Chapter 1 A Swift Victory

After a great victory, the Bao Liang Army (Grain Protection Army) settled down for the night, a battlefield rule to rest before pressing the attack.

Normally, there would be attempts to persuade surrender, reconnaissance, and assessment of the surroundings. But the Bao Liang Army gave no time to catch breath before launching a night assault on the city.

But that was exactly what the Bao Liang Army did.

From Hu Ma’s vantage point, the scene below was a sea of flickering torches in the dark, a massive throng of soldiers surging towards Huzhou.

Within Huzhou, a large bonfire blazed in the city center, illuminating a platform where men in red bellybands stood, steel blades in hand.

On the platform stood a man in gaudy makeup and a green robe, a large fake beard pasted on his face. This was Deng Qijie, leader of the Niangermen (Sissy Sect), who shrieked:

“That Mingzhou Prince is disrespectful! He comes from the martial world himself, yet he tolerates no Niangermen, allowing his troops to destroy our headquarters and slaughter our disciples in a single day.”

“Today, we avenge our disciples and render a great service to the Jiao (Flood Dragon) King! Bring them up!”

Rows upon rows of women and children, bound hand and foot, stretched as far as the eye could see. There were so many sacrificial victims that the remaining Niangermen disciples were insufficient to guard and escort them, requiring Huzhou soldiers to help.

The people wept and wailed as they were dragged to the altar, the Niangermen disciples cursing and berating them. Chaos reigned.

“Not enough! Not enough!”

Deng Qijie roared, “To use this sorcery, we must kill the Mingzhou Prince. He has gained momentum, so we need more sacrifices. The more sacrifices, the sharper our blade!”

“Seize people, seize them all! Bring them to the altar!”

“Don’t be stingy! Once we kill the Mingzhou Prince and seize the rich lands of Mingzhou, we can have all the women we want!”

“Of course, if you join our Niangermen, learn our skills, and understand the wonders of the universe and the harmony of man and nature, you will no longer desire such useless things as men and women…”

His cries threw the city into further chaos as countless people were dragged out of their homes. Even the soldiers guarding them felt pity, but they were cowed by the Jiao King’s cruelty and the Niangermen’s strange ways.

Just as the women and children were about to be hauled onto the altar for their blood to be spilled, distant drums began to beat, a rumble that shook the heart. Torches were lit atop the city walls, and gongs clanged incessantly. Voices shouted:

“The Bao Liang Army is attacking!”

Panic erupted as people fled in terror. Even the Niangermen disciples were shocked.

Many of the soldiers guarding the women and children seized the opportunity to release them, urging them to flee while they went to defend the city.

By this time, the Bao Liang Army had reached the city walls. Arrows rained down like locusts, and war cries filled the air. Boulders and logs crashed down from the walls as the Bao Liang Army erected siege ladders and rammed the city gates with massive logs.

The Bao Liang Army pressed their attack relentlessly. Inside Huzhou, people scurried and ran, some even stripping off their armor and hiding under beds in thatched huts.

Outside the city, the sight of the Bao Liang Army’s fierce advance, with red lanterns glowing in the dark night and an overwhelming aura of bloodlust, chilled the hearts of the Huzhou soldiers manning the walls.

But then, a black banner emblazoned with the character “Jiao” (Flood Dragon) was raised high in Huzhou. A whirlwind arose from all directions, gathering into a vortex that reached into the heavens.

A sudden downpour began, just as the Bao Liang Army charged the city. Raindrops the size of fists fell in the storm.

Soldiers both inside and outside the city were drenched. The Bao Liang Army, despite their superior morale, found the assault increasingly difficult in the face of the storm.

“This rain is strange!”

Tie Zuizi, the Bao Liang Army’s strategist, wiped the rain from his face and tasted it. He sneered, “There’s a fishy smell to it. The old dragon in the city is casting a spell!”

Those around him were worried. “The rain makes the siege ten times harder!”

