Huh? Isn't this an adventure kingdom building game?!-Chapter 715 - 699: You Think I Don’t Want to Leave?
The county magistrate looked at the surviving village soldiers in the distance and thought about the one he sent along the official road for help. With nightfall, they would have sought shelter at an inn, which might have already been flooded.
He couldn't help but sigh, "After the divine bird left, I immediately dispatched someone on horseback to the Celestial Sword Sect for assistance.
That very midnight, the divine bird flew over anxiously, urging everyone to climb the mountain. It said it overheard that the debt collector was skilled in using fire, and was thus blocked by the waters of East Lake, unable to confront directly. The opponent had already sought a water-resistant magical treasure and proceeded to negotiate in the lake.
The fish demon retreated repeatedly and could only temporarily give in, planning to use that magical artifact for a sneak attack!
As the saying goes, when immortals fight, ordinary people suffer. The ensuing magic duel would inevitably lead to floods. The divine bird feared the people at East Lake Port would be affected, so it stole the fish demon's magical artifact to protect everyone from being flooded.
So, we all hid on various hilltops, protected by the treasure stolen by the divine bird. But since it left, it hasn't been seen again, and I worry... could it have been discovered by the fish demon while trying to save us..."
The county magistrate's eyes reddened as he stood up solemnly and bowed, "Mr. Jiang, for rescuing the people of East Lake Port, we are eternally grateful!
I didn't dare to disclose the details earlier, worried that the flood was caused by the fish demon. His range of control is vast; if he overhears the details, it might endanger the divine bird. If you can truly find the source and stop the water calamity, please also keep an eye out for the divine bird's whereabouts. It must not be implicated!"
Unexpectedly, the ethereal sparrow had accomplished such a great deed. If discovered by Zeyang, it might meet a grim fate.
Last time at the Celestial Sword Sect, I feared it being exploited by evildoers and went back on my word, not allowing it to reference the Heaven-Burning Scripture again. Hearing about the ethereal sparrow now, it's indeed breathtaking.
Jiang Yuan immediately consoled, "With the wilderness about to descend, let's first settle everyone safely. I'll head back to East Lake to find its whereabouts. The Lord County Magistrate will have to organize manpower meticulously to keep everyone accounted for, preventing further incidents."
The Clear Wind Bright Moon Sword was summoned, and after nearly a day of "sobriety," both sword spirits had evidently absorbed and refined the strength contained in the flood dragon meat, their forms solid and indistinguishable from real people.
"Sir, any instructions?" The two identical sword spirits, adorned in flowing immortal robes and indistinguishable in gender, appeared and bowed, awaiting their tasks.
Looking up at the soon-to-descend wilderness, Jiang Yuan said gravely, "According to nearby villagers, the area where the wilderness descends is a mountain ravine with no significant demon beast activity.
Later we'll first patrol separately to ensure there are no threats; you two will be responsible for safeguarding the people's safety. I need to head to East Lake and find a way to stop the water calamity; otherwise, if the water continues to spread, even people away from the river path will suffer."
"Yes! We respectfully follow your command, sir." They responded in unison, with Clear Wind and Bright Moon each sitting cross-legged on the flying swords, waiting quietly for the wilderness to descend.
The county magistrate couldn't help but be amazed, wondering how those two living people appeared out of nowhere? From the divine bird's description, the fish demon's methods were far inferior to this Mr. Jiang!
But he didn't know if, with such deep waters, Mr. Jiang had a water-resistant magical treasure, or if he could enter the lake's bottom to confront the fish demon.
[The dusk had arrived with the descent of the wilderness]
Once everyone was settled, at six in the evening, the wilderness arrived as expected.
After patrolling and killing two demon beasts, ensuring no other safety hazards, Jiang Yuan repeatedly instructed Clear Wind and Bright Moon to guard the headquarters.
