World of Cultivation - Volume 04 - Zuo Mo’s Counterattack

by Fang Xiang

  “There are thirteen different powers in our surroundings. The biggest has over five hundred xiuzhe, the smallest has eighty xiuzhe. Oh, on average, each faction has about two hundred people. Thirteen factions, how many would that be?” Gongsun Cha tilted his head as he asked.

  The subordinate swallowed, “About two thousand and six hundred people.”

  The faces of the people changed slightly. In total, they had slightly more than three hundred people. If they were to attack more than two thousand and six hundred people, the difference in numbers was really too large.

  “Just two thousand.” A slightly disappointed expression came onto Gongsun Cha’s face.

  Everyone’s heart jumped simultaneously as they hurriedly urged.

  “It’s more than enough, more than enough. Head, we should fight one at a time.”

  “Yes yes! An empire isn’t built in a day.”

  … …

  They feared that Gongsun Cha would be crazy and increase the number of targets. It was very likely that something like that could happen.

  Gongsun Cha showed a disappointed expression. “Alright, even though it is slightly less, but we shall first eat them.”

  “Head is wise!” The subordinates said together.

  Gongsun Cha smiled as though he enjoyed the respect of all the people.

  “Head, we’ve taken so many people out, the safety of the camp is … …”

  “We don’t have to worry about that. It’s enough to have two platoons standing guard. That woman is very strong,” Gongsun Cha said carelessly.

  Everyone finally recalled that Boss had a female xiu of immeasurable power that followed him. Then they recalled the three golden armor guards that never showed their faces, and instantly stopped talking.

  “Oh, we will return to the camp in a month.”

  The faint tone made everyone’s hearts shake as it entered their ears.

  All of the xiuzhe forcefully stood up from the body of the sword. Floating midair, they solemnly accepted the order. “Yes!”

  ———

  Batches of blue-gold bricks were transported next to the foundation. They piled up into little mountains. Yuan Jiang glanced over and couldn’t stop himself from swallowing. He urged weakly, “Boss, we should call some more people over.”

  Zuo Mo ignored him and picked up two blue gold-bricks. The thick bricks seemed to weigh nothing in his hands.

  “What do I do?”

  Seeing the situation, Yuan Jiang could only helplessly inform, “Gold soup needs to be poured between two blue-gold bricks, and then spells are used to reinforce them. During the entire process, you have to notice to not damage the formations already on the blue-gold bricks. The root of the wall needs to be set up with earth element formations to connect them to the earth veins, so they can root themselves in the earth and become hard to shake. After the city walls are completed, bigger formations have to be drawn onto the surface of the outside walls.”

  Yuan Jiang had already prepared and handed Zuo Mo a jade scroll. There were all kinds of detailed explanations in it, like the recipe for the gold soup. Gold soup was a substance that was created by mixing all kinds of gold element materials together.

  After he finished reading the entire scroll, Zuo Mo suddenly asked, “Can’t I just melt the two blue-gold bricks together?”

  “Melt them together?” Yuan Jiang was dumbstruck, “This … … how to melt?”

  Zuo Mo himself was not so confident about the idea he just had and decided to try. He put the two blue-gold bricks together, and then he summoned the Golden Crow Fire. After some thought, the spell on his hands changed, and the Golden Crow Fire seemed to be pulled in four directions by an invisible force.

  Yuan Jiang’s eyes were wide as he stared at the changes in Zuo Mo’s Golden Crow Fire.

  The Golden Crow Fire gradually spread out and became increasingly thin until it was as thin as paper, an extremely thin golden piece of fire paper. At this point, the fire paper did not change anymore, but slowly flew towards the two blue-gold bricks that were stacked together.

  The fire paper paused in front of the blue-gold brick and then burrowed into the gap between the two blue-gold bricks.

  The fire paper quickly spread out flat between the two pieces of blue-gold bricks. A short while later, the brick surfaces facing the gap started to melt at the same time. There were no other signs of melting in the other parts of the brick.

