Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 317 - 317 0249 Near Total Annihilation_2

Chapter 317: Chapter 0249: Near Total Annihilation_2 Chapter 317: Chapter 0249: Near Total Annihilation_2 Qi Tian is quite satisfied with this intelligence.

By then, Zhang Lei and others had already killed off the last few incoming Chi Di cultivators. Those who had received Qi Tian’s rewards didn’t come to meet Qi Tian. Instead, they flew straight to the Chi Di Camp, intending to kill more Chi Di cultivators and collect more cultivation resources. Zhang Lei, accompanied by a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage, flew towards Qi Tian.

Zhang Lei called out ‘junior brother’ from afar, while the cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage bowed to Qi Tian with deep respect, signaling complete formalities.

“Senior sister, the harvest is pretty good, isn’t it?” Qi Tian asked with a smile.

Zhang Lei nodded and said, “I partnered up with several other cultivators and managed to kill two Chi Di cultivators altogether. We split the spoils evenly. Would you like to see if there is anything useful in my share, junior brother?”

Qi Tian shook his head, “No need for that. Senior sister, I already sent a Transmission Talisman, asking Pan Yulin and a few other cultivators to come over and kill those Chi Di cultivators outside the pass. You are welcome to join them if you’re willing.”

Zhang Lei shook her head and replied, “I’m a pill refinement master. Being able to collaborate with other cultivators and kill two Chi Di cultivators is already satisfactory for me. As for killing other Chi Di cultivators, I’ll leave it to others to do.”

Qi Tian just smiled and didn’t try to push Zhang Lei to fight outside the pass. His attention shifted to another cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage, and asked, “Sir, your name is…”

As the commander of numerous cultivators at the Tongmen West Pass, Qi Tian couldn’t remembering everyone’s names but, at the very least, he recognized subordinates. But this Foundation Establishment cultivator was a completely new face, definitely not one of his subordinates.

The cultivator who appeared to be in his thirties was medium-built and had an honest face. When Qi Tian posed the question, he hastily bowed and replied, “My name is Wang Shuqing, a lone cultivator. Young as you are Commander, you’ve achieved the Foundation Establishment Stage. You have single-handedly killed numerous Chi Di cultivators who attempted to break in, and later stormed into the Chi Di Camp alone, killing two of their Foundation Establishment powerhouses. The damage and havoc caused by just one individual, all this has created an extraordinary feat. I have nothing but deep admiration.”

Qi Tian laughed and said, “It’s just a minor contribution, nothing remarkable. Sir Wang, you didn’t go to all this trouble just to flatter me did you? If you have something to say, just say it.”

Wang Shuqing scratched his head and said somewhat sheepishly, “My request may seem presumptuous. Please don’t laugh at me. I’ve heard from Zhang that you are about to take on the role of the County Master, and you still don’t have reliable men at your side. I wonder if I could serve under you?”

“You want to join me?” Qi Tian was a little surprised. He gave Wang Shuqing a once over, “You should be at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, right? With such an advanced level of cultivation, any faction would welcome you with open arms. Why would you want to join me?”

Wang Shuqing replied, “You do have a sharp eye, Commander. I am indeed at the fifth level of Foundation Establishment. Despite my appearance of being in my thirties, I am actually over fifty. At the age of sixteen, by sheer luck, I saved an injured cultivator, who passed on to me a cultivation method in appreciation of my act of mercy. After that, I overcame all sorts of hardships, faced numerous life and death situations, and managed to reach the position I am in today. Having witnessed a lot of people and experienced many incidents during my cultivation journey, I may not claim to have seen everything in the world, but I have come to understand many things. Without going into details, I just want to say, based on my judgement, you, Commander, are someone capable of achieving great things. I am willing to follow you, acknowledge you as my leader, and even brave through fire and water.”

“So impressive? What do you want then?” asked Qi Tian.

Wang Shuqing said, “I only hope that if the Commander comes into power, he could provide me with the opportunity to cultivate to the Half-step Golden Core. Of course, if he could help me ascend to the Golden Core, I would willingly devote my life to the Commander, offer loyal service generation after generation, never to betray.”