Tie Zuizi shouted, “They can summon rain with their sorcery. Don’t we have capable men who can break this spell?”

Orders were issued, and the Bao Liang Army’s own experts, already prepared for this eventuality, began their own rituals.

Some donned rain capes and burned talismans, appealing to the heavens. This was a rain-summoning technique that could borrow the power of ghosts and gods to communicate with the heavens. It could both summon and dispel rain.

But the smoke from the burning talismans rose into the night sky, and although it seemed that the heavens had received the message, the rain did not stop. Instead, the raindrops fell even harder.

Others gritted their teeth and had a bronze coffin dragged onto the battlefield. When the lid was pried open, a stench of decay filled the air.

Inside lay a black, dripping corpse—a Hanba (drought demon) corpse. Legend had it that in the ancient wars, the Yellow Emperor had used Hanba to control rain. It seemed like the perfect counter.

But when the Hanba corpse appeared, a dry wind blew, and the rain seemed to lessen slightly, but the effect was limited. The downpour continued unabated.

“It won’t work.”

Those who had brought out the Hanba corpse could only grit their teeth. “This thing can cause a thousand li to turn to desert over time, but we need results too quickly. It can’t stop the rain in time.”

…

…

“I don’t believe that old dragon in the city has a thousand years of cultivation, but its magic is powerful. Ordinary people can’t deal with its rain.”

On a low hill outside the city, Hu Ma reached out to catch the raindrops. As he pondered, he heard someone speak. He turned to see Erguotou (Double Distilled Liquor) climbing the hill in a blue cloth robe.

Both were concerned about the Bao Liang Army’s first battle after leaving Mingzhou, so they had come to observe.

However, their roles were different. Hu Ma was focused on the Bao Liang Army, watching for changes in fate, while Erguotou needed to measure the terrain and auspicious locations for setting up altars.

“Each sect has its own abilities. I think it’s a bit narrow to divide all the world’s magic into ten sects,” Hu Ma said with a smile. “In the end, there are no ten ancestral sects, just ten families who have advanced a little faster in the path of magic.”

“That old dragon is no good, but it’s truly a freak of nature. Its abilities have a self-contained logic, but it has forged its own path with no guidance, so it progresses slowly.”

“…”

“You see it too?”

Erguotou nodded and looked at the rain. “The magic of this world is completely different from what we saw in our previous lives, but I’m beginning to realize that it’s not entirely without rhyme or reason.”

“Heaven and earth, yin and yang, have their own logical laws. It’s just that the various changes were originally governed by the workings of heaven and earth.”

“But humans are too clever. They can see the loopholes in the workings of heaven and earth. Once they discover the loopholes, they exploit them, find bugs, and gradually rise up, even trying to steal the power of heaven and earth.”

“Sigh, I gradually understood this truth after learning the skills in your Year-Suppressing Book.”

“…”

Hu Ma smiled and nodded. “Monkey Wine is more powerful.”

“He always said things that were shocking but turned out to be true. I was amazed, but I couldn’t understand why.”

“Now I realize that we all learn magic first, then glimpse the inner truth. He sees through the inner laws and essence first, then comprehends the magic.”

“Different perspectives lead to different levels, and the speed of learning these skills is also different.”

“…”

Erguotou’s expression darkened. Transmigrators tend to have a subconscious sense of superiority over the natives, but Monkey Wine always seemed to be able to equally crush both transmigrators and natives.

So, in his eyes, the two were always equal.

He waved his hand and said, “Do you have any way to dispel this rain?”

“I’m a Year-Suppressor!”

Hu Ma said helplessly. “I could fire a True Yang Arrow into the sky to dispel the clouds, but it would be a waste, and it wouldn’t be completely clean. It would be like trying to scoop water with my bare hands—more trouble than it’s worth.”