  Zuo Mo’s expression was serious. His consciousness was spread to its limits.

  Seeing that it was almost enough, the fire paper suddenly flew out between the two blue-gold bricks. The two blue-gold bricks instantly stuck together. Zuo Mo didn’t dare to pause, and sent out five spells according to the description on the jade scroll.

  The lights from the five spells accurately hit the merge point between the two blue-gold bricks.

  When the last spell entered the two pieces of blue-gold bricks, what appeared in front of everyone was a single piece of blue-gold brick! It appeared to be one body, the surface as bright and smooth as a mirror without any gap.

  Yuan Jiang was so shocked he couldn’t speak. It wasn’t just him. All the other forging xiu that were watching were left dumbstruck when they saw Zuo Mo’s skill with controlling fire.

  Zuo Mo released a long breath. Good, good, he didn’t embarrass himself too much.

  He felt slightly proud. Pointing at the big blue-gold brick that had just been forged, he said, “Go try and see what the effect is.”

  Yuan Jiang was startled out of his daze and hurriedly arranged for an assessment of the new blue-gold brick. After a while, he ran back with an excited expression. “Boss, Boss! Strong! It really is too strong!”

  Zuo Mo wanted to know the results. Hearing Yuan Jiang filled with meaningless words, he couldn’t control himself. “Tell me the result!”

  There was still some hint of disbelief in Yuan Jiang’s eyes. “This is the strongest brick that this subordinate has ever seen! Definitely the strongest! We did a comparison with the best gold soup. Boss’s fire paper method was about two times stronger than reinforcing with the gold soup. We also found when there is too much outside force, the entire blue-gold brick would turn to powder, but before that, it never shows a crack. The ones made with the gold soup will crack at the mortar joints of the two blue-gold bricks if the outside force is large enough.”

  Hearing Yuan Jiang blab on, Zuo Mo’s head felt dizzy. He could only ask, “So my method is better?”

  “Better! Much much better!” Yuan Jiang was so excited he couldn’t control himself. The increase in strength that Boss’ method would provide to the city walls was greater than any method he knew. The other two people were also very excited.

  Zuo Mo was very smug inside, and he did not feel much excitement. However, it was not hard for him to understand why Yuan Jiang and the other’s were excited. If they didn’t like it, who would study something as obscure as city construction? When a breakthrough development happened in an area a person liked, no one would be able to keep their composure.

  “Oh, you guys can study the remaining. I’m going to start the work.”

  Zuo Mo didn’t plan on wasting time. Time was very expensive.

  The ling power spat out of his hand and coiled around twenty blue-gold bricks like a ling snake. He directly put them on his shoulder.

  He felt his shoulders suddenly weigh down, his feet sinking into the earth.

  It was really heavy!

  These blue-gold bricks were all forged from large slabs of bluestone. Even though the volume had shrunk, the weight had not lessened. If it was any other person, they would have been pounded into paste when the twenty pieces were put on their shoulders.

  Zuo Mo steadied his body and released a breath. Pulling his leg out of the mud, he started to charge towards the foundation.

  Bam bam bam!

  Each time Zuo Mo’s step landed, the earth would shake. Everyone in the surroundings inhaled in shock.

  Ther
e were two Dhyana xiu in the two platoons who had stayed behind. Seeing this inhuman feat, they were very embarrassed!

  Which motherf***er said that Boss was a sword xiu … …

  * * *

  Translator Ramblings: WanderingGummiOfDoom pointed out that the wall might actually be weaker this way since it turns to powder rather than cracking. Any opinions?

  I find deadlines a funny thing. If there is a time limit in a story, it is usually never gone over. Something happens so that time never runs out. Zuo Mo has always been able to deliver by the deadline … … like in his match against Luo Li. In this case, Ma Fan and the others acted so that He Xiang was able to remain alive rather than be killed by the Clear Sky Old Forefather. I know there is no sense of urgency on Zuo Mo’s behalf right now but the yao army is just a jie river away and he did do another Stars in Daytime.

