Chapter 131: The Surrender of the Nether Army

Massive amounts of spiritual energy poured into Li Yunfei and Honghong. At this moment, both felt the spiritual power in their dantian compressing rapidly inward, and a sense of emptiness washed over them.

Xie Liuyun and the others, who had returned to Ziwei’s side, stared at this scene in dumbfounded silence, completely bewildered. What was going on? The disturbance was unexpectedly massive.

Daoist Yuling asked in uncertainty, "Are they...?"

Ziwei’s eyes flashed with a sharp light. Looking at Li Yunfei and Honghong, he stated with certainty, "They have reached the Golden Core stage."

With that, he pushed his left palm toward Li Yunfei. The Sun Golden Wheel transformed into a hemispherical light screen, propped up like an umbrella in the direction of the incoming artillery shells, shielding Li Yunfei from the barrage. Daoist Yuling also waved his hand, conjuring the Bagua Haotian Mirror to block the area diagonally above Honghong’s head.

Li Yunfei and Honghong nodded in gratitude to the two, then closed their eyes.

Ziwei sighed inwardly. It seemed he had underestimated Li Yunfei’s unique Daoist physique; killing a Golden Core late-stage Ghost King had allowed him to break through directly from the late stage of the Yin Spirit to the Golden Core stage. If he were provided with enough targets, would he soon transcend mortality and become the first true immortal of the Great Xia?

What surprised him even more was that as he broke through, Honghong followed suit, and the eighteen skeleton warriors also advanced from the mid-stage of the Yin Spirit to the late stage. Could it be that anyone or anything connected to his primordial spirit could share in this physique?

Ziwei knew Honghong was a demon, and he had previously noticed a special connection between the two. Now it seemed Honghong must have surrendered her true spirit, and since Li Yunfei held it, their primordial spirits were, in a sense, linked. In this kind of connection, the party holding the true spirit held absolute dominance, capable of obliterating the other with a single thought.

Ziwei had no issue with this; rather, he thought Li Yunfei was right. While one might worry about the intentions of those not of one’s own kind, holding the power of life and death over the other clearly fostered a more unreserved trust. After all, not every demon was like a panda, close to or dependent on humans.

Ziwei’s reasoning was slightly off in the details, but the direction was correct. Honghong was a pet beast bound to Li Yunfei, possessing a sub-system that was a wisp of the chaos-colored substance separated from Li Yunfei’s body during the binding. Through this sub-system, Li Yunfei did indeed hold Honghong’s fate in his hands. If he were to recall the sub-system and strip away her digitized body, she would revert to that ordinary little fox. The special connection Ziwei sensed came from the link between Li Yunfei’s system and Honghong’s sub-system. Because the system existed in attachment to Li Yunfei’s soul, his and Honghong’s souls and primordial spirits were indeed connected.

"What is going on? Why did they suddenly break through?" Daoist Yuling was an experienced practitioner who had gone through the breakthrough to the Golden Core stage himself, so he naturally understood the cause of these heavenly phenomena. However, the problem was that they had clearly only been at the late Yin Spirit stage, not even at the peak—how could they have inexplicably reached the Golden Core stage?

But Daoist Yuling’s mind turned quickly. He recalled the special physique Li Yunfei had mentioned earlier, and remembered how he had insisted on resolving all the Ghost Commanders himself and requested to deliver the final blow to Zhao Kuo. A realization dawned on him, and he asked, "Ziwei, does Yunfei’s special physique allow him to significantly increase his cultivation by killing ghosts and monsters?"

Ziwei glanced at Daoist Yuling and praised, "Daoist, your thinking is sharp, I admire it. However, you are mistaken on one point: it is not just killing ghosts and monsters; killing anything allows his cultivation to grow rapidly. I call his physique the 'Innate Dao Saint Physique of Slaughter'."

Xie Liuyun and his fellow disciples were baffled but impressed, while a look of worry appeared on Daoist Yuling’s face. "Will he develop malevolence?"

Ziwei shook his head. "I know what you are worried about, but rest assured! The Innate Dao Physique is a special existence; it does not have the side effects of autonomous cultivation. Otherwise, the Li Yunfei you see would not be like this, but a demon deep in malice."

Daoist Yuling felt relieved and looked at Honghong, asking curiously, "What about that little fox demon? Why did she break through as well?"

