After completely leaving the rebel forces' sphere of influence, the group spent just over half a day crossing the area occupied by the imperial army and arrived at the foot of Mount Xiaoyuan.
Ji Yuan then carried the captive of the Third Realm back to the Water God Temple on the mountain top.
He did not resort to the same tactic of forcefully bestowing godhood to gain complete control over the other party.
Firstly, his current strength was insufficient to confer divinity upon a second subordinate god.
Secondly, even if it were possible, he did not wish to waste another precious slot.
The reason for not killing this person on the spot and instead taking the trouble to bring him back was for other purposes.
Not long after, Ji Yuan, using formations, brought the cultivator of the Third Realm to the foot of Mount Xiaoyuan.
This was the source of a small river that connected to the Fuyuan River tens of miles away, and as one of its origins, it had nurtured many water sprites.
Although called a river, its scale was not large; it would be more appropriate to call it a stream.
Upon entering the area, Ji Yuan immediately unleashed his divine abilities, suppressed the cultivator of the Third Realm in his hands, and then patiently set up layers of formations. It was only after more than half a day had passed that he nodded in satisfaction. He then focused his gaze on the cultivator of the Third Realm, who was heavily bound by chains formed by the formations directly above the source of the small river.
With the other party's foundation in water-element cultivation, he could serve as a spiritual stone or crystal. By slowly drawing out his essence through the formations, the water flow in this area could be continuously nurtured. Furthermore, under the operation of the formations, an unending stream of spiritual energy would be injected into his body, restoring all the depleted magical power.
This method, while seemingly inhumane, was devoid of any psychological burden for Ji Yuan when he felt the thick layer of sin emanating from the other party. Who knew how many crimes this person had committed, directly or indirectly harming countless innocent people! Ji Yuan felt he was performing a great service by treating him as an inexhaustible spiritual stone to nurture the source of the river, the foundation for his own deification.
After activating all the formations in the area and confirming their absolute infallibility, he returned to the Water God Temple on the mountain top. As soon as he appeared in the side courtyard behind the main hall, he saw several people waiting for him.
"Rest assured, my main body is not in danger; on the contrary, I have gained significant rewards," he said with a smile to those who were full of worry.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuebai and the others finally breathed a collective sigh of relief, and the suppressed fatigue surged through them. They took their leave one by one and returned to their respective rooms. Bracing themselves against their overwhelming exhaustion, they took a few pills and began to circulate their cultivation techniques. They were both healing their physical injuries and restoring their heavily depleted magical power, as well as meticulously digesting the gains from the past few days.
"Water God..."
A young man stepped forward. He was a close friend of Zhang Qingyang and a constable in the county yamen. This time, it was this individual who led the team to the border with the rebels to escort back over a hundred ordinary people. He seemed to have something to say but hesitated, unsure how to begin.
Ji Yuan glanced at him and immediately understood his thoughts. He then reassured him, "The items are with my main body. If nothing unexpected occurs, they should be sent back to Mount Xiaoyuan in a few days."
Upon hearing this, the young constable, named Tu Yuan, finally let out a slow sigh of relief, lifting a heavy weight from his heart. He cupped his fists in a salute and, without lingering, turned and retreated from the courtyard.
After this person left, Li Buwei and Zhu Tao stepped forward to report the events that had transpired at the foot of the mountain over the past two days. Due to various reasons, nearly ten thousand refugees had now gathered at the foot of Mount Xiaoyuan, and numerous problems had arisen, leaving everyone overwhelmed. The most pressing matters were no longer food and medicine, but sanitation, shelter, and supplies needed for winter. In a short period, diseases had begun to spread on a small scale among these thousands of people. While not severe at present, any further delay might lead to an outbreak in the future.
"Conscript the able-bodied among them to start felling trees and building houses," Ji Yuan said with a sigh. "Since they are unwilling to leave, they should do something for themselves." More than half of the thousands of people were young and strong; otherwise, they would not have been able to travel hundreds of miles and pass through rebel-controlled territory. As long as there was sufficient food, they could be mobilized to build simple houses, at least providing temporary shelter.
After some thought, he took out a jade slip, inscribed a few messages within it, and then instructed Li Buwei to have someone deliver it. Such a large burden of nearly ten thousand people was, for the time being, manageable by them, the cultivators, but would become overwhelming over time. Ji Yuan also did not want to easily let go of this opportunity that had come his way. If managed well, by keeping the thousands of refugees, a small town could develop at the foot of Mount Xiaoyuan, providing a steady stream of incense and wish power in the future.
By the time this transmission jade slip reached the nearest Mingxin Pavilion shop and was then delivered to Liu Ruyan, nearly half a month had passed.
On this day, within the rebel territory, Ji Yuan's main body, deep within a cave, suddenly opened his eyes. A sharp glint flashed through his pupils, and his sword intent flowed abundantly, emitting a sharp Dao charm.
Not long after, the formations in the area were put away. After Ji Yuan had recovered from his injuries and stabilized his cultivation, he quietly left the place. Even though he was in rebel territory and the searching rebels had not dispersed, he appeared remarkably calm, seemingly unconcerned about his trace being discovered. In fact, after breaking through in cultivation and comprehending the Way of the Sword, he had reached the peak of the Spirit Sealing Realm, with one foot already in the Third Realm. Even when compared to the prodigies of the Nine Xuan Sect, Ji Yuan was in no way inferior, and could even rank among the top few. If he encountered an ordinary early Third Realm cultivator now, he could contend with them, even defeat or kill them. However, to reduce trouble and avoid unnecessary risks, after careful consideration, he chose to conceal his whereabouts and avoided any conflict with the rebels.
It was only after more than half a day that Ji Yuan, alone, traveled directly over two hundred miles and returned to the foot of Mount Xiaoyuan. Only a few people knew of his return. On a cleared open space at the foot of the mountain, he produced a vast quantity of supplies and then quietly departed.
That night, the warehouse pre-prepared by the Linfu County yamen was piled high with all sorts of supplies, enough to sustain the entire county for a year or even longer. The remaining supplies were divided: some were kept by Ji Yuan for emergencies, while the rest were handed over to County Magistrate Zhang Qingyang, who was instructed to organize personnel to deliver them to the imperial army on the front lines. Having learned from a previous lesson, Zhang Qingyang specifically sent people to invite five hundred elite soldiers from the army. Coupled with the escort of Ji Yuan, Li Buwei, and others, it could not be said to be foolproof, but to snatch this batch of supplies from them would at least require the presence of one or two Third Realm cultivators. Although the imperial army had been forced to retreat repeatedly, this was due to being caught off guard and the presence of powerful individuals targeting their leadership. In terms of the strength of the soldiers themselves, they were still very powerful.