Chapter 171: Urgency

"Almost there!"

"Give me a little more time, maybe ten or so more visits to the secret room, and I’ll be close to solidifying that second petal. Then the Hundred Battle True Intent will advance to twenty percent."

Shen Changqing examined the changes within his Sea of Consciousness, then glanced at the values on his status panel, gaining a general understanding.

Having a status panel…

Sometimes, aside from using slaughter points to improve, being able to accurately see the changes in martial arts is also a good thing.

After all,

being able to see the progress in martial arts prevents cultivation from becoming too monotonous.

Six days of bitter cultivation…

Not only allowed him to make significant progress in his Martial Arts True Intent, but also immersed his physical body in a dense spiritual aura, tempering both his Qi and blood, and true Qi.

Shen Changqing estimated in his mind.

The impurities in his Qi and blood had probably lessened somewhat.

With fewer impurities,

the intensity would naturally increase.

However, the increase wasn’t significant, maybe only a tenth of a percent or so.

Still,

speaking honestly, to cleanse impurities and purify Qi and blood by a tenth of a percent in six days of seclusion was quite remarkable.

As for true Qi,

the total amount didn’t increase at all; in fact, it decreased slightly.

However,

Shen Changqing could clearly sense that while the quantity of true Qi diminished, its quality had greatly improved.

Strictly speaking,

his strength hadn’t decreased; it had increased.

"What a pity that my merit points are gone. Otherwise, if I could keep cultivating here, my progress in True Intent would advance by leaps and bounds!"

Shen Changqing lamented inwardly before stepping out.

Outside the Martial Pavilion,

Zhong Ning wasn’t lounging as usual. Instead, he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, the cynical smile on his face replaced by a solemn expression.

"Elder Zhong."

Leaving the Martial Pavilion, Shen Changqing offered his greetings.

Zhong Ning gave a slight nod, not answering, seemingly lost in thought.

Seeing this,

he couldn’t help but inquire.

"Has something happened to cause Elder Zhong to look so troubled?"

"What could possibly happen to me? It’s just that Great Qin is in trouble."

"Great Qin is in trouble?"

Shen Changqing raised an eyebrow, his confusion deepening.

What could possibly be happening to Great Qin?

His first thought went to Dahuang Prefecture.

But while the Barbarians were formidable, they could only threaten Dahuang Prefecture. It was almost impossible for them to threaten the entirety of Great Qin.

If it wasn’t the Barbarians, then who could be causing trouble for Great Qin?

Could it be…

the Eternal Life Alliance!

Zhong Ning’s words stirred many thoughts in Shen Changqing’s mind.

Logically speaking,

these matters weren’t something he should be concerning himself with.

However,

he was now a grasshopper tied to the same rope as the Demon Suppression Division, and the Demon Suppression Division was inextricably linked to Great Qin.

Now that Great Qin was facing problems, it was impossible for him to completely ignore them.

Hearing this,

Zhong Ning shook his head, a look of lament on his face. "Great Zhou recently launched a sudden attack on Luo’an Prefecture, causing several cities to fall and heavy casualties among the troops. Now, the Barbarians are wreaking havoc in Dahuang Prefecture. Attacked from both sides, Great Qin is in trouble."

"Great Zhou launched a sudden attack on Luo’an Prefecture!"

Shen Changqing’s mind was shaken, and he stood there stunned.

Great Zhou!

It was a faction no weaker than Great Qin, another great nation in this world.

But as far as he knew, Great Qin and Great Zhou had always maintained a "not interfere with each other" relationship.

Now, Great Zhou was taking the opportunity to attack Luo’an Prefecture. It was absolutely impossible that there wasn’t some trick involved.

Immediately,

Shen Changqing turned his attention to the Barbarians.

"Great Zhou’s attack on Luo’an Prefecture… could it be in league with the Barbarians?"

"Judging from the current situation, that seems to be the case."

Zhong Ning sighed.

"If it were just Great Zhou and the Barbarians working together, that would be manageable, but the biggest trouble would be if Great Zhou also had some connection to the Eternal Life Alliance."

Currently, the Barbarians were allied with the Eternal Life Alliance, but whether Great Zhou had joined forces with the Eternal Life Alliance was still a question.

If not,

then the three forces wouldn’t be completely on the same side, leaving room for maneuver.

But if the three truly joined forces, then Great Qin would be attacked from both sides.

At that time,

even if Great Qin’s power was formidable, whether it could break the deadlock was a problem.

Zhong Ning’s words

made Shen Changqing understand.

The other party’s worries weren’t unreasonable, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

Neither the Barbarians nor Great Zhou were opponents he could deal with at the moment.

Don’t think that because he could slay Mierba amidst tens of thousands of troops…

But honestly,

if he hadn’t retreated at the time, he might have been exhausted to death by those tens of thousands of troops.

Therefore,

although Body Forging Realm entry was strong, it wasn’t strong enough to ignore numbers. Only those at the peak of the mental system, as Di Qiu said, could barely manage to be a one-man army.

However, even then, they wouldn’t be invincible.