"Fox demon?" Zhou Ming asked in surprise. "Master, you said little sister Honghong is a fox demon?"

Daoist Yuling was about to speak, but realized he didn't need to. He gestured toward Honghong and said, "See for yourselves!"

Everyone looked over and saw Honghong’s body radiating a brilliant red light. Within the glow, four tails, like burning flames, stretched and swayed behind her, looking both eerie and beautiful.

Zhou Ming exclaimed, "It’s a Flame-Tailed Fire Fox, and she has four tails! Her background must be truly extraordinary."

The *Maoshan Secret Records* contained illustrated guides to various spirits and monsters; whatever was in the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* was in the *Records* in even greater detail, along with content the *Classic* lacked. Zhou Ming had once seen a record of the Flame-Tailed Fire Fox in the fox demon section of the *Maoshan Secret Records*.

Ziwei smiled. "Naturally, it is extraordinary. Her surname is Tushan; she is of the orthodox fox immortals, a noble among foxes."

"Tushan? Tushan Honghong?" Zhou Ming and Yang Lianzhen exchanged a look, strange expressions rising in their eyes. Did she have a younger sister named Yaya?

Ziwei explained to Daoist Yuling, "It is actually quite simple why Honghong broke through with Yunfei. She acknowledged him as her master and surrendered her true spirit. Their primordial spirits are linked, allowing her to share in Yunfei’s special physique. She is the best illustration of the saying that one must lose to gain."

After hearing Ziwei’s words, Yang Lianzhen looked at Honghong, dazed. At that moment, she felt the impulse to surrender her own true spirit and acknowledge Li Yunfei as her master.

Artillery shells continued to fall like rain, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth poured into Li Yunfei and Honghong without end. During the time Ziwei and Daoist Yuling were ganging up on Zhao Kuo, at least 200,000 ghost soldiers had been reduced to ashes. Among them, the ghost soldiers and commanders, being in mid-air, had blocked many shells for the skeleton monsters on the ground, so their losses were far greater. Over 130,000 ghost soldiers and commanders had vanished, and about 70,000 skeleton monsters had fallen apart.

Ziwei looked at the ghost soldiers who were still shouting "Avenge the General" and launching suicide charges toward Sector B7, and his brows furrowed slightly. He said to He Ming, "Old He, go try to persuade them to surrender again. It would be a pity to destroy these ghost soldiers like this. If we can subdue them, the Great Xia will never face a necromantic crisis again."

He Ming hesitated. "But how can you guarantee they won't repeat their actions?"

Ziwei turned his head to look at Daoist Yuling. The Daoist explained, "At the beginning of the ancient battlefield anomalies, Ziwei had already considered the possibility of recruiting the ghost soldiers, so he had me coordinate with the Xuan Group beforehand to refine the 'Ten Thousand Soul Banner' and the 'Bone Spirit Banner.' But rest assured, the banners we refined have had their evil parts removed. They will not turn the accommodated ghosts into vicious spirits; they simply provide a space for them to rest."

Hearing this, everyone felt relieved. He Ming had no more concerns and flew toward the edge of Sector B7.

When he reached the edge, ghost soldiers charged at him howling. He did not attack; after protecting himself, he pushed his palms forward, creating a gust of wind that blew the soldiers back. Then, he took a deep breath and shouted, "Zhao Kuo was stubborn and has been brought to justice. Do you truly wish to cease existing?"

This explosive shout made the charging ghost soldiers pause. The fact that he hadn't attacked directly but used gentle means to force them back had been effective. If it were an army of the living, a single sentence from He Ming would never have stopped them; even if those in front wanted to stop, those behind would push them forward. But the ghost army did not have this problem; they floated in mid-air, able to move or stop at will.

The ghost soldiers looked at each other. Although their faces still held anger, none dared to charge recklessly again. A moment later, one of the deepest-cultivation ghost commanders who had survived, at the peak of the Lingdong stage, stepped forward and shouted, "What do you intend to do?"

He Ming said to the commander, "Do you know how much time has passed since your death?"

The commander asked, "How long?"

He Ming said in a deep voice, "Two thousand three hundred years."

"Whoosh!"

The ghost army was in an uproar. The leading commander stared at him, dazed, his mouth slightly open, unable to utter a word.

