The Tartar sorcerer had visited here a year ago, beheading the believers of the White Lotus Sect and taking their heads. This coincided with the previous incident of Li Rusong's demise at the Hun River in Liaodong. For a powerful general, bearing the immense national destiny and fighting on the border of his own dynasty, to serve as the Commander of Liaodong, it was impossible without the protection of a powerful divine position.
In a world filled with divine and ghostly powers, it was impossible for the court's mighty generals, especially those at the level of a Commander, to be surrounded and killed by a mere ten thousand men on their own border, especially when he had three thousand light cavalry at his side.
The Tartars were prepared, and their movements were significant. Such unnatural deaths were bound to be related to the Mongolian curses that had been passed down on the grasslands since ancient times.
Perhaps, it could render the opponent's divine position ineffective?
"What rotten luck, daring to steal my incense."
Ji Xiang was slightly annoyed.
It had always been me who borrowed from others, never had others borrowed from me. I never expected to be intercepted by a barbarian sorcerer from the northern desert. Although they only killed White Lotus followers, the White Lotus followers they killed were not the same as the ones I killed.
You killed the White Lotus followers, which was an attack on the subjects of my Great Ming. I killed the White Lotus followers, which was to eliminate an evil cult. How could this be called double standards?
This was at most shamelessness.
However, speaking of which, the White Lotus Sect itself was composed of a large number of farmers, artisans, bandits, refugees, mountain bandits, cult leaders, sea merchants, monsters, landlords, officials, and fanatics. They were spread across the vast land, and their composition was extremely complex. Everyone had their reasons for believing in the White Lotus Sect. Farmers and refugees believed for survival and food, officials, cult leaders, and landlords believed for wealth, mountain bandits and thugs believed for backing and to act as enforcers, sea merchants and artisans smelled black business opportunities from it, monsters believed for the sake of wearing human skin to eat people reasonably, and fanatics... they truly believed.
Humans, demons, monsters, and ghosts were all welcome. As long as you believed in the Lifeless Mother, we were brothers of different fathers and mothers.
However, no matter how much trouble the White Lotus Sect caused, they were indeed people of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty could suppress them themselves, but when outsiders attacked, it was called invasion of territory and harm to their own people.
Huang Pizi listened to Ji Xiang muttering about "you kill, I kill" and reminded him, "It wasn't the Tartar sorcerer who killed them, it was the monsters from the Changbai Mountain."
Ji Xiang waved his hand, "Anyway, if the monsters from the Changbai Mountain didn't kill these people, the Tartar sorcerer would have killed them sooner or later. Although the form of death was different, the result of death was the same. He had the motive and the ability, and even cut off their heads after others had already died. This definitely wasn't for drinking."
Huang Pizi: "?"
Huang Pizi touched his mouth with his little paw and fell into thought.
What he said seemed to make some sense, but it also seemed to make no sense.
"It's just right, Fushun is not very far from here."
Ji Xiang left riding the clouds. A gust of celestial wind surged, and he saw a not-too-wide river. The smoke of war had not long since dissipated. The corpses on the riverbank had naturally been collected and buried by the reinforcements, but there were still large patches of black bloodstains on the land and wild grass, seeping into the earth and merging with nature.
There was no oil to be gained from killing Tartar shamans. Shamans, like Shinto priests, were remnants of ancient witchcraft that had evolved with the times. However, although some primitive aspects could still be seen, they were worlds apart from true ancient witchcraft. It was more like a descendant witchcraft that inherited the outer shell of ancient witchcraft and developed anew.
Descendant witches worshipped nature, while ancient witches valued both humans and nature. Ancestral gods and nature gods were often placed on the same level. Later generations mostly did not mention ancestral gods, or they turned nature gods into their ancestral gods. In a sense, this was also "the unity of heaven and man."
Ji Xiang continued forward on the clouds when suddenly a patch of dark clouds obscured the sky ahead, forming an impenetrable barrier. Ji Xiang tried to disperse these dark clouds, but from within came the mournful cries of countless eagles. Pairs of wings flew out from the dark clouds, gathering in large numbers in a certain direction and falling.
...
The Tartar encampment was hidden among continuous tents in the mountains and ravines.
This area was close to important towns like Xuanfu and Datong, and it was also a vital region in Liaodong. The Tartars came and went like the wind, with various attack routes from west to east. Although they could not breach the cities, they were strong in harassment and mobility. The Central Plains dynasties, which relied on agriculture for a living and fortified cities for defense, were clearly unable to compete with the Tartar tribes in terms of mobility.
In the last attack, they had unexpectedly killed a "big fish."
The eastern Mongols, who lived in this land, had the Chaohua tribe of the Tumet frequently raiding here in the past few years. Now, in addition to "natives" like the Chaohua tribe, there was also a "Royal Court."
A blood-stained helmet was placed in the great tent. Buyan Chechen Khan, the leader of the Khalkha tribe at the time, stroked the helmet with satisfaction.
He wore a large cloak and sat on a low couch with his sturdy body.