He glanced at the group, noting the dozen or so individuals with large checkmarks over their heads, some having spirit roots that could teach the Demon Suppression Scripture, or villagers where spirit roots could be implanted. He stepped on the Dragon Roar Sword and soared into the night sky.
Initially busy with rescue; then concentrating on propelling a dozen large ships; later having to understand the details and settle the affected people; now racing against time to resolve the source of the water calamity, he couldn't find time for the side tasks of human support plans.
Anyway, these people weren't going anywhere. It wasn't too late to arrange them after addressing the urgent issues.
On the way back, Jiang Yuan contacted Ouyang Qing and briefly explained the situation.
The latter speculated that the Central Province flood likely stemmed from the mischief of a catfish demon, causing floods and breaking downstream dams. As more water poured into rivers and lakes already rising during the rainy season, it became the last straw breaking the levees.
Currently, the Celestial Sword Sect is leading, with the Haoyue Sect assisting, and joining forces with various sects, families, and governing offices along the way to assist disaster victims and resist the flood.
As long as the source can be controlled, preventing endless water from flowing into the rivers to continue overflowing, relief efforts can fully unfold.
"Huff! Where exactly is East Lake?" In the dark night, with the wilderness's descent, the waters were broader than before, so Jiang Yuan compared against the system map, barely finding the approximate location, then retracted the Dragon Roar Sword and jumped into the water.
"Bang!"
The Double Fish Jade Pendant's water bubble automatically surfaced, encasing him.
With the Earth Mirror Book's passive skills aiding him, Jiang Yuan could see everything clearly around him, even in the night waters.
He planned to first locate a house or familiar mountain to mark his position, then judge East Lake's approximate location and continue diving to find the catfish demon Zeyang's trace.
Meanwhile, in a cave dwelling made from a gigantic shell at the bottom of East Lake, Zeyang sat with his friend enjoying a drink.
"The night before last was truly perilous. If it weren't for Zhao Yan's Water-Resistant Magical Treasure being of lower grade and forced back by the raging waves you unleashed, you might not have survived!"
Huang Shan, who had cultivated to the third layer of the Soul Condensation Realm as a Great Demon, had maintained his favorite patterns from his original form, with symmetrical black designs on his fair face. He wore a long shirt with black and yellow patterns, adding a rather sinister air to his demeanor.
Sipping his wine, Huang Shan advised, "I must say, this time you've stirred up too much trouble. You should quickly find a new place to settle down, taking advantage of the flooding waters."
Zeyang nodded vaguely in response, thinking to himself, "Do you think I don't want to leave? I bloody well can't!"
First off, the cave dwelling crafted with years of effort, essentially his entire fortune, was not yet completely refined. He couldn't just abandon his home and possessions, especially with the refining process nearly complete.
Secondly, the flood was maintained by the Heavenly Water Mirror, a Divine Artifact passed down from his ancestor. Despite its dilapidated state and minimal Spiritual Power, it remained a rare and precious treasure.
This time, solely relying on the Heavenly Water Mirror, Zhao Yan was deterred from acting rashly. Unfortunately, during the magical duel, his impatience had led him to activate it too fiercely, causing the already battered mirror to lose control, nearly turning the lake into a sea.
How could he bear to abandon the Heavenly Water Mirror?
The problem now was that the mirror still continuously spewed forth raging waves, incapable of being stopped. If he carried it with him, floods would break out wherever he went. Zhao Yan wouldn't be oblivious to it.
Thus, he had to wait a bit longer, using the period to complete the refining of the cave dwelling so it could be stored within his body. Once the Heavenly Water Mirror's Spiritual Power was depleted and the gushing ceased, he could discreetly pocket two Supreme Treasures and venture into the vast world!
Unaware of his plan, Huang Shan thought Zeyang was fearlessly confident due to the treasures he possessed. He reminded, "The magical duel this time caused a flood with countless casualties within a hundred-mile radius. Such killing transgressions likely won't escape the Heavenly Dao Laws, so you should be careful."