He Ming continued, "Two thousand three hundred years. The world has changed; the seas have turned into mulberry fields. It is no longer the world you once knew. To persist in stubborn resistance leads only to destruction."

The commander said angrily, "I surrendered to Qin in the past to save my life, but Bai Qi was unrighteous and buried us all. Now you call for surrender—why should we believe you?"

The commander was furious, but He Ming appeared even more furious, saying indignantly, "I have wanted to recruit you from the start, but it was that little brat Zhao Kuo whose ambition was to occupy our world of the living and slaughter our people. What were we to do?"

"This..."

Seeing the commander speechless, and the soldiers having nothing to say, He Ming softened his tone and said sincerely, "Ghosts were once humans too. It is not that I cannot tolerate you. If you are willing to surrender, I will surely provide you with a place in the underworld."

The commander repeated, "Why should we believe you?"

Now it was He Ming’s turn to scratch his head. The commander’s meaning was clear: how could they trust that they were truly recruiting them, and not using a ploy to make them surrender their true spirits only to wipe them out?

Just when He Ming didn't know what to say, a clear voice rang out from behind: "General, look down, and you will know our sincerity."

He Ming turned and saw Ziwei flying over with Li Yunfei and the others. It was Li Yunfei who had spoken.

Earlier, the spiritual power in his dantian had compressed to the limit, finally condensing into a golden inner core. The entire process had been incredibly smooth, without any of the hardships of a self-achieved breakthrough. Once the Golden Core was formed, it rotated slowly in his dantian, emitting spiritual power of a much higher quality that refilled his dantian and meridians. No wonder those at the Golden Core stage could ride swords through the air; it wasn't just because the spiritual power was higher quality, but because once the Golden Core was formed, it operated automatically, endless and inexhaustible. The consumption of sword flight wasn't even as fast as the Golden Core’s replenishment, so there was naturally no depletion.

Li Yunfei and Honghong finished their advancement, joined Ziwei and the others, and after accepting congratulations, noticed the ghost army had stopped attacking Sector B7. Ziwei asked for the communicator back, ordered the artillery brigade to stop the bombing, and flew toward He Ming with Li Yunfei and the others. As they reached He Ming, they heard the commander’s question, and Li Yunfei spoke up.

The commander and the ghost soldiers behind him looked down at the ground, where eighteen soldiers, armored and with a stern demeanor, were lined up. The next moment, the eighteen soldiers simultaneously removed their helmets, revealing glowing, iridescent skeleton heads like colored diamonds, with two balls of golden-white soul fire in their eye sockets.

"Whoa..."

Xie Liuyun and the others exclaimed. They had never seen skeleton warriors like this. How on earth did this kid Li Yunfei raise them?

The eighteen super skeleton warriors held their swords in one hand and their helmets in the other, walking a distance forward to stand before the rows of Zhao army skeleton warriors.

"Click, clack..."

The Zhao army’s skeleton warriors shifted, subconsciously retreating. Seeing that the super skeleton warriors had no intention of attacking, they calmed down. Their jaws clicked, and the ghostly green soul fire in their eyes flickered as they looked around, appearing to be communicating.

Before long, the skeleton warriors in front knelt on one knee and saluted Li Yunfei and the others, a gesture that spread backward through the ranks. These skeleton warriors actually had few memories of their lives before death, as their memories had been taken away by their souls, leaving only deep-seated instincts. After they mutated into skeleton monsters and regained their intelligence, they possessed brand-new memories, having no real relation to the Zhao army soldiers. Their previous cooperation with the Zhao army ghost soldiers was merely the jungle law of the weak submitting to the strong. Now, seeing their own kind join the living and evolve to this extent, they naturally knelt in submission.

Ziwei was delighted. Whether the ghost soldiers were willing to submit or not, at least these two hundred thousand skeleton warriors were now theirs. Although these skeleton warriors weren't strong, with proper cultivation and equipment, their combat effectiveness would be far superior to an army of the living.

Everyone looked at the leading commander. Li Yunfei spoke again, "The bones in this tomb are also highly valued and painstakingly cultivated by me; how much more so for your heroic souls?"

This sentence finally struck a chord in the hearts of the ghost soldiers. The commander sighed, cupped his hands, knelt on one knee, and said in a deep voice, "I... am willing to surrender."

