Strange mountains and rivers

Returning from Bianjing to Yijun, a journey of more than two thousand miles, all the way to the southeast, the two of them were in a good mood, even a little nervous and excited.

Both of them had not been home for many years, and Chen Huaisheng even had a vague impression of his hometown in Yuanbaozhai.

Except for Brother Jiu and Xiao Qi who could still stay in his memory, there were not many things left in Yuanbaozhai in his memory.

People like Chen Chongyuan and his son are no longer in Chen Huaisheng's sight. Things are happening in Yuanbaozhai like a snail's horn, and they are getting further and further away from him.

But now that I have to return to my hometown again, I seem to have to face these troubles again.

Liao County, and even the entire Yiyang Prefecture, have been included in the Zijin Sect's sphere of influence.

However, Lingyun Sect still has some potential power here, and more or less every year, some disciples still go back thousands of miles to Wolong Ridge or Chongyang Mountain to get started, just like there are disciples from Langling who come to Chonghua.

I have the impression that in the past few years, no one in Yuanbaozhai met the recruitment standards of the Chonghua Sect, or perhaps the Taoists in Yuanbaozhai did not choose the Chonghua Sect, but chose other sects such as the Zijin Sect.

The closer they got to Liao County, the more excited Chen Huaisheng and Xuan Chimei became. Chen Huaisheng was even better, but Xuan Chimei was extremely excited and talked a lot.

"My father and mother are almost forty. My father is fine, but my mother's lifespan may be less than ten years. I originally thought that I could choose some spiritual materials to supplement her, but the mortal body cannot bear the spiritual materials... …”

After being excited, Xuan Chimei became a little sad for a while, and her voice became lower.

"This is the way of heaven, and no one can change it." Chen Huaisheng explained: "The only thing I can do is to let my aunt live a happy and satisfying life for the rest of her life, without any worries or regrets. Don't you have to think about your brother? Hmm. , it seems to be from your aunt, so what do you plan to do?"

Chen Huaisheng's casual question also made Xuan Chimei hesitate, "I haven't thought about it. It depends on what my father and aunt want. If they are willing, of course I can bring my brother to the Chonghua sect, but if You said that the Zijin Sect has established a firm foothold in Liao County, but I'm afraid my father and aunt may not..."

Chen Huaisheng smiled and said, "Then ask your father and others for their opinions. The Chonghua sect may not have a good reputation in Da Zhao now, but it can be said to be worthy of discussion in Hebei. Please be honest with you My father said that it was up to him to make the decision, and there was no need to force anything.”

"I don't know what is going on with the Zijin Sect here in Yiyang Mansion. I really can't understand how the Taoist palace and the official family would tolerate the Nanchu sect entering our great Zhao Dynasty. It's simply unimaginable." Xuan Chimei sighed, "This is luring the wolf into the house. , it will be difficult to drive out this evil wolf in the future.”

Chen Huaisheng smiled and did not respond to this question.

The transactions between Nanchu and Da Zhao have their own ulterior motives. The Emperor's Banner of Luck has gained and lost over time. It's hard to say yet. Nan Chu has been plotting against Yi County for a long time, but Da Zhao has been plotting against the land of Hebei. Having coveted it for a long time, everyone got what they wanted.

But Chen Huaisheng believes that in the final analysis, the gains and losses of land and people still depend on strength. If the Zijin Sect and even the Southern Chu behind it can remain strong, then it is reasonable and reasonable for Yiyang Mansion to really fall into the hands of Nanchu. But if the Zijin Sect is frustrated in going north, the Southern Chu will Chu himself is sluggish, and I am afraid that it will be a matter of time before the Zijin Sect withdraws.

Just like Zhao's plot against Hebei, Hebei is now an unowned land, but not just anyone can come in and establish a foothold. Didn't you see Lingyun Sect disappear in smoke?

The Chonghua Sect also seized the opportunity and adopted a reasonable strategy to incorporate the Ding Family and Lingyun Sect into their current situation.

But judging from the current situation, I am afraid that the tide of monster beasts in Hebei this winter will definitely be worse than that in Da Zhao. This is a huge challenge.

Chen Huaisheng even suspected that these large sects and sects had already taken precautions in this regard, so so far none of the top ten large sects, or even the top twenty large sects and families were willing to set foot in Hebei.

That is to say, the Chonghua sect will venture in when they have no other choice, but the real test may come in the next few years starting from this year. Only by surviving this test, I am afraid that the Chonghua sect can truly gain a foothold in Hebei. .

The same is true for Yijun.

Li Yudu said that the appearance of third-level monsters in Yiyang Mansion is not a normal phenomenon, and the Zijin Sect will also experience severe tests and challenges.

This kind of test will even fall on Langling and Huozhou Second Mansion in Yinan, which are the base areas of Baishimen.

The three Yinan Prefectures went south deep between Nanchu and Wuyue. If Yiyang Prefecture had such a sign, it would be difficult for Langling and Huozhou to escape.

Chen Huaisheng went back this time because he wanted to observe and understand. There were no strange signs in Langling and Huozhou.

When they arrived at Dingling in Yiyang Prefecture, Chen Huaisheng and Xuan Chimei rested for the night and prepared to rush to their hometown in Liao County the next day.

Looking at the purple triangular flags inlaid with gold that can be seen everywhere on the street, Chen Huaisheng also knew that this should be the sect logo of the Zijin Sect.

