Chapter 444 Shifting Tides

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

Upon receiving the urgent summons, Liu Ruyan swiftly gathered over thirty individuals renowned for their exceptional talents across various professions.

Under the escort of Mingxin Xuan's cultivators, these chosen ones were brought to the Water God Temple of Xiaoyuan Mountain. There, they were placed under Zhu Tao's unified command to commence the resettlement of the refugees gathered at the foot of the mountain.

In a mere few days, a semblance of order began to emerge among the nearly ten thousand refugees, with everything proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Concurrently, Ji Yuan received intelligence gathered by Mingxin Xuan. Led by powerful sects such as the Jiuxuan Sect, the imperial forces of Feiyun Prefecture had finally managed to halt the rebel army's territorial expansion.

However, due to the presence of the Wangshen Lou and the factions and sects allied with it, the imperial side found it difficult to reclaim lost territories.

While the open warfare had temporarily ceased, the skirmishes between cultivators intensified.

Often, cultivators from both sides would, at great personal risk, infiltrate enemy territory to carry out assassinations, ambushes, and other covert operations, employing an endless array of tactics.

After more than a month of standoff, the rebel and imperial armies stationed around Linfu County suddenly withdrew.

Currently, the imperial forces defending Linfu County numbered only fifteen hundred, all ordinary infantry with not a single cavalryman left behind.

The rebel army was even more decisive, leaving behind a few hundred men and two minor sects allied with Wangshen Lou in Shilong County, before diverting all their forces towards the Prefectural Governor's mansion.

"The main forces of Wangshen Lou and the rebel army have now been redeployed towards the direction bordering Tianhe Prefecture."

On this day, County Magistrate Zhang Qingyang paid a visit to the Water God Temple of Xiaoyuan Mountain.

In the side courtyard, he pointed to a map on a stone table and stated, "It's obvious they know that if they don't abandon this piece of land, they will eventually be trapped between the imperial court and the Jiuxuan Sect."

By heading east towards the border of Tianhe Prefecture, they could avoid such a perilous situation.

It was even rumored that the rebel forces in Tianhe Prefecture were also marching towards the border between the two prefectures. However, for these two forces to merge, they would still need to breach several key strongholds along the border.

"You intend to seize this opportunity to take down Shilong County, which is still under rebel control?"

Ji Yuan, appearing in his divine avatar form, frowned slightly.

With just a few words, he had already grasped the other party's intentions. Moreover, Zhang Qingyang had brought several imperial generals with him on this visit.

"The current situation is very clear. The forces left behind in these territories are merely pawns used by Wangshen Lou and the rebels to alleviate pressure," one of the generals stated.

The soldiers and sects left behind were either rabble recruited by the rebels after their uprising or simply ordinary minor sects.

Even for Wangshen Lou, the annihilation of these forces by the imperial side would not cause them any heartache, nor would it affect their own strength in the slightest.

On the contrary, it could alleviate some pressure, and if it could inflict some losses on the imperial side, it would naturally be a very desirable outcome.

"The rebel army has abandoned the territories they occupied and is instead pushing towards the border adjoining Tianhe Prefecture," the middle-aged general with a stern face said. "And the remaining areas here represent battle merits for us!"

For instance, Shilong County, located three to four hundred li away, and its surrounding towns and villages, had a total rebel force of less than two thousand.

The two minor sects tasked with defending this area had at most a few cultivators in the second realm, posing no significant threat.

Most importantly, the Jiuxuan Sect, other powerful forces and sects, and the main imperial army were closely pursuing the rebels, on one hand to slow them down, and on the other to find opportunities.

This undoubtedly presented a rare chance for them. Capturing Shilong County and its surrounding hundreds of li would be considered a significant achievement.

Even integrating the forces of two counties, combined with other local powers and the standing imperial army, it was not impossible to further expand their successes.

Ji Yuan was naturally aware of all these implications and clearly understood the intentions of the men before him.

However, to be honest, he was not particularly interested in the matter. The refugees at the foot of Xiaoyuan Mountain alone were already giving him a considerable headache.

Even with the dedicated assistance of the esteemed professionals invited by Mingxin Xuan to handle the myriad of tasks, it would still take a month or two to sort everything out completely.

Furthermore, if he were to get involved, his divine avatar would likely have to leave Xiaoyuan Mountain. Although he was confident in his cultivation, the absence of the mountain's amplified power would still be a significant hidden danger.

As for the merits of war, while they sounded rather appealing, they held little attraction for him.

"The territories occupied by the rebel army have had their mountain and river deities either defect or have their golden bodies shattered and souls erased," Zhang Qingyang suddenly said, speaking with subtle intent. "Let's not talk about other places, but within a radius of several hundred li around Shilong County, there are no longer any deities presiding."

Even if there were, they would be deities who had betrayed the imperial court, and upon reclaiming the lost territories, their golden bodies would inevitably be shattered, and all traces of them in heaven and earth would be obliterated.

At these words, Ji Yuan's heart stirred, and he instantly understood the meaning behind the statement.

A county town and its surrounding hundreds of li, with no deity to accept the incense offerings and prayers for a prolonged period, would naturally fall under his purview if he agreed to help.

"If the lost territories are successfully recovered, we will forever remember the Water God's contributions. The people of Shilong County will also be willing to establish three to four temples, where they will often come to offer incense," Zhang Qingyang said with a smile.

Following that, the general beside him chimed in, "Currently, there are five deities remaining in the vicinity of Shilong County. The youngest has been a deity for at least two hundred years, and their golden bodies have accumulated immense incense offerings."

The implication was that they were willing to cede the golden bodies of these five deities.

The golden body of a deity was undoubtedly far more precious than most spiritual items. It could be used for alchemy, to temper magical artifacts, or even as the core of a great formation.

Especially for deities, it was a potent tonic that could enhance their cultivation, aid in comprehending the great principles of heaven and earth, and, at critical moments, be used to rapidly replenish excessively depleted divine power.

Ji Yuan sighed. Without a doubt, he was tempted. The golden bodies of five deities were enough to help him advance his cultivation further, saving decades or even a century of arduous accumulation.

Otherwise, although the Jiuyuan Chongshui Scripture and the Jiulian Jiuyuan Chongshui Secret Art were powerful and had granted him a total divine power several times that of his peers, it was precisely because of this that each breakthrough to the next realm required not only matching insights but also accumulating several times the divine power.