  Chapter 253: Golden Crow Walls

  The blue-gold bricks were neatly stacked together.

  The flying fire paper spread out and rolled, sometimes as straight as a knife as it passed through the gaps between the blue-gold bricks. Zuo Mo’s expression was serious, a faint layer of light in his eyes.

  The fire paper danced faster and left behind beautiful golden trails in the air. His ling eyes and consciousness were stretched to their limits. No flow of ling power in the surroundings could escape Zuo Mo’s perception.

  His hands were like flowers blooming. Zuo Mo’s well-practiced finger motions were completely used. His half-raised hands were always in the middle of countless afterimages that flickered in and out.

  Many xiuzhe couldn’t help but put down what they were doing to come watch. Occasionally, gasps would sound out from among the crowd. Everyone was intoxicated. These xiuzhe were mostly non-combat production xiuzhe. They were one of the classes that emphasized finger motions the most. Zuo Mo’s precise ling power control did not waste one drop of energy. In their eyes, he was comparable to the most classic examples.

  This was an experience to be enjoyed.

  If Zuo Mo moving the blue-gold bricks previously had been the most basic and bare example of strength, then the grand finger motions and the amazing ling power control now represented the highest levels of control and technique.

  It was the first time Zuo Mo had tried using his consciousness and Ling Eye at the same time. After a very short amount of time, he felt the benefits. The world in his eyes had never been so lively and dimensional in his eyes. His consciousness could detect every detail of the objects in front of him, his ling eyes could detect every change in the ling power. He was almost able to “see” the patterns behind the walls. With a glance, he would know everything in his field of vision.

  This also caused his efficiency to skyrocket, and lead to the scene occurring right now.

  Yuan Jiang had lost all power of speech. What was happening before his eyes surpassed the limits of his imagination. With a speed visible to the naked eyes, the blue-gold brick walls grew upwards. This kind of speed was outside of his knowledge. Even more, this was all done by a single person.

  This world was too insane!

  The last thread of his rationality caused him to look at the remaining blue-gold bricks. He instantly shook and his soul came back into his body. Of the mountain of blue-gold bricks that had been piled up before, there were not even one hundred pieces left. He thought of his role as the supervisor and ordered people to transport blue-gold bricks.

  Other people did not have Zuo Mo’s physical strength, and could only use talismans. Instantly, all the talismans were put to use. Flying swords, ling hoes, jade scepters etc. all turned to a long line. Several bricks hung below each talisman. These bricks were way too heavy.

  After a few round trips, the blue-gold bricks once again piled into a mountain. Yuan Jiang released a breath inside, and his expression relaxed.

  Just as Yuan Jiang’s expression eased, Ji Wei and Sun Bao’s expressions became nervous. The two of them had been entranced in Boss’ grand performance had suddenly reacted when they saw Yuan Jiang summon people to transport blue-gold bricks.

  The two rapidly calculated how many blue-gold bricks were remaining, and their faces changed!

  Based on Boss’ terrifying speed, the remaining blue-gold bricks would quickly be unable to keep up with demand. The two of them were responsible for forging. If something happened here, they could not deflect their fault.

  Previously, the two of them had feared Boss more than they respected him. Now that they had personally seen the abilities of Boss, they were full of respect to the point that they kow-towed. The more respect they held, the more they were unwilling to drag Boss down due to their own mistakes.

  The two of them exchanged a look and did not hesitate in herding off the forging xiuzhe that were watching.

  “Work work! Immediately! Anyone that dares to slow down, we’ll cut your wages!”

  “Those that are making blue-gold bricks, listen. The wage for each piece is increasing by fifty percent.”

  The two played good and bad, one punished while the other rewarded. The xiuzhe that made blue-gold bricks instantly ran off to work. They may have been motivated by Boss, or by the high wages, but each person was full of motivation.

  The camp was very busy.

  ———

  “Ma Fan is so meddlesome.” Lei Peng looked at the paper crane in his hands and muttered. He handed the paper crane to the platoon captain beside him in frustration.

