Scholar Bing said, "The Martial Alliance is in Hubei, and I understand that Yang Honored One has taken control of Shaanxi and Sichuan. If the Four Shrines Heaven protects Guangxi, we can build a long and thick wall from north to south. That is the best the Four Shrines Heaven can do."
It ant that he didn't want to stand at the forefront and see blood.
Then Jin Tiansuo said, "No. If it is necessary to strike the Blood Sect, I will stand at the very forefront."
"Heaven Lord! That is..."
As Scholar Bing tried to stop him, Baekji shot up and cupped his fists.
"As expected! Heaven Lord Jin is the one who knows the great cause. From now on, I will call you Alliance Leader Jin!"
Then he said to the South Snake Sect Master and the others, "What are you doing? Hurry and pay your respects to the Alliance Leader."
"Hmph! Is the Alliance a child's plaything?"
The South Snake Sect Master spoke and then covered his mouth, but it was too late.
Thwack!
Baekji's bamboo staff rcilessly struck his head.
"I will personally punish any brat who is disrespectful to the Alliance Leader with a beating!"
Then he glared at the Sea Ghost Sect Master and the Mother Fox Sect Master and said, "Any brat who rejects the 'Blood-Shattering Alliance' will be considered a mber of the Blood Sect!"
The Mother Fox Sect Master shot up and paid his respects to Jin Tiansuo.
"The Mother Fox Sect will of course take the lead in striking the evil Blood Sect. I greet the 'Blood-Shattering Alliance' Leader."
For the Mother Fox Sect Master, it was the best possible outco.
Not only would he save his life and preserve his sect, but he could also achieve a reconciliation with Jin Tiansuo, who had been a fearso existence, so it couldn't be better.
The Sea Ghost Sect Master, belatedly realizing the situation, also bowed to Jin Tiansuo.
"The Sea Ghost Sect will be with the Four Shrines Heaven. I will prove my resolve with this drink."
Then he picked up a wine jug and again, poured it into his mouth.
The South Snake Sect Master did not stand up in the end.
Jin Tiansuo offered him a drink.
"Since your son's safety is at stake, you cannot decide easily. I will not force you. Tonight, let's forget all our worries and drink. I will see you off in the morning."
Baekji's mouth fell open.
Wow. In the heinous martial world, and in the even more heinous Black Path... to think there was such a strange species.
He looked like a true man, but his nature was gloomy...
He was a pushover of the century.
'He's at the level of a Buddha who would form 'sarira' (relics) in his body. Is that why he reached the profound realm?'
Since the master of the Four Shrines Heaven had yielded, Baekji could not push any further.
The three leaders drank with Jin Tiansuo all night and then, at dawn, collapsed gloriously, clutching their wine glasses.
Of course, Baekji had slipped out early and had gone to sleep.
* * *
'Sohow... it seems these brats know the destination.'
Although he had rarely visited the Tang family to prepare for an ergency... the opponent knew where the carriage was going.
He had changed the route several tis, but whenever he headed for the Tang family, he was attacked.
'Who could it be?'
He was curious about the one who had seen through his intentions.
Shangguan Ming looked out the window of the carriage with a gloomy expression.
The carriage was speeding along the main road.
Enemies appeared frequently, and each ti, the masters of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion fell behind to deal with them.
Now, only four masters remained...
'Now I must make a decision...'
Shangguan Ming opened the window to the driver's seat.
The master of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion was personally wielding the whip.
"It seems we must take the second-best option."
"I understand. A forest will appear soon. Let's part ways there."
The second-best option was for the carriage to go to the Tang family, drawing the enemy, while Shangguan Ming personally carried the Alliance Leader and fled.
Shangguan Ming put the Alliance Leader in a coffin and carried it on his back.
'You were this light...'
For the body of a man who had been praised as the number one under heaven, it was too light.
When the carriage was passing through a dark forest.
Shangguan Ming, carrying the coffin, got out of the carriage.
"...I will contact you."
Shangguan Ming said to the master of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion.
"There is no need to hurry. I will go first... co slowly."
The words of the master of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion were aningful.
When the master of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion cracked the whip, the carriage sped up again.
The remaining masters of the Wind and Cloud Pavilion followed behind.
Shangguan Ming watched the carriage disappear into the darkness for a mont, sighed, and then entered the forest.
* * *
Early in the morning, soone knocked on the door.
"No, who is it at this hour..."
When he opened the door, Jin Tianxiang was standing there.
"Let's go eat."
"Eat? Weren't you going to bring it?"
"In the Four Shrines Heaven, everyone eats the sa. Even the Heaven Lord eats in the dining hall. Follow ."