The death of the Commander of Liaodong would usher in a new chapter for the Mongols.
The southern Mongols, the northern Mongols, and the eastern Mongols were divided into territories with many leaders who did not obey his command, each being a semi-independent great tribe. After the death of his father, Jasaqtu Khan, Mongolia had once again fallen into a state of disunity, with the three sides fighting each other. He, the nominal legitimate Great Khan, had obtained the imperial seal lost by the Northern Yuan, but the other two sides, seeing him establish his great tent in Liaodong, treated him with indifference, and were even about to establish new Great Khans themselves.
This situation had happened before. Anda Khan of the southern Mongols had unified that region and repeatedly clashed with the ruler of the eastern royal court, his father Jasaqtu Khan, the legitimate Great Khan. He had even opened border markets with the Ming Dynasty to obtain powerful equipment to arm himself. Such a situation could not happen again.
There could only be one Great Khan in the world. Even if he did not aspire to return to the glory of the Northern Yuan, he should at least unify two of the three sides, namely the east and the south. As for those in the north, let them fight among themselves. That land was not important. As long as the southern and eastern royal courts were in his hands, the northern Mongols, under pressure from both sides, could only submit and had no other choice.
"Our Khalkha tribe itself originated from the northern Mongols. Now that we have established our tent in the former territory of the Chahar, and set up a royal court in the east, the northern Mongol tribes have not come to pay homage, and even have ulterior motives. They truly deserve to die."
"Now that we have seized the Ming Dynasty's divine position and killed the Commander of Liaodong, what day does the National Preceptor think we can regroup and conquer the southern Mongols to awe the northern Mongols?"
Buyan looked at a red-robed monk in front of him. This old monk had a fair complexion, a bulging belly, and wore four strings of prayer beads on each wrist, which peeked out from his sleeves. Upon closer inspection, all four strings of prayer beads were made of skulls, small and exquisite, and the eyes of those skulls seemed to still have a faint white light, occasionally leaking out, flickering and burning like marsh gas.
"The Commander of Liaodong is dead, and the Korean War has also ended. The next focus should not be on the northern or southern Mongols, but on stabilizing the eastern royal court and preventing forced relocation."
"The Ming Dynasty will definitely conduct a purge here, but for us, this is another good opportunity to strengthen our power. Your Majesty can rest assured, since this humble monk has come here, he will definitely help you ascend to the throne of the Mongol ruler."
"It is because you still hold the seal of the Great Yuan."
Buyan could not hide the smile on his face. Although he restrained himself, the corners of his mouth were still upturned. He only sighed repeatedly and shook his head with a look of regret, saying, "Unfortunately, this seal of the Great Yuan is merely a 'treasure of restraint,' not the one that 'receives the mandate of heaven.'"
"Where the Yuan Emperor took the Imperial Seal, who can know? We are busy fighting and have no time to search. The Ming Dynasty has been searching for two hundred years and has found nothing. If I could get that Qin Dynasty Imperial Seal, then I would say that I truly follow the will of heaven."
The red-robed old monk heard this, and his large mouth curled up, revealing two rows of white teeth. The wrinkles on his face squeezed together, and his expression was a chilling smile. "That may not be the case."
"The seal of the Qin Dynasty is extraordinarily mysterious. Those without great destiny cannot bear it and will incur unstoppable curses. It is less a treasure carved by Qin Shi Huang and more an embodiment of the anger of the Heavenly Dao towards Qin Shi Huang."
"For Your Majesty, the seal of the Great Yuan is sufficient. Only by unifying the southern and northern Mongols can we contend with the Ming Dynasty."
Buyan thought of the Ming Dynasty's impending purge, and his smile became completely unrestrained. "That's true! Now that we have the seal of the Great Yuan in hand, when the Ming Dynasty purges us next, they will discover that one Commander of Liaodong is not enough; more divine generals are needed to fill this gap!"
The red-robed old monk nodded, "And it will only get bigger! Their divine positions will be obtained by us to connect with our national destiny. When I have seized enough divine positions from the Ming Dynasty, conquering the southern Mongols and aweing the northern Mongols will be a simple matter. However, if this time is successful, we will also need to conduct a great purge within the Mongol tribes."
"This humble monk believes that what Anda Khan of the southern royal court did in the past was very good. Forcing the unification of the tribes, although not completely completed, was very instructive. Only by becoming that prototype can the glory of the Great Yuan be recreated, and only by becoming such a true dynasty... can we re-enter the Central Plains and seize the Heavenly Dao."
Buyan suddenly stopped smiling and frowned, saying to the red-robed old monk, "National Preceptor, re-entering the Central Plains is probably not an easy matter. Many people will die then. The Ming Dynasty possesses a large number of firearms, while my Mongols have nothing. Even if their military preparedness is lax, my troops cannot breach the walls of Xuanfu and Datong. If we attack forcefully, the chances of victory are probably not high."
"I just want to be the King of the Mongols. The restoration of the Great Yuan was something I once thought about. Now that I am the Great Khan, I realize how naive my thoughts were. Even my father could not do it..."