"How can this be blamed on me?" Zeyang furrowed his brows upon hearing this. "If anyone is to blame, it should be Zhao Yan!
I pleaded with him to grant me two months, and he stubbornly refused. He was the one who initiated the conflict, and I merely retaliated in self-defense. The numerous mortal casualties should seek him out for vengeance."
After speaking, he added with a cold snort, "The root issue lies in Zhao Yan setting up traps to deceive me. Originally, gambling with treasures, concealing them in boxes completely masking their aura, shuffling thirteen boxes randomly, requiring a hundred Spirit Stones for each choice.
Just a hundred Spirit Stones, a stroke of luck could lead to obtaining a Magical Treasure worth tens and even hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones!
And I happened to have a secret technique that allowed me to make marks, although it required touching all of those boxes. If it were you, would you bet?"
Seeing no response from Huang Shan, Zeyang's eyes gleamed with greed, and he angrily slapped his thigh. "Originally, the rules prohibited us from touching the boxes, but with enough plays, one could approach and examine the boxes under the guise of questioning.
Unfortunately, my luck was terrible that night. I had just touched the boxes and made marks when another demon cultivator messed up the aura by touching them later.
I lost all my money without managing to touch all thirteen boxes. I thought borrowing some money wouldn't be an issue; once I succeeded and acquired a treasure, I could pay off the tens of thousands in debts and turn a significant profit!
After painstakingly marking all the boxes, I chose the one containing a Magical Treasure. Upon opening it, it was empty. Surely, Zhao Yan used a Secret Technique to swap the treasure!
I borrowed Spirit Stones with compound interest, not only failing to acquire a Magical Treasure but also amassing a debt of tens of thousands of Spirit Stones. Where the hell do I go to dispute this?"
Huang Shan hesitated before speaking softly, "There's a saying: nine out of ten bets are scams. Regardless of our cultivation and high realms, what difference does it make? There's always someone out there with bizarre Magic, turning you in circles.
Last time, betting blindly led to staking your entire fortune and signing a servitude contract, resulting in fleeing to this remote area to avoid debt.
Barely recovering by relying on offerings, you went to gamble again, and this time drowned all your believers, having to start fresh again."
"Serves them right for drowning!" Zeyang fumed, "I've protected them for years, and when I faced difficulties— hundreds could've scoured the Wilderness for Spirit Medicine and Crystal Stones, allowing me to repay my debts, but instead, they were utterly useless! Tch, despicable, worthless humans."
With that, he drank the cup of wine, grumbling discontentedly, "Little Birdie, come warm the wine!"
A little yellow bird with flame-like feathers on its head, wingtips, and tail flew in obediently, hovering by the table and puffing a tiny flame to warm the wine bottle.
"Oh? Is this the little yellow bird you picked up? When did it learn a Cultivation Technique and formally become a Demon Beast?" Huang Shan exclaimed. Zeyang was skilled in Water Element Techniques and disliked fire; how could he have Fire Element Techniques to train little birds?
Zeyang poured a cup of warm wine, drank it, and burped contentedly, chuckling, "Initially it annoyed me, but as East Lake Port believers reported, sometimes stray young demon beasts were mistaken for ordinary wildlife, causing quite a ruckus.
I found Little Birdie clever and astute, so I trained it up to help my believers by signaling when sensing demon beasts. Somehow, through fortunate coincidence, it picked up some scraps and became sentient.
When I returned to appeal for the East Lake Port mortals, I discovered it had learned Fire Element Techniques. I personally inspected; thankfully, it only acquired a Profound Tier technique and barely grasped its basics, which wouldn't be a problem to leave be.
Brother Huang wouldn't know, but if this little demon beast comprehends more techniques, it'd become too smart and need to be slapped dead to prevent issues. Luckily, it can warm wine and spark little flames for fun, which works out best."