Baekji quickly washed his face like a cat and followed her.
As they were going to the dining hall, Jin Tianxiang said, "You're... not supposed to hit a woman's... buttocks."
"Really? There's nowhere else to hit but the buttocks."
"Anyway... I can't get married now."
"Heok? Why?"
"If it were you, would you want to live with a woman whose buttocks were hit by a man?"
"..."
What's wrong with that...
Jin Tianxiang sighed and said, "Although you are younger than ..."
"What?"
"I'll have to marry you. That's the only way to have descendants."
Baekji jumped.
"What are you talking about? You're going to marry because your buttocks were hit? What kind of strange logic is that?"
"I thought about it all day yesterday. It's humiliating, but I can't help it. I have a responsibility to continue our bloodline."
Jin Tianxiang was serious. She even bit her lip firmly.
"If you don't want to, I'll kill you... and live as a chaste widow."
Baekji was indignant.
"Does that make sense? In the old stories, if you kill the man in a situation like this, the woman has to commit suicide too."
"If I get revenge on the Blood Sect... I'll think about it then."
Ah! That's not the point.
"Calm down... there must be a way. Think about it again. Only the two of us know what happened that day. We just have to keep our mouths shut."
"No, the heavens and the earth know, you know, I know, and my brother also knows."
"What? You told him?"
"My brother and I are the only blood relatives in the world. As the head of the family, my brother has the responsibility to arrange my marriage."
"I don't think this is right. The idea that you have to get married because your buttocks were hit is an old custom that should be abolished. We are people of the martial world. The reason we beco people of the martial world is so that we are not bound by trivial etiquette."
"Our family originally follows etiquette. What you're doing now is..."
Jin Tianxiang glared at Baekji.
"Are you saying you don't like ?"
"Yes."
"Look at you. And look at ! Don't you think you're getting more than you deserve?"
"I have no intention of getting married. With anyone."
Jin Tianxiang nodded her head.
"That's for the best. I don't want to live with a child like you either. Let's just have a child."
"You're crazy..."
In the anti, they arrived at the dining hall.
"After we eat, I will go and tell my brother. That because you refused the marriage... we decided to just have a child."
.
.
.
Baekji barely ate and returned to pack his luggage.
He was about to leave Half-Moon Fortress as soon as possible before Jin Tianxiang ca.
Scholar Bing ca to see him.
"The Heaven Lord wishes to see you."
"We've finished talking. Tell him I'll see him later. I have urgent business and have to go."
"It's on your way out anyway. You can just see him for a mont. All the sect masters are gathered, so you should also have a formal eting."
The structure of the building was like that.
Baekji was staying on the second floor, and if he went down, it was directly the main hall.
Baekji, who went down the stairs and entered the main hall, flinched at the stern atmosphere.
Jin Tiansuo was sitting on the head seat of the main hall, and dozens of people were lined up on both sides.
The n, ard with all kinds of weapons, including swords, had murderous expressions, as if they had just co from a fight.
Baekji was reminded once again that the Four Shrines Heaven was the Black Path.
Jin Tiansuo, seeing Baekji, stood up and gestured.
"Co here."
"Yes..."
"I sent the South Snake Sect Master and the others off early in the morning. It was resolved well thanks to you."
Jin Tiansuo, standing Baekji next to him, said, "I will introduce you to the brothers. This is the Yang Honored One of the Yang-Bai rchant Sect, who diated this fight. He is also the disciple of the Martial Alliance Leader and the young hero who supervised the founding of the 'Blood-Shattering Alliance'."
The gazes of the main hall all turned to Baekji.
Jin Tiansuo said to Baekji, "These are the Four Great Sect Masters, the Ten Great Division Leaders, and the Thirty-Six Great Brigade Leaders of the Four Shrines Heaven."
"Wow. There are so many."
They said the Four Shrines Heaven was the number one sect of the Black Path, and indeed, there were many.
'With this many, the Zhuge family might feel threatened.'
The Black Path mbers who filled the main hall cupped their fists in unison with a booming voice.
"We greet the Yang Honored One!"
Baekji returned the cupped fist greeting.
Jin Tiansuo said, "Thanks to you, we have resolved the matter with the southern sects without seeing blood, so as the Four Shrines Heaven Lord, I am just grateful. I would like to share a drink for three days and nights, but the situation is not favorable."
Jin Tiansuo's expression was serious.
Baekji asked, "Is sothing wrong?"
Jin Tiansuo looked at Scholar Bing. Scholar Bing, cleared his throat and said, "An urgent ssage ca today. The army is coming in from the northeast and the northwest."
