The Immortal Seeker: Legend of Bronze Mirror
Chapter 188 - 107: Taking over Qingyun Temple_4

Chapter 188: Chapter 107: Taking over Qingyun Temple_4

The roof soon crumbled, with a heavy downpour of broken tiles and splinters.

On the other side, Xu Qing directly threw out poison smoke and launched a fusillade of poison needles, seizing the chaos to effortlessly fight his way out from another flank.

"No wonder it’s said that heroes commit offenses with their martial prowess. My kung fu hasn’t reached the level of King Lin, and yet I can already kill my way in and out among a group of martial artists. To further Refine Internal, and even more terrifying realms, their strength is truly hard to imagine." He had read some books about wandering heroes before, which said that martial artists must not suffer humiliation, and at this time he especially understood.

With such formidable skills, one truly does not wish to suffer indignities.

Thus, peerless warriors in history have always been difficult to subdue.

Xu Qing understood why, after Refining Internal, King Lin chose to venture Overseas, where the sky was high and the Emperor far. Once he left, it was like a dragon entering the sea, how gratifying that must have been.

"Regrettably, the resources for cultivation ultimately need to be obtained from the secular world; without one’s own faction, relying solely on oneself to do all the work, the efficiency is too low to maintain one’s kung fu, let alone make any progress."

The more powerful the martial artist, the more they need a supporting faction to remain unentangled by mundane matters and continue to advance bravely and diligently.

The cultivation of Divine Soul is actually the same.

Wealth, companions, methods, and location, the four essential elements of cultivation, it’s not unreasonable that wealth is the foremost.

After a bout of chaos in the great hall, some people quickly rushed out.

Yan Kong had now arrived at the place in Qingyun Temple where the bell was tolled.

He laughed heartily, picked up the hammer, and struck it once.

The midnight bell tolled, thunderous like Heavenly Thunder from the Nine Heavens, resounding mightily.

Consequently, Qingyun Temple descended further into turmoil.

Once Xu Qing got outside, he was not in a hurry.

When a few martial artists caught up with him, Xu Qing engaged them in a scuffle. Once they and the people behind them had put some distance between each other, he suddenly wielded the Flying Sword and aimed a stab at the one closest to him.

That martial artist was immediately pierced in the throat by the sword.

It turns out that the space inside the great hall was limited; the concentration of Qi-Blood from martial artists would influence the Divine Soul’s Exorcism.

Once outside in the spacious grounds of the great hall, Xu Qing deliberately created distance and employed the tactic of kite-flying, quickly finding an opportunity to kill an enemy with his Flying Sword.

He also took this chance to catch his breath.

Earlier in the great hall, his mind and Qi-Blood had been intensely concentrated, a state that could not be sustained.

Compared to Yan Kong the Monk, despite being older, he was still composed.

The difference in physical endurance between one who has and one who has not Refined Internal is truly significant.

To be precise, it wasn’t that Xu Qing’s sinews, bones, flesh, and blood were much worse than Yan Kong’s, but under extreme conditions, his internal organs couldn’t withstand the strain.

This is to say, Xu Qing’s strength was not much less than Yan Kong’s, but the obvious shortcomings affected the sustainability of his bursts of power.

Internal organs are also where the Qi-Blood converges, especially during the outbreak of Dark Strength, the burden on the internal organs is demanding, hence Refining Internal Masters can freely unleash Dark Strength, this realm is also known as the Hua Realm.

To be able to release Dark Strength effortlessly, covering the entire body!

After Xu Qing had kited a few times, killing several martial artists, the people inside the temple realized something was wrong.

"This man has a Flying Sword, everyone gather up, concentrate and burst forth your Qi-Blood," shouted a Taoist from Qingyun Temple.

Everyone gathered to prepare themselves solemnly.

Xu Qing observed that between the ones with at least a basic foundation, there were still over twenty martial artists, plus other strong-bodied temple guards in the temple, roughly up to a hundred people.

And this was just the outer minions of Duke Wei Mansion.

The two-hundred-year accumulation of top Powerful Aristocratic Families was indeed substantial.

Xu Qing and Yan Kong each exerted pressure on these people, making them afraid to disperse. Once most of them had gathered, Yan Kong flung the temple gates wide open, and Su Lianqing led a group of Crossbowmen inside.

