Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

The Jing Luan Assembly had just begun when a noble son was lost!

Had he not witnessed it with his own eyes, he would have certainly not believed it.

Hanging high in the sky, the Martial Master Lan Gongliang from the Kongyou Realm looked toward the distant Shen Qing who was fleeing into the hills, his face revealing a trace of astonishment.

It was known that in previous years, the heirs of noble families were surrounded by abundant talents and were akin to clouds of experts.

Ordinary lower-tier martial masters couldn't even begin to compare with them.

For a noble son to suffer a loss at the beginning of an event like the Jing Luan Assembly was indeed unprecedented.

After all, reaching the Spirit Void Realm in cultivation was considered exceptional in Great Zhou Country, ranking among the forefront.

It was as difficult as scaling the heavens for a lower-tier martial master to achieve this level without relying on the court's resources.

Let alone, the age of the opponent appeared so young.

Lan Gongliang's eyes flashed, fixating on the direction Shen Qing had departed, seemingly deep in thought.

Within the rolling hills, sensing the sharp gaze on his back, Shen Qing turned around to look, locking eyes with Lan Gongliang, who was suspended in the air at the Kongyou Realm level.

Pfft!

A stabbing pain, akin to that of a needle prick, surged through Shen Qing's mind, causing a momentary dazedness to his spirit.

Had his Divine Sense not been strong, he may well have fallen backwards.

So powerful was the Kongyou Realm.

Shen Qing averted his gaze, suppressing the shock in his heart, and quickly led Shao Hongling and the other two away.

...

In Dan Zhou, within a mansion's scripture hall.

Incense smoke curled up from the burner, weaving through the intricately carved beams and painted rafters.

It mingled with the intermittent chanting coming from deep within the hall.

The chanting was uniform and resounding, spreading far and wide over the mansion.

At that moment, the mansion's door gently opened, and a figure dressed as a sect member hurried in, waiting outside the scripture hall for a short while before being granted permission to enter.

He looked around and saw that the disciples sat on their cushions in meditation, all with closed eyes, deeply engrossed in their practices.

A powerful aura of Belief Energy circulated in the air.

At the very center of the scripture hall, a young man, adorned with a Daoist crown and dressed in dark cyan Daoist robes, sat on an ancient cushion.

In his hands, he gently held a slightly glowing copy of the "Huang Tian Dao Scripture," sometimes closing his eyes in contemplation, at others revealing a transcendent temperament as he opened them. Stay updated with empire

The sect member, clad in coarse linen clothing, took a deep breath, mustered his courage, stepped forward, and spoke softly, "Sect Master Shen."

The young man gave a small nod, gesturing for him to wait, and continued to immerse himself in the world of scripture until the waves in his heart gradually calmed. Then he slowly put down the scripture scroll and said, "Why such urgency to see me? There are numerous affairs in the church daily; unless it's urgent, it can be discussed and resolved with other envoys."

If Shen Qing were to see this young man, he would undoubtedly be astonished.

This person was none other than Shen Xiaohu who, by a twist of fate, had joined the Huang Tian Sect.

After several years of striving, he had quietly risen to become the Church Envoy of the Huang Tian Sect in the Dan Zhou region.

Talented and promising.

Compared to his past naivety and cluelessness.

Several years of experience had clearly made him much more mature and composed.

The Sect Member glanced at the many believers in front of Shen Xiaohu with a hesitant expression.

Shen Xiaohu, upon seeing this, waved a hand.

From his sleeve shot a yellow glow.

That was a talisman inscribed with runes.

With a single hand forming a spell, the yellow talisman spun in midair with a flicker and burst forth with strands of yellow light, enveloping both him and that disciple of the Huang Tian Sect.

The chanting within the hall came to an abrupt halt.

"This is a Silence Talisman I specially concocted," said Shen Xiaohu. "It can completely block sound from inside and out. Whatever is said within it won't be heard outside. You may speak now."

"Yes," replied the Sect Member with crossed hands, performing a greeting unique to the Huang Tian Sect, and continued, "Envoy Master Shen, I've just received an urgent oral message from the Commander. The Ji Family Emperor has ordered the inception of the Jing Luan Assembly, and his enormous army is rapidly advancing towards Dan Zhou, aiming to swiftly conquer this place. The Commander has specifically instructed in the letter that Envoy Master must hold Dan Zhou for at least one month because, according to secret reports, there may soon be a Spirit Mechanism descending here, which is of utmost importance to our Huang Tian Sect."

Shen Xiaohu expressed his surprise, "A Spirit Mechanism is to descend here?"

"The Commander has said so, although he was not certain, just that there was a very high probability. Hence, he only asked for you to hold for a month."

Shen Xiaohu fell into deep thought.

Over the years, the Huang Tian Sect had initially had great success in seizing lands of the Spirit Mechanism, but gradually, the Qintian Bureau and Mountain Sea Department of the Great Zhou Court also set their sights on these lands.

Apart from battling demons, they had to be wary of the people from the Zhou Country Court when they wanted to collect Spirit Essence.

If a Spirit Mechanism were to descend here, the Qintian Bureau and Mountain Sea Department of Great Zhou would certainly not stand idly by.

Thinking this through, the possibility of a Spirit Mechanism land appearing seemed likely, yet the likelihood was probably not very high.

"Did the Commander mention anything else?" Shen Xiaohu asked.

"Yes, yes, yes," said the Huang Tian disciple, pulling out an object resembling a compass.

The compass was studded with yellow flags, with streams of spiritual light continuously flickering from them, becoming dazzling with radiance.

"The Commander has also bestowed upon you a mighty killing array," the disciple continued, "said to be powerful enough to refine tens of thousands of martial masters. Should Envoy Master face Great Zhou's martial masters and find it impossible to resist, this array can be deployed to refine them."

Hearing these words, a hint of pleasure flashed in Shen Xiaohu's eyes.

A killing array had been sent as well.

That was excellent, as it saved him a great deal of trouble.

He gently caressed the scripture scroll in his hand, pondering to himself, "The lands of the Spirit Mechanism are ethereal, something countless martial cultivators dream of. Should one truly appear here, demons would surely arise, and together with the Ji Family Dynasty's Qintian Bureau and the tens of thousands of Jing Luan Assembly martial masters, my forces here would probably be incapable of defense, to say nothing of Xue Zhao waiting ominously at the sidelines."

"But with the killing array, everything changes. Combined with my crafted Flying Charm Martial Mechanism Bombs, it should suffice to defend Dan Zhou for a while."

"First, hold out for a month and then see. If it's not possible, then abandon the city and retreat."

After settling his thoughts, Shen Xiaohu instructed, "Issue an order, on the Commander's command, all Sect Members and the Huang Tian messengers in Dan Zhou are to immediately prepare, strengthen defenses, and concurrently summon the Sect's elite forces to prepare for the enemy and to set up the killing array in Yongzhou City."

"Yes, Envoy Master," replied the disciple.

Having received the order, the servitor of the Huang Tian Sect hurriedly left to carry out Shen Xiaohu's arrangements.

Seeing the disciple leave, Shen Xiaohu beckoned with one hand.

The talisman hovering in midair and radiating splendor immediately began to rotate, drawn back into his hand.

The silence barrier he had established slowly dissipated.

Shen Xiaohu looked at the now slightly dimmed runes with a reluctant sigh, seemingly somewhat distressed.

He stowed the talisman away in his sleeve and once again closed his eyes, silently reciting scripture in his mind.

Within the grand hall, with Shen Xiaohu's continuous recitations, an intangible power of will slowly gathered above the heads of everyone present.