“Besides, even if I dispelled it, the old dragon could easily summon the rain again. I would have to use seventy percent of my strength to dispel the clouds, while it would only need ten percent of its strength to summon the rain.”

“…”

“Hehe, then let me do it!”

Erguotou smiled, raised his sleeves, and held up an object: the Yin-Yang Two Scenery Disc.

Hu Ma asked curiously, “What method will you use?”

Erguotou said, “That old dragon’s skill lies in summoning rain. I’ll just set up an altar and trap its curse within Huzhou, wouldn’t that be better?”

Hu Ma was surprised. “You…”

“That’s right, I’ll set up an altar and seal the city.”

Erguotou said smugly, “Your big brother here doesn’t bother with altars smaller than a city!”

As he spoke, he held the disc in one hand and waved his other sleeve, shouting, “Rise!”

All around Huzhou, even along the connected lakes and rivers, flags had been placed at some point. Because Huzhou was too large, the flags were spaced far apart.

Now, as he cast his spell, these flags fluttered in unison, sending out layers of invisible ripples. The entire city of Huzhou seemed to tremble slightly, as if a hazy mist was enveloping it.

At the same time that the mist began to spread from the city, the rain in the sky seemed to intensify suddenly, then gradually subsided and finally stopped.

Not only that, but even the dark clouds in the sky had dispersed, revealing the bright moon.

“Quick, heaven is helping us! The rain has stopped, attack the city!”

The Bao Liang Army’s generals shouted, ordering their troops to rush towards Huzhou.

“Swish, swish, swish!”

The defenders on the city walls were startled when the rain stopped. They immediately ordered their men to desperately fire arrows into the night sky, regardless of cost.

But now that Erguotou had acted, how could he only dispel the rain? He held the Yin-Yang Two Scenery Disc in one hand and simply waved the other, and a fierce wind began to blow.

The endless rain of arrows that fell towards the Bao Liang Army was met by this wind, which scattered them in all directions. Those that did fall were light and powerless, like straw.

At the same time, the second wave of Bao Liang Army soldiers reached the city walls, throwing ropes and ladders against the walls.

Normally, siege ladders would be used, raised high and placed against the city walls. The first wave of the Bao Liang Army had done this, but the defenders on the walls had hindered them, making it inconvenient.

But now, rope ladders were being used. In fact, even the soldiers didn’t know why they were carrying them, only that General Shen Hongzhi had ordered them to be made, saying that they would be useful in time.

When the rope ladders were released, an astonishing scene occurred. From afar, Erguotou simply raised his hand, and the rope ladders suddenly flew upwards, as if lifted by invisible hands, and were placed on the city walls of Huzhou one by one.

The Bao Liang Army soldiers were overjoyed and climbed up the rope ladders towards the city walls.

Erguotou on the low hill was not satisfied with this spell. He looked around and then, finally, clenched his fist gently.

Boom!

At the city gate, the Bao Liang Army had been using a huge ram to hammer against the gate again and again, but it had not yet been broken.

But invisibly, it seemed that the ram had suddenly become countless times heavier. With the final thrust, it shattered the city gate in an instant, opening a hole.

“The city is broken!”

In the dark night, tens of thousands of people shouted in unison, filled with indescribable joy and excitement.

“The army has arrived, and the city is broken in a day!”

In the army formation, strategist Tie Zuizi and the other fierce generals heard the shouts and were both surprised and delighted. They pounded their legs hard. “After this battle, why should we worry that the name of our Bao Liang Army will not shake the world?”

Amid the crowd, Yang Gong also wiped the rain from his face, his face filled with joy.

“Good, Mingzhou King. Your time has come!”

At the same time, the Niangermen in the city were in a panic because the Bao Liang Army’s attack was so fast, and the city had fallen so quickly. They had not had time to prepare for the ritual, and most of the sacrificial victims had already escaped.

In haste, they killed many people, but it was still far from enough. They could only close their eyes and chant incantations, and the altar vanished into the night.