"The army is coming?"
"The northwestern army is the private soldiers of the Mu family and a few powerful local families, and the northeastern army is the Guangxi army."
"One mountain after another..."
It was a Black Path with no peaceful days.
Scholar Bing continued, "Recently, there have been incidents where escort groups passing through the north have been massacred, and remote mountain villages have been attacked by bandits. It seems the authorities have requested the army as the public sentint has beco agitated. Absurdly, our Four Shrines Heaven has been pointed out as the culprit. The situation we were worried about has co."
"Is this also the machination of the Zhuge family?"
When Baekji asked, Scholar Bing shook his head.
"There is no evidence, so I cannot say for sure."
But his tone seed to be already convinced. Given the tendency of the Zhuge family, which was close to the authorities, it was a situation that was sufficiently suspicious.
Jin Tianxiang ca in, ard.
"I will take the witnesses from the Guangdong Escort Agency and the one we captured alive and explain."
When Jin Tianxiang ca, Baekji stealthily stepped back.
"That brat is seriously injured and knows nothing, so he will be of no help. The witnesses from the Guangdong Escort Agency will also have nothing to say if they are accused of colluding beforehand. We need solid evidence."
Scholar Bing calmly analyzed the situation.
"Even if we can deal with the northwestern army, which is the private soldiers of the powerful local families, the Guangxi army is different. Moreover, the commanding General Zheng Qiu is a figure praised as a great general who protects the country, and he is a man with outstanding military tactics and resourcefulness."
"Why would such a person co here?"
"He has been wandering the borderlands for a long ti after being pushed out of political strife."
At Scholar Bing's words, everyone fell silent. General Zheng Qiu was a general respected by all the people, and even the Black Path knew him well.
"Where will we get evidence that doesn't exist? Our Heavenly Machine Sect will go out and stop them for now."
When the Heavenly Machine Sect Master, one of the Four Great Sect Masters, stepped forward, the Wind Flag Sect Master next to him stepped forward.
"Our Wind Flag Sect will take care of the northeastern army. Heaven Lord and Jin Tianxiang, please flee for now."
The faces of the Black Path mbers gathered in the main hall were tragic.
Jin Tiansuo looked around at everyone and said, "What they want is . I will go."
As expected, a pushover of the century.
And yet, when a slender and handso man spoke so tragically, it stirred the hearts of those who watched.
Everyone shouted in unison, "We cannot do that! We will fight the enemy until the last man!"
The tragic atmosphere intensified.
Baekji was moved.
"There is such a Black Path! It is worthy of being a model for the number one Black Path in the Central Plains!"
Then everyone looked at him.
"But... why are you thinking of fighting first? You can just flee."
At Baekji's words to flee, the Black Path mbers gathered in the main hall stirred for a mont.
Soone said, "Are you telling our Four Shrines Heaven to flee?"
"I would rather die than beco a coward!"
Determined shouts erupted from here and there, and from all sides, people chid in, 'that's right'.
"Quiet!"
Baekji raised his hand to calm them down.
"Calm down. Who is the enemy? The brat behind them is the real enemy. The brats in the army that are flocking now... if you think about it, they are powerless people who have entrusted themselves to the army to make a living. They are in the sa situation, so do you have to kill each other?"
"Hmph! Each lives according to their own circumstances. If we flee like this, the Four Shrines Heaven will be pointed at as cowards. As a man, I would rather die than live in sha."
"So if you die while killing pitiful soldiers... is that not shaful? It seems you all don't know well... they say a gentleman's revenge is not too late even after ten years. Haven't you seen 'The Orphan of Zhao'? It's a story of true revenge, of living a lifeti sharpening a sword. You all can be the protagonists too."
"..."
Baekji said to Scholar Bing, "What was the Black Path of Guangxi originally like?"
"The Black Path of Guangxi was a contest between four great forces. Then Heaven Lord Jin defeated each leader and absorbed their forces, and they beca the Four Great Sects of the Four Shrines Heaven."
"Oh, that's a cool story. The story of an orphan who grew up from the bottom unifying the Black Path... it's moving."
"That's right. The Heaven Lord's actions have beco a model for many in the Black Path and are widely talked about in the Central Plains."
At Scholar Bing's words, everyone nodded their heads.
Even though he was being flattered to his face, Jin Tiansuo's expression did not change, and he remained dignified.
Rather, he looked at everyone with an even more serious and tragic face, with eyes that said he trusted them.
At that gaze, the n of the Black Path burned with fighting spirit.
That pushover of the century seems to have sothing special about him.
(End of Chapter)
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