Qi Tian nodded, “Well spoken. In this case, follow me first. We both need time to understand each other. I need to see your loyalty and ability. You must also have things to learn about. I won’t make a Servant Pact with you. Let time explain everything. Wang Shuqing, remember one thing, if you ever become unhappy here, you can leave any time. I won’t stop you. But you must tell me before you leave. You cannot leave silently, and you cannot betray us.”

Wang Shuqing half-kneeled to Qi Tian and said, “Commander, just watch my actions. I will never let you down.”

Zhang Lei standing off to the side said, “Sir Wang, since you have decided to follow my junior brother, you can no longer call him the Commander. I suggest you call him ‘Family Master’. From now on, you will be his family servant. If you ever betray my junior brother, not only will he not tolerate you, neither will I.”

“Thank you for your teaching, Sir Zhang. Please rest assured, Family Master, and Sir Zhang. I, Wang Shuqing, keep my word. I will never betray you in my life,” said Wang Shuqing, decisively.

Qi Tian waved his hand, beckoning Wang Shuqing to stand. He said, “You and Sister Zhang just had a harsh battle against the Chi Di cultivator. You must be tired. Go rest a little. Sister Zhang, you too.”

About ten minutes later, Pan Yulin, Zhang Guangyao, and Jiang Pan, accompanied by several squads of cultivators, arrived. After paying Qi Tian a quick visit, they rushed out the Tongmen West Pass to surround and kill the Chi Di cultivator.

Qi Tian did not participate in this operation. He had already killed more than ten Chi Di cultivators consecutively. Without exception, all were at the Foundation Establishment Stage. The treasures they carried all became his spoils of war. The harvest was surprisingly abundant. There was no need for him to compete with other cultivators. He had eaten meat, and he had to give others the opportunity to drink soup. Otherwise, he would have been regarded as a commander who indulged in food and hated by others.

Qi Tian only stood on the wall, watching the Chi Di Camp in the distance. He observed Huang Zhiwei leading tens of thousands of Great Zhao soldiers to attack the Chi Di Camp, besieging the Chi Di soldiers. In comparison, the two to three hundred cultivators of Great Zhao entering such a battlefield of tens of thousands of people, they were like waves, too inconspicuous.

The battle continued until the second day. The reinforcements from Tonggun Pass arrived late. By the time they reached the Tongmen West Pass, the Chi Di Camp was almost about to fall. The commander, Lou Chuan, would never miss the opportunity to beat the dog in the water and immediately brought tens of thousands of reinforcements to attack the Chi Di Camp.

Huang Zhiwei saw someone trying to grab his merit and quickly issued a strict order. Regardless of life or death, the final reserve team was led to charge at the Chi Di Camp. The Chi Di Camp had some difficulties already. Now, seeing Huang Zhiwei, the Commander, disregard his life, and the reinforcements of Great Zhao also killed, they immediately gave up resistance and ran away.

Huang Zhiwei took the opportunity to lead his men in a charge, seized the central tent of the Chi Di, grabbed the Chi Di’s commander’s flag, and captured many senior officers. Unfortunately, Chi Di’s commander was escorted by several Chi Di cultivators, broke through the encirclement, and successfully fled north.

This battle resulted in an unprecedented victory for Great Zhao. The five thousand strong force of Chi Di who invaded from the south suffered more than thirty thousand casualties, over eight thousand were captured, and fewer than ten thousand escaped. Chi Di invades from the south and attacks the passes year after year. Seven or eight times out of ten, they would succeed. In the remaining two or three times, the troops of Chi Di would merely be defeated. Even if they failed to successfully attack the pass, they could still force Great Zhao to offer countless gold and silver. Never like this year, their losses were catastrophic, almost annihilating the entire army.

While Huang Zhiwei was exhilarated, he personally wrote a memorial and sent it to the court at the speed of six hundred miles. In the memorial, besides mentioning the merits of Tonggun Pass’s Left Guard Office, Huang Zhiwei elaborated on Qi Tian’s contribution. He dared to covet other people’s merits, but he did not dare to covet any of Qi Tian’s merits.