It can be seen that Dingling City is still much more depressed than when Lingyun Sect was there. Although there are many purple gold flags hanging, in Chen Huaisheng's view, this proves that the Zijin Sect has not been able to completely control the entire Yi. Only Yang Mansion would reveal its existence in such a way.

The place Chen Huaisheng chose to stay was the Ning'an Inn. He had the impression that this should be the property of the Lu family in Dingling.

As one of the three great families in Dingling, the Lu family had a decent relationship with the Lingyun Sect when they were in Yiyang Mansion. But now judging from the attitude of the waiter at the inn, the Lu family in Dingling should be resistant to the Zijin Sect. , even opposed.

"Second Master Lu, we haven't seen you for a long time. How is business?" Chen Huaisheng leaned against the counter and casually greeted the shopkeeper at the counter. He picked up a plate of soybeans on the counter and threw it into his mouth.

"It's okay, it's okay, you are..." Lu Guiquan hesitated and responded with a smile on his face. The young man in front of him turned out to be a foundation-building monk? ! Do you still recognize yourself? But why don’t I have the slightest impression?

Although the Lu family is known as one of the three great families in Dingling, there are only three foundation-building monks in the entire Lu family, and they are all over a hundred years old. Lu Xinshu, the most powerful young disciple, is only at the eighth level of Qi refining, but this person seems to be stronger than Lu. The new book is ten or twenty years younger, so why is it just foundation building?

Whose talent is this?

It's obviously not the Zijin Sect. He recognizes most of the people in the Zijin Sect, and it's impossible to stay here. Are they from Baishimen?

It's not like that. People from Baishimen would not enter Dingling City so arrogantly and stay here.

Then it can only be a casual cultivator, but I have no impression of it at all. Maybe it is a regular customer who stayed at the hotel many years ago?

"My surname is Chen, and I come from Guzhen, Liao County. Maybe Mr. Lu has no memory of him. I stayed here for two nights seven years ago and I have a deep impression of Mr. Lu." Chen Huaisheng said, half truthfully and half falsely: "In a few years It’s gone by in a flash, I’m going back to my hometown, so I’ll stay here for one night.”

From Polygonum County? Lu Guiquan tried hard to recall the talents that Liao County had produced in the past few years. It seemed that he had not heard of any talents that Liao County had produced in the past few years. Wait, seven years ago?

Could it be that he is a disciple of Lingyun Sect? But wasn't the Lingyun Sect destroyed in Hebei and annexed by the Chonghua Sect?

Those who were annexed might be Chonghua disciples. Lu Guiquan asked tentatively: "Your Majesty, you are Chonghua..."

Chen Huaisheng smiled and nodded: "Well, it's okay if Mr. Lu knows."

Lu Guiquan immediately looked around and lowered his voice: "Don't worry, this is the Lu family's territory. No matter who it is, they still have to give the Lu family some slack..."

…

When the head of the Lu family, Lu Guilun, quietly came to the inn, Chen Huaisheng and Xuan Chimei had just sent away the contact person arranged by the Chonghua faction in Yiyang Mansion.

It took half an hour to get an overview of the situation from the contact person, and also to meet the person in charge of the Lu family here.

Chen Huaisheng actually didn't want to make the problem so complicated, but as the top twenty-four foundation-building monks in the Chonghua Sect, if he came back, he wouldn't even meet the sect's contact person here. , and don’t understand the situation, which is unjustifiable.

Li Yu specifically told him before leaving that no matter whether there was a need or not, he should fulfill his responsibilities as a disciple of Chonghua, especially when he was now included in the core circle of the sect. .

I learned a lot from the contact person.

In fact, the Chonghua faction doesn't have many plans for Yinan in the near future, or in a short period of time.

After taking Chongyang Mountain, the sect seemed to put more thoughts on Jijun.

After all, with the blessed land of Chongyang Mountain in hand, there is no reason to put too much energy on Langling or Yiyang Mansion, which requires facing the Baishimen and Zijin Sect.

In Shanyang Mansion, taking advantage of the confrontation between the Xinghuo Sect and Qingguang Dao, the Chonghua Sect could have free time to accumulate strength.

But this does not mean that the Chonghua Sect has completely let go of Yinan. Half of the disciples of the sect are from Yinan. Even though the number of disciples from Yanzhou and Jijun is increasing, Yinan is still The object of concern to countless people.

As Chen Huaisheng guessed, the Zijin Sect has been in Yiyang Mansion for several years, but the situation is not good.

Of course, relying on their strength and the agreement with Da Zhao, they did gain a foothold in Yiyang Mansion.

However, the pressure from Baishimen from the west is increasing day by day. It is obvious that Baishimen, relying on its foundation in Yijun, can digest Langling much faster than the Zijin Sect in Yiyang Mansion.

At the same time, many small and medium-sized aristocratic families in Yiyang Mansion, after receiving support from Baishimen, adopted a shady attitude to resist, which also aroused the anger of the Zijin Sect.

In the past few years, three small families were exterminated, which was considered a warning to the monkeys, but it failed to scare these small and medium-sized aristocratic families.

Baishimen even publicly threatened that they would never allow the Zijin Sect to wreak havoc in the territory of Zhao in this way. Any sect entering Zhao should abide by the rules of Zhao.