  After the platoon captain finished reading, he couldn’t help but ask, “What do we do?”

  Lei Peng said, frustrated, “What to do? Do according to what he says!” Then he muttered, “This guy had been the core before, he should know more.”

  The platoon captain was used to Lei Peng’s impatient tone. He knew that Lei Peng did not have malicious aims, but he was frustrated with having to take along greenhorns. He was an old member so he understood very well. Sometimes, even he would feel frustrated, much less a battle maniac like Lei Peng.

  As the order pass down, everyone’s figures quickly disappeared.

  ———

  In a patch of wood about two hundred li far from Lei Peng.

  “Can Ma Fan Daren’s plan work?” the platoon captain asked Xie Shan uncertainly.

  Xie Shan smiled and replied, “He was the core before. Of all of us, he received the most teachings from Gongsun Daren. None of us are likely to surpass him.”

  “This is really a big plan!” the platoon captain sighed.

  Xie Shan smiled and said, “Let’s start.”

  ———

  At the same time, more than ten troops led by other people quietly hid in places about eight hundred li from Nan Sheng Village. This distance was very well grasped. Usually, the range of scouting troops were around one thousand and five hundred li. This distance was about half of that.

  The suggestion Ma Fan gave them was to carefully sneak in and kill the little troops of xiuzhe as they were coming back.

  The xiuzhe that were coming back would not have much ling power after long distance flight, and their combat power should be at a relatively low level. In the hearts of the xiuzhe of Clear Sky Sect outer hall, this position was a relatively safe area. They would not be so high alert and may relax their guard.

  Of course, even more importantly, they could successfully reach the position of the plan.

  As long as they could do this, Ma Fan’s string of plans had a high probability of success.

  ———

  In many people’s view, Lil’ Miss’ campaign this time was slightly unexpected, but when battle started, they found that they were wrong. Lil’ Miss had done extremely detailed preparations. This was seen from the moment the first battle started.

  Wei Ran securely remembered Lil’ Miss’s order. In the first charge, they did not use all of their power like they usually did. They only used the first charge of the three section wave killing charge. The Third Division he lead was like a knife that had ran out of power, having cut only halfway
into the enemy ranks.

  The faces of some of the other division leaders that were present all changed dramatically. The three section wave killing charge was to be completed all together. It was to be like a heavy blade, cutting everything in half! If it halted in the enemy ranks, and was surrounded in all directions, and if their side had lost the momentum, then it was an extremely dangerous situation.

  But Lil’ Miss did not even look, and continued to add large numbers of fighters towards the flanks of the enemy.

  After a while, everyone found that Wei Ran, who they thought would have lost many people, were only lightly damaged.

  Wei Ran’s mission was to trap sixteen xiuzhe. These sixteen xiuzhe were the strongest power in the enemy ranks. It was not that their combat abilities were powerful, but the contribution they made towards their troop.

  These sixteen people were a rare group, seal xiu!

  Because the attack had been extremely abrupt, these sixteen xizhe hadn’t had the time to spread out before Wei Ran caught them all. Seal xiu were not famed for their combat abilities, but they were skilled in using all kinds of seal curses which could dramatically increase the combat abilities of the xiuzhe around them.

  The first people Lil’ Miss dealt with were them. He used Wei Ran to cut the connection between them and the other xiuzhe. The balance of battle quickly tilted towards Lil’ Miss’ side.

  ———

  The sixteen seal xiu looked with terror at the enemy that surrounded them, their hands nervously grasping stacks of seal papers.

  The mood was extremely tense. One of the seal xiu couldn’t bear it, the seal paper on his hand unconsciously lighting up. He then heard Eldest Shixiong shout, “Don’t attack!” The seal paper on his hands was instantly blown apart.

  This group of seal xiu were led by a middle-aged person of about forty years old. Seeing his calm expression, the other people gradually calmed down from their fear.

  Once they calmed down, they detected the strangeness. The other side might have surrounded them tightly, but did not seem to have any intentions of attacking.