Yuan looked unhappy for some reason. He asked, “What’s wrong?”

Wei Yuan let out a quiet sigh. “Assuming that a Great Warlock really is hiding nearby, then a good number of these people are going to die when we withdraw back to the domain. I can’t help but feel that I’m pushing them to their deaths on purpose.”

Xiao Yu fell silent for a moment before replying, “If the Great Warlock isn’t removed, then it is only a matter of time before they perish. Besides, haven’t you lost more people during the previous battle?”

Wei Yuan shook his head. “That’s not the same. In war, who lives and who dies is completely up to the heavens. But this? There is no question that I’m willingly sending them to their deaths.”

Xiao Yu did not know how to console him. He could only keep silent. Wei Yuan shook his head and set his melancholy aside. No matter how reluctant he felt, someone had to die, and it couldn’t be a small number. Otherwise, the Great Warlock would notice that something was amiss and refuse to take the bait. Going into this with just him and Xiao Yu wouldn’t work either as it wouldn’t give the impression that they were on their last legs.

Some time later, Bao Yun appeared before Wei Yuan and said, “I found him. He’s hiding in the northwest forest and pretending to be a small lizard. I’ve already planted a seed in him in secret, and it’ll gradually take effect over the next hour. However, I can’t be sure if it is his true body or just a body double he uses for scouting purposes. Also, a large force of Shamans are marching over from the west. I believe they’ll arrive within two hours.”

With Bao Yun by their side, the Shamans’ every move was under their watchful eye. Wei Yuan immediately instructed Yun Feifei and Xu Wan’er to start processing the logs and construct a batch of simple wooden houses. The huts were to be built in the designated disciples’ area; specifically along the route the Shamans’ main force would take. Qingming’s domain had not yet extended to that area.

Wei Yuan instructed them to escape back to the domain the second they spotted the Shamans. This was standard procedure, so Yun Feifei and Xu Wan’er agreed readily. They then led their teams to process the logs and haul the lumber.

Dozens of cultivators, all of them unaware of their true mission, started carrying pieces of sawn lumber toward the designated site. The location where the wood houses were to be built was thirty li away from the edge of Qingming’s domain. Devoid of any protection, it was a high-risk venture to put it mildly.

The cultivators worked very quickly. In less than two hours, the framework for a row of ten wooden houses had already taken shape. As they were building the homes they would soon be living in, everyone worked with great enthusiasm. They were just wooden houses, but the cultivators still built them with great care and attention to detail.

Suddenly, the dense forest in the far distance fell conspicuously silent.

The veterans immediately grew alert and stopped what they were doing, staring at that part of the forest. As if on cue, several venom lizards bearing warriors wielding shields and axes stepped out.

“Shamans!” Someone shouted at the top of their lungs. The smart ones immediately dropped everything in their hands and took off running. Two people were reluctant to abandon their newly built homes and hesitated just a little too long. A couple arrows immediately nailed them to the ground!

Waves of Shaman fighters surged out of the dense forest like tide water. Not a single one of the early-warning detection traps[1] Yun Feifei had set had gone off; an expert must have dismantled all of them.

With the venom lizard riders acting as the vanguard, the Shaman force moved at breakneck speed and quickly closed in on the fleeing human cultivators.

It was at this moment Wei Yuan and Xiao Yu burst out of the domain. Wei Yuan unleashed several flaming swords at the enemy while simultaneously hurling a few cauldrons. The cauldrons shone golden and brimmed with power, flattening over a dozen venom lizard riders at the forefront in one go. On the other hand, his immortal swords were much weaker. The blade could barely catch on fire, and seven of them only managed to kill four riders.

On the other side, Xiao Yu unleashed several Sunflames in a row and swept away dozens of charging riders. It looked incredible, but before the world was modified, he had only needed one sword strike to kill these men.

With Wei Yuan and Xiao Yu covering their retreat, the large majority of the cultivators managed to escape back into the domain. Right after that, another squad of cultivators rushed out and stood just outside the edge of the domain, forming a battle formation. They were fully equipped and clearly superior in terms of combat prowess compared to their fellows.

Meanwhile, more and more troops were still pouring out of the forest. Their numbers had swelled to six thousand in the blink of an eye!

Several noble warriors in the late-stage of Dao Foundation stage lunged viciously at Wei Yuan and Xiao Yu. Despite giving it their all, they were fighting a numerically superior enemy with greatly diminished weapons. As a result, they struggled and were gradually pushed back. Left with no choice, they began withdrawing toward Qingming’s domain as they fought.

This time, the Shaman army didn’t stop. They marched straight toward Qingming.

1. Did you know that the author used three different terms to describe the same goddamn thing? ☜