He did not say "we" or "us," but "I." His words indicated his attitude: he only spoke for himself, not for his comrades. After all, when faced with the choice of life or death, one can only decide for oneself. But since this commander had the highest cultivation among the Zhao army, and he had taken the lead, the other ghost soldiers naturally wouldn't seek their own destruction.

So, the ghost soldiers behind him also knelt in rows. Finally, the approximately 240,000 surviving ghost soldiers and commanders were all kneeling in mid-air. Ziwei’s joy could no longer be suppressed and showed on his face.

Li Yunfei smiled at Ziwei. "Comrade Ziwei, you arrange it!"

Ziwei nodded, stepped forward, and smiled. "Return to your camp and wait. Someone will come to reorganize you. Whether living or ghost, we are all comrades-in-arms."

The commander replied, "Yes."

He then rose and ordered a return to camp—their camp was, naturally, on Laobei Slope.

After the ghost army had gone, Yang Lianzhen asked Daoist Yuling curiously in a low voice, "Master, when I watch TV shows, don't they always answer with 'Nuo'? Why did he say 'Wei'?"

Ziwei, He Ming, and others shook their heads and smiled. Daoist Yuling glared at her. "Embarrassing. Go back and look up the *Shuowen Jiezi* yourself."

"Oh!" Yang Lianzhen stuck out her tongue, unbothered.

Ziwei said, "Let’s return to camp as well. We will take the Ten Thousand Soul Banner and the Bone Spirit Banner and reorganize the ghost army as soon as possible. With this successful experience, perhaps other ancient battlefields can be handled the same way."

Li Yunfei said, "Comrade Ziwei, I’m afraid that might not be appropriate. The ghost soldiers in various ancient battlefields come from different eras—some from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, some from the Qin, Han, and Three Kingdoms, others from the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties. Not only are they from different eras, but some are direct enemies. If these assorted ghost armies are put together, won't there be problems?"

Ziwei smiled. "The problem won't be big. We can divide them into military districts and gradually teach them modern knowledge. Once the battle spirits of all these eras are assimilated into modern ghosts, things will be easier."

Li Yunfei, hearing Ziwei’s words, was convinced. "Comrade Ziwei is wise. This is indeed a good method, but to teach these ghost soldiers, doesn't that mean we need to open a school?"

Honghong tilted her head and added, "Wouldn't that be a 'True Ghost Academy'?"

Everyone burst into laughter, echoing and praising Honghong’s humor. Now that Li Yunfei and Honghong were Golden Core stage masters, the way everyone treated them had shifted subtly.

Afterward, Ziwei called everyone to return. Li Yunfei recalled the eighteen super skeleton warriors and followed Ziwei flying south. Yang Lianzhen lagged behind and whispered to Zhou Ming, "Brother, what is the difference between 'Wei' and 'Nuo'?"

Zhou Ming whispered, " 'Wei' is a colloquial response from a subordinate to a superior, short and crisp. The term 'Wei ming shi cong' (obeying orders) comes from this. 'Nuo' is used between peers or by a superior to a subordinate, with a slower pronunciation. The saying 'a promise worth a thousand gold' refers to this situation. Those TV scriptwriters and directors are half-knowledgeable, making things up and misleading the audience. You should read more books on national studies in the future to avoid being laughed at."

Yang Lianzhen cleared up her doubts and finally stopped fretting. "So that’s it. It seems I really need to read more ancient books. Before, when I heard Ziwei and the others talking to those ghost soldiers, my head was full of mush."

"Good that you know."

...

On the Iron Wall, Zhang Ziying, standing on top of a bunker, saw Li Yunfei and his party returning. Seeing that not a single one was missing, she felt reassured. Abao and Xiaobei were not there; she had sent them back to cultivate. She walked to the entrance and called down, "Comrade Luo Feng, Ziwei and the others are back."

The Iron Wall formation was 80 kilometers long, but there were only about 1,300 members of the Sky Group. Thus, they were stationed in bunkers every so often, and this section was guarded only by Luo Feng and a Shangqing disciple. Hearing Zhang Ziying, the two quickly leaped to the top of the bunker. Seeing it was indeed Ziwei’s party, the Shangqing disciple immediately cast a spell, opening a gap in the Iron Wall.

