"Muá?"
Lin Zhao stepped forward, supporting the arm of the Celestial Realm martial artist, saying, "Get up, quickly!"
This ancestor of the Invincible Fist Sect was none other than Muá, who was presumed to have died in the battle at Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. Back then, Muá was struck by a Celestial Realm demon martial artist and sent deep into the ground. His chest was also severely wounded by the opponent's claws. The world believed Muá had fallen, but who would have thought his physical strength and will to survive would be so formidable? Just like Niè, he had survived!
"My lord..."
Muá knelt, refusing to rise. As a dignified man, tears streamed down his face as he sobbed, "I thought I would never see you again. I thought... Snow Domain Heavenly Pond and Heavenly Pond Town were just a fleeting dream for me, Muá. Now that the dream has ended, everyone will never return. I thought... I had lost those most precious memories forever... My lord, I miss everyone so much, I want to go back to the past..."
"Enough!"
Lin Zhao gently patted Muá's shoulder and said, "Get up. What kind of man cries like this? Do you want Niè to laugh at you?"
"Yes, my lord!"
Muá rose, wiped his tears, and looked at Niè behind Lin Zhao, smiling, "Niè, you're alive too..."
"Mm."
Niè smiled and nodded, "Just lost my right arm, but my life is saved."
"It's good that you're alive, it's good that you're alive."
Muá nodded and smiled.
Lin Zhao looked at the wound from Muá's jaw to his chest and couldn't help but frown. The strike from the Celestial Realm great demon back then was indeed ferocious. Muá's survival was like a miracle. He raised his fist and gently pressed against the wound below Muá's throat, asking, "Does it still hurt?"
"A little, when it rains."
Muá chuckled, "But it's fine. I'm a Celestial Realm cultivator now. I can endure this old injury's pain."
"That's good!"
"My lord!"
Muá was still overjoyed, wishing he could hug Lin Zhao. But he felt it was too presumptuous. He glanced at Niè, who shot him a glare, "Be happy, but don't touch me..."
"Ahem!"
Muá felt a bit awkward. Back at the Mountain Peak Villa, although Niè, Luò Yāng, and Muá were the strongest three under Lin Zhao, Niè had always kept her distance from Muá. Sword cultivators disdained martial artists, and besides, she was a woman with a proud heart. And now? Niè's sword intent was incredibly potent, making her at least an eleventh-realm sword immortal. She would likely look down on a coarse man like himself even more.
But it didn't matter. With Lord Lin Zhao back, everything would be alright.
Muá scratched his head and grinned foolishly.
For a moment, the disciples of the Invincible Fist Sect were dumbfounded. Their ancestor, usually so aloof and unsmiling, a peak Celestial Realm martial artist, was now grinning like an idiot. It was utterly abnormal.
...
"My lord!"
After grinning for a while, Muá said, "As long as you give the word, Muá is willing to go through fire and water for you. My Invincible Fist Sect will also pledge our loyalty. Please give us your command directly!"
"I want to rebuild an army belonging to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath. "Are you willing to give up your position as ancestor and lead your disciples back to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond with us?"
"Why not?"
Muá said in a deep voice, "I have waited for this day for a hundred years. With your single word, my lord, even if it means facing a mountain of blades and a sea of fire, I am willing to lead everyone through it!"
"Mm!"
Lin Zhao smiled and nodded.
Xiàng Jì watched with amazement. The identity of this "brother in white" he had met at Snow Domain Heavenly Pond was too extraordinary. What kind of prodigies did he have under him? The strongest eleventh-realm sword immortal in the world was one thing, and now a Celestial Realm martial artist. And it seemed Muá's Celestial Realm was quite stable, belonging to the upper-middle tier. He had hope of breaking through to the Rebirth Realm in his lifetime. What kind of fortune was this?
Xiàng Jì even felt that following Lin Zhao was somewhat beneath him...
"Shall we begin?"
Niè looked at Muá and smiled, "Some things are inconvenient for the lord and me to say. It would be more appropriate for you, the ancestor, to say them personally."
"Mm, I understand!"
Muá clasped his hands in front of Lin Zhao and smiled, "My lord, may I announce it now?"
"Mm."
The next second, Muá leaped into the air and landed on a giant stone tablet outside the mountain gate. Facing the 1000+ disciples of the Invincible Fist Sect, his voice, filled with true qi, boomed, "In fact, the so-called ancestor of the Invincible Fist Sect is truly named Muá. He was one of the ten from the mountain peak who followed Lord Lin Zhao in the battle of Snow Domain Heavenly Pond a hundred years ago. He was a centurion in the Death Squad. I was fortunate to survive and cultivate to the Celestial Realm you see now. Today, my lord has reappeared before me. Muá has achieved his wish and is willing to lead everyone to join Lord Lin Zhao's banner. From today onwards, you are no longer my disciples or grand-disciples, but soldiers under Lord Lin Zhao. You will all follow us back to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond to fight the demons. Those who are afraid can immediately descend the mountain. Those who are not afraid, follow me to kill demons! Are you willing?!"
"We are willing!"
Among them, a group of people led by the sect master knelt first, "We swear to follow the ancestor to the death!"
"Damn it!"
Muá grinned and cursed, "From now on, there is no ancestor. My name is Muá. You can call me Lord Muá. From now on, we will all follow Commander Lin. Is that alright?!"