The red-robed old monk raised his hand to stop Buyan's words and continued, "Your father did not catch the right time. Now that we are here, you should have such ambition. Otherwise, you will be replaced."
The old monk smiled amiably, his tone peaceful, but his words made Buyan's brows furrow into a Sichuan character. After a moment of silence between them, Buyan forced out a dry, false smile, "If I die, whoever you replace me with will not be able to win over the people. At that time, you won't even be able to control the eastern royal court. The southern and northern Mongols are now leaderless. Even if you want to find a new monarch to cultivate, your abilities will not be as high as mine."
"Even I believe it is difficult to defeat the Ming court. If you go to the southern and northern Mongols, whoever you choose will only fare worse than me."
The red-robed old monk was still amiable, "That is natural, so as long as Your Majesty follows my deployment, there will be no problem. As for conquering the Ming Dynasty, when the time comes, even if Your Majesty does not forcefully seize it, that position will be reserved for you."
"Because that is our battle, and it has little to do with you. If we lose, you can retreat to the royal court. If we win, you will recreate the prosperous era of the Great Yuan."
"However, your war with the Ming court cannot stop. Every slaughter you commit will weaken the Ming Dynasty's national destiny and strengthen the eastern royal court's luck. Your battles are strengthening yourself, and the sacrifices made for this are not sacrifices."
"We need to compete for living populations and for the souls of the dead, for treasures from both the living world and the wandering souls of the underworld, from both life and death."
Buyan opened his mouth, about to say something, when suddenly the mournful cries of eagles were heard from outside. He and the red-robed old monk hurried out of the tent. The eagles descended from the sky like patches of dark clouds. After stroking the head of one of the eagles, Buyan learned of what they had encountered.
"A great cultivator has appeared nearby! It's someone from the Ming Dynasty! But there's only one."
The red-robed old monk's eyes immediately lit up, "Amitabha! Isn't this opportune! There's only one, which means he is powerful and has come here to probe our strength out of arrogance."
"Since he has come, he cannot leave. To entertain guests from afar, one must not only use the finest local spirits and delicacies, but if necessary, also use the delicacies from their hometown."
A halo appeared on the red-robed old monk, like the blazing sun and fire. The entire person turned red.
He opened his palm, and streams of energy converged, gradually forming a divine tablet. However, the text written inside this divine tablet had been covered, and a layer of wrapping material had been added to the outside. This wrapping material converged to form a new divine position.
In this regard, it was very similar to Ji Xiang's method of occupying the Four Sacred Divine Tablets with the Celestial Master Divine Tablet, a case of "replacing the plum with the peach."
There was no need to fabricate celestial gods out of thin air.
One only needed to borrow existing divine tablets and use their existence as the "foundation" for the new god's existence.
In essence, it was a resurrection by borrowing a shell, a relisting by changing skin. Similarly, this method could still use the abilities of the original deity!
Buyan gathered his men, and the eagles flew into the sky, leading the Mongol army forward!
And among the eagles in the sky, the head of one eagle transformed, resembling a human head.
...
The Demon of Lost Ways invaded the body of an eagle and saw everything mixed among the flock.
[Ambassador of the Three Realms Patrol: God of Eliminating Evil. Marquis Huan, Yi De. Patrols the Yin world every thirty years and the Yang world every thirty-five years. The injustices between the two realms are all eliminated by this old man!]
[Heavenly Department, Great Karma, Twelve Ranks! (State Seal)]
Twelve ranks. He was not as good as the Five Day Demon King and the Four Saints of the North Pole. Although he had the state seal, Guan Yu's status was still higher than Zhang Fei's. Even so, Guan Yu had only been enfeoffed as the Great Emperor of Harmony for a few years, while Zhang Fei had not yet achieved the title of Emperor Lord.
Was this the divine position of Li Rusong?
He did not expect it to be the strongest Military Fang Six Banners Great God. He had heard before that the Military Fang Six Banners Great God was in Li Rusong's hands, but now it had become the Ambassador of the Three Realms Patrol. He thought that if the strongest Military Fang Six Banners Great God among the Ming Dynasty's military deities fell into the hands of the Tartars, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"As expected, there is a method to render divine positions ineffective. But such a move is not considered a great divine ability in front of me."
"Listen carefully, all of you."
Ji Xiang opened his mouth, and in an instant, his voice rumbled and vibrated, reaching tens of miles away!
Buyan and his men were marching when they suddenly heard thunderous roars, causing the entire army to panic, their neighing sounds incessant!
"You invade my country, kill my people, and cut off their heads. This revenge must be repaid. Today, the Eastern Royal Court is wiped out. That bald donkey in red, I don't care which Heavenly Palace you are from, even if you are a celestial being descending to the mortal world, you will leave your life here today!"
With that, he raised a hand towards the sky, and the vast dark clouds were scattered, revealing the dark, true sky behind them!
"Supreme Clarity Thunder Tribulation Array."
"Rise!"