"Fire!" commanded Xu Qing.

Although it was night, the group of martial artists and Taoists holding torches together made an overly obvious target.

Xu Qing specially sought out Assistant General Liu to make arrangements this time, obtaining official documentation to suppress bandits and, with Captain Zhang, an acquaintance leading the team, brought over a batch of Crossbow Arrows to distribute to his own people.

Everyone in the courtyard had been focusing their attention on the two powerhouses, Xu Qing and Yan Kong, completely oblivious to the fact that a group had already ascended to the Taoist temple.

By the time they reacted, Crossbow Arrows were mercilessly fired into the air.

In fact, Qingyun Temple also had Crossbow Arrows hidden within, but who would carry them around in their lair?

Besides, the attack happened so suddenly that the outside sentries had no response whatsoever.

After three rounds of arrow rain, there were the wounded and the crippled.

Xu Qing and Yan Kong also took a brief respite, setting their sights on the remaining Martial Artists with robust Qi-Blood, each employing their techniques to cut down their adversaries on the spot.

This operation was intended to eliminate everyone except for a few important captives.

Seeing the power of the Crossbow Arrows, Xu Qing felt a somber realization in his heart; this was just the Crossbow Arrow. If this world were to develop Flintlock Guns and execute firing squads, no matter how high your Kung Fu was, it would be impossible to turn the tide on the frontal battlefield.

At a distance of several tens of steps, the power of the Crossbow Arrow was actually not inferior to that of a musket; it’s just that the rate of secondary firing was too slow and the cost too high.

The cost of warfare, too, is an important factor affecting the outcome of war.

With the same cost, the ability to craft more refined and formidable weapons gives an innate advantage that is incredibly significant.

In a structured situation, nurturing one Martial Artist is far less effective than training ten elite soldiers.

Organizational discipline and weapon upgrades contribute far more to combat capability than mere fist practice efficiency.

Of course, if the capital is robust, that’s a different story.

Ultimately, it is the poor who need to consider costs. With abundant capital, you can apply brute force without hesitation.

After taking down Qingyun Temple, it was time to start tallying the gains.

Su Lianqing brought Xu Qing a bowl of Yellow Millet Rice that had been prepared in advance; albeit cold, it could still nourish Qi-Blood.

After Xu Qing finished, Su Lianqing, with a shameful expression, said, "My lord, I failed to gather news that Duke Wei Mansion had sent people over, it’s indeed a dereliction of duty, please punish me."

Xu Qing waved his hand, "These people have only just arrived not long ago. You’re not a deity; how could you have predicted it?"

Su Lianqing shook her head, "My error was not arranging people in advance to watch near the mountainous official road. If we had been prepared, we could have discovered them ascending the mountain."

Xu Qing nodded, "I also did not consider every aspect thoroughly."

He knew that, after all, he did not specialize in military warfare. It’s easy to speak of war on paper, but in actual operation, to cover every aspect requires much thought and long-term professional training.

Su Lianqing, although an intelligence operator, also unconsciously overlooked this point.

The two discussed today’s operations, mainly to see if there were any other oversights.

It’s not a fear of making mistakes that plagues action, but rather the necessity of summarizing and learning from them.

We are all flesh and blood, not pre-programmed entities; how could we possibly avoid mistakes?

After summarizing the gains and losses, record them and accumulate experience, then gradually create a set of rules to guide future endeavors.

Moreover, after today’s engagement, many individuals, having seen blood for the first time, will adapt and grow faster subsequently.

The fear in tasks lies not in their difficulty, nor their intricacy, but in the refusal to undertake them.

Xu Qing actually did not fixate on starting a rebellion; he merely felt that being well-prepared was never a bad thing.

Moreover, after the Martial Arts enlightenment of this night, a thought began to emerge in his mind: if his Martial Arts and Divine Soul became incredibly strong, perhaps even surpassing Elder Fang, could he really tolerate someone above him, deciding his life and fortune?

Beneath one person, there would always be someone above.

Born as humans, who doesn’t wish to command their own fate?

This is instinct.

He couldn’t help but look up; in the night sky, the Ziwei Star shone brightly. Its position nearly constant and unchanging, filled with mystery and prestige, he seemed to see his own "face" reflected within.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.