Chapter 40

"Enough!"

Without waiting for Qin Sang's response, the Dongyang Princess shook her head and said coldly, "Do you know? Because of your reckless actions, there is a tumult of public opinion in the court. The Crown Prince, enraged in the county town, issued three secret edicts in one day, vowing to behead Zhou Mingguang and ordering Admiral Mu to personally go to the Xuanji Temple to apologize and return the stolen goods."

The county town referred to the county town of Yingshui County.

After the Prince of Dongyang raised his army, he established a small court in Chun City, personally leading the troops, while the Crown Prince remained in the central command. After capturing Yingshui County, both armies' supplies had to pass through Yingshui County, so the Crown Prince went to the county town to oversee the situation.

However, before the Crown Prince arrived in Yingshui County, the princess had already sorted out all the forces, reaping a significant benefit.

He led his troops to steal treasures from Xuanji Temple just two days ago, and not only did the Crown Prince, far away in Yingshui County, stand up for Xuanji Temple, but the princess also rushed over from Jiangzhou City overnight.

Qin Sang lowered his head in confession, "Princess, the royal edict was forged by me. Admiral and General Zhou were both deceived by me. If anyone should be beheaded, it should be me."

"How much harder is your head than Zhou Mingguang's? If it weren't for the fact that you saved my life, I would have beheaded you right now!"

The Dongyang Princess shouted angrily, "Old Yue has already gone to see the Black Crane Immortal, voluntarily handing over the command of the military hall. Give me a list of your people. What path do you want to take in the future?"

Qin Sang replied without hesitation, "Leading troops in battle is the fastest way to earn merit."

The Dongyang Princess gave Qin Sang a deep look, "Very well. Pack your things immediately and go to the Xuanzhou Xuanwei Camp. I will report to my father, and with your previous merits, being a general is more than enough for you."

Qin Sang's face turned bitter, "Can I go to the Xiaoyong Camp instead?"

The position of general was not low; in the Xuanwei Camp, it was only below the left and right admirals and the left and right deputy generals. However, the current admiral of the Xuanwei Camp was Wang Liu, whom he had just offended in Heping County. Now, he would have to work under him.

Isn't this just delivering myself to him?

"No!"

The Dongyang Princess glared at him fiercely, leaving no room for negotiation.

"Zhou Mingguang, follow me up the mountain to apologize to the abbot."

Qin Sang hurriedly followed, "The mess was caused by me, so I should be the one to apologize. How can I let the princess, a noble lady, bow to those bald monks! General Zhou, Brother Bai, quickly gather a group of soldiers and bring this silver..."

Before he could finish, the Dongyang Princess interrupted, "What silver? The Buddhist temple is austere, and the monks of Xuanji Temple are all virtuous and high-ranking. How could they be greedy for wealth and engage in such despicable acts? Do not defame them!"

Qin Sang chuckled.

The Dongyang Princess, with a thin layer of anger on her face, swept her sleeve and left. Seemingly remembering something, she hesitated for a moment and then turned to ask, "What did you use to forge my father's seal?"

"Rutabaga."

...

Qin Sang didn't know how the princess calmed the monks of Xuanji Temple. That day, he and the Water Monkeys set off for Xuanzhou, each on a horse.

After Qin Sang became a general, his Eighth Camp, which originally handled cleanup and battlefield sweeping, was reassigned by Wang Liu, who petitioned the admiral, citing Qin Sang's deep penetration into enemy territory and leadership of the military hall, to make Qin Sang the head of the Night Watch as a full camp general.

Little did they know, this move aligned perfectly with Qin Sang's intentions. Since then, Qin Sang led his troops outside and rarely interacted with Wang Liu. With the mediation of General Feng, the left deputy general, Wang Liu, being only the right admiral, had to endure his dislike for Qin Sang.

The battle at Duling County completely broke the backbone of the Pingshan County government troops. Xuanzhou and Beipingzhou almost didn't put up any resistance and retreated all the way.

Within half a year, the Xuanwei Camp and the Xiaoyong Camp completely captured Pingshan County, even faster than the Prince of Dongyang.

After capturing Zhaoyang County, the Prince of Dongyang did not rush to seek the three counties around the capital but turned west to Xitai County. However, Qin Sang and his men had to tackle the hardest bone to chew—the three counties around the capital.

No one expected that the Prince of Dongyang, after raising his army for only two years, would achieve such a glorious victory. The false emperor could only retreat to the capital, Jiuzhou, and Guize counties. Any discerning person could see where the future trend was heading.

...

Another early spring arrived.

The harshness of winter had not yet dissipated, and the spring rain failed to bring vitality to the land.

Qin Sang tightened his rain cape and trudged through the mountain forest, one step at a time.

Unconsciously, he had been in this world for three and a half years. By Qin Sanwa's age, he was now nineteen.

The rain grew heavier, and Qin Sang found a place to take shelter. Looking at the misty mountains through the rain, his thoughts wandered.

Over the past year, he had focused entirely on cultivation and refining his abilities, handling military affairs only superficially. He had been a general for a year without any change.

He slowly and gradually tried to repair the holes in the Yama Banner, restoring the Yama's strength to its peak, but the Yama still obeyed his commands.

This made Qin Sang realize that the Jade Buddha he brought with him seemed to have unimaginable and unfathomable power.

But no matter how he probed with his spiritual energy or divine sense, the Jade Buddha remained unmoved.

The same was true for the Ebony Sword, the sheepskin, and the seven-colored brocade pouch. Qin Sang could do nothing with them.

Speaking of divine sense, after some exploration, Qin Sang became proficient in using it. By releasing his divine sense, he could clearly sense anything within a few inches without needing to see or hear it, which amazed him.

Although the range was only a few inches, it was an improvement from before, when it was even shorter before he broke through the third level of the "Yinming Scripture."

Qin Sang speculated that as his cultivation and realm improved, the range of his divine sense would grow larger, and eventually, nothing around him would escape his notice.

He would have to wait until he broke through the fourth level of the "Yinming Scripture" to verify this.

His cultivation was almost at the peak of the third level, but Qin Sang was afraid of encountering a bottleneck during the breakthrough, as he had before. The feeling of being stuck and having no clue was maddening and could delay him for a long time.

He was eager to break through, not just to gain a stronger divine sense but also for the sake of the Purple Soul Bell.

Now, Qin Sang could control the Purple Soul Bell with ease, and its power was indeed terrifying. He had tested it a few times, and the targets had no resistance, inevitably meeting a fate of soul disintegration.

However, each time he used the Purple Soul Bell, his spiritual energy was almost depleted, and he had to recover it before using it again.

Qin Sang didn't know if other cultivators had methods to quickly recover spiritual energy. He could only slowly recover it by cultivating, which was very slow. If the opponent was strong and the situation complex, he wouldn't have the luxury of doing so.

Additionally, the Purple Soul Bell could only focus on one enemy at a time. If he tried to target two people simultaneously, he would suffer excruciating headaches and couldn't persist.

This made him eager to break through to a higher realm.

It looked like the rain would continue for a long time. Just as Qin Sang was about to meditate, he suddenly saw the treetops at the foot of the mountain moving, and a figure was dashing through the forest. It was Water Monkey, and he seemed to have urgent news.