The spiritual barrier separated, and Ziwei’s party flew out. Li Yunfei landed on the bunker, wrapped his arm around Zhang Ziying’s slender waist, and flew down. Upon landing, Zhang Ziying looked Li Yunfei and Honghong up and down, asking with concern, "How are you? Are you both alright?"

She looked at Honghong with a strange gaze. Why did it feel like this girl had grown up a bit after entering the formation? Before, she looked like a ten-year-old, but now she was a bit taller and her facial features had matured slightly, making her look about twelve or thirteen.

Li Yunfei grinned. "I'm fine, just that I suddenly grew a stone in my stomach."

"Ah?" Zhang Ziying looked at Li Yunfei in astonishment, not reacting for a moment. Her dazed look was incredibly cute.

"Hahahaha..." He Ming and the others burst into laughter. Ziwei and Daoist Yuling couldn't help but smile. Hearing the laughter, Zhang Ziying naturally knew Li Yunfei was joking, but she didn't get the punchline.

Ziwei explained, "Yunfei killed the fourteen Ghost Commanders and the Ghost King Zhao Kuo, and has condensed a Golden Core in his stomach, becoming the fourth Golden Core master of the Great Xia."

Zhang Ziying was pleasantly surprised. He killed the Ghost King? She naturally knew what the Golden Core stage meant; it meant Li Yunfei truly stood at the very top of the Great Xia’s cultivation world, alongside Ziwei and the others. Moreover, the higher his cultivation, the faster her own cultivation would grow during their dual cultivation.

Just as Zhang Ziying was overjoyed, Li Yunfei leaned into her ear and teased, "Do you want to ascend to the heavens in one step and break through directly to the Nascent Soul stage? I can help you!"

With the previous joke, Zhang Ziying understood instantly this time. Her pretty face turned bright red, and she punched him in the chest, shyly and angrily, "You're asking for death!"

"Ahem... let's go. Everyone, to the conference room for a post-battle summary." Ziwei cleared his throat and led everyone toward the conference room as if nothing had happened. The others also put on expressions as if they had heard nothing, chatting and laughing as they headed to the meeting room. Li Yunfei grinned, hugging Zhang Ziying with one arm and holding Honghong’s hand with the other, following behind.

...

In the conference room, Zhang Ziying, Honghong, Yan Hexiang, Guo Qilin, and others sat on the periphery near the walls. After the army commanders who had arrived upon receiving the news were all present, Ziwei set the communicator to "always on" and reported the general process of the battle.

He concluded, "Now that the Ghost King and the Ghost Commanders have all been wiped out and the remaining ghost army has surrendered, the problem here at Changping has been completely resolved. With the Battle of Changping settled, pacifying other ancient battlefields will be easy, and the Great Xia will soon recover its peace and stability."

As soon as Ziwei finished speaking, the army commanders beamed with joy, and the conference room erupted in warm applause. At the same time, the roar of cheers came from outside. After several minutes, the cheering finally subsided. Ziwei looked at Li Yunfei and smiled. "One person deserves great credit for solving the Changping problem in one fell swoop."

Ziwei paused, then continued: "Li Yunfei, male, 23 years old, inheritor of the Maoshan Sect's Shangqing lineage, cultivator of the Maoshan orthodox methods, the fourth Golden Core master of the Great Xia..."

Ziwei’s introduction of Li Yunfei was naturally for the 1,300-plus members of the Zixiao Sky Group listening outside. After briefly introducing Li Yunfei’s situation, Ziwei detailed his contributions: contributing the Yellow Wind Gourd to wipe out fourteen Ghost Commanders at once, assisting him and Daoist Yuling in killing the Ghost King Zhao Kuo, and recruiting the ghost army, which had cemented the victory.

Finally, he said, "Comrade Yunfei has reached the Golden Core stage and has made great contributions. I propose appointing Comrade Li Yunfei as the Chen Dragon Elder of the Zixiao Twelve Earthly Branches. What do you all think?"

Li Yunfei’s Chinese zodiac sign was the Dragon, and the position of Chen Dragon Elder happened to be vacant. It was perfect to give the title to him. So far, only the Ox, Horse, and Rooster had been filled; now, there was finally a Dragon.

A Golden Core cultivation combined with the monumental achievement of ending the necromantic crisis was enough to make everyone overlook his age, so naturally, no one objected.