"Good!"
The disciples, as a whole, knelt on one knee, "We are willing to follow Commander Lin, and die without regret!"
Lin Zhao smiled at everyone and said, "Don't worry, I won't let you die carelessly. Let me introduce you further. This female sword immortal is Niè. She practices left-hand swordsmanship and is said to be the strongest eleventh-realm cultivator in the world. She is my right-hand woman alongside Muá. And this gentleman is Xiàng Jì, a former commander of the Great Shang Dynasty. Lord Xiàng Jì has now joined us and will fight alongside us."
"Greetings, Lord Niè! Greetings, Lord Xiàng Jì!"
The crowd roared.
Niè nodded with a smile. Xiàng Jì felt a bit flustered. It had been too long since so many people had addressed him as Lord Xiàng Jì simultaneously.
...
Not long after, in the Ancestral Hall behind the mountain.
Lin Zhao looked at the three hanging scrolls and couldn't help but smile. He stepped forward, took down the portrait of himself hanging in the center, and then said, "Niè, put away the scrolls of Commander Chu and Old Commander Chen as well. We will have our own true camp from now on, and it's appropriate to hang them up. Commander Chu sacrificed himself for the Great Chen Dynasty, and Old Commander Chen died fighting demons for the realm. Moreover, both of them were my teachers, and we must not forget them."
"Yes, my lord. I understand."
Niè was meticulous in her work. Although she only had one arm, she could use a wisp of sword intent to assist, so she was very gentle and did not damage the two scrolls as she put them away.
"What do we do next?"
Xiàng Jì frowned, "My lord, is the Invincible Fist Sect moving their entire household to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond?"
"Yes."
Niè smiled and said, "Forgive me for being blunt, but the camp at Snow Domain Heavenly Pond is currently too dilapidated. The Invincible Fist Sect has quite a bit of wealth, and their houses are well-built. It would be a waste not to move the large and small items to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond."
"No rush."
Lin Zhao shook his head. "We shouldn't move all these assets to Snow Domain Heavenly Pond for now. After all, the demons could attack at any time. Without absolute certainty of victory, we cannot put all our eggs in one basket. My intention is to have multiple strongholds, like a cunning rabbit with three burrows. These supplies can be transported in batches to the mountains tens of miles south of Snow Domain Heavenly Pond to establish our second and third camps. The real supplies will not be hoarded in Snow Domain Heavenly Pond, which means we can retreat at any time, and of course, we can return at any time."
"Mmm~~~"
Niè chuckled softly. She loved seeing Lin Zhao strategizing like this the most. Some matters were too subtle and profound for her and Muá to consider, only Lin Zhao could think of every aspect. In short, fighting alongside Lin Zhao, one thing was for sure: they would never suffer losses. Even if they had died back then, they had killed countless demons, and in terms of casualties, they had actually profited greatly.
Lin Zhao stood up. "Xiàng Jì, you will stay and guard the mountain gate. Instruct everyone to prepare their luggage and belongings. Niè, Muá, and I will return to the vicinity of Snow Domain Heavenly Pond to select sites for two new camps."
"Yes!"
...
Not long after, Niè's sword was surprisingly unsheathed, acting like a ten-meter-long ferry. Lin Zhao and Muá squatted cautiously on the edge of the flying sword, surveying the mountains tens of miles south of Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. Lin Zhao meticulously examined the terrain of each mountain. The mountainsides needed to have large flat areas for the army to station. The mountain paths at the foot of the mountains had to be flat, and the area from the foot to the mountainside had to be easy to defend and difficult to attack. They had to be near a water source and accessible to cavalry. Only by meeting these conditions could a site be chosen for the camp.
Ultimately, two mountains were chosen and marked on the map as Plum Blossom Mountain and Descending Goose Mountain. The locations of the two mountains formed a perfect triangle with Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. This meant that if the demons succeeded in their attack, they would not necessarily be able to determine the whereabouts of Lin Zhao's army. In the mountains, the demons might not be able to defeat the human army.
They could dig extensive trenches, build numerous fortifications, and give the demons a taste of the 'Heavenly Furnace' tactic to teach them a lesson.
With the locations of the two new camps selected, the task of transporting supplies back and forth and establishing the new camps would fall to Niè, Muá, and Xiàng Jì. Lin Zhao did not need to personally attend to every detail.
Just as all this was being completed, a ringing sound suddenly echoed in his ear. Finally, the event for the main city had arrived—
"Ding!"
System Announcement: Players, please note that the system will refresh the map [Goblin Treasure] within the Heavenly Secret City main map at precisely 20:00 this evening. In the Goblin Treasure map, a total of six resource mines will be refreshed, including one S-grade gem mine, one S-grade oil well, one A-grade gem mine, one A-grade oil well, one B-grade gem mine, and one B-grade oil well. Powerful monsters will guard the mines at that time. Players who defeat the monsters and occupy the mines will receive substantial guild resource rewards, which can be exchanged for universal currency. Immense wealth lies before you, so strive hard!
...
It's here.
The beginning of the Heavenly Secret City guild war!
Lin Zhao's expression turned serious. The establishment of the camp at Snow Domain Heavenly Pond had come to a temporary end. It was time for him to return to the player faction and fight for the bright future of the Crimson Moon Knights!