Chen Wentian held Long Yifei's hand and they soared into the air. Qiu Chuyi and Tie Buqun followed. The opening battles of the bandit fighting operation required speed, speed that an army of mortal cultivators could not achieve. Thus, the immortals would fly ahead while the others played catch-up.
The first target was a bandit fortress to the north, about a hundred kilometers away. It was hidden within some canyons and was the base from which the local bandit gang would launch raids. Killing, kidnapping, and general mayhem were their usual actions.
As they approached the fortress from above, multiple streaks of spiritual energy surged out of the fortress. They didn't aim for Chen Wentian and his party but headed further north, quickly disappearing over the horizon.
"Message talismans," Qiu Chuyi said.
"Nothing to worry about," Chen Wentian said, "Even if they want to get revenge, they will have to consider if they are strong enough. Go, take care of this rabble."
"Yes!"
Qiu Chuyi and Tie Buqun separated and dived down. As they did so, a blue glow erupted from the tallest tower of the fortress. It quickly covered the entire construct in a shining blue dome, a protective shield of considerable strength.
Chen Wentian clicked his tongue, "These bandits are quite wealthy. Which ones are these, the Blue Cloud Gang? Really audacious."
Qiu Chuyi and Tie Buqun performed their partial beast transformations and set to work. Qiu Chuyi slashed at the spiritual energy shield with his giant claws, each blow making the entire fortress tremble. Tie Buqun created a dust tornado that smashed into the shield over and over, ripping up the ground all around the walls.
The might of two Spirit Lords combined was nothing to sneeze at. Such a shield for a frontier outpost was only intended to stop casual attacks from opportunistic Spirit Lords. It could never stand for long. Based on the spiritual energy fluctuations in the air, Chen Wentian estimated that it would only last an hour or so under the efforts of a single Spirit Lord. Their mortal forces would take a little longer to make it here.
"Hmm," Chen Wentian rubbed his chin, "Qiu Chuyi, Tie Buqun, come back."
The two ceased their attacks and flew up to him.
"You two fly ahead to the next bandit outpost. Should be that way," He pointed west. "About a hundred kilometers. I'll take care of things here and join you. That outpost probably has a similar setup to here."
"Yes, Lord Chen."
"Yes, Lord Chen."
The two men nodded and flew off.
With them gone, Chen Wentian flew down to the fortress and formed fireballs in one hand. Every few seconds, he would throw one down that created a huge explosion, shaking the blue shield and the fortress below.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
It was steady, powerful, and frightening, like a heavenly hammer falling down to smash everything beneath it.
Long Yifei watched the process impassively. She had no dislike for bandits nor did she have that much compassion. The Virtuous Order, in her mind, wasn't any better. If she had a choice, she would rather get rid of those people from the Seven Potentates.
Chen Wentian had told her about his meeting with Immortal Tranquil Flute Dong Ruming. She was both excited and apprehensive. The fact that Dong Ruming could suspect something was wrong meant that her past was not a lie. What she remembered about her mother had to be true. That gave her hope, hope that she would be able to unravel the mysteries of her past. That was what she cared about.
"Is that fun?" A cold, female voice interrupted Chen Wentian's fireballs as well as Long Yifei's inner thoughts.
From the south, a figure in the familiar white garb of the Virtuous Order approached. It was Immortal Winter Hymn Xuan Xina.
"Xina? Why is it you?" Chen Wentian asked as he resumed his bombardment.
Xuan Xina scrunched her nose at the sight below, "Why, you aren't happy to see me?"
Chen Wentian laughed, "Let me guess, the Order sent you to keep an eye on me?"
She crossed her arms, "Don't think so highly of yourself. I am here to make sure your sacred daughter is safe. She is very important to us. As for you, I don't care."
He smiled and sent a spiritual voice message to her ears only, "Don't be so cold. I can still make you my woman. My disciple won't mind one bit. In fact, all of my disciples are quite open-minded."
"You… hmph!" She snorted coldly and turned away.
Long Yifei glanced between the two suspiciously before nudging her master with her elbow.
Chen Wentian shrugged helplessly and returned to his task. It seemed that Long Yifei was sensitive to Xuan Xina. She didn't mind her fellow disciples but that wasn't the case for the beautiful songstress. Was it because she was her teacher?
Fireballs continued to fall on the fortress. The blue shield started to waver more and more, growing dimmer by the minute. Xuan Xina didn't offer to help. She was merely here as an observer.
Finally, as their mortal forces led by the Glacier Palace disciples entered the canyon, Chen Wentian launched a giant fireball that crashed through the spiritual shield, destroying it for good.
"All of you," Chen Wentian's voice boomed out, "Surrender and I can spare your lives."
He counted about five thousand souls below. They weren't weak at all, with a few at the lesser realms.
"Go to hell! Our lord will avenge us!"
"Go die!"
"Fight to the death!"
A rousing fighting spirit appeared bellowed, supported by the loudest voices.
"Well then…" Chen Wentian muttered,
Locking onto these locations, he waved his hand, creating seven fireballs simultaneously. These descended like fiery spears and detonated with brilliant flashes of blue and searing heat. It was like a deity smiting mortals, an elephant squashing ants.
In an instant, several hundred souls burned to ash, crushing the resistance.
Following this, Glacier Palace, Divine Blazing Mountain, Beast God Sanctum, and the various sword sects charged through the holes in the walls and quickly subjugated the fortress. Although the bandits fought back, their will had already been broken. They fell before a barrage of ice arrows, fiery fists, and an assortment of ferocious half-beast cultivators.
Chen Wentian looked away from the smoldering ruins, ignoring the miserable screams below. He hugged Long Yifei and took off toward the west.
A lot more people were going to perish in the coming month. Such was life. When immortals stepped out to fight, mortals could only wait for death.
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