Daoist Yuling was the first to express his support: "I agree. Yunfei is a talent of heaven; at such a young age, he is already a Golden Core master, and his future achievements are immeasurable. Solving the necromantic crisis is a monumental achievement that benefits the present and the future. Appointing him as an Elder is well-deserved."

He Ming immediately said, "Seconded."

Xie Liuyun: "Seconded."

Li Yusheng: "Seconded."

In the end, it was passed unanimously. Ziwei said happily, "Very well. Since no one has any objections, I will inform all departments later. Once feedback from others is received, I will formally issue the appointment documents."

He turned off the communicator and turned to Yan Hexiang. "Hexiang, go get a Ten Thousand Soul Banner and a Bone Spirit Banner."

Yan Hexiang stood up. "Yes."

Ziwei looked at Li Yunfei. "Given Comrade Yunfei’s rich experience in cultivating and commanding skeleton warriors, I have decided that the Bone Spirit Banner will be kept by Comrade Yunfei, and he shall serve as the commander of the skeleton army."

Li Yunfei stood up and said solemnly, "Yes, I will do my utmost to cultivate a skeleton army with formidable combat power for the country."

"Very good, please sit." Ziwei nodded with satisfaction and continued, "As for the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, I will keep it personally. If other ancient battlefields successfully recruit ghost armies, we will make other arrangements. After the meeting, Yunfei will accompany me to Laobei Slope to reorganize the ghost army. Does anyone have anything else to say?"

The conference room was silent for a moment. No one spoke, so Ziwei announced the end of the meeting. Everyone stepped forward to congratulate Li Yunfei on becoming an Elder, and Li Yunfei thanked them modestly, asking for their support. After the pleasantries, the others left. Li Yunfei and Ziwei remained in the room, and once Yan Hexiang brought the two banners, they re-entered the formation together and flew toward Laobei Slope.

The Ten Thousand Soul Banner was a pitch-black flag, the pole made of black iron, about a zhang long and as thick as a child’s arm. The pole was engraved with dense Yin runes, and the flag surface was also pitch-black, with Yin energy rotating and flowing on it, making it look like a deep vortex. The Bone Spirit Banner was the exact opposite, a grayish-white color like bone, also engraved with Yin runes. Except for the color, it was identical to the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, clearly from the same origin.

On the way to Laobei Slope, Ziwei told Li Yunfei the incantations and spells for driving the Bone Spirit Banner, telling him to refine it as his personal magic weapon. To put it bluntly, on the surface, Ziwei was just letting Li Yunfei keep the banner, but in reality, it was no different from giving it to him. As long as Li Yunfei didn't make any principled errors, no one could take away his position as commander of the skeleton army.

In the sky, Ziwei and Li Yunfei flew side by side slowly. Ziwei asked, "These skeleton monsters can't compare to the skeleton warriors you summon. Do you have any way to improve their combat power?"

Li Yunfei thought for a moment. "These skeleton monsters are not my summons. I can't rely on the characteristics of the Innate Dao Physique to improve them in a short time; it has to rely on external conditions. In fact, their cultivation isn't weak; they all have soul power intensity of the Opening Light stage. They are just too fragile and lack good equipment, so their overall combat power isn't as good as ghost soldiers of the same level. If we equip them with divine weapons, they can become a formidable force of tigers and wolves. Our Zixiao Opening Light stage cultivators and Refining Spirit realm warriors only total about 20,000, but if we equip this group of skeleton monsters, that’s 260,000 Refining Spirit realm warriors. Now that I’ve reached the Golden Core stage, the items I can replicate daily have increased significantly. I will spend some time every day helping them replicate weapons and equipment, and one day they will all be fully equipped."

Hearing this, Ziwei was delighted. "By the way, the leather armor on your skeleton warriors is rare martial arts gear. Can you help replicate a batch to equip some of the Zixiao warriors first?"

Li Yunfei nodded. "No problem. About how many sets do you need?"

Ziwei thought for a while. "There are over a hundred True Intent realm warriors and over 600 True Gang realm warriors in the Great Xia. Let’s ignore those below True Gang for now. Replicate 800 sets first. How long will it take?"

Li Yunfei thought. "For 800 sets, without affecting daily affairs, it will take about a month. If I ignore outside matters and focus entirely on replicating, it will take about four to five days. However, to not waste time, I will need a large amount of spirit stones for support."