After all, Seclusion Pavilion had several individuals at the peak of the mental system, as well as powerful Town Guardians.

If that realm were truly powerful enough to be invincible, they would have been directly dispatched to wipe out the Barbarians and Great Zhou, instead of wasting time fighting back and forth.

Therefore,

in Shen Changqing’s view, although the experts of that realm were strong, they weren’t truly invincible.

"If both systems reach their peak, or even break their limits, only then will one truly fear nothing!"

Such thoughts emerged in his mind.

However,

Shen Changqing was just thinking about it casually. How easy was it to reach the peak of both systems?

Don’t even mention that the mental system couldn’t be improved with slaughter points; even if it could, the slaughter points required wouldn’t be so easy to obtain.

"Let’s not talk about this. Anyway, you don’t need to worry about so much right now. Before long, the Imperial Court should be issuing orders to the Demon Suppression Division. It’s time for this old bone to move a little."

Zhong Ning waved his hand, indicating that he didn’t want to say more on the matter.

His words made Shen Changqing’s expression freeze.

"The Imperial Court is issuing orders?"

"Nonsense. Great Zhou is attacking Luo’an Prefecture, how could the Imperial Court turn a blind eye? When the army marches, there must be strong experts to accompany them. Right now, ninety percent of the capital’s experts are in the Demon Suppression Division.

But most of the Demon Suppression Division’s powerful Demon Slaying Envoys are currently outside on missions, suppressing evil in various places.

Only Seclusion Pavilion still has some people left.

Although we can usually stay here in peace and cultivate diligently, how can we refuse when the Imperial Court needs us?"

Zhong Ning scoffed.

He had been preparing for the campaign ever since the news of Great Zhou’s attack on Luo’an Prefecture spread.

In any case,

the army must be accompanied by strong experts.

Otherwise,

if enemy forces sent top experts, it would be a one-sided massacre. Decapitation strikes are applicable everywhere.

More importantly,

having strong experts stationed in the army can also provide a significant advantage during battle.

Then,

Zhong Ning said, "There will be an exchange meeting at the Martial Pavilion tomorrow. Would you like to attend? Some Grandmasters will share their cultivation experiences, which might be useful to you."

"Is it mandatory to attend?"

"Attendance at the exchange meeting isn’t mandatory. You can attend if you want, and not attend if you don’t want to. But it would be good for you to go if you have time. After all, meeting other Grandmasters is a good way to get acquainted.

If there are any problems in the future, it will be easier for everyone to communicate."

Zhong Ning said casually.

Hearing this,

Shen Changqing nodded. "I’ll go if I have time. Where will the exchange meeting be held?"

"The third level of the Martial Pavilion."

"Alright."

After leaving the Martial Pavilion, Shen Changqing returned to his residence.

Six days

in the secret room had passed in the blink of an eye.

Originally, he planned to cultivate in the Martial Pavilion for a while, waiting for a year or so until his True Intent broke through to the second stage, before going on another mission, finding evil to slay, and plundering some slaughter points.

But now…

Shen Changqing felt a sense of urgency.

For no other reason

than the changes in Luo’an Prefecture.

"Great Qin’s national strength has been declining in recent years, which is inextricably linked to the Emperor’s old age. In addition, evil is rampant throughout Great Qin, constantly depleting Great Qin’s vital forces.

Many of the Demon Suppression Division’s experts have died at the hands of evil.

Now that Great Zhou and the Barbarians have joined forces to attack Great Qin, and there’s the threat of the Eternal Life Alliance, the Imperial Court is in a precarious state. If things aren’t handled properly, the country may fall and the family perish."

"Moreover—"

"The nations here aren’t as simple as just Great Qin and Great Zhou."

Shen Changqing’s expression was solemn.

Although Great Qin was strong, it was only one of many strong nations.

The combined strength of Great Zhou and the Barbarians was definitely not weak, and it was questionable whether Great Qin could cope.

If other nations were to interfere, Great Qin might fall apart in an instant.

"Turbulent times are coming!"

"It would be best if Great Qin could stabilize the situation. If it can’t, then Great Qin’s territory will disintegrate, and the Demon Suppression Division will be unable to protect itself!"

If the Demon Suppression Division was gone, he would lose his biggest backer.

At that time,

Shen Changqing would only be able to rely on himself.

He had successively eliminated two Eternal Life Alliance strongholds, killed many Eternal Life Alliance evil beings, and slain a Barbarian General. It was easy to understand that he was definitely on the Eternal Life Alliance and Barbarian must-kill list.

With the Demon Suppression Division as his backing, there were no problems for the time being.

But if he lost the protection of the Demon Suppression Division, then the problem would be serious.

Once it reached that point,

only absolute strength could protect him.

Body Forging Realm entry was considered a late-stage Grandmaster expert in the Jianghu world, and his strength was naturally not weak.

But when placed before the Barbarians and evil,

a late-stage Grandmaster martial artist was completely inadequate.

After all,

not to mention in front of evil, even in the Demon Suppression Division, a late-stage Grandmaster wasn’t considered a top expert. He could only barely be considered presentable.

The difference

was self-evident.
End of Chapter