Ziwei was decisive. "Spirit stones are not a problem. I will allocate one ton to you first. You don't need to replicate non-stop; just spend time every day."

Gang-Qi armor cost 17 grams of spirit stones per set in the system mall. One ton was 1,000,000 grams. How much could that buy? Li Yunfei didn't hesitate. "Okay, then in a month, I will deliver 800 sets of Gang-Qi leather armor to you. Do you need weapons too?"

Ziwei asked, "Except for that broadsword, do you have other weapons? If not, forget it; martial artists have different inheritances and are proficient in different weapons."

Li Yunfei smiled. "Besides broadswords, I have scimitars, single-edged swords, long swords, spears, polearms, claws, and whips. The highest quality are the broadswords and scimitars, which can generate blade energy—one unit of effort yields ten units of power. Then there are the single-edged swords, long swords, spears, and scythes, but these are all highly poisonous and quite sinister. The claws and whips are relatively ordinary, but they are still much stronger than common weapons."

Ziwei asked in surprise, "Where did you get all these messy weapons?"

Li Yunfei said, "From slaying demons and eliminating monsters! The broadswords, scimitars, and leather armor that generate their own energy were obtained by killing a Wild Boar Demon King; they were refined from its own body parts. The swords are made from its tusks, and the armor is its hide. The single-edged swords, long swords, and spears were obtained from killing a Snake Demon; they were refined from its fangs, so they are naturally poisonous. The claws and whips were from a Rat Demon, refined from its claws and tail."

Ziwei realized, "No wonder your cultivation increased so quickly. I never expected you to have slain so many monsters in these two months."

Li Yunfei sighed. "Who would have thought! For these two months, I was holed up in the Shennongjia forest area, almost constantly in a state of slaughter. There are quite a few monsters in the forest—I know of a South China Tiger Demon, a Leopard Demon, a Bear Demon, a Wolf Demon, and a Sika Deer Demon. I challenged them from weakest to strongest, like leveling up in a game, improving little by little. But back then, I was worried about the status of these protected animals and didn't dare to strike. It wasn't until Liu Bin told me the 'National Protected Animal Law' had been abolished that I realized."

Hearing this, Ziwei was both amused and impressed. Because of this, he saw Li Yunfei’s awe and adherence to the law, which made him very happy. Ziwei smiled. "You don't need to regret it; just go slay demons when you have time later. In that case, replicate some of all the weapons you have! Not many, just twenty of each for now. Don't worry about them being sinister; our divine weapons are for dealing with enemies. Any enemy who threatens the Great Xia, we will destroy at all costs, even using the most cruel means."

Li Yunfei’s heart stirred. "If you say that, I actually have a weapon of mass destruction, extremely evil and sinister."

Ziwei asked curiously, "What is it?"

Li Yunfei flipped his hand, and a green poison flying sword appeared in his palm. "I got this from killing a Skeleton King that had become quite powerful. It’s a flying sword. The Skeleton King was highly poisonous and could release green toxic mist; any living thing that touched it would have its flesh melted away in an instant, leaving only a complete skeleton. The Skeleton King could then turn the remains into skeleton monsters for its own use. This flying sword doesn't have the ability to create skeleton monsters, but it can release the green toxic mist and slaughter living things on a large scale."

Even with Ziwei’s experience and boldness, he felt his scalp tingle after hearing Li Yunfei’s description. Fortunately, the Skeleton King had been killed by Li Yunfei; otherwise, if it had entered a human settlement, the consequences would be unimaginable. He asked solemnly, "Have you replicated this flying sword?"

Li Yunfei shook his head. "No, I didn't dare. I was afraid of being labeled a devil and didn't dare to throw it away for fear of polluting the environment and creating a death zone, so I’ve just been carrying it."

Ziwei breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. "You did the right thing. While you don't need to worry about means when dealing with enemies, this flying sword is truly evil and anti-human. Even if you hack an enemy into pieces or grind them to dust, no one can say anything. But the effect of this sword... you are right; once used, you would inevitably be castigated as a devil. Keep the sword safe! Give it to me when you return; it must be sealed and never shown easily unless absolutely necessary."

"Yes." Li Yunfei obediently took out a long wooden box, put the green poison flying sword inside, and returned it to his system inventory. "By the way, Comrade Ziwei, has Zixiao not developed storage magic weapons?"

Ziwei said, "The Xuan Group has been working on storage magic weapons, and there has been progress recently, inspired by the panda’s Innate Yin-Yang Saint Physique. Huanhuan and Lele are coordinating the research at Zixiao headquarters, and I believe we will be able to use storage magic weapons before long."

Li Yunfei nodded and said no more, as they were already approaching Laobei Slope. The two descended, and Li Yunfei summoned the eighteen super skeleton warriors again. He didn't intend to recall them into the Bone Spirit Emblem anymore; they would serve as commanders of the skeleton army, entering the Bone Spirit Banner to lead the skeleton warriors for him.

"Zhao army soldiers, if not now, when?" Li Yunfei, trailing Ziwei by half a step, let out a shout. Billowing black energy rose from the ground on the hillside, and ghost soldiers, commanders, and skeleton monsters emerged from the earth.

The Peak Lingdong ghost commander stepped forward alone, bowed to Ziwei, and said, "Greetings, Lord."

Ziwei reached out to support him and said warmly, "General, no need for formalities. May I ask your name?"

The commander stood up. "I am Zhao Qing."

Ziwei nodded. "I am Qin Chuan, known as Ziwei, the head of the Great Xia military officials, equivalent to the Great General of that era. This is my Deputy General, General Li. Those of you willing to surrender, offer your true spirits."

After speaking, he opened his right hand holding the Ten Thousand Soul Banner. The flag unfolded, Yin energy surged, and Li Yunfei did the same. Zhao Qing sensed the pure and rich Yin energy in the banner, far stronger than the environment here, which was mixed with煞 (Sha), resentment, and malice. He felt relieved. If they wanted to harm them, why go to such trouble to refine such magic weapons for them?

With a thought, a wisp of his true spirit flew from his brow into the Ten Thousand Soul Banner. The ghost soldiers behind him, seeing this, also offered their true spirits. The skeleton warriors were even more straightforward—or rather, they couldn't speak—and the soul fire in their eyes directly split a wisp and surged toward the Bone Spirit Banner. For a time, the sky was filled with tiny, ghostly green spots of light, flowing like a river into the banners.

Once all the true spirits had been collected, Ziwei said with satisfaction, "From now on, you are all the Royal Army of the Great Xia, my brothers and comrades-in-arms. Enter the banner and cultivate in peace; later, your comrades will teach you the knowledge of the present."

Zhao Qing replied, "Yes, thank you, Lord."

Ziwei chanted an incantation, shook the banner, and the 240,000 ghost soldiers vanished in an instant. Li Yunfei did the same,收起了 the 260,000 skeleton warriors and the eighteen super skeleton warriors.

With this, the ancient battlefield of Changping was completely pacified. After Ziwei and Li Yunfei exited the Iron Wall, they immediately announced that the alert for the Changping ancient battlefield was lifted, a victory celebration would be held that night, and tomorrow would be a day of rest. The day after, the army would withdraw to their stations, and the Zixiao Sky Group members would split into two groups to head to the more tense Chibi and Feishui ancient battlefields. As for dismantling the Iron Wall and purifying the polluted air, that would have to be handled another day.

The Chibi ancient battlefield had nearly 200,000 Cao army soldiers who died of illness or in battle. Fortunately, there was no Ghost King there, nor were there skeleton warriors. The strongest force was only seven Ghost Commanders, so there was no Golden Core master stationed there. The other Golden Core master, besides Ziwei and Daoist Yuling, was Zhang Jingtao, the successor of the Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master Dao, who was stationed at the Feishui ancient battlefield.

In the Battle of Feishui, the Eastern Jin dynasty wiped out 250,000 Former Qin troops at the cost of 5,000 casualties; the idiom "the wind blowing and the cranes calling, every tree and bush looking like an enemy" came from this battle. The Former Qin general Fu Rong had become a Ghost King, with nine Ghost Commanders, over 1,600 ghost generals, 250,000 ghost soldiers, and over 170,000 skeleton warriors under his command, making it the second most troublesome ancient battlefield. Fortunately, Fu Rong’s era was far later than Zhao Kuo’s; although both were Ghost Kings, his cultivation was much weaker, so Heavenly Master Zhang could handle him alone.